​Friends, you have to read The Ghost Photographer. If you're a fan of wicked smart badass women, true tales of intuition and the afterlife, and touching memoirs about the human condition that bring tears to your eyes one minute and make you laugh the next, BUY THIS BOOK. Or, download the Audible file like I did. 

I happened upon The Ghost Photographer while researching the publishing house called Atria. As you likely know by now, I don't believe in coincidences. Clearly, I was supposed to find Julie Rieger's incredible book about how she became a ghost photographer. 

In a nutshell, Julie Rieger-- the award-winning former President, Chief Data Strategist, and Head of Media at 20th Century Fox in Hollywood—wrote a book about how and why she went from analytical skeptic to full-on believer in the afterlife (and much more). Her awakening began after her mom passed away from Alzheimer's disease. As Julie said in an interview with CBS News,"Grief creates chaos which allows us to shed our rigidity...our rigid belief systems. I happened to shed the skepticism, and that's what opened the door to The Other Side." 

Now, I'm not going to give anything away, but I do want to say that I felt, at times, like I was reading my own journey. Chills raced up and down my body more times than I could count as I made my way through her memoir. I, too, was a skeptic with an analytical mind who, later in life, awakened to the world of spirit. Also, neither of us had a near death experience, like many do who suddenly start channeling spirit out of nowhere. And neither of us offer spiritual services (like mediumship) for a living—we both kept our day jobs. We simply do what we do for the people we love, and for those who are guided to us for one reason or another. And we talk about our journey because it is life changing in the best (and sometimes scariest) ways. 

Not only does Julie share her incredible journey, but she also shares tips on how to capture photos of ghosts (and more), how to protect your space, how to clear your home of negative energy, how to utilize crystals for healing and protection, and how to talk to your guides/angels who are helping you live your best life. Or, in Julie's case, saving her from crashing her car on the freeway. (Okay, I did just give that away, but you'll have to read the book to find out what happened.)

If you're still deciding whether you believe in life after death, READ THIS BOOK. It's my new favorite memoir/how-to primer about discovering and trusting intuitive gifts. We all have those gifts, ya know. Even those of us who are wired to trust empirical data over gut feelings. 

In Julie's case, and in my case, learning to trust our intuition changed our lives for the better. 

Reading this phenomenal book just might change yours, too. 

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FIND JULIE AND/OR HER BOOK HERE:
Amazon
Instagram: @julieriegerwrites
Podcast: https://www.insidersguidetotheotherside.com

Ah, April 1st. April Fools' Day.

​This day is full of so many memories. Some are amazing, some are not so amazing. On April 1, 2011, Shark Tank aired my segment on ABC primetime. AMAZING! Then, on April 1, 2014, I flew down to North Carolina to be the spokesperson for Stanley Furniture's kids' line (Young America) and to sign the accompanying licensing deal only to find out they released to the press they were shutting down their Young America furniture line. They just didn't tell me. I learned about it when I stepped off the plane. There went my spokesperson job and my licensing deal that was projected at five million in sales for the first year. I was crushed at the time, but now I see it as a gift. The Frank Lloyd Wright deal (that never would have happened if I'd been with Stanley) began to take shape in April 2019 and launched officially on April 2, 2020.

Is April a big month for you? I definitely now see it as beginnings and endings for me. And this year, I'm seeing April as a huge period of change for so many loved ones in my life. I'm personally waiting to hear back from several publishers regarding a book deal, and I just found out my personal narrative made the finals (consideration for inclusion list) for a new book by Dr. Ramani Durvasula. On the sawdust side of my life, we're in the process of cranking out new prototypes for the Mod Mom/ Frank Lloyd Wright line of furniture. More to come on that!

Ironically, this morning, when I rolled over to check my phone and was reminded that it was April 1, I also saw a headline in my inbox that read: "Stanley Furniture suspends domestic operations." I did a double-take. For a split second, I thought I was back in 2014. But I'm not, and their news isn't an April Fools' joke. For me, it's a reminder that even the gut-wrenchingly hard let downs in our lives are simply just redirections to something better.

​Here's to Spring beginnings and endings!

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Link to my Shark Tank episode: modmomfurniture.com