Episode 155: Some of the Most Precious Gifts Come from Great Sacrifice
She was miserable in those first few months of her senior year of high school, studying abroad in the United States, thousands of miles from her home and family in Brazil. It’s not because she didn’t fit in, or she wasn’t making friends. What made her miserable was that she was working so hard in academics and sports, and not meeting her own expectations of achievement.
Our Stories Honor Those Sacrifices When We Push Ourselves Out of Our Comfort Zones
Marcela Niemeyer has always been an achiever, driven to be the best at whatever she sets her mind to do. In some families, that can create conflict, particularly when a parent doesn’t have the same drive, and cannot understand why a child would put so much pressure on herself to meet and exceed her goals.
But Marcela’s father understood her. He knew that if she gave up on something, it would haunt her for many years, that she would face regrets and those “what if” questions for decades.
She was miserable in those first few months of her senior year of high school, studying abroad in the United States, thousands of miles from her home and family in Brazil. It’s not because she didn’t fit in, or she wasn’t making friends. What made her miserable was that she was working so hard in academics and sports, and not meeting her own expectations of achievement.
Marcela was starting from scratch when she decided on track & field, her sport at home was swimming. Her placement in the group was the lowest of the athletes, and she wasn’t used to starting at the bottom.
Academics were a struggle too, and for the first time, she saw low grades that crushed her confidence. She called her father: “I want to come home.”
He told her she couldn’t come home. He was adamant that she stay and work through the challenges. He absolutely refused to let her give up, despite her desperate tears over the phone.
As I heard this story, I was moved to tears. I’m a parent, and I know the sacrifice her father made to say those words, to turn away from his child and tell her no, she must continue to struggle. There isn’t much worse for a parent than to witness that pain and not be able to - or to know better than to - fix it for your child.
She’s driven, and her father knew she’d figure out what to do next to make life bearable. Marcela worked hard to improve, finishing the year at the top of her team, and graduated with her class, her mother and father traveled from Brazil to watch her cross the stage and receive her diploma.
Her whole life follows that course, trying things others might be too afraid to attempt, full of curiosity about herself and the world around her, and in a constant state of learning and growing. She’s a force of life.
Enjoy learning more about Marcela Niemeyer, you’ll love her stories, her tenaciousness, and her love for life and people.
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Marcela Niemeyer has decades of experience in a variety of HR roles, and is currently on the lookout for her next adventure. Connect with her on LinkedIn to learn more about her adventurous spirit and her gift for bringing people together, finding the diamond in the rough, no matter where she sits.
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About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Episode 154: What Can We Say, What Questions Can We Ask to Help Us Understand Each Other?
Desiree Adaway is no stranger to being the only black person in a room, or even in an entire community.
At 16, while skipping class, she saw an ad in the back of a magazine about exchange student programs and applied, signing her mother’s name on the application, the passport application, and all other necessary documents.
Stories of Racism, and the Importance of Acknowledging Each Other’s Experiences
Desiree Adaway is no stranger to being the only black person in a room, or even in an entire community.
At 16, while skipping class, she saw an ad in the back of a magazine about exchange student programs and applied, signing her mother’s name on the application, the passport application, and all other necessary documents.
She was accepted into the program, but had to decline the invitation because she knew her mother couldn’t afford it. The program administrator found a sponsor, and Desiree started packing - before ever talking to her mother.
Desiree didn’t want to go to Germany. She felt a deep need to go, like she would suffocate if she didn’t go.
Arriving in Germany, she was placed with a host family in a tiny town where she was the only person with dark brown skin within more than a 500 mile radius. Her peers touched her skin and hair, stared at her, she felt like an animal at the zoo. And that was only the beginning.
Throughout school and career, she had many of these experiences, including being the only black person at board meetings, management team events. She lost track of the number of times strangers have reached out without hesitation, much less asking to touch her hair, her skin, one woman at a market hugged her as if she had no ownership of her own body. People have had an outrageous sense of entitlement to touch her. This may not seem like a big deal, but when you put this entitlement into the context of the history of the enslavement of dark skinned people, you might begin to understand.
This part of her story particularly resonated with me because of my experiences as a pregnant woman. Strangers would randomly reach out to touch my belly - and I know this is a common experience during pregnancy. It’s absurd.
Our conversation here is rich with experiences, stories to open eyes to the many different ways racism is experienced in a variety of environments.
The highlight for me was when I asked Desiree about a positive experience when a white person acknowledged racism, acknowledged the beauty of diversity as opposed to pretending to be “color blind.”
