A “Client” Who Became MUCH More…Raising Awareness for Bladder Cancer

 27 Responses »
Feb 282012
 

This is Not a Typical New Horizons 123 Blog Post

There are no business tips… rather this is my sharing with you something that has become very important to me. Below is the what and why…

I received a phone call a month or so ago from the author of a book who was looking for someone to create a video book trailer. Her name is Sylvia Ramsey and she is a survivor of Bladder Cancer and much more  – her life was filled with way too many harsh realities for one person to have to deal with. I read Sylvia’s manuscript prior to creating her video trailer and was totally mesmerized by her strength, courage, sense of humor, and dedication to spending the rest of her life to helping others with Bladder Cancer. Sylvia tells her story in an effort to reach out to those who are diagnosed with Bladder Cancer deal with their circumstance and to raise awareness of this Cancer to the level of other Cancers. Bladder cancer does not have to be a death sentence if diagnosed early.

I became so much in awe of Sylvia. If I had gone through what she has gone through in her life, I would be rocking back and forth in a corner in a fetal position for the rest of my life! It is for this reason, that I have decided to donate my time in helping her help others! Please help us and SHARE with ANYONE AND EVERYONE – you never know who you might be helping.

Raising Awareness of Bladder Cancer by Survivor Sylvia Ramsey

A presentation by Sylvia that I turned into a video to tell her story and share important facts about Bladder Cancer.

Here is the book trailer I created for Sylvia’s Book – worth re-posting!

Traveling a Rocky Road with Love Faith and Guts: Book Trailer by Sylvia Ramsey

Traveling a Rocky Road with Love, Faith, and Guts: Bladder Cancer, COPD, Caregiving, Polio and More has Just been released on Amazon and is now available for sale. Sylvia is donating 100% of the proceeds to The Bladder Cancer Society. You can grab your copy HERE!

Sylvia is also donating the proceeds from her other books ALL to The American Bladder Cancer Society and can be purchased  HERE.

Whatever you can do to help spread the word will be very much appreciated. You don’t have to buy the book, but think how easy it is to simply SHARE the information wherever you can. You never know who you might be helping.

Thank you Sylvia for showing me that with love, faith, and guts, anything is possible!

“Traveling a Rocky Road with Love, Faith and Guts” by Sylvia Ramsey

 36 Responses »
Jan 262012
 

The “Job” of  a Lifetime!

Traveling a Rocky Road with Love, Faith and GutsIt isn’t often in life that we are presented with an opportunity to do something and not only get paid for it, but also be able to get incredible satisfaction and more fulfillment than we ever thought possible. I was fortunate enough to have been given this opportunity just recently.

A few days ago I received an invitation to connect with a woman named Sylvia Ramsey on Linkedin who indicated that we worked together at The American Bladder Cancer Society. Now, I know that my memory is not as good as it used to be but I knew I would remember if I had worked there and I didn’t :) The email right below that one was the explanation. (I really shouldn’t read my emails from the top down anymore LOL). Sylvia wrote a book called “Traveling a Rocky Road with Love, Faith and Guts” (to be published in the very near future) and was looking for someone to create the video trailer for it. Aha, so now it made sense. I reached out to her and she hired me. This is rather interesting in that my Linkedin profile does not indicate that I actually do create videos for inspiration and other more personal messaging. Instead it focuses on business videos, however, that did not stop Sylvia from contacting me. We both find this interesting and she said she really doesn’t know why but she felt compelled to reach out to me.

Lesson number one here is use Linkedin. It is a great professional resource/networking site!

I was able to get a sneak preview of her book and read it in total amazement of how a woman, having gone through tragedy and hardship one after the other, over and over again, could not only be as uplifting and positive as she is, but also has dedicated her life to helping others with bladder cancer. I have met a woman who has truly inspired me and feel honored to have been able to create her book video trailer.

AND, she liked the video so much, she will be sharing my services with her HUGE network of authors who have already talked about needing a video book trailer. How’s that for Karma? :)

Below is her video in – that’s right – you guessed it – a video email! I encourage you to keep a look out for when the book is published. I will be announcing it as I have donated my time and resources to helping Sylvia get her book and message out to those who REALLY need the support offered by The American Bladder Cancer Society. I am sure you will be as moved and inspired as I was when I read her story!

sylvia ramsey

You can see Sylvia’s other books on Amazon HERE! Her website is SylviaRamsey.com  and her blog is HERE!

