Free Teleclass:

“Mindfulness as a Career Strategy: How to Use Centuries-Old Techniques to Enhance Your Leadership Presence Today” with Emily Bennington

To be an effective leader of yourself and others, you have to understand there is a cause and effect relationship between what you think and what you do. And since what you do is the driver of your results, if you want those results to be better you have to go to the source. This means you must shift your thinking in a way that takes full responsibility for how you experience your own life. In this 45-minute presentation (including Q&A), career author Emily Bennington will show you how to do just that through a four-step process designed to help you respond to your circumstances – whatever they are – from an empowered place, rather than simply reacting to the chaos that surrounds us all.  You’ll learn specific techniques to define the leader you want to be, observe your own thoughts without judgment, call out what doesn’t serve you, and call forth what does. But most of all, you’ll walk away from this experience with a deeper appreciation of why you must be a magnificent woman first to have a magnificent career.

Key Takeaways

• A virtues, intentions, and goals template that, when completed, will bring deep clarity around what matters most in your life.
• An increased ability to catch yourself ‘thinking’ (solution-based responses) versus ‘thoughting’ (emotion-based reactions).
• A new understanding of mindfulness that will enable you to make better on-the-spot decisions and navigate work challenges with calm confidence.

Call-in details will be sent in your confirmation email upon registration.

 REGISTER HERE

About Emily 

Emily Bennington specializes in two distinct forms of career transition: college students entering the workforce and women leaders entering executive management. Her work deep dives into what Stephen Covey famously referred to as “the space” between stimulus and response where she challenges executives to choose mindful, values-centered action. Emily is the author of Who Says It’s a Man’s World: The Girls’ Guide to Corporate Domination and the founder of AWAKE EXEC mindful leadership coaching for professional women. She has led training programs for numerous Fortune 500 companies and has been featured in press ranging from CNN, ABC, and Fox, to the Wall Street Journal, Glamour, and Cosmopolitan. Emily is also a contributing writer for Monster.com and a featured blogger for Huffington Post and Forbes Woman. She can be reached online at www.emilybennington.com.

The post Free May Teleclass: Mindfulness as a Career Strategy with Emily Bennington appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

“Be true to yourself, and follow your goals, but be open to good things that may happen. You can end up in a place that’s better than you ever expected.”

Texas Conference for Women advisory council member Julie Parsley, attorney and former commissioner of the Texas Public Utility Commission, knows first-hand about career transition. We caught up with her to ask her a few questions about her career path and how being open and flexible to change might result in opportunities you never would have expected. Following are highlights; scroll down to listen to the full interview.

Why is reinvention so relevant to your life and your career?

“Where I have ended up in life is not exactly where it seemed I would be when I started out,” says Julie.

After beginning her career at the Texas Legislature as a clerk for the energy committee, she went to law school, served as a briefing attorney for the Texas Supreme Court, and practiced law. She later joined the Attorney General’s office as deputy solicitor general and then solicitor general, served as a PUC commissioner and now practices law.

“In a way it’s been circular, but in a course that you couldn’t predict. It’s been a lot of being in the right place at the right time and a lot of accepting things out of left field.” Of facing career choices and transitions after having children and breast cancer, Julie says her ability to adapt to change has come from being open to possibilities.

“Every time I set a goal for myself in my life, I might not have achieved that specific goal, but something just as good would be there. Sometimes the other outcomes that occur can be much better than what you expected.”

What three tips would you share for women to have reinvention around their careers?

1. “Check in with yourself. Look at what you really want, versus what others expect of you or what you had expected of yourself. See if what you’re living up to is your own ideal or someone else’s.
2.  Set goals. Have an idea of what you want to do.
3. Be open, be flexible and look for things out of left field.”

Is there one thing you make time for every day?

“I have a devotional book, with one for every day. When I make time for quiet time with that book, I can get insights that I can’t get otherwise.

Find time for whatever is important to you. Take a minute and reconnect with that part of you. Days get so hectic and trying, so really having a minute to reflect makes a difference.”

