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Small Business Educational Resouces for Portlanders

February 7, 2012

Not a day goes by where I don’t engage with an entrepreneur in various stages of development who is hungry for the various resources that will help take their business to the next level. Sometimes we are a great fit as coach and coachee, and sometimes they need some extra oompha/structure/guidance to get them where they want to be tomorrow. Here is a fabulous list from Neighborhood Notes of the various educational opportunities that are available in Portland for entrepreneurs:

SEMpdx Although there are plenty of laggards out there, search engine marketing(SEM) is hardly some obscure industry; in reality, it’s easily the largest segment of online advertising. Google raked in $36.5 billion in advertising revenues last year, a 29 percent growth over the previous year, and SEMpdx is your local industry resource with a mission “to inform and educate area businesses on the benefits of SEM to bottom line revenue.” Search Engine Marketing Professionals of Portland offers monthly events where professional talent comes together to learn and share ideas. Most monthly events are open to anyone who wants to attend and prices range from $20-55, with discounts for members and registering early, plus SEMpdx’s big search marketing and social media conference, the annual SearchFest now in its sixth year, is coming up on Feb. 24.

CAKE

Consulting And Knowledge Exchange has a simple goal: “We believe everyone should follow their dreams and if that dream is to own a business, we want to help.” A fresh (now in its sixth week) organization, CAKE helps by organizing “a weekly series of Portland-based, donation-driven, down-and-dirty small business workshops and parties” where guest speakers serve up recipes on brainstorming, branding, market research and more in a casual environment—cake is actually served at every “party.” Feel free to donate to the cause, ask tough questions you want answered, or even workshop your own project while picking up “scrappy business hacks for each topic” on Wednesdays from 6-8:30 p.m.

I Heart Art: Portland

A collaborative project between PNCA, the Museum of Contemporary Craft, and Etsy and its Portland team, I Heart Art PDX provides “advocacy, education and support for Portland’s vibrant community of makers.” Outreach and education programs hope to stimulate growth through professional development workshops (developing business skills) while encouraging collaboration and community with salon discussions (informative conversations on varied topics) and mixer match speed-networking (“the intersection of speed dating and sales networking” where artists practice pitching while networking). Currently confirming its 2012 lineup of events, I Heart Art PDX will announce a new schedule of events, which are often free or cost as little at $10, later this month.

Voice for Oregon Innovation & Sustainability (VOIS)

An organization with a slight political learning, VOIS “envisions a prosperous economy driven by innovation, environmental stewardship and social justice.” Believing “there is no better vehicle for social change than a healthy business,” VOIS is a vocal advocate of local business and sustainability and brings together like minds at monthly happy hour networking events while its calendar (provided by Sustainable Business Oregon) promotes many green gatherings and educational opportunities, often free or with recommended donation, in Portland and the surrounding areas.

Mercy Corps Northwest

Offering a wide swath of classes and events, Mercy Corps teaches everything from standard six-week, business foundation courses to one-to-three hour business seminars and counseling sessions, where experts to teach topics like technology, marketing, finance, law, and business strategy. Six-week courses fill up fast and cost $150, while seminars allow you the flexibility of paying per course ($20) or saving with multi-seminar packages ($60 for four seminars or $100 for an unlimited annual pass).

Oregon Entrepreneurs Network (OEN)

OEN is the largest entrepreneur assistance organization in the state of Oregon offering “access to valuable information and responsive assistance from experienced mentors.” With a calendar of networking events, seminars and webinars, and workshops, OEN offers opportunities like CEO roundtables or casual PubTalks to a series of startup workshops, online resources, and opportunities to get in front of angel and investment networks. With considerable discounts for members, PubTalks cost $15 and $30 while workshops or seminars are $32 and $70, for members and non-members respectively.

Free Consultation Services and Multi-Week Courses

Portland offers many interesting and affordable education opportunities for small business owners.

Government-run or supported organizations offer plenty of free resources and affordable education opportunities.

