Go Big or Go Bust: Personal Impact Training ... So I Can Make An IMPACT

I met Susanna Baddiel last Spring at the launch party for Veronica and David James’  (wonderful) book “Going Gypsy” and was taken with Susanna’s lovely English accent and her warmth.

As we chatted, I discovered that Susanna is a Shakespearean actor who teaches ‘personal impact training’ and helps people to become more ‘dynamic’ and more ‘focused communicators’. She might help, for example, people who are going to be interviewed for the first time on the radio or television or people who are, God forbid, taking a crack at ‘public speaking’.

At the time, I had no inkling that within the year I’d be planning to be pitching a television show. (I’m putting ‘pitching’ in the category of ‘public speaking’ even though my public may be showing up only one at a time.)

And so, being on the verge of pitching, I emailed Susanna. She happens to be abroad these days so we set up a time to Skype.

Susanna is like a combination smart and funny best friend crossed with a fairy godmother. She’s businesslike and time-efficient in sharing her wealth of knowledge and tips and then she turns into a gentle and fun coach.

My favorite exercise was that she had me pitching ‘as if’ to a seven year old.  It's great because with that audience in mind, I get less inhibited and a lot more fun.

I'm sorry that I can't post a whole video of me pitching cause I'd love to show you my pitch and get your feedback. The thing is, I've got to keep it under wraps so that when I actually get into a room, the pitch is still fresh. 

Meanwhile, here's a late Valentine's Day present from me to you if you scroll down a little and click the Like button ...  \o/

Susanna Baddiel, Personal Impact Training coach of coaches

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Go Big or Go Bust: #WAW2015 and The Power of Groups

I’ve spent more than a couple of Christmases at home alone at my desk. Not that I’m complaining, The Louise Log has rarely felt like work. But so a social life has always been pushed to the bottom of my schedule.

So when my pal Veronica James recommended that I join her at the annual weekend retreat of Women At Woodstock, with a group of women (mostly) over 50, I hesitated. It’s risky to a) spend money to go to a conference and b) to take time away from what feels like a mountain of projects I want to get to.

All Veronica, an extremely hard-working and effective (but fun) person, had to say was: “Come. It’s really good.”

Veronica James, author of "Going Gypsy", during her talk "Getting Your Website The Attention It Deserves"

And so I went. And I wasn’t disappointed. There were authors, career coaches, a photographer, a website designer/social media marketing expert, bloggers, a tarot card reading life coach, a financial adviser, a pharmaceutical saleswoman, two dating and relationship coaches, an elected official and more. It was such a mixed group that it sort of felt like a campfire on the beach -  no pecking order, no competition.  

There were workshops and talks as well as lots of time for having a real conversation with almost everybody. It felt like a weekend with friends of a friend … which is actually what #WAW sprang out of, when Ann Voorhees Baker was going through a divorce after a long marriage and invited a group of friends, who didn’t know each other, to a cabin in the woods.

The atmosphere of support and honesty, of sharing knowledge and encouragement, with people revealing their dreams and their doubts, asking for feedback, asking for help. It was truly moving.  It was also inspiring. And it seems like it could even prove to be materially valuable.

the only selfie moment of the weekend

With Patty Chang Anker author of "Some Nerve" who did a workshop "What Are You Afraid Of?"

Go Big or Go Bust: Day 134 (on filling the well with "Going Gypsy")

Reporting live from Calgary, Alberta, I have to interrupt the travelog with a video shot a couple of months ago in NYC.

Centuries ago in internet time, Veronica and David James aka The Gypsynesters and The Louise Log (aka me) met online.  Their story is wonderful.  When their third child left for college, they decided they just didn't want to spend the rest of their lives staring longingly at the empty bedrooms. Instead, they sold their house and hit the road. Emptynesters turned gypsies.  Gypsynesters. 

I had the huge pleasure of meeting Veronica and David at a party for the launch of their book, "Going Gypsy".  But New Yorker that I am, had no cash on me at the party so I ordered it online. Everybody loves to yuck it up reading about other people's pain. Cause pain is funny.

Here's a visual recap of my reaction to "Going Gypsy" (:50).

Go Big or Go Bust: Day 71 (on The Gypsynester and the power of audience)

One truth about gathering an audience on the internet is that it’s not very effective to do it one-by-one, a method which could also be called “my way”.  I like the one-to-one interaction.  I like giving one of my little cards to the FedEx person behind the counter, one to the young woman I have a laugh with waiting at a red light, little by little, in the course of my days.  

Veronica and David James, The Gypsynester, have taken a different approach.  Veronica explained it very simply: “We’re all about community.”  

The most recent example is that they threw a book party in the very elegant Library Hotel’s rooftop Bookmarks Lounge to launch their new book Going Gypsy: One Couple's Adventure from an Empty Nest to No Nest at All.  And at their party, they spent a disproportionate amount of time plugging The Louise Log and other guests' projects, which, of course, totally broke the ice and made it easy for everybody to talk to everybody.  And then the authors raffled off some really nice presents including three days and nights at an incredible-looking resort in Costa Rica.  (A guy from Audible won that.)  Is it any wonder they have a huge following?  

I bought a copy of their (rollickingly fun) page-turner which is about their adventures as ‘gypsynester empty nesters’: how they sold their house and worldly goods and went on the road in a used RV.  Instead of sitting around staring at empty bedrooms and the empty backseat, they’re touring the world.  And in doing this, they’re a testament to the fact that the internet has made their adventure possible.  They’ve managed to gather up a big enough audience that sponsors and advertisers are funding their dream.  It's possible!  It's inspiring.
 

Me in the lobby of the Library Hotel waiting for the elevator.

Veronica and David James, the Gypsynester (@gypsynester) with a copy of their (#1 on Amazon) new book.

Charli James (@Charli), a video producer/journalist taking a picture of her parents with her grandfather looking on.