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Over 600 women attended the Hearts of Hope Women’s Benefit event that Linda Hunt (second from right) invited me to last week. The model for the Bridgeport Rescue Mission fund-raiser is to inspire women to become table hostesses and allow them to fill the room with friends and family members. Talking to other women during the cocktail hour, I sensed the excitement about this organization. The actual expense of the dinner is underwritten by sponsors. There is no cost to attend, which is wise. Why charge $25 when, after being awed by the words of a rehabilitated homeless woman, our hearts and pocketbooks opened wide.
Attendance soared from 150 in the first year of the event (2008) to 300 last year and over 600 in 2011. The formula is working.
Linda’s invitation to me came with the generous offer to bring a friend (see my post from last week). I even extended the offer to my readership and had the privilege of meeting a cyber-friend, Drew Lamm, in the flesh when she took me up on the offer to attend.
The evening flowed smoothly and well, especially considering the number of meals to serve, plates to clear, speakers to hear and money to be collected. My hat’s off to the Bridgeport Rescue Mission for their professionalism and respect for the audience’s time and resources. I felt that my attendance was of great value and that my donation would be appreciated.
The guest speaker, Elisa Morgan, drove home that point in her excellent talk which focused on a biblical quote, “She did what she could.” No ‘shoulds’ or ‘musts.’
I was inspired to be among so many women who were there to make a contribution as well as bear witness to how this organization has helped so many women in Fairfield County. I loved getting to sit next to Linda and have a more intimate conversation than a typical networking event would allow. And I relished having the abundance of time to be with my invited friend, Leigh, and my new acquaintance Drew. It was a winning evening all around.
During the final session of my winter Mastermind Group, I had participants close their eyes as I read three visualizations. We then debriefed each woman’s to establish a Life Purpose statement. Here’s what happened with Harriette Trevino, co-owner of Bull’s Head Printers in Monroe, CT.
At the start of our last meeting together, Harriette–high on the success of an event she’d hosted the night before–announced to everyone that she was “fully activated.” Like every other member of the Mastermind Group, Harriette had experienced the profound change that occurs when a group of like-minded individuals work together towards committed goals. For Harriette, it was a deep shift in her perspective on the job ahead. She was willing to do whatever it takes to be successful–meeting prospects in her new location, listening to and serving their needs with enthusiasm.
When it was Harriette’s turn to share the thoughts and images she envisioned, the Life Purpose statement that emerged was this: “I am the gentle breeze that lifts and inspires.”
The next day I received an email message from Harriette oozing with joy. After sleeping on her Life Purpose statement for one night, she got a note from a colleague thanking her for the event she’d hosted:
On a side note, your follow-up email below is no less masterfully written than was your MCing last night’s event. Not only were your remarks upbeat and the intros smooth as silk, but you lifted up everyone else who spoke as well. So big kudos to you for a super well done job.
Nice when you get an affirmation like that so quickly.
Although I’d never heard the expression, “open the kimono” before, I got its meaning the second my coaching buddy spoke those words during our conversation a few years ago. He was about to reveal a bit of closely-guarded information, and I was being alerted to that fact.
There was a lot of kimono opening at the NSA-CT event on Monday night where I served on a panel of four speakers who were sharing business models as well as career triumphs and tribulations.
I was in good company. My fellow panelists are my esteemed colleagues, and the audience was filled with other speakers for whom I have the highest regard. Jeffrey Scott, the current president of NSA-CT did an exceptional job as moderator.
Each of us had four minutes to introduce ourselves and speak briefly about how our businesses operated. I was completely candid sharing my income stream opportunities and where most of my income originates (coaching, not speaking, btw).
The evening was then turned over to the audience for Q + A. Jeffrey ably kept the pace upbeat and brisk and inserted provocative questions if there was a lull. For instance, he asked us each to share a memorable failure in the speaking business. One panelist described in excruciating detail (excruciating for him; enlightening for us) a situation he went into where he wasn’t 100% prepared and the discomfort that ensued. My memorable disaster was marketing my services to college art department chairs. Besides the fact that they most likely had no hiring power, my message at the time: You can make money selling your art! was probably not in alignment with their mission. I never found out because only one of the 30 I marketed to even responded…negatively.
