I’ve been a fan of Gretchen Rubin’s for a long time now, so I was incredibly excited when she began promoting her latest book, Better Than Before, a personal manifesto about a topic I adore: habits. It’s the first book I’ve ever ordered prior to release, other than Harry Potter books. (There is no greater […]
Self Improvement
Identity Crisis: Averted
I chose to write about PURPOSE this month for, well, a purpose. I thought I would need to prepare myself for the feeling that I was losing my current life’s purpose by giving up mommy-time and writing-time in favor of going back to work. I thought this transition, from stay-at-home to working mom, from writer back […]
The Purpose of Practice
As a music teacher, I am regularly told that my subject is less important and more expendable than other “core” subjects such as reading, math and science. Why? Well, because most music students don’t grow up to have careers in music. I question the validity of this point (does that mean Biology and Algebra were […]
Remove Your Appendix
When was the last time you thought about your appendix? Unless you’ve experienced appendicitis, you’ve probably never considered your appendix at all. It’s a completely unnecessary part of your body. It serves no purpose whatsoever. It’s like a fork when you’re eating hot dogs: positioned near the action, but never in use. What else, in […]
Top 10 Reasons To Go On Vacations
What’s the purpose of vacations? I would never have asked myself this question in my twenties. I would have thought it was obvious: you go on vacation to relax. Period. But as I’ve gotten older, and particularly since having a kid, I’ve realized there can be multiple motivations for vacationing. I’ve also learned that everyone […]
Purpose, Simplified
Let’s kick off the PURPOSE-ful month of August by simply defining what it is, and figuring out how to find it. To my mind, finding purpose is the art of asking yourself personal “why” questions; purpose itself lies in the answers to those questions. For example: Purpose: Parenting Question: “Why do I want to be a parent?” The […]