She said that her business partner, early in their relationship, pulled her aside and said these words:
One day my whiteness will betray me and I’m going to make a mistake. What will we do to move through that?
The extraordinary thing about how Desiree told me this is that she turned it around and applied that sentiment to herself. She acknowledged that at some point she will fall into that trap as well, potentially with gender identity issues and other parts of humanity that she’s unfamiliar.
If we want to address inequity and racism, we must acknowledge it as it exists for those who experience it.
If you’re ready to take action as a human, you don’t have to make huge gestures. You must notice when micro-aggressions happen, and if you miss it and someone points it out to you, do not dismiss the concern. Ask about it, find out why it’s so insulting, demeaning, why the action or words are symbols of racism and bigotry.
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Desiree Adaway is a consultant, trainer, coach and speaker building resilient, equitable, and inclusive organizations. She holds a vision for people’s lives, workplaces and communities until they can hold it for themselves. Learn more by visiting her website, connect with her on LinkedIn, and be sure to follow her on your favorite social media platforms: Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
Episode 153: Humans are Complicated! Stories of Life, Discovery, and Ambition
"People's lives are largely a product of the decisions they make."
The theme throughout this conversation is self-reflection. When we understand ourselves, and can reflect on how we're showing up to the people and environment around us, we can make decisions in alignment with our ideals, our ideal vision of who we want to be and how we want to be.
When You Are Driven to Know More, You Make it Happen
Curiosity. Intelligence. Compassion. Ambition.
These are the words that popped into my head the first time I met Kristin Sherry. We spoke about how she started with the development of her hugely successful YouMap book and program, and I knew I was in the company of someone incredibly thoughtful, who was inspired to truly guide people to find their best fit in life and career.
"People's lives are largely a product of the decisions they make."
The theme throughout this conversation is self-reflection. When we understand ourselves, and can reflect on how we're showing up to the people and environment around us, we can make decisions in alignment with our ideals, our ideal vision of who we want to be and how we want to be.
We spoke about assessment tools like CliftonStrengths (StrengthsFinder), DiSC, Enneagram, and Kristin's tool, YouMap, and how the results can help us identify the most natural, instinctive ways our brains work. Which, surprisingly enough, is complicated.
There isn't one all-inclusive, perfect tool to describe who we are, how we think, what motivates us, and what choices we make every day. Not only are we complicated beings with far too many neural connections made in our incredible brains, add to that complexity the fact that we are constantly changing, adjusting our views through experiences and stimulants.
I love the way Kristin thinks about these things, the way she sees people in a multi-dimensional way, not flat, and she uses her vision to guide people to make choices that will eventually bring them to their best environments and roles so they can contribute beauty and competence to their communities, no matter where they sit.
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Learn more about Kristin by visiting her website, order her recently published children's book, You've Got Gifts! and be sure to preorder her new self-development book, Maximize 365: A year of actionable tips to transform your life.
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About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Episode 152: A Relationship with Yourself: Lessons Learned through Self Reflection
Ron wasn't always as self-reflective as he is now, it is something he learned as a result of difficult relationships. At some point he realized that if he wanted healthy, loving relationships, he was going to have to be a person who earned them, a person who learned from his mistakes.
It was a process, becoming a self-listener. Ron learned to take a step back after conversations to reflect on how they went, the good and the bad, and what he might have done right or what he could have done better. Eventually he started taking that step back during conversations, rather than waiting until afterward, so he could see where he was going and make necessary adjustments either to shift the conversation in a more positive direction, or recognize when it was time to cut and run.
Wisdom from a Veteran on Veteran's Day 2020
This week’s episode of the podcast was an unexpected opportunity to record a conversation I had with a dear friend and veteran Ron Burns – on Veteran’s Day – in my home.
We usually get together for a beer when he visits, and as we started talking, and he started sharing stories and thoughts about current events, I realized this would make a great episode. On many occasions I walk away from a conversation inspired and touched, and disappointed that I didn't record it. This time I was ahead of myself, thank goodness, and asked if I could hit the record button on my phone.
Ron grew up in the northwest part of Montana, where cold weather means significantly under zero degrees and windchill that can freeze your lungs when you inhale. You could say people there are hardy. Or crazy. Or both.
We met just a few years after my family moved to Montana. Our mutual friend Stephanie introduced us one evening at a bar where a large group had congregated on a winter evening. Five minutes into our very first conversation, he dropped unexpected wisdom into my heart, words I carry with me now, nearly 20 years later. It was about relationships, and his caring, thoughtful words were exactly what I needed to hear in that moment.
