My New Favourite Beauty Product

If you think there’s no such thing as a magic wand, you’ve clearly never used mascara.

Payal Puri

In the last several years, I’ve become a minimalist where makeup is concerned – mascara, blush and lipstick. Readers of my blog already know that I’m devoted to Stila liquid blush (I’ve recently changed colour from Rosewater to Shimmering Lotus) and MAC Russian Red Lipstick (I won’t even take out the trash without my Russian Red). I’ve also been happily using Chanel mascara (seriously overpriced, but great!) for several years now.

I recently dropped into the MAC counter at the Bay on Queen to recycle my old makeup containers and get a free lipstick – yes, Russian Red! Allie served me and she had the most amazing eyelashes. Of course I wanted to know how she did it. Her trick is a MAC product called False Lashes Maximizer. You apply it like mascara. It’s white and coats your lashes. Then you apply your mascara and voila! It really makes your lashes look fuller and longer and stops your mascara from running so I can now wear mascara on my lower lashes. I also tried MAC’s Extra Dimension Black Mascara and was super impressed; I love the very narrow wand. I wanted to see how it performed next to my Chanel mascara so at home I did the mascara test. First I used the False Lashes Maximizer. Then on my right eye I applied two coats of the Chanel Volume Black Mascara and on my left eye I applied two coats of the MAC Extra Dimension Black Mascara. I was very surprised that the MAC mascara won the contest (not by much).

False Lashes Maximizer is my new favourite beauty product and I will stay with the MAC Extra Dimension Black Mascara which out-performed Chanel and is significantly cheaper. What are your favourite beauty products?

I won’t cry for you. My mascara is too expensive.

Unknown

Make someone smile today.

Geri

Micromanagers – The Scourge of Corporate Life

If I was meant to be controlled, I would have come with a remote.

Genereux Philip

I know that all of you working in the corporate world have had at least one (or more) experience with a micromanager – and it’s never positive. At best, the micromanager lightens up a bit over time and the situation becomes tolerable (if they’re paying you enough money). At worst, you keep a letter of resignation in your word document file and every morning you come in, you correct the dates because you never know which day will be the one where you say ENOUGH! and send off the letter to the appropriate parties. Once you have the letter of resignation poised at the ready, it doesn’t matter how much they’re paying you (I can tell you from first hand experience).

The problem is that corporations breed this style of leadership. As you work your way up the corporate ladder you’ll eventually be promoted into a position with direct reports whether or not you have the people skills to be managing living, breathing people whose lives you’re capable of ruining. With no training (or little training after the fact), these new people managers are let loose on the unsuspecting population, wreaking havoc. They have no clue how to manage so instead, they micromanage. Some micromanage because they feel that in order to do their jobs they have to be in total control. Others micromanage because they crave power and micromanaging allows them to exert their power over you. Whatever the reason, the outcome is never good.

The joke in the corporate world is the overuse of employee engagement surveys which allows employees to anonymously express how they feel about their bosses, corporate culture, etc. The well-known micromanagers get abysmal employee engagement scores survey after survey, but nothing’s ever done. Eventually employees go survey blind and the micromanagers continue on as before without missing a beat. Nothing ever changes.

I’ve sadly come across very few good people managers in my long career. The old expression People leave managers, not companies is spot on. In fact according to Gallup polls, a full 50% of employees who quit cite their manager as the reason and 70% of the factors that contribute to your happiness and motivation at work are directly related to your manager.

Interviews are a two way street. Make sure that you have a list of questions prepared for the manager so that you can ascertain whether or not you want to work for them. Jobs are not unicorns. Don’t be afraid to pass on an opportunity where you see warning signs about the manager or culture. As I seek out a new opportunity for myself, I’ll be taking my own advice. 😁

If your job is to tell me how to do my job, you should at least know how to do my job.

Someecards

Make someone smile today.

Geri

Life’s Too Short

Life is too short to have anything but delusional notions about yourself.

Gene Simmons

So often we seem to live our lives on automatic pilot, content to maintain the status quo. But, stop for a moment and ask yourself if that’s enough? Are you are really happy? Do you like your job? Is your home your sanctuary? Are you surrounded by people who enrich your life?

I’m by nature a happy person. My manager in a previous job described me as having infectious positivity. I was recently in a position that was robbing me of my smile and I allowed it. It was a good job, with good money for a good company – everyone’s dream, but mine. The environment was stifling and oppressive. I felt strangled, deflated and defeated, but I soldiered on until I knew that I had no choice but to leave - my smile was gone and I couldn’t find it. Even though I didn’t have another position lined up, I gave my notice and reclaimed my smile!

This isn’t a dress rehearsal. Life’s too short to be miserable.

• Surround yourself with happy, positive people that enrich your life
• Find a work environment that inspires and encourages you to be your very best
• Stop caring what other people think
• Wear clothes and accessories that make you happy, not conform
• Don’t be afraid to stand out
• Stop obsessing over food and enjoy it
• Eat real butter, real cheese and dessert once in a while
• Being a size 0 shouldn’t be your goal in life
• Don’t waste your life commuting

I’m going to continue looking for a job that excites and inspires me every day. I have butter in my freezer and really good cheese in the fridge. From time to time I will have dessert. I was born bigger than a size 0 and have no desire to look like a stick figure. I embrace my quirky taste in fashion and have a closet full of less than conventional clothes that make me happy. My sun glass collection currently stands at 20 and is still growing. I value each and every one of the happy, positive, enriching people in my life. And I love coming home to my sanctuary. Now if only my golf game would improve…

Life is too short to live on low-fat everything.

Kristin Scott Thomas

Make someone smile today.

Geri

We’re Being Ripped off by the Postal Service

You know you're a fool when what you're doing makes even the post office seem efficient.

Joshua Cohen

I’m tired of being ripped off by a post office that provides inferior service at exorbitant prices. The cost of postage is an outrage and I’ve gone totally electronic. In fact this past Christmas I sent ecards exclusively.

My recent encounter with the post office astounded me! I was recently notified to appear for jury selection. As much as I would truly enjoy seeing the legal process in action, I can’t afford it. I’m self employed and if I don’t work, I can’t pay the bills. In order to be released from jury duty you have to send a letter to the Attorney General’s office explaining how being a juror would cause you undue financial hardship. I wrote the letter, and not wanting to take any chances (I have no faith in the postal system), I elected to send the letter by registered mail. I should preface this by telling you that the destination of the letter is within walking distance of my apartment, so imagine my shock when the postal clerk asked me for $11.30 to register my letter. Feeling that I really had no choice, I coughed up the money with great resentment. Thankfully my $11.30 registered letter reached its mark and I have formally been released from jury duty.

The usefulness of the post office to society diminishes with each passing year and as we become more accustomed to going electronic, their only use in the future may be to deliver the goods that we order online.

Mail your packages early so the post office can lose them in time for Christmas.

Johnny Carson

Make someone smile today.

Geri