Putting It Out There In A Big Way: Book Expo 2013

May 27, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Pinch me now please.

I’m heading to New York City this week for the largest author, book and publishing event in the nation, BookExpo America 2013 (BookExpoAmerica.com), being held at the Javits Center from Thursday to Saturday, May 30th to June 1st.  I’ll be at Booth #377 with my book, How to Slay a Pirate: Lessons on Success from Sailing the Pacific, where I’ll be joined by Alicia Dunams of Bestseller in a Weekend (BestsellerInAWeekend.com) and 8 other authors with their newly released books.

I’m a bit overwhelmed by the networking opportunities, with some of the biggest names in publishing, well-known authors and bloggers, booksellers and more. I’m trying to think of this as my first learning experience as an author (pinch me please), hoping to absorb as much as I can.  Apparently Alicia will be sending us off on networking challenges to keep us busy (as if we will  need it!). The most repeated advice on BEA has been to wear comfortable shoes – there will be loads of walking.

I’ll be autographing my book for the first time (pinch me) – not surprising since it’s my first book – at three separate times: Thursday, May 30 from 1-2 p.m. at Booth #377; Thursday, May 30 from 3:30-4 at Table #5; and Friday, May 31 at Booth #377.  Stop by and get a free autographed book if you are in NY – and there will be some fun giveaways.  I don’t want to ruin the surprise, but think: Pirates!

My reference to “pirates”, for those who are just joining the conversation, is to the negative self-talk that robs you of your dreams. How to Slay a Pirate is the ultimate guide to setting your goals in motion, slaying your pirates, and finally achieving what you’ve only dreamed of until now.  Accompanied by practical step-by-step exercises to guide you through the process, together with travel blog excerpts from my nearly two-and-a-half year family sailing adventure through Mexico, the South Pacific and into Australia, this book delivers an honest account of challenges, risks, and rewards to  make a compelling case for why finding your passion is essential.

I felt compelled to write this book because I truly believe that every one of us should be following our passions to contribute to those around us all that we were meant to contribute.  The message couldn’t be clearer within the pages of my book – and I offer strategies for figuring out what that contribution was meant to be. I tell my own story, going through the pirates that were robbing me of all that I wanted – in fact they weren’t even allowing me to see my dream – and how I overcame those pirates. I also give numerous real-life examples of others who started out believing they couldn’t do what they dreamed of, but then followed the steps outlined in my book and made it possible.

Besides the passion, I’m also all about practical: The book contains real pen-to-paper exercises to help you identify what your dreams and passions and goals are — those things you’ve only dreamed of until now. I’ve included the 6 steps to set yourself up for success before you begin slaying your pirates. And of course, I’ve identified the 5 pirates that are most likely plaguing you, and how to get past them — again using practical exercises to help you along the way.

Part of my excitement in my book launch and my trip to Book Expo is that I am doing this with one of my closest friends, Beth Blecherman (Techmamas.com).  She is the one who inspired me to tell my story and write my book. And she’s kept me sane through the whole process, providing me with a calming perspective – as she always has whenever we’ve taken on projects together. Her book, My Parent Plan: How to Create a Family Project Plan to Organize Your Life and Kids,  combines her experience as a mom of three quickly-growing boys, plus her 20 years in professional project management to help parents understand the process of creating and working through a parenting plan based on their individual family’s needs and personalities. My Parent Plan empowers parents to step back to think about their daily, weekly, seasonal and yearly activities and set up a plan in advance. This gives families the time to find the right information, identify budget-friendly options, consider the needs of each family member and make informed choices to create the optimal family plan.  No doubt, you need a plan if you want to find the time to write a book!  Her book is available on Amazon and is worth the read.

By the way, my next goal: To reach bestseller status on Amazon.  I’m hoping to achieve this by running a book buying blitz on Tuesday June 4.  I am offering giveaways and raffling gifts to those who purchase from Amazon on that day – once you’ve purchased (and I hope you do), you can head to my website BGCoaching.com where you will be prompted to enter your information, including Amazon purchase receipt number, to be eligible.  Please mark your calendars for June 4 and purchase here.

And please share with me: What have you been wanting to do?  What must you do or accomplish in your lifetime? What are you passionate about?  Let’s start the conversation.

Filed Under: My Book Tagged With: , , ,

Grit and Gratitude

May 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I read an article recently that compares the hero’s journey to our own journeys when we are attempting to reach a compelling goal. We start off with a seemingly insurmountable task, need to slay many dragons along the way (or pirates, as I like to call them), the tension mounts as we get closer, we feel defeated and want to give up at regular intervals, but we persevere until we reach our goals. I have linked to the full article below.

The hero’s journey, when put that way, sure feels familiar. I have stretched myself more than I could have ever imagined over the last couple of years. First, I set out as a non-sailor on a sailing adventure with my family, experiencing both physical and emotional discomforts along the way. I consistently slayed my pirates along the entire journey. Now that it’s over, I look back and realize that I accomplished my goal and got past my pirates by simply persevering because of a compelling goal in mind.  I just had to do it. I stood with my grit.

My latest stretch has been writing my first book, getting it published, and now launching it on June 4. I have slain many pirates along this path as well, and I continue to do so. Although I believe with every ounce of faith that my message is one that needs to be heard, my pirates are shouting: What if the book is an absolute disaster? What if no one cares what I have to say? What if the writing is terrible and readers don’t even get far enough to hear my message?

