Belle de Jour revelation shows why writers need to keep it real

News that blogger and call girl Belle de Jour has revealed her true identity this week after six years has sent a warning to anyone considering writing under a pseudonym that ultimately, they will be revealed as the author sooner or later.

Book Coach Mindy Gibbins-Klein aka The Book Midwife® is urging those considering writing anonymously to think carefully about the reasons they do not want to be identified and the consequences of people finding out their true identity later on, before they embark on writing anonymously.

“I’ve never been a fan of pseudo names or ghost writing, because I believe that you need to be authentic as a writer and part of this is about you as a person as much as the writing itself. But if you do feel the need to write under a different name, you just need to be aware that your true identity will come out at some point and then you’ll have to deal with any repercussions of that when it does,” says Ms. Gibbins-Klein.

Ms. Gibbins-Klein believes that like Belle de Jour author Dr Brooke Magnanti, it becomes increasingly difficult to continue with these parallel identities indefinitely and eventually, either the author chooses to reveal themselves or worse, they are ‘exposed’ by a third party. Either scenario could have dire consequences for the reputation of the author and their businesses if not managed carefully.

“The advent of the web and increasing use of blogging means that the world of writing has taken on a whole new persona and needs to be harnessed effectively. The Belle de Jour story illustrates the permanent nature of the web and how easy it is to bring past writings to the forefront, regardless of how the author’s situation may have changed. The best thing to do is ensure that everything you write has a reason and is working towards your overall writing strategy. If you want to be a published author in that area, great, but if your subject matter may be in conflict with your career aspirations, it would be foolish to assume it will just fade away, it could resurface at the worst possible time,” says Ms. Gibbins-Klein.

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Speaker reveals Epilepsy tragedy at Hawaii Leadership Conference

An internationally renowned book coach and thought leadership expert will be revealing how her own personal tragedy helped inspire her to start two successful businesses in her thought-provoking speech at the 6th Annual International Women’s Leadership Conference in Hawaii today.

During the event which is being hosted at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel and Resort, Honolulu, Mindy Gibbins-Klein a.k.a The Book Midwife® will deliver a speech entitled ‘Pain is a Privilege’ in which she shares the loss of her two close friends to Epilepsy and how this impacted her life and her career.

“Losing not one, but two of my closest friends to epilepsy in such a short space of time was absolutely devastating and really made me take stock of life and grasp the opportunities that were being presented to me at the time,” says Ms Gibbins-Klein, who Is originally from New York but now lives with her husband and two children in St Albans, UK.

After accepting that her pain was actually a privilege, Ms Gibbins-Klein decided to take full advantage of this realisation and wrote and published her first book A Dance in the Desert (£10.99/$14.99, Ecademy Press), became an accredited volunteer for the largest epilepsy charity in the UK, and founded two now flourishing businesses, which aim to assist others in writing and publishing important stories. She has since written two more books including the recently launched 24 Carat BOLD (£10.99, Ecademy Press)

During her time as The Book Midwife® and as co-founder of co-operative publisher Ecademy Press, Ms Gibbins-Klein has helped over 300 people to write and publish their books. Her message to attendees of Conference this year is very clear, don’t be afraid to be bold and opinionated and get your message heard!

“My reason for bringing this story to the Annual International Women’s Leadership Conference is that the lessons I learned are vitally important to those in business, particularly women in leadership roles. With the business world evolving consumers are now looking to see the people behind the company instead of the company itself and this where these women have the opportunity to shine. Business leaders need to be vocal to be noticed in an increasingly noisy world and to make their mark and become REAL thought leaders, they need to be true to themselves, not be afraid of vulnerability and just put themselves out there,” says Gibbins-Klein.

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Real leaders are made of 24 Carat BOLD

In the business world, all that glitters is BOLD, according to Thought Leadership expert Mindy Gibbins-Klein who reveals the secrets behind some of the world’s greatest leaders in her latest book 24 Carat BOLD: The Standard for REAL Thought Leaders.

Released on 3rd September 2009, 24 Carat BOLD (£10.99, Ecademy Press) is a guide for leaders and senior executives looking to stand out from the crowd and get their messages heard in a world that, according to Ms Gibbins-Klein, ‘is forcing its leaders to be both visible and vocal’.

From Barack Obama’s use of social media in his election campaign through to Zappos founder Tony Hseih’s highly personalised approach to internal communications following its acquisition by Amazon, Ms Gibbins-Klein has been providing continuous commentary on the actions of some of the most influential leaders in current leaders and now for the first time ever, has brought together her highly acclaimed views on thought leadership to create 24 Carat BOLD.

