Think Enriched

Monday Maxim with Amy 2018: It’s your mental Vitamin B. Each Monday I share a little motivation & insight to start the week. You’ve got a lot of people depending on you. There is big work for you to do. So here’s a maxim for you, the smart, ambitious woman, to help you SHINE.   “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” ― Howard Thurman

Get out your papers and pens! This is one episode you should be taking notes!    Today's guest is the host of the Leader to Leader Podcast and he knows his stuff! Mark Slemons is a speaker, podcaster, and coach. He helps leaders leverage practices and perspectives to make their people and their organization thrive. It's challenging to lead well, especially young leaders who are just starting their journey. They don't have to do it alone though. With more than 30 years as a husband, father, leader, volunteer, and employee working for a multi-billion dollar international company, his unique perspective combined with practical and actionable tips will help individuals and organizations thrive. Whether humorous, serious, or sad, he uses the past to create a better future. Connect with Mark. Some highlights that apply right now are: Mark decided to be consistent, (publish an episode every Monday) before he started his podcast. Perfection addiction in his life: He struggles with not having something be perfect be

"If you are calm about your ambitions, you become confident of achieving what you set out to do." - Shiv Nadar

Have you felt like you're taking care of everyone around you and you're nearly burnt out? Or, have you felt like you haven't done anything new in weeks, maybe even months? This episode is just for you. The lifelong friend of mine joins us today.  This conversation with Mandy Green was pure delight.  She loves being a mother & wife, yet had a strong desire to do something more.  You won't believe what that led her to do. In our conversation, we uncover three steps to enriching your life. Today's highlights include:   How her parents raised the strong, creative personalities of Mandy and her siblings. The influence of Mandy, and our friend, Erika, to live fully in the moment. You're empowering everyone else around you when you are full of light. Every smart, ambitious woman needs a group of friends like ours. Learning Hebrew was difficult for her to grasp.  Mandy's solution? Attend Hebrew U in Israel. The power of travel in her life. Mandy explains the process of how she gained the support & favor of h

Monday Maxim with Amy 2018: It’s your mental Vitamin B. Each Monday I share a little motivation & insight to start the week. You’ve got a lot of people depending on you. There is big work for you to do. So here’s a maxim for you, the smart, ambitious woman, to help you SHINE.  Today is Martin Luther King Day, and his birthday, here in the US. Our quote had to come from him. "No person has the right to rain on your dreams." - Martin Luther King   

Today's interview is with the long-time friend of Amy's, Kevin Clegg.  Kevin is a successful businessman, father and serves on the Board of Directors at A Child's Hope Foundation. Be sure to like A Child's Hope Foundation on Facebook. Particularly today, as you listen, pay attention to: Specific feelings in your heart What your mind tells you to do next Then, be sure to write that down for guidance on your personal journey. Be sure to share your feedback with me Show notes:  Finding a way to give more to the community and the world is a way to discover more of your talents and gifts to the world. Kevin's request on Giving Tuesday... and the surprise from others that came from that! How Kevin and his family found the organization and how that changed his family's perspective on holiday giving. Why Kevin talks about "The Kids" over again.  How the Clegg family began to make repeat visits regularly.  The timeline of the trips to make and travel looks something along the lines of...  Tuesday night travel toget

Monday Maxim with Amy 2018: It’s your mental Vitamin B. Each Monday I share a little motivation & insight to start the week. You’ve got a lot of people depending on you. There is big work for you to do. So here’s a maxim for you, the smart, ambitious woman, to help you SHINE. You are glorious. Jody Maberry shares how a business focuses on what makes them unique in his podcast.  Imagine if we all did the same.

New year, new look. Did you see the new podcast art? Let's talk about it. New logo defining the show more completely.  That's my FACE on there now!  I feel a bit nekkid putting my face out there for the whole world to see.  It's just one more step to not being holding myself back.  It took about a year for me to get off my duff and do this. Also, you may have noticed that's an elephant topping the "I" in Think.  The elephant runs in a matriarchal order.  Not that I don't appreciate men, I just come from a long line of women taking care of more than their share.  I honor those women, and each of us, who lead families, work teams, organizations, and share our influence with the world in that image. Thank you to my designer, Jason Clement, for helping me put more me into the conversation. Then you see my name a little structured and maybe a bit mischievous. That's me.  I learn more when I'm playful.  It's the balance of the structure and the creative that makes me who I am.   You can find out more from Jason Cle

Monday Maxim with Amy, 2018 It’s your mental Vitamin B for the week. Each Monday I share a little motivation & insight to start the week. You’ve got a lot of people depending on you. There is big work to do. So here’s a maxim for you, the smart, ambitious woman, to help you SHINE. We start out the year with one from Michael Phelps.  "The more you dream, the more you achieve." Don't hide those dreams in the back of the closet somewhere.  Step into it.  And watch this year, become your best one yet. A quick challenge for the week: 1. Take 15 minutes this week and dream.  Think bigger.  Imagine.  Dive in and feel those feelings of what you want to achieve in this year.  2. Then, and this is so important, write that down. 3. Then get to work.  _________________________  

