March 26-28, 2014
Portland, Oregon

The world is changing as more people choose to work for themselves. We’re inviting independent entrepreneurs, small business owners, and freelancers to join us for an all-new adventure.

Put on by my friend Chris Guillebeau — who’s pioneered several amazing books and the World Domination Summit (WDS) — Pioneer Nation is specifically designed for creative entrepreneurs, small business owners, and freelancers. YES! That’s my jam.

I work with Creative Entrepreneurs and passionate individuals who want to thrive in all areas of their lives. This means that our work starts with Clarifying their Vision & Goals, and then often translates into my supporting them with the tech and business aspects; effectively helping them take their creative ideas to the next level. These principles will be at the core of my keynote, and I’m super excited to see what fun conversations are ignited as a result!

Portland is also one of my favorite towns, too, so I’m stoked to be back there; surrounded by Badass Activators & Conscious Creators.

If you’ll be in Portland, I would love to connect with you! I love meeting new people, and have made so many incredible friends from WDS, that I know Pioneer Nation will be just as amazing in that regard. Can’t wait!

Please find me — or send me a tweet @WilloLovesYou — and say hello!

Hugs & high-fives,

UPDATE: Pioneer Nation was so much fun! Below you’ll find few fun tweets & photos from my talk. Video should be up soon, too!

UPDATE 2: The video has been posted! Click here to watch it AND get a free download of my Systems to Support you & your business!

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Embodied Leadership = How you’re showing up

How are YOU showing up in your life?

I do Heart-Centered Coaching. I work with Creative Entrepreneurs and passionate individuals who want to thrive in all areas of their lives.

This means that my work starts with Clarifying their Vision & Goals, and then often translates into supporting them with the tech and business aspects; effectively helping them take their creative ideas to the next level.

So, while I’m coaching & consulting, we’re not just looking at the tasks and to-do lists, but we’re going deeper, and looking at all the aspects that are going to enable us to BECOME and CREATE what we want to see in our lives.

What does being a Leader look like for YOU?

Leadership in your life doesn’t have to mean leading teams, or becoming the CEO. It’s about TAKING THE LEAD in your life.  Recognizing that you have a choice in how you CHOOSE TO SHOW UP.

It’s accepting 100% Responsibility for who we are now, and the willingness to get curious and discover where we may have room to grow.

Often our weaknesses are amplified under pressure. Be curious and compassionate, as these are learning edges and opportunities for growth.

— Willo Sana (@WilloLovesYou) March 21, 2014

Learning Edges = Opportunities for Growth

What are your learning edges? 

When we lean into our Learning Edges – our opportunities for growth – we’re opening ourselves up to more of what we want in our life.

Who you want to become starts with EMBODYING it today. Right here, right now.

A helpful framework for this can be to begin by looking at it holistically:

• PHYSICAL: How we’re taking care of ourselves, our health, our bodies.
• EMOTIONAL: How happy we are, and what our heart is saying.
• MENTAL: How clear & focused our minds are. If we’re feeling lost or overwhelmed, and where we may need more structure.
• SPIRITUAL: And lastly, how connected are we feeling. Are we clear on our purpose, and are we fully engaged; recognizing our actions are serving more than just us. We need to feel like we’re a part of something and making a difference.

When you think what you do matters, you bring more energy to it. #Purpose #Contribution #Appreciation

— Willo Sana (@WilloLovesYou) March 21, 2014

What aspects of you/your life, if you gave it a little more intentional energy and focus, would greatly improve?

What’s the first step you will take?

Wednesday, March 26th, I delivered a talk/workshop, entitled “Embodied Leadership: Practical Tools for Tangible Change,” at Microsoft’s ‘Make it Happen’ Career Conference.

Sponsored by Silicon Valley Women at Microsoft, this conference supports professional and leadership development for Microsoft employees in the Bay Area. It focuses on insight and strategy to make ideal careers happen – YES! My favorite.

Thank you for having me, Microsoft!

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I’m thrilled to announce I will be delivering a keynote at the 3rd annual Women Entrepreneurship Retreat!

