GSD Diaries with Angela Proffitt

This podcast will be a little different…special...Real, Raw, BTS of how the family life line activity went…

Yes….I’m:A few drinks inWalking at my Treadmill desk at 1am wearing arm weight

And…it’s 1 am; so I Forgot to:put audio mic onturn background Music off, sorry in advance

This is why sleep is important

OH, a Heads up: 

If you are not watching the video, there is BTS video that won’t make sense. This is on the go, Vlog style, but even if you are only listening, there’s a few AHHH HAAA takeaways. 

And incase you missed Part 1 you can find that episode on our blog.

Main Topics:

*Clarity on how to have better communication when giving directions*Perspective on memories; your takeaways vs. your family members*What to listen for to gain insight on bringing your family closer together

Key Takeaways:

*Listen or watch when you set time aside for having the capacity to grow *Be present *Make memories

Recently I had the most amazing experience in Egypt, and my friend Ramez Salama, co-founder of High End Journeys, is sitting down with me to talk about all things luxury travel and exclusive luxury experiences. High End Journeys is a boutique luxury travel agency, started by Egyptologists and best friends, Ahmed Aziz and Ramez Salama. Both share a passion for travel and draw on their combined industry experience of 34 years to deliver a personalized itinerary for their guests. They work with a singular aim in mind - to create unforgettable memories for every traveler. We touch on how to step out of your comfort zone and stand out to create experiences that no one else can offer. Details are everything, even the smallest details can make the biggest impact. 

Main Topics:

*Your comfort zone is not your comfort zone*How to stand out and create experiences that your company can offer exclusively*Details are everything, even the smallest of details can make the biggest impact

Key Takeaways:

*Step out and see what happens, removing yourself from the comfort zone may change your life for the better*Curate a team that wants to grow with you*No one knows your country or experience better than you

More About Our Guest:

High End Journeys is our vision for what a high-end luxury tour should be all about: connecting people to people; helping people experience Egypt outside the tourist bubble; allowing Egypt to inspire and change our understanding of the world around us all. Egypt’s ancient history and timeless culture have the power to transform the lives of our guests. We have witnessed that incredible transformation first hand and know that we are called to accompany this next generation of travelers to Egypt to continue to be changed by its people and its treasures. Ramez Salama's love and passion for his country and its amazing history led him to study Egyptology from Helwan University. He has guided a selection of leading diplomats, foreign businessmen, and world-famous musicians. He loves meeting people from different countries and explore their cultures. He has traveled to over fifteen countries - from the Great Wall of China to the game parks of Eastern Africa. He has seen the great castles of Europe, and hiked across the outstanding nature trails of North America. Ramez delivers lectures on Egyptian history and heritage at American churches and schools – particularly in Kansas, Texas, and California. He also serves as a guest lecturer on Windstar Cruise Line. Ramez’s area of expertise is Pharaonic Egypt, and he takes pleasure in leading clients around the Great Pyramids of Giza.

Today’s guest and I go way back! Curry McDaniel Owner & Lead Designer of Curry & Co Events, LLC is joining us today and I’m so excited to share with you all the details of her journey and how she has trusted and achieved her goals! Sometimes you have to live it to know what it is  like, it’s challenging and sometimes impossible to help someone understand an experience if they haven’t experienced it themselves. And if someone is giving you advice on something they haven’t experienced themselves, why are you even having the conversation in the first place?!

Dive in with us as we talk about how to identify and address needs that you see in your space of expertise and use your uniqueness to stand out and create change, and achieve your goals while you’re at it!

Main Topics:

*How to identify and address needs that you see in your space of expertise*How you plan to find your uniqueness and to stand out and what lessons you learn*How to strategize a path for your future

Key Takeaways:

*Why to hire an experienced professional. *Why All Inclusive is the way to go.*Trust the process 

More About Our Guest:

Curry & Co Events, LLC is known for taking one idea and turning it into an amazing blueprint. With the help of our luxury event décor, high end fabrics, and glamourous table accessories; we can design anything your heart desires.

Our specialty is not being well versed in one particular design, but specializing in making any design custom. We can create free form, modern, high-end, and classic floral designs. We take pride in giving a stylish, unique, and creative approach to all of our wedding and social events; in Nashville and beyond. 

Today's guest, Nancy Wood Stabell, is a business attorney with a focus on entrepreneurs and founders who are interested in scaling their business. I'm gonna be honest, before I got into the Entrepreneur Organization, I had no idea what that meant. So if you don't know… you don't know what you don't know. And that's okay! 

