WHY NOT Wednesday! with Lori Raggio

There's a certain kind of coach who believes what we believe.

Who leads people to greatness, who gets people unstuck, who unlocks all of your passion. A coach who helps people discover what drives them to tap into their superpowers.

Knowing your why is the first step to untap potential.

To focus.

To breakthroughs.

A coach who's looking for a better way.

Are you that coach?

Hey. Hello, everyone, and welcome to why Not Wednesday. Hey. It is Women's History Month and we have had some amazing guests already, but we have a great guest today in Lori Raggio. I cannot wait to introduce you guys to her. Lori and I have known each other for only a few months, but it seems like we've spent a lot of time together because we've done some work together. In her role as president of the ICF chapter in Arizona, we had an op. Gary and I had an opportunity to spend some time with those fine people last fall. And it has been just a whole lot of fun to meet Lori. Let me tell you a little bit about her. She's the founder and CEO of Inspire Greatness Coaching and Consulting. She is. She serves as a creation catalyst, soul activist, and intuitive transformation alchemist. She helps women leaders and oper and entrepreneurs remove their armor, find their authentic self, engage with their geographical soulmate, and live aligned with with their passion and purpose. I cannot wait for you guys to meet her. So, without any further ado, let me introduce you guys to Lori. How you, Laurie, and welcome to why Not Wednesday.

Oh, thank you, Dan. It's so exciting to be here and to be a part of this amazing community.

Thank you for being here. You know, Lori, let's talk a little bit about that because, you know, I met you through Vicki Mudra, who was the previous president in ICF Arizona. She was one of our earlier Y coaches and she introduced us. And next thing we know, Gary and I are on a plane and we're going to Phoenix and we're at your chapter meeting in the fall, which was your first in person meeting in a long time. Right.

It was, it was. It was amazing day. And, you know, Gary did our afternoon keynote and we provided all of our attendees the opportunity to take the Y, which was amazing right there on the spot. And yes, and then you followed up with one of our breakout presentations and then we offered our members a certification program. And that's kind of how I got involved and have been certified since January. So, yeah, it's been a whirlwind.

It has been a. A great and fun world. When you know, here we are March 29th, first quarter is almost over. I will tell you, it's been a lot of fun. I think there were 11 or 12 of your or maybe even more of your coaches that were that attended that meeting that are now wise certified coaches. And it's been so fun to meet them. You guys have such a great group of people. And you, Laurie, got to get thrown right into the fire. Right. Because you finished certification and then you did a retreat with your board and you went through the YOS process. How was that?

Well, it was amazing because I wasn't certified yet. Vicki, who introduced all of us, you know, she actually did the team process with our board.

Okay.

But it was fascinating because we have nine board members, and seven out of the nine have a why of better way.

Interesting.

And others actually not seven. Four out of the. The nine have better way.

Okay.

Four have contribute and one has clarify. And so it was helpful to know that information and we use it on a regular basis. Comes up in all of our board meetings because I've had to kind of like switch my leadership style. And we give ourselves a certain amount of time to really do all of our better way kind of process, but then we have to commit to doing some action and executing. And so it's fascinating. And our one board member who really is more and clarifying, he brings up to us all the time. You know, it looks like we're duplicating efforts here. You know, let's clarify people's roles. I mean, it's. We see it in action every single time we get together. So it's been fascinating.

That is so cool. You know, so you're. So you're the president for 2023, and you've been involved in ICF for a while over the last four years. And then you were also, you know, so this is, you know, we're going to learn a little bit about Lori. She likes to help. Right. Her yos. So let's talk about your yos, which is better way mastery and trust.

Yes.

So you're that person that people can count on. And when I look at you served on the Sherm board of directors in Maryland for over 15 years. So you took that and you moved. You know, you're. You're in sunny Arizona and now you're the ICF chapter president. How long did it take from the time you joined ICF Arizona till you become. Became president?

Well, that's pretty funny because actually, even before I moved to Arizona, which was June of 2020, I had reached out and Said, hey, I'm, you know, I'm coming. I want to be here, I want to be involved, you know, what's happening with your board. And I wouldn't mind being, you know, a future president. So actually.

That wasn't available yet. So I jumped in as kind of like the, you know, the, the director or the supporting person of all of our professional development. And then halfway through that.

Someone actually needed to. To drop out of being the incoming president. So I moved. Moved into that. And so, yeah, it wasn't very much done.

