Twitter

Recently I saw a quote on Twitter that I fell in love with: “Some women aren’t meant to be tamed. Maybe they need to run free until they find someone just as wild to run with. I wondered what my readers—fabulous, independent-minded working mothers would think about it.

For me being wild isn’t about abandoning my child and home or having a torrid affair with a mysterious bad boy. From my vantage point, being wild is about allowing my life to unfold naturally, without feeling the need to prune or restrain the messier parts of my personality.

As a woman you may have a tendency to tamp down the ”undesirable” parts of yourself. On a regular basis, you may psychically contort yourself because you want to be loved. You may fail to state your preferences and opinions because you’re fearful of being called a bitch. You may have decided that to be happy, you can’t make waves.

I think that you sacrifice your spirit by remaining in relationships: personal or professional that don’t let you fully express who you are. You have to ask yourself if you can truly grow if you’re expected to conform to someone else’s values or viewpoints. Can someone truly love you if he/she stifles your ability to discuss your dreams or the things that piss you off? [That person may want a reflection of her/himself--not you ].

I have no interest in being tamed. I’ve come to the place where I only want people in my life who are ok with me being me—whoever that is on a given day or at a particular stage. I’m wonderful, but flawed. I’m always learning and growing. I seek to be loved and appreciated. I desire to bring love and inspiration to all those who I meet. I am complex. I am woman, mother, partner, lover, friend, professional, engaged citizen. I am human which means that I easily expose my contradictions and hypocrisies. I’m a glorious handful!

There’s nothing wrong with being wild. It’s not irresponsible. Being wild is the acknowledgement that you are a unique reflection of the Universe. Today, think about the folks in your life who are working their damndest to tame you. What will you lose of yourself if they succeed?

Learn how a FREE Working Moms StartUP session could help you to achieve higher levels of calm and success in your personal and professional life. For more details, please drop me an email at Yvonne@SophisticatedWomanandMama.com. You can also connect with me on Twitter at Twitter.com/YvonneBynoe and on Facebook at Facebook.com/YvonneBynoe

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Photo by Rienk Jan Schurer

The Internet is rife with marketers hawking client attraction systems to solopreneurs aka home-based business owners. The formulas vary a bit, but generally these programs teach that you should build your database (your cash cow) by distributing an ezine, conducting teleseminars (free and paid) and providing a free report as an inducement for people to subscribe to your ezine.

There is nothing inherently wrong with these suggestions. They are indeed valid ways to market, promote and sell your products/services. Unfortunately they won’t work alone–the missing link is networking. You’ll probably only be marginally successful if you don’t get out and meet people. What most of the client attraction gurus fail to tell their followers is that networking was critical to them finding the mentors, information and resources that they needed to build their 6 and 7 figure businesses.

I like networking as much as I like going to the dentist. I loathe intentional mingling and the awkward conversation that usually accompanies it. I’m also not a fan of people pushing their business cards on me or suggesting a joint venture when they can barely pronounce my last name. However for the sake of my business I’m diligently working on improving my networking skills. Despite the popularity of Twitter and Facebook most people still prefer to meet face-to-face at conferences, conventions, seminars and cocktail parties, happy hours.

I was glad to come across LaToya Petersen’s article, “But….I’m Too Shy to Network” in online magazine Jezebel.com. She advocates re-framing networking—think of it as looking for potential friends rather than hunting down potential business contacts. She also provides some really good tips about how to initiate and maintain new relationships.

Read the article But… I’m Too Shy To Network here

Please let me know your tips for effective networking.

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