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Women Taking the Lead

The Women Taking the Lead podcast is a resource for women leaders, allies, and organizations looking to promote more women into senior leadership. Episode formats include specific leadership challenges, "on-air" coaching with women leaders, and interviews with internal talent and organizational development leaders. Women Taking the Lead inspires women to overcome self-doubt and lead with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.
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Now displaying: June, 2017
Jun 29, 2017

This past week turned out to be the week of talking about fears. In last weeks 100% Jodi I talked about all the fears I was confronted with when I was training for and competing in the Spartan Race.

I had forgotten that the title I chose for Alison Cardy's episode was Walking Toward Fear and then the Eleanor Roosevelt quote my assistant chose for the newsletter, originally shared by Nikki Wetherell in her powerful interview in episode 104, had to do with fear.

We’ve got some momentum going so let’s lean into it.

One of my favorite life quotes is:

"Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing." ~ Helen Keller

Hellen Keller is one of my idols. She is right up there with Mother Teresa and Anne Frank. These three women experienced horrific adversity and risk in their life but each one found a way to remain positive, optimistic and soft.

They each felt fear, found acceptance in their life situations and were able to do tremendous good as a result.

According to Cheryl Strayed in her book Wild, “Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me. Insisting on this story was a form of mind control, but for the most part, it worked.”

We have to rewrite our fear stories if we want to free ourselves from a life of limits. If we are too afraid to roll the dice and experience risk then the risk we are actually taking is living an unfulfilled half-life.

Do you wonder why so many people are bored and antsy and looking for diversion? They’ve been playing it safe for too long.

For a lot of you the risk is going to look like being still and just being with yourself for a while. You’re afraid if you do so all the things you don’t like and find lacking in yourself will bubble up and overwhelm you.

All those stories you have about yourself and what you fear might happen if you owned how talented, knowledgeable and experienced you are. If you owned it and started telling and showing people how amazing you are you’re afraid you’ll get called out publicly ridiculed for being a fraud.

And here’s what’s going to sound crazy. That grueling, punishing story you have – that’s your way of playing it safe. You know if you continue to not believe in yourself you don’t have to take any risks.

What stories do you tell yourself that induce fear and keep you playing safe?

In her TED Talk, Shonda Rhimes stated, “A crazy thing happened — the very act of doing the thing that scared me undid the fear. It’s amazing the power of one word. ‘Yes’ changed my life. ‘Yes’ changed me.”

When I first heard about Shonda Rhimes book, Year of Yes, I was turned off by it. I thought she wrote a book about saying yes to everything, which as you know I’m opposed to. Then I found out her book was about saying yes to the things she was afraid of and I was all in.

I love the saying “do something every day that scares you” because I know by exposing ourselves to fear on a regular basis we desensitize ourselves to its paralyzing impact.

In People magazine Dolly Parton shared, “The key to my success has always been that my desire to succeed has always been greater than my fear.”

And that’s just it. You have to focus on the goal, the mission, your Why, however you want to say it. Your desire to be successful has to be greater than your fear. When you focus on the end goal the fear starts to dissipate and you find the ability to get in action.

And if mocking and making light of fear is more helpful to you then listen in to what Elizabeth Gilbert has to say on the subject,

“YOUR FEAR IS BORING.

…Fear is boring, because fear only ever has one thing to say to us, and that thing is: ‘STOP!’…

My fear wants me to stop, because my fear wants me to be safe, and my fear perceives all motion, all inspiration, all work, all activity, all passion whatsoever as potentially life-threatening. My fear wants me to live a smaller life. The smallest imaginable life, ideally. My fear would prefer that I never got out of bed.

Your fear is the same. Exactly the same as mine. I guarantee it.”

It’s perfectly normal to feel fear. And fear is like a beacon to get us to take a look at something that might be lurking under the surface (usually a self-limiting belief that needs to be rewritten), but fear is not a reason to hold back or stop.

For many of you fear is causing you to hold back your gifts and your superpowers from the world. You keep them hidden so no will judge you or find you lacking. But it’s a trick. In order for you to live your best life you must risk everything you fear on the chance that you could change the world.

I have to share the Eleanor Roosevelt quote Nikki Wetherell originally shared in Episode 104.

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along."

You absolutely can handle the next thing that comes along. And until it does, keep doing your thing. That’s how you prepare for the unexpected – you live each day doing your best.

What I also find to be true is that we gain confidence in numbers. If you are afraid of something find some company.