Yeah. And, you know, and that's, and that's so funny because when you talk about people with the why of trust or the why of contribute, we're always want to be the, you know, with, with you, it's trust. It's. You want to be someone that people can count on. Right. And so you were there. But you have an amazing yos in that you're a better way person. And so let's talk about that. You're always looking for a better way. You're. You're an innovator. That's probably a strength that your board has. You don't need any more innovators. But what's really great is you. You balance that with mastery, which means you take a deeper look than most people. Probably most of most. Most better way people have other hows and what. But with the how of mastery, you really take the time to dig deep. And I can even remember our experience as you got to know yos. It wasn't a slam dunk. I'm in like some of the other folks, you know, better way challenge people. They're like, okay, where. Where do I sign up people with the how of mastery or clarify it will ask more questions. And you and I had a longer courtship than most coaches. But that is that, that's so much, so good because it really balances the that better way. What, as Gary calls it, that shiny object. Right. You see something new, let's go try it. The mastery in you takes the time to learn it at a deeper level. And ultimately what you're looking for is to build trust with your clients, with the people you work with, with the people on your board. So you want to be someone that can be depended on. How did that hit you when you first found out your why?

You know, it was so funny because I actually some of the words I wrote down is it was comforting. I felt like I was coming home to myself. I felt aligned and especially the one piece about better way when I was reading my initial results that really stood out for me and was like, oh, that makes so much sense is that I can innovate from something that already exists, but give me an opportunity to start from scratch. And that's not typically my strength, but give me anything else, right. And I can take it and kind of, you know, innovate with it, make it better and run with it. But starting from scratch is not always the easiest thing for me to do.

And we've got a few better way people that are listening. So I'm gonna, I'm gonna say hello to Watson Jordan, all the way from North Carolina. Tj, fellow Arizona coach Lynn is all the way in Florida. So thank you for being on Lynn. And this is our farthest traveler and person that's staying up. The latest right now, Des Ryan, all the way from Ireland. He recently joined Y Institute. So thank you for staying up late for us, Des. And John Saunders, who I think I'm going to talk to him later on today here from Colorado. So he's in my same time zone. We cheat. As you know, Lori, in New Mexico and Colorado, we do that daylight savings thing. You guys stay on Mountain Standard Time. We are Mountain Daylight Time. So we're an hour ahead of you right now. And in the winter, we're around the same time. Watson says, I hear you, Sister from scratch is a killer. Right.

I don't know if I shared this with you, Laurie, and let me know if this, this resonates with you. Gary says, you know, dan, put a blank sheet of paper in front of me and I can't do anything. You draw a squiggly line on a piece of paper, I'll make that sucker better. It doesn't take a lot to, to activate that better way.

Right, Right. Absolutely. Absolutely.

Good stuff. Well, you know, as I was, you know, as I've gotten to know you, one of the things I didn't know about you that we found out this week is you're an avid reader. I thought I was the only one. So I'm currently reading three books, but today's not about me, it's about you. You're reading your own book that you co authored, Unmuted Voices. You also recommended you're reading it's not your Money by Tasha Silver and then the Reinvention of Work by Matthew Fox. So, you know, as I look at that, of course you're reading three books at a time with the how of mastery. You want to learn as much as you can. Tell us a little bit about unmuted voices, which you co Author?

Sure. Well, it's actually my sixth chapter in a book anthology. And Unmuted Voices is a book that is. There's 13 different authors. They're all women entrepreneurs. And the focus was to be able to tell our stories of how we first noticed that we were muting our voices and then what happened in our lives to unmute our voices and you know, how we're continuing to do that. So it's an amazing book. And you know, I actually, through one of my communities that I've been a part of for about four years, found two individuals who have grown their publishing business. And so we are constantly looking for different topics and different ways to help people to tell their stories so that we can impact, you know, others lives.

You know, there's someone I met very early in my journey with my institute. Gary and I had just started really getting on social media and her name is Rachel Druckenmiller. I don't know if you've met her.

Oh, yeah, Draco. Rachel is one of my major friends from Maryland. I've known her for many, many, many years.

Isn't she amazing? Her story is really good, you know, and recently she had to overcome some physical stuff because I think she was in an accident or something. So. So you guys already know each other. We won't need to make that connection. Shout out to Rachel.

When she first started to sing in front of people, I encouraged her and now she has her very first song that's been recorded and. Yeah, yeah.

