A Holiday Message from Lisa…
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on December 24, 2008 - 12:53 pm
Happy holidays! While I’m taking some time off to enjoy my first holiday season with my new husband and our families, I want to wish you a warm holiday season and a very happy new year…
xoxo,
Lisa
Taking the plunge
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on August 26, 2008 - 7:28 pm
This afternoon, I did something 36 years in the making.
I took the plunge and went swimming in the Firehole swimhole in Yellowstone Park. Silly as it sounds, this is something I have always wanted to do but never done, even though I’ve spent time in Yellowstone Park almost every summer of my entire life.
So why today?
It was time. Growing up, my family would drive by the swimming hole, but never stop. I would look out the window enviously at the kids swimming and playing in the water. My mother would warn me of the dangers of fast currents and unsupervised hooligans.
As an adult, I had other reasons. I was too body-conscious, thought I was too old to play in the water, you name it, I made an excuse for it.
I’m done making excuses for living a small life. As owner of a company called Woohoo, Inc., my life is dedicated to helping others experience the best life has to offer them. From fulfilling relationships to embracing life in all its complexity to building a passionate business, my clients look to me for inspiration.
What a shame it would be if I continued making excuses for why I’ve never taken the plunge.
Even this morning I made excuses. It was too cold. I had work to do. But when the sun came out at noon, I put on my bathing suit, got in the car, and drove to the swimming hole. While it sometimes gets pretty crowded, there were only a few people hanging around. And no one was in the water. That is, until I took the plunge.
Setting my towel and car keys on a nearby rock, I waded into cool river water. And once I got deep enough, I completely submerged myself. When I resurfaced, I let out a Woohoo! The water felt great. I felt empowered and alive! And even though I’m not the best swimmer and the current was strong, I stayed in the water for as long as I felt like it. I just swam around, splashed, laughed, and felt pure joy in my heart.
Afterwards, I wrapped a towel around me, scaled the big rock, and just sat there, relishing in my accomplishment. I stayed there until I was warm and dry.
As simple as taking the plunge was, it was monumental because of what it meant to me. I had conquered a fear of sorts while treating my inner child to something she’d been waiting 36 years to experience. Talk about a high!
This isn’t the only plunge I’m taking these days. After getting back from New Zealand with Mr. XY, and spending one week in Los Angeles, I packed my bags and headed to Montana for my last single gal adventure. In a month, I’m getting married. Not only that, I just finished my next book and turned it into the publisher. And I just launched my first e-book Bad Love No More!. It’s all about taking the plunge and breaking free of limiting love beliefs.
I guess you could say I’m getting comfortable taking the plunge. Can I get a “Woohoo!”?
Every day, people go through breakups. That plunges them into a whole new journey in life. As difficult and devastating as breakups can be, they’re also freeing and fabulous because after the plunge, you discover so much about yourself. You discover your resilience, your fabulousness, your ability to survive and thrive and eventually move on with your life, etc.
If taking the plunge today taught me anything, it’s that sometimes the greatest obstacle in our path from Boohoo! to Woohoo! is ourselves. By getting out of our own way, we give ourselves permission to live, really live the way were meant to. We let go of fear. Stop holding on to what no longer works. In doing so, we reconnect to our authentic self, which ultimately leads us to the life were meant to live.
What plunge do you need to take to get where you need to go? Why not give yourself permission to let go and leap today?
And when you do, don’t forget to loudly and proudly exclaim, “Woohoo!”
Not So Single Gal On Safari, Part 4 (L.A., here I come!)
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on August 2, 2008 - 6:27 pm
In my usual travel fashion, I arrived at the NZ airport with heaps (my fave new word!) of time before my flight leaves. Already done with my OK Magazine, I thought I’d write one last blog entry about my time here. Truthfully, I thought I’d be chronicling my NZ adventures more regularly. Alas…work, book, life, and love happened.
When MR. XY first approached me about coming to the other side of the world, I was all for it. That is, after I rescheduled the rest of my summer plans. We knew it would be a life altering experience. We just didn’t know how it would affect us.
For me, living in New Zealand has been surprisingly healing. Actually, all of 2008 has been a bit of a magical mystery tour in terms of spiritual growth, enlightenment, and transformation. Unplugging from my uber-busy, overly scheduled LA life was the best gift I could give myself. Getting back to basics, taking time to live and love life, working with two wonderful teachers, and refocusing my energy to include Lisa the woman as well as Lisa the business owner and relationship coach was essential to my Woohoo! factor.