Stop trying to go it alone. If you can get help from me or from a community please reach out to me and we can talk through what would be the best fit for you. You can reach me at jodi@womentakingthelead.com.

I’ll leave you with this gem from and unknown source, "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, professionals built the Titanic."

I hope this was of value to you and here’s to your success!

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FreshbooksThe all new FreshBooks makes ridiculously easy accounting software that’s completely transformed how freelancers and small business owners deal with their day-to-day paperwork. Get a 30 day, unrestricted free trial go to FreshBooks.com/lead and enter WOMEN TAKING THE LEAD in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section.

altMBA: Seth Godin’s altMBA workshop is an intensive leadership and management workshop designed for changemakers who have a fire in the belly. This is for people who are itching to level up and make a bigger impact. Find out more at:  altmba.com/womentakingthelead

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 26, 2017

Alison Cardy is a career coach who runs an international career coaching team specializing in guiding people through career changes. Her team’s work focuses on that crucial step before job searching: helping you figure out what it is you actually want to be doing with your life. She and her team have guided hundreds of people, in every industry imaginable, to innovative and functional career solutions.

Alison is the author of the 5-star rated, bestseller, Career Grease: How to Get Unstuck and Pivot Your Career. Her work has been featured on Monster, Forbes, The Muse, Undercover Recruiter, and The Washington Post.  

Click to tweet: .@cardycareers is sharing her story to inspire you on Women Taking the Lead https://womentakingthelead.com/221 #inspiration

Playing Small Moment

Alison was so used to following the path her parents put in front of her, that she got stuck in a safe routine. Realizing she had to break out of the cycle, she hopped on the Metro to DC for a solo trip. Once she stepped out of the fear, she looked around and saw it for what it was.

The Wake Up Call

Alison naturally focuses internally. When she transitioned into leading team, she realized things were getting a little rocky. Alison realized there was a blindspot getting in her way and had to refocus.

Style of Leadership

Alison takes care of herself, but is always trying to look at ways she can lift up the people in her world. She wants people to know she is not just in it for her, but them too.

What Are You Excited About?

Alison is excited about her book, “Career Grease: How to Get Unstuck and Pivot Your Career

Current Business Challenge

Alison enjoys work and sometimes struggles to turn off her work brain in the middle of the night.

Leadership Practice

Alison actually cares.

Advice For Younger Self

“Keep doing those scary things.”

Inspirational Quote

“Your real life, your whole life is worth getting your heart broken a few thousand times.” ~Martha Beck

Links

Website: http://www.cardycareercoaching.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cardycareercoaching/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cardycareers
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisoncardy

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FreshbooksThe all new FreshBooks makes ridiculously easy accounting software that’s completely transformed how freelancers and small business owners deal with their day-to-day paperwork. Get a 30 day, unrestricted free trial go to FreshBooks.com/lead and enter WOMEN TAKING THE LEAD in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section.

altMBA: Seth Godin's altMBA workshop is an intensive leadership and management workshop designed for changemakers who have a fire in the belly. This is for people who are itching to level up and make a bigger impact. Find out more at: altmba.com/womentakingthelead

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook CommunityChat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher RadioGoogle Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 22, 2017

This past Saturday, June 17th of 2017, I completed my first Spartan Race. I did the Spartan Sprint with several family members and friends and it was just an amazing experience.

And it wasn’t amazing to me because everything went smoothly and as planned. It was amazing because it was really, really hard and I did it. The community, the comraderie and the overall energy of the event was something that really needs to be experienced.

As I was heading into the last week of training and through the day after I completed the race I was reflecting back and thinking about what I learned through the whole experience and how this goal changed me.

Why Would I Sign Up for a Spartan Race?

First I have to thank my sister Kerri who on Thanksgiving Day in 2016 came up to talk to me as she and her family were getting ready to leave. She announced to me that she had read my book Accomplished and had made a commitment.

I was overjoyed because one thing I’ve learned for my own happiness is not to expect family members to be as into my career and business as I am. Any support I get from them is great.

So when my sister made this announcement I was touched and I asked what she committed to. During the day her husband had been talking about his recent experience doing the Spartan Stadium Sprint at Fenway Park so I should not have been surprised when Kerri declared that she was going to do her first Spartan Race in June.

Caught up in the moment I blurted out, “I’ll run it with you!”

Being a woman of integrity, even after the reality of what I had just done had started to settle in over the next few days I got online and registered myself for the race. 

