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One of the reasons I just joined Ladies Who Launch was to be sure to claim my space at Kristin van Ogtrop’s talk last week in Greenwich. I knew it would be a sell-out and that members would receive priority. I became a platinum member and slid onto the list of attendees.
She was fabulous!
To get a sense of Kristin’s outlook and humor I recommend buying her book (seen here), but to give you a small appetizer, here are two of my favorite points she made during her talk that night:
#3 – If you don’t have a thick skin, learn to heal quickly.
She showed an actual email she’d received (the person’s email name and address included!) that was insulting and rude as an example of what she occasionally contends with. That really got my attention as I have recently been on the receiving end of others’ ire. When you’re a public figure of any dimension, you do become a target. I liked her directive to deal with the hurt and move on rapidly. I’ve been applying that wisdom to good advantage.
I remember a Newsday poll from many years ago that named Howard Stern as the best-loved radio personality. He was simultaneously named the most-hated radio personality. Fame (or any public notice) will often be a double-edged sword.
My other favorite point Kristin made was:
#4 – Don’t exceed your own personal speed limit.
That’s easily understood and could be a screen saver on your computer monitor. How often do you take on more than you can accomplish in a day? That little word “no” (which Kristin recommended liberal use of) will help keep your travel lane flowing smoothly.
In addition to hearing Kristin speak, I’m delighted to be a new member of Ladies Who Launch which is being so well run by Kathy McShane who is devoted to helping women business owners succeed. I share that passion with Kathy and am excited about joining forces with her to serve our community and beyond.
Scarlett DeBease-My wardrobe and make-up consultant at 8am--pre-TEDx
I gave my TEDx talk my all on Saturday and I’m satisfied with my performance and also happy that it’s behind me now. It was an incredible opportunity to speak at such an extraordinarily well-executed event. Jeremey Donovan and his team did an outstanding job of coordinating nine speakers and all the logistics that went into creating a TEDx program–no small feat.
There was a timely essay in The New York Times Book Review yesterday by Susan Cain who gave her own TED talk in February about being an introvert–already an intriguing premise. Imagine being an introvert and having to present in front of 1500 people! Here’s a quote from that article describing how highly she regarded this opportunity:
The week before the conference, I canceled everything on my calendar other than bath time with my kids. Instead of writing and reading and working, I hired an acting coach, Jim, and rehearsed all day, every day, Monday through Saturday.
It served her well. Over two million people have watched the video of her speech The Power of Introverts. This makes me feel more secure in telling you how much I invested in my experience. I, too, hired a speech coach. I wanted to be sure that my talk was on point, that the order of my stories made sense, that I had the right images to accompany those stories, and that my gestures matched my words and conveyed my enthusiasm.
In addition, I hired someone to help me with my appearance on THE DAY. We met an hour before showtime for hair and make-up. I also made arrangements to have the event photographically documented. I saw this as a major opportunity and I did everything within my power to capitalize on its outcome.
This is also called risk-taking. There is no guarantee that I will get anything in return for my investment of time, energy, brain power and financial resources. That’s the nature of risks. But, I believe that I will and used every resource I had to achieve that. Time will tell.
One of the lessons I’ve learned is that even if this TEDx experience doesn’t become the turning point in my life that I optimistically wish for, the story of its unfolding will provide great material for whatever does show up for me next.
Professionals!
Please, someone, anyone, remind me that I’m a smart person. Because I’m surely not feeling it lately. There’s something about tax time that raises my self-doubt to the tipping point. (Or maybe it was the addition of a rough stomach virus that had me considering retirement yesterday…)
I just called Lauren at my payroll company because I received something from the Department of Labor declaring 1.90% as the minimum contribution rate for 2012 followed by the number 73. Huh? I brought this sheet to my accountant yesterday who referred me to the payroll people. I have no idea what this means. But when I called my payroll processor, she said, “Oh, no problem. Fax it over and we’ll make that change.”
There’s a high level of trust here, because I’m truly in the dark and don’t even want to ask the first question. Do you EVER feel like that?
My meeting with my accountant went well. Until I got tripped up on the part where he said that the charitable contributions I’d made aren’t business expenses, but are deductible in another way. What’s the difference?
If you’re reading this and thinking, “But, Jane, everyone knows this stuff,” please give me a call and really dumb it down for me.
What I’m really curious to hear about from you is: what puts you over the edge? We’re all operating at such a high level in so many areas of our lives. When I’m tripped up by my lack of knowledge, I don’t want to minimize my brilliance, as I am wont to do. I’ve got good recovery skills, but would love to prevent the deep dive.
What I’m truly grateful for is that there are professionals out there who can guide me through…and not judge me. I don’t have to understand it all, so long as I have good people in place who do.
Old Ongapotchket Site
After many months and many meetings and many decisions, the new janepollak.com is alive and well and hopefully worth your valuable time and attention. It feels as though my last website went up only weeks ago, but it’s been six years. It was time for something new, fresh and more adaptable to today’s social media opportunities.
