Just do it

That was one of my main takeaways from the Journey 2 Success conference on Tuesday.  A great message for women entrepreneurs to hear.

So often we second-guess ourselves and want all our ducks in a row before we go further with our plans.  But there are no guarantees in life, and sometimes if we wait too long, we lose momentum and it never happens.

As I listened to our panel members -Brenda Halloran, Toni Morgan and Lindsay Rice – each of them had an ambitious goal for themselves, and steadfastly went after their dream.

In Brenda’s case it was to become mayor of Waterloo.  With limited political experience and limited funds, she threw her hat into the mayoral race.  She made us all smile when she confessed that she and her friends had limited political experience – for example –she chose to go with turquoise as her campaign colours because of a mug she liked.  Very much the outsider in the race for mayor, she’d been dismissed by her competitors, only to beat them on election day.

For Toni, she wanted to go to Harvard, which for someone who had been homeless as a teen, seemed like a pipe dream.  But don’t underestimate this young woman, who crowd-funded her way to Harvard and recently completed her masters in education. 

Lindsay chose to become a racing car driver, a lonely and different path for a young woman to pursue.  Like Toni, it took money and guts to make this dream a reality, and not only did she make it happen, she’s winning.   At 23 she explained she was late to enter this career, but she is certainly making up for lost time.

Our next speaker, Molly Burke, further emphasized the need to just follow your dream because when you do, you are living your life to the fullest.  With wisdom beyond her years, Molly shared how being blind was not holding her back – she travels, rides, surfs and rock climbs – which some of us wouldn’t dare to do and we have our sight. This gutsy young woman showed us that we need to get out of our own way and just go for it.

All four women are role models.  They are trailblazers, leading the way so the rest of us can pave our own journey to success.    

Gratitude is the best attitude

“A person who feels appreciated will always do more than expected.”

 But we seem to have forgotten that.  Is it just me, or have we become a grumpier, more demanding society?

I ask because lately I’ve noticed how quickly people are to criticize, to point out faults and what’s not working, instead of appreciating or showing gratitude for what is.

Part of the problem lies in our use or abuse of email as a way of communicating our disgruntlement.  Perhaps the writer doesn’t realize just how her message sounds and perhaps too, we can read too much into the words chosen.

That said, I do find that people are often too preoccupied in what they want, and when they don’t get what they want, like the spoilt toddler, they have a tantrum thinking perhaps that will sway the decision and change the outcome.  Eh. No.

It’s too bad really because it is such a waste of energy, negative energy at that and I don’t find myself drawn or wanting to be around folks that give out such troubling vibes.

My advice?  Take a chill pill. 

Look at the big picture and perhaps reflect on the other person’s perspective.  If something is wrong, I’ve always found that being pleasant and polite gets you a lot further.  When we treat people with respect and value their time and expertise, they are more likely to work harder to fix the problem.

Gratitude and giving back is our theme for our upcoming conference on May 17.  I'm hoping people will listen and take notes.

As Andy Wooten suggests – “It doesn’t cost anything to tell someone thank you.” Try to say thanks to everyone that you can today.”

Join the celebrations

We all learn differently.  For some of us it is watching a video, for others it is listening to a podcast or reading a book.

For me a conference provides it all.  I get to meet new people, learn new information and hopefully 

get nudged into pursuing some new concepts.  And sometimes while I hear something that I already knew, it serves as a reminder.  Rarely is it a waste of time.

For most of my career I have been organizing events – and our conference this year on May 17, while it marks the 10^th Journey 2 Success, is just one of many that I have hosted in the past.   You see whether it is a group of 30 or 300, the detail remains the same.

The key I think is to mix it up.  No one wants to sit there for six hours suffering from death by power point.  Just as I said at the beginning, we all learn differently so as a conference organizer, you have to keep that fact in mind. 

So yes, at Journey 2 Success there are a couple of keynote speakers, a panel (just one), and small group discussions and biz tool information sessions.   And of course, to lighten it up some retail therapy, after all a gal needs her bling.

But because this is our 10^th annual conference, with a theme of Celebrating Your Successes – with gratitude and giving back, we have invited 21 award-winning women entrepreneurs to share their success secrets with us.  Now these are super-busy women who have generously agreed to spend time with us … with you.  It is their way of giving back and an opportunity not to miss.

