The difference between an Advocate and an Activist
I previously posted about the difference between an Ally and Advocate because it became apparent that not everyone knew what the difference was. In this post, I’d like to address two more similar words, Advocate and Activist. While researching my previous topic of ally and advocate I had troubles locating any …
Read MoreWhy don’t you have a picture of your wife on your desk?
This post stems from a conversation my wife was having with a co-worker. In my circle of friends and colleagues I am the go-to person to ask any LGBT related questions and my web appears to be expanding into my wife’s education world as well. We started talking about a conversation …
Read MoreAre you asking your LGBT customers touchy things?
So here is part 3 of 7 in the 7 part series titled: “The 7 Deadly Sins of Ineffective LGBT Communications.” I first introduced to you the idea that I believe 98% of miscommunication blunders occur for one of 7 reasons, which I’ve dubbed the 7 deadly sins. As a …
Read More#70: An Open Letter from a Self Admitted Homophobe [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/Episode_70_An-open-letter-from-a-self-admitted-homophobe.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Thanks for listening to episode #70 of the podcast. Today’s episode of the podcast isn’t an interview, it’s a response to an email I received from a reader. It’s been a few months since I’ve spent a podcast just talking to you, …
Read More#69: Melissa Ferrick | Singer-Songwriter [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode_69_Melissa-Ferrick-Rock-Folk-Singer.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Thanks for listening to episode #69 of the podcast. Today’s guest, Melissa Ferrick, is a master of many trades – an acclaimed performing artist (currently listed as #20 of the top 50 women in indie music), a record label owner as well …
Read More#68: Michele Wierzgac | Keynote speaker, leadership guru, and author of “The Talking Stick According To Michele: A Guide For Reflecting On Your Personal Brand” [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode_68_michele_wierzgac.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Thanks for joining me for episode #68 of the podcast. My guest today is Michele Wierzgac, who I’m so glad shared her story with me and now you. Michele’s journey is an interesting one; from the volleyball court to the main stage …
Read MoreJust because you see two lesbians – it doesn’t mean they’re a couple
I feel it is very well documented that I have a wife whom I love more than words can describe. When it comes to spouses I seriously got lucky. However, she can be somewhat of a unicorn, a mythical creature if you will. Very few people have met her because …
Read MoreCan I ask my lesbian neighbor about her pregnancy?
Quite sometime ago I wrote a blog post titled How Intimate is too Intimate in a Business Setting and in it I discussed how it can be awkward when you are being asked ‘Who gave birth?’ by someone you don’t know, who is trying to do business with you. I encourage you to read the …
Read MoreWhen to (or not to) use the word Queer? That is the question. [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode-47-gay-business-and-marketing-made-easy-a-queer-question.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Today I’m pleased to share episode #47 of the podcast. In this episode I discuss what I am thankful for this year as well as tackling a listener question about the usage of the word Queer. It’s an interesting topic and one …
Read MoreCan I ask a transgender person what their ‘other name’ was?
Listen up. You know I love you. I appreciate you. I enjoy that you frequently read my blog and follow what I am doing. But sometimes I feel the need to pull a tough love moment with you. This is one of those occasions. A few months ago I was …
Read More#46: What is coming in 2015 and answering listener questions [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode_46_gay-business-marketing-listener-questions.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Hi there podcast listener! Thank you for being here. I am delighted to share with you my plans for this podcast as I enter year 3 of doing so. I also discuss ways in which I will be improving my blog and …
Read MoreCan you always keep track of your employees?
A couple of years ago in Portland, Oregon an LGBT customer received his receipt from the local Apple store with the email address input as “fag.com.” As a business owner, professional, someone with employees – what is your reaction to this? If you are marketing to the LGBT community I …
Read MoreThere will always be a crank pot in the crowd…
I have two kids so the phrase crank pot comes up often in my house. A crank pot meaning someone who’s just cranky about something in general. In this post I want to point out a crank pot who reached out during my book launch. I have a very large …
Read MoreDo you only work with gay people?
This post is about an interaction I had with my Mother over the holiday. I was at my Mom’s with my wife and kids to celebrate the holidays. She had asked me how my book was selling so I started telling her and gave her a promotional bookmark. She leans in towards me and whispers …
Read MoreIs it really ‘just a phase?’ 3 ways you are offending LGBT people and don’t even know it.
For new readers and repeat visitors, I write about business etiquette and the nuances of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. In this post I address the phrase, “It’s just a phase…” Most of what is written here is aimed to educate you on what not to say in a business …
Read MoreHow intimate is too intimate in a business setting? What questions are off limits?
This question from a friend comes from a lively discussion I was having with a handful of colleagues. As you may know by now I often dedicate blogs to answering questions that some may find uncomfortable to ask for fear of being judged or afraid they may offend someone if they do …
Read MoreWhich lesbian is the ‘man’ in the relationship?
