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Written in 1990
In preparing for my talk, Create Your Own Future, tomorrow to the Arts & Culture Collaborative at the Timexpo Museum in Waterbury, I’ve been sorting through some very old files. I came across a set of note cards that I had written in 1990, by hand, in ink. The one above outlined six goals to be achieved over the next few years.
I didn’t really believe at the time they would be possible. They were only dreams. But, my favorite definition of a goal is “a wish with a deadline.” And the number one tool for accomplishing goals is to put them in writing.
I did accomplish all of them. Looking back, I wonder what I thought was so hard. Of course, looking forward to what I’d still like to achieve, I can bring up the same feeling of anxiety and delight. Writing down something you’d like to have in your life, and having no way of conceiving how it might come into reality, is what goal setting is all about.
I look forward to sharing what I know with my audience tomorrow.
BTW, the last goal was to contribute increasing sums to my alma mater, Mount Holyoke College, which I have.
MORE Magazine (April 2012) featured an inspiring article about Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s recent visit with Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma’s best-known opposition leader and a Nobel peace laureate. To read about the meeting of these two powerful women was exhilarating and informative.
What happened behind the scenes the night before contained the tidbit I wanted to pass on. How often must we reign in our own personal habits and desires for the greater good?
She ordered tea, much to the disappointment of the the traveling-press regulars, who prefer it when Clinton knocks back a few drinks with them., as she is known to do.
Sorry, guys, I can’t. I’d love to, but I can’t,” she says when wine is offered. She’s already losing her voice and needs some tea with honey. It’s a big day tomorrow. She has a president to size up, a heroine rebel to embrace, a country to help save. And a few million women to fight for. She’ll pass on the Chardonnay.
Barbara’s gift and the Lululemon recyclable bag
It would ruin any mystery surrounding the birthday gift I’m giving her tonight. But my experience at Lululemon yesterday bears sharing with my audience of business owners and other interested consumers.
I selected a cool, reversible jacket as my gift to Barbara, brought it to the checkout counter and asked that it be wrapped as a gift. “We don’t have gift boxes. We’re a sustainable store,” I was told with just the slightest edge of superiority.
“Could you put a little tissue around it?” I asked, hoping for a touch of festivity in the unwrapping experience.
“No, we don’t believe in adding waste to the environment,” the salesgirl said. Actually, she didn’t say that exactly, but that was my interpretation of her repeating the ‘sustainable’ mantra in slightly different language.
Another jolt I got at that counter was the guestbook sign-in. Hoping to get the inside scoop on what towns other shoppers were visiting from, I was surprised to see that the pages consisted solely of names and email addresses. Clearly, paper, envelopes and stamps were not going to be used by this company.
I admire and support the philosophy and commitment of Lululemon, but have to confess to suffering a bit of culture shock, this being my first time interfacing with the reality of it.
I do plan to tie a (recyclable) ribbon around the cool, environmentally correct bag they did give me for transporting said gift to its recipient. I hope Barbara likes it. They did print out an extra gift receipt, just in case.
One of Terrie Williams’ wise volumes on life
Continuing Terrie’s list from my post last week, here are the final 10 ways to promote yourself in business:
11. Send a follow-up note to people you meet and would like to stay in touch with. [As a sidebar to this, I blogged about Doug Friedman's (of Melissa and Doug) inspiring talk at the Westport Library last week and received an email from him thanking me for my post. He is forever endeared to me for even noticing!]
12. Get to know support staff of the person or company you may want to do business with. If you develop these relationships, when you call, there will be a better chance of being put through.
13. Know your profession. Stay abreast of all the latest trends and developments in your field and your geographic area. Read everything you can get your hands on and know who is doing what, where, when and how. Learn to skim.
14. Pass articles along with a note if you come across one that may be of interest to a colleague. Maybe your associates don’t have the time to read the number of publication you do. You’ll provide a valuable service that they will undoubtedly appreciate. [This is more true than ever with the Internet, a greater variety of media inundating us, and the ease of forwarding valuable information.]
15. Keep a supply of greeting cards for all occasions. Pay attention to special occasions of colleagues and prospective business contacts and stay in touch.
