Light up your Fears with Dynamite

Hello from the gorgeous Colorado! This place is magnetic to me. I love the people, the scenery, the food, the adventure and the ability to feel crazy connected to God here. Today, we are snowed in with an epic blizzard, which is perfect to give me time here break down two black-diamond topics on the Vlog!

First, I have the coolest guest vlogger with me today: Mya Wiltse! Mya, one of my step daughters (AKA bonus babies!), shares her fear of completing a Black Diamond ski run. This run was her biggest goal of our trip, and she shares her thoughts with me on a chair lift in a way that is refreshing, uplifting and wise-beyond-her-years kind of way.

This year, with my word of the year being SNOW GLOBE, we are back for more snow. This time, staying in Breckenridge, and they received more than 49 inches the last seven days! Colorado is experiencing record breaking avalanche report. All day long yesterday when we were on the slopes, we could hear the rumbling of the dynamite they're deploying to keep everyone safe. And, it made me think about all the areas in our life that could use some explosive disruption. Can you imagine, lighting a stick of dynamite to an area of your life and disrupting it? You would let the the storm rage and know that everyone and things will be safe after just dealing with it.

This vlog, from the balcony of our condo, shares how I lit up a real-life, crippling fear two years ago with the biggest stick of dynamite. The effects were far different than I imagined.

"It made me think about all the areas in our life that could use some explosive disruption. Can you imagine, lighting a stick of dynamite to an area of your life and disrupting it?"

A few years back, I was working through a very scary area of my life with my life coach, Julia Woods. I was experiencing fear, paranoia and a lack of security from a stalker. I wanted to back away and pretend like the issue wasnt there. I wanted to put my head in the sand and wish and hope it would just go away. Instead, Julia and Tray challenged me to face it head on—to put an end to it once and for all. As the court date grew closer to requesting a restraining order, again, my fear was this time screaming at me to walk away - pretend like it wasn't there. I met with my lawyer and he asked me a question I will never forget. I told him I was afraid to see this person in court and I wanted to walk away. He asked, "Why, so he can go do this to another woman instead?" And, in that very moment, I decided to press on. Much like the scheduled avalanches, I lit a stick of dynamite and blew up everything I was afraid of in this scenario.

"Much like the scheduled avalanches, I lit a stick of dynamite and blew up everything I was afraid of in this scenario."

My coach gave me an amazing thing to think about. She said, Brooke your life is much like climbing the mountain. There are days you will take a few steps up the mountain and there are seasons you need to go back to base camp and hunker in for safety. Nonetheless, you must train to withstand the wind. Your life is meant to be lived at the top of the mountain and the winds, conditions, air and environment is tough up there. You must train your mind and body to withstand the harshest of conditions at the top of the mountain. When this is accomplished, you will climb higher and farther than you ever thought possible.

Today, I want to encourage you to face your fears. Face the deepest, darkest fears in your heart—specifically the ones you are not dealing with.

I believe to do this, you must first train your mind that you will win. Second, when you become afraid in the storm, you must change your state to picturing your life at the other end of the battle.

My message to you from the mountains today is “the best views are always after the hardest climbs!”

Your life is not easy. It’s not supposed to be. When you learn how to use lessons that were meant to harm you for good you are able to climb higher and farther than ever imagined.

"You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it." - Margaret Thatcher

KEEP CLIMBING!!

GIRL BOSS aka the X Factor

Let's talk about ambition. Your goals. Your dreams. Your wishes. Your plans.

You can have, do or be anything and everything you want in this world. If someone else has achieved it, then it's within your reach. And if no one else has achieved it, then you must do it and pave the way.

Women today can be whatever you want. What an amazing world we live in that you get to decided and you can be accepted for being yourself. Stay-at-home mothers perhaps have one of the toughest gigs in the world. It's a thankless, selfless, never-ending job that pays nothing, your co-workers spit up on you and you likely don't hear the words "thank you" enough for all the roles you play. Then there is the business world that is a dog-eat-dog, stressed out, phone-in-your-hand-24-7, board room presentations and sleepless nights way-of-life. As a woman, executive, newlywed, step mother, dog mom, sister, daughter, and friend, there are not enough hours in the day to do the job at hand.

"As a woman, executive, newlywed, step mother, dog mom, sister, daughter, and friend, there are not enough hours in the day to do the job at hand."

So we worry. Women worry about our loved ones, animals, each other, the groceries, deadlines, emails, the errands, the cleaning, the hearts of children, their homework, more dishes, the laundry and the bumps and bruises. The genetic make up of our lives is to give and to contribute. And, often times (ok a lot of the time) you are left feeling empty, depleted and worn out.

Why?

What I have learned is if you give to yourself first, the world gets a better version of you. It is not selfish. It is the pathway to progress.

For me, strategic marketing, branding, story telling, tv, speaking and engagement is my jam. I also love my husband and three step children and yes it is possible to be a mom, wife and boss. You simply have to get up earlier, work harder, be sharper and go all out every single day. This life is not for every one, but it makes my world go round!

I joined TITLE Boxing Club more than five years ago and it's remarkable to witness the growth of our brand, my team and myself. It's a great honor and accomplishment to lead the brand and my team of truly remarkable women.

