Issue 140

May 3, 2006

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Changing Course is dedicated to helping you:

~Live Life on Purpose ~Work at What You Love ~Follow Your Own Road

Inside Today's Issue

Featured Article

What it Takes to be an "Overnight Success"

Featured Resources

Making Dreams Happen 

Work at What You Love Workshop Updates

Upcoming Workshops & Teleclasses

The View From the Other Side

Resources for A Change

Anything’s possible. You can be told you have a 90% chance or a 50% chance or a 1% chance, but you have to believe, and you have to fight. ~ Lance Armstrong

Opportunity Knocks

What it Takes to be an "Overnight Success"

By Valerie Young 

Hillary Price, creator of the syndicated cartoon Rhymes With Orange, is clearly a success. Not only is she one of the noticeably few female cartoonists to be syndicated, but at 25 she was also the youngest woman with a syndicated daily comic strip. Ten years later, her cartoons are featured in over 100 newspapers.

After graduating from Stanford, Hillary submitted her cartoons to the San Francisco Chronicle where she says the editor was "kind enough" to routinely feature them in the Sunday Book Review/Opinion section. She also suffered through numerous rejection letters from syndication companies. Like anyone who is good at what they do, Hillary worked hard at honing her craft. She also took concrete steps to realize her dream. Despite all of this, a newspaper reporter wrote of the positive response King Features Syndicate had to Hillary’s submission, and I quote, "she got lucky." Nonsense!

I couldn’t help but wonder how many people would read that article and say, "Yeah, she was really lucky" Or, "I wish I were that lucky." Is there such a thing as being in the right place at the right time? Sure. But more often than not it is our efforts that bring us luck. Or, as the great producer and film mogul Sam Goldwyn once said, "The harder I work, the luckier I get."

Reality shows like American Idol and American Inventor further reinforce the rags to riches dream. The idea of instant success is alluring. I’m no exception. When I first left my corporate job to strike out on my own, things moved painfully slow – or so it seemed. On one particularly discouraging day, I decided to document my progress over the previous year. Although no one thing resulted in any major financial success, the list of accomplishments and small successes served as a good reality check. While I was certainly no overnight success, little by little I was making progress.

For example, in the first year I signed on as a columnist for a Cape Cod newspaper. It was an unpaid gig but by getting my name and work out there led to other media opportunities. I produced six issues of my newsletter and had 50 paid subscribers, I was interviewed by two radio stations, the newsletter was featured in two local newspapers, and I landed four paid speaking gigs – all while still holding down my full time job.

The following year I negotiated with my then employer to transition from employee to consultant, was featured in the Boston Globe, Entrepreneur’s Business Start Ups magazine, and the Wall Street Journal, bought a new computer, learned a new software package that made producing the newsletter far easier, and landed more than double the number of speaking engagements as the year before.

A year later I actively courted USA Weekend magazine. After coming up with the novel idea of mailing each of the editors a box containing a planner with the words "Get a life" on the calendar, I "lucked out" when they came back and asked me to submit tips for couples on downsizing to one income living. Knowing that my company name was now going to reach millions of people was just the incentive I needed to put together one of these new fangled things called a website. That was in 1998. Eleven years and much hard work later, I earn four times what I made in my corporate job. More importantly I own my time and life.

If you hate your job as much as I did, you probably wish you could make the leap to your dream job "yesterday." But while things may seem to be moving slowly in the moment, most entrepreneurs will tell you that once they stopped to reflect on their progress they realized that things were moving relatively quickly.

That’s what happened to Rodney Washington anyway. Rodney’s day job is with a hotel in Los Angeles. Despite working full-time, here is what he’s managed to accomplish in just over a year:

• Upgraded from very small point and shoot camera equipment that allows him to shoot more professional jobs

• Developed a web site at RodneyWashington.com where he promotes his services and sells his prints

• Shot two fashion editorial lay outs and a corporate holiday event

• Got signed by a new client to shoot a celebrity golf tournament this summer and to build their website, including creating a photo portfolio

• Invited to go on his first press junket to photograph a resort in California wine country

• Enrolled in the AWAI’s Turn Your Photos into Cash course

• Found a mentor who’s showing him the ropes about shooting for stock photography, licensing his images, and how to pitch and submit his work to Art Directors for editorial jobs

• Launched a monthly online journal called the "Traveling Pair" where he visits resorts, wineries and festivals and shares his memories through his camera

• Began developing his own photography workshop

• Had his first show at a Los Angeles coffee shop and is actively taking steps to get his images in more public spaces

The biggest thing Rodney says he’s learned is that, "It’s a process and there are so many different directions I can go. I’m really learning new things everyday… [Over the past year] my learning curve has lessened tremendously."

p.s. You can read more about Rodney in the Workshop Update below.

About the Author

Outside the job box expert, Valerie Young, abandoned her corporate cubicle to become the Dreamer in Residence at ChangingCourse.com offering resources to help you discover your life mission and live it. Her career change tips have been cited in Kiplinger’s, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today Weekend, Woman’s Day, and elsewhere and on-line at MSN, CareerBuilder, and iVillage.com. An expert on the Impostor Syndrome, Valerie has spoken on the topic of How to Feel as Bright and Capable as Everyone Seems to Think You Are to such diverse organizations as Daimler Chrysler, Bristol-Meyers Squibb, Harvard, and American Women in Radio and Television.

Find more articles written by Valerie at ChangingCourse.com/articles/

Aerodynamically, the bumblebee shouldn’t be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn’t know it so it goes on flying anyway. ~ Mary Kay Ash

Featured Resource

Tap Your Wildest Dreams... Find Your True Calling...
and Take a Giant Leap Toward a Whole New Life...

Six months from now, you could be doing work you really love... and enjoying the freedom, flexibility, and quality of life you deserve. Find out from experts Barbara Sher, Barbara Winter, and Valerie Young exactly how you can make it happen… starting today.

With the life-changing program, Making Dreams Happen, you don't need to have a well-defined goal. In fact, you don't even need to know exactly what your dream is. We'll teach you...

• A sure-fire way to banish the "I wish I could, but..." from your vocabulary and replace it with surprisingly productive ideas you probably didn't know you had in you...  

• The creative secret behind making a living without a job… and why there's never been a better time to be your own boss.

• A shockingly easy, amazingly productive technique to generate fascinating business ideas… and open up an incredible range of positive possibilities for living the life you've always dreamed of…

Click here to learn more about making your dreams happen with this special $15 savings link: ChangingCourse.com/cmd.php?ad=168509

The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it. ~ William James

The Changing Course Newsletter Copyright 2006 Lisa Tarrant, Editor Valerie Young, Publisher info@changingcourse.com www.ChangingCourse.com 7 Ripley Road Montague, MA 01351

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The only thing that will stop you from fulfilling your dreams is you. ~ Tom Bradley

Work at What You Love Workshop Update

Success is Sweet: A Look Back at Past Workshops

This summer’s workshops mark Barbara Winter and my fourth time working together. The first time was back in June 2003 at what proved to be a truly amazing event called Making Dreams Happen. Also on hand for that event was the equally amazing Barbara Sher. Fifty five enthusiastic dreamers met at a rustic retreat center in the Rocky Mountains in Boulder and did we have a blast!

The next year Barbara Winter and I spent three magical days at the Dreams Can’t Wait workshop in Kennebunkport, Maine. For this event we were joined by an inspiring Brit named Nick Williams, author of such books as The Work We Were Born to Do and Powerful Beyond Measure and sixty five totally pumped dreamers.

Then last summer Barbara and I hosted an incredible 155 people in the happening New England town of Northampton, Massachusetts. That venue proved to such a hit that we’re returning there for the third of our three city summer tour in mid-August.

I still maintain contact with many of the people from all of the previous workshops and have had the incredible pleasure of sharing some of their success stories here. There isn’t space to tell you about all of these determined souls here so let me tell you about just a few:

An alumnus of all three workshops, interactive story teller and franchiser, Karen Rhodes is getting to be a regular at these events. During and after the Boulder workshop, Karen got a ton of reinforcement for her idea of creating a "business in a bag" to train others to start their own historically based mother-daughter events. Karen and two other former attendees came to Maine and then last summer she joined the panel to talk about her work on the project to date.

Career counselor and coach Rene Carew, who’s first book The Complete Idiots Guide to Discovering Your Perfect Career just hit the stands (available at Rene’s site AuthenticLife.com), was a participant at Making Dreams Happen and one of the coaches in residence at Dreams Can’t Wait. Unlike a lot of career books, this book covers important topics like career change issues for people of color and the concept of setting up multiple income streams – which is why I was flattered to be asked to write the forward. A first for me!

Another first time author and Making Dreams Happen alumni Linda Blachman wrote a most moving and important book called Another Morning: Voices of Truth and Hope from Mothers with Cancer. You can read more about Linda’s personal journey at LindaBlachman.com.

Licensed artist Bonnie Druschel was both an active attendee and a speaker at Making Dreams Happen. Two years later, Bonnie was back in Northampton as a panelist sharing even more words of wisdom about how she came to earn her living as a full time artist through what’s known as art licensing. (If you’re not familiar art licensing, read my article on the subject at ChangingCourse.com/artlicensing.htm).

After the Dreams Can’t Wait workshop, Tracy Jackson (who by the way drove with two friends all night from Detroit to Maine to attend) went on a six month sabbatical traveling solo to Fiji, New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa. While in South Africa, she spent two months volunteering on construction projects to build an orphanage, working and playing with children orphaned by AIDS, and visiting patients in hospices. You’ll be hearing more about Tracy’s plans to start her own non-profit and import-export business soon.

And a writer of a different sort is Cindy Oman. Cindy came to the workshop with a very clear goal. But I’ll let her tell you:

Hi Valerie,

I just wanted to drop you a line to let you know just how much your seminar has affected my life. When I attended the seminar in Boulder, Colorado in 2003 I had two goals – to become an independent writer and to live in Arizona from October through May and Colorado from June through September

At that time, I already lived in Arizona and was working at a "regular" job. Honestly, those goals looked so unobtainable. However, you and the other speakers explained it was possible. Well, here is where I’m at nearly two years later.

Goal One: November 2003, laid-off and have been an independent writer ever since. It was a slow start, but September 15, 2005, my phone rang off the hook and my client list expanded. My reputation is now established and I receive work regularly. I’m averaging more income in one month than it took me three months working at a "regular" job.

Goal Two: My family and I are taking three consecutive weeks (gasp!) and renting a cabin in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. During that time, we are looking at property to buy and build our summer home. It still amazes me that I didn’t have to ask anyone if I could take time off – we just scheduled it!

This lifestyle allows us to be together as a family, donate more time and money to our favorite charitable causes, and my husband and I get to see our son grow up.

I just wanted to thank you all for the work you do. If you didn’t do this, more people like me would have let life happen to us instead of dreaming and creating the lives we want! I cannot thank you enough.

Regards,
Cindy Oman

This summer we already have three dedicated dreamers who are coming back for more. When asked on the registration form how she heard about the Work at What You Love Workshop, Christine Brooks of Linthicum Heights, Maryland wrote, "I’m a returning attendee; I enjoyed the last one tremendously!!"

Barbara and I are busy working on some exciting new additions to this year’s agenda. I do hope you can join us at Work at What You Love. Who knows… this time next year I may be sharing YOUR success story!

If you’d like to learn more about Work at What You Love click here or visit ChangingCourse.com/workshop.htm.

Ventura Workshop Updates

There’s Still Time to Save $50!

