Podcasts

Wonder Woman in Business, Wendy Toth

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Wendy Toth

One day, I was on a plane to Boston and I sat next to a most remarkable woman named, "Wendy Toth" from Belmont, CA. Wendy was a C-suiter in tech in the communications realm so we had plenty to talk about. However, Wendy and I connected on a much deeper level. I felt as if I had known her for many lifetimes. She is a strong, sensitive, take-no-BS, kind of woman. She is a lover to her sculpture artist husband and friend to her sports racer son. She is a best friend to few and a good friend to many. She and I got off that plane never having met before but having decided to dine together at Legal Seafoods on Boston Harbor. Mike was already in Boston so he met us for dinner and we enjoyed one of the most memorable evenings ever. After Boston, Wendy changed positions and is now with Amazon. Though we have not kept in touch, I still feel her friendship. 

Well, while in Healdsburg, Wendy Toth "followed" me on Twitter. I immediately sent her a picture of Mike waving at her and this message:

"Omg! We thought you were out of our lives. We miss you! We have to get together! Follow @mikefutrell too!"

As I explored her profile on Twitter, I saw:
Wendy Toth 
Writer & Editor. Content Director. Editor-in-Chief @PowerSuiting Contributor to NY Times, NBC, PetCoach and more.


I quickly realized it was not the same Wendy Toth

After I realized, I messaged to explain my mistake. We had a good laugh and then continued to chat. This Wendy Toth is as exciting as any and I am now thrilled to interview her on my "Wonder Women in Business" podcast. She is delightful, smart, kind, funny, and has terrific content. Follow her if you're on Twitter: @bestWendy and tell her @susfree sent you. ;-)

Lesson:
It's a small world and we should welcome new people, places and things into our heads and hearts. That, and "Wendy Toths" across the nation, coast-to-coast, are pretty cool people!

Today, I had an incredible conversation with the East Coast Wendy Toth!

Wendy is a writer, editor, and mom of two boys, with a focus on making life more fulfilling for families. For the last 15 years she has held staff and freelance positions at some of this country’s top publications. She’s been a staffer at Parents Magazine, NBC, PetSmart and most recently Happy Wellness Life. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Weight Watchers Magazine, Esperanza, and many more. Because she loves her work so much, she’s obsessed with helping others find career fulfillment, and writes about it regularly at PowerSuiting.com.

In the podcast, Wendy speaks about her proudest professional accomplishment (to date, as she is young and is sure to have many more) and she mentioned having been published in the New York Times. I asked her if I could share the piece, “No, You Can’t Run With Me” and she said yes so enjoy. She also mentioned one of her inspirational mentors as Susan Shapiro, an award-winning writing professor, freelances for the NY Times, NY Magazine, WSJ, Washington Post, L.A. Times, Elle & Oprah.com. She's the bestselling author/coauthor of 12 books. I thought I might share her site here as well: SusanShapiro.net for those aspiring writers who are reading this!


Contact Wendy:

Website: PowerSuiting.com http://www.powersuiting.com/

Portfolio Site: WendyToth.com https://www.wendytoth.com/

Twitter: @PowerSuiting https://twitter.com/PowerSuiting

Twitter: @BestWendy https://twitter.com/BestWendy

FreemanMeansBusiness.com

FreemanMeansBusiness.com


Melissa Mahoney and Her Ikigai, Secret to Her Long and Happy Life

Ikigai

“Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years.” —Japanese proverb 

Mahoney Artwork


 
According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai—a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai—the place where passion, mission, vocation, and profession intersect—means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life—the happiness of always being busy. 

Getting to Know Melissa Mahoney

Today, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing fine artist, Melissa Mahoney or MahoneyArtWork.com for my Freeman Means Business “Wonder Women in Business” podcast. Melissa’s latest painting series is titled, “Vortices.” She says Vortices draw all that surround them into their powerful currents. She's interested in these masses of energy and how they can contain and then transfer their energy.  

Melissa is also attracted to the fluidity and texture of textiles. She created a recent series of artwork specifically to be printed on silk fabric. She created a custom silk scarf for Stanford University, and it sells at the Stanford bookstore on campus and online.  

