– Jane
· · · Jane’s Thread · · ·
What’s Your Vision for 2017?
Since late February I've been meeting with two other people bi-weekly as a Visions Team. We follow a tight format with 3 timed segments--reading our Vision Statement out loud first, then the longest round with these questions in mind: What have you done since the...
Bring Back the Old Days!
This post isn't about the election results, although that's an underlying contributor to my angst these days. I wanted to share my frustration--and echo yours, I'm sure--with a virtual conversation I had this afternoon while trying to consolidate my email...
Even Stephen Sondheim and Hal Prince Can Fail…and Rise Again
As I begin sending out query letters to agents to propose my memoir for publication, I take heart hearing tales of others’ artistic projects. The other night, based on a rave review by my sister, I went to see BEST WORST THING THAT EVER COULD HAVE HAPPENED, a film...
My Friend Jen Olbrys – The Goddess of Granola
When Jen Olbrys told me that one of the stores selling her granola called with a complaint, I remembered back to my early days of wholesaling my eggshell jewelry and hearing a criticism from a vendor. “We’ve taken it off the shelf until it’s resolved,” the shop’s...
A New Sink and the Universe
"It's amazing what a sink will do!" I blurted out to my Visions Group on Wednesday when we met. Two weeks before, at our last session, I had described what happened with my purchase of a new vanity and its installation. My contractor had under-estimated the scope...
Demystifying Podcasts
A woman in her late 70's or 80's, from a highly regarded national publication, was seated to my left at the Women's Media Group lunch event this week. The topic of the hour was: The Future of Media is Podcasting. There was an exceptional panel of women qualified to...
Reject Me, I Love It!
A colleague of mine in NSA wrote a book with this title back in the late 90's. I'm reminded of it every time I receive a rejection. What is it I'm supposed to love about this, I wonder. I had the opportunity to raise the question last week when I got rejected by a...
Who Wants to Listen to This?
The first draft of my memoir is complete! Thanks to my accountability partner, my visions group and a third support team (it does take a village), I sent off 275 pages to a local print house so that I can distribute hard copies to a handful of first readers. I'm...
When to Join a Mastermind Group
I just got off the phone with one of my most favorite clients who told me that she wants to lead a mastermind group of her own. "It's been life-altering for me. I want to do that for other people as well." Not that I needed reminding of why I love working with...
Lesson Learned While Sight-Seeing Yesterday
I'm going to keep this post anonymous and simply mention that I visited a good friend yesterday in Beacon, NY, a scenic spot where the fabulous DIA Museum is the main jewel. Our purpose was to spend time together and take in some art. After a nourishing catch-up...
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to My Networking Event
It’s not everyday you get to see a presidential motorcade. I hadn’t planned to yesterday, but en route to attend a lunch with an organization I just joined, the Women’s Media Group, I stumbled upon Obama’s visit to the UN. I’d gotten off the N train at 49th and 7th...
What I Learned at the Movie Theater This Week
I didn't know when I met Dave at the multiplex on Monday that I'd get a blog post out of it. As I normally do, I charged my ticket so that I'd have a receipt in order to claim the deduction. I saw his raised eyebrow and explained that when I'm in a learning...
Working with Ken Nelson – My Next Retreat
If I had any doubt as to why I had selected Ken Nelson to co-lead a retreat with me this November, he quickly and naturally provided a perfect reminder. "Would you like to have a cup of tea, sit outside, and get settled before we begin the planning?" he asked when...
Ready to Begin a New “Semester?”
How many times have you moved that to-do on your list, catalog clipping, or invitation to deal with at another time? With the hurricane-like weather prediction and lots of catching up to do after a really delightful time with family, I cleared my desk today,...
A Darling Killed
I had my final memoir draft call today with my writing coach. I'd sent her the last 5 chapters to review before she gets married next week. It went well, even when she asked me to cut one of my favorite episodes. Faulkner is the one who initially stated, "In...