So I don't know if you know this Lori, but she has, you know, you know, we, we often use that Michael Jr. Video with the singer, but she has her own basic.

Singing from her why moment. Then she shared that with me. So I love that she's doing some more singing. So great connection there. So tell me about the, the other book. What would you, what's, what's the central. What would you say is the best part about it's not your money? What? Why should people read it's not your money by Tasha Silver?

Yeah, well, there's a couple of things like, you know, there's combination of all these three books. So it's. It's not your money is all about.

The spiritual side of abundance.

Yeah.

And then the same thing with the reinvention of work. It's one of the things that I've done in the last three years is really bring my spirituality out in the forefront instead of going kind of in the back door. And I support my clients in doing that same thing. So, you know, all Three of these books have, like, a spiritual component to it.

Excellent. Excellent. And I've known that. I actually noticed it in one of our conversations we had. I think it was about a month ago. And I said, hey, I see that side of you, which is really cool. You know, I think it's not. It's not so much about, you know, whether you're putting it up front or not. It's just being comfortable in it. Right. And being able to share it with others. Des Ryan says he had the exact same conversation with a client earlier, took a spreadsheet and created an amazing document, but give me a blank sheet. And he struggles. And so that you're. You're familiar with all of those things. So let me ask you about your mission. Mission is to help women leaders and entrepreneurs remove their armor, find their authentic selves, engage with their geographic soulmate. Tell me about geographical soulmate. What is that about?

Yeah, well, for about 15 years, when I was living in Maryland, I would come visit family in Arizona, and every single time, I didn't want to go back. And there was just something that kept pulling me back here. And so a little almost three years ago, that happened. And ever since I've been living in Arizona, there's this connection that I have to the land here. And I don't know if anyone can identify with this, but there's just this amazing energy.

And it's almost like anything is possible. Being involved in what I'm calling your geographical soulmate. And I think about it as, like, we talk a lot about our physical health, our emotional health, and our spiritual health. And I actually think there's another component, and it's called geographical health. And so if we are looking at. Are we living in the environment that's really supporting us? And I think since COVID so many more people are willing to look at that and make some of those moves so that it's just. They're more a whole person.

Right. You know what? That really spoke to me because I, you know, and I've told you my story because when. When I moved back to New Mexico to be home with my mom and dad, because we had a young daughter, and, you know, I. My. Our parents are older. We had her later in life, and so we wanted her to be home. I kind of feel that way about New Mexico. I was in the military, and I was a sales leader for a big company, so I traveled and lived a lot of different places. But this is. I think this is my geographical submit. We're gonna have to explore that. I Love that. That's a great question.

And I think there's such a combination of, you know, your, your Y Os because what I find with clients is that if that one component of their health is not in alignment.

Right.

With their purpose, their why, their how, their what.

Right.

They're not happy and they're not really thriving.

So it's kind of an interesting conversation, you know, to have clients.

No, I love, I love that you have that. So let me tell. Tell us a little bit about how you've been using the YOS with the ICF board. I know we've got a lot of coaches that are listening, but people that might be interested in learning more. How does it help with your ICF board with your current clients? And are you using it with other assessments?

Yes. So I think with the board, it was really to get to know each other quickly. It was also to support us in looking at what is the best way to interact with each other.

And really using everyone's gifts and talents. And so I think because we learned about that such early on in our kind of forming as the board, it really just has supported us and we continue to use the language.

And with clients. I don't know. I don't know if this is unusual or if anybody out there will agree with me on how to use this, but from a personal standpoint, because I'm a leadership and a life coach, I have supported younger clients in dating profiles and dating introductions.

Yeah.

And one of my clients has said, you know, she finds herself talking more about kind of her work life and she was trying to figure out how does she stand out and connect with these people differently. And so we talked about how to use her. Why. And so it's fascinating, you know, so she's brought that to kind of her whole dating process.

Some of my other clients, you know, are looking at their, their careers and, you know, looking at their resumes and just cover letters and how to present themselves in an interview. And again, to stand out, they're really looking at how to use their Y OS with that. And so again, you know, that whole alignment. I have another client and his wife that took the wide OS because they're looking at him making a career change, but it also including a geographical move. So we've looked at how can they use their wide autos to support them as a family and making decisions.

