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Welcome to Lipstick & Ink®, your home for everything career and wellness inspired. I’m Kelly, a Chicago-based marketing tech professional, writer, career coach, speaker, and events host.

Whether we’re working together on your career aspirations, refreshing your professional documents, or keeping your mental health in check, I encourage you to own your power and make your mark – one lipstick stain at a time.

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Here’s the tea, friend 🫖 Things have been a l

Here’s the tea, friend 🫖 Things have been a litttttle crazy over here the past few months. From selling our condo, moving from the city to the suburbs, going through home renovations that never seem to end, working long hours, to keeping up with life commitments. Whew, it’s been a doozy. So much so, that I’ve quite literally started losing my hair because of the stress 🫣 (any and all tips appreciated btw).

I shared in a recent L&I email that amidst all the chaos, I got caught up in a phase where nothing seemed to be going right. As mishap after mishap occurred, I succumbed to the dreadful victim mindset. I got caught in the vicious cycle of pitying myself and focusing all of my energy on the setbacks, which only made things worse.

After weeks of “woe, me,” 😓 I remembered a book I read last year: The Power of TED (The Empowerment Dynamic). In it, author David Emerald shares that rather than staying stuck in the Victim role, you need to change the power dynamic and shift to the Creator role. 😫➡️🤓 While the Victim prefers to look back, re-hashing negative stories, the Creator looks forward, taking an optimistic approach and choosing to think about those stories differently.

I decided it was time that I snapped out of playing the Victim and embodied my inner Creator again. I recognized that I wasn't going to retrain my brain and reframe my behavior overnight but that I could make intentional choices to get there. For me that meant:
⇢ Acknowledging my inner conflict and accepting what needed to change.
⇢ Reminding myself that even when things in my life are swirling out of my control, I have the power to choose my reaction to it all.
⇢ Manifesting that things will work itself out and that this is just a temporary blip of circumstances.
⇢ Adopting a #gratitudeattitude. Having gratitude during a challenging time doesn’t always come naturally, but it's always there - I just have to remember to choose it.

Your turn to spill the tea: how have you shifted from being the Victim to a Creator? 💋

As a #careercoach, I've seen firsthand how often j

With fall now here, I've been thinking about the s

With fall now here, I've been thinking about the seasons. Not the ones we know of spring/summer/fall/winter, but the seasons, or transitions, of life...

I'm currently in the thick of a life transition, still unpacking and living through a home renovation, feeling all over the place. My mind has been stretched in so many directions, my work never-ending, my house a tornado of clutter, and any semblance of routine turned upside down. Before we moved to our house, I had a regimented way of how I went about each day. I was on top of everything. You could say that I was #thriving.

But now…not so much. And I have been so hard on myself because of it, trying to replicate everything I was doing when my environment and to-do list were less chaotic. I know deep down it's unrealistic, but still, a part of me beats myself up for not having everything in my life together.

Then I realized why. It's been ingrained into us that we have to constantly be focused on bettering ourselves and what we need to do to live a thriving life. In this world of self-improvement, trying to get by and survive is considered a negative.

Allow me to say something a bit controversial though: ɪᴛ'ꜱ ᴏᴋᴀʏ ᴛᴏ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ꜱᴇᴀꜱᴏɴꜱ ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ᴊᴜꜱᴛ ꜱᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴇ. Sometimes #surviving is all we can manage.

Examples of surviving seasons could be:
♡ Moving to a new home/town
♡ Becoming a parent
♡ Grieving the death of a loved one
♡ Dealing with a long-enduring job hunt
♡ Working long periods of hours at a time

Here's what I've come to know though: ꜱᴇᴀꜱᴏɴꜱ ᴄᴏᴍᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ɢᴏ. By embracing that reality, we recognize that our circumstances are temporary. We can give ourselves permission to not rush through a transition and to accept the season for what it is, even when it is challenging. This frame of mind can allow us to show ourselves kindness and grace during a difficult time vs. resisting the transition itself or unfairly judging ourselves during it.

I'm now of the mindset that each season of life - even the seasons of surviving - strengthens us and our resilience, helping to revitalize us in the face of adversity.