In 24 Carat BOLD, Ms Gibbins-Klein explores why daring to be bold and opinionated is often underestimated, what thought leadership entails, where the REAL Thought Leaders are and how to establish yourself as a credible thought leader in your field.

“The term ‘thought leader’ can be very powerful. But it is also potentially very dangerous. Just like any buzzword, the term ‘thought leader’ has spread rapidly, sometimes misunderstood and often misinterpreted. It is important to get it right because the ultimate goal of thought leadership is that you are not just considered an expert, you are considered THE EXPERT,” explains Ms Gibbins-Klein.

The motivations for writing 24 Carat BOLD were simple and came about from the many conversations Ms Gibbins-Klein was having with CEOs and top executives across the globe, who were realizing that the role of a leader was evolving and needed guidance on how to become known for their unique visions and values.

“In times of economic hardship and stress, many businesses forget about marketing and pretty much abandon any kind of strategic marketing of their top executives. But it is a well known fact that people buy from people and particularly people they like. Top executives are starting to realize the importance of being seen and heard, and sharing personal views on key issues. But after years of keeping personality out of business, the kind of openness and vulnerability they need to display is unchartered waters for many and that’s what is preventing them from making headway,” says Ms Gibbins-Klein.

24 Carat BOLD is now available online at Amazon.

For more information please visit: www.24caratbold.com

Politicians shown how to win elections the American way

Politicians hoping to make their mark at the 2010 elections will be shown the secrets to winning public support at a unique thought-leadership seminar this week.

In a two hour session on Tuesday and repeated on Thursday, aspiring Parliamentary candidates of The Reform Club will find out what it takes to become a real thought-leader and how to build rapport with their supporters from thought-leadership expert and native New Yorker Mindy Gibbins-Klein, author of 24 Carat BOLD: The Standard for REAL Thought Leaders(£10.99 Ecademy Press).

Ms Gibbins-Klein will be drawing on her extensive experience as an executive communications strategist and book coach and will address the key success factors that contribute to great thought leaders, which include being bold and opinionated.

“Politicians often have to face enormous challenges; that is part of the job description. But to really get ahead, they need to show the public that they have thought through key topics and can articulate their leadership on these topics in a way that can influence and guide people to a better level of understanding. It is this process that makes them the real thought leader in that space – and not the opposition,” says Ms Gibbins-Klein.

Ms Gibbins-Klein, who has helped over 300 people to write and publish their books believes that more politicians should be writing, publishing and speaking with authority.

“When politicians are interviewed, write blogs or books, they effectively put a stake in the ground, showing the market where they stand on important issues. Put simple, ‘people buy people’ and being more vocal helps the public gain greater insight into their personality. Politicians may not have enough time to write and publish a book before the May elections but they will certainly have time to work towards it and in doing so, improve their ability to get their message across in the way they want it to be heard,” says Ms. Gibbins-Klein.

Ms Gibbins-Klein will be delivering her seminar ‘How to be a REAL Thought Leader’ on Tuesday evening 15th September and on Thursday morning 17th September, at The Reform Club, organised by Rhidian Jones, CEO of Route-to-Market.

The Reform Club was founded in 1836, in Pall Mall, in the centre of what is often called London’s Clubland. It is no longer associated with any particular political party, and now serves a purely social function and today’s Reformers are men and women drawn from many backgrounds and a wide field of professional life.

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Mavericks given gold ticket to success as economy improves

The Vice President of an exclusive community for accelerated business networking has lent her support to a new competition to scoop a million pounds worth of coaching and is urging maverick business owners to take action now to build credibility and reputation in preparation for the upturn.

The unique competition, which was officially unveiled at an exclusive press conference at Adam Street last week, offers the chance to win a lifetime’s worth of coaching from international speaker, author and thought leadership expert Mindy Gibbins-Klein a.k.a The Book Midwife® who has just launched her third book 24 Carat BOLD: The Standard for REAL Thought Leaders (£10.99 Ecademy Press).

Judith Germain, Vice President of the BlackStar Life Members Community on popular business social network Ecademy, MD of Dynamic Transitions and an established business mentor and author, has officially endorsed the month-long campaign. Agreeing to sit on the judging panel she reveals that wilfully independent ‘maverick’ business owners are likely to benefit most from the million pound prize as it will help them enhance their natural predisposition to stand out from the crowd.