Melissa grew up in a family of artists, drawing and painting. She received formal art training at the University of Georgia where she earned a BFA. She went on to study art in Tuscany, Italy.

In our podcast, we discussed everything from her vast backpacking and biking travels throughout Europe and Asia to the incredible social psychologist, Geert Hofstede and his cultural dimensions.

Melissa Mahoney

Exhibitions and Awards

2018— Palo Alto Art Show, Palo Alto, California
2017— Triton Museum of Art, 2017 Statewide 2D Competition & Exhibition, Santa Clara, California
2017— Penninsua Art Gallery, San Mateo, California
2016— Simon Breitbard Fine Arts, Trunk Show, San Francisco, California
2016— Houzz, online art gallery
2016— OAC Gallery, online art gallery
2016— Saatchi, online art gallery
2015— Palo Alto Art Show, Palo Alto, California
2014— Woodside Gallery, Woodside, California
2016— SB Fine Arts, San Francisco, California
2016— Woodside Gallery, Woodside, California
2016— OAC Gallery, online
2016— Houzz, online
2013— A Single Grain of Rice, GALERIE MÉTANOÏA, Paris, France
2013— Beverly Hills artSHOW, Beverly Hills, California
AWARDED: Honorable Mention in Painting (4th place of 65 painters)
2013— Jeanie Madsen Gallery, I Love Santa Monica, Santa Monica, California
2013— TAG Gallery, Bergamot Station Art Center, Los Angeles, California
  JUROR: Edward Goldman, art critic for KCRW, NPR affiliate station and The Huffington Post  
2013— Wallspace Gallery, Los Angeles, California
2011— Orange County Center for Contemporary Arts OCCCA, Energy, Santa Ana, California
JUROR: Howard Fox (Curator Emeritus of Contemporary Art, LACMA)
2011— A Gallery Fine Art, El Paseo, Palm Desert, California
2010— Maiani Gallery, Montecito, California
2010— Bottoms Art Gallery, The Four Seasons Biltmore, Montecito, California

How to Contact Melissa Mahoney

Melissa Mahoney

Abstract artist and textile creator

Palo Alto, California

melissa@mahoneyartwork.com 

mahoneyartwork.com


FreemanMeansBusiness.com

FreemanMeansBusiness.com


Deirdre Breakenridge: Igniting Your Passion so You Can Excel at Life

Deirdre K. Breakenridge is Chief Executive Officer at Pure Performance Communications. A veteran in PR, marketing and branding, Breakenridge has worked with organizations including the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, JVC, Kraft, Nasdaq, NBA Events & Attractions and PRSA.  

Breakenridge is the author of six business books. Her most recent book, “Answers for Modern Communicators” was published by Routledge in October 2017. Her other titles include “Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional, and “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations.”

As an adjunct professor, Breakenridge teaches online PR and social media courses for the UMASS at Amherst Journalism Department and for Rutgers University’s PR Certificate course. She speaks nationally and internationally on the topics of PR, marketing, branding and social media communications. Breakenridge is a LinkedIn Learning Instructor with seven video courses on Public Relations Foundations, Media Training, Handling an Unruly Audience, Marketing Communications, Go-To-Market Planning, Competitive Analysis and Creating a Marketing Culture.

Breakenridge is the host of a podcast program, Women Worldwide, interviewing women who share their incredible stories, educating, imparting advice and offering insights to show listeners. Women Worldwide has joined the C-Suite Radio Network, which is the home of podcasts for top business leaders and innovators.

NJBIZ named Breakenridge as one of the Best 50 Women in Business in the state of New Jersey. She also joined the ranks of the Top 250 Women Leaders published by Richtopia in from 2016 through 2018.

Breakenridge blogs about communication, the changing media landscape and collaborative technology at PR Expanded and is the co-founder of #PRStudChat, a dynamic Twitter community with Twitter chats for PR students, educators and PR pros. 

Her latest book, “Answers for Modern Communicators,” is available on here Amazon.

Her latest book, “Answers for Modern Communicators,” is available on here Amazon.

