The saying goes that behind every great man is a great woman. This is certainly the case with Cesar and his wife Ilusion. While Cesar is out in the field working with dogs and their owners, Ilusion is in the office making it possible for him to share his message with more and more people every day.

As president of Cesar Millan, Inc., Ilusion’s charismatic leadership and positive energy inspires the whole team to work for a more dog-friendly tomorrow. But what does Ilusion Millan do? What exactly is Cesar Millan, Inc.? Ilusion tells us in this fascinating interview.

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.” – Dr. Seuss

What is CMI?
Cesar Millan, Inc.  is a company where people can create ideas based on Cesar’s methods, philosophies, and messages, make them happen, and then share them with the public. Our goal is to help get Cesar’s message out and spread awareness, through many mediums: training aids, DVDs, the internet, and even personal appearances. CMI supports who Cesar is and what he does for dogs and people.

What are the biggest accomplishments for CMI in 2006?
Oh my gosh! Where do I start? I am so proud of what we accomplished this year. For me, the biggest accomplishment was premiering the Illusion collar. A lot of hard work went into that. Also, we created, and continue to develop, Cesar’s presence on the web as a resource for dog owners. And we made two DVDs, People Training for Dogs and Becoming a Pack Leader, which help empower people – men, women, and children – in their relationship with their dogs… and also other human beings.

What are CMI’s goals for 2007?
We have a lot of projects in the works for 2007. We hope to create an official Cesar Fan Club and a place on the web where fans can interact with and help one another. There are plans to spread our message through other marketing strategies, such as print ads, as well as expanding the availability of our training aids and DVDs through placement in small boutiques and retail stores. And CMI continues to develop more resources for dog owners, such as the release of two more DVDs and a doggie backpack. Also in development is a children’s website, which my kids will help create, where our younger fans can share, learn, and be in community with other dog lovers around the country.

Another exciting project is our non-profit organization! We want to focus on making it accessible to the public. We hope to create awareness of dog issues and help rescue groups attain their goals and fill their needs. We already have an initial start-up project in the works for incorporating pet awareness, safety, and care into children’s elementary education. That’s something we really hope to realize in 2007.

What is your experience as a woman in a leadership role?
It’s a challenge from the moment I wake up, being a mother, a wife and the president of a company. I manage my children, I manage a home, and I manage a company. It’s both fun and challenging. If you can laugh at the challenges, it makes it all worthwhile.

For me, the biggest challenges are prioritizing and staying centered. As president, staying calm and assertive in difficult situations is important. All these internal conversations go on in my head – good angel, bad angel– and that’s a very natural thing. But you need to manage those conversations to make sure that you are not going against who you want to be. I have taken wonderful courses to help me manage that in a very powerful way and create structures in my life to keep possibilities I create in place. All things considered, it’s really fun being Cesar’s wife, business partner, and friend.

How do you see the role for women establishing leadership with pets?
Many women are very nurturing. We like to make things better by holding our dogs in our arms and cuddling them, but that is not necessarily going to make things better. We need to be aware of the fact that some of time – most of the time - we are not actually going to help that way with dogs. We are actually making it worse.

I came from an education background. I was a preschool teacher, so I came from that mentality. It’s all about the children, care for them and nurture them. Then I come to the center where, because the dogs were in rehabilitation, they should not be nurtured for the most part. So here I am; I want to make it better, but I really wasn’t helping. It was really hard on Cesar; I had to learn that I was not being of service when I was being that way. Every now and then, it’s natural. It’s okay to nurture. But, in some situations, it just doesn’t work. It actually goes against you instead of working for you.

Once you recognize that what you are doing is more about personal gain than about being of service, you can learn to change your approach. Once you can come from that place – being of service – and learn not take it personally, you can really help the animal – or the person. We need to overcome our personal issues and move forward from there, in order to really help.