Portland Development Commission (PDC)

Created by Portland voters in 1958, PDC strives to make Portland a livable city, providing small business support in the form online resources, like handbooks and checklists, as well as information on finance, improvement, and development programs. Related to PDC is the Bureau of Development Services Small Business Assistance Team that can help you determine “a property’s legal use and what would be required to use it or remodel it for your business.” And another supportive arm of the city is the Small Business Advisory Council, an advocate for the “formation, growth and prosperity” of small businesses, plus publishes the Small Business Bill of Rights.

Small Business Administration (SBA) and Small Business Development Center (SBDC)

The national SBA has a Portland office offering “information on small business loans, grants, bonds and other financial assistance” as well as a calendar of workshops and events and other resources. Some single-day seminars are free while others cost $30-55 depending on duration while three- and four-week course in QuickBooks cost $95 and $120 respectively. Connected to this is the Oregon SBDC, a partnership between the national government and colleges throughout Oregon, that offers free, confidential consulting services, “including analyzing cash flow, marketing, international trade, valuing a business, and intellectual property concerns,” plus low-cost training opportunities (from free, single day events to multi-sessions courses that cost $195 or more) at community colleges in the Portland metro area via webinars. Portland Community College’s CLIMB (Continuous Learning for Individuals, Management and Business) SBDC is part of this network featuring an Entrepreneur Development Series in 10 intensive workshops.

SCORE

Resource partners with the U.S. SBA, Portland’s SCORE chapter—there’s also a Vancouver, Wash., location—is an independent nonprofit offering free counseling and resources for business professionals, plus a wide variety of half- and full-day workshops for affordable prices, which range from $55-85.

Leave a Comment » | Business Planning | Tagged: business coach, I heart Portland, Mercy Corps Northwest, Portland, Portland business coach, Portland Oregon, SCORE, SEM, small business education resources | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

How to Practice Centered Leadership

January 19, 2012

Centered Leadership is a term coined in McKinsey & Company’s Global Survey which has been interviewing female leaders around the world to identify traits that characterize them collectively.

There are 5 key capabilities of Centered Leadership when used together—are important predictors of these executives’ satisfaction with their leadership performance and their life overall:

Meaning:

Finding your strengths and putting them to work in the service of a purpose that inspires you

Positive Framing:

Adopting a more constructive way to view your world and convert even difficult situations into opportunities

Connecting:

Building a stronger sense of community and belonging

Engaging:

Pursuing opportunities disguised by risk

Energizing:

Practicing ways to sustain your energy on a long leadership journey

Surveying Your Centered Leadership

Rate each statement accordingly: 1=Strongly Disagree, 2=Disagree, 3=Not sure/neutral, 4=Agree, 5=Strongly Agree

___ 1. I actively build communities of people who give and get support from each other.

___ 2. I proactively ask senior people for opportunities that will help me develop.

___ 3. I actively find ways to help others and ways in which they can help me.

___ 4. I make sure I calm & prepare myself before going into situations where I may get upset or angry.

___ 5. My passion for what I do inspires others.

___ 6. I take time to reflect on what really matters most to me.

___ 7. I engage in activities that draw on my natural strengths.

___ 8. Every day, I consciously do things to keep myself energized.

___ 9. I have a noticeable energizing effect on others.

___ 10. I recognize and step beyond my fears so they don’t keep me from seizing good opportunities.

___ 11. When I experience a mistake or failure, I quickly come up with a plan to recover.

Leave a Comment » | Leadership/Management | Tagged: Centered Leadership executives, connecting, energizing, engaging, McKinsey, meaning | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

Bringin’ It In 2012

December 30, 2011

My hunch is that you all are going to absolutely ‘kill it’ in 2012. Sure this is merely one woman’s intuition, however a) I have a pretty strong sense of where many of you are at and b) I am darn talented in sensing these types of things accurately. Now, 2011 has been an ugly/hard/tragic/challenging ______ (you fill in your blank) year for the many of us in some way or another. Can I get an amen? And in reaction to this adversity, we have all learned that we must adapt, whether we like it or not, to the new economy or be left far, far behind the lead pack. So, much has been re-thought and revised and now, now my friends is time to put the pressure on the gas and go for it 2012.

