Winning Strategies

New BOOK- Brand YOU Book Announcement Press Release

Press Release

For Immediate Attention: November 1, 2011
Contact: Amy Van Vleck, 214-649-9895

“Brand YOU” author empowers professionals to develop a personal brand

that sells them in today’s competitive market.

Dallas, Texas - The job market is perhaps more gloomy than the 9.1 percent unemployment rate suggests, because America's 14 million unemployed must also compete with 8.8 million other people not counted as unemployed — part-timers who want full-time work.

So, how can job seekers, regardless of employment status, position themselves to find work, prevent losing a job when the floodgate opens or, better yet, be on the lookout for an open opportunity or an advanced job? In her new book, Brand YOU: A Step-by-Step Guide to Building Your Brand, author Bethany Williams helps professionals find ways to survive and thrive in this tough economy.

In Brand YOU, Williams takes readers through the process of a professional self-evaluation and external evaluation, guides readers to create and market a distinct personal brand, and teaches how to communicate that brand both online and in-person.

“Your online personality should reflect your strengths, your accomplishments,” Williams says. “Once your digital resume, if you will, has their attention, doors begin to open.” She offers practical steps to position your strengths and individuality in a tough market.

Williams is a results-oriented executive with 27 years experience driving complex initiatives in the business world. She is the Vice President of Product Marketing and has worked in high level positions in industry leading corporations such as  PwC, Perot Systems, Sharp Healthcare, GE Healthcare, and IDX Systems Corporation. In 2009, Bethany was named “One of the Top 25 Women to Watch” by the Dallas Business Journal.

She has two other published books: Winning Strategies for Women and From Mother to Mentor, Father to Coach. All of her books are available on Amazon.com. Brand YOU also will be available in e-book by mid-November.

For more on Bethany, her books and speaking engagements, visit bethanywilliams.org.

The Book is Done

At my doorstep recently was a small box from the publisher with three proofs for review (one for the editor, one for me, and one extra).
The final edits are done. It is an exhaustive process to complete a book. It involves an inordinate amount of time, effort, focus and energy. The process can be all -consuming.

I took 4 weeks off in June to focus on completion and attempted to draw the final curtain on it.

Whew- I now draw a huge breath of relief that we are moving past that step. The illustrations added a level of complexity to the process. There was much talk about dpi, image size, 'flatening' the image, ect ect.

Excitement rises as I prepare for a couple speaking events and book signings. I will have a book launch party in Dallas soon.

God is so good.

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Touching Your Creativity Mindset

I love to write.  It takes a certain 'mood'.  I have to find my creative 'space'.  One must be in a specific mental mindset  that allows creativity. 

I think the same is true of work.  We must have a moment to create...a moment to allow our creativity to rise to the surface...to see things from a different perspective and to find out-of-the box solutions to problems and operational issues that we've seen time and time again.  We need to suddenly see them anew.

We are losing the ability to be creative, to think outside the box, and truly make things different.  We rush to and fro busy with busy-work, keeping our creative minds at bay and not fulfilling our life's mission and passion.  Where is your creativity space?  What setting makes your creative juices flow?  When was the last time you tapped into that creativity of yours?

Make it a point to find your creative genious and think through and solve a problem that has been weighing you or your company down for WAY too LONG. 

Take time this week to let your creative juices flow.  Get in a mindset of

Writing to Relax

What do you do to relax? I write to relax and de-stress.  I enjoy pouring out my thoughts and feelings in word form.  I didn't begin writing until I was in my 30's.  It sort of 'bubbled' out of me.  I had always journaled and found that to be a great release of pent up emotions and frustrations. My journals tended to be filled with life's frustrations.  I discovered that writing about the good things and great feelings in life was even more enjoyable. 

Entire sentences and paragraphs often jump into my brain and demand that they be put on paper.  If I don't write them down when I'm thinking of them, they slowly dissipate, leaving nothing in their place.  If I wait until I have the time to write, often nothing comes to mind.  I guess that is writer's block at its best.

Why do we always have time to do the things that HAVE to be done in life, the things we dislike (grocery shopping, working, cleaning), but seldom do we FIND the time to do what we LOVE to do?  I can't understand it. 

We should be designing a life that fulfils our passions and loves in life, yet we often get too busy doing the yucky things to get time to do the great things.  It is a little ironic.

My suggestions today is to force yourself to do some of the things that you love to do in the next few days.  Find the time to do what you love and procrastinate a couple of the HAVE to do things.  I think that you will survive just fine, and you will find a more relaxed and happy YOU staring at you from the mirror. 

The Evolution of Communication

Heather and I were reminiscing my early travel days. I was traveling the globe in an international strategy position pre-cell phones (at least I didn't have one). We wrote each other notes and made folders to hold the notes that we wrote each other. When we did talk on the phone (the old trusty LAN line) we paid close attention to what was said- these were priceless words that we didn't hear very often and an opportunity that was a rare privilege.

