Today we’d like to introduce you to Diane Wyzga.

Hi Diane, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Who Am I & Where Did I Come From: The arc of my professional career stretches from serving as US Navy nurse, corporate businesswoman, speaker, educator, lawyer, litigation consultant, podcaster, and storyteller.

For 30 years, I’ve helped professionals take their story from a message only they could hear to the publishing world, the courtroom, hospitals, board meetings, the airwaves, and more. Stories that swayed juries. Built markets. Spread ideas. Changed things.

Today, as the principal guide and story consultant at Quarter Moon Story Arts I coach women to become successful Origin Story creators (how they got from There to Here) so they connect with, engage and influence their communities to action. This work helps women clarify their ideas and amplify their voices. Our voice is our power – our story is the expression of our power.

Having stepped into the power of their singular voice women are poised to unbalance the status quo. Along the way they develop the confidence to say what they mean and mean what they say. After working with me they have the skills to be seen, heard, understood, and listened to while transforming the lives of those they serve. I am also the voice behind Stories From Women Who Walk, a long-running global podcast.

The other arc is that of a journeying woman who backpacked across Europe, mountain-climbed the Canadian Rockies, learned to fly a plane, walked the Camino de Santiago on a pilgrimage of 500 miles across Spain, and more. Along the way I suffered a divorce, loss of a law firm position, and the death of my mother from a poorly diagnosed case of cancer. I’ve known betrayal, loss, abandonment, failure – just like all of us. At the same time I’ve been enormously fortunate, lucky, blessed with health, prosperity of mind and heart, faith, family, friends. Even in the darkest hours. My podcast episodes are designed to build my life in public so that those who hear them can say, “What! You, too! I thought I was the only one.” [C.S. Lewis]. I’m guided by 3 key core values: Adventure, Justice, and Communication.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
What life is smooth? No one’s life is smooth. We might get to smooth it out but the road is rocky, and treacherous, with blind curves, steep precipices, and dark shadows. Being the eldest child in a large family taught me responsibility, discipline, and sharing; but also had to forsake my childhood to care for others. I’ve been divorced, struggled with sketchy finances, lost jobs, and lost my mom because a doctor failed to properly and timely diagnose her. They say that some who have suffered near-death experiences only to return to life were sent back because they hadn’t learned all the lessons they were given to learn. Likewise, my challenges are teachings so I could learn how to be a better woman. I don’t want to leave here while I’m still “Under Construction.”

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I’m known as an expert story consultant who amplifies women’s voices, ideas, and messages. As the principaI guide and story consultant at Quarter Moon Story Arts [https://www.quartermoonstoryarts.net] I specialize in helping women create their Origin Story – the story about how they got from There to Here. Creating their Origin Story helps women engage, connect with, and influence their audiences, their clients, their communities while also transforming the lives of those they serve.

I help women find the words they didn’t know they had to say what they mean and mean what they say.
Now they have the confidence to step into the power of their voice and help unbalance the status quo in the larger spheres of influence: socially, politically, spiritually, intellectually, economically.

What sets me apart from others who work in story? Fact: No one can teach anyone how to be a storyteller; although there are many who claim to be able to do just that. But there are people who can teach you how to teach yourself to be a storyteller. I am one of them.

Here’s how I teach you to teach yourself. We start here: you know the story you want to tell, the ideas you want to clarify, the message you want to amplify; all you need is someone to help listen it out of you; to help you find the words you didn’t know you had. Why is this key? Because you’re in charge; you’re empowered; you will use your own words in your own voice to connect human-to-human. Emotional connection doesn’t get any more authentic than that.

Over my lifetime I’ve dedicated myself to helping professionals bring their stories to life in the publishing realm, courtrooms, hospitals, board meetings, or the airwaves. My clients’ stories have influenced juries, built markets, spread ideas, and catalyzed change. What’s more, I created my Stories From Women Who Walk podcast 60 Seconds episode method – how to say more with less – almost 4 years ago and grew it to 1,100 global episodes. [https://stories-from-women-who-walk.simplecast.com/]

Benefit & Take-away: What’s the benefit to you? What will you take away? Your origin or personal brand story for marketing, branding, ideas, connection, audience development, media opportunities, and influence. A heartfelt story artfully told about how you got from There to Here, the challenges you faced, the goals you accomplished, and why the journey matters so that you, your work and ideas are recognized for the value they are! Your story told with clarity and confidence.

I work one-on-one and with small groups. We can work together in-person or via Zoom. I’m creating on-island retreats for women. I’m also serving as a keynoter and trainer.

What am I most proud of? When a woman’s eyes light up & she says: “I never knew I could write and share my own story. It really matters! I really matter!” Yes, my dear, you’ve always had the power.

If you want to have a no-sales conversation you can reach me on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/diane-f-wyzga-qmsa/], on Substack under Wyzga on Words [dianewyzga.substack.com] or e-mail me: [email protected]

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
If you’ve every read the Pippi Longstocking books you’ll get a sense of the adventurous kid I was. I loved climbing trees, racing my bike down hills, ice skating on frozen ponds, camping out, forest walks. Always in motion. And I developed a very strong desire to read everything I could lay my hands on! I had a strong intuition meaning I could “see” things; but it took me into my later years to fully step into that power and to trust it.

Some say I was driven, focused to achieve: best grades, best Girl Scout, best [fill in the blank]. Maybe that was true; but I think that under the drive was a strong sense of competition, testing myself, what else can I do, gain, be….. In many ways I maintain a curiosity, a desire to explore, to travel, to experience.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.quartermoonstoryarts.net
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diane-f-wyzga-qmsa/
• Other: dianewyzga.substack.com