And knowing what I know about big scary goals, and my own need for external accountability, in the next month I told anyone who would listen that I was running my first Spartan Race in June.

The other reality was I was getting out of shape. I ran a marathon in 2006 and managed to continue to work out with my personal trainer, run and do boot camp classes and yoga even after starting my business in 2010.

However, my time and resources were seriously depleted when I was preparing to launch this podcast. In 2015 I was no longer working out with my personal trainer and getting to the boot camp classes and yoga felt like too much of a time commitment.

Pair that with eating on the go and resorting to a cheese and cracker dinner each night because I didn’t have the desire or energy to prepare and clean up a home cooked meal.

Training for this race forced me to take my health and fitness more seriously, to get in the workout even when I felt there wasn’t enough time and to say no to things that are not serving me, my health, my money or my peace of mind.

That’s still a work in progress. That means I need to set another really big goal to support me in this.

How I've Used Spartan Racing to Conquer Fear and More

Making the time, doing the workouts, and feeling intimidated have not been easy. But it has been good.

My life is more balanced and I am healthier and more confident as a result.

In my “reflecting back” process the word “fear” kept coming to me. I learned a lot about fear and had many intimate up-close and personal moments with my own fears since beginning this.

There were fears of sacrificing time in my business to make time for training – the very fear that caused me to be out of shape in the first place.

There were mortal fears of getting injured by falling, pulling a muscle, twisting an ankle, etc.

Then there were fears of looking stupid, out of shape, intimidated, and weak.

And get this one: the fear of feeling afraid. I’m afraid to be afraid.

Oh my God, that one landed like a boulder on my chest and the consequences of this fear are still revealing themselves.

I don’t want to be afraid to feel fear anymore so I captured for you here a few things I have learned about fear while I was training for and competing in this Spartan Race.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FreshbooksThe all new FreshBooks makes ridiculously easy accounting software that’s completely transformed how freelancers and small business owners deal with their day-to-day paperwork. Get a 30 day, unrestricted free trial go to FreshBooks.com/lead and enter WOMEN TAKING THE LEAD in the “How Did You Hear About Us?” section.

altMBA: Seth Godin’s altMBA workshop is an intensive leadership and management workshop designed for changemakers who have a fire in the belly. This is for people who are itching to level up and make a bigger impact. Find out more at: altmba.com/womentakingthelead

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook CommunityChat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher RadioGoogle Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

 

Jun 19, 2017

Joe De Sena - the founder and CEO of Spartan Race, the world's leading obstacle racing company.

Following several successful entrepreneurial adventures and a career on Wall Street, Joe moved his family to Pittsfield, Vermont to operate an organic farm, a bed and breakfast, and a general store for hikers. It was here his passion grew for ultramarathons, adventure races, and endurance events. His racing resume is the stuff of legend – over 50 ultra-events overall and 14 Ironman events in one year alone. It was in Vermont the idea for the Spartan Race was born. 

With more than 200 events in 30+ countries planned for 2017, Spartan Race has more than 1 million global participants offering open heats for all fitness levels and ages, as well as competitive and elite heats. The company has two popular NBC television series, making obstacle racing one of the fastest growing sports—and lifestyles— in the world.

Joe’s message of inspiration and personal transformation, combined with his status as a two-time New York Times Best Selling Author of “Spartan Up” and “Spartan Fit.”, makes him a popular keynote speaker and public figure. Joe currently lives in Tokyo, Japan with his wife Courtney and their four children. 

Click to tweet: .@SpartanRace is sharing his story to inspire you on Women Taking the Lead https://womentakingthelead.com/220 #inspiration

A Woman Who Has Influenced Your Life

In the 1970s, Joe’s mother entered a health food store and met a yogi from India who changed her life. After that trip to the store, she began meditation, adopted a vegan diet and started teaching yoga. These new life changes made Joe’s mother an outcast and resulted in his parents getting a divorce. Joe learned to follow what he believed was right in his heart.

Trends He Sees That Hold Women Back

Both women and men need to believe in themselves more. Believing in yourself can allow you to push through when things seem stacked against you.

What He Has Learned From Women

Joe is confident that women are definitely tougher than men, probably due to biological reasons. In his races, he has witnessed women with a higher tolerance for pain and an unwillingness to quit.

The Necessary Changes

Women need to believe in themselves and stop talking about the things that are limiting them. Joe believes that you need to take control and make things happen. You may not get recognized for your hard work right away, but keep at it and you will.

