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Suzanne Brown: Author And Founder Of Mompowerment

By Cheval John

Suzanne Brown returned to What’s The Word? to share about her vision for her business, Mompowerment.

This episode was recorded on Blue Jeans Network before the “pandemic” happened.

Suzanne shared about livestreaming and the resurgence of LinkedIn.

She has written two books and recently published an article in The Harvard Business Review called, “https://hbr.org/amp/2020/09/how-to-identify-a-family-friendly-employer?__twitter_impression=true.

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Below is a sample of what Suzanne shared on the show:

Whether you are on LinkedIn or having a conversation with somebody you have just met at an event, it’s about the relationship building.

You wouldn’t meet somebody and say, “Hey, do you want to buy my book?”

That would not be your approach if you meet somebody in person.

So why would that be your approach online?

I think a lot of times, people think, “Oh, it’s online, therefore, it’s a different set of rules.

Nobody wants to be sold to.

LinkedIn is a professional setting.

So it goes by the same rules that you would have in a professional setting.

If you were selling something to somebody, you would learn a little bit about them.

Maybe there is an article that you both responded to and you really liked what they had to say.

That is a great reason to connect with that person.

I think it’s also really important to use the functionality where it allows you to send a note.

Just change the generic note and personalized the message.

That first engagement is key because it makes them think, “Do I want to connect with this person or not.”

If your immediate thing is to spam, chances are you will start losing people.

On The Comeback Of LinkedIn

I think all of a sudden, people have discovered or rediscovered LinkedIn as a platform because for a really long time, it was an online resume.

Now people are realizing this a great way to build business relationships especially with those who are not in your typical network.

You can connect with people all over the world.

You can connect with people from different business industries.

I think it’s a really great platform.

I think that influencers have really great wins on LinkedIn

Now they are saying, “This is the platform to use.”

All of a sudden, these newbies are coming to LinkedIn and they don’t necessary understand the platform.

So they are using what is essentially bad habits.

So being able to start coaching people and say, “I am glad we connected. I am not interested in this message, do you like to continue this conversation?”

You can find nicer ways to doing that.

Or simply unfriend and overtime, people will figure out, “Oh, maybe I shouldn’t done that (spamming)”

So it all depends on if you want to mentor somebody or if you want to just give them the boot.

Beth Frates, M.D., Founder of Wellness Synergy

By Cheval John

March 7th 2018

Today’s episode of What’s The Word? features Beth Frates, M.D., co-author and founder of The Wellness Synergy.

The Wellness Synergy provides people the tools and skills needed to optimize their health and wellness.

Dr. Frates decided to enter the medical field after a health scare with her father when she was eighteen years old.

In that time, she earned a degree in both biology and psychology from Harvard University and earned her medical degree from Stanford University.

Dr. Frates co-authored the book “Life After Stroke: The Guide to Recovering Your Health and Preventing Another Stroke” published by John Hopkins University Press.

In this episode, you will hear:

-the transition to founding the Wellness Synergy Center
-why moving around can help your brain
-how social media helped Dr. Frates to stand out in her profession

Snippet on Vallano Media TV

Full show on BlogTalkRadio

The episode was recorded on Facebook Live via Blue Jeans Network

Dr. Frates’ Website: www.wellness-synergy.com

Twitter: @BethFrates

You can also subscribe to the show on Apple Podcast, Stitcher and Google Play Music.

Quotes from Dr. Beth Frates On:

WORK-LIFE BALANCE

There’s pressure to perform and produce.

I think it was very heavy in the 80s where my dad was living in New York City and running his own company.

I believe there’s similar pressures but I do think it’s a little better.

People talk more about family, work-life balance than they did when my dad was experiencing his health setbacks.

So I think we have made some strides.

I think especially entrepreneurs and those who are responsible for the profits of the company still feels stress about the employees and making sure they can provide a good life for the employees and for the clients or customers or whatever their business is.

I think there’s still a lot of stress.

The idea though is if you don’t take care of ourselves, if we don’t have proper nutrition, exercise, sleep, then we won’t be at our best and we won’t perform at our best.

So the tide is changing slightly in we’re understanding you cannot pour from an empty cup.

If we want to do our best job at work, we really better take care of ourselves so that we are our best for everyone else instead of I’m not important, I just have to get the work done, get the work done, get the next client.

We need to realize we can do that better if we have the energy, if we have a clear mind, if we have a sense of purpose, if we feel good about social connections, if we feel good about our relationships with those around us and with those at work, we’ll be more productive and be able to really give our best authentic selves to those around us.

