Moms with Dreams Show

A few months ago, I was given the vision and assignment to create an event for women who were looking for direction and guidance to help them live out their dreams and fulfill their purpose. On June 4th I hosted my Design Your Dream Life Workshop along with my two amazing speakers, Marcella Moore and Donna Izzard.

This episode is inspired by my workshop and the women who were there with me during this special event.

At the workshop, we focused on having faith vs. fear, knowing your identity and what you want, gaining clarity around your dream, your why (motivation), and the steps you can take to manifest your dream into reality.

More than half of my guests shared that they dream of starting a business, but they were afraid of getting started. They admitted that wanted to get started but didn’t where to begin. They are afraid of making mistakes, being judged, or no one paying attention to them.

We spent a lot of time discussing fear and how it can be deadly to your dreams and life vision. We talked about how fear has a way of making you feel like you aren’t good enough, that you don’t know enough, that people will judge you, talk about you, or not pay attention to you if you put yourself out there.

Everyone agreed that, if you’re not careful, you could wake up one day with no more time to follow your heart and be full of regrets

I don’t want that to happen to you. I want you to live an abundant, fulfilled life – the life that you deserve.

Here are 3 tips to help you manage and overcome your fear so that it doesn’t stop you on the road to your dreams:

1. Tap into your faith or higher power. Connecting with your source will help you gain clarity and mental strength to believe that you can do anything that you put your mind to. All things are possible when you have faith.
2. Prepare for success. When you’re prepared, you’re confident. Fear doesn’t stand a chance when you know your stuff and have prepared for your time to deliver. Fear is a natural part of the human experience. However, you can manage it by preparing and practicing.
3. Feel the fear and do it anyway. Like Nike, you’ve just got to do it. Fear will not disappear. You have to acknowledge that it’s there, and at the same time, take away its power. Fear can only win if you allow it to. Learn to do it afraid, and it will get easier every time.

One last bonus tip is to give yourself permission to not be perfect. This will automatically take away your fear of messing up. Remind yourself that you are human, and that no one walking this earth is perfect. Allow your mistakes to become valuable lessons that enable you to learn, grow, and get better at what you do.

I hope this mini-training was helpful. If you’d like to read more about managing fear, check out my article in the blog.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic. Simply leave your comments below, and I’ll be sure to get back with you. If you know someone who needs to read this, please share.

Remember - reclaim your dream; do what you love, and make a difference.

With over 15 years of experience in the creative marketing industry, Felicia Wright enjoys mentoring mompreneurs and military spouses. She is the founder of Mygani, LLC, a marketing firm that helps entrepreneurs develop engaging brands. Her team shows businesses how to create a professional presence by aligning their personal brand with their company brand.

In this episode, Felicia shares her experience as an entrepreneur and how she repositioned her brand after realizing that it wasn’t the best fit.

How Felicia transitioned back into her home-based business with a newborn daughter

Felicia admits to not having a concrete plan at first. But once she made the decision to get back into her business after having her daughter, Felicia started reaching out to old clients and colleagues to get a feel for what was going on. Just by asking around, she landed her first contract with a local school district.

First steps a new entrepreneur should take to brand her business:

Felicia believes it’s important to create a personal brand first, and to position yourself as an expert or reliable source. People will always remember you as a reliable source, even if you start a new business down the road.

To get started with developing your personal brand, Felicia suggests that you write down three adjectives that describe you. Then think about how you would want someone to describe you using those three words. Continue to use those words in your content and messaging so people will associate you and your brand with those attributes.

Your personal brand and business brand should be in alignment.

When they are out of alignment, your brand may come across as being inconsistent. You may confuse potential clients, or turn them away.

You have to establish your brand before you can create a marketing strategy.