What Are You Excited About

Joe is currently writing a third book called Spartan X, which he hopes will help people 10X their lives. He is also working on expanding obstacle racing to 20 new countries, and even adding it to the Olympics.

Inspirational Quote

“It could be worse.”

Links

Website: https://spartan.com
Email: joe@spartan.com
Spartan Up Podcast: https://spartan.com/en/media/podcast/episodes
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SpartanRace

Thank You to Our Sponsors

altMBA: Seth Godin’s altMBA workshop is an intensive leadership and management workshop designed for changemakers who have a fire in the belly. This is for people who are itching to level up and make a bigger impact. Find out more at: altmba.com/womentakingthelead

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook CommunityChat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher RadioGoogle Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 15, 2017

I thought the last episode of networking tips shared by the women in this community was going to wrap up the series but as I was chatting with a friend I realized there was still more to share.

Bear with me because I’m going to keep going until I’ve wrung this topic out. Networking is so crucial to our success in our careers and in our business I don’t want to leave any stone unturned.

I’ve discussed the opportunities to do group networking and broke down the key elements of the one-to-one meeting. Now I want to share with you a skill that if you can focus on and constantly improve, will have everything else fall into place more easily.

The skill is listening.

We’re often told we need to listen more or listen better but we’re never told how to do it.

This is a complaint I hear from many people about getting information from the gurus out there. We are told what to do, and that’s great, but we’re not told how to do it so we waste time and energy spinning our wheels and then feeling like we got the wrong information.

And this skill doesn’t just impact your ability to network effectively, it impacts all the interactions you have with others. The better you are at listening the better you will be at sales, negotiating, building a team, handling customer complaints, getting buy-in, being heard and considered, and giving constructive feedback.

I’m going to share with you 3 different levels of listening and the results you can get from each.

The Three Levels of Listening

Subjective Listening

The most basic level of listening is subjective listening. You don’t have to put any effort into listening at this level as it’s the type of listening we grant most people and other people grant us.

As it is subjective the listening is focused on you as the listener. This may sound odd because you’re thinking the person talking should be the subject but the reality is when we are bringing this level of listening we are paying closer attention to our internal dialogue than we are to the other person, though you may not be aware of it.

As the other person is talking you listen through the filter of, “What has this to do with me?”

You are listening for commonalities and information you can respond to or use.

You know you’re brining this level of listening if when you get bored or irritated by what the other person is saying you start to check out. Because you have decided that what they are saying is not important to you, you no longer want to be in the conversation.

There is nothing wrong with this level of listening, per se. It is part of our wiring for survival and making our way in the world to see and hear everything through a filter of, “is this important to me?”

Example of Subjective Listening

The person you are talking to:  “I had the toughest time trying to get myself up a half hour earlier to take my morning walk.”

You respond:  “Yeah, I have a hard time waking up in the morning too.”

Or, you respond: “You know what I do? I go to bed a half hour early at night.”

The first response will likely go over better than the second. Rule of thumb, don’t jump in with advice unless you’ve been asked for it.

Since this is the type of listening we are typically giving and receiving hardly anyone would think there was a problem with the conversation. We are often trying to find commonalities with the people we are first meeting so a response like “me too!” is not uncalled for but the rewards are so much greater if you can hold off on that for a little bit.

Objective Listening

The second level of listening is objective listening. If this is as far as you get you will still be an effective listener and networker.

When you are listening objectively you are completely focused on the person you are talking to. 

Though your mind chatter will still be going on you don’t give it that much attention. Though you will of course notice commonalities if there are any, you are not overly concerned with how the information relates personally to you.

You are listening to understand what the other person is saying. You may reflect back what they’ve said to you to make sure you got it right and you’ll ask follow-up questions to get a better understanding of what they are telling you.

Example of Objective Listening

The person you are talking to:  “I had the toughest time trying to get myself up a half hour earlier to take my morning walk.”

You respond:  “You’re taking on walking first thing in the morning. What brought this on?”

Can you see how energetically this type of listening makes for a richer conversation as opposed to saying “me too” or “this is what you should do”?

Even if you are in fact also getting up earlier to walk in the morning hold off for a few minutes to keep your attention on the other person. They will appreciate it.

This type of listening is very effective, but doesn’t get to the “heart” of the matter.