And yet I still accomplished amazing professional feats. I finished my second book. Am about to launch my very first e-book. Mapped out Book #3. Have continued coaching clients and working with my VA on my greater Woohoo, Inc. vision. (When I say I’m a recovering overachiever, I sometimes wonder about the “recovering” part)
Just as awesome as my professional achievements, Mr. XY and I pushed our limits on this trip, exploring this gorgeous country, and doing our best to live life to the fullest even when we were tired, cranky, and/or homesick. We met some fantastic new friends. Fell in love with rugby. (The All Blacks game last night ROCKED!) and got a taste of what our next big adventure will be like – our month long honeymoon in Paris. We know now we travel extremely well together, can live together in even the tiniest of quarters, and are able to give each other both support AND space, as needed. I think we already knew these things but they became abundantly clearer on this trip.
And now back to La La Land. I’m both ready and hesitant. I want to maintain my Zen and not lose focus of what’s important. LA’s a tough place. Nobody makes eye contact. Everybody’s in a rush to get discovered. And no matter how much you accomplish, it never seems like it’s enough. Can I avoid those pitfalls? Here’s hoping…
Can I get a Woohoo!
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on July 24, 2008 - 9:30 pm
You heard it here first…I just finished Book #2, The Breakup Workbook!!!! Now I’m off to celebrate with wine, pizza, and toddlers(?). One of these things is not like the others…
The importance of dreaming B-I-G!
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on June 6, 2008 - 8:58 pm
Recently, I attended Mark Victor Hansen’s Mega Business weekend seminar. I was hoping to learn a thing or two about growing my business WooHoo, Inc., a business I started to help people transform their love lives from BooHoo to WooHoo! The speakers were absolutely amazing, and covered a variety of topics. I came away with three important lessons, which I’ll share in a minute. What surprised me is that these three lessons not only apply to growing a business, but they also apply to healing and moving on from a breakup. How cool is that? The lessons are as follows:
1. Make a plan
2. Surround yourself with a team of people to help you
3. Dream B-I-G
Click here to read the full article.
Sounds simple enough, right? It actually is. But even with these clearly stated goals, it’s surprising how often we get in our own way. Case in point: Mr. XY received a phone call a few weeks ago about an exciting two month job opportunity in New Zealand. The pay was great, travel was covered, start date immediate. All he had to do was say yes, get on a plane, and go.
Guess what? Mr. XY almost turned down the job. I almost wanted him to! After all, we had the next two months planned. I had seminars to attend, a cabin in Montana reserved where I could go and finish my book in peace, and he was lining up several other short-term gigs in the Los Angeles area. Changing our plans would be a pain in the ass.
And then we looked at the big picture. We both love to travel, can both work from anywhere, and have created lives that give us incredible amounts of freedom. So why were we chaining ourselves to Los Angeles? By taking our blinders off, we realized New Zealand was an amazing opportunity. It perfectly aligned with our dream life vision. If we could work from anywhere and did love to travel, why not go to New Zealand for two months? Really, what was stopping us?
As I write this, Mr. XY is on the other side of the world loving New Zealand. I join him on Sunday. We were quickly and easily able to reschedule seminars, cabin rentals, line up a cat sitter, etc. Sure we had to change our immediate plans, but if our overall plan is to say yes to adventure, then it was up to us to honor that. And so we did.
With that in mind, here’s wishing you continued success in your own life. Make a plan, surround yourself with supportive people, and above all, dream big!
What a business conference taught me about breakup survival
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on - 7:15 am
I love learning new things. And yet I’m often surprised how the lessons I learn translate into different areas of my life. Take the lessons I learned at Mark Victor Hansen’s Mega Business weekend seminar. They’re business strategies, and yet they can be applied to breakup survival. Let me explain…
Lesson #1: Make a plan
In business, it’s important to have a solid business plan. For me, I’m creating content, products, and coaching programs to help people take their love lives from BooHoo to WooHoo! The first step of course is BooHoo, a.k.a. breaking up. When going through a breakup, you’ve got a have a plan. If your plan is to mope around the house, obsess about your ex, and constantly ask yourself what went wrong, you’re going to remain in a state of misery, right? Instead, if your plan is to heal and move on as quickly as possible, then you allow yourself the tears, moping, etc. but you also have a plan for moving beyond that. You create new boundaries with your ex, fill your free time with fun and nurturing activities, and ask for help when you need it.
Lesson #2: Surround yourself with a team
For years now, I’ve run my own business. And I’ve done an excellent job. But I’ve often struggled with having too much on my plate and not enough time to accomplish everything necessary to make my business run smoothly. Oftentimes, I sacrifice sleep, time with friends, and that much-needed relaxation because my business came first. It was only recently that I realized I needed help. Admitting that I can’t do it all isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s actually a show of strength. And so I’ve invested in a virtual assistant and part time typist to help my business run more smoothly. And wouldn’t you know, my business has taken off as a result!
The same thing goes for breakup recovery. In order to survive and thrive, you’ve got to have a support system in place. I call them your Boo-Hoo Crew, but you can call them whatever you want. By surrounding yourself with loving and supportive friends, you avoid the backslide into your ex’s arms (and bed), and have helped when your emotions take over. While my #1 tip for getting over a breakup is to distance yourself from your ex, the second most important thing you can do during your breakup recovery is get your support system in place. Together, you will not only survive but thrive!
Lesson #3: Dream B-I-G
I used to think that having lofty goals and dreams was a bad thing. That it meant I wasn’t being realistic. But truthfully, how can you ever accomplish anything if you don’t set your sights on what you really want? Just as I have a big dreams for my business, I had big dreams for my love life following my Big Breakup. See, I knew that in order to have a happy and healthy relationship future I had to believe that it was attainable. I had to believe I deserved it! And until I believed it, nothing would change. So I started dreaming big. I started dreaming of a love that was real and lasting. My perfect partner was somebody who could love and support me. Maybe he’d even like to travel. Maybe he’d even dream big! And you know what? I found him. Because I finally started dreaming big, I got real results. So can you. As you heal and move on from your breakup, start dreaming big about your relationship future. What do you really want? Even if you’ve never experienced satisfying love, give yourself permission to believe you deserve it. You absolutely do. Now go out there, and dream big!
Publishing webinar replay now available
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on June 4, 2008 - 8:15 pm
In case you missed tonight’s webinar on how to take your killer idea from concept to published book, the replay is now available. Here’s what we covered:
- How to write a nonfiction book proposal
- The importance of a platform
- How to find an agent
- How to attract the attention of publishers
- How to promote your book once it’s published
If you’re passionate about your nonfiction book idea, don’t let another year go by without pursuing your dream of getting published. This is your year to bring that dream to life!
Listen to the webcast replay now.
The importance of talking in bathrooms
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on May 31, 2008 - 8:20 am
Men often joke about how women are much more social in the restroom than men are. Whereas men go in, do their business, and get out, women pee, gossip, put on makeup, and swap stories. We’re very communal in the restroom.
Recently, I was in the restroom at Mark Victor Hansen’s Mega Business weekend workshop chatting with a lovely woman about her desire to write a book. I gave her my card and said if she had any questions, she could email me. Part of what I do as owner of WooHoo Inc. is help people through the book proposal writing process. As she and I were exchanging cards, the woman next to us asked if she could have my card. She explained she wanted to write a book, too. I handed her my card, and her eyes widened and she started getting excited. She looked at me, incredulous, and said, “I read your book!” We both started laughing and squealing like schoolgirls, and she told me a little bit about her breakup.
Here’s what’s so amazing about that exchange. Outside of book signings and media events, I’ve never randomly met someone who read my book. It was a rewarding and beautiful experience.
But here’s what makes it even more amazing. Shelly, the woman who read my book, wants to write a book about her own breakup experiences. I can only hope that our bathroom encounter inspired her to move forward with her project. She hasn’t e-mailed me yet, but when she does I’m ready to help.
Networking in bathrooms? Just another reason why being a woman rocks.
Something in the air this week…
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on May 7, 2008 - 4:06 pm
Are you feeling it? There’s a whole lot of WooHoo! happening this week. First, YouPublish.com launches. Then, my friend Alexis Martin Neely launches her book Wear Clean Underwear: A Fast, Fun, Friendly – and Essential – Guide to Legal Planning for Busy Parents, and it becomes an instant best seller on Amazon. And now, my technology go-to guy Luis De Avila gets in on the action, launching his brand-new business The Technology Collaborative.
Can I get a WooHoo!?
Alexis is a personal family lawyer who is rocking her business this year! She’s helping Mr. XY and I with our separate trusts and is an absolute pleasure to work with. To find out more about her, click here.
Before launching The Technology Collaborative, Luis was an independent technology consultant who saved me $10,000! Using a personalized approach, he walked me step by step through the website creation process, identifying my individual technology needs. I absolutely love the results and am working with him again on launching my business site, coming soon.
Here’s to living large, launching fearlessly, and loving life!
Mega Business is sure to be Mega Awesome!
Submitted by Lisa Steadman on March 21, 2008 - 1:49 pm
After attending Mark Victor Hansen’s Mega Book Marketing University, I’m sold on his hands-on approach to empowering individuals to make the most of their lives. As the owner of a brand-new business WooHoo Inc., I have much to learn. That’s why I’m attending Mega Business.
At Mega Business, you’ll discover how to:
Turn a simple idea into a multi-million dollar business
Make your business completely recession-proof
Uncover the secret to earning more, while working less
Stop simply surviving and start THRIVING
I’ll be there! Will you?
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