RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 17

Guest: Alicia Marie

Personal growth and development is critical to effective leadership. There is a huge misconception…Leaders are NOT born, they are trained, coached and developed to become great leaders. 

Leadership is relational, not transactional and has nothing to do with big personalities, charm or being persuasive. Those attributes are useful in interpersonal relationships, in sales but have nothing to do with what determines a great leader. Maureen’s guest is Alicia Marie, an expert in the field of leadership development. She has expertise and education and psycholinguistics, humanities, marketing leadership and management.

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Introduction: 

Alicia Marie is a national leader in the field of leadership development. She founded People Biz, Inc. in 2000 with the intention of providing TOTAL personal and professional development solutions for individuals, teams, and organizations. She specializes in creating customized Leadership and Management programs based on desired outcomes. She has been a professional trainer for more than twenty years AND a professional coach with more than 20,000 paid coaching hours over the last 21 years. She possesses a UNIQUE education in Psycho-Linguistics, Humanities, Business, and Marketing. 

Key Takeaways:

In this episode, you’re going to gain valuable insights and learn about:

• Emotional intelligence and its correlation to leadership.
• Transactional management vs developmental leadership.
• The power in developing language around emotion and how we live life from experience to experience.
• Executive Function and engagement.
• Stages of creation.
• The power of words (neurolinguistics).
• Energy for engagement and courageous action.
• Resilience and how it is a function of ego!!  (ego drive and ego resilience…this was fascinating!)
• Imposter Syndrome and perfectionism.

Best advice Alicia Marie ever received:  Be yourself.  Always.

REALTALK: The best leaders are the ones who work on themselves all the time - they are the people who invest in learning, growing and self-discovery.  

Resources:

Leading Change Program 

Coaching Skills for Leaders

Coaching Services

Guest:

Alicia Marie

Company:

People Biz, Inc. 

https://peoplebizinc.com

Social: 

@peoplebizinc - Facebook

@aliciamariepeoplebiz - Instagram

@PeopleBiz  - Twitter

Alicia Marie - People Biz, Inc. - Youtube

People Biz, Inc - LinkedIn

Listen and Subscribe on: iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  Google Play  |  Spotify 

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/ 

Want to learn more and connect with like-minded women? Click here to join our RealTalk Community

SEE TRANSCRIPTION BELOW

Maureen Borzacchiello: (00:00)

Alicia Marie is a national leader in the field of leadership development. She founded people biz Inc in 2000 with the intention of providing total personal and professional development solutions for individuals, teams, and organizations, she specializes in creating customized leadership and management programs based on desired outcomes. She has been a professional trainer for more than 20 years and a professional coach with more than 20,000 paid coaching hours. Over the last 21 years, she possesses a unique education in psycholinguistics, humanities business, and marketing. Alicia is a mother of three adult children and a grandmother of two. She is a yoga enthusiast and runner and the newlyweds, her sweet and adoring soulmate. Having spent most of her life in Texas. She currently resides in the Austin Metro area and works with clients globally. I am not only blessed to have worked with Alicia Marie in a variety of capacities over the last 15 years but most importantly to call her a dear friend. So welcome. Alicia Marie this will be epic for sure there is no doubt. Welcome. Welcome.

Alicia Marie: (01:21)

Thank you. I'm so present to how much I love you when you were talking

Maureen Borzacchiello: (

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 16

Guest: Gail Davis

It’s so fascinating how one experience can be a turning point that shapes one's career, life, decisions!  Hear how the movie Alive became a catalyst for Gail Davis, corporate professional in the meetings and events space, to start her own company GDA Speakers.

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Gail Davis is the founder of Gail Davis and Associates, a leading Speaker Bureau Agency.  She is the past President of the International Association of Speakers Bureaus and has served as IASB's governor, where she developed new education programs for members worldwide and through increased investment in the industry.  Gail has won numerous awards, including Dallas's top 25 Women in Business. She is an accomplished corporate marketing and events professional turned entrepreneur who has dedicated decades to her craft before becoming an entrepreneur and creating Gail Davis and Associates. 

