Enriching Experiences, Creating Bonds
As the sun rises on this beautiful morning, my heart flutters with anticipation at the thought of 130 people coming to our house Saturday to celebrate my son’s graduation. Top on my to-do-list the rest of the week is cooking and preparing for the welcomed crowd which includes all 7 of my siblings from the four corners of the country.
Being brought up Italian meant celebrating with loved ones around a table whether it was after Church on Sunday, Thursday “macaroni day” or a special seven course meal my mom would prepare for her closest friends on a Saturday night. Food, family, friends and events were the essence of my upbringing and continue today, not only at my house, but at 40 Women TIES luncheons a year. It’s probably why I love Women TIES event days. I adore gathering with others around a table.
What I have learned throughout my life is the importance of celebrating the small and big moments with others. Sharing special occasions with customers, favorite business vendors or close associates produces common experiences with them. The sharing experience bonds people together. It’s why the more programs a woman attends of ours, the more she opens the door to creating emotional connections that enhances the event experience, strengthens business bonds and makes her feel at home within our organization. Women are meant to be with other women and to share.
Today’s post is to encourage you to open your heart and mind to attending new social opportunities in business this summer because you release the possibilities of new beginnings, deeper relationships and stronger bonds. Creating enriching personal experiences with other women business owners opens the door to deeper connections of the mind and spirit and lays the foundation for a healthy and vibrant business relationship.
Make sure you don’t miss creating special occasions or attending events that can help forge stronger connections with other women. Accept more luncheon invitations and create special dining experiences to bring together the people you love or want to get to know better. Didn’t you know “A way to a woman’s heart is through her stomach?”
Three Tips to Make Any Event a Success
Event Planning Advice for Women Entrepreneurs
After planning and managing events through Five Star Events and Women TIES of all sizes and scopes for two decades I know one thing for sure…you can’t create a successful event without organization. Whether you’re trying to plan a business board meeting, annual conference or in my case a private graduation party for 120 on Saturday, you need three key tools to make any occasion successful.
It all starts with a vision. I always start by envisioning the end of the affair as my guests are leaving. I visualize what they say, how they feel, what they comment about and what they considered special. By visualizing the end product, you can create the essence of your party. For example: My son’s graduation party this weekend will be themed with food that represents the “Syracuse Orangeman” since my son will enter Syracuse University in the fall. From that vision, I know the colors, food selections and theme to make the event memorable and fun. Once the vision is set and before your mind gets overwhelmed with planning a big event, put every detail related to the event on paper. From the menu to the decorations to the guest list, write down everything that must be accomplished before the big day. Once you’ve created your list, work backwards putting completion dates to tasks. Soon you’ll have the perfect planning document to use from start to finish.
Finally on the day the event arrives, make sure you empty your mind of any stress or tiredness, refresh yourself and realize you are the host of the event. Your mood and energy will set the tone for everyone else. Put on music that moves you, think of the special people joining you or the purpose of the affair and get pumped up for your special occasion. Making sure you enjoy the event will guarantee your guests will enjoy it too.
Events produce excitement and energy. You’ll feel it building as the important day arrives. By visualizing, planning and enjoying the event, you’ll produce a special occasion for everyone including yourself and by remembering my professional motto, “Success is in the Details,” you’ll be assured your special occasion goes off perfectly.
Open the Door to Your Business Future
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs
As I walked through the back door of my house onto my lawn today, I was hit by the beautiful light of morning. For a moment I felt like Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” who had opened the door of a black and white existence to the brilliance of Oz. All of a sudden a hue of rainbow colors washed the screen, brightening the way for Dorothy to step out into unknown territory. This morning’s sun washed light over me the same way.
Living in New York State so far this spring has been like living back in Dorothy’s old farmhouse in Kansas…bleak, grey, void of color. On a morning like today when the sky is blue again, the grass glistening green and the purple irises in full bloom, one appreciates what color can bring to the spirit – joy, hope, happiness, and contentment.
If you’ve been an entrepreneur for awhile, you know periodically business feels like being stuck in a grey environment. Nothing brilliant or new is streaming in the door, the finances can look quite bleak, and our energy level can be sucked out of us like the violent winds of a tornado. Whether you know it or not, the only way to move past the darkness is to open a door and step into a new place. It might be time for you to create some new colors in your business life, to renew your spirit, purpose and corporate mission.