This blog post comes from a conversation I was having with a fellow lesbian. I was interviewing her for my 30 days – 30 voices – stories from America’s LGBT business leaders podcast project. I was telling her about my first book called “But You Don’t Look Gay…”, and explaining how I came up …
Read MoreIs asking someone “So, what’s your disability?” similar to asking “So, are you a lesbian?”
For the few years I have written blog posts that are related to effective communications with the LGBT community (and it’s turned into so much more! I’m not sure all of you are aware that this blog actually started off called “LGBT Questions from a Friend,” and I was answering questions from friends and …
Read MoreHow to be more inclusive in your LGBT marketing… one small change (Part 2 of 2)
This is part 2 of a 2 part series. Previously I talked about one small change you can make in your LGBT marketing to be more inclusive of LGBT clients and potential LGBT clients. The one small change was to add LGBT imagery to your existing website or marketing materials. …
Read MoreHow do you recover from sticking your foot in your mouth?
I had the pleasure of previously speaking at the Travel Gay Canada conference in Niagara, Ontario. I had a great time presenting to a crowd of travel professionals who were eager to know how to communicate more effectively with their current and potential LGBT clients. Towards the tail end of …
Read MoreShould you ever say "those people" when talking about the LGBT community?
I’m a firm believer that the phrase “those people” should be banned from your vocabulary regardless of what group of people you are talking about. But since my blog is focused on the LGBT community we will talk about “those people” today. Did you see what I did there? All …
Read More#021: Expert Interview with Jodi Savitz [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/GBM_Episode_021_Jodi-Savitz.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Have a listen to episode #21 of the Gay Business & Marketing Made Easy podcast! You’ll hear the story of filmmaker, Jodi Savitz. You’ll hear her story as an invisible feminine lesbian and her current documentary project, “Girl on Girl.” Below are …
Read MoreHotel check-in: Will that be one bed or two, ladies?
Annually, I attend the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce conference. I write about it, talk about it on the podcast and meet many of you there. The conference never disappoints, in fact each year I’m not sure how they are going to top the previous year, but somehow …
Read MoreAre you "happy to deal with LGBT people?" Err, what?
By now you know that most of my blog posts comes directly from experiences in my day-to-day life. As a very out lesbian and owner of a business catering to education about the LGBT community, I have an endless supply of things to write about, which I am very grateful for. …
Read MoreWhat exactly is a sexual preference?
As with almost every post I write, this topic comes out of a direct conversation I had with an old friend and colleague. She has been a proud supporter of the LGBT community for many years and has been very active and successful in doing so. We were talking about equality …
Read MoreAre you the only gay people in your neighborhood?
This question comes from a conversation I was having with a friend in San Francisco. I was in the Bay Area working on a client project and while I was at lunch one day we got to talking about the differences of the city and the suburbs. I think I live in …
Read MoreAre you ‘Living the Gay Lifestyle?’
It seems like forever ago that I wrote a blog talking about the ‘Gay Lifestyle.’ In that post I boldly exclaimed ‘There is no such thing as a gay lifestyle!” I stand by that statement but feel the need to elaborate. There is no such thing as a gay lifestyle …
Read MoreWhat’s the difference between gender identity and gender expression
Comparing gender identity and gender expression is like… Comparing Granny Smith apples to Macintosh apples. They’re both fruits and part of the same family. In a previous post I talked about the differences between sexual orientation and gender identity. I made the comparison that they were like lemons and grapes. …
Read MoreWhat’s the difference between sexual orientation and gender identity?
Comparing sexual orientation to gender identity is like… Comparing lemons and grapes. They’re both fruit but they have little to do with one another. Awhile back I wrote a blog titled “If I’m not lesbianed, then you can’t be transgendered…” One of my main points of this post was the …
Read MoreMarketing to Lesbians – where are they?
Previously I wrote a rambling blog post titled, Deconstructing gaydar: Why do I know she’s a lesbian? I am really happy with the readership and comments spawned from this post. My intention was to create a dialogue around the mystique of gaydar but also point out that it does exist as …
Read MoreHave you been offended by being called a lesbian? Read this!
This post around business etiquette within the LGBT community comes from a direct experience I had not so long ago. I am going to start off with the moral of the story, then share the actual story. Moral: If you are offended that someone would assume that you were part …
Read MoreWhat is a Gayborhood?
I spent time in the gayborhood in Dallas, Texas. When I mentioned I was in the gayborhood it prompted a few people asking me what exactly that meant. Here is how Wikipedia defines a gay village; “A gay village (also known as a gay neighborhood, LGBT district, gay district, or …
Read More"So… which one of you is the man in the relationship?"
