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The Greatest Show on Earth

March 6th, 2006

Who doesn\’t love the circus? At The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art (www.ringling.org) in Sarasota, Florida, you\’ll see the genius behind “the greatest show on earth.” John Ringling was not only a circus entrepreneur, but also an art collector and financier whose estate now includes the Museum of Art, Circus Museum, and Ca d\’Zan mansion, all located on 66 acres overlooking the sparkling Sarasota Bay. Ringling\’s art collection, which included paintings by Peter Paul Rubens, Velazquez, Poussin, Van Dyck, and other Baroque masters, was left to the people of the... Read More

The New Retirement – Trying a Place for “Fit”

March 6th, 2006

What if you\’ve decided you\’re among the 50 percent of Boomers who say they are planning to relocate after they retire, and, after doing some investigating, you\’ve narrowed your list of locations to several possibilities. Of course, there really is no perfect place, but there are likely many locations that will mesh with your priorities. Remember, too, that moving doesn\’t have to be a permanent decision – you may decide you want to live in a place for several years, and then relocate again. Now, assuming you\’ve done your homework and narrowed your list to several... Read More

Learning to Open Your Heart

March 1st, 2006

…by Suzanne Falter-Barnes Five years ago a psychic in Key West, FL told me something I\’m only just now beginning to understand. As I sat there in front of her, in a darkened room all full of incense, she intoned: “You\’ll have the success you want, Suzanne… but only when you open your heart.” I wasn\’t sure what this meant, exactly, but I did what any good self-help devotee would do. I set out to crack the code on what ‘opening your heart\’ meant. My first stop was the aromatherapy store, where I spent a good hour sniffing this and that until I\’d... Read More

The Old Switcheroo

March 1st, 2006

…by Julie Clark Robinson “Without change, something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens.”  -Frank Herbert. A person expects it to some degree, whether they are aware of it or not. You squeeze through the aisle — trying not to bonk anyone in the head with your carry-on –mumble words of appreciation to the flight attendants, and step down the ramp into another city\’s version of an airport. Change is literally in the air, albeit institutional and somewhat stuffy. You pick up your pace and follow the overhead signs to your final destination. But when the month is March and... Read More

The Better Angels of Our Nature

March 1st, 2006

…by Prill Boyle Many women love Valentine\’s Day. Not me. I\’m not inspired by Hallmark cards. Nor do I care for forced romantic gestures. (If you want to make my heart go pitter-patter, surprise with me flowers when it\’s not a special day.) But having just finished Doris Kearns Goodwin\’s monumental biography of Lincoln, I am newly inspired by our 16th President, whose birthday is February 12th. Anyone in the throes of a life change would do well to follow his example. Here\’s why. During the most turbulent times this nation has yet encountered, the Civil War,... Read More

The Blessing of Being Different

March 1st, 2006

We didn\’t get married eighteen years ago. Jim had been married twice before and this was Judith\’s first walk down the aisle. While we loved each other in ways we couldn\’t even explain, we also knew that our differences were a major challenge. Each of us is opinionated, head strong, known to get defensive, and more often than we\’d like to have admitted back when we were first married, downright stubborn. So our irritation and anger at each other over the big and little differences that cropped up most every day had to be dealt with or we would be one of those couples... Read More

The Most Important Commitment You Can Make

March 1st, 2006

Commitments. Commitments. Commitments. They fill our days, our heads and our lives. Most of us are in the commitment business. Of course, that\’s not what we call it. At work, we\’re making commitments to customers, suppliers, bosses, coworkers and staff. At home, we\’re making commitments to family, friends, neighbors, community and organizations. Not to mention commitments to pay taxes, credit card bills, mortgages and car loans. Commitments become our drivers. Like the proverbial hamster wheel, we can\’t stop the stress, or the time demands we obligate ourselves to, because... Read More

The Smart Business Women\’s Quick-Start Guide to Competitive Intelligence

March 1st, 2006

If the term “competitive intelligence” is not familiar to you, you should learn about it right away. Competitive intelligence is a concept derived from the manufacturing industry and military strategy, two fields not traditionally associated with women. This concept is defined as “a systematic program for gathering and analyzing information about your competitors\’ activities and general business trends to further your own company\’s goals.” Larry Kahaner, Competitive Intelligence (Simon & Schuster 1996) p. 16. Although the terminology may not be familiar to most women,... Read More

Travel Light

March 1st, 2006

Several years ago I was scheduled to teach a class at a spa just outside New York City. A van was to pick me and the other weekend speaker up on a street corner on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. While I was waiting, I noticed a lady getting out of a taxi hauling one of the biggest suitcases I had ever seen. In addition, she had two large weekender bags. She looked at me standing there with one small bag and we burst out laughing. “I guess I brought too much,” she said. It was the start of a great weekend and a long friendship. March is a great time to start planning your summer getaway.... Read More

Welcome to the Sandwich Generation

March 1st, 2006

First we couldn\’t have any. Then we could have it all. Then we realized we didn\’t want it all. So how come we\’re still doing it all – and feeling guilty about it to boot!? Welcome to the “Sandwich Generation”! So much has been written lately about the “Sandwich Generation” – those caring for both their children and their aging parents. It\’s an important subject, especially because, while Baby Boomer men are also members of the sandwich generation, the overwhelming impact is on Baby Boomer women. Why are women bearing the brunt of eldercare? Because we\’re... Read More