Two and a half years into the future

Two and a half years ago I wrote the following article which appeared in my newsletter. Given that that this is the last weekly newsletter I'll be sending out (scroll down to find out how to subscribe to the blog to keep reading) I wanted to share something which completely exemplifies why I write and share.

To read the article first - click on in here.

Mid September I received this comment on the blog post:

Hi Kirsty,
I am not sure if you will read this comment but I will write it anyway.

My name is Lauren and I am the person that you wrote this post about 3 years ago.

I would just like to say that I still have that email sent to my mum containing the article about me, intact I am sitting here looking at it now, it is pinned up on my pin board, which is where it has been for the past 3 years.

I can still remember when you came to my house and whilst you were here you asked me if you could write about me and I am really pleased that you did. When I read that article it taught me a lot of things:


One, that I do want to create the life I want, when i was twelve I only understood just the basics of something like this and now that I am a lot older I understand a whole lot more about life and I now know that I definitely want to create my own life.


Two, to work hard for things and I know that this dream board showed me that if I set my mind too things I can achieve it and although I have long taken my dream board down of my wall it is still there, tucked away in my cupboard, away from viewing eyes and I still look at it from time to time just to remind myself to keep going and to never give up trying for something I want whether it may be a material thing like a pair of skis, a holiday or a long term thing like a job.

I would just like to share with you some of my accomplishments off of my dreamboard, although I have not completed all of my dreams on there and I may not complete all of them as some of them are no longer a dream of mine, I did complete the wants that I really did want to achieve.

One: I wanted to earn my very own pair of skis.
I achieved this one two years ago when I finally managed to conquer my fears and go outside of the wake on skis, I did this and once I did do that I became unstoppable. I went on to learn to slalom ski and am now hoping to get my own slalom ski as a result of this. To me this showed to me that I can do something if I set my mind to it and if anyone out there is worried because they might fall along the way, you just have to learn to get back up, brush yourself off and try again, exactly like i did when learning to go outside of the wake. If I fell off, I just got back up, put my skis back on and tried again! You can achieve anything you want to if you just try.

Two: I wanted to receive an a+ in school
I can tell you that I have received many a+'s in school since then and I continue to receive to this very day.

Three: I had on my dream board that I wanted to become an architect and a chef. Well as you get older and I'm sure everyone knows this, you change your mind. So when I was was 12 my dream was to become an architect and a chef but I have since changed that and I am now working towards becoming a lawyer. I am only in grade nine at the moment and my mind will probably change again but that is what it is right now.

The last thing on my dreamboard that I am going to tell you about is that I wanted to receive a medal in hockey. I have just finished my fourth year in hockey as the season just ended. On my dreamboard I did have a gold medal but the medal that I received was a lot better than a gold medal and I am proud of myself for getting it. It wasn't a best and fairest or a most goal scorer or anything like that. It was a medal for the coaches award, it isn't a gold medal and it certainly dosent have the Olympic emblem on it but it shows to me that I can do it. I am only as good as what think I am, I just did my best and by doing that I was rewarded and I am happy that I did because that just encouraged me to try harder and I did try harder because this year i got most goal scorer award and that s something I never thought I would get but I did and that is cause I believed in myself, I believed that I could do it and I did.

Thank you for writing that article about me in 2010, it has shown me what a great person I can be and I hope it showed other people that they can achieve things f they set their minds it it as well.

From Lauren


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How cool is that? Where will you be two and a half years into the future? What will you have achieved? Where do you need to write down or draw or cut out a picture to give you guidance?  Lauren is still my hero - I want my little girl to read her story one day. Thank you for sharing in mine - and I hope you'll continue to do so on the blog.

By Marjorie with No comments

Pay what you think is fair - Kirsty's 2 CD Customer Service Set

So - I did it once before... I sold my book Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can for "whatever you thought was fair" - you can read about the results here: http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/2012/08/what-would-you-pay-if-you-didnt-have-to.html and.... I'm going to do it again.  This time with my 2 CD set on customer service. It's not industry specific, it's just for anyone who works with people, and wants to knock their socks off with their customer service.  To go ahead and take advantage head on in here: http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/p/interaction-enhancement-pay-what-you.html And, here's how it works / terms / conditions etc:  1. It's a maximum of one copy of the CD set per person, if your friend wants a copy, they can go ahead and order it under their own name  2. All you pay is $14.90 to cover production, shipping and handling anywhere in the world  3. The special is only on offer until I stop it - or until I run out of CDs (very possible)   4. You'll get 2 months to listen to the CDs (it's a 2 week course) and then I'll email you and ask you to pay what you think is fair (RRP $69.95).   5. What you decide to pay is completely up to you!   6. If you bought Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can on the last special and didn't pay anything, well, unfortunately you can't take advantage of this special Questions, queries? Email kirsty (at) kirstydunphey.com and ask away.  Want to know more about the CD set, read reviews, or grab your copy? Head in here: http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/p/interaction-enhancement-pay-what-you.html

By Anonymous with No comments

All the best coaches have coaches

I was chatting with an amazing businesswoman and friend the other day who was going through a particular challenge in her business and who had (humblingly) come to me for some advice.

