Raise your hand if you know a married couple in which the wife makes more money than her husband. How fast did your hand fly up? And if I asked if you to name a single (unmarried) woman who is earning a good income, would your hand fly up just as fast? I bet it…

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Every time I find a sticky packet of sugar at the bottom of my purse, I think of Nora Ephron. I once saw the divine Ms. Ephron dump out the contents of her purse (on purpose) at a conference in New York City, and the mish mash of random objects that fell out caused the…

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When the young sales associate walked me out to the sidewalk to bow and thank me for coming into the store, I knew I wasn’t in Chicago anymore. After all, I hadn’t even bought anything. I just got back from my first visit to Japan to observe the country’s retail environment. I had envisioned a…

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I had just chosen my nail color when it happened. Please take a seat, said the manicurist, as she motioned to the small chair. It was rush hour at the salon, around 5:30 on a Thursday. As is my custom, I gave a head nod and brief eye contact to the client seated next to…

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