Ink & Key

06/02/2026

If you are not coming to the Columbia Chamber Gather and Grow event tomorrow morning, why not?? I have props, people. You might get to be one of my volunteers.🦩 🎳 🎈

Get to bed early tonight so you'll be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed tomorrow and ready for the workshop. Learn cool stuff and start writing 5 soundbites to make your business unforgettable. 💰

When: 8:00 AM, Wednesday, June 3
Where: R2I2. 763 Fashion Dr. (up the escalator and to the left)
Why: Muffins. Coffee. Workshop. Props. FOMO is real.

05/29/2026

"Chase what gives you energy." - Jesse Cole of the Savannah Bananas

FYI: This is my dining room wall when I practice for workshops. Workshops give me energy, so I've been chasing them!

I'll be using my Apple Pencil and iPad during part of my StoryBrand workshop at the Columbia Chamber Gather and Grow next week! (Locals: Wednesday, June 3, 8:00 AM, R2I2, 763 Fashion Drive. Registration link in the first comment. Be there or be square. 😁 )

Practicing the live drawing part has been energizing, too. It's taking me back to how I drew ALL the time as a kid, how I taught art at a special-needs camp, and how I continually drew pictures on the chalkboard and on all the papers I graded as an elementary school teacher.

Send me a DM if you want to chat about a free workshop for your organization. Put a .com behind my first and last name to visit my workshop website and get more info if you'd like to book a private workshop.

What energizes you? Are you chasing it?

05/28/2026

Show your work.

Teachers always say this, but I still forget, so stay tuned for more Show & Tell posts.

Dr. Claudine Kubesh came to us to talk about rebranding her medical practice. We started by working through options for the new name, and the process took off from there.

Seattle Functional Health is now Santé Lifestyle MD. Tah-dah! 🪄

Swipe through for some before and after images, then go visit her gorgeous new website.

Here's some of what we did and are continuing to do:

Overall plan + ongoing strategy
Naming
Brand design + logo
Brand message + messaging playbook
Website copywriting
Offer design
Website design
Ad campaigns
Webinar, email, and social media marketing
StoryBrand messaging campaign

If you don't tell people what you do, they'll never know.

If your marketing feels scattered, scheduling a free call with me is the right decision.

05/22/2026

All the social posts in my head will have to wait until next week since right now I’m about 5 feet from the ocean. 🥰🏖️ Here’s an unfinished thought that will have to do for now.

“Don’t patronize me.” This is what I’ve told Claude before. I might have said please, but anyway, last week Claude laughed at me!

I uploaded the wrong screenshot and Claude’s correction started with “Ha!! You (insert my mistake here)! And then proceeded to tell me what to do.

Emotionally just wasn’t sure how to process that. 😅 Has Claude ever low key made fun of you??

05/14/2026

Columbia, SC area people, save the date! Tell your friends! Let's goooo!

Date: Wednesday, June 3
Time: 8 to 9 AM
Location: R2I2 Conference Center (up the escalator and to the left!)
Event: Columbia Chamber Gather and Grow
Topic: Say it So People Get It
Speaker: MEEEEEEE 😁

Okay, you know how I charge ONE MILLION DOLLARS to teach private messaging workshops?

This messaging workshop is a FREE Columbia Chamber event. The past 3 workshops I've coached at in Nashville are 2 full days, so we won't cover everything, but I promise, in our 30 minutes together, you will get an excellent overview and even some time to start creating your own short, simple, repeatable message designed to attract your ideal buyers.

Hop on over to the Columbia Chamber website to register.

Also, I may even bring a bowling ball or two. You have to show up to find out!

05/12/2026

A Story. A New Offer. An Ask.

Know a small medical, health, or wellness business? Send them on over!

05/07/2026

Here we go! It’s a full house here for the 3rd sold-out StoryBrand Your Business Live workshop in Nashville!

Day 1: Donald Miller is kicking off the day by talking about the massive cognitive load that customers have to take on in order to understand what we do.

Have you ever thought about the cognitive load of the words on your website?

Schedule a free call with me and I’ll audit your website and give you some tips on how to decrease the cognitive load of your site.

Why would you want to do this?

Ummm, why wouldn’t you?

When you lower the cognitive load of the words you use, you make it easier for your buyers to give you money.

The next workshop is September 1-2. Reserve your spot before it sells out, or if you don’t want to wait, let’s talk.

inkandkey(dot com)>schedule a call

05/05/2026

My daughter was on the interstate yesterday and some debris from a truck in front of her flew off and went up under our vehicle with a loud bang. She kept driving and when she got home she asked me to help her check everything out.

We found the back right splash guard hanging by one screw. 😬 Yikes!

So this morning with about 15 minutes to spare before an appointment, I stopped by JCA Auto Care Center and asked if they could secure the splash guard for me so it wouldn’t fly off the next time my daughter was on her way to work.

Brendan stopped what he was doing and took care of it for me. No charge. Plus he checked the tires and filled them up while he was at it. ❤️

The owner, Alex, who always wants to talk marketing with me, showed me the latest things he was learning to do with AI while I was waiting. So impressive!

I told him JCA showing me Unreasonable Hospitality was the theme of my LinkedIn post today and he was familiar enough with the book to tell me his favorite part!

THIS is my definition of Unreasonable Hospitality. Read the book by Will Guidara if you haven’t.

If you own a business, think about how you can show this sort of hospitality to your buyers.

Has JCA won my loyalty for life? 100%!

By the way, my appointment was with Brianna at The Velvet Edge Salon. When I got there, she had a lap desk waiting for me along with a lovely flavored water so I could get right to work.

This is the way.

Show some love in the comments for a local business that has shown you Unreasonable Hospitality. 😍

04/29/2026

I’m so excited about the StoryBrand Your Business Workshop!

We’ll be coaching business owners through the StoryBrand Soundbite Strategy during the next two days.

This place is bringing back memories, too, since it’s where I got certified back in July of 2019. If I could go back in time, I’d tell my terrified self to take a breath, and that she was making one of the best decisions of her life.

04/25/2026