The Energizer Blog

I got thinking about this the other day—probably in the shower. (That’s where some of my best thinking occurs) Consider: we have Alphabet Leaders. The CTO, COO, and CIO answer to the CEO. (That’s the Chief Technology Officer, the Chief Operations Officer, and the Chief Information Officer reporting to the Chief Executive Officer. Notice that these, more often than not, are men, and the titles all use vowels. However, three vowels are unaccounted for: A, U, and Y.

Interesting term: “human-centric” when juxtaposed with AI- artificial intelligence. For the human resource professional, AI can provide powerful tools for writing compelling documents, collecting data, drafting research-backed proposals, and developing HR policies.

Trumpian orders that defy logic and legality. Global warming. Water shortages. Terrorism. Failing health care system. Wars around the globe. Gas prices. Severe economic downturn. Look at the headlines, and it's enough to make you stay in bed. But wait! There is hope. It's not being a the cock-eyed optimist. Rather, it's what psychologists call "intelligent optimism."

There is a growing pressure to monitor cell phone use in efforts to curb use and remove the stress, so that young people can start making better judgement calls.

John Sileo fascinated—and scared—us with all the ways cyber criminals can get into our professional and personal tools. When I get back, I have work to do in that realm. Here are 10 lockdown tips from John.

Consider thriving. It means to come alive regardless of the circumstances or environment. Dolly Parton was an amazing example of thriving despite the circumstances.

I admit to having a difficult time with this. For a starter, the hate speech, lies, and cruelty that have taken over my nation defy belief. Raised by parents who taught us that we owed allegiance to our country, and often we were asked what we did to help another person, I struggle with this. I find my energy dissolved into anger. This is NOT emotional regulation. It’s call visceral response. And it is not healthy.

This second article, “The True Meaning of Resiliency,” explores what resilience really means—and it is NOT the dictionary definition.

This is the first of a five-part series of articles on Radical Resilience and its components. I hope to provide guidance and hope to all those struggling during these untested, unsettling, and unusual times.

It is Earth Day and I can’t stand by and watch. I’ve had enough. ENOUGH opening the Arctic Refuge to drilling. ENOUGH letting coal plants pump toxic chemicals into our air. ENOUGH ransacking our irreplaceable planet for the financial gain of a few billionaires and Trump family members.

John came for dinner and brought me a “plant”. Not your ordinary plant, mind you, but a big, dried bulb nailed onto a piece of wood.

Just as nature offers metaphors that can become new products or solutions, using metaphors as a method for team conversation and personal inspiration offers a safe, unique way to deepen conversation and personal insight. Notice more about the tangled burr in a dog’s hair, or the padding on a gecko’s feet, or that slime mold as a model for creating traffic patterns.

I just found this in a 2011 file. Amazing how reading “old” words offers insights for resilient living for today’s crazy times. Might have written this 15 years ago, but the whatever muse whispered then is calling to me now.

Here are a few quotes of resiliency that have I found that speak to the state of our nation and the world as we close out 2025.

A poem by Nancy J. Carmody about all the reasons for being thankful.

I can no longer hold back from making observations that could have many of you casting me aside. But this is far too important.

Reacting to life's events demands patience, a quality that I, being an extrovert, often find challenging to embody. As we approach the year's end, I share these reflections in the hope of learning from introverts the invaluable art of patience and the grace of waiting.

“A stitch in time saves nine." That was an old adage about sewing up clothes before the hole became too big. However, I have been fascinated lately by that expression because I think there is a more critical addition to the old saying: “A stitch in time saves nine, but not if you have outgrown the pants.”

When Bill announced that the first two destinations on our road trip would be Flagstaff, AZ, and Moab, UT, I was thrilled. These two sites are among the few Dark Sky International has certified as having the highest-quality night sky.

For many of us, the advice to “set goals” can feel impossible—we simply don’t know what we want. That’s why I use reverse goal setting. Instead of starting with what you want, begin with what you don’t want.