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Welcome to the second issue of Beautiful Layers Magazine! In this issue we bring you lots of yummy fall recipes from Greek yogurt pumpkin muffins (pg. 21 ), to pear jam (pg. 49) and ten ways to upgrade your salad for fall. We’ve also got career advice from a seasoned professional (pg. 13 ), several fall fashion ideas (pg. 17, 23, 53), and a fall playlist to drive along to (pg. 55). Welcome to the second issue of Beautiful Layers Magazine! In this issue we bring you lots of yummy fall recipes from Greek yogurt pumpkin muffins (pg. 21 ), to pear jam (pg. 49) and ten ways to upgrade your salad for fall. We’ve also got career advice from a seasoned professional (pg. 13 ), several fall fashion ideas (pg. 17, 23, 53), and a fall playlist to drive along to (pg. 55).
Citation preview
issue two | fall 2012
Beautiful LayersMAGAZINE
creating a path
nnre
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Welcome to the second issue of Beautiful Layers Magazine! In this issue we bring you lots of yum-my fall recipes from Greek yogurt pumpkin muffins (pg. 21 ), to pear jam (pg. 49) and ten ways to upgrade your salad for fall. We’ve also got career advice from a seasoned professional (pg. 13 ), several fall fashion ideas (pg. 17, 23, 53), and a fall playlist to drive along to (pg. 55).
Happy Reading!
Lorrie Fenn, Editor in Chief, Creative [email protected]
EDITOR’S LETTER
xo Lorrie
c o n t r i b u t o r s
Ashley Perks“The Jam Files”
Erin Roberts“The Curvy Girl’s Fashion Guide”
Kelly Gregorio Pfeif fer
“Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Muffins”
Brandi Gray“Fall Playlist”
Nicole Martin“Top 5 Teas for Fall”
Francine Gingras“What Works for
a Successful and Happy Career”
Nicole’s Photo by Lee Reyes Photography
Beautiful Layers
creating a path
EDITOR IN CHIEFLorrie Fenn
MARKET EDITOR, SALESBrandi Gray
ART DIRECTION AND DESIGNBeautiful Layers Design
FASHION PHOTOGRAPHYJessica Taylor
M A G A Z I N E
c o n t e n t sbeautiful style
beautiful inspiration
Steal This Look - pg. 17-18A Day at Urban Gypsy - pg. 23-45The Curvy Girl’s Fash-ion Guide - pg. 53-54
What Works for a Success-ful and Happy Career - pg. 13, 14, 57, 58Francine’s Top 12 Career Tips - pg. 15Fall Playlist - pg. 55-56
beautiful eatsAutumn Salad - pg. 11-12Top 5 Teas for Fall - pg. 19-20Greek Yogurt Muffins - pg. 21-22The Jam Files - pg. 49, 50, 51
AutumnSALAD
Who says salads are just for summer?
Not us! Add these seasonal toppings to your next salad
for a cozy week-night meal.
PHOTOGRAPHY AND STYLING BY LORRIE FENN
Fresh arugula or dark leafy greens.
Pumpkin Dressing. 1/4 C. pure pumpkin puree, 6 T olive oil, 3 T rice vin-egar, 1 T brown or French mustard, 3 garlic cloves minced, 1/8 t pepper, 1/8 t. salt. Wisk.
Mission figs.
Toasted pecans.
Wild Rice.
Curry Roasted Butternut Squash. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toss 2.5 cups of cubed butternut squash with 1 t. masala curry, 2 T olive oil, and 1 t. sea salt. Roast for 20 minutes or until desired texture.
Fried Goat Cheese. Freeze a 4oz. log of goat cheese for at least 10 minutes. Wisk one egg yolk, set aside. Divide goat cheese into four even pieces; form into patties. Dip goat cheese patties into the egg yolk and dip in a 1/2 c. bowl of seasoned bread crumbs. Heat 4 T vegeta-ble oil in a frying pan on medium. Fry each patty for two minutes on each side.