Ron wasn't always as self-reflective as he is now, it is something he learned as a result of difficult relationships. At some point he realized that if he wanted healthy, loving relationships, he was going to have to be a person who earned them, a person who learned from his mistakes.
It was a process, becoming a self-listener. Ron learned to take a step back after conversations to reflect on how they went, the good and the bad, and what he might have done right or what he could have done better. Eventually he started taking that step back during conversations, rather than waiting until afterward, so he could see where he was going and make necessary adjustments either to shift the conversation in a more positive direction, or recognize when it was time to cut and run.
This quality is something I noticed early in our relationship, and have always appreciated the thoughtfulness he puts into his language and actions.
I realized something during this conversation: If more people took the time and effort to consider their own roles in communication and miscommunication, people in our communities would be much healthier and happier.
And now... I'm introducing you to Ron Burns for your listening pleasure.
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About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana.
Episode 151: Every Situation Can Become A Meaningful Story
It was tempting to hunker down and immediately get to work, even though I knew I wouldn't be inspired or productive, mostly spinning my wheels and finding opportunities for distraction.
Instead, I forced myself to put on my hiking boots and take the dog for a long walk. I knew if I could get myself outside for a little while, I'd be far more productive for the rest of the day.
I was right.
Self-Reflection Can Help You Rid Your World of "Shoulds"
I woke up the other day inspired to write a blog post encouraging people to really re-think their holidays this year, to avoid trying to make them feel “normal”, and stressing out over obligations they cannot meet.
Madly typing away, I knew I was on to something important, inspiring even!
For some reason, I saved the article without sharing or posting it anywhere.
When I woke up the next day, I was faced with two struggles:
Our major kitchen remodel would be delayed again, and we will not be back in there for Thanksgiving, and
I received an email that made me uncomfortable, and had to acknowledge something I didn’t want to see in myself, something I really don’t love.
It was tempting to hunker down and immediately get to work, even though I knew I wouldn't be inspired or productive, mostly spinning my wheels and finding opportunities for distraction.
Instead, I forced myself to put on my hiking boots and take the dog for a long walk. I knew if I could get myself outside for a little while, I'd be far more productive for the rest of the day.
I was right.
As I walked in the snow in the crisp, clear air, I realized the tone of my article was too “preachy.” It happens sometimes when I have an idea I really want to share, an idea I believe will make a positive impact on people.
Toby is definitely a mountain & snow dog. Mt Helena, Helena, Montana
But I know better than to write and speak about things as if I’m separate from them, that if I want to have an impact, the lesson has to take the form of a personal story. Understanding why I didn’t post the article helped me realize that THAT was the thing I didn’t want to see in myself. I had been in the mode of advising, rather than coaching, when I clearly needed to be the latter for that situation.
Finally feeling more clear headed as I walked, I realized that because of the disappointment of the delayed house project, I had a perfect story to share to make my point about rethinking the holidays this year.
Rethinking Our Holiday Season
Our Thanksgiving and Hanukkah have always been pretty low-key. We’ve lived at least 750 miles from our nearest family member since we moved to Montana 21 years ago. Even so, the holidays can be stressful for me, when it comes time to acknowledge our family with gifts that are meaningful, especially because we live so far away and don’t see each other often.
I recently recorded an episode of Unapologetically Bold, I’m Not Sorry For… with Emily Elrod, and we talked about removing the word “should” from our vocabulary. This was in the context of internal “shoulds”, like “I should go to the gym” or “I should eat a salad instead of these potato chips.” And also our external “shoulds” like “you shouldn’t eat those potato chips” and “you should change your oil every 5,000 miles!”
Should can be condescending, but worse for me is how it is associated with obligation.
Anyone who has gone to a family Thanksgiving dinner that they really didn’t want to go to understands obligation. What they might not realize is that the people at the table know you’re feeling obligated and that you don’t really want to be there.
What do you think that does to your relationships? Obligation is the precursor to guilt, neither are good for relationships.
But how to we back out without making things worse?
Imagine that you’ve invited a close friend over for dinner, and she shows up but obviously doesn’t want to be there. She thinks she’s being subtle, that you don’t know, but of course you feel it.
She felt obligated for one reason or another, and here she is. Do you notice her distance? Does it bother you that she didn’t feel like she could say something to you, to cancel or postpone the date? Or do you relish in her feeling obligated, does it make you feel good that she came only because she had to, not because she wanted to? I doubt it.
