Inspiration for Motivation

Inspiration for Motivation

While the Thanksgiving holiday is a great occasion for feasting, I truly believe that we must not forget the reason underlying the celebration.

This week, I offered to substitute for a friend, Dr. Brandon Lemuel at a regular Wednesday morning meeting of local business people where FAMILY Magazine is a member.  Dr. Brandon (as we call him) provides a motivational quote every Wednesday to the group. I volunteered because he will miss the meeting this week. He is going to be with family for Thanksgiving.  I thought it would be enjoyable to search for a good quote to share with our Wednesday group.

Little did I know what an experience this search would be. Dr. Brandon is always in a great mood and greets everyone on Wednesday with such enthusiasm.  Now I know why.  Searching for a good motivating quote to give next Wednesday has been just down right FUN.  I have read some of the greatest quotes, I am in a great mood and I can’t wait for Thanksgiving so I can give a great toast at our family gathering.

But there is one problem, I found too many motivational quotes.  Now I can’t choose the best one.  So I decided to put my favorites on my blog and share.

When you gather around with friends and family for Thanksgiving dinner, think of all the wonderful time you have spent together. It is good to count your blessings, share your dreams and aspirations. Let those that love you know your inner most goals.

The tradition of Thanksgiving dinner teaches us to appreciate the finer things in life. If you want this tradition to continue, you must invest positive energy into the Thanksgiving dinner, and make it a joyous affair. Let your enthusiasm and energy revitalize everyone. Prepare a great Thanksgiving toast and inspire others with your positive words. Make this your best Thanksgiving dinner. Here are some Thanksgiving quotes to help you create a memorable Thanksgiving.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy
As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

Anne Frank
I do not think of all the misery, but of the glory that remains. Go outside into the fields, nature and the sun, go out and seek happiness in yourself and in God. Think of the beauty that again and again discharges itself within and without you and be happy.

Theodore Roosevelt
Let us remember that, as much has been given us, much will be expected from us, and that true homage comes from the heart as well as from the lips, and shows itself in deeds.

William Shakespeare
Small cheer and great welcome makes a merry feast.

Robert Quillen
If you count all your assets, you always show a profit.

Cicero
A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parent of all the other virtues.

Johannes A. Gaertner
To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.

Frederick Keonig
We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon
You say, 'If I had a little more, I should be very satisfied.' You make a mistake. If you are not content with what you have, you would not be satisfied if it were doubled.

Alice W. Brotherton
Heap high the board with plenteous cheer and gather to the feast, And toast the sturdy Pilgrim band whose courage never ceased.

H. W. Westermayer
The pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts... nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving.

Albert Pine
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal.

Happy Thanksgiving!

And,a big thank you to Dr. Brandon for the opportunity to share with our group on Wednesday.

Brenda

Annual Women's Leadership Conference

Last night I was privileged to attend the 4th Annual Women’s Leadership Forum held by the Washington DC Police Foundation at the Women’s Memorial at Arlington Cemetery.  Here is a picture of District of Columbia Chief of Police, Cathy Lanier and myself.

The November issue of FAMILY Magazine features Chief Lanier on the cover and includes a wonderful article about her and how she has been so successful in a male dominated world.  If you haven't read this insightful article written by our own Cynda Zurfluh, please read it today.

The event featured a panel of 3 great role models for young women:  Police Chief Cathy Lanier, Beverly Perry, Special Advisor to the CEO, Pepco Holdings and Alisa Ulrey, Group Director for Target Corporation in DC, Maryland and Virginia.

The evening started off with a bang when the two wonderful moderators (young DC women) asked each of the panelists what was their most difficult challenge.  Ms. Ulrey answered that balancing her life as a mother and a professional woman was definitely her biggest challenge.

I knew right then and there I was going to like this panel of influential women. 

Here are some significant quotes from the panel:

Beverly Perry, “I tell my team I won’t ask you to work harder than me.  Just try to keep up.”

Chief Lanier, “The decisions I made when I was young made my life much harder.  Consider every decision you make carefully.”

Alisa Ulrey, “My motto is doing the right thing even when no one is watching.”

