Woman Owned: The Growth Podcast for Women Entrepreneurs

In our last episode, I spoke with Joan Michelson of Green Connections Radio. She brought up a fascinating topic about the differences between how women support other women in business compared to the ways men support other people in business. This discussion led me to evaluate how the women within my own network have supported me through various business ventures, as well as how the men in my network have shown their support. One thing that I have found interesting during this evaluation was that women typically demonstrate their support through emotional support while men will often support you through practical support. Keep Reading >> In this episode, I share with you the reasons why many women in business often tend to stick with emotional support, and why they need to step out of their comfort zone, step into their power, and help other women in business through practical support strategies. Here's a Breakdown of Today's Show: Women are more likely to offer emotional support to other women in business while men often offer practical support. Women need more than just emotional support to help us step into our economic power. We need practical support and access to professional networks. One of the main reasons women do not offer practical support to other women is often because they do not realize their power. The first step to stepping into your power is to understand that you have it and realize that your biggest source of power is the relationships you have built. "Business & success are like a river – they've gotta flow. If you treat your success like a pond, it will just get stuck." – Eleanor Beaton My Challenge to You: It's time to start "walking the talk," ladies. Continue to offer emotional support to the women in business, but step it up a notch and also offer practical support! Here are two tips that you can use to offer practical support to other women in business: Find ways to make powerful introductions to key business partners, clients, and customers. Identify people in your network that would be a good supplier to someone else, then introduce them. Subscribe to and Review the Fierce Feminine Leadership Podcast for a Chance to Win This Month's Contest! At the end of each month, one lucky reviewer will win a free private coaching session with me! Are you feeling lucky? Head on over to iTunes, subscribe to the show and leave your honest feedback to enter your name into the contest!

Today, I am joined by a fabulously fierce feminine leader, advocate for female leaders throughout the corporate and entrepreneurial world, and owner of Green Connections Radio, Joan Michelson. Joan has made a huge impact in the corporate world and helping women "claim their power" in their industries. Her very specific, unique niche in the business community is in the Clean Tech area, also known as the "green space." She joins us today to share her story about how the "green space" niche fell in her lap and provide some insight and tips to other women in leadership roles on ways they can find their voice within their organization. Keep Reading >> Here's a Breakdown of the Topics We Covered: Joan's story – how she dived into the Clean Tech space, the struggles she has endured, and how she overcame those struggles and how she empowers other women to do the same. Statistics show that women tend to get promoted on performance while men get promoted on potential. Women walk into a discussion or decision with a laundry list of assumptions. How Joan felt "held back" in her previous career goals, and what she did to overcome this common obstacle. Women have permission to change the rules in the corporate world, even though many feel as though they don't. Using relationship building skills and deal closing skills at the same time produces results. Everyone in business – entrepreneurial or corporate – needs to do both. What is Joan's business model? "Women tend to limit their choices by – unknowingly or unintentionally – setting boundaries." Joan's Advice for Women Who Are Looking to Build their Voice: Confidence Self-talk – listen to yourself, how you talk to others and yourself, to learn a lot about what your voice is and how you are, in your own way, making assumptions that may or may not be true. Network Be visible Ask for what you want Be willing to hear voices that are different from yours so you can stretch your knowledge. Be willing to learn new things and ask for help. Joan's Advice for People Working Within a Corporate Entity and Want to Elevate Their Personal Brand: Go to your company's communications team and ask to cover the public speaking engagements that the CEO cannot attend. Approach them with specific opportunities that will also benefit the company. Connect with Joan: greenconnectionsradio.com iTunes Joan's blog on the Huffington Post Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Email – info@greenconnectionsradio.com Subscribe to and Review the Fierce Feminine Leadership Podcast for a Chance to Win This Month's Contest! At the end of each month, one lucky reviewer will win a free private coaching session with me! Are you feeling lucky? Head on over to iTunes, subscribe to the show and leave your honest feedback to enter your name into the contest!

