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What Glenda Watson Hyatt Said … About a Smile

November 19, 2008 by Liz

A community isn’t built or befriended,
it’s connected by offering and accepting.
Community is affinity, identity, and kinship
that make room for ideas, thoughts, and solutions.
Wherever a community gathers, we aspire and inspire each other intentionally . . . And our words shine with authenticity.

A Smile Is a Powerful Tool

If only positive things happened, we have no worries about what other people were thinking, what could go wrong, or what the future might be bringing. We’d also never learn about strength of purpose or facing down adversity. No one has courage every minute, but when we need courage, a smile can be a powerful tool.

Here’s what Glenda said . . .

“What do you do when people are looking at you?” Being in a wheelchair with an obvious physical disability, people look or stare most times I head out my front door. Generally, I take deep breath, hold my head up, slap on a smile and carry on! Most times it works. . . .
Glenda Watson Hyatt from a comment on April 22, 2008

I so believe in the power of positive thinking. Sometimes it does take some effort, like slapping on a smile when I don’t really feel like it. But, when I am truly in the zone of positive thinking and being grateful, amazing things happen!

Glenda Watson Hyatt from a comment on April 20, 2008

A successful and outstanding blogger said that.
–ME “Liz” Strauss

Filed Under: Motivation, Successful Blog Tagged With: adversity, bc, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, smile

Forget Brogan, Forget Me While You’re at It! Meet GLENDA at BlogWorld Expo!

September 3, 2008 by Liz

Go for the Gold

I’m writing in response to Brogan’s blog post. He’s only telling his part of the story.

Last year at BlogWorld Expo, the first person I met in the hall was Chris Brogan. I already knew him.

Yet everywhere I went there he was again. In the hallway, Chris Brogan. In the breakroom, Chris Brogan. In the lunchroom, Chris Brogan. I love Chris Brogan. I think he’s awesome, but I was beginning to think there were 55 of him.

Finally, I ducked into the b5 Chris Brogan-less educational session. What a joy! Who should I spy there in the front row, but my dear friend, Glenda Watson Hyatt and her husband! Of course, we had no chance to talk, because speakers were speaking. (Speakers seemed to be doing that in every session.)

Do you know Glenda Watson Hyatt? She’s the one you really want to go to BlogWorld Expo to meet. She’s a published author, an accomplished blogger, and an adovocate of accessibilty rights like no other. She’s also an SOB like most folks around here.

Of course, when I got my opportunity to talk to Glenda, who should be there already romancing her . . . yep, the infamous Mr. Chris.

Glenda_Watson_Hyatt_and_Liz_Strauss_BlogWorldExpo07

We got Brogan to take this picture — the three of us got some quality time talking together.

She’s the gold.

Forget about meeting me. Forget about meeting him. Glenda is the one.

Of course, then, you could meet all of us at BlogWorld Expo. It’s Sept 20-21 in Las Vegas, NV.

I hear the BawldGuy is going to be there too.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!

Get your best voice in the conversation!

Filed Under: Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, BlogWorld Expo, Chris-Brogan, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, Liz-Strauss

Success in the Middle Position

October 23, 2007 by Liz

Happy Successful-Blog Birthday!

from Glenda Watson Hyatt

Excerpted from I’ll Do It Myself:

I was slightly nervous as I entered the ring and bowed to the judges. But soon it was Devil Boy, my music and me. Everything else disappeared. It was a great feeling, one of complete freedom and independence. I was in complete control of the horse, and he was listening to me. I simply did my thing, with Devil Boy as my partner. I rode my five-minute program without a flaw, matching the length of the song, which meant I had paced myself well.

At the end of my program, I halted in the middle of the ring to bow again to the judges. Protocol says you exit the ring by riding to the wall and along the perimeter to the gate. Well, Devil Boy took the opportunity of halting to stand in a perfect show stance, with his hind legs out behind him. No matter how I squeezed my legs, kicked or said “walk on”, he would not budge. I suppose he figured since I had five minutes, he deserved a moment to show off, too. Despite what Regan had drilled into me, I finally yanked on the left rein and did an 180o Western-style turn and exited the ring.

Once the two classes were done, the officials were wondering how to get the wheelchairs onto the small podium for the medal presentation; a question that obviously had not occurred to them prior to this moment. Dad suggested that, since we were still on our horses, we simply ride in and stand in front of the appropriate position at the podium. Great idea! We would maintain the same level of independence for the medal presentation as we had during the competition. And the wheelchairs wouldn’t distract from the abilities that had been demonstrated on that beautiful afternoon. Perfect!