 

She has a business coach and also seeks out the advice of others that she trusts – and in delving into her current situation it struck me that she saw getting this advice both formal and informal as a sign of weakness.

 

“All the best coaches have coaches” – I told her. I go to people when I need help, I bet your coach has someone, or a whole suite of people they go to when they need help. This simple statement was like a revelation to her. “Really?” she said, dumfounded.

 

She’d always looked at going to people for help as something only people having trouble did. Now ultimately, it’s an obvious choice to go to someone for coaching or advice when you’re having a tough time – but the most successful people (in my experience) have a coach, a mentor, a peer that they will constantly bounce ideas, goals, struggles and issues off.

 

When was the last time you reached out to someone and shared what you were going through?

By Marjorie with 3 comments

Conference Creativity

A little cheekily this was one of my tweets (@kirstydunphey) from the recent (and fabulous) ARPM (Australiasian Residential Property Management) conference in Sydney.

“Wondering if it’s a conscious decision for @1form_live to “man” trade stand with attractive young men at a conference full of women?

1 Form Live were trade stand exhibitors at the conference and even this happily married woman was having an extended glance at their booth over the conference. I thought it was a smart strategy given that the conference attendees were probably 70% women.

Later in the day I promoted them to the level of geniuses when I noticed that their wi-fi connection had been renamed to this: “1Form – Chris is Single” to me – a brilliant way to leverage off their existing strategy.

Knowing I was going to be compelled to blog about it – I went and got a photo of the 1 Form team to add to the blog and they had a giggle as to why I’d come over. 

But – I am going to downgrade them from genius to just clever. What else could they have done? Well – if your company’s going to have a twitter account and you’re at a conference with a hashtag and people are tweeting  - engage! If someone posts a cheeky tweet about your sales team being hot – REPLY!  Have someone checking twitter during the day and responding and engaging where appropriate.

So many people see twitter as a way to get a message across when really, the true value of it comes from it being a way to communicate. Communication is two ways. You’d rarely ignore a customer talking to your face, why would you ignore a potential customer’s tweet.

Secondly – and disappointingly their wi-fi was renamed to “1 Form Live – come and visit us!” day 2 of the conference… yawn! Ahh well boys – thanks for the memories.

By Marjorie with No comments

Money, money, money....

Well - I'm excited to be sending out three big envelopes tonight containing documentation to donate $10,035 to three fabulous charities.

To read about my head shave motivation head on here: http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/2012/08/can-you-help-me-shave-my-head_8.html

And to see pictures of the "chopping and shaving itself" head on here: http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/2012/08/hair-today-gone-thursday.html

I'm excited to be sending off my goal amount - plus there's another $621 which has been pledged that hasn't come in yet - so I'm hopeful of sending that off too over the coming weeks.

As promised, I would like to convey my extreme thanks to all of the following people who donated $100 or more, but please know that I am so grateful for everyone from those who donated $5 to those who overwhelmed me with donations of $500.

On the honour role are:

Pam Corkhill, Courtney Hogan, Xavier Wakefield, Simone Hackett, Rob King, Felicity Peterson, Richard Gough, Jodie Pedlar, Shane Wiseman, Steve Jaffray, Karen Pryor, Kate Woods, Ronald Brown, Doug Mallett, Chris Follett, Fletcher Husband, Glen Coutinho, Lisa O'Connor, Tom Woolley, Brock Fisher, Maureen Lacey, Bianca & Matt Barney, Elephant Property, Celine Egan, Dale Beaumont, Mel Kerrison, Shayne Harris, Ron Ward, Dean Mance, Melissa Anderson, Sylvia Smith, Carole Williams, Danelle Wiseman, Krystal Morgan, Susan Connor, Cathryn Cocker & Jacinta Prewer, Catherine Bissett, Edwin Vandervelde, Carrie Hesketh, Sally Shaw, Domenic Carosa, Jen Rayner, Megan Barrow, Faulkner Plumbing, Kaitlyn Abrahall, Peta Simmons and Susan Head.

Thank you thank you thank you to everyone.

xxxx K

By Anonymous with No comments

Feedback at the speed of fingers

“Does anyone know a good Masseur / Masseuse in Launceston?” - posted by a friend of mine to facebook this week. Minutes later she had referrals, back up referrals and phone numbers of who to call.

“Can you believe what XYZ property managers let my tenants do to my place” [photo] [photo] [photo] – posted by friends of friends and then shared and shared and shared.

Chris from GASP found a nasty dig at a customer posted on facebook and reposted on numerous hard media sites after yelling after a customer as she left the store: “"Have fun shopping at Supre... I knew you were a joke the minute you walked in".”


We live in a new world where customer dissatisfaction isn’t limited to dining table conversation and where referrals are spread (or not spread) with the greatest of ease amongst your 300 (or 5000) “closest” friends.

It’s both exhilarating and terrifying (see the One Star Review - http://blog.kirstydunphey.com/2011/08/one-star-review.html).

And my favourite feedback frenzy of late, a review of Chris Brown’s new album rating it “no stars ever”. Reposted, shared and liked by at least 20 people on my feed and now by me to 5,000 of you.

By Marjorie with No comments