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Continue reading →: A condition that must be satisfied
Creativity arises from elegant restraint. – Jon Stewart Two trains leave their stations at 10:00 am. One travels North at 80mph and the other travels South at 90mph. They each make 3 fifteen-minute stops. They travel a combined total distance of 135 miles. What time will they cross paths? It’s…
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Continue reading →: A series of things in a specific order
The law of cause and effect is the law of laws. – Ralph Waldo Emerson Mom was known for her carrot cake recipe. It was her go-to dish, the one she baked for every holiday and every birthday. She almost always made two cakes at a time, because my family…
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Continue reading →: Defining the steps in between
A list is not just a list; it’s a map to your goals. – Anonymous We were married young. Despite having been together for years, it felt fast, like the universe propelling us forward. A series of major life events all condensed into a six-month window. On the other side,…
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Continue reading →: Where you are, and where you are going
If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there. – Lewis Carroll I grew up in the woods. We moved around a bit, but for most of upper elementary school our trailer was nestled down deep into the forest. My family settled in on a…
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Continue reading →: Ascertaining one’s position
I learned to drive in my friend Josh’s little blue car. It was twenty minutes from his house to mine, and thirty in the opposite direction to Bloomington. Forty miles total, all in a straight line, down the same state highway stretching west to east across the county. Forty-some-odd years…
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Continue reading →: Of moving or being moved
It was freezing cold in Indiana this week. It’s always chilly in January, but these temperatures are really bananas, the kind of cold that keeps children inside at recess and dogs dressed in silly coats. I didn’t want to run and there were a million reasons not to in fact.…
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Continue reading →: The capacity to accept
Every semester, just before classes began, I walked to the Student Union at the heart of campus. Buried in the basement of the sprawling, gothic, limestone structure sits the student bookstore. Back in my day, we bought textbooks. Heavy, awkward tomes I carried across campus in my overstuffed backpack from…
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Continue reading →: A logical relation between sets
I find the most difficult aspect of being a project manager is articulating where the magic happens. What precisely makes some projects run smoothly, and others feel like you are dragging a tractor-trailer towards an elusive finish line? We’ve all had this experience. The scope is documented, the Gantt chart…
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Continue reading →: A decision to do something
Mondays are my absolute favorite days of the week. Hear me out, I know it’s controversial. My social media feeds are buried under the barrage of downer Monday memes too. I grew up listening to the Bangle’s Manic Monday on repeat. No matter, there’s just something about the beginning of…
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Continue reading →: A propitious moment for action
Several years ago, I found myself numb. I’d left a job I loved and lost my mother to cancer. I felt bleak and unmoored, rattling around in the world without the routine and responsibilities which had always been an anchor. The blessing of that time was that there was an…
Hello,
I’m Melissa
Welcome! I’m so glad you’re here.
I’m a project manager with a passion for simple approaches that emphasize the importance of context. I love helping others navigate complex projects with clarity & confidence.
Outside of the office, I’m an avid runner, reader, writer, mother & wife. I spend my days looking for connections and inspiration in the context of our busy, messy, wonderful, joyous, everyday lives!
I hope you’ll find something useful & encouraging here. Have a look around and let me know what you think.
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Context Matters 