If you don’t know who or what you’re serving (who your dream client is and what your products and services are), then it will be difficult to create an effective marketing strategy. Once you know your brand attributes, you can create messaging and a strategy to attract your dream clients

How to set yourself apart from the competition:

Rather than focusing on your products and services, focus on the audience you’re trying to reach and who needs what you’re offering. You’ll create powerful content and images that speak directly to your dream clients, ultimately attracting them to your brand.

Felicia suggests that you read:

Miss Jessie’s: Creating a Successful Business from Scratch- Naturally, by Miko and Titi Branch. Felicia enjoyed reading their back story about how they started their hair care products as well as savvy business tips and inspiration.

Where you can find Felicia online:

Website: http://mygani.com

Parting Words of Wisdom:

“Your confidence is your number one asset; it’s important that you learn to embrace that.” ~Felicia Wright

 “I felt so strongly about this concept and this business, that it never occurred to me to not go full force with it.” ~Leigh Kellis

Leigh Kellis is the proud owner of The Holy Donut located in Portland, Maine. She built her business from scratch after craving the comfort of a “deeply satisfying yet healthy comfort food – specifically a donut.”

As a newly divorced mom, Leigh experimented with donut recipes in her kitchen that eventually became her signature Holy Donuts. Five years later, The Holy Donut has two locations in Maine and has been featured in Elle Magazine, Boston Globe, and was named one of the 10 best donut shops in the U.S.

In this episode, Leigh shares her journey from humble beginnings to a highly successful brand, and some of the key lessons she’s learned along the way.

Putting herself (and her donuts) out there for the first time was scary.

Leigh took us back to when she offered her first batch of homemade donuts to the owners of her local coffee shop. She was nervous, but she was all in at that point. The fear was there, but she wanted it more than she was afraid of it.

She felt a strong sense that if she was craving that comfort food, other people probably were, too. She felt that a “handcrafted, rustic product” would be well received. Leigh also realized that donuts create a nostalgic feeling of comfort much like the feeling you get from eating your grandmother’s food. She wanted to create that feeling for people and allow them to indulge in a healthy, wholesome sweet treat.

Her orders quickly grew from one dozen per day to 40 dozen per week, then to 100 dozen per week. That’s when Leigh knew that she was on to something and would have to do something to keep up with the high demand.

Leigh took a leap of faith…

After five months into her wholesale donut business, Leigh could no longer keep up with the demand and work her job. So she did what any single mom would do, right? Not quite. Leigh stepped out on faith. She quit her job and decided that she would live off of the profits of her business. This was a courageous move, but one that had to be made.

“I felt so strongly about this concept and this business, that it never occurred to me to not go full force with it,” Leigh explained. Quitting her job felt like the right thing to do so she would have the energy to put toward this “thing” that she felt so strongly about.

When you feel a strong desire to do something…            

Go for it! Leigh encourages you not to stop at go – just keep going at full force because that thing is calling you for a reason.

You have to show up every day.

Be prepared to “work your butt off” in the beginning, to lay the ground work and really get your business going.

In the beginning, Leigh did everything – she made all the donuts, iced them, cleaned up, hired and fired employees. You name it – she did it.

Test your market with your business idea before forging forward, which will reduce some of your risk.

Biggest Challenge as a Mompreneur

Leigh had to invest a lot of time and energy into her business, which often made her daughter feel a little left out. It was hard figuring out how to balance her time and attention between being a single mom and an entrepreneur. Leigh admits that she is getting better, but she’s still a work in progress, as we all are.

Leigh’s 3 Tips for Success

1. It’s ok to make mistakes and welcome them. That’s how you learn and know how to do better.
2. Ask for help when you need it. Don’t try to do everything on your own, and you don’t have to know how to do everything. Leigh has joined a women’s support group, which is helping her find balance between her life and business.
3. Being in business isn’t about donuts (or your product or service). It’s about fulfilling your mission and bringing something good to the world.

