Wendy Piersall, CEO of sparkplugging (formerly emoms at home) is here with us today! Interview questions were sent long before her site underwent a major re-branding facelift (it went live yesterday - perfect timing!) but her answers remain mostly the same.

Darren of Problogging also interviewed Wendy in yesterday’s post about how and why she underwent such a dramatic makeover so you might want to take a look at that interview before you read mine.  It’ll give you a little more background information on why she took such a great leap of faith and made the daring change. Trying to change a well known blog name (emoms at home) to something radically different (sparkplugging) would be a huge challenge for anyone.

By the way, she will be one of the featured speakers at the SOBCon08 conference in Chicago in May so if you’re planning to go, you’ll get to meet her.

We met online because when I was just getting started in 2006 as a blogger, I had heard about her and decided that I would send an introductory email. Wendy was well known at the time (and is even more so a year a half later); yet despite her busy schedule, she managed to find time to respond back to me with a couple words of advice, something I never forgot.

Okay folks, let’s welcome Wendy to the set of Stephen Hopson Interviews!

1. One of my favorite questions when I want to learn about someone is by asking them to give me their 5 second introduction when I pose the question: “What do you do for a living?”

I help parents pursue their professional dreams while maintaining some semblance of personal life balance.

Stephen’s Response: For the benefit of today’s audience, if you saw Problogger Darren’s interview with her, you’ll know that she’s gone beyond helping parents pursue their dreams. With her new site now officially up and running, she’s expanded to include non-parents as well.

2. Tell me in 3 to 5 sentences something we can’t read in your bio or at the “About Page” at your new blog Sparkplugging?

Answer forthcoming.

3. How long have you been blogging at “emomsathome”?

Almost 2 years - it will be 2 years at the end of April of this year. Yay!

Stephen’s Response: It made sense to keep this question because the new site was just relaunched only yesterday.

4. How did you come up with that eye catching title?

I loved the name ‘eMoms’ because it represents so much of what it is I wanted to write about. Entrepreneurship. Excellence. Enthusiasm. Electronic Media. And, of course, Extraordinary. I just kept typing in variations of ‘eMoms’ until I found one short enough, relevant enough and available as a dot com. But honestly, if I knew how many dads would be regular readers of the site, I’m not so sure I’d have named it eMoms at Home. But I’m stuck with it now!

Stephen’s Response: As of yesterday, you’re not stuck with it anymore! Once again, I kept this question because I wanted us to get a sense of the history behind emoms at home.

5. What’s the real reason why you started “emomsathome”?

I started my blog as a hobby - I really just wanted a place to put all of the valuable research I was doing as I launched my other eBusiness. Little did I realize that eMoms at Home would take off and force me to leave that first business in the dust. I’m thrilled with how the site has evolved, but honestly, I never thought the site would be anything more than a little hobby mommy blog. Boy, was I wrong!

Stephen’s Response: I love how sometimes people start off with no big intentions, just something fun and then suddenly things begin to take off in a different direction, leading you places you never would have thought possible! It makes for a great story - especially yours because you’ve literally become a household name in the blogging industry!

6. One of the reasons why you were invited to be interviewed is because as I’ve gotten to know you through both your blog and email correspondences, which led to the discovery that you are quite a genuine human being who seems to care about helping other people succeed. Can you tell us a story about yourself that your readers might not necessarily know about you but would be inspired if they did?

Many people don’t realize or know everything I have been through in my life, and thus, they probably have no idea what drives my passion behind my business. I struggled with clinical depression on and off for over 20 years. I used to be bulimic, and I even lived out of my truck for 6 months after college. I got pregnant at age of 25 with a man I hardly knew. I decided to move back in with my parents and become a mom. It was the best decision I have ever made in my life. Although at the time I only had a minimum wage job, I decided to make the most of the fact that I had no rent or utilities and I started my first business in my parents’ basement.

Although that first business never really got off the ground, the business got ME off of the ground. I’ve had 3 businesses since then, and my life today is so very different than it was back then. I have a great husband, we have a nice house, 2 more kids, and life is really, really good. I started eMoms at Home for two very personal reasons. It was first and foremost almost like my valentine for my 25 year old self - if only I could have gone back in time to teach myself what I know now, that business would have soared. But since I can’t do that, enter reason 2 : I hope I can reach every woman out there who might not believe in herself enough to pursue her dreams - and I started eMoms at Home to believe in these women until they could believe in themselves, giving them the wisdom and tools to succeed.

Stephen’s Response: Wow, what a fabulous story! It sounds very similar to the one I’ve heard from another favorite blogger, Christine O’Kelly of Self Made Chick (who was also interviewed here earlier this year). Isn’t it amazing, the journey we’ve all been on and how we’ve been led to where we are today? Stories like yours gives me renewed hope, faith, courage and strength to keep going. Thanks!

Your desire to reach out to woman also reminds me of another friend of mine who started out as a subscriber to Adversity University but ended up becoming one of my dear online friends, Sharmaine Hobbs. Her dream is to reach hundreds of thousands of women, giving them renewed hope and inspiration. It’s amazing how I have had the privilege of meeting people like you two, not to mention countless of others! I’m so very grateful for it. I cannot wait to meet you at SOBCon08!