Beautiful Eats
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I have been blessed to have many teachers over my career, most of which never knew they were teaching. The popular “men-
toring” efforts people formalize to-day didn’t exist much for me but it never precluded me from learning. Most of what we learn, we learn from watching, listening, paying at-tention and then trying things out. So what advice would I give my own daughter? What would I want her to be aware of as she grows into be-ing her own person? The first thing I would tell her is that where you start is not where you end up. I started my career as a Registered
nurse, mostly ICU and today I head global public relations and corpo-rate communications for a publicly traded beauty company…yes, a beauty company. So how does that happen and what have I learned?
Career transitions or I call them “ca-reer takeovers” happen when you let your professional life unfold by following your passion and building on your strengths. As a nurse, I learned that great communication skills are at the basis of great patient care and focus allows you to deliver what’s needed to get the job done. When some-
one’s life becomes a straight line, there is no room for error. Focus and timing is everything. Listen-ing to my patients, asking the right question, being specific and understood and working collaboratively matters in a hospital and everywhere else.
Solid communications trans-late into selling skills, so I moved out of the hospital into the arms of a drug company to become a “detail man”. That term was transitioned into sales rep soon after most com-panies realized that women could
What Works for a Successful and Happy Career
Looking Back
By Francine Gingras
sell. I left nursing, not simply be-cause of the night shift (I could never stay awake past 5am and that’s a problem when you work in ICU) but I was curious to move on and learn something new.
As a sales rep, I learned the impor-tance of “your word” and “your action”. If you say you are going to do something and you do it…people trust you. Trust is the foundation of great relationships and positive relationships are needed to move beyond a certain point. Trust is also what people buy into when they move you up the ladder and it’s what people remember most. Your boss’s will only raise you and your career if they trust you. Say what you mean and mean what you say. No trust = limited movement.
Working hard and then some is what separates you from the oth-ers. Working hard is expected. And the “and then some” is the icing on the cake. It’s what’s your employer is looking for. Just doing your job is not getting you where you want to go unless of course you are happy to stay where you are. Some people are happy to stay put and knowing that, understanding how far you want to go and being happy about that decision is perfectly fine. We don’t all want the same things and thank God for that.
I started to move up the pharma-ceutical ladder and took sales man-agement positions I never believed I was ready for, but those who I worked for saw things differently. It was challenging at times, a constant learning curve but if you are willing to lead where you are plant-ed…good things can and will hap-
pen. There are three types of people in the workplace (same in the world at large). People who make things happen, people who look at others to make things happen and people who don’t even know anything hap-pened. That third category kills any career. We all think of doing great things and some of us actually do them. If you want advancement, you need to be both a thinker and be a doer. Early in your ca-reer you do things. Eventually you get to think about what needs to be done and do them. If this works out well for you and people trust you, eventually you do the big thinking (called strategy) and inspire, moti-vate others to carry out your plan.
Then one day, a challenge (in my case the advent of AIDS drugs) hap-pens and you leap forward in unchartered waters where it’s all gray. No black or white road signs, just a lot of unknown. Unknown territory really means opportunity. I was placed in a role that had not existed before in a category that was fraught with peril and yes people
were dying. Bravery or stupidity? I wasn’t a journalism major or a pro-fessional in public affairs, but none of that prevented me from taking a role as head of public affairs for the company. I was a nurse who could sell and I didn’t let myself or others “pigeon hole” me into one thing or another. Realize that you can re-purpose your skills and expe-rience to do other things. What I did have was a solid foundation of what would be needed (strong com-munication skills, common sense, perseverance and tons of energy) to figure things out and a supportive management that yes…trusted me. It is your cumulative experi-ence and knowledge that pre-pares you. Not just your education or past experience. The sum of all of your parts comes to play in your thirties. Those gray areas are where careers are made and broken.
Faced with unprecedented chal-lenges in dealing with AIDS activ-
Beautiful Inspiration
“There are three types of people in the workplace (same in the world at large). People who make things happen, people who look at others to make things happen and people who don’t even know anything hap-pened.”