If I am ahead of any of you with this action plan, here’s a simple formula:

Gain clarity on YOUR 2012 Plan

+ Develop the necessary confidence to

+ Execute Your Plan

_________________________________

= You killing it in 2012 (sweet!!!)

2011 has been a year filled with abundant blessings for myself both personally and professionally. My husband and daughter and I welcomed a second daughter into our family and I am enjoying the opportunity to work with the type of incredibly bright and inspiring clients I had aways hoped to attract. Now with blessings comes responsibilities and I have had and continue to be challenged by the complexity of my life at home, putting natural limits on how much I can extend myself to my clients and business development. This has and will be a central theme in my life and one that I know there is no one solution. I share this with you because I want you to know that I share in your struggles to ‘have it all’ and at the same time refuse to back down on my career ambitions while also totally loving being a mother to our girls. It’s not easy, but it is possible, eventually.

So tell, me what will YOU be toasting to on December 31, 2012?

I am hoping that I will be beyond the development stage of an internet television show as well as continuing to develop clients in Oregon and California.

What are you bringing to 2012?

Leave a Comment » | Creating Your Vision, My Personal Initiatives | Tagged: 2012 planning, California, clarity, confidence, Oregon, television | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

Why Women Do Not Ask & How To Negotiate Better

November 18, 2011

I had the privilege of hearing Melanie Billings-Yun, author of ‘Beyond DealMaking’ speak this week on the subject of why women don’t ask. Melanie has a Ph.D. from Harvard University in diplomatic history, an MSc from the London School of Economics, and a B.S. with high honors from Portland State University. She is the author of Decision Against War(Columbia University Press, 1988), as well as numerous articles on negotiation, mediation and dispute resolution. She regularly speaks to professional associations and business conferences around the world about negotiation and relationship management. You can learn more about her here:

Beyond Deal Making

Melanie believes that women don’t ask for 5 common reasons:

1. Fear of conflict

2. Communication differences

3. Concern about impact on relationships

4. Fewer mentors, networks

5. Social aversion to ‘aggressive women’
In order to help her female clients overcome these obstacles so that we ask more often, thus engaging in profitable relationship building, she suggests:

1) Focusing on the interests of all parties

2) Seek solutions not victory

3) Decide issues on fairness

4) Use positive language instead of, ‘why not’ say, ‘how can we make this work?”

5) Consider negotiation as a pull and not a push (like sales)

6) Combine assertiveness with friendliness (smile when you ask for things)

7) Demand valid justifications

8) Have a reason for everything you ask for

9) Ask the negotiating party what they are looking for

10) Consider the three points of fairness: equity, 2 party dialogue and did you keep the spirit of the argument?

What do you think? Does this resonate with your experience in negotiating?

Leave a Comment » | Leadership/Management | Tagged: agressive women, assertiveness, communication, conflict, equity, Melanie Billings-Yun, negotiation | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

5 Simple Steps to END Child Sexual Abuse NOW

November 13, 2011

This week, many of us witnessed in horror the alleged wide-scale failure in leadership that occurred in the Penn State community to protect children from a sexual predator. There are endless questions to be answered as to how this situation was able to occur; but in general most people seem to want to know what they can do to be a part of the healing process for the victims. However, here are some statistics we all need to know:

Child sexual abuse is now an epidemic. 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused before their 18th birthday. The median age for reported sexual abuse is 9 years old. If your child is molested, there’s a 90-95% chance it was done by someone you know, not by a stranger.

