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UPCOMING SPEAKERS AND EVENTS

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November 8, 2006

Liz Perle
author of
When Work Doesn’t Work Anymore
presents
MONEY, A MEMOIR:
Women, Emotions, and Cash

When Liz Perle’s first marriage broke up she was left with fifteen hundred dollars to her name. Having given up everything to join her husband halfway across the world, she now sat on a plane bound for the United States with no home to go to, no partner, and—perhaps scariest—no financial support. This epiphany hit her at thirty thousand feet and brought the erstwhile successful publishing executive to the realization that, despite having spent her life striving for security, she now had none. So began Perle’s exploration of how women spend, ignore, and feel about one of the world’s most important and controversial subjects: money.

In MONEY, through her own story and interviews she conducted with over two hundred women, financial experts, and psychologists, Liz Perle examines the reasons why these complicated relationships exist, and what women might want to do about it, before it’s too late. In a spirited, wry voice, she warmly wags a finger at all those who turn a blind eye to a crucial aspect of daily life, and one that could be the difference between a comfortable retirement and the poverty line.

In her new book, MONEY, A MEMOIR: Women, Emotions, and Cash,
Perle shows just how complex and deeply rooted these financial issues are.

Early in life and only half-consciously, Perle made a quiet contract with money: she would do what it took to get it, but did not want to spend any time thinking or worrying about it. She was content to hand that task over to her husband. But her story didn’t end happily-ever-after and Perle was forced to confront some unattractive facts:

• She was a successful, modern, career woman still waiting for Prince Charming to come and save her.
• She was a victim of her “Inner Stewardess”, a woman who didn’t get the raises she deserved because she was too eager to please everyone—even her bosses—rather than appear money-hungry.
• She was living under the shadow of her childhood insecurities about money, which stemmed from her father’s persistent threats to “disinherit” his kids.
• And she had blatantly ignored her grandmother’s warning to keep an emergency nest egg for herself

RAVE REVIEWS
Praise for MONEY, A MEMOIR

“How did Liz Perle get so far inside women’s heads? This is much more than a memoir. It’s one of the most insightful and important books about women’s behavior I’ve ever read.”
—Hope Edelman, author of Motherless Daughters

“One of the most powerful determinants of a woman’s quality of life is her relationship with money. If she takes good care of her financial health, she lives life on her terms. If, however, she avoids taking responsibility for this important area of her life, she relinquishes her power to forces outside of herself. In MONEY, A MEMOIR, Liz Perle offers a straightforward and deeply personal account of what it takes for women to reclaim their financial and emotional freedom.”
—Cheryl Richardson, author of Take Time for Your Life

“If you want to understand many women’s complex and contradictory attitudes about money, take out your wallet and buy Liz Perle’s very personal and very honest look at the subject in MONEY, A MEMOIR.”
—Myrna Blyth, former editor-in-chief of Ladies Home Journal

“This deceptively powerful book is a must-read for any woman who really wants to be in control of her life. Written with humor and hard-won wisdom, I hope it inspires women to really look honestly at what their relationship is to money. It’s an examination that’s long overdue.”
—Arianna Huffington, editor of the Huffingtonreport.com

“Change is in the air. Someone finally has the courage to be straight about women’s emotional struggles with money. Every woman who reads this touching, smart and true book will come away with more insight into one of the most important relationships in her life – the one between her and her pocketbook.”
—Debbie Ford, author of The Best Year of Your Life

“This is a book for any woman who feels uncomfortable with the subject of money, i.e., nearly all of us. It proves what Simone de Beauvoir wrote fifty years ago—that women will always be the second sex until we take financial responsibility for our lives. Part autobiography, part social science study, MONEY, A MEMOIR is an intelligent, reader-friendly book that couldn’t be more timely.”
—Marilyn Yalom, author of History of the Wife

Click below to download pdf copies of Liz's articles and reviews:

1. Myths About Money
2. About Liz Perle
3. Praise for Liz's Book
4. Surprising Statistics on Women
   

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Extra Value Received from Team Training

"My writing improved significantly by taking your writing workshop…While each staff member improved their writing, the office gained even more from our collective improvements. Staff routinely map thoughts before writing a word and, consequently, produce a better-written document. We accept editing from others more openly and less personally than before. Because everyone understands editing improves one’s writing rather than being a criticism of one’s writing, we produce better documents with less struggle".

Max Cheeseman
Administrative Office
Office of Small Business
California Trade and Commerce Agency.

State Conference Overwhelming Success

"Because of you, our First Annual State Conference was an overwhelming success. You provided the essential information that Head Start personnel need to enhance their productivity and effectiveness. Through relevant content, real-life examples, and interactive dialogue you gave people the confidence and tools they can apply immediately.

All of us at CHSA wish you continued success and look forward to working with you in the future".

Debra J. Crumpton
Executive Director
California Head Start Association

Date to be Announced

Fran Zone,
Creator of the Zone Method™

Fran Zone is CEO of San Francisco-based Zone Communication and the creator of The Zone
Method™, a proven process for getting desired outcomes, developing leadership style, and leveraging what is assumed of you. A nationally recognized keynote speaker, leadership communication expert, and executive coach, Fran addresses more than 30,000 professionals annually via business conferences, communication workshops leadership seminars and message-strategy sessions. She is also an invitee of Fortune Magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in Business Summit.” Zone clients include White House staff; Dolby; Genentech; Merrill Lynch; NASCAR; NBC Olympics; and Time Inc.

