“When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.” Dalai Lama The secret to marketing copy that connects wholeheartedly with your audience? Using exactly the same words in the same way that they talk about their problems and what they need. EXACTLY the same Read more...

“The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” – Ludwig Wittgenstein I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I feel reading emails or social posts coming from businesses I care about. And I find I’m often disappointed – especially when I’m a longtime customer and nothing in the email acknowledges that. Read more...

“A role model should be like the light at the end of a tunnel, guiding you when you are lost.” —Cristina Imre We are all competing for people’s attention when we are in business. And while I fully believe there is enough for all of us (coming from a mindset of abundance), we are also Read more...

“Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.” —Rollo May If your business grew out of a passion you have to either do something or to create an impact/make a difference in the world —or both—then building a community can be instrumental. Social media started out as a community building set Read more...

"There is no truth. There is only perception." —Gustave Flaubert Pricing by value was the topic in my last essay: Your Price Signals Your Value to Your Market. In a nutshell, your price reflects the value delivered to your customer, rather than the cost of the product or service to you – a completely customer-based Read more...

“Perhaps the reason price is all your customers care about is because you haven’t given them anything else to care about.” —Seth Godin Pricing often seems like a tactical, mundane sort of topic. Prices are usually set according to what already exists in the market: slightly above or slightly below a competitor. Most small businesses Read more...

The Story Behind "Let's Go Make Some Money" In 2011 and 2012 when we were first having monthly WomenLaunch (a startup mentoring accelerator, now closed down) meetings, one of the most inspiring stories was about 2 guys having lunch next to a women and her friend at a café.  When the guys finished – they were obviously Read more...

"Courage is grace under pressure." – Ernest Hemingway Thoughts about failure: Are you making up stuff about what it means for you to have failures?  Why? How can you bring more grace to the challenges you face every day? What are some failures you’ve had that are starting to build some wisdom? What new directions Read more...

What are you NOT doing for your business because you’ve never done it before? Starting a business isn’t for the faint of heart.  You know that… The journey is full of frustration, upset, highs, and lows.  We all make mistakes, learn from the experience, refine our skills, and get advice from our friends and mentors. Read more...

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. —T.S. Eliot The challenge: How far out of your comfort zone are you stepping? Could you step just a little farther? What would be possible if you just took the step without knowing where you’d land? Just one Read more...