Surprise Gift On the Way!!!

Recording for our free gift!

There are many exciting things happening here at the String of Pearls blog and we wanted to give you just a taste of it.  Hopefully, this will get you full of anticipation for what is around the corner!

Recently we have been booked to be guests on the radio show The Mind of the Matter.  This particular show is on women entrepreneur's and we are so excited to be able to share with a wider audience about the mission of our business.

When we booked this particular appearance, we continued some prayers that had started a few weeks ago, about wanting to offer the women who subscribe to our blog a gift of some sort.  Most of you have probably noticed that websites will ask you to sign up for updates etc. and sometimes they will offer some sort of free gift.  We wanted our gift to be something that would offer true value to the women on our blog and we decided the best time to launch this gift was in conjunction with the radio show.

Steve Hickman was amazing in helping me get comfortable and ready to record.
It was a gift getting to work with him

There was a rub though; we had no idea what our free gift should be.  In all honesty, I began to panic a bit and there's nothing like a little panic to ruin a good idea!  The day after my panic I remembered that we have dedicated this thing to God.  Beyond that, He gave us the idea for the blog in the first place!  I decided I would do some consulting with Him.

The first item on the agenda was to get quiet and still the panic.  This was a tall order but after some journaling, talking with friends, prayer, etc.  The peace came back.  And a few moments after the peace came back, so did the idea.  

We don't plan to tell you exactly what it is today.  That would ruin the surprise!  But we will give you a few hints through the pictures and will let you know that the surprise will be available on June 7 and afterward, for those of you who subscribe to the blog.  We feel God sent the idea for this, and actually, it is something my clients have been asking me to do for years, which makes it doubly exciting!

We will also post a notice and send out emails to remind you on June 7, when the radio show will air.  We hope that you will send the link to all your friends and spread the word about what String of Pearls is doing!   

Retraction! Conference Call Information

Hello everyone!  I wanted to let you know that I got something wrong...the free conference calls are not scheduled for 9pm EST.  They are scheduled for 8pm EST.  So tonight's call is at 8pm!  Here is all the information one more time!

• The calls will occur every Tuesday at 8pm EST, and Sundays at 8pm EST.

• The Tuesday call will be directly related to business.

• The Sunday call will be directly related to Spirituality and it's role in our business, financial, relational, and emotional growth.

• For those of you who will join us, the phone number is 424-203-8400 and your access code is 692996#.

Personal Business

When I read about the String of Pearls blog my first thought was, “This is definitely not for me.”  Businesses, entrepreneurship, marketing, and money, are all words I find extremely intimidating and make my insides cringe! I’m guessing this is most likely due to insecurities surrounding my lack of knowledge and experience in the corporate world. The desire to learn is there but the opportunities and the willingness to learn are often not present at the same time. 

Over the past 10+ years I have been on what seems like a never ending road leading to the middle of nowhere. Life seemed to only be filled with pain, hurt, depression and isolation. About 3 years ago I started my journey on the road to healing. I tell you this as background information for what follows. 

I love learning new information that will aid in becoming a well-rounded person. Striving to find out who I am and my purpose in this world has been my top priority for several years now. I have often criticized myself for the knowledge deficit around personal finances, business opportunities, marketing, and money. During some quiet time yesterday I realized that I might know more about entrepreneurship than I give myself credit for. I had this abstract idea that I have been learning how to run my own business for years now. I am my own ‘business’. I realized that taking risks and investing in myself is the training which must first occur before I am able to invest in others or in this world as a whole. I can’t skip steps A and B and still expect to reach step C. I think there are physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of every business requiring attention and acknowledgement. I do (we do) have internal assets. They might have been buried for a long time but can be rediscovered. By uncovering our assets they begin to appreciate (to increase the value of an asset in excess due to improvements or additions made to it)! 

