The first time I presented after starting my company was a nightmare. I was terrible. A major Chicago publisher asked me to talk about how small businesses can land TV interviews. There were about 100 people in the room. I wasn't that nervous. But I felt like I had to [...]
My daughter turned three recently. I spent a couple of weeks brainstorming. I called my contacts to find the perfect gluten-free cake that would also be over the top beautiful, hunted down the best "mermaid rainbow" decorations I could find at a local stationery shop, and built a menu for [...]
People want to do business with people they know, like, and trust. But what do you do if you're meeting someone for the first time and want to convince them to do something, such as hire you to speak or buy something else from you? Those first few minutes are [...]
If you have resistance to something this morning, trust your gut and know you feel that resistance for a good reason. Sometimes we think we must push through, forcing something to happen. I fight this daily now. When I used to force things to go exactly as I wanted them [...]
I was at a dinner party recently with eight other Chicago women. My lawyer hosted it. When one woman arrived (also a lawyer), she had a Starbucks in her hand and joked, "Who walks into a dinner party with her own coffee?" More on her in a second. Last week, [...]
We all have seasons in our careers where we’ve been knocked down. It might be getting laid off, having a toxic boss, or losing a business. The question is: Will you get back up? And if so, how do you start? One of my clients received a significant industry award [...]
Whenever we're speaking -- whether it's to our internal teams, to clients, during an online webinar, at an event, or in the media -- developing a solid mindset is critical to presenting powerfully and memorably. But that needs to happen before we even step into the room, be it virtual [...]
Body language is essential to get right whenever you're presenting. Even though we're only seeing the top third of your body on Zoom (or Microsoft Teams or Google Meet), how you appear up there matters. This is especially true when you need to be perceived as a leader. This is [...]
This is an emotional time. We could be approaching WWIII, and you might be feeling many things intensely. This morning, I’m sitting in a hotel room getting ready to help clients present on stage during their annual meeting, and it’s hard not to be distracted by the news. If you’re [...]
Elton John finally made his way back to Chicago. This was a show originally scheduled for 2020. Like a lot of concerts, it was delayed because of the pandemic. As the months passed, I didn't think he would actually make it back. As you may know, Sir Elton recently had COVID. Was [...]