So I'm going to. Yeah, no, I'm going to ask you because this is something that, you know, being in being a New Mexican, you know, there's. There's a lot. There's. Every place has its strengths and its challenges. Right. You know, we're sandwiched between everybody knows where Colorado is and everybody knows where Arizona is. Nobody knows where New Mexico is. They think it's Texas, Colorado, and Arizona, and we're sandwiched in the middle. So. So I often hear people, you know, and it really upsets me when they're like, oh, gosh, I wish they would do this. And. And so that tells me those people are not in their geographical with New Mexico's probably not their geographical soulmate there. You probably have people in. In Arizona who say, oh, my gosh, I can't stand the heat here in the summer. I wish it wasn't. So I'm like, what's keeping you here? Right. And so do you do work with people around that kind of dissonance that they might have with where they live?

Yeah. It's really looking at, you know, what is supporting them. And just like anything else in your life, if you're in a relationship that's not supporting your. Your why, your purpose, your passion.

Right.

Then maybe you need to make some changes. Same thing with where you're living.

Yeah, that makes so much sense. Hey, did you see that?

Hello. Hello, Vicki. Thank you so much for introducing me to Lori. We have had such a good time just getting to know each other, working with her board, getting to know the icf, Arizona. And you know, what was really cool, and that was the other thing that I really appreciated about that opportunity, is we got to see each other in person for the first time after a long time of not being able to connect in person with. With people. We miss that. You know, there. Those of us who are extroverted. You know, I had a friend who said, hey, during COVID he said, hey, guys, keep an eye on your extroverted friends. They really need to hear from you. I was looking to zoom with anyone. I just wanted to talk to people and. And be in contact with people. So let me. Let me ask you about this. You know, when. When we're talking about why not Wednesday, One of the things I like to talk about is you. Your biggest why not moments. So tell us your what's been your biggest why not? Yeah, I mean, moving from Maryland to Phoenix, probably a big one. What's been your biggest why not moment so far.

Vicki certainly knows this because we are good friends. But at the end of December 2019, after going through a women's retreat, I actually made an intentional decision to end a marriage of 32 years and talk about being Aligned with my better way. I mean, I just was finding that, you know, I knew that there was a better way, a better relationship, a better, you know, life out there for me. And so very amicable and great friends now and all kinds of things. But that was probably the biggest one for me that then led to my ability to move to Arizona and really be in this place that is just so in alignment with who I am, who I'm becoming, who I want to be. And it just brings out all of the, you know, real positives and strengths for me. So I think that probably.

Was my biggest.

Yeah. And that talk about life changing. Right. So it's one of the most, you know, they say the divorce, changing jobs, and I think children being born or parents dying or some of the most stressful they are events in our lives. And so you did two of those. Right. You combine that with a big geographic move.

Yes.

To. To a new place. And, you know, I think I love what you said there in terms of amicable and being good friends. You know, I don't think you can have a 32 year relationship and just throw it all away. Right. There was a lot of good that probably went into you being together for 32 years, but you found that, hey, there's, there's a better, better way to do this. Right?

Yeah. I mean, that. What a big example of following your better way.

Wow. I really, really appreciate that and thank you for sharing. You know, we, we have all these conversations and sometimes we don't get to know each other. What about on. On a professional side? On the professional side of your life, what's been your biggest why not moment there? I mean, a lot of us have made the transition into being an entrepreneur. What did you do before you were a coach, Lori?

Yeah, I think that probably is my biggest. I was a human resources executive for about 30 years in healthcare.

And had gone through about three or four different acquisitions with the same organization. And then all of a sudden it was the last one, the fourth one that it was a duplicate of efforts. And so my position was eliminated. And I had already been thinking about starting a business and knew what I wanted to do. And it really was kind of the, you know, impetus that I needed.

Right.

To start that process.

Yeah. Des says the why not moments are always incredible. So powerful, inspiring. So you're inspiring, Des, all the way across to Ireland. So thanks for joining, Des. Thank you. You know, here, here's. You just said something really important. Important. You know, a lot of times in our life that these things happen right that, that force us in a different direction, and it forces you to make a decision that you might have been putting off, but then you, you got the opportunity to go do it. What's the most rewarding thing that. What about being a coach? What is it that you love?

Yeah. I was just sharing this with someone yesterday, a friend of mine who's a physician, and we were talking about, you know, when you see that, that change in someone that, you know, you had just maybe a tiny little bit of something that you supported them through. But it's, it is, it's helping people, especially to see what is their purpose and having them then start to live their life aligned with that, to me, that's probably the most rewarding.

