Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Shoes You this Day: On the Potomac

300 LDS YSAs cruised the Potomac on a charming steam boat called the Cherry Blossom.
It was chilly that night and the sights from the river were beautiful, especially the monuments.
You know me, I love any chance to get dressed up, but truth be told, I couldn't wait to get off that boat. I was feeling claustrophobic.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Interested in Sis U?

I've gotten some seriously interested ladies knocking at my door about Sis U. This is your chance to win free tickets! -maggie
 
The Hot Mommas Project is running a contest for free tickets to their Sis U seminar on October 15th. Here's how to get in on it: Sign up through Thursday September 22 for a chance to win two free tickets to the launch of our Sis U seminar in Washington, D.C. on October 15th—a value of $300. Can't make it to DC? No worries, you'll get our full digital package.
 
Click here to enter or enter a woman in your life. 

Sis U is our proven half-day seminar that combines groundbreaking research with the best practices in women’s leadership education. In a world of promises and fluff, it delivers actual measurable results. 

Winners will receive two tickets—one for themselves and a friend. Those who cannot make it to D.C. in October will win the online equivalent of Sis U with the launch of our digital classroom.

Winners will be announced on The Hot Mommas Project blog and Twitter account at noon EST on Friday, September 23rd.

Enter now, or forward this information to a woman in your life. She’ll thank you. It's a half-day that she'll never forget.

Sincerely,
Team HMP
 
The Hot Mommas® Project is the confidence 101 for young women and their champions. We're an award-winning venture that pairs the world's largest women's digital case study library of role models with award-winning teaching tools to increase confidence up to 200%.  Contact us to impact women in your life.
Remember how about a week ago I mentioned I wanted to debrief, self-critique, take a deeper look into and share some behind the scenes of the lesson I taught in Relief Society last Sunday, my birthday?


Debrief: I taught the Law of Chastity. I kept the mood light by turning it into a birthday party for myself. A princess party, really. We ate candy, talked about how we are daughters of God--princesses in his eyes. Instead of using the manual I got inspiration from President Uchtdorf's talk "Your Happily Ever After." I took the fairytale theme of his talk, about Once Upon A Times and Happily Ever Afters, and applied that to our princess party theme, the paths of our lives, and the Law of Chastity. We talked about Trials, Opportunities for Greatness, Courage, and Love...all in terms of the Law of Chastity.


Self-Critique: It was a crazy idea. I'm trying to forget it ever happened. I didn't even use the manual I was supposed to, which in my eyes is such a big no-no. I painted myself as being this princessy, pink and purple, sparkly, little girly who can't take a serious topic seriously. I'm embarrassed about that. I didn't teach the principles. I DIDN'T TEACH THE PRINCIPLES. I just fostered a discussion ABOUT the principle. We had investigators there that day, and I didn't even teach them what the Law of Chastity was about (just like I'm not going to do here on this blog either.) It was the perfect opportunity to be a woman and talk about something deep, profound, and important. Instead I feel like I glossed over the surface and tried to have a party instead. I didn't want to look our Relief Society presidency in the eye because I felt like they were so horrified at what I was doing. I truly had this attitude of, well it's my birthday and I'm going to do this MY way. I try to remember this phrase "Don't let the voices of critics paralyze you," from President Uchtdorf, but I know a lot of the girls in my Relief Society and I can only imagine the conversations they had about me and the lesson afterwards.


A Deeper Look: I've gotten nothing but positive feedback. I'm talking GLOWING reports, heartfelt thank yous. Someone I look up to SO MUCH said, "It was...  ...  ...MAGICAL." She couldn't even find the right word for a few seconds. And I was told something that meant a lot to me: that I can be SURE that what I taught made a difference in a lot of people's lives. I'm sure there was a lot of eye rolling and confusion and maybe even disgust, but those people haven't said anything to me at least, and I think I'd like to keep it that way.


Behind the Scenes: I did NOT want to teach this lesson. I've been assigned some hard topics lately and I wanted a break. I deliberately did not sign up to teach that lesson. Plus I knew it would fall on my birthday and I knew I was already going to be performing a musical number at church that day, so I didn't want to overload myself. But, a scheduling conflict surfaced for the day I had originally signed up for, and it only made sense that I switch to teach this lesson. I still tried to get out of it. But basically they wouldn't take no for an answer and I felt incredibly guilty saying flat out no I won't teach it. As soon as that phone conversation was over (I was driving) I pulled over and cried. A lot. I was so mad. Mostly at myself because I felt like I wasn't sticking up for myself. I felt stressed and too busy and not spiritual or confident enough or worthy enough to teach the Law of Chastity. It's a hard principle for me. It wasn't until about 2 am that Sunday morning that an idea finally came to me. I fell asleep and when I woke up I thought, "That was the worst idea ever. You can't do that." But I was out of time, so I continued with the plan. And that's what they got.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Suffering from a Nasty Case of “The Shoulds?”

Dear readers: I want to introduce you to an organization I've gotten to know since I've begun working in the School of Business at The George Washington University:



ABOUT THE HOT MOMMAS PROJECT: Founded in 2002 by Kathy Korman Frey, Harvard Business School MBA and professor of Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership at the George Washington School of Business. The Hot Mommas® Project is "Confidence 101" for young women and their champions. The award-winning social venture pairs the world's largest digital case library of female role models with teaching tools to increase women's confidence up to 200%. Through exposure to online role models and leadership education, the venture's mission is to increase confidence of women and girls across the globe, in turn opening their opportunities. Research for The Hot Mommas Project is housed at the George Washington School of Business, Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence. For more information on The Hot Mommas Project visit: www.hotmommasproject.org.



