BIRTH YOUR DREAM- FROM CHAOS TO CLARITY

breck

Take a look at this image as I bring you back in time with me, oh about three years ago. It was here, in Breckenridge, Colorado, that I was walking up and down the quaint city streets in tears. While I was supposed to be skiing, I had taken the day off to write. Instead, I found myself wondering, frustrated, confused and on the phone with my best friend from grade school begging her to help me find clarity. I felt like a mad woman and no matter what I did I couldn’t shut my mind off. I needed an answer and no matter how far I walked, or long I talked, thought or cried, I wasn’t ready to receive it- not yet.

Looking back, as I again walk the streets of Breckenridge, I am in a totally different place. I got my answer, and in turn clarity, purpose, and peace of mind. So what was the question you ask? While it might sound trite, what I needed was the title of my movement and book. I had been writing for close to a decade yet the title eluded me. As a writer, it’s like the bow that goes on top of the package and without it I literally felt lost.

It took another two years but that answer came in the form of Get Your Girl Back. I was on the phone with my amazing writing coach Lisa Tener when she said, “What about Get Your Girl Back?” As soon as I heard it, I knew- that was the perfect title to describe my movement and book. Why did it take so long? Why did it have to be so painful? Yet the fact was, I got my answer, it came when it was supposed to and not a moment before.

While I may make things look easy today, trust me, it’s not. Birthing a dream can literally feel like labor! Consider the fact that I started writing Get Your Girl Back when I was pregnant with Paris. Now she is ten! I tucked the book away and stopped writing for years only to be nudged to pull it back out. One time I literally threw it away and said, “I can’t do this!” until a life coach of mine, Sue Youngs said, “Traci, are you willing to miss your destiny simply because you are afraid to be vulnerable?” I knew in that moment that no matter how hard it was to share the private moments of my life, my personal stories and failures to help others; that I had to pursue my destiny- and NO I was not willing to miss it!

Then came the branding and rebranding, three website redesigns, and regular investments in something that wasn’t even viable or real yet. Of course I would question myself, “What am I doing?” Yet with each fear, insecurity and moment of doubt, I reminded myself of my purpose, passion and ability to do anything I set my mind to. No matter what, I was going to give until there was nothing left to give.

So here I am. I pushed through. While I’m nowhere near the finish line, I successfully launched the Get Your Girl Back movement just six months ago. The movement is on fire, women are engaged, sharing the movement with their friends, sisters, and mothers; all who want to reignite their passion- whether it be for their marriage, health, career, spiritual health, hobby, children, charity or something entirely different- they are revisiting those passions and thinking about how to rekindle them.

Next up? Get ready for a series of life class opportunities where I will show you how to reignite your passion step by step (and it will be for free because I want to help make a difference in your life). We have fun dream journals and other exciting things in store for you! So hang on and take a look at your own dream with fresh eyes. If it were easy, everyone would do it! You have to fight for your dream, and never, ever give up on them! Use my story as an example to follow in your own life. It’s not easy; you will fail, cry, give up and then start over again and again. Yet when the dream begins to manifest, the taste of victory will be worth every moment of energy you gave to birth your dream. So welcome the chaos, its proof that you indeed are alive!

If you’re reading this post through the daily email and want to become an Ambassador for Get Your Girl Back, where I’ll ask for help from you from time to time, email me at Traci@GYGB.com and I’ll share what we are up to. If you’d like to get the daily blog post by email, sign up at http://gygb.com/category/blog/ and see what we’re working on how it can help you!

Written by Traci Bild, Author and Founder of the Get Your Girl Back movement

<a href=”http://www.hypersmash.com”>www.HyperSmash.com</a>

What I Learned From Frontier Airlines- An Angry Mom Speaks Out

frontier

What I learned from Frontier airlines is that everything my mother taught me about manners, as a child growing up, was spot on.  Let’s start with the golden rule: Treat others as you would expect them to treat you.

Here is what I learned today: Frontier is a service business- I was blown away that they would violate the golden rule over and over in my experience with them today. Trust me; I will share in detail what occurred.  All I could think as I traveled was, “Has service in the airline sector gotten so horrible that they simply don’t give a crap?” Jokes used to be made about used car salesmen. In my opinion, they are now the heroes; they help people get into cars with no credit and little money. Airlines, they’ve become worse than any used car salesman I’ve ever met and to me that’s tragic.

From Fun to Run!

So here’s what happened. We woke up this morning excited; our family was heading out to Breckenridge for our annual family ski trip. Keep in mind that I’ve traveled for over twenty years as a professional speaker and my husband is an airline Captain for AirTran, soon to be Southwest. My kids have traveled to Paris several times as well as throughout the great USA. We are traveled people so we know the highs and lows of airline travel. Yet today broke my spirit. It took everything in me not to cry in front of my kids. What’s worse is that I wasn’t mad, I was disappointed. So much that it tore at my heart. Can’t we do better than this?

