I started out as a child (I believe there was a comedian who used that line). But I did, just as you all did.
My earliest entrepreneurial memory was sitting in my parents' call office (they had a laundry and drycleaners overseas), at my miniature desk selling Barbie clothes I had made with foam coathanger pads and staples. You could get a "couture gown" for $1! I did pretty well, too, but hey, I was a cutie back then. Who could resist this face?
From there it was Girl Scout cookies as a Brownie, making and selling cat toys from the pads left when the marking tickets were used up (these were stapled pads of paper about 1/2" by 1", frill the edges and tie with a piece of string) 50 cents each and I was launched.
In high school, I must admit, I just studied, but when I hit college, I was introduced to Avon and a couple of other direct sales companies (I can't even remember now who).
Once I married and had my daughter, things happened and I found myself divorced, working on a secretary's pay with a child to raise. Again I turned to my sales abilities and got into Herbalife and Tupperware. I was #1 in sales for Northern California three months in a row!
And it continued from there, doing all sorts of jobs just to survive. But then I turned 55 and woke up one morning and declared that I was through doing what I was "supposed to" and it was time to do what I loved and what made life living. I thought about my options and created this, my current incarnation as a business trainer and facilitator.
I specialize in working with Baby Boomers who are retiring but not ready to go fishin'. These folks are those who have dreamed of starting their own businesses for years and now have the time to do so, but don't have the marketing and sales savvy to compete in today's markets. I also work with Mompreneurs and one-person businesses. I can deliver for any size of business from 1 to 1 million employees. Let's talk about what I can do for you.
You can depend on me to be:
- A creative developer of new ideas, an excellent coordinator, planner, organizer, skilled at interpersonal communication -- verbally and in writing.
Artistic, imaginative and skilled at finding new ways to do ordinary things,
- A highly effective manager of projects, people, programs and events.
- Energetic and enthusiastic with a genuinely positive outlook and approach. I'm open to new experiences and learning and I'm willing to take risks and try new things.
- Happy to share the basic concepts of self-awareness, clarity of thought and purpose, time management and entrepreneurial finesse.
From Arizona to Washington, I have been training entrepreneurs for over 20 years. I have been an SPE (Single Parent Entrepreneur), a traveling artisan , a visual designer, art director and print broker. I've been a television and radio personality as well as a voice actor. I've started and sold 6 companies and have had responsibility for training sales people and marketing teams, creating brands and corporate IDs, all the while remaining committed to networking and sharing with other entrepreneurs.
Nominated for "Who's Who in American Women" in 1991, again in 1996 as well as "Who's Who in International Women" in 1996, I was awarded the coveted "Entrepreneur of the Year Award" from the ICONnet Entrepreneurial Group in 1992. I was Director of the Modesto, CA Leads Club in 1993.
More currently, I am an Ambassador for the Walla Walla Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, Membership Director with the Blue Mountain Business Builders and a member of Soroptimist International. I have Expert status with www.selfgrowth.com as well as www.ezinearticles.com. I am also one of the trainers offering the Business Expert Webinars series to be rolled out later this year.
See my Affiliations Page to find out what I'm doing while I wait for your contact.