Public Speaking Prowess Mindset

 "Fear paralyzes you - fear of flying, fear of the future, fear of leaving a rubbish marriage, fear of public speaking, or whatever it is."

~ Annie Lennox

One of the most important things in life, relationships, toasts, and in any industry is to remind yourself that your mindset in public speaking, as in every area of accomplishment, matters.

Keep in mind, front and center, that you’re speaking publicly often, and that it is not about a "speech" or something contrived, rather it is about communicating to connect, and ultimately demonstrate expertise and confidence through the spoken word. 

When you know this, and believe it, as it is developing relationships, it tends to alleviate a lot of that classroom perspective of “oh my gosh, I have to give a speech now” that unfortunately lingers with a lot of people when they aren’t familiar with how often public speaking, and even simple, effective communication, is a part of their daily successful exchanges.

For a Public Speaking Prowess mindset, think connection, not speech-giving, engaging, not overwhelming, and audience, not you, and your mind will guide your heart, and therefore, your effectiveness in front of a group of 1, 10, hundreds or more!

#PublicSpeaking #presenting #PresentingIdeas

Lessons Learned: Closed Door/Open Window

"Don't spend time beating on a wall, hoping to transform it into a door."

~ Coco Chanel

It is often said that when one door closes, another one opens, or that when a door closes, a window opens, and that may give us a sense of "things will work out", and yet you are encouraged to think and act upon "If I choose to close a door, I get to open another door or window!"!

I embraced this in 2022, by choosing to resign from some boards, and rolling off others as I opened up to new boards and opened my mouth to welcome some of the new board members with encouragement, and by doing that I certainly learned some lessons, including:

1) Do not let a door stand in your way - open or closed, you choose what you walk past or walk through.

2) Leaving something or someone doesn't remove the impact you had, it simply ends the experience (not the memories).

3) Look back not on the closed door, rather look back to learn from experiences to grow, and mistakes to avoid in the future that you may have missed at the moments that came up later that added to the reason you closed it.

4) Look forward to doors and windows, as well as the people who present themselves in those spaces/opportunities, as there is no fear in the unknown when you know there is hope and anticipation in the future for what can be, rather than what might not happen!

So, as I did, go ahead, and close a door, open another, open a window or more than one. It's not the closing that stops your progress, it is the opening that inspires new beginnings and forwards momentum!

#ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment #KIND #Leadership #1KindAct #Growth #EmotionalIntelligence #EmotionalIntelligence #PerformanceCoaching #OneBeanerPerformanceCoach #LivingKindly #KindnessIsMyOwnSuperpower #Kindness #CoachsCorner #Resilience #Resiliency #Growth #LessonsLearned #Gratitude

Debbie@DebbieLundberg.com 813.494.4438 DebbieLundberg.com

Stressed or Blessed?

 "Adopting the right attitude can convert a negative stress into a positive one." ~ Hans Selye

If you were to answer the question "Are you stressed or blessed?", what would you say? Stressed? Blessed? Both?

If you think you are stressed, you will likely feel stressed. When you feel stressed, you typically approach people and situations impatiently and/or with a bit of negativity or doubt.

While if you think you are blessed, you will likely feel blessed. When you feel blessed, you will often approach people and situations with hope and openness, even positively!

Should you think the answer is "Both", you will bounce back and forth between stressed and blessed, and even though that could seem fair, go past fairness into goodness by adjusting your thoughts toward blessed. 

Blessed thoughts are those of abundance and strength, gratitude and appreciation, perspective and purpose. Being in a state of blessed in thoughts and feelings doesn't necessarily imply a religious or even spiritual connotation, yet it can be a huge part of your connectedness - however that concept of 'blessed' sits with you.

Alternatively, stressed thoughts are those of lack and fear-filled vulnerability, and can be an unfortunate part of a lack of connectedness.

By being blessed, not stressed or both stressed and blessed, you will serve yourself, and additionally, those around you will have the chance to feed off your approach and attitude!

#ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment #KIND #Leadership #1KindAct #Growth #EmotionalIntelligence #EmotionalIntelligence #PerformanceCoaching #OneBeanerPerformanceCoach #LivingKindly #KindnessIsMyOwnSuperpower #Kindness #CoachsCorner #Resilience #Resiliency #Growth #LessonsLearned #Gratitude

Debbie@DebbieLundberg.com 813.494.4438 DebbieLundberg.com

LESSONs LEARNED: Being Married to a 50-something!

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young. 

~ Henry Ford

It feels like it wasn't all that long ago that I was thinking and likely saying "God, 40 is so old" and/or something like "Can you imagine what it would be like to be married to someone in their 50's - eeeewww!!!". While you may think that is shameful that I share that, and you have the right to, I admit having those thoughts. Back then, I expressed most thoughts, so it's fair to imagine yes, I said them out loud. I can even recall my girlfriends and me giggling about it without a care in the world beyond that or the realization that we would be those ages someday if we were fortunate!

