Inspiration

Inspiration  ·  Mindset  ·  Success Skills
It’s never too late to live a new story

When is it too late for you to find love, write your book, start your passion project, live with purpose, make healthier choices, get fit, or do work you love?

Some people use age as the deciding factor of whether they can start something new. But age alone should never be the factor.

Today I’m thinking a lot about age because it’s my mom’s 74th birthday.

Something I admire so much about my mom is how she has maintained ahopeful spirit regardless of her age.

I often talk about how this bold lady found love at 70-years-old.


One year ago around this time, my 73-year-old momma experienced dog-sledding for the first time!

She likes to join all my challenges and events.

And even though she’s struggled with her weight and health habits, she has made huge strides in getting healthier and making better choices by participating in RejuvaFAST and our CORE Community,

You can’t stop the clock from ticking but you can choose how you will use your time. Will you stop living because you think you’re too old, or will you maintain a hopeful spirit?

My mom’s not giving up yet and neither should you!

The only time it is too late to change your story is when you’re dead or have lost your faculties. So if you’re still reading this, maybe this is the message you needed to start chasing your best life. 

Today I cheer to my mom’s life, and to yours.

March 15, 2023

Inspiration  ·  Mindset  ·  Productivity  ·  Success Skills
It’s all about your eyes

I’ve always been fascinated with people’s eyes. Not their eye color, shape, or eyesight ratio. No. I am fascinated by the lens people see the world through. Because I find that the quality of your life depends much more on how you “see” things than what “things” happen to you.

I touched on this in my book, Looking Over the Edge:

I’ve also created Daily Affirmations to speak “living with big eyes” and “being the kind of person who can look up” into your subconscious.

And now I have the privilege of interviewing the man who literally wrote the book on this theme!

 

CONNECT WITH CARO Featuring TJ Kostecky

TJ Kostecky is the lead innovator of Vision Training, a developmental program that empowers athletes to maximize their playing potential. Over the last 40 years, TJ has coached thousands of players and coaches around the world — teaching them how widening their vision has the power to transform not only how they approach their sport, but how they approach life.

TJ’s upcoming book, Eyes UP: Discover Your Full Potential and Form Meaningful Connections Through Subtle Shifts in Perspective, is a comprehensive self-help guide covering all aspects of life, from career to family to spiritual fulfillment. It shows readers how small shifts in perspective can have a major impact on how they see the world and live their life, leading to higher levels of success and satisfaction.

With Daylight Savings starting this weekend, you might feel a little groggy on Monday because you’ve lost an hour of sleep. This interview will wake you up so that you see your life differently — whether you’re springing forward or falling back!

Oh, and fun fact about my friend, TJ, in 2021 he was inducted into the Ukraine Sports Hall of Fame!

Save your seat for this hall of famer interview on March 13th at 12pm Est and maybe you’ll leave as fascinated by “eyes” as I am. ☺️

Click here to save your seat

March 10, 2023

Inspiration
Do you have a stutter?

What’s the thing that holds you back from speaking up, using your voice, or sharing your ideas? 

 

Have you ever learned something about someone you know whose past seems impossible? 

That happened to me with my friend, Rosemary Ravinal 

 

Rosemary is one of the most poised, eloquent, articulate, elegant women I have ever met. I know her as a professional speaker and coach with an impressive background in television. 

 

That’s why I was floored when I learned that this woman who had perfect pronunciation, had battled a life-long speech impediment. From childhood to young adulthood, she’d had a crippling problem which she worked hard to hide — She stuttered.

After conventional voice therapy failed, Rosemary found salvation in unconventional methods, including live radio broadcasting and became a highly accomplished bilingual communicator. 

Today, she is a public speaker and executive speaker coach who teaches individuals how to change the world with the power of their voice.

Do you have a stutter?

Although Rosemary had an actual stutter, many of us have our own perceived forms of a stutter. What’s the thing that holds you back from speaking up, using your voice, or sharing your ideas? 

