Q: When did you realize your big WHY?
A: When I turned 40, I was at a high point in a way and low point in another way. I had reached my professional and financial goals I set when I turned 30, thinking at the time they were impossible. But I was losing interest in my current career; it was no longer challenging or fulfilling. It was time to set a goal to hit by my 50th. I had spent the last 3 years steadily making healthy changes to my lifestyle. I started losing weight and getting in shape. At 40, I was in the best shape of my life. I had energy, confidence, and self awareness. It provided a springboard for growth in all areas of my life. Being fit had given me so much, I decided I had to share that with other women. I decided to share my passion for exercise and nutrition and become a life coach specializing in health & fitness. I enrolled at the International Coach Academy and became a coach. I was searching so hard for my ‘calling’ and it was right there under my nose.

Q: How and when did you make living your WHY a reality?
A: I live a healthy lifestyle one day, week, month and year at a time. The battle for a healthy lifestyle is won in the little moments when you have to do the right thing when no one else is watching and may never know your victory. You’ll know. Small changes add up to big results over time. It’s not a perfect road; it’s a slow, ever-evolving road. It has so much to teach you about you. I launched The Personal Evolution Company to help women through their journey and discover their why. To transition to a healthy lifestyle, it takes commitment. Looking good for one-time event isn’t going to cut it. There must be a bigger reason for the changes to stick. There is a lot of information available about how to exercise, what to eat, and even a lot of compelling health reasons why you should. NONE of it matters until it gets personal. People have to find their WHY to really make the change to a healthy lifestyle.

Q: What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned so far about living your WHY?
A: The most important lesson I’ve learned so far about living a healthy lifestyle is about promises. First, set goals that are totally within your control. You can’t control how much weight you lose this week or where it comes from. You CAN control what you eat, your portions and your exercise regimen. When you set your goal for the week, say it is to walk 3 times this week for 30 minutes at your minimum target heart rate, then you are making a promise to yourself. KEEP your promise. Only commit to the things you are willing to do. Start small if you have to. Once you make the promise to yourself, keep it.

Q: What is coming up next for you?
A: My next project is to widen my reach and create a community of support for women on their journey to being healthy and fit. I want to launch a national organization for women that provides inspiration, education, self awareness, motivation, and tips.

Q: Name some authors or books that have influenced your life in a positive way.
A: The most influential book in my life is Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I read this book (several times) early on in my professional career. It helped me grow up. The first habit alone was worth it’s weight in gold: Be Proactive.

Other authors I like are Tom Peters and Timothy Ferriss. A great book about eating healthy is anything in Tosca Rena’s Eat Clean series. Her recipes are fabulous, all whole foods and they taste great.

Q: What excites or ignites your soul?
A: It’s a total rush to see someone get excited about something he or she wants to do. I love positive energy. There’s no better feeling than accomplishing a goal or a milestone…unless you’re sharing someone else’s moment. Of course, I also get excited over a great golf shot.

Bio: Stacie Cole is an expert at creating a healthy lifestyle. She is a former gym owner, personal trainer and nutrition counselor. In her late 30′s she renewed her commitment to eating better and exercising. Losing over 40 pounds, she shed her size 14 clothes for a new wardrobe of 4′s. Stacie decided to center her professional life on her passion for a healthy lifestyle and launched The Personal Evolution Company (www.PersonalEvolutionCo.com) to help women live in the healthy, fit body they deserve. She is married to the man of her dreams, Jason. They live in Florence, S.C. with their Schnoodle, Putter, and Great Dane, Luna. Their goal is to move to the St. George, Utah area soon where they can hike the red rock canyons often.

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About this section: Each week we feature one of our Smart Women Book SeriesTM authors. If you would like to be featured in an upcoming newsletter and on our blog permanently, click here: http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/2011/12/become-an-author/

Would you like to personally mentor with me in February?

Good Monday Morning,

It’s Sheri, and I’m writing all my Smart Women friends today since many of you have expressed interest in receiving personal mentoring from me, so please read on…

Once or twice a year, I offer a two-day mastermind meeting for 10 women. It is a transformational, two-day, closed-door session for 10 select women entrepreneurs who need to receive honest and experienced objective insight on what the next best strategies are to take their businesses to the next level, much faster.

You may or may not know that I’ve coached hundreds of women over the last decade from start-up to successful 6 and 7 figure businesses.  Although, I no longer offer year long programs, I still open up my office once or twice a year to help women create and grow businesses that change the world.  It is my big WHY.
Well, the universe has been up to magic again and due to a cancellation, we have opened up another spot for a lucky Smart Woman!

