Remember when the arrival of summer was looked upon with sighs of relief ? Families got to slow down from the hectic schedules of a busy school year. Vacations were scheduled in advance with great anticipation. Trips to the beach and pool were the highlights of the day. Afternoons were filled with ice tea, lemonade and the arrival of the ice cream truck! Well, summer arrived on time and in the same usual way. Today’ s summer schedules, however, are another story! There are still the weddings, reunions, 4th of July family traditions and occasional other scheduled commitments. But now we have the basketball, soccer, track, softball, baseball, football, tennis, horseback riding, golf, swimming lessons, clubs, day camps, and tournaments! How did they get in there? Where did the marbles, lawn darts, backyard badminton, 10 cent kool aide stand,kick the can, skins and shirts and running through the sprinkler go?

As a motivational speaker, I am oftentimes comparing life as it used to be with life as it is whether talking about summertime activities and schedules of yesteryear and today or the proverbial “when I was a kid, I used to walk five miles to school in a foot of snow in the winter time.” When I was a pre-teen, songs like “Summer time, summertime, summ- summ - summertime”or”Roll out those lazy,hazy, crazy days of summer…” topped the charts. My folks, not unlike many others, used to say to turn that noise down.  I swore that I would never do that. Nowdays, I cannot even hear or recognize lyrics for the heavy base beat and rhythm of wrap. And guess what? Somewhere between the doorway markings of height growth and near retirement I have become them! And there is no one precise moment or life changing experience that marked this metamorphosis. Rather, it seems to be a cumulative effect and you kind of end up going from someone’s son or daughter to being a parent to parenting your parent  and it all comes full circle.

These kinds of comparisons are fun fodder for speaking to audiences of all ages. On the one hand, one can see the younger people looking like” not me;”  the middle aged people nodding in identification; and the seniors with  keen recognition registering in their eyes.  The audiences and the occasions will vary from corporate leadership training, corporate sales training, social work advocates, teachers getting ready to start the school year, to a dentist hosting a wine seminar for his employees as a thank you event and too many more to enumerate And though the groups and the settings vary, the shared human experiences of “then and now”   are universal.

As a public speaker, it is both fun and rewarding to tap into the ” thens and nows”  of our lives.  Changes in summertime activity served as the catalyst for this message. We could go on with fall, winter and spring both in terms of seasons and in terms of  stages of life. Much grist for the mill…let’s talk.

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Speakers all over our country are addressing this holiday in May.  Moments of silence are observed in a myriad of locations from ball games, to churches, to personal family gatherings where the living come together and remember those who lived before us and those who died before us.  Speakers remind us of those for whom we have our very birthright to thank.  Keynote addresses acknowledge the broken hearts of families who received the broken bodies of their children from World War I, World War II, Korea, Viet Nam, Afghanistan and Iraq.  The words of speakers saluting this very poignant holiday serve like matches kindling the flames inside of our hearts.  Not one of us who lives and breathes and commemorates this holiday, is here without history…the history of those who left this world before us and left their mark in us and in our world.  One day each one of us will be hopefully, the remembered, the celebrated, the spoken about.

J is for just another inspirational keynote speaker?  Hardly, if you have ever had the opportunity to hear Jackie, you would know that J is for jubilant, as she strikes joy of recognition of life experiences in the hearts and minds of her audience.

A is for the audiences to whom Jackie reaches out.  Audiences are as diverse as: corporate leaders, social workers, teachers, garden clubs, wine enthusiasts, attendees at any annual meeting, neighborhoods…got the idea? The common denomnator across the audiences is that they are made up of people, fellow human beings, who thrive and strive to become more fully human.

C is for corporate: whether corporate leadership training, corporate team building training, Jackie is your person. Her background of 30 years in education in management and teaching positions and her background as the wine training coordinator at the Biltmore Estate combine to render her cutting edge in addressing corporate issues.

K is for keynote speaker. Jackie is as comfortable giving a keynote address to 500 or a thousand plus people as she is tailor making a seminar for a small group of people who want an intense and interactive experience.

I is for inspiring public speaker. Jackie reaches deeply into the souls of her listeners. It is through her examination and sharing of life experiences that takes the audiences from individuals toward the collective humanity we are who share this world.

E is for educational, enlightenment, earnestness, epiphany, all the experiences you will have when engaged with Jackie.

P you probably thought would be for professional, public speaker. And that she is. But, the capital P if for poignant, penetrating, pulsating with energy and poised to talk directly to you and your group.

