Women Taking The Lead With Jodi Flynn

Jennifer Briney is the host of Congressional Dish, a twice-monthly podcast exposing the secrets drowned out by the partisan noise in the United States Congress. By interpreting legislation, summarizing Congressional hearings, and following the money, Jennifer Briney analyzes the actions of Congress that are generally ignored by the corporate media, delivering the information from the perspective of a fed-up taxpayer, who bears no allegiance to any political party or ideology.  Playing Small Moment For six months, Jennifer had an idea to make a podcast but never acted upon it. She allowed the naysayers in her life to influence her decision. It wasn’t until after her father had a near-death experience, that she decided to take his advice and run with the idea. The Wake Up Call Jennifer downloaded 30 episodes of Audacity to Podcast, and then followed through with every piece of information the host recommended. She’s embarrassed by those first episodes, but is so happy she did it! Style of Leadership Jennifer’s

Carol Cox is the creator of Speaking Your Brand, which helps purpose-driven women entrepreneurs and leaders shape their business and personal brands, share their message, and become recognized as influencers in their field. She teaches business and marketing classes at a university, and during election seasons, serves as a Democratic political analyst on TV news. Carol believes that as high-performing women, we change the paradigm, the perception of ambitious women, by more of us actively and visibly pursuing bigger audacious goals, raising our voices and sharing our stories about what really matters — on stages, in boardrooms, in our businesses, in the media, and in our families — so others can learn from our journeys, see themselves in ours, and become leaders in their own companies and communities.  Playing Small Moment Carol was in her early 30’s when she decided to finally run for chairperson. She obtained the position and enjoyed the success for a time, until her friends stopped supporting her. After th

Lin Eleoff is an Internet startup lawyer, but she's more than that — she's the kind of lawyer that wants to help you avoid having to hire a lawyer, especially when you're just trying to grow your business, and money is tight. That means she doesn't want you to hire her; she wants to show you how you can do a lot of the legal legwork yourself. Her "DIY Legal Toolkit" not only answers your legal questions, it provides you with checklists, templates, and the law you need to know about in order to "cover your assets online." Online entrepreneurs don't know what they don't know, and that means they're exposing themselves to liability, and they're putting their personal assets at risk. Playing Small Moment Lin says playing small for her was when she attempted to be all things to all people. The Wake Up Call Lin started her online business without knowing what she was doing. After some time, she made a 46-step checklist that she made into a book. A book she wished she had had access to when she first started her bus

Dana Zarcone, known as “The Liberating Leadership Coach,” is passionate about helping her clients live all-in and full-out, step into their power, and enjoy epic success in life and business. Dana has her masters in counseling, is a national certified counselor, certified core energetics practitioner, certified life coach and energy healer. She’s the founder of Source Your Joy™ and is a motivational speaker, author, and host of The Your Shift Matters podcast. Playing Small Moment When Dana was growing up, her parents had her life already roadmapped for her. She did exactly what was expected of her. Dana’s playing small moment came after receiving her mother’s discouragement after she told her mom she was going back to college, after becoming successful in corporate America. She ended up staying the course and continuing her work, when it wasn’t what she wanted to do. The Wake Up Call Dana decided to leave the corporate world to become an entrepreneur and coach. When she took the leap, she realized that she di

In this holiday season while we are putting more effort into being forgiving, cheerful and jolly I thought I’d go over some of the reasons why you might want to continue the effort throughout the year…at least until it doesn’t require as much effort. We’ve all needed to vent at one time or another. The pressure builds inside of us and we need to release it to a close and trusted confidant. The mistake I see some women make is bringing that behavior into their professional life assuming everyone they are talking to is on the same page as they are. They voice their grievances indiscriminately and without any commitment to create change for the better. Another reason I’m doing this episode is as a reminder to myself to always be mindful of the impact I have on others. I’m generally known as a positive person but I have my moments of negativity and I’d like those moments to be fewer and farther between in the future. Also, if you are a win-lose kind of person I can tell you when you go negative in a relationship

Michelle McQuaid is a best-selling author, workplace well-being teacher, and playful change activator. With more than a decade of senior leadership experience in large organizations around the world, she’s passionate about translating cutting-edge research from positive psychology and neuroscience, into practical strategies for health, happiness, and business success. She blogs for Psychology Today, Huffington Post, and Live Happy, and her work has been featured in Forbes, the Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, Boss Magazine, The Age, and more. Michelle lives to help people discover their strengths, move beyond their fears, and finally discover what it truly takes to flourish with confidence. Playing Small Moment Michelle says her playing small moment came when she requested coffee with a friend who was a C-level executive from a large financial firm, to ask for some career advice. When her contact said she should take on a new role, Michelle was embarrassed, because she didn’t think she had wh

