or...
Stop being so darned "professional" and take a break today!
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Issue No. 20
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October 2009
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Welcome! If you enjoyed last month you'll be craaaaazy
about this month! The purpose of this ezine continues to be
inspiration, humor, business, personal and just plain fun: aka the
don't-take-yourself-so-seriously ezine.
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This issue is dedicated to my beloved dog, Brat.  August 20, 1995 - October 14, 2009
I lost a treasured friend today
The little dog who used to lay
His gentle head upon my knee
And shared his silent thoughts with me.
Although my eyes are filled with tears
I thank him for the happy years.
Pet Loss Poem - The Rainbow Bridge
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 The word Halloween is really a result of fast-talking
slurs of the phrase, "All Hallowe'en," which meant to go out on October
31st and celebrate all Hallow's Evening, which got shortened to All
Hallow's Even' and then to Halloween.
Halloween came to the US as a result of the great potato famine that
brought many Irish and Scottish immigrants with their traditions and
superstitions. So, along with St. Patrick's Day, we also got Halloween. |
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From Reverend to Certified Zumba Instructor...yes, that's my new title.
It's been a "dance month."  Saw Barishnikov dance and he was still spectacular. Drooled
over the dancing in "Forever Tango" (my goal is to Tango in Argentina) and
capped it off with my all time favorite "Burn the Floor" on Broadway.
Had
another great Speaker's School, so much so that  by popular demand we are going
to a three day format which will include a Learning Lab. To learn more just click on the logo: 
Some of the September highlights included facilitating a brainstorming
session with Senior  Management at Universal Weather and Aviation in Houston then on to a dinner speech
with a Vistage group
led by Gadi Pollack. Had a great time at Tastefully Simple in Alexandria, MN (that's me with Joani Nielson, one of the founders).
Closed off the month with BFF
Sherry and then retreat to Florida home. Ah, life is good.
 This photo is from my ol' (not old) fitness friend Fred Hoffman from Paris, France. While traveling here he stopped at this B & B and thought of me. Hmmmmm...I wonder
why.
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I LOVE THIS BOOK!
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Once Upon a Cow:
Eliminating Excuses and Settling for Nothing but Success
By Camilo Cruz, PhD
This inspiring parable empowers you to examine your unconscious
excuses, justifications, fears and limiting beliefs with a fresh perspective to
be fully accountable and embrace your true potential, some of my key points in
my signature keynote, "A Balancing Act: Walking the Tightrope of Life." We hear and perhaps say these kinds
of excuses on a daily basis. They're
so common we hardly even notice them. While these excuses make us feel
better in the moment they hold us back in the long run and lock us in our
comfort zone. If you know me or have heard me speak you know I talk about living in
our "discomfort zone," for that is where true growth happens. Try it, you might
like it, or at the very least discover something new about YOU.
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Mikki will be teaming up with some of her fabulous friends and peers to create unique training days.
SIGN UP NOW FOR THE NEXT TELESEMINAR: NETWORKING AND SOCIAL MEDIAOctober 23, 2009 at 12:00 Noon (CST) with Mikki and Samantha (aka "my Sam" ) 
Mikki Williams, CSP
Networking is the ultimate contact sport. It's the success skill for sales people, managers, top executives, and for anyone who wishes to get ahead personally and professionally. In this era of networking through social media it is important to be cognizant of human networking as well. To be successful you must understand the value proposition of both. Relearn some simple and creative techniques to make an impact and develop mutually beneficial relationships, then apply these critical skills for fun and profit!
More
and more large companies are using social media to stir up interest in their
products or services, and it's working to their advantage. But for the
small business it's essential. Learn about social media to decide what's right for you and your company. For the small business without a
website a blog is a powerful tool to create an Internet presence and create interest. Use Twitter to promote a product or service. and to reach new customers.
Log onto Facebook to connect with your customers or friends. For a small investment of your time social media can help you to reap big benefits in
promoting your business.
TELESEMINAR BEGINS AT 12:00 NOON (CST) ON
FRIDAY, OCT. 23, 2009.