Awhile ago I was in a shop in Asheville N.C. browsing the greeting card section. Before long my smirks became smiles. My chuckling turned into laughter. Tears ran down my face and I could not contain myself. I looked around to see a salesperson looking at me with a grin. Holding my ribs and keeping myself somewhat together I declared “What a great laugh!” It did not take but a moment for others to come see what the hilarity was all about. I walked away joyfully and light hearted. My discovery of reading funny greeting cards continues to this day. The great belly laughs are healing in and of themselves. As a motivational speaker I share my personal experiences with my audiences and one of the things I often say is that we do not laugh nearly enough. This little exercise is a must do! When was the last time you bent over in the throws of laughter? Remember how good it felt? Check out those hilarious cards! You’ll be glad you did!

Once the caterpillar changes into a butterfly, that’s it.

Once the egg is scrambled, it can’t be over easy.

Once the cucumber is made into a pickle, it will never again be a cuke.

Once the butter is on the popcorn, it can’t ever be just plain.

Once the apple is picked from the tree, it will never grow any more.

Once the lie is told, doubt will always follow.

Once the heart is broken, it may never mend.

Once the trust is lost, things will be forever changed.

As a motivational speaker I challenge people to look at and to  accept change. I know how important change is to continued success in the business world.  On a quiet sunny afternoon, listening to my fountain and enjoying my flowers,  I had the opportunity to look at change in another arena.

My past experiences coaching and leading people have demonstrated to me that the trait of consistency is almost always present when one is successful in working with a group of people. Those with whom I worked, knew that my statements and actions were intentional and that they could take what I said  and what I did to the bank.  Speaking to a business group recently, I was asked about motivating employees, keeping them performing at level or beyond and holding them accountable for their performance.  My  answer to these folks was that the leadership of the organization had to have practices and policies in place that were clear, reasonable and fair so that employees knew what the expectations were and  that failure to meet these expectations would  carry  direct consequences. It is the responsibility of the employers to uphold the organization’s policies in a consistent manner.  If employees see that nothing seems to happen when the rules and regulations are not upheld, or are sometimes upheld and other times turned a blind eye toward, then some employees will push the envelope and slack off in their performance. Consistency in practice, adherence to policy, follow-through all create a working climate in which expectations are clear to employers and to employees and what is said and done can be taken to the bank.

My experience as a professional motivational speaker has enabled me to listen to and to watch people in many different places and spaces. I recently overheard at the Charlotte airport the following statements: “I’m too too tired to think about it.” “He was too large to fit in the seat!” “They book too many people for every flight.” “She is too old to be left alone.” “You’re a bit too straight, even for me darling!” “Look, he’s too small, he fits under the turnstile!” “It is way too hot in here!” “I was just too busy, Gloria, to get it done!” I think you get the idea here. Too fat, too thin, too small, too large, too tired, too anxious, too gay, too old, too young, too tall, too short, too frightened, too sad, too gray, too wrinkled, too slick, etc. Watching and listening to people always creates new stories to share. Too many wanna be’s? Too many should haves? Too many could haves? Seems like we just worry about too many things, but it makes for some great speaking material!

Keeping an open mind let us enjoy a wonderful spring and summer beverage that at one time was pretty much never tried by wine lovers.  Here’s Jackie’s recipe for Sangria, if you choose to use white wine it is called Sangria Bianca…

Combine the following ingredients in a large pitcher : 2 bottles of red wine, vintages not needed here!

4 shots of brandy

4 pinches of sugar

3 cups of carbonated something

3 or 4 sliced oranges/limes and or lemons

Stir well with a long spoon and chill at least 4 hours

Serve in any type of glass, mug or cup that feels good in the hand. It can be put over ice. You can add a few slices of fruit. Make it your way and enjoy!  Speaking to a group of wine students in Asheville recently, I found myself telling tales of this wonderfully refreshing beverage.  So fellow wine lovers, never say never and give it a try!

Knowing the audience is without a doubt the most important thing in public speaking and certainly in motivational speaking. When I do wine seminars, I know the folks before me all have the same interest; they want to hear and taste…it is all about the grapes! As a motivational speaker, it is my responsibility to know whether I am serving  spuds and corn  or fillet mignon. I need to do the homework, do the research and connect the thread running through the fibers of my listeners. Presenting information that often comes in forms of life stories is much different than laying out the numbers of the last quarterly sales reports. I have found from experience that tragedy overrides comedy just about every time when it comes to storytelling. Not to say that all listeners would rather hear the typhoon story vs. the return of Fido news. I can say that there are important lessons learned from each.  Public speakers just need to know who is looking at us before we begin!