For the longest time, I have dreamed to one day share a cup of tea with Oprah Winfrey. Oprah has been a constant force in my life for as long as I can remember. When my son Kyle was born in 1997, I watched Oprah’s “Remembering Your Spirit” segments during the 4 o’clock hour as my son napped dreamily in my arms. While I don’t remember many of the specific messages she shared during my post partum, sleep deprived state as a new mom, I do remember setting the intention to live a life of which I could be proud.
Since then, I’ve made some progress.
- Together with my husband Steve, we’ve helped our son grow into a remarkable, smart, empathetic, 11-year-old.
- Steve and I have navigated 21 years of marriage and still like and love each other.
- I’ve helped my clients achieve greater visibility and business success through my role as a publicist. In my work, I support powerful, inspired women who follow their passions to do great work in the world. My niche is the “comfort and joy” space because working with clients who offer premium chocolate, hot tubs, affirmation blankets, and other warm and cozy items that bring smiles just suits me. And every client has what it takes to one day earn Oprah’s attention.
- I’ve coached over 100 small business owners on how to earn their own publicity at my Publici-Tea™ Workshops, and many are having fabulous successes in the media every day.
- I’ve given time to a few causes that touch my heart.
On October 1, 2008 I attended the Nellie Cashman Women Business Owner of the Year Gala and marveled at the success of the finalists who were evaluated by their financial skill, risk taking, leadership, and contributions to community. I left the event with nagging feeling that there was still more for me to do.
During a presentation I gave a week prior to a group of women business owners, I was struck by the universal desire each expressed to sell more of their products, services and ideas and set themselves apart in influential and lasting ways from their competition. It caught my attention in a big way when the audience of 100+ women revealed that none had enough money to hire the help they need to get the job done.
I was immediately inspired to create a gift item that would answer the call at a price point that just about every business owner can afford. By combining some of the things I love the most – such as tea, Seattle Chocolates, and Biscot-Tea™ — with practical DIY publicity information products I created with the intent to empower others to unleash the power of free publicity to build their own buzz and support their Prosperi-Tea, Publici-Tea™-to-Go was born. I wrapped this bundle in its own sassy hot pink tote box and asked an important question.
How could I turn this item into something I could be really proud of that would contribute to others’ success and do something more that would be bigger than selling more services and stuff?
As it turned out, one of my clients asked me to investigate non-profit organizations to benefit from the company’s generous fund raising efforts. I spent some time reviewing the 
good work of the Northwest Hope and Healing Foundation. This organization generously provides healing baskets that are abundantly filled with “comfort and joy” items to nurture women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. The organization also provides essential services – such as grocery shopping, childcare, and transportation – for families coping with breast cancer treatment and recovery.
Watching the organization’s video, I was touched as I listened to the courageous stories of women who were supported and encouraged during their most trying times by the kindness of Northwest Hope and Healing Foundation’s good work.
Quite by coincidence — or perhaps it was serendipity — I met Christine Smith, the organization’s founder, in the locker room of a local gym just about the time I launched my public relations agency in 2001. Her toddler son had taken her prosthetic breast from her gym bag and was running around the locker room with that item well in hand. I ran after the toddler and retrieved it, returning it safely to its owner. After laughing at the absurdity of the situation until we cried, Christine and I sat and talked for a while. As a breast cancer survivor in her early 30’s, Christine told me about the foundation she launched to nurture others as she had been helped by her own family, friends, and neighbors during her time of treatment and recovery. I shared her story with the local media to bring more attention and support to her cause.
In the intervening years, when friends, family members, or neighbors received a breast cancer diagnosis, I always thought to ask for a Northwest Hope and Healing basket to be delivered to their door to deliver comfort and joy when it was needed the most.
In 2002, I had my own breast cancer scare. A suspicious mammogram led to anxious moments, waiting, wondering, and then surgery. The doctors found abnormal cells. My doctors cautioned that these cells could one day turn into breast cancer. Needless to say, every mammogram appointment gives me reason for pause and concern. Breast cancer is an issue that is deeply personal for me and one that I’d like to do something about for me and for women everywhere.
