Is my life’s pursuit of great storytelling now defunct, cast into the bin of “that used to be a good idea?” I ask this because the word Storytelling is now everywhere, used for all kinds of reasons, and thus makes me ask: has the word lost its meaning like so many other C.R.A.P. words out there? (Keep reading [...]
Last week my husband took his camera on an image-seeking adventure across the plains. Since starting his full-time gig as a professional photographer earlier this year, he’s experienced a full range of highs and lows. On the best days, he’s exhilarated by the hunt for a new vista, proud of a sharp and well-composed image, and uplifted [...]
While you couldn’t say my father was on the quiet side, he wasn’t the type to make small talk about the weather. Instead, he spoke when he had something to say. Although, he did have a few “somethings” that he like to repeat, over and over through the years, his Dad Maxims: Measure twice, cut once. [...]
Earlier this month on a cold rainy Sunday, my husband and I were out “glamping.” Our RV is well-stocked with diversions to keep us occupied on just such a day. I read for awhile, took a short nap, then pulled out a bulging box of art supplies to try my hand at watercolor. I’ve become a [...]
Playing Waiting Games I’ve been a little obsessed with the idea of waiting, the joys and pains of it. Expectation and anticipation are a form of waiting that offer an element of surprise, a hint of ooh, this is exciting. Other forms of waiting just suck. Waiting for events over which we have no control, like a [...]
Whenever I tell people what I do for a living—helping people bring storytelling and creativity into the workplace—I’m met with immediate interest. “Wow! Cool! That sounds like so much fun.” It is! And not just fun, but useful. The ability to craft and tell a good story is oh-so-valuable to any business. My livelihood depends on [...]
How To Be Creative is a theme that surfaces again and again when I sit down to write. Not because people flock to me asking, “Oh Beth, you creative wizard, will you please publish your wisdom?!” Nope, that’s not the spark that lights my blog-posting flame. Most of the time, my creativity-focused posts begin from a [...]
Each holiday, my wife puts out HoliDog. This cute little bit of fluff gets gussied up depending on the holiday. Last month it was a pumpkin for Halloween. This month it will get a Santa's hat and a red bowtie. You know you're at our house when HoliDog greets you at the front door. I love seeing [...]
Video. When I watch myself in a video it's sort of an out-of-body experience; is that really me on the screen? Do I look like that? Why do I keep doing that weird thing with my eyebrows? We are forever critical of ourselves and our presentation to the public. So many of our students are nervous [...]
As the holidays approach, I’m refining a new party trick. Let me try it on you, right now. “I bet I can guess the slide headlines on your most recent presentation.” “No way,” you say. “You don’t even know what I do for a living. You don’t know who was in my audience, and you have [...]