Today is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life!
Each morning, when I open my eyes and welcome a new day, I see it is an opportunity!
An opportunity to make it the best day that it can be.
This opportunity means that I try to live each day as if it were my last!
One day it will be -- but until then -- I'll be sharing with you a variety of things that I've learned,
discovered, and even laughed at along the way. Enjoy my journey with me as we live it One Day at a Time!
How Smokey Bear’s Timeless Marketing Campaign Can Inspire Today’s Marketers
When I first saw Smokey Bear at the Washington National Zoo back in 1960, he was already ten years old and well-known to kids everywhere as the symbol of the U.S. Forest Service’s Fire Prevention campaign. The story of his life along with the evolution of the “Prevent … Read more
Creativity and Passion – When You Lose It
If you have a business, you may have started it for many different reasons. To stay home with the kids. To get away from the 9 to 5 routine. Where you could make lots of money with little investment. But that’s not most of us — particularly those … Read more
Make a Difference – The Choice is Yours
Make this world a better place. Make your industry a better place. Make your home a better place. A tall order? Impossible? Not at all. You can do it—starting with you. Many years ago, when I was living in Yreka, California, I saw problems in the town — … Read more
Used Coffee Grounds Have Value
Are you dumping your used coffee grounds into the trash or down the sink? Don’t! There are better uses for them that you have probably never thought of or known about. 1. How about using coffee grounds as to feed your plants? Coffee is highly acidic and makes … Read more
The Difference Between Talents and Gifts
When I was in elementary school (many, many years ago), I was assigned to a choir for a school play. When the teacher told me to just mouth the words, I discovered that singing was not my gift. That was confirmed once again in the ninth grade when … Read more
The Benefits of Mistakes
Mistakes aren’t always bad. They can actually be very good sometimes. And they can even prove to be very profitable. A well-known example is the accidental discovery of pencillian. Two other, but lesser known, examples are “Post-It Notes” and “Chocolate Chip Cookies.” Post-It Notes, sometimes called sticky notes … Read more
What Might Have Been?
Some people fold after making one timid request. They quit too soon. Keep asking until you find the answers. In sales there are usually four or five “no’s” before you get a “yes.” Jack Canfield There are a number of reasons why a business folds and closes its … Read more
A Life Lesson Learned from the Game of Monopoly
Ken Blanchard, author of “The One Minute Manager” and other business books, told the story about the little boy who really wanted to beat his grandmother at Monopoly. He studied. He practiced. He learned. Until one day, he beat her at the game and told her, “Finally! I … Read more
Two Secrets of Success: From A Very Special Lady
Way back in 1961 or ’62, I met a very special lady who taught me two secrets of success that I still remember today. My husband and I had been married for about a year. Ron had just got out of the Navy and we had returned to … Read more
Today is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life
“I hope in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you’re making mistakes, you’re trying new things, pushing yourself, changing yourself and your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before.” Neil Gaiman I love each new year when it arrives. I consider it to be a … Read more
Charles Schultz and Charlie Brown
I’ve enjoyed creative writing ever since my freshman year in college when the professor was a published fiction writer in Saturday Evening Post magazine. He required us to submit one ceative piece each week and I was hooked. As a result, years later I discoverd the Santa Barbara … Read more
Memories of Summer Home Farm
History is important and it is incredibly sad to see it disappear only to be seen in old photos and memories. Last year, Big Basin State Park, filled with ancient redwoods and historic buildings, became a victim of the ongoing fires in Santa Cruz County, California. Most of … Read more
Nuggets of Wisdom for Both Life and Business
I grew up in the South where nuggets of wisdom were a fact of life. Here are some ones for life as well as business. They may be tongue in cheek but each and every one of them is oh so true! Don’t name a pig you plan … Read more