Continued on page 57
1. Where You Start is Not Where you End Up.Don’t let the location of where you are today limit where you can go. Job skills and experience can be repurposed into new adventures. Always think about what skills you have, not which ones you don’t have. Follow your passions and build on your strengths.
2. Develop Strong Communications Skills.Your ability to listen, ask the right questions, and use language that is understood and positive is at the basis of anything good happening to you. Communicate of-ten as needed, up, down, sideways internally and exter-nally. Know who needs to hear what and when.
3. Say What you Mean and Mean What you Say.Stand on your word. If you commit to something, do it! At the end of the day, you are only as good as your word. Trust is built form from this simple principle.
4. Work Hard and Then Some.Always do more then what is expected. That’s when you get noticed. You need to be both a thinker and doer.
5. Lead Where You Are.Do your best wherever you are, even if you aren’t happy to be there. Nothing last forever and to be able to lead in any situation bodes well on your abilities and flex-ibility. Don’t be afraid to leap forward in unchartered waters. Careers are made there.
6. Collaborate.You are nothing if you don‘t learn to work with and ask other’s for their help. We live in a society where part-nership is the only way to get anything done. Love to collaborate and love the energy and diversity it brings along.
7. Judgment, Context and Common Sense.It seems simple but sometimes people forget that your instincts have strength and context is critical as it can change your thinking. Who are you talking to and what do they need? This question alone will propel any ca-reer!
8. Change Everything and Change Nothing.Be willing to do adapt to a new world. Embrace change but stay true to yourself. Being your authentic self is easy and natural and it’s what people remember.
9. Simplify the Complex.Complex matters need to be dissected and reassembled in a way that will be understood by all. Those who can do this well… win.
10. Share Your Knowledge and Experience.Don’t keep your knowledge to yourself. People who can share the wealth build better and successful teams. Keeping knowledge to yourself will make you look like a control freak and will limit your possibilities.
11. Perseverance.Persevere until it’s obvious you need to stop. And if you do stop…stop and move on.
12. Having it All…Not all at the Same Time.Except the fact that multi- tasking and being a super women is a short term plan. Except the reality that you can accomplish a great deal more when you focus on fewer things at the same time. You will be better orga-nized, less stressed and more successful. No what you want and know what is non-negotiable in your life.
Francine’s Top 12 Career Tips
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Annie Bromley Riding BootsZappos.com$65.99
Long-Sleeve Plaid OxfordEddie Bauer$29.99
Classic Bootcut JeansNY & Company $49.95
Women’s Perfect V-NeckOld Navy$13.50
Small Silver Hoop EarringsMountain Light Jewelry$36.00
Top 5 Teas for FallNicole Martin
N ow that fall is here, our tastes start to change along with our wardrobe. I’ve started reaching for richer fla-vors and warming spices in my tea-cup. These five teas are definitely
going to be regulars for me this season.
David’s Tea Pumpkin ChaiThis festive and spicy black tea blend goes beyond your normal chai with the comforting tastes of carrot, pump-kin and caramel. It’s like Thanksgiving dinner in a cup! They’ve even included tiny pumpkin shaped candies to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Min River Tea Company Old Iron OolongIf you are a fan of Tie Guan Yin oolong (also known as Iron Goddess of Mercy), this charcoal roasted version is a must try for fall. It’s woodsy and mildly smoky but still has its signature floral sweetness in the finish.
Tiesta Tea Nutty Almond CreamThe apple pieces and cinnamon in this teasan bring to mind a delicious slice of pie while the almond adds a subtle creaminess. It’s caffeine free so this a perfect sip to warm you up just before bedtime.
In Pursuit of Tea Darjeeling 2nd Flush, Makaibari EstateThis autumn has been particularly rainy so I’ve been drinking a lot of my favorite Darjeeling. It’s my go to tea for rainy days. I love how the fruity and floral taste is balanced by notes of nuts and spice.
Adagio Dragonwell Green TeaThis green tea is sweet and buttery with a lightly toasted taste that makes it perfect for this time of year. Some-times a mellow tea like this is just what the doctor or-dered. It’s also available in tea bag form so that I can have great tea no matter where I am.