Key Takeaways:

Considerations for becoming a Public Speaker:

• Understanding the realities of being a speaker
• Are you willing to invest the time to pay your dues to build a name for yourself?
• Invest in doing it well to be an amazing speaker - Hire a speaking coach

Hiring and Managing People:

• Frustration is nothing more than unmet expectations
• Don’t be afraid to pay for talent
• Be very clear about expectations
• Building a team is an opportunity to grow as a leader... to understand the nuances of how people learn and how you can communicate

Personal Growth:

• Moments of self-doubt can be overcome by time and personal growth - which leads to confidence.  
• Recognize opportunities for growth and give yourself grace to learn and evolve.

Key to Gail’s success:  Gail is super passionate about being a connector and helping people learn. Resiliency is the second biggest key to her success.

REALTALK:  It can be EXHAUSTING surrounding yourself with people just like YOU!!!  Surround yourself with people with different strengths and acknowledge them...often!  

Resources:

The Wealthy Speaker 2.0: The Proven Formula for Building Your Successful Speaking Business 

by Jane E. Atkinson (Author)

The Three Ring Circus Bootcamp:  https://3ringcircus.com/bootcamp/

Guest:

Gail Davis

Company:

GDA Speakers

https://www.gdaspeakers.com/

Social: 

@GDAspeakers - Facebook

@gdaspeakers - Instagram

@GDASpeakers - Twitter

GDA Speakers - Youtube

GDA Speakers - LinkedIn

Listen and Subscribe on: iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  Google Play  |  Spotify 

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/ 

Want to learn more and connect with like-minded women? Click here to join our RealTalk Community

SEE TRANSCRIPTION BELOW

Maureen Borzacchiello: (00:00)

Gail Davis is an accomplished corporate marketing and events professional turned entrepreneur. She dedicated decades to her craft before becoming an entrepreneur and creating Gail Davis and Associates, a leading speakers Bureau and agency. Gail set out to do things a little bit differently than the norm. And her company is not only a service provider, but a true trusted partner with their clients. Almost two decades later, GDA has built a database of world-renowned thought leaders and expert in her field. Gail is a past president of the international association of speakers bureaus. Prior to that, she served as IASB's governor, where she developed new education programs for members worldwide and through increased investment in the industry. Overall, Gail has won numerous awards, including Dallas's top 25 women in business. Gail. We are so excited to have you here today. Welcome.

Gail Davis: (01:00)

Thank you, Maureen. I've been looking forward to this all morning.

Maureen Borzacchiello: (01:04)

All right. Well, we're going to dive in because there are women out there that are going to want to hear what you have to say.

Gail Davis:

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 15

Guest: Francine Glick

Francine Glick, founder of Echo Strategic Consultants and Water Journey, a personal care product company. Francine has an MBA from NYU Stern School of Business and a BA in computer science from Barnard College at Columbia University. 

She is a perfect example of the crossroads where super-intelligent meets the super creative problem solver. Her background as an expert in Mergers and Acquisitions, specializing in the technology space enabled her to leverage her skills as she transitioned to entrepreneur and innovator when she created the category of alcohol-free hand sanitizers, and she received two patents.

Key Takeaways, Tips and RealTalk:

• Just because you think you have something that's patentable doesn't mean that it is.
• A patent is expensive. Use caution about jumping into soon and really think about whether it's important to patent your product.
• Patent pros: 
• • Gives you a marketing advantage
  • If you want to sell your company to a larger company, the larger companies are very interested in patents.
• When dealing with the retail marketplace, they want more SKUs. They don't want one product. They want more! 
• Once you have the traction and the numbers are kicking in - roll out your next product.  Don’t bring too many products to market too soon but at the same time, get prepared for “what’s next” once the primary product is thriving.
• When working with Big Box Retailers:  You need to be the expert in your space to explain to them how this is going to increase their sales and who’s going to buy it. 
• You have to be able to articulate who that ideal client is that buys your product so that collectively you can collaborate and market to them
• Big Box Retail is not always the best route. Really analyze whether your product is a good fit for that particular Big Box: Is there alignment with core values or does it just happens to be a product that everyone wants or needs in some capacity? 
• Relationships are important. Cultivate great relationships with your buyers and suppliers and MOST importantly, your banker (especially before you need your bank and more money).  
• Growth and Scaling: When you think about growth, don’t forget about the cash flow. When you're in a product business, you need to plan ahead and think through what growth will look like. It’s not just about increased sales revenue, it’s about funding more product as you grow and scale and expanding logistics and operational efficiencies.    

Guest:

Francine Glick 

Companies:

Water Journey

https://www.waterjourney.com/

Echo Strategic Consultants

www.echo-strategic.com

Social: 

• Hands2GO Alcohol-free Hand Sanitizer - Facebook
• @save_our_hands - Twitter
• @hands2go - Instagram
• Hands2GO - Amazon

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 14

Guest:  Lisa Song Sutton

About Lisa:

• Successful serial entrepreneur
• Real estate investor
• Former Miss Nevada - United States
• Former Congressional Candidate for Nevada’s 4th District.
• Former attorney who started her business career working in a top Las Vegas law firm, specializing in business litigation. 
• Started her first business, Sin City Cupcakes in 2012.

Companies:

Sin City Cupcakes

Ship Las Vegas

Elite Homes - Christie’s International Real Estate 

Liquid and Lace Swimwear

Lisa often publishes articles for periodicals like Forbes, Inc Magazine, and Business Insider on all things, business, and entrepreneurship. She's passionate about sharing her message of leadership and empowerment as well as action...encouraging people, especially women to take a seat at the table and make their voices heard. 

Key Takeaways and show notes from Lisa Song Sutton:

Partnerships and Business Models:  

• No company stays the same forever so, your paperwork then also has to change along with the company
• Have a discussion with your partner and make sure you guys are on the same page because if one of you wants to have a legacy business and the other wants to eventually sell it, in 60 months, that's the misalignment. 
• A business is going to go through life cycles. If it's a legacy business or lifestyle business, that's one thing….But when you're ramping up and getting strategic and positioning it to sell, it's a very different animal, and you really need to take a different approach as to how you run it. (i.e. how lean, how systemized, a little more frugal, etc).
• Work-life Balance has to be your own definition of it. It's not going to be 50/50. There are going to be some days where it's less than more.
• When you're in the beginning stages of your company expect to be in the trenches, don't expect to take your weekends off. Don't expect to take days off.   If you do,  you're setting yourself up for failure. You need to go in with blinders on and just say, okay, am I willing to not take a vacation for the next two years? You have to be intense if you're serious about getting your business to a place of stability.

Systems and Operations:

• Document everything - all processes and procedures.  
• It's so helpful for training new employees because the documents already exist. It's easier than as you make tweaks to your processes and systems just to update them. It's also great insurance. If a key person leaves your company and they were the one that responsible for a lot of tactical day-to-day things because someone else can pick up where they left off

Support and Mindset:

• When you go through a rough time, you can't let it discourage you to the point where you're like, I'm just not going to do this at all. I think it's really important just to not let yourself get to that point. Cause you've worked so hard to build this. Surround yourself with good supportive people.
• You're going to them for support and confidence because your confidence has now been shocked and hit because of the situation. So you have to surround yourself with people who believe in you.
• Most  women who are overachievers tend to suffer from occasional bouts of imposter syndrome
• I think imposter syndrome, is such a human thing. It can be a blessing in the sense that it keeps you humble, at least for me. I never get too big for my britches regardless of what the facade is or what the social media facade is. I never get too big for my britches. I remember where I come from. And I think somewhere that little bit of self-doubt that I'll carry or that will pop up from time to time. That's my reality check to keep grinding. 
• You never know everything. So I think they can be a blessing. So instead of looking at imposter syndrome as we have to eliminate those, that, every day is superwoman. That's not true.
• The cape has to go in the wash sometimes. 
• When I feel discouraged or in control, I'll grab a notepad and I'll start making a list of the things I can do right now. What can I tighten up right now? There's always something helpful to me. Write it down. So that way at the end of the day, I'm crossing it off. 
• If you're so drawn to adventure and you're so drawn to an idea and you know, in your gut that it could work, then why not take the risk in your twenties? Why not take the risk in your thirties?  I just feel I meet a lot of young people and think, you have so much time. You could mess up for the next nine years. And you'll still be okay. And I think as we get older, we become a little more risk-averse.
• Entrepreneurs, in general, are very willing to take a risk. And I think that 80% of the world is risk-averse and can understand that we're willing to roll the dice and do things that aren't as secure, but in exchange, it's also because we're so passionate and we want to make a difference in the world and we want to do things and beat to a slightly different drum that we're willing to take that shot.
•  

The main keys to your success?

• I have great people around me. I'm so thankful for my partners, for our teams and our staff, and the great people who work with us and for us, without them, none of this would be possible. None of this would even exist without them. I'm incredibly grateful for that and just grateful for my inner circle too, my family, my great friends who have supported me along the journey the entire way. I’ve got a girlfriend of mine who knew she was in my kitchen when we were starting the recipe right and creating recipes for Sin City Cupcakes in 2011. I'm blessed to have just great people around me.  So I just want to make sure that I remind myself of that and stay grateful for that. 

What's the best advice you've ever received? 

• So my parents told me this quote when I was little and it's just something that has stuck with me ever since, hard work, beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. And I found that to be true time and time again in my life. There's always going to be someone faster than you, smarter than you, and better looking than you, whatever the case is and in the context. And so the question is, what do you bring to the table?  I think, having a solid work ethic and being willing to grind when most won't, so that's a quality that a lot of people don't have. I think it's easy to talk about and it's easy to share memes on social media, but when it comes down to, who's going to do the work, no one wants to do the work. And so if you're the one who's willing to do the work, you should reap the reward for that. Show that your work ethic is what will set you apart from other competitors. 

What is something about you that most people don't know? 

• I'm very musical and I grew up with dance classes as well. So I grew up with private piano lessons, private flute lessons, taught dance lessons. I had a fine arts upbringing. and I think people are just always really surprised by that. 

What woman has inspired you and why? 

• There are so many, Of course, what immediately comes to mind are family and female mentors I have in my life. But you know, I love the way that Sara B

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 13

Tori Ganahl and Heidi Ganahl

• The mother-daughter, founders of Shefactor, an online platform for young women looking to create a life they love. 
• Heidi Ganahl is a serial entrepreneur. She gave up a successful, but slightly unfulfilling career in pharmaceutical sales while turning a personal tragedy of being widowed, super young in life into an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people and their pets. As the founder of camp bow wow, the largest pet care franchise in the US which grossed over $100 million. She sold that company and is living the dream.  
• Tori Ganahl. Her daughter was raised by this amazing human being and benefited from having such a bad-ass mom. Tori while in college demonstrated her leadership and people skills by becoming a sophomore president of the largest sorority on campus at the University of Oregon. When she graduated, she realized she was stuck in a corporate job that just wasn't fulfilling in the real world. 
• Tori and her mom tackled this issue head-on and ended up creating the Shefactor platform to help other young women navigate the journey of becoming confident, successful leaders of their lives and creating the life that they loved. They've reached over 1 million women in one year, and boy, they are just getting started.