  1. Don’t You Have an Extra Couple Hundred Dollars? Our flight was scheduled to leave at 9:50 am per our itinerary that we checked ten times. I attempted to check in online the night prior and the first upset came when I saw that I wasn’t just going to pay $25-$30 per checked in bag but also $25-$30 per CARRY ON Bag (unless a briefcase type). I’m thinking, okay, I’ve got Paris and Noah’s two carryon bags with their beloved stuffed animals, which travel all over the world with us. Hmmm…don’t think I can check them so that’s $100 and then my bag is another $30. So we are looking at $130 EACH way simply for carry ons (unless I check the animals and risk losing their most treasured possessions to include baby blankies). I also had two large bags with all our ski clothes so that is another $50-$60 and ONLY if I pay for everything the night before. If I dare wait because I’m totally perplexed on the carryon bag charge, then I will be charged up to $50 PER BAG FOR BOTH CARRY ON AND CHECKED. Hmmm.  Now I’m looking at a possible $250 for bags EACH WAY for a total of $500 for my wonderful luggage because the fact is, I will need to change my clothes at some point. Really? Just put the real price of the ticket instead of TRICKING us into a ticket and then killing us with extras. All I could think of were the people who would be stuck at the airport, not knowing about all these fees, and trying to figure out how to pay for it. I’m fortunate enough that while I can afford it, its plain wrong and deceiving.
  2. Read the fine print: Apparently if you buy your ticket on the Frontier website or some other odd place you avoid all these fees (does anyone buy tickets direct from airline websites?).
  3. Sorry! Oh, forgot to mention that after all this upset, trying to figure out fees, and putting in my credit card twice, I was told they could not check me in online and that I had to go to the airport desk.
  4. Change of Plans! Didn’t You Get the Memo? As we leisurely headed to the airport with time to spare, and a grand plan to get something to eat, we get to the gate and are told we are going to MISS OUR FLIGHT! What? Oh, they forgot to tell us that the flight was moved up from 9:50 to 9:15, didn’t I get the telepathic memo? No worries, I can do this! I’ve got global entry and we can zip right to the front of the security line, or so we think. Wrong! It’s airline travel, right?
  5. Bummer! We pay our $130+ dollars (no time to look) for checked and carryon bags, run to security and am told that I can’t use the global entry, not on the boarding pass even though, I’m holding the prized card in my hand. Remain calm…
  6. Ha! Just Kidding! We get through security, run to the gate, and as we get to the door are told we HAVE TO CHECK OUR BAGS! What? Didn’t I just pay $100 (I confirmed that there was indeed space and assured there would be room)?  Sorry! My kids start to cry, although silently, and I do too but just inside because I’m mom right, need to strong in this moment (and I’ll use my pen later to get it out as I’m doing now!). The kids grab their favorite animal and I promise nothing will happen to their dear friends in the belly of the plane, they are safe (not so sure the way this is going, there could be a gremlin down there).  By the way, I had the gate agent come back in and give me her name as I asked for a refund on the bags but imagine that won’t happen without some hard follow up work with long wait times. Trust me; I’m following up on that supposed “credit.”
  7. Hungry? Got Credit? As we sit down, I realize I have two kids and I included who have not eaten; we have no water and a four hour flight. I look and “Yeah!” they have items but for a price. Isn’t it basic courteously to offer your guest a drink? Not on Frontier! You can have a drink but for a price! Again, just rude. No problem- I whip out my Am X platinum that I’m burning up today anyway and pay $14.99, to be exact, for food and drinks.  
  8. Yeah, we are on the flight, have food and drink, and guess what, there are even televisions, which as a parent is a Godsend on a plane. Could it be free, like on Jet Blue? Of course not, it’s yours for $5.99 EACH.

Did I really need to get my bags on the plane, have something to drink, food to eat, and entertainment for this trip to Colorado? No, it’s not a human need, it’s a want. Yet in a service industry, I expect more. I expect an honest business transaction. Give me the real price for my ticket when I buy it, don’t trick me into buying “the lowest fare” and then kill me with extreme fees that would literally break the bank for many families as they head off on a much needed vacation. Its plain wrong.

I do fly AirTran and Southwest often and am grateful my husband flies for them and not Frontier. AirTran’s business class rocks and Southwest always makes me laugh. There is still hope yet but may this be a warning to them NOT to follow in the footsteps of airlines like Frontier. People like me will stand up, shout from the rooftops and make sure that people are aware of the misleading purchase of tickets. So let this be your warning. If you buy Frontier, read the fine print and make sure you buy the ticket on their website or be prepared to spend your vacation money on airline fees.

So thanks mom for teaching me to know when a wrong is being done and to stand up for myself and others. I listened, learned and hope that others will benefit from this information in this blog!

If you’re reading this post through the daily email and want to become an Ambassador for Get Your Girl Back, where I’ll ask for help from you from time to time, email me at Traci@GYGB.com and I’ll share what we are up to. If you’d like to get the daily blog post by email, sign up at http://gygb.com/category/blog/ and see what we’re working on how it can help you!

Written by Traci Bild, Author and Founder of, the Get Your Girl Back

<a href=”http://www.hypersmash.com”>Hypersmash.com</a>