What if she said: “I can’t join you and your family for dinner, it’s uncomfortable for me, too chaotic. I’d like to have dinner with just you so we can really connect. Is next Saturday okay?”
She’s being honest about her discomfort, and though it’s a little painful that your family creates discomfort for her, aren’t you grateful for her honesty? Plus, she’s not making up an excuse, and she’s asking for a specific time – with the specific intention to spend time with you, as opposed to saying “raincheck?”
Here we are, heading into holidays full of “should”, obligation, and guilt.
Are Those "Shoulds" Yours, or Do They Belong to Someone Else?
When I say remodel, I’m serious!
I had a grand vision of Thanksgiving in our home in our newly renovated kitchen. We’ve spent 20 years in the house and have done a lot of critical projects inside this 1890 Victorian in the mountains, but we hadn’t touched the kitchen… until now.
You can imagine my disappointment when I heard the news that we wouldn’t be back in the kitchen until at least the week after Thanksgiving.
My vision of hosting our grown sons and their girlfriends in our new kitchen was crushed.
Here’s the thing I have to remember: Nothing has been normal or predictable about 2020.
Our kids know this isn’t normal, and if there’s one thing they’ve learned this year, it’s that life is unpredictable, even going to school isn’t guaranteed!
For the duration of this project I’ve been filled with gratitude. We have a place to live while this is going on, a small AirBnB apartment with a fully equipped kitchen.
On my walk, I realized I had to practice what I preach: I had to rethink my holidays this year.
This year is different in so many ways, including our opportunity to rethink what actually makes us happy, what our priorities are, and to make adjustments to our rituals and traditions to meet those priorities. We get to decide which ones serve us and our family and which do not.
I texted our boys to let them know the change in plans, and that we would have a limited Thanksgiving menu this year: Turkey, stuffing, cranberries, green vegetable. I asked them what food was their favorite for this holiday, and promised to make it sometime over the weekend. (Partly because I simply love to cook!)
Guess what? They’re FINE with the change in plans. One of them even replied: “It’s all good, mom, as long as we can be together.”
We are going to celebrate Thanksgiving this year in a completely different way, in a small apartment filled with laughter, food, and likely some whiskey.
We might discover some new traditions and rituals to add to our future holidays, or maybe it’ll be just this one year that we celebrate differently.
I know it will be meaningful, and rather than stress about “trying to make it as normal as possible” (as if normal always equals good), I’ll simplify our Thanksgiving celebration.
I am giving up obligation this year and following my heart, giving and receiving based on the impact I want to have on the people around me, not on someone else’s should.
What will you do to make this year different in a good way? What new traditions will you create to make this meaningful and special? How will you acknowledge the love for your family if you cannot be with them during the holidays?
You can do this. I can do this. We’ve been through so much already this year, let’s make the most of this opportunity.
Here's a great article that describes the value of creating rituals when life feels uncertain and unpredictable:
“Having rituals is a reliable way to come back to something that is comforting, familiar and meaningful — no matter how out-of-control our life feels...” ~ Nick Hobson
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About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will, will be released in mid-November, and for a limited time, the ebook is just $0.99!
As a special bonus for listeners, the book will include two songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana. Keep an eye out for announcements through LinkedIn and via my Elkins Consulting Facebook & Instagram pages, or visit my website to learn more.
Episode 150: If You Dream of It, Work for It, and Make It Happen, Is it Still Magic?
Meg Nocero worked as a prosecuting attorney for 20 years. She saw every kind of human in that work, and yes, after a while the job might have contributed to trust issues.
You Can Tell Yourself a Story of Magic, of Resilience, of Persistence, and It Will Happen
Meg Nocero worked as a prosecuting attorney for 20 years. She saw every kind of human in that work, and yes, after a while the job might have contributed to trust issues.
But when she lost her mom, she felt like a corner of the foundation of her home started to crumble, causing a sense of imbalance, of instability.
Her counselor suggested that she start writing about all of what her mom left her - the legacy she left in her wisdom and stories. What started as a coping strategy turned into a blog with a big audience, and then into a book, The Magical Guide to Bliss.
Meg as a contestant on The Price is Right
That book became the renewed cornerstone for her foundation, stabilizing her home, and rebuilding her sense of self, her resilience and strength.
This is it, a dream come true! Meg spins the $1.00 on the big wheel!