Leigh recommends that you read

The Secrets of Six-Figure Women: Surprising Strategies to Up Your Earnings and Change Your Life by Barbara Stanny – this book is about the spiritual side of allowing yourself to have abundance and feel good about earning money

Where You Can Find Leigh Online

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Holy-Donut-256219337742023/

Or you can search for “The Holy Donut”

Website: http://theholydonut.com

Leigh’s Parting Words of Wisdom

“It takes a team to build an empire of good.” In other words, it takes a team, and you need to build a tribe. Ask for help so you can bring more good to the world.

Yoli Tamu helps mothers and their teen daughters create a genuine heart-to-heart relationship. As a seasoned high school and college educator and founder of the nonprofit Unity Theatre Foundation, Yoli often met young women who struggled in relationships with their moms.

As a result of her many conversations with teen girls, Yoli created HeartVERSATIONS, a groundbreaking coaching program that helps mothers and daughters transform a mediocre or toxic connection into an unbreakable bond.

In this episode, Yoli shares some of the common issues that teen girls are facing, how she supports them, and how she heals fragile mother/daughter relationships.

How Yoli Supports Troubled Teen Girls

Yoli has worked with girls with different issues such as teen pregnancy, “cutters”, suicidal thoughts, abuse in the home, parents with addiction, and more. Yoli shares her personal trials with the girls so they see that she can relate to what they’re facing.  

Small group settings help the girls bond with each other and realize that they’re not alone. By the end of her program, her girls have a new outlook on life, have grown, and are ready to work through their issues.

How Yoli Supports Mothers with Teen Daughters

Yoli helps moms develop healthy self-care and wellness rituals. You can do this by setting aside just 20 minutes out of your day to meditate or take a break, which will help you transition from your work day to being mom.

She reminds mothers of how important they are to their daughters, and that they have to learn how to be open and transparent with them. She encourages them to write out their past experiences (good and bad) and write the lesson learned from those experiences. This is cleansing for the mothers while it helps their daughters see that they are not perfect, and that they can talk to their mothers about their issues.

Yoli speaks directly to moms who feel like their teen daughter would rather be with her friends. She reminds you to not take it personally and to give her a little space to explore her independence.

Create a mother-daughter ritual that the two of you do together. This will create special bonding time that you can both look forward to sharing.

Yoli Recommends that You Read:

Mothering and Daughtering by Sil and Eliza Reynolds. This mother-daughter team gives great insight on how to understand one another from their own perspective.

Where You Can Find Yoli Online

Web site: http://yolitamu.com

Twitter: @YoliTamu

Instagram: @YoliTamuOfficial

Yoli’s Parting Words of Wisdom

“Your child will help you resolve the unfinished business of your past.” ~Unknown

“You can’t reflect the best of who you are on the outside when the inside is not right.” ~Uchenna Eboagwu

Uchenna Eboagwu, popularly referred to as “Queenchenna”, is a pacesetter on a mission to help people discover, claim, and live out their dreams.

She is the visionary and founder of The Life Circle, a marketplace ministry with a vision of raising and establishing a circle of passionate, compassionate, world-changing women around the globe.

A preacher and dynamic leader, Uchenna currently serves as associate pastor at Open Door Missionary Church in Laurel, MD. She’s also the CEO and founder of VIP Image Consulting, where she specializes in helping individuals and organizations create an image and/or brand that conveys their vision, ingenuity and purpose (VIP).

Above all that she does, Uchenna loves being a mother to her beautiful six-year old daughter.

In this episode, Uchenna and I discover that we have a lot in common with regard to our past experiences and the challenges we were able to overcome. She opens up about an extremely difficult chapter in her life and reflects on how her pain inspired her to begin her journey as a life-changing mompreneur.

Your Pain Leads to Your Purpose

Uchenna has learned that your painful experiences and challenges get you closer to your dreams, even though it feels like you’re getting further away, as you go through the process.

How She Manages Her Busy Lifestyle as a Business Mogul and Mom

Uchenna doesn’t have a specific system that she follows to manage her life; she relies on daily prayer to stay centered and moving in the right direction. She has learned that everything doesn’t have to be perfect or get done all in one day.