Deirdre and I get quite personal and in interviewing her I felt as if I had known her all my life. I am sure you will appreciate the ups and downs we address in our professional and personal lives. This podcast was very meaningful — and very moving.

Contact:

Deirdre Breakenridge, CEO 

deirdre@pureperformancecomm.com

Phone:  732-580-8600

New Book: Answers for Modern Communicators was published in October 2017!

Website: www.pureperformancecomm.com

PR Expanded blog: www.deirdrebreakenridge.com

Women Worldwide podcast: womenworldwideshow.com

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dbreakenridge




Peer Podcast: Terrie Wheeler

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Terrie Wheeler

PSM, LLC.

Terrie Wheeler is a legal marketing veteran, having served for 13 years as an in-house marketing director, then, in 1997 founding Professional Services Marketing, LLC. PSM delivers outsourced marketing and marketing coaching services to lawyers across the country. On August 15, 2018, Terrie launched CLE Connect| Ethical Marketing CLEs on Demand for lawyers in Minnesota. Terrie recently ended a six-year term as vice chair of the MN Lawyers Board of Professional Responsibility. She teaches marketing and client service at three midwestern law schools and is a syndicated columnist for the ABA’s Small Firm Solo Section, and Attorney at Law Magazine. 

Background and Services Offered: 

PSM has 35 employees who provide outsourced marketing department services to lawyers and law firms across the country. Terrie is also a personal marketing coach for lawyers who wish to expand their practices and drive new business. 

CLE-Connect is a new venture focused on a niche within the CLE market – that of offering on-demand CLEs to lawyers in MN. What makes this unique? Each marketing course was approved for ethics credit! 

What Compelled Terrie to Offer the Services She Does?

Lawyers don’t learn how to market in law school. Yet, they join the real world and quickly realize if they can’t develop business, they will not become a partner. Terrie has worked with lawyers her entire career, and loves helping them develop the individual and firm strategies (all as unique as each lawyers’ connections) that will drive new business into their firms. 

She really enjoys having lawyers as clients and figured that if she could successfully serve lawyers as clients inside big law firms, she could also do so as a consultant on the outside.

For CLE-Connect, in Minnesota lawyers can earn 15 of the 45 CLE credits they earn through on-demand programming. There were absolutely NO marketing CLEs of any kind and Terrie was able to create 1-hour marketing CLEs that were also awarded ethics credits! 

Three Things Clients Misunderstand – and Setting the Record Straight 

1. “I have a marketing department, so I don’t need to market.” Not True! Lawyers need to understand that marketing is about messages (website, PR, events, social media) and sales is about asking questions. Lawyers need to learn to think and act like sales people if they want to develop business! 

2. “If I leave my hectic law firm to start my own practice, I will achieve life balance.” Not True! Most lawyers have not read the E-Myth Attorney by Michael Gerber. Being an entrepreneur (E) takes a dedication to building an enterprise, not owning a crazy practice. 

3. “Marketing is about where and how I advertise.” Not Ture! Advertising is really one of the least effective ways in which to develop clients. Building genuine relationships is the answer. Lawyers like to press the “easy” button and throw money at advertising – but generally, it doesn’t work. 

Terrie Wheeler

How to Connect with Terrie: 

www.psm-marketing.com 

Terrie@psm-marketing.com 

www.cle-connect.com 

Terrie@cle-connect.com 

facebook.com/ProfessionalServicesMarketingLLC 

facebook.com/cleconnect 





Authenticity in the Workplace: Really?

Deborah McMurray is the founder, CEO and Strategy Architect of Content Pilot. Her vision has always been to elevate professional services organizations through smarter strategies, dazzling execution and a service ethic that starts with passion and ends with love and care. In this podcast we discuss authenticity in the workplace. We also address topics like being grateful for what we have, what past generations had to deal with that we don’t, and what we are most grateful for.

We touch on some harder hitting issues like the fact that men still run the world and whether it matters that men hold the majority of leadership positions. We talk about whether having more women in power would lift women everywhere in every way. more women in power. Lastly, we address what would be different, if anything, if there were more women in leadership positions.

