Laura is an accomplished public speaker who is available to speak
to your business or organization on any of the following subjects.
Many of the subjects can be tailored to your group's specific needs. 

Applying the Golden Rule in a Business Setting

We all have horror stories about the bad service we’ve experienced at one time or another. But have you ever impartially examined your own company’s record when it comes to client conduct? Brush up on your skills — learn some of the do’s and don’ts of business, including e-mail, phone, and meeting etiquette.

During this presentation, you will:

•  Learn about and discuss workplace issues, including: the telephone; e-mail; office gossip; meetings; interruptions; defining our territory; guests, consultants, and new employees; appreciation and credit; punctuality; dress and appearance; gender relations in the 21st century; secret shoppers.
• Learn what to do in social settings, including: introductions; proper use of business cards; handshakes and nametags; table manners; small talk; who pays the bill.
• Understand why it’s important to think beyond the company.

This is a talk that can be tailored to any industry. Audience size is not limited

Business Writing for the 21st Century

Whether it’s a memo, a business letter, a newsletter, or a proposal, everything you write is a reflection of you. The written word is a powerful tool, primarily because it is a concrete — and potentially lasting — record of your thoughts and ideas. You want that reflection, and that record, to be positive. Whether it’s brushing up on comma placement, or learning how to broach a difficult subject, this program can help you sharpen and enhance your written communications to help you effectively reach your target audience.

During this presentation, you will learn:

• Why it’s important to get it “write”
• Why correct grammar matters
• How to determine who your target audience is and your reason for writing to them
• Appropriate use of e-mail
• Style and mechanics
• Grammar basics
• Margins and fonts
• Consistency and agreement
• The importance of being succinct
• We all make mistakes — nevertheless, we must proofread!!!
• Problem words and phrases
• This is a talk that can be tailored to any industry. Audience size is not limited.

E-Book Essentials

Could finally writing that book give your business or career a boost? You bet it could! Authoring a book gives you credibility as an expert in your field. You are an expert, right? Otherwise you wouldn’t have the career you have! Why not share that expertise with as wide an audience as possible, and get paid for it? If people are always telling you, “You should write a book,” or if you’ve always wanted to write a book, but hesitated because you didn’t really know how to get started, an e-book might be just the right vehicle for you.

Maybe...if I knew exactly what an e-book was. An e-book is a book that is written and formatted just like a normal book — but it’s not printed or bound in a hard copy. Instead, what you sell is an electronic version that is delivered via e-mail, or that is downloaded directly to the purchaser’s computer or Palm Pilot straight from the Internet. The purchaser has the option of printing a few pages or the whole thing, if they like — but they don’t have to print any of it if they don’t want to. Research has shown, however, that most people who purchase e-books print at least a portion of the pages.

The main thing is that any book is mostly about the words and ideas in it — and much less about the format in which it is delivered. Make no mistake — people will never give up physical books. Almost anyone reading fiction is always going to want to curl up on the sofa with their book... But, e-books are incredibly useful tools for people selling non-fiction, specifically “how-to” books.

It’s a great way to get exposure for yourself and your business while you create credibility as an expert and a stream of passive income. And who couldn’t use more passive income? The one caveat is that you MUST have a Web site — and you must be willing to invest the money or the time in Search Engine Optimization.

The E-Book Essentials Self-Study Workshop offers guidance to first-time authors. Regardless of whether you eventually publish your book as a bound paper book or an e-book, this course will benefit you! It will teach you the fundamentals about developing a successful book, and how to publish that finished product as an e-book.

In this course, you will learn:

• What makes a good e-book
• The importance of strong writing and excellent editing
• How to choose an e-book format
• How to create an e-book document
• Where to distribute an e-book
• How to market an e-book
• What to look for in an e-book contract
• Where to locate support services for e-book authors

This is a live-action workshop but also is available as a Webinar. Participation in the live class is limited to 24 people.

Even I Can Write That — Using Writing to Enhance Your Creativity

A follow up to “If You Have a Brain” that is more writing intensive. This 4-hour course will teach you how to use the written word to explore your creative thought process. You will learn to get comfortable with writing, even if you think you are not a writer or have always felt that writing was difficult for you.

In this workshop, you will:

• Let go of the idea that you “can’t” write
• Discuss the many different forms writing takes
• Realize that everyone can write something — even a grocery list is writing!
• Try your hand at several different styles of writing
• Learn that even good writers practice in order to improve
• Perform several writing exercises
• Gain confidence about your own ability to use the written word to express yourself

Finding Abundance in Gratitude

How to Build Expert Credibility in Your Business
or Industry

  + Develop trust and confidence among your prospects

  + Add legitimacy to your endeavors

  + Differentiate yourself from your competition

  + Enhance your reputation

  + Increase your brand equity

If You Have a Brain, You Are a CREATIVE Person!

