9 Lives for Women Blog

When employers ask you for references, it’s the moment that could make or break your chances for a job.  Especially if you choose a reference who gives you a lukewarm review. The first thing to know is that employers prefer to speak directly to a person rather than read a letter that glows brighter than…

When I was a newly minted college graduate with an English degree, I thought that I launched a very logical job search.  I knew that I liked to write, so I searched for jobs at any company or department that focused on writing and editing.  I figured that as long as I was in an…

When you’re not sure if you want to return to work, you’re thinking a lot about how work will affect your life—and your family—today.  This is a bit of luxurious thinking because a current comfortable financial situation could easily change in the future. I’m not looking to be the purveyor of doom—only reality.  We’ve all…

On recent long flight I watched the movie, “I Don’t Know How She Does It”.  If you feel like your head is a supersonic “To Do” list missile headed for an unknown planet, and you’re trying to hold it all together before opting out of the workforce, you’ve got to see it!  It’s cute, funny…

One of my blog readers on the main line in Pennsylvania mentioned that she was enjoying reading Jane Fonda’s book, Prime Time.  After she said that the book ”gives me a clear and directed message about balance in all areas of our lives,”  I cheated and read excerpts on Amazon.com. There’s one part of the…

Last week I had the good fortune to visit my daughter who has the good fortune of studying in Milan for a semester.  As she talked about the need to “blend in” with a new culture, I was reminded of parallels in the work world. For generations there has been the problem of the “ugly American”…