Great news! Because this event just hit the local papers in Ventura we’re extending the special early registration price of $199 for a few more days. Be sure to register soon to take advantage of this $50 savings and to ensure your seat at what promises to be a sold out event. ChangingCourse.com/workshop.htm

More Dreamers to Join the Inspired Entrepreneurs Panel

In the last issue you heard about assistant school principle turned interior designer Stephen Fofanoff. Stephen is one of the inspired entrepreneurs who will be joining us at the Work at What You Love workshop in Ventura, California. (In case you missed it you can read about Stephen in Issue 139 ChangingCourse.com/archives/issue139.html.)

Also joining Stephen on the panel will be…

Rodney Washington

Not many people can afford to just quit their job to pursue their dream. That’s why at this year’s workshop, we’re including several entrepreneurs who are smack in the middle of their transition from having a boss to being their own boss. Take Rodney Washington – assistant manager for a large hotel chain by day and the rest of time a professional photographer in hot pursuit of his big dream.

Rodney says his passion for photography began with the purchase of his first 35mm camera in 1989. Having recently relocated to San Francisco, his spare time was spent exploring his new home by taking snapshots of the beautiful city by the bay. In the early 90’s Rodney relocated down the coast to Los Angeles where he continued to hone his craft. Then in 1997 his creative interests took a different path when he formed a web design company called Whit Communications & Media.

Two years ago Rodney says he "reconnected with his passion for photography." That’s when he started shooting for travel web sites. His rekindled passion took him to destinations like New York, Palm Springs, Scottsdale and Bangkok. Rodney writes, "I love capturing moments with my lens, noticing the details of life is what excites me. Whether it's a street scene, a flower –or – people just going about the business of living their lives, my desire is simply to freeze moments in time and present them for the enjoyment of myself and others."

Rodney will be joining our Inspired Entrepreneur’s panel where he’ll talk about what it’s really like to start a business while juggling a full-time job, why you should never burn your bridges with your current employer, and tips for anyone who need to nurture their dream on the side. You can view Rodney’s photos at RodneyWashington.com

Linda Locke

When you talk to Linda Locke, you get the feeling that you’ve met a true Renaissance soul – and serial entrepreneur. "Even when I’ve had a job," she says, "I always had a business on the side. I’ve just followed my interests and the businesses evolved out of that. "

By her own admission, she is a frustrated teacher. "I really love encouraging people," she says. Although training is one of the ways she makes a living, Linda has channeled her energies into a series of entrepreneurial activities that all provide encouragement in their own way. One of those businesses is a successful Internet company called Templates2Go which markets a variety of tools to help others create professional looking Web sites. You’ll also find a collection of business-building articles on her site, many written by Linda.

In fact, Linda has always made part of her living by writing and editing. She published a local newsletter called Theater Scene which reviewed and promoted area productions. "I love the theater and this was a great opportunity for me to see lots of plays," she says. A second newsletter called MLM Women appears online, along with her other sites which include Moms in Business Blog, LearnatLast.com and her newest creation MidlifeWriter.com.

Obviously, this energetic woman is someone who can teach us a lot about how to turn our passions into profits. Linda will share the story of how she spotted the opportunity for Midlife Writer when she joins our panel in Ventura.

Madison and Northampton Workshops

You’ll be hearing soon about some of the incredible entrepreneurs we’ve signed up to speak at the Madison, Wisconsin (July 14-15) and Northampton, Massachusetts (August 11-12) workshops. As a sneak preview though I can tell you that the list includes a woman who runs her own hot air balloon company, a magician who made his corporate job disappear by striking out on his own, and a woman who found a way to combine her love of event planning and dogs into a viable business.

To learn more about Work at What You Love or to take advantage of the Special Early Registration discounted price and save $50 click here or visit ChangingCourse.com/workshop.htm
 

Rowing harder doesn’t help if the boat is headed in the wrong direction. ~ Kenichi Ohmae

Upcoming Workshops & Teleclasses

If what you are doing is not moving you toward your goals, then it's moving you away from your goals. ~ Brian Tracy

View From the
Other Side

"I’m probably happier and more relaxed now than I have been in years."

~ Ronald Sheade, former vice president and general counsel at a Fortune 1,000 company who left to teach eight-grade science in a suburb of Chicago

Resources for A Change