Protect Your Personal Life
By Susan Newman, Ph.D., author of The Book of NO: 250 Ways to Say It—and Mean It and Stop People-Pleasing Forever The tense and demanding workplace environment depicted in The Devil Wears Prada may hit a little too close to home. If an annoying boss or colleague is ruining your work day by adding to your stress or intruding into your personal time, you’re not alone. According to an online job source CareerBuilder.com survey, more than half of workers say they work under a great deal of stress, with nearly 77 percent reporting they feel burnout on the job. Difficult co-workers, unrealistic workloads and overbearing bosses are only some of the top workplace stressors mentioned. A stressful workplace can also wreck havoc with a professional woman's personal life as many always agree to stay late, attend co-workers’ weddings, baby showers, and weekend parties and Friday night after-work get-togethers. As I point out in The Book of NO: 250 Ways to Say It—and Mean It and Stop People-Pleasi...
Author: Susan Newman

Managing Diet on a Busy Schedule
We have all had that moment. You know the one, when you realize that your stomach is growling. You know that you fed the kids and packed their lunches, sent in the permission slip for school, repacked the store bought cupcakes to look more "homemade" for the bake sale, made it to the conference call on time and sounded somewhat intelligent, articulate and even a bit brilliant, if you do say so yourself. Oh, yes, the stomach. The growling. Breakfast? Lunch? Wait, when is the last time you had a healthy and well-rounded meal? Then, you realized you only have 10 minutes to your next meeting, run to the vending machine -- sweet, salty, sweet, salty? Why not -- corn chips and some chocolate chip cookies. Done. We talk about BALANCE, about establishing that fine line between keeping all the balls in the air, AND taking care of yourself. Food is one of the greatest sources of fuel, energy, power and also one of the most implicated etiologies of so many disease processes. In fact, diabetes, h...
Author: Suzanne Steinbaum

"Opt-Out" Guide for Mothers’ Return to Career
  Even though the number of women "opting out" of career to raise children is not widespread, plenty of mothers often face an uphill career re-entry. Here are some tips to help women with this transition. When "Tracey" decided to return to work in marketing for a major company, she was shocked to find that the field had changed in the six years that she stayed home to raise her twin girls. She thoroughly enjoyed her time as a full-time mother, but now she wanted to return to the working world. But the economy had altered drastically, and many companies now required far more innovative techniques, international networks, cost-saving approaches and collaborations. She thought that reading newspapers such as "The Wall Street Journal" and subscribing to one marketing publication would be enough to keep her up to date, but she was wrong. When she contacted her previous company after six years of being away, she was offered a less responsible and less lucrative position. She felt like she...
Author: LeslieBeth Wish

Letting Go of Limiting Beliefs
As host of the radio show "The Empowered Mother," I have the privilege of coaching moms and moms-to-be across the country. A recent session proved particularly interesting and is a wonderful example for many professional women. Who: Kristen, a 37-year-old mother of two boys, starting her own business. Issue: "I have so much already in my life and I am grateful. But, I’m starting my business and I want it all and I want it all right now!" Background: Kristen has two small boys, ages two and four. She used to be the fashion director for "Cosmo Girl" magazine and has been a stay-at-home mom the past few years. Recently Kristen has been itching to start up her own business. She is enthusiastic about her business ideas but worries that she isn’t moving fast enough. The Coaching: After hearing Kristen describe both excitement and frustration with getting her new business rolling, I asked, "How good are you with patience on a scale of one to 10?" Kristen figured she was a three or four wh...
Author: Amy Kovarick

Financial Advice with Success Story
My name is Tammy Trenta.  I have been able to make a successful career change from Financial Planning into Handbag Design.  As a former Apprentice 5 contestant, I truly believe in Donald Trump’s mantra that if you do what you love, the money will follow and am living proof of that.  The key questions are:  “How much time will it take?” and  "Can your family support you in your move?"  Yes, it is possible, but much trickier when you are not just responsible for your own life, but for the lives of others as well.   Here is my story:   As a young financial planner in my 20's, I worked very hard, received a graduate degree in addition to a plethora of other industry credentials, designations and licenses, constantly striving for more.  I am now considered to be an expert in the field.  When I hit my 30’s I got to a point in my life, where I was stable in my career and didn’t really feel like I knew what I wanted the next step to be.  I was comfortable but not necessarily satisfied.  I ...
Author: Tammy Trenta