If you’ve ever felt you’re not good enough to speak in public; If you are the kind of person who avoids cameras, speaking, or any other kind of public performances because you’re embarrassed about how you look or sound; if you have limiting beliefs or physical impediments that shy you away from the spotlight, but you wish that wasn’t the case — then you won’t want to miss this empowering and inspiring interview. 

As Rosemary says, “Each of us has something important to say. My goal is to make you understand that you matter. That you have a purpose that comes from inside you. If you can speak, you can influence. If you can influence, you can change lives. It’s a simple fact that the ability to speak and connect with others is the foundation of leadership.”

Join us on January 10th at 12 pm EST for a life changing interview with this powerful communicator and learn how to turn even your biggest weaknesses into strengths!

 

January 6, 2023

Inspiration  ·  Mindset
Jumping into new beginnings

There are moments when you choose a new beginning, and moments when life forces you into new beginnings, whether you’re ready for them or not.

Time is one of those forced beginnings. 

There is always a new day, week, month and year, even if you’re happy in the present moment, or you wish you could hold on to your past forever; or you’re afraid of the future; or even if you have unfinished business to take care of.

Welcoming a New Year

Last night, as the clock struck 12, my kids and I jumped into our freezing cold pool.

To my oldest son, this meant starting the New Year with discipline.
To my middle son, this meant starting the New Year with courage.
To my little one, this meant starting the New Year with strength. 

To my husband, watching us jump was confirmation that he lives with crazy people. 😂

But for me, that jump was a reminder:

There can be joy and pain.
That humans are resilient beings.
That in life, sometimes you get to take a leap of faith. 
That you get to choose how you want to show up for your life. 
That you can challenge yourself and do hard things. 
That you get to behave as if everything is already okay.

For you, maybe a new year couldn’t be more timely, or maybe the timing seems unfair. Either way, here you are, and now you get to decide how you will show up for your life.

No matter which season you find yourself on this new day of this new year, may these reminders offer you a hopeful beginning. 

My wish for you in 2023 is that your year is full of …

✨ Meaningful Connections
✨ Intentional Choices
✨ Inspired Perspectives
✨ Magical Moments

… and so much more.

Happy New Year and thank you for hanging out in my corner of the world in 2022.
January 1, 2023

Inspiration  ·  Success Skills
A practice that has served me well

A few years ago I started a practice that has served me well — choosing one word for the year. 

 

You can use this one word as “the theme” of your year; The framework by which your choices and decisions are filtered through. 

 

Some years the word pops into your mind quickly and other years it requires careful thought and deliberation. You will love some words more than others, but that’s okay, because each year you get to choose a new word. 

 

The best part of coming up with a word for the year is that it creates a life of intention. 

 

I put my one word on a bracelet which I wear all year as a physical reminder of the person I am choosing to become. 

 

In moments of uncertainty, doubt, confusion, or lack of motivation — taking a look at that word will help you refocus, readjust, and choose your next best step. 

 

With only three days left in 2022, I’ve been reflecting a lot on this past year. My word for 2022 was RISE. There were moments when I didn’t feel like I was living up to that word. Gosh, there were moments when I felt like I was crashing rather than rising. But as I take inventory of my life and business, I see many areas where I’ve risen above my comfort zone, my abilities, and my existing circumstances. 

 

The key is to focus on progress, not perfection. 

 

As you get ready to close out this year, take some time to think about your successes. What habits and practices served you well? What goals did you accomplish? What are you proud of? 

 

Next, think about the next year. 

 

What kind of person do you want to embody in 2023?

 

What kind of life do you want to live? 


What framework do you want to filter your decisions by from now on? 

 

If you could choose a theme for the year, what would it be? 

 

Let the answers to these questions help you come up with your one word for the year.  Some people also like using acronyms to represent their one word. 

Don’t worry if you decide to change your word later. (Again this exercise isn’t about perfection, it’s about intention). 

May this practice help you design a life you love.

 

Now, I’d love to hear from you! 

 

Reply to me and let me know if you have a one word practice or if you’re going to adopt one in 2023. 

 

Oh, and if you loved this idea, you will love to participate in one of our vision board workshops this January. 

 

Wishing you all the best in this upcoming year.