From accounting or finance 101, I randomly thought about the concept of absorbed accounts (an account that has lost it’s separate identity by being combined with another account). In a personal sense, I can relate to this term as I am often tempted to give up my own identity so to be more accepted by others. This account usually gets me “stuck” and causes my assets to depreciate or to become buried again. 

So, in the end, because I have been on this journey of self-discovery, of investing in the business of me, maybe I'm not as far away from being an entrepreneur as I thought!

What about you?  Does the idea of being an entrepreneur intimidate you?  Tell us about it.

-Brianne Gibson

Woman, Thy Name is Entrepreneur!

I found this short video while I was kicking around on YouTube and it made me stand up and cheer. It is just under 2.5 minutes and we couldn't help but share it with you. Enjoy and finish your week inspired!

Weekly (FREE) Conference Calls

Those of you who follow our blog know that our goal is to offer support and services to women entrepreneur's.  (Yes, men are welcome too.)  In the last few weeks our team has begun to put together many exciting programs that we plan to launch within the next few months.  You will hear more details about those in the next weeks,  but initially, we are very excited to announce weekly conference calls for those of you in business who would like added support.

• The calls will occur every Tuesday at 9pm EST, and Sundays at 9pm EST.

• The Tuesday call will be directly related to business.

• The Sunday call will be directly related to Spirituality and it's role in our business, financial, relational, and emotional growth.

• We will launch this program tonight, May 22 at 9pm EST.  

• For those of you who will join us, the phone number is 424-203-8400 and your access code is 692996#. 

Our agenda will be to talk about the String of Pearls blog, how it was birthed and how it can support you in your business, we will cover a one minute business presentation, and lastly, we will talk about what you can expect from the Sunday call focused on Spirituality and connection to God.

We are super excited about this new development and hope that each of you will utilize this option.  If you are not in business feel free to participate for the sake of the learning you will gain and the support it will add to your life to have regular contact and accountability.

Also, we want to remind you that the SOP blog is where we will continue to announce and notify you of new services.  Please, if you haven't done so already, and are interested in these updates, make sure you give us your name and email address by signing up to subscribe in the box at the top right of our blog.  We will not give your email to anyone else and signing up will insure that you get notices about each new post.  We are also working on a free gift that we will give to all our new subscribers.  (We're very excited about this gift and look forward to having it fully prepared for you!)

We want to thank those of you who have followed us on the beginning of this journey.  We are so happy to be expanding our services and look forward to serving you better and better in the months and years to come!

Cute Aussie

We wanted to offer some good, practical support this week and so I am including  a link from a Matt Lloyd presentation (who happens to be a cute Australian!).

Matt Lloyd is a young internet marketer from Perth, Australia and we highlighted one of his video trainings several months ago.  I have been studying internet marketing for some time now with a lot of different sources and so far he is my FAVORITE.  His information is gold and he presents it in a very simple, systematic way.

On a personal note, I find his personality to be humble and professional and I could listen to his Aussie accent all day long!  If you are interested in building a business of any sort online, we offer him as a valuable resource.  (He is one of mine.)  Let us know what you think!

Matt Lloyd Training

Broken Angel

Today we are introducing another guest blogger.  Her name is Brianne (aka Bri) and those of you who read the blog regularly have probably noticed the honesty and depth of her comments.  Today she shares a poem and we hope it to be the first of many.

Her head held low

A face she does not show

True love she does not know 

Is this her time to go? 

Feeling broken and afraid

Asking why she was made

Kneeling in the shade 

Praying to be remade. 

You are the seed I will sow 

You will flourish and you will grow

Be still as I create a different view

Please don't fight these hands that hold you. 

My love, you are not broken

Listen to the words I have spoken 

Though you have been wounded 

You will never be excluded. 

No need to earn grace

Keep your eyes upon my face 

Your wings know how to fly

Just spread them and soar high

You are whole 

Perfection is not your role

I smile when you open your heart 

This is where your life will start. 

I will keep you calm 

You are embraced in my palm

So get rid of the broken labels

Because you are one of my angels. 

