I just returned from a weekend in Las Vegas for the Barbra Streisand concert. She is, and has been since I was a teenager, my favorite musical artist. I missed her concert once when my kids were small because I couldn’t afford the ticket price. I promised myself that if she came out on tour again, I would do whatever I could to get a ticket and attend. I was able to see her about four years ago in Las Vegas, but it was nothing compared to this weekend. This time, her voice touched my soul. I have never listened to someone and just the voice makes my eyes start leaking. Lyrics have done that to me, but not just the voice. While the ticket price was really high and I can see how it is prohibitive for some, I am so happy that I was able to attend and once again mark it off my bucket list.

Who is your “must see” artist? Have you seen them yet? While I actually believe that some artists take advantage of their popularity by ridiculous ticket prices which many people cannot afford to pay, I think it is important to support the arts–the music, the plays, the concerts. To me, it is a shame that some schools are doing away with classes in the arts such as band and chorus in favor of sports events. With grandchildren in high school sports, I realize those are important too, but I don’t believe it is MORE important than those kids who choose to play clarinet instead of playing baseball.

If you have not been to a Broadway musical in your hometown, you need to do it at least once. Watching people who are doing what they love and are passionate about in the name of entertaining me is a wonderful experience that I love. If you can’t afford the local Broadway series, attend a musical or play by another local group. If that is still pricey for you, our local high schools have plays and musicals every year or so at an unbelievably reasonable price, so perhaps schools near you do the same. Check the internet as venues and schools all have webpages that should have that information.

There are also local symphony concerts, ballets, operas, choral concerts, band and orchestra concerts, and other arts events through local organizations (like the Phoenix Symphony) or high schools. Get out there and support the arts. It is an evening spent helping others see the fruits of their passions and helping you relax by listening or watching the arts in action. That sounds like a win-win to me!

Have you ever heard the saying “If you’re smarter than everyone in the room, you’re in the wrong room”? It’s one of my favorites because it reminds me that I need to be around people who can teach me.

I’ve known a few people in my life who think they have nothing left to learn. I can’t imagine any time at which that would be true. It just isn’t. There is ALWAYS something you can learn. Even if you’re an expert, there will be something that changes or something that you didn’t completely understand at some point. And you should learn it.

Learning isn’t always about opening a book and studying or sitting for an exam or taking a class, it is watching how other people do things–including how they do the same tasks that you do but they do it differently. It is talking to people in your chosen career field about how they got there, what keeps them there, and what they’ve gotten out of it. It is reading what comes in and goes out of your company. It is keeping an open mind and really listening to people exchange ideas. You may not always agree with them, but you can usually get information you didn’t have before or learn something you didn’t know before.

In my professional association, I often hear people say they aren’t going to attend a certain educational session because it doesn’t pertain to the work they are doing   The problem with that kind of thinking is that you may not always have the same job you have now or you may not continue to do the same tasks in the job you’re doing now. In addition, you never know what tidbit you will pick up from a “totally unrelated” topic that will help you in your work now or a contact that you make or material you get that will help you with some task at your current job.

So hang out with people smarter than you. Regardless of what you think, I’m pretty sure that list is long. You don’t know them all yet, but they’re out there. Don’t ever think you’re the smartest person in the room and don’t ever discount learning. It is invaluable to your skill in your chosen profession and to your standing as an intelligent human being. You never know it all, so make a plan to learn — constantly!

Every human–and I mean every one–deserves respect. They can destroy that and have it taken away, but for the most part, they deserve it just for being part of the human race.

You can’t treat people that you perceive as beneath you as if they don’t deserve the very same respect you demand from those around you. The person cleaning the glass door that you just grabbed with five of your fingers instead of grabbing the handle deserves your respect for keeping that door clean of everyone’s (including yours!) fingerprints.

As I was walking into my office building this morning, I noticed something interesting. First, I put my phone away and was walking with my head up (shocking, I know!). Second, one of the building’s cleaning people was out picking up litter and cleaning the glass doors of our building. She looked up at everyone and smiled. The woman in front of  me was face first in her cell phone, so when the cleaning woman started to say “good morning,” she realized she was being completely ignored and stopped. I was right behind, looked her in the eye, smiled, and answered her “good morning” with my own. Just as the woman ahead of me was going to go to her desk to get her day started, the woman pushing the garbage can and smiling at everyone had already gotten her day started. They may do different tasks, but they are both on the same mission–get their job done to the best of their ability. That demands respect.

Our building also houses a lot of military personnel. I think there is an enrollment center there. They are always very friendly, but only travel a couple of floors, but most of them still say “have a good day” or some other kind of greeting. Plus they are working at their jobs to protect the freedoms I take for granted. That demands respect.

Well-behaved children in shopping carts trying to make eye contact or smile at strangers (probably completely ignoring their mother’s admonition not to talk to strangers) are interesting to watch. They smile at everyone hoping to get a smile back or a quick conversation. When you do smile back, some of them will giggle or say “hello.” Even they command respect.

Respect for another person is not difficult to give them. Treat them as your equal or, better yet, as your superior, look at them with your full attention, say something to them in passing, and move on. Do not ignore them or keep your head buried in your cell phone.

One of my greatest fears for my grandchildren is that they will lose the skill of dealing with human contact. All of their communication is through their phone, on Facebook, on Instagram, on Snapchat, or on whatever is the biggest and best newest social media network. They play games with other people–on the computer or television screen with a headphone set talking to them. They don’t even go into stores anymore because they can get everything on Amazon. They don’t have the opportunity to look at a stranger and smile and that is really unfortunate. I’m afraid of how they will deal with their boss once they are in the working force. I’m afraid of them losing their smile muscle from disuse. I’m afraid that they will never know the joy of sharing your smile with a complete stranger and getting theirs in return.

