Archive for the ‘Whole Life Balance’ Category

Next week March Madness begins.

For all my non-sports types out there, it’s the time when college men basketball players across the country compete for the national championship. It is very intense, but also exciting! I wonder which two teams my husband will place his bets to win all.

However, March doesn’t have to be a month of “madness” for us, it can be a time of solitude instead.

Chances are you are doing what you typically do – be all things to all people, at all times, at your own expense. You haven’t taken time out for number one in a while, and your energy levels and momentum in your business has shifted because of it.

I am officially declaring March as “Solitude Month!”

What exactly is solitude?

Simply put, it’s enjoyable time spent in your own company! It’s about quality “ME” time. However, this does not include staying glued to your cell phone, or browsing your Facebook or Twitter account. So put aside all your gadgets and other distractions, and just focus on you.

Instead solitude is an opportunity to understand, reflect, and manifest in the following ways:

Put Your Life in Perspective – spending time each day looking back at the previous day and analyzing how you lived it, will open up insights personally, and in your business.

Get the Creative Juices Flowing Again – creating private space free from distractions, friends and loved ones, will help you get unclogged, increase the flow of new ideas, and illuminate what’s possible.

Enrich Relationships (both business & personal) – maintaining healthy relationships is key. When you’re in quiet reflection, you can decide which ones are worth keeping and nurturing, and which should be placed on the back burner. Remember, life’s a theatre…not everyone can be on the front row.

Contemplate & Grow Spiritually – being alone shows you any “clouds of doubt” and negativity that obscure your TRUE self, patiently waiting to manifest itself. You will discover the way to dissolve these clouds, and then your bright core will shine through.

Transform Yourself - being alone helps you see clearly bad habits and negative emotions. When this is revealed, acknowledge it, forgive yourself, and move forward to usher in change. Ladies it’s empowering to be able to figure things out for yourself. You’ll also feel more confident in your own competence and resourcefulness.

I think you would agree with me these things are CRITICAL to your success as an entrepreneur. The pace of life is rapid and non stop. Making a conscious effort to spend time in solitude will prove to be most beneficial in your life and business.

Tune in Thursday for some quick tips on what specific activities you can do in solitude that will bring about a shift in the areas noted above.

I am excited and enthusiastic. My goals are in place. I have my to-do list and finetuning my plan for execution.

But this nagging reality keeps getting in my way – my health.

I have been struggling with a few health issues for quite some time, mostly the past year. Through it all, I’ve justified how I was feeling and adopted coping mechanisms to get by.

But is that enough? Being and feeling less than 100%? Is it okay to just merely function and not be well?

I want to encourage you today ladies to take care of you.

You and your health DO matter. In order to step into the fullness of you and what you have to offer the world, you have to be complete. How can you BE and function at your best, when you are operating from less than? When you deny care of self, you deny quality of life.

You and I are in business because we want to change our lifestyle, enjoy new freedoms and experience new joys, while making a difference in the lives of others. Good health is liberating, and so is business success.

However, one cannot exist without the other.

Last week was proof positive of this very premise. Instead of being highly productive and making forward progress in many initiatives, I was robbed of energy, momentum, clarity, and focus. As a result, little was accomplished.

Thankfully, I am happy to report last week was a momentary set-back. This just goes to show trouble doesn’t last always. Hallelujah!

I wish to learn from this experience and guard against neglect of self in the future.

I am wondering to what degree are you in tune with how you are doing and how you are feeling?

YOUR ASSIGNMENT:
Take out a piece of paper and write down all the aspects of you (e.g. physical, mental, spiritual, social, emotional, intellectual). Rate your level of satisfaction in each area. As you rate yourself, be honest. What have you been tolerating, or merely coping with, at the expense of achieving business success? What change(s) are needed at this time to receive more of what you want and an improved quality of life? Formulate three action steps to make this change happen. Keep a journal of your decision today and revisit this entry a month from now to see where you are.