Brianne Gibson

3/16/12

The Wind That Brings Change

As I look out my window, not only can I see the trees being tossed around by the wind but  I can also hear it howling and whistling around the windows.  Today the weather in New Mexico is exceptionally windy gusting up to 35mph and is ushering in a cold front causing the temperature to drop 30 degrees.  After enjoying days of 70-80 degree weather my body is screaming, “Noooo!”

I was thinking about the wind bringing sudden and drastic changes in the weather and how God compared it in scripture to His Holy Spirit.  Acts 2:1-2 says, “When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.  “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.”  This was the fulfillment of God’s promise to send and baptize His disciples with His Holy Spirit to empower them to fulfill their mission to grow the church.  This promise is for us too. 

One morning as I was spending time in prayer and asking God to fill me with more of His Holy Spirit, He directed my attention to the lamp sitting on my desk.  He told Me He could not put a 100watt bulb in a lamp that was only capable of handling 25watts or it would blow a fuse.  God revealed to me that I was unwilling to surrender and give Him power and control over all of my life. He would not compete or force His power on me. The more control I release to Him, the more He can fill me with His power.

What I have come to realize is when I surrender and give God control over every area of my life I don’t have to be fearful of being denied of or losing anything, I am only making room for something much greater, His power! 

I pray daily to experience the wind that brings change, the power of God’s Holy Spirit, to fill and empower me to accomplish what God is asking me to do.  I believe as His power increases and my power decreases I have positioned myself to experience the “and suddenly” move of God in my life and circumstances. 

Kathy Hammond

Time to Get Real

Please welcome Michelle to our circle.  Below is a piece she wrote while wrestling with the decision about what dream to choose.  It gives me chills and we are thrilled she allowed us to post it.  Please let her know how it hits you in the comments section.  I love this girl and would love for her to have an overwhelming response from those of you it touches!

Why am I even here? To accept love? To give love? Giving voice to dreams? Somehow there's a disconnect; between my head and my heart. Between my life and my dreams. And a pulsating, fervent warrior drums the lull of "more" in my chest.

But what? Where? What more can I achieve? I feel lik such a loser. Like I could try to live the life I want but it wouldn't work out for me because I'm not a good enough person. Like who wants me, ala carte?

I feel so weak, vulnerable, impotent. "Welcome to my life, I have nothing to offer." I will be discontent even here. Going abroad will not make the drummer stop. More. More. More. He says I'm made for more. It thumps through my veins. More. So if it is some "god-sized-hole" and it's not going away, I guess I have to deal with it. Quit running and dodging and hiding from this hole. Or pretending it's not there. Or stuffing it quiet with stress, tasteless food, heartless exercise, and bland relationships where I am not me.

Even hearing the phrase "god-sized-hole," I think, "what a croc." So maybe I'll give it another, more comfortable name. I'll just call it More. More says there are untapped depths of self-love. More says I was made for more than SUVs, cubicles, stale TV shows, Facebook, overeating. More says take off your blindfold, you are wandering in a fenced-off pig pen seeking the next comfort when there are the most beautiful mountains just on the horizon. The most beautiful flowers that create the most appealing fragrances fill the valley. Gentle animals wander and play, exuding a trust and calmness that comes from knowing they are safe. More points out the easy, pure joy of children, even those who don't have a lot of comfortable things.

More urges me to stop and hold hands, look into the eyes of a young boy with a swollen belly from malnutrition. I feel angry, heartbroken, enraged, empowered to help this boy live. No matter what it takes. To put as much into caring for him as I have into pursuing comfort. To let go of the resistance and surrender to the course of life's stream, taking me to unknown and wonderful places.

I scream - "AM I GOOD ENOUGH? I DON'T SEE HOW I CAN DO THIS ON MY OWN."

Self-doubt has been a lifelong friend.

