Home
About
Services
Work
Blog
Contact Me

Barbara Brooks created Flamingo Strategies LLC to help clients stand up and stand out, through telling and sharing their stories of impact and purpose.
Hacking Away at Happiness is her blog. 

email me

FLAMINGO STRATEGIES, LLC
Fantastic opportunity
Oct 1

Oct 1 Fantastic opportunity

Barbara Brooks
Wellness, Philosophy, Religion

The fate of the Earth already is inscribed. But through our actions, we have a fantastic opportunity save our planet from doom.

Silver linings
Sep 22

Sep 22 Silver linings

Barbara Brooks
Wellness, Friendship

Life can be hard. But every difficulty or setback also brings the potential for beneficent outcome.

Fly little birdie
Sep 11

Sep 11 Fly little birdie

Barbara Brooks
Family

We must send our little birdies out of the nest. Even if they say they need us, or we believe we need them, it’s better to cut the cord.

Do the hard thing
Sep 9

Sep 9 Do the hard thing

Barbara Brooks
Creativity, Storytelling, Work ethic

Why is it necessary to do the hard thing? Because the path of least resistance is a terrible teacher. And the obstacle is the way!

Offer. Receive. Support.
Aug 9

Aug 9 Offer. Receive. Support.

Barbara Brooks
Friendship, Travel, Creativity

There’s nothing selfish about noticing the rhythm of your offers, and what comes back in your direction. If something feels out of whack, it probably is.

Why camp?
Aug 7

Aug 7 Why camp?

Barbara Brooks
Mindfulness, Travel, Creativity

For quieting the monkey mind, there’s nothing better. It forces mindfulness, reinforces simplicity, and even subsistence tasks bring joy.

Total immersion
Jul 23

Jul 23 Total immersion

Barbara Brooks
Travel, Creativity, Business, Mindfulness

Swimming is refreshing. It’s meditative. It’s an act of total immersion. But landlocked is a state of mind.

On the right course
Jun 23

Jun 23 On the right course

Barbara Brooks
Wellness, Family

If you study the market and know your stuff, you can choose the best time and place to try that big thing for which you aren’t quite prepared. As the kids say: you can “send it.”

Grasping at glimmers
May 16

May 16 Grasping at glimmers

Barbara Brooks
Creativity, Storytelling

Whether we aim to jumpstart our writing—or to make sense of our lives—isn’t everything we need to know located in the glimmers we experience or observe? 

Quitting is committing
Apr 29

Apr 29 Quitting is committing

Barbara Brooks
Work ethic, Entrepreneurship

There can be huge return on quitting (ROQ). But only if we actively commit to something that is of greater value to us.

Aging without a recipe
Apr 18

Apr 18 Aging without a recipe

Barbara Brooks
Creativity, Entrepreneurship

With aging—as with cooking or any other creative pursuit—we need to master the basics before we can play around. Hooray for us. At 40 and 50+, we are masters!

Flywheels vs. rabbit holes
Mar 30

Mar 30 Flywheels vs. rabbit holes

Barbara Brooks
Business, Work ethic

My podcast habit begs the question: When is listening—or, for that matter, writing this blog—a valid use of time, vs. a trip down a rabbit hole?

Cross words
Mar 11

Mar 11 Cross words

Barbara Brooks
Mindfulness, Wellness, Business

On average, Americans know 42,000 words. And yet, in business and in life, we use the same ones over and over again. So people are likely to tune us out.

Truth be told
Feb 17

Feb 17 Truth be told

Barbara Brooks
Mindfulness, Wellness

Liars are everywhere and consequences are nil. But by telling the truth we distance ourselves from the bad guys. And we experience real personal gain.

Decision science
Jan 31

Jan 31 Decision science

Barbara Brooks
Business, Mindfulness

Life choices aren’t just about what we want to do; they’re about who we want to be. So, it helps to know what matters to us most.

 The fresh-start effect
Jan 12

Jan 12  The fresh-start effect

Barbara Brooks
Business, Work ethic

Reset the same goal over and over. Try new ones. Take breaks. We’re playing the ultimate long game. And with any luck, it won’t be over anytime soon.

Amateurs making music
Dec 22

Dec 22 Amateurs making music

Barbara Brooks
Creativity, Storytelling, Education

If we keep singing or writing about something—and hoping for the truth in our words—then we can make them true. Love is the seventh wave, I say love.

Enjoy the company (of your company)
Dec 7

Dec 7 Enjoy the company (of your company)

Barbara Brooks
Business, Work ethic

Jim said it best: “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.”

The ukulele effect
Nov 30

Nov 30 The ukulele effect

Barbara Brooks
Creativity

When learning new tricks, remember this: The simpler the task, the bigger the R.O.I. And there are few things more timeless or cool than the ukulele.

The five-second rule
Nov 19

Nov 19 The five-second rule

Barbara Brooks
Business, Creativity, Mindfulness, Entrepreneurship

Our rush to respond—to be answer-ready at all times—is habitual. And we don’t even know we are doing it.

Load More

Hacking Away at Happiness

That's my blog!

You can unsubscribe at any time.

Thanks very much!

Home
About
Services
Work
Blog