Halloween used to be one of, if not my favorite holidays.  Costumes, parties, piles of candy not normally allowed in the house (Choco-Lites were the best!), collecting pennies in my orange UNICEF box… As a young adult it became more about creating unique/clever ensembles from thrift stores or scratch, then later marching in the Village Parade years before it became the monstrosity (pun intended) it is today.  No matter what, it was always good clean fun.

The past several years, at least in NYC, there’s been an explosion of Halloween hacks (pun again intended).  Like so many other things, it’s been commercialized ad nausea with store bought costumes (a Ricky’s on every corner it seems), mostly slutty versions of professions, or zombies, and an excuse to blackout from drinking instead of it being an opportunity for creativity, imagination and humor.

There used to be a small crop of horror flicks that came out around this time (and a few in the summer) with fellas named Michael, Freddy, Jason and Chucky; now it’s year round vampires, witches, werewolves, haunted houses and a host of other things that are sick, twisted and go more than bump in the night, on TV/cable as well as the big screen, not to mention video games that take violence in general to a whole other level – all of which further desensitizes us to brutal attacks both at home and abroad.

What if instead we took the best of the other holiday seasons (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine’s, Fourth of July even!) with as many secular feel-good themes and positive sentiments that abound and spread that 24/7?  There’s enough negativity and fear to deal with in the reality of our everyday lives, so wouldn’t it be nice to bombard ourselves year-round with the uplifting and leave the scary/slasher stuff to just a few weeks prior to October 31?

The good news is you have a choice in what you let sink into your brain cells. I choose to acknowledge the dark side yet turn the other way, put on some shades and counteract the sinister with sunshine and hope that reflects back to make a brighter, lighter world, at least in my neck of the woods.

Need a one-way ticket out of Spookytown to experience a more ‘normal’ type of activity in and around your abode?  I’m not a Stranger and won’t make you Scream, so give me a buzz and I’ll help you gain the confidence you need to take on any trick and enjoy plenty of treats instead!

P.S. For related thoughts on this topic, check out these posts: Fear Factor; Wherever You Go, There You Are; Your Epidermis is Showing 

Whether you think we are living in the best of times or the worst, they certainly are interesting times.

I assure you that I am very much part of the 99% being represented in Zuccotti Park, and now all around the world. I stand with the Occupy Wall Street movement in so far as it is protesting greed and corruption, which is a misuse of power in the area of money; but it’s important to remember that money itself did not cause the problem.     

Fighting to bring justice to those who have gotten away with crime and to help those who are suffering because of it is one thing; hating all people who have money, even those that earned it with integrity and hard work does not make sense.  It doesn’t even make sense to hate the system that allowed it to happen; it’s people that abused and twisted the system to their advantage.    

I love money.  It took me a long time to understand and be comfortable saying that because of all the connotations, including the school of thought that espouses “money is evil” and “rich people are bad”.  But I know I have my priorities straight and I’ve come to see money as something I strive to have a healthy and balanced relationship with; therefore if I want to have more of it, I have to love and respect it so it can treat me right.  If I hated money, why would money come into my life?   

I also know that money isn’t the end, it’s simply the means, and I’ve only ever given it a supporting role status in life, never the be-all, end-all of my existence. (Just ask my friends and family who have witnessed my journey these past ten years…!) Money is an energy and just like any other type of energy, it’s how you use it that counts.  I am still learning, but because of the choices I have made and the extremes I have experienced, I have come to a Zen place with it at least for now.

The necessity of money in our lives is a reality that is not going away anytime soon, if ever, and changing the ways in which we exchange goods and services or govern ourselves won’t make much of a difference if people themselves don’t change.

As I say in all my seminars, at the end of the day you need to define what prosperity means for you in all aspects of life.  You must know that you are not your bank account and your self-worth and happiness are not determined by your salary or your stuff. 

Wondering how you can get from being a have-not to a having a life that is affluent in mind, body and spirit?  Give me a buzz and I’ll help you go from rags to riches, pauper to prince(ss), creating an earthly experience filled with purpose and meaning that surpasses all the Great Expectations you could ever have!

P.S. For related thoughts on this topic, check out these posts:  Money Makes the World Go Round, Changing of the Guard; Work It 

P.P.S. Last week I was featured last week in a column in the Huffington Post, check it out here!

“And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”  ~ Steve Jobs

Back in 2001, I visited a tech writer friend in San Francisco. He had a clunky gizmo about the size of a small hardcover book which he called an electronic jukebox; it allowed him to carry around and play his entire record collection on demand.  I was blown away.  Who knew that just a few years later I would own one myself,  only mine was sleeker, smaller and held even more songs?

I’m a PC, but one of my most essential possessions is my iPod, and Steve Jobs’ 2005 commencement speech brilliantly articulates my understanding of life and how I try to express that through my own work and existence. Heeding his heart and intuition from an early age, combined with his intelligence and curiosity, allowed Steve Jobs to become the incredible innovator and visionary that he was. And because of it I’m sure there were many people along the way that thought he was a little coo-coo for Cocoa Puffs.

Last week the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize  went to three women, one of which was Leymah Gbowee.  Featured in the film Pray the Devil Back to Hell, Leymah was the main force behind the courageous movement that brought Liberia back to civilization and sanity in the midst of a barbaric civil war. She listened to her heart and intuition and then strategically called upon the united and unique position of women within the culture, the power of prayer and sheer will to transform a nation engulfed by darkness. Throughout the non-violent campaign she used innovative tactics that appeared crazy to many.  When I watched the film, I knew I was witnessing a modern day miracle; I was blown away. 

Yesterday’s holiday was named for an Italian fellow named Christopher Columbus who in 1492 not only had the guts to assert his belief the world was round and new lands were yet to be explored, but to actually go out and prove it.  Many thought he was insane to set sail into the unknown; even his native country would not fund his so-called folly.  But because he had the courage of his conviction supported by faith and reason to guide him, he literally opened up the world for humanity to discover each other; for better or for worse, things have never been the same. When I think about what it took to make that journey, I am blown away.

We never would have survived or evolved beyond the caveman era without the brave men and women like these who have stayed hungry and foolish throughout history. Because when you allow your passion and talent to be guided by a mind which receives direction from your heart, you can create something, be someone or do something extraordinary.   

Feeling a little too satiated and serious these days?  Give me a buzz, and I will help whet your appetite for life and discern whether the direction you’re going in and the ideas that you have are more of a wild goose chase or the kind that will one day blow me away!

P.S. For related thoughts on this topic, check out these posts: Just Go With It,  Leap of Faith, and One Day at a Time.

Age is all imagination. Ignore years and they’ll ignore you. – Ella Wheeler Wilcox

I’m one of those people who doesn’t remember how old she is.  Because 1. it’s irrelevant and 2. I honestly feel like I’m 25 (I’m not).  I believe this is the main reason others often assume I am much younger than my birth certificate would state, and I recently came across a greeting card that perfectly expressed this phenomena which read: “How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?”

I like to think of myself as ageless and timeless, but my brain will do a double take every now and then when I find out the numbers of people around me (whose age when you originally met them you think they somehow still are, even though 14 years have passed) or when I hear that famous folks the likes of Beyonce, Britney, Paris and Justin are all turning 30 this year, and about Sting, who just turned 60?! But then again, 60 is the new 40…

And then there’s my Mom, who will be celebrating her 66th revolution around the sun next Monday, but who has been experiencing the adolescence and early adulthood she never had, which began a few years after becoming single again at the age of 51 when my father passed away.   She is out at her clubs most Friday, Saturday AND Sunday nights, dancing and flirting into the wee hours of the morning.  She does online dating (several sites), has oodles of admirers (many younger than her) and a gang of giggly girlfriends (mostly around her age) to have fun with and gossip about it all. Really, I’m not exaggerating. My friends are in awe… 

I was recently invited to two fancy shindigs honoring and almost exclusively attended by men and women in their “third acts.” It made me reflect on how I’ve lived my life so far and reminded me that vitality at any age is always about how you take care of and feel about yourself, and re-enforced my trademark admonishment to make the most of the time and energy you have while you have it.

Abraham Lincoln once said “And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”  So I say who cares about the number?!  Just embrace wherever you’re at and let your enthusiasm for living make you glow.  Not feeling like you’re getting the best bang for your mind, body and spirit’s buck?  Give me a buzz and I’ll help you make the most of the years you’ve got, no matter how many you’ve already left behind!