I’m sure it can’t just be me, but there seems to be SO much going on at the moment… My inbox is full of information I want to read and don’t possibly have time for, classes I’d love to take, workshops I’d love to attend, livestream options in case I can’t attend but still want the information, free done-for-you-giveaways, multiple eclipses, information on the significance of the eclipses, nutrition myths, GMO dangers every parent should know, healthy recipes I must try and on and on…
Do you ever find yourself feeling a little overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information available to us these days? Not to mention the myriad of ways the information can be delivered to us, everything has its own beep, buzz, twang, vibrate, image, icon… it’s really quite incredible how much more information we have available and how if we are not careful, how much time we can waste with ‘shiny object syndrome’ these days! Do you find yourself distracting yourself from what’s really important, or are you just dissatisfied at the end of your day with what you accomplished? Does it leave you feeling tired, overwhelmed, exhausted and frustrated that you are actually no further forward than you were this morning?
I either seem to be on all the right lists, for everything I could possibly be interested in at the moment and everyone has something interesting for me, or and I suspect this is it, I’m not focused on exactly what it is that I actually want right now.
I usually end up looking at everything eventually with ‘what’s my part in this?’ and seeing where I can take more personal responsibility for what I have created around me. What do you do when you find yourself overwhelmed? For me right now, it’s about recognizing that this feeling of overwhelm is just information. I can make a choice now about what I choose to do with that information. I can:
1) ignore it and hope it goes away!
2) over-react and lash out at the seeming cause of my overwhelm and perhaps unsubscribe from everything I’ve ever desired to know about, or
3) stop and look around and respond to the situation by turning inward first and deciding where I want to put my focus today and what I want to accomplish… and then for today, not forever, actually focusing my energy and attention there.
Sounds simple enough, right? I find it’s actually the solution…IF you can recognize that’s where you are and THEN make a conscious choice on where to focus. It’s a very simple process, but not always easy to do! The simplest things are often the hardest to practice! We human beings are so complex, sometimes the very thing we are attempting to accomplish is the one thing we find the hardest to actually change… ever know anyone who has fallen off the wagon, binged on a diet, smoked while trying to quit? It’s not that they’re bad people, it’s just that sometimes the same old, same old, familiar territory is easier than going somewhere new, even when we know we should want to, or actually DO want to go there. That’s why we have so many support groups and communities focused on the same thing, it’s so important to get help from people in the same situation, to help us stay the course and to make the changes we say we want to make.
So the question under the question is… who will I be when I’m… not drinking/not over-eating/ not smoking/ not avoiding/not wasting time/not…fill in the blank? For me right now… who will I be when I have a successful business? What will that feel like? How will I be different and is that really what I want? For me, now that I see it, YES! I want that and I will have to make better choices about where I put my attention and I will have to say NO to some things that I enjoy… but it’s for now, not forever and I’m consciously choosing my business.
Where in your life are you feeling overwhelm? Are you avoiding taking actions that you know will cause changes? Where in your life could you really choose to focus and actually achieve change? Who could you be if you did that?
If you’re wasting your time figuring out technology stuff, that you know isn’t the best use of your time or talents and you’re ready to make a new choice… I’d love to have a conversation with you about helping take that one off your plate, so you can move forward in the other areas that are calling for your unique attention. If this sounds like it might be something you’d benefit from, fill out my CONTACT PAGE and I’ll contact you to arrange the next steps.
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What do the numbers really tell you?
This past week, my husband and I went to visit our accountant to get our annual taxes compiled… still a month ahead of the official US tax date of April 15th and I can’t you what a relief it has been to finally have the numbers tallied up. I for one was seriously avoiding looking at the numbers this year… I knew I had started a new venture, there were start-up costs, training and coaching investments I had taken on, while figuring out what my fledgling business was going to look like, who it was going to serve and how many hours I could realistically spend on a business, considering I had a toddler at home, a family to care for and a household to run… I knew the numbers this year were going to be ‘interesting’ at best!
So, what do the numbers really tell you? Of course there’s the obvious income and expenses to look at, but beyond that, what other numbers do you care about? Have you considered where your income actually comes from? Was it from where you expected? Did you do a bunch of little tasks that added up? Or was it from a specific activity or product or class that was more popular than you expected? Did you learn anything unexpected from your numbers? Did you realize there were some things that really didn’t give you a return on investment and perhaps there were other ideas or relationships that bought you more than you expected? Were those things fun to do while you were doing them? Did you expect they might work out as well as they did? What will you do differently this year, based on what you learned?
For me, what my numbers told me, apart from the obvious, was that investing time and resources to connect with people is well invested; for me, relationships are key and I like writing out referral checks! ;o) I also like working with team members and I will always have an exchange of money rather than a barter of services, even if it’s a wash…
I also learned that I like being in business, I enjoy connecting with other business owners and helping them to figure out their technology; that it is something I actually enjoy doing, it’s not just something that I can do to earn money… and I also learned, I will do the numbers as I go along this year – not bury my head in the sand and hope it will all go away!
There is power in knowing where you are with your money, income and out-going and more specifically if you enjoy those activities and if you enjoy what you spend it on… So I invite you, get a handle on your money situation. If you happen be great at spreadsheets, that’s a great way to track and if you aren’t but want to use a simple tracking spreadsheet – if it helps, I have already prepared one, for a very small fee that you can order from my site and start using straightaway. In either case – I would love if you shared what you use to track your numbers and/or any money rituals or practices you use to connect in with your money… here in the comments below or on my Facebook page would be great!
