Facets of inspiration

In a lifetime you meet many people.

Some you treasure and some you leave

Some you hold and others who hold you.

Then there is the rare person that you meet that you hold in high regard

You learn from them and they learn from you

You laugh together

You inspire each other

You share your most intimate thoughts

You are real with them, no facades, no walls, no barriers.

The value of honesty and trust are core to you both.

It is this individual that helps you grow

How? By challenging you everyday.

They walk with you sometimes guiding you holding your hand in front of you.

Other times behind you and you leading them on their life journey as they have led you.

Most often than not they are right beside you sharing each others lives.

The value you find in the person you cannot put a price on because it is so rare.

When you find a special person like that you are free to be you.

The key to the relationship is the trade that exists within the relationship.

One time someone gave me the key to the trading relationship.  Not the key to their heart, but the key to opening my eyes to more freedom.

That person is you and no matter where we go in our lives I will always treasure my life lessons.  You changed me and allowed me my freedom.  You grew with me and helped me see things in a new light.  I know you have learned from me as well.

My trade is that you saw the same things I did in return and that we will always remain friends true to our values, moral codes and naked conversations.  You are the inspiration for these written words.  

Quagmire of Life

Quagmire has two definitions.  One is a soft boggy area similar to a marsh and the other definition is a precarious situation.  Either way we get stuck in the Quagmires of Life.

In today's ever changing financial arena, I have found myself in a bit of a quagmire.  The one thing that I strive for in my life is freedom.  I value freedom and choice.  Sometimes the choices we make are not the best and so we end up learning from them.  That is where I am today.

Now how does one get out of the quagmire of what appears to be meloncholy, depression or discouragement, whatever term you can relate with can fit here.  The first thing is not to become a victim of the consequences in which you have created.  Many of the situations in life we chose and could have avoided but because we were unaware of what was waiting on the otherside we took a chance.  Very similiar to the stock market.  We live in the ups and downs of the world daily.  How we forge through is what makes the leaders shine through.

As much as I try to not show my meloncholy ways, it does show through at times and that is when I need to take a step back and ensure that I am not taking on the victim role but that I am truly seeking the path to clarity and resolution.

Oh, it's difficult to do even for the most seasoned individual but it can be done.  How you ask? Well, just as you attack an elephant in the room one bite at a time, that is how you approach the situation.  That is what I did, I looked at what did my quagmire consist of and what were the things I could change.  I changed the easiest things first because let's face it, the sense of accomplishment helps us forge in faster and further.  If one tries to tackle the most difficult thing first and fails, that begins the spiral of uncontrollability and that leads to the pit of despair.

Anytime you are caught in the quagmire of life, one can get out, it just takes thought and you can get out.  It may be a slow trudge through but what awaits on the other side is so amazing.  Being free and choosing to live a free life comes with a price. I will say this, that I sought my freedom years ago and I speak my mind.  I value honesty and truth above all and because of this philosophy, the quagmires of life don't get me down as often or as long as they used to because I know how to get through them.  Sure, I am human and deal with life issues daily, but it is your approach to how you face your problem/demon that makes the difference.

If you are relying on others to help you then you are a victim and will remain in the quagmire for sometime, maybe never getting through, because depending on who you are asking to throw you a life vest, may change everything.  If you resolve to seek assistance, by asking questions, doing your homework, learning, gaining knowledge and finding others who have been in your shoes before and how they resolved then you are moving forward and are not a victim but a seeker of the truth and a trader.  You seek to trade your knowledge with others so that you too can move faster through your quagmire of life.

Remember you have the freedom to choose your path and where it leads you and sometimes that choice leads us not to where we believed it would so we must choose again.  This doesn't mean we should stop making choices, but we must learn from them.