SO - if all you did today was survive, know you are doing JUST FINE. Our thriving seasons will come 💋

Ever taken PTO only to find yourself constantly re

Ever taken PTO only to find yourself constantly refreshing your email inbox or checking in on messages? 😥 Same. But let me tell you, I recently got back from a 2-week long vacation to Greece (which was incredible, by the way) and successfully was able to let go of work and actually enjoy my time off 🙌🏼🍹🛥🏖 Here’s what I recommend the next time you take PTO so you too can unplug and not worry while you’re away:

📧 Put an upcoming PTO alert in your email signature and give your clients and co-workers advance notice. I bold and highlight the text red so it’s obvious I have time off coming up so no one is surprised when I’m actually OOO.
🤝 Identify and ask a colleague to be your OOO contact while you’re away weeks ahead of time so they can actively prepare to take on additional work. Also offer to be their back-up when they decide to take time off to return the favor!
✍🏼 Document and share project details with your back-up so they can keep track of outstanding items so they are in the loop of what’s going on. Also, write out a to-do list of items for yourself that you’ll need to take care of when you get back. This will allow you to not feel so overwhelmed when you get back and allow you to hit the ground running.
😎 Create and set your OOO message, indicating the dates that you will be away from work. And refrain from checking emails/Slack/Teams/etc!! The prep you put in before your PTO should allow you to truly disconnect.

Now go ENJOY that time away without guilt or stress! 💋
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#pto #workplaceculture #outofoffice #timeoff #womeninbusiness #communicationtips #corporate #workplace #careertips #vacationmodeon #greecetravel #lipstickandink

As we grow up and join the real world, we tend to

As we grow up and join the real world, we tend to forget to appreciate 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙟𝙤𝙮𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚. We get caught up speeding through life, racing toward milestones and focusing on our next destination that we forget our sense of play, fun, and wonder along the way. Our perpetual busyness harms not only our physical health, but it can also deprive the soul of the joy and meaning of life.

In order for us to refuel and replenish ourselves, we need to embrace life's little joys. One way to do that is tapping into your 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱, sparking that curiosity, exploration, and innocence:
🎨 Maybe that means painting and doodling
🦋 Maybe it’s getting outside and admiring the beautiful nature around you
🌧 Maybe it’s dancing in the rain
🛝 Maybe it’s playing with your own kids
🚲 Or, maybe like me, it means hopping on a bike and enjoying the views along your path

Whatever it may be, seek it out. It's 𝒐𝒌𝒂𝒚 to let go of your adult responsibilities and worries about the world once in a while. Welcome joy with open arms, let loose, and have 𝗙𝗨𝗡.

No matter how much is piled on your plate and no matter how overwhelmed you feel, I promise you that your inner child will always be there waiting for you. And when you take a moment to say hello and embrace that piece of you, you’ll be reminded just how beautiful and fun this life can be 💋

It’s easy to become a corporate doormat if you s

It’s easy to become a corporate doormat if you say yes to everything and have little to no boundaries - esp when you’re new to the workforce or in a new role where you feel you have to prove yourself. I've been there.

I used to let work take priority and run my life. That meant no boundaries, less time for myself, and poor health habits. But after working in corporate 12+ years, I now know what it means to protect that precious time and energy. I've told my coaching clients this and I will tell you: 𝗻𝗼 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 - you always have to advocate for yourself.

Setting those boundaries is great, but the real challenge is staying firm in them. Aka - making sure no one crosses them (and that you yourself don't bend them either). Here's how:

⓵ 𝐁𝐞 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐦 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬: Talk with your manager if you're working outside of your designated hours. Express concern and share how it’s affecting your life. Discuss expectations and mutually agree so you can communicate your availability with others. Do not deviate from these or it will cause confusion for everyone!
⓶ 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐬: You know how much of a workload you can handle. Say no when your bandwidth is stretched too thin. Be upfront about your priorities and explain that you simply cannot take on anymore work or that you’ll need to reprioritize your focuses.
⓷ 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫: Back to back meetings are no fun. I highly recommend planning out your workweek a week or two ahead of time (before it gets full!) and putting blocks on your calendar as you see fit. Look for gaps where you can carve out time to work on projects or step away from the computer. Make time for breaks and protect that time!
⓸ 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐔𝐩 & 𝐏𝐮𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭: If you’re not functioning at your best, you’re not going to perform at your best. Know when your work becomes too much. Advocate for yourself so your manager can help find solutions. Speaking up is crucial since your manager may not know the full scope of your work 💋

One of my coaching clients called me yesterday let

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