Key Takeaways:

• Business is like a baby. You got to get it there.
• If you can really align what you're doing with your career, with your life, with what you're passionate about, what you care about, it just makes all the difference in your success, in how your attitude and the people that you're around with. It's just so much more fun.
• When you have partners, there's that extra dynamic because you both have different points of view.
• start with figuring out what you're good at and your strengths, and then relying on other people to do the things that you might not be as good at, but they are. And that's also a leadership moment. Cause if you're not giving them that freedom to do what they are great at, then you're depriving them of that too.
• You have to build relationships with your customers, and our customers need fun, lighthearted, little bits of inspiration every day.
• We're slowly building this community of growth-oriented young women who really get how important it is to take a second out of the day to read a little bit of inspiration, laugh, smile, or just take a tidbit of advice and move on with your day.
• when it comes to content, it's about just speaking directly to the customer and in me creating this content. And more recently we've completely boiled it down to just me doing it all because the thing is, people, connect with a person and that's how they connect with the brand. 
• You have to create memorable moments and things happening in your company and your brand that they want to hear about and they want to report about.
• Always look for opportunities to do things a little bit different or edgy to grab their attention so that they would want to have a relationship with us and report about what we were doing.
• one of the core things we built Shefactor on was this statistic that young women only stay at their jobs right now for an average of 18 months. Now, how do you build women into the C-suite and women onto the board of directors if they won't stay at the company, when they're 25 years old for longer than 18 months, it just doesn't work?
• You can't just walk in with the same old, same old, you need to know your audience, you need to know your data and you need to give them something that's really intriguing and interesting.
• I feel like we ask for this because we need affirmation that what we're doing is good and what we're doing was great. And you know, we're in the right spot, but you have to be your own cheerleader. Like you have to tell yourself that those things were great. So it starts with how you talk to yourself and then the more you've got, you're like, yeah, I can own that.
• You have to be selfish to resonate with what that vision is for you.
• you have to be in alignment with who you bring into your business, your employees, your partners, your speakers, whatever that is. And if you're not in alignment, it's a huge red flag.

What kind of challenges did you encounter, how did you navigate through them and what steps did you take to overcome them?

• Tori: I think our biggest challenge initially, especially within 2020 was this pivot that we had to make our whole plan for 2020 was to do live in-person events. And then on top of that, you know, figuring out how to monetize this space is definitely a huge challenge.
• Tori: we also had some family stuff going on, where my mom had to get brain surgery in August. And I had to completely transition over into running the company and taking care of her and doing those things. 
• Tori:  All of 2020 was pivot, pivot, pivot, and see what works, see what there's something in the wall, see what sticks.
• Heidi: We have such a small, nimble team. We had a great coach to step in. She was one of our speakers, Stephanie Pong. She does manifestation and hypnosis and teaching positive thinking.
• Tori: I think the biggest thing that I learned as well from that experience is taking every challenge as an opportunity. Like you can turn every challenge that you face into an opportunity to grow and to change and to be more passionate and fill your life with more purpose. 

If you each had to pick one thing that you still struggle with, what is it and how do you work on pulling yourself forward or through that struggle? 

• Heidi: My word for this year is grace and giving myself grace, giving the people around me, grace, and it's a struggle like you have to be kind to yourself and I can say that but who's your harshest critic. Usually, that's what we do as women. And that's kind of how society rolls, but at the end of the day, especially with everything going on with COVID and mom's trying to juggle so much, it's almost an impossible task.
• Heidi: We have to give each other grace, we have to just find ways to connect in small ways and support each other as much as we can and recognize this is not normal. It's not a normal time. Anything that is, I think, really important.
• Tori: I still struggle so much with perfectionism and I think that's something that a lot of women struggle with as well as this theory that we have to be perfect.
• Tori: Taking care of people, that's my strength, but it can also be my weakness, I can focus way too much on helping other people and not enough on myself and what I need.
• Tori: So it's about finding that balance. It has to make one little impact and let go of the need to be perfect and be everything for everyone. Especially as an entrepreneur and leading a team and leading a community like you want to be perfect. 

When you've had those moments of imposter syndrome, what have you done to pull yourself out of that? 