Throughout the centuries there were men who took first steps, down new roads, armed with nothing but their own vision.
Ayn Rand

The essence of learning

Ayn Rand was a phenomenal woman a true role model to all Americans and she was Russian.  She saw many flaws with her own country and she also saw America as a great place.  Today her philosophies and stories, such as Atlas Shrugged, are more prevalent in our country than ever.  The essence of her philosophy is simple yet so many have such difficulty understanding or trying to live this way.  She lives by Objectivism which consists of these four areas:

1. Metaphysics Objective Reality
2. Epistemology Reason
3. Ethics Self-interest
4. Politics Capitalism

Simply translated it is

1. Nature, to be commanded must be obeyed.  Wishing for something won't make it so.
2. You cannot have your cake and eat it too.
3. Man is an end to himself
4. Give me liberty or give me death.

These philosophies are indicative to our very human essence no matter what religion you believe.  These are humanistic concepts that should be valid to our very core. 

Ayn Rand discusses Objectivism very easily.

My philosophy, Objectivism, holds that:

1. Reality exists as an objective absolute—facts are facts, independent of man’s feelings, wishes, hopes or fears.
2. Reason (the faculty which identifies and integrates the material provided by man’s senses) is man’s only means of perceiving reality, his only source of knowledge, his only guide to action, and his basic means of survival.
3. Man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life.
4. The ideal political-economic system is laissez-faire capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as traders, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. It is a system where no man may obtain any values from others by resorting to physical force, and no man may initiate the use of physical force against others. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man’s rights; it uses physical force only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use, such as criminals or foreign invaders. In a system of full capitalism, there should be (but, historically, has not yet been) a complete separation of state and economics, in the same way and for the same reasons as the separation of state and church.

http://www.aynrand.org/site/PageServer?pagename=objectivism_intro

Think about what are your values?  Are you a trader or a taker? When was the last time you voiced your opinion?  Why did or didn't you? 

It is time to start standing up for what you believe.  Opening up your mind to the world outside of your own and learning.  One thing I am a big advocate for is learning.  I do not believe one stops learning  because they have all the knowledge, I believe one stops seeking knowledge due to fear.  What are you afraid of to learn?  Ask yourself the question you might be surprised at what you learn and the doors that it will open.

Freedom and choices

Freedom is a lot like air. When it is around, you hardly notice it. Once taken from you, you notice it instantly. Not long afterwards you choke and later you die.


The right to "boldly go where no one has gone before" is the main reason that I am proud to live in the United States of America, "the land of the free and the home of the brave." Not surprisingly, the best quotes come from women who know all too well about the lack of freedom.

The other day a friend of mine was at my home.  She is a smoker. My soon to be 5 year old daughter picked up the pack of cigarettes and asked "Mom and Miss A, what are these and why does Miss A like them?"  My friend immediately stated "you don't want them they are bad." 

I told my friend, "wait I talk to my kids about these things."  I proceeded to tell my kids that those are cigarettes.  I said these are for adults and when you get older you will be given the choice to either chose to smoke or not.  I said that your Nana used to smoke and she had emphysema (which I explained to them on their level).  I also told them that mommy used to smoke not all the time but then I made the choice to not smoke.  I let them know that Miss A has the opportunity to make the choice and she chooses to smoke.

My youngest pondered what I was saying and she said to me "Mom, if I choose to smoke when I'm an adult will you still love me."  Wow, what a profound statement.  I told her that no matter if she smokes or not when she is an adult, I will always love her.  I said I loved my mom  very much and she smoked and smoking is part of the complication she experienced and why she died.  My daughter then said "Is Miss A going to die soon."  I told her we never know when we are going to die, that is not our responsibility to worry about, but we can do things in life to help ensure we live the healthiest life we can such as eating our vegetables, exercise and doing things in moderation.

She was very content with the answer and she said "Mom, I don't think I want to smoke" and I said well you have a lot of time to choose, but right now that is a great choice.

Humor in the eyes of the beholder

Have you ever just found something so funny that you laughed out loud and then realized you were the only one laughing?  That happens to me all the time.  Looking around I see so many people with frowns and scowls and very few people have laughter anymore.

Why? Has life become so barren and woeful that individuals have forgotten how to be happy?  Do they rely upon others too much to make the connection for them?  Has humor become so socialistic that we are told when to laugh, cry, be angry etc?