December 28, 2022

Inspiration
What a stoic and a psychic have in common

The first time I heard about Nikki Novo, I never imagined our paths would cross. Although we were Cuban-American women from Miami, we lived in different spheres.

Nikki identified as an intuitive, healer, and medium. Oh, and she was very well known for her career work in dating.

I, on the other hand, identified as a stoic, agnostic, personal development expert who was transitioning from being a full time lawyer to becoming a motivational speaker. Oh, and I had been out of the dating scene for a decade.

Because I was writing a book, a few friends suggested I reach out to Nikki since she, too, was an author, and we lived in the same city. I just didn’t think we’d have much in common.

The Universe disagreed with me. As luck would have it, Nikki’s son and my son ended up in the same 1st grade class — and they became best friends. On a Thursday night school event at Chuck E Cheese, I made the connection that Ryan’s best friend’s mom was “the Nikki” I had googled just a few days prior. What an incredible coincidence!

This encounter happened at an interesting crossroads in my life. I had been struggling with identifying as a “magical thinker” or “critical thinker.” (if you want to know what this meant for me, read this post) But it seemed the more I embraced the magical coincidences in my life, the more they happened. Nikki was a magical coincidence.

Our connection was instantaneous and Nikki and I became fast friends. It’s like she was one of my soulmates. 

Since we met, Nikki has opened my mind and my eyes to spirituality and the intuitive that lives within me. She has helped me connect with my soul and embrace a higher power. 

I like to think I, too, have helped her connect to different parts of her identity.

Most people get so stuck in their labels, identities, limiting beliefs, and the boxes they think they fit in that they miss the bigger picture. 


Nikki and I may use different words and techniques, but we are way more alike than different. We live on purpose and with purpose.

HOW TO CONNECT WITH YOUR SOUL’S PURPOSE 

This week I get to interview my sister from another mister to talk about something she’s so good at — teaching you how to connect with your soul’s purpose.

If you have ever felt like you can’t figure out what your life or work purpose is, or like you’re being called to something bigger, but you have no idea what that is or how to get there — this interview is for you. 

Join us this Friday, November 18th, 2022 at 1:30pm for a dose of clarity and confidence as you get ready to welcome a new year.

Cheers to making space for clarity! Oh, and thanks for letting be a tiny voice in your head encouraging you to live your healthiest, happiest, and most meaningful life.

P.S. Tomorrow, you’ll get a glimpse of just how aligned a stoic and a psychic can be 😂. 

November 17, 2022

Grief  ·  Inspiration
Do things happen for a reason?

Have you ever heard the saying “Everything happens for a reason,” and felt like how could there be a reason for this awful thing that happened? 

Me too. 

Can we find lessons in these experiences? Yes.
Can we grow stronger because of these experiences? Yes.
Can something good stem from these experiences? Yes. 

But does that mean they happened for a reason? I don’t know. 

That’s why I loved when Chad Hymas said in our last interview, 

“Some things happen in life that just don’t make sense.” 


I loved it because it’s so true. It’s hard to find the reason for something when it just doesn’t make any sense. 
​
There was a tragic boating accident in my local community which resulted in injury, death, and so much pain. That didn’t make any sense. 
​
My dear friend’s son died in his sleep last week and my other friend’s brother passed away suddenly. Neither of those incidents made any sense.
​
At 27, Chad Hymas suffered an accident that left him quadriplegic. The accident should have killed him, but it didn’t. That, too, didn’t make any sense. 
​
During our interview, Chad shared so many nuggets of wisdom on what to do when things happen that don’t make sense. The interview was eye-opening and inspirational, and it left us all feeling hopeful. 
​
And although I would have loved to share that interview with you, the recording was deleted and lost forever — which made little sense because that had never happened to us before.
​
We don’t always get a do-over or a second chance, but Chad teaches us that so long as we’re still here, we have a responsibility to do better, be better, and live better. Luckily, we do have a second chance to have this conversation. Chad has agreed to show up again with a grateful and generous spirit, just like he does every day since life gave him a second chance. 

Things may or may not happen for a reason, but they happen.

