Transforming Perspectives: Fun Ways to Shift Your Mindset

©The MBT Blog published by MBT Mindful Business Today

The other morning my adult niece told me, “There is protein in ice cream, you know. So, I ate some for breakfast. Protein for breakfast! Ice cream for breakfast!” Interesting perspective.

I remember the days when my son was young and occasionally we did silly things just for fun, like eating cake for breakfast. And, really, what are pancakes and syrup? The word “cake” is even in the name!

It made me think of changing perspectives. How we change them. Why we change them. And, why is a change in perspective important.

You know how it feels when you make a big decision or finish a big task? Sometimes, an invisible weight lifts, and you feel like you might skip for joy or fly with exhilaration. Wouldn’t it be great to find that relief in times when the decision or task is still looming? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you knew some ways that helped you adjust your perspective? If you knew a method you could use to help you move forward decisively, with confidence?

One way to activate the energy to accomplish something is to change something. Recently, I moved a couch in my living room to a different wall. When I sat down at the end of the day, I was greatly surprised at how different everything in the room looked. I even felt different. My perspective changed. I felt a deeper appreciation for a piece of art hung in the room. I also swiftly removed one piece realizing it did not match the rest of the decor.

What are some ways to adjust your perspective on demand?

  • Put on some music you love and dance. Privately where no one can see you, if you are shy about it.
  • Sing to music you love, maybe even as loud as you can.
  • Watch a movie with subtitles about people in far away places.
  • Meditate.
  • Try a new kind of food.
  • Talk to a friend and colleague. Listen to their experiences.
  • Write stuff down in a journal. Notice any trends or patterns?

As I wrote last time in Prep To Make Your Life & Business Easier, give yourself a break. In fact, find intentional ways to give yourself ease and grace.

To delve more deeply into creating a strong mindset, enroll in one of our classes.

Prep to Make Your Life & Business Easier

©The MBT Blog published by MBT Mindful Business Today

For Mardi Gras and Fat Tuesday this week, I wore my beads (and so did Snowy, one of my dogs) and celebrated. To accomplish the bead wearing first thing in the morning, I relied on an old hack I taught myself years ago – make things easy for yourself. That self-commitment showed up for me, and my very simple Mardi Gras prep made it easy for me to sparkle in purple, pink, green, and gold. How about you? Do you take a moment for yourself and find ways to make your life easier?

Here is one thing I do. I box things up at the end of each season, put them in the attic, and then retrieve them ahead of the next season. Hence, my Mardi Gras beads were boxed with the Valentine’s Day table runner and wreath. My bag of beads and special socks, the ones I bought in New Orleans last year, were handily tucked in a bright, glittery bag in the Valentine’s box. When decorating for Valentine’s Day, I placed the bag next to my dresser. On Tuesday morning, I grabbed the bag, retrieved the adornments, and was ready to snap a photo with my dog. Thank you, self, for being proactive!

The concept is simple. I bet many of you already do these things to make your life easier. Buy multiple corned beef briskets around St. Patrick’s Day and freeze them. Then you can enjoy a Reuben sandwich throughout the year whenever you have the craving. Leave notes in your calendar to remind you where you stashed the lawn mower batteries. Then, you have found and charged them in advance, so the moment “No Mow May” ends you are ready to trim. Create a list of all the things you need to do before hosting a gathering at your home for annual occasions. I also make notes on recipes to remember the changes I made to make the food extra delicious.

Yes! We can all be pretty good at getting ahead of ourselves to stay on track. But how do we translate that into our business life? Here are a few ideas:

  • When a conference you attend each year announces its dates for the following year, add it to your calendar immediately.
  • When a potential client indicates they are not yet ready for your services, put a note in your calendar (or CRM system, if you have one) to follow up in an appropriate amount of time.
  • I am very supportive of calendaring! Use your calendar to block out time to work on business strategies. This is especially useful when the need is many months in the future. It is too hard to create the entire strategy and plan in one week. Better to give yourself a head start.
  • Keep a “me” folder of the compliments and accomplishments you receive during the year. Then, you are ready to write your self-evaluation, lobby for a raise or promotion, or feel better after a day that did not go so well. You can take a moment to read through your folder.
  • If you have calendared time to work on developing business, add notes to the appointment to remind yourself how you can use that time.