The upside of that failure was that the head of the mentor program, where I was doing all of this preparatory work to reach my market, got to know me very well and witness my dedication and skills in marketing. She was impressed enough with these qualities that when an opportunity arose for her to recommend a speaker with those skills, I was her first choice. It resulted in my speaking for Staples stores all across the country for the next two years.
Another panelist spoke of her relationship with speakers bureaus and the less than positive taste it left after her experience with someone other than herself serving as go-between with the client. You could be years in the industry and have to suffer many hardships and learning curves to gain that one nugget of truthful experience.
The tenor of the evening was congenial and open. There was invigorating networking at the break and afterward, a telltale sign of a successful program. When the speaker and/or content aren’t filling the bill, crowds disperse post-haste. I highly recommend this format to every association that is open enough to offer its seasoned practitioners the platform to share best and worst practices with their peers. With a competent facilitator like Jeffrey, it’s a win-win event.
I’m honored and thrilled to be the EWN keynote speaker next Wednesday at the Norwalk Inn. I’ve been a member of the organization for 20 years. This is my first time ever speaking at a lunch event. Today, with so many things shut down due to snow, is the perfect day–a week in advance–to get everything in order. I can let it marinate over the next several days before going live.
My topic, a good one for the month of January, is It’s 2011: Do You Know Where Your Goals Are? Like I do for most projects I undertake, I created a mind-map for what I want to accomplish today. This visual allows me to see the multiple areas I need to spend time on, then designate the minutes or hours on my calendar for each item. My handwriting has become less legible, so here is the bulleted list seen in the spokes below:
- Finalize script- decide on illustrations
- Practice one hour
- Create packing list
- Figure out staffing for book sales
- Create handout
Here’s the take-away for anyone attending next week–You will participate in an exercise to identify a life or business-changing opportunity and create the accountability to take one step towards that vision.
I dare you to attend!
And I invite you to share this posting so others can take the dare too.
A colleague of mine specializes in coaching people who give high stakes presentations. While not my specialty, I did have the honor of helping Susan Beallor-Snyder prepare for her own high stakes speech which she delivered this past Saturday afternoon.
Susan’s father, Bob, passed away in August. The memorial service to honor his life was on the 27th, and Susan wanted to share her memories about him. Having never really spoken in public, she was understandably nervous. Addressing 100 friends and family added to the fear. Not that they would be judging her. Anytime you put yourself in front of an audience, it’s a scary proposition.
Susan prepared like crazy. She composed a beautiful collection of related stories that she cherished when thinking about her dad–his passion for food, his love of nature and his gentle spirit. She rehearsed a lot. She had trusted allies actually listen to her give her talk. I was one of the fortunate one who had a sneak preview via skype.com.
Her talk was a huge success. Susan did the most important thing a speaker can do. She was 100% authentic. For the time it took Susan to give her speech, her father came to life for all who were present. I know when a talk connects with me because I get goosebumps, or God-bumps as a friend once called them. I was covered with them throughout Susan’s talk. On one level I felt her love for her father coming through, especially as she was telling the story of how “…my father wouldn’t hurt a fly–REALLY! He had a bug-catcher and would catch the flies in our house and release them outside.” Her stories touched something deep inside me and my body reacted, as bodies do when a sweet truth is told.
And also I got goosebumps because this woman, whom I love and admire, was taking a huge risk and succeeding. I could see her glowing as the audience responded with laughter and applause to her comments. After everyone had spoken and the crowd broke up for refreshments, I went up to Susan to give her a hug and to ask her how it felt. Her huge smile and response said it all. “It felt great!”
Sharon Leichsenring, artist extraordinaire, paints murals in people’s homes and workspaces. She doesn’t depend upon people spelling her name correctly to find her at SharonPaintsMurals.com–a wise move when you have a challenging last name to remember, pronounce and spell. Make it easy for people to find you.
Sharon and I met a few years ago through EWN – the Entrepreneurial Woman’s Network. I’ve been enjoying Sharon’s newsletters and seeing her at my Remarkable Women’s Network events since we met.