Our conversation was full of laughs, beginning with Meg's hilarious story of being a contestant on The Price is Right while traveling to California as a celebratory trip after graduating from college.
If you're wondering what I mean when I say Meg is magical, you'll definitely want to listen in.
Sparkle & Shine Mantra #50, as read on the podcast.
Another dream becoming reality, standing on stage with Oprah.
You’ll hear how Meg managed her magic to end up on stage with Oprah Winfrey, and the story of leaving her job as a prosecutor to start her own business, helping other women take a similar leap - and to find their own magic.
To learn more about Meg and her work, check out the links below:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/meg-nocero-esq-686b8715/
https://www.facebook.com/meggiebliss
instagram- @megnocero
twitter- @megnocero
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCati3jiHnBi5ym6z8Pcu5iQ?view_as=subscriber
Meg Nocero, Esq. is an attorney (former federal prosecutor) inspirational speaker, certified empowerment coach and award winning author of The Magical Guide to Bliss, Daily Keys to Unlock Your Dreams, Spirit & Inner Bliss. She holds a BA in Spanish, with a concentration in Italian from Boston College; a MA in International Affairs from the University of Miami; and a JD from St. Thomas University School of Law. Ms. Nocero is the owner of Butterflies & Bliss, LLC, founded a non-profit called S.H.I.N.E. Networking Inc. that provides educational scholarships to young innovative leaders, and is a Love Button Global Movement Ambassador.
She published her book Sparkle & Shine, 108 M.A.N.T.R.A.s to Brighten Your Day and Lighten Your Way in October 2020. Her memoir called Butterfly Awakens: A Memoir of Transformation Through Grief will be published by She Writes Press in September 2021.She is a contributing writer for the collaboration entitled Price of Greatness, Thrive Girl Thrive and a contributing author for Amy Butler’s book Blossom: Create Love-Express Beauty-Be Kind released in January 2016 in addition to her on-line magazine of the same name.
About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will, will be released in mid-November, and for a limited time, the ebook is just $0.99!
As a special bonus for listeners, the book will include two songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana. Keep an eye out for announcements through LinkedIn and via my Elkins Consulting Facebook & Instagram pages, or visit my website to learn more.
Episode 149: The Story of Your Life Starts Early When Your Future Presents Itself to You
Michael sat with his mother when she went to the hospital for breast cancer treatment appointments. He was struck by the compassionate care of her doctors, the fact that they treated her with dignity, kindness, and as if she was far more than a patient or a diagnosis.
He was in high school at the time, and had all kinds of ideas about what he wanted for his future. That experience, though, gave him the inspiration and motivation he needed, and he signed up for pre-med classes the following semester.
One Experience Inspired Michael's Career Goals
Michael sat with his mother when she went to the hospital for breast cancer treatment appointments. He was struck by the compassionate care of her doctors, the fact that they treated her with dignity, kindness, and as if she was far more than a patient or a diagnosis.
He was in high school at the time, and had all kinds of ideas about what he wanted for his future. That experience, though, gave him the inspiration and motivation he needed, and he signed up for pre-med classes the following semester.
When he graduated from high school and started school at Carroll College in Helena, Montana, he was well on his way toward his dream - he would be a doctor.
Michael Fuller and I have been friends for years, thanks to my introduction to his parents. I've always found both Michael and his brother, Joshua, to be thoughtful, considerate people, and that isn't at all surprising, given what I know of their parents.
As he's grown into himself and his future, we've taken opportunities to go for long walks together, sit in coffee shops, and even have a beer together (after his 21st birthday, of course), and have had deeply thoughtful, insightful conversations.
Michael Fuller, Summit of Mt. Helena, March 2020
It occurred to me that his story is one many can related to: The decision to go into a specific area of study and work as a result of watching a loved one go through a difficult situation.
You'll hear that Michael finished his bachelor's degree and has been accepted into a few medical school programs. He hasn't decided yet where he'll go. I know that whatever his future holds in terms of a career and location, he will contribute an extraordinary amount of courage, kindness, compassion and healing to those fortunate enough to find themselves in his care.
And if I'm lucky, I might just get a hold of his brother for another episode of Your Stories Don't Define You.
About Sarah:
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will, will be released in mid-November, and for a limited time, the ebook is just $0.99!
As a special bonus for listeners, the book will include two songs recorded by my band, Spare Change, in my living room in Montana. Keep an eye out for announcements through LinkedIn and via my Elkins Consulting Facebook & Instagram pages, or visit my website to learn more.