EXERCISING FOR THE BRAIN

Most who people think about exercise think about the heart which is right.

Exercise is really good for our heart and our cardiovascular system.

We can reduce blood pressure.

We can reduce cholesterol.

We can do a lot of good by exercising and we can even increase insulin sensitivity.

What we don’t tend to think about is what exercise does to the brain.

A lot of physicians don’t tend to know this.

We know know that after exercising, you get an increase in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which is also called “miracle grow” for the brain.

It helps neurons to make new connections and it also increases neurogenesis.

All very good.

Research shows that if you look at MRI’s, you can look at the hippocampus, a specific part of the brain that is intricately involved in consolidating memories.

So if you want to keep your memory for a long period of time, exercise should be on you list.

One-half of people who are 85 or older have memory problems.

So if you want to be in the half that does not have memory problems, I recommend exercising.

How much do we need, that’s the question.

There’s a lot of research still going on around that.

But, the recommendation is to accumulate 150 minutes of moderate intense physical activity in the week which is like a half hour, five days a week.

If you want to exercise more on the weekends, you could be doing half hour, both days on the weekends or you could be doing an hour both days on the weekend depending on your schedule.

You get all the benefits that exercise can give to all your organs including your brain.

The ten minutes come from the United States Health and Human Services Department which holds all the data something like 8,000 studies that were done on exercising.

They found that if you exercise ten minutes, yes, just ten minutes every day for a total of 70 minutes, your chances of getting sick or dying goes down dramatically.

If you are not exercising three days a week for 30 minutes for three months, you are considered at a sedentary level, which means sitting down.

If you are considered sedentary, you have an increased risk of a heart attack and a stroke.

SOCIAL MEDIA

I did not want to get involved with social media.

I did for a very long time use LinkedIn because that’s very professional.

You set up your account and you connect with people.

It seemed as if I didn’t have to have interaction.

You would connect or not connect and that would be it.

I wasn’t very involved with messaging or posting or anything.

So that worked for me really well.

Our department of physical medical rehabilitation at Harvard University which is based at Spaulding Rehab Hospital has a lot of great research and a great program.

In April of last year, the department said, “We’re all doing great things, but nobody knows what we are doing. We have to get up with the times. Yes, we’re physicians, but we need to promote our programs in order for them to survive and thrive.”

So they encouraged us to get on Twitter and post.

I have a colleague, Dr. Julie Silver, who basically set me up and taught me about Twitter.

I’ll never forget I did not know how to tweet.

I did not know how to retweet.

I did not understand if someone put an @bethfrates that meant they wanted you to retweet.

There’s a whole world of twitter that I did not know.

As I was figuring out twitter, I found it to be remarkably fun.

It was enjoyable.

It was not drudgery because I like learning about other people.

I like learning what other people are doing.

It’s fascinating.

It’s great to see what other people are doing and posting.

I am involved with many different physician groups and I’m also involved with other patient groups.

I feel like I’ve gotten a lot out of Twitter.

In fact, I have actually made friends from twitter that I would have never have met.

Some are not even in this country (United States).

Certainly not in my state or in my department.

I gained friends and some colleagues I might be presenting with.

I have gotten opportunities like this and other podcasts to do because of twitter.

I’m finishing a book proposal hopefully this year and I have been told that you need to have a following of some kind.

They have asked me, “How many people follow you on twitter?”

It helps if you have some followers because then the publicist thinks, “Okay, she could potentially sell this book. There are people who are listening to her.”

So that might help me.

Jessica Ann, Author and Founder of Jessica Ann Media

By Cheval John

February 14, 2018

Today’s episode of What’s The Word? features Jessica Ann, who is the founder of Jessica Ann Media.

She is the author of the book, “Humanizing Your Brand” which she self-published in 2016.

Jessica spent years working as a producer for national media outlets including Sirius XM in Washington, D.C. before striking out on her own with her company.

She is the host of the podcast, “The Art of Humanity,” where she interviews leaders about being your true authentic self in business.

Jessica has been featured in media outlets including The Huffington Post.

In this episode, you will hear:

-What Inspired Jessica To Become An Entrepreneur

-Why She Started Her Podcast

-Why Businesses Should Be On Social Media

-Should Businesses Be On Live Video

This episode was recorded on Facebook Live via Blue Jeans Network.

Snippet on Vallano Media TV

Full Episode on BlogTalkRadio

You can subscribe to the show either in Apple Podcasts, Stitcher and Google Play Music.