How about you? How do you make your life easier?

Cultivating a Hopeful Mindset: The Power of Self-Reflection

©The MBT Blog published by MBT Mindful Business Today

My niece and I recently watched the Michelle Obama documentary from 2020, “Becoming.” While watching, we both suddenly became silent and sad. Then, my niece said, “This is what we are missing now – hope.” Amidst the constant constantness of our world and continual stream of bad news, there is little talk of hope. Yet another reason to develop and maintain a strong mindset, a hopeful mindset.

As human beings, we look for the hope. At home each night, I cuddle with my dogs, cats, and husband – in that order. We seek out movies, television shows, and people who will bring us joy and make us laugh. At the same time, reality closes in around us.

Because you have the power to decide how to feel, how to react, how to show up in this world!

Let’s watch one of our favorite movies, “The Princess Bride” or “When Harry Met Sally.” Oh, that’s right, Rob Reiner and his wife were murdered. Okay. Let’s pick up some hamburger and have nachos for dinner. Oh, that’s right, at $6.99 per pound, we can’t afford hamburger. Veggie and black bean nachos sound good?

What do we do? What can we do? Look backward, forward, and sideways for the hope you seek. I am completely serious. Do not give up your quest for hope and happiness.

For me, the solution for finding hope and happiness is first to look inward. I build a strong, happy, and hopeful mindset first by writing down my thoughts. It is no secret I am offering journaling classes this month. I will continue to offer them throughout the year.

Why look inward? Why journaling? Why start with yourself? Because you have the power to decide how to feel, how to react, how to show up in this world! And the source of that power is a strong, hopeful, positive mindset.

Here is what journaling can do?

  • Trends emerge through journaling that illuminate how I respond to the world.
  • I discover both my negative reactions – those that are harmful to my mindset – and my positive reactions – those that help me achieve by noticing what I have written in my journal.
  • When I am down, my writings reveal happy times and past accomplishments. These memories replenish me.
  • The ritual of taking quiet time for myself to decompress is self-care.

Look inward for hope. Replenish yourself. Then share it with your community. And, if you need help doing that, join a journaling class or reach out to me at mary@mbtmorebusinesstodayllc.com. I am here to support you in your journey to mindful leadership.

Finding Simple Solutions in Complex Times

©The MBT Blog published by MBT Mindful Business Today LLC

I’m thinking about more than pens this morning. Sometimes simpler is better. I was playing Word with Friends. I had the chance to play a really cool word, but would earn only 12 points. I also had the ability to play a totally lame word, za, and get 65 points. Today I chose the simple solution and reaped the benefits.

Then I pondered my daily life and those of my clients. The issues and obstacles we face at home and at work sometimes pile up. The more of them we experience, the more complicated they seem. We look for new solutions, thinking and thinking until our thinker turns blue. If only there was a new way to solve this puzzle.

Of course, often the answer is right in front of us. Sometimes it is a combination of tried and true methods known to generate good results. Sometimes an obvious resolution lies directly in front of us waiting patiently to be uncovered.

Sometimes the most elegant solution is the most obvious and the most accessible.

Some people are excellent at seeing simple solutions. My husband, Steve Thompson, is one of the best. He prides himself on being “basic.” To him this means his needs are basic – eat, drink, love, laugh, work, nap, repeat. He is a voracious reader of books, mostly science fiction or biographies, and watcher of movies of all kinds. He seldom talks about these hobbies except to bring them out when offering a simple fix to a problem the rest of us have spent an hour debating.

Do you have someone on your team like this? How great that is for you and your team! I am so glad Steve is on my team in life. He can cut through the clutter of the webs made by over thinking and drive directly to the heart of the obstacle. Usually, his solutions begin with, “Well, that person does not like mustard. Stop giving them mustard,” except, the mustard is something else equally as obvious.

People like Steve remind me to turn to the basics. Sometimes the most elegant solution is the most obvious. The answers begin with acknowledging what you know to be true about yourself, your business, your team, and your customers. We do not always need to invent the iPhone. Let’s find ways to improve it.

