-
“Everyone knows something you don’t… learn from them.” It’s a simple phrase, but one that’s resonated with me for decades. I’m not even sure where I first heard it, but it’s become part of who I am and how I approach life. Long before Blue Gypsy. Long before I was speaking at conferences or teaching classes. Before I ever became an Online Sales Counselor. It’s a mindset I’ve carried with me from experience to experience…country to country. I learned it years ago while traveling the world. Every place I visited…
-
We live in a business world that often rewards the illusion of perfection. You’ve seen it. Polished LinkedIn profiles, shiny headshots, carefully curated captions that make it look like everyone’s got it together all the time. (I mean check, check, check I have all those things going on!) It’s like we’re all somehow superheroes in blazers…well not me, I don’t think I own a blazer. It seems like we are dodging failure, fear, and insecurity with a winning smile and our own business taglines and philosophies. But let’s get real…
-
Let’s talk about something not often discussed in professional circles, but very real for so many of us, especially those of us who seem like we’ve got it all together on the outside. High-functioning depression. It sounds like a contradiction, doesn’t it? Functioning. Depressed. But it’s not. Is it a clinical term? No probably not. (Well definitely not…I looked it up!) What does it mean? It means showing up to work, meeting deadlines, staying upbeat in meetings, helping others, being productive, and all the while, carrying a quiet, heavy weight…
-
I remember the first time I used AI to help me write and organize something. It was June 2023, and I was finally thinking seriously about putting my house on the water in Virginia onto the short-term rental market. My dad and I bought this house while I was still working on wooden schooners, and it was my place to go between boat jobs. Up to this point, I was an expert at couch surfing. Later it became my peaceful retreat, and I even lived there the first year I…
-
Let’s pick up where we left off. In Part 1, we explored the idea that we naturally value what we prioritize. Our calendars, to-do lists, and mental energy are often the truest indicators of what really matters to us. But if that’s true… what happens when we feel like we’re stuck between two values? Welcome to the tug-of-war between professional growth and work-life balance. This is one of the most common internal battles people across all industries are fighting quietly, every day. Two Good Things, One Big Tension “I want…
-
Lately, I’ve swapped my mindless Facebook scrolling for something a little more intentional, LinkedIn. Fewer ads, more inspiration, and the chance to connect with friends and colleagues in the industry. So when I came across a post from Morgan Lurz, President of Cannonball Moments, I had to stop the scroll. She wrote: “Forget work-life balance—what we truly value is what we prioritize. I’ve been knee-deep in interviews lately, and nearly every candidate brings up that elusive ‘balance.’ But here’s the truth: balance is a myth. Progress happens when we go…
-
In face-to-face communication, body language accounts for a significant portion of how we understand each other. According to one of the most often-cited (though frequently misunderstood) studies by Dr. Albert Mehrabian, communication is broken down like this when expressing feelings or attitudes: 7% is the actual words spoken 38% is the tone of voice 55% is body language (facial expressions, gestures, posture, etc.) Now, important context here: those numbers apply only when a person is communicating emotions or attitudes, not all forms of communication. If you’re giving directions to…
-
Thanksgiving is just a couple of days away. It’s a good time to remember the importance of gratitude—not just for the food and fun… and hopefully days off, but for the people who make our journey meaningful. At Blue Gypsy Inc., Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the abundance in our lives: the opportunities we’ve embraced, the challenges that have made us stronger, and the partnerships that continue to inspire us. Gratitude is at the heart of what we do. It fuels our purpose to help Online Sales Counselors…
-
You may or may not have noticed that I didn’t create any new blog posts in October or November… for those of you who follow me on LinkedIn or social media, you know I lost one of my greatest mentors at the beginning of October. My father. From an early age, my dad taught me the value of hard work, perseverance, and kindness. He led by example, demonstrating the importance of integrity in everything we do. His unwavering support and encouragement gave me the confidence to pursue my dreams and…
-