Website: www.jessicaannmedia.com

Twitter: @itsjessicann

Quotes from Jessica Ann on:

STARTING A PODCAST

I always love podcasts.

I love the fact that I can just be who I am and I can show up on audio and talk to my guests.

I love video too, don’t get me wrong.

But sometimes, it can take away from the experience of the intimate setting of the podcast.

We’re finding growth like through the roof across the board in terms of podcasting.

I didn’t even know it would become such a trend that it is today.

When I first started, I just kind of got this calling and I wanted to talk with people around the globe about what they are working on in a way that would not only help me personally and professionally, but also help my listeners and my potential clients and anyone really who’s listening learn something from the interviews in my podcast.

LIVE VIDEO

You got to figure out what works for you.

In today’s day and age, you have to be on video.

You really need to be on any platform that conveys your message in the most human and real way.

Video gives you that option.

I’m going to be doing more video in the coming months.

I’m excited.

I am evolving.

We are all kind of going through this huge shift in communications and how we talk to each other today.

It’s exciting.

I just need to get out of my comfort zone and I’m sure other people out there might relate to that as well in terms of how we get out in the world.

There are so many different ways we can talk to people and we want to do what number one feels right and true to ourselves.

Also, the way that can make the most impact and video is definitely an expression to do that.

UPCOMING FACEBOOK ALGORITHM CHANGE

As a person in business, I really don’t want to get freaked out over any of these changes.

Algorithms changes all the time.

Business has changed all the time.

We just have to attribute it to an ongoing evolution of the web.

We’ll see what happens over time.

I’m personally not freaking out.

I know some of my dear colleagues and friends are not freaking out either.

I also see some people not happy with it.

Looking back at how google changed their algorithm like penguin and all those silly names a few years ago.

We figure it out as we go.

You can’t freak out.

You just have to grow with what’s happening in the technology world.

They are multiple ways outside of facebook to get in front of your customers today.

Facebook is not the be-all, end-all of marketing granted it is very huge platform.

They are many other options and you don’t necessarily have to be there if it’s not working for you.

I’m a big believer in business and making an impact.

I’m also a big believer in listening and exploring and figuring out what’s working and what’s not and then moving on from there.

WRITING THE BOOK “HUMANIZING YOUR BRAND”

What led me to create this book was people in the business world aren’t accessible.

They write dry jargon language that is incomprehensible and it’s so much more simple than that.

I got tired.

There was a book that was written in 1999 called “The Clue Train Manifesto”

It really just about the evolution of communications.

That was the first point in history where people started writing about this concept.

I quoted it in my book too.

That inspired me to realize we’re shifted so much since 1999 and we need to continue to communicate with our customers in an accessible human way.

So I needed to figure out how to convey this information to the world in a way that was accessible.

The book poured through me.

I had to write it and I had to self-publish it.

I always want to peel back the layers.

It’s like an onion.

How do we really get to the core of who we are.

Not just as a business, but as a human being.

So that’s what I hope to convey in my book.

THE DIGITAL MEDIA WORLD

We can all leave a digital crumb so easy today.

Before going into any type of media or message, ask yourself, “Is This Valuable?”

Can people really get value out of what I’m about to say or broadcast to the world.

We all do that in our own unique way.

That’s a thread I like to ask myself personally and I help my clients as well and all of their communication.

How do we make ourselves a value to the world.

Be out there as much as you possibly can.

Chelsea Peitz, Snapchat Expert and Author of “Talking In Pictures”

By Cheval John

January 31st, 2018

Today’s episode of What’s The Word? features Chelsea Peitz, who is a snapchat influencer and author.

Chelsea works in the real estate industry and has built her brand using snapchat.

Many have thought that a business can’t see the return on investment (roi) with using snapchat because of the content disappearing in 24 hours.

Chelsea basically saw different as she formed a deep friendship with people who are now business partners via the snapchat app.

This has inspired Chelsea to write her book, “Talking In Pictures.”

She also hosts, “Chelschat,” a show about the latest third party apps and softwares to better improve your social media experience.

Chelsea has taken that same concept and launched her YouTube channel by the same name earlier this year.

In this episode, you will hear:

-what led her to join snapchat
-if snapchat will make it through this year
-the process of writing her book
-taking the leap into entrepreneurship

The show was recorded on Facebook Live via Blue Jeans Network

Snippet on Vallano Media TV

Full Episode on BlogTalkRadio

Chelsea’s LinkedIn Account

Snapchat: Chelsea.Peitz

Quotes from Chelsea Peitz on:

JOINING SNAPCHAT

My personality is kind of an all in personality.