Visit Nicole’s Blog, Tea For Me Please
Tea For Me Please Facebook Page
Beautiful Eats
Greek Yogurt Pumpkin MuffinsKelly Gregorio Pfeif fer
It took three tries, tweaking the combinations until pure perfection was achieved. These holiday muf-fins have no oil, no butter, low-sugar, and are 100%
amazing!! Babycakes was so excited to wake up from her nap to see this perfect little pumpkin "cupcake" and her daddy's sweet face, of course.
Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Muffins
Ingredients (Yields 12 Muffins)
1 1⁄2 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour3 tablespoons Whole Wheat Pastry Flour1 1⁄2 teaspoon Baking Powder1⁄2 teaspoon Salt1⁄4 cup Brown Sugar1 teaspoon Cinnamon1⁄2 teaspoon Ground Ginger1⁄4 teaspoon Ground Cloves2 Eggs1⁄2 cup Greek Yogurt (I used Peach, but would suggest Vanilla!)3⁄4 cups Pumpkin1 Ripe Banana1⁄4 cup Agave Nectar16 ounces Cream Cheese 1/3 Fat (for frosting)1⁄3 cup Pureed Dates (for frosting)Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Mix together all dry ingredients in one bowl.Smash banana and mix with other wet ingredients in a separate bowl.Mix dry and wet ingredients together.Spray a muffin tin and pour batter into each cup.Bake for 25 - 27 minutes.Make frosting while muffins cook: mix up the cream cheese to make it fluffy with a hand mixer. Slowly add in the date puree, while mixing.Put frosting back in the fridge to firm up.After muffins have baked, allow them to cool before adding the frosting to the tops.
Visit Kell’y Blog: No Sugar Sweet Life
Enjoy!
Beautiful Eats
Roanoke Virginia
Photography | Jessica TaylorStyling | Lorrie Fenn and Brandi Gray
Models | Lila Lamanna and Lucy Lamanna
Beautiful Style
A Day at Urban Gypsy
Ask Me About Home Parties and
Business Opportunities.Visit my website for a catalog!
TheJAM
filesashley perks
Watercolor | Marek Uliasz ; Illustrations |Elena Lishanskaya
It’s safe to say that a person’s first exposure to jams or jellies is in the ubiquitous peanut butter and jelly sandwich of their childhood. I grew up in day care,
and can remember unwrapping slightly-smashed pb&js at various nature parks around town, the white bread soft and still warm from the back of the van they used to haul us from place to place, the peanut butter just a little melty and the grape jelly a blast of sugary sweetness.
Sometimes if they were feeling especially generous, we could assemble our own sandwiches there, and you could then put as much peanut butter or jelly as you wanted. I always erred on the side of As Much Jelly As This Sandwich Can Take, rejoicing in the too-sweet feel-ing in my mouth as I ate it, needing the sugar to fuel my crawdad-hunting expeditions along the creeks of West Virginia.
I started making jam because I wanted to feel like I was creating something tangible yet sturdy. In my job as a newspaper designer, I create a tangible product every single day, a product that people hold in their hands, then throw away. I wanted to do something that would stick around for more than 24 hours, something I could give away to people as gifts. I pictured myself going to housewarming parties bearing jars of homemade jams, my basket overflowing with various fruit spreads. Sometimes I pictured myself in a gingham dress while doing this. I wanted to live in Little House on the Prai-rie-time.
The first jelly I made was a jalapeno jelly. I chopped and seeded 2 pounds of jalapenos, not bothering to wear gloves, relishing in the burning sen-sation in my hands, my fingertips, my cuticles. This, I thought, this is what my ancestors felt. They didn't have plastic gloves! They felt the burning in their hands and knew that they were creating something.
That turned out to be a terrible deci-sion. Please, anyone who reads this, always use gloves when you touch hot peppers. Please.