Rather than continuing to let this situation continue to fester within me, I decided to take action and start a conversation with all of you regarding what we can do to help end the cycle of child sexual abuse in our communities today. This is an incredibly painful and disturbing subject matter to think about because of the precious innocence of the victims. However, if we continue to let that discomfort keep us from doing something about it, then the perpetrator will continue to prevail and the abuse will never stop.

I welcome your input, recommendations and insight. Join me, won’t you?

Here are 5 simple steps YOU can take today to END child sexual abuse today:

1) Understand How To Spot & Confront a Possible Child Predator

Tips for identifying and confronting a possible predator

2) Buy & Wear a Blue Silicon Bracelet that Symbolizes Child Abuse Awareness

Be prepared to talk about child abuse to those who ask you about the bracelet. This is a highly stigmatized and shame-ridden subject. The more we don’t talk about it, the more children who will continue to go unprotected. Be their VOICE.

3) Ask about the Child Abuse Reporting Policy & Procedures at Your Workplace/Organizations

If there is not such a policy in place, take a role in putting one into effect. If there is one already, make sure that the process has been clearly communicated to all of your colleagues by your administrators. Also, look into having an expert on child abuse speak, such as a policeman/woman or a social worker or counselor, at your workplace.

4) Talk to Your Children & Family about Child (Sexual) Abuse

This process begins by doing your own research on the subject and determining what is most appropriate to share with your children based on their age and/or developmental phase. What is most important is that you are creating a safe and trusting environment with your children, or the children in your life, so that they have the space and time and security to talk with you about anything that is bothering them or making them feel unsafe.

5) Follow These Steps When Considering a Program for Your Child: http://www.stopitnow.org/9questions

What else? What are you going to commit to start doing? You can begin by sharing this blog with your community. Thank you.

Leave a Comment » | My Personal Initiatives | Permalink
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Your Fall-spiration Booster Shot

November 9, 2011

With the days getting shorter, the temperatures dropping and the overall state of the state getting well—dour; I know ALL of us are in need of some ‘back to basics’ rejuvenation when it comes to our approach to our businesses, our self-care and our life in general. Taking a few minutes to consider your values and your talents should help you to get back to doing what you do best AND in planning mode for your NEXT BIG THING. Now, get to work:

1) What Do You Value Today?

To get started with this whole big ‘ol project of self/life improvement/upgrade, we have to begin at the beginning, at the very crux of where our priorities are set—our value system. Just like so many themes that we are discussing, our value system is not a formal or stagnant entity that remains consistent throughout our life. It shifts as our life does through maturity, relationships, milestones, children, etc. So, what matters most to us today is what your value system is RIGHT NOW. So let’s be terribly dramatic, and pretend that today was your last day here on earth, how would you want to design your day? What experiences would you want to have? What would you want of this day? What would you want to contribute? What would be significant enough for you to have accomplished to state that your last day had met your expectations? After you have pondered these abstract questions, try to extract the themes or essences of your answers. We want to know what values show up in an exercise like this.

2) What Are Your Talents Today?

Talents are skills and abilities that you do better than most You must understand what your ‘special sauce’ is in order to make a bold impression with others. Your talents are what open doors for you and what keeps the spotlight on you when others have lost the attention of the crowd. If you are trying to work on ways that you can expand a greater experience at work, then consider what your particular talents are there; and if you are focused on your life outside of work, then consider what just shows up there. However, what is often special and unique about you outside of work, could often help serve you at work, but perhaps in a more refined and ‘work appropriate’ manner. It’s so much more fun to be transparent and your unique self everywhere you go, versus stifling your essence.

Since no one exercise works for everyone, I like to offer a smattering of options to my clients and let them play with them so that they can find the one that brings out their richest self:

What makes you different from everybody else?

What are your remarkable differences?

If you were on a blind date (with someone whom you REALLY liked), what do you tell your suitor about yourself to is most appealing?

If you were applying to ‘America’s Got Talent’, what skill would you most want to showcase? Furthermore, describe your performance.

