AuthorKatie Helgesen

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Put Your Hands Up!

No Comment in Travel by

You know those little lies we tell our kids…the ones we tell for a ‘good’ reason? My ‘good’ reason started with the Demon at Six Flags when my son Oscar was about 8. Oscar was comfortable with rides and rollercoasters but stated on the drive to Six Flags he’d go on anything except rides that went upside-down. I’m the mom and I knew better. I knew he could handle it and he’d love it. So while we neared the line for the Demon, Oscar pointed …

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What Are You Deeply Passionate About?

No Comment in Business/Work, Getting to know me by

I am passionate about thinking and about learning, usually centered on the theme of constant improvement. Some of these passions developed as a result of the best compliment I’ve ever received. I feel most valued when someone asks for my opinion. I love being a sounding board, knowing that I bring a unique perspective to the table. If I have insights or experience to help make something better, I jump at the chance to share what I know. If I haven’t been there/done that, I …

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What Do You Bring to the Table?

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This isn’t the most beautiful image, but the message resonated with me this week. When someone compliments you, say thank you. And accept what that person says. Many women feel uncomfortable when someone compliments them, and rattle off a list of faults in response. Stop doing that. If you’re having a ‘show and tell’ or sharing session at work, or with family and friends, stop opening your ‘share’ with something like “I know this is stupid but….” or “I know this is lame but….” Accept …

Mikey and Abbie
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The Hardest Goodbye

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Tomorrow is June 8 and it will not be an easy day for our family. For the last 5 years our family Google Calendar has said “Abbie’s Happy Birthday” on this day. It still says “Abbie’s Happy Birthday” because I don’t have the heart to delete it. Sadly though, we don’t have a 6th birthday to celebrate tomorrow. Instead, we’ll be reflecting back on the short life of our little beagle dog, Abbie Dorothy Helgesen. We rescued Abbie in the fall of 2012 after experiencing …

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Just the Two of Us

No Comment in Healthy Living/Lifestyle by

A few years ago, I was listening to an audiobook and was introduced to an idea I fell in love with – traveling without children. This was the story about two career-oriented people with little kids who lived the hustle. The couple was so busy with their professional lives they enlisted the help of several live-in caregivers. Their careers required long hours and frequent travel. They hardly sat down for dinner together. As infrequently as their lives intersected, the narrator described an annual tradition the …

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My Dining Room Table is Full of Shame

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I love my dining room table. Well technically, we don’t have a dining room, but I also feel odd calling it a kitchen table because um … it’s not in the kitchen. (There goes literal Katie again.) When you enter through the front door of our home, you step into a large, open concept area. Couches, a tv, built-ins and a fireplace are the first things you see from the entry. Beyond the couches you’ll find what I will refer to as my dining room …

four year old boy doing headstand on couch
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Ghosts, Starvation, Sick Knees, and Waffles

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When my four and a half year old Mikey woke up this morning, he couldn’t walk. He couldn’t walk because his legs didn’t work. His legs didn’t work because he was a ghost. He was a ghost because he was starving all day. He was starving because his tummy was rumbling. His tummy was rumbling because he was a ghost. This is the encounter I listened to, between my husband and Mikey this morning as I was dressing Scarlett in her room across the hall. …

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I Have Two Words for My Son’s Stepmom

No Comment in Holiday by

For the last five years, we have followed a court-ordered visitation schedule for my 17 year old son Oscar. Every other weekend and alternating holidays, Oscar spends with his biological father, his stepmom, and his two (soon to be three) half brothers. Oscar’s biological father and I don’t get along. I send him texts or emails when he needs to be informed of things but if I need a response, I communicate directly with his wife. I don’t remember exactly how it happened, but it’s …

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What’s On Your Learning To Do List?

No Comment in Decorating/DIY by

The company I work for, Dealer Inspire, was founded on 5 tenets that we live, breathe, hire and evaluate our employee performance on — Communicate, Innovate, Learn, Be Transparent, Give. My team knows my favorite tenet is Be Transparent, but Learn is a close second. Last year our CEO challenged us to take our Learn tenet to heart and learn a non-work related skill. At the time I thought of all the DIY projects I had saved on my Pinterest boards and thought to myself …