Since March, the Ghilotti's (and Ghilotti Mandel's) have exchanged "Silly Face Tuesday" photos with one another.

It's lightened our collective grief after losing my brother and mother in such a short amount of time.

This family fun practice started between my SIL and me, then, I moved it to a group family text thread one (Tues)day.

This photo of my niece Vivi and me, taken while I was visiting the Bay Area, is just one example of our "Silly Face Tuesday" family text exchanges.

It many ways it says what I believe all our fun photo exchange say these days: "Love, light, connection and light-heartedness, we SEE you. You see us through." 🙂

I share this with you today because I know that your brand of woman is also to bring perspective, love, light and a unique brand of reflection, creativity and curiosity to all of life's experiences.

Today on "Silly Face Tuesday,"  I invite you in…

What is or could be your "Silly Face Tuesday" and how could it see YOU through? 

As always, here's to enjoying your business and enjoying your LIFE, no matter what is happening or not happening in your world. 

Sending you all my Summer love.

Life is good,
 

Moons ago, when Josh and I lived in Los Angeles the first time, we became friends with a couple of big-hearted Australians named Corey and Susi.

Smart move on our part.

Many countries and 14 years later with us back in LA and they in Brooklyn, we are the closest of friends.

Receiving mail from soul family like these two is divine. It feels awesome and frankly, is a connection and expression we all need more of right now.

We are losing the art of connecting to texting and email. They are not enough.

They are not enough because our friends and family are worth more than hiding our love behind a screen. Or worse, never responding to them, which sadly texting and email make it all too easy to do.

Pick up the phone.

Call them back.

Write a letter.

Send a surprise gift.

Don't underestimate the great impact these "small" things added up over time have on matters of the heart, healing and having true friends for life vs. names to scroll through on Facebook.

Though Susi and I connect on many levels, such as being writers and business owners (check out her crazily creative online yoga program @ www.dirtyyogaco.com), we relate most around the importance of nurturing meaningful relationships.

Susi is a pro at the unexpected and lately I've taken to mailing more photos, unexpected gifts and cards to friends and family too.

I wrote my Dad a six-page letter two weeks ago and the simple act of writing it made me feel 10x more connected.

I don't doubt for one second that it added another 10 years to each of our lives too. 😉

What you heard is true: your word is all you have.

Jump to it.

Get to saying these life-giving and love-filled words in person or by calling your special someone on the phone.

Say your words, whether in person, or by writing them in cards or in letters, but say them, and now.

Make the effort.

You're not off the hook.

On the contrary, you're on the hook for every single friendship and relationship.

If they're not feeling like the connections you want, breathe new life into them by taking a breath and a moment to give to them in this way.

Love stories don't write themselves.

You write them.

See this all as a great privilege and it will be.

Love is a great privilege.
 

Life is good,

[Photo by Ashlee Wilson Dephillippo]

We can and do over-complicate what branding means.

We can and do over-complicate what expression or being "authentic" calls us forward to do and do consistently.

We can and do over-complicate what it takes to create a successful and profitable company or collective that feels way more than a business because it IS way more than a business.

In the end, it comes back to the work you commit to doing on yourself and the support you have while you do it (this will always create and/or grow your brand of woman, in and outside of business).

It also is very much about never losing sight of your humanness and knowing that sustainable success is about a creative mix of both heart and hustle.

As an entrepreneur, powerful global leader and brand you need it all, but it needn't come with struggle.

Hustle to Zsuzsa and me is not your typical hustle. It is about being out there consistently with confidence, purpose and power, doing what you say you will do to reach a goal and another and another, over and over again, all while you take ridiculous care of yourself.

True commitment and this kind of alignment move the needle, and so does doing the work on yourself and in the business, every single time.

Hands up for this brand of ease being where prosperity begins:

www.TheBrandingRetreat.com/waitlist

Enjoy your business, enjoy your LIFE.

Life is good,

Hiding never helped anyone succeed in anything. We make life and business more difficult when we hide.

You may need practice to land in your own unique brand of elegance around your story, and around who you are, but you won’t know until you start.

The answer continues…

You are multi-dimensional.

You are multi-passionate.

You have joys, sadnesses and many other experiences in between that are of value and that make up a life cred that only influences and instructs your professional cred.

Your community or clients don’t need a perfect leader. No leader is ever perfect, but they lead, not follow their dreams (and dreams always include being exactly who they are, while they serve). If a leader is human and they can take what they’ve been through to grow and instruct their work and service, that’s mighty perfect.

Your business persona and the woman your husband, brother and child know should/can be the same person. She is the same person.

The invitation on this 12th of May 2016 is to take that woman on the road. While you’re on the journey, ask yourself, time and time again, how this part of me, or what I’ve experienced, how can MY story (or, what parts of my story) serve the people who have found me?

Share those stories.

Share those sentiments.

Keep the rest locked away…for now.

When you are in regular practice of being you, sharing you and honoring both your life cred and professional cred, equally, know that you will have found the answer to your uniqueness and to why people will care.

It’s called depth.

It’s called caring.

It’s called people can’t and don’t ignore that, ever.

Your potential clients care about you, long before they care about your services.

Not everyone will take this challenge, but if you do, I promise that you will no longer feel challenged by finding your people.

Resist the urge to let the fear flames rise high, to get lost in ego, or over-rev about not being liked or having others think your life is a mess when, in reality, it is all a stepping stone to your greatest suc-cess.

As in life, as in business. As in business, as in life. The professional is personal and the personal is professional.

Here’s a visual for you. When head, mouth, heart and feet are all doing the same thing, you are living authentically.

And, when your heart and head, for example, are in harmony, you are happy. Gandhi said that, or something close to it.

Lastly, your brand, specifically, your greatest, most powerful brand will always come when what you do, say and show are consistently in alignment.

Be you. All parts. All passions. All stories. All of you.

Hide not.

Express, even just a little more today.

And make the work being about finding the common thread between all of you, and your stories, because there always is one.

Being in alignment, authentic or a rich, take notice brand is not about keeping a part of you hidden.

Do the work you need to on yourself so that you grow to feel confident and comfortable being you. Allow the joys to seep deep into your soul and work through the pains and problems, so you can use all of it to support others, not just in your specialty of [fill in what you do here], but in recognizing that they are not alone.

Connection ~ what you say you want most want in business or life ~ lies here.

Right here.

Being you means sharing your story.

To my brother Dino, I love you more than human words could ever adequately express. Thank you I dedicate this day, the serving of these women to live more expressed and happy, to you.

To honoring the past and the love experienced there, as well as the love that is yet to come with so many new beginnings.

This is and you are the human story.

Enjoy your business and enjoy your life! 

Life is good,