What do people most appreciate about you?

If you were being roasted, what would be said about you?

Create the most unique biography of yourself for a very juicy contest that you REALLY want to win!

If you were a product, what would you put on your label to sell yourself?

Come up with a fun way to collect feedback from friends/ family/colleagues on what THEY think your particular talents are (contest, simple email, Face book post)

What do people consistently tell you they love about you?

What makes you memorable?

Simply said, your talents are your single most important differentiator—identify them, polish them and flaunt ‘em baby!!!

Okay, enough from me for now. Now I want to know from YOU, what you uncovered about yourself in this exercise and how you are going to use this information in your life today to do things differently. No more same ‘ol, same ‘ol….thing FRESH and BOLD. Now, do share your brilliance, won’t you?

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My E-Book Outline (very rough draft)

September 29, 2011

Becoming Your Own Leading Lady: Reflections on Personal Leadership

By Katie C. Kelley

This book is for the woman who yearns to be her own leading lady. Some leading ladies are already living life on their own terms and are inspired by a belief that only they can truly leave behind their own unique legacy. This type of lady can feel responsible to pay forward all of the blessings that have been bestowed upon her through her relationships and experiences and believe that there is no one else that embodies her particular vision. This responsibility, while awesome in its midst can also become very overwhelming over time, as women devote so much of their energies as caretakers and tactically focused in their day-to-day life. There are also some leading ladies who have yet to pinpoint their vision and intentions for their life, and will appreciate the chance to use this book as a way to get in touch with these foundational steps in building toward their inspired life.

The genesis of this book evolved through my experience working as a leadership coach with women in business. I created the assessment based on themes that I continually noted that were both serving to move these women along in their journey as well as stagnate and dilute their potential. I will add that selfishly, I also have been personally motivated to finally put this book into motion for my own well being. I juggle the hats of a highly motivated professional with big dreams, mother to two very young daughters, and wife to name a few and am no further along in the process of striking the proverbial balance than anyone else. My dear friend and business partner, Cindy explains to me that rather than ever finding a balance in it all, to think of life as walking along a tightrope and working to make sure I don’t lean over too far too one side so that I fall into just one part of my life.

This book is the first in a series of three that will span my business modules: Personal Leadership, Interpersonal Effectiveness and Business Leadership. This first ‘Personal Leadership’ book will cover the core foundation from which our personal initiatives and global outlook are established. Look upon it as a journey to revisit parts of yourself that you may be taking for granted or perhaps parts of you that are so ingrained that you forgot that are actually malleable and can be ‘tuned’ up. Our personal foundation encompasses the dynamics of our earliest relationships, our cultural practices and the orientation we have towards the world and ourselves. The beautiful aspect of life is that we never stop growing and that there will always be an opportunity to begin again, to be re-birthed as well as a chance to re-affirm who we are to ourselves and want we want from this life and what we want to put forth into it.

Let’s begin…

Part One: Take Your Own “Leading Lady Personal Leadership Assessment”

Part Two: The Four Cornerstones of Your Personal Foundation

1) ENDURING VISION + DRIVE + INSPIRATION=DREAMS IN MOTION

Narrative: We will begin by exploring the bedrock from which your value system and your relationships were born. We will take an inventory to determine if what matter to you the most is showing up in your life. We will work towards designing a plan so that your intentions are being actively sought after, rather than merely yearned for. We’ll explore the power of setting one’s aspirations far beyond reach, all the while keeping your eyes on your prize, your ultimate intention. If you are not feeling so inspired, this should get your fires burning!

