A collection of things I love. In the past weeks - no, even months! - frequently I start discussions about trivial or business-related topics with people, then surreptitiously slide into personal, even spiritual topics. There's something in me, that, when asked "So, how are you doing?" keeps wanting to answer 100% honest, brutally even: "Well, you ...
Trust the process
I'm fascinated by my personal growth process. I've gone through ups and downs, had months in which I felt tremendously strong and stable, and days and weeks when I felt like I don't know who I am anymore. It's easy to give up and say "This is who I am. I'm probably never going to change." The hard ...
Are we all asleep?
This is a post responding to Alis' thought-provoking post from last week, in which she challenged people who are "asleep" in their own lives, living mechanically, like Neo from the Matrix before taking the red pill. She said people who live consciously, breaking away from the nice warm beds of mundane lives, those are awake. That ...
Does happiness really come from doing what you love?
As a corporate worker, I'm one of the lucky ones who get to do something they really enjoy, and something I've wanted to do for many years. Some might even say "living the dream". However when I draw the line at the end of the day, the answer isn't always "happy". As a human being, I'm ...
What you hate is what inspires change
I'm going through some confusing, yet change-prone times. It seems to come around every few years, a restlessness and need to re-define my life. Normally it includes hating what I've worked hard to earn, and a feeling that unless I do some big change around here, I'm not - ever! - going to be really ...
Taking the time to read
In a different life, my dream job is to be a librarian. I spent many autumn and winter afternoons in the Bucharest British Council library, near a roof window facing trees and grey skies. While working 3 months in Chicago, one of my favorite places was the Library - the large one with 7 floors, in the ...
What are you learning new about yourself?
I haven't been posting for more than a month, which, in blogger terms, is unexcusable. I haven't posted not because of lack of ideas, but of lack of ability to get myself together and do something constructive. Instead, I kept having long conversations with myself, especially at night during my insomnia hours. It seems that lack of sleep ...
The Gratitude List
Dan Pink, in the book "A Whole New Mind", suggests having a "Gratitude List" on your birthday, with x things you are grateful for, if you turn x years old. The principle being that once you grow older, you learn to appreciate the things around you more, and you get more to thank for. I guess ...
1 year of Life Toolkit! Best posts & Coaching challenge
So one year of blogging passed away, quite fast. What happened during this time? Looking back... - I started blogging like crazy, read all I could on SEO and social network promoting, then decided I should just let my readers unfold as they come. And that's how I got to this steady, smallish base of you ...
Leadership – moving from chaos to trust
I know, ashes on my head, I haven't written in a while. But it was for good reasons - I've been on an management training. Perfect weather, chilly, windy and rainy; great people, who didn't speak much to each other for the first two days, after which they/we danced frantically in a pub until ...
Finding inspiration
We mostly stride through the day in large steps, looking straight, rarely to the side. We don't much stop to smell the flowers, or look - consciously - for inspiration. I found that inspiration easily comes when I create the setting for it. Sometimes the elements of my day converge to form a certain state - ...
Transition to a new job Phase 3 – getting up to speed
Did you read "The first 90 days"? It's the best book ever written about the transition process of a newly appointed person, whether it's a new leadership role, a new job, or a new team. The principle there is that you have 90 days to prove. They should have entitled it "The first 30 days". I've ...
Transitions – internalizing learning
The second week of my transition to a new job has passed, and I find myself with an obvious conclusion. I'm treading on thin ice. Constantly aware of what I say and do, exposing my views ("you don't want to seem unopinionated", my angel on the right shoulder, or Self 1, advises) but careful not to let ...
The first steps of a transition
Since ages, I've loved transitions. The first days of falling in love; the changes of seasons; moving to a new place to live (ok, without the packing and unpacking); going back to school in autumn; and changing the job. Transitions spice up life. Without them, we would be caught in a neverending slumber. The only thing ...
Being a Professional Muse
Yesterday I was talking to a dear client, and she shared with me an experience that made me think about the people we surround ourselves with. But let me share the experience first. Episode 1. Enter "The Expert". We all meet experts in our lives - most of them are quite arrogant people, who consider their ...