Nancy started her career in big law and spent a period of time doing high end health care finance for hospital systems, before going in house with a multinational marketing company that worked with financial institutions. She brings all that experience to smaller companies and founders who are working to be that big; meaning they have plans to scale. The stories that she shares are absolutely mind blowing. If you're an early company, especially if you're raising money, or doing anything with equity, it's so important to just have a relationship with somebody that you can reach out to before you sign your name away.

We have been very schooled on how attorneys are expensive and unaffordable. But that’s not always the case, you have got to do your homework. Make sure that you have the right legal setup before you do anything. And if you don't have a business attorney or, or you don't have an advisor or someone that you can call, please, please, please go to Nancy. Because not only is she an amazing attorney, she really freakin cares! Listen into this episode for all her top takeaways and steps to point your business in the right legal direction.

Main Topics:*What having a go-to business lawyer who understands your business can do for you*Key legal agreements that every creative business needs.*The power of a good partnership agreement between you and your partners... and what happens if you don't have one. 

Key Takeaways:*Invest in a relationship with a good attorney who can help protect your business and achieve your goals. That person should understand your business, its drivers and key risks.*Ensure that you have key protections in place for your business -- limited liability structure, partnership agreements, NDAs, employment agreements and 1099s, employee proprietary rights agreement, noncompetes, etc.*Focus on your strengths - outsource the rest. 

More About Our Guest:

Nancy Wood Stabell is the Founding Member of Wood Stabell Law Group. As a fourth-generation attorney with over 20 years of experience, Nancy knows the law; she loves business; and she is committed to being a strategic partner who delivers results, improves the bottom line, and protects stakeholder value.

As an attorney with an M.B.A., she doesn’t just provide legal advice to businesses; she gives sound, creative business advice supported by legal knowledge. Nancy is known for her innovative approach to representing growth-focused businesses, sophisticated entrepreneurs and high net worth individual investors in complex transactions.

Nancy routinely advises senior management and investors on capital raising solutions, which may come from bank financing, friends and family, angel investors, and/or venture capital or private equity funds. She tailors capital raising transactions to a client’s unique needs or to serve the investment objectives of the investor, the venture capital fund, or the angel investor, and ensures compliance with investor guidelines. Nancy also drafts and negotiates business to business agreements; reviews and negotiates commercial loan documents; prepares employment agreements and advises human resources on employment matters.

Prior to founding Wood Stabell Law Group, Nancy was Vice President & Senior Counsel at Affinion Group. Working directly with the C-Suite gave Nancy a deep understanding of how executives communicate and how businesses face unforeseen circumstances. Nancy spent 10 years in private corporate practice with two AmLaw 200 firms where she honed her clients-first approach. Nancy uses all of her experience to find lean, creative solutions for her clients and to position them for future success.

Nancy is active in the Nashville community and enjoys cooking, entertaining, and traveling. She can be spotted around town supporting her son in his sports and activities or walking her dog Charlotte.

I'm so excited to share today's guest, Bree Carroll. She is a rockstar military spouse, and first and foremost we want to say a huge thank you to anyone that does service for our country. She's an event planner, a community builder, a speaker, she transforms spaces, and most importantly, hearts. 

Bree has a background in civil engineering, you heard that right, she's an engineer! She brings her brilliance of problem solving, strategic thinking and design to transform experiences into amazing things. Bree holds the title as the 2020/2021 Air Force spouse of the year and advocates to strengthen military marriages on her internationally broadcasted podcast Hearts and Stripes. She's the founder of Military Marriage Day, a national holiday celebrated annually on August 14th, and she just got back from the White House! 

In this episode we are diving into what made Bree switch from weddings to B2B planning, how evolving in business is many times necessary and when you do, having a solid strategy is essential!

Main Topics:

*What made Bree switch from weddings to B2B planning*The CARE Method*Why having a unique strategy is important

Key Takeaways:

*It’s okay to evolve in business, and many times it’s necessary  *You can determine and achieve your goals using the CARE Method*Following what everyone else is doing is a recipe for failure. You have to be strategic about what works for you 

More About Our Guest:

B Carroll Events, LLC is a strategic events and marketing agency focusing on helping change agents grow their brands through live and virtual events & aligned partnerships.

Top entrepreneurs and foundations with large communities know how beneficial events can be for the overall brand. These leaders know that there is also an equally high risk should the live event not go as planned. This keeps entrepreneurs from taking the leap for fear of not getting a return on their time, energy and investment. That is where BCE comes in. We execute events through concierge-style planning and a proven process focused on strategy–resulting in higher profit margins and greater impact.