Where are the Towers?

 6 Responses »
Sep 112011
 

9/11 Tribute“Where Are the Towers?” By Steven Lee — On September 11, 2001, two people rose early and became first responders in the disaster that was quickly to become known as 9/11. Thomas J. Foley, age 32, a distinguished ten year veteran of the NYFD and member of Rescue 3, lost his life as he rushed up the Tower to save others. At his funeral, Mayor Guiliani compared his sacrifice to that of those who lost their lives at Pearl Harbor.

Diana McClure, an EMT-trained visitor from Arizona, rushed down to ‘Ground Zero’ and for days took part in the rescue effort. The images you will see here are hers.

I wrote the song “Where Are the Towers?” ten years ago but never felt it was time to share it. There will never be full closure or healing because all the pain, suffering, and loss endured that day continues in us all but none more keenly than in the lives of the loved ones and survivors.

The film and song you are about to see and hear are dedicated to Thomas J. Foley, Diana McClure, (both friends of mine), the victims of 9/11, their families, and all the first responders who tirelessly searched for survivors.

Thank you Steven Lee for sharing your beautiful music and wonderful tribute!

“Making it” by Helping Others: The Story of A Real Entrepreneur

 3 Responses »
Jul 272011
 

Dani Johnson: A Person to Emulate

successIn a previous post, I wrote about my dad, my hero, who made it to the “top” in business with honesty and integrity: Be Careful Who You Step on – on Your Way Up…

I just came across an article Dani Johnson Offers Her 12 Laws for Creating Wealth — and Keeping It

Dani’s story is very inspiring and points out the importance of how we have choices in our lives that determine our future. Coming out of a very rough childhood and having made some bad choices in her early adult years, Dani went on to enjoy tremendous successes – all the while – helping others. Watch her interview below on The View and read her story – amazing!

Be Careful Who You Step on – on Your Way Up…

 16 Responses »
Jun 232011
 

You Might Just be Reporting to Them on Your Way Down

employeeVariations of this phrase have been around for years. Jokes have been made using the same concept about our children: “Be nice to your kids, they will be choosing your nursing home one day“. The basic principle is the same; BE NICE – period! It is really a very simple concept that stems all the way back to biblical times. You know that “Do Unto Others…” thingy. Well, I really believe that this principle is a good one to follow in all aspects of our lives. I always try to treat others as I would want to be treated. Now of course, there are always exceptions to every rule and there are some people – we all know at least one – who just don’t deserve to be treated as we would want to be treated, so I am not talking about “those” people here.

My dad was a very successful CEO for years and a man that I have always looked up to. He led by example, was loyal to his staff, and admired by all. A long-term employee of his named my dad as his “Personal Hero” in an Interview with PPFC. I witnessed first-hand how people who worked for my dad over the years felt about him when I made him a surprise 80th birthday party two years ago. One man in particular, re-arranged his business travel plans so as not to miss the event. The gentleman who did the interview with PPFC was so excited to be included in this celebration – he arrived camera in tow and became our party photographer taking great shots that I later put into a video (shown below).

Just the other day, my dad mentioned how he realized that he was probably one of the few U.S. executives who had worked for three United Kingdom companies, where their bosses were knighted by the Queen. It is very refreshing to hear a success story from someone I love and admire, who made it to the top keeping his integrity and respecting others along the way. Naturally, he was not a push-over, or else he would not have been successful. He has pointed out to me on several occasions that he had to play hard ball many times and fire people, but that is part of being a successful businessman.

In my opinion, if the business world were run by people like my dad, it would be a much better place than it is today. I have a wonderful role model to emulate – now to just be able to pay my bills :)

Thanks to my dad for showing me the right way to be.

Movie From Dad’s Surprise 80th

“Work” Combined with Passion is not “Work”

 24 Responses »
May 252011
 

Are You Passionate About What You Do?

successIf no, then your work is “work”. If yes, then you, like me, don’t consider what you do “work”. I began realizing how much I really love what I do just recently. I have been too busy “doing” and not thinking about what I have been “doing”.

