In 2012, I died my hair purple. Well, it was just my bangs, but they were PURPLE. I had never been one for making bold physical...

For a decade or more, this has been my go-to definition of hospitality: Hospitality is the relationship between a host and a guest. Short...

Every good book about someone who has made it BIG includes a chapter that looks back on that time that they struggled: That place in our...

It was the summer of 2000, and I was a brand new guest service representative in a brand new hotel. Those first few weeks went by in a...

I’m an empty nester, for REAL this time. My son is eight + hours away, and even though I have enjoyed caring for his 85 pound German...

When I was in junior high school, I tried out for the cheerleading squad. Looking back on that time in my life, I can admit that it was a...

I accomplished two cool things this past week: 1) Wrote a syllabus for an undergraduate level course 2) Wore a 2 piece bathing suit...

I’m on vacation this week, and my home away from home is a perfect little corner room at Disney’s Port Orleans – French Quarter. After...

In 1998, one of my sisters was planning her wedding. In 2022, wedding planning occurs almost exclusively online, where vendors for...

There’s a phrase from my childhood that lives in my mind rent free: Anything worth doing is worth doing right. Usually when this phrase...

When I was 25, I picked up a part time restaurant job in Alpharetta, GA. The Hometown Grill & Wine Loft (hi, Peter!) was under...

Yesterday, July 5, would have been my work anniversary. 22 years ago, I fell into an amazing hotel career. After a lovely sendoff...

How do you answer this question? I suppose it depends, on the context, right? Your answer would be quite different at a cocktail party...

In the summer of 1999, while I was living in the suburban sprawl of Atlanta (pop. 500,000), I found myself on vacation in Southport,...

Fifteen years ago, I met Marcus Buckingham. Well, when I say "met," I mean I was in the same room with him... and about 1200 other...

Sometime between April and May, soft spring days become electric with the buzz of neighborhood lawn mowers, children's laughter through...

I find it paralyzing to make decisions. I do! Frustrated by having to decide what to eat for lunch every day at work, I once declared an...

I have this image pinned to my email app, a cheerful throwback to childhood wonder full of sticky fingers, alphabet magnets, and an...

I came across this letter from 2014 me this morning. “Hello, awesome,” it begins. Hello, awesome! What an amazing way to kick off this...

(This blog post was originally written on January 10, 2014. A few things have been edited for relevance. I left the original formatting,...