Lessons from Sunny and Gizmo: Embracing growth and support
I have become captivated by Sunny and Gizmo, the two bald eagle chicks lovingly nurtured by their...
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by maripat | Jun 5, 2025 | Coaching, Leadership, Personal Development | 0
I have become captivated by Sunny and Gizmo, the two bald eagle chicks lovingly nurtured by their...
Read Moreby maripat | May 19, 2025 | Communication, Personal Development, Presentation Skills | 0
My “S.O.P.” (standard operating procedure) has three parts: 1) A minute to visualize...
Read Moreby maripat | Nov 24, 2024 | Communication, Personal Development | 0
I am thankful for this time of year because it never fails to give me the nudge to reach out to others near and far to say hello, extend gratitude, or simply let them know they are loved. There are of course millions of ways to...
Read Moreby maripat | Aug 9, 2024 | Communication, Engagement, Personal Development | 0
We all love to hear the sound of our name. It’s human nature to be drawn to things that are...
Read Moreby maripat | Sep 20, 2023 | Communication, Digital Communication, Interpersonal Skills, Listening, Personal Development | 0
My mother raised me to be a curious, inquisitive person. I am much more comfortable finding out about another person than talking about myself – having said that, I’ve gotten rusty.
I had the opportunity to put my post pandemic introversion to the test on my recent vacation. I went on safari in Botswana with my sister. It’s one of those trips in which you are immersed in another culture and surrounded my locals and fellow international travelers – strangers.
While I have spent a lifetime talking to strangers it can be awkward and uncomfortable – and with ever-present digital channels and the isolation we experienced during the pandemic, that interpersonal communication muscle has gotten weaker. And you know the saying, “if you don’t use it, you lose it.”
Read Moreby maripat | May 23, 2023 | Career Development, Coaching, Communication, Employee Engagement, Influence, Leadership, Personal Development | 0
I met Martin in the test kitchen at #fgf and the first thing he said to me with a laugh was: “I...
Read Moreby maripat | Apr 6, 2023 | Communication, Leadership, Personal Development | 0
In the new documentary series “Pretty Baby” actress and model Brooke Shields described her quest...
Read Moreby maripat | Apr 13, 2022 | Communication, Interpersonal Skills, Listening, Personal Development, Persuasion | 0
I like to think of myself as an empathetic person and someone who has a fair amount of emotional...
Read Moreby maripat | Apr 10, 2021 | Communication, Employee Engagement, Leadership, Personal Development | 0
When someone attains a leadership position – whether in politics or business – we assume they’ve worked hard to achieve that role and are likely being compensated well. Should we expect them to like the job and us? I say yes.
In his new book An Effort to Understand David Murray’s essay “We deserve leaders who act like they like us” caught my attention. We’ve all had the experience of working with or for individuals who look like, sound like and feel like they’d rather be doing almost anything else than leading. It can show up in any number of ways:
Read Moreby Varg_Admin | Sep 8, 2020 | Communication, Employee Engagement, Influence, Interpersonal Skills, Leadership, organizational culture, Personal Development, Teamwork | 0
Lamenting this past weekend, I took liberties with Aaron Burr’s line in Hamilton and thought, “I...
Read Moreby Varg_Admin | Jul 16, 2020 | Communication, Interpersonal Skills, Leadership, Personal Development | 0
Be in the Conversation about Racism – even if it is uncomfortable. I’ve always thought that the problems of the world could be solved if we would just be willing to enter into deep, meaningful conversations about them. The wise Fred Rogers once said, “Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable, is manageable.” We are living through times none of us could have imagined. From the pandemic to racial justice protests to political turmoil – these have left many of us tongue-tied and unsure of how to articulate all that we are thinking and feeling. All of this is compounded by the fact that we are more isolated than ever before and yet communication – conversation – has never been more essential.
Read Moreby Varg_Admin | Apr 7, 2020 | Coaching, Communication, Influence, Leadership, Personal Development, Persuasion, Presentation Skills | 0
On a call this week with a not-for-profit organization I work with we discussed everything from...
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