To manage her busy schedule, Uchenna chooses the 3 most important things she needs to do daily in 3 specific areas – her family, her church, and her business. This strategy, along with her mindset shift from trying to do it all, has helped a lot.

Uchenna encourages women to replenish and take a break so they don’t have to serve others when they’re empty. To replenish, Uchenna treats herself to regular manicures and pedicures, and she enjoys spending quiet time with The Lord.

Her Greatest Accomplishment So Far

Finding her purpose is Uchenna’s greatest accomplishment. Nothing compares to the peace and joy that she has found from walking in her purpose.

The First Step You Can Take to Find Your Purpose

The first step is to go to the one who carved out your purpose. Uchenna knows that the answer about your purpose is with God, and that’s where you must go first. When you ask, He will answer you.

You may not hear the “voice” that you expect, and it may not happen quickly. Be patient and listen. Slowly, you will begin to get a nudging feeling in your heart that will keep showing up to guide you in taking small steps toward your purpose.

Also, think about the things that you do well and write them down. Often you’ll find your purpose is intertwined with your gifts.

Uchenna’s Suggested Books

The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth am I Here for? by Rick Warren. She found this book to be life-altering.

The Five Love Languages, by Gary Chapman, which was an excellent read that has helped her with personal relationships as well as being a mom.

From the Pit to the Palace, is Uchenna’s forthcoming book, and she’s very excited about releasing it soon.

Projects

Uchenna is excited about her VIP Image Consulting shows, where she partners with models for Philadelphia Fashion Week in June and popular brands, helping them convey their vision, ingenuity, and purpose.

Where You Can Find Uchenna Online

Instagram: @queenchenna

Twitter: @Iam_Queenchenna

Facebook: www.facebook.com/queenchenna

Email: [email protected]

This year I stepped up my game and attended Lisa Nichols’ Speak

The conference was incredible! The speakers were great, and I

I hope you enjoy this episode and get something that you can use

I often get asked the question, “Erica, how do you do it all?”

In general, women believe that they have to do it all in order

In this episode, I share my approach to getting things done, and

My answer to that question is that I don’t do it all - I

I focus my time and energy on things that get me closer to my

How to Escape the Trap of Trying to Do It

One of the first things you can do to escape the trap of trying

Give yourself permission to not be perfect – no one is.

Setting unrealistic expectations can easily lead to feeling

Figure out what’s important to you. Start investing your time

Delegate tasks to free up more time to focus on what’s

Start where you are and take small steps along the way.

Action Step:

What can you do today that will get you closer to your

What will you do on a regular basis to build the

Write your answers down and commit to doing one thing

Born in Israel, Edie Berg has lived in various parts of the world. She has also enjoyed a variety of interesting professions. Now in her “fourth profession” as the host of her podcast, The Strong Women’s Club, Edie interviews very successful women from different fields about their journeys. Through her podcast, Edie hopes to inspire women to go after what they really want.

How Edie Started The Strong Women’s Club Podcast

Edie started her podcast on a whim, out of her own love for radio and podcasts. She’s grateful for this platform that allows her to interview such an elite group of successful women, to learn from them, become friends with them, while teaching and inspiring women around the world.

Biggest Challenge Edie Faced when Starting her Podcast

Edie loves starting new things, so getting her podcast up and running with all the techie stuff wasn’t an issue. Getting good guests was a challenge in the beginning. Once she figured that out, she then had to figure out how to grow her audience.

Edie has learned that there will be different challenges in each stage of your podcasting experience.

How Edie Found Time to Start a Podcast while Working her 9 to 5 Job

Edie admits that it was hard finding the time for her podcast in the beginning. There are some things about podcasting that she loves and other things that she doesn’t love so much.

Edie encourages aspiring podcasters to view podcasting as a marathon, and to pace themselves for the journey.