Friday, April 11 – Sunday, April 13, 2014
Ben Lomond, CA (near Santa Cruz, ~1.5hrs from SF)

Capped at an intimate max of 55 rad women, this retreat is geared toward entrepreneurial women starting and/or running smaller organizations (this includes sole proprietors and freelancers).

This year’s theme is Guerilla Business Tactics for Women. Essentially, the art of doing more with less.

“Your competitors are bigger, better funded, and more established than you. That’s when you use every secret, hack, and shortcut you can get your hands on.

Among other things, we’ll talk about secrets for establishing credibility, covert tactics for getting access to the right people, and quick and dirty hacks for doing all sorts of thing you thought you had to pay big money for.

Each of the workshops and keynote talks will address a critical area of business, through the lens of guerrilla tactics. You’ll leave the weekend an empowered rebel, armed with unconventional tools and techniques that aren’t taught in business school. I bet you even have one or two tips of your own to share, don’t you?”

My keynote will be focused around a topic I help many of my coaching/consulting clients with, “Structure & Focus: Implementing Systems for Success.” I’m looking forward to learning and connecting with all the other amazing ladypreneurs there, too!

Join me at this beautiful retreat center in the mountains north of Santa Cruz.

Claim your spot & register now! 

The post Keynote Speaker: Women Entrepreneurship Retreat 2014 appeared first on WilloLovesYou.

The first of which is I had the honor of MCing TEDxFidiWomen 2013!

This is me introducing 9yr old speaker, Vivienne Harr, who has raised
over $100,000 with her Make A Stand Lemon Aid to help end child slavery!

2011
I had first attended TEDxFidiWomen, in 2011, which synchronistically led to this post about Jennifer Sherman’s inspiring talk, my launching my “Ladypreneur: Women Winning at Work” tumblr, that was then featured in Glamour! Not to mention all of the amazing women I met, and whose words and wisdom impacted me that day.

One of them being the ever-awesome SARK, who I’d met & spent time with way back in ’97 (which is also when/how I met Andrea Scher!), and I was able to relay to her that – inspired by her bio in Creative Companion, that I read while I was living in Boulder – I too now “live in a Magic Cottage with my cat in San Francisco!” :p

2012
The next TEDxFidiWomen I attended (2012), I contributed by designing an animated timeline of ‘Key Events in the Women’s Right’s Movement,’ that played throughout the day in the gallery:

2013
As you can see, I’m a big fan, so I was honored to support and contribute again by MCing the event! All of the speakers were *amazing* (you can watch all of their talks here!), not the least of which was the fabulous 9-yo Vivienne who’s on stage with me in that photo above.

In fact, super cool is that I know Vivienne’s parents from way back before they were even married! We were friends in 1998, when Eric was speaking at the Learning Annex, and I was the Events Coordinator there. It was so awesome reconnecting with him & (his now wife!) Alex, and meet their super cool kiddos! So neat how life works that way, huh?

On December 5th I was not only on stage all day MC’ing TEDxFidiWomen, but after dinner I hopped in a cab & cruised over to the Brava Theatre where I hopped on stage and delivered my first Ignite talk! I’ll post about that, with the video of my talk, when it’s published. It was two exciting events in one jam-packed-with-awesome day!

2014
I already have 4 exciting speaking events lined up this year, not to mention my own events/retreats (details coming soon!)… and, yes, I’m definitely planning on delivering my own talk at TEDx as well. Considering how much joy, knowledge and opportunity* they’ve brought my way, it’s about time, huh?

*In 2012 I also supported sweet Tanya Geisler by designing keynote slides to accompany her brilliant words of wisdom, and we’ve been working together ever since!

Big thanks & kudos to my awesome friends Michelle Fetsch & Gretchen Sweet, for putting on another great year, and here’s to an awesome year ahead!

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Stories About The Collapse Under an Avocado Tree in Hollywood, California

The famous avocado tree – massive, like a big green umbrella above us

The post Speaking at Farmhouse Conf 5: The Collapse of Hope & Letting Go of What Could Have Been appeared first on WilloLovesYou.

I’m not pregnant, nor planning to be any time soon, but as a creative business owner, I resonate quite deeply with the process: a seed is planted, there is a gestation period, and a new idea is born into the world.

Exactly nine months and four days ago, my dear friend Mati and I started talking about collaborating on a project together. She first emailed me (on a day that turned out to be a major turning point in her life), and our first meeting was over a delicious brunch at Boogaloos. We had two other brainstorming sessions over the next few months, but it had to be put on hold, as come mid-April, I was knee deep rockin’ it at Stitch – leading webinars and speaking at conferences around the country – and Mati was busy with her Get Your Paint On ecourse and preparing for the launch of her first book, A Daring Adventure in Paint. Busy ladies!

RE:CONNECT is born
Fast forward to now, where last week I announced my bold decision to dive back into my heart’s calling, and Mati and I have finally had the opportunity to put the finishing touches on our brainchild: a 5-week ecourse, called RE:CONNECT – Get Unstuck & Find Your Magic!

Yup, that’s right… the band is back together. The WilloToons Connect band, that is!

All three of the remarkable women I had inspiring conversations with last summer will be contributing their magic to this course. Mati being my co-creator, and incredible contributions by my two other guests, and dear friends, Marianne Elliott and Helen Jane Hearn. Additionally, we have incredible contributions by the veritable Jen Louden, Rachel W. Cole, Laurie Wagner, Flora Bowley, Molly Graves, and more!

Meet the Contributors 

Click here to learn more about the course, and more behind how it came to be from my perspective, as well as Mati’s story, too.

Here’s to 9 months in the works, and giving birth to me & Mati’s first major collaboration together! We hope you’ll join us, and our amazing guest contributors, for this 5-week course, supporting you on your path to reconnect, get unstuck and find your magic.

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I am completely thrilled and honored to report that I will be joining a handful of other amazing ladies for this year’s Mighty Summit! It’s next weekend up in Guerneville, CA (my 3rd time up there this summer – lucky me!) and I’m SO incredibly excited about all the fun things we’ll be doing, and all the fabulous ladies I’ll be meeting!

If any of you know the word *Mighty* like I do, it basically sums up the fabulous Maggie Mason, aka Mighty Girl and the creator of Mighty Events, Mighty Goods, Mighty Junior and Mighty Haus, just to name a few. She’s also pioneered a huge movement around creating a Mighty Life List: 100 things you want to do before you die.

I’ve had a list rolling around in my head for years, but only got serious about writing them down this year. With Mighty Summit, it’s essentially required, so that really got my butt in gear! It’s nowhere near the full 100 things yet, but here it is:

My Mighty Life List: Things I want to do before I go

Last updated Aug 4, 2018 (hadn’t been updated since 10/23/13 before that!)

• be debt free & flourishing
  – I got there and now have some debt again. Life of an entrepreneur!
• write and publish a book (non-fiction)
  – my first book is coming soon OMG!
• write & illustrate a children’s book
  – this is also closer than ever
• speak at TED
  – I have now MC’d 3 major TEDx events… which is close! Still holding out for TED main stage. 
• be featured on the cover of a magazine (about me, my work, creativity, my message)
• create/illustrate an iPhone/iPad app
• take singing lessons
  – so funny… I’m JUST starting this now, Aug 2018! I’ve had this dream for SO long
• go skydiving
• fly first class
  – can you believe I still haven’t done this!?
• own a home
• have a big living room with a big, comfy sectional couch
  – kind of achieved this in HK, but the couch wasn’t comfy, so I’m leaving it here. Somewhat not as important as a goal anymore, but for Past Willo, we’ll see if I get there.
• have a dual- or triple-head shower in my home
• make 500K+/year
• get a new car
  – less important now, but will be fun
• get married to my love & have a fabulous celebration, surrounded by everyone we love!
• take my mom on a European vacation + have her visit me in Asia!
  //
  New Goals added in 2018: 
• Go scuba diving more regularly (at least 2 trips/year)
• Become more fluent in Spanish
  //
• Travel Goals – original list:
  • Yosemite
  • Vancouver
  • Grand Canyon
  • Greece
  • Brazil
  • Tokyo
    – went to Osaka/Kyoto in 2017! But have yet to experience Tokyo
  • Safari in Africa
  • Iceland or Alaska to see an aurora borealis
  • have a romantic weekend in Paris
  • go on a shopping spree in New York City
  • dive Turks & Caicos
  • dive the Great Barrier Reef
    //
    Added in 2018:
  • Live in South America for a while (i.e. Mexico, Columbia)
  • Peru
  • Costa Rica
  • Istanbul
  • India

DONE (or no longer a goal)! 