Any other advice to share with other professional women?

“Be true to yourself, and follow your goals, but be open to good things that may happen. You can end up in a place that’s better than you ever expected.”

Julie Parsley is a partner at Parsley Coffin Renner LLP and advisory board member of the Texas Conference for Women.

The post Inspired by: Julie Parsley appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

However, as decades of research informs, we need space – slack time, time for messy thinking, time to learn – to fuel our creativity.  Where does this leave us? Applying techniques from recent neurological and creativity research with our experiences helping senior executives, below is a short list of disciplined, proven practices you can put in place.  Creative thinking certainly comes easier to some than others, but every one of us is capable – this is not something for a privileged few.

■     Challenge the status quo.  Think about the core beliefs that drive how you and your company operate – what do you believe are truths.  These can include how consumers behave, what can and cannot be done, etc.  For example, when Steve Jobs opened Apple retail stores, every analyst on Wall Street said this was a bad idea because consumers did not want to purchase computers in a store.  Our core beliefs, especially those held over long periods of time, often reflect orthodoxies – barriers that stifle creativity and get you stuck in repeated patterns.  Spend time alone or with your teams conducting this simple exercise:

–    Step 1. What are our core beliefs about [select a topic: e.g., consumers, operations, processes]?

–    Step 2. Introduce the concept of orthodoxies.  These are often the monuments in your organizations and your life that we fear changing most.

–    Step 3. Ask yourself and your team, what if these were not true (some of course will remain true as not all will be orthodoxies)? What would you do differently? What creative options would you consider?

■     Reframe questions.  Very often the same question is asked repeatedly resulting in a similar set of answers.  By reframing questions, asking them differently, you can get to surprisingly creative answers.  Neuroscientists have recently connected perception and creativity in our brains.  This means that the more you change how you look at a problem or ask a question differently, the more creative your responses will be.

■     Get out and experience.  As adults, the most powerful learning experiences occur as just that – experiences.  The most effective approach to ultimately changing long-held beliefs is to experience something that challenges how you think and what you believe to be true.  These simple tactics such as visiting stores, calling our own company as a consumer and so on are extremely powerful yet so often ignored because of time constraints and end up on the bottom of many well-intentioned to-do lists.

Consider making these tactics a discipline just like many others on your calendar.  For example:

■     Find time at a cadence that works for you and schedule a small amount of time for these types of activities.  For example, each Friday or one Friday a month give yourself permission and time for creative exploration,

■     When problem solving and brainstorming, begin to incorporate these techniques into your daily work and for those on your teams so they become a natural extension and not something intentional, and

■     Lastly, briefly reflect occasionally on their effectiveness and how you might improve.

You’ll be surprised how these simple techniques can have dramatic effects.

_______________

Marla M. Capozzi is a Senior Expert and a leader of McKinsey&Company’s Global Innovation Practice based in Boston.

The post Leading Innovation and Increasing Creativity: Marla Capozzi appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

What do you do when you’ve lost your way at work? (And desperately need a new plan for the future!)

A lot of times, our work is … fine.  Things are going well enough that we don’t look too deeply or ask too many questions of ourselves, and shamefully leave the TV channel set to The Real Housewives.

Sure, we’d like to be more energized, maybe less annoyed by our co-workers, and more money would be nice too, and maybe less of that nagging feeling that you should be doing something better. Or more interesting. Or just…more.

You wake up one morning and find out that somehow you have just lost your way.    You’ve got a vague dissatisfaction that things could be or should be better.  That feeling drives you to roll back over, close your eyes, and wish that a magic fairy would save you from the day (and maybe upgrade your shoe collection?).

Have you ever felt that way?

If so, you are sooooo not alone.  It happens to everyone at some point, but most people just keep on doing what they are doing, hoping magic/chance/luck/fairy dust will come their way and make something new happen.

YOU, however, are not most people.  You are ready to roll up your sleeves and actually make a change! (You are awesome!)