So, that means we have a spot just for you.

Please join me for two powerful days of high-level input on your individual business, February 21st & 22nd here in San Antonio, Texas.

In addition to our two live days together, you’ll also get private pre- and post-meeting calls with me to discuss your business in-depth, one-on-one.

During these calls, I will assess your current Smart foundation or lack thereof, and determine your specific Smart Plan to help you grow fast.

If you feel this could be exactly what YOU need at this time, then send an application in right away, you can download it here:

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/coachsulting

I think you owe yourself this opportunity as well do the many you will serve in the future.

I look forward to meeting YOU soon!

Supporting You One Smart Step At A Time,

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

P.S. This Business Stimulus two-day mastermind will most likely be the final session I host this year. We have already filled most of the spots and have just one left due to last minute cancellation.  Did the universe open up the space for you? If so, grab an application today at http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/coachsulting

Dear Smart Women,

Welcome to all the new Smart Women Members this week! So happy to have you as part of the Smart Women Family.

And a big welcome to 2012! This is our first newsletter of the year and I personally feel like I am about to burst with joy over the possibilities for all Smart Women.

This is the year of transition for many and as a company, we are committed to helping you move through all change and grow.

Speaking of transitions, would you like to…

Become an Author In Our Next Book!

Title and Mission of Book

The Smart Women’s Institute^TM is proud to open up the opportunity for you to participate and be an author in the 5th book in the Smart Women SERIES^TM.

Our first 2012 book title Smart Women Embrace Transitions – How to Lean Into Change with Your Body, Mind, and Soul will be a compilation of tips, advice, inspiration, and stories from women who have “thrived” through transitions.

The mission of our next book is empower women to embrace change as a catalyst for growth and to share how this is especially important moving into 2012.

Your stories regarding transitions such as career changes, marriages, child birth(s), adoptions, deaths, health changes, etc. are encouraged.

LEARN MORE NOW at: http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/2011/12/become-an-author/

Have You Officially Joined the Smart Women’s InstituteTM Yet? It’s free!

If you you haven’t officially joined the Smart Women’s InstituteTM yet, now is the time. Click HERE to join now and get a lot of cool SMART TOOLS. And remember, if you post the membership seal on your website and/or at Facebook, and email us, we’ll send you a free PDF copy of our latest book, Smart Women Live Their Why!

Take Care!

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

This “intro” was taken from our latest newsletter. Not getting our newsletter? Sign up by clicking on “Grab Your Smart Tools Now” at the TOP of this page and you’ll also receive a free membership!

Smart Biz Tip of the Day

Manifest a Brand New Reality Through Journaling

Dear Smart Women,

Some of you may know that for ten years I was the CEO of the National Association of Women Writers before reinventing the company into the Smart Women’s Institute™.  For years I was happily down in the rabbit hole serving a target market of primarily women writers.

That journey was just what I needed in my thirties as I learned how not to be a super mom anymore to my children (thank goodness!) and I learned how to create an extremely profitable company that didn’t require I work more than 25 to 30 hours a week on average.

The reason the writing journey was so important for me and I believe it is for you too (even if you don’t think of yourself as a writer) is that the physical act of putting words on paper is healing and it is the best tool I know of to manifest a new reality with in the very near future.  Along my journey of changing into a new person over and over again, you can bet I was journaling as I figured it all out.  Somedays I was letting the universe know what I intended to do and other days, I was mapping out entire plans and the steps to make it happen.  And somedays, I needed to vent about what wasn’t working in my life. Remember frustration leads to change.

To help you commit to the journaling process, I offer a few tips.  Enjoy!

Just write, don’t think.

Make a list, write your intentions for the day, week, or year.  Or just write something you are grateful for. Commit to a daily practice and I promise you that journaling is one of the best tools I know of to support the process of cultivating a higher self.  Of course once you are committed, “think” all you want.  But in the beginning while trying to create the habit, I find it is best for people not to think too much.

You are brilliant.

The more physical space you give yourself to express your real thoughts and feelings, the more wisdom will emerge.  I call this tapping your brilliance… the more you do it, the easier your newly discovered brilliance begins to flow.

Speak your truth.

If you are not honest with yourself in the physical realm on paper, the universe knows you are not ready to move forward and grow.  You will uplevel when you are ready to learn from yourself and the universe.

Practice makes juicy.