16. Write…write…write. Send letters [emails, now] to people you want to do business with. Many valuable relationships have developed this way.
17. Go through your Rolodex [online database] periodically and send a hello note to those people you want to remember you.
18. Let people know that you are available to speak or to otherwise participate in panel discussions, seminars, clubs, religious organizations, civic groups, charitable organizations, service groups and community centers.
19. Selectively donate your services to nonprofit organizations that may be in need of your expertise.
20. Remember what Mom used to tell you: say Thank You. It’s amazing how few people invest the time to express gratitude for a favor or job well done. Remember that people don’t have to do anything for you It’s all about developing a winning style and cultivating relationships that can be instrumental in opening doors you never dreamed could open for you. Work hard to achieve your goals. There will be disappointments and defeats along with the highs and the joyous victories, but if you apply the “little things,” you’ll be amazed at how many “big things” may result.
Misleading Letter
Here’s one way I can measure my growth in business. I received this IMPORTANT envelope from the United States Trademark Registration Office in Saturday’s mail. Whenever I get something government related, I have to admit, I feel a bit intimidated. Did I do something wrong? Do I owe money? Right there at the post office, I felt vulnerable.
I waited till I got home to open the envelope, then read the contents which suggested that I owed a $375 fee on a trademark I’d taken out six years ago. One I had already paid hefty sums for. There was a lot of legal looking language in the text, so I had a moment of panic. Do I still owe money on that thing?
Then, I looked at the envelope again and thought, “A government agency in Los Angeles? Wha’?”
I immediately went to google, inserted ‘trademark registration office Los Angeles’ and saw an article in Ripoff Report explaining the scam being run.
The whole process lasted under 30 minutes as I went from fear-based entrepreneur to slightly annoyed, wiser seasoned business owner. And that’s what 30 plus years in business can do for you. You learn what to pay attention to and what to investigate before taking action. Years ago I may have simply sent in the check and been sadder, poorer and not much wiser. Today, I take the pause that refreshes and took action on my own behalf.
Any other scams you’ve been subjected to that you’d care to share?
I know. I can hear you all thanking me for being your role model for extreme self-care. I told my coach the other day that I feel like I’m in the Olympics of self-care these days.
I leave bright and early tomorrow morning for a week at a resort. I do have some responsibility while I’m there–giving two talks. But, mostly I’ll be R&R’ing. I plan to hike, take aqua-fit classes, meditate and do yoga. All of my meals will be prepared with food from their organic gardens. No beds to make, no decisions to make either, other than hot stone massage or herbal wrap.
The resort is Rancho La Puerta. Watch the incredible history-movie.html about its origins. I was so inspired by the owner’s story. It’s now a high-end spa, but when she and her husband began it 40 years ago, you brought your own tent and it cost $17.50 a week.
My outgoing messages say that I am out of the country and will not be returning calls until December 28. I plan to turn off all electronics and totally relax and recharge for 2012. No blogs or newsletters until early January either.
I hope you’ll take designated time for yourself during this hectic season to use however you choose, whether it’s an hour, a day or more. If you happen to be taking my webinar and read this, you get extra credit for letting me know what you did for YOU.
I had the privilege of sitting next to Gail McMeekin at Bottom Line’s elegant Four Seasons networking dinner in June. Marjory Abrams, who acts as host 
for these events, brilliantly seated us together knowing that our interests were so aligned. Gail’s audience, like mine, is highly creative women. We instantly connected and have continued to correspond and support each others’ businesses since then.
So I’m honored to participate in Gail’s Blog Tour promoting her new book, The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women Journal.
Here’s an Excerpt from Her Journal…
Living in Abundance with Positive Priorities
Abundance is the experience of plenty, often called prosperity. For creative people, the opportunity to dance with the creative process is itself an experience of abundance. Abundance invites us to live the life we truly desire instead of settling for less. We are the choice-makers of
our own priorities. We do indeed design our own lives.