How to Stretch Yourself to Become Your Best This week I'm delighted to have Jon Stolpe on the show. We discuss: How we connected.  Why STRETCH is such an important term in Jon's life. He's helping men around the country help improve their commitment to fatherhood, family, faith, and work challenges.  See the Stretched Men Group for more info. How Jon first got to Guatemala. The big confirmation that allowed him to go there. Jon and his blog audience brought the finances available to build houses. His book, Rooftop Reflections. How the book, Wrecked, for something good, as Jeff Goins described. The socio-economic status of families in the Guatemalan culture.  How widows struggle amidst the situation. They have built multiple homes in Guatemala to help families of widows in Guatemala.  Jon's vision to build 100 houses in Guatemala before he passes away.  The next step in his journey to impact families and involve the community in the process. What Jon and his family would like from you. How much it costs just

The holidays are so much fun...and so much extra work. This time is so precious. You can easily run out of energy, zest, and enthusiasm if you’re not careful. Enjoy your marathon, and set yourself up to WIN.  Holiday Extras are your Responsibility. Take care of yourself, girl, there are too many other depending on you. Solution:  Get a team.  Involve others.  Ask for help.  Let the older kids wrap presents with you... or don't wrap at all! Too Much Good Stuff.  Everywhere. Too much of anything is just too much.  So enjoy the goodies.  Just be wise.   Solution:  Drink your water. Decide your limits. Get a water tracking app. Lots of late nights and ridiculously early mornings. Sleep Doesn't Happen in December. Solution: While it's easy to say you're going to bed on time.  Set yourself an alarm. Really. Making sure it's...perfect. Say no.  Even in December. Solution:  It's time to laugh more at Christmas.  Tell your family and friends you are not going for all-out perfection. Plan the next thing. Explain how th

A year ago, I shared a post about how Thanksgiving is like Leadership. But the more you dive into the makings of a happy holiday feast, the more you realize, Thanksgiving is like your Business. No matter how well you plan, one thing can derail you how you respond says everything. You think you’ve got it covered- the full logistics. Find the less than obvious things. We thawed the turkey in the bathtub. Lesson learned: Turkey Thaw (Prep) Time. You cannot make up lost time. Be a turtle.  Keep moving forward. Multiple things are going at the same time. You don’t have to be there for each one.  Efficiency. Don’t crowd the oven. Set stations & spread it out.  Lesson learned: Set up stations. Structure the project with assembly line focus. Become efficient. The restriction of 1 oven held us back. Three tools allowed us to have multiple things cooked and ready at the same time.  Lesson learned:  Invest in the tools. You need to maximize your efforts and your time. Ask these three questions before making your 

Ep. 90 How to Take Quality Care of Your People (Think: Your Champion) Sales Funnel Series, Part 5 Take your small business to be the business “everyone keeps hearing about…” Who are Your People? Your people (they have decided to be your Super Fan) They’ve been coined “your apostles” because they are out speaking the good word of you. We call them CHAMPIONS They feel comfortable (They seek out new ways to) learn from you, be part of your group, or contribute to your cause. You know you have a champion when… Their spouse, close friends, and beauty shop ladies know you.  By name. They cannot stop talking about you.  Everywhere. The love and buy every, single thing you sell. They volunteer to do more, buy more, or give you even more than what you asked of them. The relationship between you and your champ is what we call “The Ultimate Win-Win.” Why do your champions matter? Organizations, businesses, and even political parties do not survive WITHOUT them. Example: NFL with the Seahawks fans in freezing cold w

Ep. 89 You've made the sale. Now make a connection.      How to Get Your Customers Speaking About You.      Be the tour guide. Remember that funny scene in Toy Story? Tour Guide Barbie drives them through the experience. 1.  Show them what to do next. Don't assume they know. (Don't give them a fish!)  Think of our discussion on the last the sales episode.   Focus on the relationship. Thank them directly. Tell them, “Great!  Do this next…” Take them to the next step, add the link so they can follow your process.  2.  Need a testimonial or review?  You guide them through it. If they send you an email with some great feedback, ask if you can share it. If they tell you in person, ask if you can write that down and they can add their insights. You can write a testimonial and ask if they would be willing to endorse you. Ask customers to leave a review on Yelp. Or your Facebook page. Only ask for one request.  Too many requests and what happens?  Nothing. 3. End every communication with Calls to Action (CTAs).  As t