Beverly Perry, “I found my passion when I focused on helping my community.”  (Interesting information – Beverly is the highest-ranking female African American in the energy community) 

In case you are not aware of the Washington DC Police Foundation, the mission of the Washington DC Police Foundation is to bring together business, professional, civic and nonprofit organizations and individual citizens to promote public safety by providing financial and in-kind resources to the Chief of Police and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Their goal is to make Washington, DC a safer place to live, work and visit for everyone.

Last night Joseph Persichini, the Executive Director spoke about the Foundation’s summer mentoring program.  He was very motivating and I am going to explore having FAMILY Magazine participate next year.  Please look into this great organization that is definitely making a difference in the lives of youth in the District of Columbia.  The young women in attendance last night were really impressive and you can expect great things from them.

Brenda

My Keynote Address

Today I was fortunate to give the keynote address for a group of about 90 local business leaders.  The group I spoke to is a networking group, and about 30 visitors attended as well. You have probably heard of BNI (Business Networking International). It is a great organization for networking and building business by word of mouth. And, the chapter that I belong to is absolutely fantastic. In fact, it is the largest BNI in Northern Virginia. They are like working with family. They really care about each other.

What is the purpose of the BNI keynote?  The purpose of having each member do a presentation is so we can all understand a member and their business. Because this group really wants to help each other, it’s an important part of our weekly meeting.

The mission of FAMILY Magazine is to help businesses that want to sell to our readers be successful, and grow.  We all know that in today’s cluttered marketing world, you really need to reach your audience 9 different ways and FAMILY Magazine does offer several ways for companies to reach our readers.  At this presentation I focused on our print magazine.

After the meeting, one of my guests, Ritzya, the Drama Coach, came up to me and offered presentation advice. I will share her top three tips –
1.    Make a strong presence. Keep their attention.
2.    Stay within the time you promised. Don’t go over.
3.    Tell stories, some at the beginning and some during your presentation.

Her ideas are great and certainly something that we could all do to make our presentations better.  Here is a link to her website if you’re looking to improve your speaking, your personal pitch or your image.
http://www.thedramacoach.com/4436.html

When BNI members conduct their keynotes, they’ll typically mention who makes a good referral for their company.  Since I went over my allotted time today (true to form), I wasn’t able to share this information with my group.  So, who is a good referral for FAMILY Magazine?

What is a good referral for me?
A good referral for me is a company sells a service or product to women who have children. If you are talking to someone with these attributes and they say, “We are putting together a new brand or new marketing plan” they are a great lead for me. You could say to them, “Have you looked at FAMILY Magazine? I am friends with the publisher.”

Another good referral might be a company that is just starting and wants to sell to women, AND they have an advertising budget. You might be helping them with other aspects of their business, so you will be able to see if you, or your wife might purchase their product. You could ask them if they are putting together a marketing plan. Then suggest they also look at FAMILY Magazine.

Sometimes FAMILY can work with a very small company that is just starting when they have a small marketing budget.  They might not be ready to have Mary Kay with Blue Shamrock Communications step in, but we can be creative and help them get going. If they are looking to reach women, we can help them.

     You might listen for these key statements:
We are reaching out into the Washington market.
We are looking for ways to promote our business.
We are looking for a good way to communicate with moms.
We want to do more social networking to reach moms.

What would be a bad referral?

We really are not a good source for an in-home day care or companies that cannot afford at least $120 a month for advertising. To really work with them and promote them through our weekly newsletter and social networking (as well as a print ad), they really need to make a commitment towards marketing of at least $120 a month.

How do you give me a referral? A personal email introduction is a great way to give me a referral.  Be sure to include their name and phone in the email.


In case you missed it, here are the main points of my speech:

Women make almost all the buying decisions for almost everything we all use.  Readers of FAMILY Magazine make some of those decisions when they read our magazine.

You need to be persistent and consistent with your advertising because women keep information a long time.

You can count on FAMILY Magazine to help build business.  We have several different methods that reach our readers to achieve this.

A good referral is a company that is targeting women and ready to make a consistent investment into reaching women.

Because at FAMILY Magazine, WE REACH WOMEN

    If you have questions, please send me an email.  Brenda’s Email

I’ll leave you with my motivational quote for the morning –
“Watch the sunrise at least once a year, put a lot of marshmallows in your hot chocolate, lie on your back and look at the stars, never buy a coffee table you can't put your feet on, never pass up a chance to jump on a trampoline, don't overlook life's small joys while searching for the big ones.”

-- H. Jackson Brown, Jr., Writer