I'm focused, driven, and persistent. I get so focused, I sometimes run out of the house wearing the same color from shoes to cap... I notice but am not easily distracted! Sometimes, I get a haircut a month or more after I need one.  The typical entrepreneur maybe? A friend graciously used the word "passionate". So guess what... all that makes me prone to making mistakes -- particularly under pressure and moving too fast.

When you are trying to make something happen, there is always a certain amount of horsetrading involved. Unfortunately, my natural talents don't include diplomacy -- the right words just don't come naturally to me. In fact, even in the best of times, I rub many people the wrong way. I've lost partners for this reason. I also lost a friend once.  The fact is, I make mistakes.

We are constantly blasted by negative messages today and if you run a business or if you've been laid off or had your salary cut, you're experiencing changes that confirm the talk.

Anxiety is a natural consequence of all this. Is anxiety or fear helpful? If these emotions are on display in your next job interview or for your team at work, they are likely to cause you to stumble badly. Here's a timely reminder from the Career Encouragement Blog:

Had an interesting conversation with Mike O'Brien and Nick Jimenez at climber.com a few days ago and when I asked them how I can improve my blog, they said 'transparency'.  They wanted to know why I blog -- so here it is:

Why do I blog?

This is a view from our balcony of the morning sun on the front range. We moved to Boulder Colorado last year from Florida after seeing my health deteriorate steadily for about five years. The move itself was so difficult that I got much sicker and practically stayed in bed for three months. Since I know people are curious and I want everyone to know I don't have anything life threatening, I'll try to explain a little more about my illness and show you some more pictures of Boulder.

The greatest wealth is health. ~Virgil

This is a difficult topic for me to write about. I’ve been dogged by health problems since my second daughter was born four and a half years ago. But for a number of reasons I’ve said little about my struggles to the LatPro team.

I especially enjoy sports and coaching movies because they often provide a great metaphor for business life whether you are in the job board business or any other. Here's a list of the ones I've enjoyed with some other types mixed in:

Coach Carter

When I watched 'The Secret' DVD I couldn't recommend it enough. I picked it up because it was mentioned by Verne Harnish of www.gazelles.com. Then in a blog about The Secret, I noticed it features Jack Canfield who's another of my favorite gurus. That sealed the deal for me and I ordered it online.

But, it turns out the creator is a scam artist who apparently took advantage of the people who helped her make the movie.  Truly a shame.

in addition to favorite movies, here are books that I like or have found useful:

buddhism

• the miracle of mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
• training the mind: and cultivating loving-kindness by Chogyam Trungpa
• true meditation by Adyashanti
• the wisdom of no escape: and the path of loving kindness by Pema Chodron

business

• $1,000 and an idea: entrepreneur to billionaire by Sam Wyly
• built to last by Jim Collins
• don't shoot the dog, the new art of teaching and training by Karen Pryor