• Heidi: It’s really hard for women to brag about ourselves and to own our successes. And at the end, I found myself being self-deprecating and kind of making some funny remarks and I'm like, knock it off Heidi. Like, don't do that. Just stop before it comes out of your mouth. And I think that we do that often, it's a practice we've got to practice not doing that or catch ourselves when we do it. And with grace say doing better next time. And then really standing up for ourselves and speaking out and owning our successes is really important as well.
• Tori: I have a lot of thoughts on imposter syndrome and mostly because I think it's the number one thing that our community has voiced that they struggle with and it's happening so much across young women right now.
• Tori: I think a big part of that is social media. I think you constantly are comparing yourself to other people and what they're doing and how

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 12

Guest: Wendy Pease 

Wendy Pease is on a mission: to unite people across languages and cultures.  In this episode of the RealTalk podcast, Wendy shares insights, tips and strategies to help entrepreneurs evaluate and consider marketing globally, as well as the benefits of investing in proper, high quality translation to market in different languages.

Key Takeaways:

Exporting Advise:  Consider leveraging grants from the Federal Government to grow and scale through exporting

Marketing Globally:  

• 90% of people would rather spend time on a site that is in their native language and more than 50% said they would pay more
• English is NOT the global language - people want to converse in their native language, so although they may be capable of speaking English, they prefer to interact in their naitive tongue.
• The United States does not have an official language!
• ROI: sales, brand recognition, engagement
• Many companies start by marketing to other English speaking countries - but you could be going into an extremely competitive market instead of spending a small amount on translation

RealTalk Tip:  When considering exporting to another country:  Figure out what the biggest markets for your products or service (look at your google analytics + market research)

• Advice:  Pick one country and master that and then move on to pursuing other countries/languages
• Be careful about free translations like Google Translate for things like quality/in-depth translations. AI (Artificial Intelligence) translation is good for words, more than phrases… particularly generational or dual meanings, geographic use of words, dialect… so to ensure that you are paying for quality
• Determine if you need to globalize your marketing  or localize (b to b will tend to lean globalized and b to c will tend to lean localized)
• Localization:  is marketing to a local region - especially if you are a consumer product
• Cultural:  think about the cultural traditions, positions, standards for doing business so that you understand expectations when traveling abroad
• The second largest Spanish Speaking country in the world is the US!  So think about the benefits of converting your marketing even if you are not planning to export.

When thinking about going global, some things to consider are:

• What is your buyer or consumer’s journey?
• • What’s their and what can solve my problem
  • What solutions are out there
  • Easy way to buy
• So if you look at your website, what does your site offer to walk prospects through that journey, is your site clear?
• Which pages would you then want/need to convert/translate to a micro site, in the additional language
• Consider converting your FAQ or Chat Bot into the additional language?

Recommendations:

STEP funding for Federal Grants:  https://www.rapporttranslations.com/blog/us-small-business-association-step-grant-initiative

Understanding and Managing Cash Flow:

• Learn what your breakeven numbers look like
• Put systems in place to ensure that you understand your numbers
• Have a line of credit in place - an emergency fund
• Develop a relationship with your banker - BEFORE you need it
• Understand the difference between good debt and bad debt

Networking Tips:

You never know where your business is going to come from

Going into networking from the perspective of getting to know people and find ways to give/help/connect.  “Givers Gain”

Build relationships

Book:  You, You, Me, You by Jayne Mattson

LinkedIn is the same as physical networking: 

• Find common ground
• Chime in to discussions
• Set a goal to connect and get followers based on Giving/Sharing content that helps people (and relates to your product/service/industry in some capacity)
• Create a content calendar regarding what you want to post to bring value
• Engage:  answer questions, comment on other people’s content
• Build time to do the engagement part so that you are not a phantom

Mentions: 

Leading Change Course from People Biz Inc.

Book:  Traction by Gino Wickman

RealTalk - best piece of advice Wendy ever received:  Hire Slow, Fire Fast!