We all get caught up in the minutia of day-to-day “stuff”, trying to keep up with the latest and greatest, our emails, paying our bills, taking care of our children, being a wife, husband, girl friend, whatever, eat, sleep, and get up and do it all over again. I wrote a post about this cycle called GroundHog Day a while back. What can we do to avoid feeling like we are Bill Murray?

For starters, think about the parts of your job that you enjoy the most. Look for areas in your life where you can find congruency and synergy. In another post When Professional and Personal Align… I wrote about how when what we do in our professional life carries over into our personal lives, we experience a true sense of congruency. The pieces seem to fit together making for an overall pleasant experience.

I love music. It is my passion and my escape from real life. I use music in my professional life for so many things. I use music in the videos I create and in the products I use. Below is a sample of one of the products I use and music that is especially close to my heart – it is my daughter :)

What do you do to make each day a little different than the one before? What do you love about what you do? Please do tell, inquiring minds want to know!

Did You Eat Your Frog This Morning?

 12 Responses »
Jan 092011
 

procrastinationHUH?

Small business owners have very long daily to-do lists. How many of us leave the most difficult or time-consuming task to the end of the day? How many times does that task make it to the next day's to-do list? This is called procrastination – something we all do at least some of the time.

There are many reasons for procrastinating and many reasons to try to avoid it – especially if it is something really important that we need to do.

Here comes the part about the frog……

Brian Tracy has a great video about eating a frog first thing in the morning because more than likely it will be the hardest thing you have on your to-do list for the day and the thing you will most likely procrastinate about and not do. He suggests that rather than procrastinate, get the most difficult thing done FIRST, and this way the rest of your day will be less stressful and more productive. 

What do you think? Do you think it would help you to get the most difficult task done first so that you can be more productive for the rest of the day?

Enjoy his great video by clicking on the image below:

procrastination

When Professional and Personal Align…

 14 Responses »
Nov 302010
 

… It is a Beautiful Thing

HarmoniousWe all have many facets of our personality and wear many hats every day. When what we do in our professional life – especially something we truly enjoy doing – carries over into our personal lives, we experience a true sense of congruency.

In my case, one of the many things I do in business is to create videos for clients. I started creating videos last year when I tackled a HUGE project that kept getting bigger and bigger. I decided to make a "movie" for my dad's 80th birthday as an additional surprise to the party I was planning. It started as a small project and ended up being a 40 minute tribute to his life, starting from his birth in a chronological sequence of life's events, including the birth of his two children and 5 grandchildren. As both the movie and the party were a surprise, it was a comical daily challenge to talk to my mother on the phone about both without him knowing what we were talking about. There is an interesting phenomenon that seems to happen to parents after the father retires. Phone calls become a joint effort – we no longer speak to only one parent at a time – they are both always on the phone! Luckily my dad didn't pick up on the numerous covert conversations – they went right over his head :)

I learned so many really neat things while creating this movie from how to utilize all the functionality of the custom animations in PowerPoint to editing images and music files, to perfecting timings – resulting in a beautiful, musical tribute to a wonderful man that brought tears to the eyes of everyone watching the movie. I included recordings of my sister, my mother, and myself singing as well as inspiring songs and recordings of some of my dad's favorite composers like Cole Porter.

This experience was such a rewarding one for me having taught me some very valuable skills that I was then able to use for my business – in addition to now having a keepsake of my love for my dad and my family.

Fasting forward to the present, my involvement with MyVideoTalk has now enabled me to make this movie available to anyone who wants to see it by including it on my video channel. Because the movie is too long to upload to YouTube, there were many family members and friends who had been unable to attend the party that didn't get a chance to see the movie. We did send them DVD's but for many there were compatibility issues so they never got to see it. My uncle at the time of my dad's party was too ill to attend. We tried many different ways to show it to him – none of them worked. Because the movie included a tribute from him and my aunt to my dad, we wanted so much to have him see it. He has since passed away and when I sent the link to the movie now on MyVideoChannel to my Aunt and her children, we all cried wishing I had had this technology before my uncle died.

I use these video production skills often in my business life having first learned them for personal reasons. Now I am using them again for personal use. Below are two videos I would like to share with you. The first is a movie I made of a song my niece wrote and performed. The second is a movie I made for my daughter's 18th birthday which is today. Alexandra's movie can also be seen on MyVideoChannel. Enjoy :)

Hannah Rosenfarb's "Father"

To Alexandra on her 18th Birthday with Love From Mom

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