An interesting point was mentioned during my last episode while interviewing Vicki Saunders, the founder of SheEO. She said that women are not asking for help in their businesses – that many women feel they need to do everything on their own in order to be, or feel, successful and accomplished. In reality, though, it is incredibly hard to do everything on your own without asking for help and developing a team. Keep Reading >> In this episode, I want to share some tips with you on five ways you can ask for help, and three ways you can ask in the right way. 5 Ways You Can Ask for Help: Ask for Introductions An introduction is a powerful pre-framing technique in terms of positioning and allowing you to gain access to that person's network. Ask People to Spread the Word Through Their Social Media Networks Ninja Move Tip: When asking people to spread the word through their social media platforms, give them an image and some text they can use to promote. Ask for Advice A wise woman once said, "When you ask for money, you get advice. When you ask for advice, you get money." Have a Focus Group or Advisory Board Interview People 3 Tips on How To Ask for Help In the Right Way Be Mindful of a Person's Time Follow the 10-minute rule: "Hey, can we chat for about 10 minutes on the phone? I really need some advice." Know What You Want Having a clear picture of what you want and how it fits into your business' "bigger picture" will help others help and collaborate with you easier and more efficiently. Have a Beginner's Mindset Maintain a balance between being open to information and closing down the information so you can implement. "The most dangerous thing that can happen to a leader is that she begins to cut herself off from information" – Eleanor Beaton Subscribe to and Review the Fierce Feminine Leadership Podcast for a Chance to Win this month's contest! At the end of each month, one lucky reviewer will win a free private coaching session with me! Are you feeling lucky? Head on over to iTunes, subscribe to the show and leave your honest feedback to enter your name into the contest!

Today, I am joined by award-winning mentor and advisor, entrepreneur, and founder of SheEo, Vicki Saunders. Vicki has incredible experience and insight on what it takes for women to "step into their power," lead their businesses on their terms, and grow a successful, meaningful career as an entrepreneur or intrapreneur. In today's episode, she shares some of her insight on leadership and entrepreneurship as well as the "art of disruption." Keep Reading >> Vicki routinely speaks at conferences and events around the world, including the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Women of Influence Series in Canada, and the TedX Conference among several others. She was selected as a "Global Leader of Tomorrow" by the World Economic Forum and has co-founded and run several ventures throughout Toronto, Silicon Valley, and Europe. Vicki, thank you for joining me on the show today and sharing your valuable tips, suggestions, and insight. Here's a Breakdown of the Topics We Covered: Vicki's "back story" on how she became an entrepreneur. Vicki's tips on how women should deal with the world finally catching up to their innovative ideas. SheEo – what is SheEO and what is their mission? Ways women can sharpen their entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial skills by identifying and synthesizing problems to find a unique solution. Common ways many women entrepreneurs make things harder than they need to be. Vicki shares the one important leadership lesson she has learned from her 20+ years with building and growing businesses. How and when Vicki stepped into her power. What's up next for Vicki "Women are an economic powerhouse that haven't been tapped into before." – Vicki Saunders Interesting Statistics Shared: 4$ of venture capital goes to women-owned businesses, and this figure has remained unchanged for decades. If women were financed at the same degree as men, we would create 6-Million jobs in the next five Women are set to inherit 75% of the world's inherited wealth. Women are starting businesses at almost twice the rate as men. Women have a buying power of 80-85% 3 Steps Women Can Take to Sharpen Their Entrepreneurial & Intrapreneurial Skills: Be clear about the problem you are trying to solve. Broaden your circles of inspiration. Use that insight to create a model you can use to push you. Connect with Vicki: sheeo.world YouTube LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Think Like a SheEo (book) on Amazon An Open Invitation to All You Fierce Feminine Leaders Are you a coach, consultant, entrepreneur, or service provider wanting to sell your expertise and build your brand? I want to personally invite you to register for my brand new, free training webinar coming up on May 18! You will learn: Three stories you must tell to become a globally recognized expert, attract influential clients, and double your sales in as little as 12-months. Exact sales and marketing structures you need to build a multiple 6-figure business. Why so many coaches, consultants, and service providers struggle to replace their corporate salaries. Bonus! I am going to give you a behind the scenes look at how I earned a fabulous income as a global thought leader from my base in Canada! One lucky live participant will win a free gift! To register for my free training webinar "Stories That Sell," head over to www.eleanorbeaton.com/storiesthatsell Until next time…. Stay fierce!