I stand by this mission 100%. What young woman wouldn't benefit from female mentorship, role models, and an increase in confidence while navigating this world? I can't say enough good things about HMP's masterminds, motivations, and projects.

Thus,
I'd like to spread word about an HMP event called Sis U being held in October.

 
 Ask yourself: Are you suffering from a nasty case of “the shoulds?”

Symptoms include: Habitual doing of what you think you SHOULD do versus what you WANT to do, feeling detached from your job, wondering what happened to that life or career dream, a general angst for doing the dishes...

Sound familiar?

Several, major bodies of research actually focus on the cause and impact of that nasty case of “the shoulds”: Confidence.

The Hot Mommas Project has cracked the code on women’s confidence, and has packaged it up in a half-day seminar. Until now, these teachings were only available inside the classroom of an exclusive, nationally ranked Women's Entrepreneurial Leadership course. Today, The Hot Mommas Project brings you groundbreaking research and the best practices in leadership education. The result:  To help YOU solve, improve, and reach higher; a real world toolkit with the guidance to use it.

WHEN:       Saturday, October 15th, 2011: 10 am to 1 pm

WHERE:     The George Washington University School of Business, CFEE
COST:          $99 with a discount code made exclusively for MY FRIENDS! gwsbdm until September 30th (30% off original ticket price)
WITH:         Kathy Korman Frey, The Hot Mommas® Project Founder, Harvard MBA, Entrepreneur in Residence and Professor of the award-winning Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership class at The George Washington University School of Business, Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence.
What You’ll Learn at Sis U:



·         Understand the hard-hitting facts behind the value of women and girls in society. We raise GDPs and company profitability. There's a reason. Here's what we can do to bring it to the forefront.

·         Learn about the "confidence crisis" and how to neutralize it. It's rampant among women and girls, but we're so well educated and awesome, we've been excelling in spite of it.

·         Master the Sisterhood of Success Equation: GRIP, GOAL, GET and see how you can replicate this in your career in any situation ranging from work life balance to salary negotiation to running for office.

·         Experience one of the most addictive mentorship exercises ever, and walk out with "Your 5" - what our research shows is the make-or-break between mediocrity or pursuing your true potential.

·         End strong with a pay it forward plan - because that's how the Sisterhood of Success rolls.
  

Thanks for reading this info! This is truly exciting stuff for women entrepreneurs, those of us who are navigating the work force, and all women who are interested in empowering the upcoming generations. Please let me know if you are interested in attending, and I will come to the seminar with you! Go here to purchase tickets with my special discount code. gwsbdm
I will be adding more info about Sis U over the next few weeks so stay tuned!

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Shoes You This Day: Birthday Extravaganza!

I can't say thank you enough to
Caitlin Magidson
Jayci Carlson
Sunni Mumford
Ruth Ostler
Perla Antoniak
my office
and so many others!

Last weekend involved a trip to the Newseum, breakfast at the perfect Gilmore Girls look-alike diner on Capitol Hill, studying in the Library of Congress, watching some cougars football, playing my violin, teaching, partying, eating deliciousness, getting showered with gifts, spending time with great friends, and listening to a message from an apostle! 

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Goodness to come


Lots of goodness coming your way soon on mm (my maggie)

here's a sneak peak of what I've been up to lately.


guys. I've been all over the place. Here are some things to look for soon:
*shoes you this day goodness
*birthday extravaganzas
*weekend shenanigans 
*sincere thank yous
*a debriefing, self-criticism, deeper look and behind the scenes of the lesson I taught in Relief Society last Sunday. I have a lot I want to express.
*sharing with you all an exciting opportunity coming up in October and a concept I truly support and want to share with my friends (not General Conference, though all those same things apply there)
*one mortifying experience, followed by a slightly redeeming experience.

feel free to share mm with your friends and family who might want to take a peak at what I share here.



Monday, September 05, 2011

This is the earthquake miracle mirror! This is the antique mirror I bought in Baltimore and it fell off this shelf during the earthquake but miraculously landed on a the pile of pillows right below it. This shelf is on the wall beside my bed. This vignette matches my style perfectly and it is the only little bit of decor I've put together in my room so far. I love bright white walls and fixtures that let the items pop. I love a mixture of antique and modern. I bought the Royal Wedding souvenir from The House That Lars Built and showcased it with a pop of green floral (stationary!) ha ha. Then there's the mirror accompanying my two Eiffel Towers. They are offset by a POP of hot pink and beautiful words to live by, by Kate Spade. The card is contrasted with the beautiful muted colors and graphic punch of the candle Bremen surprised me with on Christmas morning from Notre-Dame. I've always had a thing for images of Mary. She is not only a role model of mine, but the graphic quality is usually stunning. Vignettes are totally my thing. It's because I don't have too many bigger decorative items, so I love to style with the smaller things I have.

Saturday, September 03, 2011

School's back in session

I'm studying away today and definitely throwing in some fun stuff throughout the weekend. Last night was Free For All Shakespeare with Ruth!: Julius Caeser. Cougars are regaling the big screen of ESPN and I'll be all over that! Love my cougs! Tonight a birthday party for one of my Favs: Beck Bee. Happy Labor Day weekend! Happy September! Best month of the year. Hold on to it as long as you can.

Shoes You This Day: work stuff