Laurie Delk - author, speaker, coach, trainer

Laurie's life journey is a testament to unwavering faith, entrepreneurial spirit, and the transformative power of resilience. Rooted in a lifelong foundation of Christian values, instilled from her upbringing and a pivotal move from Texas to Middle Tennessee in 1986, Laurie embarked on a path marked by both professional achievement and personal devotion.

In 1993, driven by a profound desire to nurture her growing family, Laurie made a courageous decision to transition from a decade-long, successful career as an accountant at a Fortune 500 company. This pivotal moment, coinciding with her husband's aspiration to pursue his calling in law enforcement, became a catalyst for a life dedicated to purpose and service. Through prayerful consideration, they embraced both paths, demonstrating a commitment to faith-led action.

God has uniquely privileged Laurie to serve Him in numerous capacities over the past few decades. Her entrepreneurial journey began with the inception of her web & graphics, branding, marketing, and design company. Recognizing her talents as gifts to be shared, she pledged to utilize her skills for divine purpose. This commitment manifested in the creation of over a thousand websites, marketing materials, training platforms, and courses for pastors, churches, evangelists, missionaries, colleges, and a diverse range of business clients. Her expertise extended to comprehensive rebranding initiatives, empowering organizations to articulate their vision with clarity and impact.

Beyond her business acumen, Laurie is a prolific author, having penned the best-selling books "Keep Those Clients" and "We All Have Choices," and co-founded the transformative "Gratitude Girls - 100 Day Gratitude Journal Challenge." She has also contributed her insights to three additional publications. As a sought-after motivational speaker and corporate sales trainer, Laurie inspires audiences with her authentic voice and empowering message, often called upon for special speaking engagements around the world. Her dedication to education is further evidenced by her five years of teaching at her children's Christian school and her subsequent decision to homeschool them, allowing her to balance her growing speaking career with her commitment to family.

Her mission to empower women to embrace their God-given potential has taken her across the globe, where she shares her wisdom and encouragement with diverse audiences. Laurie's life, however, has not been without profound challenges. In 2013, she experienced the devastating loss of her children's father in a tragic accident, navigating the complexities of grief while raising her four children, then aged 25, 18, 16, and 12.

Believing in God's guidance for her life, Laurie remarried in April 2020 to Kevin Radecki, following their meeting in December 2019. Laurie prayed for exactly what she wanted in a husband and God showed Himself strong in giving her more than she asked in a God-fearing and God-loving husband.

Laurie's unique experiences over the past few decades provide special insight and encouragement for those who take her courses. Her story is a powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit, the transformative power of faith, and the profound impact of living a life dedicated to purpose and service. Her journey inspires others to embrace their own unique paths, to overcome adversity with grace, and to live with unwavering gratitude and purpose.

Cowboy Grub

Cowboy grub – new cookbook pg 59. E
I used the biggest skillet I have, than as I was adding all the ingredients, I had to move to a pot lol.
But this is super yumm!
I used the 2 cans of pinto beans, and fresh organic green peppers and onions.
Recipe said 6-8 – I think it would cover that. It was nice for us, we were feeding 2, but now I have on plan leftovers for a few days.

This follows the Trim Healthy Mama eating plan, and is a nice energizing but filling meal!
If you are not on plan, or want a crossover – adding cheese would probably be good 🙂

To see the full recipe – order the cookbook: (due to copyright, I cannot post the recipe here) 🙂
Trim Healthy Mama

Trends in the industry…

Reaching Out
After spending several years concentrating on personal fulfillment and “cocooning”, Americans are now focusing outward, seeking to connect, enhance and nurture their relationships with others.

Friendship cards, encouragement cards and other everyday non-occasion cards are proving popular in meeting this need, and continue to show the greatest sales growth of all card categories. The desire to reach-out with greeting cards appears to be strongest with Baby Boomers and Generation Xers, who are likely to view family and friends as the most important priorities in their lives.

The Designer Look
Greeting cards featuring high-style looks, inventive designs, unusual paper stocks and eye-catching embellishments are gaining favor with consumers who are seeking “something special” in their card-giving. This has led to the creation of more handcrafted cards, cards that are intricately designed or innovatively engineered, and cards incorporating ribbons, feathers, glitter, beads, etc. Despite their higher cost, the designer-fashion flare and artistic uniqueness of these cards continues to win the favor of many card purchasers.