Andrea Goulet is the CEO of Corgibytes, a software development shop dedicated to maintaining and modernizing software applications. Named by LinkedIn as one of the top ten professionals in software under 35, Andrea is the founder of LegacyCode.Rocks, and hosts a podcast dedicated to changing the way we think about legacy code. She keynotes frequently about building a business based on balance, empathy, and trust; the perils of the technical/non-technical divide; and the technical philosophies around working with legacy code. In her spare time, Andrea enjoys helping other people learn how to code, and writing about the intersection of empathy and software. She loves watching her kids explore the world, and is a sucker for a good physics documentary. You can recognize her by the JavaScript tattoo on her wrist. Playing Small Moment Andrea says she still plays small sometimes, and she feels the anxiety that accompanies her fear may always be there for her. She finds herself focusing on the negative comments about

As CEO of Successful Culture, Marissa helps CEOs master the three most critical aspects of business growth: leadership development, strategy formulation and execution, and organizational culture assessment and improvement. Marissa also helps CEOs build the supporting communities they need to grow, including advisory boards and CEO roundtables. Successful Culture ensures organizations have the strongest internal infrastructures and external support systems required to build their greatest organizations, and reach their greatest potential. Playing Small Moment When Marissa worked for a company before starting her own business, she was a protégé to the CEO. She had built a business case about why she deserved a raise and the CEO told her she would never be worth more than $34K to his company. For a moment, Marissa thought maybe I am only worth a certain amount. She then remembered her mother saying “Never let anyone else determine your value.” The Wake Up Call After a government initiative to only accept lowest-

Upon the creation of Wreaths Across America™ in 2007, Karen Worcester was chosen for the position of executive director. With over 40 years’ experience in the administrative stewardship of various Worcester enterprises, Karen is a passionate champion and spokesperson. As a co-founder of Wreaths Across America, Karen tenaciously works on ways the organization can best remember the fallen; honor those who serve; and teach our children that our freedoms are purchased at a great cost. Playing Small Moment When Karen’s second child was born two months premature, she blamed herself. It put things in perspective for her, and she knew if she could survive that, she could survive anything. The Wake Up Call Karen struggles with self-doubt and realizes many people just want to be loved and needed. She feels blessed to have understood from a young age, she didn’t need to be perfect, and she could only do the best that she could do. Style of Leadership Karen is respectful of the fact that we all have different skill sets

As a lifelong pianist, Jennifer Eklund has embodied the American entrepreneurial spirit since she was a teenager. She worked as a performer and teacher for twenty years before diving head-on into running her music book publishing company, Piano Pronto Publishing, full-time, starting in 2014. A trailblazer in the evolving print music industry, Eklund is an avid composer of educational piano music and now represents and publishes the works of a growing number of independent composers. Playing Small Moment Jennifer says for musicians small moments can come on an almost daily basis. She had created a curriculum she felt needed to be seen in the publishing industry. She accepted many rejection letters before standing her ground and questioning them on why they thought the world didn’t need it. The Wake Up Call Jennifer had a contract meeting with a major publisher which made her feel like she would be signing away her life. They edited her piece of music and took all the fun out of it. She knew at that moment she

Milly Welsh is the founder of Zebralove Web Solutions, a web development company in Portland, Maine, that specializes in web design & development, mobile app development, and search engine optimization. Milly started Zebralove in 2006 and loves to help businesses, small and large, achieve the online presence they need, to grow to the next level. Milly is currently working on a mobile app, called VibeSquirrel, that will come out for iOS and Android in early 2017. Playing Small Moment Milly’s playing small moment was when she took on an enormous project, and because she was a self-taught developer, she didn’t ask for help from other developers. She feared they might think her a fraud. The Wake Up Call Milly realizes that by helping other people she is able to grow her business to the next level. Style of Leadership Milly is developing her leadership style through collaboration. She knows it takes longer than giving directives but she believes better ideas come out of it. What Are You Excited About? Milly is

Today, for this bonus episode, I want to talk to you about bartering. This topic is relevant if you have a business or not, so stick with me. First, let’s start with selling. The idea of selling, for many women, is an icky thing. We are taught as young girls to be of service and to give for the sake of giving. Usually when we were transacting with money the price was set by someone else and we were not to haggle over it. And as a coach, the idea that I was selling conversation – something I gave away for free all the time – that was even more difficult. I remember when I became a newbie coach there was a lot of advice and opinions on what to charge for services and how to have those conversations. I remember being told not to barter my services; that my services are a valuable commodity and I needed to respect that. I can see how this advice was well intended but I have evolved as a coach and a business owner and I want to share my new understanding with you in the hopes that it is helpful to you and gives yo

Krystal is a branding, PR, and influence expert who helps women build expert brands that get them more opportunities to make an impact in the world, so they can finally get paid what they’re worth. She’s also an author and keynote speaker who loves helping people stand out. Playing Small Moment Krystal realized she was playing small early in her freelance career when she had difficulty charging people for her work. It wasn’t until she found the support of a networking group that she was able to become comfortable asking for her true value. The Wake Up Call Krystal started a free networking group named “Women of Denver.” When she decided to make it a subscription based group, she was overwhelmed with anxiety from the responsibility of it all. Her wake up call came when she realized she needed to build her own confidence before she could lead the group using her full potential. Style of Leadership Krystal wants people to know the why behind the things she preaches, and she allows people to see the mistakes she

