Category — Personal Growth

Feeling UNinspired?

For entrepreneurs who are feeling burned out or for moms or mompreneurs who are feeling a little ho-hum about life, one of the most important things you can do every day is to seek out the things that inspire you and make you feel alive.

In this video, I share 7 things that inspire me so that I can plant the seed of inspiration in your mind and hopefully inspire you to get inspired!  The most important part of this message is that inspiration doesn’t come to you, you have to actively and consciously seek it out.

But, do you?

Now, I’d love to hear about what you do to feel inspired, how often you seek out inspiration and any ideas that you have about loving the life you live OR if you are struggling with finding inspiration and not feeling happy in your life, I’d love to support you.  So go ahead leave a thought here and whatever you are feeling about this post, let’s talk in the comments!

Have you ever wanted to just live on the edge (even for a moment)…

Have you ever found yourself feeling stuck in a rut with a level of comfort that holds you back from really feeling truly alive…

?

Meet my very cool friend Sarah Robinson (up above), the founder of Escaping Mediocrity and the creator of Irresistible Presence.  Sarah very graciously agreed to be my guest on the Getting It Done Show on Wednesday August 25, 2010.  We talked about creating irresistible presence in our businesses and truly live an extraordinary life.

Just to give you a glimpse into our fun hour-long show, I asked Sarah a few simple, but telling questions that may inspire you to listen to the replay…

1.  What is your favorite quote?
I have several but “Speak what we feel not what we ought to say.” by William Shakespeare is always at the top of the list.
2.  Do you have a role model in business or in your life?
That’s easy – Dagny Taggert in Atlas Shrugged.
3.  What does it mean to have irresistible presence?
Irresistible Presence is about being completely anchored in who you really are with no fluff and stuff between you and your tribe or audience.
4.  What is one tip for moms who want to escape mediocrity right now?
Escaping Mediocrity can be as simple as taking a walk alone without a walkman plugged in and noticing what’s around you. Or breaking out of the same old same old for dinner.
5.  What is the craziest thing you have ever done in your life?

Umm…I can’t say that in public.

— But maybe we can get her to share a glimpse of her answer to this last question on the show tomorrow night, so listen in to find out!

Sometimes in life, we don’t know why we are drawn to do certain things.  We simply know we must do them.

We sense an overwhelming feeling of urgency to attend an event, go to a workshop, join a retreat, participate in a coaching program, go on a journey or do something else that is out of our comfort zone and we put ourselves on the line financially, emotionally and in relationships to do that thing that we know will move us forward.

We may not know at the time WHY we need to it, we simply can’t NOT do it.  It’s almost as if we have no choice, but to do that thing.  And often times, it isn’t until months or years later that we realize how critical our choice to do (or not do) this thing was in shaping our destiny.

This is the story of that “thing”… and how it changed my life.

In 1998, I was a 24 year-old Pre-Masters student living in San Francisco and barely making ends meet with a $12 an hour job as a preschool teacher and as an exhibiting artist (which generated unpredictable revenue at best).  In my spare time, I loved (and still love) to read personal growth books like The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra and The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.  But after a while, I wanted something more than the books to help me take big leaps of growth.

It was time to walk on burning coals with my bare feet.  Yes, it was.

So naturally, I went to the Tony Robbins Unleash the Power Within Weekend Retreat in San Francisco.  It consisted of three full days in a hotel ballroom with 1000 people and Tony on stage… cheering, crying, laughing, singing, dancing… learning about psychology, exploring belief patterns and life purpose and seeing firsthand proof of the power of the mind… by walking on the burning coals.

Talk about being pumped up.  This was being pumped up on steroids.

Big time.

And then it was time to go home…

After three solid days of transformation and personal growth all I wanted to do was talk about my discoveries.  I’m telling you, this was ground breaking, hard work, soul-searching type stuff.  There was nothing passive about this event.  And I felt like I had won a marathon.  I wanted to celebrate, but everyone around me wanted to laugh this “woo-woo” stuff and mock the lessons I had learned.

