“How are you?”

“Busy. So busy. Crazy busy.”

Sound familiar? I feel like it’s the refrain of our times – the theme song to the twisted perception that the more we’re juggling, the more we’re on the run, the more we’re scheduled to the millisecond, the better we are. Yet how often do we stop to ask ourselves, “Why am I doing all of this?”

Instead, we approach life reactively. We say yes without thinking, run errands willy-nilly, jump when our devices chime, and take on way more than necessary. But if, like me, you’re on board the S.S. Stop the Madness, it’s time to put an end to busy and a start to productive. And that means getting intentional about what you’re doing and why:

• Reflect and Introspect: To get clear on your intentions, you have to make time to process. For me, that’s walking three miles every morning to mull over what I’m doing and whether it aligns with my priorities: writing (both my business and passion projects), relationships, and well-being (exercise and quiet time).
• Rule of Three: Aim to schedule no more than three key projects/events per day. Maybe that’s work, errands, and date night. Or an outing with your child, a client meeting, and a passion project. (Yes, just three. You can do this.)
• Less Yes, More No: Run every request through the intention filter. Do you want to do this or do you feel obligated? If you want it, is it good for you? If it’s an obligation, is it necessary or just people-pleasing?

There are always things we can’t dismiss (work, family, the ever-diminishing supply of toilet paper). But when we’re clear on our intentions and we act accordingly, we’re not busy – we’re productive. We’re not exhausted – we’re pleasantly spent. And we’re not frantic – we’re fulfilled.

Nicole Christie is a writer, storyteller, and the principal and creative director of NICO, Inc. – a one-woman firm specializing in fresh, honest, engaging employee and marketing communications for Fortune 500 corporations, leading-edge creative firms, and rapidly growing new technology companies. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and at nicolechristie.com.

In an agency with wood paneling and thick draperies reminiscent of twentieth-century office design, a young college graduate finds herself seated at a desk with a Rolodex and an enormous IBM Selectric, typing form letters for hours on end.

Tasked with processing J.D. Salinger’s voluminous fan mail, Joanna reads heart-breaking letters from around the world and grows weary of sending the agency’s form response, so she begins writing back. In doing so, she develops her own humorous voice as a writer.

Joanna Rakoff’s memoir, My Salinger Year, is a tale of self-discovery and a desire for happiness. The book reads like a coming-of-age novel with a protagonist finding her way in the old literary publishing world of New York City before the digital revolution transformed the book publishing industry.

Part of the beauty in Rakoff’s memoir is that her love of reading for pleasure is restored as she sheds her academic approach to literature. She picks up Salinger’s works for the first time and learns to appreciate the effect literature can have on one’s life.

Whether we are experiencing our first job, are mid-career, or are retired, our professional lives as women evoke universal ideas. We learn to cope and thrive and develop a tougher skin. We delicately balance our personal and professional lives and are reminded as Rakoff aptly states in her memoir “in literature, as in life, sometimes there are no right answers.”

Renee believes we all have a story and advocates continuously for sharing & improving these stories. An educator and activist for eradicating inequities in our world, Renee believes access to quality education is a right for everyone. On the C&W blog Renee explores her creative side by offering thoughts on a variety of books from her book a week reading list.

Renee lives in Lexington, Kentucky with her husband and two sons.

Twitter: @renee_boss, Blogger:www.reneeboss.blogspot.com

I close my eyes and imagine myself as a seven year old girl, running barefoot through the backyard grass, my movement a joy. Pausing in the patch of dandelions, I stretch my hands up and over my head slowly reaching back, walking them down the air until I palm the dirt. I find myself in a backbend, today known to me as wheel pose, the world upside down. I breathe deeply then reach my right foot high, flipping myself over.

Things look different.

This season I am moving towards fearlessness and freedom, reaching for inversions in my yoga practice, yearning once again for those afternoons of flipping over freely. Summer has settled in my life, teaching both in the classroom and in the studio paused for a moment as I simply rest on my mat, honoring my own practice. There are many kinks to be worked out, many stuck places to move through, so telling of the places in my life that need work.

