ZingYourBrand.com with Mary VanDeWiel

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I enjoyed interviewing Mary Van De Wiel of ZingYourBrand.com about the importance of defining your brand and doing what it takes to stand out from the crowd.

Mary, or Van as she would prefer to be called brings to the table a global understanding of people and business and that special feeling that you get when a brand is properly created and positioned in the marketplace.

You learn from Van that businesses need to work on their brand when they start-up and also many people need to work on their brand as they advance in business.

Businesses need to  be clear about their position in the marketplace to be more successful and ultimately make more money with companies they've already started.
You can have a business that is successful that can be even more successful with some adjustments.

What do you adjust when it comes to your brand and how do you make a difference in the crowded business marketplace? Sometimes an outside evaluation from an expert, like Van, will reveal as she explains the cracks that need to be filled in your presentation and strategy.

So many people get coaches to help them in all areas of their lives, Van is like a brand coach.

I wanted to know where people go wrong or what people need to improve on most frequently and Van explained to listeners of our talk show "Successipes" that the brand presence ranges from how businesses present themselves with their business card, their logo, their website and everything along the way.

Consumers want to connect emotionally with brands they like and want to be more involved with. First impressions count and that's often overlooked by business owners who might not have taken the time to create a business card that is attention-getting and memorable.

Business owners should really pay attention to what the customer is seeing, feeling, and experiencing with their website. There's so many talented people out there in the marketplace who can offer services to help you design a great presence on paper and online and it doesn't have to be at costs that are prohibitive.

Van is a solopreneur and presents herself as an experienced and savvy brand provacateur. She knows her stuff and has even established a NY Brand Lab to help business owners get a strong grip on their Brand identify. Van is about sincerely wanting to help people and about being honest with them about what's working and what  needs to be revamped. All I can say is she can definitely help people with Zingyourbrand.com

For the full interview tune-in to our Las Vegas success talk show at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes ..

Put a Beautiful Idea Into Action and See What Unfolds

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Complete projects don't just happen. You start with an idea. It might be a beautiful idea, but if you take no actions to do something about your idea, it won't grow on its own. 

Ideas are like seeds, you plant them ,then water them. If you don't care for your garden of ideas, they might die. Help your ideas bloom. 

As you learn about more ways to use online marketing techniques, you have to try things to grow and get better at  using the tools .

We were introduced to a few sites recently including hub pages, Examiner.com, reddit, and digg.com. The good news is that you can work on growing your online presence a little more each day. Take actions or nothing will happen.

You can read some of my business success articles at
Business Success Examiner

Inspire Someone Today to Share Their Special Talents with the World

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Joel Osteen said in his sermon today that you should speak the blessings onto others and this made me realize that we help others by encouraging them. How many times have you heard parents who were knocking their kids and talking about them in a negative manner. This is damaging and some children just never forget. They grow up with emotional issues because they never felt supported by their parents.

Joel Osteen, in his now #1 New York Times bestselling book, It's Your Time,"  encourages people to live their dreams and move ahead to live their passion and as I say here, love your life. As we move towards the holidays and people are out shopping for gifts, it's great to think about doing something to encourage someone and change their life forever.

Life is too short to miss living it with passion. I love to hear stories of people who have had a defining moment or a special incident that changed their life forever and helped them impact other people's lives. One small statement might  be all that person needs to have the confidence they need to succeed.

Instead of telling someone not to try something and not to take a chance, how would their life be different if you told them they had a great idea and that they should work on it? If you don't apply for the job, how will you get it? If you don't make the artwork, how will you sell it? If you don't write the book, how will you be a best-selling author? If you don't encourage your child to play sports, how will he or she get the sports scholarship to college?

Encouragement and inspiration with your words are free and priceless. The price that people pay in their lives because they were discouraged about using their gifts and talents is monumental. People tend to hold on too long to the criticisms they receive during their lives. I've read many books about famous people and many have shared the discouraging words they received from parents or teachers along the way that almost changed the course of their lives forever.

Tune-in to our Las Vegas daily success talk show broadcast live or listen to the archives 24/7 at 
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes 


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The Learning Curve and Connecting With Your Passion

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For many of us, when we start moving in the direction of our life's passion, we might not have all the skills and all of the tools in place to be our best. It's so easy to procrastinate and hold back from doing things that will move us toward living the life we really desire.

Let's give an example. If you want to be a videographer and you're pretty broke, one option is to forget about your passion. This probably won't work because that inner voice will work on you and you'll probably have a hard time pushing away your gifts and talents. The second possibility is that you buy some video equipment that is inexpensive and just get started.

