Of course friends, my blog has once again morphed into hollywood MADNESS as I react instantly to Academy Awards! So if you read on, expect terrible grammar, punctuation and me picking apart Hollywood and also celebrating a big night for some of the most talented ppl in the bizness.I hurried up and saw BLINDSIDE and JULIE AND JULIA (or is it the other way around?)  this weekend. That brings my Oscar movie total to 3. The third is Avatar.I am not going to cover every celebrity and every moment of the award show as I am pre-Spring Cleaning and multi-tasking all at the same time…but let me know what your thoughts are.Gosh, I am such a sucker for this stuff.

Sam Worthington -(Avatar) I love a beard …but Sam could have cleaned up just a tad bit more for the OSCARS for cryin out LOUD. I am not saying get rid of the beard but cant you just make the beard look neater? Plus-he seemed negative to me on the red carpet. He was talking about the night and speaking casually about “throwing on my monkey suit.” Sam my man, you are way to new still to be showing your attitude.

Gulianna Ranic-I think she great at what she does and her dresses were very pretty but she looked a bit to skinny for me.I watch guilanna and bill on the style network and she is trying to have a baby so the doc. told her to gain 5 pounds NOT loose 10!

Good for Mariah Carey to actually look fully clothed. She looked elegant and I like her ‘toned down’

Vera Farmiga-Yikes lady! You will regret that outfit tomorrow. I may stand alone with that opinion Ranic loved it.

James Cameron and lady-LOVE the Avatar matching color NAVI blue on the red carpet. cute. loved it.

Ok wait…is this who neck beard thing actually a TREND in Hollywood? Pete Saragaard (sp)  who was walking the red carpet with Maggie Gyllenhaal was sporting the unshaved look as well…hhhhhhhmmmmmmThree is a pattern.  we shall see.

Nice to see Lenny Kravitz-Weird to see on the Oscar red carpet inside of on “Music’s Biggest night” carpet but regardless nice to see he is alive and well.

Sandra Bullock and Jesse James- So I am biased. I have grown to love Jesse James and I am intrigued by this relationship. Jesse looks great. Best dressed nominee. I love the blck on blck.Sandy-Wow was a TIGHT dress! Good for her.  She herself looks like an Oscar!

FAITH HILL: Best dressed hands down. she is gorgous. The critics said her dress looked like a jigsaw puzzle. I simply loved it. Tim McGraw on her arm doesnt hurt either He melted my heart when he said “I love strong willed women!”

Rachel McAdams-Another stunning woman. she is a fun spunky girl and I think her dress fit her personality. Miley should have worn something like that.

Thank YOU Jake Gyllenhaal-way to sport a great beard buddy. It’s official, the year of the beard!

Miley…one of my favorite ppl from 2009…not my favorite outfit, she needs to dress her age. Loved her hair though.

SarahJessica Parker- At first glance I was confused by her dress…then it made sense cuz its on SJP. It fits her.I love that

George Clooney-I dont think I liked his hair. Any longer in the back and it could be in the mullet catagory.  Clean shaven look makes him look younger though-he is just hot.

Demi Moore- I actually like her dress. Also her hair is great.

J Lo-Not my style dress.  I like the color. Very …Spring.

WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHATKeanu Reeves beard! What is THAT THING?  What happened to elegant at the Oscars? Please someone tell me.

fast forward a few long hours………yawn…..

Oprah is everywhere! Of course she is on the Oscar stage.

GO SANDY-She deserved an Oscar. Great speech. Heartfelt and grateful. Beautiful story…see the movie-it will motivate you to pay it forward.  I cried the second they put the camera on Jesse James and she was telling her story. If you didnt see it…go back and watch her acceptance speech…(now where is my kleenex)

Final thoughts. Biggest movie of all time doesnt get a big award–it doesnt seem to be right? Lastly, I guess i have to go see Hurt Locker now. 
Big nite for women! We are amazing!

Katie

The birds chirping like mad, the sun playing pee-a-boo and the streets wet from melted snow…could Spring be around the corner?
I came across an article that I wanted to share with you. This was an article that I read and thought, ‘ya know, I couldnt of said it better myself.’

No matter what the subject, I work with my clients around their ‘chatterbox’ all the time. You can never get rid of this chatter but you can learn how to manage it so you can have more joy and success in any area of your life!
My clients are always amazed as to how much their chatterbox is running/ruining their lives.

A power piece-simple read. Do yourself a favor and read up!

