10 reasons why I no longer Shop at Normal Retail Stores A few weeks ago, I was at BUTTON when the owner Liz asked me if I could help her make over the company website. My immediate response: “Yes, what do I have to do?” Her goal was to do a photo shoot of customers in action. She wanted to show the customer experience at BUTTON. Being able to help gave me a great deal of pleasure. Button has become a very special place for me and has shaped my shopping attitude. The staff at Button has always made my shopping experience unique, and I wanted to give back to them. You see, I quit my long-time job in early 2017, and, as a result, I had to make a few budget adjustments, shopping including. In the beginning it was easy. I was Continue Reading
BE ACTIV – MY 2019 UPDATE AND YOUR HELP !
Listen to your heart.Trust the timing of your life. You make it or you break it.If you need to make a decision re: 3. – go back to 1. This process pretty much describes my start-up experience with be active the best. If you like to know more about www.beactivpdx and how it all started, please read these two blog posts. To be honest, I debated almost all year 2018 on what to do with my first ever self-owned business be activ. Despite what I know is right and what I share in my book, I was hoping that a solution would come from somewhere. But as we all know that hardly ever happens and there only certain things that you can sit out. When it comes to crucial business decisions, it is definitely the wrong action to just sit Continue Reading
My 2018 Recap – 10 Reasons Why It Was the Best Thing Ever Not to Go Back to Work All Year.
It is already Mid of January when you read this, but it took me a while and I needed a moment to find out what my overall take away on 2018 would be. I wrote down my thoughts, looked through all the photos I took in 2018 as well as went through my email inbox.While doing all of that, it became pretty clear to me: The best thing about 2018 was that I did not go back to work. Here is why: THE SECRET OF GETTING AHEAD IS GETTING STARTED One important thing that made this year such a happy and good one for me is that I knew projects that I wanted to do going into this year. I knew that I wanted to write a book, that I wanted to take trips and go.see.do with Lucy and that I wanted to get fit and healthy again. Having these goals in Continue Reading
BE ACTIV – FAQ
What is BE ACTIV? BE ACTIV is a new, innovative fitness concept to get the world moving. The product to execute this concept is brand new, customized, high-end fitness trailer. THE STORY Born and raised in England and Germany the founder, James Montague and myself both grew up being members of sport clubs (soccer / track and field). It has shaped us tremendously. Besides the fact that we worked out and stayed fit, what was even more important was that we developed an unbeatable skill set that has always helped us to successfully conquer the challenges & mile stones in our lives. It has been down to these experiences, that we feel comfortable and energized navigating in the complex world we live in today. Since we moved to the US Continue Reading
HELLO 2018….it’s OK!
I think I told you before that it feels like that I get tested on every chapter of my book before I decide to really include it. Our start into 2018 or let’s say the last 4 weeks have been my personal proof that my chapter “It’s OK!” will definitely get a spot in my book. Not sure if I have never noticed it before because I was so busy myself or even used to do the same thing. This year it seemed like the world around me started the new year with more goals than ever, more life changers, more resolutions and more diets. From personal happiness, high prioritized self-care and possibly record-breaking fitness to very promising business opportunities. Filled with energy, boundless power and ambitious programs, people started this year Continue Reading
TRUST THE TIMING OF YOUR LIFE
Today marks November 13 and I am heading into my last two Portland weeks of the year. It feels a little early to me to wrap up this year and get into the holiday mood but due to the fact that we will spend the month of December in Germany my Portlandia-Year 2017 will officially end on Thanksgiving. Crazy. My new favorite thing to do called Motherhood has taught me many things but here is one: If you think you have time do something right now, you better get it done right away as you never know when the next “now” will be. Sometimes it’s just NOW or NEVER. So, let’s look back: 2017 was definitely a very special year for me and so different from all the other years before. I didn’t really know what to expect but I Continue Reading
How BE ACTIV came to life….or simply: DON’T OVERTHINK IT.
I didn’t know what to expect when a client asked me to meet him for happy hour to share an idea with me. It was a typical rainy evening, and he had already arrived when I entered the cozy restaurant in NW Portland. He was a bit nervous and hesitant to share, so he launched into small talk. I finally told him I couldn’t help him if he wouldn’t share his idea with me. His idea was to create a mobile fitness concept. He had done tons of research and analysis about what keeps people from moving and what barriers prevent them from working out. His analysis revealed the problem, and he had created a business idea based on it. A fitness van or trailer would arrive at participants’ homes where they could work out with friends or neighbors. Once Continue Reading
BACK TO SCHOOL
When I was still in school summer was always my favorite season. The weather was nice, we were out and about all day, went on unforgettable family vacations in Italy, spend all day windsurfing, playing at the beach with friends, enjoyed good food, didn’t worry about a thing, most of the time didn’t have to do anything tasks or homework, the parents were a pretty in a good mood as well and it was just a good time overall. Also, our back then six weeks of school vacation felt forever and always too short at the same time. When it was time to go back to school we were excited about the first day and also sad that the summer felt like it was over. If you were lucky you could still wear your brand-new Italian summer dresses and there were Continue Reading
Alameda, Freemont and Alberta.
We moved to Alameda in May 2015 and happen to end up just between Freemont and Alberta. Back then I wasn’t really sure I would like the area we decided to rent a house in. I hadn’t spend much time on Portland’s east side and I was hesitant if we wouldn’t be to "far out". ( funny, right?). Besides the fact that we ended up loving the house we stayed in, the neighborhood has been growing on us day by day and we still very much like it. The question leaving our house basically was: “Left or Right?” Which either meant we would end up on Alberta Street or Freemont Street ;-). // When on Alberta // A sun downer, a happy hour, a blazer’s game or just a little snack and IPA. So many times we ended up in THE STATION. It’s definitely Continue Reading
You got half a day to kill in Portland? What about…? #getoutthere!
Being the tourist guide in your own city always makes you explore more things and might take you to places you normally don’t go that often which is great! A similar thing happens when you take different kinds of transportation: Even if you have the same destination you need to go to every week: If you mix it up (car, bike, walking, public transportation) you will notice different spots you might not have known just taking by car. The last couple weeks motivated me again to play tourist in my own city more often as well as to try to get to same places taking different transportation and ways to explore more by even doing your daily routine. Here we go with my new April-finds, ever-greens to go’s as well as some “re-born” Continue Reading