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Guest post by: Ann Mehl Become an Author

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The Sound of No Hands Clapping

This past month, I traveled to Florida to deliver a presentation to a group of health and wellness experts, and I thought I did a bang-up job. My preparation went beyond the norm for this type of event, including a full week spent slaving over the PowerPoint, even going so far as to hire a presentation coach for two sessions to help me iron out some of the kinks (yes, even coaches need a coach!). So when the feedback arrived that my presentation fell somewhat below expectations, I was upset. My message had failed to land. Or as one reviewer delicately put it, “You didn’t quite connect with everyone in the audience.”

The New Rules of What-If

If you own a computer or read the news, you’ve probably heard of the “two Steves” – Jobs and Wozniak, who founded Apple Computers in 1976. Far less likely is that you’ve heard of Ron Wayne. He designed the Apple logo and along with Steve Jobs and Wozniak, was one of the original founding partners in Apple. Afraid that their new startup computer company would fail, Ron sold back his 10% stake in Apple for $800, only 12 days after he got it. If he’d held onto that $800 stake, even as a silent partner, today he’d be worth around $22 billion.

Whose Life Is It Anyway?

As a fan of Jim Carrey, one of my all-time favorite movies is The Truman Show. The hero, Truman, lives inside a Utopian bubble carefully constructed just for him by a savvy media company. Unbeknownst to Truman, hidden cameras broadcast his every move live on television 24/7 to an audience of millions. While outwardly, he appears happy-go-lucky, inwardly a subtle desperation begins to take hold, as he gradually realizes that the life he thought was his, is in fact a monstrous hoax perpetrated upon him.

Your Greatest Asset

One of my clients (we’ll call him George) came to me because he wanted to lose weight. He desperately wanted to lose weight. Over the course of ten years sitting behind a desk, he had gradually packed on an extra fifty pounds which, he painfully admitted, had become an encumbrance. His knees and back bothered him most of the time and he was often winded. With a very demanding work schedule involving a lot of travel, room service, business dinners – there was scarcely any time left for his wife and three children, let alone for self-care. I suggested a shift in his priorities might be in order if he was to be serious about tackling his weight loss goal. “But I don’t have time to exercise!” he protested. It’s a familiar refrain that most working adults can identify with.

200 Words

How do you capture the essence of a life and legacy in about 200 words or less? That is the onerous task – and awesome responsibility – faced every day by the newspaper obituary writer. In the wake of 9/11, the reporters at the New York Times faced an even greater challenge. How to memorialize nearly 3000 dead, most of whom were known only to friends and family?

Square Peg Round Hole

In his wonderful book The Element, Sir Ken Robinson tells a story that I’m sure many people can relate to. In it, a young girl named Gillian is having trouble concentrating at school. The school – suspecting a learning disability – asks her mother to take 8-year-old Gillian to see a psychiatrist for evaluation. After hearing from the girl’s mother how the girl is always disturbing her classmates, her homework is sloppy and always late – the doctor asks to speak with Gillian alone. Before escorting the mother outside for a private conference, the doctor turns on the radio in the room to occupy Gillian. As soon as the music began to play, the girl was on her feet. From outside the room, Gillian’s mother observed for a few minutes as she moved beautifully to the music, dancing around the room, lost in a childlike trance.

One Man And His Word

About five years ago, my father passed away. I still think about him almost every day, but especially this time of the year when his anniversary rolls around. He was well known and liked in the community where he lived with my mother in New Jersey. Fiercely proud of both his German and Irish ancestry, he always walked in the Annual West Orange St. Patrick’s Day Parade wearing a green tie and a German hunting hat. With my sister and brothers, I will sometimes reminisce about the small idiosyncrasies that made him our dad...

Confidence

Over the span of 15 years, I have run more than 40 marathons - NYC, Boston, Chicago, Berlin, Stockholm, Dublin, Quebec City and St. Louis, to name but a few. Running grants me confidence and a positive outlook on everything. Even on my worst days, I gain inner strength and personal satisfaction simply from trying. Whatever your own personal marathon, I believe that the same mind-set I use in prepping for long-distance events may speak to you as well. These are a set of values to keep in mind when you're setting out to accomplish any worthwhile goal.

Ways to sparkle in tough times

My old college roommate recently asked me if she still has the "shine" factor. On a quest for a new job in this difficult market, she wanted to know if she embodied that "sparkle" she used to have when we were just entering the workforce after graduation. As a career coach, I advised her that to be a star and advance in this current economy, she may need to pull out some extra glitter and go well beyond the normal call of duty. Here are some other tips that I shared with her:

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