The jalapeno jelly was sweet, yet tangy from the vinegar. I'm not a huge fan of pepper jelly, so I gave
most of it away. My boyfriend at the time ate a few jars worth spread on cream cheese-topped Triscuits, and for awhile, those two things were on our weekly list of things to buy at the grocery store. I started daydreaming of flavor combinations. Blue-berries and lavender? Strawberry and black pepper? Peaches and bourbon? I kept a note in my phone so I could jot down ideas when I was eating things out and about. Mango sticky rice for dessert at a Thai restaurant made me think of a thick mango butter slightly flavored with coconut milk. A cup of sweet, milky Earl Grey tea made me consider a milk jam consisting of sweetened condensed milk steeped with tea. A can of Fresca with my boring lunch equaled a tart grapefruit marmalade studded with thin slices of grapefruit and lemon rind.
My favorite jam was a thick plum-lemon-cinnamon jam. I was on vacation with my family on the coast of North Carolina in August 2011. We were made to evac-uate due to Hurricane Irene, and I had to leave the beach at 10 p.m. on a Thursday night. I drove a few hours, then crashed in a hotel off I-95. The next day, on my way home, I saw a roadside stand selling plums. I bought 6 pounds of them out of annoyance and made them into jam the next day while torrents of rain pounded the DC area. My ex-boyfriend was sleeping on my couch at that time and I wanted to stay in the kitchen as long as I could to avoid any discussions that could lead to my uncontrollable sobbing. So I stood in my kitchen and pitted and chopped 6 pounds of plums and had my own
Mango sticky rice for des-sert at a Thai restaurant made me think of a thick mango butter slightly fla-vored with coconut milk. A cup of sweet, milky Earl Grey tea made me consid-er a milk jam consisting of sweetened condensed milk steeped with tea.
conversation with my him in my head, and only a few tears made it into the mix. Lemon zest was added, and then almost as an afterthought, some cinnamon. The result was a sweet plum flavor with the brightness of lemon and the warmth of cinnamon. It's the best jam I've ever made.
But that's not what people will tell you. A few months later, I made a pear jam that my friends flipped over. It's sweet, sticky, slightly gritty from the pears, and the per-fect surprise companion in a grilled cheese made with a sharp cheddar or musky brie. I've made it multiple times and have experimented with different flavors - the pear fades into the background which makes it nearly perfect for whatever flavor you add to shine through. My two favorite combinations are a honey-ginger and a vanilla-cardamom-cinnamon, but you should play around with any warm flavor profiles to find your fa-vorites.
makes about 3.5 pints (fills seven half pint jars)
8 cups chopped pears - no need to peel4 cups sugar1 packet liquid pectin
In a large pot, combine chopped pears and sugar. Cook on medium heat until the pears are soft and easily smashed. Break down the fruit with a potato masher or immersion blender until relatively smooth. (I like to leave a bit of chunk in there).
Add pectin and bring to a rolling boil. Let boil for a full five minutes to ensure your pectin activates.
Fill jars, wipe rims, apply lids until "fingertip tight". Process the filled jars in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes .
Honey-Ginger Pear JamMake basic pear jam, but add 1/4 cup of honey and 2 tbsp of grated ginger to the pears and sugar.
Vanilla Cardamom Cinnamon Pear JamMake basic pear jam, but add the caviar of 2 vanilla beans, 1/2 tsp of ground cardamom, and 2 tsp cinnamon.
Basic Pear Jam
The CurvyGirl’sFashion Guide
Erin Roberts
Beautiful Layers: How would you describe your per-sonal style?E: Vintage, colourful, geometrics. I adore vintage pieces and will get whatever i can find in my size. I'm also a big fan of colour, which is just a tad ironic as I'm a former goth. Just making up for lost time I guess. And I rock a lot of polka dots and stripes. I'm a sucker foreither of those patterns.
BL: Where do you buy your clothes?E: Value village, old navy, and f21+ (online). Basical-ly the only places there are to get affordable plus size clothes here in Canada!
BL: Do you have any tips for thrifting for plus sized clothing?E: TRY IT ON! Sizes are whack. They always have been. If you see something cute and it looks somewhat close to fitting, just try it on! A lot of things you try on wont fit but a lot of them will. And look for stretch. Stretch is your friend. I just got a skirt marked size12 that fits my ample size 22 frame thanks to good ol' stretch fabric!