When I begin coaching a new client, I take them through a series of discovery exercises and conversations about what it is he or she truly desires. Determining our priorities gives us a roadmap for decision-making. Let me share an example with you. Sara contacted me a few weeks ago to help her change careers. She wanted to express her submerged creativity. She had read The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women and felt it was time to change her life. Sara’s personal Positive Priorities, which I define in the book as “life choices that express who we are and what we want for ourselves,” are:
Having time to explore her creative potential
Nurturing mutually beneficial relationships with others
Maintaining healthy habits that support her body, mind, and spirit
Keeping in touch with opportunities for learning about landscape architecture
At this point, Sara feels her creativity has been lost in a stressful job and a legacy of putting everyone else’s needs first—in a city she no longer loves. Her number one creativity saboteur is guilt about finally defining and claiming her own definition of abundance. By celebrating her Positive Priorities, Sara now has a yardstick by which to measure her life choices up to this point.
Many of the women I interviewed in The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women had transformed their lives to honor their Positive Priorities. Sixteen themes emerged again and again, and I share them with you here to help you capture your own Priorities:
- Time for creative exploration
- Fulfilling work
- Encouraging partners, friends, and community
- Personal growth experiences
- Good health
- Nurturing living spaces
- Learning opportunities
- Self-protection from negativity and toxic people
- Reflective time
- Spiritual practices and beliefs
- Independence
- Solitude as needed
- Inner centeredness
- Connection with nature and the arts
- Inspiring activities
- Balance
Gail is currently on a Blog Book Tour so if you want to read more you can find yesterday’s post here at A Room of Her Own and tomorrow you’ll be able to find Gail here. Share a comment on today’s post and you will be entered into a random drawing to win one of Gail’s books – 12 Secrets of Highly Successful Women, 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women or her new book, The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women Journal.
I attended my first 341 Studios Fresh Intelligence Roundtable Series almost exactly a year ago–late September 2010. I was so knocked out by the power of that event, I wrote a gushing love letter blog post for all to see. Not surprisingly, the women at 341 were among the first to read it. We’d had a mutual admiration thing going on prior to that, but something about my post that day put a punctuation mark on our growing relationship.
That’s the power of the blog.
I’ve attended many of their roundtables, learned from each one, and continued to enjoy our mutually beneficial relationship.
Today I sit here at another event in their series, only this time, I’M the expert. Let me qualify that. I’m on their panel as an example of a successful blogger–who is open to going from good to great.
With brilliant suggestions from social media expert Rhonda Hurwitz you’ll now begin to see a more focused and strategic use of keywords in my postings. It won’t interfere with the content, I promise. Mary Callahan of 341 illustrated the back-end features of sites like WordPress.com, which is the one I use.
Once again, Michele Graham hosted the roundtable and kept the questions and discussion flowing. The four of us are in the photo above.
I’d love to hear your suggestions, too, for going from good to great. What would you like to see more of?
I just left my Remarkable Women’s Network event, checked my BlackBerry and saw the NYTimes news alert that Steve Jobs had passed away. My heart did a little dive and my stomach feels jittery. I’m sad.
An era has ended. We have lost a major contributor to life as we know it. Wow, what a loss.
On a regular basis I’m asked, “Do you miss doing your art?” The answer is “no,” but today I heard a perspective that articulated perfectly why I don’t. I was being interviewed by Patrick Kiger for secondact.com, a website devoted to helping people over 40 with all aspects of their lives.
Patrick had first interviewed me for a piece he was writing about my good friend and colleague Mary Ellroy. During that conversation he mentioned that he’d like to interview me at a future time, which turned out to be today. He’s very interested in the whole idea of re-invention, so my transitions from schoolteacher to mother to egg decorator, entrepreneur, speaker, author and coach was fodder for his mill.
He, too, asked me if I ever missed doing the eggs. I explained how creative it is coaching entrepreneurs, how my mind fires ideas like never before and that my clients’ creativity is satisfying to me as well as to them. “You’ve made business your art form,” he said matter-of-factly. I felt like saying, “Eureka!” It was crystal clear in that moment that I am still practicing art, but in a medium that is unlike any that I’ve used before.
Patrick reminded me of how Salvador Dali spent the first half of his career painting and the second half self-promoting. He didn’t stop being an artist, but his medium changed. I liked the comparison.