As I desire to get back to the root of my practice this season, I am reminded of how important it is to offer up grace. So often my practice manifests itself in my life.

Grace in my practice.

Grace in my everyday.

Caitlin Lore is a storyteller and adventurer. By day she is a junior high English teacher, and by night a Holy Yoga instructor. She also wears the hats of wife, entrepreneur, marriage retreat maker, and aspiring novelist. After a jaunt with endurance racing, she now specializes in yoga for athletes, and restorative yoga seeking to bring soul-care and freedom to those feeling constrained by anxiety, depression, and stress through the avenue of Holy Yoga.

Website: www.caitlinlore.com, Instagram: http://instagram.com/caitlin_lore, Twitter: http://twitter.com/MsLReads

I have a dream to own a business. I’m working on this dream now, and while it’s exciting, I’d be lying if I said that it was all rainbows and butterflies. One of my biggest challenges is loneliness. I am the only one working on my business right now and I’ve entered a new type of work environment in which I can’t turn to a colleague at 5pm on Friday and say, “Hey, let’s grab a glass of wine; we worked hard this week.” I have no one to ask except my cat.

As a result, I have adopted a new habit to help me adapt to my new work environment: podcasts. Podcasts are online radio shows hosted by someone about a specific topic. They can be streamed and downloaded via iTunes, or through an app such as Downcast. Here are my top three favorite podcasts to listen to for motivation, inspiration, and business-know-how. I think you’ll like them, and if you’re a solopreneur like me, then they may help you feel more socially engaged during the workday.

• The Lively Show – After a few years of running her own jewelry business (which she started before graduating college) and doing business consulting on the side, Jess Lively entered into a new phase of life and began to focus on what she called “uppercase-V Values.” These Values are what Jess believes define our life’s intentions and allow us to live a life of joy, peace and uniquely-defined fulfillment both personally and professionally. She interviews guests from all walks of life and business; the theme is that all live in accordance to their values and have gone through great personal transformation to do so. I listen every week to be inspired and reassured that what my goals are possible.

• The Fizzle Show – Three hilarious gentlemen who all make their living in online business created an online community called Fizzle to support budding creative entrepreneurs. Their podcast is free for everyone (you don’t have to be a Fizzle member), and I’ve gotten a lot of value from it. Topics range from how to define and identify an audience, how to build a product, and how to know when to move on from a project that isn’t going the way you had hoped. You come for the business advice but stay for the laughs with this podcast.

• Market Foolery – This podcast focuses on that lovely m-word: money. By wanting to start my own business, I have to be comfortable with the language of money and though I took finance classes in school, they taught me about theory rather than real-life situations. Enter Market Foolery. This podcast is hosted by “fools” who work at Motley Fool, a company that analyzes the stock market and teaches people how to invest better. Market Foolery discusses the top business and investing stories of the day and does so in easy-to-swallow language. These podcasts motivate me to dream big. All companies listed on the S&P or NYSE started out small and likely with the idea of one or two people. If they can do it, why not me one day?

Call me Meghan. As I sit down to introduce myself, I can’t help but wonder why I named my blog, megbollenback.com.   Perhaps it was born out of a moment of rebellion or just a symbol of change and trying something new. To bring you into my world, in Fall 2014 I effectively retired from my corporate career, running operations for a high growth healthcare start-up company. Prior to that, I spent some time working in the hospitality industry. Since the fall, I’ve started my latest journey and adventure as a writer and creative professional in Washington, D.C.  I blog about food, life and am starting to discuss the process I’m going through to intentionally craft a lifestyle and career that I value and find joy in. I’ll be sharing thoughts on that process here at CAKE&WHISKEY and look forward to sharing my perspective on the sweet and spirited side of business.  And honestly, I answer to Meg, too.

Blog: www.megbollenback.com, Facebook: www.facebook.com/megbollenback, Instagram: MegBollenback, Twitter: @megbollenback

When I was a child I was an unbridled dreamer. I didn’t think of winning or losing or pros or cons in my quests of discovery. I simply moved in tandem with my soul.

