Kristen Marie's Blog

Swing for the fence.

Recently I had the pleasure of serving on a panel talking about Personal Branding. This is a topic I am super passionate about because it is directly tied to my belief that we all have gifts to give the world..... OUR OWN GIFTS.... and it’s our job to figure out how to give them (and prosper while doing it). After the panel today - talking to about 100 women business owners - I got even more lit up. WE ALL HAVE GIFTS TO GIVE THE WORLD. It’s our responsibility to uncover our heart’s desire and set up our lives so we get to go do that thing that makes us sing. And we get to thrive doing it.

So I say, be bold. Play big. Swing for the fence. Build a personal brand that mirrors what's in your heart.

You can.

Master the Mastermind

I love mastermind groups. About a year and a half ago I met Terri. We decided to form a two person mastermind - even though I'm in Seattle and she's in Philadelphia. Oh, what an amazing experience. In May we spent two days on my business... looking, assessing, asking questions, considering options, making plans, setting intentions. It was extremely powerful. Many of the insights that came from those two days are in motion and making a huge difference in Affirmagy. Last weekend we focused on Terri's business. Wow wee! What an honor to get to contribute to someone else's  passion and make a difference for them. There is nothing like it!

Are you considering looking for a mastermind group, or starting one of your own? If you are, email me for a special report I wrote on the topic. I’ll be happy to send it to you as my gift.

Where's Your WOW?

While in Dallas a couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of seeing Robyn Spizman, and getting a copy of her new book Where's Your WOW?: 16 Ways to Make Your Competitors Wish They Were You!

I am totally inspired! My favorite chapters include "Hire People Smarter Than You" and "Find Your Edge - and Sharpen It". If you are looking for a smart, informed and dynamic resource to get your entrepreneurial juices flowing get yourself a copy of this book!

As you know I love sharing about people who are designing and living a life they love. I think authors are some of the most creative people around simply because what they do is creation in its purest form. Creating from nothing - that's exactly what Robyn is all about. Wow!

The Giving Zone

Everyday I meet people who are truly living a life they love. Today I am honored to shine a light on Bruce Painter, creator of Giving Zone Radio. WOW. Bruce is up to really cool things!

His book "The Giving Zone" offers reader access to a 'realm where your dreams come true'. Hello? How much better can it get? Bruce is a perfect example of living a life you love.

When Bruce and I met - through Gail Goodwin of Inspire Me Today - it was such a delight. Bruce was gracious enough to invite me on his radio show for an interview. Take a listen.

And check out what Bruce is up to. He's a man with a vision, a passion and a commitment to living full out.

What's your Good Cheer Company?

Ever come across something and declare "I wish I'd thought of that!"? Well, I sure do. Here's my latest find:

The Good Cheer Company makes these fabulous little metal puzzle pieces with words like "I am powerful", "I am grateful" and "I am magnificent". WOW COOL IS THIS IDEA? I have "I am blessed" on my key chain. What a perfect gift for yourself or for someone you adore.

In addition to the puzzle pieces, I just bought their Cheers to You CD. Oh my! Go take a listen. It's totally fabulous.

I love that the minds behind all this actually took the time to build it! That's what it's all about folks; finding your heart's desire, giving yourself permission to go after it, and surrounding yourself with people who support your big dreams. That's a powerful combination that serves the world.

What's your "Good Cheer Company"?

The Big Idea: Michael Port

I love watching people design, create and live a life they love. Michael Port is a perfect example. Author, speaker, and sales expert, Michael appeared on one of my favorite shows last night - the Big Idea with Donny Deutsch. And Michael hit a home run!

For the show, Donny assembled a host of experts to discuss The Art of Selling. What a show! Michael brought an authenticity and thoughtfulness to the conversation that I greatly appreciated. Be gracious, be transparent, be of service. These are the very same ideas that have fueled our success.

I encourage you to learn more about Michael - I had the great pleasure of hearing him speak in Dallas a year ago. He's a great man with great wisdom to share. (Check out his blog.) And he's living a life he loves!