Perfection = Poison  Honestly, I wish the word “perfection” didn’t exist so we wouldn’t even know what it meant.  Women especially would be much better off!  My suggestions for a truly enriching  journaling experience are to develop a ritual, show up for yourself and connect deeply to the voice inside you as often as possible.   Five minutes or five words can be just as powerful as five pages.

Supporting You – One Smart Step At A Time,

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

PS

Want to connect with other Smart Women?

Join the Smart Women’s Institute today for free at http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/free-stuff

Want To Use This Article In Your Ezine or Website?

You have my permission, as long as you include this complete blurb with it:

Sheri McConnell is the CEO of the Smart Women’s Institute™ (formerly the National Assn of Women Writers). You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and become a member absolutely FREE at http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/free-stuff

Smart Biz Tip of the Day

How to Write A Bio or Resource Box

One of the most common questions we receive is how to write a bio or resource box.  A bio is used in many places professionally.  On website “media” and “about us” pages, as well as in books and at the end of articles (often called a “resource box” when at the end of an article).  It is also used for hosts to introduce you when you speak live or virtually.

The Power of a Bio

Next to the name of the company and the tagline, I think the bio is one of the most powerful tools you have to position yourself.  The 2 or 3 paragraphs is very powerful real estate on your website and should be valued as such.

Here is a copy of my bio below and then all of the tips you can use to write your own.  Have fun and remember to rewrite your bio once a year at least and most importantly to always be proud of yourself no matter where you are at in your journey.

Sheri McConnell is a bestselling author, inspirational speaker, mother of four, and the CEO of the Smart Women’s Institute™, a global company with over 50,000 women subscribers and members. The Smart Women’s Institute™ focuses on empowering women to be healthy, wealthy, and smart!

Sheri has built and sold multiple networks (associations and institutes) over the last decade and is known as one of the leaders on and off the Internet today when it comes to creating equitable membership-based businesses.  Sheri has also consulted with hundreds of newly created networks across the Internet and considers herself lucky to have helped birthed so many powerful and successful brands over the last decade.

Sheri speaks to worldwide audiences inspiring them with her story of survival and triumph.  She was the only child of a mentally ill and often homeless mother and left at age 17 to work her way through two college degrees and eventually building a multiple seven figure business while raising four children. She is also the author of the Smart Women Book Series™, including Smart Women Create Membership-Based Businesses, The Smart Women’s Book of Powerful Quotations, and Smart Women Know Their Why.

Sheri has appeared on CBS, NBC, FOX, San Antonio Living, NPR, and featured in many business publications including “Women Entrepreneur” as well as achieving the status of being the only female business author in the top 25 on Amazon.com.  Visit her at http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com and become a Smart Women Member today absolutely free!

The Positioning

A bio should be short and paint an overview of your career so far.  Its main purpose is to position you well so that people know that you can help them and so they also know you are a person they need to stay connected with.

Here are a number of tips and examples from my bio.  Pay attention to the italics as it shows what part of the sentence applies to that tip. You should use at least three of the tips and feel free to use all of them if you want.  It is possible to use more than one of the tips in one sentence in your bio.

1. Share Your Personal Story

Sheri speaks to worldwide audiences inspiring them with her story of survival and triumph.  She was the only child of a mentally ill and often homeless mother and left at age 17 to work her way through two college degrees and eventually building a multiple seven figure business while raising four children.

2. Share Your Position

Sheri McConnell is a bestselling author, inspirational speaker, mother of four, and the CEO of the Smart Women’s Institute™, a global company with over 50,000 women subscribers and members.

3. Share Your Philosophy

The Smart Women’s Institute™ focuses on empowering women to be healthy, wealthy, and smart!

4. Share Your Popularity with Them

Sheri has appeared on CBS, NBC, FOX, San Antonio Living, NPR, and featured in many business publications including “Women Entrepreneur” as well as achieving the status of being the only female business author in the top 25 on Amazon.com.

5. Share Your Partnerships or Past Clients with Them

Sheri has also consulted with hundreds of newly created networks across the Internet and considers herself lucky to have helped birthed so many powerful and successful brands over the last decade.

6. Share the Progress You’ve Made

Sheri has built and sold multiple networks (associations and institutes) over the last decade and is known as one of the leaders on and off the Internet today when it comes to creating equitable membership-based businesses.

7. Share the Press You’ve Earned

Sheri has appeared on CBS, NBC, FOX, San Antonio Living, NPR, and featured in many business publications including “Women Entrepreneur” as well as achieving the status of being the only female business author in the top 25 on Amazon.com.

8. Share Your Call to Action

Visit her at http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com and become a Smart Women Member today absolutely free!

