Building Your Virtual Trampoline: The Power of Support Networks

In this episode of Seasoned Women, Serious Business, Isabel delves into the concept of a 'virtual trampoline,' which symbolizes the robust and interconnected support system needed for women to succeed in business and life.

She discusses the critical elements of this trampoline, including strong relationships, personal advisors, coaches, and strategic networks, all of which contribute to resilience, empowerment, and continuous growth. Isabel also emphasizes the importance of 'Vitamin G' (girlfriends) and her Board of Advisors in building a sound foundation for success.

Join Isabel as she guides you on how to construct your own trampoline to bounce back from setbacks and propel towards greater heights.

00:00 Introduction and Recap of Last Week

01:08 The Concept of the Trampoline

03:30 Building Your Virtual Trampoline

07:38 Key Relationships for Support

09:46 The Importance of a Personal Board of AdvisorsWho Am I Now Book

12:54 The Role of Coaches and Masterminds

14:01 Empowered Teams and Strategic Networks

15:44 Final Thoughts and Next Episode Preview

About the Host:

 

Isabel Alexander

Your Next Business Strategist and Transformation Catalyst

 Isabel Alexander's journey from modest beginnings to global recognition epitomizes entrepreneurial resilience and innovation. With over five decades of experience spanning diverse industries, she has become a driving force in shaping economic landscapes worldwide. Noteworthy accomplishments include founding a multimillion-dollar global chemical wholesale business and earning accolades such as Canada's Top 100 Most Powerful Women.

As a mentor and advocate, Isabel empowers women entrepreneurs through initiatives like the Lift As You Climb Movement and podcasts, guiding them from startup to maturity. Serving as Chief Encore Officer of The Encore Catalyst, she dedicates herself to coaching and educating emerging entrepreneurs. Her involvement in organizations like RenegadesReinventing.com and Femme on Fire underscores her commitment to leadership and business development.

Additionally, Isabel's advisory roles with government bodies and trade associations, such as Chair of the Canadian Association of Importers & Exporters, highlight her influence in shaping trade policies and fostering international relations.

Driven by her mantra, "Lift As You Climb," Isabel embodies the ethos of mutual growth and empowerment. With dual citizenship in Canada and the United States, she values her extensive family and embraces global connections through travel and professional engagements. Isabel Alexander's narrative serves as a beacon of inspiration, illustrating how visionary leadership and strategic advising can drive global entrepreneurship and economic independence forward.

Founder:

The Encore Catalyst Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/TheEncoreCatalyst )

and

Chief Encore Officer, The Encore Catalyst (www.theencorecatalyst.com) – an accelerator for feminine wisdom, influence, and impact.

also

Author & Speaker ‘Who Am I Now? – Feminine Wisdom Unmasked Uncensored’ https://whoaminowbook.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isabelannalexander/

 

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Crossroads Clarity Solution

Who Am I Now Book

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Welcome back to Seasoned Women, Serious Business, the podcast for

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women who are wise enough to want more.

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Let's have some fun today!

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Last week on this podcast, I shared why I really believe we excel as business

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owners, and the reasons why I believe so.

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I talked about the power of our experience, resilience, adaptability,

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our sense of humor, and relationships and networks that we have built over time.

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I also shared my thoughts on how we have grown our empathy and our

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vision and our ability to mentor and be mentored and create a legacy.

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And in that conversation, I dropped the term trampoline.

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I got a lot of people asking me, What the heck are you talking about, Isabel?

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Isn't this a podcast about business, not about gymnastics, even

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though the Olympics are going on?

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So let me explain today what I meant by a trampoline and why I think every

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seasoned woman, serious about getting the most flavor out of her life,

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needs to build her own trampoline.

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Imagine with me, if you will, A virtual trampoline with a fabric of

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strong and supportive relationships.

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Each band of the trampoline represents a connection with friends,

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advisors, mentors, peers, all working together to create a resilient

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and flexible foundation for you.

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Imagine the robust springs on your virtual trampoline that signify

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the essential support structures.

