I woke up this morning exhausted. Triggered. And I could feel my negative thoughts lining up like little toy soldiers ready to go to battle.

I’ve found that running with friends is less expensive than therapy.  Having a whole hour to vent while your friends puffs along beside you nodding because she’s too out of breath to form complete sentences in response to you is a beautiful thing.

Big week for the Cornings.  Our first and third grade sons both started a brand new school and rode the bus for the first time. Ever.

When we think about our careers, we generally think More is MORE.  More responsibility, more exposure, more opportunities and – obviously – more money.  But times exist during a career lifecycle when LESS is more.  Less money, that is. 

I am so proud that once again Lindquist & Vennum has earned a place on the 2013 Working Mother & Flex-Time Lawyers “Best Law Firms for Women” list. Last week at our firm’s Women’s Initiative luncheon, one of my partners was recognized for being one of the Top 50 Women Attorneys in Minnesota. I received recognition for my 40th (!) anniversary of practice.

As if returning to work isn't hard enough, imagine returning to work and having a BAD manager.  That just makes the adjustment all the more difficult.

It looked so far down.  With my hands in the air and me contemplating my first cartwheel in at least two decades, the ground look so far away.  My incredulous family didn’t believe I could do it and suddenly I didn’t think I could either.

For the first time, I felt old.

Fear had taken over and I cursed myself for having a kid so late in life. I kept my arms up as I argued with myself.  I am not ready to feel old yet.  I still have too much daring to do.  They don’t believe you can do it and besides, who cares if I can’t.   

Going back to work? Don't take another step in your job search process until you figure out HOW to be successful in your next role.  Why waste time, energy and potentially lost dollars on a role that isn't the right fit?  Get it right.  The first time.

Raise your hand if you own a copy of The Secret?  Are you one of 19 million people who have read it, listened to it, or watched the movie version of it in one of the 46 languages it is available in?  For those of you not raising your hand, the premise of The Secret franchise is that you get back from the universe what you put out there - they call it "The Law of Attraction."  So if you think you are a Brazilian super-model neuro-scientist then you will attract into your life all the tools to help you actually be a brainy vixen.&n

If you predominantly work from home and very rarely have to physically go into the office, you may get jitters when the time comes to make an actual appearance in person. This happened to me recently. I literally work from home about 90% of the time, but recently I was asked to come into our New York office for training. Oh well, there goes the bunny slippers! I immediately went to my closet to take inventory. It's been 7 years since I've actually worked around other people and unfortunately my wardrobe reflected it.