Springin’ Ahead!
Hello fellow NAWBO-OC members, affiliates and admirers! As April showers bring May flowers, it also brings many great sprouting business opportunities to our NAWBO-OC women. Our members report that they are gaining new clients, creating more sales and expanding their services. A recent report shows that California Women Owned Businesses are growing as well – to the tune of around 54.2%. The latest unemployment statistics indicate a drop to 8.8% in March which is at a 2 year low! Yet another report indicated that California has more than 1 million women owned businesses, more than any other state in the nation. Now that is some serious business gardening!
Speaking of success, we have a few successful people I would like to recognize – our 2011/12 slate for the Executive Board of NAWBO-OC:
- PRESIDENT – Dr. Maureen Rhyne, Heritage & Associates
- PRESIDENT ELECT – Loreen Gilbert, WealthWise Financial Service
- VICE PRESIDENT, MEMBERSHIP – Trina Flemming, Women Helping Women
- CO-VICE PRESIDENT, CORPORATE PARTNERS – Peggy Fu, Focus Business Law Group
- CO-VICE PRESIDENT, CORPORATE PARTNERS – Kennie Sheehan, Allianz Merchant Services
- TREASURER – Kathleen Urquidez, Bezich, Rose & Urquidez
- SECRETARY – Sheila Ivary, S Ivary Consulting
If elected by you, the membership of NAWBO-OC, these women will serve for 2011/12 year. I would like to thank them in advance for taking the time to volunteer to get involved at a higher level. We would be very lucky to have their talent leading our tribe!
Our April dinner meeting speaker was Marilyn August, who has been dubbed the “Queen of Ka Ch’ing”. She was very engaging and informative, and proved that she is the expert on attracting high paying clients and growing business revenues with integrity. Her motto is, “You can’t grow your business without growing yourself.” The keys to her presentation were:
- Know Thyself (Your Inner Game of Money) – check your beliefs, attitudes values and behaviors
- Money – The Last Taboo – don’t let preconceived notions and ideas limit yourself
- The Hidden Money Objection – look under the covers of “I can’t afford it”
- Stop Mind Reading – develop your ideal client profile and go for it
- Be prepared with a scripted dialogue – asking more questions to manage triggers
- Use these 6 power words – WHAT DO YOU MEANT BY THAT? (This will allow you to get to the bottom of their concern)
What we learned from Marilyn is that we are in control of our destiny.
Speaking of speakers, be sure to join us in May as we welcome Jenn Lim, former Zappos leader and happiness guru. Her participation on the Zappos leadership team led to the sale of Zappos to Amazon.com for $1.2 billion. She is currently the CEO and Chief Happiness Officer of Delivering Happiness, a company she and Tony Hsieh, former Zappos CEO, co-created. Jenn created the first culture book for Zappos in 2005, and her story of how to create a culture based on happiness while being profitable at the same time is truly inspiring, and one you won’t want to miss. It is sure to be a sellout crowd, so reserve your spot now by going to our website.
We are excited to roll out our first-ever NAWBO-OC Marketplace Expo on Saturday, April 16th, from 10:00-2:00. This is just before Mothers Day and offers a unique shopping and networking experience. This is a must-attend event! There will be a variety of vendors including jewelry, chocolate and wine!
As my term as President nears an end, I thank you for joining me on this wonderful ride. It has been great for me to get to know you and your business needs. May the seeds of success that you’ve sewn sprout strong and bountiful, providing you with all the success you so richly deserve. YOUR success is our success, for you are the future of NAWBO-OC.