“Great Britt. Good for you. “  They would say as they rolled their eyes and snickered.  But I kept on smiling and spreading positive thoughts.

This was a turning point for me where I went from always doubting my contributions to truly feeling empowered to help others.  Now, I could clearly see solutions for people’s problems and rather than giving them answers, I would recommend a book, an exercise, a weekend retreat or a CD that would help them.  I turned into a walking, talking self-help billboard that promoted Tony Robbins, Deepak Chopra, Don Miguel Ruiz, Dale Carnegie and a host of other self-help gurus.  (If only I had known about affiliate marketing back then, I could have added another revenue stream this way!)

And then I heard there would be another UPW in Chicago a few weeks after mine.  No, I didn’t go again.  But, I did encourage my boyfriend, Bob (who at the time was lacking in career focus) to attend.  Before we knew it, Bob was in Chicago walking on burning coals and shouting out, “I’ll do it!” at the top of his lungs.

Back in California, I would await Bob’s phone calls every night so I could hear his renewed enthusiasm for life.  In a way I was living vicariously through his discoveries.  But boy oh boy, was his zest going to come in handy for the whopper that dropped while he was getting his soul pumped!

As I said, I was 24 years old and about to begin an intensive 2-year double Masters program in Marriage and Family Therapy and Art Therapy.  However, our lives as we knew them and as we had carefully planned were about to change in a way that Bob and I could never have imagined.

The last night of UPW, Bob called to tell me about the power that was unleashed within him that weekend. While I listened with love, things were different.  Amidst his overflow of excitement, Bob paused…

“Is everything ok?” he asked.

Silence.

“Um. Yup.  Everything is fine.” I responded.

“Are you sure?” he overlapped.

“Everything is fine. I just need to talk to you in person about something.”

Silence.

“Are you pregnant?” he said and I could hear a smile in his voice.

Oh shit.  Now what?

Are we ready for this?  Is he going to want to keep this baby?  Is he going to be mad?  Are my parents?  How are we going to afford this?  Shit. Shit. Shit!

“Honey, I really just want to see you in person… so we can talk face to face.” I murmured as tears streamed down my face.

“You’re pregnant!  That’s awesome!  We can call him Arthur after my dad!  Are you crying?”

Bare in mind, for all this guy knew… I could have been planting the seed for a break up because I never really answered his question.  However, the beauty of this moment was that he knew exactly was what was going on and he was STOKED!  Thank god.

No… thank Tony Robbins!

And so it was.  A week later, we got engaged at a beautiful lodge in Big Sur.  Three months after that, we were married in the mountains in Idaho.  Four months after that, our first beautiful baby girl was born.

And the rest is history.

We still talk about UPW and what we learned over that weekend.  It was truly life changing and the best $2000 we ever spent.

Are you wondering why I am sharing all of this with you?

Good!  Because I am going to tell you right now…

Do you think it was UPW that made Bob and I step up and handle an incredibly difficult situation with grace?

I’ll answer that for you… As much as I would like to say that it was UPW that made us step up, the reality is… it wasn’t.  We certainly learned valuable lessons and discovered a lot about ourselves at UPW, but what made us step up was the choice we made to grow into a new level of existence.  Our old patterns weren’t working for us and we needed something to create a shift in our mind.  UPW may have given us the tools we needed, but what made us blossom was the freedom of making that choice to be who we wanted to be in that moment.

So, my question to you is…

Do you have a thing that is calling to you and that you know on some level will help you to step it up a notch or two?

What is it that is holding you back from saying YES?

And is there anything I or someone else reading this blog can do to help you step it up?

Just like everything else in life…

Nothing is created perfectly equal.  Support systems included.

What are support systems, you ask?

Have you ever sat down to list out just how many (or how few) contacts you can tap into on a regular basis that can offer you an ear to listen, a boost to lift, a word of wisdom or a piece of advice?  What if you have a multitude of these relationships in place, but they just don’t seem to be working just right?