What’s at the heart of your business?
Like most online businesses, I was under the impression that the heart of my business would be my website. That’s the natural place prospective clients would go to learn more about my business, how I serve my clients, what my ‘flavor’ of service is and learn more about my experience, why they can trust me to do the things I say I can, to read testimonials of how others have found working with me and to experience a taste by signing up for my Free Offer – either my Organization Tips, or more recently My Content Planner…
As an entrepreneur, obviously we are at the heart of our business, without us – there would be no business… but even still – plenty of people are ‘in business’ and not progressing or moving in the direction they want – lots of great ideas, some momentum, sometimes, but not the sustained growth, or full-practices, or increase in income they might desire…what’s at the heart?
I was challenged recently to look at my calendar differently and to schedule my time in a new way; to more clearly define the time I spend with clients and the time I spend working on things for my business, not with actual clients and to actually schedule time where I am not working on my business, in any way at all. The idea seemed ludicrous at first, I’m an entrepreneur, with a home-based business and a two-year old – I’m always working!!! What does time off look like for me????
As I had such a strong reaction to the idea, I knew there was something in here for me, so I began considering new places and ways to look at this whole scheduling thing with a fresh perspective… First I automated clients scheduling time with me – which meant I had to define the times I was actually available and in the office, ready to meet with clients, which means more clarity for me and support from my family and more commitment to specific availability for clients. Yay!
Next, I have to then schedule time with myself on my calendar when I need to be away from my office – such as a DMV visit I have to do next week… the time has to be blocked off on my calendar, so that I am not available for clients to schedule anything – so obvious – but again, the clarity for me, knowing a week ahead of time that I will be unavailable, is huge! I’m PLANNING to do something responsibly, rather than reacting and squeezing it in wherever I can, amidst a huge to-do list and rushing back for an appointment. Such a relief!
So as I experience this change in my perspective, I’m realizing that when I am now in the office – I am more present and more productive and when I am with my daughter, I can really be there and enjoy that time and not be checking email. This little shift in perspective is really helping me to be better at whatever I am doing in the moment, as I know I have scheduled time later to read email or cook dinner… I know it will be handled. It is a little bit of extra planning upfront, but as the self-appointed systems and structure queen, much more suited to my natural style! Admittedly, I am still working on exactly which routine will work best for me, but I am committed to continue this exploration, as I am discovering that for me, the heart of my business is becoming my schedule and what I choose to ACTUALLY commit to on those pages…
I would love to hear your thoughts on anything I have said here, on my website or on Facebook – please feel free to share your thoughts or comments.
Urgent or important?
So many different things going on… I’m sure every business owner must go through… what really is important and what is urgent? Is there a difference? Of course!
Urgent to me means things that have to be done immediately, or there is an undesired consequence. Like paying a late water bill, before the water is shut off.
Important are those things that have to be in place to handle things BEFORE they become urgent! Like having a system in place to make sure bills are handled, before they are late. So if you find yourself every day handling things that are urgent, it’s time to take a step back and take a look at the bigger picture. What is the vision for the business and are there systems and structure in place to get you there?
Entrepreneurs often have to deal with a shifting landscape, business often evolves without an eye on structure, or systems and this can be problematic. Success can often be fleeting as more opportunities arise, the solo-preneur becomes less able to respond effectively and things start falling through the cracks; customers don’t get the same response times they used to get and success levels off, or worse falls away… feeding the classic feast or famine cycle that many small business owners find themselves going through. So, what’s a solo-entrepreneur to do? Cloning themselves sounds good? 🙂
The trick of course is to get the systems in place while the business is small and then stick to them when times get busier. It takes discipline and dedication to follow through and keep on top of everything, but the time taken to put systems in place early on, makes it easier to grow steadily and to more easily build a supportive team as that growth and success happens.
Are you happy with the systems you have in place? Do your systems still support your growth or have you outgrown them?
If you know you’ve reached a place where you could use some help in setting up systems and structure or overhauling and updating what you have in place – I invite you to contact Rama and let’s see what we can do together to streamline your business and get you on Auto-Pilot.
As Summer Closes
Well, another summer draws to a close, I for one am looking forward to fall, after the intense heat, it’s always such a relief to have cool evenings without an AC! And I know I’m not the only one!
What a terrific summer it has been, meeting a number of holistic business owners at the GAHP Business Breakthrough event in Madison in June, completing the GAHP VA training and getting certified, the Olympics, starting to attend other networking events in NYC, signing up for SOAR in FL in September with Heather Dominick at EnergyRich, (woohoo!), bringing new clients on board, teaching about Deliberate Creation and getting my toddler into summer camp for a couple of weeks, to prep for the coming school year… yes – lots of changes.
And more to come, I am teaching a WordPress Basics class in September, lots of moving pieces and technology to get in place in order for that to be a success. The SOAR event in Fort Lauderdale coming up in a couple of weeks, some client website projects getting close to completion, new client newsletters on the horizon, including my own (yeay!), a Health and Wellness Expo in NJ, also in September and even with all of that, the biggest event of all… my 2 year-old daughter will be starting pre-school. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now, organized chaos it maybe, but even the satisfaction of helping my wonderful clients, working from home, can’t beat the simple truth, I’m so grateful I get to do what I do, so I can be around for her. 🙂