Preserving Memories
Generation after generation, people have been saving greeting cards to remind them of the special relationships and events in their lives. Rather than tuck their keepsake cards in a dresser drawer or cedar chest, many consumers are now formally organizing and preserving their greeting card collections to enjoy time and again. “Scrapbooking” with greeting cards has become an especially fashionable way to document and share memories of special occasions. Similarly, many retailers now sell decorative boxes and files designed specifically for storing keepsake cards. They often include special pages or dividers for jotting down notes and dates.

The Internet and Greeting Cards
E-mail and other electronic methods of communicating have given Americans a convenient and inexpensive way to keep in contact with friends and acquaintances. Interestingly, the increased use of electronic forms of communications seems to be bolstering rather than reducing sales of traditional greeting cards.

Some sociologists believe this is because the Internet has allowed people to increase the number of relationships they are able to maintain, which they then subsequently strengthen by sending traditional greeting cards. Others believe E-greetings are a form of communication that both senders and recipients recognize as transient and treat accordingly. As such, they turn to traditional greeting cards to establish an emotional connection that can be saved and cherished.

I have 6 packages, starting from about $3 up to $500.

The 1st one is about $3/card, that allows you to send out any greeting card to anywhere in the world. This package allows you to send any of the 70,000+ cards we have in our online system, even create your own CUSTOM (by uploading pics from your computer) cards.

The 2nd one is Pay as You Go – (just buy cards and stamps as you need them). Allows you to send out greeting cards to anywhere in the world. This package allows you to send any of the 70,000+ cards we have in our online system, even create your own CUSTOM (by uploading pics from your computer) cards.

The 3rd one is $9.80/mo – (this gives you about 7 cards/mo, you just add postage) (they roll over each month if you don’t use them up, and you can cancel at any time) allows you to choose any cards we have plus allows you to create any CUSTOM cards (basic uploading pics from your computer) you want, and you buy postcards at .49 each, and greeting cards at 1.47 each (then add postage).

The 4th one is $39/mo (this gives you about 33 greetingcards/mo, you just add postage)(they roll over each month if you don’t use them up, and you can cancel at any time) allows you to choose any cards we have plus allows you to create any CUSTOM cards (uploading pics from your computer) you want, ALSO we have many templates, clip art and more you can use with this – like digital scrapbooking (create layers and more), and you buy postcards at .39 each, and greeting cards at 1.17 each (then add postage).

The 5th one is $395 (one time fee) – basically gives you a system JUST LIKE MINE, where you can buy AT MY COST. this gives you about 66 greeting cards to start with, the personal handwriting font with 4 siggys (reg $49), and the ability to use all our 70,000+ cards and make your own CUSTOM cards, PLUS the option, if you want to do autoship, to get future postcards at .31 each, and greeting cards at 93 each.

Master Keys To Client Loyalty

Do you send birthday cards to your clients?
Anniversary cards?
What about holiday cards????
Birthdays, anniversaries and holidays are master keys to client loyalty.

This is a simple concept. Your clients will demonstrate dramatically increased client loyalty to you, naturally, when you communicate that you value the importance of their personal and family celebrations.

Does this ring true for you?
With enough loyal clients, any business will exceed its financial goals.

Is there a magic bullet? Yes. Of course. It has been proven over and over again, for 600 years – send your best clients a greeting card.

Basic, but very, very effective.
Then, why is it so difficult to act on this truth?

Because it is a staffing nightmare to organize and execute. Remembering dates, buying cards, writing the message, stuffing, stamping, mailing!!!

It takes determination, but wait….
We have solved the problem.

In fact, this technology did not exist several years ago.
Never again address, stuff, stamp and mail another birthday card.
In less than 60 seconds, enter your client’s basic information online.
As easy as sending an email, except that your client receives a photographic quality greeting card in the postal mail.

The company prints, stuffs, stamps and mails the card.