They told Dad to direct me to the middle position. Isn’t the middle position gold? I had won gold! Oh, what a feeling! What a high! I instantly forgot that I was melting in my wool blazer in the hot, mid-afternoon sun. I beamed from ear to ear for the rest of the week!

Glenda Watson Hyatt, Do It Myself Blog

————————————————–

Thank you, Glenda! You take success to a new level — always did!
Liz's Signature
birthday balloon The party is Oct. 24th! Come for the surprises! Bring a link to your success!!!

Filed Under: SOB Business, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, Do-It-Myself-Blog, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, Successful-Blog-Birthday

13.4 Glenda Watson Hyatt, the person I met

March 1, 2007 by Liz

See What Is Right

Glenda Watson Hyatt's photo

Through this week, Glenda and I had a conversation, really, not an interview. She was open, authentic, and transparent in sharing the stories of her life and her publishing achievements. If were in my old job, I would have tried to find a way to talk Glenda into coming to work for me as work-at-home writer.

Glenda and I had a conversational interview — one question at time. I sent her a conversational email that ended with a question. She added to the conversation when she retuned the answer to the question. When the answer email arrived, I responded to the conversation and sent an additional question.

One exception to the one question at a time rule occurred.

Glenda as a Brownie
Glend'a college graduation

Thinking Glenda might want to know I was going to ask this final question, I sent it early along with another, stating it would the the last of the questions.

I should have known that Glenda wouldn’t need time with this — that she would have the answer.

Here’s that question and here’s Glenda’s reply.

I’m sure that, as a woman with a significant disability, you find folks often focus on the wrong things when they meet you. . . . But then, I feel that sort of thing happens to me too. . . . If you could tell the whole world something once, have them believe you and understand, what would you tell them?

Despite my speech impairment, I am not deaf. I can hear just fine. And I am not cognitively impaired. I am an intelligent woman and I understand you, as long as you are speaking English.

Despite my cerebral palsy and my jerky movements, I have the same needs, wants, dreams and desires as anyone, as any woman. I do not consider myself courageous or brave for simply living my life and following my dreams. After all, what else am I suppose to do with my life? Other people’s misperceptions and assumptions are what limit me, not my so-called disability.

Look beyond what is wrong with me and see what is right. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Glenda on horseback

Thanks Liz for conversing with me in this way. I’m curious to see how it turns out.

You just explained the reasons I’m so glad to have met you. Thank you so much. I’m honored to call my friend..

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related
13.3 Glenda Watson Hyatt, Learning to Write
13.2 Glenda Watson Hyatt, published author
13.1 Meet Glenda Watson Hyatt
A 4-Part Series: An Interview with the Amazing Glenda Watson.Hyatt

Filed Under: Interviews, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, cerebral-palsy, emoms-at-home, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, ill-do-it-, Wendy-Piersall

13.3 Glenda Watson Hyatt, Learning to Write

February 28, 2007 by Liz

A Life Changed by a Book

Glenda Watson Hyatt's photo

Yesterday, Glenda and I talked about what it felt like to become a published author. She shared the experience of touching her books for the very first time. Her description makes it easy to imagine how it must have been — one more example of Glenda’s skill as a writerr and storyteller.

Glenda’s accomplishment and that thrill of achievement are a future that many people reach for. Yet Glenda became a published author following a distinctly different path from the usual road. I wondered about that path and asked Glenda these questions.

How did you learn to write? How did you learn to type out the characters? How did you learn to find your clear, authentic musical voice?

Please allow me to share this except from I’ll Do It Myself about learning to print in Grade One in the Special Education class:

“Because getting to the chalkboard was difficult for most of us once we were placed in our seats, we each had an 18-inch square piece of chalkboard at our desks for practicing our printing. It was also easier to work on a horizontal surface rather than a vertical one. Initially, my printing was wobbly scribbles. With practice and extreme concentration, I controlled my jerky movements enough to make my letters almost legible more of the time. I also kept a chalk eraser handy, though inadvertently an uncontrollable movement erased a good letter. In frustration, I did the letter again.

Although learning to print, and then to write, were important steps in learning to read, it was evident that printing would not be efficient. It took too much energy and was too time-consuming to keep up with my work, and that would only worsen through the grades. Learning to use a typewriter was a necessity.

An electric Smith Corona typewriter was placed at the back of the room, which a few of us shared. When it was time to do typewriter work, Mrs. Rutherford dragged me in my desk chair over to the typewriter table and then dragged me back to my desk when I was done. Then it was the next student’s turn. A while later, perhaps once funding became available, we each had a typewriter at a second desk beside us. We simply dragged the typewriter back and forth as we needed it. It was much easier, especially on Mrs. Rutherford’s back.