Intuitive Listening

The highest level of listening you can bring is intuitive listening. And when I say intuitive I don’t mean you got magical messages from the universe.

Intuitive listening is paying attention to what the speaker is saying as well as taking in their tone of voice, facial expressions, body language, word choice, their overall energy level, the feelings they are expressing, etc. 

It’s paying attention to what’s NOT being said.  This is the most powerful form of listening and allows you to really connect with the other person.

You not only want to understand what they are saying you want to understand why what they are saying is important to them. It’s the complete opposite of subjective listening.

The goal is to really know who the other person is as a human being and what their core values are. You want them to walk away from the conversation with you thinking, “They really get me.”

If you can leave someone with that experience you will be memorable and hold more sway in their mind.

Example of Intuitive Listening

Although you will likely not be diving in with a typical intuitive listening response at the beginning of a topic here’s what it might sound like…

The person you are talking to:  I had the toughest time trying to get myself up a half hour earlier to take my morning walk.

You respond:  It sounds like you really want to do this, you really want to live a healthy lifestyle, but you’re not used to it yet and you’re finding it to be challenging and maybe a little frustrating.

Don’t be afraid to dive in and take a stab at it. Even if you get it wrong the other person will explain why you have it wrong without thinking any less of you.

In fact, most people enjoy the opportunity to really explain themselves and make sure the person listening to them really understands where they are coming from. As long as you get to that point it doesn’t matter that you were off the mark at first.

And let me tell you if you can provide someone with the experience of being truly heard and feeling like you get them, you have sped up the relationship building process. You are well on your way to building trust, respect, and if you want, friendship.

I can’t underscore enough how important it is for you to develop your ability to listen with your entire being. It will radically change your life. You will show up differently to those who know you and they will start interacting with you more positively and appreciatively.

Do me a favor, if you know anyone who would love to get those benefits please share this episode with them. The more people walking the earth with intuitive listening skills the better the planet will be.

I hope this was helpful to you and here’s to your success!

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FanchestSports gift boxes loaded with products from your guy’s favorite team, in the perfect packaging delivered right to their door. Licensed apparel and fun surprises any sports fan will love. Free shipping and free returns. Enter promo code Jodi to get $10 off! www.fanchest.com

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 12, 2017

Maggie Patterson is a communications strategist and Chief Marketing Officer at Scoop Industries. With 15+ years’ experience (11 of which as a self-employed consultant), Maggie has spent her entire career working in client-facing roles in marketing and as a copywriter. Today, she works with service-based business owners to help them implement smart strategies for business growth. She’s the co-host of the Service Business Success podcast, a Master Level Content Marketer as awarded by Copyblogger and her work has been widely published by leading websites including Virgin.com, Fastcompany.com and more.

Click to tweet: .@magspatterson is sharing her story to inspire you on Women Taking the Lead https://womentakingthelead.com/219 #inspiration

Playing Small Moment

Maggie was the epitome of playing small, until a trip of lifetime with her husband changed everything. While she was unplugged, she realized life was too short to do work that didn’t make her happy. When Maggie got home, she transitioned her clients and within 6-7 months, she was working for micro small companies and much happier.

The Wake Up Call

Maggie was possessive of her business and felt that she had to do all of the tasks herself. Maggie’s coach pointed out that she was making a decent income and it was time to outsource. After hiring her first virtual assistant, Maggie noticed an astounding difference in her revenue. Now, she has full-time employees!

Style of Leadership

Maggie views herself as a renegade leader, as she doesn’t do rules very well. Understanding that she can still have her vision/goals, but as a leader part of her role is giving her team permission to improve on her ways. Not apologizing for being “too bossy” or “too much” To be the renegade and own that has been amazing for her.

What Are You Excited About?

For the last year, Maggie and her business partner have been mentoring women who are stuck and help them move through it by focusing on whats important in the business. Ultimately, they focus on going back to basics.

Current Business Challenge

Maggie battles with her inner critic and an imposter complex, but she is always evolving and figuring it out. “That inner critic? Man, she is mean!” Maggie doesn’t let it get her down, but it’s always present during the important and scary things that are necessary for success.

Leadership Practice

Maggie is a prolific planner and often works in 12 week sprints.

Advice For Younger Self

“Oh you got this girl. Go do it!” So many times we hold ourselves back, so she would give younger Maggie the nudge needed to go do it.

Inspirational Quote

“I run this day. This day does not run me, because otherwise, chaos will ensue.”

