"Starve Your Fear By Feeding Your Faith" Heather Thomson

1. Heather mentioned that she “starves her fears by feeding her faith” and it is not that we will never feel fear, but what does it take so that we can do “it” afraid. I often reflect on what it takes to FEAR – Face Everything And Rise instead of FEAR – Forget Everything And Run. Is there something you have been putting off for the fear that is will not go as planned, go perfectly or perhaps even go better than you could imagine? – as that brings up a whole other level of fear. Think about one step you could take to help move you closer to being able to feel your fear and do it anyway.

2. Heather shared her thoughts on the adversity advantage and I do believe that it is not what happened to us that is the story – but how we react to what happens to us that will enable us to soar and shine. We all have things in our life that we wish had gone differently. Take a moment to reflect back lightly on a challenging time. Did it make you better or bitter? Do you view yourself as a victim or victorious? It is not always easy to see the good, and there is nothing wrong in taking the time to grieve and heal – and then it is important to release the negatives of your past so that you can cement and build your positive future.

3. A Masters In Heart & Hustle. Heather shared her unconventional backstory to success. Her Masters came from working in the fashion world instead of being in school. She talked about getting a foot in the door and the importance of constantly being open to learning. I often talk with people who feel that they don’t have “enough” credentials behind them to go for their dreams, and this is something I struggled with for many years. If you knew that you only needed to know a little more information than the people you want to inspire and motivate – would you already be out in the world sharing your message?

4. Heather is a big advocate of mentorship and talked about the importance of helping others rise as we travel our own path to success. Is there someone that you could reach out to mentor under? Someone who is already doing what it is you are wanting to do? Can you trade your time their information? Now look back and is there someone you could mentor? Someone who could help you with their time in trade for you sharing your tips and strategies for success?

5. Heather talked about the importance of knowing our light and being able to shine brightly and also how it sometimes will serve the work we are doing to allow those around you to take center stage. Technology is reducing our ability to being able to read a room and recognize what it needs. Emotional Intelligence is defined as the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. – EQ or emotional intelligence is just like a muscle, you have to use it or you lose it. Unfortunately, as we are all behind our screens so much it is something we can all use to cultivate and strengthen. Notice the next time you walk into a meeting, a party or just meet someone for the first time. Can you listen more than you talk and can you bring into the room what it is that people are hoping to find?

“Think About What You Love And Move Towards That” Heather Thompson

In this conversation, Heather shares both her highlight reel and more interestingly her backstory about the hard work and hustle that it took as she climbed the mountain of success. Not content to sit on her celebrity status that she found through her time on the hit reality show, The Real Housewives Of New York, Heather recently took her success all the way to the top of the mountains of Nepal, to help raise money and awareness for the underserved in that community.

We begin the show by talking about how Heather engineered her own, “school of design” through mentorship, hard work and her ability to turn every opportunity into street credibility within the fashion industry. Raised by a mother who encouraged her to follow her passion, Heather climbed her way up the ladder through hard work and creativity, to eventually become the founder of her own, very successful line of fashion wear.

Heather shares what it took to enable her to do it “afraid.” She talks about the fact that she never sought overnight success, but rather a foot in the door that would allow her, along with patience and persistence to succeed and soar.

Heather shares that her drive and ambition are also balanced by her desire to help those around her also succeed. We talk about the importance of recognizing our light and unique talents that we bring to the table, along with the power of collaboration and especially the importance of mentorship.

We talk about the fear of failure and it was refreshing to hear Heathers perspective on this topic. While we all have fears, Heather shares that she "starves her fears by feeding her faith." She goes on to say that her failures do not define her but rather they mold her into the strong dynamic person that she is meant to be. She talks about the importance of creating a resilient mindset that will allow you to embrace the good the bad and the in between.

We talk about Heather being an “everybody-ist” and she believes that to be able to create change in this world, it is important to create a diverse and dynamic table where many different people and personalities are invited.  She talks about the importance of learning the skill of reading a room to be able to get an emotional pulse at every meeting. This is the way you are to able to create a team where everyone can shine and succeed.

Heather talks about ‘the adversity advantage” and how often our worst times can be the catalyst moments for the greatness to appear. She also talks about the importance of recognizing the times when we may also need to sit in the dark times for a while and allow ourselves to dig deep to see what is really under the fear or negative emotions.

Shifting gears we touch on her time in the world of reality TV when she was a fan favorite on The Real Housewives Of NYC. She shares her most unexpected lessons from her time in front of the camera and how she has leveraged her “fame” to raise awareness for her charities.

Just last week Heather completed her climb to Mera Peak in Nepal. This 21,246 feet climb is one that would challenge any of us, but in true Heather fashion, she completed the challenge with heart.