“Mavericks tend to be top performers but also have a fierce sense of independence, are easily bored and need to be given constant challenges to ensure that they are as productive as they can be. When running a business, be it a global organisation or cottage industry in size, this wilful independence needs to be harnessed effectively to ensure that they can achieve their true potential which is why long-term support is a great way of keeping focused,” says Germain.

With the worst of the recession now over, Germain believes that the pressure is now on for many business owners to get ready to ride the upturn and advises that those who can channel their maverick energy positively to build a good reputation will have a far better chance of succeeding in the long term.

“With the economy improving, business owners need to focus on how they are perceived by people in their outer network (i.e. those that know of them but do not know them well). Mindy’s competition to win a lifetime’s worth of thought-leadership will be an invaluable resource to any Maverick serious about growing their business. I’m a great fan of anything which helps people to build their credibility and reputation and for me, this competition ticks all the right boxes,” says Germain.

The competition will run for one month. There is just one stipulation; you need to have purchased a copy of 24 Carat BOLD: The Standard for REAL Thought Leaders from Amazon during the month of September, which then qualifies you to enter the competition.

Entrants need to forward their Amazon proof of purchase with a statement of up to 15 words on why they deserve a lifetime of thought leadership coaching to emma@bookmidwife.com. Entries will be reviewed by a panel of judges. Eligible entries are Amazon purchases dated August and September, closing date is Sept. 30th, with the winner being announced Oct 1st.

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The Book Midwife® launches hunt to find million pound prize winner

The secret is finally out! Following a press conference today at Adam Street private members club, The Book Midwife® Mindy Gibbins-Klein has revealed that she is personally funding a prize worth one million pounds and is now on the hunt to find a lucky winner.

To mark the launch of her much awaited third book 24 Carat BOLD (£10.99 Ecademy Press), thought-leadership coach Ms Gibbins-Klein has devised a never been seen before offer of the chance to win a lifetime’s worth of coaching, worth a million pounds.

The competition will run for one month and the entries will be judged by a panel of four leading UK entrepreneurs including; Ms Gibbins-Klein, Beermat founder and FT columnist Mike Southon, Founder of The Academy for Chief Executives Brian Chernett and Managing Director of Dynamic Transistions Judith Germain. There is just one stipulation, you need to have purchased a copy of 24 Carat BOLD during the month of September from Amazon, which then qualifies you to enter the competition.

The lifetime offer is a bold move by New Yorker Ms. Gibbins-Klein, who says:

“Coming from New York I’m used to being around bold, opinionated people, so it was only when I came to England 18 years ago that I realised how many businesspeople were missing out on opportunities to really stand out due to fear of a damaged reputation. I decided that in order to help them realise their inner boldness or as we New Yorkers say Chutzpah, I had to take things into my own hands and use my experience and knowledge to help them evolve into REAL thought leaders,” says Ms. Gibbins-Klein, who has helped over 300 people to write and publish their books.

William Buist MD of Abelard Management Services, who attended the press conference said;

“Mindy put on a great show today, we didn’t have a clue about what was happening as she kept the nature of the announcement a total secret. A million pounds worth of coaching is a extremely generous offer considering the current climate and we are all looking forward to finding out who the lucky winner is!”

Entrants need to forward their Amazon proof of purchase with a statement of up to 15 words on why they deserve a lifetime of thought leadership coaching. Entries will be judged by the panel of judges. Eligible entries are Amazon purchases dated August and September, closing date is Sept. 30th, with the winner being announced Oct 1st.

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Industry praise for Zappos CEO’s visible and vocal use of social media

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh has been praised by UK leadership and social media experts for his innovative and engaging communications regarding the merger of Zappos and Amazon last week.

Following news that Hsieh had released details of a merger with Amazon to employees via email, the UK’s leading authority on REAL thought leadership Mindy Gibbins-Klein has claimed that it was a risky move, but it was Hsieh’s unconventional and engaging style of leadership that secured employee buy-in, reinforcing her mantra that successful leaders must be visible and vocal.

“Tony Hsieh is willing to step out and be the face of the company and he has carefully crafted his online and offline persona which is congruent with company values. His extensive use of Twitter has allowed the public to get to know the real person behind the job and the company. In my opinion, this behaviour (exploited mainly through other media before the recent explosion of Twitter) was one of the key factors in the success of Zappos. Allowing consumers and employees to get close to him and get to know him certainly resulted in increased sales. We all prefer to buy from people we know! Finally, the open communication style and the sharing of information could have been a major factor in Jeff Bezos’ initial interest and certainly sped up the proceedings, which happened very quickly,” explains Gibbins-Klein.

