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He said so, as quoted in the New York Times, when recently interviewed by Oprah at a benefit event held at Lincoln Center last week.
Why do I love reading those words? It makes me feel connected to greatness. It makes me feel normal for having the same feelings. It makes the whole world of entrepreneurship a little bit cozier having the elite stars own up to the fearsomeness of the process we indulge in every day.
Anyone else out there feeling scared today? You are not alone. Ralph Lauren feels that way too.
It doesn’t get any better than this for a client or her coach.
Attending Patti Tower’s View From the Tower Open House on Saturday was like watching a vision unfold. She had several dozen guests and clients visit and purchase items from her new collection of hand-painted and embellished clothing.
Patti has gone from a corporate position to entrepreneurship with grace, delight and a lot of footwork. She articulately summed up her transformation to the cameraman/reporter from Channel 12 News who videotaped her for the program that night. Having recently lost her job with a Fortune 500 company, Patti stands out from that crowd having already seized the reins of entrepreneurship.
Does this look like someone who has found what she’s meant to do?
Last night I attended another outstanding WBDC event in Stamford featuring Faith Middleton who has become an ardent supporter of their mission to help women entrepreneurs. Her talk focused on WBDC’s success stories–women who had started and are thriving in business ownership. In addition, Faith added a few observations that underlined WBDC’s role.
The most important question Faith invariably seeks to answer is, “Does it add to the quality of our lives?” The answer for both WBDC and its clients’ contributions is a resounding YES. Faith also mentioned the vast number of jobs provided by women owned businesses, in CT particularly, and their positive economic impact. She said that “statistics are simply people with the tears washed off.” She shared several stories about WBDC clients who had overcome huge odds as illustration.
WBDC classes provide support and education as women learn how to build their businesses. Observed Middleton, “Talking to family members can sometimes be detrimental. WBDC peers encourage you because they’re in the same boat taking similar risks.”
Another highlight of the evening for me was that I had the pleasure of meeting Faith’s spouse before the program began–Fern Berman, owner of Fran Berman Communications, Inc. We were chatting about Faith and her award-winning radio show. Fern meets a lot of people who would love to be a guest on Faith’s show. “We have a firewall between our personal and professional lives.” Fern will never suggest anyone as a guest to Faith as a way of honoring that commitment. I love that!
When my caller ID showed the message US News World Report you can be sure I picked up the line! How exciting to be interviewed by such an eminent publication. My main question was, “How did you find me?” but I graciously delayed asking until the interview was complete. Liz Woglemuth, the reporter, was unable to remember how she’d found me, which I guess is a good thing.
As you’ll see from the complete article, this was about telecommuting. I reminded her that my home office experience caters to entrepreneurs, which was fine with her. Here’s an excerpt from the full article:
Problem: Your home office doesn’t feel like an office.
You may underrate the importance of your physical environment in the beginning. You think you can work from anywhere. “For some people working from home the first time, they want to make sure they have a clearly delineated space,” Slim says. Keep the area clear, and make sure you have the tools you need—that your phone will work for teleconferences or that your Internet connection will carry bandwidth-heavy work applications.
Be straightforward about marking your territory. Jane Pollak, an entrepreneurship expert and coach, says she loves her renovated home office. “It really staked a claim that I’m serious, that this is my office,” she says. “I have friends who write ‘World Headquarters’ on the third bedroom door. It’s a way of saying: ‘This is where I go to do my work.’ “
My inspiration for this was hearing Rosita Perez, esteemed member (and my mentor), of the National Speakers Association.
On my morning walk recently I saw a fancy sports car in a neighbor’s driveway. Its bumper sticker said: The older I get, the faster I was.
I filter pretty much everything I see, hear and do through the senses of an entrepreneur so I thought about how that applied to me and my clients. Since I’ve completely closed down the art part of my business, I can say with full confidence that it was an enormous success–always profitable, highly publicized, nationally recognized with tons of customers. The truth is, while I was in it, I NEVER referred to myself as a success.
