But one of the most important lessons of all: freedom is an inside job

This summer I had a chance to experience it first hand – in a dressing room. Of all places.

I took a branded shopping trip with my friend and colleague Kristen Domingue, creator of Ignite, a boutique style and brand consultancy. She specialized in helping women entrepreneurs link their style to their brand, and their brand to their purpose, so they KNOW they are attracting the right clients, on and off-line.

Given that I do so much speaking, and dress from my suitcase-cum-closet, a little style pit stop felt like a good idea.

After filling out her extensive brand assessment, and talking about my brand and purpose with her, she hit the streets and set aside clothes that were aligned with my core message. Clothes for dates, for speaking gigs, for working with clients, and just plain old hittin’ the road.

We had a lot of fun, broke a few sales associate hearts. And more than that, I realized we are aligned on something important.

I believe that freedom is something that happens inside of you when you tell yourself the truth (about money, love, etc.), and then align your life with that truth.

Inviting Mike on the Freedom Tour? Truth.
Starting the freedom Tour? Truth.
Taking a break this summer? Truth.
Not doing a daily video blog? Truth.
Cutting my hair? Truth.

And as a result, I am feeling more like me, and more free than I have in a long time.

Kristen totally understood that – in fact – just like I believe freedom is an inside job, she shares that branding is an inside job: the outer expression of your internal purpose; aligning your brand with your purpose leaves you free to have the kind of business and life you really want.

I mentioned in another post that this year, I launched a new business partnership, ended another one, then ended the one I had just started, experimented with being homeless, and fell in love.

With all that transition, my brand was a little hard to nail down.

But I can tell you for sure, my essence wasn’t.

It’s in stripping away everything that wasn’t me that the truth of my loves, likes, dislikes emerged. Which meant that while we saw tons of cute clothes, I felt most like me when we took an off-the-plan stroll into Cathryn Malandrino (a personal fave of mine) and I fell in love with a dress I wore to dinner that night, and then to a wedding the following week. It felt so much like me, that I bought it in 2 colors.

There is something magical about finding a dress that compliments you perfectly, fits you like a glove, and truly looks like you to the most important person of all: you.

And as I transitioned all year, a magic is emerging on The Freedom Tour that has it “fit me” just like my Cathryn Malandrino.

This year on The Freedom Tour (just like in the dressing rooms,) I tried on, I took off. I looked for the right fit, color, cut and shape.

I didn’t settle.

And I found freedom in the perfect little black (and peach!) dress…

What I noticed about Kristen in our time together, is that she is committed to getting down to the core essence of a person. She doesn’t want you to just look good, she really wants you to have something that fits YOU.

She’s offering a tele-class about this called Magnetic Branding. On it, she’ll share exactly how to infuse your brand with your purpose – your truth – and how this creates more freedom in your business and life.

Click here to register for it:

Magnetic Branding
November 8th at 3 pm EST

More than anything, I do The Freedom Tour to inspire you to find the keys to your own freedom. I know this tele-class is one tool to help you do that.

Click here to register now.

Nancy & me at The Freedom Tour launch party.

Nancy Levin is a bad-ass event producer. She once lived out of a carry-on suitcase for 73 days straight. The most she’s ever been on the road in a year is 213 days. Nancy is a road warrior, no doubt, but she also happens to be a poet and one of my dear friends.

When I first heard Nancy read one of her poems (the very same one she reads on the Glimpse TV episode below) before a keynote at a Hay House I Can Do It event I was awed to tears. I didn’t know this woman who I had known for several years had this kind of art in her. This is what Nancy represents to me:

Pealing back the layers.

Forgiving yourself.

Finding the gems in vulnerability.

Being deliciously, adorably, divinely human.

I’m so thrilled to share Nancy with you today on Glimpse TV. She’s hilarious. She’s freaking smart. She’s gorgeous. And she’s very, very real. Nancy’s book, Writing For My Life: Reclaiming Lost Pieces of Me is a book of poems, most of which were written as she was going through and healing through a divorce.

As Louise Hay says,

“Whether or not you are a poetry lover, you will be so glad you found this book. It’s liberating.”

Tune in for Nancy and my Glimpse TV episode where Nancy bares everything from packing tips to her soul. Enjoy!

More Nancy:

Web: www.nancylevin.com

Twitter: @nancylevin

Buy the book: Writing For My Life: Reclaiming Lost Pieces of Me

Exactly one year later a lot has happened for both Bindu and me. Neither of us are living in NYC anymore. Both of us are coming out the closet in different ways. Both of us are reinventing.

I was thrilled to be with Bindu again at the World Domination Summit put on by Chris Guillebeau in Portland, OR a week and a half ago. It was the perfect opportunity to hang out at the Portland Art Museum and get some updates on Bindu’s new look, how she had her basic goodness reflected back to her in group therapy, and some exciting projects that she’s cooking up that you won’t want to miss. (One of them has to do with something I’m completely obsessed with and can’t get enough of.)

