The shorter way to do many things is to only do one thing at a time. ~ Mozart
Knife in the right. Fruit in the left. Both hands occupied, me attempting to sit on the kitchen bar stool while adjusting its height was a sure recipe for disaster. And so, it did. Multi-tasking doesn’t work in all situations.
Down I went; fruit, knife, bar stool and me! Wham! I felt that sharp pain as the one-legged bar stool knocked sharply into my right rib! My oldest and her hubby ran to the rescue! But the damage was already done. It’s as though the wind was knocked out of me. I lay on the ground writhing in pain beyond 10-minutes.
When I finally accepted help to get up, I felt like I wanted to simply lay flat. I staggered in hasty retreat to bed. But could hardly get in. The pain was too much to bear and I could hardly breathe. Why does it hurt so bad, I pondered?
The night ended with the Emergency Room Physician telling me post X-Ray that I had bruised by rib, and the healing and pain would ease in three weeks! Internet searches recounted with 4-6 weeks recovery. Others who have gone through it, said the pain lingers beyond that.
Left in daily excruciating pain marked by sleepless nights, that’s the tale of my multi-tasking mishap. Work, sleep, appointments all interrupted but it could have been worse.
Balance and foresight is important. Multitasking has its limits that leaders should be mindful of. Brown University’s Dr. Jennifer Davis, among others, share hidden costs:
More mistakes: Dividing your attention can increase your error rate by up to 50%.
Mental exhaustion: Switching tasks drains your brain’s energy and leaves behind mental blocks.
Higher stress: Juggling demands raises your heart rate, blood pressure, and anxiety levels.
Blocked creativity: Constantly shifting focus robs the working memory needed for deep, creative thought.
So self-leaders take heed. Manage multi-tasking. The urge to get things done all at once can lead to sad consequences, like mine.
What are your tales and views on multi-tasking? Do share, we would love to hear.
The greatest investment in a leader is not simply preparing them for where they are but equipping them for the decisions, they have yet to face. ~Dr. Shelly
When I look at this collage, I see more than individuals holding copies of The GreenLight Factor. I see an investment.
The books pictured were donated by sponsors who believe in the importance of developing emerging leaders. That distinction matters because the books were not simply gifts or keepsakes from an event. They were placed into the hands of leaders as resources for the journey ahead.
And leadership is certainly a journey.
Leadership Comes With Intersections
We often celebrate people when they receive a promotion, accept a new position, earn recognition or step into leadership. What we don’t always see are the decisions that come afterward.
Should I accept this opportunity?
Is this still the right environment for me?
Do I speak up or remain silent?
Should I continue on this path?
Is my hesitation fear or is it telling me something I need to examine?
Am I ready?
These are the intersections that inspired The GreenLight Factor.
The framework uses something familiar, the traffic light, to encourage a more intentional approach to decisions:
🔴 RedLight: STOP. Something requires attention. Continuing simply because we have already started isn’t always the best decision.
🟡 YellowLight: ASSESS. Not knowing doesn’t mean failure. Sometimes wisdom requires slowing down long enough to gather information, reflect, ask questions and gain clarity.
🟢 GreenLight: GO. There are also times when preparation, opportunity and alignment come together. At that point, continuing to analyze can become its own obstacle. It may simply be time to move.
Developing Leaders Before the Crisis
Organizations often invest in leadership development when something has already gone wrong.
A manager is struggling.
An employee is considering leaving.
A promising leader has become overwhelmed.
A team isn’t functioning effectively.
A professional has reached a crossroads and doesn’t know what to do next.
But what if we gave people tools for reflection and decision-making before they reached the crisis? That’s one reason this particular sponsorship meant so much to me.
Someone recognized that investing in emerging leaders isn’t only about celebrating what they have already accomplished. It is also about helping prepare them for what comes next.
A Book Can Start a Conversation
No book can make someone’s decisions for them, and it shouldn’t. What a good leadership resource can do is provide language, questions and a framework that helps someone think differently. That is what I hope The GreenLight Factor does.
A reader may recognize that they have been sitting at a RedLight but refusing to stop. Another may realize that they aren’t stuck, they are simply in a YellowLight season that requires additional assessment.
Someone else may discover that they have already done the preparation, asked the questions and gathered the information. Their challenge isn’t clarity anymore. It’s having the courage to GO.
From Reading to Application
This is also where leadership development and coaching can go deeper.
Coaching can help someone determine what to do about the decision directly in front of them.
That’s why I see opportunities for The GreenLight Factor beyond individual readership.
Organizations, associations, educational institutions and community partners can use books as part of leadership development programs, emerging-leader initiatives, new-manager development, facilitated discussions or sponsored book distributions.
The photograph accompanying this article is one example of what that can look like.
