|
|
 or...
stop being so darned professional and tak a break today!
|
|
Welcome! If you enjoyed last month you'll be craaaaazy about this month!
The purpose of this ezine is inspiration, humor, business, personal and just plain fun: aka the don't-take-yourself-so-seriously ezine.
|
|
|
CONNECT WITH US!
In case you've missed past issues of the ezine Click here to visit the archives. |
|
|
May has Cinco de Mayo and is National Hamburger Month but for me it is all about mothers. We've all had one, been one, been called one, etc., hence the photo of me and THE son Jason who walks on water.
I had a great Mom's Day brunch with him at Willow Road in Chelsea - that would be NYC - then walked the High Line, a very cool outdoor garden built on an historic rail line elevated over the streets of Manhattan. 
I saw this sign from the High Line.
We had dinner the night before at Da Noi with best friends Nick Visconti and Tony & Kathy Sirico,
 | |
Nick Visconti, Tony Sirico
|
my oldest (in tenure) friends from Westport, CT. Kathy and I spent the afternoon at my idol Bette Midler's one woman play, I'll Eat You Last.
 Below is the sign on the scrim when you walked in to the theatre.
And here's my Bette leaving the theatre in her car. :)
Since my last ezine I spoke for Quest Engineers, trained Vistage Chairs in Nebraska and Iowa, spoke to a Vistage group in Philly,
 | |
Quest
|
 | |
Me and Fitz
|
volunteered at The Cara Program
 | |
The Cara Program
|
did the closing
keynote for my National Speakers Association Chicago chapter, AND...spoke for Country Bank in Massuchetts who is one of my favorite repeat clients. They did an appreciation night for 450 customers and it was all themed around my website - so unexpected and so creative!
 | |
Paul Scully, Country Bank
|
Even Paul Scully, the FABULOUS bank president was wearing a purple shirt with a red logo. There were red and purple balloons everywhere, including lips ones, and my caricature was on candy bags around a red and purple candy bag table. They had colored lighting, food...just so unique. How would you like a bank like that?
 | |
Kelly
|
With all that I still had time to enjoy dinner with former Vistage members,
Kelly Wisecarver at Trencherman
and Carolyn Grisko
 | |
Carolyn
|
at Babette's.
I took a week at my Florida home, then drove (yes, drove) to Tampa for a planning meeting for the 2014 Tampa NSA conference as I am on the committee.
 | |
NSA
|
Now, I'm off to Gathering of The Goddesses in Vegas this weekend. Woo Hoo! Stay tuned for next month's ezine to find out what "doesn't stay in Vegas!"
|
|
NOW...not one, not two, but THREE divisions of
The Mikki Mouth Club!
CLICK HERE for more information
If you want Mikki's expertise at an affordable price on an ongoing basis The Mikki Mouth Club is for you.
Questions? We've got answers!!
Just call 312.664.8447 or send us an email
|
 Boardroom to Basecamp
Life and Leadership Lessons from the Top
by Todd Millar
In the spirit of full disclosure, Todd is my coaching client, my Speaker School attendee, my Accountability Academy member and now a TEC/Vistage Chair in Canada due to my "prodding", and most of all a cherished friend. With all that said he has written a great book, one I encouraged him to write because he has an awesome, inspiring story. From the $2.6 billion dollar sale of SuperPages Canada to the base camp of Mt. Everest, Todd shares some simple yet profound lessons of life and leadership. Todd is a family man first and foremost, a business leader and someone who has maintained humility throughout his astounding success, and he shares with you his amazing journey that he calls his Everest Model. Now in demand as a speaker (and yes, I represent him through my company, Outrageous Orators), Todd will take you on a journey that is sure to impact your values and your vision.
NOW GO GET THIS BOOK!
|
At a Propane Filling Station: "Thank heaven for little grills."
|
OH, IF ONLY THERE WERE SUCH A THING...!
|
MIKKI MOUTH Things I Wish I'd Said and Some I Did Say!
|
|
Enjoy a quote each month from my book - some funny, some poignant, some professional, some just darn cute!
There is no velvet so soft as a mother's lap, no rose as lovely as her smile, no path so flowery as that imprinted with her footsteps.
~ Archibald Thompson ~
|
In the vast majority of the world's languages,
the word for "mother" begins with the letter M.
|
Dave Nelsen
Dave's formal title is President, Dialog Consulting Group.