• Travel To/Visit:
  • Thailand
    – have been traveling here every year since 2014, and been living here off & on since Dec 2017!
    //
    Adding some I’ve been to now, so I can cross them off:
  • Oslo, Norway
  • Prague, Czech Republic
  • Berlin, Germany
  • Hong Kong
    – lived here 3.5 years!
  • KL & Perhentian Islands, Malaysia
  • Teipei, Taiwan
  • Seoul, Korea
  • Cebu & Siargao, Phillipines
  • Hanoi & Saigon, Vietnam 
  • Bali
    – been living here for 6 months!
  • Singapore
  • Toronto & Ontario, Canada
• get a completely new bed (mattress/frame) and all new linens Got this when I moved to HK!
• fall in love again
  – Fell in love & moved 1/2 way around the world to HK in 2014
• do editorial illustrations for a magazine
  – technically I’ve done editorial illustrations for websites & blogs
  – not exactly any of the above, BUT my illustration was published in a cool coloring book!
  – no longer a goal, as illustration isn’t my primary form of expression any more
• hold a creative retreat
  – Co-founding/Co-producing Yes And Yes Yes for 5 years most definitely qualifies! Not to mention I’ve co-created & contributed to several other retreats & events!
• speak to audience of 500+ (again) and rock it
  – Proud to report I’ve done this several times over!! See my Speaking & Events page
• be featured in 7×7 – no longer a goal 
• have an inspiring office/art studio outside of my house, shared with creative, fun, nurturing, inspiring friends
  – moved in January, 2013!
• take the Hendrick’s Foundation Seminar, Conscious Living 5-Day Advanced Training
  – Happened February, 2013 & I took several more trainings. I’m a Certified Big Leap Coach!
• go through the Hendrick’s Leadership and Transformation Program – no longer a goal
• get really good at making fresh salsa – sounds delicious, but no longer a goal
• go on a yoga retreat – basically did this with SUP Yoga in HK! Also no longer a goal
• take a painting class
  – took an acrylics painting class from Mati!
  – Now I want to do a watercolor class.– no longer a goal
• take a writing class
  – started taking Wild Writing in Nov. 2012!
• take a pottery class & have my illustrations on pottery – no longer a goal
• grow wheatgrass – no longer a goal
• own a really nice DSLR camera
  – I’ve had & have a great camera now, and never use it :p
• have my own gallery show
  – I participated in the loving you gallery show
• catch up on all the wedding gifts I’ve yet to give
  – finally did this in 2012!
• stomp grapes – no longer a goal
• put together my own baby book/photo album (I never had one of me)
  – I basically created one online
• go horseback riding on the beach
  – I feel like I did this at some point a long time ago. If not, no longer a goal
• go visit my grandma in Colorado Springs
  – I finally did this in 2014, a reunion with all the O’Brien women!
• have a different home and/or live somewhere else for a portion of the year
  – Ya… moved to HK, Thailand, Bali & am totally living like this FT now!!
• have a large walk-in closet
  – basically had this in HK, no longer a major goal
• get massages on a monthly basis for a year – pretty much
• shop at Rainbow Grocery or Whole Food Grocery without looking at the prices

Continued Original Post from 2011…

I will update this as more come to mind, which – after reading, meeting and dreaming big with all the other ladies at the Summit – no doubt I’ll have a few to add!

Doing this was so fun. I’m sure there are things on my list you have already done, right? As I was going through other lists, I also couldn’t help but revel in some of the awesome things I’ve already done. Too many to name, obviously, but some big dreams I have already accomplished thus far are:

• learn to play the drums
• swim with dolphins
• bungee jump (from a hot air balloon!)
• become a certified scuba diver
• have my own kitty
• create my own product line with my illustrations and designs on them
• travel to Spain, London, Prague, Berlin, Toronto (many more, but those are the big’n’s)
• make six figures
• fall in love
• start a video series
• and more recently, everything on this list.

What’s on your life list?

Lastly, I wrote a post documenting all the awesomeness that went down! Check it out here: My weekend at the mighty Mighty Summit! – photos, links & more! So fun.

The post My Mighty Life List appeared first on WilloLovesYou.

Back in May, I blogged all about the fabulous speakers I’m honored to be rubbing elbows with while speaking at next month’s Conference of Creative Entrepreneurs (August 5th – 7th). Now that we’re finally firming up the schedule and the session descriptions, I wanted to fill you in on how I’ll be contributing to this epic 3-day inspiration-fest:

Advanced Social Strategies and Analytics with Willo O’Brien

So, you’ve had your business for a little while. You’ve got your Facebook Page, your blog and your Twitter profile, and maybe you’ve even managed to amass a fairly humble little community. What next?

In this session we won’t be covering the basics. Nope. Instead, this session is going to speak to those who have been doing this for awhile, and discuss ways you can engage and leverage your community to take your brand to the next level. More importantly, we’ll be discussing how to quantify and qualify the ROI (Return on Investment) of your efforts utilizing these powerful (and free) social media marketing tools. Creating and implementing a social media marketing campaign based on concrete data and analysis will help you optimize your communications and get the results you’re looking for.

DIY is Overrated: How to Sustainably Grow Your Business While Keeping Your Sanity with Willo O’Brien

While being an independent entrepreneur is exhilarating, there is a considerable amount of responsibility that comes with having to manage all sides of your small business. DIY (Do It Yourself) is empowering, but there’s a point when Doing it ALL Yourself gets downright overwhelming and exhausting.

Do you like the idea of working with a partner or a team, but don’t know how or where to find them? What if you know you need help, but don’t have the extra funds to pay for an employee? Is it impossible to think that someone would actually believe in your idea enough to volunteer their time to grow your vision?

All of these are common stumbling blocks that keep many independents from asking for help. This session will arm you with the inspiration and know-how to stop doing it all yourself and build a team that will support you as you grow your business.

Creative Collaboration: Don’t DIY Alone with Willo O’Brien, Kelly Wilkinson and Jaime Zollars

Connecting with other creatives online, or in your local community, is a great way to kick-start your ideas or support the launch and growth of your business. This session will give you the inspiration and direction to think strategically about collaboration.

In this session you’ll learn:

• When does 1+1 really equal more than 2?
• How to size up and approach potential collaborators for new skills and support
• Easy ways to start a community or collaboration, online or off
• Plus, local groups and organizations to get involved with right now
• BONUS: We’ll be doing a little ‘speed-collabodating’ exercise to connect you with complementary creatives

Whether you’re a wanna-be creative or a full-time entrepreneur, join us and let’s create something awesome!

Building a Successful Online Shop
with Kelly Lynn Jones, Christiana Coop, Janette Crawford and Willo O’Brien

Learn how to launch (or improve) your own online shop from this panel filled with seasoned e-commerce veterans.  We’ll discuss issues like increasing traffic, managing inventory, accepting credit cards and integrating your shop with your blog or social media accounts.

Getting More Done with Lauren Smith, Derek Fagerstrom and Andrew Venell (moderated by Willo O’Brien)

Most of us wish there were more hours in a day.  Learn how to make the most of the ones you’ve got while reducing stress ulcers in this panel moderated by Willo O’Brien.  We’ll discuss ways to manage your correspondence, to-dos, and finances that get the busy work done faster and leave you with more free time.  We’ll also discuss ways to organize your workspace, projects and paperwork so that you never miss deadlines or misplace important items.

Chock full of awesome, right? I’m so excited for this conference!

View the full schedule and register before it sells out. I look forward to seeing you there!

UPDATE: Click here to see how you could win a free pass to the conference!

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