Marketing, sales, and online sales are all on the same team. We need to put that into practice, especially when it’s easy to slip into a scarcity mindset. Recently I heard two different stories that inspired this blog post. One was of someone at leadership level disparaging OSCs and what they do…because numbers are down. The other was of salespeople disparaging OSCs and what they are doing…because numbers are down! In the first case, I don’t have access to current numbers, but in general if this sentiment is coming from…
Goals For The New Year – They Might Surprise You
So here we are almost the last day of 2011. Blue Gypsy Inc has nearly completed it’s 2nd year of existence and through hard work, top notch service and dedication we’ve doubled the gross income of the company and pleased many clients throughout the year. But the blog for Blue Gypsy Inc has taken a hit, as has the twitter feed. Which is somewhat ironic since we’ve probably put out an average of about 2000…
Thankful for The Amazing Blue Gypsy Road
What are you Thankful for? These are the days when we start asking this question. Just before thanksgiving between the craziness of the holidays we begin to ask ourselves what are we thankful for. I am so thankful that in less than two years time I’ve been able to build Blue Gypsy Inc into a thriving business with amazing clients who respect me as much as I respect them. As a gypsy wanderer it was…
Steve Jobs: Words To Live and Work By
Steve Jobs was an innovator and a visionary. He pushed the envelope and strove for excellence in everything he did in his short yet amazingly productive life. If we could all strive to be the best at what we do in life, in our work, with our family we will be lucky and full filled. The following are quotes from Steve Jobs to help inspire in many areas of our lives. On this sad day…
Balance: Work and Life
When you work in front of computer all day, and you own your own business, the tendency is to work to fatigue. At least that’s what I do. There is always something that needs to get done, and there seem to not be enough hours in the day to get it all done. At some point, you, have to step back and say, it isn’t all going to get done today. Set reasonable expectations for…
TED Talks: What Does It Feel Like To Be Wrong?
What does it feel like to be wrong? We can all learn from Kathyrn Schulz on being wrong in this TED Talk. If you’ve never visited the TED Talks site you are missing out. These talks expand your mind, make you think, and help you become a stronger individual both in your personal and your professional life. If you take 20 minutes a day to listen to a random TED Talk I’m sure it will…
Thousand Crane Project: Touching The World Through Ripple Effect
Have you ever heard about the Legend of 1000 origami paper cranes? Ancient Japanese folklore promises to grant a single wish to anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes. Well yesterday I came across the fan page, Thousand Paper Crane Project. Rich Greenhagen, a resident of Virginia Beach, has a unique goal. He’s folding 1000 paper cranes to spread love around the world. It started out as a poem, then became a story and then…
A Soldier’s Silent Night: How To Get Involved During The Holidays
I love this time of year. It’s pretty to drive down night streets and see lights and colors aglow. There’s the smell of cinnamon, spice, evergreen and woodsmoke in the air. Visions of fires in the fire place and chestnuts roasting take me back to my childhood. People are a little bit nicer as you smile and chat with strangers in stores. More bells appear to mark your entrance into shops and homes. Winter scenes…
Pay it Forward: Random Acts of Kindness and Deliberate Acts of Kindness
Hey folks did you get the invitation? It’s circulating around Facebook and it’s about Pay it Forward day. If you haven’t seen the movie it will make you cry! And then it will make you think why don’t more people do this kind of thing on a daily basis. What a better world we’d live in. I need your help paying it forward today. Every year there is a Dream Home giveaway in Hampton Roads…
What Level Do You Live On?
As we wind down the year, and especially during this season of giving, not only is it a great time to take stock of how we met our goals on a business level, but also on a personal level. It’s also the time of year to be calibrating those goals for next year. It’s important to set both business goals and personal goals. But sometimes it’s hard to decide or understand the importance of what…
Epic Change: Small Donations Create Cumulative Effects In The World
I can’t believe it was just one year ago that I was arranging Tweetsgiving in Virginia Beach with my friends Sonya Schweitzer and Karen Clements at Gordon Biersch. It was a wonderful evening of positive energy for an amazing cause to help build schools in Africa through Epic Change, a 501 (c) 3 organization, while giving thanks for all the things we have in life. I’m grateful that we were able to be a part…