Recently I was having an email exchange with a gentleman I had never met before. During the course of our communication, he replied to one of my questions by writing, “Well of course, silly.”
“Silly”? I’m sure he meant no disrespect in his word choice, so I brushed the incident off. However, it got me thinking [...]

I’ve been on vacation in Maine for the last few weeks. Our family has a house in a small coastal village where we come every year. I love being in Maine, so far away from the bustling Bay Area where I live. It’s a quiet retreat, a respite from the traffic, noise and density of [...]

I recently came across an excellent article at TrainingMag.com that explores gender roles in public speaking. To briefly summarize, the author identifies several differences in the way men and women give presentations and how both genders can learn from each other to improve their speaking skills.
Although I think there is plenty to learn from the [...]

I was traveling via air from San Francisco to Maine recently. As the plane was nearing take off, the flight attendants started their usual safety demonstrations. I politely sat through the “how to buckle your seatbelt” and “how to use your seat cushion as a floatation device” spiels. Then, after the demonstration of placing the [...]

It’s a man’s world. Do you think this statement is obsolete in 2011? Unfortunately, the answer is no. Consider these sobering facts:

Only 12 Fortune 500 companies are run by women, down from 15 last year, as three left their posts and were succeeded by men.
Women earn 77.5 cents for every dollar a man earns.
The more [...]

I just learned that Ursula Burns, CEO of Xerox, will be in the Bay Area next Wednesday (6/29/11) giving a presentation with George Colony, CEO of Forrester Research. And here’s the best part of all: You’re invited to attend (and for a discounted rate—see the end of this blog for a special offer for DeFinis [...]