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 she was having with a …

I grew up in a small town where diversity was scarce, really scarce. I’m not sure how or when being inclusive of everyone became such a part of who I was but I remember as early as 11 being inclusive regardless of race or religion specifically in my very non-diverse town. I remember during the …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/Epi85-LGBTQ_Interview_with_JACOB_TOBIA.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSSDownload the Transcript here! Jenn T. Grace – Episode 85 – Jacob Tobia Shares How to Build a Personal Brand Platform with Meaning Thank you for tuning into episode #85 of the podcast. In this episode I speak with Jacob Tobia who is a leading voice for genderqueer, nonbinary and gender …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/epi-73-gay-business-marketing-hrc-corporate-equality-index-replay-of-episode-53.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSS Hey all – this episode is a re-airing of episode 53, so if you already heard episode 53, come back for a new episode in episode 74! In today’s episode I cover a few topics. The first is I answer a listener question about what to do when you …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/Episode_70_An-open-letter-from-a-self-admitted-homophobe.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSSThanks 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, my audience, so it was nice to get …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode_69_Melissa-Ferrick-Rock-Folk-Singer.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: 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 as a professor at Berklee College of …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/episode_68_michele_wierzgac.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSSThanks 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 there’s never been a dull moment. She offers …

In January 2013 I wrote a blog post about Jodie Foster coming out in her acceptance speech honoring her for lifetime achievement at the Golden Globes (read that post here). At the 2013 Golden Globes there very well may have been other important milestones for LGBT people but my central focus was on Jodie Foster’s …

Does your business have any kind of form(s) that you require your customers to fill out? Maybe your products or services serve both children and adults? Maybe you own a medical practice? Or the local martial arts studio? Regardless of what kind of business you own or where you work, I want you to stop …

I don’t know about your schedule but mine can be pretty chaotic – usually trying to fit a lot of meetings and phone calls into one day. For some reason Thursdays always seem to be my busiest days of the week. I’m usually up and out early, attending events, going to mastermind meetings, having a …

I was meeting with a colleague and we were talking about a challenge her wife had just recently faced as it related to a new LGBT person working for her. Her wife recently hired a young woman who was very masculine in appearance – what you might call a ‘butch lesbian’ (I will write about …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/GBM-epi-40-book-launch-of-no-wait-you-do-look-gay.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSS This week’s podcast is all about my virtual book launch. A much shorter episode than usual, that is filled with so much love and gratitude to you the listener and reader. I really appreciate you! 🙂 Now through Friday is the virtual launch of my new book, No, wait… You do look gay! …

During 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 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/gbm-ep-38-interview-with-stacy-7-21-2014.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSS In this new podcast, I had the pleasure of interviewing a close friend and colleague on the show. I lovingly refer to her as an operational genius, but you can just call her Stacy (Morataya-Pilkington). This interview covers many topics and her retail experience as an LGBT shopper will …

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 “Do you only work with …

This blog stems from a question 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 Health. It is a …

Today is April 15th. It is the dreaded tax day for many. Fortunately I am not scrambling and did my taxes months ago but I know this is top of mind for many people. It is likely top of mind for many LGBT couples, as it is the first time many of us can file …

A few years back I was in a Facebook conversation with a friend about the ridiculous nature of Arizona’s Senate Bill 1062. I was so intrigued by her comments that I told her to head over to my Facebook page and post there so we could get the conversation going with other people too! I promised I would …

Were you one of the 111.3 million viewers who watched the 2014 Super Bowl? According to Nielsen this was the most-watched U.S. TV telecast of all time. I watched it, like many, just for the commercials. Did you see the gay couple in the Coca-Cola “America the Beautiful” Super Bowl ad? If not, I’m not …

This past year has been a good year for LGBT equality. As with anything there is still so much more work to be done, but this year was something I am proud to have witnessed occur. You can see the shift in consciousness happening, in the United States. However, there is more work to be …

A few years back I wrote about all of the lesion I learned in 2012. Believe or not, all these years later, I continue to have a great response to that post, click here to take a look. Because of the response I received I decided to do it again and share the 6 key lessons I …

Tis’ the holiday season for many of us! I understand that not everyone celebrates Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa or any other holiday pertinent to your specific culture, but I think it is generally safe to assume that this time of year, we are all in the holiday season – whatever that means to you. Most of …

This is another post where I get my ‘geek on’. I have a love hate relationship with numbers. I am notorious for transposing numbers when I am trying to dial a phone, seriously it’s painful to watch. However, I have a love for numbers and statistics especially when they are so strong and powerful and tell …

If you are a long time reader of this blog, or perhaps you’ve just found my site, either way you’ll understand real quick that I am a Dork – with a capital D. So each year when the Human Rights Campaign releases their  Corporate Equality Index scores I am like a kid in a candy store! …

This post is part 2 of a 3 part series that explores the reason why you are interested in marketing to the LGBT community. In part 1 I gave you a few things to think about and even provided a worksheet to help you through the process. You can go back and see part 1 and get …

The past few years have been years of creation for me. I’ve written and published 2 books, which you can find here, and I created a series of online products to help you master your communications and marketing skills when working with the LGBT community. During this process I had a fabulous conversation which brought to …

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. If you missed that post …

A quick note from Jenn  – When my dear friend and colleague Diane reached out to me upset with what she had just read I was empathetic. However, rather than voice my thoughts on the matter I invited her to share her thoughts and opinion here on my blog. It is my intention for this …

I grew up in a small town where diversity was scarce, really scarce. I’m not sure how or when being inclusive of everyone became such a part of who I was but I remember as early as 11 being inclusive regardless of race or religion specifically in my very non-diverse town. I remember during the …

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http://traffic.libsyn.com/jenntgrace/GBM_Episode_021_Jodi-Savitz.mp3Podcast: Play in new windowSubscribe: RSSHave 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 the items mentioned in this episode of the …

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 they do.  (Check them out here). …

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. After hundreds of blog posts and counting …

A while back I was having lunch with a friend and colleague and we were talking about LGBT media; things like newspapers, websites and magazines. We were discussing how there are pockets across the country that are just blatantly lacking access to LGBT media outlets. In several of my prior marketing related blog posts I talk about …

Often times in this blog I’ll address questions I’ve been asked by friends or colleagues. But in this post I’d like to attempt to answer my own question by brainstorming in writing with you. It may sound a bit crazy but I’ve been racking my brain for a while trying to figure out – why do …

Have you heard the phrase “Non-Traditional Family” when being marketed or sold to? Perhaps you have and haven’t noticed or perhaps you have and you cringe when you hear that phrase? Either way we are going to talk about the Non-Traditional Family today. This is an area of interest to me because for my undergraduate …

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 gayborhood) is a geographical area …

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 a negative way. Years ago …

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 hearing “That’s so gay” to …

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 from a conversation I was …

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 this new position. She was …

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 person speaking. Lesbian, gay, and …

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 “Well he may not be …

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 may offend someone if they …

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 of me getting upset because …

Diversity is en-grained in everything that I do. I stand for equality and believe in and promote diversity every chance I get. I believe in buying products from companies who support diversity as a whole but specifically those who support LGBT equality. Because of this I swear by the Human Rights Campaign’s, Buying Guide. The …

As an out and proud ‘professional lesbian’ (yes I do refer to myself as such when people ask what it is that I do), I find that I am often the voice of reason for setting examples in the LGBT community. I had an encounter in Chilli’s, a popular chain restaurant, last week that made …