Podcast Blog

Hear why a great customer experience means everything

I am always excited to share a great woman’s story with you, our audience. Melissa Copeland is a great woman to know. She had a wonderful career, as so many women have had, only to discover that flying all over the world was not great for her family, or even herself. She pivoted and launched Blue Orbit Consulting, which allowed her to refocus her attention on clients closer to home and on projects dear to her heart—like improving customer interactions for her customers. Our conversations roam all around the challenges she, and I, see among our clients as their customers are changing, service expectations have dramatically shifted (where fast means right now), and staffing has become an uphill climb, to say the least. What to do? Call Melissa, who brings her expertise in organizational transitions and interpersonal growth and development to the task at hand. Clients love her approach, and I think you will as well. Enjoy. 

Hear how when teams work together, everybody succeeds

You may have not paid much attention to the cultures inside law firms. Law firms are really no different than other firms. Some have strong cultures that seem to work smoothly. Others need a hand. One hand they often reach for is Amy Gardner, our interviewee in today's podcast. Amy is charming. A smart woman who has worked in law firms and now with them to help them reimagine their organizations and create teams that work better together than alone. In our conversation, you will hear ideas that are as relevant to your company or non-profit as they are to Amy’s clients. As we all try to navigate our new work culture, her story is well worth a listen.  

Hear how anthropology can send your business zooming to the top

I love to read the Financial Times. It provides a very different perspective of the world from our US papers. As I was browsing recently, I came upon a story about Gillian Tett, FT's US Managing Editor, and her new book, Anthro-Vision. Curious as I am, my question was, What is a journalist doing writing a book about anthropology, and promoting AI (Anthropology Intelligence)? My joyful discovery was that Gillian is an anthropologist who became a journalist, a bit by chance and then by design. Her book is about the power of observation. Whether in Tajikistan as an aspiring anthropologist studying marriage rituals or reporting on a major conference before the financial crisis of 2008, she mastered the art of listening to the stories being told, the resistance to change that people demonstrate, and the wisdom an anthropologist can offer—if only others are willing to listen. As a fellow anthropologist, I am fascinated and I know you will be too. Enjoy.

Hear how to build a culture that values men and women 

There are times when you are fortunate to meet exceptional women. Kim Graham Lee is one wonderful woman who is moving in a very important direction — how to build allyship for men and women. Kim is the CEO of Integrating Women Leaders (IWL) which is joining with Women Business Collaborative, of which I am a member, to conduct the first nationally-focused study to measure the practice of allyship with women in corporate America today. The primary focus of IWL's 2022 benchmark study is to take stock of where we are in building better cultures where men and women can support each other. This is truly groundbreaking...please plan to listen.

Hear how you can build wealth AND a happy life 

Laura Rotter and I met through the Business Council of Westchester, a wonderful organization that brings together great people, men and women. Laura is the founder of True Abundance Advisors, a financial life planning and wealth management firm. As she tells you her life journey, her story will resonate with you. She is a great woman to interview and share her journey with our listeners. I know you will gain knowledge about yourself, your business, and what makes you truly happy. Are you living to work or working to live?

Hear how to navigate change so you can grow and thrive

Laurie Hirsch Schulz did something quite awesome: she left corporate life to pursue her calling as a coach and a champion for small businesses, particularly for women solopreneurs. She had a great job, only to discover that she had had enough. Sounds like a recurring theme among many of our podcast guests. They are talented women ready to steer their power and their energy in new directions. Laurie's creative genius is in seeing unmet needs in her markets and finding innovative ways to solve them—rather Blue Ocean style. So much to learn from her! Enjoy.

Learn how to grow your business through your employees

What is a great performance coach? Meet Kathy D’Agostino. Kathy and I met through the Business Council of Westchester where I was giving a talk about my book, Rethink: Smashing The Myths of Women in Business. Like so many women, Kathy had a great corporate job until it wasn’t such a great corporate job. Her passion was in coaching people. As she earned her professional certifications, Kathy realized that she had, indeed, found her calling. Her particular focus is helping leaders improve their employees' performance. Listen in, learn and share. Enjoy!

Hear how to rethink your life's journey and find your purpose

Meg Nocero has several books that reflect her own journey from grief to a meaningful life. Her latest book, Butterfly Awakens: A Memoir of Transformation Through Grief, takes you through her story which could easily be your own. How many of you are doing a job you thought was your purpose in life, only to realize that you are bored, frustrated, unfulfilled, and searching for something more meaningful? What do you do, deal with it or reach for another pathway? In our conversation today, Meg shares her own discovery about how she could do something that mattered more to her. She needed a crisis in her life, the loss of her mother, to be that catalytic moment propelling her forward. Maybe you are going through something similar? Have a listen.

Learn how you can reach or exceed your income goals!

Jessica Yarborough brings to you, our listeners, her highly successful approach to helping consultants and businesses significantly accelerate their growth. Her process is an interesting one. In today's podcast, we talk about the challenges people face who have created courses or are selling low-end programs who are not reaching their income goals. Listen in and let’s think about how to help you build your sales, create long-term clients, and hit your income goals.

Hear about amazing innovations in our food supply!

You are going to love learning from Anne Greven. Anne is the Global Head of Food and Agribusiness Innovation and the FoodBytes! Platform at Rabobank. Our shared interests are all around change, specifically, how to create a new way to produce food at a time when agriculture is facing escalating crises in soil, water and the environment. In today’s podcast, you will listen to this amazing woman talk about her own personal journey and what she has learned as she moved up in the banking world. You just might leave feeling a little better about our planet, too.