My mother used a lot of Yiddish words when we were growing up. The one that popped into my mind every time I pulled up my old site was ongepotchket (uhng-guh-potch-kit), which can mean too fancy or ornate, fussy, overdressed, overdone. What I had it mean in my head was “too much going on.” After four years of plain and simple, I had my assistant add the logos from the media outlets that had once featured me. Then, when the revised edition of Soul Proprietor came out in May 2010, we threw the new cover up there with links to amazon.com.
The site got cluttered and messy looking–ongepotchket–so every time I clicked on my home page I had to squint so as not to notice the clutter.
And then, you just know, it’s time to re-group and re-launch. I hired a wonderful marketing/branding company to work with me, and I’m thrilled with my new look. It’s congruent with the cover of my book. There’s no more ‘egg’ symbolism. And we’ve added a lot of video and social media connections to stay abreast of the times.
I hope you’ll spend some time checking it out, send your friends, sign up for a free webinar and/or hang out with my remarkable clients sharing their experiences on the youtube clips.
Welcome to my new site!
Like this:
My marketing director took me out to lunch yesterday for a planning session.
How cool does that sound?
I’ve been working with this woman-owned company for over a year now. They specialize in helping other women-owned businesses get the word out about their enterprise via social media, events, web development and other campaigns. I attribute her expertise with my growing revenues.
This was our second annual working lunch meeting, her treat. After a delicious soup and salad at Bloodroot (I got to pick the venue), she handed me an agenda with 10 items which she then reviewed point by point.
Each agenda item was something that we had talked about during the course of the year. I was amazed that she had captured them all and was helping me to re-visit them individually. Whenever I hear a great idea, I shoot it off to her via email. Taking them one by one a few weeks or months after the original inspiration affords me the opportunity to reconsider them in the stark light of day versus the excitement of the moment.
During our one hour meeting we covered everything we’ll be sure to do in 2012: promote my webinars, Remarkable Women’s Network events, launch my new website, build my lists, send direct mail campaigns and sponsor another client appreciation event–a highlight of 2011.
Would I have done these things on my own? Not likely.
The benefit to having a paid professional is participating in a best practice experience like this. Every business owner would benefit from an annual review, but how many actually take the time to sit down and make a plan?
I’m grateful to my marketing company for modeling this practice and helping me grow my business by partnering with her.
Like this:
I rely heavily on Scarlett De Bease of Scarlett New York for advice on my wardrobe. She’s created a look-book for me, which means that every time I need to go out in public and look presentable, I have a photographic album of outfits Scarlett has assembled for me to choose from. My bodily flaws are camouflaged by the shapes and accessories she helps me purchase and coordinate.
Naturally, any magazine would want to feature Scarlett’s expertise, not to mention her great good looks. In fact, she was recently contacted by O Magazine (Oprah’s rag for those of you who may not recognize it by name), to be in a makeover shoot for an upcoming issue. Scarlett had emailed me that she had a noteworthy interaction that might be of interest to the women I serve. Here’s the email invitation she received inviting her to be photographed for a spread on fashion makeovers:
Our team of fashion experts are here to help! Tell us about your “problem area” (not limited to the ones listed above [sic arms belly, neck, bust] and we’ll teach you how to dress in a way that will make you (and everyone else) forget all about it!
To which Scarlett replied (thank you, Scarlett, for letting me share your response verbatim for interested readers):
Thank you so much for contacting me, and I am so sorry to say that as much as I REALLY want to be in the magazine, I cannot participate in this feature as it is my specialty to show my clients how to solve the very same issue your feature is all about and it would discredit my work if I were a model for this particular story.
I know you are working hard tonight and I am truly sorry I cannot be a part of tomorrow’s casting. I do hope you will continue to keep me in your files for future features as, naturally, I would be delighted to be included.
Scarlett was relieved and pleased to receive an acknowledgment (often producers do not respond at all) saying “I totally understand” with a winking emoticon after the sentence.
I always love to hear, see or read what goes on behind the curtain. Thanks to Scarlett for sharing this story with all of us.
I just finished reading Onward by Howard Schultz, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Starbucks–lower case letters used by his example. The subtitle of the book is How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul. You may remember the closing of many Starbucks stores a few years ago and the looming possible demise of the company. Howard Schultz took back his leadership position and turned the company around. Onward is the tale he tells about this journey. I was mesmerized.
I’m sure every reader is familiar with Starbucks as it is, according to this book, the most frequented retailer in the world. What a gift to read this account of the good, the bad and the ugly of that journey back to profitability well written by his co-author Joanne Gordon.
What, you may ask, can I, a sole/soul proprietor, gain from this corporate giant? Let me count the ways! Here are just a few of the nuggets I highlighted in my edition:
- “Third Place” concept created by Starbucks – a social yet personal environment between one’s house and job (or home office). ~Raise your hands if you’ve met a client or colleague at this “third place.”
- Starbucks is intensely personal. p. 23 ~Isn’t your business, when you really come down to it?
- If coffee and people are our core, the overall experience is our soul. p. 25
- Moving forward became more important than laying blame. p. 28
- We needed to rediscover who we were and imagine who we could be. p. 73 ~Even big companies need to do vision work.
