Andrea J. Lee, founder of Wealthy Thought Leader, is a fabulous innovator and futurist. At her event, she created an “Open Mic Throw-Down” where we could share a rant, an innovation or any piece of our own thought leadership.

One of the greatest challenges we face is how to keep our focus and vision clear and steady in the face of what I call the “information tsunami” our world now operates within. Check out this clip on how I think you can navigate your way to greater success.

If you prefer to listen to the audio version of this week’s article instead, just click here:



“Problems are not stop signs, they are guidelines. “
Robert H. Schuller

Marketing your business is mission critical for all small business owners. Networking and meeting people in person are some of the most impactful ways you can grow your client base.

Today your potential clients receive more marketing messages in a single day than your grandparents did in their entire lifetime. Through the media, the internet and our ability to stay plugged into the world wide web 24/7 literally now in the palm of our hands, your potential customer gets bombarded with thousands of marketing messages a day.

Successful networking requires more than a snappy “elevator pitch.” To network with impact you need to be able to address these important questions:

How do you stand out in an increasingly crowded field?

How do you communicate about your services so that people’s eyes don’t start to glaze over when you answer the question, “So, what do you do?”

If you have just a few seconds of attention, how do you share so that people get hooked and want to know more about you?

Connecting powerfully with people – whether at a networking group, a coffee meeting or through a referral – can make an enormous difference in your business. Imagine if out of 10 conversations you have, that instead of having 3 people interested in working with you that you have 5 people working with you. That could mean some serious new cash flow and source of referrals for further business.

But beyond the money, networking with impact means you can help transform more people through the work you do. But if you can’t communicate what you do so that people really “get it” they end up stuck in the problem you could solve for longer than they need to.

Here are 3 tips to help you network with impact.

Tip #1 – Let Your Heart Do The Talking

Of course it’s great to have a short, succinct way to share about what you do. But let your heart do the talking, not just your head. Feel the passion and vision you have for why you do what you do. When people feel that energy of enthusiasm and commitment, they will definitely want to know more.

Tip #2 – Speak to the Transformation

As coaches, speakers and business owners, it’s so easy to fall in love with the “thing” we do. We all have our steps, blueprints, processes and systems we use to help people solve real problems. But people care more about the results and transformation that working with you can create. How you get them there is really secondary. Focus less on the “how” and speak more about the “where” you can take your clients.

Tip #3 – Listen More

In a conversation with someone who might be a prospective client, there needs to be an energetic give and take between you. Have you ever networked with someone who then gets so wound up in a sales pitch you can’t get a word in edgewise? It’s frustrating and doesn’t inspire you to hire them, does it? So listen more and be prepared to speak less.

© 2012 Carolyn B. Ellis All Rights Reserved

This week give yourself a quick self-assessment of how you talk about what you do. What’s been working well for you, and where can you use some tweaking? Ask 1 person to listen to your elevator pitch and get their feedback.

“When you believe you can – you can! “

Maxwell Maltz

Sometimes the biggest obstacle you face in business or in our personal lives is yourself. Those voices of self-doubt, fear and negativity can drown out your dreams and test your conviction in your vision. But there is brilliance and inspiration inside of every one of us, and it takes an enormous amount of energy to hold that back and play small. In this episode, I’ll share with you an exercise I created that will help you get out of your own way, stop modulating yourself and step into your confidence and commitment to share your true brilliance in the world.

If you prefer to listen to the audio version of this week’s article instead, just click here:

“Continuous effort – not strength or intelligence – is the key to unlocking our potential.”

Asking for the business is something that for many spirit-led women entrepreneurs can still have a considerable “Ick” factor to it.

Getting down to the brass tacks of asking someone to hire you can push a lot of buttons for women. Which one of these thoughts can you relate to?

“I just don’t want to come across as pushy.”

“I love connecting with people, but when it comes to “making the ask” I still feel like a used car salesman.”

“I chicken out when it comes to follow-up because I don’t want to make it all about me.”

We want and need the sales, but don’t want to come across as “salesy” or inauthentic. Yet the enrollment conversation is what turns prospects into paying clients. We all need paying clients if you want a business and not just a hobby.

If you feel hesitation or lack of confidence in your sales process, it’s simply a sign that your internal emotional and energetic foundation has a few cracks in it that need your attention. Here are 5 ways you can turn the “Ick” into “Inspiration” when you ask for the business from your potential clients…

1.    Make an Invitation Instead of an “Ask”

A lot of traditional sales training out there comes from a corporate male-oriented sales model that just doesn’t feel authentic or in alignment with women. Yet common sales lingo like “making the ask” tends to depersonalize the sales process. It makes the experience more about a transaction rather than a relationship.

Women are so talented in nurturing and connecting with others, so use that to your advantage. Make an invitation to work with you, instead of “making the ask.”

2. Share Your Passion

There is nothing more engaging that feeling someone share about their passion. Don’t forget to share WHY you caught the bug to start your own business. Let people know about the difference you want to make in the world. Share enough of your personal story so that your prospects understand where you are coming from and what your mission in your business is. This builds trust, connection and credibility with your prospective clients.

3.  Come From Service

Holding back from asking for the business because you are afraid of being “pushy” is actually a form of stinginess. If you know you can help someone solve a problem and aren’t sharing that clearly and confidently, you’re actually doing a disservice to others.

Instead approach each sales conversation from a place of being of service. Ask “How can I help this person?” Don’t be attached to getting a “Yes!” right away, or walking away if you get an initial “No.” They may not become a client now, but perhaps they’ll give a referral or become one down the road when the timing is right.

Step into Your Brilliance

Take 10 minutes to write out a list of any of the “ick” thoughts, fears or doubts that come up for you in your enrollment conversations. Once complete, declare your intention that you will no longer let these beliefs and thoughts hold you back from being of service to others. Tear up the list and burn it. Have at least two enrollment conversations within the next 7 days, incorporating these principles. Notice what feels different and the kind of result you create.

 ”Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees all others.”
Winston Churchill

Success requires a willingness to take action and keep your focus, despite the fears and doubts that come up when you move out of your comfort zone. Applying these 4 powerful strategies to bust your fears will keep yourself in gear and on track.

Identify a decision or situation where your fears are taking you out of action. Apply just one of the strategies to how you view that situation and decide upon one inspiring action step you can take right away to step just a bit further into your fear. Put it in your calendar within the next week.