I was going to blog about various creative ways for job-seekers to communicate their (professional) value to prospective employers...but honestly, people, oy, the news out of Newtown just has me heart-broken. I was sniveling while running at the gym this am and watching a broadcast on CBS' morning show about the "Elementary School Massacre," which seriously are three fucking words which should never EVER go together.

Thinking about people's professional value, of course made me think about the intrinsic value of being human, the unique universe inside all of us--I promise, I am not stoned, just emotional--which makes me think of those murdered children, those lives (and, of course, the equally valid adult lives) wasted, all that potential squandered...arrgh! It kind of makes me want to scream and beat my head against the wall and be all melodramatic. I mean, I'm trying to be perky for clients, but there's another part of me which wants to curl up under the covers with about 50 mini bottles of vodka, some cupcakes and be all Judy Garland (wink, wink) about the situation. Heart-breaking.

People are going to attempt to learn some lessons, pass some new laws, do whatever because of this tragedy...and I hope it does, in whatever way possible, force us to do better by our children and ourselves. (Because honestly: the alternative is too horrible to bear.) But the only "lesson" I can handle today is: USE YOUR POTENTIAL. Do what you love, what you're drawn to TODAY because tomorrow is not promised. Choose creativity, choose to invest in yourself, and your life and your dreams. If for no other reason, use your talents to honor those bright lives cut short: those children were our children, and their teachers were our teachers.

"Change your life today. Don't gamble on the future, act now, without delay." -Simone de Beauvoir

Also: tell your TEACHERS, family, friends, neighbors,cats, flings, Yentas, you LOVE them.Want to tell me something, and/or invite me over to watch "Futurama" and help you drink some or all of that 80 proof eggnog? You know you do... Email me @ carlotazee@gmail.com!

(Christmas is next week! I'm sure there's someone in your life who could use a session of coaching, maybe to help their stalled job search...or resolve some issues at the office...or get them started on making their dreams come to life. Buy a session through PayPal, by December 24, 2012, and I'll send them a special, personalized notification!...And, you're welcome.)

If I could get anything into people's heads--besides the fact that they should fill my PayPal account with money--it would be this: It is totally normal to think that you're an imposter, that you have no idea what the hell you're doing with your [fill in the blank], and to be jealous of everyone else, who appears to know exactly what they're doing.
Spoiler alert: They don't. In fact, most people have no idea whatsoever as to what they're doing. They just hide it better. Or, they don't care. Or, they learn from their mistakes. But really: they just hide it better.
Obviously yes, some people do indeed know what the hell they're doing--like, for example, my amazing super, Jorge, who in four hours completely re-plastered, re-painted and generally fixed a huge hole in my ceiling. Yes, Jorge is a machine.--but most people, if you read their biographies, or study history, or just ask them later on...they're making the sh*t up as they go along. And for some of them...ha, it works! And they get the corner office or win the Nobel Prize for Literature or, like Stalin at the end of World War Two, enslave the rest of Eastern Europe, because he got lucky and Hitler was crazier.
I think that people want to believe that there are rules in life, and if they follow them...all will be well. Yeah, not so much. What there is, is luck, education, a willingness to learn, and crucially, a willingness to be honest with oneself. If one fancy corporate job has not filled the void within you...why would another, even fancier one do so? Hmm.
But once you realize there are no rules...isn't that liberating? It should be! I started this business, and wrote a play, and am writing a book because I finally said, "F**k it. I'm just going to do it. Who cares?" God, if I was worried about following the rules, I'd be another disgruntled, mediocre attorney, practicing law, badly, and hating my life. Not a good look.

Imagine what you could do if you embraced the chaos and were true to yourself...imagine.Why not email me @carlotazee@gmail.com and let me know!  (PS: Any readers who go on to win the Nobel Prize for Literature, after reading this blog...you're welcome and where's my 10%?)