Bridge the Stress of “Re-Entry” Between Work and Family
Just as children need “re-entry” time when they come home from school, parents need similar adjustment time when they return home from work. All family members can be wound up from the day’s mental and social pressures. Most families know the signs of family stress at the end of the day—hyper-activity, moodiness and tempers. Here are some family strategies to bridge these transitions between work, school and home. 1.  Be proactive—develop a relaxation routine for re-entry into the family. On the way home from work, listen to soothing music. The goal is to calm the brain, so if music doesn’t calm you, find what does. One of my clients who took the commuter train home, kept on her phone photos of her favorite vacation pictures of beaches and birds. There is no one right answer for everyone—just keep the goal in mind of shifting from overdrive to third gear—the driving gear that nicely hums along. 2.  Exercise before work or at lunchtime. A weekly schedule of aerobic activity, three t...
Author: LeslieBeth Wish

Don't Worry, Be Happy
Happiness is the illusive desire of every human being on earth. We seek happiness through the doors of religion, philosophy, psychology, medicine and even government.  In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote “We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men are created equal: that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." What does the pursuit of happiness mean? Are we guaranteed happiness in our lives? Of course not. Isn’t it interesting that 229 years ago, happiness was considered a “right” by our founding fathers. We have a “right” to be happy. Most Americans in a recent Time Magazine poll said they are happy 78 percent of the time. We were an optimistic country seeking happiness when the Declaration of Independence was written in 1776 and we seek happiness now more than ever .  Happiness has moved from a guaranteed right of our government to the forefront of scienti...
Author: Kathleen Hall

Are You Getting the Credit You Deserve?
How to view it: Men are really good at taking credit for everything. Women are not so good at taking credit for what they deserve. When I give workshops on secrets to getting ahead for women, one of the hardest exercises for participants is what I call "the owning your own worth exercise." It actually is very simple. The participants have a few minutes to write down their thoughts about what makes them great or valuable in a specific work context. Then she must stand in front of the group and tell the group in a first person declaration. "I am a great sales person because …" For many women, this task might as well be walking on hot coals. On the other hand, it is also very common that when a woman is given a compliment at work about her success, her immediate reaction is to say something like, "Well, I could not have done it without Jenny and the team." A common and pleasant ritual among women is the "No, it’s not me, it was you." Exchange. It goes like this: MANAGER: Great Job Be...
Author: Robert Schwarz

National Conferences
Annual Women In Business Conference In June 2008, WBENC will hold its 9th annual Women In Business conference in Atlanta, GA. More than 3,000 attendees and 400 exhibitors are expected to attend the event. Conference sponsorship levels range from $75,000 to $5,000. This event is the largest of its kind for women's business enterprises. During the three-day event, WBEs, senior corporate executives, supplier diversity and procurement professionals, and government representatives will foster many business opportunities by participating in an ambitious agenda including networking activities, workshops, key note plenary sessions, special events and Matchmaker meetings. JAne Austen Society of North America 2008 Annual General Meeting, Chicago, Illinois "Jane Austen's Legacy: Life, Love, & Laughter" 30th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Jane Austen Society of North America in Chicago during October 2-5, 2008, at the Westin Michigan Avenue Hotel.  
Author: Site Contributor

Learning From Gloria Vanderbilt
The rich have it easy, at least rich working moms do. For starters, they don’t really need to work. Then, if they do work, for God-only-knows-what reason, they can call on an army of maids, nannies, chauffeurs and other various and sundry servants to attend to them and their kids. No need to start a fund for the care of working rich moms. Or so it seems. Yet as millions of working women know, to suggest that work is for money alone is something akin to suggesting that raising kids is solely about survival of the species. Both require a clinical – some might say cynical – view of life’s bounties, overlooking the emotional satisfaction and sense of achievement that both career and parenthood are uniquely capable of providing. Gloria Vanderbilt was born 73 years ago with an oversized silver spoon in her mouth. Her great-great-grandfather, Cornelius, owned the New York Central Railroad and the original Grand Central Terminal on 42nd Street in Manhattan. By some reckonings, counted in 20...
Author: Dr. Cathy Greenberg