Section One Takeaway:

Identity of your values and talents and where they are showing up in your life
An opportunity to ponder your most desired life, at home and work
An understanding of the power of setting stretch goals
A chance to re-engage with your divine inspiration

2) SELF-WORTH + ROLE DISOBEDIENCE + POSITIVITY=SUCCESS ROCKET FUEL

Narrative: We will journey into your single most important relationship, that with yourself. The regard with which you view yourself has the greatest impact on the way that you then look out onto the world and others and in turn their reaction to us. A review of the data on positivity will highlight the value of self-fulfilling prophesies and clarify the significance of maintaining a steadfast sunny disposition as a success tactic. We’ll exercise the power of self-expression in an effort to explore the ways that you might be limiting yourself. Finally, we will journey from our most internal core to the external self to investigate how our image impacts our outside world and whether that is aligned with our intentions.

Section Two Takeaways:

Insights around how your self perception impacts the way you view the world
Awareness around your resilience and how you navigate challenges
A gage on your positivity and how that effects your initiative taking
Appreciation of the value of expressing yourself
Clarity around how rules and roles are influencing your modus operandi
Consideration of the impact that your presentation has on the world

3) FLEXIBILITY + FOCUS + STRENGTH BASED LIVING= 1 ON TASK & BLISSED OUT CHICK

Narrative: This third section delves into the evolution of how our values and self-image impact our lifestyle and quality of self-care. This is a critical piece for leading ladies who wear many hats and need to ‘show up’ in various capacities throughout the day, often giving much more than receiving. Timing is everything so we will investigate how cued in you are to optimize windows of opportunity versus saying ‘yes’ to every invitation. These particular reflections can never be overstated for leading ladies, as preservation is everything. Our ultimate intention is sustainability.

Section Three Takeaways:

Inventory of your overall self-care regimen
Recognition of your priorities and whether you are honoring those with time and space
Awakening to your flexibility and alertness to action
A self-prescribed barometer test to determine stress levels

4) PEERS + EXPERTS + MENTORS= MANDATORY DREAM TEAM

Narrative: Not only is it lonely at the top, it’s frankly not as fun. We all need our own villages to support us, hold us accountable and cheer us on when the going gets rocky. We will explore your current network and outline the various roles that need to be filled so that you are surrounded with an army of followers, leaders and comrades.

Section 4 Takeaways:

Inventory of current support network
Tips for identifying and contracting peers, experts and mentors
Plan for developing a personal advisory board

2 Comments | Creating Your Vision, Leadership/Management, My Personal Initiatives | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

Tips for Becoming More Persuasive

September 27, 2011

A universal desire for people in business or even in their personal life is to become more persuasive. The obvious benefit of doing so is that we get more of what we really want whether that means money, caliber of work or an improved quality of life. However, a secondary gain is that we also gain more credibility or authority and that contributes to our strength as a leader. Here are five steps that you can take to become more persuasive today:

Develop expert knowledge and solutions for your target market’s universal issues

The first step is getting very clear on what your intentions are by carving out a niche or a particular target market that you want to establish as your clientele. No one person, particularly early on, can be the solution for everybody or everybody’s problems, so get clear on who and what you really want to go after and then learn everything you can about their needs. The second part of this equation is to then figure out a solution to your niche’s issues so that you are clear where your value lies for others.

So, to highlight this advice, I can tell you about a past client named Nancy who had started her own business as a Financial Advisor. She wasn’t sure early on what her target market would be as she wanted to be open to a diverse roster of clientele. As a result she was never clear in her marketing and advertising efforts what value she was bringing to her clients that was any different from her much larger and more established competitors. She and I worked on identifying her ideal target market which was 30 something newlyweds. Next, I made sure that she was focusing her own learning and development around becoming an expert advisor around some of the universal issues that arise for newlyweds as it relates to their financial management. The next step was having Nancy work on creating products and services that would easily and efficiently meet the needs of these ideal clients. Within a year, Nancy was enjoying a 60% increase in her revenues as a result of these actions.