Ok. Fine. I relent. Love me. Let me find happiness providing equality and hope. Maybe I have a savior complex. I feel like I'm spinning my wheels because I'm not living wholeheartedly here, so how do I expect to do so just because I'm in a foreign country? Maybe living wholeheartedly is easier abroad because that's always been my clear purpose with humanitarian trips. Literally waking up every morning to make someone's day better and mine is certainly at the top of that list.

My heart can't escape the din of the battlefront. I want in it. I want to fight, to tend to the sick, to suit up and show up. I think I should be doing this here, maybe I can start by practicing little things. I could experiment by doing something that gives me the feeling of living my purpose. Today.

God. This is not for the numb.

Our Contest Winner!

Hello Everyone!  As promised, we are giving you some information about our contest winner as well as excerpts from an interview in which we talked about her experience at Guerilla Business School.

Our winner was Julie Cole and she is a newlywed and nurse on the mother/baby unit of her hospital.  Julie entered the contest because she realized that while she loves certain aspects of nursing, she does not love what working nights has done to her physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  There has been a part of her that knows she was made for something more, although she has not been sure yet what that is!

Julie and I during a negotiation exercise at GBS.  We were negotiating for a ride in the ambulance, but the paramedics didn't want to be suspended without pay, even for us, so we compromised on a picture in the cab!  Such fun!

While at the conference Julie did a lot of soul searching about what she's passionate about.  She was able to gain some clarity on it and realized that she is passionate about women's health and wellness.  Part of this awareness has been about learning to take care of herself in spite of her strange work hours and how incredible she started to feel once she took up a regular exercise regime.  She also has a heart for new mother's who go through so many changes once they bring their little one's home.

When asked what part of the conference impacted her the most, Julie shared that initially, it was a little hard to be in a room with 500 business owners when she does not have one yet, but she realized early on that she could apply all the concepts to her personal life.  So when the presenter said that our businesses are a reflection of us, she realized that she wants to have an incredible business someday and that meant that she would be investing in herself now; to learn, to grow, and to be incredible!

Julie and I had breakfast this morning to follow up on the conference and I think for me at least, this is when the reason for the contest became really clear.

A little background first; many of you know that the contest came up pretty fast and the deadline was tight.  It was a last minute decision on our part but it was such a great opportunity we decided to run with it even though we weren't able to offer as much prep time as we would have liked.

Due to the tight deadline we did not have many applicants, but the applicants we did have were all known to us, and so it was especially hard to pick.  Without going into all the specifics, we felt Spiritually guided that Julie was our winner.  I think there were moments that Julie questioned that because she is not currently in business for herself.  But it was clear.

So now flash forward to this morning over oatmeal at Panera; Julie was sharing about what has been going on since we returned from the conference.  Two different organizations that she loves have sought her out and she has had interviews this week.  These are not options for FT work and it doesn't mean that we are announcing she's a millionaire after attending the conference with us, (If you know an "overnight millionaire" I guarantee you there was a lot of discipline and little steps taken prior to the big payday.) but what it does mean is that as she has opened herself up to pursuing her goals and hopes, other opportunities are coming her way in areas that she is passionate about.

This is how God works!  As a mentor said to me once when I was struggling in a job I didn't want, "It seems clear to me that God made you a square peg and He is not going to keep you in a round hole."

So what areas are you a square peg in a round hole?  What are the things you'd like to change or move into?  Tell us about them in the comments section.  And be sure to say hi and congratulations to Julie! We'll look forward to seeing the changes with you!

The First Few Days in LA

It has been my experience that when I’m in a time of action...when I’m on track Spiritually and feel like I’ve been given a purpose; when I’m moving toward that purpose; obstacles come up...opportunities if you will.  They may be a simple departure from what I thought my schedule was going to be, an illness, etc.  But I have also noticed that the more important the purpose, the more opportunities I have.  My experience in this area has been confirmed by my first few days in LA, before the conference began.