Links

Website: http://www.scoopindustries.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/scoopindustries
Twitter: @magspatterson

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FanchestSports gift boxes loaded with products from your guy’s favorite team, in the perfect packaging delivered right to their door. Licensed apparel and fun surprises any sports fan will love. Free shipping and free returns. Enter promo code Jodi to get $10 off! www.fanchest.com

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 8, 2017

After doing the 8 Networking Myths that Prevent New Opportunities and The Secrets to Make Networking Easy and while I was beginning  Where the Real Magic of Networking Happens I received a message from Shelli Warren of Sheconnex via an awesome app called Voxer. If you are not using Voxer you need to check it out.

I went into the private Facebook group for the Women Taking the Lead community and asked if they had any networking tips to share with you.

It’s no surprise we’ve got some savvy networkers in our community and I’ve got their audio clips strung together for you here.

If you are not yet in the Women Taking the Lead private Facebook group yet get in there. You can hang out and see what everyone else is chatting about or you can dive right in, share posts and resources you have found helpful or ask questions and leverage the talent and experience of all the members of the community.

You can find it in Facebook by typing Women Taking The Lead Private Group in the search bar or you can click on the link in the show notes at womentakingthelead.com/networkingtips.

Here a few tips from the community.

Carol Cox of Speaking Your Brand

Cloris Kyle of ClorisKylie.com

Anna Dixon of Creative IQ

Jan Molino of Aspire Ascend

Karen Maffeo Creamer of KWrites.com

Kathrine Farris of MarkeTecs.com

Nicole Boucher of NBoucher.com

Nikki Groom of NikkiGroom.com

Would you add anything to what these amazing ladies mentioned here? Let me know by emailing me at Jodi@womentakingthelead.com or leaving a comment where ever you found this episode.

Also, do me a favor. If you are not subscribed to this podcast and you find it randomly on social media or some other platform hit the subscribe button below on your favorite platform:  iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, or iHeart Radio. When you are subscribed the episodes come right to you, you don’t have to go searching for them.

I hope this was helpful to you and here’s to your success!

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FanchestSports gift boxes loaded with products from your guy’s favorite team, in the perfect packaging delivered right to their door. Licensed apparel and fun surprises any sports fan will love. Free shipping and free returns. Enter promo code Jodi to get $10 off! www.fanchest.com

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 5, 2017

Diane Gardner is a Certified Tax Coach and best-selling author whose proactive planning approach helps clients dodge the tax bullet. Her tax coaching sessions have resulted in a combined savings of over $1.22 million to-date — hard-earned profits small business owners would have given to the government by overpaying taxes. Diane is the co-author of the best-selling books, Stand Apart and Why Didn’t My CPA Tell Me That?  She has also authored six other books including her newest, Stop Overpaying Your Taxes! 11 Ways Entrepreneurs Overpay and How to Stop it Now! 

 

Click to tweet: .@gardner_diane is sharing her story to inspire you on Women Taking the Lead https://womentakingthelead.com/218 #inspiration

Playing Small Moment

As an accountant, Diane had a habit of letting her staff and clients walk all over her. It wasn’t until Diane was able to stand up for herself and create processes and systems, that her business started taking off and excelling.

The Wake Up Call

Diane was stuck in a verbally abusive marriage for 17 years. When Diane was at a conference with a mindset coach, she realized that her experience in her marriage had her believing the lie that she had nothing important to say. That mindset helped Diane develop her voice and see that she had an important message to share.

Style of Leadership

Diane doesn’t associate herself with titles; she is just part of her team. Those titles can be intimidating to some and Diane wants to be relatable to the members on her team.

What Are You Excited About?

Diane’s goal for 2017 is to bump her current $1.22 million in tax savings to $2 million by the end of the year.

Current Business Challenge

Diane struggles with staffing to get those really good, superstar people to join her team. She is working on honing her interviewing skills, as well.

Leadership Practice

Diane is a firm believer in ditching the titles.

Advice For Younger Self

Diane would tell herself to develop a niche early on and not to wait until she has been in business for too long.

Inspirational Quote

“Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.”

Links

http://www.taxcoach4you.com/
https://twitter.com/gardner_diane
https://www.facebook.com/taxcoach4you

Thank You to Our Sponsors

FanchestSports gift boxes loaded with products from your guy’s favorite team, in the perfect packaging delivered right to their door. Licensed apparel and fun surprises any sports fan will love. Free shipping and free returns. Enter promo code Jodi to get $10 off! www.fanchest.com

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

Jun 1, 2017

If you’ve been following along with the last couple 100% Jodi episodes you’ve heard the 8 common myths out there about networking and you’ve gotten an idea of all the different types of events and gatherings you can attend for group networking.

