INSIGHTS
Originally published in Utah Business. The Utah economy celebrated its eighth anniversary of economic growth in June, the second-longest in state history. Currently, the state economy is creating about 45,000 jobs a year. Unemployment remains low at 3.2 percent and inflation-adjusted wages continue to rise. The nice economic winds have been blowing and business is…
Originally published in the Deseret News. For many Utah families, July and August are filled with goodbyes. Sons and daughters leave for school and military academies, LDS missionaries depart on missions and job seekers start fresh opportunities in new towns. In every case, a great thing is happening, but so is a goodbye. I’m not…
Originally published in the Deseret News. It’s been a violent summer in our community and country. A disturbed man gunned down a mother, her sons and another child as they returned home from school. A drunken fight turned into a murder in Murray. A drug bust in the basement of a Cottonwood Heights home revealed…
Originally published in Utah Business. Alvin Toffler was a futurist who wrote extensively about the digital revolution. He popularized the term “information overload” and wrote the landmark book Future Shock, which has sold millions of copies and remains in print today. He died last year, but left a legacy of compelling ideas. I thought about him…
Originally published in the Deseret News. Summer begins this month, and I find it a good time to recharge my spirit and think about how to approach life. A summer reset helps me refocus my energies, recalibrate my expectations and recommit to a happy life. My mother gave me the gift of optimism. She used…
Originally published in the Deseret News. In a very real way, June means weddings. The end of school and great weather motivate young couples to tie the knot and schedule summer weddings. Back in the old days, summer weddings meant an uptick in births 10 months later. This is less true today. Utah’s fertility rate…
Originally published in Utah Business. I share my life with a beautiful yellow Labrador Retriever named Marley. Marley has the personality of a service dog—gentle, kind, content and loving. She lives for food, walks to the park and family play time. She loves sunspots and scratches on her ears. In the morning, she visits my…
Originally published in the Deseret News. My husband and I were listening to a sports radio station Sunday night shortly after the Utah Jazz soundly defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 7 of the NBA playoffs. We were laughing out loud because of the crazy enthusiasm expressed by a fan who had called the…
Originally published in the Deseret News. Jack Gallivan, the former publisher of the Salt Lake Tribune, once challenged community leaders with this statement: “Our task is to make all of Utah as beautiful in man-made additions as it is in God-given wonders; beautiful in the maintenance of the good life; beautiful in social equality and…
Originally published in Utah Business. I’ll never forget the first time I came face to face with squalor. My car broke down as I was driving home from Capitol Reef National Park. I walked a half-mile or so in the dark to a home just off the highway. A man opened the door, hesitated, and…