So, given that, here are three things to think about to help you find your way back again:

1. What about your work makes you happy right now? (Be specific)

2. In a year from now, what specifically would make you even happier (be honest and brave here – don’t just go for the more money route)

3. What do you need to do to make this happen for yourself?

Voilà - you have started to make a plan!  This is the first method of attack to letting go of that lost feeling and really figuring out what your next step should be.

You may be thinking: “All well and good, but now I have to go DO that. How?”

The first step is having the confidence that you can and will.  Confidence is not always that easy to come by, and often times we stay feeling “meh” about work because it is the safe thing to do.  That thing that keeps us feeling comfortable and relaxed watching bad TV on the couch (hey, hey Real Housewives!).

Well, comfortable and relaxed doesn’t help you get your mojo back.  Have no fear though – it’s time to take yourself in hand and expand your comfort zone.

The first way to do this to start small, by taking a new road to work or trying a new restaurant.  Then, get bigger – have coffee with someone you admire or want to get to know better, try a new skill or an experience that scares/thrills you (roller coaster? Rock climbing? Public speaking?), and do something that makes you pause for a moment and think: “Ummm, was this really such a good idea?” (Yes. YES! It is!)

When you get out of your comfort zone and survive the experience, you feel better.  You you feel more confident in your skills and abilities, and it’s not only easier to figure out where you want to go, you are so much more likely to do it.  Now, go out and try – I know you can do this!

Christie Mims is the Radical Fairy Godmother to the Woman Trapped in Her Suit and is here to wave fairy dust on you and get you unstuck in your career. Sign up for her free job UNstuck kit here! And, if you really want to get out of your comfort zone and have a career adventure – then join her this summer in Costa Rica!

The post How to Find Your Way When You’re Lost at Work: Christie Mims appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

• clarifying your goals
• leveraging your support network
• communicating your value at the workplace.

Samantha and Darlene will be addressing your questions during the live broadcast, giving you the tools you need to be your best advocate! If you are interested in being featured on the show please send an email to info@conferencesforwomen.org with your name, contact information, and brief overview of what stumbling block you may have encountered with advocating for yourself.

These are ‘Office Hours’ you can’t afford to miss. REGISTER HERE

Please note: A link to the online radio show will be sent upon registration.

Darlene Templeton is a professional speaker, trainer, executive coach and author. A master in LEADERSHIP and TRANSFORMATION, Darlene’s extensive corporate experience (36 years with IBM) has given her the tools to transform even the most dynamic executives into world-class leaders. To learn more about Darlene visit here.

As the leading lifestyle and parenting expert for women, Samantha Ettus specializes in coaching the busiest parents on the planet. Since earning her undergraduate and MBA degrees from Harvard, Sam has coached thousands of parents – celebrities, top CEO’s and professional athletes – who aim to perform at the highest levels in both their professional and personal lives. To learn more about Sam visit here.

The post May “Office Hours”—Who is Driving Your Career? Advocating For Yourself In the Workplace appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