It all boils down to 2 things: intuition and strength.

Let’s back up a moment here and talk about what support systems are.  Depending on who you are, what you need support for and where you live, support systems are just as individual as our fingerprints.  However, the purpose of having a support system is to give you the strength you need to persevere in any situation you may face, so you can ultimately achieve your goals.

Support systems in life may consist not only of friends and family, but may also include your therapist or life coach, your nutritionist, your fitness trainer, your hair stylist (yes, I went there – lol), your co-worker, your nanny, your yoga instructor, and anyone else who helps you to be a better YOU.

In business, your support systems may consist of your board of advisers, your business coach, your life coach, your lawyer, your sponsor, your boss or your mentor.  These support systems should help you to grow your business by guiding you to make effective decisions, by providing feedback, by suggesting resources and by sharing their expertise with you.  Whether you are facing a challenging situation or managing day to day operations, your support system should be there for you.

Support systems are there to SUPPORT you, right?   Well, this may seem obvious to you, but it is amazing how many people don’t see when a support system is not supporting them anymore and end up feeling abused, abandoned or alienated.

How do you know when a support system is broken?

You know that it is time to reevaluate a support system when your interactions turn negative or become intrusive.

You know a support system is failing when you consistently feel depleted or bad about yourself after each conversation.

You know that  support system isn’t working when your trust is broken or when you feel betrayed.

You know when a support system isn’t working out when you feel misunderstood.

You know that a support system isn’t serving you when you feel judged, belittled, criticized or mistreated in some way.

What do you do to fix a broken support system?

Just as with any relationship when there is a problem, the first step is to get clear on what the problem is and then to communicate this to the other party.  When a support system falls short of your expectations or stirs up drama, it’s time to reevaluate within yourself your goals with this support system.

Now is when the intuition comes into play. The most important thing in business and life is to listen to and trust your intuition. Your intuition will never steer you in the wrong direction, whereas a support system can.  When you listen to your intuition, you send a message to the universe that you value yourself.  (BTW, One of the best ways to get in touch with your intuition is through the regular practice of meditation.)

REMEMBER: Support is a 2 way street. For a support system to work on a consistent basis and to maintain healthy functioning, all parties involved need to be winning on some level.  Sometimes the win comes form paying for a service, such as with a therapist or coach.  Other times the reward comes from recognition or following guidance. The truth is when things get out of whack, it is usually because one or both parties are no longer winning. Maybe someone is feeling taking for granted or taken advantage of.  Maybe one party feels neglected or ignored.  Or maybe one person feels frustrated with a lack of results.  Either way, you have to step up to the plate and find a solution.

From the beginning of any relationship or support system, one of the best things you can do is to talk about and agree upon how you will both win from the relationship. Build the relationship by staying in regular communication, expressing gratitude for each other’s contributions and successes and consistently checking in to make sure that everyone is satisfied with the progress being made.

Once you have your support systems in order, you will be able to achieve those goals you have set for yourself with the help of your handpicked winning team.  As much as we like to convince ourselves… we do need support to succeed.  It’s just a matter of keeping everything in a positive place and paying attention to our intuition.

So, who is on your team?

The theme for this month is HAPPINESS.  I thought about going with a theme like freedom, but when you boil it down- a large part of freedom has to do with happiness.

When we are truly happy, we are free from the negative impact of people, situations and problems around us.  When we are truly happy, we see the opportunities around us (they are everywhere).

When we are truly happy, we are free to be ourselves 100% of the time.

Now that said, nothing is perfect.  Even when we are truly happy, we may have down moments or challenges to face, but it is how we approach them that will determine how we ultimately feel.

Happiness is a choice. It is a mindset.  But it can also be a goal that you achieve every single day.  (And an awesome goal at that!)

“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes.”

- Andrew Carnegie

Another beautiful thing about happiness is that it is contageous. When we feel happy and our smile shines throughout the day, we spread that happiness to everyone we come into contact with (if they want to receive it).  Studies have shown that brain chemistry can actually be altered into a positive state by simply smiling.

