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Interview with Tracy Lyn Moland
Best Selling Author of 'Mom Management'
Dot Com Woman Of The Month (OCTOBER 2003)
 Ask
her who she is, and TRACY LYN MOLAND, will prominently add 'I'm ME'
to a long list of speaker, author, entrepreneur, mother, wife,
triathlete, volunteer, and fitness instructor. And this dynamic lady
not only discovered the importance of 'ME', but also came forward to
teach all the women in this world the importance of tracing the 'ME'
in 'MOMMEEE'.
Using her entrepreneurial and teaching skills to make a vast
difference to the lives of women, the Best Selling Author of 'Mom
Management', believes in Managing Mom Before Everybody Else,
which in turn, improves the ability to perform all other roles that a
woman plays in her life.
A 'Time-Management' expert, author and professional speaker
Tracy, gives you the 'Gift of Time' with her books and seminars. Dot
Com Women is honored to have Tracy as the DCW of the month and we
wish her success in her personal as well as professional life.
"When we follow our personality, we
succeed." - Tracy Lyn Moland
1. Let's start with some background
info about you. Please tell us about your life before you took up
writing professionally.
I have my Bachelor of Education in Secondary Education. My major
is Social Studies and my minor is math. I have taught English,
Science, Social Studies and Career and Life Management at the high
school level. After having children I tutored for awhile. I then was
inspired to start a business – I started an Errand Services
business.
My family comes in two batches – I have a brother that is 31 and
he lives in Bermuda. I have a sister that is 21 that lives in Eastern
Canada and another brother that is 22 and lives in Singapore with my
dad and his wife. We all are very close. I have 2 children ages 5
& 7 and a wonderful and supportive husband.
2. Speaker, author, entrepreneur,
triathlete, volunteer, and fitness instructor - I am amazed! What
went into acquiring expertise in all these? Did you have a vision of
what you wanted to accomplish when you were young?
When I was young I wanted to be a teacher. I then realized near
the end of high school I may like to somehow be in business. I
thought maybe law but just wasn’t sure. I was always comfortable as
a public speaker but did not even realize that was a career options.
Even after attending conferences I thought you had to be famous or an
author to be a speaker!
Expertise in each area came quite differently – speaking stemmed
from my education degree and feeling at ease in front of a crowd. I
honestly was amazed that the number one fear in life is “public
speaking” over death. To me, it is so natural.
The author part – I hated writing papers in University. The only
kind of writing I really enjoyed over the years was letters and
notes! Writing about real life and what was going on. I distinctly
remember saying in university, “I will never ever write a book!”
When I started to write articles to promote my errand business, I
realized I loved that kind of writing. It was real life, my
experiences and people reacted very positively.
As a fitness instructor, I am certified and maintain my
certification through a variety of courses and teaching certain
hours.
Triathlon – well, I am by all means not an expert but I finish
the races. It is an incredible feeling to be a part of the race
(running as well) and that is what keeps me motivated.
No matter what I do, I love to continue to learn. I read books –
business, life, self help, fitness, fiction – non stop. I read
anything I can get my hands on. I take courses –when I started in
business I took a number of entrepreneur courses. I attend workshops.
I do my best to know as much as possible about what I am interested
in or working on. This has truly helped me to become the expert in a
number of ways! Ironically, one of my most popular presentation is
You are the Expert – teaching others to become the expert in their
field in order to build their businesses!
3. Please tell us more about 'Mom
Management' - the book as well as the concept.
This is from an article - For me, Mom Management™ holds a
number of meanings, with Managing Mom Before Everybody Else™
being most important. I have always felt that being a Mom is a lot
like being a manager. The skills we use to run our homes are very
similar to skills used to run a business.
Regardless of our individual circumstances, we share a common bond
- that of being a Mother. Being a Mom is an incredible experience but
it is also very consuming. We have all experienced an incredible
change from our pre-mother lives. Most of these changes are very
positive but one that we all have trouble dealing with is a loss of
our sense of self. At some point, we realize that we have let being a
Mom become our entire identity. When my children were two and four
years old, I realized that Tracy Lyn was missing. In tears, I
realized I had lost my sense of self. In looking for myself, I
decided to try doing a triathlon, thus setting one goal. Wow! The
focus of that one goal, one thing just for me, re-established my
sense of self. That initial goal led to five more triathlons,
becoming an entrepreneur, a professional speaker, and now an author.
During the long process of finding my true self again, I also became
a better Mother.
 As
I realized, being a Mom is not who we are, but rather one of the many
other roles that we fill in our lives. The term Mom Management was
created as a reminder that the Me in Mommeee still exists, and needs
to be nurtured. Flying provides us with the perfect analogy. At the
beginning of each flight, we are told that, “If flying with
children, make sure to secure your own oxygen mask first and then
secure theirs.” As a Mom, we need to take care of ourselves first
so that we can better meet the needs of our families. Rather than put
ourselves second we need to secure our oxygen masks first.
I had the name Mom Management in my head, not sure what it would
become. While in an online marketing brainstorming suggestion,
someone said “Your speaking titles sound like chapters of a
book!” Voila Mom Management had a home. I truly believe the idea
behind the book made the world of difference in my life and that it
needed to be shared.
4. You also run a shopping and
errand service. Please tell us about it.
USED TO RUN! LOL.. I got too busy! It was an amazing experience
however. I would have never expected that to sell books, the author
needs to act and think like an entrepreneur. No matter what the
publishing company does, a great deal of the success is based upon
the author. The more I do, the more I am out there, the more my name
is known the more books sell. If I had to learn the concept of being
an entrepreneur at the same time as trying to sell the book I would
be lost. Being in business taught me so much about being in business
– and also that I LOVE being an entrepreneur! I am a business woman
at heart!