Best,
Katie Kruz

(more…)

I have gotten some requests for play by play thoughts about the Grammy’s so here it is.It’s pretty simple for me….Coaching and music. I have alot to say about both and since it is music’s biggest night…I thought I would focus on just that.If you have interest in my opinion about the Grammy show then keep reading…If your not, stop back soon for a blog I am cookin up about your new year goals (more…)

On most days, you will not find me watching the nightly news. After working for a very big news network a handful of years ago, I have made the conclusion that the television news is very negative and uninspiring. (I know a lot of you feel the same) However, since last Tuesday I have been found watching CNN and seeing how the global community is coming together from the terrible circumstance in Haiti. It truly breaks my heart to see such destruction and sadness.

I know there are MANY MANY ways to step up…I personally know individuals that are doing some very special things. You can make your mark as well…After speaking with a few people I have come to learn that since there is sooooo many different ways to donate-There is a little bit of worry as to where your donation will actually go.  If you do want to have a donation I encourage you to go to this website first for those of us too busy, or unsure who to donate to, I wanted to share with you the link to “Charity Navigator” that gives you an overview of what each charity is doing, and even a rating system.

You can find it at:

http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=content.view&cpid=1004

(If you can’t click this link, just “copy and paste”
or type it into your browser.)

Another great way to make a contribution is to team up with the Bob & Sheri Morning Show and WorldVision. Click here for details

“Only those who have learned the power of sincere and selfless contribution experience life’s deepest joy: true fulfillment.”
-Anthony Robbins

Join the global community and make your contribution now,
Katie Kruz

I raise my glass high enough to reach the BLUE MOON as I cheers 2010!

I want to wish you and your family a happy, healthy and prosperous 2010.
 
 Write Your Accomplishments
This idea really comes from the corporate world. In most companies, managers are required to submit a list of their accomplishments and objectives annually. This information is used as the basis for performance reviews, raises, and promotions.
If it works for them, it will work for you!  We take so much of what we do for granted, or just shrug it off, saying, “It’s no big deal.” We point to the successes, contributions, and accomplishments of others while overlooking all that we, ourselves, have done.
Only after taking the time to list our own accomplishments and activities do we see that we, too, are making a difference. We realize how much we have actually done in our lives, and this serves to encourage and motivate us to even greater heights.

New Year’s Challenge:
In your journal, blog, logs etc. make a list of what you have done in the past year. Include everything you can think of. Where have you vacationed? What plays, movies, or concerts have you seen or attended? What books have you read? What have you done for and with your family? What have you accomplished in your business? What about personal goals? What have you done for yourself? What about your health? Have you lost weight, began exercising, or played a sport? Did you start a business, write a book, or give a speech?
Write down everything you can think of. The more you list, the better. Be sure to list even the small things.
Seeing all you have done will raise your self-esteem and increase the likelihood that you will accomplish even more in the future. You have probably done much more than you realize, and writing it down will enable you to see just how much you have accomplished.

Acknowledging ourselves is the best gift we can give. This does not be you are “cocky” or self centered…This is a time to say “I am pretty awesome, here is what I did…”

One of my small accomplishments in 2009 was learning how to hold a scissors properly! Go me! (I would always put all my fingers in the smallest hole. I am strange

May your 2010 be as full as the moon tomorrow night!

Katie

www.coachkatie.com

So this is Christmas …..I hope you enjoyed the holiday with friends and family and treated yourself to a chocolate or two. I was reading an article about excuses and how the holidays are no excuse to splurge on treats.
I disagree…holidays are the PERFECT excuse to dig in. Just like everything else, there are consequences to every action so I found this funny holiday poem and I wanted to share.

Twas The Month After Christmas

Twas the month after Christmas and all through the house
Nothing would fit me, not even a blouse.

The cookies I’d nibbled, the eggnog I’d taste.
All the holiday parties had gone to my waist.

When I got on the scales there arose such a number!
When I walked to the store (less a walk than a lumber).

I’d remember the marvelous meals I’d prepared;
The gravies and sauces and beef nicely rared,

The wine and the rum balls, the bread and the cheese
And the way I’d never said, “No thank you, please.”

As I dressed myself in my husband’s old shirt
And prepared once again to do battle with dirt—

I said to myself, as I only can
“You can’t spend a winter disguised as a man!”

So–away with the last of the sour cream dip,
Get rid of the fruit cake, every cracker and chip

Every last bit of food that I like must be banished
Till all the additional ounces have vanished.

I won’t have a cookie–not even a lick.
I’ll want only to chew on a long celery stick.

I won’t have hot biscuits, or corn bread, or pie,
I’ll munch on a carrot and quietly cry.

I’m hungry, I’m lonesome, and life is a bore—
But isn’t that what January is for?

