About two years ago I established a morning routine that includes 20 minutes of meditation. Although I had meditated on and off for about five years, it has now become an important and joyful part of my life.

I sense that many of you already meditate or have tried it (or thought about trying it). After all, meditation and mindfulness have been well researched and much has been reported about the benefits.

As Jon Kabat Zinn, founder of the renowned Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, explains mindfulness is  “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.” [Read more…]

This past year, I’ve had the honor and privilege of serving as president for Apra, the professional association to which I belong. It was an extraordinary experience. It was also hard! It involved diplomacy, a lot of listening, understanding different perspectives, having difficult conversations, getting people to consensus and the occasional “herding of cats.”

But here’s the thing: If being president of Apra were easy, I wouldn’t have learned or grown as much as I did. Brene Brown sums it up well: “One of the most important findings of my career is that daring leadership is a collection of skills and practices that are 100 percent teachable. It’s learning and unlearning that requires brave work, tough conversations, and showing up with your whole heart. Easy? No. Because choosing courage over comfort is not always our default. Worth it? Always.” [Read more…]

How many of you wake up to a freshly filled Inbox and a daily agenda filled with a range of difficult conversations and challenging work? Tempting to dive right in, right? But, if you’re like me, that trap can ruin a morning and, honestly, not give the work the attention and venue it deserves.

Well, my coach gave me some great advice about a year ago about a better way to start the day and it has made all the difference. But here’s the trick: it takes some serious discipline until a habit is formed. After that? It’s no more difficult than your 5 am sleepwalk to the coffee machine. [Read more…]