5. You host a number of forums all over the web. How is the
experience of providing Online assistance to women?
I find that online people we are very similar to offline – some
people are freer to contribute because of the anonymity but in
general our personalities shine through. I also see that people
whether online or not are either ready to do what it takes for
success or not.
My favorite part is that I have been able to make incredible
connections, networks and friends across the world. I have found
people and information that I just couldn’t through local
networking. People are often willing to share so much with someone
far away because they are not direct competition. You can get amazing
ideas from each other.
6. What is the contribution of the World Wide Web, in your work?
It has been invaluable. Without it, I am sure my success would be
so different. I can find out about events so easily – I have been
able to find and speak at events in many places that I just
wouldn’t have known about otherwise. I am able to sell all over the
world through the internet. If I didn’t have access to sites like
Amazon.com then there would be no point in marketing in the United
States at this point. I have been on radio shows that would have
meant missed sales w/o the internet.
I have been able to see my work published in so many areas through
the internet. I am sure that without the internet I would be doing
well but would be a local gal rather than touching the life of women
all over.
7. What is your mission in life? How do you utilize your two
tools namely Writing and Speaking, to accomplish your missions?
My mission is to help people live their lives based upon their
priorities. I think so many of us get caught in a wave of life that
we forget that we have choices and can make decisions. My writing and
speaking are my methods of reaching others. I can connect with so
many through my mediums. I also find that that the more I do to
connect the more I live my own message. As I teach, I learn more
about myself and apply what I am teaching.
8. Almost all readers must be
waiting for this question. Please tell us about your work as a
Fitness Instructor? Also awaited are some tips from the expert.
I always loved doing aerobics as my form of exercise so in my
early 20s I decided that I should make some money while staying fit!
I became a certified fitness instructor and have taught all sorts of
different group fitness classes. A few years ago I switched my focus
from aerobics to biking and running and triathlons. I now mostly
teach cycling classes and I really enjoy it! My fitness tip – sit
on a ball rather than a chair, you then are constantly working your
core muscles and it is much better for your posture. Every time you
here a phone ring or see the color red – tighten up your stomach
and hold until you forget. A tight stomach is one of the best ways to
strengthen your abs!
9. What do feel about the
combination of 'Women' and 'Business'?
I love being a woman in business! I think that women play a very
strong and unique roll in business. We have different ideas and
different ways of doing things. I think we have brought a new and
exciting edge. I also think we have to work harder in some cases to
make sure we erase the old boys club while being careful of not
starting the new girls club. There are definitely certain
personalities that were made to be entrepreneurs and I think that
when we follow our personality we succeed!
10. What do you like to do when you
are not working?
Hmmm, read, read, read! I love to read novels (I love Harry
Potter) and I love to read business and self help books! (yes that is
sort of working but fun work). I train for upcoming races, I try to
spend time with my husband, do things with the kids, I would like to
spend more time with girlfriends – unfortunately they are fairly
far away.
 11.
What are your views on Matrimony and Motherhood? How did they affect
your personal and professional life?
My husband is a part of me. He is the best thing that ever happened
to me. His support and love mean the world to me. We have fun
together, we laugh and we play. We both support each other and do
what we can to help each other’s dreams come true. I talk about
taking care of the Me in Mommeee but it is just as important for him
to take care of himself. We will both adjust our schedules so that we
each do our thing, have time together and have time as a family. I
could not have done what I do without him.
Motherhood – well, it gave me the story to write the book! We
can’t imagine what the heck we ever did before kids! My children
have taught me so much about Me and about life. The way they look at
the world is so simple and so smart. Many of my book principles are
based upon their ideas. I think that the solutions to many problems
are simple – we as adults complicate things. Motherhood affected my
life in that I did go through a period when the kids were 2 & 4
that I really lost my sense of self. I was mom, wife, etc but not me.
I felt really lost and that something was missing … I decided to
try a triathlon which gave me something that I was doing for me. That
one thing ( a goal) made a world of difference to my life and has
been the focus of my book and presentations.
12. Who are/were the people who are/were instrumental in your
success?
Pat, my husband. His belief in me and support made me know I could
succeed. My best friend Terri is as much part of the book as I am.
She has been beside me the entire way – reading and editing each
chapter at least 3times – before and after the editor, she does all
my web work, she is there if I ever need to talk, she is like a
sister. I have also had many mentors in business and writing. I have
had so many people help that I feel blessed.
13. What lies ahead?
We have reached Amazon.ca best seller list, working towards
Amazon.com’s list,
Canadian National Publicity and Media tour will take place in
November (all major television, radio and print)
Will move into the United States for a publicity and media in the
Spring (following National book distribution)
Continue to be an expert on websites, magazines, media (moving into
paid sponsorships and endorsements)
Increase the amount of freelance writing I am doing
Increase the number of presentations I give – looking at doing more
large conferences and conventions in the United States (very popular
with the entrepreneur crowds and business/associations that are
primarily women)
Release books 2, 3, 4… (possible Single Mom Management, Dad
Management, Me Management, Senior Management…)
15. What advice would you like to give to the women reading
this?
ASK, ask, ask…This is my secret weapon – based upon one of my
favorite quotes (see below). If you don’t ask for what you want the
answer is always NO. No one else will offer or know what you need.
A – ask yourself what you want – be specific, figure it out
S – seek the answers to the questions of what you want –research,
ask, read, use the internet, ask people what you need to do to get
what you want –
K – knock on the doors of the people that your research said have
the answers or can give you what you want and ask them for it -
Ask, and it shall be given to you; Seek, and ye shall find; Knock,
and it shall be opened unto you. Mathew 7:7
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