Start with a few simple questions and:

  1. Ask yourself.
  2. Ask your team.
  3. Ask your clients.

What answers might you find? What worked in the past? Do it again! What did the clients say they wanted more of? Do more of it! And what saps your energy yielding only small results? Stop doing that.

Remember to use your journal for solutions that appear when you are half asleep or exercising or driving – all those spaces you are in where your mind is free to breathe. If you form the habit to write down your thoughts, you have created another resource for yourself and your business when you are stuck.

Look for those simple solutions. It is okay to play the boring word and make 65 points sometimes. Just make sure you stop serving mustard to people who do not like it.

If you are interested in forming a habit of journaling, consider joining our Four Fridays in February group coaching class focused on it. Just e-mail mary@mbtmorebusinesstodayllc.com for more information.

Make It Happen: Go All in on Journaling in 2026

©The MBT Blog published by MBT Mindful Business Today LLC

When I reflect on the challenges of 2025, I am grateful I learned how to journal earlier in life. My family suffered a tragedy at the end of 2024. During that awful time, I realized that somehow, miraculously?, I remained grounded in the face of terrible grief and trauma. How did that happen? It was the result of years of focus on learning how to manage my emotions, learning to identify my own needs, and relying on the simple act of writing things down.

In adapting my business now to the needs of my clients, I am changing the name of my company from MBT More Business Today to MBT Mindful Business Today. In fact, MBT will focus more strongly on mindfulness than ever before. The center of that focus is journaling.

My clients see the results of noting their thoughts and experiences, whether they are working on bringing in new business or becoming better leaders. There is power in the act of writing something down. It gives the words weight and permanence. It takes something abstract and makes it real. I uncovers trends and truths.

The alignment of mindset with values and purpose produces results. It keeps out the noise that disrupts our focus. It wrangles in negative self-talk. It helps us find the roots – internal and external – that derail our progress to our goals.

Simply put, a strong mindset clears the way for confident, decisive action. Then, the action creates pathways for pursuit of success. The final result is achievement of goals set.

For all of these reasons, I believe journaling to be a critical tool for cultivating a business mindset. Coupling the skill with coaching guides individuals through the process of using mindfulness in business.

If you wish to create a habit of journaling this year, join our group coaching classes Four Fridays in February. Email mary@mbtmorebusinesstodayllc.com for more information.

Focus on Building A Strong Mindset in 2026

©The MBT Blog published by MBT More Business Today LLC

During these last few weeks of the year, we turn to introspection. I looked for the greatest lessons of 2025 and thought about how they impact 2026. The strength of mindset emerges as the most important skill needed to thrive in today’s workplace and world. As life pushes, pulls, elongates and changes at home and at work, clients rely on emotional intelligence skills to manage their reactions. 

What that means for me, The Mindful Business Coach, and my business is a company-wide focus on supporting clients to build mindfulness and resilience. I hear about the friction in the workplace. I listen to stories about a huge increase in client anxiety. I understand that the only thing we can control is ourselves. It is time to strengthen our internal emotional management skills to best thrive in the new year.

The photo shows me Behind the Mask I created when I participated in the event by the same name for NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) in March. The discussion focused on what goes on behind the masks of women business owners. Along with a group of four brave women, I talked about the impact grief, the economy, and changes in the administration made on my business.

In tough times, I return to what I can control. I return to mindfulness, introspection, and self-management. My response to the obstacles clients are facing, is to offer programming that teaches and hones those skills.

Here are samples of what I will offer. Watch social media and future blog posts for more information.


  • **Four Fridays in February     – Journaling helps us work through issues and emotions by discovering the clues to our behavior. My clients want to journal but often struggle to make it a practice. Hint: it does not have to be perfect. The sentences do not even need to be complete. During these 45 minute group coaching classes, we will discuss journaling, learn specific prompts to try, and spend quiet time actually doing it. Group runs 11:30 until 12:15 p.m. Central Time Feb. 6, 13, 20 & 27. 

    **Mindful Management March – It is one thing to think and talk about how to best manage our emotions, and quite another thing to do it successfully while leading a team. These Group Coaching Sessions focus on creating self-management techniques to use in the moment. Each participant receives access to the TypeCoach Verifier (a $150 value), a group debrief on interpreting results, and four, one-hour group coaching sessions in March (session dates will be chosen based on availability of participants).