Unable to giggle, no longer a riot.
Happy New Year to all and to all a good diet!

Author Unknown

So how to do you set an effective New Year’s resolution? Read my last post.
Still full,
Katie

I am so charged up!!!!!!!!!!!!…I just hopped off the MONEY RELATIONSHIP conference call  with Bruce Bradshaw and I gave out soooo much good information that you NEED right now. The good news? We recorded the call and you can reserve your FREE copy of the call by contacting Bruce Bradshaw at www.walworthfinancial.com

Just let him know you want the link to the recording…it’s that simple….

What a great call. Thanks to all that opened themselves and their schedules up to create new possibilities! If you missed it, I am cooking up some amazing things for 2010 and invites will be posted here. Make 2010 your best year yet!

Otherwise, I have snowed myself in for the nite and hoping that those that have to do traveling in Southeast WI and Northern IL choose patience and drive safety.

WINTER is no doubt here, I am enjoying my seasonal tamales (why are tamales seasonal again?)  and successfully completed my annual “I LOVE SNOW” photo-shoot at the WLKG studios. My Christmas shopping is also complete and I am  ready for the holiday!

The photo shoot started out as a big joke. I don’t know how I became the proud owner of my I LOVE SNOW hat but I do know why…I was famous for whining and complaining about snow. I was the first one to say “I am moving West” at the first sighting of snowfall. Through the years, I have coached myself to really appreciate the snow and I am learning how to continue living when snow does in fact fall. (I am not kidding, I would hibernate when it snowed)

So this amazing hat I have had for quite sometime and one year when the first storm came through I wanted to take pictures for my “west coast friends” so I got out a ruler, blew the dust off my fun winter cap and did a little photo shoot for those that don’t get snow this time of year.

That is the back story….This year I did my best to enroll Dave Michaels in my shoot. He was being a grinch but I did manage to convince him as long as he didn’t have to wear a Santa hat. (party pooper) So below is a few pictures in-front of our new and improved WLKG Holiday Tree.
Dave doesn’t know it but he may in for an annual treat now

Check out this hat!

Dave and I getting ready for the electric parade!
(ps. Dave it would have been alot better with that Santa on…)

Admiring Nancy and Erin’s work with the WLKG tree makeover.

GOTTA LOVE THE HOLIDAYS!!!

Katie Kruz

www.coachkatie.com 

MONEY: The Root of all Evil?
How to Nurture, Weed, and Fertilize your Relationship with Money.

IF YOU MISSED THE CALL IT WAS POWERFUL….AND ITS INFORMATION YOU NEED RIGHT NOW

GOOD NEWS: WE RECORDED THE CALL SO YOU CAN LISTEN IN WHEN YOU WANT!

CALL ALICIA AND TELL HER TO SEND YOU THE RECORDING!

Contact Bruce Bradshaw by clicking here or call Alicia at 262-643-8883

What does money mean to you? Some would argue money to be a measurement of success in life and can never get enough of it. Others experience money as the source of most of life’s problems and are burdened by financial restrictions. Still others view money as a means to and end, living paycheck to paycheck not really giving much thought to the future. And then there are those who have discovered money to be a useful tool to achieve their life’s goals and dreams.

In less than 60 minutes you will:

• Identify the “money beliefs” that block your success
  
• Transform your money beliefs to heal your relationship with money
  
• Explain why you are not where you want to be
  
• Reveal the single most important thing you need to master in order to receive financial freedom.

It is time to take a look at your relationship with money and unlock your abundance right now!

“The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships”

A HOLIDAY GIFT

It’s time for the Holidays, the season of giving. We’re all busy thinking about how to make the people in our lives happy. What’s the perfect gift to give that special someone? What can you put under the tree that will fill your kids’ lives with joy?

I have a suggestion: Forget the cashmere sweater or the latest electronic gadget or stocking stuffer. These are tough times. If you are living in fear and uncertainty, if you are unhappy or unfulfilled, none of that stuff is going to help you achieve what you really want and deserve-an extraordinary life.

So this year, give yourself or someone you love the gift of a changed life. A change in perspective. A change in emotions. A change in your most intimate relationships. A change in your body. A change in your stamina. A change in your finances. A change in strategy. A change in results. A change in how fulfilled you feel. A change in what your life means. A change in what you contribute.

So as 2009 draws to a close, I hope that you take a moment to stop and think about what you really want for 2010 and what steps you can take to make the greatest, most immediate impact in your life or in those you care most about.
No matter what you’d like to change or achieve, the secrets to success are the same…so either way let’s connect!  Jump start a better 2010 and hop on this call and get good information to help you move forward!

If you wish it, wish it LOUD,

Katie

 GOBBLE GOBBLE!
It’s Katie, coming back to life after my 2 day food coma! I hope you got plenty to eat, enjoyed plenty of friends and family and gave yourself and others the gift of gratitude. I was giving myself this gift as I was driving to my Mother’s house and I was talking out loud, banging on the steering wheel and well actually pretty much yelling all the things I was grateful for. My heart was racing, my physiology changed quickly and in the moment I was filled with abundance. Though I study the brain and think it is fascinating, I do “practice what I preach” often and say “yep, this stuff really works!” Despite people looking at my like I was a crazy person, I was energized and filled with joy. The best part, nothing from my external world created that for me. I was in control. We look to external people places and things to “make us happy.” That is why we invite disappoint into our lives. We leave it up to others, things and places to decide for us so we don’t have to take the fall. So it’s not our fault.
If you haven’t yet, give yourself this gratitude gift before the weekend is over. It will take you less than 3 minutes.
If you are having a hard time believing that this “stuff” works…read the below article and then make a new choice!

Katie

www.coachkatie.com

Scientific Evidence:

Gratitude Increases Happiness
& Goal Progress

It was found that keeping a gratitude journal  (listing at the end of the day to list 5 - 10 things people are grateful of over the last 24 hours), generated a 25% increase in happiness levels! It was also found to increase progress towards important goals.

Robert Emmons and Mike McCullough are the two leading researchers on this topic. Here are some of their findings…

In their studies, the group that did “gratitude intervention” (keeping a gratitude journal at the end of the day to list 5 - 10 things they were grateful of over the last 24 hours), were:

* More likely to have made progress toward important personal goals (academic, interpersonal, and health-based) over a two-month period.

* Reported higher levels of the positive states of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, attentiveness and energy.

* Exercised more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic.

 As an entrepreneur being a Life Coach I found this article to really charge me up! I did not write it, I seem to be having a writers block so I think I am going to look into audio/webcam messages in the new year.

In the meantime, I hope this charges you up as much as it did for me. We all are scared to fail in some area of our lives. Fear is the driving force in our life and I love reading about how everyday people overcome their biggest obstacles. I believe that is why I love to Coach people so much. I get to be there when they are faced with their fears and I get to then see them take massive action to overcome and create extraordinary results. I don’t coach because “positive thinking” will get you great happiness and I don’t believe that to recharge and find your spirit you need “sweat lodges.” I coach because when we are not in the mood to be accountable to ourselves, and when we are hiding in a dark corner because of fear-There is someone there to get the bottom of  the WHY and assist you to take massive action quickly.

The article below is like a quick swig of RED BULL. (As you can tell I am not great with metaphors)

Are you going to be the next famous failure?

To your failures,
Katie

——————————————————————————————————-

To succeed as an entrepreneur there is one thing you are going to have to master… never quit, especially when you fail. It’s the great irony of success… it requires countless failures. Don’t believe me? Watch this video, and check out the list of “famous failures” I have prepared for you. If you work hard enough, and if you never stop… perhaps you will be the next famous failure on this list:
Famous Failure 1: Hillary Clinton failed the D.C. bar exam in the 1970’s yet went on to contend for the President of the United States.Famous Failure 2: Isaac Newton was the greatest mind of his generation, often labeled a genius. Yet he failed throughout grade school, to the utter frustration of his teachers.

Famous Failure 3: JK Rowling lived on welfare for years. A failing author, she went on to write the Harry Potter series, and today has an estimated worth over $1B. Among many recent notable successes, she performed Harvard’s commencement speech.

Famous Failure 4: Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the most epic composers of classical music. Yet at the early stages of his career, his music instructor labeled him “as a composer, he is hopeless”. Of course, we all know that he also lost his hearing, yet went on to make the world’s most famous music!

Famous Failure 5: Winston Churchill failed the 6th grade and now he is regarded as one of the most important leaders in British and world history.

Famous Failure 6: Michael Jordan is, well, Michael Jordan. He still is one of the most recognized name in sports, even though he retired from basketball years ago. Yet as a high school player, he was cut from his team because of his “lack of skill”.

Famous Failure 7: Walter Disney is the entrepreneur behind the Disney conglomerate, a company generating over $30B annually. Starting his first cartoon production out of his garage he quickly went bankrupt. And ultimately was rejected by over 300 banks when he went to seek funding for his theme park.

Famous Failure 8: Henry Ford’s first two automobile companies failed.

The Next Famous Failure: Is it going to be you? Are you going to give up at your next failure… or are you going to be inspired forward?

Compiled by Mike Michalowicz, Author of The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur