You’ve likely encountered the idea, “you are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”. For a lot of us those 5 people, or at least the majority of them, are at work. For the first chapter of my life, that wasn’t such a good thing. I worked with smart, creative, generous professionals BUT the majority …
The Virus That Changed My Life…for the Better
Some days my professional life looks like this. More often than not, my daughter and I are sprawled out on her playmat between my coaching sessions and events. And other days, I find myself crying in bed during one of the precious moments when she’s sleeping or napping, and I surrender to frustration over something related to the backend of …
I’m Retiring, and Here’s One Last Chance to Work One-on-One Together
Effective September 1, 2014, I will no longer be taking on one-on-one speaking and leadership clients. I intend be spending more time in Hawaii, as this picture suggests, AND I’ll be focusing on scaling my Influencer Academy here in Las Vegas as well as bringing it to companies around the country. I’ll also be launching a variety of virtual and …
I Did a Bad But Brilliant Thing!
I want speakers to succeed. And sometimes, when I’m in an audience watching one stumble, I’ll do something to help him or her shine. A couple of weeks ago I was part of a group that was interviewing principals for funding. Each principal had about 20 minutes to share the story of his or her school and how some bucks …
How to Find Your Words When Your Boundaries are Violated
My dad recently came for a visit, and during his stay we went out for many meals with my almost 6-month old daughter. While she is pretty chatty just like her mother, overall she fairs just fine. Actually, a little too fine. She loves flapping her big baby blues at whomever she sees. As a result, she is a magnet …
I Got Schooled During My Pedicure
Last minute appointment cancellations used to drive me bonkers. As a new mom, they now are my excuse for impromptu self-care. During one such incident last week when I was already on the road, I decided to use Yelp to identify the closest nail salon. Within 15 minutes my feet were soaking in a foot spa. The man performing my …
Did He Really Just Call Me a ‘Slow, Stupid B*tch’?
That’s the question I kept asking myself as I drove out of the Whole Foods parking lot over the weekend. To be fair, I was definitely backing out of my parking spot slowly. (When you load your groceries on top of a stroller in the trunk of your Prius it blocks most of your visibility. So I had decided to …
Here’s Why You’re Not Closing
There are two key reasons why smart people with good ideas, products, or services don’t close. The first–they don’t ask correctly. Or as is often the case, they don’t ask at all. After working with my Influencer Academy women on pitching, I have recently realized that the second problem is one that doesn’t get enough discussion. Until today. And it’s …
Focusing on Mistakes is a Good Thing
One of the best things about being a learning and development professional is…wait for it…learning and developing. I’ve been tweaking my curriculum on persuasion for my Influencer Academy and Step Into Your Moxie Mastery women and to do so have been reviewing my notes in one of my favorite books, Yes!: 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive. One of the 50 ways …
The Bullied Can Bully Too
Have you ever had the experience of a book flying off a bookstore shelf and landing in your hands…literally? This is what happened with Katherine Preston’s Out With It: How Stuttering Helped Me Find My Voice. As someone who lived through a childhood and adolescence with various orthodontic devices and extreme embarrassment over the impact these devices had on her …