Watch for something new each month! Let’s capture self-control, resilience, and strong mindsets together in 2026!

Show Gratitude: Remember Community on Giving Tuesday

©The MBT Blog published by MBT More Business Today LLC

What do you care about?

What do you value?

What impacts you?

It’s time to make a stand and support those things, people, and issues that are important to you. Tuesday is Giving Tuesday, the perfect opportunity to offer peace, understanding, and goodwill to your community.

A few years ago, I wrote a blog post about this: “Be Intentional: Bring Your Personal Drive to Your Professional Life,” Now, I continue to be moved by the stories my clients, colleagues, and acquaintance tell about their lives. There are personal struggles. Situations they see others navigating create empathy and the need to help.

There are so many sources of inspiration in the lived experiences they share. What is your story? Share it with someone. And if you are going through something now, please know that you supported.

Boost Your Growth: Therapy Plus Coaching Benefits

©The MBT Blog published by MBT More Business Today LLC

Working with individual clients over the last few years, I noticed a shift to greater openness about mental health issues. Many of my clients talk about therapy and the specific issues they are working toward understanding and improving. Most of those subjects also show up through the various personality assessments I use when coaching.

Anxiety, managing stress, and codependent behaviors take the top three slots in the cross-over between what is discussed in therapy and what obstacles materialize in coaching. As a coach, I check in with clients to suggest they seek out a good therapist and to confirm they have already done so.

What is interesting to me now is the speed of improvement I see when clients openly work with both.

Therapy focuses on looking backward to the root of the obstacles a person faces. Coaching guides a person to move forward and focuses on improvements. In both cases, information, programs, books, and techniques are shared.

For example, after reading through the tips for improvement offered in a personality assessment report, a client remarked to me, “This is all about my anxiety. I am working on that with my therapist.” From that moment on, the techniques overlap.

Here are some examples:

  • For several clients of mine, the combination of support created a feeling of confidence to engage in conversations they had previously avoided. They tended to put themselves in the category of conflict averse individuals.
  • The power of saying “no” emerged for clients who were inclined to put the needs of others before themselves. With their therapist, they delved into their codependent behaviors. With me as their coach, we worked on building their mindset to affirm their rights to self-care, rather than tearing themselves down through negative self-talk.
  • In therapy and coaching, clients learned to recognize their triggers. I help people determine how to best prepare themselves for triggering situations by creating processes to follow. I saw the swiftness of improvement double when clients also worked with a therapist to find the root of those triggers.

In these and other areas, I have seen an improvement-squared result. Simply put, clients move forward more quickly with both types of support. How about you? Have you invested in yourself? What works for you?

Rediscover the Joy of the Coffee Meeting

©The MBT Blog published by MBT More Business Today LLC

I love coffee. I love all kinds of coffee; fancy coffee drinks, straight up caffeine-filled coffee, a bit of café au lait in New Orleans, a pumpkin spice latte both hot and cold. The drink in the picture is a very special café tiramisu drink – no alcohol used but great use of a martini glass. Coffee is cozy and happy and comfortable for me. I also enjoy sitting down and talking with people. All kinds of people, some, I know this sounds crazy, who do not enjoy coffee still meet up with me for a sip – usually of tea or smoothie. It brings us closer together, helps us establish and expand relationships. It is like dating, but for business.

Coming off a solid few weeks of networking, I felt a faint aversion to coffee meetings begin to develop. These are the important next steps that must be taken to bring in new business. How can someone buy your services or refer business to you if they do not know, trust, and like you. The one-on-one meetings are essential. Yet, fatigue had set in. I needed to find a way to power through the thoughts in my head telling me to lie down with a warm blanket.

Once I arrived at the meetings though, I enjoyed the ritual as usual. It seemed the leaving-the-house part of things was weighing on me. They, whoever they are, say too much of anything is not good for you. Yet, how will I plant the seeds for future business if I sit at home? I need to be out there, right?

