A Guest Blog from Nando Parrado

Gail Davis, 23 April 2012

By Nando Parrado

nando with gailIt is my honor to write the first guest blog for GDA . It seems fitting since I was the first speaker at GDA.

I had the pleasure of attending several events with GDA this week. A fundraiser, the Open house this week to showcase their new offices, and the reason for my trip to Texas, my keynote at an Entrepreneur Organization (EO) meeting. I have so many memories of GDA over the years.

It was wonderful to be there with Gail and the members of her team, past and present, at the open house. I marveled at what Gail has done to create such a professional organization.

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Do You Take the Stairs?

Gail Davis, 03 March 2012

By Gail Davis

Take the StairsYears ago Julie O’Keefe in my office stumbled upon an unknown young speaker named Rory Vaden. He had won the Toastmaster award and she was impressed with his authenticity and passionate speaking style.

She was so impressed that she reached out to introduce herself. For those of you in the business, you know that is a rare step. Rory committed to Julie that he would come meet our team.

Little did we know he had another reason to come to Dallas. Rory had decided he wanted to write a New York Times bestselling novel. He had gone to a book store and studied the books he liked. He quickly spotted a trend in the acknowledgments. The authors kept thanking their literary agent Jan Miller who is based in Dallas.

Rory decided Jan was his ticket to the New York Times list. He sent her a proposal, he called her, and he had not yet received a response. So he decided to fly to Dallas to meet Jan and Julie … .literary agent and speaking agent.

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Dr. Gary Chapman Brings the Love to Our Office

Gail Davis, 16 February 2012

What a treat at GDA today! Dr. Gary Chapman visited our offices. He was in town speaking to two different client groups. He graciously agreed to stop by our office and meet the team.

Dr. Chapman is a wonderful author who is improving relationships around the world with his books. He is best known for The Five Love Languages. This book is 19 years old and remains a New York Times Best Seller.

The book has been so powerful that it has inspired other great and helpful books, including The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace, which he coauthored with Dr. Paul White. We were thrilled to learn more first-hand about his “MBA” – motivation by appreciation – and how we can empower each other through encouragement. It’s a powerful tool!

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DON'T HIRE MOVERS!

Gail Davis, 03 January 2012

Moving dayI am a big fan of outsourcing. I believe in letting experts do their thing. However, I just had the most incredible team bonding experience because we did it ourselves! This would not work for everyone. However, with the right team and the right circumstances, it was a fantastic experience

After 11 years in the same building, we moved our offices to the Uptown area of Dallas. The distance is 24 miles. We had a moving company come out and give us an estimate. And for the fun of it we made a wish list for the new office. All new furniture and a new VOIP phone system. As our wish list grew and we evaluated the cost of moving, we decided as a group to sell all our old stuff on Craig’s list and move ourselves.

December 1st was full court press on planning the move. I borrowed a tool from my event planning days, the detailed timeline. I completed the first draft, got the team involved and moved out of the way. Theresa and Ashley took ownership of the timeline and ran with it.

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Designing Women

Gail Davis, 16 December 2011

Designing WomenChristmas is one week away. Where did the year go? What an amazing, exciting year it was … but man, what a whirlwind!

Whirlwind is exactly what I’m looking at right now.

After 16 years in my suburban home, I decided to buy a high rise condominium in Dallas. I was very fortunate to sell my home quickly with the buyers even purchasing everything in it! Literally, every piece of furniture, fixtures, decorations. Everything.

In some ways, moving free from all the trappings of two decades was liberating. Moving from a larger home to a smaller urban space presented a great opportunity to get a new look.

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TEDxSMU - What a day!

Gail Davis, 05 December 2011

A Saturday during the holidays spent at an all-day speaker event? It was hands down the best decision of many holidays in recent years. Which is why I spent Saturday feeding my mind at TEDxSMU with the newest member of our team, Sarah Leverett.

I did have one important hint. Besides the fact that it was a TED event, I knew that anything Jim and Carole Young are involved in is sure to be a winner. This did not disappoint.

So I headed downtown to the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. I’d never been. Honestly, it was my first time on the ground to really understand the Dallas Arts District. I think it is a good thing that I moved from the suburbs. I am surprised daily at the amazing offerings of Dallas. So much has changed in the 20 years I spend in suburbia!

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