Ultimately, all of this group activity is leading to where networking has its power: the one-to-one meeting.

These can be coffee dates, lunches, happy hours, video conference calls, etc.

This is when you spend focused time with an individual to deepen the relationship.

Nothing can replace an in-person meeting but when time or distance are inhibitors it’s time to get hip with the latest technology.

Phone calls serve their purpose but they are so last century when it comes to the get-to-know-you meeting.

Now that video calls are readily available to anyone with a device and wifi, phone calls give off what they are: a conversation with a disembodied voice. It’s fine as a last resort but if you want to make a strong connection get comfortable with the tools that are out there. I regularly use Skype, Zoom and Google Hangouts. I have also used Facetime on occasion.

Before the One-to-One Meeting

Confirm the meeting a day or two in advance. It happens. Sometimes the meeting doesn’t make it to the other person’s calendar or they haven’t looked at their calendar in days.

Also, sometimes there is glitch when you or they put the meeting on the calendar and the time or date is off. By reaching out to confirm the meeting you can discover ahead of time if there is a need to reschedule.

I don’t know about you but, even if I’m having a video call from my office, I’ve structured my activity around the call. To discover 10 minutes into the call that it’s not going to happen can be very frustrating because in actuality I’ve lost about 30 minutes of my time. The time gets eaten up because we need to reschedule the meeting. Also, the mental transition out of projects before the time of the meeting and the transition back in after discovering the call is not going to happen. This is even worse if you travel to a coffee shop or restaurant only to find out it was a waste of time.

If you are having an in-person meeting be sure to exchange cell phone numbers in advance in case anything comes up last minute. Text messages tend to be more reliable than email especially if you are in an area that does not have good cellular service.

Review their website or LinkedIn profile to get an idea of this person and the work they are doing. This is especially helpful if you are having an in-person meeting with someone you have not met in person before. You can look up their profile picture so you’ll be able to spot them in the crowd. Side note, make sure your profile pictures look like you and presents you as you want to be seen. Update it if necessary.

During the One-to-One Meeting

The first time you are meeting with another professional or business owner, focus on getting to know them well as a human being and finding out how you can contribute to them.

Don’t focus on the work they are doing right away. Ask them about their journey, what they are currently excited about, and their plans for the future. When they look back on all they’ve done what makes them feel proud? What has been their biggest challenge?

There are so many questions you can ask to get the ball rolling and once it is rolling stay curious about them and the questions will come to you naturally.

If at the end of the meeting you feel strongly that this is a person you would want to introduce to others in your network, schedule another meeting to find out more about how the two of you can help each other.

In subsequent meetings get into the nitty gritty of what opportunities they are looking for and guide them to teach you how to find those opportunities for them.

Even if you are a newbie entrepreneur or you are early in your career, there is always a way that you can bring value. You have to believe that it is true and it is just a matter of discovering what it is.

If they are looking for more customers get them to talk in specifics about who their customers are and how you can identify them.

Do not settle for descriptions like anyone with a car, anyone with a spine, anyone filing taxes or everyone could be my customer. It’s too generic and it doesn’t give you a clue of where to start.

I’ll use myself as an example. I occasionally hear, “everyone needs a coach so anyone could be my client.”

Ugh! It’s not true!

Anyone open to coaching can benefit from having a coach but few people need a coach.

Even as a BNI member, I can confidently say there are people in my chapter who are going above and beyond to identify and chat with potential clients for me; it is still MY JOB to make it as easy as possible for them to make that connection. However, I am trained to do this.

Not everyone you meet with will be skilled at helping you find them new opportunities. You may need to guide them to give you the information that will help you help them.

Here are some prompts you can use and if you are networking for your career take the focus off clients and focus on opportunities and connections the other person is looking for:

Tell me about your favorite client. What were they going through before they found you. What problem did you solve for them and how did that change their life?

What do your clients say about you?

How do your clients or customers find you?

What professions would typically refer clients/customers to you? Or, who else could provide opportunities for you or be good connections for you? It doesn’t have to be a specific person. Think about titles, companies, professions and industries.

What would I say to that person that would make them want to meet you?

