Look what showed up at my door this morning.  For a self proclaimed chocoholic this just made my day.  Well except that it is way too pretty to eat.

Again inspiration for a blog post appears before my very eyes.  This beautiful box of chocolates was sent to me for supporting the eWomen Foundation.  So before I forget I have to say thank you to Sandra Yancey, the founder of eWomen and Terri Craig, the Director of the eWomen Houston chapter!  Both these ladies are amazing leaders.  I bet your wondering who made it.  Two very special women named Gina and Goya who own Dandy Candy.  They do amazing work with chocolate.

The Extra Mile

As a business strategist and someone who studies successful businesses, it is really easy to sometimes say that success in business comes from going the extra mile.  We hear it all the time but do we really get it?  Do we practice what we preach?

I have to tell you when I received this box from Fed-Ex and started to open it my mind was filled with wonder and anticipation.  What could it be?  Who was it really from?  I knew it was chocolate because it came from Dandy Candy but why was I getting it?

It was wrapped so well and with such care that it took me what seemed like 5 minutes to get in it.  What did that do?  Just fueled the anticipation.  Dandy Candy did a fabulous job of packing this, by the way.  Every time I got through one layer there was another.  LOL  Come to think of it, knowing there was chocolate in the box I can't believe I took as much care as I did and stopped to take pictures of the progress along the way.

Wrapped in Care

But then success!  I finally got the through the layers of care that it was wrapped in and the box appeared.  And I have to tell you that this was the hardest point to stop and take a picture.  LOL  I wanted to just rip it open and dive in but I restrained myself.

At this point I still don't know who it is from.  Who cares about me so much that they were willing to send me a huge box of candy because this bad boy is big – 14 inches tall and 14 inches wide.  And you and I both know that size does matter (when it comes to chocolate) LOL

Success

Then that moment of anticipation when I open that box and realize it is from my friends at eWomen Network.  It was even sweeter when I realized it was from eWomen Foundation.  If you were at my event in March you know that we were raising money for the eWomen Foundation because I absolutely love how they handle their foundation.

Let me tell you what it did – First it cemented my belief in eWomen as an amazing support organization both for women business owners and as a foundation supporting womens needs.  I was already looking forward to the eWomen convention in Dallas next week but now I can't wait to get there.

Second, do you think I will ever forget that moment when I opened that box?  The anticipation, then the feeling of elation when I finally saw the chocolate plaque inside.  My brain will always equate that feeling of joy when I think of eWomen.

As business owners isn't that what we want – to have our clients think joyfully about our products and services.  We also want them to think of us when they are looking for our particular service.  That's called TOMA – Top of Mind Awareness.

Thanks again to eWomen and Dandy Candy for a wonderful surprise.  Now the question will be how long I can go without eating it.  LOL