Back down off the mountain, Heather continues to raise awareness for the many who are underserved. To find out where you can support Heather and find out more about the orphanage in Nepal click here:

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Heather Thomson envisions the goals that she wants to achieve and then does whatever it takes to make them happen. Instead of focusing on critics or naysayers, she focuses on believing in herself and using her immense work-ethic, strong self-discipline and determination. Heather says, “When you go through hardships and decide not to give up, that is strength”. It is from this experience that Thomson has garnered 25+ years of fashion experience under her belt, including serving as Design Director for the Sean “Diddy” Combs line, Sean John, and Co-Creative Director alongside Beyoncé Knowles and Jennifer Lopez to launch and develop their respective labels. In 2008, Heather founded her innovative and fashion-forward collection, Yummie by Heather Thomson which changed the shapewear and lifestyle game for women.

To many, Heather is an adored reality star that got her claim to fame from her 3 years on the hit Bravo reality series, The Real Housewives of New York City, showcasing her life as a married fashion executive, international business professional, and mother of two.

"Bring Value And Interest To All Your Relationships"

David Burkus

1. David talked about the importance of bringing value to our relationships, and I know for me, especially when it comes to meeting new people and expanding my existing network, I can often feel intimidated. If you feel the same way, I can guarantee you that you have so much to offer in terms of your strengths and skillsets. However often times we are only good at noticing our weaknesses. If you are stumped as to what you bring to the table I encourage you to go over to viacharacter.org and do their quick strength assessment. VIA stands for virtues in action, and this quick 20-minute session will reveal to you all the amazing things that you bring to the world.
2. David invites us to reframe the idea that a network is not something we build but rather something we exist within - take a moment and think about your circle of friends and circle of influence. How strong is your inner network? Do you contribute to its vitality and growth? Is there something that you could do to deepen your level of contribution?
3. David talked about the importance of coming into each conversation with interest and I also think curiosity. The next time that you feel nervous about meeting someone, can you reframe your nerves into excitement? See the meeting or dinner as an opportunity to bring something new to the table, and to walk away having learned something new?
4. David talks about Social Capital and the value that comes from being in a community that has a strong level of trust – he also talks about the social capital that comes from us accumulating capital by being surrounded by a strong network. He encourages us to become the gardener and to tend to our network and this, in turn, allows us to bring great value into our network. What is one thing you can do this weekend to tend to your community? By being the connector, the gardener, and the nurturer, you will help both yourself and your connections flourish and thrive.
5. We talk about the challenge that we all have in the cocktail party situation and David gave us his example of how he opens up the conversation with an open-ended question – one that cannot be answered with a yes or a no. Can you come up with two or three new questions that you can ask when you feel as though the energy is low and that you can use when you have to do the awkward thing of introducing yourself? A question that shines your light on the person you are talking to and creates a pathway and opportunity to learn, to engage and to meet someone new while also having fun?

"Bring Value And Tend To Your Community" David Burkus

Today David Burkus releases his new book Friend Of A Friend, Understanding The Hidden Networks That Can Transform Your Life And Career. In this conversation, we talk about the word networking: the good, the bad and the in between. David shares his thoughts on how to bring value to your community and how to be the person who is the gardener that tends to your relationships (network) with interest and enthusiasm. I talk about the idea that often people believe they don’t have enough to offer to be worthy of showing up and deserving a seat at the table – and in turn being a part of the network - David shares his thoughts on how we all have so much to offer and that it is a subtle shift in our thinking that can help us overcome this internal barrier. David shares his unique perspective that we exist within a network versus it being something we own.

We wrap up the conversation talking about the dread of networking at social events and how we can make it more enjoyable for ourselves when we create conversations that are meaningful. It is when we bring a sense of curiosity and interest to all of our interactions that the magic can appear.

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David Burkus is a best-selling author, a sought after speaker, and business school professor. In 2017, he was named as one of the world’s top business thought leaders by Thinkers50

His forthcoming book, Friend of a Friend, offers readers a new perspective on how to grow their networks and build key connections—one based on the science of human behavior, not rote networking advice. He is also the author of Under New Management and The Myths of Creativity. David is a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review and his work has been featured in Fast Company, the Financial Times, Inc magazine, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, and CBS This Morning.

David’s innovative views on leadership have earned him invitations to speak to leaders from a variety of organizations. He’s delivered keynote speeches and workshops for Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Google, and Stryker and governmental and military leaders at the U.S. Naval Academy and Naval Postgraduate School. His TED talk has been viewed over 1.8 million times.

When he’s not speaking or writing, David is in the classroom. He is associate professor of leadership and innovation at Oral Roberts University where he was recently named one of the nation’s “Top 40 Under 40 Professors Who Inspire.”