What’s it like to be in the public eye?
It’s exciting. It’s fun being recognized. The best part is the acknowledgement we get about what a good thing we are doing in the world. That is what makes me open my eyes, get out of bed and go do what I do. Knowing that women are becoming empowered - not only with their dogs, but for themselves and with their children - is just a very powerful motivation for me. That is what makes me do what I do.

What were the early days at Dog Psychology Center like?
Well, financially, we were just making ends meet, so, because of the financial restraints, Cesar and I had to take on a lot of roles to run the center. I did all of the office and business part, managing the operations, and Cesar did all of the dog and maintenance part. It was rewarding, and it definitely had its challenges. As wife and husband, we had to learn new boundaries and rules of our relatedness within the working environment. Once we established and respected those rules for each other, everything was smooth sailing.

How do you handle your active business role and your role as a parent and a dog owner?
It’s definitely a balancing act everyday. It’s prioritizing. It’s being present. You know how they say quality vs. quantity? Well, it doesn’t make a difference which one you choose if you are not present for either of them. What I chose was being present. That’s what I wanted to give my children. When I am with them, whether it’s 10 minutes or a whole day, I give them full-on 100%. I am listening to you. I am looking at you. I am interacting with you. I am engaging you. I am not watching TV or sitting on the cell phone. I am present, and they get that. I really get a sense of fulfillment in that moment. I am there with them, and they are there with me. Therefore, that gets complete, and we are all happy.

I really believe it takes a community to raise a child, so I give that experience to my children. Calvin and Andre have a love community. It’s not just mom and dad. That’s not the only place they are getting love from. They have grandparents, uncles, cousins, etc. So I never feel bad if I have to choose quality as opposed to quantity. Like I said, what matters most is being present.

I balance my many roles every day. It’s an ongoing conversation all day long. I am lucky enough to have the flexibility to choose what days I want to come into work, what days I want to work from home and what days I have off. My life is flexible in the way. So sometimes I end up working Saturday and Sunday, because I took Monday and Friday off. And I set a time for myself; I’ll work from this time to this time. Then I’ll go home and be a mom. I’ll cook. I love to cook. It’s just something that I love to do, making people happy with food. I find so much fulfillment in bringing my family together around the dinner table. We enjoy my food and talk about things that make us laugh, make us happy…and some of the things that are not so great. It’s just a great sense of being related, of being connected.  I see what that does for my family. I really enjoy that.

Does this happen every night?
No, about 4 nights a week. If I have a long day at the office, Cesar will take the kids out for dinner. Or my mother will cook. I try to make it home by, at the latest, 7 pm. I help the kids with their homework. Then, by 9:30, they are in bed. That’s how it works at my house.

Before that, they can play with their friends. My house is the neighborhood house. All the kids from the block come to my house. The boys play basketball in the back, do wrestling moves out front or play video games inside. The girls are talking about girl stuff and watching the boys play. It’s really cool to see that.

What advice do you have for other woman in leadership roles or pursuing leadership roles?

You can accomplish anything if you believe in yourself. Whenever you doubt yourself or feel down, step back and get perspective. Whenever I think it’s going bad for me, I remind myself of all the good things going on in my life. I look outside myself at how much worse others have it and how they are managing their challenges and think, “Here I am complaining about my little things!” But you have to acknowledge that. Right now I am complaining. That’s natural, but that’s not what my intention is right now. My intention is to get this done. So you have to put that aside and remind yourself that, in the long run, it is to help others.

Choice. I think that is important. I really choose my life. This is what I want. This is what I am committed to. And then I create structures for it, and I do my best. My best is not yesterday’s best or tomorrow’s best. It is the best you can do that day. Your best comes in different forms. I think often women don’t get that. Your best does not have to be one certain way. No, your best is what you can offer right now. Sometimes there are constraints: physical constraints, mental constraints, emotional constraints. Your best doesn’t have to be a certain way. It’s just the way that you feel is your best, and that’s what counts!

For more information, please visit:
Ilusion Millan: Dogs and Kids