Believe me, the first time I was engaged (yes, I was engaged three times before getting engaged and going through with the wedding to my husband, Michael), I never thought being married to someone in their 40's would or could be similar in the type of fun and romance and intrigue that being involved in my 20's would bring.

And then I hit my 30's, 40's, and now 50's!

While Michael is younger than I am, on his 50th birthday, I told him "Funny, I never anticipated being married to a 50-year-old" and then added "while having so much fun and living life fully!". So, here are my lessons learned from being married to a 50-something:

1) Age is a number. That number matters for some medical testing and otherwise, it's a number. You do the math!

2) Attitude makes a huge difference in whether someone acts in thoughts and motions to seem old or not.

3) Health and well-being are keys to staying youthful in actions and approaches, activities, and adventures.

4) Aging with someone is very different from observing someone as they age.

Overall, love and age can be friends or enemies. And, while at 53, I really do feel 38, I wouldn't want to be married to anyone other than my 50-something husband, and I would not want to be any other age! Here's to being married to Michael as a 50-something for years to come and then a 60-something, a 70-something, an 80-something, and so on!

Happy July Birthday month to Michael!

#ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment #Kind #PerformanceCoaching #OneBeanerPerformanceCoach #LivingKindly #KindnessIsMyOwnSuperpower #Kindness 

Lead for GROWTH

"A man's growth is seen in the successive choirs of his friends."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

American essayist, lecturer, and poet, who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. (1803 - 1882)

Often a good way to grow ourselves as leaders is to assist in the growth of others.

Who can you be a part of in his or her GROWTH? Meaning:

G - Give that person the

R - Responsibility and

O - Opportunity to

W - Work within their

T - Talent and time while

Hearing feedback for learning

Remember, GROWTH is a good thing...for their leadership and yours!

Maximize Your Moxumility

"You know more than you think you know, just as you know less than you want to know." - Oscar Wilde, Irish Poet, Novelist, Dramatist and Critic, 1854-1900

MoxumilityTM is a word I have trademarked to show, express and encourage the idea of combining moxie with humility. While it is super to have the confidence (the moxie) it is also well-serving to know there is more to learn, experience and appreciate (the humility). Here are my top 10 ways to Maximize Your Moxumility. Additionally, here's a link to a 28-minute talk where I shared this as well: http://youtu.be/c23pkMRH1jE 10 - Be the expert in your space for your size, clients & offerings. 9 - Be trusting to be trustworthy. 8 - Be responsive instead of reactionary. 7 - Be contagious. 6 - Be grateful instead of just full of "great"s. 5 - Be absolutely, positively addicted to the truth! 4 - Be more interested in others than interesting to others. 3 - Be about "What?" and/or "How?" over "Why?". 2 - Be the product, and be the value. 1 - Be an intentional example that others can sample. Whether it is the video, or just the quick summary, here's hoping this tip reminds you of your moxie and humility! Thank you, and make the most of your moxumility!

TLC for You and Me

“When you don't know that you don't know, it's a lot different than when you do know that you don't know.”

- Bill Parcells, ESPN Analyst, Former NFL Coach (b.1942)

Football season is back! It is an exciting time of year for sports fans, as hockey, baseball and football are all available for our viewing pleasure! Bill Parcells is quoted this month because his Sunday pre-game commentary reminded me of what I call TLC for You and Me. It was as though he’d heard me speak or gotten inside my brain. I don’t know, and since I don’t know where it came from, per his quotation, it is a lot different than if I did know that!! So, regardless of what the reason, thanks, Mr. Parcells for reminding me of a worthwhile tip to share this month!

TLC is often thought of as Tender Loving Care, and I appreciate that. For me, TLC is about personal and professional success, and it stands for:

Talent
Leadership
Commitment

Whether it is your family, a sports team, or your work team or business, to be confident in what you know, and get to where you are driving forward to learn what you don’t know as you strive to succeed, you must have the right people handling the things that suit their skills and interests (Talent), the direction and passion to go out and make changes where needed and keep things the same where they are working well (Leadership), and all be working toward the same goal for the same reasons with a common brand and definition of a "win" (Commitment).

As you move forward finishing out the 3rd quarter, take a look at your roster, see who is playing on your team, is the TLC apparent? Do you have the Talent, the Leadership, and the Commitment to get to your goals and make it a winning season for your household, your league, your group or your business? Tweaking the TLC, and letting everyone know all three areas, Talent, Leadership and Commitment combine to be the base that will determine your results, will surely assist you in knowing you are the champions you can be!