Choose from over 60,000+ cards. Custom cards are easy to create.
Even upload your current database in mere minutes.
The online data manager never lets you forget a birthday or anniversary.
Send multiple cards as a follow-up campaign, automatically, whenever you say, even months from now.

Add your signature, even use your own handwriting font.
Add a picture or image from your computer – they print it next to your message.

Compassionate client follow-up the easy, effective way.

This works – beyond your expectations.

Contact me, or see more about the system we use to keep in touch with our clients – at www.ILoveCards.net

Cooking with Kids!

Creating memories with your children is a treasured event. These memories do not have to be elaborate vacations or expensive gifts. Sometimes just spending quality time together can make a lifetime of memories. What better way to do that than in the kitchen? Let your little one pull up a stool and help you cook with these helpful tips!

Plan menus. Let them decide what is for dinner one night a week (or more!). Look through cookbooks or online searches for a twist on their favorite dishes. If you are feeling adventurous, let them make up a new dish!

Understand kitchen equipment. Let them push buttons, hold mixers and turn oven knobs! It curbs curiosity and gets them involved. This is also a great opportunity to teach them about safety in the kitchen. They know that the stove is hot – but this will help them see that the heat is what cooks our food.

Add a little science. From bread rising to liquid ingredients separating, cooking is science. Use these moments to explain why these reactions are happening. Let them conduct their own edible experiments!

Help with remedial tasks. It is probably not a good idea to let them loose with a butcher knife, but they most certainly can measure and mix ingredients, add seasonings and help plate the food. For softer things like fruits and some vegetables, let them cut with a butter knife!

Now that your little one is ready to be the Sous Chef of your kitchen, have fun! And remember, this is not only a great bonding experience but an investment in your future. Teach them right and they can cook for you in a few years!

http://lauriedelk.sendcere team task management app.net/post/cooking-with-kids-2/

Happiness Is A Choice

I CHOOSE to be happy!
I CHOOSE to LOVE my LIFE!
I CHOOSE to be thankful and grateful for ALL the BLESSINGS God has given to me!

When Paul was talking to King Agrippa, he said:
“I think myself happy” Acts 26:2

Some people make a different *choice*…

They choose to…
whine, complain, worry, be depressed, think about what they are missing, focus on who has done them wrong, be a victim of circumstance.

Every single day you DO have a CHOICE.
You can CHOOSE how you feel about a certain person or situation.
You can CHOOSE how you react to things that happen to you.
(because everyone has things happen, right? It is just our choice in our response.)
You can CHOOSE how to feel (angry or happy)
You can CHOOSE what to think about.

Phil 4:8
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Everyone has trials in life – you can CHOOSE to let them DEFEAT you or DEFINE you.

No matter what you are going through right now, there is somebody that is going through the same or worse than you. There is always something you can CHOOSE to be grateful or thankful for – think on these things.

Put your faith in God, and trust in Him, even though we not might *like* what He *allows* us to go thru at times, if we trust in Him, we are better.

“whoso trusteth in the LORD, happy is he” — Prov 16:20

Stories of who climbed to the top and their success

We see the stories of who climbed to the top and see their success right?
But do we always see the price tag that person had with that success? Are we willing to pay it?

Most people do not become successful overnight.

I have been abundantly blessed by God in so many areas…
But I have paid some prices too…..

–Friends and family have said *no*

–Lost lots after being in a different company, and after hitting 5 figures monthly, then a greedy owner, it went under.

–Lost my husband’s mustang and harley, after my income went down, and he had back surgery that *went bad* and he had to leave his career at the police dept and be off work for an extended period of time, with lots of medical bills.

–Got a *job* making $10/hr to pay bills and get insurance for my husband after he had to leave his job.

–Thousands of dollars invested in training & personal development

–Joining a company and working it every day even if 15 minutes a day only, between work, family, church, etc.

—Lost my husband in a tragic car accident.

There are many other things I *could* list here – as I am sure we all could……
But in the end – I have been SO amazingly blessed by God, with awesome friends, family, church, finances, my company and so much more.

There is a price for success
Are you willing to pay it?
Are you dedicated to yours, and your teams, and your family’s success?

Wishing all of you the very best for 2015!!!!

Tell me your story…..Tell me your why….Tell me your want for success