A Simple Message We Should All Be Sending

dee

My Mom (right) and Aunt Dee (left). Their friendship was always a source of inspiration to me.

It’s been a tough few weeks. My Aunt Dee — who is also my Mom’s best friend had several heart attacks on October 12th. Everyday since has been one step forward and then one step back. Sadly she passed away on Monday evening.

A week before her heart attack, Dee sent my Mom a card.

It was just a friendly hello, thinking of you type card. Dee wrote that she wanted my Mom to know that even though sometimes they didn’t talk or see each other as much as they’d like, she was loved and meant the world to her.

What a nice note to receive at any time!

Given the current circumstances — this note has been especially comforting to my mother.

The truth is she and Dee would talk all the time. They have a lifetime of memories, secrets and inside jokes. They would “touch base” as my Mom calls it, almost everyday even if it was just a quick email forward (my Mom is big on those,) an emoji text message, or a funny photo. They always kept on each other’s radar even when traveling or when things got busy.

It wasn’t uncharacteristic for Dee to send my mother flowers as a reminder that she was loved. They even have matching necklaces that say, “You Are Loved.” My mother is wearing hers now to keep her memories of Dee close to her. Dee was an amazing friend, mentor and woman.

Dee did it right. She never let anything go unsaid and everyone around her knew how much they mattered to her.

She always sent cards to everyone for holidays, birthdays and just to say hello. It made the recipient feel loved and special. Especially in this age of email and texting — it always made her stand out. She even would send me Halloween cards even though I’m not a little kid anymore! But it always made me feel loved.

To remember Dee I’m going to do something in her honor.

I went to Papyrus, my favorite stationery store, and bought up a bunch of beautiful cards. I’m sending them off to friends and family near and wide. I have a list of those people who have touched my life in big and small ways and I’m sending them a card to say “You Are Loved.”

I’d love it if you did the same. It can be a paper card, an email or even a text. I’m going to be doing it on social media as well and using the hashtag #YouAreLoved in honor of my beautiful Aunt Dee.

Feel free to use the graphic that I created below to send love to someone special today. You’ll be glad you did.

You are loved

A List Making App For Us!

17oTr569List makers rejoice! There’s an app just for us!

It’s called The List App — and it’s like Twitter for lists.

You can create and share all your best lists. You can also request a list from users – so you could ask your friend what they favorite food is, or you can ask Snoop Dogg for a list of his favorite movies. (Yes, even Snoop Dogg has an account!)

The app was created by The Office actor and writer B J Novak along with Dev Flaherty. On producthunt.com Novak explains why he created the app:

“I just love ’em. I’m always asking people for lists of favorite restaurants in certain cities, or documentaries on Netflix that are good, and originally wanted a place where people could request and share those types of lists with friends. There’s still a lot of that.

But we’ve also discovered what I think we all knew deep down – that lists are addictive, because they’re the way our brains naturally order things anyway. It enables substance way easier than other forms of writing because it is often the connective tissue that gets in the way.”

The app encourages people to share all kinds of lists, not just shopping lists. There are lists on hot new music alongside lists of favorite emojis! Read more

The Six Lists You Must Make

shopping-list-707760_640Are you one of those people that puts everything you need to do onto one list?

It’s a classic mistake I see people make over and over again.

You can’t mix your lists!

Just like you wouldn’t expect to find carrots in the candy aisle – ‘lose 15 pounds’ and ‘buy milk’ don’t belong on the same lists.

The key to making lists work for you is writing lots of different lists based on your specific needs. That way you will know where to access the information when you need it. Read more

Stop Searching For Your Passion

screenshot-300x225Everyone has their “thing” — that one big goal they often dream about, tell their friends about and picture themselves achieving.  For me it was writing a book and it’s been thrilling to reach that goal.  

If you follow this blog regularly you’ve probably heard of my friend Terri Trespicio. I’m especially proud of her for reaching one of those goals that she’s spoken about often and dreamed big about.  

She did her very first TEDx talk in Kansas City a few weeks ago! She talks about finding your passion… or rather not finding it. Read more

Things You Always Do To Have a More Productive Day

mountain-918637_640I’m a procrastinator by heart, so in order to make sure I get everything done I force myself into a routine. I like to always wake up at the same time and stand at the best part of the station platform for getting on the train quickly. All these little things help to make me my day more productive.

Yes – getting to know where the doors are going to stop on the platform only saves me one minute or so everyday. But it makes me feel like my commute is going faster. Which puts me in a good mood and helps to kick start my day.

Here are some other little ways you can ensure you’ll have a productive day:

Make Your Bed – I know, I know I sound like your Mom. But taking a few minutes in the morning to make your bed look nice doesn’t just give you that feel good – post clean up feeling. It gives you something to look forward to coming home to! Read more