What This Blog Was Supposed to Be About … The Ups and the Downs

One of my favorite online gals, Patricia Handschiegel, posted today that her blog would become an online documentary chronicling her quest to become the next big thing.  That’s what this blog was supposed to be.

But then I got scared and didn’t do it.

What if I wrote something and a TV producer saw it and decided I wasn’t a good fit because of what I wrote?  Or, what if I was going out for investment money and potential investors saw my posts and thought I was weak?  What if one of the lawyers considering becoming a Personal Family Lawyer saw that I’m not perfect and I get scared too and then didn’t join?

All these “what ifs” keeping me from doing what I had originally intended to do here.

Then I read Patricia’s post and I became aware of this sensation around my solar plexus that nearly took my breath away.  It was a combination of envy (I’ve erased this word three times because I’m ashamed of it and don’t want to admit that’s what I was feeling), excitement, appreciation and respect.

Ultimately, I let all of that settle in.  I sat with it.  Felt it.  And I’m expressing it as inspiration.

I am inspired to do what I said I would do and with it, I hope inspire you to do the same.   I mean c’mon … it’s about being afraid and doing it anyway, right?

So, here’s where I am as of today:

On the business side of things:

My main project is training lawyers how to be Personal Family Lawyers.

We’ve designated 65 lawyers as of right now.  We just began training our newest class and we won’t take on any additional lawyers for training until at least December.

My goal is to train 100 by the end of the year.  I’m not sure whether we’ll hit our goal, but we’ve just begun a brand new campaign to find lawyers who might be a good fit.

My other main project is to help every parent in America name legal guardians for their kids, regardless of their financial or personal situation.  If you have kids, you need to name legal guardians for your kids.  My website lets you do it free and even helps you choose the right guardians.  Now there’s no excuse.

The KidsProtectionPlan.com website is going great, but I need to find new ways to get the word out to parents.  My TV media has been great exposure.  The Today Show, On the Money, View From the Bay … all good stuff.  But, I’m surprised to find out that TV doesn’t go as far as I thought it did.  I need to focus on print media as well.

Several months ago, I hired Stacie Krajchir of BungalowPR for her PR-to-go program.  When I went to NYC, she hooked me up with several editors at Parents Magazine, American Baby, Kiwi, and a few others.  I wasn’t really ready though.  The book hadn’t been launched and the KidsProtectionPlan.com website wasn’t ready.

I’m thinking I’ll see if she can set some things up for me for my next trip to NYC in mid-October.

Speaking of …

I’m going to NYC to meet with producers at CNBC for a “development” meeting.  I don’t know what it means, but I’m super excited about the possibilities.  This follows my two appearances on CNBC’s “On the Money” with Carmen Wong Ulrich.

About those appearances, I thought the first appearance was awesome.  As soon as I finished, the producer came into my ear piece and said I hit a home run.  And, I knew I had.  The second appearance just didn’t seem quite as good.

30 seconds before I was set to go, a producer came on and said “we’re really short for time today, so make sure your answers are short and to the point.”  It shook me a little.  I wish it hadn’t.

Plus, the shirt I was wearing didn’t really work with the background, my hair had been blown out three days ago and was starting to get out of control, the makeup artist wasn’t as good as the one from the first appearance and I was exhausted from having traveled the day before to Oregon to tape my Better TV spots.

Every experience is a learning experience.

I’m currently appearing every week on Better TV as their Family Financial and Legal Expert. That, by the way, is thanks to Stacie from BungalowPR.  She hooked up my original Better TV appearance on that first NYC trip.  Afterwards, they contacted me to see if I’d be interested in being their regular featured financial expert.

Um, yes!

I’d love to line up something closer to home on a show where they have hair and makeup for me before each show – I do my own for Better TV.  I actually had to get makeup lessons because I had never worn makeup before all this TV stuff!

So, I’m working on that.  Maybe that development meeting at CNBC will turn into something regular.  That’d be amazing.

I’d LOVE to have a call-in show answering questions helping people make smart financial and legal decisions for themselves and their family.   I’d focus on helping people make more money rather than trying to save money.  Passing on family wealth.  Raising kids and starting businesses.  Having it all.

I swear I think I could talk about that all day.  There’s so much talk right now about saving money and reducing expenses.  That’s all fine and well, but what if you could make more money and invest that instead of worrying about how you can save a few bucks here and there.

In the meantime, I am also pitching a reality tv show.  A&E’s looking at it right now.  I expect we’ll shop it to the new Oprah network, OWN.  It’s all very exciting and I know it could turn into nothing at all.  I’ll keep you posted about that as more develops.  If I say anything else about it right now, my producer Christof will yell at me.

And we can’t forget the book, of course.  Wear Clean Underwear has been on the Morgan James’ (my publisher) bestseller list since it launched, hit #1 in all of it’s categories on Amazon and even hit #8 overall on Barnes and Noble.

Books #2 and #3 are in the works.  For those two, I’ll be seeking a more well known publisher.  Starting to look for lit agents right now.  I’ll tell you all about the reasoning for that another day.

Last, but far from least, I am about to re-release the comprehensive Kids Protection Planning Kit (this page hasn’t been launched yet, you are getting a sneak peek here).  The Kit is all new, re-designed and better than ever.  (If you have a business that reaches moms and dads contact me about awesome affiliate opportunities!)

This is the product that first led me down this path three years ago and it feels as if everything has finally come full circle.

Back then, I was newly divorced and working my butt off in my law firm.  I knew it was my purpose to help millions of people and I knew I had to make the transition from serving clients one by one to changing lives on a grand scale.  I didn’t know how.

I decided the Kids Protection Planning Kit was the start.  I did everything wrong!  But, it was a start.  I’ve made A LOT of mistakes along the way.   I’ve also done a lot right.

I built and sold my million dollar law business and I’ve built million dollar business #2.  This one is on my terms and through it I will fulfill my dreams of inspiring others to do what may seem impossible.

I’ve got big dreams.  A software company.  TechCrunch50.  My own TV show (or two).  Several more books.  The NYT Bestseller list with one or more of them.  A Personal Family Lawyer in every neighborhood.  Millions of parents naming legal guardians for their kids.  Making a real and substantial difference in the lives of people around me, but most of all in the lives of my kids.  Being a thought leader.  A rule breaker.

Being afraid and doing it anyway.