Sunday, November 16, 2008

Suze Orman in The First Church of Harpo

When one of TIME Magazine's 100 most influential people in the world is speaking at a local event, check it out. Especially when it's Suze Orman talking while the global economy spirals downward into the worst meltdown of our life time.

Orman appeared in San Francisco on October 25 courtesy of O You!, a wildly successful 'live your best life' experience delivered by O as in The Oprah Magazine. O Yes!---if you've never been in The First Church of Harpo live with Oprah herself, you've simply got to make an effort.

Never underestimate the power of individual brand identity and marketing. My 20th Century top three include Madonna, Martha, and Oprah. Once Oprah embraces you and your message, you're sphere of influence sky rockets. As Suze Orman's brand positioning and financial expertise gained credibility, she's created her own mini-empire worth millions. She talks with Oprah weekly. And in this economic climate, one can imagine those conversations.

When the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury beckoned Orman to Washington in September and asked, "What should we do?" Orman replied, "Now you're asking?" For those folks paying attention, she's been telling all of us for the past 10 years what we should do.

Passion for money, it's power, and how one manages money to control one's destiny define Orman's message and brand success. She ends her television show on cable's CNBC with the mantra "People first, then money, then things."

In The First Church of Harpo, Orman delivers the same diagnosis and prescription we've seen her deliver recently all over cable news and network shows. On this warm, beautiful sunny October day in San Francisco, Orman took the stage where she masterfully held our attention for about an hour.

Suze flashed her trademark sparkling white teeth, walked us through what's happening, and pleaded with us to listen to her. Orman's tired and frustrated about the economic disaster, in fact, Suze's mad as hell.

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