About Marie Burns

I wish we had a different word to use here in the United States for our “status” after we lose a spouse other than the word “widow.” It’s the only box you can check on forms you need to fill out afterwards at the bank, doctor’s office, dentist…
Read More

Checklists are more powerful than you might think. Research is definitely convincing on the merits of using checklists. They help you focus and accomplish goals, one small task at a time. They train your brain to be more productive…
Read More

What are the odds of getting hit by a bus? 1 in 495,000. Not happening to me, right? But what are the odds that you’re going to die someday? Exactly. I always say this topic is about WHEN not IF something happens and you are no longer…
Read More

When I first started public speaking, part of my training was the constant reminder that you only have 30 seconds to make a positive impression and grab the audience’s attention. That training was about 30 years ago, and the timeframe…
Read More

“Take a deep breath!” That was probably a common phrase that was used when we were younger if we were upset about something. Or we might have been told to “calm down, count to 10” or “walk it off.” Who knew this age-old advice…
Read More

What is a favorite memory you have of holiday time as a child? Maybe it was related to an event or activity rather than a gift. Or perhaps you have smells or sounds that come to mind when you think of the holidays. I remember getting…
Read More

Talking around the dinner table as a young girl is where I heard the story of my grandma Helen’s first husband. It turned out that 1941, the year of the Pearl Harbor attack, was also a year that will live in infamy in the history of my family…
Read More

When one of my nieces was just a little thing, maybe 4 or 5 years old, she saw a spoon rack on her grandmother’s wall (my mother-in-law). It is one of those wooden shelves that holds tiny spoons my in-laws had collected…
Read More

If you had to choose one word to describe what money means to you, what would that word be? Survival, security, love, power, independence, or something else? Whatever word you identified is the result of years of experiences…
Read More

When we hear the term “legacy” we often think of leaving millions of dollars to heirs, so most of us decide “well, that sure doesn’t apply to me!” and we stop thinking about it. However, the word legacy simply refers to passing…
Read More