Yeah. And you get that. You get to do that all the time. Right? How? And you're helping people find a better way. Right. Help people find a better way through your mastery of your craft in, in. In building trust. So that's so important. So let's, let's look at your, Your vision, because I saw. Saw another part of your, of your, of your bio that I really liked. And so your vision. So you're powered by purpose, driven by insatiable curiosity, and guided by source to partner with women leaders who. To explore who they are becoming and courageously support them to intentionally impact the world by leveraging their talents and gifts in alignment with their heart and soul. That's a mouthful. But man, that is a powerful vision and I hope Sunil captures that and we can put that in the, in, in, in the, in the comments, in the banners, because that's a. Tell me about that vision. Where does that come from?

It really has come from especially the last four years and really getting more in touch with my own spirituality and that.

Kind of my, My experience of. I would probably say that I was a workaholic in my corporate career and that, you know, that no longer defines who I am. And so I, I noticed that a lot of my clients, coaching clients, are also women who are kind of in that phase where they're wanting to be showing up as a whole person and not defined by any one piece.

So I think that's. That's part of it.

Yeah. Tell me about your Pat. Your passion is different, which is to, to be a lifelong learner with insatiable curiosity and a passion to build a better community one conversation at a time. I love that.

Yeah. Yeah. Because I do believe that it's the, the conversations that we have. And of course, my mastery comes out in those conversations.

Right.

I am always in for a good long deep conversation. You probably won't find me just kind of having a chit chat with someone, you know, because it'll quickly turn into something deeper.

Deeper, right?

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

So and we know that about you. We know that, you know, the scratching the surface is not for Lori. She's going to go deep and ask those deeper level questions and really get to know people. Love that. So let's ask a couple more questions because like I said, I was looking at your mission vision and your passion and I really like that we talked about.

Your walk up song. We did have a walk up song this week because we didn't talk to Lori fast enough. So that's on me and Sunil. But you love smooth jazz and you just came off a fun weekend. What were you listening to?

Yeah, there's a company here in Arizona that does a three day jazz festival twice a year and I learned about it last year so I went the first time in October and then just was over the weekend. And it's just amazing. It's all outside, it's all open and anywhere from 4 o' clock on Friday afternoon to 10 o' clock Sunday night, it's all jazz, just all jazz.

And it's always a great lineup and just the community of people. I mean I go by myself. I don't know anybody when I walk in, but I don't leave that way. I mean people just are all there for the same purpose. And I believe strongly that music really connects us regardless of, you know, our cultures, our nationalities, our ethnicities and that it's just such a fun time.

So I feel I hear a theme. Number one, I love your thoughts on music, but your theme is to help women. Right. So who's, who's your ideal client, Lori?

My ideal client is a woman leader or entrepreneur anywhere from the ages of 30 to 70. And they're all dealing with various transitions in their life but based initially on being a leader in an organization.

And if someone wants to work with you, where should they go?

Right now the best way is to connect with me on LinkedIn or on my email. Either one is the best.

Excellent. And so what's your email? We want to make sure we put it on there.

There's a LinkedIn profile, lori@inspire greatness coaching.com.

Perfect. Thank you so much. You know Laurie, you know, we've talked a lot about how the the yos has impacted you. What would you say to a coach who's, you know, I'm talking to John Saunders later. Later today what would you say to someone who's considering becoming a wife certified coach and adding this to their toolkit? What, what advice would you have for them in terms of how to evaluate it and, and, and take into account what, how it fits into their practice?

Well, I think, you know, I had the same kind of questions and so knowing that I was already using certain different types of assessments, I was curious about how those might connect. And it definitely connects. I also think that most of us as coaches do some type of core purpose work with our clients. And what I found is with the Y Os in about five or 10 minutes, I can see the result that was taking me two, three, four coaching sessions to get to with a client. So I think that it's something that is very efficient, you know, and effective and really just helps us to have that foundational level when we go to start to work with someone. So I think I would strongly suggest, you know, that that's. That a coach. Look at this.

Excellent. Well, I love that answer. So what do you say we end the show on that note, Lori?

Why not?

Thank you so much. And guys, listen, I want to make sure I let you guys know that next week we've got Carrie Listic Traub. She's a qualifying broker and a realtor. She is using the yos with her clients in the real estate industry and she's a leader and she has lots of people that she works with. So we're excited to talk to her. Thank you so much, Lori for being on today. I can't wait to see you in person in October and have a great rest of the week. We'll see you guys next Wednesday.

Bye. Bye. Thank you.