Recently I’ve had a number of things happen that need my immediate attention. My husband is having health problems, all stemming from advanced stages of diabetes. He’s in the hospital as I write this.

I am so grateful to friends, colleagues, and perfect strangers who shared words of encouragement with me after I posted a quick reality check on Facebook:

Got a LOT of ailing people around me. Mom has cancer, hubby’s got to start dialysis. So grateful to have such amazing, supportive people in my life, especially my business girlfriends! Clients, colleagues, et al have been super supportive while I had a crazy week. Appreciating the prayers and light you’re all sending my way! Thanking Creator for putting you all in my life.

Over 50 people left comments of love, light, healing, and support.

I felt pulled in many directions and finally hit the end of my rope. Super Woman needed a break and with some very kind and compassionate advice from Therese Skelly, Catherine Bruns, Andy Spyros and a number of others, I sent out a request for help.

First off, Therese facilitated a call for my mastermind group. She rocked it and was able to help my clients with her talents and gifts.

Catherine sent me a checklist of things I could start doing for myself. She was very matter of fact yet very loving with her advice. She’s known me for over 7 years and understands how I often push myself full throttle and forget to check the fuel gauge.

Andy, a retail store owner and psychic in training, gave me incredible insights into the energetic side of things. Like Catherine, she’s known me for years and sees (more clearly than I do!) when I need to step back.

So here’s what I did… and let me tell you THIS WASN’T EASY BUT I’M SO GLAD I DID IT.

1. I came to terms with the fact that I needed help and was in overwhelm. Admitting the problem is the first step.

2. I made a list of colleagues I could ask to help me. I sent a very honest email out on Saturday morning and within minutes I had people offering to conduct a virtual retreat I had planned for my clients, to coach my clients, to write blog posts.

3. In that email, I also stated that I could not repay or reciprocate the favor. I was asking selfishly and that anyone stepping forward would understand that. This was HARD to do. I’m so about giving, and as Andy pointed out to me, I tend to meet people halfway then 10 steps beyond. (Can anyone else relate to this?)

4. Working from a hospital waiting room with my Blackberry, a stack of index cards and a really nice pen a guy at EZ Lube gave me because I needed a pen (it’s my favorite pen because it reminds me of the kindness of strangers) I kept track of all the responses. 8 people offered to clear their schedules for me. 10 people are sending guest blog posts. Everyone sent hugs and prayers.

5. Whoa. That was my response. Love, love, love. Pouring out, generously, unconditionally, for fun and for free. These are true friends.

Laura West called my cell and we chatted briefly while I was getting ready to head back to the hospital. Here’s what we realized:

You know how when there’s a crisis, friends and family will come over with covered casserole dishes? Well, this outpouring of support was the virtual business version of coming over with casseroles.

My friends are spread out across the globe. They can’t come over and babysit or clean my house, but they can take over some things in my business. They show their love, care, and support by sending blog posts and offering to answer questions from my clients.

This is yet another reason why relationships in business are so important.

You’ll see what this type of support looks like in the next few weeks as several guest blog posts are published. Not only will you get great information on making money doing what you love, online visibility, social media, productivity, and all the things we need for a thriving business…

… but you’ll also see WHO my most amazing friends are when you read my blog in coming weeks.

Thanks everyone for the understanding.

THIS is what a heart based business network looks like!

Makeshift Memorial for Tucson Shooting Victims January 2011

Like many Americans, the recent shooting rampage in Tucson, Arizona has left me shaken and with deep condolences for everyone killed or injured by the tragic event. I am feeling called to share some thoughts with you on playing nicely in the cyber sandbox and taking strides to heal what needs to be healed in this world.

Citizens and politicians are being asked to review what civility means and to begin practicing a more intelligent discourse. One thing that adds fuel to the fire is exactly what adds variety to the conversation: the blogosphere and social media.

Backbiting and snide remarks have always existed, but now they have a global, much more public audience. Uncensored opinions- including the good, the bad, and the ugly- are all over the web as blog comments, tweets, Facebook updates, and YouTube videos. A lot of it is about building bridges, yet we still have the people intent on keeping those walls up. My vote is to build bridges. That’s what we mean by showing civility.

You’re an influencer.

Whether you’re on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or on a blog, your words, actions, and opinions have an impact on others. Your business ideals, your personal opinions, how you treat others… these all show up on this very public stage.

Use it for good.

If you disagree, disagree with finesse. It takes far more intelligence and thought, but it’s worth it. Creating a fake name for yourself then leaving hateful comments is cowardice. Spewing ugliness just to get a rise out of other readers is childish. Seriously, I read some people’s rants and wonder “Who didn’t hug you as a child?”

If you agree with something, don’t gloat. Understand that not everyone will hold your same opinion, especially if you’re in the majority. Remember the marginalized and the people outside the circle.

Do you call yourself heart based? That doesn’t mean you’re a wimp. Stand up and let your heart shine and let it lead you to greater, better things. Let it shine in your business, in your community, in your actions.

Yes, this post is more of a sermon than my usual posts, but it needed to be said.

Having visibility means you have an audience and with that, you have a responsibility.

Answer this simple question (and you can leave a comment or write some posts of your own on the topic):

How are you using your visibility   – ie, your influence in front of an audience of people watching you-    to do good?

"Gossip" by Norman Rockwell

This morning my phone rang with an urgent message from a colleague.

“Nancy, there’s something circulating about you that you need to know about.”

Besides feeling like I just entered a scene from Desperate Housewives or All My Children, I took a deep breath and joked, “Well, I guess that means I’ve officially made it to the big time!”

But gossip isn’t a joking matter, especially when it’s a swirl of misconceptions and your name pops up.

I’ve never actually had this happen before… wait, I take that back. This did happen before… IN SIXTH GRADE which is what this feels like.

