JEN SEVERN'S BLOG

I just finished reading Joy At Work: A Revolutionary Approach To Fun On The Job by Dennis W. Bakke. I took a few wonderful things with me from his book. The thick business details of this book made it a difficult read for me. Dennis is a Harvard graduate and ran an international energy company for most of his career. His work is out of my league. I skimmed over a lot of the details. His approach to business is unique and intriguing.   Dennis values people at all levels of his company. Ground level workers had leverage to make important decisions in the work they did. These working environments created an opportunity for employees excel. It was important to Dennis that his employees found joy at work and a sense of ownership of the company. I found his strong work ethics and value for people inspiring.  He also held a strong stance that all work, not just work with-in the church walls, is sacred. I share his passion for ...

Daring Greatly by Brene Brown was the best book I read in 2015. It took me 6 months to finish it. I soaked up all the wisdom a little at a time. The title is based on this Theodore Roosevelt quote: She is a brilliant researcher on the topic of shame and vulnerability. She offers wisdom on how to get past fear and criticism and live a more wholehearted life. I learned some very simple and powerful tips. I even learned that I battle shame and I didn't even know it. Now I have some strategies on how to work through shame in a healthy way. In our society where we never have enough, we constantly compare ourselves to others. We compare our kids, homes, parenting, marriages, cars and anything else. This comparison can wear on our identity and our self-esteem and lead to living closed off lives. That kind of life is not daring greatly! This book is lovely and insightful. She is a wonderful storyteller and teaches through story. It has greatly impacted the way I live my l...

FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED. What? The other day I posted an article about the best  advice a woman ever heard about cleaning. I read it and her advice was "finish what you started". I like this idea and thought I'd give it a try. This is proving to be one of my worst qualities. I know I love to start things and hate to finish them. I get bored easily and then I'm on to the next shiny thing. I am more of a visionary and a strategic arranger than a maintainer. Change and efficiency energizes me.  Our house will be on the market in less than 10 days! My goal, set by my relator is to clear off my horizontal spaces. I am wondering why this seems so difficult only to find this: FIVE partially used bottles of lotion on my bathroom counter. One I got from my son as a gift, another from my MIL, one has glitter so that can't be used everyday, one is my favorite and another the lady at Sephora somehow talked me into buying. My love for variety a...

We have a teenager! We threw our girl a 13th Birthday Party to celebrate the beginning of her teens. It was simple and sweet. She decided to have a sleepover with 7 of her friends at my mom's house. (Well sleepover aren't ever simple. They do take planning, they usually include a few hilarious moments, a few hard lessons on friendship, late nights, tired morning and a lot of laughs. Maybe I should say we keep it as simple as possible.) Here's what we did! The celebration sparkled in aqua and gold. Jess found this cool M at Michael's on clearance and spray painted it gold. Sweet treats served as the centerpiece on the table all the girls gathered around for meals. We met up at our house for a little hover board test drive. Sweet smiles with the birthday girl! While the girls were getting settled in my friend and I went on a little walk. I think it's nice as a mom throwing a party to have a few friends to hang out with too. This was a mistake that turned i...