From 2005 to 2009 he was CEO of TalkShoe, a social media company now serving more than one million monthly listeners...and the fabulous company I use to produce my monthly teleseminars.
What's Up With All These People
Endorsing You?
On May 5, 2013 LinkedIn celebrated its 10th birthday. It now has more than 200 million users, roughly half of who are in the United States. Every second, two more professionals join LinkedIn. If you're not a member, it's time to sign-up. If you are a member but are not active, it's time to participate. If your company doesn't have a branded corporate page, it's time to create one.
So, what's up with all these people suddenly endorsing you? I'm not talking about the "Recommendations." LinkedIn has had that feature forever and it's rarely used unless someone is looking for a job and asks someone else to write a recommendation for them.
No, I'm talking about the new "Skills Endorsements." It seems that virtually every day someone new is endorsing me (and you). I think this feature is a great addition to LinkedIn, although most casual users are still confused by it.
Here's why it's important. When you or anybody else signs up for LinkedIn, you're asked to list your skills. You probably don't remember doing this because it was a day one activity, not repeated thereafter.
The problem with the collective lists of our skills is that they're all self reported. In a world where r�sum� padding is legendary (remember the CEO that Yahoo recently hired and then fired), how valuable is a self-reported list?
Since about six months back whenever someone views your profile, LinkedIn poses a question: "Does John have these skills or expertise?" LinkedIn then presents five randomly selected skills from among those you claimed, offering the viewer the opportunity to "endorse" or "skip" any or all.
Think about it. A given professional associate may not have a full view of your skills, but when everybody weighs in, that
is likely to be on target. What am I more likely to believe about you, the skills that you claim or what everyone else says? See how this makes LinkedIn's personnel data more valuable?
Addressing one other mystery, I've frequently heard people say, "There's no way that Jane Smith would have viewed my profile." Indeed, she may not have, but if she viewed and endorsed someone else, LinkedIn then displayed four of her connections listing one skill for each and asked "What skills or expertise do your other connections have?" If this happened to you, you were simply chosen at random.
So be careful whom you link with. Hint: Stick to people you know and respect professionally. That's what LinkedIn advises.
Now, you might want to visit your own profile and see what everybody is saying about your skills. If there's a mismatch between what you say and what they say, well... there's a credibility gap. It will be easy enough to change the skills that you claimed. In fact, I recommend doing that immediately.
Or you can work to change people's impression of you. It will take longer, but just like people's ratings of restaurants on Yelp, it matters. Whether we run restaurants or are business professionals, we ignore the "world of mouth" at our peril.
You can find more formal details here:
wesocialize.biz
To contact Dave directly:
|
B rian Beaulieu is the "economist with a personality" (my title not his) . He is one of the country's leading economists, MY Vistage member, a phenomenal speaker, brilliant businessman and a special friend. CEOs worldwide rely on his forecasting as they plan their business year. And for anyone trying to understand the economy, Brian speaks and writes in English not in that foreign language called economicspeak. Enjoy!
Education - Chinese style China's economy made the news today as slower growth pulled down gold and other commodity prices. We had already factored that into our revised commodity price estimates for 2013. I would like to look briefly at another part of the China "miracle"- their education system. Many, if not most, Americans seemed awed by the Chinese educational system and how it is reputedly better than ours. I have two thoughts on the subject: one, if you have a hard time believing their economic data, why readily accept their educational achievement claims? We are not necessarily talking about overt deceit, but differences in expectations, culture, and national pride can have an impact on proclaimed results. The second thought relates to what is actually occurring across China. Education in China is supposed to be free according to a 1986 law, but that is far from the truth. Parents often pay significant sums to get their children into the better schools, or even 300Rmb/month so their child will have a desk close to the teacher. Parents will pay intermediaries to supply necessary introductions so their children can attend the better schools and universities (does that sound like a bribe to you?). Education is also uneven in China with poor districts suffering from a lack of government funds and a poor population who cannot afford to pay the bill. It is estimated that approximately 900,000 six to eight year olds drop out of school every year. Money is an important reason why. Schools are harder to get to than they were a few decades ago. There were 630,000 primary schools in China in 1997. The number dropped to 254,000 in 2011. The student population did not shrink proportionately, which means class sizes went up. Rural classes can have up to 130 students per room. Ask any teacher you know and they will tell you that does not help the quality of education. Learn more about the future at www.itreconomics.com or by sending an email today to Kim Clark: kim@itreconomics.com |
LIFE LESSONS...FUNNY, FIT  OR FABULOUS
Submitted by John Godoy
|
|
That was the name of one of my businesses and oh, come on,  I know guys cook, too.