The Gaslight Effect
Amira is an ambitious professional in Chicago whose commitment to her career has paid off. Now in her mid-40s, she has quickly moved up the ladder in a Fortune 500 company. After almost a decade at the firm, Amira began doubting her abilities and feared that her job was in jeopardy. She arrived at her first counseling session with me anxious and suffering from low-level depression she attributed to her problems at work. As Amira began to describe her anxieties, I noticed an all-too-familiar pattern to her story. About a year ago, Amira’s coworker Julia was promoted to senior vice president. Amira had always admired Julia, just two years her senior. After Julia’s promotion, the two remained good friends, openly praising each other’s work, with Julia promising to throw more challenging, high-profile projects Amira’s way. Amira’s satisfaction at work was at an all-time high; she loved feeling validated by Julia. Two months after her colleague’s promotion, however, Amira was  getting p...
Author: Robin Stern

Learn to Ask for What You Need
Requests are powerful. Truly. While no one request is guaranteed to change the course of your career, business, relationships or life, any single request can. Requests have the potential to make a profound difference to the quality of your life and your ability to achieve the success you want. Sure, just because you ask for something doesn’t guarantee that you will get it.  But not asking for it does guarantee you won’t!  Would you really prefer the certainty of not having your needs met over the possibility of having them met? Surely not?! As someone dedicated to helping people fulfill their full spectrum of needs, I often find myself surprised at how few people actually ask for what they really want and how ever fewer ask for it in ways that maximize the chances of getting it.  So I’m curious: Right now, as you read this article, what needs do you have that are going unmet and are causing you to feel resentful, frustrated and unappreciated because, whether you are conscious of it o...
Author: Margie Warrell

How to Work a Room
Do you find yourself stuck in awkward silences with members of your own family? Whether you want to improve your social skills in your business or personal life, Susan RoAne, keynote speaker and best-selling author of the newly revised How to Work a Room (Collins, 2007), can help. In this LifeScript exclusive, RoAne gives the low-down on how to feel at ease, meet new people and form new relationships – no matter what social situation you find yourself in. The Benefits Savvy social skills are essential for business executives who attend conferences and high-powered meetings. But those in the workforce aren’t the only ones who can benefit from networking know-how. Whether you’re at a wedding, birthday party or casual barbeque, working a room with charm and pizzazz will ensure everyone remembers you. You’ll have a blast meeting new people, and you’ll make new friends and contacts along the way. Prepare Think of it as studying for a test: Your work begins before you show up to the clas...
Author: Carly Young

What Is Your Entrepreneurial Style?
Matching who you are with what you do may seem like common sense, but the sad truth is that most people don’t have jobs that truly complement their personalities. In their newest book, Career Match, coauthors Shoya Zichy and Ann Bidou take readers through a simple, but revealing, ten-minute self-assessment quiz to help identify specific personality types. By seeking the type of work that will inspire and exhilarate you, determining the kind of boss and work environment you need in order to thrive, and by confirming the rightness of the path you’re on, you can reflect on whether you should stay in your present career path or take steps to find a better one. If the career you have doesn’t leave you feeling exhilarated or inspire the kind of passion and satisfaction you deserve in your life, it’s time to figure out which one will. One of the tools the authors have devised is called "Color Q Styles," centered around four color personality groups. Below are brief descriptions of their fo...
Author: Shoya Zichy

Holidays for Singles: Will We Get Engaged?
The holidays are a huge engagement season - prime time for popping the question and setting the date for a wedding. But seasonal timing may not match the timing of the heart. Here’s what to do when they don’t line up. Have you been dating someone for a significant period of time with a high level of involvement? Do you feel the pressure to get engaged over the holidays? For many couples in this situation, the expectation of getting engaged ratchets up with every DeBeers commercial you watch together. Family and friends may unwittingly add to the pressure as well. Your inner voice may ask, “How many more holidays do I have to get through before I’m celebrating them with my own family?” If you find yourself distracted with this dilemma to the point that you’re talking about it with your colleagues at work, gathering people’s opinions and trying to figure out what to do, it’s time to take a step back. Here are some things to consider before acting. When he pulls you into jewelry stores...
Author: Nina Atwood

The Best PR of All: Common Courtesy
“She never returns her calls.” “We rushed to get them the estimate to meet their deadline and now they won’t tell us what’s happening with the project.” “I stayed late to finish that report and didn’t even get as much as a thank you for it.” How many times have you heard professional women make remarks like these?  It seems that in the rush to deal with everyday life and work, it has become O.K. to ignore common courtesy, like returning phone calls or letting someone know you won’t need their services. Don’t fall into that trap.  One of the best public relations and communications tools of all is to have good manners and use common courtesy in your dealings with people.  Here are a few examples where doing the right thing will create good PR for you and your business: Develop a reputation for returning all of your calls and emails.  (Junk email and calls as well as unsolicited sales calls are the exception.) Set up a time to do so each day.  If you can’t keep up with the vol...
Author: Susan Finco