BL: What do you love most about your appearance? How do you play up your assets?E: I've got really killer legs and I'm not afraid to show them off. I tell my mom this all the time when she tells me my dresses are too short. I also have gorgeous eyes which I hate to hide with glasses, but a girls gotta see somehow...
BL: What are your top five tips for dressing your curves?E: I don't know if I can come up with five! My only rule is to do what makes you feel comfortable and confi-dent. If you want to wear something, then wear it! Don't worry about what people might think or say. You are
Q&A
dressing your body which is completely and 100% your concern only! If you want to wear skinny jeans, wear skinny jeans. Haters to the left!
BL: Why do you think it's important for women, re-gardless of size, to explore their personal style?E: What I like about style is that it allows you to show your personality. It's a way of expressing yourself and conveying what you feel is important to the world. If you are truly expressing yourself than you will be more confident. And confidence is key. Speaking ofconfidence, once you have played around with how you present yourself and finding what truly makes you com-fortable is a great way for women to feel more empow-ered, which as a feminist is what i'm all about.
Visit Erin’s blog Plus Sized Pretty for even more photos!
Beautiful Style
Illustration | Anja Kaiser; Photo Courtesy of Brandi Gray
Fall By Brandi Gray
Closer to you - Brandi CarlileI found Brandi Carlile while listening to Pandora. She came into my life during a time of heartbreak and it was like she took the feelings from my wounded chest and put them into song lyrics. She just came to our home town music festival, Floydfest, and I almost passed out when I walked by her (I had backstage ac-cess)and then giggled like a school girl when I stood next her on stage. She is an amazing artist.
Skinny Love - Bon IverNo story - I just like it.
Emmylou - First Aid KitThese little ladies are no joke. Awesome lyrics and voices. Flowers in Your Hair - The LumineersYou might see a bit of a stalkerish theme here, I was at a Brandi Carlile concert (ahem) and these guys opened for her - I don't usually listen to the opening band, but they stopped me in my tracks. The only problem that I have with this song is that it isn't three hundred hours longer.
Young Blood - The Naked and FamousI like to run to this song - also, it just makes me feel good because I like the lyrics "fall back in love eventu-ally" because we always do.
Always Like This - Bombay Bicycle ClubI am pretty sure that my bestie (or biffel as I like to say) sent this one to me on Spotify one day when I was working. It's got me through the day.
Sure Thing - MiguelThis is what I want for my relationship. I mean, who doesn't want to be the cash to someone's rubber band? Think about it.
Shake it Out - Florence + the MachinePreach it Florence - there really is no other way. Let go of those burdens.
Chasing the Light - Mat KearnyI feel like I have been chasing the light for a really long time. I am just glad that either I'm getting faster or it's getting slower because it doesn't seem so far away anymore.
Leave You Alone - Young Jeezy (Explicit Lyrics)Okay, the part that says something like ...matching Rolexes, baby, team us...I thought, yeah, I could be on that team. Granted, the whole rest of the song isn't so appealing - like being a side chick - I'm not into that.
Amor Fati - Washed OutI liked this song and googled what "Amor Fati" meant and some totally random guy on the internets said "The love of fate" or "fate's love" and I really liked it - so much so, that I thought about getting it tattooed on my body. That didn't happen. Mainly because I am not sure I totally trust the random guy.
Good Life - Kayne West featuring T-PainThis old school, I know. It is still damn good tough and the part "we like the girls who ain't on tv cause they got more a$$ then the models" makes me smile, cause well, I got junk in the trunk.
Playlist
Beautiful Inspiration
ist (and they were a tough bunch I admired) reporters looking to por-trait the pharmaceutical industry as greedy pigs and a government (Canada) paying attention, I learned that I needed much more than me. I needed a network of collab-orators and needed to constantly communicate up, down, side-ways, inside and outside of my role. Others had to travel with me if I was going to get anything accom-plished. In time and with experi-ence you learn who needs to know what when. Not everybody needs to be involved at the same level all the time.
