I did say I'd work for Bordeaux
- Danielle Hughes
- Jun 7
- 3 min read
Will work for Bordeaux
People from other countries take their wine seriously. And non-French people aren’t big Bordeaux fans. TBH it’s not my favorite either, but “will work for Merlot” just doesn’t have the same ring to it (and also, we’re NOT drinking Merlot!). Regardless of country of origin, my little blurb in my bio about working for bottles of Bordeaux starts a lot of conversations. Which, of course, is the point.
I don’t have it in there because I think people will actually pay me in wine. I’m partial to actual money. But because it elicits a smile, a laugh or better yet, something in return. Their love of beer, their wine of choice, their passion for chocolate. Whatever it is. It’s better than “let’s talk about work.” Yawn.
Not going to wine about it
As you know, I do a lot of things for free. I speak to other communities. I speak at events and run workshops that don’t always compensate financially. And I do it gladly. I want to share my expertise. I want to help people. I want to support my fellow business owners and their communities, clients or audiences. We support each other. That’s how it works.
And what I love is when I do run a workshop, or give a talk or just answer questions and someone is able to truly take my advice and run with it. Someone turns that wisdom into wine, so to speak, and wows me with their revised LinkedIn or bio. It’s beyond gratifying. But this might be the first time that one of those people wanted to send me a thank you in the form of vino.
And because he’s of Spanish descent, he really wanted to introduce me to his favorite wine from the region of Ribera Del Duero. (don’t tell him that I’m familiar with this region!) And, as you can see, this is what arrived this week.
You shouldn’t have
I’m beyond touched and of course insisted this wasn’t necessary. But who am I to turn down some free good wine? How rude! I know that when I send someone a thank you gift for a client referral or won business, I feel good. I know that person went out of their way to help me and I see it as the least I can do to reflect my appreciation. And I’m sure he felt the same. Plus, there’s a passion there. A passion to share something you enjoy with someone else. Which is kind of the point of life. And why shouldn’t that spill over into business? (see what I did there?)
I can’t wait to try these and possibly add some new varietals to the rotation. If you have a story about sending or receiving something you love, shoot me an email and let me know!
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Failure is an option
Ever fallen flat on your face? Stepped in it? Just epically failed? Ok, so perhaps none of that happened in this conversation, but I did get to share a business failure with Lorraine Ball on her More Than a Few Words podcast. And it actually felt great to admit the failure. But more than that, she gave me an idea for how to use that failure and turn it into a win. Because you never really fail. You just learn. Give this quick episode a listen and let me know if you agree.
If you enjoy my content, have attended a free workshop, or simply want to do something nice, feel free to buy me a coffee (or glass or two of wine).
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