Are you a leader?

I found this chart, and alot of valuable ideas in an article written by David Kerpen, a best selling author and speaker.

My thoughts are that some people are just natural born leaders.  Starting on the playground, they are the organizers of the sandlot baseball game, gathering friends together to carol at Christmas for senior citizens or just the person with the most charisma and influence. All they need to be to be successful is harness those natural talents, get an education in a field that interests them, and join a good company.

Many of us have some of the skills needed to become a leader, but they need to be recognized and honed.  Consider what it is about the people you want to be around.
They should be a little bit smarter and more knowledgable so you can learn from them, and you inspire them to do even better.

A good leader always takes the time and effort to know the team.  It is important to play up the abilities of the people on the team.  If someone is creative, put them in charge of new ideas and expansion.  If another member of the team is analytical, let them keep everything in order, and on time  and budget.  Use the team to the best of their ability.  Not everyone has the same skill or mind set.  A good leader knows and appreciates that.


"Individuals play the game, but teams beat the odds."  SEAL Team saying

Green selections for kitchen

It has been a couple of weeks since we started our kitchen remodeling project, and we have made quite a bit of progress.

The fun part for me was selecting the finishes and styles of the cabinets, countertops and hardware.

I had a wonderful experience at Home Depot, where I selected Martha Stewart cabinets and Silestone countertops. The entire team was helpful, available when I needed them and very knowledgable.  I would highly recommend them to anyone in the process of remodeling a kitchen or bathroom in their home.

The selections I made are green selections, so I am being a good stewart to the environment, and they will be very functional in a space that is used a great deal.

The perimeter cabinets which I wanted in a white, are a 5 ply laminate which will not show the cracking or splitting that would normally be experienced in a dry enviroment like we have in the winter.  They will also be very easy to clean, and will not yellow over time.  I have chosen the Silestone, Merope for the countertops, and love the honed look which is soft and casual.

The island will be in a dark Java maple wood.  The Silestone, Giallo Nova will add movement and color to the space, and not show marks or waterspots.  The wonderful features of it not having to be sealed, scratch and heat resistant, and another green product makes it perfect for my needs.

I have always said that the kitchen is the heart of the home.  And that is certainly true in our house.  With that said, I am really going to love my new kitchen! 

Working together

Day 4 of remodeling project
 

Wow, day 4 of our remodeling project, and I have learned alot about working together on a project that has not been planned by everyone involved.

Originally my dear husband said "Just do what you want honey, I always like your work."   Well that led me to believe that he really did not have an opinion on the choices, or how things were to be done.  I thought he was just going to do the work!
Wrong, ... oh so wrong. 

After many years as a designer, I should have known that he was going to have an opinion. Silly me...

So, we have worked very hard, gotten very dirty, and did quite a bit of  shopping together.

My original thought was to have a high contrast kitchen that was black and white.  I have already gotten my appliances that are white, and have always loved that look.
However, he does not want it to look 'like a hospital', which of course it wouldn't.

As we have always done, we are going to compromise so we both enjoy our home.
I will have white cabinets, but the look will be softer with a softer tone on the countertops and dark wood floors.  I will be using some accent finishes on the island and the pantry.

We have also decided to change a bit of the layout after finding some 'surprises' when we opened the walls.  But that is not a bad thing, and the results will be great.

So, the electrician and plumber have been here to do the preliminary work.  The popcorn ceilings are all scraped, the wall is down and additional header is up.  Still need to fill in the gap in the floor underlayment.

I think it has been a very productive week, and we have had some laughs, as well as growling  (from him of course, never me)

Stay tuned for the next installment on the adventures of our great kitchen remodel...