1. Be unapologetic about your lifestyle. Making excuses for working is like wearing a short skirt and constantly pulling on it.
2. Have a school network – two moms you can count on in each child’s grade. If you help them when you can, it will be easier to ask for help when you need it.
3. Spend a night out each week – a date night or an evening with friends. This is your fuel; don’t let your tank run dry.
4. Disconnect to Connect. Turn off the technology for a set time each day so that you are present when you are with your family.
5. Do all of your errands within the Golden Triangle – home, office and school. From the dentist to the hair salon, make no exceptions.
6. Treat your arrivals and departures like a train schedule. Predictability makes you more successful at home and at work.
7. Beware of the “Flextime Fantasy.” If you have a flexible career, establish set daily hours so that you don’t lose time reinventing your schedule each day.
8. As soon as the school calendar arrives, add it to yours. This way you can plan around the school play and the parent teacher conference.
9. Sundays are big for you. Plan every detail of the week’s schedule down to the meals and who’s making them. This will reduce conflict, ease stress and save time.
10. Don’t get so attached to your sitter that you can’t see her faults. Spot-check by arriving home unexpectedly to see what happens when you are not there.
11. Help your spouse to be a partner. Praise more than criticize and create opportunities for him to do every task you do.
12. Divide and conquer. Being partners means sharing the responsibilities, divided by your strengths, and pitching in on any as needed.
13. Write it all down. From the grocery list to the lunchbox ingredients, you can’t delegate unless you get it out of your head and on paper.
14. Nurture your marriage with daily 20-minute check-ins. Keeping in touch with your own partner is vital to a strong bond.
15. Synchronize your sleep schedules. Going to bed at the same time together leads to a healthy sex life.
16. You can never show your kids too much affection. Shower them in it and watch them thrive.
17. Triathletes win or lose races based on transitions. Keep all supplies in their place (cubbies for each family member) and pick clothing the night before.
18. Foster a strong family culture by celebrating occasions big and small – birthdays, new seasons. Create rituals e.g. Friday night family movies.
19. Expect stress and roller coasters but remember that bad moments are not “bad days” or “bad weeks.” They are moments. Make this a family philosophy.
20. Aim to have at least one focused meal a day with your children no matter how crazy work can get.
21. If you can’t host play dates during the week, do it on the weekends so that you get to know your child’s friends and their families.
22. Personal maintenance is not discretionary. Incorporate exercise into the “train schedule” and if you feel best with a weekly manicure, add it too.
23. Keep a positive connection with your kids all week long by planning a weekend event for them to look forward to. Start talking about it on Monday; anticipation is half the fun.
24. Identify kid-friendly errands and make a habit of bringing them along. From the supermarket to the car wash, no need to spend this time away from them.
25. Be proactive about what you can do. If you aren’t available for weekday opportunities, volunteer to coach the soccer team on Saturdays.

As the leading lifestyle and parenting expert for women, Samantha Ettus specializes in coaching the busiest parents on the planet. She is a bestselling author of four Random House books, a writer for Forbes and Disney’s Babble, and host of the nationally syndicated radio show, Working Moms Lifestyle. She makes regular television appearances on national TV including The Today Show, The Early Show, Your World with Neil Cavuto and The O’Reilly Factor, among others.  She aims to practice what she preaches in her daily life as a mother of three and wife of entrepreneur, Mitch Jacobs. Learn more at http://workingmomslifestyle.com

The post 25 Ways to Win as a Working Mom: Samantha Ettus appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

How was/is your mother a role model for your career?

Following are some of our favorite responses. Add yours in the comments!

She taught me “Never say can’t. Tell me you don’t want to. Tell me you don’t know how and I’ll show you. But never say ‘can’t’.”

My mom’s mantra was “make yourself indispensable” (i.e. do whatever’s needed, not just what you think you should be doing).

My mom always told us to do what makes us happy.

My mom had her own alteration business in 1948 before (and after) she got married. She taught me to be independent and not to settle – whip up a dress and a fabulous meal too J.

My mom was a stay-at-home mom but also sold Tupperware and Avon. She had such a beautiful light about her, and people were drawn to her smile. I realized having positive energy and a good smile goes a long way.

Funny you should ask. I am a communications trainer and I reference her years in the banking industry all the time. I learned so much from her about how to treat people, how to be a true professional, and how to be a working mom. I am indebted to her entire generation of women who blazed a path for me and the women of my generation. I hope to do the same for my girls.

My mom didn’t have a high school diploma; she worked in sewing factories, long, hard hours for low wages, also waitressing. She inspired me to get an education so that I could earn a better life. I am grateful.

She told me to invent a product, I did, and millions of sales later I have her to thank!

Growing up, my sister and I witnessed my mother (a single parent) struggle and work long hours as a waitress. After many years she had enough and decided to better herself and her family by going back to school for nursing. While going to school full-time and working (and being a single parent was an even harder struggle), she graduated and has been a nurse for well over 10 years now. I am extremely proud of her hard work and dedication. Her persistence has taught me to succeed in everything I do. I would not be where I am in my career today if it were not for my mother.

