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Welcome to Margie's Insights and Interviews

  • Jan 31, 2024

    You think failure is hard? Not near as hard as learning from it

    Failing is hard. But not near as hard as learning from it. Thomas J. Watson, former CEO of IBM, once said, “If you want to increase your success rate, double your failure rate.” It sounds good. Yet it’s not wholly true. Sure, risking failure is

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  • Jan 05, 2024

    What's your 'growth edge' for 2024?

    "Every blade of grass has an Angel that bends over it and whispers, 'Grow! Grow!'" I love this verse from the Talmud for its imagery as much as its encouragement. It aligns with a valuable lesson from growing up on my parent's dairy farm which I shared

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  • Nov 16, 2023

    The greatest source of risk to us... is us

    In the 2000’s, the US Armed Forces introduced bulletproof body armor to protect American soldiers in deadly combat zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet the armor was so heavy that it weighed soldiers down and slowed their speed. General Stanley McChrystal, commander of the

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  • Sep 02, 2023

    Without psychological safety, fear stifles truth and courage

    NASA Challenger disaster. BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Volkswagen emissions scandal. What went wrong? Investigations produced multi-layered findings. Yet beneath the complexity lay a common element. Fear. People were afraid to speak the truth. And so, they didn’t. Concerns weren’t shared, mistruths were rewarded, and

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  • Jun 30, 2023

    Let the love you share be the legacy you leave

    It’s been over three weeks since my precious mum left this world and over two weeks today since her funeral. And oh, what a beautiful funeral it was! Yes, it was sad. Yes, we cried. Yes, our hearts hurt. My siblings and I have lost

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  • May 09, 2023

    Get comfortable being uncomfortable

    After graduating from university I moved back to my parents' farm and worked two jobs for six months until I’d saved up enough to buy an around-the-world airfare. Then off I set. No cell phone. No credit card. Just a handful of traveler’s checks (remember

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  • Apr 18, 2023

    Put your 'to be' list ahead of your 'to do' list.

    I felt awash with a swirling mix of anxiety and overwhelm in late March 2020. I was living in Singapore. My husband had just been hospitalized with Covid-19.  I was put into a strict quarantine with one of my children, Singapore's health department video-calling three

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  • Oct 08, 2022

    Embracing Tears

    Tears. I’ve shed a few lately.  While I’ve lived a long way from my parents for many years, the miles have never tugged so hard on my heartstrings than in the last few years as the thickening fog of dementia has rolled in over my

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  • Aug 06, 2022

    Take Courage! Beware the hidden tax on timidity.

    “All right, I'll go in there for Dorothy," announced the Cowardly Lion. "Wicked Witch or no Wicked Witch, guards or no guards, I'll tear 'em apart. I may not come out alive, but I'm going in. There's just one thing I want you fellows to

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  • Jun 01, 2022

    How might you be wrong? Chances are, in more ways than you'd like to think

    Which do you value more: the truth or your own beliefs? Because they are not synonymous. It’s pretty safe to assume that people reading this will have different opinions about many topics. Fiscal policy. Abortion. Parenting. Education. Climate change. Racism. Religion. Gun control. The leadership

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  • May 23, 2022

    Shame Keeps Us Stuck

    Dr Brené Brown has shared many insights that resonate with me. Yet one stands apart: "When we don’t work on our shame, we work it out on others.”  Sometimes we conflate and confuse guilt and shame. Guilt is an adaptive emotion we feel when we

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  • Feb 25, 2022

    Beyond The Middle Octave: Embracing All Of Life's Notes

    It's hard to wrap words around reuniting with my parents in Australia after two years of travel restrictions. Mum has developed dementia since we last hugged. As she dried my tears she said, "Margaret Mary, is it really you? I feel like I am looking at myself,

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  • Dec 17, 2021

    Choose Courage Over Comfort

    A swirling mix of nerves and excitement coursed through me as I waved my family goodbye and the sliding doors closed behind me at Melbourne airport.  I was 21 and, armed with little more than a backpack and some travelers' checks (remember those?), I was

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  • Nov 22, 2021

    Practice Gratitude. What You Appreciate, Appreciates

    We all know that it’s good to be grateful. Yet let’s face it, the gravitational pull to dwell on what we don't like or perceive as lacking is strong. Unless we consciously choose otherwise, our attention tends to get pulled toward what’s wrong and whom

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  • Nov 17, 2021

    Give More Grace – To Yourself, To Others

    The woman across from me at a dinner I attended recently rolled her eyes in annoyance when the waiter accidentally poured wine into her water glass. As soon as he realized his error, he apologized profusely. But she was frustrated and let him know as

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  • Oct 20, 2021

    How To Thrive Under Pressure

    As a kid, my dad often took me fishing in his rusty tin boat. Every now and again it would spring a leak. Dad was always creative in finding ways to plug the leak until we returned to shore. Blue tack. Candy. One time he

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