So, step one to finding true happiness… show those pearly whites! When you wake up in the morning- smile at your children.  Walk down the street and smile at your neighbors.  Smile at the person in the car next to you or the cashier in the grocery store. A smile is a little gift that costs nothing and provides incredible rewards.  Talk about a win-win!

When you have mastered the art of smiling, another action step to true happiness is starting each day with a gratitude journal. Write for 3 minutes about everything that you have to be grateful for.  What we focus on expands.  So, the more attention you pay to what is going right in your life, the more joy, love and gratitude you will experience.  That’s a fact!

Do you agree?  Disagree?  Have any additions?  Add them in the comments below and if you are free, I’d be honored to have you join me for the Live monthly Q&A call July 2  at 10am PST.  The call is only 30 minutes and I will be talking more about happiness and answering any questions you have about motherhood, entrepreneurship and success.  I hope you will join me!   Sign up for my newsletter for call-in details.

I just read this on Seth Godin’s blog and had to share it with all of you amazing moms.

To keep things in perspective, read the following…

You matter

One of the biggest inspirations for most mom entrepreneurs is our kids.  Of course we want to make money and make the world a better place, yada yada, but what we really want is to inspire and be inspired by our kids.  That’s why we are moms.

We start businesses to empower ourselves, but we also want to support, encourage and be present for our children.

So, we start these businesses with the best of intentions and sometimes we need a little help staying on track.

Well, I wanted to know what my littlest little thinks about me working from home and running my own business(es).  So, I made this video (and had no idea what was going to come out of her mouth!) to show you what a 4 year old thinks about her mom being an entrepreneur…

Now, I want to know what other questions you want me to ask this little cutie about her mom running a business in Part 2!  Leave your ideas in the comments! 

In the old model of business, the thought was that you needed to outsmart your competition if you wanted to “win”.

Yuck.

Fortunately, not all entrepreneurs subscribe to this way of thinking and have seen the power that collaboration can bring to business.  For mom entrepreneurs and moms without businesses, competition can eat up friendships and make you look like a real jerk.  However, if you see your fellow mom as an asset and an ally, you may find that you can accomplish more in less time and have fun in the process.

The mindset of competition is a thing of the past, but does that mean that we should completely lose our competitive nature?

What is the happy medium for competition versus collaboration in business and motherhood and how do we leverage our skills and natural strengths to not only succeed, but to teach our children the value of giving to others?

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Staying True to Your Vision and Your Purpose is the KEY to success.

As a multi-passionate entrepreneur myself, I can honestly say that it is very likely that the vision you start out with as you launch your business will evolve into something different than you originally dreamed. Expect this and plan for it. Launch your business in phases and schedule times to check in with yourself before you get wrapped up in execution. As long as your end goal stays the same, you will be on the right track.

“Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more and more successful.”

-Mark Victor Hansen

To promote happiness and fulfillment on your entrepreneurial journey, schedule daily time to acknowledge your own successes, receive support and absorb inspiration. The start-up phase of your business can be an exciting time and a stressful one. Expect to have times where you feel like throwing in the towel, but know that those who persist are the ones who ultimately succeed.

Go easy on yourself and make sure that the business you create is one that you will love. Focus on your end goal and use that as a way to navigate the way to living your dreams.  If you need help navigating the start up phase, don’t be afraid to reach out and hire a coach!  It is always a good thing to have someone to hold you accountable. give you resources and provide support.

If you like this post, feel free to share using the buttons below or leave your comments and questions if you want feedback on your business ideas…

Once you have built the beginnings of your business, the next step is to create repeatable systems that will help you cover all of your business, personal and family bases.  For the purpose of this article, we will focus on the business aspect.  Systems reduce anxiety and help you focus on the customer experience and financial growth.