Imagine how great you'll feel by taking the action of moving forward to work on your craft. Another great way to move ahead when the balance in your checkbook is not what you had hoped for is to partner with others who already have the equipment that you need to do this work and pursue your passion. You also might consider bartering with others who have to equipment and experience to work with you or trade-off opportunities in exchange for your time and efforts.

Another way to get the tools you need to pursue your craft is to find people who believe in you who will sponsor your equipment. For some people, there are family members or friends who will back you, for others you might even need an angel investor to get your dreams off the ground.

Be patient with yourself and your skills more than critical about not being perfect.There's definitely a learning curve for everything that we do and practice is essential. Improvements come over time and it's really important to keep working on your craft, whatever that craft may be. 

This blog is really about encouraging you to look for all the possibilities you can to make your dreams come true. Once you start and even if you're working with less expensive or sophisticated equipment, you can always upgrade when the time is right. The world needs your gifts and talents and if you're going to attract the help that you need whether emotional, or financial, you have to take some steps to get out there and let people and the world know you exist. It's great that with online marketing we have the possibility of announcing our gifts and talents to the world almost instantly and connecting with people around the globe who we may never have met in this entire lifetime.

Tune-in to our Las Vegas success talk show live http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes

Animals and Children Teach Us To Find Joy and Wonder in Simplicity

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There is just something so refreshing as animals and small children. I was inspired with these thoughts by the picture of a squirrel in the morning sun. One of the most amazing experiences was out in nature at the Grand Canyon observing the small animals on the side of the Grand Canyon and just wondering how they viewed this miraculous National Park.

Mornings bring a start to the day and the sunlight coming up and sparking on creation is so beautiful.The small creatures live in much more simplicity than we do. The squirrel at the Grand Canyon isn't thinking about the traffic jams we face heading back to the city  or how the stock market is doing today.

Children's eyes light up when they see new things. Children have a fresh perspective on the world and we should stop to enjoy what they say more often.
I love the questions children ask about nature as they explore the world and have many first-time experiences.

Approach today with fresh, innocent eyes and see how your day unfolds. Today is a beautiful day and it's wonderful to be part of it. Smile today and enjoy the world around you.

Tune-in to our Las Vegas success talk show called "Successipes" produced with a live studio audience and broadcast at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes . Follow us on Twitter at Successipes.

Time Flies When You're Doing What You Love

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It's amazing how quickly time seems to fly when you're working on a project that you love. On the other hand, if you are bored and unhappy, the time seems to stand still and it's a longer day on the job you don't like.

We are given signs and clues about whether we are on the right track to fulfill our life's purpose. When we are on a path that will keep us from less than our full potential, we often find more challenges.

The greatest question I have for you is: If you're not doing what you love now, when will you be starting ? Life is not like a vcr. It has not hold button to hang on to time. Life has no reverse button to bring back time you've already spent.

Every minute you use up today moves you closer to tomorrow. Embrace today and do something today that makes your heart sing. Find some time today to do something you love and you'll probably spend more time doing it because you won't realize how quickly time flies when you're enjoying yourself.

"Believe in what you do, soon others will too." "Anytime is a great time to be successful. Now would be fine." -Lori Wilk 

I recently interviewed an author, Elizabeth Power, who wrote a book about Getting Happier. You can visit Elizabeth's website at http://www.gettinghappier.com. Tune-in to our daily Las Vegas success talk show broadcast at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes. If you want to tell me what you'd like to accomplish it may be a great opportunity for you to be interviewed on an upcoming episode of Successipes.

Visualize Your Dreams and Inspire Your Progress Toward Achievement

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As the temperatures start to drop here in the desert, Las Vegas, I need a visual to help me work towards my dreams and to stay on track with my desires. For me, the visual is someplace hot and exotic and it can be Hawaii, the Caribbean, French Polynesia, RioDeJaneiro, or a beach in Australia. The key is that the warmth of the sun and beautiful water are what will keep me going.

I am convinced that my most successful work environment would be hot 365 days a year. I could absolutely do without Winter and would prefer to undress than dress in layers.

I envision speaking in all the islands and tropical destinations of the globe and writing more non-fiction on the sand. As I keep my visual of this lifestyle I attract in more opportunities that match my vision.

Take the time today to visualize what you want and exactly what it will look like and imagine that you already have it. Put the visual on your wall or keep it with you and look at it every day. You have the power to create the life you want if you'll start with the dream and the visual it will be easier to recognize when you've accomplished the dreams.

