Do you have someone in your life who pushes you higher than you could go on your own, a power source who makes you work harder, do better and enjoy life more fully? Have you acknowledged that person and told them how their influence has helped you? Are you a refreshing breeze in someone’s life, or do you carve the landscape like an eroding storm?

We’re in the middle of a whole lot of new around our office, and I’m struggling to keep up. It’s all good, don’t get me wrong, but “new” can be stressful, too. In fact, many of the Top 10 most stressful events in life all revolve around something new: being newly single, newly married or newly bereaved; starting a new job; having new children; moving to a new house. Toss in a new economy and a new generation coming of age, and you’ve got one stressed out country.

I struggle with generosity. I’m all about fairness, using an even hand to give each one their due. It’s much harder for me to give (or forgive) when doing so would tip the scales in someone else’s favor, when it will cost me more than I will gain. I tally dollars and cents, hours and minutes, costs and benefits. If I’m on the short side, I squawk!

Is there a job title for “Fitting Room Designer”? Does someone actually put one ounce of forethought into this inconspicuous closet, often confused with the adjacent stockroom? Flickering overhead fluorescents highlight every flaw as you bang your elbows on its flimsy walls while trying to shimmy into clothes that probably don’t fit anyway. But this maligned room, an afterthought on most retail floors, is where Ms. Jones makes her purchase decision.

Have you ever been someplace where everyone was glad to see you? Where people catered to your every whim and met needs you didn’t know you had before you even knew you had them? Where bells tinkled as you walked in the room, where smiles gleamed and faces beamed in radiant joy just to meet you