Gibbins-Klein says that Hsieh and the rest of the leadership team informed their employees about the transaction in a style that was completely in keeping with the normal communication style, even to the extent of making fun of the lawyers and the press.

“Throughout the entire email, he continued to keep true to the values and ethos of the company and has gained a huge amount of respect and acceptance from his employees as a result,” she says.
Social Media Consultant William Buist agrees and thinks that Hsieh and Bezos may well have set a precedent for future internal communications.

“Internal communications in a large organisation at a time of momentous change are critical to making the change happen effectively and efficiently. The message that’s been given here, in writing from someone they know and in video from someone they don’t is forward thinking. Tony’s message is open and transparent and demonstrates his own feelings well even with the legalities of the message.

Jeff Bezos in video allows the employees to see him, hear him and understand his messages. He’s presenting things that fit well with the messages that Tony wanted to make clear, Customers, Invention, Long term thinking. He only talks about Zappos in the last quarter of the video, but the positioning before that ensures that his audience (the ones that have similar goals and insights) hears what he says and understands the sincerity of the message. ‘It’s always day 1′ was a great way to end.

He won’t have got instant trust, he will have got people to know him a bit, some to like him a little and a few to respect him. It’s a powerful strategy. I’d expect this merger to be one of the more successful we will see, partly because of the outstanding start that they have given it,” says Buist.

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More Home Births In Store for The Book Midwife™

Aspiring authors from across the globe can now confidently nurture and deliver their books from the comfort of their own home thanks to a new home-based book coaching course from The Book Midwife.

Previously only available to The Book Midwife™ Writer’s Gold Club clients, ‘The Book Midwife™ Complete Home Birth Kit’ will provide hundreds of would-be authors with exclusive material and knowledge from one of the world’s top book coaches Mindy Gibbins Klein, better known as The Book Midwife™.

The course provides everything an aspiring author will ever need from idea through planning, writing, editing, publishing and launching their new book. It is a complete package of Video, Audio and Reading material combined with an entire year of support from Mindy, a published author, international speaker and publisher who has helped hundreds of people to write and publish their books.

“I get panicked requests all the time from writers desperate for help with blocks, confusion and overwhelm and as I usually work one-to-one, I can only support a limited number of writers at any one time, yet there are so many others like with whom I wanted to share my accumulated knowledge of 20 years. Many people writing books for the first time have other commitments and pressure and often struggle to find the time to dedicate to getting their book in shape and for many, it just never ends up materialising,” says Mindy.

Whatever stage you may be at, Mindy has already helped many writers through that stage to be able to see their own book in print. One such client is Lindsey Agness, author of Change Your Life with NLP who since publishing her book in 2008 has sold over 20,000 copies and generated £35,000 worth of business from it in the first year of publication.

“I feel proud of myself now that I have been published by Prentice Hall Life -one of the biggest publishing houses in the world and I’m now  on track to publish my second book in Spring 2010,” says Lindsey.

“The great thing about this home study course is that you can work on your literary masterpiece in the comfort of your own home at whatever time of day or night you have available. It’s just like having me there with you every step of the way holding your hand,” says Mindy.

To celebrate the launch of The Book Midwife™ Complete Home Birth Kit”, a limited number can be purchased for the discounted rate of just £397.

For more information visit
http://www.writenowcourse.com/completehomebirthkit/4c3.html

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The Sky’s the Limit for Latest Book Midwife Success

The sky really is the limit for one British Airways cabin crew member who has realised her dreams by launching her first book this weekend, thanks to the efforts of book coach Mindy Gibbins-Klein.

Writing had always been a passion for Premier Cabin Crew member Felicity Lerouge, whose inspiring novel Changing the Channel (£9.99, Ecademy Press) launches tonight in Notting Hill, but life ended up taking her in different directions and it wasn’t until 2007 that Felicity stirred her creative juices once more at a seminar by highly acclaimed self-help writer and speaker Tony Robbins.

It was then that Felicity met Mindy Gibbins-Klein, the founder of book coaching company The Book Midwife™ who went on to become Felicity’s writing coach last year. Earlier this year at Mindy’s recommendation, co-operative publisher Ecademy Press decided to take on the book and since then Felicity has never looked back!

“Mindy’s coaching was an essential part of Changing the Channel being written; she helped me define compelling reasons why writing the book was so important to me and how achieving this goal would enrich my life and, hopefully, the lives of others. This is what kept me focused and at my laptop, when the writing didn’t flow as easily as it might have done,” explains Felicity, who lives in London.