You know what a smart, ambitious looks like.   We love what she accomplishes. We admire & respect her. So why is it so hard to recognize the smart, ambitious woman in ourselves? This is a tough concept we haven't talked about enough. Smart, ambitious women are so busy caring for others and reaching out to make a contribution to the world they can easily overlook themselves. So today let's break it down. All smart, ambitious women have 5 strengths that are innately part of who they are.  These women:  Believe in themselves.  Plan to succeed.  Have the heart to serve & to teach.  Finish the job.  Epitomize "aggressive consistency." These are strengths that we can all work on.  It is this inner grit that makes us stand out. But there is more to it. This is The Value that Unites All Smart, Ambitious Women Allow me to share my delayed jury duty experience. It hit me how important this is when another juror looked right at me and said,"Motherhood is hardship." The value that unites us is family. Family is

Warning: This is How You Get Customers to Act Now Sales Funnel Series, Part 3 Think of that guy you see on your daily routine.  You develop a relationship with a stranger. This is the process your customer goes through.  First, they Acknowledge you, then they connect (a relationship is made), then they are willing to try what you do.  That is, they have enough trust to spend money with you.  A:  Acknowledge C: Connect T: Trust/ Try Research from over 2,000 customers showing how far companies must go to please (or alienate) customers. * Customer-centered marketing (aim at the customer) >> Customer-first marketing (elevate the customer). Your customers today are: modern empowered customers people looking for personalization those that value efficiency The number 1 reason people were satisfied customers is: “I consistently have good experiences with it.” The number 1 reason people were unsatisfied customers is: “The company does not put my needs and wants above its own business goals.” The key to getting your

How to Quickly Get Started with Your Solid Sales Funnel This is part 1 in the series on Sales Funnels.   The old school vs. new school sales funnels.   Too many terms, not enough tactics. Attract Your Customers With a Nibble You are leading them on a journey. In a world bombarded with noise, it doesn't help to give someone the full feast of what you offer. It's appetizer education now. Give them a nibble.   Your customers are too busy with all the incoming messages, a nibble is all they need.  Think of Costco runs on Saturday afternoons.   Those sample stations are at nearly every turn. Smell good? Have a nibble. "Do you like it?  They are located right around this corner and are sale today!" It Starts When Customers Spot You. Here's How the Big Companies Do This. Companies pay millions of dollars so that you can spot them. A few examples are: Movie/ television sets are paid by companies to have their products on camera. Think of cereals, etc. Sponsorships of teams and organizations in the community. Banners

The next few episodes, we're going to take each step, each component, and really go into that, how you can make that work for your business, how it's going to happen, and put the pieces together. By the end of the next few episodes, you will have your own kind of sales funnel to get your marketing going for your people.   The question really comes down to is where are your next customers?   You know they're out there. You know they're people can benefit from what you have to offer. Not just the product or service, but from you as a person. It all comes down to this. You need a sales funnel. It's some jargon marketing sales talk just to relate the customer experience. I learned about sales funnels in a marriage and family relations class in college. Smart sales funnels take the entire population and guide the person through the experience and keeps them not only to become a first time buyer, a customer. Examples of sales funnels you see daily. Define the Terms of a Sales Funnel Make it a snack Email in your sa

Hey Smart, Ambitious Woman, You Good? Speak the Lingo: Here's a term we should all know:  netiquette. Yes, it's really a word, meaning, the etiquette of the Internet; polite online behavior :  netiquette. (n.d.). The Dictionary of American Slang. Retrieved October 12, 2017 from Dictionary.com website http://www.dictionary.com/browse/netiquette   5 Easy Ways You Beat Stress Right Now I see you. I hear you. You are busy.  You are serving. Components of life: Family Faith Finances Fitness Friends  Feed running That's running on normal autopilot.  What happens when that is overpowered by something else? How can you take care of yourself while you are taking care of so many? Try a couple.  When you find yourself in that moment, there's a lot going on and you just need a break, take your 5-minutes. Because we need you.  We need you GOOD. Have a drink of water. Your stress, headaches, muscle aches and more could simply be that you are dehydrated. Take a bathroom break. Your body responds to your mind.  Listen &am

Books every smart, ambitious woman should read. I read in the car. In today's list, I'll share with you the book and why you need to take it in.  Then you can decide which order to read them.   The Deeper Path by Kary Oberbrunner This book, The Deeper Path, profoundly impacted my life.  I have given away multiple copies to friends. You should read this because: like all of us, you have a tendency to hide your failures and pain. You can either work through toil and suffering, or you can work to create your OPUS, your masterpiece. This book takes a profound look at how to take your pain, the scary room in your heart, and all of who you are to create your OPUS.     Essentialism by Greg McKeown If there is one thing every smart, ambitious woman understands, it is that there is not enough time to get it all done. But where do you decide to cut something off?  Essentialism helps you navigate that space. You should read because: not only have you found yourself stretched too thin... you, smart, ambitious woman, have