181. Embracing Vulnerability and Courage: Crafting New Identities with Creativity and Care – Let’s Toot Our Own Horn!

[00:00:06] Welcome to episode 181, which is a Girl Take the Lead soundbite. And a soundbite is a shorter episode that may build on a previous topic or be a quick inspiration. Like our episode, I hope will be today. And I'm your host, Yolanda Canny.

[00:00:22] So throughout my podcast journey with you, I have hopefully had the guests and covered the books about taking the lead in our life by searching out all the things that can get in our way. And I've tried to practice what I've shared with you so I could find my own voice and passion in my life.

[00:00:43] Areas we've explored and will probably continue to explore deeply are topics like vulnerability, authenticity, confidence, and courage. So here I am walking the talk.

[00:01:00] If you listen to my episode about creativity called From Junk to Genius, Nurturing Your Creative Flow and Brilliance.

[00:01:10] We cited Brene Brown, who said that vulnerability is the birthplace of creativity and innovation.

[00:01:20] And then we have to deal with rejection, perfectionism, discomfort, and get clear about whose opinions matter.

[00:01:30] And perhaps I've learned the only real opinion that matters is my own.

[00:01:37] Wow.

[00:01:39] Wow.

[00:01:40] I now get that much more clearly.

[00:01:45] Hmm.

[00:01:47] You guys, I have opened an online store called Girl Take the Lead Heartfelt Cards and Gifts.

[00:01:58] And you can find it on my website, girltaketheleadpod.com or go directly via girltaketheleadpod.com slash shop.

[00:02:13] I'll have all the info in the show notes for you.

[00:02:17] My intention with this store is to share a passion I've had for over 30 years, crafting, card making, and scrapbooking.

[00:02:30] And oh boy, my head immediately goes to fear that I'll be judged by you.

[00:02:38] And as I put this store together, I was filled with fear, imposter syndrome, and tons of negativity.

[00:02:49] But you know, I worked through it.

[00:02:53] I learned that we can shed old skins and new ones appear.

[00:03:00] We're creating a new identity for ourselves, which gave me room to move.

[00:03:07] My new identity was evolving my podcaster identity to accepting and incorporating the part of me that was a crafter and entrepreneur.

[00:03:22] Hmm.

[00:03:23] In my episodes, I have tried to encourage and celebrate our guests who have done remarkable things.

[00:03:30] And as my friend, Rachel Blair reminds me, toot our own horns.

[00:03:38] So here I am tooting my horn.

[00:03:44] By the way, there's a card in the Heartfelt Card and Gift Store just for this occasion that you can check out.

[00:03:52] And for those of you on video, here it is.

[00:03:57] Hold it up.

[00:04:00] And audio listeners, I'll try to describe it to you.

[00:04:04] The cover of the card has three shiny balloons with the sentiment.

[00:04:09] Just a little note to say.

[00:04:12] And there's a ribbon that ties the front and back together.

[00:04:16] Little gray one that's kind of pretty.

[00:04:19] And then you undo the bow.

[00:04:22] And inside it says, go ahead, toot your own horn, because you're awesome.

[00:04:28] And then just below that, you find a plastic party horn held in place with an elastic band, which you can remove easily and toot away.

[00:04:39] The sound is sure to make everyone giggle for sure.

[00:04:46] Sometimes it helps for others to remind us to celebrate ourselves with a toot.

[00:04:50] So I asked a few customers and visitors to tell me what they thought about the store.

[00:04:57] And here's what they had to say.

[00:05:01] Rachel said this.

[00:05:03] Yo's handmade cards are gorgeous and lasting.

[00:05:08] I received one myself, and I couldn't even express how special I felt receiving it.

[00:05:14] I have kept it because it is so beautiful and uplifting.

[00:05:19] Her store is lovely.

[00:05:20] I highly recommend it.

[00:05:22] And Yo is a woman for women.

[00:05:26] Her cards help us all lift each other up.

[00:05:31] And Melissa gave me a video, which I'll have in the show notes, and it's on the site.

[00:05:36] And here's what she said.

[00:05:39] Yo's cards are one of a kind.

[00:05:41] Each one is so different.

[00:05:43] And oh my God, they are so cute.

[00:05:46] You cannot buy a card that looks like that.

[00:05:50] You cannot get a card that is handmade at Hallmark, not at these prices.

[00:05:55] And she also said that you should hurry and go and get them because I'm going to raise my prices.

[00:06:00] But believe me, I'm not.

[00:06:04] And from Misha, she said, girl, take the lead shop is such a great spot to remind you and those you share the gifts with of the extra special personal touch that actually just leaves you feeling so wholesome, so thoughtful and cared for.