When pitching, communicate crisp and evocative messages around Your “WHY”

Thought leader Simon Sinek has written a book entitled, ‘Start with Why’ which explains that the most salient way to differentiate yourself from your competitors and rise to the top is to communicate your, “What, How and Why” when pitching your business. Sinek explains that our “What” is merely the title on our business card, so in my case, Leadership Coach and Consultant. Our “How” explains how we accomplish our overall work intention. So in my case again, my “How” is that I listen and respond dynamically to my clients based on my experience as a psychotherapist, a corporate sales management trainer and now as an entrepreneur. But most important, Sinek explains, is to crisply and evocatively express your “Why” when pitching yourself or your business. One’s ‘Why’ is our highest intention driving the work that we do and explains to others our core motivation. So for example, my why is to alleviate pain by igniting and emboldening women to become more inspired, effective business leaders.

Once you are clear on “Your What, your How and Your Why”, begin your conversations with these messages rather than a contrived and uncomfortable sales pitch. I guarantee that as a result you will spark intrigue in the right parties and the business will follow.

Ask & Close for Their Business/Commitment based on their social style.

Throughout your interactions with a potential client, be sure to ask the right questions that will shed light on their decision making process, their value system as well as their social style. The 4 universal social styles are analytical, driver, amiable and expressive. Be sure to adapt your approach and focus with each person based on their social style. So for example, if you are dealing with someone who is ‘analytical’, you want to be sure to have data proving your ROI or contextual information that you can present to them so that they can make their own informed decision as to whether or not they want to work with you or not. If they are a ‘driver’, then focus your pitch on how you will help them achieve their goals in the most efficient manner and be forthright with asking them for their business. However, if they are ‘amiable’ , you want to be purely relationship focused and let the business follow from there. With ‘expressives’, sit back and let them talk and be sure to listen to what they are telling you they need and use more of a soft close with both the’ amiables’ and the ‘expressives’.

Deliver 110% on your commitment and follow-up with evaluation

It should go without saying, but your success rate in persuading others will only be as good as the work that you are producing elsewhere. Particularly when you are embarking on a new niche or a new target market, I urge you to deliver 110% on the small windows of opportunity that you are given and to follow-up with an evaluation process so that you can perfect your work. This is even more critical if you live in a small city like Portland where there seems to always be six degrees of separation amongst your colleagues.

Leverage all your early wins to build your expert status

Throughout this process that I am describing, you are developing your expert status that will over time build your credibility and authority and in turn lead to a very high rate of persuasion. However, keep in mind that this journey takes time in order to build your reputation properly. That being said, you want to be sure to start slow and small and begin to take on larger projects and/or complexity of clientele’s issues gradually. With each win, meaning successful work relationships, figure out a way to share that success with your larger community and network as well as potential new clients. Some examples of this would be to write an article or a blog about your success with your client (not disclosing their identity unless you received permission from them of course), sharing your lessons learned on social media or seeking out opportunities to speak publicly or on a panel to your target market.

Leave a Comment » | Attracting Clients, Building Your Brand | Tagged: amiable, analytical, authority, credibility, driver, expert knowledge, persuasiveness, social styles, target market | Permalink
Posted by legacybuildercoaching

Contents: My Big Dream Job & how I am getting started….

September 21, 2011

Greetings friends and fans,

Today is the day I have decided to share with you all the grand plans I have for myself professionally for two glaring reasons. First, I think it will be helpful for those of you who have similar ambitions and are curious as to the process and methods by which I am going about reaching this overarching, awesome and universal goal. And, secondly, because I need your support, humor and overall feedback on how I am doing and what you think I should do differently, etc. If it takes me 30 years to reach this goal, so be it, but in the mean time, let’s begin….

Drum roll please, I feel deep in the core of who I am that I will eventually end up with my own television show. Yes, that’s right, and I am talking, move to Los Angeles, syndicated, cable type of show. This is just something that seems like a logical evolution for myself given my drive, the messages I want to share with the world and frankly the type of lifetime goal that I feel up to taking on. Now, when I share this LOFTY goal, people either go silent or smile, rather glibly, I might add. I can see their mind working, they are thinking to themselves, “Oh, good Lord, listen to the ego on this one??” or the ones I choose to embrace as friends are those who say things like, “I’d watch ya” or “You rock on with your bad self Katie”, or my FAVORITE is my own father, whose best response to all of this is, “Katie, you have never been short on dreams”.