7. What is the best advice you’ve ever received? Given?

I’d have to say that the best advice I have ever gotten was through a simple quote that I try to live my life by every day. It’s by either Marianne Williamson or Nelson Mandela - I can’t seem to find out which one of them coined it, but I’m sure you have heard it before:

We ask ourselves, who am I to be talented, gorgeous, and exceptional? Who are you NOT to be that? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.

On my cell phone, I have two words at the top of my screen all of the time. It says, “Play Big.” I spent too many years playing small. It’s now my time to catch up!

The best advice I think I have ever given is always to ask questions rather than give advice. People might want to listen to me, and might want to learn from me - but honestly, I’d rather they look into their own hearts to find their own answers. God knows that usually it’s better than anything I can come up with!

Stephen’s Response: I had to smile at this one - yes, I’ve heard the quote before and I happen to know that it was Maryanne’s, not Nelson’s. Nelson had heard Maryanne’s quote and used it in one of his speeches shortly after he was released from captivity. Unfortunately the press thought it was his quote and attributed it to him.

Her quote will forever remain true in my heart because we’ve all been taught to play “small” by well meaning adults and authority figures. Nothing could be more damaging than that! I agree that we are meant to grow and prosper. Why would God create us and then have us play small? That doesn’t make any sense! No wonder psychotherapists continue to flourish in America!

8. What do you consider your proudest achievement in life?

That’s a really hard question - Personally, I’d have to say being a mom and having a wonderful, loving family. Professionally, I’d have to say it was growing eMoms at Home to what it is today. Spiritually, I’d have to say that it was overcoming my addictions and setbacks and turning them into gifts. It’s hard to value one of them over the other, because they are all so important to me, and all very different from each other.

Stephen’s Response: Wendy, I serve to please my audience by asking “hard” questions! Your response was wonderful. I particularly liked your spiritual response because it’s not what happens to you that matters but what you do about them. It’s all about perception. I truly believe obstacles are illusions. They are only what we make them to be. Living consciously (being aware of our choices) would solve many of our problems in society.

9. At Adversity University, I often talk about the value of changing our perceptions in order to deal with adversity. How have you dealt with adversity in your life? Give us specific examples of adversity and what you did to overcome them.

Well, I mentioned much of what I have been through earlier. But I can specifically talk about overcoming my addictions - to food, to negative emotions, and to spending money. Although I had been in recovery from much of these painful experiences for many years, I still held onto the sadness and self-hatred for far longer than I should have. Nothing about the past ever changed - the only way I was able to turn these experiences into gifts was by being willing to let go of my ’story’ (which was probably one of the scariest things I have ever done, BTW), and being willing to look for and find the opportunities that these experiences have given me.

I’m now a much more compassionate and generous person than I used to be, and I also know that by going through what I have gone through, I can now help others get out of that black hole of self-hate. For someone who is still in it, they might have a hard time seeing the value in that. But to be able to change lives and make a difference today has made every step of my journey worth it. All I can tell people living in that dark place of addiction is this : I can stand on the other side and tell you that I would gladly go back there and do it all over again in order to be able to give to others at the level I am able to today. And if going through that much pain is actually worth it, I just hope that I can shine a little bit of light on their path to their own wholeness. There is another side. And it is indeed extraordinary.

Stephen’s Response: Yes, we sure got a little taste of some of the adversity you experienced at the beginning of this interview but this one was astronomical! It’s true that we need to let go of the past and release old tape recorders that no longer serve us. I’m a strong believer that nothing happens by chance. We were meant to experience everything that we have so that we could evolve spiritually. In as painful some of my past experiences might have been, I can tell you with confidence that I wouldn’t change any of it. Like you, I am who I am today because of what I went through. Not many people could honestly say that they would gladly go back and do it all over again in order to be able to give to others at the level you are able to today. That takes guts and grit.

10. What would you say was the defining moment that forever changed the course of your life? Was it someone who made an impact on you or was it a spiritual revelation?

I’d have to say that there were two very big turning points - one was when I got pregnant with my first daughter. At first, I sat down on my bed and bawled my eyes out. And I swear to God, not 30 minutes later I knew I could no longer F around with my life, and from that moment forward, I knew I was going to live at a much higher level of discipline, responsibility, and determination.

Another big turning point was when my husband and I almost divorced about 2 years ago. He was battling his own addictions at the time, and I decided to demand more from myself and my life. In one week, I quit my job, asked for a divorce, and started up eMoms at Home. I felt like I had jumped off of a cliff - and I had no freaking clue how I was going to manage being a single mom with three kids in a big house and manage a startup. But by taking a stand and being willing to risk everything to do what was best for me and my children, that decision is what forced my husband to face his own demons rather than blaming me for them. And by doing so, he got sober - and we stayed married. I’m so proud of him for what he has done - and I’m also proud of myself for being so brave at that time and trusting my heart in the midst of chaos.

Stephen’s Response: You remind me a little of myself in terms of the willingness to take risks. You may or may not be aware that in 1996 I quit a six-figure career on Wall Street to pursue my dreams of becoming an inspirational speaker, author and eventually pilot. It was a scary time for me but similar to your situation, somehow everything just fell into place.

Turning to the audience: That about concludes the end of Part I with Wendy from  sparkplugging (formerly emoms at home). Wasn’t she inspiring or what?

Thank you Wendy for coming on the show with us today - we are looking forward to having you back next week for Part II!

Until the next time, enjoy your week!

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