Naketa Thigpen, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and Balance & Relationship Advisor took the best of her education, aptitude, and experience as a barrier-breaker, and founded ThigPro Balance and Relationship Management Institute to unlock passion, unleash innovation, and maximize profit. As the author of the forthcoming book, Selfish, and a sought-after speaker and podcast host, Naketa has set her daily intention to empower and motivate the willing to balance all that matters. Playing Small Moment Naketa takes us back to the first time she recognized she was playing small. She walked into a networking event and felt isolated based on her appearance and personality. She acknowledged she wasn’t comfortable in her “new skin” as an entrepreneur, when she changed her answers based on if the person who approached her was a male or a female. The Wake Up Call Naketa’s latest aha moment came when she decided to do a daily 5 a.m. Wake and Breakthrough on Periscope. She didn’t plan on her Grandfather’s words

Robin Bates is a new small business owner, as of June of this year. She creates unique children’s books, where your precious little one is the star of the story. Prior to starting Jewel’s Custom Books, she took a four-year hiatus from her 25+ year career as a preschool teacher. She and her husband, Marc, currently have three children, and they were her main motivation in starting Jewel’s Custom Books. The love of reading is a gift they wish to instill not only to their children, but to as many other kids as possible. Playing Small Moment Robin recognizes that some people view teaching as being a glorified babysitter, but she knows what she is doing is very important. Teaching is actually one of her superpowers. The Wake Up Call The book, The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats, had a profound influence on Robin at a very early age. Later, when her husband introduced custom books as a business idea she loved it because she knew what it felt like for a child to be the star of the story. Style of Leadership Robin beli

Boom Shikha is a serial entrepreneur, wanderluster, online-business owner, yogi, author, and avid meditator. She's interested in helping you find your life purpose, and get to your Level 10 life. Playing Small Moment The last time Boom felt like she was playing small was in the corporate world. She says they almost set up the environment for people to play small by hiding their creativity and not being themselves.    The Wake Up Call Boom was working at her previous job when she planned an overseas vacation. Shortly before she was ready to leave, the management team told her about an upcoming launch she would miss if she continued with her travel plans. Boom went to Asia and upon her return, her boss told her how disappointed she was that she missed the launch and that she must not care about the company. Her wake up call was the realization she wanted to control her own time.  Style of Leadership Boom trusts her gut and considers herself an intuitive leader. What Are You Excited About? Boom is excited about

Changing the world is the reason Daniel Bielak wakes up in the morning. A dynamic speaker and presenter, Daniel’s desire for change has led him to start the Youth Empowerment Podcast, and business danielbielak.com. On the podcast, he has interviewed some of the world’s greatest influencers, leaders and inspirational people. With a passion for entrepreneurship, helping others and changing the world, don’t be surprised if he’s impacting one hundred thousand youth by the end of 2016, and one million within 3 years. Look out for him in 2035 when he is sworn into office and becomes Prime Minister of Canada. A Woman Who Has Impacted You as a Leader Daniel was born nine weeks premature, and diagnosed with asthma. He spent most of his childhood sick, due to his allergic reaction to the asthma medication he was prescribed. His mother took him to the Mayo clinic when she was tired of seeing her son suffer. His Impact on Women as Leaders Daniel’s initiative is to empower men to embrace their feminine aspects -- which he

Dr. Tiffany Stewart is a national speaker, professional coach and mentor, trained licensed therapist, and tenured associate professor of counseling. She works with individuals, teaching step-by-step how to create the life they want and desire. Her passion is to help individuals, who may be stuck in some area of life, tap into their power and give themselves permission to step into their purpose and create the life they want to live. She is the creator of the L.E.A.P. Success System. Playing Small Moment Dr. Stewart’s playing small moment was a large portion of her past, when she was following along with everything she thought she was supposed to do. She didn’t consider that she could think outside of the box and explore her other abilities. The Wake Up Call Dr. Stewart was working with a mentor early in her career, when she was looking for guidance. She questioned her own worth, because her ideas were being rebuffed. But when she noticed her ideas were being regurgitated back to her, she experienced her wake

Accomplished: How to Go From Dreaming to Doing is in Amazon! Knowing the pain of needing coaching yet not being ready for it I took my coaching system, wove it with personal stories, descriptions [and a free companion course with videos and worksheets] and put it into Accomplished: How to Go From Dreaming to Doing. Go here to grab your copy and share with a friend: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N3LH7S0

Katie Grant is the co-owner of Dirigo Public House, a craft beer pub located in Yarmouth, Maine.  After many years in the service industry, she and her chef husband, Ben, opened Dirigo in 2015 where they share their love of great food and drink and a welcoming community with their guests. Katie has a BS in Media Arts & Design from James Madison University and has worked in the corporate design world as well successfully running her own graphic design company after graduating from JMU in 2010.  Katie is a proud life-long Mainer and feels incredibly fortunate to live, work and raise her family in such a beautiful place. Playing Small Moment Katie’s playing small moment came when she joined a larger team of graphic designers. She was new to the team and the youngest of the group which made her unsure of her abilities. The Wake Up Call Katie’s wake up call slowly evolved as she took control of the managerial activities at Dirigo. Her confidence is continually rising as she is confronted with each new challeng