Neenah Paper

Dyana Valentine I’m a fire hose in a garden hose world. Instigator, DyVa and Tension Seeker & honored to be invited to help teams and entreps rock.  

Dyana Valentine I was the nosy, bossy 1 who knew what everyone was up to. Getting $ 2 connect folks & creatively solve probs= getting paid to be me.

Neenah Paper You’ve experienced many jobs over the yrs, care to share your fave or one that pushed u to go off on your own?

Dyana Valentine Ahh, well, I was working for the devil and a friend asked if I’d help him scale his biz–I said YES, and he was my first $ gig.

Neenah Paper It’s great to be “saved” sometimes isn’t it?

Dyana Valentine Eeerm, “saved” is right–I did have the cosmic collar grab of a serious injury that really got me out of that “job.”

Neenah Paper What’s Project Impossible?

Dyana Valentine An intensive coaching series that guides folks through finishing what wants to be finished and plotting their greatness.

Neenah Paper Well I caught a snippet of your coaching skills at the HOW Conference in June. It’s such a remarkable talent.

Dyana Valentine Thanks so much–what turned you on about it? I always am on another plane, sort of, when I’m working with 400+ folks.  

Neenah Paper The “Hello I’m Good” at stickers were what drew me in. I answered mine with “TALKING”. LOL.

Dyana Valentine I think the HELLO, I’m really good at stickers work b/c they give us a chance to really connect on something FUN–first.

Neenah Paper Where’d you get the idea for those? Super cool. For those of u that haven’t seen them: http://bit.ly/99204n

Dyana Valentine Found a version by @overheardatmoo – they were cool w/me making them my own! Photos on HELLO album: http://bit.ly/hirgadv

Neenah Paper What’s your first step in “coaching” someone towards their goal? What’s your last step?

Dyana Valentine There’s no fixed formula. I’m against most! Each workshop or session starts w/the client project and the energy around it.

Dyana Valentine Start with: idea/project and leave with tools for leaping/deciding/finishing what they start, using their own style.

Neenah Paper You seem to be the epitome of self confidence, is that nature or nurture?

Dyana Valentine You are kidding, right? Part façade, part reality. I’m confident that life is an experiment & learn a lot from failing.

Dyana Valentine Learned more failing than easily succeeding. Not 2 say I romanticize screwing up, but there’s gold in them thar flops.

Neenah Paper No kidding- you exude confidence…or you should win an emmy!

Dyana Valentine Ha! I’ll take the Emmy! No, really, I do feel very confident & brave–well NOT scared of taking risks–that shows, huh?

Neenah Paper I’m a big believer in that theory myself.

Neenah Paper It’s important for you to know that Dyana doesn’t do anything half-way she pours herself into each project.

Dyana Valentine Well, no, let me be honest here. I do some things half-assed-sometimes it works and is appropriate. Don’t sell it short.

Neenah Paper But your 1/2 way is someone else’s 100%!

Neenah Paper You help a lot of people manage their lives and careers. How do you manage time for yourself?

Dyana Valentine You are shining a giant spotlight on my Achilles heel! I don’t notice I need rest until I’m unconscious or sick.

Neenah Paper Many of us are like that. A wise person once told me “there’s a reason rollercoasters are only at amusement parks.” (Thanks Matt Porter!)

Neenah Paper So knowing when to get off the rollercoaster before you get sick is a smart move!

Dyana Valentine That’s a great one–I do put a lot of myself in2 my work. there’s something incredible about getting paid to be 100% me.

Dyana Valentine I’m getting much better at resting, having more fun and shutting the heck up (that helps me recuperate).

Neenah Paper A fun one: Name 3 things (in your purse, on your desk, in your life) that you CANNOT live without.

Dyana Valentine Ahhhh, essentials for inspiration and ideation: @designboom ,cooking supplies (sharp knives!), space pen and my camera.

Neenah Paper A foodie!

Dyana Valentine Yep, love food, love cooking, love cookbooks–need a ladle and a smaller saucepan at the moment (lit and fig).

Neenah Paper Who do you consider your personal/professional heroes?

Dyana Valentine S/heroes: mom & dad 4 making art & teaching me how to live “people first,” folks w/ strong boundaries and who take risks

Dyana Valentine More s/heroes: Tyler Perry, Twyla Tharp, Aruhdhati Roy

Dyana Valentine Other ways 2 rest: days of silence: no music, internet, tv, talking. It’s AMAZING realizing what you don’t have to say. Very helpful.