Today’s blog post is meant to have you stop for a moment, look outside your window, relish the bright hues and sense how you feel. If you feel lighter, happier and more energetic, than use that sense to spill more of it into your business. Are there new products or services you’ve meant to launch? Are there new customers you should be meeting with? Are there other businesses you could be working with? Opening up a new door with an innovative idea, new client or new creative vendor could be just want you need to bring color back into your business.
Before the rain returns again, I hope you enjoy the beauty of today and let it fill your mind and spirit with fresh new ideas to start implementing in your company. Open the door and walk into a more brilliant and colorful future. Today’s the perfect day to do it
Creating an Even Playing Field for Women
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs and Business Women in New York State
One of the emails gracing my inbox this morning was, “Governor Introduces Women’s Equality Act.” Anyone who has followed me for 19 years knows this email was long overdue. For close to 2 decades I have been personally motivated through my business and community leadership roles to help women become more financially successful because of the inequality in pay between the sexes. If the government couldn’t fix the inequality then I was determined to even the playing field through my corporate mission of encouraging women to buy from other women as often as possible locally, regionally and statewide.
In yesterday’s article Governor Cuomo listed this important fact, “In New York, women earn 84 percent of what men earn, and over a lifetime will earn $500,000 less than men. In 2013 this is both inexcusable and absurd. The Women’s Equality Act strengthens the law to ensure that women receive the wages they are entitled to, as well as provides for increased damages if a woman is not paid equally.”
The demographic I serve are mostly women who do not work in traditional corporate environments – although we do have independent corporate saleswomen involved with our organization. Therefore regaining the $500,000 lost in unequal pay might not speak to us directly, but because many women entrepreneurs are solo entrepreneurs, run smaller companies and still work less hours trying to balance work and families, it’s essential for every single woman to financially support independent women business owners as often as possible to help them make more money.
A woman understands no one has our back like another woman. It’s the truth. No matter how wonderful our sons, husbands, fathers and brothers may be, the women in our lives are the ones who understand us best, dedicate hours to support us and offer unconditional love and friendship over a lifetime. Women exist for women and it’s shown in our dedication to our sisters, mothers, aunts, grandmothers, and best friends. We must continue to support each other emotionally and financially.
Today’s post is to remind you that women will keep making strides towards equality in pay, domestic violence, freedom of choice and other discrimination because of the power we bring to the table individually and collectively. Our voices, our beliefs and our actions will pave the way for change if we choose to live a life that promotes equality for women.
When I look into the face of a young girl, teenager, female college student or sister entrepreneur, I work harder to even the playing field. What can you do today to help this generation of women and the girls to follow?
“Graduating” in Business
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs
“Holding on is believing there’s only a past; letting go is knowing there is a future,” a quote by Daphne Rose Kingma graced my morning computer screen. What an interesting quote for this month when so many young people are moving up a grade or graduating from high school. You probably remember your own moving up days and graduation moments when you stood in a moment of time looking back and looking forward at the same exact time.
In business we celebrate those moments too when we are standing in the threshold of change. Sometimes its simple adjustments that need to be made and ones we have been avoiding for awhile; other times it is dramatic transformation calling us. We sense it. We feel it. We know it. It’s like thunder roaring off in a distance trying to get our attention. I have always believed the hardest part of making any change is actually thinking about making the change, not the change itself. Once a decision has been made, relief sets in.
Women are constantly challenged to grow as entrepreneurs. Whether we are creating new systems, adding staff, expanding into new regions, being educated in new subjects or borrowing capital to expand, we have to nurture development within ourselves and our business walls. We have to be willing to graduate to new levels all the time. We must “move up” in order to make more money.
Today’s blog post is meant to inspire you to look at change the way a graduate is looking at change this month – cognizant of where they have just been and enthusiastic for where they are going. Remember you can’t stand in the threshold of making small or major decisions too long. At some point you need to step backward or move forward or you risk stalling and staying exactly where you are.