Perspective:  In taking a looking back, Wendy would:

• Have recognized that she’s not alone
• Believe in herself more
• Trust herself in decision making
• Ask for help or advice when she needed it

Guest:  Wendy Pease

Company:  Rapport International

Website:  https://www.rapporttranslations.com/ 

Podcast - Global Marketing Show - https://globalmarketingshow.podbean.com/  

Blog - https://www.rapporttranslations.com/blog  

Translation Resource Center - https://www.rapporttranslations.com/learning-center

• LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendypease/ 
• FB: 

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 11

Marissa Sams

Her family's international work gave Marissa a multi-dimensional view of the world and a wider viewpoint for strategy building

Marissa’s mission: help people create spaces where all can feel comfortable and heard.

Key Takeaways:

• Create a professional sphere of influence and make sure that it’s a give/get relationship - give more that you are looking to get from the connection
• Be curious when networking, focus on meeting a few key people and have quality conversations as opposed to making contacts for the sake of contacts (it’s about quality, not quantity)
• Stand up for yourself, your team and what you believe is right 
• Be willing to have uncomfortable conversations with clients or employees if there are issues of disrespect  

• Evaluate your staffing needs in relation to the scope of work that you are providing and consider a blend of outsourced support vs. staff employees to find the right blend that works for you.  

What do you feel is one of your keys to success?

Marissa: I think what makes me me currently and keeps me satisfied with where I am right now is just serving and really feeling that I have a unique set of experiences and a unique set of gifts that I'm really committed to sharing with the right people. 

Perspective:  In taking a looking back, Marissa would:

• Take time to have fun, work a little less
• Be more present 
• Appreciate the small things
• Make time to just relax
• Celebrate and own your victories
• Don't worry about what other people think - their opinion is none of your business!
• It’s a marathon, not a sprint. So pace yourself and take care of yourself 

Best Piece of advice Marissa ever received was from her grandmother:  meekly, wait and murmur not. Have patience. 

Guest:

Marissa Sams

Company:  Marissa Sams Events

Website:  http://marissasamsevents.com/

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/marissa-sams-559642a/ 

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/

RealTalk Podcast:  Episode 10

Kiki Rozema

In this episode of the RealTalk Podcast, my guest Kiki Rozema shares how a simple problem...led to the creation of her company and a movement.  

Creating a brand around confidence takes courage - hear how she took her life’s mission to help others, from being a middle school teacher...to a confidence business - that happens to sell apparel for women!

Her philosophy is different from others

Her products are Eco friendly

Her POV is Inclusion - with sizing ranging from XXS to 3XL 

In this episode you’re hear insights about:

• Investing in learning from people who are a few steps further along than you are
• Hiring people who are better than you at specific roles/tasks - to free you up to do what you’re best at
• Investing in yourself and your education - to grow and scale with more ease
• Knowing your numbers and understanding where you are financially at all times
• How making time for yourself is critical

Kiki also shares why she believes that mindset is everything - we all experiences and choices that shape who we are, but our response is what creates our success.

RealTalk Moment:  Hear how a traumatic and personal experience planted the seed that led to the formation of her company.  

Kiki’s story really is the hero’s journey - you’ll be inspired and you’ll have some good laughs too!

Guest:

Kiki Rozema

Company:  

Smoothies Activewear

Website:  https://www.smoothiestanktops.com/

IG:  smoothies_tank_tops

FB:  @smoothiestanktops

Confidence Connection FB Group for Women:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/790219721413765

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/ 

Hear how these Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Business Owners were inspired to create a product line that launched a NEW market category while making people feel good about themselves... and learn how they got their product into one of the largest global big box retailers in the world. 

• Do you want to know what the most important elements of working with a global retailer is? 
• Are you curious about where to start regarding manufacturing overseas, this episode will give you some amazing tips!

Lisa Harrington and Kimberly Martinez of Bonitas International and their newest company Bondy Worldwide, share insights about:

• Raising Capital
• Managing Cash Flow
• Having Remote Teams
• Working with Large Corporations
• Navigating Crisis ...and what the most important, critical skill is that is necessary to do so 
• Plus, they share their biggest pieces of advice around business, success and taking time for yourself.  