Tune in to learn about Bindu’s inner secret thing that she’s now doing in public, to see the most interesting Glimpse TV background setting yet, to find out the subject of my number one stress dream, and to have a giggle with us, because, quite frankly, that’s what we do best.

(I decided to give you the uncut version as I think it’s far more entertaining.)

Enjoy and leave a comment!

More Bindu:

www.binduwiles.com

@binduwiles

A meeting that didn’t quite go as planned.

Last February I sat across from my mom’s literary agent, Ned Leavitt, at lunch. I had scheduled the lunch to ask him questions about the publishing world as I was beginning to get a hankering to write a book. And that’s what we talked about…for the most part.

At the end of lunch as we were paying the bill and Ned began a conversation that both surprised and unraveled me. Here it is, paraphrased to the best of my memory:

Ned: I was so glad when I received your invitation to lunch, Kate, because there’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you for a while. What ever happened to your singing?

Me: Oh no, that’s my sister you’re thinking of. She’s the singer.

Ned: No, not your sister. You. I have a vivid memory of you singing for your mother’s fiftieth birthday. Something came through you when you sang that was so earthy and vital and alive and I’ve never forgotten it. What ever happened to your singing?

Me (in tears): Well, I guess the answer to your question is what I just said: my sister.

Hiding my light under a bushel.

(Thanks for the expression, Mom!)

***Necessary interjection: My sister and I have an amazing, deep friendship. We love each other so much and support each other in everything we do. I realized in this moment with Ned that I had given up performing at eighteen after landing a starring role in a Brown University musical my Freshman year because I subconsciously thought that there was only room for one performer in our family. My sister seemed to want it more so I decided to switch directions and focus more on business than on being an artist. Let it be known publicly that my sister is my biggest fan, has encouraged me to tap back into my artist/performer self continuously and has never, in any way, dissuaded me from shining. Any hang ups I’ve had about this have been purely in my head. Thank you Annie for being the most amazing sister I could ever dream of. ***

After I blew my nose and got myself back together, I explained to Ned that I had given up singing and performing so as not to be in competition with my sister. He told me that though he had no doubt that  part of my purpose was to be a leader and community builder in the business world, he suspected there was something else in me.

F*ck it.

Six months later my friend Kirsten Lewis began producing a cabaret burlesque show called Paper Dolls. She asked me to do an act and I politely declined saying: “Oh no, I’m too busy/I’m a business woman not a performer/performing in burlesque shows isn’t part of my brand/(insert other stupid excuse here.)”

Given that I’m about to leave NYC, that I’m embarking on a journey into the unknown, and that I’m leaving more space for possibility by allowing myself to be more of who I am and less of who I’m not, I decided that now would be a good time to let my performer come back out to play.

So on Tuesday night at Paper Dolls at Sway Lounge I let “Bubbles” (my stage name) come out to entertain an intimate group of 75 New Yorkers who braved the cold. Sandwiched between a hula dancer, some girls in pasties and tassels, and my friend Kirsten and her baton, I took the mic for a spin.

And though I was scared out of my mind and I was really pissed at myself for saying yes to this before the performance, as soon as I was out on stage and I gave myself permission to lighten up, I LOVED IT! I tapped into a part of myself that I’ve not invited out in public in at least nine years and IT FELT SOOOO GOOD!

A once in a lifetime (sort of).

It’s not lost on me that this all occurred the same week as I deleted my external drive of video footage for Glimpse TV. It’s not lost on me that since Tuesday night I’ve felt happier, more energized, and more inspired than I have all year. I wrote to a group of friends before the performance that this would be a once in a lifetime chance to see me perform. I think I lied. I think I’ll be doing this more often.

Here’s to doing things that freak you out. Here’s to letting your freak flag fly. Here’s to grabbing the mic and serenading someone (or a hundred someones). Here’s to not hiding your light under a bushel. Here’s to giving yourself permission to be seen.

Much love,

Bubbles

***For those of you in NYC, I’ll be performing in Paper Dolls again on Tuesday, January 18th at Sway Lounge in NYC. Join the Paper Dolls Facebook group and my list to make sure you get the invite.***

And now, Glimpse TV presents….Bubbles!

(Disclaimer to make myself feel better because this is really scary to put this out there: the footage is not professional, there were a few mic feedback moments, and my voice is slightly rusty after not singing for nine years. But progress not perfection! I’m proud enough of it to share it with you so enjoy!)

My NYC Singing Debut: Come Rain or Come Shine from Kate Moller on Vimeo.

What have you done lately that freaked you out?

How did you feel afterward?

Is there a part of you that hasn’t come out in a while that it might be time to invite out of hiding?

Leave a comment!

The two things you need to master to make your dreams come true: Glimpse TV with my neighbor Nell Alk from Kate Moller on Vimeo.