[00:06:24] What a great place to make meaningful giving easy.

[00:06:27] I love this shop.

[00:06:31] So, yes, sometimes it's easier to have others toot for us and tell us and remind us that we need to celebrate our own accomplishments.

[00:06:43] And I just love hearing what you all have to say.

[00:06:47] So if you go to the store, please let me know what you think.

[00:06:50] I would love to hear.

[00:06:52] And if you have any ideas on how to make it better, I would be really open to that.

[00:07:00] And I wanted to look at why was it so hard for me to kind of toot my own horn?

[00:07:06] And I did a little work on that.

[00:07:09] And the top layer, I think, was just about my own ego and holding myself in my own highest regard

[00:07:18] and assuming that you could do that as well, right?

[00:07:22] And kind of read my mind.

[00:07:26] After all, like I was thinking, can't they just see that I'm terrific?

[00:07:29] Do I really need to tell anyone?

[00:07:32] But now I see that really under that facade was fear.

[00:07:38] Yeah, fear.

[00:07:40] That if I put my own hat in the ring, you'd scoff at my work, which was so dear to me.

[00:07:49] And of course, we know that happens on social all the time.

[00:07:53] And so there's some learning there for me, definitely.

[00:07:59] And I kind of felt like here I was, kind of like in the movie, Notting Hill, which is

[00:08:07] one of the best vulnerable scenes in movies, where Julia Roberts said to Hugh Grant, the

[00:08:13] thing is, I'm just a girl standing in front of a boy asking him to love her.

[00:08:20] Oh my God, do you guys remember that part of the movie?

[00:08:23] Oh, geez.

[00:08:24] But I can really relate to that.

[00:08:27] So here I am in front of you all, just asking you to check out my store, which you can find

[00:08:33] again on my website, girltaketheleadpod.com slash shop.

[00:08:39] And like every good marketer would do, there's a discount code you can use if you want to purchase.

[00:08:46] And the code is welcome.

[00:08:48] Just the word, welcome.

[00:08:53] Hopefully that you'll see my cards and gifts reflect the voice of this podcast.

[00:09:01] And you'll see the products as something different than you'd find in the retail store.

[00:09:07] And my goal is to surprise, delight, and make you smile.

[00:09:13] A real gift you're giving me if that is your experience.

[00:09:17] In one of our previous episodes, I talked about personal branding, and I have such a passion

[00:09:25] for that.

[00:09:26] And the importance of finding your superpower.

[00:09:30] And if you remember, mine is caring.

[00:09:34] So as this new entrepreneur filled with humility and eager to learn, you can be sure that I've

[00:09:42] cared and loved all the products I've crafted in my store.

[00:09:47] So you could give care and love to yourself or to others in your life.

[00:09:56] Now there's another component to the store.

[00:10:00] In our episode 167, Empowering Women in Philanthropy with Heather McLeod Grant, Heather challenged

[00:10:08] us to develop our own giving strategy and nothing was ever too small.

[00:10:13] She said this, be strategic, figure out a focus area where your money can make a difference,

[00:10:23] right size your goals, have fun, find the joy in giving.

[00:10:30] And I have always thought what a terrific challenge she gave us.

[00:10:33] And I took her words to heart and looked at all the great organizations we've had on the show

[00:10:40] that are all addressing important issues like the Mother's Day movement, which is supporting

[00:10:49] the African education program in Zambia this year.

[00:10:55] Girl Scouts of Northern California, which helps girls develop their full individual potential

[00:11:00] as leaders.

[00:11:02] Blue Fairy, the Adrian Wilson Foundation, which treats and hopefully cures primary liver cancer

[00:11:11] through research, education, and advocacy.

[00:11:16] Research International, scaling up access to reconstructive surgical care in low-income countries

[00:11:24] by training and supporting the next generation of constructive surgeons across Africa,

[00:11:30] Asia, Asia, and Latin America.

[00:11:33] Thread, connection through expression, which is about bringing the therapeutic power of music

[00:11:40] to individuals and communities experiencing trauma.

[00:11:46] And Siparna, oh my gosh, in episode 169, she spoke about the Marine Institute Maui Ocean Center,

[00:11:55] which inspires lifelong environmental stewardship and ensures the survival of coral reefs and sea turtles

[00:12:04] in Hawaii.

[00:12:05] The Maui Nui Marine Resource Council, which promotes clean ocean water.

[00:12:15] Project Coyote, which works to change negative attitudes toward coyotes, wolves, and other native carnivores

[00:12:23] by replacing ignorance and fear with understanding, respect, appreciation.

[00:12:30] And the One Reef Micronesia, working to scale a coral reef protection across Micronesia

[00:12:39] while providing long-term sustainable livelihoods to Pacific Islanders.

