See, I told you communication was more important than you thought! This tool involved intrapersonal communication. That means communication with yourself, where, you probably have your most fascinating conversations! Here's how it works. Good questions lead to new perspectives. New perspectives result in higher levels of thinking. Higher-level thinking is what solves your problem!

The underlying assumption, is....every problem has a solution. The kicker to that is that the solution is totally different from what you thought it should be, or even what you wanted it to be. (Hint: the solution is usually simpler than what you thought!)

There's an example after the questions to show you how this process works. These 7 questions you can use to coach yourself to solve a sticky situation, move forward on a project, to drop some burden without guilt, to take better care of yourself or just to enjoy your life more. They are in sequential order and I suggest you answer one at a time.

  Read more »

In a recent conversation with a client, she was sharing her frustration with what she called, "a series of unfortunate events." It was the sort of thing that happens in life -- and this client, we'll call her Michelle, wasn't really down on herself. However, these events had shaken her confidence in the way she was redesigning her life. That is often the way life unfolds. That's part of what makes it so interesting. So, you may want to be a part of our discussion of what is means to really be the creative and effective leader in your own life. The word "creative" relates to the ability to create or proactively respond, rather than simply reacting to unfortunate events.

Here are 23 ways you can know if you're the authentic leader of your own life, rather than simply a participant in it. Read more »

I had to look up the template at the end of the article for a new client and I thought I'd repost this just in case you need some help putting together your next high-impact presentation. This post is a guide for your brilliant self out there in a bigger way -- an easy step-by-step checklist you use to put together a compelling and engaging presentation. Below the article see the free template you can download; it's a presentation cheat sheet. With all the digitalized communication channels available to us, speaking face to face before a group is by far the MOST powerful way to get your message out. There are several reasons for this. Read more »

"Self-confidence is knowing that you have the capacity to do something and deciding not to give up." The Dalai Lama

Whether you work at home, in a cubicle or in the corner office, developing tools and processes to raise your employees' and colleagues' sense of positivity will pay you back, in real profitability! Here are 23 Benefits of Positivity -- all overwhelmingly supported by psychological research (Lyubomirsky, King & Diener, 2005.)

23 REAL Benefits of Positivity

1. Lower turnover.

2. Better reports of customer service.

3. Better supervisor evaluations. Read more »

Read more »

In the interest of full disclosure, "Fun, Fearless and Fabulous Females" is what my ECEW entrepreneurial group is all about. Being part of ECEW leadership, this is a opportunity to share with you the from-the-inside-out communication secrets of fun, fearless and fabulous leaders, like you are. The first thing you must know about fun, fearless and fabulous communication is that it starts inside of you.  Read more »

This post is written with fundraising in mind but you can apply these ideas to other situations like getting your bank to reverse overdraft charges (like I just did,) asking for a raise, raising your prices or getting a better deal. I have the most solid preparation for the Art of Asking for Money from my darling parents. You see, I was born into a well-to-do family, but not your typical country club set. My dad was determined not to raise "spoiled brats" (as he defined that term) so he made it clear from the cradle that while we could enjoy the money he made while we were young; he fully expected us to fly away from the golden nest at age 18. One of his training tactics was setting us up as employees of his periodontal practice at age 12. We had a cushy job, for sure, but we were expected to cover ALL of our variable expenses, including clothing, movie tickets, fun stuff.  Read more »

Researchers at MIT's Media Lab found they could predict the outcome of negotiations, sales calls, and pitches with 87% accuracy without listening to a single word of content, just by analyzing people’s body language. Here's an exercise developed by charisma and leadership expert Olivia Fox Cabane for you. With this exercise in your toolbox you can change your body language to greatly increase your chances of success in any interaction. Read more »

"The thing always happens that you really believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen."

---Frank Lloyd Wright 

Such an odd thing for an architect to say. Especially FLW.

  Read more »