“Hello, my name is Eric and I’m a people pleaser.”
By far the most popular post I’ve ever written on this blog and the one that seems to deeply connect with the most people is:
Is People Pleasing Keeping You From Pleasing The Right People?
In this post I lay out some of the key signs of being a people pleaser and then offer some tips to help overcome this terrible and self destructive personality trait.
What I found interesting, though, was just how many people could clearly associate with being a people pleaser. If you read through some of the comments you’ll see that many had no problem laying out their life story knowing that they were among fellow pleasing addicts. And those who really got the message had a tone of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted from their shoulders. Read more »

I think we can all agree that 2009 pretty much SUCKED in terms of economic development. We were expecting it, no doubt, as the end of 2008 brought us a world wide financial crash of sorts and the wind was effectively sucked out of our sails, yet I think the reality of these tight times still really blind sided us as this past year drudged on. It wasn’t this way for all of us as businesses that profited off of things like repossessing property, flourished, but I believe we all felt it in one way or another.
One thing I always notice when reading the words of successful individuals is that they think for themselves. You can just tell they do things the way THEY think is best, not what they think OTHERS would do or wish them to do. They are trailblazers because they are first to push away a new path and it is this self-confidence and willingness to think independent of the herd that earns them their respect and often times their success.
This has been a recurring question for Liz and I over the past few years. Both being native to our current location, we wonder what our lives would be like were we to pack up and move to the unfamiliar. Would we find a new adventure just waiting for us to tackle or would we crumble under the weight of home sickness?
I was walking the dogs this evening, thinking about my wife, Liz, and my son, Tyson, both of whom are visiting my mother-in-law for the weekend. As I walked I was picturing Tyson, who is just a hair over 4 months of age, wearing his blue pajamas, hat and slippers. This was the outfit I saw him in this morning, just before heading to the office. He looked so cute, baby pimples and all. He gave me a big smile and made both Liz and I smile with a joy that never seems to lose its luster, no matter how many times he cracks the same silly grin.