Whether you are running a business or running a marathon, high-performance is a critical skill to have in order to "finish the race." As many of my wonderful listeners already know, I am a huge fan of high-performing women, athletes, entrepreneurs, and business executives. However, throughout my coaching experience, I often see many women that have the potential to be high performers, but somehow fail to unlock that potential – leaving it on the table. Today, I share with you four critical psychological skills that all high-performers must have and master in order to achieve success in life, business, and sports. Keep Reading >> Unless you're living a high-performance lifestyle in business and life, you are leaving potential on the table. My Challenge for You: Think about what would be possible if you could unlock 15% more potential without creating more time in a day or upgrading your skills. Think about what would be possible for humanity if everyone could unlock 15% more of their Think about how the whirlwind of your life is affecting your ability to achieve your wildly important goals. The 4 Critical Psychological Skills of High-Performers: Focus Focus to work through the whirlwind. Visualization Visualize the "end game" and what steps you need to take to achieve it. Setting Effective Goals Drastically narrow your focus down. Set smaller goals to achieve the W.I.G. Dealing with Distractions Learn how to say a powerful "no" to stay on track with your vision and goals. When you unlock your capacity by 10, 15, 20 percent – think about what is going to be possible for your family, the people you love, and humanity as a whole. Book Recommendation: I highly recommend checking out Annette Verschuren's new book, "Bet On Me," an inspiring book on Annette's philosophy on what it takes to be a highly successful leader. To purchase "Bet On Me" On Amazon On Barnes & Noble On Books-A-Million On com An Open Invitation to All You Fierce Feminine Leaders Are you a coach, consultant, entrepreneur, or service provider wanting to sell your expertise and build your brand? I want to invite you to register for my brand new, free training webinar coming up on May 18! You will learn: The three stories you must tell to become a globally recognized expert, attract influential clients and double your sales in as little as 12-months. Exact sales and marketing structures you need to build a multiple 6-figure business Why so many coaches, consultants, and service providers struggle to replace their corporate salaries. Bonus! I am going to give you a behind the scenes look at how I earned a fabulous income as a global thought leader from my base in Canada! One lucky live participant will win a free gift! To register for my free training webinar "Stories That Sell," head over to www.eleanorbeaton.com/storiesthatsell Until next time… Stay fierce!

Welcome back, my Fierce Feminine Leader! Today's episode, I talk about the number one desire that women who want to lead crave, and how "the approval trap" prevents these amazing women from stepping into their power and achieving this desire. Keep Reading >> I have worked with countless high potential business women throughout my career. The number one thing that these women want from leading their company is – you guess it – freedom. However, freedom often comes with a price, and the price that we discuss in this episode is releasing your natural need for being a "people pleaser." Women have been conditioned to be people pleasers; to make people happy, comfortable, and to feel good. However, to step into your power, you must be able to break free of the fear of criticism. If you are not gaining the traction in your career to the degree that you want, transition your mindset from student to teacher. My challenge for you: Examine the times and situations in your life and career where you are playing smaller out of the need to have the approval of other people. An Open Invitation to All You Fierce Feminine Leaders Are you a coach, consultant, entrepreneur, or service provider wanting to sell your expertise and build your brand? I want to invite you to register for my brand new, free training webinar coming up on May 18! You will learn: The three stories you must tell to become a globally recognized expert, attract influential clients and double your sales in as little as 12-months. Exact sales and marketing structures you need to build a multiple 6-figure business Why so many coaches, consultants, and service providers struggle to replace their corporate salaries. Bonus! I am going to give you a behind the scenes look at how I earned a fabulous income as a global thought leader from my base in Canada! One lucky live participant will win a free gift! To register for my free training webinar "Stories That Sell," head over to www.eleanorbeaton.com/storiesthatsell Until next time… Stay fierce!