Supporting You – One Smart Step At A Time,

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

PS

Want to connect with other Smart Women?

Join the Smart Women’s Institute today for free at

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/free-stuff

Smart Holidays Savings Starts Today!

…and lasts until the end of the year.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Our annual holiday sale has officially started.

Head on over to our Smart Store now and get 35% off everything — it’s our holiday gift to you!

Be sure to enter coupon code “HOLIDAY12″ at checkout to grab your 35% discount.

Remember this sale lasts until December 31st only,
so do NOT miss your chance to learn, leverage, and lead!

Shop the Smart Store Now!

WHAT’S NEW?

We’ve been busy revamping and updating
our most popular products over the last few months.

We also converted them to downloadable versions
for you and now they are more affordable than ever!

Shop the Smart Store Now!

Here are the products you have to choose from:

• Smart Women’s Create Your Own Network Today!
  
• Smart Women’s Marketing 2.0 – Everything You Need To Know To Grow
• Smart Women’s Guide to Publishing a Book that Build Your Business Fast and Easy
• Smart Women’s Guide to Publishing Infoproducts Fast and Easy

Dear Smart Women,

Welcome to all the new Smart Women Members this week! So happy to have you as part of the Smart Women Family.

And a special welcome to our latest Smart Women Members that I met in Atlanta last week. I had such a blast this last week with my brilliant friend Christine Kane (See her below when she accepted the Smart Woman of the Year award earlier this year). I spoke at Christine’s UpLevel Live event on the Infinity Business Model and the attendees gave me lots of collaborative feedback on this new business/life paradigm. Very juicy and exciting times we live in.

Become an Author In Our Next Book!

Title and Mission of Book

The Smart Women’s InstituteTM is proud to open up the opportunity for you to participate and be an author in the 5th book in the Smart Women SERIESTM.

Our first 2012 book title Smart Women Embrace Transitions – How to Lean Into 2012 with Your Body, Mind, and Soul will be a compilation of tips, advice, inspiration, and stories from women who have “thrived” through transitions.

The mission of our next book is empower women to embrace change as a catalyst for growth and to share how this is especially important moving into 2012.

Your stories regarding transitions such as career changes, marriages, child birth(s), adoptions, deaths, health changes, etc. are encouraged.

Special attention given to submissions that integrate 2012 specific advice into the story or after the story.

LEARN MORE NOW at: http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/2011/12/become-an-author/

Have You Officially Joined the Smart Women’s InstituteTM Yet? It’s free!

If you you haven’t officially joined the Smart Women’s InstituteTM yet, now is the time. Click HERE to join now and get a lot of cool SMART TOOLS. And remember, if you post the membership seal on your website and/or at Facebook, and email us, we’ll send you a free PDF copy of our latest book, Smart Women Live Their Why!

Take Care!

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

This “intro” was taken from our latest newsletter. Not getting our newsletter? Sign up by clicking on “Grab Your Smart Tools Now” at the TOP of this page and you’ll also receive a free membership!

Smart Biz Tip of the Day

Dear Smart Women,

As many of you know, I think having and growing a business is much like having having and growing a baby.

(Read: Honey, I am Having A Business)

After speaking to the local CBS station this week, I thought of another comparison as it relates to Social Networking on the way home.

Just as a child or any living being must have “air” to thrive…

Social Networking is healthy for your business.  The “people” are the oxygen to your business.

So if you are having trouble committing an hour a day to the social networks on behalf of your business, think of it as a life and death matter for your business.

Because trust me, it is.

Need help setting up your WordPress Blog, or Facebook and Twitter accounts?

Contact our SMARTWOMENTEAM.COM division at http://www.smartwomenteam.com and one of our team members can have you up and running in a very short time frame.

Supporting You – One Smart Step At A Time

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

PS

Want to connect with other Smart Women?

Join the Smart Women’s Institute today for free at

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/free-stuff

Smart Health Tip of the Day

Dear Smart Women,

We tend to be an all or nothing kind of culture.  We either take care of ourselves or we don’t.  Overboard or no effort at all.  You get the idea.

I wanted to share this video above to help all my left and right brained smart women out there get back on track.  With just 30 minutes a day of just about any type of full body movement (like walking!) you will be happier and smarter and shinier!

And if you use time as the excuse, I guarantee you that much of what is on your daily list is there to provide a release.

What do I mean?  I mean the coffee you drink, the favorite show you watch, the shopping you do, the book you read, the Facebook you check… all of it PROVIDES A RELEASE at some level.  You are essentially trying to feed your soul.  When your soul isn’t being fed–feelings and emotions build up that must be released.