My visuals make me happy and I smile often. My eyes and face light up with excitement when I look at my visualized dreams. I expect that amazing things will happen along the way and I am glad to say that I have taken the dreams to the Caribbean and Hawaii and look forward to more tropical experiences soon.

My body wants the warm temperatures so my mind is going to create the business oppportunities to get me to these warm places. I'll be in the gym again tomorrow working on my body so I'm ready to wear that bikini and enjoy the warm sand.


Tune-in to our daily Las Vegas success talk show at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes. Follow us on Twitter at Successipes and be part of our live studio audience by contacting lori@successipes.com

Let Your Dreams Take Flight and Find Support For What You Love

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A little birdie told me that you have a dream to fulfill and that this is your time to make that dream come alive. A dream is magical and can take flight if you find the support to help it take-off.

What if you gave yourself some love and know that your special gifts are meant to be shared with the world. For those of you who read my blogs you know that I am a firm believer in the power of the present and the urgency to live while we're here.

My father was tragically killed in an automobile wreck recently and it only made me believe even more in today. Dad was in excellent health and I have to say I considered him the "bionic dad" since he had hip replacements, knee replacements, and shoulder replacements. He was on the way home from a doctor appointment when he lost control of his vehicle and it flipped multiple times and then his life was abruptly ended by the internal bleeding. I was not there, but was told that it was all over in about three minutes.

If you don't try and put all your energy and passion into your dreams it's possible that they will not come true. Even using all of your life energy and determination is no guarantee of success, but if you put your notions in motion, things will happen. Many of the magical things that will happen in your life will be unexpected and wonderful. Having dreams and living with passion to fulfill them will make the struggles a little more tolerable.

I remember reading a book called" Even Eagles Need a Push" and it shares the fact that mother eagles have to push their little ones out of the nest so that they will ultimately fly.It must be so hard for the mother eagle to push her baby eagles out into the big world without a net. She reluctantly pushes and the baby eagles learn to soar on their own.

This push I give you to let your dreams take flight is gentle and supportive but still a push. It is backed up with a belief that I know you will have much more success if you take steps than if you do nothing. Please let me know what you are dreaming of and what you are doing to make your dreams come true.

It will also help you if you find a support network of one or more people who believe in your gifts and talents and can be honest with you and guide you towards the successes you desire. Stay away from those who do not share your vision. Avoid those who try to burst your bubble. Make more bubbles.

Tune-in to our live daily broadcast Las Vegas success talk show  Successipes. Send your questions or comments to lori@successipes.com

The Importance of Living Your Life While Your Alive

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The late night call came in. The one you never want to get. It was to inform me that my father had been killed in a car wreck. It was an absolute shock and once again proved to be a defining point for my life.

It took some arranging , then we went across the country to identify his body and make final arrangements.

The most profound times in my life have been when my loved ones have passed and I get this amazing push forward to do the work I'm meant to do in this lifetime. It is so tough and yet when someone you love leaves, you realize that we only have so much time to be alive to make our mark on the world.

There is an urgency in each day to live your life with passion and to love your life because it can end at any time.

Tune in to our Las Vegas success talk show daily and call-in or send us an e-mail with questions or comments at Successipes.

The Risk, Rewards, and Payoff of Pursuing Your Dreams

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I just opened my mail and found the latest cd from Michael Ray Tyler, Cool Breeze, a big band musical adventure and it's so awesome. It reminded me of the cost of following your heart to fulfill your life's dreams and to live your passion.

Cool Breeze is Michael Ray Tyler's 3rd album and CD, he's been working on his musical career and creations for more than 25 years. In order to pursue his musical gifts and make these albums he has had to sacrifice by working part-time as a music instructor and musician and has had to take the rest of his time to dedicate to his music.

If you calculate the loss of income he has sacrificed over the years to make his three albums, it's a fortune.
What's the risk of following your heart's desires and living your life to fulfill your passions? The rewards of knowing you are sharing your talents with the world during this lifetime cannot be measured in dollars.

The payoff is that you get to work at what you love and this is definitely better than hating your job. .
It's also important to remember that you don't get the Grammy if you don't make the music. Enjoy the music and passion in your heart and use your talents and gifts. There is a greater risk of unhappiness, depression, frustration, and disappointment if you don't pursue your passion. 

Tune-in to our Las Vegas daily success talk show "Successipes" produced with a live audience from Las Vegas. We encourage our listeners to call-in to talk to our guest experts on the show. For the show page and  details go to http://www.blogtalkradio.com/successipes