Welcome back to the Fierce Feminine Leadership podcast! In today's episode, I share with you three tips on finding your voice as a Fierce Feminine Leader. Keep Reading >> Did you know that the vast majority of "new and noteworthy" podcasts on Stitcher and iTunes are hosted by men? In fact, statistics from Stitcher regarding top podcasts, only about 10% are hosted by women, while 80% are hosted by men. Women listen to a lot of podcasts, webinars, and attend dozens of conferences, but statistics show that the majority of business professionals and leaders are actually using their voice as a vehicle to increase their sales, earn more money, and market their businesses. Women often struggle with finding and utilizing their voice as a means to improve their businesses for three reasons: We feel we don't have anything to say. If we do have something to say, we often ask ourselves "why would anyone be willing to listen to what I have to say?" We are afraid of our own power. Ladies, it's time to step into your power, find you voice, and be more competitive with the male leaders in your industry. Here are three strategies you can implement today to help you find your voice, step into your power, and be the Fierce Feminine Leader that I know you can be. Start Commenting on Blogs & Articles "Weigh-in" on articles and blogs you find interesting. Don't just share those articles on Facebook and Twitter. Do both! Are you "internet shy," or maybe commenting online just isn't your thing? There's an alternative! Send those articles that you find interesting to someone you admire. Tell them why you think it's valuable and why you are sharing it with them. This serves two purposes – builds your network and helps you find and practice using your voice. Practice Your Voice at Conferences Every conference has a Q&A period. Use this time to practice using your voice and making it heard. Ask questions. Pay Closer Attention to the Material that Fascinates You Identify your "controlling idea." Your controlling idea is your central area of focus. Identifying your controlling idea helps you become known for something, builds your expertise in a topic, and helps other people understand what you're all about. So, ladies, I challenge you this week to begin practicing these strategies to help you find your voice and become the Fierce Feminine Leader I know you can be! Who is the Lucky April Contest Winner? Congratulations to Vlad Secovich for being the first lucky winner of the monthly contest! As the winner, you will receive a free private coaching session with me! Thank you for listening to the Fierce Feminine Leader podcast, and leaving your honest feedback on iTunes! To participate in May's contest and receive a special private coaching session with me, leave me an honest review on iTunes! A Special Announcement I am excited to share with all of you Fierce Feminine Leaders a special promotion that I am running on May 18! I am hosting a very special, free training webinar called "Stories That Sell." If you are a thought leader that sells your expertise, this training webinar is for you! What you will learn: The 3 stories you must tell in order to position yourself as the expert in your field. Why so many coaches, consultants, and service providers struggle to replace their corporate salaries. A "behind the scenes look" and how I earned an income as a global thought leader What sales and marketing structures you need in order to build a 6-figure business as a coach, consultant, or service provider. If you are a coach, consultant, entrepreneur, or service provider, this training webinar is for you! To register for the Stories That Sell Training Webinar, happening on May 18 visit www.eleanorbeaton.com/storiesthatsell Thank you for listening to the Fierce Feminine Podcast! Until next time… Stay Fierce!

Your reputation. Your personal brand. Many Fierce Feminine Leaders know they need a personal brand, but they simply don't know where the starting line is when it comes time to create one. In the business world, you are aware that your reputation often precedes you. Your personal brand can help you leave a lasting, positive impression on a potential client, customer, or business associate – and this is critical for your success. Keep Reading >> So, how do you create a strong personal brand? In this episode, I am going to share with you 5 critical elements of a strong personal brand. The 5 Critical Elements of a Strong Personal Brand A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words Your customers, clients, and business associates are researching you before they make the decision to hire or buy from you. Having a professional, high-quality headshot picture taken by an experienced, professional photographer will help your customers and clients make that decision. They do not want to see a picture of you with your dog playing in your back yard – they want to see a professional quality headshot, an image that will resonate and cause them to remember you the next time they need a service or product that you offer! Challenge 1: Shell out some cash for a few high-quality, professional headshots. Update Your LinkedIn Profile LinkedIn is a powerful, professional search engine and social networking tool used by thousands of businesses and organizations worldwide. Part of maintaining your public image and reputation relies on maintaining and updating your LinkedIn Profile. Update your profile picture – remove the pictures of you and your dog (save those for your private Facebook profile!) and upload one of the professional headshot images that you've ordered when you completed Challenge 1. While you are updating your LinkedIn profile, also improve your summary and ask for recommendations from people you have worked with. In the era of online marketing and networking, maintaining a positive online image and reputation is crucial to your chances of success. Part of maintaining your online reputation is building a solid network of people who will happily recommend you to other businesses and clients. Your LinkedIn profile and recommendations from people you have worked with is the perfect first step toward building a positive online reputation. Challenge 2: Spend time updating your LinkedIn profile – your picture, your summary, and ask for recommendations! Tell Your Origin Story Stories help people learn more about you and understand why you chose the professional lifestyle that you did. We are hardwired for stories. One of the critical elements of establishing and building your personal brand is your story behind how and why you got started in the work that you do. Challenge 3: Share your compelling origin story with others – through your website, your LinkedIn profile, or other professional networks. Your Elevator Pitch Many Fierce Feminine Leaders have powerful elevator pitches that help them tell their story and share their services with potential clients and customers. Elevator pitches are a 30-second pitch that explains who you are, what you do, and how you can help. It helps keep you memorable and magnetic to your clients and customers! Challenge 4: Create a powerful, memorable elevator pitch! Get creative! Have a Signature Piece Presenting yourself in a consistent fashion can help your brand consistency. It can help you position yourself and your brand in a memorable way with your clients, customers, and business associates. Brand consistency is incredibly important for every professional, and developing a signature piece can help! What do I mean by a "signature piece?" Think of Steve Jobs with his black turtlenecks or, my personal favorite, Anna Winter with her oversized sunglasses. These signature pieces incorporated into their wardrobe have helped them establish and promote their brands, products, and services time and again. Challenge 5: Develop your personal signature piece. Thank you for tuning into the Fierce Feminine Leadership podcast! Until next time… Stay Fierce!

