i'm in love with a bag

I fell in love with this bag I discovered on NotCot's blog by Hard Graft, called the 3Fold. I wish I had a boyfriend, just to get this rad bag for him...his loss ;) But I love this Italian all leather bag that can transform into 3 different variations. I see this bag on any metro or at least fashionably-conscious male bookin' it to work in LA or NYC. I love items that are fashion-forward, chic, & functional!

Photos directly from NotCot.com

quote of the day

leadership to live by

I've always been obsessed with business and how companies evolve and succeed. It's clear that good leadership is vital to a company's success--I'll include employee moral and empowerment along with financial success in this term. I came across this article highlighting Bob McDonald's top 10 principles of value based leadership. Bob McDonald is the President and CEO of P&G, enough said.

1. Lead a life guided by purpose.
Only work for a company that you believe in, said McDonald. When looking for a job, examine a company’s purpose, values and people to see if they align with your own beliefs and ethics.

2. Everyone wants to succeed and success is contagious.
Treat your employees like they want to succeed, not like they want to fail. “Most of us manage by exception: We wait until someone does something wrong to interact with him or her,” McDonald said. “Spend enough time in your leadership role finding people succeeding.”

3. Put people in the right jobs.
McDonald emphasized the importance of identifying your employees’ strengths, and then placing them in roles that feed into those strengths. “At P&G, we have 130,000 employees around the world,” he said. “Imagine what would happen if we put them in jobs that they weren’t good at.”

4. Character is the most important trait of a leader.
It’s important for leaders to have integrity and take responsibility for their mistakes. “Choose the harder right, rather than the easier wrong,” McDonald said, citing a prayer that he learned as a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

5. Diverse groups of people are more innovative than homogenous groups.
Diversity sparks ideas and innovation, so companies must employ a diverse group of people. “We try to plan innovation, but there’s a little serendipity involved,” McDonald said. “Diversity is what helps these nodes to connect.”

6. Ineffective strategies, systems and culture are bigger barriers to achievement than the talents of people.
It’s important to blend a high-performance culture with robust systems and sound strategies, McDonald said. Those ingredients, coupled with technical competencies and a strong company mission, will create a high-performance organization.

7. There will be some people in the organization who will not make it on the journey.
Some employees won’t turn out to be a good fit for your company. As head of a company, it’s your responsibility to find the right place for them. “Your job as a leader is to be committed to them as people, not employees,” said McDonald.

8. Organizations must renew themselves.
Leaders should always think about what changes are needed to stay relevant in the marketplace and fulfill the company purpose. “Organizations are like biological organisms — they constantly need to change,” said McDonald.

9. Recruiting is a top priority.
“Somewhere here is someone who will be giving a presentation here years from now,” said McDonald, pointing to the audience of Kellogg students. “And that excites me.”

10. The true test of a leader is the organization’s performance after the leader departs.
If you want to determine whether a leader has been successful, “look at their fingerprints and footprints,” concluded McDonald.

For the direct link to the article I read: McDonald's Top 10

defiant to the hands-free ear-piece

Okay, I'm a total genius! Just kidding, but necessity births ingenuity. Let me explain...due to the recent (July '09) law prohibiting talking on a cell phone while driving via the passe hand to ear method, in addition to my protest of having to pay upwards of $80 for a quality ear-piece, on top of the fact that I should be exempt from the law based on my superior multitasking skills and ability to drive safely while carrying on a conversation. I would also like to argue that any quality hands-free ear-piece is far too expensive for me to purchase in the current economic climate, food is somehow taking priority. Also, I'm finding it difficult to not make phone calls or not receive them, while driving...so, drum roll please....the "scarf satchel"! Bam! This is what I developed while running errands and driving to work this morning. While trying to get creative with the law and placing my phone on my arm while driving and talking via speaker phone I realized I was wearing a scarf and sat it in the cowl of my scarf and it was perfect! I didn't have to yell, didn't have an annoying ear-piece, and was obeying the law--best of all worlds!

Sorry for all of the exclamation points, but it was very exciting to finally resolve this recurring dilemma. So if you relate with my defiance of the law or ear-pieces, please try-out the "scarf satchel", it's free accompanied by your favorite scarf.

quote of the day

the modern cinderella

Find me on PolyvoreI am super excited about the romantic princess sleeves that have been popping up on jackets and gowns all over the place recently. This polyvore collection is an ode to the Balmain jacket that I am completely obsessed with! I love how romantic and feminine a sleek black blazer can look while maintaining its edgy-ness.
Ever since I was a young girl, I've loved this Cinderella/Sleeping Beauty-esque sleeve from the very first time I watched the Disney movies, so I thought it fitting to call it the Modern Cinderella, appealing to that desire within every girl to be exalted out of their life and into a dream world of becoming a princess. I guess this is how I would describe/express my interpretation of the modern princess--the princess inside of all of us (without getting too cheesy on you, but...) who works hard, is active, social, and always fashionable--this is her perfect blazer.

quote of the day

favorite new shelter mag!

I'm sure everyone was as devastated as I was when Domino magazine dissappeared along with other shelter publications. Luckily, Michelle Adams and her crew have come to our rescue with Lonny, a shelter publication exclusively on the web. Lonny has easy to zoom pages with links to products and resources they feature, with one-click one can go directly to sites to purchase items.

The premier issue is such a treat, featuring some of the best design experts in the biz. I could definitely live in Kate Simpson's, former Sr. Market Editor of the late domino mag., beach house, or Eddie Ross, Top Design reality show, and Jaithab Kochar country cottage, or the amazing home of Deborah Needleman, the former domino's Editor In Chief. Please check out Lonny magazine; I promise you will love it as much as I do! I'm so excited for future issues!

Here are some of my favorite pics from the 1st issue: