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🤔 Trivia: On January 1, 1983, the U.S. officially switched to what system, considered the birth of the modern internet? Find out.
💼 How to explain why you left your last job without raising red flags.
🥄 Health experts weigh in on whether baking soda in water actually helps with acid reflux and constipation.
🗣️ 25 simple phrases that build connection and confidence with your kids.
💧 Why nasal rinsing might be the underrated move for staying healthy this cold season.
What can you do to help prepare for the more practical part of retirement?
Retirement isn’t just a financial milestone. It’s a full-body, full-life transition.
And the people who thrive in it don’t just plan their money. They prepare their body, mind, relationships, and sense of purpose long before the last workday. So, let’s stretch.
Movement shifts from optional to essential.
As we age, movement becomes maintenance as much as enjoyment. How you move is up to you. Yoga. Walking. Calisthenics. Pickleball. Whatever you choose, stretching matters.
Planning to travel cross-country in an RV? Stretch at every truck stop. Loosen your hips. Twist your back. Give your body what it needs to keep up with the life you want.
Regular stretching protects your comfort and independence so everyday moments stay easy longer. Sneezing. Reaching for toothpaste on the top shelf. Getting out of the car without wincing. These small things matter more than we expect, and staying limber helps them stay small.
Stretch your friend group
Connection is long-term health.
Once you’re over 40, it gets harder to make new friends. That doesn’t mean you need a brand-new social circle. It does mean you need to stretch the one you have.
Say yes to the grocery store regulars. Other dog walkers. People at the local library (and yes, please keep using the libraries). Reconnect with old friends. Accept invitations you might normally decline.
Social connection is one of the strongest predictors of long-term health, yet it’s often the first thing to shrink as life changes. Parents pass. Kids move away. Friends face illness. Expanding your circle helps balance those losses.
Even a friendly Trader Joe’s cashier who’s tried the item in your cart can lighten a hard day. And if you share your life with a partner, don’t let them be your only friend. Both of you benefit from outside perspectives that keep stretching you.
Stretch your mind
Curiosity keeps you sharp.
Read. Visit your local library. Wander a bookstore and flip through magazines. Reading on a device keeps you informed, but holding something physical still matters. Challenge yourself.
Always wanted to learn another language? It’s never been more accessible. Want to save money? Learn basic home repairs. I’m the plumber in our house (everything except crawling underneath). A quick YouTube video and a trip to the hardware store can save $75–$150 and deliver a surprising amount of pride.
My husband’s parents became zoo docents more than 20 years into retirement. Pull out your second-grade “what I want to be when I grow up” list and see where it takes you. Stretching your mind now keeps it engaged longer.
Stretch your wallet
This isn’t about accounts. It’s about values.
While you’re still working, give a little when you can. An extra dollar at checkout for the food bank. A bigger tip. A donation to an animal shelter. Joining neighbors to clean up your street.
Small acts of generosity build muscle memory. They become easy. Natural. Part of who you are. When retirement comes, generosity won’t feel like a stretch.
Generosity expands the space around us now and often returns later in unexpected ways.
Stretch out a kind hand
Small connections can become lifelines.
I was recently in a Lyft when the driver shared a story about an elderly rider who became a close friend. What started as casual conversation grew into daily check-ins and help getting to appointments.
Two strangers became essential to each other because one person kept reaching out. Over time, that stretch turned into something steady and meaningful.
Stretch now so retirement feels less like an ending and more like a continuation of a well-supported life.
If something in your life feels tight or neglected, that’s usually the first place worth stretching.
— Lainie Gaither, TA Guest Writer
Scrutiny is rising across workplace conduct, manager decisions, AI use, cybersecurity, ethics, and workplace violence. Regulators are moving faster. Employees are speaking up more. And boards want proof that policies actually hold up under pressure.
The gap between “we’re covered” and “we’re exposed” is getting smaller.
Traliant’s HR and legal experts are hosting a practical, no-fluff webinar on where compliance risk is headed next and what HR leaders need to pay attention to now, before small gaps turn into big problems.
You’ll get a clear look at the trends already reshaping policies, training, and accountability in 2026, plus the areas where organizations are most likely to be caught off guard.
If compliance touches your role, this is worth an hour of your time.
Webinar: 2026 Compliance Predictions Companies Can’t Afford to Ignore
When: Wednesday, January 28 | 2–3 pm ET
Oh dear, I said what I said.
Listen, if this article offends you, I’m sorry. But not really.
Over the past few years, DEI somehow became the cool kid and the ugly stepchild in record time. One minute, it was everywhere. The next, it was politicized, controversial, and treated like something organizations should quietly distance themselves from.
Yikes.
Here’s something I need to say plainly: if you’re a woman reading this, you are part of DEI.
And last time I checked, the world literally cannot reproduce without women giving birth. So by default, we’re not going anywhere.
And neither is the need for diversity, equity, and inclusion.
America is statistically diverse and becoming more so. You can dislike the acronym. You can disagree with how DEI has been implemented in certain organizations. But there will always be a need to fight for people who have less access, less power, or fewer seats at the table. History makes that part very clear.
Women’s rights are one example. We still have a long way to go, but by historical standards, this is the most progress women have ever had. That progress didn’t happen by accident. It happened because people refused to accept inequity as the status quo.
There will always be work to do around equity, representation, and inclusion. That work doesn’t disappear just because the conversation gets uncomfortable.
There’s a quote often attributed to Thomas Jefferson that says:
“The measure of society is how it treats the weakest members.”
And that idea shows up in real outcomes.
When the poorest and most vulnerable people in society are supported through strong social safety nets, the benefits extend far beyond those individuals. Prioritizing this reduces strain on healthcare systems, schools, housing markets, and local economies. Societies that invest here consistently see better long-term outcomes, including higher graduation rates, improved health, higher lifetime earnings, lower incarceration rates, reduced crime, and greater overall stability. Economies benefit from a healthier, more productive workforce.
Put simply: when the lowest in a system are taken care of, the entire system is stronger.
This matters for business, too.
Companies that prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion perform better over time. They make better decisions. They innovate more. They retain talent longer. They build cultures people actually want to stay in.
Right now, we’re in a climate where rhetoric is being used to exaggerate differences and divide people. The irony is that most employees want the same basic things: respect, opportunity, psychological safety, and a sense that their voice matters.
DEI exists to help more people participate fully in the systems they’re already part of. When workplaces are clearer, fairer, and more humane, everyone operates better inside them, including those who already hold power.
DEI exists because humanity exists. Good workplaces don’t happen by accident. Good societies don’t either. They’re built in rooms where there is representation, variation, disagreement, and accountability.
So while we’re navigating this weird era where DEI has become politically weaponized, I’m asking you to stay in it with me.
Don’t be afraid to ask, “What are we actually doing to honor the legacy of leaders like MLK?”
Don’t be afraid to say, “That maternity policy isn’t very pro-women-in-the-workforce.”
Don’t be afraid to advocate for affinity groups where people can feel seen and supported.
Don’t be afraid to question performative advocacy and ask how your organization can show up more meaningfully for the causes it claims to care about.
We may be in a strange cultural moment, but this conversation isn’t ending.
DEI may evolve. It may get rebranded. But the need for fairness, representation, and access will always exist.
So ladies, don’t shrink.
Keep your voice.
Keep demanding equity as a baseline, not a favor.
Keep taking up space in rooms you belong in.
Thania (TA Content Mgr)
P.S. If you disagree with me, I genuinely welcome the dialogue. Reply to this email. Progress has never required unanimous agreement. It has always required people willing to speak up anyway.
Feeling puffy, constantly stressed, or stuck in a loop where the scale won’t move despite eating well and staying active? For a lot of women, the issue isn’t effort. It’s physiology.
After 40, elevated cortisol can quietly interfere with sleep, metabolism, digestion, and mood. When stress stays high, the body resists change. Pushing harder often makes things worse, not better.
Reverse Health’s Cortisol Weight Loss Program is designed for women navigating hormonal shifts, chronic stress, and midlife changes. Instead of extreme workouts or restrictive eating, it focuses on calming the nervous system and supporting metabolic health so progress becomes possible again.
The approach is practical by design: manageable routines, realistic meals, and habits that fit into real schedules without adding more pressure.
If you want an approach that works with how your body functions right now, start here.
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🦷 Oil pulling mouthwash for that just-left-the-dentist feeling.
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