[00:12:48] But all these great organizations just touched my heart.

[00:12:52] Boy, and they're all leading the way.

[00:12:55] So I had this thought.

[00:12:57] What if I could use the proceeds from my store to help all these great organizations we've had on the show?

[00:13:06] Oh yeah.

[00:13:08] And you know what?

[00:13:10] Another new identity emerged for me.

[00:13:13] Yo, the philanthropist.

[00:13:15] You know, I turned 70 a few days ago.

[00:13:20] And what a journey it has been.

[00:13:24] Since leaving corporate life and learning and continuing to learn as much as I can about personal branding,

[00:13:34] I have not for one second missed my corporate identity.

[00:13:40] It's like all the pieces have come together for me.

[00:13:45] The marketer, the crafter, the businesswoman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist.

[00:13:53] What a life.

[00:13:57] And I can see lots of topics for us to cover in the future.

[00:14:02] And they're all emerging right now, given the number of people who have done a side hustle.

[00:14:09] Like, did you know that more than half of us all have one?

[00:14:12] And within the Gen Z or generation, over 70% have a side hustle.

[00:14:17] And there's another trend happening, which is people leaving corporate to become entrepreneurs.

[00:14:26] In June 2024, a Gallup poll found that 62% of U.S. adults would prefer to be their own boss,

[00:14:36] and 52% of those would be willing to take financial risk to do so.

[00:14:43] In May 2024, Zen business research found that 93% of Gen Z young professionals have explored business ownership options

[00:14:57] and 75% plan to pursue entrepreneurship.

[00:15:04] Lots of us are exploring these areas, and we'll be covering them together.

[00:15:10] One of my favorite poets and writers you may know is Donna Ashworth.

[00:15:18] And in her book, Wild Hope, she wrote this, and it's titled, Right Now.

[00:15:26] And here it goes.

[00:15:29] What if you get to the end of your life, and you suddenly make the connection that you were supposed to enjoy it?

[00:15:36] That you were supposed to let go and live, make stories to pass on?

[00:15:44] Because material possessions don't bring half as much joy as the memories of love that you leave.

[00:15:54] What if you realized too late that your cellulite and tummy rolls were adorable, actually,

[00:16:01] and should never, ever have been enough to stop you having fun?

[00:16:09] What if your last thoughts were regrets for not enjoying this ride and giving it all you had?

[00:16:19] What if you stopped that from happening right here, right now?

[00:16:28] What if?

[00:16:32] And on that note, dear friends, we'll end today's episode.

[00:16:36] Thank you for joining us.

[00:16:51] Thank you again for listening today, and we sure hope you enjoyed this episode.

[00:16:56] If you did, please leave a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.

[00:17:00] Tell a friend about us.

[00:17:03] Join our public Facebook group, Girl Take the Lead, or visit our website,

[00:17:08] girltaketheleadpod.com.

[00:17:09] We also have a YouTube channel where your subscription would be appreciated once you're on YouTube,

[00:17:15] search at Girl Take the Lead.

[00:17:17] And we've recently expanded to YouTube music where you can see a video of this episode.

[00:17:23] You can also check out our new store on our website and plan to return to it frequently

[00:17:29] as we'll update our products monthly.

[00:17:34] Here are three takeaways.

[00:17:36] One, we definitely need to move out of our comfort zones and risk vulnerability to address issues

[00:17:46] we care about.

[00:17:49] Two, tooting.

[00:17:54] Our own horns may be uncomfortable at first.

[00:17:58] Start with having someone else do the tooting for you or practice with our card from the store.

[00:18:07] Three, you, my fearless listener, made this store happen.

[00:18:12] If you didn't listen to these episodes, I am very clear I would be a very different yo.

[00:18:20] Thank you for your support.

[00:18:22] And together we can move mountains and help solve very difficult issues.

[00:18:29] Our August theme, Fearless Leadership, began with me today and will continue the whole month.

[00:18:36] Our next episode will feature Kathy McAfee and Rosemary Paytow, authors of the book, Fearless Female Leaders.

[00:18:48] Kathy was with us on episode 13 where she talked about fearless leadership.

[00:18:53] And in this new book, Kathy and Rosemary go deep into the stories of remarkable women,

[00:19:01] some of whom we hope to have on the show.

[00:19:04] And they all share a common struggle against external and internal barriers to leadership advancement.

[00:19:13] Prepare yourself to be inspired by these brave women.

[00:19:17] Please join us again and talk to you soon.

[00:19:20] Bye.

[00:19:21] Bye.

[00:19:22] Bye.

[00:19:22] Bye.