Recharge for Family and Work
Professional women frequently think, "Vacation—are you kidding? With all these work projects and responsibilities and laundry building up?" Yet, a vacation is probably just what is needed to enhance productivity and creativity at work, as well as better functioning in the family. If you are not sure you need a brief getaway, take this short quiz. Read these statements and count how many of them describe you. Do I Need a Vacation?  1. I’m snapping more at my spouse or family. 2. I am not as productive at work. 3. I have been getting more colds, headaches or stomach upsets. 4. At night I feel as though I’ve "hit the wall" and just collapse into bed. 5. My husband and I are living friendly but separate lives. 6. The household looks as though a tornado hit it. If three or more of these statements apply to you, then you would benefit from a brief vacation. Here are six tips about how a getaway can help. Tips on the Benefits of Short Vacations 1. Knowing you are going away increase...
Author: LeslieBeth Wish

Use Work Techniques at Home and Home Techniques at Work
One of the keys to overall success and maturity is developing a consistent inner core of values and a personality style for work, home and relationships. The goal is to avoid the disconnect we see in the media every day, for example, between the public and private lives of leaders. Smart, professional women at work often use successful techniques in their career that would also succeed at home. Work Techniques for Home 1. Be clear about your expectations, tasks and job assignments. For example, if Jr. is supposed to take out the garbage on Tuesdays, specify the task with details. 2. Write expectations out and post them where they can be read. 3. Give praise when a person has done a task well. Make sure you praise in person and in public. Take your daughter aside, for instance, give her a big hug and tell her how happy you are that she put her toys away. At dinner or breakfast, announce to the family that Susie put all her toys on the shelf last night. 4. Give precise feedback whe...
Author: LeslieBeth Wish

Getting Back on the Career Track
Would you like to return to the work world but are concerned about how to find an opportunity that will allow you to fulfill your family or other non-work obligations, nervous about how to market yourself to potential employers, or unsure about what type of work you want to do? We know how you feel. We took time out to be home with our children and then relaunched our careers years later. Based upon our experience and that of the 100+ women we interviewed for our book on resuming careers after a career break, “Back on the Career Track,” as well as the career counselors, recruiters and employers whose advice we sought, we’ve developed a detailed process to help you negotiate this major transition. Here it is in a nutshell: RElaunch or Not: You Decide. If financial reasons require you to return to work, go to step 2. If not, determine whether you are ready to go back to paid work or whether deepening your volunteer involvement or engaging in a non-work passion might satisfy your r...
Author: Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin

Going Bold
I’m at the midpoint of my life, but there’s nothing halfway about how I want to live right now. How many of you are feeling the same way?  It really doesn’t interest me to look back at where I’ve been or stress about what lies ahead. I’m pumped to live more boldly right now and pull out all the stops to make this moment as big and juicy as it’s meant to be.    And as I look at the world now, it calls for bold talk, bold acts and for women with big, bold hearts to make a difference. We’re hungry for women’s ways of resolving conflict, finding common ground and building peaceful communities. When just one of us steps out to express our energy and passion, the entire world gets a bit bolder, saner and more alive.   Recently, I knew, without a doubt, that I had to go bold. My soul strutted every time I thought of going to Africa to support African women in their climb out of poverty, growing my soul in the journey. So I spent time with the amazing women of BeadforLife in Uganda, refug...
Author: Susan Skog

Moving Forward After Losing a Job - Part I
By:  Pam Williams You’ve packed up the cardboard box, returned the ID badge, written down all of your passwords and hugged necks and shook hands around the office. The HR person is closing the front door behind you and the parking lot looks lonely. Now what? Losing a job is like buckling into the last car for your first roller-coaster ride. Over the next few weeks or months, your emotions are going to plummet and soar again and again. How you handle this thrill ride can have profound effects on your life, your career and your family. In my 33 years as a professional recruiter, I have seen people at every peak and valley of that ride. I have seen those who made good decisions resume a rising career. I have seen those who suffered through divorce and estrangement as their poor decisions or pessimistic attitude affected those around them. From my discussions with thousands of people in between jobs, here are the steps in a strategy I recommend for moving forward after losing a job: Re...
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