How often do you hear or utter phrases like “That will never work,” or “I can’t even draw a straight line,” or “I have no idea where to begin with this project”? The fact is that creativity is not just for artists, musicians, and poets. Every one of us has a personal source of inspiration — and each of us is capable of profound creativity. Wherever you are on the creativity spectrum — whether you are an “already creative”, a “sometimes creative”, or a “can be creative” person* — this hands-on, 4-hour program will invigorate and involve you. And what’s more — IT’S FUN!

*From Ned Herrmann’s book, The Creative Brain

In this workshop, you will:

• Learn that creativity is a state of mind

• Discover why creativity comes from listening to your intuition

• Use all 5 senses to invoke your creativity

• Create a personal catch phrase to help you silence your inner censor

• Learn what visualization is and practice using it

• Perform a creativity meditation

• Practice brainstorming methods that work in the real world

• Learn techniques for overcoming writer’s block

• Unlock the door to your personal creative genius

• Discover ways to live a more inspired life

This is a live-action workshop, meeting in person at a predetermined location. Participation is limited to 25 people.

Kick-Start Your Creativity: Practical Tools for Thinking,
Visualizing, and Brainstorming

This invigorating 2-hour presentation will teach you how to tap into your own creative potential. The value of creativity and brainstorming are illustrated through group exercises. This informative and FUN session will demonstrate that everyone is capable of profound creativity.

During this presentation, you will:

• Learn the definition of creativity and creative thought
• Explore the concepts of left-brain vs. right-brain thinking
• Discuss why non-judgment is imperative to creative thought
• Hear the explanation of the tag phrase: “Silence the Censor”
• Study lists of the 12 traits and 12 secrets of creative people 
• Learn the definition of visualization
• Understand the importance of visualization
• Practice sample visualization exercises
• Learn the definition of brainstorming
• Practice sample brainstorming exercises
•  Discuss reasons creative thought is important in the workplace
• Learn ways to implement creative thought/problem-solving/brainstorming in the workplace
• Discover ways to overcome impediments to creative thought in the workplace

This is a talk that can be tailored to any industry. Audience size is not limited.

My Experience as a Birthmother in an Open Adoption

Having placed her son for adoption at the time of his birth, and working with Lynn C. Franklin on her book, May the Circle Be Unbroken: An Intimate Journey into the Heart of Adoption, Laura has become an active advocate of openness in adoption. Her specific passion is for sharing the birthmother story as widely as possible.

Most people know an adoptive parent or someone who was adopted — and most people probably also know a birthmother. They just don’t know they know a birthmother, because so many birthmoms are still so reluctant to talk about their experiences. Amazingly, half a decade into the 21st century, there’s still an inordinate amount of shame, grief, and guilt surrounding birthmothers’ place in the adoption triad — and a seeming societal disconnect around their role in the adoption process. By speaking openly about this subject, Laura is creating a new and necessary dialogue about adoption by relating her own story, honestly and directly. To date, she’s never heard a question she was unwilling to discuss.

This is a talk that can be tailored to any group. Audience size is not limited.

Vivid Visuals: Manifesting Your Dream With Visualization

A fun, lively 2-hour workshop where you create a vivid visual representation of your goal — a poster, a treasure map, a comic strip, a coat of arms, etc. You don’t have to be a great artist — all you have to have is a dream! At the end, you take your creation home and display it in a prominent place where you can look at it often. This constant reminder will give power and energy to making that dream a reality!

In this workshop, you will:

• Learn what visualization is and why it works
• Perform several visualization exercises
• Select one goal you want to manifest in your life
• Discover why judgment is the biggest obstacle to obtaining your goal
• Create a vivid visual picture of your goal that will help you bring your dream to life

This is a live-action workshop, meeting in person at a predetermined location. Participation is limited to 12 people.

What Does Your Handwriting Say About You?

Handwriting has been called “the window to the soul.” Because our handwriting styles are as unique as our fingerprints, they can reveal a great deal about our personalities, our wants, our potentials, and our true selves. Handwriting analysis, or graphology, has the potential to help you determine a career path, and to actually change your life. Find out how it works, and how to use it to your advantage. Learn to recognize specific personality attributes indicated by handwriting. Get an overview of graphology so you can begin to understand the characteristics of your own handwriting, and develop a better understanding of yourself.

During this presentation, you will learn:

• Things handwriting can and cannot determine
• How to take a handwriting sample
• Characteristics of handwriting, including the meanings of overall organization, extremes and variables, baselines, margins, slant, zones, letter size, spacing, pen pressure, connectors, script form, capital letters, and identity words
• The meaning of specific letter formations
• How to spot pain and physical illness from a person’s writing
• What a person’s signature means

This is a talk that can be tailored to any industry. Audience size is not limited.

What's Your Networking Personality?

Based on the article found on the Arizona Networking page of this site, this presentation offers humorous instruction about how to be a good "people meeter."

During this presentation, you will learn:

• Why it's important to have a network
• The three different kinds of networks each of us has, and their specific roles in our personal and professional success
• Samples of networking styles that generally don't work
• Samples of networking styles that tend to work very well
• The meaning behind the acronym I.C.E.
• Tips for becoming a better networker

This is a talk that can be tailored to any industry. Audience size is not limited.