RealTalk moment:  Listen to them share how their fear of Covid-19 wiping out their business inspired creativity, innovation and a whole new company (while their legacy business actually thrived and grew through the pandemic!).  

There is SO MUCH valuable information, insights and relatable laughs.  If you are serious about growing and scaling your business, you won’t want to miss this episode.  

Episode Guests:

• Lisa Harrington
• Kimberly Martinez

Companies:

Bonitas International

Social:  @BooJeeBeads

Bondy World

Social:  @bondyworld

Kimberly’s LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/kmartinez1/ 

Link to Kimberly’s book Women Who Mean Business:  https://www.amazon.com/Worlds-Leading-Women/e/B008DGBCO6?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1599734005&sr=8-1

Lisa’s LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-harrington-6b912830/ 

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/ 

Did you ever meet someone whose energy and light shines so bright that you can’t help but want to know this person… well, that’s Nora Tobin! 

This incredible human being will inspire you with her journey of how she went from couch surfing and living out of her van chasing her dreams of being a professional volleyball player -  and turned it into a super successful, global business including her role as The Health and Wellness Partner for Marriott International and other Fortune 500 companies!  Hear how LinkedIn played a role.

Hear about her grit, resiliency and determination combined with her grass roots approach to proof of concept, helped her identify a gap in wellness related to travel and create a niche which has expanded to on-property programs, retreats, interim/online videos and her client interfacing programs. 

RealTalk moment:  Nora shares her how a nightmare that could have destroyed her reputation (and career)  became one of her greatest life lesson!  We talk strategy, her tips regarding systems that she uses to manage her prospecting, outreach and projects.

Plus, she gives you Three Impactful Tips to Quickly and Easily make time for yourself,  improve your wellbeing…and hello… reduce fat and improve your sex drive!!  I’m not kidding – and she’s talking only 15 minutes a day!  You want to hear this for sure.

Takeaways/Learnings:

• Don’t be afraid to say No to things/people/situations that do not serve you.  
• Recognize and embrace your own inner strength and resilience and let it empower you.
• Focus on things that are IMPACTFUL, not time consuming when it comes to wellness.  
• Give yourself protected time daily - non-negotiable time for yourself each day, even if it’s just 15 minutes.
• Take some deep breaths, while sitting in silence.  Follow this pattern:  deep breath in, hold for a three count, exhale for a five count.  Repeat this several times.  Why?  This puts your body into a parasympathetic state, which means that you're entering your day from a place of calm and focus rather than fight or flight (where our cortisol rises and ladies, cortisolpulls from your thyroid or estrogen, which equates to holding on to fat or lowering your sex drive!  So take those deep breaths!)
• Get moving - do some kind of movement to get your energy going.
• Write in a gratitude journal, or go through the process of thinking about what you are grateful for, as you set the tone for your day.  

Tip:  When we express gratitude and receive the same, our brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotransmitters responsible for our emotions, and they make us feel ‘good’. They enhance our mood immediately, making us feel happy from the inside.

By consciously practicing gratitude everyday, we can help these neural pathways to strengthen themselves and ultimately create a permanent grateful and positive nature within ourselves.

Guest on this episode:  Nora Tobin

Company:  Nora Tobin LLC

You can find Nora on:

Website: www.noratobin.com 

Instagram: @noratobin

Programs:

Kale, Cardio & Cocktails

RETREAT with Nora

Fulfillment in 3

20% Discount Code for Kale, Cardio & Cocktails:  REALTALK

About the KCC program:  Kale, Cardio and Cocktails is a full-proof fitness and nutrition plan designed to get you in the best shape of your life without having to clock hours at the gym, be deprived of your favorite foods or forgo cocktail hour.

We'd love to hear from you!  If there are topics or burning issues that you'd love to hear about, or if you would like to be considered as a guest on the RealTalk Podcast with Maureen Borzacchiello, just shoot us a note:  [email protected] or complete this short questionnaire:    https://programs.maureenborza.com/