I figure, the best I can do is shooting to make this dream a reality and in the short-term have fun and continue to expand my business and who knows where I”ll actually land. However, for those of you who are curious as to how one goes from where I currently stand in the world, both professionally and personally, to joining the ranks of Ellen DeGeneres, Rachael Ray, Anderson Cooper of the Goddess of all that is, Oprah, this is what I am beginning to work on based on the amazing professionals I have consulted with in the last few days:

1) Developing my online presence by branding myself as a media personality via my personal Facebook Page and Twitter account and dedicating my Legacy Builder Coaching website, FB Page and Twitter Account to just my corporate work. Basically, beginning to distinguish myself between these two identities. (Thanks to Maggie Palmer of MKP Creative & Jill Daniel of Pasta Queen Public Relations for that advice)

2) Begin to blog on a weekly basis (here I am!)

3) Hire a Writing Coach (@BrookeWarner in San Francisco) to hold me accountable to completing an e-book by years end to begin to establish my platform.

Okay, that’s it for now….let me know what you think this sounds, etc. I need your help!

2 Comments | Building Your Brand, Business Planning, Developing Your Platform, My Personal Initiatives | Tagged: Anderson Cooper, Ellen DeGeneres, Oprah Winfrey, Rachel Ray | Permalink
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My Executive Development Journey with “A Seat at the Table”

June 17, 2011

I completed an 8 month women’s executive development program by The Link for Women’s Cindy Tortorici called “A Seat at the Table” yesterday along with eight, now life-long friends. Throughout this odyssey, I developed my overall career vision, cultivated my influential voice and formalized my community of peers, experts and mentors. In other words, I found ‘me’ and my well needed tribe and baby, do I have plans! As my Dad simply stated, “Katie, you have never been short of dreams”

The premise of this particular program is that as women aspire from middle management positions to senior leadership roles, there is a tendency to remain focused on being tactical as this is what resulted in us achieving our merits to date. However, the onus now as leaders is to think with vision, develop strategy and to effectively delegate the tactical to those who now report to us.

Here are some of the most valuable lessons I learned along this journey:

Build in 30 minutes of time every day to simply think and plan and then act strategically about your business (phone/email off-solo activity) (See Doug Mendenhall of Spark!)

Before you can lead others, you must first understand how to lead yourself and that means knowing what your personal success patterns (see Susan Clark of Heartspark) are and what your ‘why, how and what’ are (see Simon Sinek)

Take time out to evaluate how ‘balanced’ your current life is with regards to your career, $, health, your partner, your family, your friends, your personal time. Then, design a more ideal balance chart that you want to strive towards over the next year.

If you are not happy with what you are doing and/or who you are doing it with, there is no one else who is responsible for changing those two factors besides yourself. Take responsibility for your own happiness and success.

Don’t make assumptions about your future until you have truly turned over every stone and knocked on every door. Success awaits only those hungry enough to seek it out.

Understand what people come to you for and what drives you throughout all your relationships and journeys. Let that answer inform your path towards even greater success.

Figure out who you need on your Advisory Board for strategic support, information resources and your particular project team. The higher you get, the more support you need to achieve the dream.

Understand what your body and soul are telling you about your journey and then better align yourself so that you are getting the holistic support you need.

Leverage your unique strengths as an influencer.

Understand what makes you compelling and what then supports evidence for that fact.

Be a risk taker versus a risk talker.

What else would you add to this list?

Leave a Comment » | Creating Your Vision, Leadership/Management | Tagged: A Seat At The Table, Cindy Tortorici, Doug Mendenhall, stragegy, success paterns, Susan Clark, tactical, The LInk For Women, vision | Permalink
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