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Last night, I was appalled to have to share my Twitter with Rachel Pradhan, President of Blaze Interactive & Indra Successful Coach Marketing. (RACHEL! Did you not read my last blog entry????? Twitter and I are involved!)

You see, Rachel so graciously agreed to be a guest lecturer for a Six Figure Moms Club event in San Diego. Rachel and I spoke to a room of folks fairly new to social media about the almost endless benefits and ways to make money on the internet.

I spoke before Rachel arrived and started with a live Twitter feed up on the screen. The group was very inquisitive about Twitter and wanted a casual overview of how it works. We talked about the following:

• The feeling of confusion many people experience when they first sign up for Twitter. We discussed how many of them (me too) had signed up, sat there looking at the sceen saying, “Okay, I don’t get it. Now what do I do? How do I figure out who to follow?” or ” These people that have asked to follow me seem like stalkers. How do I block them? How do I make sure to protect my privacy and make sure I’m safe?”
• @PHDBRE was Tweeting away and had four posts in a row on the twitter feed. Everyone wanted to know why so many? Was she just really talkative? An overpromoter? What was she doing? I read her tweets aloud and explained that she was in the midst of conducting an online survey. Also, that @PHDBRE and I had communicated through DM’s earlier in the day about bloggers and my guess at their potential MBTI type of NT. This lead to a discussion of What is a DM? and Next, “Wow, Angie, Do you know her?” “Well, No, not face-to-face, but I hope to soon, and we did have a business related conversation (140 characters of course) earlier today”. They were amazed, glossy eyed and somewhat enthralled.
• Next we discussed how @AshleyMahaffey who was in the room, came because she found out about the event through connecting with me on Twitter. Next, we discussed a potential Tweetup between Ashley, me, @AnnVertel and @MariSmith sometime in the next few weeks…all as a result of Ashlee following me on Twitter.
• The group asked how do you learn Twitter lingo. @AshleyMahaffey offered a great resouce I can’t remember (so I’m hoping she’ll post it in the comments here) and I refered again to @MariSmith ’s Twitter LIngo Demystified.
• We also discussed that although several folks were interested in starting a blog, there were only a few folks in the room (in addition to the folks mentioned above) that had blogs like www.sandiegobargainmama.com, and www.healthwisewomen.com. This took us to a discussion of the untapped market of opportunity awaiting these six figure moms if they chose to embrace it.

Ok, back to Rachel, the main speaker. She presented, “Creating a FAPulous Website” and talked about how websites must have a clear Focus, contain a call to Action and be Personal. She then discussed the elements of a great website and maximizing the user experience. I twitted as she presented in hopes that any Tweeps not able to attend could get a taste of what she was talking about. (You can see what I tweeted by going here). Rachel also discussed how easy it is today to develop alliances with people using social media. Specifically, she discussed how she and her husband felt lucky to be corresponding with Guy Kawasaki, famous author/blogger.

We started a discussion in tandem both in the room and on Twitter about preferred Contact Management Systems/Autoresponders (aWeber vs. IContact) that continues today online. Meanwhile, Rachel’s husband, @webocsupport was twitting me, “Is the presentation over and what have you done with my wife?” from her home over an hour away. The night was a great success.

Today, just before writing this post, I finished my work day ordering some printed goods from a vendor I learned about at the event last night. When I called, she said, I know you, I follow you on Twitter and I offer discounts to all my Twitter friends. Check out @vpg_printing. She’s even offering some fabulous bonus to whomever is lucky enough to become her 1000th follower which she expects to happen by November 1. Perhaps that could be you?

One last note. If you are still wondering what you can do with Twitter, check out this great blogpost written by Dahna M. Chandler about Warren Whitlock, who she deems “Dr. Twitter” ” Why Do I Need Twitter and How Do I Use It? A Twitter expert tells you”.

Maybe, I’ll deem myself, “Mrs. Twitter” and see if that sticks….but alas, I think I might be getting ahead of myself a bit in our relationship…

So, again, can you see just a little why I can’t help but continue my affair with Twitter? I’m smitten.

Ok, I admit it. I’m crazy in love with Twitter. Just like my historical attractions to men, this is happening with Twitter because I’m learning things I never even conceived. My relationship with Twitter started about six months ago when we casually started seeing each other. I signed up for a twitter account and then installed the Twitter application on my facebook account. By doing this, I could tweet and my updates would show up in Twitter and on my Facebook page as “status updates”. So efficient which really does it for me. I thought Twitter and I knew each other pretty well. But little did I know, our relationship, analogous to relationships with men, was to grow in layers.

Next I went to Blog World Expo, a true Twitter explosion. The entire conference was run using Twitter as it’s heartbeat. Below are just a few examples of Twitter’s usage.

• The conference leaders created a unique identifier (a hash code in Twitter lingo) for the conference and instructed attendees to identify all messages with this code. That allowed us to track all conference related tweets.
• Most sessions had twitter displayed on the presentation screen so that attendees and seminar leaders could have live, direct communication during presentations which made for a real-time, interactive learning experience. This also allowed participants to almost be in two places at once since you could be reading other seminar tweets from other rooms.
• Most conference related communication was done using Twitter. (This included anything related to conference materials, schedule changes, meetings, after hours events, lunch, etc.)

I really started to get the power of Twitter for business and my heart raced faster.

The next big step in our relationship was the Vice Presidential Debate last Thursday. Did you realize that on certain channels, Americans could tweet their thoughts while Sarah Palin and Joe Biden were debating. Check out Hack the Debate? Seriously! Tweeps were sending their tweets into public television and they were appearing across the bottom of the TV screen complete with their Twitter names and pictures. They were likely censored but this was an historic moment for social media. Think about that. People all around the globe had the opportunity to weigh in on the VP debate. I kept thinking, “the only way this is really happening is if the government does not really grasp how Twitter works”. So incredible. I couldn’t sleep well that night thinking about the possibilities for working women and the next thing that Twitter would teach me. What WOULD be next?

So, the next thing was a random encounter with a work colleague I hadn’t seen in three years. I started to update him about me. He stopped me and said, “I know all about you Angie. In fact, a bunch of us were just talking about you at lunch. We were talking about how often you update your facebook page. We keep track of what you’re up to and in fact I know who you had lunch with yesterday.” A bit embarassing for me that this friend thought I had nothing better to do than update my facebook page so I asked him if he knew about my friend Twitter. He did not. So, what’s a girl to do to explain her relationships? Until the world catches up, it’s nothing but opportunity for those of in the know.

So why am I choosing to out myself and my relationship with Twitter? Because ladies, each day the picture becomes clearer and clearer to me that there are so many opportunities for all of you who have even a slight interest in the internet to create so many great opportunities for yourself. Coincidentally, our live Six Figure Moms Club meeting in San Diego this week covers this topic. You can reengineer your career using New Media options if you want to.

If you would like to learn more about Twitter (or New Media in general), check out expert, Mari Smith’s, Twitter LIngo Demystified

Mari is amazing and continues to stay on the cutting edge of New Media as it seems she in a different learning conference every other day. If you only choose to follow one person on Twitter. She’s a great person to start with. I’ll be writing a post about her soon so stay tuned for more on Mari.

I’ve talked with women all over the US about the loss of identity that often occurs when professional women have children. This feeling seems to be common among executive women that I speak to who usually range in ages between 30 to 45.

For example, I once interviewed a woman who was previously a partner in a very large law firm in Washington DC making over $.5 Million per year. Prior to deciding to start a family, she was the major breadwinner for her family. Once she and her husband embarked upon becoming three, they decided her husband’s career would become the focus and hers would take the back seat.

They left DC and relocated to the Midwest where he settled into a lucrative lead position in a prominent company. She got pregnant, had a baby and started consulting. At the time of our interview, she was a bit lost and although she was doing great work and award winning research, she felt uncomfortable charging for her services. Why is this? It is certainly a phenomenon I see in many women once they off ramp from their high powered careers to care for their children. It’s like our identities are so tied to success and the path that planned for ourselves that we don’t know what to do once we take a detour. What’s up with that? Do we feel guilty? Are we just confused? Can it be that we have tied our self worth so deeply to our salaries that we don’t know what to do once we take a different path? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic so please post your comments and let’s discuss.

Very interestingly and conversely though, women just a few years younger and still without children, can’t imagine this being an issue. Last Friday, I had a discussion with Ginger, Founder of Girls Just Want to Have Funds , a 20 something women’s finance group in Washington DC. Ginger posed the question of “Why Do Professional Women Lose Confidence?” to her blog readers. These readers are a few years younger, well educated and most do not yet have children. They are likely the Six Figure Moms of the future. The responses indicate that this group of educated, young ladies feel they will not experience this same emotion once children enter there lives. Hmmm. I’ll be interested to watch them and to understand whether a younger generation is better equipped to deal with this juggle/struggle. It will be interesting to watch their responses over the next few days.

What do you think? My bet is, as sorry as I am to say this, that unless they’ve been able to build a flexible career for themself already, they’ll be dealing with the same issues that you Six Figure Moms of today are. What CAN we do to help create a different path for them? Well, for one, if you are in a supervisory role, think about what you can do to make change. If you have power, you can be a change agent. What’s stopping you? Your image? Shame Shame ladies!

I wanted to pass along a great opportunity to participate in a conference coming up in Orange county on October 16: The Next Generation of Work Flexibility: An Innovative Forum for Employers and The Flexible Work Force.

The goal of the event is to help promote an open dialog about flexibility in the workplace for the many professional mothers and fathers who struggle with work life balance and the employers competing for talent in today’s increasingly demanding work environment. You can read more specifics about the event at their web site but below are a few of the highlights of the conference:

• Are you a professional woman ready to on-ramp / re-enter the workforce after a break?
• Are you an employer looking for new ways to engage high level talent?
• Are you a valued employee who is struggling to keep family life from impacting your work?

Six Figure Moms Club is a contributing sponsor of this event because we feel it is such an important step toward opening doors to more flexible work options with employers in Southern California.

If you would like more information, please contact Jessica Reister at 949-276-9812.

I’ll be attending so twitter me so I’ll be sure to look for you!

Waiting in the very crowded Bare Lounge at the Mirage Hotel last week during a Blog World Expo party, I was standing next to a guy i didn’t know. Naturally we were talking as there was nothing else to do but wait. It was hot and we were thirsty. He never told me his name but he was nice and funny so I didn’t mind. I ended up seeing him wherever I went the rest of the evening but still didn’t know him. That is, until I walked into my first session the next morning on Monetizing Your Blog. There he sat on the panel. Famous Brian Clark, aka CopyBlogger. Brian’s blog is a Technorati top 10 and he recently won the #1 spot of Top Ten Blogs for Writers for the third consecutive year.

I heard Brian speak in several sessions during the conference. His message was always consistent, “Focus on Writing Great Content for Your Audience and Be Authentic”. On a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) panel, he mentioned how a blogger could do all the right things for SEO and gain a number one spot on google, but still if the content wasn’t any good and nobody was reading it or linking to it, then it doesn’t really matter now does it? I loved every comment this guy had to say. Why? Because his philosophies are about life, not just about blogging and writing. He’s a guy who’s all about keeping it real, doing what you love and letting the rest take care of itself (or at least it appears so from the outside).

So, what does this have to do with a Six Figure Mom? Let’s see? Being authentic, doing what you love and letting the rest take care if itself. I think there’s at least a few things we can learn from Brian Clark. My advice is that you add copyblogger to your RSS feed for a few days and read some of his writing. His post on Monday, Are you a Spineless Blogger?, although written for writers, really can be used for all sorts of problem solving. This is a coaching article folks. You can use it to work through anything where you are striving for more clarity. Bloggers love comments so leave a few for Copyblogger and be sure to mention that Six Figure Moms Club sent you.

I just returned from an 18 day trip last night. My last stop was Blog World Expo ‘08 in Las Vegas. I went to the conference to enhance my understanding of the New Media industry and to learn how to better serve you, my readers, as a writer/blogger. Little did I know of the almost limitless benefits that this little four day trip would bring me. I’m still digesting everything I learned over the past few days and I know I will be for quite some time. However, the one gem of the conference is this:

“If you’re a blogger, you’ve stepped up to your life, addressed your issues, cleaned things up enough that you’re willing to put yourself on stage to the world. You’re an entrepreneur, you’re authentic, you’re passionate, you’re open, you have a genuine desire to help others. You think outside of the box about life options.”

Those of you that know me or who have been reading my blog, know that this is my message to my clients and readers. Can you imagine how lucky I felt to be in a room with 1,000+ other likeminded people? SOOOO amazing!

That in itself would have been enough but in addition, I personally met and talked to at least ten bloggers on Technorati’s Top 100 list and I’m not talking about “Hi, How are you?, Nice to Meet You”…but real, genuine, meaty, helpful conversations. These folks are down to earth, modest, pioneers of their industry and they are ready to help open doors for the next generation to step through and join them. Crazy! I’ll be writing about some of them in the future in more detail but here are just a few of the folks I met, attended class or twitted with during the conference:

• Gary Vaynerchuk (Wine Library TV),
• Tim Ferriss (Author, 4 Hour Work Week),
• Mike Shinoda (Lincoln Park),
• Brian Clark (CopyBlogger),
• Guy Kawasaki (Alltop),
• John Chow (John Chow),
• Jeremy Shoemaker (ShoeMoney),
• Wendy Piersall (eMom)

So, the list of things we six figure moms can learn from the blogger community is long. This is a whole community of people making a living via flexible work options. They work long and hard but they love what they do and they live passionately. They are pioneers just like you can be. I feel like I just hit the jackpot.

As soon as I get a little sleep and collect my thoughts, I’ll share some more with you and we’ll continue on our journey together. In the meantime, feel free to email me with any specific questions.

I am sitting here in my dad’s kitchen in Florida thinking how I should be writing a post for my blog. Sorry guys, it’s been a few days but I’ve been consumed with family obligations. I want coffee but have no time for driving to Starbucks. Too many things to get done today and not enough time (ahh, the old familiar motto of the Working Mother rears it’s head again…but today for a different reason). My dad has been in the hospital since 9/11 and may be coming home today or tomorrow. I leave early tomorrow morning for Blog World Expo in Las Vegas so today I want to do everything I can to spend every minute with my Dad and to prepare him for his homecoming. I’m dressed for the gym, but am changing my mind, thinking my time is better invested in Dad things today.

So, back to coffee. My dad and his wife drink instant coffee. I just can’t do it. I look around the kitchen and settle on Good Earth Tea. Funny. Good Earth Tea is here because I gave it to my dad last time he visited my house. Next, time to choose a coffee mug. Should be simple enough, right? Not so, I realize as I’m looking in my family’s cabinet that I am a coffee mug snob. All of the coffee mugs here have sayings and cartoons that fit the personalities of the people who live here. I’m stuck, I don’t relate to any of them. Funny huh? It’s just a crazy coffee mug and I am wasting time. I finally settle on one I can stomach. So, now I have tea from a coffee mug that is reminding me, “If Older is Better then I’m approaching Magnificent”. It’s even got the word “Magnificent” printed on the inside so when you take a sip, you get a second reminder. Too funny. Reminders to be our best self really are everywhere aren’t they? We just have to listen to them and keep our eyes open. So, today I will be more magnificent than I would have been otherwise thanks to the reminder from my dad’s coffee mug.

I like being in my dad’s space among his things. I am here alone as everyone else has left for there day. I didn’t grow up here so it’s different than coming home to your childhood memories. I look around breathing it all in and committing my dad’s life to memory. It’s my job to leave positive energy where ever I can and to leave my essence behind to remind him I was here. I want him to remember to stay positive and continue on the healing path. My dad had major surgery on 9/11 for some localized cancer. He’ll have a full recovery after a somewhat extensive healing process. I’m so glad I could be here to witness his vulnerability, strength, charm, and childlike amusement of the whole process. It’s also been fun to watch him flirting with the nurses. He’s enjoyed that part for sure. Hospitals, no matter how hard they try, are just not fun places to spend a week. I’ll be glad when he’s safely back in his own space.

So, if you are reading this from the comfort of your own coffee mug, I solute. Have a great day and remember how magnificent you are today. Until my next post, stay fabulous!

PS…Yes, this hospital does have it’s own McDreamy and McSteamy’s in case you were wondering fully equipped with blue eyes that would make any girl’s heart melt.

Yesterday was a perfect day for winding down our week at the lake. It rained. It didn’t rain a little, it rained a bunch. All day, all night, in buckets. In Southern California, sometimes it doesn’t rain for eight months so I really miss days when you get an excuse to stay inside and do inside things. I also miss sitting on the porch, listening to the rain and letting the sound lull you into a semi-meditative state where you don’t have to work too hard to let your mind wander to what it really wants to think about. I’ve enjoyed the week at this lake and I’ve enjoyed writing about it and sharing my experience with all of you. However, I’ve had my fill and I’m ready to leave. Time to move on the the next phase of my marathon trip.

Each year, when I spend time on a lake, I leave with a little more clarity about what I would do differently if I really did win the lottery. So my task will be to refine my dream a little more with the information I’ve gained from this trip. How lucky am I to get to try out my dream before I really get the opportunity to go for it? You should be doing this too. It’s so much fun!

I received a note from a reader today that said, “I just realized, I have no earthly idea where the Adirondacks even are”. Here’s a link for your reading pleasure. I found my house on www.vrbo.com which I’ve mentioned before here. Email me if you decide to travel here and I’ll give you my tips on planning a great lake adventure. I like to vary my trips from fast paced to laid back. The Adirondacks are definitely a place where a Six Figure Mom could kick back, relax and reengineer a few things in her life while taking in some great scenery. What are you waiting for?

I purposely didn’t write about 9/11 yesterday. Not that I didn’t want to honor the monumental event that occured seven years ago and to pay respect to the lives lost and the families affected but I wanted to avoid contributing to the negative energy that would inevitably be evoked by remembering. Like most of you, I remember exactly what I was doing that morning. It was three weeks before my wedding day.

Despite my efforts to stay positive, my day yesterday got off to a rocky start. Could the universal energy pool be off this morning? Is everyone’s energy is so negatively charged due to their memories of 9/11? I wonder…

In addition to the World Trade Center anniversary, my father was having some major surgery and I was distracted and worried about the outcome (All considered, he’s fine, thanks for asking but do keep him in your thoughts for the next few days please).

Uncharacteristically for me though, I woke up on the wrong side of the bed and had a rough time shaking it. Remember, I’m on vacation, in a beautiful spot so this is pretty unlikely. My day progressed and I implemented things that usually help me jumpstart myself and get me out of a negative funk. I talked with friends and family, did a few things to create some order around my environment, exercised, got outside and experienced nature, etc. Nothing was really helping. Later in the afternoon, i got a massage from a skillful and super positive therapist. Her energy was contagious and my spirits started to turn a bit. I walked the three miles back to my lakehouse passing at least ten deer along the way. This too helped. I was definitely turning the corner.

When I arrived back at the lakehouse, I sat on the dock for a few hours with my daughter while she sang songs for me and danced around. The sun was setting and the temperature was perfect. Two loons also sang their songs off in the distance. Loons are amazing birds. We don’t have them where I live in Southern California and I’m always in awe of them when I visit their regions.

We had all survived 9/11 despite the negative energy of the day. Dusk was reminding us that tomorrow would be better and I was so thankful for the message.

But, let me say I could have chosen to take another message from the great evening. Earlier in the day, I had returned my rented ski boat. Looking out from the dock, the lake water was like glass. The absolute best ski conditions I had seen since I arrived on this lake but I had no boat. To a waterskier, this can be pure torture. I knew that if I still had my boat, I could be getting in the best ski runs of the year. This could have been the opportunity for me to let my negative energy overtake me again and easily go back into that space. However, what can you do but live in the moment? I had made it through the day. My daughter was singing and asking me to film her, “Make another movie mommy” with my digital camera and I just had to laugh at the irony of it all. Glassy lake water and all. Life serves us lessons every day. What we learn is our choice. The lessons are within us. I chose to look at my kiddo and bask in how lucky I really am. The opportunity for skiing on perfect waters will undoubtedly surface again in my life. Conversely, the opportunity to film my daughter doing an almost perfect rendition of Mick Jagger singing, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” at age 3 1/2 will not. My blessings are overwhelming if I really let myself think about them.

So, negative energy, thank you for serving me up a tortuous day, as I know I will be thankful and appreciative of the joy that comes tomorrow. I don’t allow myself to have a bad day very often but I’m admitting it here for one reason. I know some of you might have had one too. If you did, give yourself a break, tomorrow’s a new dawn, you’ll do better, just like I will.

Today, I had the great pleasure of a triathlon day made up of hiking, kayaking and waterskiing in a beautiful fall weather day. If you’ve been following along, you know I’m vacationing in the Adirondacks of New York. It was less than 40 degrees fahrenheit when I woke up today so the fact that it turned into such a great day was a true gift. During my kayaking adventure, I was paddling far ahead of my family enjoying the solitude and taking in the beauty of nature. I wasn’t thinking about work or much of anything at all. (This is unusual for me as I am gifted and tortured with a busy mind). This quiet time wasn’t destined to last and was interupted as I hear my husband talking to my daughter, “Great kayaking is all about great balance”, he says to her. I think, “Isn’t that the truth about everything?”. And it is, isn’t it? The key to almost any great challenge we face in life is moderation and balance. As working mothers, we’re probably the worst offenders to turning our heads to balance for ourselves. However, we must remember that everyone around us is tied to our balance. If we’re off kilter, we cause a domino effect for everyone else. Try to remember that. As a Six Figure Mom, likely a Type A personality, you are very powerful. If you don’t take care of yourself and protect your center, you can cause great waves of anxiety and unhappiness all around you. How great that you are so powerful but what responsibility that comes with. If you think this isn’t true, you’re kidding yourself.

A friend suggested that I read, The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews, as it seemed appropriate since I’m on an 18 day marathon trip. The book is about personal leadership and seven steps everyone should take to improve personal character. If you haven’t read it, it’s certainly worth the short time investment. You will finish with a great reminder of all of the things you should think about everyday to ensure you live your best life.

Conversely, if you don’t feel like reading, I do recommend the triathlon approach to balance. Although, beware of the injury factor, I have a sunburned nose, a bruised arm, a banged up knee and several other reminders of the day. All worth it though…