Business mistake #1: Don't have a strategic business plan. I learned this the hard way when I was dipping my toes into the entrepreneurial pond for the very first time. Now that it is almost 2010, the economy is showing at least some signs of light at the end of...

The reminder on my TV had been set for a week. My daughter and I were settling in for our favorite show premiering on Thursday night and ready for two hours of Grey's Anatomy drama.

Last season they introduced us to a new character, Owen -- a doctor suffering from...

I read this in today's headlines:

"It is important to note that this is not about urban crime, university crime, domestic crime but an issue of workplace violence, which is becoming a growing concern around the country."

Workplace violence, including the bank robbery-motivated stalking, kidnapping and 14 hour hostage ordeal...

Millions of people everywhere are struggling to make ends meet, stay in their homes and afford to put gas in their car to even get to a job interview. Okay, so there are a few that are not struggling and some that will tell you that there is no recession,...

In an interview DJ AM said "I understand why they call it post-trauma" referring to the his state of mind in the aftermath of the plane crash he survived.

An article today in the New York Times about kidnap and hostage survivor Jaycee Dugard states, "About two-thirds of children...

I had been planning my trip to Australia for over two months. It was on my daughter's top three places she has always wanted to go so for her 16th birthday, since a car was pointless after her "challenges" passing the written driving test, I decided to book our first...

This one has got me half laughing and half shaking my head in disbelief.

Sarah Palin said "It's no wonder girls have such low self-esteem in America when a comedian can make a remark like this." Really? She went on to say that this is the reason we have...

When a friend of mine came over last night because things at home were again too tense to handle, we began talking about how his life has been for the past several months. His concern, he said, was about doing the right things for his son, his wife, his job,...

As I was enjoying a relaxing evening in the Jacuzzi I began to ask myself, "what are the three things that have kept me trapped, or stuck, when success was right in front of me?" The answer that came to me is the three "R's" that keep us all from...

Get ready for spring cleaning...for your business!

Break out the dust buster and mop and clean up the clutter that has not been working for you in your business. Goal setting, visualizing, branding and creating a 3, 6, 9 and 12 month business plan are all things that must...

When I arrived home from a speaking engagement in Florida the back window to my car was shattered. My mom was so sweet to want to stock my fridge with groceries before I arrived home and when she pulled out of the garage to go pick up my daughter from...

Lemonade stands have always been the start of something big: the first glimpse of entrepreneurship and The American Dream! When I was 12, it wasn't lemonade but mistletoe picked by my six siblings and me that sparked my entrepreneurial spirit. I remember clearly the living room strewn with the holiday...

As I was reading the latest Chris Brown-Rhianna report on the ABC website today, I realized that there are always red flags in a relationship leading up to this kind of action. But with abusive behavior, whether emotional or physical, red flags are often either ignored or excused. People stay...

Winter Formal for a freshman in high school is supposed to be a magical memory, right? Being the girl that didn't attend any high school dances and feeling like I made a huge mistake by choosing not to take advantage of all that high school had to offer, I really...

In the new movie nominated for two Spirit Awards Wendy and Lucy, Michelle Williams, an Oscar nominee for her work as the late Heath Ledger's wife in Brokeback Mountain, gives another deeply emotional performance as Wendy Carroll, an Indiana woman who intends to reach Alaska in her unreliable Honda with...

As I was listening to the father of the co-pilot who assisted in the safe landing of US Airways flight 1549 into the Hudson River discussing his son's condition on the news I heard him say, "Physically he is okay and he got pretty cold out there but emotionally I...

I decided to start out my new year with a blog that reflects my how I want to focus my energy this year: light and fun! Oh, and I have set an intention to get out of my hyper-focused haze of 2008 and date more!

After 15 years of...

Last week San Diego experienced an unprecedented three major take-over style bank robberies in one day. In the past two weeks there have been an astounding number of kidnapping bank employees and their families for vault ransom, the type of bank robbery we were victims of, and today bank robberies...

When a life altering event happens suddenly the view looking from the inside out becomes a whole lot more colorful and life itself takes on new meaning.

Since being kidnapped, held hostage and forced to rob a bank to save my daughter's life, I see myself, others and my...

There have been at least two incidents in the last two weeks where a bank executive or middle management employee has been kidnapped, held hostage along with their family and forced to rob the bank they worked for as part of a bank robbery plot. It is...