What Are We Putting Into the Hands of Emerging Leaders?
We talk frequently about developing the next generation of leaders. Perhaps another question deserves our attention:
What are we actually placing in their hands and in their minds to prepare them for the decisions leadership will require?
My hope is that long after the photograph was taken, there will come a moment when one of them faces an important intersection, remembers the framework and asks:
Do I need to Stop?
Do I need to Assess?
Or is this finally my GreenLight to Go?
That is when the gift of a book becomes something more. It becomes an investment in a leader’s next decision.
The GreenLight Factor is available for individual purchase and can also be incorporated into sponsored book initiatives, leadership-development programs, facilitated conversations and coaching engagements.
If you’ve already read The GreenLight Factor, I invite you to leave an amazon review and share the idea, question or chapter that spoke most strongly to you.
Don’t wait for opportunities. Create them. ~ Bruce Lee
Recently, I received a message from WordPress that stopped me in my tracks: 100,000 all-time blog views. As grateful as I am for the milestone, I quickly realized that this isn’t really my story, it’s ours.
Every view represents someone who paused for a few moments to read an article. Someone looking for encouragement during a season of change. Someone seeking clarity, inspiration, a fresh perspective, or simply a quiet moment to reflect. Whether you’ve been reading for years or have only recently discovered this blog, thank you for allowing me to be part of your journey.
To celebrate this milestone, I wanted to do something a little different. Over the next four weeks, I’ll be opening the archives and sharing collections of some of the most-read articles from this blog. Rather than organizing them by date, I’ve grouped them by the themes that have shaped my writing over the years:
Reflections for the Journey
Leadership
Writer’s Corner
Life’s Serenity
Each collection represents a different part of my journey as a leadership coach, author, researcher, and lifelong learner. Some articles may make you pause and think. Others may inspire your next step, spark your creativity, or simply remind you to slow down and enjoy the journey.
Whether you’re revisiting an old favorite or discovering these articles for the first time, I hope you’ll find something that speaks to where you are today. Thank you for reading, sharing, and growing alongside me. Here’s to the next chapter.
Below are ten reader favorites that invite us to pause, reflect, and reconnect with what matters most. I hope one, or perhaps several, will encourage you this week.
Reflections for the Journey: 10 Reader Favorites
Below are ten reader favorites that invite us to pause, reflect, and reconnect with what matters most. I hope one—or perhaps several—will encourage you this week.
Judge people [Not] by their peak of excellence; but by the distance they have traveled from the point where they started. ~Henry Ward Beecher
Do any of these thoughts sound familiar?
I’m overwhelmed
I’m not sure of what’s next
I just became a new manager
I’m thinking of starting a business
I need to make an important decision
I’m burned out
I’m trying to be a strong Leader
If any of these resonate, know that you don’t have to figure it out on your own. Make the decision to gain Clarity and build your confidence. Connect with an accountability partner or coach now.
Any you would like to add? Do share. We would love to hear.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
Quiet Fear of Success
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. ~Marianne Williamson
Believe it or not, I spent years researching leadership and success, exploring what truly drives high-achieving leaders forward. What I did not expect to find so often in practice was not just a fear of failure:
but a quiet, often unspoken fear of success.
Not because leaders don’t want to succeed, but because they understand, consciously or not, that success changes things.
It raises expectations.
It increases visibility.
It shifts relationships.
It demands a new level of responsibility.
And sometimes, it requires becoming someone you have never been before.
I’ve worked with high-potential leaders who hesitate at the exact moment they are ready to move forward. Not due to lack of capability, but because of what that next level will require of them.
This often shows up as:
Overthinking instead of deciding
Staying “busy” instead of moving forward
Delaying opportunities that are clearly aligned
Downplaying readiness
At its core, it’s not about ability. It’s about identity. And sometimes, the quiet question underneath it all is:
“Am I ready for the version of me this will require?”
This is where intentional leadership matters. Because growth isn’t just about skill, it’s about alignment.
In the GreenLight Framework, this is your Yellow Light moment: Pause. Reflect. Assess. Not to retreat, but to move forward with clarity and conviction.
Leadership Reflection: What opportunity have you been hesitating on, not because you are unprepared, but because stepping into it will change you?
That might not be your red light. It might be your green light, waiting on your decision.
All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking. ~ Friedrich Nietzsche
Get up and move. That’s me. Finally selected a ‘walking’ friend in another state. I’d have her as an accountability partner for my need-to-move decision. To exercise. To stay healthy. To think. To write. My goal was simple. Walk at minimum twice weekly as a start (secretly hoping for more). But two times per week was manageable. After-all, the week has 7 days. I drive out of town a lot so twice should be achievable.
And We’re Off!
