Website: www.KristenDomingue.com

Occupation: Personal Brand Strategist, Creator of ignite!

Twitter Handle: @KristenIgnites

1. What are three words that best describe you?

No BS, honest and clear.

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

It’s my gift to help other women make their passion profitable. I also have cool hair.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences?

1) Streaming TV shows on my computer marathon style (LOVED Downton Abbey for this!)

2) Clothes.

3) Learning. I love to learn. I’m always enrolled in some class or another. At least one personal and one for professional development.

4. What’s currently your favorite…

Oh God. I change favorites like most women change clothes. By the time this is posted, I’ll have other favorites. Feel free to tweet me for an update!

Restaurant: Bar Jules in San Francisco

Shopping Destination: Helmut Lang

Hangout: I don’t really hang out. But I love to work at Soho Grand.

City: New York City

Food: Anything my chef-y friend James makes.

Cocktail: I don’t really drink.

Book/Author: The Big Leap, Gay Hendricks

Song/Artist: Anything by Tycho

Website: www.KristenDomingue.com

Magazine: Inc.

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

People who blame their lack of success on their circumstance instead of owning their lack of hustle and doing something about it.

6. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

Oprah. Who doesn’t want to have dinner with Oprah? I have some things to ask her about being a “first”.

7. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

It’s about creating a platform from which I can make a difference. The personal brand is the tool.

8. What is your #1 tip for fellow women entrepreneurs?

Get support and guidance early. Never fall into the trap of believing you need to or should be able to do this all by yourself.

Many of us have to find the right balance between nurturing our goals and letting ourselves become stressed out with too many messages going through our heads. We have to learn to sort through the white noise and filter out unproductive thoughts.

Attitude influences the way we think. A positive and productive outlook on work and life will make a big difference in how we perceive the world. In turn, negativity or self doubt can permeate thoughts in a destructive way. When we’re confused, overwhelmed or stressed out, it is important to take a deep breath and clear our minds of all the useless chatter.

Think of yourself as a mini radio station. You are constantly broadcasting signals about yourself to the world. The people and situations that match those signals are the ones that will tune in and become a part of your life experience.  Some refer to this as “chemistry”, but it’s actually the resonance of your own personal energy that has been created by your thoughts and feelings.

If you believe this to be true, then you begin to realize that there is no one to blame, no fingers to point and no more excuses. In terms of your personal and professional success – or lack of it – you are 100% in charge. The accountability, direction and outcome are completely up to you. Our own consciousness creates our reality. Your self-observations, whether positive or negative, become your present reality. In other words, you become what you think about most.

It’s important to be fully aware of what you are focusing on. If you find yourself focusing on the things you don’t want, such as a difficult boss, too much debt or no significant other in sight, you want to stop and immediately shift your thinking. Here are just a few tools that work:

• Take a 20- minute walk outside. Breathe in the fresh air, remember all the things you have to be grateful for and give yourself a little bit of time and space to daydream about the things or situations you want in your life.

• Read through a list of positive affirmations. In fact, combine this with your walk and say the affirmations out loud at least half a dozen times. Don’t worry if they don’t feel real to you yet. Put the energy out there and allow the possibility to exist.

• Enlist a positive, enthusiastic friend as your “feel good” accomplice. Any time you find yourself down in the dumps and focusing on the negative, call her for a five minute pep talk. Let her remind you of not only how wonderful you are, but also of everything you have to be grateful for in your life.

• Keep a gratitude journal. Spend five minutes a day writing down all of the things you are grateful for in your life. Any time you need a mind shift, spend a few minutes reading through your journal.

• Assess your environment. Are you surrounded by clutter and things you don’t love? Take some time to clear your space and keep only those things that are most meaningful to you. Donate what you do not want or need to others. Every animal shelter needs blankets. Most recovery and rehab homes need daily supplies. By doing this, you will help yourself and others.

•  Help someone less fortunate that you. Volunteer. Mentor. Spend a weekend at a pediatric cancer ward. Nothing will snap you out of feeling sorry for yourself faster than helping an at-risk teen or someone who only has a few months to live.

Every once in a while you have to switch your internal radio station and find a new channel with programming that inspires or relaxes you. Sometimes, it’s even a good idea to turn off your proverbial radio. Do something that calms and restores your mind, whether that entails getting a massage or reading an interesting book. These simple activities can help inspire change and eradicate the negative thoughts that threaten to diminish your spirit.

