Last week I was at a conference for entrepreneurs (look at this beautiful background!)… …and the topic of “balance” came up on the panel. One person said they prefer swapping in the word “harmony” instead of balance. This made me think of a symphony: some notes are louder or last longer; different instruments add their […]

Like it or not, you already have a personal brand. Maybe you’ve been intentional about shaping yours, or maybe it’s something you’ve never even thought about—but either way, people are making up their own story about who you are. (Today’s Tea Time was inspired by this article: “Having a Personal Brand at Work is Key for Introverts.” […]

I asked ChatGPT to write an obituary based on what it knows about me from our conversations. It’s long, but here’s exactly what it said: Nicole Bensen—beloved mother, devoted partner, cherished friend, and spirited mentor—left this world having lived it to the fullest. Known for her magnetic blend of warmth, humor, and grace, Nicole had […]

The woman sitting next to me at a networking event last week shared this story, and I can’t stop thinking about it. When someone died in ancient Egypt, their soul entered the Hall of Two Truths. There, they were asked two questions: That’s it. Not “Did you make your bed every day?” or “Did you hit […]

Now, you have $444 million in your bank account. No debt. Taxes are paid. You’re free to spend your days however you’d like. What would you do? That’s one of the prompts in my Ultimate Vision Board Workshop, and last week after a session, I got this feedback: “Ugh, I got a lil teary during the […]

Are you a morning person? I got up at 5:45 this morning (early for me 🥱) to lead a session of The Ultimate Vision Board Workshop for a group at Google. It was a lovely group who asked some great questions. I wanted to share the answers I emailed back, in case they’d be helpful to you […]

If you’ve seen my stories on Instagram the past few days, you know I’m in Vegas on a girls’ trip to see the Backstreet Boys at The Sphere. 🎉 (Raise your hand if you grew up in the boy band era!) So, while I’m OOO, I wanted to share something from my friend, Sam Sheppard. Sam’s mission is […]

Next month I’m leading several sessions of my Ultimate Vision Board Workshop for one of my corporate clients. It’s a 90-minute workshop, and we spend 75% of the time NOT creating a vision board. Wait, what? Yep, before we even choose the first photo or open the vision board template, we visualize, journal, and dig into what success […]

I just counted 49 networking meetings and events on my calendar that I’ve attended in the past six months. Forty. Nine. (!!!) That’s a lot for me, and I’ve met a lot of people—a few gems, but most of them I’ll probably never talk to again. Maybe we didn’t align on values, or didn’t get past small talk. […]

Last week’s OOO packing list included ruffles and hiking boots: I used to think my dream life was this hazy, sometime-in-the-future milestone. Like I had to quit my job, move countries, totally burn down my current life and rebuild something extraordinary—one luxury vacation, purchase, or experience brick at a time—and then, one day, voilà: “dream […]