So the next time you are walking into your office building, or are at a store, restaurant, or bar, or just generally out in public, put your phone away, pull your head up so everyone can see how very beautiful you are, and smile at strangers. Better yet, if you see the cleaning person making sure your office building always sparkles, tell them thank you!

You’re either a pet person or not. If you are, you’re usually either a dog person or a cat person. We are dog people plus.

I’ve had a dog nearly my whole life. And they have each had a special place in my heart. They were each amazing in their own way and they were each very different. Each time we’ve lost a dog, we swear we won’t get another one–and then we do. And now we have two. My husband is a softie and a friend of his usually has dogs that people have dumped near his property in the outlying area of Phoenix. We went “just to look.” My first clue that we weren’t just “looking” was stopping at PetsMart on the way and buying a kennel, a lead, and a collar. That just doesn’t scream “looking” to me. So we brought that dog home. We have since added another rescue dog. I’m not quite sure how someone could have given this dog away because she is the sweetest dog we’ve had.

We have also ended up with two parakeets. They may have names, but they “belong” to my husband. I just feed and water them. I vaguely recall him calling them Ben & Jerry (but I try to block that so it doesn’t make me think of ice cream).

And finally, we have a African grey parrot. This is truly an interesting experience. She is sweet (if she likes you) and can be a little mean (if she doesn’t), but she is an amazing bird. She does talk and says things like “wanna go outside” (to harass the dogs), “time for night night,” “give me a kiss,” and “thank you” when you do. My husband is working feverishly to get her to say “Corvette,” but she’s not budging on that one yet.

As crazy as it gets sometimes worrying about pets and making arrangements when you want to go out of town, the unconditional love received from each one of them makes it worth it. They, of course, do have things that make me crazy–like when Libby escapes and we have to chase her down, or when Ruby chews up every piece of Post-It notes she can find, or when Smokey barks like one of the dogs is outside when we think they are inside, or when the parakeets screech to remind me they need water–but all in all, they are way easier to take care of than most living things, like children.

They each of their very own distinct personality and they each are very much a part of our family.

It is hard when you’re in the midst of a weather emergency to be thankful for the outdoors (which naturally includes weather). I was “trapped” at home this morning because the washes in my neighborhood were running, so I couldn’t drive through them to get to the freeway. Well I actually COULD have, but then you would have seen me on the news with the byline “Stupid Motorist Law.” No thank you! It is a problem when it rains a lot on the Superstition Mountains, but that doesn’t happen very often.

I did go outside while the washes were running to take a video for my husband, who has engineered some kind of flood control that he keeps tinkering with, so I could show him that it seemed to be working. I could hear and see the washes on two sides of the house rushing by and pretty full, but the yard was fairly dry. SUCCESS! But while I was out there thinking about the damage that the rain could (and does) do, I couldn’t help but think it is rain! Arizona needs rain. We don’t always need it all at once like we get it during our monsoon, but we do need it. It is the rain that helps the desert plants continue to grow and blossom beautifully each year. The rain helps keep our lakes and rivers full so fish can live to be caught by a recreational fisherman or a child on their first fishing trip.

And then there is a rainbow. A true beautiful miracle. Rainbows can mean something special to each person. When I was recently in Albuquerque, I saw double rainbows. What a treat! It was beautiful!

When the sun is shining, that is something to be thankful for too. The sun helps plants grow and give us our necessary Vitamin D. It also creates the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets day after day.

Once the sun goes down, and after some of the amazing sunsets we have here, the moon rises and the stars come out. I’m really lucky to live outside of the city, so with not so many street and house lights, we are able to actually see tons of the stars–and they are beautiful!

So when you have a chance to enjoy the outdoors and your weather, slow down and enjoy it. Nature is something we have absolutely no control over, so our choices are to complain and stress out about it or to do what we can to prepare for it and then relax and enjoy the beauty of it. Relaxing and enjoying nature sounds like so much more fun to me.

They say that before you pick up a phone, you should smile. It makes your voice sound friendlier. I think it also changes your focus away from the work you were doing or the television show you were watching or whatever you were doing when the phone rang to the actual phone call. So now you are sounding friendly and ready for the conversation.

A smile is also usually contagious. Have you ever heard a child laugh and not smiled yourself? It is really hard not to. It’s the same on a crowded elevator or on the street. Practice smiling at people. If they are paying attention and you are able to meet their eye and smile, they usually will smile back. So not only have you given the gift of a smile, but you have received the gift of a smile. And it cost you nothing, but you received something valuable in return.

It’s a little more difficult these days with everyone walking around with their heads down looking at their phones. I’m really guilty of this myself and am making a conscious effort to be better about walking with good posture and looking at other people.

So try an experiment this week and look up and smile and see what kind of reaction you get. Are you willing to do that?

Words are powerful. You can say the same thing in two different ways with completely different reactions. Try to make your words positive. Words can be hurtful–whether you mean them to be or not–so watch how you say what  you want to say.

If you need to have a difficult conversation, think about what you want to say. Don’t just launch off while you are upset. That will only serve to upset everyone. And people tend to turn off their ears and focus on the hurt when they are upset. You can get your point across and be nice at the same time. Then both people leave with the message that they actually heard because you didn’t verbally attack them.

It also means you should use your words to ask for help, give help to others, and build others up. Don’t use your words to bully people.

I saw this video several years ago with one of our keynote speakers at a NALS Conference and rewatch it from time to time. It speaks volumes about the power that words have. Watch it and keep its message in mind the next time you open your mouth and use your words.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpVSeV_V1ug