Author Archives

Chery Gegelman

President, Giana Consulting

Chery Gegelman is an adventurer that loves to learn. ...Deep conversations, books, travel, and daily living are all food for growth.

As a speaker, facilitator and workshop leader she creates energizing environments that reflect God's grace, tear down walls, help people to consider new perspectives, and inspire change.

Chery is the Founder of Giana Consulting and Conversation Safari's, listed as a Great Leadership Speaker by Inc., writes a recognized leadership blog and has co-authored two leadership books.

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How to Hit A BULLSEYE in 2014!

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Have you ever made a New Year’s resolution?

I remember the first time I ever made one.  I was sixteen.  It was New Year’s Eve and I left the family party before everyone else and walked home to an empty house.

In that quiet space I did some thinking and visualized what life would be like if I changed one of my habits and then I set a personal goal.

It’s the first time I remember being so intentional and so specific about something I wanted to accomplish.

In the months that followed I was so focused on the vision that I never once gave into the temptation to break that promise to myself.

In that process I learned a valuable lesson:

[Tweet “Strategic Quiet + Commitment = BULLSEYE and JOY! @GianaConsulting”]

Nothing builds self-esteem and self-confidence like accomplishment.  Thomas Carlyle

2014 is just around the corner.

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It’s not how much you give, It’s how much love you put into it!

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What are the most cherished gifts you have ever received?

For me that list is easy.  They are the most thought-filled gifts and probably some of the least expensive ones I’ve been given.

  1.  There is the Christmas stocking my parents purchased for me when I was four months old because they could not afford any other gifts.
  2.  There is the memory of the first gift my husband ever purchased for me, after hearing about a song I loved.   (This is years before instant downloads, so he visited every music store possible looking for that tape and finally had to ask if a store had it.)  …It had just come in and had to be unpacked and priced before they could sell it to him.
  3.  Then there’s a special collection of Hallmark tree ornaments, that remind my husband and I of a special memory from our dating years.  In order to purchase all four of them, he had to go to the mall every week for a month…

Expat Christmas TreeThis year I am especially inspired by two expat families who are determined to make Christmas memories for their children in spite of the land that we live in.  For little cost, they have created memories that their family will cherish for years to come:

One named a plant Mohammed, created their own decorations, and turned that plant into their Christmas tree last year.   Their kids liked it so much that this year when they had the option of a more traditional tree, they wanted Mohammed!

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Finding Hope & Peace after the Shock & Awe of Painful Experiences

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Last week was the anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

I wasn’t alive yet on that day, but immediately my mind thinks of events that have filled my lifetime that bring shock and awe, experiences that are burnt into our consciousness so deeply that it only takes one of our senses to catch a glimpse or a wiff, or a sound and we are instantly transported back in time.

Days like September 11, 2001.

  • Days that are impossible to understand and process.
  • Days that remind us who we are and what we stand for.
  • Days where strangers become friends and family.
  • Days where we grieve and work together.

Days that interrupt the life we have always known and distinctly mark it as the past, leaving us no choice but to create an alternate reality.

Days that we are all reminded that we were created to be a part of a community.

When I think of the days where shock and awe bring us together, I also think of days where painful events alienate individuals from the community we need:

Days we live through these words and the emotions and realities that go with them:

  • Bankrupt
  • Infertile
  • Betrayed
  • Orphaned
  • Mental Illness
  • Cancer
  • Terminated
  • Deceased

And then I think of the people that have pushed through the loss, the confusion, and the pain.  …People that grew wiser, and softer and stronger and turned the shock and awe into a defining moment.

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Risk, Conflict, Struggle and a Path Forward

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Last week someone asked how I was feeling about a particular topic.

I answered from the heart.   I was struggling.  I was viewing something with fresh eyes and could clearly see that years of doing something had created a comfort zone where there is risk.  Today that comfort zone is so big that unnecessary risks are being taken without a second thought.

Instead of really listening, this person attempted to explain away my concerns with something that sounded a bit like this, “We’ve always done it this way and we’ve never had a problem…”

When the conversation ended I felt like a puppy dog that had been patted on the head and dismissed.

I felt frustrated about being asked to share my thoughts, when the person asking did not demonstrate any desire to hear them.

As I was tempted to dwell on the frustration I made my mind switch gears and consider another perspective:

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What has CHANGE taught you this year?

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In late November 2012 we had just said yes to our first expat adventure.  We were facing massive unknowns, planning for the transition that this change would bring and choosing our attitudes.

One year later as I reflected on that season in our lives, the thoughts and feelings came back in a flood of emotions.

In order to fully share that experience I have to take you back in time…