Bravo.

YES, Please. Make Mine a Million!

In the spirit of living a life you love, Nell Merlino founded Count Me In - the organization that created the Make Mine a Million program that is coming to Seattle June 11. (I am HONORED to share that Affirmagy is one of the 16 finalists selected from 200+ applications!!!)

Reader's Digest did a fabulous piece about Nell and her vision for 1,000,000 women owned businesses doing over $1,000,000 in sales by 2010. Nell is my kind of thinker. This BIG IDEA (Donny Deutsch gets it too!) is so compelling (and timely) that OPEN by American Express is a founding sponsor.

What an extraordinary time in which we live. I am so proud to be a part of a growing, dynamic, creative, powerful group of entrepreneurs across this great country who are following their hearts, giving their best, and through their businesses making a difference for others.

It's a beautiful thing.

Connect with Kristen

Friday I had the pleasure of hosting my first Connect with Kristen event. What a treat! It was such an honor getting to lead the day, and learn about the aha's and breakthroughs that my guests experienced.

For those of you who teach, you know that any time you immerse yourself in workshop - even if you are leading the conversation - it's natural to experience your our aha's! in the process.

Well, that's what happened to me. As the morning was unfolding, I remembered the very first set of steps that made the day possible...and they were super simple: I declared that I was doing the event. Sitting in Maui at the end of February, I created Connect with Kristen. I selected a date, built a little website, and drafted an outline of the day. That's it.

All the details, the comprehensive outline, securing attendees, figuring out all the ins and outs came later.
My big aha? GET INTO ACTION on your BIG DREAMS. Tip the domino. Step the first step.

It will all unfold from there. This I know.

Making it up as we go....

How Helping More People Helps Your Bottom Line

Our newest venture at Affirmagy is called Positively Fundraising. A division we built dedicated to helping non-profits, primarily youth groups, raise money for their programs.

From a personal perspective, I am so excited about what we've created because as a creative type I love to take an idea and give it form.

From a business perspective, I am excited for that reason, and more. Consider why our Positively Fundraising division makes sense for Affirmagy, and see if you can draw some parallels in your business.

1. Help Your Customers Achieve THEIR Goals.
Positively Fundraising is a superb example of helping people get what they want. Organizations need money. We provide a great way for them to make it. As I learned years ago, figure out how to help people get what THEY want and you have a solid foundation to start from.

2. Make It Easy-Squeezy-Lemonezy To Work With You.
Ain't nobody got time for nothin' these days.  I say, MAKE IT EASY for people to give you money! I swear. Do it.
Step back, look at your business, and figure out how to make it so easy to work with you that it's like breathing.

With Positively Fundraising, we make it easy in lots of ways:

• We provide downloadable order forms that our customers can customize with their contact info.
• We provide a secure place to order from us 24/7.
• We offer smart and savvy tip sheets that make it easy for folks whether they've done a fundraiser or not.
• We offer a master order form which consolidates individual orders into one order for placement with us online.
• We offer free shipping on orders over $300.

Every single one of these things came from either a direct customer request, or the process of us walking through what we thought our customers would need. Try finding "make it easy" things to infuse into your business. It's a powerful experience.

Make Mine A Million

Nell Merlino is quite a woman. (Check out the recent article about her in Reader's Digest here.) She's the visionary behind Make Mine a Million - a campaign to support women owned enterprises break through the seven figure mark in sales.

Ever come across something so cool you hit your hand to your forehead while declaring, "I wish I'd thought of that!"? Well, MMAM is one those for me. I LOVE this idea.

In the past year, Pink Magazine and O Magazine in the past year BOTH printed the results of research showing somewhere between 2-6% of women owned businesses ever reach a million in sales, yet we are starting businesses 2x the rate of men.

So why don't women aspire to build big businesses? I am not sure. But I do know that Nell Merlino is a tireless force in supporting those that do.

Make Mine a Million is coming to Seattle and beyond. Check out their schedule here.

Onward ladies!