Do you ever catch yourself comparing yourself to other successful people, and feeling frustrated and discouraged that your achievements are coming up short compared to someone else's? Many – if not most high achieving professional women experience this phenomenon. It's called "Compare and Despair" and it has reached monumental proportions since the development of the Facebook highlight reel. Keep Reading >> Research shows that most high achievers have a competitive streak, whether in sports, business, or in life in general. While having a competitive edge can be a healthy, positive personality trait to have – it is not when it grows to the epic proportions of "Compare and Despair". This phenomenon can cause you to significantly inhibit your ability to perform at the high levels that everyone around you knows you're capable of. In this episode, I talk about the "Compare and Despair" cycle and give you three simple ways to break this career inhibiting habit, move past these negative thoughts, and move forward with your career goals. 3 Ways You Can Stop Comparing Yourself to Others: Acknowledge the Feeling Ladies, we are spending too much time comparing our accomplishments to others, gauging our success based on the success and achievements of others. One of the most common reasons why we spend so much time and energy in the "Compare and Despair" cycle is because we fail to recognize the feelings we have while doing it! Challenge 1: I challenge you: Next time you catch yourself comparing your success to other people's success, stop and notice the habit, the feeling. Once you recognize the habit, just stop, in that moment, and say: "Wow, I'm making myself feel ill because I'm comparing myself to so and so. INTERESTING!" Then, move on with your day. Keep Your Eye on the Prize It is truly amazing how many people are working without a clear goal, a prize they are striving to earn. If you don't set a goal and create a plan of action to achieve that goal, then it becomes much easier to waste your time watching and comparing yourself to others. Challenge 2: Your next challenge is to know your prize, own your ambition to get the prize, and stay focused on that prize. Set goals and plans to achieve your goals! Have a "Safe" Word Compare and Despair is a dangerous cycle for high performing, professional women. To help you break the habit, develop a "safe word" that will allow you to break your focus from comparing yourself to others and allow you to being focusing on other important tasks, like your "prize." When I notice that I'm slipping into the Compare and Despair cycle, my safe word is focus. I literally stop, take a deep breath, then say "Eleanor….FOCUS!" Ladies, don't spend your life trying to live it like someone else. Crush your own! Be the Fierce Feminine Leader you know you can be! Until next time… Stay Fierce!

Are You A Tall Poppy Tall Poppy Syndrome, what is it? It is a social phenomenon throughout the industry, often affecting women – but sometimes men, too – in which great people of merit are criticized or resented because of their achievements. Tall Poppies often "play small" because they are worried that they will be criticized for showing up in the world as brilliantly as they really are. The term, "Tall Poppy Syndrome" was coined by New Zealand Researchers, and many women in business unconsciously allow it to affect their business growth. In this episode, I explain three ways that Tall Poppy Syndrome is preventing you from stepping into your power as a female leader. 3 Ways Tall Poppy Syndrome is Preventing You from Being a Powerful Female Leader Tall Poppy Syndrome makes you self-conscious Research shows that self-consciousness inhibits high performance. Tall Poppy Syndrome can hold you back from accepting high-profile assignments Own your brilliance! Tall Poppy Syndrome can prevent you from building a powerful personal brand Tall Poppies often hold back from highlighting their achievements. Takeaway: If you are a Tall Poppy, know that you are not alone! For tips to overcome Tall Poppy Syndrome, download the Checklist Tip Sheet below. http://www.eleanorbeatonpodcast.com/13