Mango Chicken Salad with Couscous Makes 4 servings  1/4 cup Moroccan couscous
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper 1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped red bell pepper 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided 1 tablespoon canola oil 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (3 ounces each) 1/3 cup fresh lime juice 1/4 cup Japanese rice vinegar 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard 2 tablespoons honey 2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce 1/2 head romaine 1/2 head fris�e 1/2 head hydro Bibb lettuce 1 cup arugula 1/2 mango, thinly sliced In a bowl, combine couscous, bell peppers, onion, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1/3 cup water. Season with salt. Refrigerate until couscous is tender, about 2 hours. In a large skillet over high heat, heat canola oil. Cook chicken until golden brown on the bottom, 3 to 4 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low. Flip chicken and cook through, 6 to 8 minutes. Cool chicken; cut into 1/2-inch dice. In a blender set to medium, blend lime juice, vinegar, mustard, honey and soy sauce. Slowly add remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Season with salt. Break up lettuce heads and combine leaves with arugula in a bowl. Divide lettuce, couscous, chicken and mango among 4 plates. Dress salad with mustard vinaigrette. |
 IF WOMEN RULED THE WORLD...
|
Be Outrageous...it's The Only Place That Isn't Crowded.
~Mikki Williams
|
|
No Love like a Mother's Love 
There is no love, like a mother's love
no stronger bond on earth...
like the precious bond that comes from God,
to a mother, when she gives birth
A mother's love is forever strong,
never changing for all time...
and when her children need her most,
a mother's love will shine.
God bless these special mothers,
God bless them every one...
for all the tears and heartache,
and for the special work they've done.
When her days on earth are over,
a mother's love lives on...
through many generations,
with God's blessings on each one.
Be thankful for our mothers,
for they love with a higher love...
from the power God has given,
and the strength from up above
~Anonymous
|
|
Visionary - adjective (esp. of a person), thinking about or planning the future with imagination or wisdom
 I speak of volunteerism is my speeches. I tell stories to inspire and challenge audiences to volunteer as individuals, as responsible business and community leaders. as parents/grandparents, and to get their children involved early. By the way, volunteerism is the number one way to raise self-esteem. What are you doing in this visionary effort? Each month I will give you a link to a site where you can volunteer. Please send me a link to your favorite volunteer opportunity to post.
You might be thinking, "The little bit that I can do will never help much!" or "What in the world can I do?" If you've ever spent ten minutes reading a book to a lonely child, you know that even that small amount of compassion and attention can make a world of difference. No one person can solve the world's problems, but what little you do can make your little corner of the world - or one far away from yours a happier, healthier, safer place to live for those who need your help. Each of us can right a wrong, fill a plate, visit a shut-in, rescue a pet, deliver a meal, tend a public garden, mentor a child or whatever action inspires you. Just jump in and volunteer!
generationOn.org
generationOn is the global youth service movement igniting the power of all kids to make their mark on the world.
As I say in my speech, "get your kids involved in volunteerism early on, tell them what it is, why they are doing it and help foster their self esteem and instill a lifelong core value.
|
|
 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
|
|
he next Speakers School is in session on
|
|
Mikki Williams, CSP (certified speaking professional, an honor bestowed on less than 600 speakers worldwide) specializes in business dynamics and human potential. She has been named one of the top speakers in the country by Meetings and Convention Magazine along with Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, Colin Powell, Lou Holtz and Mike Ditka. Mikki is also one of the top tier speaker resources for Vistage International, the world's leading executive organization, and Group Chair of two of their peer advisory boards in Chicago.
Her company Mikki Williams Unltd. produces Speakers Schools in Chicago, a monthly ezine: Hair She Is...! and a blog: Mikki Williams' Blah Blah...Blog. She is sought after for business, life and presentation skills coaching through her firm Coaching, etc... She also facilitates The Mikki Mouth Club, an annual subscription-based presentation skills coaching membership with three distinct divisions...Speaker Source, Accountability Academy and Keynote Kamp. If you need other speakers, she can book you the best through her Outrageous Orators...speakers who rock, an uncommon speakers bureau.
To hire Mikki or learn more about any of these services:
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! |
|
|
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 � 2012 Mikki Williams, 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. If you are the owner of the rights of any of this content, please contact us so we may arrange for appropriate permission and give credit. |
|
|
|
