Lessons From My Father

This is the tale of two different HorseTalk results with my dad’s voice on my shoulder.

In July, participant #1 loved the day of his HorseTalk experience. He talked about bringing his team as a team building experience. He was in no hurry and decided to wait until next year, approximately 11 months away.

In September, participant #2 loved the day of his HorseTalk experience. He talked about bringing his team as a team building experience. He was in a hurry to help his team work as a team. He scheduled them to have their own HorseTalk day three weeks later.

Are you more like participant #1 or participant #2? I use the saying “opportunity has a shelf life, it may not last forever” because it reflects my dad’s perspective. In the Arabian horse world, if you qualified for Nationals you would be eligible for 2 years after you qualified. If I qualified, his belief was to go to Nationals that year because who knows what next year will bring?

If a team is enough on your mind that you think a team building experience would help, I am curious what you say to yourself to make it OK to wait almost a year?

This section is usually a brief video from me – Leslie. Since the title is Ask Leslie, I thought this month you could actually ask me. So you can call me with your question, text me, email me, make a video and send it to me or post on YouTube, message me on Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram with a question in narrative or on video.

Tell me what medium you want me to use to answer you!

Writing a Speech is Like Using a Ouija Board:

3 Things are Important for Both

Perhaps one of my more interesting analogies since I have never used a Ouija Board.

1. Follow the Planchette



I pride myself on writing a speech in my client’s voice not mine. Recently I was mentally working on a speech for a client. I thought and thought about it and I had no idea where it was going to go or how it would start. I sat down and waited for a direction or inspiration to come from somewhere.

Lesson Learned:  Writing a speech may be like using the planchette – the pointer that moves on the board. When you play the board, the challenge is to let the planchette go where it wants to go not where you want it to go. Same thing as you create, the challenge is to listen to where the material wants to take you. Are you the medium or the message?

2. Create a Positive Environment

The New York Times recently had an article about walking: the writer claimed that it should be done solo. I agree. At least if you are thinking, creating, or planning while you are walking, it needs to be solo. I can work on a speech in my head if I walk one dog not two. And it works if I walk Benji not Tevi. Moving helps me think.

Lesson Learned: I can take a speech or a particular challenge and think about it while walking solo. It doesn’t work if I am walking with someone else. For me it is walking. For you it may be something else. Tiger Woods liked the Zen of scuba diving because he said the fish didn’t recognize him. What can you do to help unleash your voice?

3. Surround Yourself with Positive Energy

I had a client who was doing two days of important zoom interviews from his home. We practiced so I could see what the interviewers would see. As a result he took some things off the wall behind him, added some things, brought in more light and sent the dogs away for the week.

Lesson Learned: In writing a speech and apparently in using a Ouija board, it helps to have positive energy around you. That may include people: make sure they believe in your abilities. Energy also includes the environment: how light or dark, how it smells, remove distractions that may affect you. How can you make the energy around you more positive?

I like having Benji with me. I miss not having him at work with me. I try to spend time with just him a few times a week. Whether it is for him or for me it is hard to know.

Sometimes when I can take both dogs with me I choose to leave Benji at home. I think sometimes he needs some time without the puppy. Some time to just chill.

Recently I went to hear a client give a speech I had written. He said that I made him calmer when he looked out and saw me in the audience. For some people I may make them more nervous when they look out and see me, or they think I will make them more nervous.

Sometimes your team members may need more of you and sometimes less of you. Sometimes more time with teammates and sometimes less time.

Do you know each member’s needs to be effective?

It's a bat, it's a witch, it's a POP UP Event!

For many, it is scary, downright frightful to create a PowerPoint that is current, relevant and NOT old school.

Come to this Mini-Boot Camp, our 2nd ever POP UP Event.

You will leave this Mini-Boot Camp with your own PowerPoint and a gift bag of Treats!

Join Us October 23 from 2:00pm - 4:00pm

Your job is to stay current. Your job with PowerPoint is to:  

• verbally add value to every slide
• be the color commentator not the play by play guy
• use words sparingly
• enhance with graphics, they are an aid not the main show
• know what to do with ING words

This Boot Camp will get you ready because time in the spotlight should be a TREAT not a TRICK.

Date and Time: October 23rd from 2:00pm – 4:00pm

Video and Vino

December 6, 5pm - 7pm

This is the fun Video & Vino because you can give the HOLIDAY gift for the hard-to-shop-for-person, give them the gift of an experience.

Bring a friend with you! It's fun to "experience" this session together!

We call it Video & Vino because we video each participant and then each leaves with a bottle of vino - wine!

Each of you will be taped for 2 -3 minutes. We play it back, make suggestions, and then we will tape you again. You will see immediate improvement!

You learn by doing and by observing. And guess what? You have fun in the process!!

Each person may choose what they do while being videotaped:

1. I have found it is most beneficial for you to use your own material, from a presentation or anything that is about 300 words.

2. We have transcripts from famous speeches/famous people who gave a speech if you want to present a couple of paragraphs from one of these.

3. We can do an interview where I will be the host and you will be the guest.

You will learn by doing and by observing others and take home a gift bag!

This event takes place at our Electric Impulse office in Fairlawn.

Ask me about my 10 in 10!