January Deposits:
Carmen with Case Kenny
- Attended Miami Made on January 6th, connecting with other change makers and listening and learning from Case Kenny. Case challenged my thinking around the stages of growth (to me, for me, through me, by me) and also dropped these gems: “handwriting is intentional thinking” – get out your pen and paper people, and “We will not be able to rise above our opinion of ourselves” – truth! He also shared the power of word selection, but internally (our thoughts) and externally (to others.) I am excited to talk more about this with him, as word selection in leadership is paramount.
- On January 10th, we attended the National Speaking Association meeting for the Florida chapter to connect with other speaking professionals and learn about Ted Talks. It was great to see those we’ve built relationships with over the past two years and made new connections with David Spencer, a fractional CFO and Karen Hinds a fellow speaker and leadership advisor. Looking forward to building these relationships in 2026. Oh, and my speaking friend, Sharon, is doing her first Ted talk on February 4th!!
The Move Miami
- On January 13th, we visited several podcast studios in the Miami area select a new studio where we can record and film The Amplified Life Podcast in 2026. While each studio had its high points, the moment we walked into The Move Miami, we knew we were at our new recording home. We took time to get to know the team that was present: Alayna, Val, Humberto, and the Founder, Andrew Loranger. Since the initial visit, we’ve not only booked our first session, but my husband and I attended a worship night at The Move Miami in January, and he also joined a men’s group with Andrew. When you say yes, when you include others, when you are open to sharing your vision and gifts, God will bring you the right people and opportunities.
Ribbon-cutting ceremony for Brightstar Credit Union
- On January 15th, we attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Brightstar Credit Union’s first location in Miami Beach. Brightstar is Florida’s member-owned financial powerhouse. Committed to community, driven by education, and relentlessly committed to helping everyday people save more, borrow smarter, and build secure financial futures on their own terms. The CEO, Biana Murnane, shared that the credit union is deeply rooted in its mission of “people helping people,” and we couldn’t be more aligned with those words at the Amplified Life Company. This ceremony was hosted by the Miami Beach Chamber of Commerce and attended by Mayor Steven Meiner. The Mayor and I had a few moments to chat about the importance of clarity in leadership. I also met the new Business Development director for Miami Beach, Steven Anthony.
- On January 16th, I met with my friend, Vero Medina, who is the founder of Blue Lavender Café and a wonderful boutique hospitality company, Alquimia Hospitality Group, with her husband. We talked about our 2026 vision, and I shared ideas on engaging frontline staff meaningfully. Vero is one of my favorite people in Miami Beach, and I love what she’s created with Blue Lavender!
- On January 27th I met with Steven Anthony, whom I met at the Brightstar Credit Union ribbon cutting two weeks earlier. And guess what? We met at Blue Lavender! My intention for this meeting was to get to know him and his vision for his work in Miami Beach. I shared with him that I am intentionally building a network of high performers, who are purpose-driven and ambitious, that can support and challenge each other in our endeavors. Turns out we have a lot in common, including our values and past experience with banking.
- Earlier in January, while in the sauna at Valjalah in Miami Beach, I talked with a new business colleague, Danny Weiss. Danny is an attorney in Miami Beach who works with business owners. During our talk, Danny suggested that I look into a group he is a part of called ProVisors and proceeded to connect me with Erika, who runs the Florida division of ProVisors. Erika and I met on January 27th, and I look forward to connecting with her and the group of expert business professionals (one requirement to join is that you have to be in business for a decade or longer!)
What deposits did you make in January?
We are focused on in-person deposits this year and remind ourselves often:
ABS = Always be
Sharing our vision
Serving others generously
Seeking diverse perspectives
January Breakthroughs:
#1: Steal other people’s homework and share ours: We’ve been working in the public government space for almost three years, and the RFP procurement process is still a challenge for us. We’ve won 3 RFP over this time, but most of our government work has been through referral. We were deeply aligned with a recent RFP and the organization, but we did not win the award. On to the next? No, this is all public record! We decided to order the public record of a few award winner’s proposals and the scoring so that we can steal their homework and learn what’s working and incorporate it into ours. Let’s learn what is working before moving on to the next. Plus, we plan to reach out and congratulate and connect with the organizations that won an award and are aligned with ALC.
Which brings me to stealing our homework. People don’t want or need fluff, AI-written jargon that sounds the same; they want to know what works, why it works, and how to do it. We’ve committed to sharing our decades of homework this year to give you the real, high-impact, high-value practices that are time-tested and move the needle. Be sure you’re on the email list HERE because our best stuff will be shared there.
In February, the ALC team is sharing with you:
– Carmen’s exact daily routine, called “Done by 1” for high-performing leaders
– Carmen’s exact daily routine, called “Done by 1” for high-performing leaders
– High Impact Steps to build your Dream Team
#2: Patience is power, stay in the game, and bring high value consistently: Time and time again, this proves to fuel our daily work. If you’re only focusing on outcomes, you’re always playing defense, and it’s exhausting. It’s easy to slip back into this, but when your team is vision-forward, focus nothing can stop you. And that starts with what leadership is modeling. If you’re a leader, it’s time you check yourself and start playing offense.
January Learnings:
- Staying in action at this level of engagement (with delayed ROI) takes extreme focus. I am blessed that I am not doing it all alone. Yet a few times in January, I allowed myself to slip back into isolation. Even though this is the foundation of our work, we are not immune to falling into this old way of working. I am the CEO, but I know that we all benefit greatly from our team’s expertise and insights. Allowing people the opportunity to step up and expand is my job as a leader.
- We see this all the time with the CEOs we work with. CEOs who are carrying too much alone. That’s why our work is about taking the invisible weight off one person’s shoulders by building a leadership team that no longer waits for direction, stays silent in meetings, or hides behind individual silos. We help you develop leaders who think like owners, act as coaches instead of managers, and share responsibility for results. So, you’re no longer the bottleneck, the translator, or the only one holding the vision. A leader’s job is to build other leaders.
LFG! 2026 is forging a new way to work, and it begins now!
Ever wonder how a high-performance leadership plan looks?
Explore our 2026 Impossible Goal, Word for the Year, success measures, and Q1 priorities, all in one clear, strategic page.
Download the 2026 Amplified Report HERE.