This brings me back to doing something of which I can be proud, contributing to others’ success, and doing something bigger than selling more services or stuff.
Last Sunday, October 5, I connected with another woman – Pamela Ridgway, a Publici-Tea™ graduate and a breast cancer survivor – in the locker room of another local gym. I told her about the Publici-Tea™-to-Go gift I created and wrapped in a hot pink box. She immediately said, “Make it a benefit for breast cancer.” What a brilliant idea!
Today, I am proud to announce my own cause-related initiative that will benefit the Northwest Hope and Healing Foundation — just in time to celebrate Breast Cancer Awareness Month. I promise to donate 10% of the net profits that flow from Publici-Tea™-To-Go gift sales to this worthy cause.
Publici-Tea™-to-Go supports others success by offering tips, tools, stories and mostly free resources to empower DIY publicity success, and the information can be enjoyed in the time it takes to enjoy a really good cup of tea without leaving home or the office.
Affordably priced, this bundle of “comfort and joy” addresses different and equally important needs deeply felt by women business owners who are starting, running, and growing their businesses.
- They want to get seen, heard, and celebrated in the media for their winning ways.
- They want to deploy influential and lasting ways to differentiate how they serve from their competition.
- And, they want to do so at a price they can afford.
When I started my business in 2001, I wanted to earn enough money to buy better groceries. Building on many years as a marketing specialist in the fast food industry, much of my focus since then has been helping people get what they need in the media in short order so they can get fast on their way to success.
Publici-Tea™-to-Go is a new way to deliver those benefits to those who are thirsty to earn quality media attention in a hurry without having to leave their home or office. Those who get into action by applying the information within will most surely earn more money to buy better groceries – and so much more.
It’s Time to Dream a Bigger Dream. Won’t You Join Me?
No matter the demands we face in our lives and work, there is nothing quite as comforting as sipping a cup of tea as we ponder what is ahead. And, sometimes, we have full circle moments when we just know – like you know a good melon – that we are on the right path to make the kind of difference only we can make. I know this is my moment to make that difference for all the sisters, mothers, aunts, and daughters – and the brothers, fathers, uncles and sons who love them. The Publici-Tea™-to-Go gifts are the vehicle to make it happen.
A while back, I saw Oprah interview a guest who was moved to tears to be living her dream of sitting beside Oprah, sharing her story with the world. Oprah took her by the hand and said, “And now it is time to dream a bigger dream.”
The Publici-Tea™-to-Go gift bundle to benefit women business owners and those newly diagnosed with breast cancer – and the men who love them –is how my dream to make a difference is taking shape today. Whether or not I ever get to share a cup of tea with Oprah, I know in my heart that I am en route to a much bigger dream that has the potential to make a lasting difference.
Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
- I want women business owners everywhere to get seen, heard, and celebrated for their winning ways in the media so they can do more of what they love and get on with their lives without spending a fortune or spinning their wheels.
- I want to spread comfort and joy to others in a way that makes a personal impact for business owners and breast cancer survivors when it is deeply needed.
Publici-Tea™-to-Go is the vehicle to pave the way for both goals to become reality.
The first shipment of 100 Publici-Tea™ gifts will be ready to deliver in early November, and I promise to ramp up production as fast as I can to accommodate demand for more. And, everyone who makes a purchase will also receive three high value bonus gifts that they will receive by immediate digital download that make it easy and convenient to get into DIY publicity action while they wait for their Publici-Tea™-TO-GO gift to arrive.
Those bonuses include:
- The “How to Pitch an Article the Media Can’t Resist” special bonus report
- An engaging, hour-long audio file that explains in simple terms how to get known as an expert in your field
- The Get Media Savvy eGuide to Promoting Your Products, Services, and Ideas Around the World
Won’t you be among the first to place your order today? I’d be honored and proud to welcome your purchases. Thank you in advance for your support and for the difference to be made for women and the men who love them everywhere. By the way, I know this blog post is well beyond the standard length. Thank you for reading all the way to the end. This initiative is important to me, and it is wonderful to have a blog through which I can share my message and be heard.
