Spark and Hustle Los Angeles

Once upon a time, a girl took a huge leap of faith and it was worth every penny.

It’s been a week since I first sat down to attend #socialvention with Cindy Morrison.  It was the close of the first day of Tory Johnson‘s Spark and Hustle Conference in Los Angeles.  There are 200 women in Tulsa right now running around a room discussing hash-tags and I so wish I was there with them.

This part of my Rodan + Fields journey happened on a total whim.  It went something like this: I was playing on Facebook and a top leader in my company posts a link to a blog.  I follow the leader, so I read it.  It was a great article by Tory Johnson that I will have to try to find and link.  Well, I’m a researcher, so I’m all over the website learning about who Tory Johnson is.  I don’t know about you, but living with a little princess, I don’t often get to watch shows like Good Morning America.  Mickey Mouse yes, GMA no.  Then I see that she is hosting a conference series and it’s kicking off near me.  Oh, and I can do a vendor table at one of the evening events.  But — it’s not cheap, at least not for someone just starting her business while her husband is finishing school in an economy that has hit our savings pretty hard.  So I wait and I resign myself to following Tory on Facebook because it’s all I could do.

Then I see it.  A “black Friday” offer for a discount plus a free vendor table.  I excitedly call my husband and tell him that we need to talk about it when he gets home because it’s a big investment.  I start emailing with Tory’s staff, find out that my company is not already represented, etc.  About 45 minutes later, there I am with my credit card paying for the conference.  Hours later my hubby comes home and asks about it.  “Oh, yeah, um, I couldn’t pass it up and I already registered.”  I knew in my gut that I needed to go, and I couldn’t have been more right.

Focusing on women entrepreneurs, I had the obvious goals — learn more about owning and building my businesses.  I got that, but I left with so much more.  I left with new supports, new mastermind partners, and what I believe will be some life-long friendships.  We laughed, we cried, and we ate too many sweets.  I can’t even begin to describe the experience.  I’m still in awe of the speaker line-up as it was phenomenal.  When I got the topics list prior to the conference, I thought “how am I going to choose which sessions to attend?”  I’m used to having break-outs, but this was different.  We all sat together and had the privilege of listening to each and every speaker with plenty of time to build relationships and networks with the women (and men) who attended and presented.  I can’t tell you how inspired I am each day as posts from these amazing people come across my Facebook and my Twitter.  You can’t have a bad day when you know these incredible people because they pick you right back up and remind you of where you are going.

I could go on and on (and on) about this experience and still not capture it all.

Were you there? I’d love to highlight you in a blog post and add you to my links. Contact me to work on the details.

Are you wanting to be there? Contact me for a special discount code.  If you make one large investment in learning about growing your business in 2011, make sure Spark and Hustle is at the top of that list.  You will not regret it for a second!

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Happy (and Healthy) Hearts Month — Shopping for a Cause

Once upon a time, a newlywed couple arrived back home after their wedding.  Life would NEVER be the same.

Four days after our fairytale wedding, my husband and I drove to his parents’ home to retrieve the gifts and other wedding paraphernalia they had brought back for us.  In my old life, that autism specialist life, I lived on my phone when I was away from work.  I was the boss and was admittedly a work-a-holic.   We pulled into the driveway and my husband went into the house while I finished a call.  He soon came running out to tell me that his dad was there and he couldn’t wake him up.  I won’t go into the details, but what I can say is that all of the efforts were to no avail.  Married for only 4 days and I had lost my new father-in-law, my husband had lost his dad, and the not-even-yet-thought-of princess lost the papa she’d never know.

We knew he had a heart condition, congestive heart failure.  He had a pacemaker.  The doctors had wanted to change it out for one with a defibrillator, but he refused.  What we didn’t know is that two years prior, he’d been given 2 or so years to live.

What some of you know and others may not is that each year I donate to charities as our holiday gift to our friends and family.  I’ve donated some of my Aerowyn’s Castle items to good causes, but had not yet thought to link my Rodan + Fields business to a charity.  It was listening to Julia Fikse of Save the Tatas at Tory Johnson’s Los Angeles Spark and Hustle Conference last week that finally pushed that idea into my thought processes.

I’m sure you all know that February is American Heart Month.  But to honor my father-in-law’s passing 5 years ago next month (March 29), I am offering the following from February 1st through the end of March.

For all NEW Preferred Customers, I will give you the option of receiving a check for $14.95 to “refund” your enrollment fee at the end of your first 60 days OR I will donate that same $14.95 to the American Heart Association at the end of March.  It’s your choice.

For all returning Preferred Customers, I will donate 5% of your replenishment order or 10% of any “off-month” orders.  You still get your 10% savings for off-month orders, but are responsible for paying shipping.

For all NEW Business Partners, I will continue to purchase your first set of business cards and name tag.  In addition, I will donate $20 for signing up and 5% of your replenishment order if it occurs before the end of March.

My fund-raising goal: $500.  While it doesn’t sound like a lot, it’s a big goal if you do the math.  Please share this with your friends and family.  Know that you can contribute to a great cause while getting the best skin of your life.  For those who want to determine your own financial success, join me on the Rodan + Fields journey.  What will your legacy be?