And because I teach what I’ve personally experienced (please remember that), I am called to turn this around and share it with my peeps.

So let’s start with a big clearing of the air…

It was insinuated (and I’m not really sure by whom, but the omnipresent “they” were invoked) that I took someone else’s idea and passed it off as my own. I’m more used to being the one others copy than the copying culprit.

For years I’ve had my web copy “inspire” other people’s home pages, my Facebook profile artfully “modeled”, copyrighted materials appear under someone else’s banner, and even program ideas serve as “launchpoints” for others.

And you know what I do when this happens?

Nothing.

Why?

Because I know who I am and that even if someone were to get plastic surgery to look like me and change their name to Nancy Marmolejo, there would only be one me. I know the authority of my expertise and the power that it puts into the world.

The unique fingerprint tells no lies.

I’m the incomparable combo of Mexican-Aztec-German-American genetics packed into a 5’10″ frame, housing a brand of genius that’s unmatchable.

And because I’m incomparable, that means YOU are incomparable too. Even if you’re a 5’10″ tall Mexican-Aztec-German-American dynamo who decides to name your business Viva Visibility and throw a live event in June called I Heart My Biz, you won’t be me.

Get it? Comprendes?

MANY VOICES CAN SING A SIMILAR SONG and there’s plenty of room for all of us.

Even if you use add in words to your titles  like purpose, passion, profit, money, meaning, diamond, platinum, inner circle, or mastermind you will NOT be a copycat because you’re putting YOUR unique stamp on it.

Period.

Here’s what I think happened to spark all this craziness.

I shifted the focus of my business in late 2009 after having a big revelation. That revelation was that my original work being a creative force for business owners got muddied up by my intense involvement in social media and my subsequent programs teaching social media strategies.

I’d meet people who didn’t really know what I did or how I helped businesses. People wanted me to be a trainer when I’m way more visionary than that.

So I’m simply experiencing the backlash of going to social media then circling back to my bigger vision business strategizing.

Quick Nancy history so you understand the big picture:

I began my business in 2003 with an emphasis on helping creative minded entrepreneurs take their ideas to market. Check out this “about the author” blurb from a creativity article published on January 6, 2005:

Nancy Marmolejo helps creative and entrepreneurial women hone in on their core strengths to turn ideas into action. She helps both the wildly creative and the mildly creative launch innovative ideas, enter new markets and build upon natural talents.

That was in 2005 and it sure sounds like my current focus of Profitable Essence. Talk about going full circle, right?

Beginning in 2006, I used social media to get my name out there. It was very helpful- I won national awards, was written up in major magazines, life was good. And in 2008 everyone wanted to know how I did it. Enter Nancy the social media strategist.

Social media is intoxicating and fun but soon began to lose its luster. You want to be the person who knows the latest killer app or be the one who’s discovered the shortcut everyone else has been jonesing for. I decided in late 2009 that I wanted to be the person who got to rest and unplug for a while.

I also started to notice a disturbing trend among social media “experts” and highly visible entrepreneurs:

The majority weren’t making any money.

From a moral perspective I had to stand back and look at this. How am I helping people pump up their visibility if they have nothing to offer on the back end? How can I help all the people I’ve taught to be visible get some money in their pockets? I realize now, I was contributing to the “build it and they will come” fantasy by not having that firmly in place.

The Perfect Storm

My waning interest in being a social media expert coupled with the profitability problem collided in Fall 2009. I called a number of colleagues and shared that I needed to recalibrate my business. I wasn’t looking for a new brand, rather a new understanding of what I really bring to the table and how it’s unique.

My business is more than teaching visibility tactics. It’s about building heart based, profitable businesses that expertly leverage visibility.It’s about helping people discover their Profitable Essence.

That’s my medicine. Always has been, always will be. If you haven’t known me long, you’ll understand that I use “medicine” in the Native American spiritual context. It’s our gifts and how we express them in the world for the greater good.

So that’s where it stands.

But let me give you one more example because I’m on a bit of a roll here.

When I created an audio course in 2007 on how to stand out as an expert, I made it clear that there really isn’t anything new under the sun, we just each put our own spin on information. If you were to go to any bookstore and look at cookbooks, you’d find 10 titles for Italian cooking, 15 titles for low fat recipes, etc.

The lasagna recipe in one book may not be all that different than another, but each author has infused it with their own flair and style.

The same is true with business.

We are inspired by each other’s ideas, just like artists in a studio . Can you imagine if Picasso staked a claim on modern art and berated anyone else for trying his methods? We wouldn’t have any innovation.

My flair is the way I approach my work. So if I say I’m going to teach you in 3 days how to create a business that draws upon your greatest strengths and makes you more money than ever before, I mean it. And I’m going to present that to you in my style, with my hand picked experts, with my truth. I can name 5 people off the top of my head who either are or have done live events on similar themes. Who’s the copycat? Who owns massive breakthroughs for helping professionals? Are there only 100 people in the world we’re marketing to?

Insanity.

Resolution

Spring Equinox ceremony 2008

When this matter was first brought to my attention, I was shocked.

But I knew not to go on the defensive, that’s not the way for me. I’d rather come out standing tall, knowing my truth, knowing my medicine, and opening my arms to anyone who has a bone to pick with me to first have a hug.

The world is full of ideas. We are not lacking any.

Right now, there is a massive emergence of entrepreneurs like myself who are being called to drive their businesses towards the beacon of heart based, money making strategies.

Just like the star in the Bethlehem sky, it’s calling people from wide and far.

There’s no copying going on anywhere.

We’re simply witnessing a massive spiritual migration in action, unfolding very publicly, and doing a LOT of good for people all over the planet.

Ometeotl.

The feather is now in YOUR hands.