We believe in the art of storytelling and leveraging experiences to convey impact and to attract opportunity.

Listen  as we dive in to the experience of Chateau Challain! Our guest, Cynthia Nicholson's story is one of family and determination to restore history. The creation and development of Chateau Challain, one of the grandest private homes in the 19th century, was not an easy task, but with hard work and a talented international team of craftsman,Cynthia and her family succeeded in revitalizing this French estate home. 

Together they created a breathtaking destination to host special events - like romantic weddings – while bringing back all the beauty from its midieval past. There’s no doubt that their journey has been one of passion where art, architecture meets culture for visitors and locals alike!

Main Topics:

*The difference in destination venues and venues that are “close to home”*The journey of revitalizing and giving new life to historic properties *Intentionally prioritize business and personal life so you can give quality to both

Key Takeaways:

*Each wedding is a new business and you don't know what kind of rocky roads you're going to go down*Self learning is many times the avenue to success*When you drive the client experience and anticipate their needs your guests have a lifelong memorable experience

More About Our Guest:

The earliest recorded chateau on our site dates all the way back to the medieval age in 1050, in a time of knights and chivalry. The original castle was probably part of the ‘Les Marches de Bretagne’ a series of fortresses that acted as a defensive line that protected the people of the ancient region of France known as Brittany. That chateau, and many others that followed it were destroyed in the wars, and conflicts that wracked the area in the centuries that followed.

But our story truly starts with Louise-Ida de La Potherie, an exceptional woman that lived through some of France’s most turbulent times. She was the last of her line, from a noble family steeped in history. Her was father a famous colonel that fought in the Spanish wars, and against the forces of revolution, her only brother was killed in a duel. Alone, in this difficult period she finally found the love of her life, Le comte de La Rochefoucauld-Bayers. They married, and sought to make a refuge for themselves in the seat of her ancestral home. Together they set about to build a sanctuary, a testament of their love, and it is this monument that we know as the ‘Chateau Challain’.

Work began in 1847, they commissioned Parisian architect Louis Visconti, famed for designing the Louvre extension, to replace the original 16th century castle. The owners chose Rene Hode, a well-known Angevin architect to oversee the building project. The chateau was designed to commemorate the passing of time. Its 4 towers represent the seasons, 12 turrets represent the lunar months, 26 spiral staircases represent the fortnights per year, 52 fireplaces represent the weeks of the year, and 365 windows represent each passing day. It covers an area of 7,600 square meters (nearly 82,000 square feet).

Over 700 artisans worked on the construction, and although worked progressed quickly it was far from straightforward, with the work being delayed by yet another revolution in 1848. With the work close to completion tragedy struck once more. In the early winter of 1854, and in the shadow of the nearly completed chateau Le Comte died. Heartbroken, and with two children, Louise, now Countess La Rochefoucauld-Bayers, was determined to see the project through to the end, and personally oversaw the final stages of construction.

Ultimately, the chateau became one of the grandest private French homes of the 19th century. It boasts a wealth of architectural detail, including intricate woodcarvings, Gothic panelling and sculptures, large working fireplaces, and hand painted ceilings. It is situated on a beautifully manicured estate, which occupies one corner of a quaint village. Because of the property’s ambiance and the design of the castle itself, Chateau Challain is often referred to as the "Neo-Gothic Jewel of Anjou" or "Le Petite Chambord.”

In 2002, the Nicholson family purchased Chateau Challain and began the painstaking process of restoring the castle to its original splendour. 

Today's guest requires no introduction if you tuned in to our previous podcast episode together, this is part two! As a business owner we are often pushed into being really uncomfortable. It's those uncomfortable situations where growth can happen. 

Johanna White is an award winning graphic designer and visual branding strategist who designs premium brand identities that create impactful first impressions. As the founder of Design by Jo studio, she believes that if someone is the best at what they do, they deserve to look like it. For the past decade, she's worked with individuals, startups and fortune 200 brands worldwide, to help them cut through the noise, attract more of their ideal clients and be as delightfully expensive as they can deserve to be. 

So it's funny, like, let's define expensive, right? Because everyone may have a different approach to what that actually means. She knows there's no limit to success, and she's proved it several times when she took life by the horns and started three companies within a year while battling a brain tumor! Wow, no words. At a time when everyone else in her life was suggesting that she quit working and go on her social security to cover her medical bills, she chose to do the complete opposite and defy the odds. 