My mom modeled communication, she took us to campaign, community, church…taught us to prioritize a balanced life…our God, our family, our community.

My mother started “take your daughter to work day” with two other women. She has paved the way for so many women scientists and inspired me to be a business owner. She’s my hero.

My mother owned a public relations company in the ’60s. She was very successful and always told me I had to find a career that I loved so that I would never have to depend on anyone else.

How was *your* mother a role model for you? 

The post How Was Your Mom a Role Model for Your Career? appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

In our free teleclass on April 24, Julie Shifman of Act Three discussed how to use small-stepping to reach your goals, avoiding the hopelessness and discouragement that often come when facing a big challenge. Scroll down to listen to the 30-minute call.

Julie advises us to look at the specific steps we need to take to reach our goal, and break them down into doable segments, or small steps. For example, do you need a new resume before you find a new job? Should you do some market research before you try to open a new business?

Download Small Stepping to Success Slides (pdf)

The small-stepping approach, Julie says, allows you to get comfortable with each step along with way.

Julie answered participant questions, ranging from how to on-ramp after being a stay-at-home mom to how to leverage networking to change careers.

In a brief exercise, Julie asked call participants to identify their long-term goal and then ask themselves:

What is one thing I need to do right now to move towards reaching my goal?

Julie Shifman is an inspirational, award-winning speaker, author, and business owner. She started her career as a professional ballet dancer and then became a highly successful lawyer in New York City and Cincinnati before founding her company, Act Three, an organization that helps women define their next stage of life and create their own personal action plan for living out that life and is a certified coach.  Julie is the author of Act Three: Creating the Life You Want, and has also created a documentary film featuring many of the incredible women profiled in her book.

Listen to the call here:

The post Teleclass Recap: Your Next Career—Now with Julie Shifman appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

by Alexis Sclamberg

I remember my polished image staring back at me at that downtown consignment store. I could hear Dolce and Gabbana cheering me on, with my cinched waist, tapered suit pants and power pumps.

I looked pretty sharp, I looked really professional, and crazily enough, I looked like a lawyer.

My Penn Law pedigree scored me an interview at nearly every top law firm in New York City, so I figured I better look the part. In a funky, run-down thrift shop, hidden in the 20’s, I bought the suit. Zebra-print-lined blazer and all. I even kept my hair wrapped in my neat, business bun as I carried my loot back uptown on the Subway.

The designer suit, along with my poise and my pep, worked their magic, and by the following week my apartment started filling up with offers and gifts—lots of gifts—water bottles, flash drives, and gym bags, all sporting Big Law names.

I even got a bonsai tree.

I was wanted. I was being courted full press. By the best. The best of the best!

That part felt good. No, it felt fantastic. I could work the system.

But could the system work for me?

I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach that it wouldn’t, that something wasn’t right. It seemed that the prize I worked so tirelessly to win, with all its perks and sky-scraper paychecks, wasn’t for me.

Was it just new job jitters or was some deep down voice really telling me to change course?

Not a Chance.

Turns out, it was my voice. And it was getting louder and louder. I think I may have always known that working a cookie cutter job was a lost cause for me. It took me a measly six weeks at a firm to high tail it out of there.

Here it was, just another chapter of my life story. I’m the girl that doesn’t draw in the lines. I’m the girl that sings a different tune. I’m the girl that…you get the picture. My gut gives me a direction and my heart leads the way. That’s just who I am.

Reason, Logic and a Gut Feeling

I know that many of you are thinking I’ve squandered an incredible opportunity. How irresponsible! What insanity to give up financial security in a time like this! Do you know how many people dream of being in your position?

For three years in law school, I was taught that Reason and Logic reign supreme—that deductive thinking dictates sensible action. So, yes, you could argue that I am irresponsible, insane and unappreciative. You could tell me that it would only make sense to take my law degree, my license to practice, and my $150,000 student debt straight over to Big Law, hunker down, and stay a while. A good, long while.

