Laura Click, Mika Moser, and Dawn Cornelius on stage at BrainTrustLIVE 2024.

Fail Forward

On October 17th, 2024, BrainTrust held its 3rd annual BrainTrustLIVE Conference in Nashville, Tennessee.  About 330 women founders were in attendance, in addition to 20+ men supporting our work.   We were crammed into the space, clearly too small for us now, but the attendees sat with rapt attention as we heard from amazingly successful…

Retro-Tech: An Ode to Pen and Paper. And Ron Samuels.

Retro-Tech: An Ode to Pen and Paper. And Ron Samuels.

With new apps and technology being introduced regularly, there are a few tools that just never go out of style:  Pen and paper. There is so much power in writing, physically moving a pen across paper, making the loops and lines and dots that form letters and words… and ideas. There are many reasons to…

The Power of Listening: Why Silence is Key in Leadership and Sales

The Power of Listening: Why Silence is Key in Leadership and Sales

“I’m tired of how they lean in and LISTEN to me”… said NO ONE EVER. We all long to be heard, to have a voice. To have our needs and opinions matter. With your life partner, co-workers, parents…and children, accountant, and doctor. When the person across from you determines to be silent…and to listen, how…

The Dangers of Having a HUGE Customer
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The Dangers of Having a HUGE Customer

When a HUGE customer might present a problem for you.  We all love landing that HUGE customer!  Maybe it’s the “flagship” customer – the household name that gives you instant credibility.   For example: “My pasta sauce is now in every Whole Foods”… or “Wow, FedEx just started using my app”…. or “I won a 3-year…

Lonely at the Top?
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Lonely at the Top?

For most of my life, when I heard the phrase “lonely at the top,” I thought of it as a sarcastic remark by someone AT the top, condescending to those they led, pointing out the fact that it was the few, the elite, that made it to the “top” – whatever that was.

Later, as I became an entrepreneur, a CEO, that phrase came to mean something quite different and it began to resonate.

Hold Yourself and Your Team Accountable
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Hold Yourself and Your Team Accountable

Picture an ultramarathon runner, miles into an exhausting race, finding strength in a simple mantra: “relentless forward progress.” This is more than just a runner’s resolve; it’s a powerful lesson for businesses setting their quarterly priorities. It’s not the act of setting these goals that counts, but the unyielding pursuit of them, step by determined…

Personal Branding for Business Owners

Personal Branding for Business Owners

Like it or not, as a business owner, you’re not just running your business; you’re the living, breathing embodiment of it. What people think of you directly influences their perception of your business. It’s a two-way street where your personal brand and business brand are so intertwined. Now, I know what you might be thinking:…

The (Realistic) Guide to Organic Social Media for Small Businesses

The (Realistic) Guide to Organic Social Media for Small Businesses

If you’re reading this, chances are you’re handling social media in-house and when you’re running a tight ship with a small team, social media might not be top of your priority list. While we’d typically suggest partnering with a marketing agency for optimal results, we understand that’s not always feasible with limited resources and it’s…

Why Advice Sucks…and How to Stop Giving It
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Why Advice Sucks…and How to Stop Giving It

In the business world, advice is as common as coffee meetings, but is it beneficial? Let’s explore why advice might be doing more harm than good and how we can shift our approach for better outcomes. The Pitfalls of Advice At BrainTrust, advice-giving is a HUGE no-no. Think about it this way, when you give…

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