As soon as your business plan is written and your biz entity is set up, you will want to start thinking about acquiring leads, turning them into clients and keeping them in your marketing efforts to continue buying from you.  Statistics say  it is 6 times easier to make a sale to clients who have previously made a purchase.  So, keep that in mind when thinking about systems for growth.  Always seek to attract new clients while building relationships with existing clients through systems that involve spreading the love (emails, phone calls, satisfaction surveys, handwritten notes of congrats, flowers, special promotions etc)

The first system that you will put into place is client attraction. What are your top three methods for capturing the interest of your ideal client?  Unfortunately the “if you build it, they will come” mentality doesn’t work in business.  It would be really cool if it did, but it doesn’t.  So, we need to let people know that our businesses are not only here, but how we can help our target audience.

Marketing is another word for client attraction.  Some business owners focus mainly on online marketing to find new clients.  Online marketing can include utilizing social media, video, pay per click ads, e-newsletters, press releases and webinars.  Choose the most effective method for reaching your ideal clients by testing and tracking your efforts.  (Sign up for my mailing list if you want to receive a Monthly Client Attraction Marketing Strategy Planning template.)

Offline marketing is often overlooked by a lot of entrepreneurs, but it is a very effective form of client attraction as well.  Offline marketing techniques include direct mail, speaking engagements and radio and television appearances.  (I’m not an expert in offline marketing, but if you need resources, email me or comment below and I can send you some amazing resources.)

No matter what your strategy for client attraction is, you have to put a system in place to engage leads that you attract. And yup, you guessed it…

To get visitors to your website to engage with you, there will need to be an opt-in form that allows you to collect names and email addresses.  It should be placed above the fold (so you don’t have to scroll down on the page) on your website. An offline client engagement system might include a phone recording where you collect email addresses, phone numbers and mailing addresses.  An increasing list of interested buyers is essential to the growth of your business.

“Even in such technical lines as engineering, about 15% of one’s financial success is due one’s technical knowledge and about 85% is due to skill in human engineering, to personality and the ability to lead people. “
-Dale Carnegie

Once you get the attention of your ideal clients, how will you engage them so that they buy from you?

The only way to know is to try a few, test them and track your results.  This is a critical part of understanding how to get the right eye balls on you.  From there, it is about establishing a relationship with your audience BEFORE they will buy from you by giving them results up front (from your online and offline opt in offers).  If you can create a gift when someone opts in that will help them to achieve desired results before they buy anything from you at all, you will set yourself up for a much easier sales process.

If you can give results for free, people will be lining up to buy from you!  Think about that.

Once a lead purchases your product or service, they move into the client services system where you will deliver the product or service to them.  It is within this system that you will not only execute order fulfillment, but you will also deliver gratitude emails, phone calls, follow up emails, hand written notes, referral and testimonial requests, and customer satisfaction surveys.

Ok, now once a client makes a purchase, do you have a system in place to keep them coming back for more?  This is called client retention.  Again, it is six times easier to sell something to a customer who has already bought from you, so focus a good amount of time on this system and keep at it.

Actions like sending hand written birthday cards, coupons for preferred clients, follow up surveys and check in phone calls can be easily scheduled into your calendar and can keep you firmly on the radar of your best clients.

Launch your business with the preparation for when clients will be rolling in the door on a consistent basis.  To do this, make sure your financial systems are set up to record all bills that need to be paid, payments that need to be received, financial projections and revenue growth planning.   Your chart of accounts will help you to keep all of this information in order, but having a bookkeeper and an accountant to work with on a regular basis will help this system to perform so that you can focus on creating great products and offering exceptional service.

Last but not least, to grow a successful business, you will need a team that supports your vision and your growth. As you assemble team members (virtual assistant, bookkeeper, lawyer, web developer, etc) make sure that their values are in alignment with yours and that they understand and believe in your ultimate vision.

Protect yourself with NDAs and service agreements as part of your team management system.  Ensure that your team members feel supported by you by incorporating satisfaction and feedback surveys as well as hand written notes and phone calls of thanks and congratulations for a job well done.

Stay tuned for Part 3: Self Care and Success Strategies for Moms

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