Then I reflected on the conversations coffee created in the past few weeks. I let myself feel the excitement of learning a new thing. I learn something from each person I meet. I wondered at the life experiences of my table companions – the part of their life experience they shared with me on that particular day. I marveled at the differences and the similarities we uncovered together. I loved each one of those meetings.

What’s old is new! The epiphany surfaced or re-surfaced. I do so like green eggs and ham, or, in this case, meeting and connecting over coffee.

“Yes, but how does all this caffeine intake impact your business?” you may ask. I may reply, in fact, I will reply, “greatly and for the better.” Looking back at my notes, I remembered the follow up I had yet to do. This is an important step, I remembered through my mocha haze: do the follow up!

Those connections have connections and agreed to connect me. In all cases, I also agreed to connect these new connections. The connections are sure to grow from here, leading to many more associations.

I am a bit jazzed up on coffee, so I best write these tips down more clearly for all of you who are reading this.

  1. Reflect on the meetings you had.
  2. What did you learn about the person you met?
  3. Look to your notes for information. What did you agree to do and what did they agree to do?
  4. Make a list or just dive right in, but DO THE FOLLOW UP!
  5. Especially make sure to make plans to reconnect and deepen the relationship.

And that, is how I rediscovered the joy of the coffee meeting.

Surviving the Workplace: Rely on Your Source of Motivation

From the MBT Blog – published by MBT More Business Today LLC

I recently attended a webinar about “Surviving Today’s Workplace” and was surprised to hear the primary focus was on what to wear at work – at least during the first 20 minutes of a half hour webinar. What I hear consistently from clients about surviving the workplace right now contradicts the webinar’s advice – my clients are not wondering whether they are wearing the right shoes. Their concerns center on anxiety, exhaustion, uncertainty, and burnout.

Many people are feeling the grasp of overwhelming circumstances at work. It affects their concentration, productivity, mood, and health.

The root of those obstacles comes from the pressures of meeting company goals assigned to the individual and their team, managing a multi-generational team, employee retention, increased expectations, and, the state of our world right now with the intense level of change and uncertainty.

Many of my clients express, whether through words, actions or inaction, the drain this high level of stress inflicts upon them physically and emotionally. They are having a hard time finding the motivation they need to keep them active and productive at work. Then, their lack of productivity leads to additional stress placing them in an orbit of overload with no escape seeming to be near.

Many people are feeling the grasp of overwhelming circumstances at work. It affects their concentration, productivity, mood, and health. Through coaching, they discover the importance getting back to the basics of their motivation. Asking the question, “why do you do what you do?” is key to breaking out of the funky orbit holding them hostage.

For most people, the answer to the question above falls into four categories. They are motivated by: family and/or people, being responsible, achieving excellence, and solving the immediate problem in the moment. The situations around them make it difficult to satisfy their need for action leading to the responses listed above.

Family and/or People: Individuals in this category are motivated by helping and supporting people. They started their career to dedicate their time to the impact they can make on other people, including their families and members of their teams. When their job and work responsibilities keep them from achieving their purpose, they lose their motivation.

Being Responsible: Responsibilities surface from many places and people in this category are driven to fulfill all of them. Sometimes, they are the chief breadwinner in their family and are supporting multiple people with their paychecks. At work, they feel personally accountable for the successes or failures of their teams and businesses. Understanding this motivation and taking a look at the burdens an individual takes on, can be the key to breaking out of the orbit.

Achieving Excellence: What is more important than achieving a goal? Doing it perfectly, in the best way, and with the highest level of success. These individuals are often so confined to their vision of excellence, they are unable to see the victories in a job well done. Frustration and anxiety will surface for them when the rate at which they are expected to execute leaves no time for impeccable thoughts and planning.

Solving the Immediate Problem in the Moment: Have you ever wished you had the scissors to cut through the red tape in your organization? Red tape, delays, and lack of autonomy are nightmares to this group of individuals. They simply want to go to work, do the job, solve the issues, and move on to the next challenge.

Which of the motivations listed above resonated with you? Give yourself the gift of time today to pause and regain your understanding of what motivates you? And remember to take on that orbit of tasks and obstacles surrounding you one situation at a time. Rather than being stuck in an unrelenting titanium orbit, break through softly by finding control over your work, day, and mood.