Hello My Friend! I'm looking forward to our LIVE Call this evening. Please jump in and join us! And please check out this short video first, so you can answer the questions I posed for you. Please write a comment with your answers and be ready to hear from others and/or tell us about your 3ams!

Hello My Friend! Full disclosure. When I feel an uptick in Chaos, especially the type that lives in my mind and has me feeling like I'm moving in too many directions at once, I crave sugar. Dark chocolate, cookies, cakey things. Especially if I start the day with one of these treats, the rest of the day is a battle to get back on track. What is your relationship to food when Chaos comes calling? Does it change?

First, let's welcome Rachel Cox - our newest member. She has hiked most of our Nat'l Parks! And I really missed making sure to welcome each of you as you jumped in with us. Sooo, let's fix that! Pick someone you haven't met yet, and say WELCOME! Here we ALL are! I'm so glad you are all here. Together, we can calm the chaos... Jody Marken - Horse trainer and dressage show judge Christian Phipps - Construction Guru and Cat Herder Michele Clark - Empowering Breast Cancer Survivors Les Landes - Landes & Assoc - continuous improvement systems Susan Miranda - Nurse Case Manager for folks with intellectual disabilities Ted Prodromou - Tahoe skier and author of Ultimate Guide to LinkedIn for Business Rozalind Murray - Mom, songwriter, and poet yearning for farm life Andrew Ruiz - Chef extraordinaire Sharon D Brown - Founder of Self Care You Academy Heidi Beckett - Autism mom, caretaker, cat lady, party animal Judith Coletti - founder of Two Old Broads podcast Hana van Campen - Crazy cat vet and thoroughbred horse Mom Freddy Cicerchia - Endurance cyclist, 9th-Dan Uechi Ryu martial artist Dr Jim DOC Weathers - Biohacking Doc for pro and elite athletes Kevin Whitacre - Mechanical engineer and Colorado horseman Jessica Rose - Mystical therapist and Guide Feather Berkower - Child sexual abuse prevention educator/author Halima Davidson - Military veteran and award-winning human resources leader Allison O’Neall - Textile artist and lover of the natural world Dawn Hogan - Business Marketing and Strategic Coach Melissa Riley - Former special educator and rabbit rescuer Lisa Burke - DC fan of Calm Your Chaos and cat wrangler Karin Antoni - Personal trainer, horse Mom, nutrition guru Jane Rauscher - Former D1 basketball player, pickleball aficionado Scott Dresser - Construction contractor, wilderness EMT, praying for snow

During last night’s Calming Chaos live call💻, I was asked to share my perspective on a challenge many professionals face but don’t always feel free to talk about: "How do you handle chaos at work when the pressure, control, or micromanagement is coming from leadership above you?"😠 The conversation was honest, real, and worth watching. I’d encourage you to go back and view the full call to hear the context, comments, and discussion that led to this question. When I’m not treating pro and elite athletes💪—keeping them in the game until they are ready to leave on their own terms—I consult with healthcare practitioners, clinics, and organizations on leadership and operational breakdowns.👨‍⚕️ And this issue comes up far more often than people realize. Leaders want results… ✔️🏆but sometimes their behavior makes it harder to actually get the job done. After the call ended, I kept thinking about the discussion and realized there were a few additional points that didn’t make it into the live conversation, so I wanted to share them here. Here’s the bottom line: Difficult people are unavoidable. Strong professionals don’t win by reacting to them—they win by managing themselves.☮️ A few perspectives shift that matter: • “Difficult” doesn’t always mean unethical or toxic. ☣️ Often, it’s personality differences—contrarians, micromanagers, chronic skeptics—who may still bring real value to the organization. • Also worth remembering: You may be the difficult one to someone else. That awareness alone changes how you respond. • Matching behavior never works. When you react emotionally or mirror control, you give away your leadership edge. What actually helps you navigate the chaos: • Know the real goal.🏆 Leadership isn’t about changing people—it’s about helping them succeed without losing your professionalism or credibility. • Prepare before the interaction.📑 If you don’t prepare, difficult leaders can take control of your emotions before the conversation even starts. • Manage your internal response first.

Is there an animal you are or were grateful for - Pet? Livestock? Wildlife? An animal in your life now or one that was with you for a time? Or maybe more than one? Tell us about the special animal(s) you are grateful for, and share a photo if you can...