I can't help but think that we have desensitized communication. Phone calls happen SO FREQUENTLY. Are you truly listening to what is said when you are the phone? Are you holding on to each word? If you are texting, do you save or print the texts to read 10-20 years from now. Of course not. I love reading old letters. It reminds me of where the relationship was at that point in time. It gives me perspective and reminds me of things I've forgotten. I can fall in love with my husband all over again by reading old letter he's written me or laugh my butt off reading a note from one of the kids when they were smaller.

I think we should re-adopt an occasional hand written letter. We will cherish and keep them for years to come. They will brighten a day for us in 10 years or longer. It will become a collectible. Let's face it- there aren't many of them around. Pen a letter to someone you love today. Give it to them with a 'memory' box to keep it in. Enjoy!

PS.  I just realized the irony in the fact that I write most of my blogs today on a Blackberry sitting in line at the grocery store or at Starbucks.  Using new technology, my Blackberry can electronically upload images and text to my Typepad account.  It is really quite amazing. 

Years ago, it would have been impossible to have a phone at either location. Now it is the norm and it allows me to blog- - - WHILE I'm living life- and trying to be an executive, working, way too busy mother of three, wife, writer, and blogger....ha- it all seems a tad bit ironic.

Turn Your Focus Inward

We spend a lot of time focusing on what other people are doing, where they are going, what they are saying, ect. We complain and grumble about what they have. I find that the most happy people that I've met have one thing in common----their focus is on their own life and what they can do to be satisfied with it.

I want you to focus your time and energy on YOU. What makes you tick? What do you LOVE to do? Why don't you start incorporating that into your life. This focus on others is zapping your energy and stealing precious thinking time. Your assignment, should you wish to accept it, is to REALLY get to know yourself and compile a list of the things that you love to do. Make sure that some of the things on your list are free (ie painting, taking a walk, playing tennis). Others may be costly (trip to europe, house in the country, grandkids at your house for a week).

Now study the list. How can you incorporate some of these things into your life? I won't accept your answer that you can't.

Dream.......dream a dream. Problem solve a way into the life you want and start turning your focus inward- not outward. Good Luck- the journey to get there' is part of the fun.

PS- Many of you write in. The most often received question is "how do you get it all done?". "The books, the blog, full time work, being a mother, wife,ect". It is simply this- I concentrate on the things that I love to do. When I do them- I have more energy- I am energized and happy. I am walking the dog this morning. I started at 5 :15am. The nature that surrounds me is beautiful and I absolutely love it. I stopped at the lake and am blogging this note from my blackberry. I am now even more energized and content- and off to my day I go (with one minor interruption of a call from the highschooler that he is out of lunch money- he calls after he leaves for school- ha- that is a story for another day).

Mind Wandering to the Past

My mind wanders.  In my wanderings I have climbed to the top of a hill.  It is a very tall hill next to a highway.  I think I'm in West Virginia.  The weather is similar to the weather today in Dallas Texas.  It is 70ish and sunny.  There is a slight breeze that seems to pick up as I get closer to the top of the hill.  Once I alight on the top of the hill, I survey the surrounding area.  Wow, the view is fabulous.  I sit on the grassy knoll silent with my eyes closed and my head tilted back.  The sun shines on my face and it begins to warm.  I can hear the traffic of cars passing by.  There is a freeway not far off.

I sit in silence.  For this moment, all is perfect in my life.  I feel incredibly loved and wanted.  The warm sun alights on my face and arms and I feel as if I am being hugged tightly.  My eyes are still closed and I enjoy this moment.  I could live in this moment for years.  I hear the branches swaying behind me, the leaves russle.  The birds sing in unison as if they have announced their song.  Another bird calls from afar, in a different note and a different sound, he raises his voice.  I open my eyes and see a flock of birds flying in a V formation.  They are heading off to the right, flying off to a different destination.

My heart wonders where I'm flying to.  My mind reels around questions of where my life will go from this moment and what is in store for me.  I remember this crossroads as if it were yesterday.  My mind settles on an answer and my soul leaps at the thought of it.  This moment lives in my memory with a trillion others.  Each buried away, and remembered only occassionally when I reach back into the past and touch them.

When I do, when I find those buried memories, a warm feeling covers my body.  I feel as I did in that exact moment in time.  My mind goes there as if it were occurring now.

Our minds are powerful.  I am continually amazed at where our minds can take us.  Where have you traveled today?

American Airlines Road Warrior Search

Whew, what a long long day.  I just returned from 'Meet the Teacher' night at Caleb's school (after a rather fun filled day at the office) (laugh out loud).  Well, I guess you could call it fun filled- it was definitely WORK filled.  I feel like I'm catching a cold or another flu or something, so that hasn't helped my hectic (more than hectic) schedule. 

Yesterday I entered the American Airlines Road Warrior Search.  It has repeatedly been an annual experience for me.  Often they have published pieces of my entries, but I've not yet been awarded the honor of winning.  It did beg the question in my mind- where do you go in your mind when work gets very stressful.  For me, it is a beach.  When I'm stressed at work, and I close my eyes if only for a second, I take a trip to the beach.  It is on the beach where I can feel the wind in my hair, feel the warm sun beating down on my face, and the warmth spilling over my body.

oops, kids are fighting, so much for my daydream...gotta go breakup a fight- reality bites.