Letting Go Does Not Mean Giving Up!!!!

I was talking with a dear friend and fellow entrepreneurial mom. We have been taking care of each other for the last 7 years. She was sharing how she made a difficult decision to turn down an opportunity to work with a client that could have been worth $1,000 to $1,500. We talked about why she needed to make this decision and the process she used to come to the decision. Here is what I learned from her wisdom:

• When she said no to a client that was not a good fit for her, she opened herself up to a yes from a potential client that was a good fit;
• She felt stronger, and more assured as she made and implemented the decision which intern built a level of confidence that was amazing to see; and
• She chose to honor herself and not sell herself for a sum of money.

With this decision she bought back a week of production, time with her family and a sense of self worth that is immeasurable. Are you selling your soul for a few dollars? I think it is easy to make decision on immediate need without thinking about the long-term ramifications. Be sure as you build your business that you do so with integrity for your self and your clients.

Success - It's Personal

It is easy to get caught up in the holidays and also all the noise about the economy. Yet, I believe we need to look at our lives not with the world's eyes but by our own measure of success.

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Herman Cain

This year has been a challenging year to say the least. Many changes have occurred in my life that could have easily thrown me off course. What kept me from derailing? The truth that I love what I do. I live, eat and breath my work and love sharing with my clients. I like to say I am an entrepreneur at a cellular level. Pardon the baseball metaphor, but even when I am thrown a curve ball, I feel like I can hit a home run because I am in the game.

If you are not feeling that way, maybe you need to find a different game. I hope you feel like you can hit home runs no matter what is thrown at you. If not, look for another game.

Lessons from my Launch

I have learned a lot about myself and how to launch a program. Mostly I learned that I can do it. Yeah!! I am enjoying the process as much as the outcome. My most recent discovery is that you need to have an enrollment form ready at the end of the introductory session to allow people to make a decision to buy. I had a flyer and then scheduled a follow up session. I realized that prolonged the process and was not a clear enough call to action. I love that I am not too old to learn and I that I am still enjoying the process.

When is it time to document?

I have had the pleasure of working with a great client recently that has been very successful. He's the ultimate entrepreneur who flies by the seat of his pants. It suddenly became apparent that he could not translate how he did what he did in a way that someone else could duplicate. Also, not everyone liked that approach. They were looking for a little bit more direction. It is really neat to be able to help his company not only reign in the vision, articulate it and then share it with the group. We are also documenting the process so it is no longer subjective or in the head of just one person. This will be something anyone can plug into.

So the question becomes "when is it time to document?" My answer is now and always. Even when it's just you, if you think you ever want to grow your business or more importantly, some day sell the business, it has to be documented. If it is not documented, you do not have a business with out the source, the owner. If you don't document, and the source is not available, the business stops. So by all means document the process.

Picture of Success

I recently started working with a large sales organization that is pretty amazing. They have an amazing program and spirit. Even though they are spread out all over the United States they use technology to run their business like they are next door. I had the privilege to go to one of their regional conferences to speak. I felt like I was preaching to the choir. They were so amazing I remember feeling, what is left to be said. I recently came across a quote by John Maxwell that epitomizes what I saw at this conference and their team.

"To achieve all that is possible, we must attempt the impossible.
To be all we can be, we must dream of being more.
To reach our dream, we must reach out to others."

This team does all of the above and it shows.