As a consultant and a coach with a home office, I have found keeping work separate from non-office life to be important. With 24 hours in a day, work at home can easily spill over to personal time at home. Keeping a schedule with defined hours of work and non-work time can be helpful. Additionally helpful is having a separate office space (even if it’s small) in order to keep papers and work items in one area. Scheduling client calls and returning calls during your “office hours” keeps boundaries in place and prevents burnout.

I started my consulting and coaching practice after being a successful salesperson working in an office environment. To stay positive, I read an inspiration quote the first thing every morning. This helped keep me motivated by having an upbeat attitude. Every evening, I made a list of goals and set them out for the next day. To me, it was important to take time out of the office by having lunch with a friend or client once a week. Now, in these times with restrictions due to the coronavirus, I take two walks a day and have a lunch break. I find these practices especially helpful during these unsettling times.

I have just become a fan of carrying a backpack. I prefer a slim backpack, not a large bulky one. For many years, I carried small bags, large bags, or purses and used a briefcase as a carry all. Using a backpack for everyday is a workable all-in-one solution. A backpack can easily be carried and many of them feature a small pocket in the front (with easy access) for a cell phone and keys. They are deep enough to house a portfolio. Some backpacks, like the Tumi travel backpack I carry, have white linings inside, making it easy to see and grab an item. Backpacks also can be carried on one shoulder and allow the freedom to use two hands. They also free up your hands if you like to carry another bag. Slim backpacks fit close to the body and do not hit someone’s face or body when you turn around. In short, when considering your next carry all for work, consider a backpack.

Color can be used in full force if the style and cut of the clothing item works. You can even wear the same color top to bottom!

Michelle Obama, the former First Lady has been on a whirlwind. 99% of the time she wears a suit (Yes!) in an array of colors from a metallic cyan-hue suit to a multicolor strip golden suit. Material chosen, cut, and styled, plays a major role in expressing a powerful statement with color. It also needs to be the right occasion.

Her stage presence has always been as a dynamo!  This includes her book tour presence which has been a showstopper and fun to watch. Her suit colors and choices accent her brilliance.

Renewing excitement after holidays are behind us and the new year begins is challenging. I remembered when I read Stephen Covey’s or Tony Robbins’ daily reflections to help jump start the day.

Self-motivation works best when looking at the upside of life and being grateful for the things we have going for us. Always staying in a hard driving mode gets old after a while. We must break and take some time to enjoy what we have. The length of the break needed depends on what works best for each person.

Wearing short boots rather than heels has become more popular over the last few years. There is no hard and fast rule except that the boots should not be the first thing noticed.

If you want to make a fashion statement by wearing an animal or red print, a short boot can accent your total look. It does takes a great eye to correctly balance the impact of wearing a short colored or print boot. Of course, you can always run with the idea that the boots are just a fun statement!

Holidays can be overwhelming with additional events added to an already full work and social life. Businesses rush to end the year on a good note, individuals work diligently to ensure all the festivities and related activities are completed.

Recently, a client who is a also a friend, took his wife away for a long weekend. I thought, what a great move. When they returned refreshed, they might find the holiday stress a bit easier to handle. So, take a pause, go away, and just chill to ease the stress.

For those who cannot get away, outsource gift giving. Amazon is great for gifts, especially if you include the gift wrap and delivery in the purchase. Harry and David, with their wonderful pears and other goodies also make gift giving a fun task, not a stressful one.

Years ago, at a Fortune 100 company, I was asked to spend a day working with high potentials candidates for management. There was a woman in her mid-thirties, in accounting, who was constantly overlooked for the next level position. In my first meeting with her, she walked in with pink hair!

Naturally, the hair came up for discussion. I learned that she changed her hair color every week because her evening job required it. However, it appears to be hindering professional advancement in her day job because it comes up often in talks with management. The problem is that her hair has become more of a talking point than her professional qualities.

Recently, my partner needed to replace his iPhone due to the screen coming apart. Apple in Oakbrook opens on Sunday at 11 am. We arrived fifteen minutes early during a pouring rain. Outside, an employee took names for reservations for a technical person to help Bill with his phone. Apple management thought this would prevent folks from rushing in and help the customer and the staff manage the flow.

By the time 11 am came around, at least 20 folks waited to get in. How many times have you stood in front of a store waiting to get in amid confusion followed by a mad stampede! Apple deserves five stars for customer service. We were also waited on and taken care quickly with a new replacement phone in just 35 minutes.

In working with a client experiencing high stress and in a no-win situation, it became clear that a time out was needed for some personal care, a massage in this case. We let all the parties involved know that we would come up with a solution at the end of the week.

The client had the authority and the funds to ask team members to take the day off and send in suggestions by email for the client to review for the Friday meeting. The client and all parties needed to take a break from their 24/7 work schedule to ensure the decisions were the best for the project. The project was successful and all parties felt empowered by the outcome.