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Vitamin G; girlfriends, we'll expand on that later, personal advisors,

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coaches, strategic networks that empower you to bounce back from

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setbacks with renewed energy.

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Now as you leap on your trampoline, It propels you higher every time,

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and it symbolizes the dynamic and uplifting nature of the interconnected

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support system that you have chosen, that you have curated.

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But a trampoline is also a safety net.

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It's there to catch you when you fall, but then it also catapults you to

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greater heights, allowing you to bounce back, And it embodies resilience and

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empowerment, and continuous growth.

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Just as I was saying in the episode last week, seasoned women, excel at what

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they're doing in their life now because they have this resilience, they have this

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adaptability, and they're wise enough to know that they can gather around them more

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of the support network and empowerment to live the best life that they choose

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and become the best version of themselves.

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So I'd love for you to take a moment to begin to construct the vision of

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your own virtual trampoline; your virtual trampoline that is there

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for support and for inspiration.

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Here's a couple of words I hope that Anchor your vision.

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Supportive.

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Put some emphasis on the networks and the relationships that form

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that emotional support and also the professional backing that you need.

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Resilient.

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This is where you highlight the strength and the flexibility to

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help you recover from any setbacks.

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Empowering.

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Focus on the ability to uplift and encourage not only your own personal

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growth and confidence, but the impact that you will have by the energy you create.

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Flexible.

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I hope that this makes you think of how you can freestyle when you're bouncing

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on your trampoline, that you can adapt to various situations, challenges, always

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coming up with a different way to do it.

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Dynamic.

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I that means nothing is status quo.

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Nothing is fixed or unchangeable.

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And that's how you leverage the energy from the movement on your trampoline.

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That bouncing is pure energy for you to use in any way you choose.

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Connected.

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This is where you can really reflect on the strength that

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comes from the interwoven support system that is your foundation.

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If you're like me and you like to doodle or create mind maps, then

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this would be an excellent exercise.

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Think of a mind map of your virtual trampoline, the one that's custom

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designed specifically for you, by you.

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Visualize your trampoline as a safety net that catches you when you fall and propels

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you right back up with renewed energy.

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Maybe it's elastic bands or bungee cords that are in your image.

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Picture very strong, Elastic bands that stretch and contract, symbolizing the

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flexibility and the resilience of this support system that you are creating.

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Or maybe you prefer to focus on the springs that are in a trampoline,

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imagining the robust springs that represent key relationships

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and resources that help you bounce back higher each time.

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And of course, usually a trampoline is round in design, which is so perfect

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for women because we are a circle.

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So envision a circular frame.

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symbolizing unity and interconnectedness that comes from supportive relationships.

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And to complete your picture, how about some uplifting arrows?

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Pointing up representing continuous growth and upward

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movement, expansion, no limits.

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Put all of this energy together, the imagery, the words, and you

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create your ideal trampoline.

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Now that I have shared with you my creation method for the

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imagery around my trampoline,

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I'd like to share with you my ideas about the most important relationships that make

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up the support system of our trampoline.

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Imagine the joy of visualizing jumping on your trampoline, knowing confidently

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that you are supported and that you are lifted, and even if challenges come your

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way or setbacks, that you will rebound because you have carefully created and

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built this supportive trampoline of yours.

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You already know my passion about business and entrepreneurship, but I always start

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first as a woman because it's in that whole life of mine that I factor first

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the important personal relationships that no matter what, through my business,

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will always be there to see me as the woman that I am and celebrate me.

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The number one building material for my trampoline is vitamin G.

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And if that seems a little confusing, then let me say I'm going to come back in

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another episode and explain all about the incredible benefits of vitamin G, but for

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today, know that stands for girlfriends.

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I have a lifetime of proving the extraordinary importance and how

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essential vitamin G is to my overall well being, personal growth, and success.

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And that's the very first building material when I create my trampoline.

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My second priority as a foundational building material

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is my Board of Advisors.

