Working through all the feelings, I recorded this to capture some of the lessons I’m learning. Please forgive the meandering (my state of mind is not as incisive as usual) and the less-than stellar quality of the video… but I promise there are some important nuggets in here.
Stress and Overwhelm
Making Peace with Time (low-tech, no cost)
I’ll admit it: I have a troubled relationship with time.
I’m always searching for the perfect way to schedule my calendar. The perfect scheduling tool. The perfect reminder system.
This year I made three simple changes that cost me nothing and make a big difference in how I feel every single day.
- For as long as I can remember, I have hung a one-year dry-erase laminated calendar on the wall that I face while sitting at my desk. Time was literally looming over me. I was facing off with it every single day. So I moved 2024’s calendar behind my office door and filled the space I face with the things that are most important to me: family, pets and inspiration.
- Another long-time practice that I changed is I stopped wearing my Apple watch. Even though I have all the notifications turned off, it was a distraction. I could check the weather, my exercise rings… so many ways to waste a little bit of time here and there. I’ve swapped out the techy nagging device for a watch my Dad gave me one Christmas. It’s sentimental and low tech. Doesn’t even have the date on it.
- With this last one, I may be veering into the neighborhood of TMI, but an idea from my fab time management coach Lisa Crilley Mallis of Impactive Strategies, I go to the downstairs bathroom instead of the one right next to my office. A mini-break from my day.
I’ll wrap up with this thought: when you have a busy life and business, making huge sweeping changes is hard. And then maintaining them? Almost impossible.So while these 3 changes might seem too small to actually make a different, the power behind them is that they are sustainable.
How to Ditch the Pressure of “Now or Never”
At the end of the year, all I hear about is closing the year strong and creating a mind-blowing plan for 2024.
It is so much pressure, and I was starting to crack from the stress of it all. Here’s a 90 second tip where I share what I did to release the pressure fast!
Staying Energized through the Tough Times
Lots of changes are happening. I heavily invested in my business this year. A friend is having surgery. I feel brittle and teary.
I don’t usually send out the really raw stuff until I’ve resolved it into a tidy little story with a moral that we can all learn from.
Today, not so much.
I did have an insight though. It’s not resolving my crankiness, but it did give me some clarity that you might also find helpful.
Did I just make it into a tidy story with a moral again? (at least it got me to smile… 😊)
Enjoy the video, and if you’d be willing to give feedback, here is a link to the longer video.
I Was Over-giving And Under-grateful (ugh)
To be completely transparent, I haven’t been super-positive lately. Yesterday I finally uncovered the internal thought patterns and the external habits that were creating a self-fulfilling prophecy of scarcity.
Coaching Week: Lack confidence? Grow Anyway! (Outside-in Approach)
If you struggle with confidence and are spinning your wheels in your business, try this unconventional approach to getting unstuck!
The majority of my clients are coaches, so I know (and embrace!) that coaching facilitates transformation from the inside out, based on the knowledge of the client, not the coach.
A few years ago, however, it occurred to me that I work exactly the opposite, with an outside-in approach.
Please note: I am not a coach. I am a teacher and trainer.
When I work with coaches and other business owners, there is a LOT going on all at once. They want to grow their business, they need to learn marketing and entrepreneurial skills, they’re bombarded by expert advice and are often exhausted and overworking.
On top of it all – no matter how successful they were in a previous career – they struggle with a crisis of confidence.
But time after time, client after client, I’ve found the most effective approach to escape this spin-cycle is to create an action plan that consists of simple action steps that leverage your strengths and are very specific.
SUPER SPECIFIC, as in: on Tuesday, text your former co-worker Kim with the following, “Hi Kim! I want to catch up… can we get a coffee (virtual is ok) sometime soon?”
When you’re this specific, there’s no wiggle room to overthink. You just get into action, implementing the pre-determined steps.
Here comes the bit that will blow your mind…
When you do this, client generation becomes so simple, so authentic, so bite-sized and manageable that your confidence (or lack thereof) is no longer running the show.
You simply take the action steps that lead to results and your confidence catches up to you!
Ready to take the first step in defining YOUR simple action plan? The 3-minute Business Accelerator Quiz can help!