Fran’s talent for applying strategic communication has been utilized in award-winning Broadway promotions, Emmy-winning television and radio production, television casting, magazine launches and promotion, international events, and national public information campaigns. Her passion for ‘media that makes a difference’ caught the attention of ABC-TV, who recruited her to orchestrate a national, multi-medium, information campaign on sexual harassment. As executive director, Fran secured alliances with sponsors that included Chrysler Corp., the American Assn. of Advertising Agencies and Hearst Magazines.

Fran has taught at UC Berkeley and created a media scholarship at the University of Texas. The John Mack Carter Scholarship, named in honor of the magazine icon, is a graduate-level award for women committed to creating ‘media that makes a difference.’ Fran is a recipient of the Headliner of the Year Award, a national honor for lifetime achievement in the field of communication. Other winners include John Quinn, editor-in-chief of USA Today, and legendary White House correspondent Helen Thomas.
All Zone Method™ programs, seminars, products and tools are produced and distributed by Zone Communication (www.zoneme.com).

CLIENTS INCLUDE:

AAAA (American Association of Advertising Agencies)	NBC Olympics	PBS
Penguin Putnam Publishing	AT&T	ABC Inc./Capital Cities
Boeing	PeopleSoft	Saatchi & Saatchi
CourtTV	ChevronTexaco	SBC
Del Monte Foods	Sony Style, Sony Pictures	Southern California Edison
Dolby Laboratories	State Farm Insurance Co.	Frederick’s of Hollywood
Time Inc.	Genentech Inc.	Business 2.0 Magazine
Greater Bay Bancorp	Fortune/Money Group	GSD&M Advertising
InStyle Magazine	Hearst Magazines Enterprises	People Magazine
Johnson & Johnson Companies	Universal Television	Adv. Sterilization Products
Vatican Representatives	BioSense Webster	The Pope’s 1987 U.S. Visit
DePuy AcroMed	Venture Strategy Partners	Kaiser Permanente
White House Staff	Los Angeles Police Dept.	W.R. Hambrecht + Co.
Merrill Lynch	Young & Rubicam	NASCAR

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Cathleen Rountree, B.F.A., M.A., Ph.D.

author of

presents

THE MOVIE LOVERS' CLUB: HOW TO START YOUR OWN FILM GROUP

SWN will be hosting Cathleen Rountree, B.F.A, M.A., PH.D., a University of California professor and author. We have been hopeful that Dr. Rountree would speak at an SWN meeting for years and we are honored that she has agreed! She will be discussing the topic of her latest book, The Movie Lovers' Club: How To Start Your Own Film Group. Barnes & Noble will be there to sell her book, as well her celebrated “decade series” of books about women and aging. We will have copies of these books available for sale and Dr. Rountree will be happy to sign them.

Large screen TVs and full-line DVD services have liberated movie lovers from fear of parking and stale popcorn. Across the country, movie lovers are staying in and creating their own version of book clubs – but without the homework.

There’s more to be gained from participating in a movie club than just a pleasant diversion (though fun is certainly part of the equation). There is something especially rewarding about watching movies with someone and having a quality conversation afterward. A movie club provides more than simple entertainment, it offers a unique venue for starting, building, or strengthening your relationships, along with a chance to get to know yourself and others better.Movies help us connect and empathize with others, both fellow viewers and movie characters alike. Watching movies together can provide a sense of connection that may be missing from our lives, by presenting shared cultural touchstones.

During the past 100 years the cinema has both mirrored and shaped our internal and external lives: what we think and feel, how we dress, the cars we drive, to whom we are sexually attracted, and so on. The movies we love and identify with throughout our lives have real power to shape who we are and who we aspire to become. Because films have such a capability to transform us, it’s inherently and deeply satisfying to talk with friends and family about how the movies we watch relate to our lives.

Pauline Kael, arguably the greatest film critic of all time, appreciated the fact that sharing the “giddy, high excitement you feel” about movies is all you need to create and cement friendships. Which is why you may want to consider starting a movie club of your own!

Cathleen Rountree, B.F.A., M.A., Ph.D., a seventh generation Californian, is a writer and writing consultant, film analyst and scholar, visual artist and photographer, educator and cultural mythologist. She is the best-selling author of eight books including the most recent on the art and craft of writing titled The Writer's Mentor: A Guide to Putting Passion on Paper. Her coaching and consulting service, also called The Writer's Mentor, offers editorial assistance in developing both fiction and nonfiction projects, writing proposals, finding agents and publishers, and the business of being a writer. Her articles on writing appear in The Writer magazine and Writer's Digest.

Cathleen is nationally celebrated for her efforts to bring women's midlife issues to public attention. She is the author and photographer of the five-volume series that documents women's life stages: On Women Turning 30: Making Choices/Finding Meaning, On Women Turning 40: Coming Into Our Fullness, On Women Turning 50: Celebrating Midlife Discoveries, On Women Turning 60: Embracing the Age of Fulfillment, On Women Turning 70: Honoring the Voices of Wisdom, as well as The Heart of Marriage: Discovering the Secrets of Enduring Love and 50 Ways to Meet Your Lover.

For her books of interviews, Cathleen met and interviewed such well-known artistic and public figures as Doris Lessing, Isabel Allende, Gov. Ann Richards, Betty Friedan, Sen. Barbara Boxer, Ellen Burstyn, Mary Travers, Gloria Steinem, Marion Woodman, Maxine Hong Kingston, Gloria Allred, Molly Haskell, Andrew Sarris, Jacob Lawrence, Gwen night, and Dolores Huerta, among many others. She is often referred to as "the Barbara Walters of interview books."