If you were at a cocktail party how would you know you were talking to someone who could potentially be your client? What kind of things to they say or do that lets you know?

What questions do you ask them?

What do you say to them?

Now, I’m not you, what would I say to them that would make them want to talk to you?

What’s the best way to make that connection?

Now, when you are empowered with the answers to these questions you will have a much easier time finding new opportunities for others.

It’s one thing to say you want to help someone else. When you can deliver on that commitment it goes miles to creating a strong business relationship that will provide opportunities for you as well.

Speaking of which…

Be Ready to Talk About What YOU Need

Be confident about yourself and clear about what you are looking for. This is where a great conversation can come to a disappointing end. After you’ve been all gung-ho about helping them, they are naturally going to want to find out how they can reciprocate. If you don’t give them anything they are going to be left feeling pretty crappy.

I’ve done this to so many people. It sucks the magic right out of what had been a great conversation. At the end, it’s still a good meeting because I’ve discovered how I can help them but I’ve also left them feeling a little frustrated because I’m able to more easily go to bat for them while they will have to struggle to find something for me.

I know for many of you you’ve been taught not to boldly ask for what you want but in business, rather than coming off as unselfish and giving, you will be perceived as clueless and possibly incompetent.

Imagine you desperately want to help another person be successful and they say, “I don’t really know. Let me give it some thought and I’ll get back to you.”

You have to empower other people with information to allow them to help you.

Know ahead of time what you are looking for. All the prompts I gave you a few minutes ago to ask the other person – answer those questions yourself.

Additionally, be ready to talk about the opportunities you are looking for: speaking engagements, a new job, board positions, etc.

Don’t forget to ask for connections to other professionals who wouldn’t necessarily be your client but come into contact with your ideal clients or connections on a regular basis.

Who else can help you grow in your career or business? Have some names ready or if you’re not able to be that specific, know the titles and industries you are interested in meeting.

At this point if they haven’t offered it up yet, ask the other person, “Are there other people in your network that I should meet?” This is how you can meet other professionals via a warm introduction without having to constantly be going to the social networking events, if those events don’t interest you.

Lastly, remember that when someone passes you a referral or presents you with an opportunity they are putting their reputation on the line for you and that’s a very vulnerable thing. That’s why it may take a while before someone is ready to go to bat for you but trust if you continue to nurture the relationship and provide opportunities for the other person, it will come back to you.

After the One-to-One Meeting

Send an email thanking them and reconfirm your tasks from the meeting and give an update if you have one.

Put reminders on your calendar to check back in with them or send them items of interest. I share articles, social media posts and upcoming events that they may be interested in, on a personal or profession level. Anything that let’s them know you had listened to them and you are thinking of them.

If you are connected on social media comment and share their posts. Keep yourself top of mind by being a supporter and advocate for their cause.

Coming back to the analogy of planting seeds that I share in the last 100% Jodi episode, you have to think of this as cultivating a vegetable garden. You cannot plant seeds and expect that you’ll yield a plentiful harvest. You have to feed and water the garden, and pull the weeds when necessary.

It takes some time and effort but it’s so satisfying and delicious to have fresh vegetables that have come straight from your own garden.

Would you add anything to what I’ve mentioned here? Let me know by emailing me at Jodi@womentakingthelead.com or leaving a comment where ever you found this episode.

And again, subscribe to this podcast at womentakingthelead.com

Before we go I wanted to give another shout out to Milly Welsh of Zebralove Web Solutions, who has been faithfully sponsoring this podcast since last Fall. She has been a priceless resource to me and has helped protect my website from hackers and does updates as needed.

If you need a website or are sick of trying to figure out the updates on your own contact her at Milly@zebralovewebsolutions.com.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

Zebralove Web SolutionsYour website tells a story about your business! At Zebralove Web Solutions, Milly and her team are going to make sure your website tells the story you want your customers to hear. Connect with Milly at zebralovewebsolutions.com to create the impression you want to make!

Resources

Private Facebook Community: Chat, share and collaborate with other women in the community!

Accomplished: How to Go from Dreaming to DoingA simple, step by step system that gives you the foundation and structure to take your goals and make them happen.

The Accomplished Community: A community of entrepreneurial Type A women uniting to achieve their biggest goals with confidence, integrity and a sense of humor.

Subscribe to Women Taking the Lead

If you enjoyed this episode subscribe in iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music or iHeart Radio and never miss out on inspiration and community!

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