©Liz Dennery Sanders 2013

Website: www.kateschelter.com

Occupation: Stylist | Creative Director | Illustrator

Twitter Handle: @KateSchelter

1. What are three words that best describe you?

Hardworking, funny, down-to-earth

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

If you say so, ha! I bring a unique combination of artistic capabilities to every project. My work comes from my heart and my taste comes from my gut. I’m deeply in love with what I do and it’s very satisfying to help others.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences?

I’m not an indulgent person; I’m very practical. Ice cream, fresh flowers, designer clothes & shoes.

4. What’s currently your favorite…

Restaurant: Bar Pitti, always and forever

Shopping Destination: eBay

Hangout: Home

City: NYC or Tiny fishing village on the Amalfi Coast, Italy

Food: Four Seas Ice Cream (available only on Cape Cod)

Cocktail: Sparkling water and fresh lemonade; I’m pregnant

Book/Author: Freedom by Johnathan Franzen

Song/Artist: Anything in a John Hughs 80s movie

Website: www.garancedore.com and www.RomyandtheBunnies.com (I am a contributer)

Magazine: Vanity Fair

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Dishonesty, tardiness, flakiness, messyness, suck-ups. Over-promising and under-delivering should be against the law.

6. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

Matisse and Yves Saint Laurent. They are my heroes.

7. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

It’s important for me to be true to myself and let that show transparently to others to create trust, and help people understand my aesthetic and point of view. I wear my heart on my sleeve. I am what I do. My work is very personal so it gets into everything I see and do. I once read that it is important to “create desire” by letting others figure out what they want on their own. When someone or something is sought-after it sells itself because it is genuinely desirable and attractive.

8. What is your #1 tip for fellow women entrepreneurs?

Work, work, work. Persistence pays off always. And, meet your heroes and idols – surround yourself with mentors (even if they don’t know it.) Go with it – a career is a winding journey not a straight destination.

Name: Loree Rodkin

Website: www.loreerodkin.com

Occupation: Jewelry Designer

Twitter Handle: @missrodkin

 
1. What are three words that best describe you?

Sarcastic, Intimidating and Funny

 
 
2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

I’m on my third career…I launched Brad Pitt & Robert Downey…I made Michelle Obama’s inaugural jewelry and my jewelry now hangs permanently in the Smithsonian. Steven Tyler went on TV to say he wasn’t cool ’til he had my jewelry and Madonna went on the radio to say the only thing she wanted for her birthday was something from me!

3. What are your three biggest indulgences?

Clothes, Shoes and a Driver

4. What’s currently your favorite…

Restaurant: Robert Kass’ new restaurant, LARCHMONT in LA

Shopping Destination: Paris

Hangout: 5 Hertford in London

City: tie between New York and London

Food: Chopped Cabbage Salad from Lemonade in LA

Cocktail: Mojito

Book/Author: Anything autobiographical

Song/Artist: Anything Adele

Website: net-a-porter.com

Magazine: Architectural Digest

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

When people lie.

6. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

I had dinner with Salvador Dali & Gorbachev….Not sure how to dream larger than that!

7. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

Loree Rodkin started as a hobby, making jewelry for myself…Elizabeth Taylor was my first client and made me into a brand overnight…It gives me a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Someday, I will be someone’s heirloom.

8. What is your #1 tip for fellow women entrepreneurs?

Just try. You have nothing to lose…Follow your passion!

As you read it, I invite you to consider this: Is there any area in your life where you are allowing your light to be dampened? How might you be holding back in some way?

What needs to happen to really let your light shine through?

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.

 
Our Deepest Fear

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

- Marianne Williamson, A Return to Love

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Name: Lisa Bloom

Website: www.TheBloomFirm.com and www.LisaBloom.com

Occupation: Attorney and founder of The Bloom Firm, a civil and family law general practice boutique law firm; author of Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed Down World, and Swagger: 10 Urgent Rules for Raising Boys in an Era of Failing Schools, Mass Joblessness and Thug Culture; legal analyst for the Today Show and Avvo.com; speaker to corporate, women’s, parenting and book groups; civil rights and animal rights activist.

Twitter Handle: @LisaBloom

 
1. What are three words that best describe you?

Busy, Healthy, Grateful

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

1. Mostly as a single mom, I raised two children who are now bright, healthy, decent young adults.

2. As a former national debate champion, I can still out-research and therefore out-debate nearly anyone on any topic.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences?

1) Travel. My fiancé, Braden Pollock and I, have created a life where we leave the U.S. for about three months a year, in one month increments. So far in 2013 we’ve been to the Dominican Republic, South Korea, Vietnam, Turkey and Israel – and it’s only March! I’ve been to over 55 countries, and I’m not slowing down.

