This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on August 6, 2024. We interrupt our regularly scheduled series about stories “from the heart of business,” to have this non-partisan, pro-human discussion about the phrase being thrown about, “DEI Hire.” If you’re on social media or simply paying attention, you’ve started to see or hear […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on July 2, 2024. Thanks for your interest in Become More… inspired by Raffi. Today, we start a new series, this one focusing on the Heart of Business. For many years, I’ve talked about managing with a heart in ways that feed the spirit — it’s […]
The decision to take and share this journey began as a result of an accumulation of significant personal losses and the delayed grief that imploded within me last fall. Namely, that I lost my parents, Anna and Sam, and treasured dog, Rafaelle, all in a three-and-a half year period. I was consumed with sadness and […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on May 7, 2024. For the past few months, we’ve looked at how my angel of a dog taught me to become more… patient, kind, accepting and authentic. In our final part of this series, we discuss what Raffi taught me about empathy. As usual, it’s […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on March 26, 2024. We’ve talked about being authentic several times in this column over the years (2016, 2017 and 2019). Each time, we focused on a different aspect of what it means to be authentic and how to be it. This time we’ll focus on […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on February 6, 2024. Today’s lesson is about becoming more accepting in the workplace. Raffi accepted everyone! Age, color, wealth meant nothing to him. Two things did: were you nice to me, did you bring him a treat? What did I learn from Raffi? That I […]
I was interviewed by Bold Journey. It is very personal, but intentionally so. I hope that it contributes to the mental health and wellness conversations we need to have more often. Originally published by BOLD JOURNEY, October 23, 2023 We were lucky to catch up with Santo D. Marabella recently and have shared our conversation […]
I’ve been playing pickleball since June of last year. It is the first team sport that I can honestly say that I enjoy. For anyone not familiar, it’s similar to tennis with a racket that reminds me of an over-sized ping-pong paddle and you typically play with 2-person teams. When I started, it was typically […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on January 2, 2024. Today’s lesson: Become More… Kind. What did Raffi teach me about being kind? Remember the saying, “they don’t have a bad bone in their body”? Well, that was Raffi. Easy-going, friendly, and happy. Never heard him growl unless we were playing rough […]
This column was first published in the Reading Eagle on November 21, 2023. This is the second edition in our series, “Become More…” First, a quick Raffi story. Raffi was a flat-coated retriever and one of the things the breed is known for its patience. He was patient to the point that he would wear […]