Judgment, context and com-mon sense always prevail. We’ve all seen those people who re-port on absolutely everything and in the process; even if they are do-ing good work, disengage people because they are seen as “climbers” and “brown nosers”. A sure career killer if there was ever any. Yes, you might see them getting some trac-tion but eventually, the world catch-es up with them and their careers become limited.
There were many dark days in that role and I didn’t always believe I would get through it. It was hard, grueling and emotional work but I persevered. Perseverance is the art of moving forward no matter what. I was once told by one of my mentors that all forward movement is good. Even when you fall down, you fall in a forward movement, rarely backwards.
With success in my sails, I was pro-moted to move to the big leagues in New York. Probably the scariest position I ever accepted. This was after all the Big Apple and I was sure
people would make mince meat out of this little French Canadian girl. I changed everything in my world yet changed nothing about me. I wasn’t going to pre-tend to be anything but who I was. Being your authentic self and not pretending to be anyone else is easy and it’s what people remember. The “you” we are does evolve over time, and we build and develop with experience. But your values, those things that you are known for, stay pretty much the same.
I had many lateral moves once in New York. Different business divi-sions working on different projects for different people. By my late 30”s, I established myself as a strong cri-sis and issues manager. AIDS drugs was the first crisis of many to follow inclusive of silicone breast implants, counterfeit infant formula prod-ucts, cancer allegations and hair dye safety, mislabeled products in China, natural products movement and others. The one reason I believe I was successful in taking on these issues was my ability to simplify the complexity of what was go-ing on and keeping things as simple as possible for the masses and being able to go deep with only the few where it mattered most. None of what I was dealing with was simple but the ability to express the com-plex in a simple manner is a great skill to develop. I have seen many people in my career who are way smarter than me and have much more education. But if they can’t express themselves in a way that will bring others along and get to resolu-tion, they don’t move up the ladder at any great neck speed.
Life happens and I had a daughter in 1993. The most important and cher-
ished milestone in my life! All of sudden you are faced with the ques-tions of “life balance”. What is it, how do you get it, how do you manage it, what role do you and your husband play in it, what does it look like? On and on, like a roller coaster. Bottom line, you can have it all but not all at the same time. Accept this simple reality and you will have less stress and more fun. This is also a time in your career where you need to know yourself enough to know what is non-negotiable for you. What are you willing to sacri-fice and what won’t you sacrifice or put on the back burner? It could be any number of things and it’s differ-ent for all of us. But knowing this is critical for you to have “balance” if you will work and be someone’s mom, wife, daughter, sister, neigh-bor etc. all at the same time. For me it was my daughter’s doctor’s visits. Regular visits or emergency visits. Birthdays and Sunday din-ners…I had to be there no matter what. Did I always get my way? Not always. But knowing where I wasn’t going to cheat myself helped to limit the emotional damage that often plagues young professional women.
I eventually found myself at a beauty company, was acquired by a much larger company (Fortune 50), sur-vived a decade of growth and retired to be home with my 12th grader who was preparing for college. Follow-ing a full time career of hard work, long hours and global travel, I need-ed to be present for this college prep year. It became a non-negotiable item on my bucket list. She wasn’t the one needing me. She had grown up to be independent, beautiful and strong. I was the one who needed her. I was the one who needed to be present and enjoy that journey with
her. Time is the one thing you can’t buy, re-do or reclaim. It really is the most precious asset, don’t waste it.With my daughter moving into her next chapter, I decided to go back into another career chapter for a smaller company where I knew I could make a difference. I also re-alized that I had more to give and really loved working. I now head PR and corporate communications for a global beauty company and am privileged to work with amaz-ing young women and men (mostly women). I leverage and share all that I know, have experienced and continue to learn and grow with them. I mentor and teach as I go. I welcome people to shadow me and learn from the front lines. I explain and give background. Sharing what you know builds commu-nity, strength and a positive work-place. I challenge people and ask of them only what I would ask of and expect from myself. I also keep put-ting things into perspective. Unless things are life threatening…any-thing can be managed.
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