2) Gourmet vegan food. My plant-based diet gives me endless energy and the comfort that I do not contribute a penny to animal cruelty or the environmental devastation wrought by factory farming.

3) My rescue dogs, Bear and Moxie. So what if I baby them and spoil them? They love it and I love it, so sue me.

4. What’s currently your favorite…

Restaurant: Café Gratitude. You don’t have to be vegan to moan ecstatically from their amazing creations. On the fast food end, Veggie Grill, especially their vegan chicken wing salad, oh my God.

Shopping Destination: You probably wanted a mall, but I’ll give you a country: Vietnam. Nice quality, bargains galore. And don’t miss the American war crimes museum in Hanoi for a reality check of our recent shameful behavior in this stunningly forgiving country.

Hangout: My backyard, especially if my kids are visiting, with my man and my dogs.

City: Rome. The city is in ruins, and they are spectacular, especially lit up at night. The art at the Vatican, the food at every café, the architecture, the Coloseum. Wow.

Food: Perfect white summer cherries.

Cocktail: I’m not much of a drinker, but I love any kind of fresh juice. Istanbul’s fresh squeezed pomegranate juice blew my mind.

Book/Author: Half the Sky, by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. Required reading for all world citizens. And many more. Check out my recommended book lists at the ends of both my books, Think and Swagger.

Song/Artist: Changes weekly, but I love badass female singer-songwriters. This week, grooving on Kacey Musgraves.

Website: NewYorkTimes.com. I read it several times a day. Best English language news site on the planet. There’s a reason they’ve won so many more Pulitzers than everyone else.

Magazine: VegNews, Ms., Mother Jones, the New Yorker, the Nation.

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Inconsiderate people, like those who get on the subway and stand in the doorway, though there’s a crowd behind them who would also like to get on.

6. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

My father. I miss him and he was, and continues to be, a major force in my life.

7. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

I don’t think of myself as a brand, just a person trying to make principled choices that would make my rabble-rousing mama and smart, fiercely independent daddy (now deceased, but I know he’s watching) proud.

In other words, I try to stand for something. It’s usually the underdog, or the point of view that isn’t getting voiced.

8. What is your #1 tip for fellow women entrepreneurs?

Decide right now that you are a leader, and fake the parts that don’t come naturally. This is what men do, and we should do more of it. The brave person and the coward both feel fear. The brave person acts anyway.

My #2 tip is to read constantly. Educate yourself thoroughly about every aspect of your business, your community, and the world. Knowledge is power, and nearly everything you need to know is available for free online. Be smarter than your competitors and you will beat them.

Name: Shelly Kramer

Website: www.v3im.com

Occupation: Founder + CEO, V3 Integrated Marketing

Twitter Handle: @shellykramer

1. What are three words that best describe your personal brand?

Direct, No Nonsense, Results-Driven

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

I’ll admit that I hate questions like these, because it’s not my nature to walk around reveling in my own awesomeness. I’m a fan of humility and quiet confidence instead. And I’m convinced that by doing great work and also doing all I can to support others whenever possible, that I’m living the best life possible.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences

1) Officing from home so that I can pick my kids up from school every day

2) Bliss White Chocolate (for which I blame my addiction on Alli Worthington and the Blissdom team)

3) Sending my sheets out to be laundered and pressed, because I’m worth it

4. What is your biggest pet peeve?

People who aren’t qualified to do the work that they sell to clients, for which the clients ultimately suffer; people who spend all their time, effort and energies promoting themselves; people who don’t make time or care enough to be kind.

5. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

My grandfather. I miss him and he was, and continues to be, a major force in my life.

6. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

That’s easy. My clients don’t buy what I’m selling, they are buying me. That means trusting that I will do what I say I will do, and that I’ll have their best interests at heart at every turn. To my way of thinking, my personal reputation and integrity are my greatest assets. This is my brand – and I take it very seriously.

7. What is your #1 marketing tip for fellow female entrepreneurs?

Raise your hand. Women are notorious for not getting work, not getting opportunities, for not getting attention. And I find that largely it’s because we are often so intent on getting the job done and on taking care of others that we don’t raise our hands often enough and step up to the plate and command attention. I’m constantly telling women entrepreneurs and women of all ages to remember to ask for the work, ask for what they want and essentially raise their hands – and I have to remind myself of that as well on a regular basis. If we don’t do that, certainly no one else is going to do it for us.