Walked 30 minutes! Yea! I did it. Before our midweek check-in, my friend sent me a video on the 2nd day. I screamed by text. “Don’t rush me or don’t bother with the accountability.”
Then I looked at the video. It was doing sit ups. Rolled my eyes since of late I have been experiencing a bit of back pain. There’s no way I can go that low much less to do the sit up.
Then I did it. Oh so satisfying! Yippee!
Next Steps
I snuck away. The weather wasn’t great. Cold. Windy. But I walked. Went a slightly longer route to get to the regular route. Why? Because there was a lady slowly running ahead of me. Not wanting to bump into her space (or more-so she into mine), I walked around. She ran ahead, then disappeared. Nowhere in sight.
I walked along. It worked to my benefit because I added another 10 minutes to my stretch. Horrible back pains but I did it slowly, but surely. Stopping to stretch along the way.
Got home. Did what I love. Wrote about my steps in this medium. Hmm, what if this is an inspiration to write, to put it in a journal of sorts?
Climbed the stairs. Then looked at the wide-open space between rooms and laid on the floor. Guess what I did? 30 sit-ups in blocks of 5 and 10. I’m so very proud of me!!!
I think I can do this! Again. I’ll keep going. One would never believe I was a track and field athlete (smirk).
So that’s how you do all things uncomfortable. No matter what it is. Career, education, financial, relationship, homeownership. Whatever your goal, you accomplish it one step at a time. One day at a time. Bigger goals become accomplished.
Breakthrough: Priced affordably and marketed directly to YA readers online.
Result: Over 1 million copies sold; multi‑million‑dollar deal with St. Martin’s Press.
Lesson:Use smart pricing and targeted marketing to quickly grow sales.
Takeaway for Aspiring Authors
Self‑publishing is no longer “Plan B.” It’s a proven path to bestseller lists, film deals, and global readership—if you combine quality writing with smart marketing.
At a gathering, family and friends were asked to reflect. Sonia asked each to share one thing they were thankful for. Marriage, graduation, opportunities, sports achievement, divine protection, new car, life and the aged still living were among the thoughts shared.
But one thing stood out. As Stephan ended giving thanks collectively in prayer, shouts rang out at her thoughts that hit home. Many rushed with hugs and adoration, but one stood out. George turned to her mom and pointed at her. Without saying a word, his action said it all. Mom had passed the baton to Stephan and stood watching as the group embraced. Indeed mom felt pride that her labor was not in vain.
Before the New Year Begins
As the year comes to a close, leaders are already thinking about goals, plans, and next moves. But before we rush into the next chapter planning our dreams and aspirations, there’s value in pausing to reflect.
Personal growth doesn’t always show up as promotions, metrics, or public wins. Often, the most meaningful growth happens quietly.
This year, growth may have looked like:
Choosing courage when fear was familiar.
It may have meant staying committed when quitting felt easier.
Or letting goof roles, relationships, or expectations that no longer aligned with who you’re becoming.
Understand that Leadership begins within. Before we lead teams, organizations, families or communities forward, we must first acknowledge our own evolution.
As you prepare for the new year, consider these questions:
Who have I grown into this year?
What did this season teach me about myself?
What alignment (not perfection) do I want to carry forward?
Clarity comes after commitment
You don’t need every answer before January 1st. Clarity often comes after commitment.
As the calendar turns, may the next year be marked by your:
Intentional leadership
Purposeful growth
The courage to move forward aligned with who you truly are.
Reflection:
What is one lesson this year taught you about your leadership or personal growth? Think about it. Acknowledge it and Do share. We would love to hear.
I am struggling to get inspiration to continue writing a story I started. What do I do? ~New writer
Writers often face that daunting moment when the initial excitement fades and the blank page becomes a fighting nightmare. You may be many chapters in, or just past the opening scene, losing momentum is one of the most common challenges in the creative process. But the good news is that writer’s block and motivational slumps are not permanent. They are signals that you need to shift your approach. Reconnect with your story’s core or simply give yourself permission to write imperfectly.
Here are 23 strategies offered by seasoned authors. These are designed to help you rediscover your pulse and move ahead with renewed energy. Yep, sometimes inspiration can feel frustrating and out of reach. That’s when you dig deep. Adopt a strategy or two to use whenever the writing drought hits.
How To Get Back in the Writing Game
Read books
Keep writing
Go for an isolated nature walk
Relax. The story will write itself if you stop worrying about it
Keep a journal for each project. Write why you can’t think of anything to write
Free write your story until you get a flow going
Follow the advice of keep writing. But be prepared to write stuff you don’t feel okay with. This is how you break the barrier
Write for the sake of writing.