Hear how to overcome the difficulties that block change

In our podcast today, Linda Coughlin and I get deep into a conversation about the challenges of working with organizations that need to change. You are going to love this interview. Lin is an expert on how to help companies rethink their processes and develop new ways to bring together new teams, engage different generations and successfully build new cultures, often from the merger of different organizations. As you'll hear, she and I are on the same page. Enjoy.

Hear how to launch your own business, successfully

In this podcast you are going to meet Maggie Karshner. She loves to work with people who want to set themselves up in a new business or grow the one they currently have. She and I talk about how to help solo-preneurs take their ideas and become coaches, consultants, therapists, chefs, specialists helping kids get into college, branding experts...you name it and Maggie has done it. During our podcast, we want to help you see what is possible and make it happen. Listen in!

Hear how change can really, actually happen for you

While I have known Marie-Claude Stockl a long time and we are both devoted horse lovers, I never had the pleasure of really getting to know her back story, and how she became so successful doing interesting and important things in teaching people how to better communicate. Today we have a splendid conversation about the challenges women face in the workplace, and the slow pace of change taking place in our society today. Both Marie-Claude and I have experienced being the only woman in the room and we have both endured, determinedly overcoming challenges and bias. Yet, we are both optimists at heart and enthused by the possibilities and opportunities we see for women today, and going forward. Do listen in!

Hear how fulfilling customers' needs can lead to a big success!

Marsha Friedman is one of those women entrepreneurs who started with little and built a great business in the public relations and communications arena. She didn’t start with a plan. Her parents didn't enable her to go to college. She was simply supposed to find a wealthy man and get married. She never had much funding or capital. She just listened and believed in herself. As she shares with us, she learned over the years to care a lot, have the courage to try and try again, and to think about the customer as part of your team. Hers is an amazing story, one we should all listen to and learn a great deal from.

Hear how to find your voice, even in the midst of change

What a powerful conversation I had with Leslie Rasmussen, award-winning author of the novel After Happily Ever After. It is a book that tells a story about a woman, perhaps you or me, who realizes that it is time for her to rethink the woman she used to be and wants to become. Sounds both familiar and intriguing, right? It is. While Leslie will tell you in our podcast all about her own journey, she also will shed light on how this novel emerged and why she has used it to give a voice to many women today facing the pain of change. Whether it is pandemic fatigue or watching the house empty as the kids head off to college, I know this is a conversation you will enjoy and a book you will want to read.

Hear how even bad times can open the door to success

Melody Watts has an amazing story to share with you, but it was hardly a straight line. Rather, nine years ago she had a tsunami of tragedies confront her, pushing her in entirely new personal and professional directions. She was diagnosed with Lyme disease, was newly divorced, and lost her mother in a tragic car accident. Then something strange happened. While looking for a solution to her son’s chronic cough, she discovered doTERRA essential oils. The oils helped her son and equally important, opened her up to a new business. She joined doTERRA in 2013 and two years later was in the top 1% in sales. Talk about lemons into lemonade. Listen in and learn!

Hear what can take your idea from good to great!

Listen in today to a woman who had a client searching for an unmet need and who then helped him open up a new market, literally Blue Ocean Strategy® in action. Jennifer Brazer, my podcast guest, has a new book out that you really should read because it's a “how-to” guide for building a great business, Blue Ocean-style. (It actually happened to be her own business.) She explains how she went from a cubicle to a multi-million dollar bookkeeping service on the cloud, serving accounting firms across the country. And it all started when a client asked her how to manage the bookkeeping for his companies at an affordable price. 

Hear how to grow your big idea into a big success 

Please meet Gina Paoloni. Gina found me through her search for speakers for her upcoming virtual summit, “The Untethered Entrepreneur.” She herself is an exciting entrepreneur who is building her business to help others grow theirs. Entrepreneurs, as you know, have an amazing way of seeing what is possible and then making it happen. Is that you? Do you have a clever idea to solve a problem in a new way? As Gina describes herself, she is often the lifeguard at the side of the pool watching her clients thrashing around trying to find a way out of a conundrum — and splashing each other at the same time. Over time, she has found an approach to help them, and you, reframe the problem and see solutions that might have been there all along. Do listen in!

Hear how to make time for strategic thinking and strategic growth 

Richard Medcalf describes himself as "what you get if you were to put a McKinsey consultant, a slightly unorthodox pastor and an entrepreneur into a blender." Richard is an executive coach and leadership consultant to CEOs and their leadership teams. What we hope you'll take away from our discussion is how to build your own career and amplify your story. Sometimes you need a mentor or a coach, and sometimes you are the coach. Both are hard. (I know; I currently have six mentees and it is hard.) For solutions, Richard has a number of big ideas to help you sharpen your listening skills and do things now, not just someday. Listen in, not a minute to waste!

Hear how to embrace change so you can soar!

As I have been working with women thought leaders and innovators, I've been struck by the number of them who are moving mountains during this pandemic and setting up new ways of life and work as we try to emerge from it. Kim Snyder and I met at Peter Winick’s Tuesday Thought Leader gatherings and enjoyed our off-line conversations. They were deep and she was full of fresh perspectives on what people are doing and how they are going to have to change as this new world we are in is changing, faster and faster. I know you will enjoy Kim as much as I do!