A great value at only $29.00
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CREATIVE CAPTIONS
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I love creativity and as a wordsmith I love double entendres, alliteration, onomato... whatever the heck that one was. One of my quirky habits is collecting names of businesses that display any of the above. Here are two of my favorites:
Sake to Me (Japanese restaurant)
Curl Up and Dye
(Hair salon)
*********************************************************** I hope you'll continue to send me ones you know of. Please send to mikki@mikkiwilliams.com
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SHOE-BE-DOO STORIES
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Yes, I own about a billion pairs of shoes. And each pair has a story to inspire, a lesson to be learned, a laugh or an "aha!"
OK these win! Highest ever at 5.5 inches and no I don't go dancing
in them. Instead I had the
wonderful opportunity to be seated with the captain while cruising on Celebrity
Cruise Lines. I love to cruise,
been doing it over 30 years, first as a dancer, later as a fitness instructor
and now as a life enhancement lecturer.
It's a great way to see the world or to just relax and have fun while
meeting interesting people. The only challenge is you go on as a passenger and
come home as cargo...the food is just too good.
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WONDERFUL WEBSITES
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I come across so many and so many are shared with me that I thought I'd share with you.
www.thatisfabulous.com
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MIKKI MOUTH:
QUOTATIONS I WISH I'D SAID AND SOME I DID SAY!
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Enjoy a quote each month from my new book - some funny, some poignant, some professional, some just darn cute!
Nothing splendid has ever been achieved accept by
those who dare to believe that something inside them was superior
to
circumstance.
~Bruce Barton
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READER REVIEWS
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"
Ha ha, this is GREAT!
My reading quickly turned into a family viewing, and we were all
laughing. We love ya!"
Joy Jones
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VISTAGE VIGNETTE
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As a speaker resource for Vistage International for 15 years and Chair of two groups for seven years I have the opportunity to interact with some of the most dynamic business leaders. Vistage is the world's largest executive organization with 15,000 members worldwide. It is to my delight to profile one of them each month.
Don Riddell is a Southern California Chair that
I have been blessed to work  with six times and regard as a colleague and
friend. Don was
born and raised in Los Angeles and has never lived more than 30 minutes from
the hospital where he was born. He attended Occidental College and is a member
of their basketball Hall of Fame.
Before Don started his own consulting firm he coached high
school basketball and golf and then worked in the restaurant business as Director of HR and VP of Administration. He has been
a Vistage
Chair for more than five years now and by his own decree is "having more
fun than I should be allowed to have."
His passions are family, travel and golf. He has traveled extensively to exotic locales with his wife Sharon and this year
they are off to Ecuador. Don is very proud of his three
grown sons, Scott, Michaeland
Jeffrey.
626-840-9334 cell/
626-795-3539 office
DonRiddell@ix.netcom.com
http://www.linkedin/in/donriddell
For more information on Vistage International click here:
If you are interested in becoming a member of a Vistage group anywhere in the world, or a speaker or a Chair, drop us a line:
mikki@mikkiwilliams.com
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HE WHO LAUGHS...LASTS!
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If
Women Ruled the World:
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JUST JEANNIE, THE SOCIAL MEDIA MAVEN
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Jeannie Walters helps companies enter into the
social media mayhem - by connecting with customers, prospects
and colleagues in new and powerful ways.
Tip from Jeannie:
Find like-minded people! When you are investing time in social media it's important to find people you want to engage with. Think of these people as anyone who you can learn from, collaborate with, share your knowledge/expertise, or just enjoy!
Search for these people by finding groups on LinkedIn and Facebook by industry/interest/company and joining the conversation.
And remember that social media is about being social. Say please and thank you, introduce people to one another, and in general - have fun!