Resources to Get From Where you Are to Where you Want to Be – NOW!:
Legal/Marketing/Tax/Accounting Consultation – http://www.bizsuccessforyou.com
How-To Steps from Start-up to Launch and Beyond – http://www.audiostartupminicourse.com

It is unbelievable that January is on the brink of close; it seems like yesterday we were toasting in the new year. Now pretty soon we’ll hope Mr. Groundhog predicts the near end of winter

I know you are aspiring to make 2010 your best year yet. Everyone is blogging and writing articles about goal setting, and taking action.

So by now I’m sure you have established new benchmarks and your plan of action for getting there.

However, have you taken time to plan how you will celebrate your wins, triumphs, and successes?

Goal setting and planning is CRITICAL to the success of any entrepreneur. However, the down side is it can put you in a state of “gotta get, 24-7/365!” When you are constantly thinking about what you can “get” you are less committed to receiving, giving, and expressing gratitude. In order for abundance and prosperity to flow easily you must have greater balance between getting and receiving.

I like to look at rewarding self as a way of receiving and celebrating the champion within.

Here’s a quick how-to list:

What else comes to mind?

YOUR ASSIGNMENT: This will only take a moment. Revisit your written goals for the year and benchmarks. Besides each benchmark, write in what you will do to celebrate, and how you will express gratitude to all and anyone who helped you achieve. Close your eyes and create the mental image of what that celebration will look like. Now feel the feeling of that celebration.

I bet you can hardly wait!

I really like summertime. It is the time of year when I get the most time off, and we take our biggest family vacation. It feels more laid back as there is less hustle and bustle on the roads and highways when school is not in session. It’s great for the kids as they kick back, enjoy camp, be with their friends and just play. For me, it is the perfect balance between work and fun.

But just like that, summer is about to become a thing of the past.

In just a little while, the fall season and everything that comes with it will be upon us – PTA meetings, back to school nights, orientation, school meetings, field trips, sports practice, homework, and more homework.

The list is long enough to make anyone say – WHEW!!

Like it or not, the wave is coming. However, I am wondering where you are in all of this? I have no doubt you’ve been taking care of everything and everyone else as you manage work, family and household needs. You have been working hard – really hard – on your business to reach your most important goals.

I am wondering if you were kind to yourself this summer and took care of you.

There are a lot of business coaches out there talking exclusively about business fundamentals, business planning, strategies, techniques and the like. However, few are discussing the impact of self care and business success. Maybe that’s more of a life coach thing, huh? Well, I disagree.

I believe in order to have true business success you must take care of self – ALL of you that is (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually).

The bottom line is all the business know how and experience in the world will not yield the kind of results you are seeking if:
-your mind stays cluttered, crowded and disallows your creative juices to flow;
-you lack physical stamina, energy and clarity of thinking;
-your body is weak, stressed, and unhealthy;
-you feel fearful, doubtful, and overwhelmed with the weight of business ownership;
-you lack the faith, confidence, inner strength and wholehearted belief that you can be successful.

Do yourself a favor and TAKE A BREAK – yes, before the fall season settles in and all the craziness and hustle and bustle starts, take time out for you.

You deserve it. And your body and business will benefit greatly from it.

YOUR ASSIGNMENT: If you had to rate the degree you are taking care of yourself on a scale of 1-5 (5 being the highest) what would you say? If it’s a 4 or 5 – GREAT – keep up the good work.

If it’s a 3 or less we need to talk.

What aspect of YOU have you neglected? What do you need to do MORE of to feel whole: Eat better? Sleep? Exercise? Pamper? Declutter your mind/work/home environment? Journal? Pray? Trust and believe? Affirm self? Surround yourself with positive minded people? Give and receive? Allow others to help?

What else?

Review the list above and ask yourself, “Do I need to do more of this? In doing so, what will this do for me personally and the success of my business?” Commit to working on two or three of these areas for at least 2 weeks. Post self care reminders and messages all around – your home office, your office at work, your bedroom, kitchen, laundry room, family room, and any other part of the house you frequent on a daily basis. Share what has been working for you and inspire other women to follow suit.