'Ignite'

There is no such thing as ‘No’.

Four months ago I had a dream. To bring 35 women together to write a book about female leadership. Of course everyone told me it was impossible. They questioned how I would find 35 individuals wanting to write on this topic. How I would curate the stories, edit, polish, produce and complete. They all said it was impossible and many said ‘No,’ not believing in my timeline or vision.

I learned at a young age that the word NO is just someone else’s limited thinking. Their No is not my No. Them feeling incapable, unwilling or insecure about if a situation belongs to them. If I believe, trust, and keep trying, I know the results will happen. No, in my mind is simply the Universe saying there is ‘ANOTHER’ option so kept at it.

When one door closes another opens. If you stay determined the path will be revealed, and there are many ways to skin a cat. Dozens of antidotes have been scribed to describe the possibilities and opportunities that lie on the other side of giving in to a common No.

While people were No-ing all over my idea, I stayed focused. I found the women who had an open mind. Those who could see the positive outcome and bought into the idea of helping others with their heart-felt words. Often a No is delivered when the subject is self- serving. When the individual is egocentric versus community or world-centric. No usually come from small thinking or 'what’s in it for me?' Those are the people you want to avoid, so their No's are fine by me.

The law of probability eases the fear of hearing a No. Numbers dictate if you ask enough people eventually you’ll start hearing a yes. You’ll modify your approach, alter your pitch, polish your positioning, and improve your deliverables. Over time you’ll find the sweet spot in your request, and soon enough a No will become a yes!

Then you are off, doing what you love and getting one step closer to your dream. I had a dream of publishing a book including 35 outstanding stories of women stepping into leadership. Not them ruling with an iron hand, but emulating the new power of leadership with grace, sensitivity, and female intuition. With the quiet giant type of leading and the kind style of persuasion and diplomacy. I knew a book like that would be a hit, so little could stop me.

I then had the idea of bringing that international collection of women to a foreign country to bond, share, and connect. To have each of them travel out if their comfort zones and fully immerse themselves in a weekend of sharing, while working towards making the book a best seller.

We all flew to Pula, Croatia and met for the first time to celebrate and obtain our common desire. We achieved our goal within 24 hours, becoming a best seller in seven categories in five different countries. The magic of unity was outstanding. The focus of the group’s intention was also inspiring. All the No's became Yes's and the possibilities blossomed. My vision was materialized despite the many who said it could never be done.

It seems we had broken the NO barrier and found success in all the Yes's we shared. The vision was easy to see because we all saw it together.

Don’t let anyone’s No become yours. Listen to the voice in you that knows what it wants. Follow your own guiding light and go after your vision. No one else can see, feel, or believe what you do, so you have to be your own leader. It is up to you to navigate past the No's and find the Yes's. No one will do that for you. It is part of the journey towards success. You have to move through the obstacles yourself to reach the finish line, be willing to hear one hundred No’s before you get a single yes. Then you will know you are ready. Pushing past the No’s will show the Universe you are serious and it will prove you are not one to give up.

Being a leader at anything means being different. It means going further and having more committed than the others. It means not wavering or compromising. It means you are all in when the others are not. It is those unstoppable dreams that inspire the planet and positivity impact others. You doing it, despite a No, is what genuinely ignites others to do the same.

Go out and get it.