Laura Hadley, Digital Marketing Coordinator & Jenny Parker, Sr. Field Marketing Manager

I thrive on accomplishing goals, leading teams and leveraging resources to win. As an avid fitness enthusiast, cancer survivor, marketing exec and health and wellness spokesperson I have seen my fair share of business trends. And, the current issue of Franchise Update Magazine feature me as one of "8 CMOs who Rock and Rule" in the Annual Women's Issue.

To think that I am recognized as one of eight fearless women in franchising is just so cool. I have missed a lot of personal events, traveled the country and lost more sleep than I care to admit getting here and I am no where close to done.

Keep reading below for excerpts from the piece and my advice for your career!

THREE MOST IMPORTANT KEYS TO BEING AN EFFECTIVE CMO/LEADER TODAY:

1. Gratitude

Our team meets every Monday, and we start by going around the table and sharing the one highlight from last week that we are grateful for in business. Collectively as the team shares, we all are filled with the reasons we love our jobs at the start of every week. Then my request is for each person to write a personal thank you note to the person they are grateful for. This results in cross-department collaboration, gratitude and culture.

2. Influence

The art of influence is so key in business. If we have great ideas, yet cannot communicate them clearly and/or influence other departments on the importance of projects and collaboration, you don't get very far in your work. No matter what situation you are looking to improve, mastering influence will help you get more out of your business and your life.

3. FIRE

You don't have to compromise between passion and profession. To be great, you must have an intrinsic passion that lives within you as a human being, then translate that passion into your profession. When you get out of bed in the morning looking forward to work, your team knows it, your boss certainly knows it, and your results show it.

WHY DO YOU THINK SO MANY CMOS ARE WOMEN? *they asked*

I'm not sure if they were ready for my response, but honesty and authenticity are two of my core vales. I said, "Oh I didn't know that many CMOs are women, nor would I have guessed that. Marketing Week released an article some years back saying that men are twice as likely to become CMOs as women. I would bet that it's because women are naturally torn between wanting a family at the time in their career path when they would be at that level. However, there are ways to do both! I can't speak for women CMOs as a whole, yet for me it's natural to be chief of a brand where our consumer is 75 percent female. It's easier to get inside her head when forming our brand strategy."

MY ADVICE TO ASPIRING CMOs AND MARKETING LEADERS

Read books, listen to postcasts, network with people smarter than you, and always take notes. Be a student of the game and become obsessed with constant and never-ending improvement. As the world changes quickly around us, you can create a proactive strategy or a defensive reactive environment. To shift into the offensive strategy, you must carve out time for thinking and not just execution. Create white space in your mind for your business. When you take a step back, the bigger picture is so much clearer. My number one tip would be to invest in yourself and not expect the company to do it for you. Sign up for personal development seminars, get audiobooks to listen to on your commute, and use the time you have been given to your advantage!

Now, my advice to moms, working moms, young professionals, budding entrepreneurs and everyone in between:

BE YOURSELF.

In between your goals, remember that there's a little thing called life that has to be liked and enjoyed.

Beyond the magazines, TV appearances, keynote speeches and regular, grinding 9-5 work, I choose to be whoever I want to be. I laugh at work, offer encouragement, push for greatness and always rise to the occasion. The best roles of my life? Being a wife, step mom, dog mom, daughter, granddaughter, sister and friend.

In the same week of the magazine release, I was given a note from Makenna (12) that brought me more joy, validation, honor, accomplishment and pride than any other publication ever in my life.

Little love notes always mean the most!

Stop thinking that you need the approval or support of anyone else to do your thing. If they are in. Great. If not, hold your own and be relentless in making it happen and let your light SHINE.

Today, give yourself permission to be the very best at every role you serve. You can do it. It's possible. You've had the X factor all along. Remember, you are the CEO of your life. Hire, fire and promote accordingly.

A story about who you are meant to be

One of the most iconic stories ever told to me by my life coach, Julia Woods, was about a chicken and an eagle.

There’s an old, well-known story of a chicken farmer who found an eagle’s egg. This farmer picked up the eagle egg, put it back in the coop with his chickens and soon the egg hatched. The young eagle grew up with all the other chickens and whatever they did, the eagle did too. The eaglet thought he was a chicken, just like the others. Since the chickens could only fly for a short distance, the eagle also learnt to fly a short distance. He thought that's what he was supposed to do, so that's all that he thought he could do. As a result, that was all he was able of. One day the eagle saw a bird flying high above him. He was very impressed. “Who is that?” he asked the others around him. “That’s the eagle, the king of the birds,” the chickens told him. “He belongs to the sky. We belong to the earth, we are just chickens.” So, the eagle lived and died as a chicken, for that’s what he thought he was.

Today's vlog is one of my favorites I've recorded thus far. The moment I heard the story of the chicken and the eagle, I realized I am an eagle. And my #wordoftheyear in 2016 was Eagle for that very reason. I committed my life for 365 days to becoming an eagle.

Today's message is meant to encourage you to be an eagle, even if you are surrounded by chickens.

Remember, you may have been brought up in a situation that limited your understanding of your potential. Perhaps you're in a career that doesn't seem to fulfill you. Or, maybe you are seeking new friends to help push you. It’s time for the past to lose its hold on you. Don't limit your life to thinking you’re a chicken.

It's time to soar!