So I committed to using it every single day for an entire year.

And I found some people that were in my industry.

Those four people turned out to be my closest friends in life and business partners now.

We have done so many things together.

We have created a community online.

We have created conferences.

If I would have told my mom two years ago that I was getting on a plane to meet strangers that I had never actually met in person, she would have said, “What are you doing, that’s unsafe. What are you thinking?”

There is something to communicating and building relationship with the camera that made me really think about how the landscape of social media and marketing was really changing and how we were creating these very close intimate relationships with people through the cameras in our smartphones that always had with us.

I started using snapchat and I didn’t know what to do.

So I said, “I’ll just make a show and I’ll share marketing tips everyday.”

As I kind of got into that, I kind of became known as the marketing person, the social media person.

Then I started doing a little bit more of my personal life and kind of my hilarious sense of humor.

I started to see an exponential change in the relationships that I had with people and I realized that you can’t do business all the time on snapchat, instagram stories and facebook stories because people really want relatability and relatability is the most underutilized marketing tactic today.

Going into this new adventure, I almost unknowingly built this global virtual board of directors and I can now reach out and collaborate with them and say, “I need somebody to teach me how to do YouTube.”

I have a great snapchat friend who is a YouTube expert.

Or I need somebody to teach me how to do SEO.

I have a great snapchat friend who’s an SEO expert.

The cool thing is that we’ll help each other and it’s like nothing I’ve never experienced before.

For me, snapchat is gonna have a very special place in my heart forever.

I’ll be very sad one day if they don’t exist.

There is something about holding someone in your hand everyday and watching their life.

You can’t fake who you are every single day all day forever.

So people really get to know who you are.

WRITING THE BOOK “TALKING IN PICTURES”

When I sat down with those people, “those strangers” if you will that I had never met before, we went to Salt Lake City and spent the weekend there and I brought my closest friend.

We were sitting in a Starbucks and my closest friend said to me “It’s really weird that it seems like you’ve known each other for years and I’m watching y’all talk and it’s just like you just saw each other yesterday.”

So that made me start to really think “What is different about snapchat” at the time because this was right when facebook live starte coming out before instagram stories.

It wasn’t specifically the platform itself.

It was the key elements that app brought to people which now other apps have.

It was really about the intimacy of the camera and showing your face because neuroscience we can’t help but connect with somebody when we see them eye-to-eye.

It was the psychological triggers of us going in there and getting feedback and wanting more.

It really changed from something that had happened in the past where we post something on facebook or twitter that had already happened to being this real-time visual communication which was a really fundamental shift in how we were creating communities and communication.

I didn’t rally know that when I started writing the book but I knew there was something that I wanted to do.

I documented that entire experience (writing the book) through snapchat and I will tell you that people sent me snaps of them holding my book and said, “I’m so excited. I watched you for a year writing this book on snapchat.”

That was really cool and that’s something very different about what you can do with these camera first platforms.

You can bring people into your story and become part of your journey.

You can document what you are doing and you never have to sell or give a sales pitch.

You don’t have any sales objections to overcome.

People will come to you and ask you to buy your product or sign up for whatever.

It’s the greatest experience ever and everything I do from here on out is camera first.

I also interviewed people for the book because I wanted to share the community and those people were really part of that journey with me because they saw the different pieces that were happening.

TRADEMARKING CHELSCHAT

You see all these big names and what-have-you and people say, “How did you come up with the name?”

Nine times out of ten, it’s completely accidental.

I was trying to rebrand a couple of months ago and I called my snapchat people that I talk to everyday.

I said, “I just need to come up with a brand name. I’m gonna do a YouTube channel.”

All of them were like, “When I think of you, I think of Chelschat”

It just came out.

It wasn’t anything that I had specifically planned.

People on the street call me that.

Elena Rahrig: Author of Eleven Books and Entrepreneur

By Cheval John

Elena Rahrig stopped by What’s The Word? to share about how she became an author of eleven books.

She is an international speaker and also founded Otto Publishing New York, a company which publishes books and work books nationwide.

In this episode, you will hear:

What led her to write eleven books

Why potential authors should aim to write a full length book

How social media helped her to be very successful in her business

The importance of live streaming

This episode was recorded on Facebook Live via Blue Jeans Network

Snippet on Vallano Media TV

Full episode on BlogTalkRadio

Website: http://www.elenaspeaks.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ERTransform/

Upcoming Podcast Recording on Facebook Live:

Julia McCoy, Founder of Express Writers– October 3rd at 3 p.m. eastern, 2 p.m. central