Website: www.kcbaker.com

Occupation: Founder of The Women’s Thought Leadership Society and The School for the Well Spoken Woman LIVE

Twitter Handle: @kcbaker007
 
1. What are three words that best describe your personal brand?

Feminine, Bold, Elegant

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

Women blossom in the presence of my listening. Every woman who comes into my life walks away feeling more confident, free and joyful in her message, her ideas, and her ability to really crank up the volume on her voice in the world.

3. What are your three biggest indulgences

1) Almond Butter

2) S Factor (pole dancing)

3) Frequent trips to Sedona, Arizona to be in nature and conjure amazing visions to bring into the world

4. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Cowardliness. And doing nothing to overcome it.

5. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

Queen Elizabeth I. Hands down. That woman was one of the most influential, culture shifting leaders…ever. She founded the East India Trading Company. She promoted the arts (Shakespeare). She led the “Golden age of England”. Not everything she did would be considered “moral”, but she was a woman standing in her own power in a major way at a time when women were considered lesser versions of men. She spoke up to the other church leaders at that time, and though utterly terrified, did it anyways, and instituted major state/church transformations. And…she was a very sexual woman. All this with a mother who was beheaded, a father who basically abandoned her, a sister who wanted her killed and a brother who died. An extremely dramatic and intense life. I’m enthralled, fascinated, and inspired by her.

6. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

It’s my mark in the world, my calling card. It’s my way of sending out my energy and seeing who pings back at me. I have certain, very valuable gifts to offer and service to give. It’s crucial that my brand is clear, powerful and authentic so that I then am able to resonate with those who have needs that my work is perfectly designed for.

7. What is your #1 marketing tip for fellow female entrepreneurs?

Never, ever skimp on quality…of your site, of your videos, of your materials, of your trainings, of your event venues. People will make judgements on the quality of experience and value they will get from you based on the quality of how your materials and marketing are produced. It affects the value and the price level of your work. Go for fabulous. It will pay off.

 
Because sometimes, you just have to let go.
 
SHE LET GO

She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go.

She let go of the fear. She let go of the judgments. She let go of the confluence of opinions swarming around her head.

She let go of the committee of indecision within her. She let go of all the ‘right’ reasons. Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she just let go.

She didn’t ask anyone for advice. She didn’t read a book on how to let go. She didn’t search the scriptures. She just let go.

She let go of all the memories that held her back. She let go of all the anxiety that kept her from moving forward. She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right.

She didn’t promise to let go. She didn’t journal about it. She didn’t write the projected date in her Day-Timer. She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper. She didn’t check the weather report or read her daily horoscope. She just let go.

She didn’t analyze whether she should let go. She didn’t call her friends to discuss the matter. She didn’t do a five-step Spiritual Mind Treatment. She didn’t call the prayer line. She didn’t utter one word. She just let go.

No one was around when it happened. There was no applause or congratulations. No one thanked her or praised her. No one noticed a thing. Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go.

There was no effort. There was no struggle. It wasn’t good and it wasn’t bad. It was what it was, and it is just that.

In the space of letting go, she let it all be. A small smile came over her face. A light breeze blew through her. And the sun and the moon shone forevermore.

- Jennifer Eckert Bernau

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Website: www.todaysinnovativewoman.com and www.AlessandraMediaGroup.com

Occupation: CEO/Publisher

Twitter Handle: @InnovatveWmnMag

 
1. What are three words that best describe your personal brand?

Committed, Authentic, Innovative!

2. Tell us why you’re awesome in two sentences or less?

I am supporting womenpreneurs worldwide with tools, articles and resources to help them grow their business and reach their dreams of success!

3. What are your three biggest indulgences

1) Going to the spa regularly

2) Purses

3) Nice hotels when traveling

4. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Excuses! Take responsibility for your own successes and failures. You are not going to grow, personally or professionally, if you aren’t will to implement what you learn! We all have excuses – success is determined by how quickly we move past the excuse.

5. If you could have dinner with anyone (living or not) who would it be?

Oprah. As a media giant, I’d love to shadow her as her magazine was reaching deadline! And then have dinner to discuss what has worked and what hasn’t for her in publishing!

6. Why is having a powerful personal brand important to you?

I want my readers and followers to know exactly who I am. They know what to expect and I know what they expect of me.

7. What is your #1 marketing tip for fellow female entrepreneurs?

Be visible. Don’t hide behind your computer – or your brand! Step up, step out and be seen as the woman you are! That is the best way to build relationships and a client base of people who will love what you do, and you’ll love working with!