This morning, I had a very concerning communication breakdown, not with a human, but with artificial intelligence, or more famously known as AI. I’m going to admit, I have what I would call a great relationship with AI, in fact in our household we call it Chad and my husband is comfortable with me having this extra-marital relationship with Chad. Often times he asks me, “Who are you talking to? Chad?” Anyway, Chad and I had been working on a fun graphic together when I sent a

Recently, I had the privilege of working with ten leaders who voluntarily chose to participate in a 360-degree leadership assessment process. If you've never experienced a true 360 assessment, let me tell you, it is not for the faint of heart. Participants invite direct reports, peers, supervisors, and their manager to provide feedback on more than 130 leadership behaviors and competencies, including communication, strategic thinking, self-awareness, collaboration, change man

Years ago, I had a personal trainer named DeeDee Hillman. A key piece of the story is, DeeDee and I didn't just see one another in the gym - DeeDee and I actually worked in the same office together at Ohio University. So not only was she my trainer…she also had unexpected access to my daily decision-making. Which, unfortunately for me, included cake. One afternoon, our office was celebrating the monthly birthdays, and there I was happily enjoying my frosting covered piece

There’s a moment that happens during almost every values conversation. It doesn’t always happen right away. I usually first experience curiosity and people lean in. They want to hear what’s being proposed. But eventually someone asks the question that’s sitting quietly in the room. Sometimes they ask it out loud, sometimes they say it with their behavior, or sometimes they just say it with a look. The question is simple: Will these values even make a difference? Beca

If you’ve never spent time with parks and recreation professionals from New Jersey, let me tell you, they are warm, sharp, deeply committed to their communities, and very, very fun. I was able to experience all of this during a recent trip to the New Jersey Recreation and Parks Association state conference to serve as their keynote speaker. Also, I think it’s important to note, I met three Dinas, a Lenny, and a Ronnie before lunch… which felt like peak Jersey in the best

I was walking through the office of one of my favorite teams recently - the kind of team you just feel good being around. You know the energy. Light. Easy. Alive. And then I saw it. On one of the desks, someone had stacked another coworker’s supplies into a tiny, ridiculous tower. Kleenex box. Keys. Mouse. Carefully balanced like those rock stacks people make on hiking trails. Naturally, I took a picture (see below). Not because it was “fun.” Not because it was playful. But

On New Year’s Eve Day, I did what every party-loving human dreams of doing…I knocked out some of my annual doctor’s appointments. Three appointments. Three new doctors. And by the end of the day, I found myself asking a question I wasn’t quite prepared for: When did all my doctors get so young? Because just yesterday, my doctors were always older than me. Calm voices. Confident presence. That steady, “I’ve got you” energy. And now? They’re not only younger than me

Let’s talk about being tired. Not the I stayed up too late watching ridiculously funny puppy reels. I mean the kind of tired that lives somewhere between your shoulder blades and your soul. The kind where you’re running on caffeine, adrenaline, muscle memory, and the faint hope that tomorrow’s calendar will magically clear itself. Leadership tired hits different. Because when you’re tired, you don’t get to just… stop. You still have humans. You still have decisions. You