We all have to choose how to keep going when life doesn’t make sense. 

Let’s learn how to choose to live with hope, intention, and purpose — no matter what happens.

If you didn’t tune into our last conversation, don’t miss the chance to tune into this one. Click here to save your spot and share with your friends. 

September 22, 2022

Inspiration  ·  Mindset  ·  Productivity  ·  Success Skills
Change Your Story, Change Your Life

Have you ever felt like you wish you could change something, but you can’t seem to find the way to make the change?

Most of us have a laundry list of things we’d like to change, and yet we think change is too hard to do. Because humans are complicated creatures, we believe our solutions have to be complicated too. But I learned from Marisa Peer a long time ago that solutions are often quite simple.
Sometimes, changing your life starts with something as simple as changing your story.

The habit I couldn’t adopt

I’m embarrassed to admit this, but for a long time, I struggled with adopting a nighttime skincare routine. Yes, night after night I’d fall asleep without washing my face or taking off my makeup (if I wore makeup that day.)

Of course, I understood the importance of cleaning my pores and applying serums and creams to work their magic while I sleep. I wanted to have a good complexion, and I did not want my face to age prematurely because I neglected it — and yet neither the knowledge nor the desire helped me adopt a good skincare habit.

Every day I’d say, “Today I’m going to be disciplined and wash my face before bed!” and then I’d fall asleep on my kids’ bed, only to wake up just long enough to sleep walk to my bedroom and plop myself on the bed.

I was more tired than disciplined.

Until I changed the story

One day I was getting a facial done and my facial lady, Maribel, was noting how dry, clogged, and dull my skin was. As she analyzed me through a magnifying lens, she started asking questions. I knew the inevitable question was coming, “what are you applying at night?”

“Well, my dermatologist gave me some great creams and serums, but most nights I fall asleep before I get the chance to put them on.”

She gasped.

“What about your makeup?”

“Well, I don’t wear too much makeup. But even if I have some on, I fall asleep with it on.”

My eyes were closed but I could sense the horrified look on her face.

“You are getting older, and you need to take care of your skin, Caro! You can’t continue doing this.”

Feeling ashamed, I began telling her all my justifications and excuses, until she said something that changed everything. “Then do your routine earlier. It doesn’t have to be the last thing you do.”

There it was.

The story I’d been telling myself was that my nighttime routine had to be the very last thing I did before I lay to rest. But that’s not working in this season of my life. So what if I took out “night” from my nighttime routine? What if it became the first thing I did rather than the last thing I did?

One small change can be all you need

Changing my definition of “night time” routine gave me permission to do the things my face needed while I still had the energy. So after dinner, but before I wash the dishes, clean up around the house, put my kids down, read bedtime stories, etc, I take a few minutes to wash my face, put toner, apply my creams, and take care of my skin.

That’s all it took, and I’ve been building that habit ever since.

Change your story, Change your life

My friend, Kelly Swanson is a master storyteller and storytelling expert. She has devoted her life to helping people use the power of story to change their lives. But throughout her life, there was one thing Kelly always struggled with — her weight.

No matter what she tried, she could never get her weight under control. When the story was about being skinny, Kelly didn’t care. When it was about looking like other people, she didn’t care. Even when it was about shaming herself, she didn’t care.

It was only when the story became about being healthy so Kelly could continue doing the things she wanted to do — only then was she able to tackle that part of her life.

This Friday, join me in a very special Connect with Caro Expert Interview where Kelly will share the health crisis that changed her relationship with food, life, and weight.

She’ll make you laugh; she might make you cry; but more importantly, she’ll inspire you to think about the stories you’re telling yourself and how you can change them to adopt better habits, pursue your goals, and live your best life.

Click here to register for this interview. You won’t want to miss it! Oh, and share the love with your friend.

Kelly Swanson is an award-winning storyteller, comedian, motivational speaker, Huffington Post Contributor, and cast member of The Fashion Hero television show airing on Amazon Prime. She is also author of Who Hijacked My Fairy Tale, The Land of If Only, The Story Formula, and The Gutsy Girls Pocket Guide to Public Speaking.