On the plane I felt God suggest that I spend some time in my Bible.  I don’t like reading my Bible in sight of strangers because I don’t want to be mistaken for one of those obnoxious Christians.  You know the type right?  Pushy and invasive...”have you been saved brother?”  I make no judgement on the state of their hearts, but I have never heard of Jesus interacting with anyone like that.  So I argued with God.  I kept hearing Him say that I would get a gift if I did it.  So finally I put down my Kindle and got out my Bible (Yes, I admit it, I tried to hide the cover.  God’s not done with me yet.)  

Here was my gift...Matthew 25:14-33.  It’s the parable about investments; one servant getting 5000 talents, another 2000, and another 1000.  The first two servants doubled their investment and the last buried it to keep it “safe.”   The last servant gets chastised by his master.  “The master was furious.  That’s a terrible way to live!  It’s criminal to live cautiously like that!  If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least?  The least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers, where at least I would have gotten a little interest.  Take the thousand and give it to the one who risked the most.  And get rid of this ‘play it safe’ who won’t go out on a limb.” (The Message) 

 I feel like I’m out on a limb much of the time.  Much of what I’m doing currently is a new skill set.  But I feel called to it.  I’m risking just like He asks me to do.  Walking in faith.

Opportunity #1, Gift #1

Susan and I met with a dear friend of mine on Sunday.  She is a vibrant amazing woman who I got to know through Marcel when I moved to LA.  I adore her and her story will just blow you away (maybe I’ll interview her for the blog someday.)  Yesterday though, I noticed she wasn’t quite the same as when I last saw her.  She was still funny and warm and beautiful, but there was an edge.  A sadness.  As we all talked over lunch she shared about the struggles she’s been having.  Longing to have a baby, in a church more legalistic than alive, struggling with what she feels she’s been taught and what feels like it’s killing her spirit.  We ended up coming back to the hotel and doing some serious talking with God in which there were tears and hugs.  She told us that she had been hesitant to talk to God lately but what prayer life she had consisted of, “I’m lost, help me.”  “Send me something.”  She left at peace.  I thought we were just going to have brunch and go shopping.  God had other plans.

Opportunity #2, Gift #2

About 24 hours after arriving I got a stomachache.  To give you a sense of what it felt like I would say picture someone taking your stomach out, scraping it up on the inside with a fork so it’s nice and red and raw, and then letting fire ants loose in it.  Pepto Bismal didn’t touch it, but I was still getting hungry at meal times...can we say infuriating?  Susan prayed for me, but nothing shifted.  For two days it ached.  I was a bit whiny I must admit.  I had been looking forward to visiting my favorite eateries for weeks.  I questioned God, and in general drove Susan crazy.  The night before the conference was to begin I announced to Susan, God, and whoever else was listening, that I knew I was at the conference for a reason and that nothing was going to stop me from being there.  That I would “drag my sorry butt to the meetings stomach ache or not.”  I topped this proclamation off by announcing, “No weapon formed against me shall prosper!”  The next morning I woke up with no pain....and promptly lost my wallet...yes, the entire thing.  I had asked God to increase my faith while I was doing my meditation that morning...I have learned it is best not to play around with that particular request. Lol.  I found the wallet (It had fallen out of my purse in the rental car that we had already returned) and the man who returned it got several enthusiastic hugs from me.

Opportunity #3 & 4, Gift #3 &4

After all this, the conference began.  It was amazing.  I felt like I got my MBA in a week and the gifts were incredible.  I’ll share about some of the things I learned in future blogs.  

Opportunities 5-1 Million, Gifts 5-1 Million

For now, since this particular post is getting long, I will sign off saying that the opportunities that came up made me realize that when I’m living in my purpose, I will be attacked, the bigger the attack, the bigger the threat I am.  Anne Lamott, one of my favorite authors, talks about the idea that the bigger the difficulty the more important the thing is that is being birthed.  

What’s being birthed in you right now?  What are the opportunities that are disguised as obstacles?  Remember as you navigate it that the bigger the difficulty, the bigger the gift at the end.