Questions about social media? Email me at Jeannie@360Connext.com
For more info see me at www.360Connext.com
 Follow Jeannie on Twitter
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THE HAPPY COOKER
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Yes, that was the name of one of my businesses and oh, come on, I know guys cook too. Chicken Escarole SoupServes 6  8 cups (2 quarts) chicken broth 1 tsp lemon zest 2 bay leaves 1/2 medium onion, grated 1 whole boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 8 oz.), halved 1 head escarole (about 3 cup), rinsed and cut into 1" squares 6 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan Bring broth to a boil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat, then stir in zest, bay leaves and onion. Add chicken, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Remove chicken and cool before cutting into bite-sized pieces. Return soup to a boil, then stir in escarole and chicken pieces. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, another 5 minutes. Remove bay leaves. Salt and pepper; garnish each bowl with 1 tbsp Parmesan.
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MIKKI'S MANTRA
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Be outrageous...it's the only place that isn't crowded.
My favorite quote is featured in The
Woman's Advantage Shared Wisdom Calendar, one of only 365 chosen from
over 3,500 submissions.
The Woman's Advantage is a line of
information products designed exclusively for successful women business
owners. For more information call 919-841-0401
or visit The Woman's Advantage
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INSPIRATIONS
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As the wordsmith that I have always been, from my high school honors in English (and French) to my calling as a professional speaker, each of the "inspirations" that I share every month are from years and years of collecting words that have inspired me.
OH HENRY
Every day at about the same time, a young man named
Henry would stop in at the Williamson Candy Company in Chicago and flirt with
the girls making the candy. Soon the
girls were asking Henry to do things for them. Whenever he came into the store they would start, "Oh Henry, will
you do this!" "Oh Henry, will you do
that!" When Williamson introduced a
new candy bar in 1920 one of the salesmen suggested that they call the bar
"Oh Henry" in honor of the likeable young fellow.
Anyone name a candy bar after your "niceness" this
month?
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MIKKI ON THE MOVE
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Check out where Mikki will be speaking and piggyback your company or association event. Or just invite her to dinner or shopping!
Click here for her calendar:
Mikki On The Move
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NOW, DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND,
Speakers School is three days!Day One: Presentation Skills
Day Two: Learning Lab (Your opportunity to practice what you learned in Day One. You must have completed Day One to participate.)
Day Three: Marketing Your Speeches
The next Speakers School is February 18-20, 2010.It's for people at all levels: novices, wannabes, CEOs, professionals or anyone who needs to improve their communication skills. | |
Become a fan on Facebook:
 Join me at these other social networking sites:
Catch my new video on YouTube and don't forget the weekly quote:
Don't forget to check out my personal blog every Sunday
for a new post:
And my Work Life Balance blog:
In case you've missed past issues of the ezine
Click here to visit the archives.
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To book Mikki for your next event as a keynoter, emcee, panelist, seminar or workshop leader (she doesn't do floors or windows) or for more info on Vistage, Speakers Schools, Coaching or Consulting or anything else that's on your mind, contact Mikki or Samantha |
| MIKKI WILLIAMS, CSP |
Mikki Williams, CSP is a professional speaker/trainer, specializing in business dynamics and human potential as well as a Resource Speaker for Vistage International, the worlds largest CEO organization. She is a small business consultant, runs tri-annual Speaker Schools, Chairs two Executive Think Tanks, affilated with Vistage International and is a Life Architect, helping people design their lives and businesses through a coaching model. To learn more about Mikki Williams Unltd. and all the services provided
CALL ME: 312.664.8447
FAX ME: 312.664.8460
E ME: mikki@mikkiwilliams.com
SEE ME: www.mikkiwilliams.com |
Thanks for spending time with us!
Sam's going as Mikki. Mikki's going as a punk-rocker girl,
which is what she would have been as a teenager if punk rock had been invented
yet. 
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*If you enjoyed this ezine and know others who would like to receive it, please forward this along to friends, family and colleagues! Use the "Forward e-mail" link at the bottom of this newsletter.
** To unsubscribe please use the link at the bottom of this newsletter (but we'd rather you didn't!).
All contents � 2008, except where indicated otherwise. All rights reserved worldwide. Duplication or reprint only with expressed permission from Mikki Williams. All trademarks are property of their respective owners. All contents provided as is. In our extensive research we've made every attempt to be accurate in attributing quotes, poems, jokes and the like and want to apologize in advance if we have not given proper credit or given it erroneously. |
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