Her children are teenagers, so she has a little more freedom to work on her podcast in the evenings after dinner. To work around family time, Edie usually schedules interviews while her kids are doing homework or after their bedtime.

Sometimes Edie works on the weekend and uses her lunch break at work to get some of her podcast tasks done.

Edie’s Tips for Aspiring Podcasters & Business Owners

Edie’s Self-Care Ritual

She enjoys doing cross fit exercise early in the morning before work and also started using the app, Head Space, to help her with meditation. Edie tries to eat well and get enough rest, too.

Edie’s Biggest Lesson That She’s Learned on Her Journey

That she wants to live without regrets. Even though her life is more challenging now than it was before she started her podcast, she likes herself better this way.

Edie’s Suggested Book

Women Don’t Ask by Linda Babcock & Sara Laschever

Edie found this book to be about the art of negotiation – why women don’t negotiate as well as men do, why their salaries are lower than men, why women don’t go out and get what they want, set lower goals, etc. She feels that this is a great book for women in the workplace.

Edie’s Projects

Edie plans to continue her podcast, blogging, and nurturing her Facebook Group, The Strong Women’s Club

How to Connect with Edie Online

Website: http://thestrongwomensclub.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/edieberg or www.facebook.com/strongwomensclub

Edie’s Parting Words of Wisdom

“It’s never too late to reinvent yourself and do exactly what you want to do.”

“It’s all about evolution.” ~Natasha Grey

Natasha Grey earned a bachelors and masters degree in psychology and became a child and family therapist. After having her son, she began to question her life. The answers she received led Natasha to her heart.

She made a conscious decision to shift from treating illnesses to preventing them. Now her time and energy is devoted to well-being, wholeness, as well as mind, body and spirit connection.

In addition to being a wife and a mother, Natasha is the author of the children’s book, Everyday Superheroes, which she wrote to inspire young children to recognize their inner hero.

Natasha’s Thoughts on Leaving Her Job to Become a Full-Time Entrepreneur

Leaving her job was scary because it was a completely new identity. Up until that point in her life, Natasha wasn’t a big risk-taker. But she also knew that there was something to be said about recognizing fear, doing it anyway, and knowing that everything is going to be ok.

Natasha discovered that her fears weren’t about her – they were about what others thought of her. Once she was ok with following what was true to her rather than what other people thought was true for her, she gained a great sense of freedom and allowance.

Two Powerful Motivating Forces in Natasha’s Decision to Follow Her Heart

Natasha’s son and the idea of having regrets were her biggest motivation to walk away from her job and follow her heart.

She didn’t want her son growing up watching her mother spend her life working in a job that wasn’t meaningful. She also did not want to wake up one day with regrets about things she wished she would have done when she had the chance.

Natasha reminds you that this is your life right here, right now and nothing is guaranteed. She encourages listeners to seize the moment and follow their heart.

Conscious Living - Natasha’s Holistic Approach to Prevention

Natasha and her husband, Casey, created their Conscious Living brand to help people gain awareness around the foods they’re eating, the homes that they live in, and how they’re impacting their bodies and health. Her brand helps people shift to a humanistic way of seeing themselves so they make better choices that prevent illness.

How to Start Making Conscious Decisions about Your Health

It all begins with education and having a desire to make healthier choices. Start by recognizing that each decision you make impacts your health and wellness in some way. Instead of trying to revamp your lifestyle all at once, take baby steps in areas of interest to you. Small steps will prevent you from feeling frustrated and overwhelmed.

 Natasha’s Suggested Books

Loving What Is, by Byron Katie

This is an easy read with practical, actionable steps that you can incorporate into your life.

The Return to Love, by Marianne Williamson

This is a book that will help you get grounded and remind yourself of who you really are.

Natasha’s Projects

Natasha and her husband have developed a relationship program to support couples. They have The Conscious Store, an online store that sells fair trade handpicked, health food items, clothes and much more.