I’ve found that exercise feeds my soul on an emotional level as well as a physical level.  Try it.

Pay attention to the “release” you feel each time you allow more air to enter your body and each time you cause the blood to circulate in your body.

I just have one question for you.

“How Will You Use Your 30 Minutes?

Want to connect with other Smart Women like you?

Join the Smart Women’s Institute today for free at

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com/free-stuff

Supporting You – One Smart Step At A Time

Sheri McConnell

Smart Women’s Institute™

http://www.smartwomeninstitute.com

Become an Author In Our Next Book!

Title and Mission of Book

The Smart Women’s Institute^TM is proud to open up the opportunity for you to participate and be an author in the 5th book in the Smart Women SERIES ^TM

Our first 2012 book title Smart Women Embrace Transitions-How to Lean Into 2012 with Your Body, Mind, and Soul will be a compilation of tips, advice, inspiration, and stories from women who have “thrived” through transitions.

The mission of our next book is empower women to embrace change as a catalyst for growth and to share how this is especially important moving into 2012.

Your stories regarding transitions such as career changes, marriages, child birth(s), adoptions, deaths, health changes, etc. are encouraged.

Special attention given to submissions that integrate 2012 specific advice into the story or after the story.

Ways You Can Leverage This Book

Becoming a Smart Woman co-author is the next best thing to authoring your own book and a lot cheaper.  And when it comes to the promotion side of book publishing, being a co-author is a lot better because you have a large company with an established brand behind you as well as 29 other co-authors in the trenches promoting with you.

Co-authors can leverage this book as a marketing tool for years by:

• Sitting on physical and virtual panels together
• Booking media interviews such as TV, radio, and print
• Creating virtual events together
• Taking advantage of the positioning along side very successful women
• Sending to potential clients/friends as a gift
• Using it as a bonus, benefit, or list builder in your current business
• Using it to build your contacts
• And so much more!

Submission Details

- 1500 to 2000 words (usually about 3 to 5 pages)
- Submission deadline is January 15, 2012. (Will extend to January 31st at the latest)

Possible ideas:

• Focus on mind, body, soul techniques for dealing with transitions
• Your stories regarding transitions such as career changes, marriages, child birth(s), adoptions, deaths, health changes, etc. are encouraged
• Special attention given to submissions that integrate 2012 specific advice into the article/story or after the article/story

Feel free to email us with your ideas too!

AND you can use past content as long as you own the copyright to it.

History of the Smart Women SERIES ^TM

The Smart Women SERIES ^TM has a inspiring track record.  Our 2010 book, Smart Women Live Their Why for instance reached No. 11 on Amazon over all at launch and then was the only female authored book in the top 25 books in business.  Sheri McConnell, the managing editor of this years book was the past CEO of the National Association of Women Writers for over 10 years.

The  Smart Women SERIES ^TM has also been

Here are some of the books in the Smart Women SERIES ^TM:

Launch Details

Our latest book is due to be launched in January 2012!

In addition to the initial launch, we will be adding this book to our Smart Women Catalog and website.

And finally as an author, you agree to promote and leverage the book.

• We will provide the solo email and you may add to it to personalize.
• We will have anywhere from 30 to a maximum of 40 authors promoting.

Deadline for Registration Fee

All authors will pay a one time fee of $1097.

Registration fee should be paid ASAP to hold your spot in the book.

Submission deadline is Jan 1, 2012

This fee covers:

• Editing of your submission
• Photo included on cover and bio and photo in book
• 1 free copy shipped to you as soon as book is produced
• Permanent solo feature with photo and website link of you (we will send interview questions to you) on Smart Women Blog and in the Smart Women Newsletter  during the 1st quarter of 2012
• Right to purchase all future copies at cost, exact amount will be between $5 and $10 (Cost is determined by size of book)
• Right to co-promote and participate in future book signings and/or leverage our brand for PR opportunities. See History of Smart Women Series above.

This is truly an amazing opportunity for women like yourself to partner with us and share your brilliance while at the same time using Smart leverage to grow your own business if you have one.

The positioning alone is worth the $1097. And by the way, we do care about quality, so if for any reason should we not be able to accept your submission, you will get a full refund of the author fee.  Final decisions will be made by January 3, 2012.

Secure Your Spot Today In Our Next Book

Before All Slots Are Gone

Click on the button below to pay one time fee of $1097 and secure your spot in our next best seller!