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The best trampoline for me is my very carefully curated personal

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board of advisors, and I believe strongly that every woman should

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have one, whether in business or not.

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There is a lifetime value of having a carefully chosen and nurtured personal

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board of advisors, and that will change over time and circumstances.

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But let me suggest some areas of consideration.

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Every successful business corporation, whether it's Fortune 100 or Fortune

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5000, small, medium sized enterprise, family owned business, not for profit

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association, service club, They all have a board of directors, that is

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a chosen group of people with skills, experience, resources, that come together

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to support the growth and success of that organization, because the leader

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of that organization or institution on their own can't know everything.

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She cannot possibly know everything.

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By surrounding yourself with a good board of advisors, you drastically

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reduce your risk and you infinitely increase your chance of success and joy.

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Depending on your stage and your requirements, your personal board of

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advisors may include professionals or a mix of personal and professionals.

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Right now, my personal Board of Advisors is made up of other women entrepreneurs

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that have bigger businesses, or have been in business longer than I

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have, or have business skills that are specialized and different than

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mine, but all have a commitment to continually improve themselves and

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grow, and are willing to share their unrestricted wisdom and advice.

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A well chosen board will give you a very broad perspective and the

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opportunity to choose the right advice at the right time for you.

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Oprah said, That you should surround yourself only with people

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who are going to lift you higher.

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And so that's always a consideration in every choice that you're going to

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make for your trampoline material.

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The next group that I like to reflect on and choose for

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my trampoline are my coaches

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I'm a lifelong learner and I hope I will always be coachable, so I invest in myself

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by choosing coaches to help me learn in areas that I still want to expand, in

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areas where I have not had the experience or the confidence to continue to grow.

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And that's why I encourage everyone to look at themselves is the first place

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to invest as they are growing in their business and their personal best self.

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I participate in masterminds.

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I've been in a mastermind group now for four years.

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We share core values about wanting to learn, and uplevel, and become

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the best version of ourselves.

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Additionally, the benefit is that we don't each have to learn every single thing.

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We can share that with each other.

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And that makes for a great trampoline bounce!

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Number five in my list of building my trampoline is an empowered team.

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As a business owner, I have learned the hard way, over and over, bouncing

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and bouncing, that my team is only as good as my communication to them.

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So by sharing clearly my vision for the business, And giving them clear

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direction and then empowering them to go and deliver what I've asked, lifts

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me and I am able to bounce higher because my energy is devoted to growth.

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The last aspect of my constructing my own trampoline is my strategic networks.

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I have decided to reclaim the term networking for its highest and best good.

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Networking is no longer about having a couple of glasses of wine, keeping

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a smile pasted on my face and leaving with a bunch of business cards in

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my hand that really don't lift me.

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Now, my network building, is very strategic and thoughtful.

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Who are the people that I want to meet that will lift me?

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I hope that you can see networking in a different light when you

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think about it as part of the construction of your own trampoline.

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Okay, before we part, let me recap very quickly.

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I believe that we are incredible as a seasoned group with life experience.

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and opportunities to continue to do whatever we want more of in our lives.

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If that means more growth in our businesses or more impact from what we

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do and who we are in our life, more fun and more freedom, more of everything,

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then why not feel like you're on your own trampoline and you have control

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over that energy and that experience?

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And because I believe that we are not only smarter and wiser now, but

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I believe that our vision is bigger and our appetite for a more impactful,

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enriched, enjoyable life; I like to share with you my ideas, my systems

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for making it fun and successful.

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And I welcome ideas from you about how you change the paradigms, change

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business models for success and growth today so that it's really appropriate

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to us who we are today and what we want.

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Conforming to something that no longer serves us or perhaps never did really is

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just like that's off the table for me and I invite you to share with all my audience

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what ways you have learned to create a system or vision that supports you as a

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seasoned woman serious about business.

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All right, next episode, we're going to talk more about vitamin G and why that

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makes me the powerful, resilient person that I am today and how I can share

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some of my best practices with you.

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Have a great week!