Casey +Natasha, Conscious Living Podcast, where she interviews guest from all over the world who are living a life on purpose.

How to Find Natasha Online

Website:  http://caseyplusnatasha.com (this is where her podcast lives, too)

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CaseyPlusNatasha

Periscope: @caseyplusnatasha

Twitter: @CaseyNatashaG

Natasha’s Parting Words of Wisdom

“Whatever you want for your kids, do that for yourself.”

“A so-called good birth or a so-called bad birth isn’t about the mode of delivery – it’s about the experience the mother had and whether or not she was passive or empowered.” ~Selina Boily

Inspired by the birth of her children – one at the hospital and one at home – Selina Boily pursued her midwifery career at the Seattle Midwifery School. She graduated in 1999 and registered with the College of Midwives of British Columbia in 2000. Selina and her family moved to the Cowichan Valley and started the Cowichan Midwifery Group in 2001. She has over 20 years of experience as a midwife and a lifetime of passion for supporting mothers.

In this episode Selina shares her thoughts on motherhood, the birthing process, and life as a mompreneur.

Selina’s Philosophy and Her Why

Aware of the impact that birthing has on women and driven by her birthing experience, Selina is passionate about supporting mothers through the birthing process. Selina believes that giving birth is a woman’s “primary relationship” and “the first time that she falls in love and learns to trust her environment.” By supporting women through this miraculous process, she feels that she’s contributing to a better world for future generations.

Birthing Allows You to Write Your Own Story

Selina believes that giving birth is about being able to write your own story. She teaches women how to recognize that giving birth isn’t something that just happens to them, but that they are actively participating in their birthing story.

Selina’s Advice for Expectant Mothers

Pregnant women need to have many conversations with their health care providers. It’s important that they have a connection where they feel safe being vulnerable and sharing their feelings. Expectant mothers should be empowered to make choices about the care they receive during their pregnancy and the birth of their babies.

Selina’s Take on the Idea of a Good Birth and a Bad Birth

A so-called good birth or a so-called bad birth isn’t about the mode of delivery. It’s more about the experience the mother had and whether or not she was passive or empowered. It’s about if she could understand and participate in her birthing.

About The Matraea Centre

The Matraea Centre was a 10-year goal. It began as a dream that Selina and her co-founder, Kate Coyote, had to create a multidisciplinary health center that would become a community for birthing families.

Today the Matraea Centre is a central hub for alternative health and wellness services for women and families. The core mission of Matraea is to provide women with access to useful information, products, and services so they can make great choices for their babies, their birth, and their families. Some of the services offered include naturopathic medicine, massage therapy, acupuncture, pre-natal education, and yoga. There is also an online store with a line of pre- and post-natal certified, organic teas and cosmetics.

Selina’s Biggest Challenge as a Mom Pursuing her Dream

Selina’s biggest challenge has been finding personal balance while juggling all of the moving parts of being an entrepreneur and a mother. At the same time, she discovered that being a mother brought her to balance. The bond she has with her children reminds her to stop and do other things that are as meaningful to her as her business is.

Let Go of Cultural Ideology of Motherhood

Selina encourages women to let go of what they have been culturally programmed to think as mothers and choose to live their lives the best way for themselves and their families.

Selina’s Suggested Reading

The Green Mama Book, by Manda Gillespie

This book will help you make healthier choices for you and your family.

Selina’s Projects

Selina has partnered with Plan Canada and the Because I’m A Girl campaign to support young girls around the world. She is collaborating with Manda Gillespie, founder of The Green Mama, to offer products that empower and support mothers.

Where You Can Find Selina Online

Website: http://matraea.com

Twitter & Instagram: @Matraea

Facebook: http://facebook.com/matraeatrading

Selina’s Parting Words of Wisdom

Find what it is that you love and throw yourself into that. Let it be your inspiration, and let it pull you through. Be creative with what you love and let things follow that.