I hope you will be more like the graduates this month who are full of anticipation for what lies ahead if you are going through thoughts of change. Remember at any moment, you can walk through the threshold you’ve been standing in to experience new and exciting business opportunities and horizons.
Forward Motion Needed For Success
‘Forward Thinking’ and ‘Forward Motion’ are statements which crossed my mind this week and made me think about their significance as an entrepreneur.
As I watched a television series come to an end, a major character, who was dark and cruel, admits that one crucial decision he made twenty years prior set him on a life of bad choices. One critical moment created the trajectory of the rest of his actions and decisions. With heavy regret, he realized if he was more mindful about that choice and let it ‘go’ years ago he would have had a better life. He wished he had been “forward thinking” instead of stuck in the past.
After reading a short story on survival, a woman who had tragic and unexpected circumstances occur in her life talks about her will and determination to go on. She said, “Every morning I woke up (literally and figuratively), put my feet on the floor, took a deep breath, fixed breakfast and did everything I always did. I used my routine to keep me moving. I continued moving forward.”
As entrepreneurs we have experienced tough entrepreneurial moments when we’ve lost a client, made a poor decision, experienced a regretful moment, or lost faith in ourselves. The question is, “Have we let that moment, that event, that decision, affect us and our business negatively or positively?” Like the first character, have we remained stuck in a bad decision from years ago that still influence or harm us? Or like the second character, have we moved forward from a bad situation knowing the only way to move on is to go forward?
Today remind yourself that what matters most is the fact we cannot go back and change our past – past decisions, poor choices, or wrong turns. We must continually think and move forward realizing we are always given opportunities to advance ourselves. It is up to us to set the goals, devise the strategy and most importantly control the way we think so we can move forward freely and at peace.
Majestic Planning Moments for Women Entrepreneurs
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs
A couple years ago on a balmy summer day like today with a lemonade in my hand and a yellow pad of paper and pen in front of me, I sat outside under the coolness of a majestic maple tree following the “creative” directions of a Women TIES member who had just presented a program on using creativity to grow a business. The task she gave to seminar attendees was to spend an afternoon creating a list of 100 new innovative ideas for their companies.
The challenge sounded fairly reasonable, fun and easy. Ironically it wasn’t as simple as it sounded. By the time I got to creative idea number 37, I was stumped. Coming up with 63 more ideas was like asking a woman entrepreneur to give up what she loved doing. It seemed impossible. But by pushing my mind to think beyond its normal parameters and contemplate expansive thoughts, I ended up producing 100 innovative ideas in which five solid revenue producing concepts were born.
As women entrepreneurs we get use to running our businesses the same way once we find the magic formula. But when we are challenged to think differently it eventually alters our perspective and allows for fresh insight and ideas. Doing business the same way all the time can make us successful, but periodically fresh vision opens up unlimited possibilities. As the spring and summer seasons begin to blend, I hope you’ll check out the weather forecast in advance, head outside and take an afternoon to create your own list of 100 innovative ideas.
Today’s blog post is to remind you that just like a majestic maple tree needs to ‘branch out’ to grow big and strong, so do women entrepreneurs interested in doing the same for their companies. I hope you grab a glass of lemonade, a yellow pad of paper and a glorious day and enjoy an afternoon of creative and challenging thought.
The Power of Now: Taking the Shot
Business Advice
This morning’s inspiration rose from an unlikely business source; but I have always believed there are inspirational business moments in everyday life. Today’s wisdom was created from an exciting, double over-time lacrosse win in the Carrier Dome last night. It taught me about the power of now.
By nature entrepreneurs need to be planners. It’s pretty hard to run a company by the seat of one’s pants hoping the best, most rewarding and fruitful situations will arise if we don’t plan for success. But we shouldn’t forget that some of our best decisions arise from a sudden opportunity which inspires us in the heat of a moment.
As my son’s lacrosse game went into its second overtime period last night, spectators witnessed the effects of well trained sportsmen on the field fighting for an important title. Fifteen years of grueling practice, play and conditioning eleven months of the year had brought them to the final seconds of the game; but it only took one shot by one player to land the victory – a split minute decision harnessed by the power of the moment won the game.
