Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Life Lessons”
A chill in the air makes us want to bundle up. And not just with blankets and quilts (though I do love quilts!). Bundling is a simple technique to start adopting a new habit. At Personal Money Manager™ I’m often asked how to develop new routines and good organizing habits to avoid clutter build-up and the confusion it …
Where do you get your inspiration? Life lessons? Over the past 16 years at Personal Money Manager™ I’ve found them in expected and many unexpected places! In the spirit of discovery, I’m sharing this story from a wonderful quilting colleague, Melanie Tauzon, with her permission. (I encourage you to look here and here for her creative work.) Last week, …
Ten years ago, and six years into Personal Money Manager™, I put pen to paper, starting a blog and a newsletter, “Notes for Trusted Advisors.” Creating content. Truthfully, I had been resistant to having a business newsletter, even a blog, From the Desk of Personal Money Manager™. You see, my first job out of college and at several …
It’s not an easy lesson. And I learned it the hard way…. One spring evening in London, I went to hear Robert Bly recite his poetry. He had won the National Book Award for Poetry in the US a few years earlier in 1967, yet the audience was small. Afterwards, we all went to the local pub for a pint. …
Remember when we were taught “the magic word”? That word was “please”. And it opened doors. We were also taught two other magical words: “Thank you.” At the start of this grinding pandemic, new attention was paid to those on the front lines—in healthcare, government offices, and the supermarket. Even those at the other end of the phone—to answer our …
This story took place back in the fall, pre-vaccines, before we could see what we hoped was the “light at the end of the pandemic tunnel.” Still, I think it’s worth sharing this for the valuable lesson learned. It was our monthly Zoom call. We were all professionals working in the “senior world” like I do as a financial organizer …
I remember Dad’s Clutter Game that he invented for my siblings and me when we were young. It was a good rainy-day activity that kept us busy and out of each other’s hair. And it seemed to satisfy his life-long crusade against clutter. How would we get rid of stuff? Dad would set each of us up with paper grocery …
There’s a lot we learned the hard way this past, difficult year. But just reviewing the tough stuff wouldn’t provide an uplifting start to 2021. As a financial organizer / daily money manager, part of what I do is bring hope and positivity. Inspired by a colleague who does this each year, I put together a list of some of the things I… [ for MORE, click on the Title ]
As 2020 draws to a close (do I hear a cheer?), here’s something for those who, when it comes to paperwork organizing, would rather listen than read. I had the pleasure of appearing as a guest on the Taxgirl® podcast here. (Shout out to a colleague and loyal newsletter reader who recommended me to Kelly Phillips Erb, aka Taxgirl® .) …
I lost my mom in 2013, though the Alzheimer’s that gradually took her away makes it seem like several years before that. Remembering Mom Spending time with my grown daughters recently, I asked them if they had any “lessons learned” from their grandmother, my Mom. Stories emerged, from her amazing matzoh ball soup to her zany ways of seeing things …