This blog post comes from a conversation I was having with a fellow lesbian. I was interviewing her for my 30 days – 30 voices – stories from America’s LGBT business leaders podcast project. I was telling her about my book called “But You Don’t Look Gay…”, and I was …
Read MoreAlly versus Advocate: What’s the difference?
In this post I would like to talk about the differences between an ally to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and an advocate for the LGBT community. It hadn’t occurred to me that some may confuse the two until recently. I had a conversation recently and in it …
Read MoreWhat happens when you assume the gender of one’s spouse?
In the past, LGBT people were not at the forefront of society like we are today. It just wasn’t talked about. Now, LGBT rights and equality is something everyone is talking about. Democrats, Republicans and everyone in between is talking about it. Some in a positive way and others in …
Read MoreAre you saying "That’s so gay?" Stop.
There are always those expressions that can get under your skin. For me, one of those phrases is “That’s so gay.” It definitely seems to be more of a young adult and adolescent phrase but I’ve caught an adult or two or three saying it as well. I would equate …
Read MoreThere’s no such thing as the ‘gay lifestyle’
During a meeting the question “What is your knowledge and experience with the LGBT community?” came up. In the middle of this person’s response a reference to the ‘gay lifestyle’ was made. I had an immediate reaction. When I hear the term ‘lifestyle’ it sends a red flag that the …
Read MoreWhat is Cisgender?
I was in a meeting a while back reviewing candidates for a specific position we noticed that ‘cisgender’ was an option on the application form. I personally knew one of the applicants and hadn’t heard the term cisgender before so I was immediately thinking… I’ve never heard her describe herself …
Read MoreDon’t assume that because your co-worker is gay that they have ‘gaydar’
By now you may know that I pull the content I write about from recent interactions I’ve had. There never seems to be a shortage of information to write about in terms of educating people on how to do business with the LGBT community in a non-offensive way. This blog comes …
Read MoreHow can I help my co-worker "come out" at work?
I sat down for a cup of coffee this weekend with a friend and colleague. She recently went from being in business for herself to jumping back into the corporate world. Within just a couple of minutes she began to tell me about the person who is training her in …
Read MoreHow to Identify and Respond to "The Pronoun Game"
So what is the Pronoun Game? I was pleasantly surprised to see Wikipedia had a definition – “‘Playing the pronoun game’ is the act of concealing sexual orientation in conversation by not using a gender-specific pronoun for a partner or a lover, which would reveal the sexual orientation of the …
Read MoreWhy Are Rainbows a Symbol of the LGBT Community?
In a meeting I was talking about pride parades and made a comment about rainbows. One of the people I was sitting with said “I had no idea rainbows are a sign of gay pride.” It never occurred to me that people wouldn’t know that rainbows were a symbol of …
Read More3 reasons you should never say homosexual. ever.
There is never a right time to use the word homosexual. Ever. This week’s post comes from a conversation I was having where we were talking about a person who is not so pleasant to deal with. In the middle of the conversation the person I am sitting with says …
Read MoreHow does one qualify as a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender business owner?
I want to share with you a conversation I had on LinkedIn with a connection of mine. He asked a whole host of questions about being a certified LGBT owned business. While I was answering them for him I figured I would answer them for you as well. He asked …
Read More#001: Introduction to the Gay Business & Marketing Made Easy Podcast [Podcast]
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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/GBM_001_IntroToTheShow.mp3 Podcast: Play in new window Subscribe: RSS Listen to the episode by clicking the play button below! This first episode of the podcast is short just about 11 minutes. It’s really just an introduction to what the Gay Business & Marketing Made Easy Podcast is all about, a …
Read MoreIn a business setting: is it okay to ask intimate details?
The question I answer in this post comes from a lively discussion I was having with a handful of colleagues. As you may know by now I often take time in this blog to answer questions that some may find uncomfortable to ask for fear of being judged or afraid they …
Read More"Pardon my ignorance but what is LGBT?"
This website came to be after I found myself answering LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) related questions from a variety of friends of mine. Since I consider myself a Professional Lesbian TM (educating people around LGBT topics is what I do every day) I’m often the first place friends come to …
Read MoreDo you need to "Come out" to your Doctor?
This question comes from a friend who is a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) and has encountered a similar situation a couple of times when treating her lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) patients. To best understand the situation she provided me with a document from the Rhode Island Department of …
Read MoreHow to assist a transgender job applicant
This question comes from a colleague who runs the full service staffing firm 925Hire. 925Hire is unique because they focus exclusively on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. An awesome niche to serve (I may be biased)! She saw this conundrum in a recent staffing magazine and wanted …
Read MoreLGBT Questions from a Friend…
I have a friend who has inspired me to start this blog based on questions she brought to me. She asked me LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) related questions on a fairly regular basis. She knew that she can ask the sensitive questions she needed to ask without fear …
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