How often do we as business owners miss taking the shots that present themselves to us because we are so use to planning? The longer we are in business it seems the less risky we are and the more cemented we become in our ways of succeeding. Being well prepared and having a plan is essential to accomplish great feats but so is taking those unexpected shots too. As hockey great Wayne Gretzky’s once said, “You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take.”
Today’s post is to challenge you to think about those business shots you aren’t taking, the risks you keep leaning away from, and the opportunities you are afraid of seizing. The economy is getting stronger day by day so stop being afraid to make the decisions you know you need to make to capture success. We can’t live in trepidation and succeed. We must be willing to up our game at any moment.
I hope today you realize you have done your homework, you have put in a lot of hours, you are well conditioned in the ways of entrepreneurship, now it’s time to take more action, to take more risks to gain bigger rewards. Be inspired. Be fearless. Make sure you take that next shot and live in the power of now.
Competition in Business and Life is Good
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners
As my West Genesee lacrosse son prepares for another epic Central New York sectional championship showdown against lacrosse rival Fayetteville-Manlius tonight in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, I’m inspired by the positive effects of competition in life and in business.
Competition has a way of bringing out the best in most individuals. Battling a competitor typically means putting extra time, effort and money into improving ones skills or action plans to surpass someone else’s efforts. Competition doesn’t have to be a malicious word in sports or in business. It can be a constructive word that catapults someone to higher performance and results.
Today’s post is to inspire you to think of competition as healthy; to embrace the fact it exists in the world and in business. Here are some reasons why women entrepreneurs should embrace competition in business:
* By studying a competitor’s strengths and weaknesses in the marketplace, a business owner can compare themselves to others and focus in on their own powerful attributes. Entrepreneurs can also alter their game plan to prepare themselves for improved healthy competition.
*Sometimes entrepreneurs become lackadaisical over time giving up golden sales opportunities, major connections and forward momentum. By focusing on a successful competitor, business owners can motivate themselves to up-their-game and reclaim their energy and focus to excel.
*Even though entrepreneurs aren’t striving for championship titles or trophies, we are striving for more monetary success or business growth. Comparing our business success periodically to a competitor may be exactly what we need to sell, achieve and grow more.
Today embrace a competitive spirit. Rev yourself up to achieve some higher goals. Set new heights and new horizons, do your due diligence, create new action plans and put in the hard work needed to win the title! It’s a battle sometimes but one well worth fighting.
Business Advice for Women Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners
As Memorial Day approaches business owners have mixed feelings about beginning the summer season when their customers start taking vacations, collaborative partners slow down business projects and their own mental energy yearns to relax while children are home from school or college and family comes to visit.
If you don’t have a business that thrives during the summer sales season, keeping focused, earning sales and conducting routine business can become difficult. Today’s blog post is to share a few summer business strategies that have worked for Women TIES the past 8 years in business. We hope it motivates you to find a balance of work and pleasure this upcoming summer season.
* Adjust your work schedule or work hours. Since the sun comes up early every morning and traveling to work isn’t hampered by bad weather conditions, consider adjusting your entire work schedule to get to work earlier so you can leave earlier at the end of the day to enjoy your personal life. Send an email or letter to your clients listing your summer hours, change your hours of operation on your website and social media sites, and post the change on your store doors. As long as customers know when they can reach you, they will accept your summer hours.
* Adjust your revenue projections for summer sales. If summer is typically a slower sales month, project what you need to bring in each month and how you’ll catch-up with sales the day after Labor Day and in the fourth quarter of the year. Most entrepreneurs see dips in their sales at some point in the year. Understanding when yours might occur and planning appropriately will take the stress out of enjoying a more relaxed summer business pace.
* Take some time to plan while you’re enjoying a less hectic corporate pace. While you are relaxing away from your corporate office this summer, don’t forget to think about some new, exciting business goals when you return. “Down time” can inspire creative business ideas. Focus on new, inventive business concepts while you relax this summer. It might be the best thing you could do for the future of your company.
Memorial Day Weekend which begins the summer season doesn’t have to produce fear in the hearts of entrepreneurs worried about summer business success. Embrace this special time, make the most out of enjoying it while still being a good entrepreneur.
Women TIES 