Draw inspiration: music and movies. Inspiration is fuel. Don’t wait for it to fall in your lap
Move. Exercise. It Stimulates your brain
Try dancing
Write one true sentence about your story and repeat it until you get some momentum
Outline the next couple of chapters. Start high level then fill in details. Keep iterating. Often you find there is something in your story that is giving you doubt and this helps to resolve that too
Go hiking with friends and bounce ideas off them
Walk away. Write another book. Sometimes you need space to think
Go on “Artiste Date” (solo excursion somewhere you like). This will help your creative. You need to stock the pond to catch anything worthwhile
Add a new character
Write another element: poetry, prose, scripts
Keep writing. Some days it’s inspiring and exciting. Other days its drudgery. But you sit down and keep writing
Do art. Draw, music, painting, dance, even cooking. Get that creative right brain firing on all cylinders
Make a list of ‘why you like your story and why you’re writing it
Write the ending and then go back and write your way to it
Think “what if”. What if your character got abducted? What if another love comes along? What if the treasure you sought in the jungle housed vampires? Don’t dismiss ideas. Just write them down and then brainstorm it further.
Are you a writer? Is a tip or two missing? Do share. We would love to hear.
Thanksgiving may have passed, but the spirit of gratitude is one of the most powerful leadership tools we carry into the rest of the year.
This is the season where leaders shift from reflection to readiness. While many people slow down mentally, high-impact leaders use this window to recalibrate. It’s not about rushing to finish tasks. It’s about finishing the year with clarity and intention.
Gratitude sharpens our focus. It grounds our decisions. And it reminds us that leadership is not measured only by what we achieve, but by who we become along the way.
As we move toward the close of 2025, here’s a question I encourage leaders to sit with:
What is ONE decision you can make right now that will set you up for meaningful growth in 2026?
This may be a decision to: • Delegate more intentionally • Step into a new direction • Release what no longer aligns • Seek clarity before making your next move • Invest in development (your own or someone else’s)
The weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year are the most underestimated leadership window, and yet one of the most powerful. Small shifts made now create profound momentum in the new year.
If you are a leader navigating transition, stepping into a new role, launching something new, or simply needing clarity for 2026, support is available.
And if you know someone in your organization, circle, or family who needs that guidance… this season is the perfect time to gift it.
Let’s finish strong, lead with intention, and walk boldly into the year ahead.
Who looks outside dreams; who looks inside, awakens. ~Carl Jung
As the year closes, the most effective leaders are the ones who pause long enough to evaluate, realign, and elevate. These 12 questions are designed to help you step confidently into 2026 with clarity, courage, and intention.
Take a moment to reflect on each. Use them to guide your vision, your team, and your next level of growth. Strong leadership doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built through awareness, alignment, and action.
Reflection Questions
1. What are my top 3 leadership wins from 2025?
2. What drained my energy this year, and why?
3. What habits strengthened my leadership?
4. What habits weakened it?
5. What opportunities did I ignore that I should revisit?
6. What does success look like for me in 2026?
7. What limiting belief must I leave behind?
8. Who do I need to become next year?
9. What relationships do I need to nurture?
10. What boundaries do I need to create?
11. What skills must I develop or sharpen?
12. What is ONE bold move I will take before Jan. 31?
If you’d like support creating a strategic leadership plan for the new year, join the year-end and January coaching sessions. This is designed for leaders in transition and professionals preparing for a stronger 2026.
What will you do differently next year? Which question resonated with you the most? Do share. We would love to hear.
Ann, a historian and extreme planner, had an adventurous time touring Greece with her husband. During the trip, she shared photos of places she had learned in her undergraduate program. As they began their return trip, civil unrest occurred blocking all flights to leave Turkey, cruise and all. Quick decision, they decided to get out of the country whichever way they could. Both landed in Paris, only to be separated to get back home to the USA. Separation was a non-issue. Their goal was to return safely to their two kids waiting back home.
Times of Crises
There are times of crises as in Ann’s case. But most often we do have opportunities to plan ahead. Financiers will preach that we should plan for times of crises too.
Why is it important to set goals? Because if you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there. Where you will end up, who knows? That’s when you will just have to go with the flow.
Goalsetting is the process of identifying desired outcomes and creating a plan of action to achieve them, providing a sense of direction, motivation and focus
So why do we need to set goals? Because setting goals is the process of identifying desired outcomes and creating a plan of action to achieve them, providing a sense of direction, motivation and focus.
That’s the reason it a pleasure to facilitate the writing process with authors. The event was held at the Broward County’s West Regional Library in Plantation, Florida. This session focused on Writers Goal Setting for 2026 books through the Writers Group of South Florida.
If you are an aspiring author, or are ready to take your leadership to the next level and need a copy of the Goal-Setting guide, connect to get yours today. Leadership Assessment also available.
Not an author but ready to take your leadership to the next level through setting your 2026 goals, let’s chat. Referrals are warmly welcomed.