This was not a selfish period of my life….rather the opposite. I believe our hearts are naturally bent towards others; serving, bringing joy, making someone feel as if they are accepted fully and loved unconditionally when they are with you. And so it was for blue-eyed Megan Wilson.

I dreamed only of harnessing the non-tangibles~ friendship, love, generosity, curiosity and happiness. I giggled for hours with my best friends while painting our fingernails. I bought my first toaster when I was nine years old at a yard sale with my next door neighbor Robbie so we could set up house together. I spent weeks painting a picture to gift to a family member. I sat on the floor in front of my deaf grandmother, letting her soft, wrinkled hands wrap around mine, forming my fingers into the letters of the alphabet so we could talk. I wrote letters to my pen pal in Egypt. I learned recipes so I could bake for my mom. These were my goals. My dreams. Simple, I know. Yet, they filled this girl’s soul to the brim with purpose and joy.

Of late, my heart beats faster, racing to find that place of unbridledness again.

I cherish a business mind. I’m surrounded every day by some of the most creatively charged, highly motivated brains God has on Earth right now. And it’s awe-inspiring. I too have been said to have a business mind. On paper, I guess this is the case. But I really don’t. Not really. I don’t have the fight in me for the win or loss. Because the greater vision means more.

In the midst of building a career, I had forgotten that until someone recently reminded me.

Big things loom on my horizon. Some may play out and others may never fully develop and I’m unphased by the outcome. Because, if I can stay close to my soul~ it tells me to serve, bring joy and create a sense of home for everyone I meet. Everything else is icing on the cake.

I need to get back to those non-tangibles. I want everything I do to not be guided by a fear of losing or anticipation of gaining but for long-term reward that cannot be measured by man. That’s what my heart beats faster for.

The kisses of the wind pull the currents of the ocean back and forth. And on one night not too long ago. the ocean and the wind brought with it a mist. A kiss to my cheeks.  Soon the mist became tiny droplets of rain, which steadily gave over to a downpour. I took shelter under an alcove, large enough only for a small stone bench. And there I sat. And breathed deep the sounds and smells and unexpected treasure life had given me in that night. And my soul was filled.

“There is one spectacle grander than the sea, that is the sky; there is one spectacle grander than the sky, that is the interior of the soul.” ― Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

Without notice, my grandmother moved two states away to help attend to the proper care and recovery of my grandfather. Much to our surprise, he did not make it, but what came out of the 24-hour whirlwind trip to say farewells and support my grandmother is a moment that I will carry in my heart forever.

When embarking on the trip, my grandmother fully expected to return home within a day or two and jump back into normal life. But, three months went by, and during that time she had nothing to wear except her matching jogging suit and sneakers. When it came time for the funeral, my grandmother was torn: she didn’t feel she could honor her husband of nearly 70 years, presenting herself in sneakers.

With the little makeup bag I always keep in my carry-on and some extra help from my dually equipped mom, we set our sights together to pamper my weary grandmother. We offered little touches of affection and together styled a wardrobe to help soothe and renew her confidence.  Gathering our suitcases, we pieced together an outfit.

With my new little one exhausted and strapped to my front in her carrier, I set to work moisturizing, applying, laughing and giggling at the rare girls’ moment the four of us were sharing. Four generations of women loving one another the best we could.

How could a moment of such loss afford the four of us to share something so beautiful? The beauty of the heart, the care of a finger’s stroke across tear riddled cheeks, or the laugh as my little one snuggled on my chest and swayed with my every brush stroke: this is true beauty.

Through a moment’s pause in our daily rush, we can help love another.  Remind that friend, family member, or even a stranger that they matter; it is a gift that ripples in effect. Smiles, unexpected hellos, a hand held, a phone call to remind someone you were thinking of them: this is how beauty is shared.

Grace filled beauty is something I challenge us all to pause and breathe in. These are the moments that take years off your soul and enrich your spirit.