Last week Sharon attended my talk to the Working Women’s Forum in Sandy Hook, CT where I shared my top strategies for business success. One sorely overlooked tip I included was saying “thank you” as part of your sales cycle as well as everyday courtesy. While email and phone thank you’s are fine, the hand-written thank you note stands out now more than ever. Sharon added the cherry on top to my suggestion.
“One of my clients was so pleased with the mural I painted for them that they had a stamp made of the painting. As a thank you, they sent me a sheet of these precious images. I now get to decide who is ‘stamp-worthy’ when I write my thank you’s!”
Sign up to receive Sharon’s newsletters and find out more about her offerings here.
I had my first ever Soul Proprietor Book Club last week graciously hosted by Janice Weinstein in West Hartford, CT. Twenty women attended, many of whom were business owners, but also several who were there simply to soak up the energy of entrepreneurship. There was plenty of that on hand.
Jan gave a heartfelt introduction of me which I followed with a self-revelatory lesson from my book. Then the evening turned interactive as attendees selected from a list of provocative statements I had provided.
It got really interesting when I opened the session to questions on the minds of the women there. One that particularly stood out was: What do you do when you have too many good things coming at you in your business?
First, I congratulated the woman who raised the issue. She’s in a rare position these days as most business owners I know are scrambling to find business. Then I asked her what she was most interested in having her business look like. And how many of those opportunities fit the template of her vision? All of a sudden she began to nod and recognize that while her phone was busy ringing, not every opportunity would take her in the direction she wanted. It’s hard to turn down money, but if you’re too busy, this is the time to start.
Think of your long-term goals. Think about what makes you happiest and keeps your business thriving. Then hold that up to the offers that are coming your way. Where is there a fit, and where can you say no? Last year I turned down an opportunity to partner with a team for an international mastermind program. While it sounded very tempting at first–they would reach an audience of 250,000–having to turn over my database and being bombarded by the other team members’ email blasts quickly soured me on the deal.
Please let me know if you’d like to host a Soul Proprietor Book Club in your home or virtually (via Skype).
The Soul Proprietor Book Club is a members-only, opt-in community of women formed in celebration of Jane’s book, Soul Proprietor – 101 Lessons from a Lifestyle Entrepreneur. Offered free of charge, and based on lessons from the book, members receive exclusive invitations to special events including teleseminars, discussion-over-dinner events (next one is 11/30), book readings and coaching sessions. (Members may opt out of the Book Club at any time via the unsubscribe link.)
I had the privilege of speaking at the Westport Library last week. One of the services the library provides is free podcasts recorded during presenter’s talks. For those of you who missed it and/or would like to hear my message, follow the instructions below. BTW, the subtitle of my talk is How I Got On the Today Show (without a PR agent!).
Here are the instructions:
1. Go to www.westportlibrary.org .
2. Click on “Listen to podcasts” in the center column
3. Scroll down to the October 6 listing and click on the podcast link.
October 6, 2010
Jane Pollak: Business Special
Jane Pollak, entrepreneur, public speaker, author, and business coach, discussed plans for getting noticed in the media on a regular basis, on Wednesday, October 6, 2010.
Click on gray arrow to begin podcast.
Enjoy!
I received an email this morning from a colleague I admire asking advice about speaking. It triggered my radar noting that this request for information about speaking comes my way weekly.
So, I’m going to share with you what I shared with her. Most people who approach me to find out the best way to get into speaking (whether professionally or otherwise) have a great story to tell. That’s a perfect beginning.
The two elements required to get in front of an audience are:
1. Get your story into shape for sharing it.
2. Find an audience.
We’ll talk about getting paid another time.
The best way I know to get your story audience-ready is to join Toastmasters and sign up for the Icebreaker speech: the first manual presentation where you introduce yourself to this friendly group of strangers. I’ve always maintained that if you can captivate and amuse this disparate gathering of men and women of all ages and backgrounds, you’ve got a good chance for success.
This is a two-for-one situation, because practicing in front of the Toastmasters audience gives you a receptive crowd and a deadline to begin. When you’re planning to move into any new arena, you need a forcing mechanism. The ongoing meetings (usually every two weeks) of your local Toastmasters club will give you the opportunity not only to get started, but to commit to building your repertoire of topics and talks.
That’s my advice. Go to Toastmasters, work through their manual, and call me in the morning after you’ve completed this assignment.
