Stories to inspire you.
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Do you feel like you're in a career rut? Your goals (if any) seem unreachable, or you can't pin down exactly what you want to do with your job or life. A coach could help you prioritize, provide advice and support, and point you in the right direction. Kimberly Gleason experienced the benefits of a coach firsthand and was able to form a major business goal—to open a coaching business of her own. Now, Kimberly Gleason Coaching exists to help your life "flourish and grow."
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True or false? When your mother tells you to do something, you want to do the opposite. For a just-out-of-college Diane Griffin, the answer was true. But eight years ago, she resigned to the fact that sometimes, moms just know best. Now, she's making her real estate-savvy mother and her community proud with her commitment to the thriving business community and local philanthropic efforts.
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Growing up, Kari Tubbs and her favorite female cousin shared everything, including clothes. "She always had a closet full, and she let me go through and pick out my favorites and keep them," Kari said. Although the girls were twelve years apart, they had a bond that propelled them through childhood and keeps them close even now—even as her cousin is in the midst of breast cancer treatments. When Kari got the news that her cousin had been diagnosed, she was "heartbroken." Throughout chemo and radiation treatments, she has tried to stay positive for her cousin. "She's always been very beautiful in my eyes, and even with a bald head, she's gorgeous. I tell her with her bald canvas, her blue eyes just pop."
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Reaching retirement age is inevitable, but the age at which workers are ready to punch the clock for the last time is not so uniform. Many employees, especially those of the Baby Boomer generation, are tuning in to the latest employment trend—encore careers. Brigitte Betser, owner of Caledonia's FranNet, said while those in their mid to late fifties may not be ready to retire, they are looking for a change. "Career pains," as Brigitte calls them, induce a search for more flexibility, control, and independence. If this is the case, business ownership, particularly becoming a franchisor, may be the answer.
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Maureen Noe is naturally a strong, results-driven, task-oriented woman. The president of Heart of West Michigan United Way said, “I get a lot of energy from my work.” Maureen is capable of a high degree of efficiency as she moves United Way toward its mission, yet she knows that excellent leadership is about balancing her results orientation with a process approach to leadership. She intentionally restrains her own desires to move quickly and precisely in meeting the needs of her team members, leveraging their strengths so the team can accomplish greater goals than she could on her own.