I will stand by my grit knowing that I am on the hero’s journey of life, with my own compelling goal being this: I must be heard. I must share what I know to be true.  My book’s message:  You must learn to slay your own pirates if you are to reach your own compelling goals.

My grit got me endorsements from big names (Neal Petersen, Diane Selkirk, Joanna Strober, and Brian Tracy), and a sponsorship from Pirates Booty for Book Expo America (where I will be autographing at booth #377 on May 30 and 31 and handing out over 500 snack bags of Pirate’s Booty!). With my compelling goal as my backdrop, I achieve little successes along the way, until I get to the end of this particular story.

But it’s not just the grit.  I could not have done what I’ve done without the kindness and generosity of those who have helped me along the way, like my book endorsers and my sponsor. It has me believe in the genuine goodness of people and the willingness of most to help others out. I am so grateful that so many have willingly helped me along the way.

I realize that it’s also gratitude that keeps me slaying pirates. My family has been on the journey with me. I have many friends who have regularly asked me how it was going and gave me encouragement and support daily. And I’m grateful for getting to do what I love.

Where to go from here on my own hero’s journey? Once a goal has been reached, we are changed for good. We have grown, and become bolder to take on the next challenge.

Read the full article referred to above:  http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/raising_happiness/.

Filed Under: Change, Goal-Setting, Motivation, My Book, Success Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Who’s Your Pirate – Part II

April 29, 2013 by Leave a Comment

How you navigate your Pirates, the negative self-talk that stands between you and your dreams, is key to reaching your goals. The first step, however, is to identify which Pirates have latched onto you. While there are many excuses that our Pirates give us to maintain the status quo, all can generally fit within one of the following five categories:

1. That’s just the way it is or that’s just the way it’s done. As in: You’re stuck here. There’s a real sense of struggle and sacrifice in this mantra. It’s full of martyrdom. It makes you a victim of your circumstances. And it’s saying: Who are you to think that things could be different? You’re not special. Nor are you lucky, like all the really successful people who actually live their dreams.

2. You don’t have enough. As in: You don’t have enough time for this, especially not now. You don’t have the resources, the knowledge, the wherewithal, the money, the support. While the successful people have all those things, it’s unrealistic to think you’ll ever get them.

3. You’re not enough. As in: You’re not smart enough (or as smart as all those other successful people are). You’re not good enough to do this. You especially are not entitled to this. What have you done to deserve this? You are simply not worthy enough and besides, you’re already not successful enough. Who are you to think anyone will listen to you? Or go along with you?

4. You shouldn’t. As in: You are so selfish for wanting this. Your family (or your boss, or the organization, or someone or something else) needs you, and you’d be letting them down. They are relying on you, and you are a terrible person for abandoning them.

5. Your dream is just too insignificant to matter. As in: There are far greater issues facing this planet (like starving kids in Africa). Who are you to think your dream is important? You are so self-absorbed for wanting such a ridiculous thing.

I am willing to bet that one of those Pirate voices shows up in your head to insist that you have no right to be making a change. It keeps us in the status-quo, and therefore, to a certain extent, our Pirates protect us — from failure and discomfort. While it keeps us comfortable, however, it tricks us into thinking that we should not or could not do what we really want to do.

Which Pirate or Pirates show up most in your life? What have those Pirates stopped you from doing? What are those Pirates costing you?

Filed Under: Change, Goal-Setting, My Book, Success Tagged With: , , , ,

Putting It Out There Takes My Breath Away

December 12, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I just spent a very full weekend writing my book during the Bestseller in A Weekend Boot Camp. The webinar allowed me to sit in the comfort of my own office, and was so intense that I barely had time to go to the bathroom, let alone eat. While my self-care suffered afterward, the inspiration and excitement I got from it was worth every penny, every uncomfortable moment. I feel energized and excited to get my book written. And the end result is so compelling for me that it literally takes my breath away. That doesn’t even take into account the fact that I’ve now announced it to the world, and therefore am feeling that I MUST get it done.  In. The. Next. Six. Months. (Okay Barbara, now Breathe…).

Which leads me to the subject of my book: Right now, the working title is: Sailing to Success: 7 Steps to Creating Your Courageous Change (Lessons Learned from Sailing the Pacific). By the title, you’ll get that it will integrate my family’s sailing adventures of 2009-2012 together with how one gets past barriers to do what you really want, even when it takes your breath away to even think about it. Or when your negative self talk says it’s impossible. Or that it’s ridiculous. Or whatever other things it says to you.

Over the next few months I’ll be enlisting you, my readers, to help me with case studies, surveys, opinions and ideas to include as content for the book. Let me know if you have any burning questions you’d like answered around the topic. What do you think of the title of the book?  Would you buy it? I’ll be asking questions that may have yes/no answers, or others that are more open-ended. Please share your thoughts with me – I strongly believe that your comments will help others. To start with, take this survey on how you, personally, get to making an important change.

And now for the first tips to making your Big Change: Announce it to the world. Once you are scraped up off the floor and resuscitated, there is nothing like it to motivate you to get started.

Filed Under: Motivation, My Book Tagged With: , , , ,