I think not.  I believe people have forgotten who they are and have allowed others to become their puppet masters.  Remember I talked about being Pinocchio in an early blog.  Go back to being a kid, dig deep into your mind and heart and rekindle some of the youth.  If you have kids or grandkids, even nieces and nephews.  Put down the electronic device, go outside and watch them play, then join them.  Hear their laughter and try to emmulate that laughter.  For a brief moment  you will rekindle a freedom and sense of happiness that you thought you forgot.

Once you have done that ignite the fire and don't forget to laugh.

Friendship is like peeing on yourself: everyone can see it, but only you get the warm feeling that it brings.  If you laughed at that then you are on the road to enlightenment.

Skeletons in the Closet - Clean them out.

I have begun another new exploration in my life. My political and closet cleaning side. Clearing out the skeletons that once haunted me are no more. Dealing with things that you really do not want to because for some reason we believe they will hurt us.  Interesting, as I move forward I've realized "I'm not the person I was when I put the skeleton in the closet."

So if I'm not the same person I was then why do we not clean out the proverbial skeletal closet? Are we afraid of what lies in the past?  Will it resurface things that maybe aren't quite resolved and if it does then maybe it's time to resolve them once and for all.

That is why going on the path that leads somewhere is safe, but go where there is no path and leave a trail, be daring and different.  Take risks you never know what lies behind the closet once it has been cleaned out.  Maybe your own wonderland.  I know I am learning more and more about me and my wonderful-land now that my closet is empty.

The FALL is upon us

Sitting watching the falling leaves and realize autumn is upon us.  I think back to earlier in the year with the changes that have occurred polticially, economically and personally.  As the leaves continue to fall, I realize that autumn is not a dismal season, it is a rebirthing season.

What I mean about that is things take on a new form.  Trees become more bare as the leaves descend upon the ground.  Animals change their coats and burrow in for the winter.  People begin to add more clothes on and attend sporting events and focus on friends and family as the season brings many holidays.

So why are there so many holidays that reside in the fall?  What is it about these three months that create a change.  One-third of the year is it the opportunity to deal with all the remaining issues of life that you are or were struggling with and growing to make a new change?   Why is it that we as humans wait until the end to make changes as if we have this immortal power to know that we have another day to procrastinate?

I believe that it is that as long as we avoid the change and procrastinate then we can be immortal.  But in essence our time is limited so we should be embracing each day as a new change a rebirthing so to speak.  Everyday we wake we should look it as a rebirth to change, because whatever happened in the past is just that past.  We cannot change it but we can change today.

Intuition vs Facts

As a Human Resource Professional I deal with facts on a daily basis.  I deal with reality, whether it is my reality or others.  One thing that separates the human resource professional is not only being able to collect the facts but also having a sense of his/her surroundings.  Intuition is the ability to acquire knowledge without inference or the use of reason.  It is understanding and reading body language.  


Knowing when someone is lying to you. You can sense it but where are the facts.  Body language tells when someone is lying and you can then rephrase questions to ensure you get to the facts.  The TV show Lie to Me is very similiar to the role of a Human Resource Professional. Okay, maybe not every HR professional but I know that I am similiar to that as I seek the truth in every meeting, investigation or employee relation issue.  


Being able to Reconnect at each meeting with somone to establish the bond of trust is important in gaining truth.  When someone gets angry with you because you said something or questioned something they said, ask them "What value did I just step on?"  Understanding someone's values helps you get to the truth and fact.


Intuition vs fact, that is a misnomer.  I believe it is Intuition and fact help you get to thet truth.

Get Inspired with Christina Mazzella - Div. Dir. HR Emory U 08/24 by Inspiration At Work | Blog Talk Radio

Get Inspired with Christina Mazzella - Div. Dir. HR Emory U 08/24 by Inspiration At Work | Blog Talk Radio

Reconnecting with others

"Keep things informal. Talking is the natural way to do business. Writing is great for keeping records and putting down details, but talk generates ideas. Great things come from out luncheon meetings which consist of a sandwich, a cup of soup, and a good idea or two. No martinis."— T. Boone Pickens

Have you ever had a boss that you felt you were just speaking two different languages?  You could not see eye to eye?  That was me these past two years in my job.  I would say blue he would say black, I would say high he would say he wanted low.  We were totally disconnected.