And for those who like going to the movies – we have the premiere of the One Red Lipstick documentary, complete with popcorn, followed by the After Glow party.  How cool is that.

Often we leave conferences and events with such great intentions, then when we get back to the office, reality sets in and the new ideas get left on the back burner.  So on May 18 we have a retreat to help participants move forward and capitalize on the learning of the day before.

So check out our website, (http://journey2success.ca) mark the date on your calendar and join us.  You will be glad you did.

2015 - The good, the bad, the ugly

I always like to reflect back on my business year, note the lessons learned and what I would do differently next year.

So here’s the good – (the brilliant actually.)

1.            An element of surprise wins the day.
People are still talking about Liz Radzick’s entrance to the Journey 2 Success conference (carried on a stretcher by four hunky firemen).  It was an amazing day and Liz set the stage.  Now who knows what she’ll do next yearJ

2.            Women want practical skills, delivered through hands-on training.
We started to deliver Yes You Can… one-day sessions on a specific topic where the women left with new skills, all set and ready to go.   

3.            When you let go and listen to new ideas, your business can soar. 

 We now have eight chapters and I am really wowed by my team this year.  They’re keen, capable women, all committed to helping women succeed.  Just watch this space for new stuff “coming to a neighbourhood near you.”

4.            Making soup is another way to network.
Who knew? What started as a casual conversation about making soup, turned into two classes on how to do it.  It was fun and the conversations fascinating as a diverse group of women connected over a meal they’d made together. 

5.            The brain cells are still working
I managed to get away to attend two conferences in the US.  Learning always fuels me, even if it takes me time to filter and implement what I have learned.

6.            I love, love, love interviewing and writing women’s stories.
Doing the interviews for the One Red Lipstick was for me a personal high. Not only did I enjoy hearing the stories, but I loved that I was able to help the women best articulate what they wanted to say.

The bad (well not that bad)

7.            Not practicing what I preach.
I’ve always said that we need to deliver what our customers want, rather than what we want to offer or think they need, and I still think it’s true.  But it struck me that I wasn’t strictly sticking to my rule this year. 

We haven’t offered as many evening events as in the past.  Why?  When I dig deep, it was because I didn’t want to work evenings.  There, said it.  My focus was on what I wanted, not the customers.  Wrong. 

8.            It’s not all about me
With my new team, that will change, because there’s another lesson deep in this, it’s not all about me.  I don’t have to attend every event (even if I could).

9.            We’re a last minute society
Late registrations are the bane of any event planners existence and cause endless stress, and it seems to be getting worse.  Just as you think you may have to cancel, the last minute gals sign up and suddenly you have a sold out crowd!    

The ugly (the tough stuff)

10.        Life is fragile.
On a personal note, we’ve had a sudden death and serious illness within our extended family, which makes everything else pale in comparison.  Unfortunately as we get older, there will be more of this, but you never get immune to the sadness it brings.

So what’s my main takeaway from the year?   I’ve built a business that doesn’t need me 24/7.  It can tick along beautifully with the team I have in place,  which enables me to turn more of my energies to writing and publishing books.

It’s been a year of transition, with key lessons on letting go, listening and learning.

So how about you?  What were the lessons, highlights, low points in your year?  When you take the time to reflect back, there are lessons to be gleaned if you are open to learn. And trust me, we can all learn.  I for one am a lifelong learner.

Be bold. Be brave. Belong.

That’s the theme of our conference this year and I believe the message will resonate with you, because after all as small business owners, at different stages of your business, you have had to be bold and brave to enter and survive in the world of entrepreneurship.

Our speakers Shanna McFarlane and Nadja Piatka are trailblazers and our role models, having paved their way to become super successful in their business ventures. They will be sharing their inspiring journeys with us.

The courage panel this year is made up of women who have demonstrated their bravery in different ways – finding resilience in a life threatening situation; throwing her all (financially) to follow her business dream and overcoming personal challenges after an accident.  In each instance, their fortitude and tenacity to stay the course, no matter what, is to be applauded.

As for the “belong” – that’s you.   As women business owners we’ve created our own “club” – the Company of Women community.  We are there for each other, and we welcome you to come, join in and belong. You don’t have to be alone with you own. 

Finally let’s just say you will really be connected and belong together by the end of the dayJ

Check out the website http://www.journey2success.ca  Early bird rates are available until April 1^st.