Talking Confidence with Holly Caplan

The importance of networking should not be underestimated. I say this because, I did not do it, for years. Even though I worked for large corporations, my market was very exclusive, and my business did not depend on it. When I left to start my own business, because I had not been actively networking in my community I was behind. I started my business from scratch thinking that through visibility on social media and having a website that clients would suddenly appear. I was underestimating the power of the face-to-face relationship. If it were not for my friend Jolene Risch, who invited me to my first local networking meeting here in Dallas, I don’t know if the realization would have come to me in time. So why is it important to network? I think the example I just shared is one reason…. And there are so many more. Which is why I’m excited to bring this episode to you today specifically on the power of networking.

My guests, Susan Bryant and Phuong Jennings, will both share their thoughts on networking, how it has worked for them, and how we can use it to help each other professionally and personally.

Have you ever had an inspired idea about starting a business, writing a book, or venturing into a passion project? Maybe you started to take the first steps into that inspired idea, put work into it, and found it fulfilling, but then you stopped. Perhaps having enough time was an issue or your limiting beliefs crept in. Just know that If you have experienced the inspired idea and then the infamous hault, you are not alone. You are normal. There are ways to get through this and still achieve that passion project. My guest in this episode Alana Matthews has been through it herself and she will tell us how her inspired idea turned into reality.

How important is mentorship? I think it is very important for personal development. When I examine my own life and think of this topic, my mentor was my mother. I watched her grow a business, lead in community activities, and I sought advice from her on my own life. But then as I emerged into professional life, I didn’t seek mentorship. It didn’t occur to me that it was needed, but it was. It would have been nice to have a few mentors throughout my career to help provide assurance that I was going in the right direction. So, how do we place more attention on mentorship for women? How do we recognize these relationships, utilize them, and then pay it forward to the next generation?

In this episode, Rita Balice-Gordon will share with us how having mentors has affected her life and why she believes serving as a mentor can help improve others.

In this podcast we talk a lot about our personal paths and trajectory. We discuss the expectations put on us by family or friends, and how we tend to follow those expectations because that is what we believe we are supposed to do. Once you go down the path, years into it, have you ever taken the time to stop and think, “How would things have been different or changed, if knew then, what I know now?”

In this episode you will be hearing from my client and friend, Julie Linares. She has had this moment of clarity and will tell us how it has impacted her current life today, but most importantly her confidence.

How many of us have set plans in our minds of how our lives will transpire professionally and personally? These plans may be expectations put upon us by others, like parents, friends, or even ourselves. The problem is we ascribe these ideas to who we are and our identities. So when life throws you a curve ball, how do you find the confidence to switch gears and find your footing again? In this episode, Susan Hercules-Hubbard will share her story of how health and purpose helped her reroute and redefine her plans .

When we are born, we are not able to select who our parents will be or who will raise us. We have no control over those first formative years of our lives. We innocently enter the lives of those who precede us and oversee making our life decisions. In other words, they make our choices. Their choices affect our direction, until we are able and old enough to do so ourselves.

My guest in this episode, Summer Watson experienced life circumstances because of the choices of others. The beauty in her story is that she realized that their choices would not dictate who she would become. Instead, she persevered and made her own choices that would impact her professionally, personally and drive her to success.

Life takes twists and turns. At the beginning of our work life we may start out down one path, and feel certain about where we are headed and what we are doing. Perhaps we got a degree in something that is supposed to go the distance, or we’re certain that our passion at 23 will remain the same at 53. This can happen, but what if it doesn’t? What if you find yourself midlife wanting to change your trajectory, in a direction that is more aligned with where you are at 53 or 63. This time in life is referred to as our "second act". This "second act" gives us the chance to do something new with our careers, something that inspires us and something that is sustainable. But, how do you find what that is, and what do you do next? My guest in this episode, Leslie Farin, is an example of this trajectory. Leslie found a way to translate her passion and serving others into her business, and not just one business, two them.

Traditionally, women have had a hard time asking for what we want. Whether it is a personal or professional situation, we seem to be less direct because of having lack of confidence. A lot of us have a fear of stating our true desires and needs. This is due to so many factors such as how we were groomed as young girls or conditioned to exist in the workplace. My guest in this episode, Jennifer Graham, owner of Cambridge Consulting Services, is going to walk us through her tips on this topic to help break through the barriers that hold us back and give us the confidence to move forward.

We all have a sense of needing to belong to something or someone. It’s a human feeling that begins early on in life. The hard reality is that it can be difficult to find where you belong. Think middle school. Remember those days? Although we mature and and grow, that sense of “not belonging” may remain the same. The trick is having a personal tool set and confidence to learn how to navigate those feelings, break out of negative thinking and break into where you do belong. And mostly, how to help others do the same.

In this episode, my guest Natalie Borneo, shares her personal story of how she experienced “not belonging”, and how she was able to grow up and into her own.

Have you ever thought in your career, while working for another organization, that you would really like to go out on your own and open your own business? This might be a fantasy you play over in your mind on your drive home from your 9-5, or something you talk about with friends, but you aren't sure of what exactly you want to go into. This is the best time to consider franchise ownership.

Over the last decade, there has been a 38% increase in women-owned franchise businesses, and of all new franchises opened in the past 24 months, 32% are women-owned businesses. This is noted in the franchise business review .com in 2021.

My two guests in this episode are franchise experts. Roxanne Rapske and Sarah Waskow. They are franchise consultants for FranNet, a company that is focused on connecting you with the right franchise opportunity. Hear their advice and direction on franchise ownership!