 

September 14, 2022

Inspiration  ·  Mindset
Changing your relationship with time

Have you ever measured how long something will take against how much enjoyment you’ll derive from it? It’s only natural to do so, right? Some rewards simply aren’t worth the level of output required to get them.

This is how my husband and I used to feel about traveling. If you’re going to go through the hassle of traveling somewhere far, you better be there long enough to enjoy it!  

And then one day my husband had to travel to Idaho for business. He was told there was an incredible city and resort in Idaho called Coeur d’Alene and that he should take his wife for a romantic getaway. Between our work and kid schedules (and the flights available), we’d be traveling 8 hours plus to be there for less than 48 hours and have to return on a red eye (another 8 hours). It barely seemed worth the effort to fly to the other side of the country for a day and a half of leisure.

But something told us to throw caution to the wind and book the trip.

Fast forward to this weekend. Orlando and I had schlepped all five fingers up to Sarasota to hang out with family (for less than 48 hours). As we walked on the sand, Orlando looked out into the ocean and said, “that trip to Coeur d’Alene changed my life.”

“How so?” I asked, even though I knew the answer.

“It changed my relationship with time, traveling, and living. We would have never come to Sarasota on a whim for a weekend before. I’d focus too much on the hassle and inconveniences of traveling that I’d convince myself the trip wasn’t worth it. But we had such a blast in Idaho — and even though we were there for such a short time, we did so many things! It felt like we were there for much longer. I just don’t have those hangups anymore. As long as we get to enjoy our time together and do something fun, who cares how long we’re there or how long it took us to get there?”

Isn’t that the truth about everything?

We idealize the length of things. We celebrate a couple who has reached 50 years of marriage or an elderly person who made it to 100. The longer we can hang on to something, the prouder we are of it.

But does the length of the experience matter as much as the actual experience? What if the couple spent all 50 years hating each other — is it still cause for celebration?

How about the woman who reached 100 but did none of the things she dreamed of or longed for? Is the number alone the accomplishment?

What I know now is that it doesn’t matter how long you take to get to where you’re going, or how long you are there. What matters is what you do with the time you’ve been given. Memorable experiences are always worth it, even if brief.

Today I want to share this moment of clarity my husband and I had because of our far away and very brief romantic getaway:

Never forego living a full day just because you think one day is not enough time. Life will always be too short, so any day is a great day to make some memories.

What things would you be willing to do now that you have this perspective?

August 4, 2022

Inspiration
Who you really are

You are not your degree.

You are not your career.

You are not how good or bad your marriage is.

You are not your kids’ accomplishments or mistakes.

You are not the neighborhood you live in.

You are not your material possessions.

You are not the religion you practice.

You are not your health diagnosis.

You are not even your accomplishments or mistakes.

We get wrapped in these identity markers. There’s a good reason for it — we humans use these labels and criteria both to differentiate from one another and to find common ground. They help us express ourselves and understand each other.

The problem is when we assume these identities so intensely; we believe they define our worth. We create an image of ourselves based on all these factors and then we either hate ourselves for them, or we love them and fight like hell to make sure we maintain them — even when that image isn’t an accurate representation of our current existence.

So if you’re not any of the above, then what are you?

You’re a human being experiencing this game of life. I love the idea that you are a spiritual being having a human experience in this life. In this game, there are experiences you can control, and many you can’t. There are surprises and plot twists, roadblocks, challenges, and some lucky breaks. You are playing this game with the cards you’ve been dealt. And the beauty of this game is that you can change; you can evolve; you can start over, and sometimes you can even create a new deck to play with.

My son is an actor. Ever since he was little, people refer to him as “the star,” or “the actor.” I could see where he could confuse that label with whom he is. I always remind him — “you are not an actor. You are a being who loves acting. So long as you love it, keep doing it. And if one day you decide not to be an actor anymore, you will still be that incredible being ready to experience something new in life.”

The same goes for you — no matter what you’re known for, proud of, or what you identify with, know that you are a special being that is experiencing that. If that ever changes, you will still be you — you’ll just be ready to experience something different.

 

 

 

July 21, 2022

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