As a result, Johanna is a dreamer extraordinaire for top performers, goal oriented individuals and brands specializing in premium brand identities from start to finish. She assists her clients in a large range of needs, from brand messaging to visual brand identities to premium custom websites that convert visitors into customers. She believes that excellence applied across all customer touchpoints results in brand experiences that matter. 

To find out more about making every brand moment count visit https://www.designbyjostudio.com/. 

Main Topics:

- Consistent brand touchpoints for max ROI- Your brand is more than a logo- What you believe matters, what you do about what you believe matters more

Key Takeaways:

- If you don’t say it about yourself, and show it about yourself, you can’t expect your customers to know it about yourself! - If you want to attract the best, you need to look the best- If you are stuck undercharging because your leads are not qualified then you have a branding problem 

Happy Thanksgiving!! I am SO thankful for YOU! Thank you for being here and for your support. This family activity is a great tool to lead to better communication and understanding of eachothers differences, as well as, helping you to be present and bring you closer together! If you try this with your family take a pic or video, post it and tag me @angelaproffit! It means the world to me!

Well That’s a Wrap!  And this is not just “a” tool you can use to impact your future. It’s THE tool to use to gain clarity on navigating change and what’s next for you.

As we wrap up this lifeline series of Business Unveiled, we want to thank you for joining us (in the Bahamas!) on this journey as we share our experiences, why we think the way we think and how they have shaped us into who we are today!  Seriously, I can’t believe we are at the “end” of this series, but really… it’s just the beginning :) 

In this episode I’m talkin’ all about ages 30-40+ (my very favorite years of LEARNING), and let me tell you a little somethin’... in my 30s I thought, oh age is just a number.  In my 40s I am learning that age is not just a NUMBER!  It’s a mindset.

WHY LISTEN?

*Time-Your most valuable asset:How can charting your lifeline help you gain clarity on how to better focus on where to spend your time? 

*Mistakes-We all make them:How are you reacting and taking accountability; do you take ownership and learn from it?

*Clarity-Each decade shifts priorities Where have you been, where are you going, why, and most importantly what is your plan to get there?

TAKEAWAYS: Sharing my top AH-HAAA moments from doing a lifeline:*You may notice patterns, identify gaps, and develop more self awareness

*Your “tough” will look different to others. Don’t compare and only ask for direction from those who have gone through what you are going through. 

*Practice gratitude everynight before going to bed.  You can do this alone or with others.  Say out loud the ONE high you had for the day and the ONE low.  Whatever your low is, ask yourself why.  Could you have planned better or better paid attention. (Sometimes I share them on my Insta Story!)

*You will value your time more by looking at how far you have come and all that you have accomplished.  So if you want to raise prices, or make a change, this tool will guide you. 

*When life gets hard, instead of saying “Why is this happening TO me” think “Why is this happening FOR me”. It’s the life challenging moments that create space for you to grow. 

*You grow as you go; which requires change and shifts.  Your experience can guide you to be prepared for whatever comes your way.  And if you aren’t, then that’s what mentors, coaches and consultants are for.  That did not exist the first decade I had my first business. Budget for this annually.

New beginnings can start every day… don’t wait til the next January 1st.  You will blink your eyes and half of your life could be over. This is your reminder

So here we go onto the next chapter. Up next, Business Unveiled is going back out on the road.  Where should we go next? If you are interested in doing a collab, reply to this email and tell us your idea! 

Your time is precious.  So make it count!

A special thank you to Rosewood Baha Mar in Nassau Bahamas for the relaxing Bahamian experience. It was a total escape from doing podcast in the loft of my home alone, to the most beautiful powder-white sand, most beautiful beach.  From our suite, to culinary experience, the spa, infinity pools, flamingos, turtle program, the community was incredible.  My favorite thing is implementing the write key (that makes it SO easy to spend money) but having it be water proof was so nice. I loved the stainless steel water bottle in our rooms at check in.  And the power behind changing just ONE thing.  By installing water dispensers around the property, helping with sustainability.  It truly is a sense of place.

XO-Angela & Amanda

Join Angela and Amanda as they travel to the Bahamas and share special behind the scenes stories and experience shares. In this episode we talk about lifelines and what they mean as you grow and gain more life experience!

Thank you Rosewood Baha Mar for the beautiful accommodations!

Main Topics:- What life lessons teach us and allow us to grow - Always have grace with yourself - You grow as you go and experience more

Key Takeaways: - Embrace the memories you have made - Be proud of the steps you have taken to get to where you are - Time is precious