Last October I surprised myself by accepting an opportunity to speak at the Women’s Leadership Exchange’s New York Conference, even though my new twins were barely two months old. As you may know, the WLE asks its speakers to provide speed coaching to the attendees. While it can be thoroughly exhausting to "speed coach" 10 people in an hour, it’s also incredibly exhilarating, and it’s always great fun to meet so many talented entrepreneurs.

This time, though, one thing was different. One of the entrepreneurs I speed coached brought someone with her. Vigdis Ericksen, the founder and ceo of Ericksen Translations, a $5 million plus company, was being shadowed through the conference by BusinessWeek SmallBiz senior correspondent Amy Barrett.

I’m excited to tell you that Amy wrote about the speed coaching Vigdis received that day, and included much of Vigdis’s session with me. It’s in the just-released Feb/Mar issue of BusinessWeek SmallBiz. I’ve been a fan of the magazine since it’s inception and I’m pleased to be included.

I hope that you’ll click on the link below and read the article.

I think there are valuable things to be learned reading about Vigdis’s varied experiences with speed coaching. So much so, in fact, that it inspired the feature article in my upcoming issue of the "DROOM with Beth Polish eZine."

My DROOM eZine feature article will give you specific tools and tips for getting the most out of encounters like that, whether it’s in a formal speed coaching session, over a meal, in a meeting or on a telephone call. As someone who’s been on both the coaching side and the advice-seeking side, I know you’ll find these tips useful.

I want to thank the WLE again for giving me the opportunity over the years to speak at their conferences. I always look forward to the inspiring award winners, knowledgeable experts and outstanding entrepreneurs. And thank you Vigdis for coming to see me. I have no doubt that you’ll be successful in your continuing expansion into oversees markets.