As I have only one somewhat functioning hand, I only typed with one hand, my left hand. While typing, I steadied my hand on the typewriter hood to give myself some control over the spastic movements and used my thumb to hit the keys, causing my wrist to be in a dropped-wrist position. This concerned the adults, particularly the physio and OT [occupational therapist]. Although this was decades before repetitive strain injury and carpal tunnel syndrome had been invented, they were concerned that the dropped-wrist position would cause damage over the long-term.

They decided a splint with a stick to hit the keys was needed to keep my wrist in a good position. With this contraption snuggly Velcro strapped to my arm, I was expected to have enough arm control to steady my hand mid-air, without resting it on anything, and to accurately hit the keys. And this was less frustrating than printing with a pencil? After a few days, the splint ended up in the back of my desk drawer, and I resumed typing with my left thumb, my hand in its compromising position. I type the same way today, as nothing else feels as natural. For a non-verbal individual who relies on written communication, my left thumb is my most valued body part.”

I have always enjoyed writing; that is my means of communication and expression. I fondly remember our Creative Writing sessions after Friday morning recess in the Special Ed class. In the regular Grade Seven class, as a replacement assignment if there was something I couldn’t do, the teacher had me pick one moment or incident and write as much as I could about it by describing all of my five senses. The idea was to expand that one moment in time as much as possible and to include as many details as I could remember. I still use that technique if I’m stuck while writing.

Once I got my first computer in university, my writing improved because rewriting and revising were easier. I no longer had to type a rough copy and then a good copy or mess around with that darn correction paper. I love when the words just flow through me; that when I am in my groove and truly using my gift.

Gosh, Glenda, that’s a story. Thank you.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related
13.2 Glenda Watson Hyatt, published author
13.1 Meet Glenda Watson Hyatt
A 4-Part Series: An Interview with the Amazing Glenda Watson.Hyatt

Filed Under: Interviews, Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, cerebral-palsy, emoms-at-home, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, ill-do-it-, Wendy-Piersall

13.2 Glenda Watson Hyatt, published author

February 27, 2007 by Liz

A Life Changed by a Book

I'll Do It Myself Book Cover

Yesterday, Glenda gave us glimpse into the business she began as a web accessibility specialist, Soaring Eagle Communications, and she shared her feelings about a future filled with possibilities.

Our conversation, at that point, had turned to the how the act of writing a book had an effect on Glenda’s life.

Glenda, as a publisher, I know that the book we start is hardly ever the book that gets written.

What was the most unexpected thing you found while writing your book? How did the book change? How did the book change you?

When I first began writing the book several years ago, I envisioned a collection of short stories and memories from my life. I then found myself filling in the gaps between the memories. The book evolved into my autobiography, or, at least, the first installment! The book cover also changed, thanks to Nancy Cleary of Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing. I had designed a simplistic cover, which she turned into something amazingly beautiful. I was emotional the first time I saw it.

Once I started telling people that I was writing a book, I was surprised by the support and encouragement that I received, even from people I did not know. One such person is Debbie Fierst, of Logical Imagination . who generously volunteered to edit my manuscript. I was also surprised by the number of people who would like to write a book, but haven’t made it happen for a variety of reasons.

My book I’ll Do It Myself confirmed to me that I am a bona fide writer and that writing is my gift, which I am meant to use and to share with others. I sense my book will continue to change me by opening new doors for me, and by taking my business/career and my life in a whole new direction.

I remember the feeling of seeing my words in print for the first time. How did you experience that feeling? Where were you when you opened the first copy of your book? What was the feeling and thoughts you had at that time? Have you captured them to call them up later?

Since I self-published, the boxes of books were delivered to my home on December 5th. I anxiously awaited their delivery until they finally arrived mid-afternoon. I was trembling with excitement and anticipation while the delivery man wheeled in the boxes in two loads. When I opened the first box and saw my book for the first time, a wave of emotions came over me. Thirty years of dreaming, preparing, researching, visualizing and writing became real in that moment. I had done it! My dream became reality in that moment. I had written and self-published my book. And they were beautiful! There were a few happy tears. I can only imagine that it is similar to giving birth and holding your baby for the first time. I captured the moment on my other blog.

Thank you, Glenda! I can identify with those moments. You made them real for everyone. That’s a writer’s gift.

See you tomorrow with another question.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related
13.1 Meet Glenda Watson Hyatt
A 4-Part Series: An Interview with the Amazing Glenda Watson.Hyatt

Filed Under: Successful Blog Tagged With: bc, cerebral-palsy, emoms-at-home, Glenda-Watson-Hyatt, ill-do-it-, Wendy-Piersall

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