Felicity is one of six Book Midwife™ clients to have finished their books in recent months. Hot off the press are Change by Choice by Philip Cox-Hynd and The Trusted Advisor by Lee Clarke with others are on track to publish throughout July and August.

And as these literary passengers check out of their journey with the Book Midwife™, several opportunities now exist for serious aspiring authors to work with Ms Gibbins-Klein on a private 90 day consultancy program which guarantees to takes the author from idea to finished manuscript in just 90 days.

Mindy has helped over 300 people to write and publish their books

“90% of people who start a book never get round to finishing it and so the 90 day programme is great for people like Felicity who have that book on the tips of their fingers but just can’t seem to get it onto the page,” says Gibbins-Klein, who has helped over 300 people to write and publish their books.

In a survey conducted by The Book Midwife™ last year of 112 would-be authors of business and personal development books, 31% admitted they had started but not yet finished their book, whilst 40% had not even started to write their book yet .The survey found that the biggest barriers were finding the time, a lack of publishing and marketing knowledge and self-doubt and indecision.

“But racing at full speed into a ‘best-seller’ without any clear plan or direction can be equally as dangerous if the book ends up being more of a ‘brain-dump’ than a well thought through expression of the author’s values, experiences and beliefs. Most authors are too close to their work to make this distinction,” reveals Ms Gibbins-Klein.

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Notes to Editor

Mindy Gibbins-Klein, better known as The Book Midwife™, has helped hundreds of experts get their message out into the market by writing and publishing the best possible books, ebooks and articles, and through delivering high impact, relevant presentations and key note speeches.

An MBA graduate in International Business, Mindy is a trained coach and marketing consultant with over 18 years of experience in the corporate world, largely running marketing departments.

Mindy established The Book Midwife™ in 2001 so that she could fulfil her lifelong dream to provide personal and professional development services, and she has helped over 300 people to achieve their goals in writing their own books, articles and whitepapers quicker.

Publisher and founder of Ecademy Press, Mindy is the UK’s leading authority on writing and co-operative publishing, and passionately believes that every book deserves to be written and published, but only if it is the best book it can be.

Mindy is also co-author of Amazon’s number two best seller ‘BusinessWise’, has published her own book ‘A Dance in the Desert in 2001 and an e-book for people who are about to jump into self-publishing.

Mindy is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker and is a regular contributor to the business press on a variety of subjects, with an emphasis on the value of passing the expertise and experiences of current thought leaders on to the next generation of business leaders.

Information provide by Media Jems. For more information, images or to arrange an interview please contact;

Jenna Gould
Tel: 01603 283 503
Email: Jenna@mediajems.co.uk

The Book Midwife™ reveals epilepsy grief helped her become a published author

As National Epilepsy Week approaches, highly acclaimed speaker, writer and consultant Mindy Gibbins-Klein has revealed her heartbreaking loss of two close friends to the disease and is encouraging anyone who has experienced similar stories, to write and publish matters which are of importance to them as way of dealing with their grief.

At the time of losing two of her best friends to epilepsy several years ago,Ms. Gibbins-Klein knew very little about epilepsy, nor did she realise that she was going to experience such a dramatic change in her life.

“Losing not one, but two of my closest friends to epilepsy in such a short space of time was absolutely devastating and really made me take stock of life and grasp the opportunities that were being presented to me at the time,” says Ms Gibbins-Klein, who lives with her husband and two children in St Albans.

After accepting that her pain was actually a privilege, Ms Gibbins-Klein decided to take full advantage of this realisation and wrote and published her first book ‘A Dance in the Desert’ (£12.99, iUniverse.com), became an accredited volunteer for the largest epilepsy charity in the UK, and introduced two flourishing businesses which aim to assist others in writing and publishing important stories.

“A Dance in the Desert was my way of dealing with the loss of my friends in a way which gave my grief a sense of purpose and helped me to ensure that their legacy lived on through my writing. I also decided that a portion of the proceeds from any sales of the book would be donated to Epilepsy Action to fund the helpline so that others have access to support that my friends didn’t have at the time,” reveals Ms Gibbins-Klein.

According to Epilepsy Action, there are currently 456,000 people across the UK suffering from epilepsy and agree that greater awareness of the condition is needed to help save more lives.

National Epilepsy Week will take place 17-23 May, 2009. ‘A Dance in the Desert’ is available to buy from Amazon.

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