But my Intuition is a wellspring of wisdom so far beyond the halls of law school and the walls of my brain. And it was sharing a vision of a girl who fits perfectly into the fabric of her comfy sweatshirt and yoga pants. It was telling me the story of a girl who wanted something else. So I listened.

My gut feeling didn’t come with a long list of explanations or even a well-reasoned alternative. It just arrived—a big package with a bold message: NO ANALYSIS REQUIRED.

You might call my decision a giant risk. But never have I thought it was a bad idea to gamble on myself. The real risk would have been silencing my inner voice; this I refused to do. And as for the Dolce and Gabbana suit, it ripped straight down the front pants’ seam, right before an interview. It just wasn’t meant to be.

A former lawyer and past speaker at the Texas Conference for Women, Alexis has been called “the self-help voice of her generation,” and is the author of the upcoming book, Borrowed Wisdom. She contributes personal essays to publications including Forbes.com and Cosmopolitan magazine, blogs for The Huffington Post, and writes an advice column in the J Weekly paper. You can also find her writing for Women’s Media Center, Hello Giggles, Women’s eNews, Runner’s World online, and others. You can find her at and follow her on Twitter here.

The post Poise, Pep and My Power Suit appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.

I’m not crafty but at the beginning of every year I make a vision board.  It’s my one craft project for the year and it’s so much fun.  Reading magazines is my guilty little pleasure and it comes in handy for this task.  Over the past few weeks I’ve been ripping out pages, pictures and words that speak to me.  I spent this evening gluing my favorites on a piece of poster board.

What is a Vision Board?

The idea is to have a place for all the things you’d like to accomplish, places you’d like to go and things you enjoy.  Oprah talks about making vision boards because as she says, “you become what you believe.”  So if you use this tool as a jumping off point for your goals you are more likely to achieve them.  I use it as a reminder of my goals — like having a three-bedroom apartment or going to Venice.  I also put photos of people I admire, things I enjoy like drinking tea and other ambitions like writing a book.

There are No Rules

Your vision board can include photos, drawings or inspirational words.  If you are super crafty you can use fabric or other textures as well.  There is no right way to do it.  The photos can be places you’ve been, places you want to go, outfits you like, things you’d like to buy, kitchens you want to model yours after or anything that makes you smile.  You can make your board by hand like I did or do it digitally on your computer.

You can be literal or creative with your choices.  I’ve included photos of champagne because it’s one of my favorite drinks but also it symbolizes celebrations. I’d like to have a lot of things to celebrate this year.  There’s a photo of someone filling out thank you cards and it’s not that I particularly like writing out cards — but I’d like to have lots of reasons to say thank you.

I purposely leave some white space on my vision board so it can evolve throughout the year.  Whenever I see a photo that catches my eye or I think of something I want to achieve — I add it.  I hang my vision board inside my closet door.  That way I’m sure to see it every morning when I get dressed.

Here are some places you can keep your vision board:

1. On your desk in a frame
2. Pinned up on a cork board
3. As your desktop wallpaper
4. In a book that you carry with you
5. On your phone in an app like “Vision Board Deluxe” by Happy Tapper
6. On Pinterest.com

I think this would be a fun activity to do with friends or even with kids.  Kids can make their own vision boards with activities and places they want to go throughout the year.  You’ll be surprised how much of an influence it can have on them.

You can even make it a tradition to check out last year’s vision board on New Year’s Eve and evaluate how much they’ve done in the past year.  Then make a new board on New Year’s Day.  But you don’t have to do this at the beginning of the year — you can make a vision board at any time.

Remember though that just having a vision board isn’t enough.  You must actively work towards your goals.

Paula Rizzo is a senior television producer in New York City and founder of ListProducer.com.  She’s an Emmy Award winner and attributes much of her success to her compulsive list making.  She makes lists for everything and started ListProducer.com to help others become more organized, focused and efficient, while being less stressed.  Follow her on Twitter and connect on Facebook. 

The post Vision Boards: You Become What You Believe appeared first on Texas Conference for Women.