10 Ways to Compel through Connection!

"There are no traffic jams along the extra mile." - Roger Staubauch

Businessman & Heisman Trophy Winner (born February 5, 1942)

While there is much talk about how to serve clients, below is a top 10 list of ways to truly make a connection. This approach means not just customer service, it means client care. This means not just reacting to a situation, it means responding to the person in the situation. Often we think we want to tell people about something, but that is just chatter, and then we make the attempt to sell them on an idea, but that has a lot to do with convincing and persuasion, and if we reach a level where someone is compelled to work with us and/or partner with us as a client or customer, then we have built a relationship through true rapport!

10. Wow them with your words, and make them ambassadors through your actions. Say what you mean and do what you say you will do. Offer incentives and ask for referrals. Welcome people back instead of asking where have YOU been? No need to discount you or your product, instead, show appreciation with special offers/opportunities.

9. Think and say "Yes, and", and demonstrate an "Absolutely I can" attitude. Start positive and stay positive. Focus on what is RIGHT versus what is WRONG. Be humble in your errors and show moxie in your solutioning. Have fun in what you are doing.

8. Plant the SEED (Strive to Exceed Expectations Denoted) for Success. You have to know what is expected to meet/exceed the expectation. Be humane...not just human.

7. Know your "difference", live your truth and be memorable. Remember the win is not just in getting a customer, it is also about keeping customers. Each client's perception of you and/or your company will determine how well you do this and that perception will depend on how compelling you are to them. Make things a memorable experience. The connection of knowing someone's name and smiling sincerely are great for a start. Leave people with something they either cannot get elsewhere or cannot get in a way you deliver it. Know your 2-4 areas of expertise and stick with them. Otherwise, say "no thank you", and connect, connect, connect as the referral source.

6. Get and Give Feedback. Take notes, use names, and really listen. Listen to understand instead of just to react. If you are a challenged listener, notes will slow your pace. Agree with a person and disagree with an idea (not the other way around). When you survey your clients, and I encourage surveying, share the results quickly and without defense. Own the results and state the actions you'll take...and then do just that!! Address the issue at hand, and then dig into the root cause.

5. Adopt a no-corner-cutting mentality/approach. If you already have one, let everyone know! Our society is about "gimme more"...and what else can I get. Be the one with the integrity to walk away.

4. Give back...for the right reasons. Checks are nice, actions make a difference, and advocacy allows for learning. People like to do business with people who are more than business. Earn their respect and then share about charities/groups for the reason of advocacy and learning, and not just to get recognized or to be a top fund-raiser. Strive for fun-raising instead...and your give backs will get even more!

3. Appropriately Promise and Appropriately Deliver (Instead of Under Promise and Over Deliver or Sandbagging). Be a business of both empowerment and accountability. Offer options...only 2-3 and only those with which you are okay.

2. Strive for inclusivity instead of exclusivity. There is a difference in when people are part of something versus people attempting to "get in" where there is a level of discomfort. Make people feel welcomed and a part of your success.

1. Know that the quality of customer service cannot exceed the quality of the people who provide it. Your team, even if you are a team of 1, will treat others how they are treated. Start with a positive view of you...that view carries far! There is a connection with how we feel about ourselves and how we care for others. Invest in you/your team a set % of earnings, and only let that grow as your success grows!

Pick and choose what works for you in your situation. How can you enhance your customer and client relationships through care and connection? After all, aren't we all about compelling customers and clients to drive Client Satisfaction and Build Lasting Rapport?

Learning is FUNdamental

As I remember the Public Service Announcements, PSAs, that stated Reading is Fundamental, I alter it slightly in my mind to Learning is FUNdamental.

It seems while many kids think "I have to go to school Monday", a lot of adults are thirsty for learning, and yet, once out of school, is there enough formal learning provided for them?

Speaking with a group of people at the Tampa Convention Center today, I realized that the professionals in attendance wanted to be there on a beautiful Saturday...yes, to enhance their work, yes, for the tools, and yes, to have some fun.

And fun we had! Learning is FUNdamental, and when each growth opportunity occurs, remember it is learning, and seek/create the FUN in it! Embrace the FUN and the fundamental is enjoyable and the learning is inevitable!

Share Your Voice...

At a public event this weekend, I had an opportunity to share my voice, so to speak. From that little bit of sharing my passion and voice, quite a few people have contacted me with questions or interests, and now, each of us is growing and changing...because each of us shared our voice.

How many times do you want to say something or have a way to do something but hold back or blow it off in your mind? If you would kindly remember that your voice...your opinion...you, matter, so the sharing of your voice is a way to be heard and for others to hear. Consider it a way to learn and grow yourself and possible for others.

Here's to your voice...please let it be heard!