Neenah Paper Do you meet someone and size them up immediately or wait to get to know them?

Neenah Paper We talked on the phone a few times before this interview, I felt like you had already assessed me!

Dyana Valentine Hmmm, I think “size ups” happened b/c you were open & generous w/yourself–it’s easy to get to the juicy juice that way.

Neenah Paper BTW, I got off the phone with Dyana feeling empowered and inspired in just 30 minutes. Imagine if we had more time? Phew.

Dyana Valentine Very cool-what did you feel inspired to do after our phone date?

Neenah Paper I was inspired to give myself permission to take a break and also to be a better listener.

Dyana Valentine how wonderful. I love that I had any part in getting you permission to be even more wonderful. Listen, rest, permit.

Neenah Paper I liked what u said about empowerment coming from w/in & how I probably know what i need 2 do, I just need 2 do it!

Dyana Valentine did I say that? I guess it’s true, but I think YOU might have said/realized that on your own. Beauty of being watched.

Neenah Paper Not in so many words, but I started listening that day rather than just hearing what you said.

Dyana Valentine BIG diff btw listening and hearing. Now you know, you are good at both.

Dyana Valentine I know we are wrapping up soon. I want to thank you for an awesome experience! This is so fun.

Neenah Paper Thank you so much Ms. Dyana for taking time out for us today. Brilliant as always and I am better for knowing you.

Neenah Paper xxoo

Neenah Paper Make sure you visit Dyana’s site for more about her and what she does: http://dyanavalentine.com/

Dyana Valentine MY pleasure! Thank you all and please do connect with me and share your ideas.

By Erin Moore for Neenah Paper

Dyana Valentine in motion at the Denver Airport. She looks taller in real life.

She is nosy.  She is bossy. She is creative, social and adventurous. She is an entrepreneur worthy of attention. And she gets a lot of it. Dyana Valentine is a one-woman conference catalyst, an idea machine and project impossible coach. She motivates. She challenges. She occasionally ticks you off. That is what is making her such a popular force on the design lecture circuit.

Dyana’s work motivates people to a life of diligence and success, of self-fulfillment and self-discovery. Of thinking beyond one’s own self- limiting assumptions. She looks for the undiscovered energy and establishes “grounding boards” to codify information that is real, and productive. She believes potential exists within all of us.

Dyana’s interest in others was shaped as a child by her talented artist parents and nontraditional experiences. She grew up among immigrant communities struggling to assimilate into the U.S. culture because her mother directed a place called Settlement House. Exposure to diverse people and cultures shaped her more than any other experience.

Even at 14 years, her resilience was already evident: begging for a work permit and negotiating barters, shoveling the muck of horse stalls in exchange for riding lessons. She attended an alternative high school, too, that allowed her “walk-abouts” (independent projects). Pursuing photography, an avid interest of her father’s, Dyana also worked 8 weeks on a Native American Reservation photographing its people, customs and daily rituals. This colorful past engendered a life-long love for the nontraditional.

Dyana Valentine often poses this question: “What excites you?” Well, we asked, what excites Dyana? She loves getting lost in good book or great film movie – sports films, specifically. “I’m turned on by radical systems thinkers: Nancy Duarte, Garr Reynolds. Linchpin, the Pease’s Body Language and Freakonomics, for example. Anything Malcolm Gladwell even breathes on flares up my mind crush on him, too.”

Dyana’s love for her home community, Santa Monica, is palpable. She gives back by teaching a class on success at an L.A. community college. Guess what she leads them to discover? “When you do what you love, it surfaces in everything else,” she states. Obvious? Sure. But why on earth do so few follow the advice? Because, they forget the path.

What does Dyana Valentine have to do with Neenah? She practices what Neenah believes: when you do something, do it well. Dyana Valentine runs a digital business.  For her, paper is reserved for the personal communication, the functional and entertaining, the “warm” and the “fuzzy.” Whenever she prints, she does so on 100% recycled paper. Green is her thing.

“Some maintain sustainable paper products are, well, an oxymoron.  I believe Neenah Paper has blown that notion out of the water by raising the bar for recycled paper and papermaking.  There will always be a need for fine paper. What we need are sustainable paper options.”

She continues, “It is important to reach out to people in a very personal and tactile way. Paper can make a big impact because it is personal, tactile and beautiful. It is a motivating, intelligent medium.”