Work LIFE Stories
Shine On: How to Be Brave
“You playing small does not serve the world,” says Marian Hodges. She believes that when you let your own light shine, you give others permission to do the same. As the VP of Operations for her company, Data Reality, Marian is doing just that. She shines with some brilliant lessons and insights: Harmony and Bravery. […]
Play Ball! What Softball Has to Teach Us About Work-Life
Amy Sink is the CEO of Interra Credit Union and at the top of her game. She loves sports and it’s a good thing. As a wife and mother of two teenagers, she’s been attending sporting events as a ‘soccer mom’ for many, many years. When Amy writes her book (each chapter will be […]
Joy Wanted: Why Tuning In Requires Turning Off
As a professor of management at Hope College, Tom Smith regularly hears college students say they want to seek joy through the vocation they will later choose. They want to find happiness in their work. They are looking for a career that will bring them fulfillment. But Tom says they have it wrong. It’s less […]
Mommy, Leadership is a Process, Isn’t It?
Some parenting gurus suggest playing foreign language recordings for children so their brains will be wired to learn new languages more readily. Kris Downing* played leadership books on tape for her toddler son. She wasn’t doing it for brain development though. Instead, for Kris, it was all about integrating work and life. And she’s succeeded […]
The Crooked Path of Inspiration
Julia McAnallen* speaks three languages, she has degrees in Slavic linguistics and nuclear engineering, and she’s lived in three different countries. From Michigan to Moscow, to Madrid, and back again, her path hasn’t been straight, but it’s been inspired. Today, Julia is in a job that seems custom-made for her. What have been her lessons […]
First Among Equals: Primus Inter Pares
Andrew McClain* is creating his own work-life fulfillment and as the VP of HR for one of the largest companies in the world, he’s also creating it for others. What makes Andrews’s story unique is all that he’s learned from living and working in lots of places – and how he leads as a result. […]
Work When it Works: The Wisdom of Working on Vacation
How does Cynthia Kay* define work-life integration? She doesn’t. As the founder and owner of Cynthia Kay & Co and the author of Small Business for Big Thinkers, she says work and life are all connected and there’s no separation. As a small business owner for 28 years in a highly technical field, she reinvents […]
A Thousand Miles from Yellowstone to San Francisco: The Portability of Meaning
Yellowstone* and San Francisco are worlds apart (1,032 miles, to be exact), but Tom Porter** is closing the distance. His journey started when he was 20 and working as a housekeeper at Yellowstone’s Old Faithful Inn. While he won’t comment on whether or not the Inn is actually haunted (“it depends on which story you […]
Life is Fleeting: Embrace the Possibilities
Chris Cancialosi*, Managing Partner and Founder of gothamCulture, is embracing possibility in every single moment. His military service in Iraq taught him that life is fleeting and each choice matters. He lives his life with a sense of passion and urgency that are uncommon and he is the reference point for the expression the rest […]
You Can Have it All, Just Not All At Once: Lessons from the Boundaries
Jennifer* has been achieving work-life integration since before we were all talking as much about it. I met Jennifer shortly before she left a corporate job in order to go out on her own. It was a gutsy move. At a time when lots of us were focused on serving the corporate lattice, Jennifer started […]