- We will transform the company internally by being true to our coffee core and by doing what will be best for customers. p. 90
- People inside the company needed to see and connect with me. Often. I had to be accessible, almost ubiquitous, more than I’d ever been. p. 99
- Anyone can ask questions with no fear of retribution. p. 99
- When we relegate responsibility to our partners and give them the right tools and resources, they will exceed expectations. p. 110
- Starbucks mission: To inspire and nurture the human spirit one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time. p. 112 ~Is your mission as simple and straightforward as this?
- Partners mission: We always treat each other with respect and dignity. p. 113
- Emotional connections our true value proposition. p. 117
- At its core, I believe leadership is about instilling confidence in others. p. 308
Is any of this relatable for you?
What business owner wouldn’t feel blessed to have 20 ready-to-work-for-you 20-somethings lining up for face time? That was the premise of an event I attended on Monday night at BeSpoke restaurant in New Haven–an elegant venue with excellent service.
Brilliantly organized by the founders of Super Interns, Julie Braun and Michelle Demers, the FastMatch™ night was exactly that. As you can see in the photo, employers sat on the banquette side of the tables and the soon-to-be interns rotated around the chairs on the inside of the room. Each match lasted 8 minutes. Scripts were provided with questions to ask of each other. Clearly, the young men and women who showed up had been primed to come with resumes, dress professionally and have a cheerful attitude. They all did.
Julie and Michelle were assisted by their own interns who took our names and information at the door and guided us to the location, handed out goodie bags at the end, took photos (exhibit A above) and generally helped the flow of the evening. The two women managed the time efficiently and explained what they were all about as well. Near the end of the event, they put out an offer to the employers to learn more about working with interns.
I attend a LOT of events. Very few (341 Studios immediately come to mind) are as well managed as this. I say this in my blog, because I value your time and would only recommend attending programs of high value. This was one.
I met about ten candidates, many of whom I would gladly find opportunities for. One has already followed up with me. I’m waiting for his references. I have a specific research project in mind for him.
One of my clients is in that long, dark hallway that seems to lengthen and dim as a huge deadline draws near. She has been relentlessly working toward her vision. Opening day is soon. Her gremlins have formed choruses and are serenading her hourly.
“She” is actually a collage of several of my clients who are about to manifest big time, but are on the precipice of belief today. Is it really possible to have this dream? The answer is YES. It just doesn’t feel that way.
One of the tools I give the amazing women I work with is called metavision–taking a helicopter view of what their lives look like rather than the magnifying lens perspective.
All of my clients excel at the microscopic details of getting the job done. They’re exceptional at their crafts, remarkable in their abilities to attract and utilize the skills of others to assist them, and uncommon at accepting responsibility and responding to the needs and wants of others. They’re visionaries when it comes to how their talents can make this world a better place.
Where I need to guide each of these wonderful women is in pulling back from the day-to-day operations and having them look at the big picture. What does your life look like from 5000 feet up? Who’s in the picture with you? Do you like what you’re doing? Are you having fun? What’s the scenery surrounding you? Is this where you want to be?
Often, they are so caught up in the dailiness of production that how they’re living their lives is overlooked. When, on our call, we shoot up and look at what’s happening below, there’s an energy shift, a recognition that this is what they’re meant to be doing. It’s not easy, but it could not be any other way.
All of my clients love what they do. (It’s a prerequisite of working with me.) Where they need my help is believing that the miracle is coming, especially in today’s uncertain economic climate where everything has a longer lead time than in the past. Whether and when it will arrive is not guaranteed, but the daily journey is where we can take responsibility. Your attitude and outlook inform your mental and physical health and your fortune.
The adage tells us it is always darkest before the dawn. Will you stay the course of the long dark night of the soul?
I’m going on vacation soon. As I get ready, I realize how important it is to schedule time off. I had no idea what kind of a winter we’d be having back in October when I scheduled a trip south for February. Now that the date has arrived, I couldn’t be happier. But, as you undoubtedly know, it takes work to go somewhere to relax.
Like hiring a cleaning lady and then organizing your house before she comes, for a business owner going away requires getting your ducks in a row. Before leaving for this trip I made sure my marketing e-blasts were written and scheduled and that my Virtual Assistant was on top of all the upcoming activities. She’ll be my only channel of communication while I’m out of the country. I recorded my out-of-office message both on my phone and my email account. I arranged my schedule with clients around this time away. I even pre-wrote blog posts to go live during this time. It was doing double-time so that while I’m on the beach, I can do nothing.
I know how important doing nothing is. For a Type A like me, I also know what a challenge it is. Yell at me if you receive an email from me between now and March 7. Zig Ziglar advises us to let everyone know about goals that are advantaged by outside monitoring–like giving up smoking or drinking or refraining from electronics while trying to relax.
The advantage to scheduling time off is that it brings into sharp focus all that’s in front of you, forces you to prioritize and delegate or plow through. Otherwise, we all just kind of go along. When clients say they want to give a workshop or have an open house, I immediately suggest they send out the invitations. The rest will take care of itself. Did you know that the English translation of the word vacation (this is a little known fact) is actually ‘deadline’?