Vanessa Elese is a NY based Emmy Award Winning Celebrity Makeup Artist and Beauty Expert. Vanessa’s most recent work includes Amazon’s “Alpha House”, the highly addictive “Orange is the New Black”-Netflix and Discover’s “Deadly Affairs” working with the ever lovely Susan Lucci. Previously, Vanessa has worked with FX’s hit TV show, “Damages” (Glenn Close and Rose Byrne) and ABC’s “All My Children” helping to manage their conversion to HD-TV, while demonstrating new high-def makeup techniques and products. Additionally, she has had the unique opportunity to work as part of the hilarious and hard working team at Saturday Night Live, a group with multiple Emmy Awards under their belt. While Vanessa continues to work as a full-time makeup artist for a select celebrities as well as television and film, she also maintains a private clientele. Additionally, Vanessa serves as the Executive Producer/Co-Host for a reality makeover pilot and considers it an honor to dedicate her time and energy to Child Crisis Organization of Arizona, a charity near and dear to her heart. Vanessa is featured as a beauty expert in numerous editorial articles, serves as an on-camera beauty/fashion expert as well as her blog, “The Beauty Fairy Diaries”TM. With each of her endeavors, Vanessa focuses her efforts to encourage and nurture a healthy inner beauty before focusing on the exterior. It is her mission to truly ignite women to perceive themselves with grace and beauty

As a younger professional, I was blessed with a number of mentors. I found these women through my involvement in internships, volunteer positions, and professional organizations. These mentors taught me not only how to be a professional, but how to navigate the business world. I’m grateful that now, even as an established professional, new mentors appear in my life just when I need them.

These days, I find myself feeling like a proud mama bird. I’ve had the great privilege of both employing interns from and participating in a formal mentoring program at my alma mater, and this month I will watch four amazing mentees of mine graduate, leave the nest, and move on.

What surprises me most as a mentor is that I learn just as much as I do as a mentee. I have learned that there’s not that much difference between 40 and 20. At 40, I can be as unsure of myself as any 20-year-old, and sometimes these 20-somethings have it way more together than me. By asking questions that stumped me, they taught me that I can’t ease up on my own education. And they reminded me that I have valuable life experiences to share. My mistakes have become their cautionary tales, although I am sure they will all repeat some of them anyway; tis human nature and some lessons have to be learned first-hand. Our relationships have transcended the professional and are now friendships, and I am proud to have had a hand in making these women who they are and who they will become.

Teach something and learn something. Share what you know, and grow as you do.

Tanzi Merritt has made a career out of words. She spent several years working as an academic reference librarian and a community college library director, teaching students how to locate and evaluate information as well as to choose reading materials purely for pleasure. A career shift landed her in the position of sales and marketing coordinator for a technology consulting company, where she translates things written by software engineers into words that the non-developers of the world can understand. In her free time, she sits on a number of nonprofit boards, reads, knits, crafts, listens to (and sometimes makes) music, obsessively watches documentaries, buys art, and frequents lots of local restaurants and craft breweries.

Pinterest: pinterest.com/tanzimerritt

Goodreads: goodreads.com/tanzimerritt

Instagram: tanzimerritt

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/tanzidmerritt

Twitter: @tanzidawn

Traveling over 3,000 kilometers from their home in Pátzcuaro, Alma and Arturo leave behind a comfortable life where lunch often consists of bowls of cubed papaya and mango topped with coconut juice or cotija cheese in exchange for boxes of oatmeal and canned goods from a convenience store. Hope and optimism drive them forward.

The Rivera family treks to the United States in search of a school to provide special services for Maribel, recently injured in an accident. “I wanted her to have the full, long life that every parent promises his or her child by the simple act of bringing that child into the world.”

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez quickly captures your attention, drawing you into the compelling stories of the lives not only of the Rivera family but also of their neighbors in a run-down apartment building in Newark, Delaware. Told in alternating points of view (11 total), the stories of the lives of immigrants from Mexico, Guatemala, Paraguay, Panamá, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Costa Rica unfold throughout the novel. Henriquez weaves the stories together, conveying the experiences of individuals struggling in a new land but also of people caring about other people.

Whether we read fiction to escape life or read to learn about other cultures and ideas, we have an opportunity to listen to the stories of fellow humans through Henriquez’s work.