Verbal communication has become a lost art so to speak.  Two weeks ago I finally had enough and at our bi-weekly meeting I said "I learn kinesthetically, hands on".  If you want me to learn how you think give me examples.  Don't email me, talk to me.   Verbal communication has been lost in so many industries because of the email society.  It's easier to send an email than get up from your desk and communicate with someone or even pick up the phone.

What is forgotten is that with personal face to face communication the non-verbal communication exists.  Whether you realized it or not we learn from non-verbal communication as well.  Humans communicate non-verbally in three distinct forms.  One is the nonverbal communication of attitudes and emotions of the immediate social situation, secondly the nonverbal communication as a support and complement of verbal communication and lastly the nonverbal communication as a replacement for language. (Non-verbal communication in human social interaction. Non-verbal communication. Argyle, Michael Hinde, R. A., (1972). Non-verbal communication,. Oxford, England: Cambridge U. Press, xiii, 443 pp.)

The nonverbal I am speaking about is the second one the nonverbal communicaiton as a support and complement of verbal communication.  While conversing with my boss he would tell me "Wait I'm processing what you are saying"  then he would explain how he processes things.  Watching him think, act, and process are valuable to me because in the end when I make decisions that affect my department that might require my bosses backing he will understand why I did what I did, but also I learned when he wants information and when he doesn't.   We reconnected because I spoke up.  Instead of remaining miserable in my situation I finally realized I needed to speak.  Why was I so afraid to talk to him?  We all get that way once in awhile.  Complacency sets in and we become robotic like, but for me robotic is not what I like nor who I am.  I am a visionary person.  I like movement, change, implmenting different things for people.

You believe that what you have to say is not worthwhile or let's face it in this economy talking to your boss honestly might find yourself in the unemployment line.  That won't happen.  Everyone needs to be reminded that first and foremost we are human and long before pen and paper even people communicated verbally and non-verbally.  

The key to reconnecting with others is communication.  Approaching the person in a nonthreatening manner, letting them know you believe there is a disconnect and state the reasons, then talk and watch them.  Provide them examples of how to communicate with you and you will be amazed the dialogue that occurs.  

Life in the Fast lane

We live in an instant gratification world.  Everything is at our fingertips, iPad, iPhone, iTouch, Internet, Inflation, the "I" phase is where we live yet we have forgotten about the "me".  We want things fast.  Sometimes we forget that we have to work hard for what the "me" wants. It's important that the "I"  reassess and define what the "want" is in terms of our value.   That is the re-establishment to find the REAL you.

According to the Oxford Dictionary reconnection is defined as reestablishing a bond of communication or emotion.  Reconnecting with ourselves is tough at times due to the fact that we are constantly changing and evolving.  What I mean about reconnection is the ability to look at yourself and see if you are content with the person that maybe you once were, are, or on the path to be.  Our past dictates our future, meaning you and only you have the ability to mold and shape your desires and destiny.

Ayn Rand once said "A rational man is guided by his thinking – by a process of Reason – not by his feelings and desires."  

Many times we allow our feelings to make decisions that our mind and brain should be making.  The reconnection is the ability to reconnect with the mind and deciphering your desires of what you want and where you want to go, it's about your choices.  

Roy Disney once said "It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are." That's where the reconnection begins.  Understanding your values.

Aristotle writes in ten books, Nicomachean Ethics in which he expounds on a set of values.  They are listed as follows:

Book 1 - The study of Good

Book 2 - Moral Virtue

Book 3 - Courage and Temperance

Book 4 - Other Virtures

Book 5 - Justice

Book 6 - Intellectual Virtue

Book 7 - Evil and Pleasure

Books 8 & 9 - Friendship (this is one of the largest areas.  One might consider the reason it is so large is that Friendships are very influential in our lives)

Book 10 - Pleasure and Politics.

I am not going to write about each book, however I will be writing about the books that really have emphasis on reconnection, empowering, affirming and loving you.  

This blog is for those that are interested in learning about themselves and contributing in a mutually favorable manner.  I am learning from others as it is my intention that  you gain insight from me as well.  


~Steena