At The International Wedding Conference in Lisbon, Portugal; at the Coterie Retreat in Johannesburg, South Africa; at Oh So Inspired in Sonoma, California.
If you're new to Think Splendid, here's an intro to what it's all about. If you're a regular here, keep reading, because there are some new updates as well.
First, in case you're wondering, my name is spelled Liene but pronounced Lynn. No, my parents weren't hippies — it's a family name. I'm the founder of The Splendid Collective, a family of business-to-business brands that empower the wedding and lifestyle industries. The two brands currently under its umbrella are Think Splendid and Splendid Insights.
THINK SPLENDID is a management consulting firm that helps wedding industry leaders succeed. Everything I write, speak, and consult on is focused on developing leaders who will leave the world a better place than they found it.
I'm lucky in that I love my job. Creating strategies that allow people to define and achieve success on their terms is one of my favorite things to do. I also have real-world experience in doing just that.
I built a company where I led a national team of employees, managed multi-million dollar budgets, and brought in over $27 million for the local economy. I've also successfully sold a company I started, as well as helped over a dozen others sell theirs as well. I keynote wedding industry conferences worldwide and my research on the millennial generation is taught as part of the MBA curriculum at three top-tier US universities and is cited in scientific and academic journals. And I've done all this debt-free.
Prior to working in weddings I worked in international development and am fortunate to have called several different countries home, which allows me to bring a more nuanced global perspective to the table.
Some of my clients are companies who have found themselves in a position of leadership at an early stage, while others have been leaders in their field for decades.
My work revolves around five core beliefs:
I believe that people have a right to live fully, not just merely.
I believe that if you've "arrived," you've settled.
I believe that if your dreams don't add good to the lives of others, you're dreaming too small.
I believe that balance doesn't exist, but that margin is life-giving.
I believe that true humility doesn't hide its gifts.
SPLENDID INSIGHTS is the leading wedding market research firm, providing unbiased research on the $625 billion global wedding industry.
Most non-custom wedding market research costs upwards of $10,000. I wanted to level the playing field. I started Splendid Insights to make consumer market research accessible to the creative businesses that are the backbone of the wedding industry: a floral shop owned by a mother and daughter team, a husband and wife photography studio, a wedding planning company run by a single mom, and so on. The wedding market reports from Splendid Insights empower you to create smart, fact-based strategies, earn more money, and grow your company faster.
DOING LESS, BETTER
I'm a believer in the idea that to grow in a healthy way, you must prune. Putting that into practice is a little more difficult.
In 2013, I sold Form+Function, a company I co-founded that provided professional-grade, legally-compliant human resources materials to companies with less than 100 employees.
Three years ago, I shut down Find A Wedding Job, the wedding industry job board. This one was a little harder to do, as it was profitable and a steady stream of pretty "hands off" revenue for The Splendid Collective. I also didn't get to have the ego-boost (gross, but true) or payout of selling it. However, in order to more strategically focus on my long-term goals, this was a darling I needed to kill. (John Bell has a great book on this, called Do Less Better, if you're facing a similar situation.)
I also discontinued the long-running Splendid Sundays feature two years ago year for the same reason: strategic focus.
While I am a polymath, I am not a publicist, media coach, or graphic designer. I'm also not a life coach. If you're considering one, I'd recommend spending the money on a reputable licensed therapist instead.
SOCIAL MEDIA
You can find me on TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. You can also find me here on ThinkSplendid.com most weekdays.
This blog is a place for my to share my thoughts and observations on a variety of topics, most notably leadership, influence, and generosity. On occasion there will be a "how-to" post, but in general this is not a tactical blog. There are many other great resources to choose from that cover the basics, if that's what you're looking for.
If you don't want to miss any updates from the Think Splendid blog, you can subscribe via RSS here (or here if you use Feedly) or you can also sign up to get new blog posts delivered straight to your email inbox. New posts are published at 5 am EST and delivered via email at 9 am EST.
I use Instagram as an exercise in seeking out creative inspiration, and I eat much better (and healthier) now because of Pinterest, but Twitter and my blog are the platforms that bring me the majority of my clients, so those two are where I focus the bulk of my social media energy.
I believe in being a wholehearted, multi-faceted person, and as such I share my perspectives and opinions based on all of my interests (including orphan care, politics, international development, pop culture, etc), not just those that directly relate to my brand. That said, I do have a few boundaries when it comes to social media:
I don't post much about my family online for the simple reason that their stories are their own and are not mine to share. If I do post something about them, I have permission from them to do so. The Internet is forever and I believe they have the right to choose when and what to share about themselves.
I don't post much about my faith beliefs on social media because they are sacred to me and the thought of using them as a marketing gimmick grosses me out.
Not allowing strangers to have access to every part of your life does not make you any less authentic.
These boundaries aren't for everyone, but they work well for me and my family.
It is hard to believe I started this blog twelve years ago as a way to market my company through sharing my expertise. A huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who has read over the years and allowed me to do something I love. I am always floored when I find out who is reading and I am incredibly grateful to all of you.