Renee believes we all have a story and advocates continuously for sharing & improving these stories. An educator and activist for eradicating inequities in our world, Renee believes access to quality education is a right for everyone. On the C&W blog Renee explores her creative side by offering thoughts on a variety of books from her book a week reading list.

Renee lives in Lexington, Kentucky with her husband and two sons.

Twitter: @renee_boss

Blogger:www.reneeboss.blogspot.com

When I approached the 3-month mark with my twins, a period of time that characterized a reasonable maternity leave, it symbolized that I should have been “ready” to go back to work. Yet I was feeling less ready than I ever had.  The twins were my 3rd and 4th children so I knew the tenuous relationship with ‘readiness‘ a mother can have going back to work. This feeling was as bloated, as ‘2X’ as my twin pregnancy.

For each of my returns to work, I had a series of memories of expectations gone awry – naive thinking that proved so off base, it distanced me from reality. I expected my work clothes to magically slip right back on, the baby’s sleep schedule to suddenly lock in place, complicated email threads from prior to my leave to have been solved and tucked away into the ether, important, “mission-critical” stuff to happen from 8-6 to justify precious time away from the baby. The more these things didn’t happen, the more distance I put between me and the rest of the world. I figured I must be alone.

No one talks about these things. These details. These imperfect moments. These instances of expectations gone awry and affective forecasts miscalculated. We talk about them to ourselves, often late at night, when we feel like we and the babies are the only ones – besides robbers, ghosts and monsters awake.

In her beloved TED talk, Brenee Brown reports findings from her research that the people who feel most fulfilled are those who are comfortably vulnerable. If we could admit to these vulnerabilities – the unvarnished truths where we question and laugh at our realities, would we be more fulfilled? If we could rely on the solutions others just like us have devised to balance (juggle) our complicated relationships with work, romance, friendship, body, mind, family, parenting, could we be more engaged in each pursuit?

I’m finding I am. Summer of Sooth is a chance to try it out: to find fulfillment in our shared vulnerabilities and strength in our reliance on the advice and wisdom of our peers in these same admittedly shaky boats.

Kate Niederhoffer founded Sooth two years ago with a desperate, simple need to get advice as she navigated the turbulent waters of returning to work after the births of her third and fourth children (twins). She wasn’t just compelled by her own situation — her background in both social psychology and social media gave her a hunch this was a bigger human problem.

summerofsooth.com

As a creature of habit, a proponent of ritual, and someone with mild OCD tendencies, I’m obsessed with routines. There’s loads of research linking morning routines to success, and it’s fascinating to learn what entrepreneurs and artists do every day to tap their innovative and creative muse (check out this and this).

However, as a solopreneur, I have the luxury of NOT following a routine. At least not one typical for someone with, say, a family or a 9-to-5 job. For many years, I woke up whenever and slept whenever – and for a long time, this worked for me, as I wrote prolifically for clients and passion projects. Then something known as Approaching Middle Age happened and I couldn’t stay up past 11:00 or sleep beyond 7:00. While my body forced me into a morning routine, it was cemented when I got into a relationship with a successful, disciplined musician who rises before dawn (!) to practice.

These days, my morning routine isn’t just key to creating, it’s vital self-care. I love to wake slowly, so I read from bed for a half-hour. Then I make the bed, put my contacts in, brush my teeth, wiggle into workout clothes, and head out the door for a three-mile podcast-narrated walk, followed by a healthy breakfast, before diving into email and deadlines around 9:30.

I’m not one to criticize night owls as I was madly productive by moonlight for decades. But I get pretty jazzed over how much I accomplish – mostly for my well-being – by an hour when I would once have still been asleep. Mornings are when I get centered, move my body, and feed my belly, mind, and soul. As a result, I’m more intentional, creative, and productive. That’s the power of routine – and it’s a gift only I can give myself.

Nicole Christie is a writer, storyteller, and the principal and creative director of NICO, Inc. – a one-woman firm specializing in fresh, honest, engaging employee and marketing communications for Fortune 500 corporations, leading-edge creative firms, and rapidly growing new technology companies. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and at nicolechristie.com.