What Makes Deborah Unique

As a former head of two large law firm marketing departments, she brings a leader’s in-house perspective to every engagement with a professional services firm. Having conducted many hundreds of client interviews, she also brings the client’s voice to every assignment.

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Wonder Woman

Deborah McMurray,

CEO of Content Pilot

Our approach is strategy-first in everything we do. Our clients’ strategic vision and goals reign supreme, and we are both the standard-bearers and protectors of them. With your strategy as our foundation, we design for your firm five years from now – pushing you to see greater possibilities than you might imagine today.

I have co-authored several books published by the American Bar Association Law Practice Management Division, with the latest being, “The Lawyer’s Guide to Marketing on the Internet, 4th edition.” I also wrote the 2nd and 3rd editions with co-author Greg Siskind.

—Deborah McMurray

Deborah From Her Own Point of View:

Projects she Loves

Anything with strategy. Unearthing positioning strategy is a special talent and I am known for it. Working with our creative director and project managers on smart and beautiful design for websites and brands, crafting a new and elevating content strategy, and writing copy with heart that hits the intellectual and emotional mark – I love all of this.

I am literally thrilled when we work with major law firms on their new proposal systems and experience management projects. Again starting with strategy, we climb into their processes, understand their teams and their technologies and find ways to streamline, make them better, more productive and efficient.

What Makes her Proud

I am proud of three decades of service to the legal marketing community, having held many local and national roles in the Legal Marketing Association. I was inducted into the LMA Hall of Fame in 2008 and the College of Law Practice Management as a Fellow in 2007. I was delighted to be on the inaugural list of National Law Journal’s “2013 Top 50 Legal Business Trailblazers & Pioneers” and included in LawDragon’s Top 100 Legal Consultants for several years running.

My charitable service is intensely meaningful, too. I am Board President of the Resource Center, the largest LGBT and HIV provider of services in North Texas. And I am a long-time board member and advocate for the Dallas Theater Center.

Nuts and Bolts

  • Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, Gustavus Adolphus College, St Peter, MN

  • Master of Music, honors, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

  • Frequent author and blogger, speaker at regional, national and international conferences and law firm retreats, tweeter

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Deborah McMurray

How to Reach Deborah McMurray:

deborah mcmurray

CEO+Strategy Architect

D214.351.9690

C972.897.4921

deborah.mcmurray@contentpilot.com

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Badass Lady Gang Member a.k.a. Wonder Woman in Business, Lindsay Griffiths Shares New News!

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Lindsay Griffiths

International Lawyers Network

Lindsay Griffiths is [currently] the International Lawyers Network’s (ILN) Director of Global Relationship Management. In this role, she develops and facilitates relationships among ILN member firm lawyers at 90+ law firms in 67 countries, and seeks opportunities for member firms to build business and relationships, while ensuring member participation in Network events and initiatives. Ms. Griffiths works closely with the Network’s Executive Director on the oversight and management of day-to-day operations. She develops strategies and implementation plans to achieve the ILN’s goals, and shares responsibility with the Executive Director for recruitment, member retention, and a high level of service to members.

At least that’s what you THINK she is — and what she does — for now.

In this episode of “Wonder Women in Business Podcast,” Badass Lady Gang Member, Lindsay Griffiths shares with us some surprising news about her newest professional accomplishment and some of her proudest personal and professional achievements. Lindsay speaks about a unique and unexpected inspirational mentor, someone you’d never guess. Together we dish about gender bias, particularly “prove it again” bias in the international arena.

This was one of the most fun podcasts to date. Enjoy — and Go Red Sox!

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Lindsay Griffiths, ILN

To Contact Lindsay:

Lindsay Griffiths, Executive Director of Global Relationship Management

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lindsaygriffiths

Websites:

iln.com  (International Lawyers Network)

zenlegalnetworking.com  (Zen & Art of Legal Networking)

lindsaygriffithsphotography.wordpress.com/  (Lindsay Griffiths Photography)

Phone: 201-594-9430 (Work)

Email: lindsaygriffiths@iln.com

Twitter: @LindsayGriffith

FreemanMeansBusiness.com

FreemanMeansBusiness.com