She’s Got Systems

Find the systems you need to grow your business

The Curse of ‘Someday’

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If you’ve ever shared about your goals or big plans and then sighed with an air of ‘someday… maybe’ then this article is for you.

As we’re constantly bombarded with success stories by those who have achieved all the things we ourselves want, it’s easy to become hopeless and frustrated because we’re not there yet. There are countless books, authors and motivational speakers who are dedicated to helping us all move from ‘someday’ to action so I’ll keep this simple.

Take one step forward.

That’s it, the whole ‘secret’ to my success in accomplishing anything. This blog post?  Started with an idea, opened up the file, began writing.  Of course I edited and revised and made many changes along the way but that’s the fun part. The process of taking anything from an idea to a finished project – it’s a little like hiking.  Sure you get to stand at the top of a mountain at the end and hopefully there’s a beautiful view, but also aim to find joy in the process and the challenge of getting there.

One of the many reasons I love working with systems is that once I’ve figured something out I have a map.  I won’t say there is no more indecision and waffling but there is considerably less.

Recently I launched a fun project that I’ve been thinking about and planning for almost a year.  Since the idea would not leave my head and often pop into my ‘someday’ thinking randomly, I knew that I would take action on it eventually. Instead of creating a fifty-seven step plan I just got started. Created the blog. Uploaded a bunch of posts. Started tweeting and sharing.

Of course when you’re launching something in your business, instead of for fun like my blog, you’ll want to plan a little more and here’s where the system comes in.  When you’re creating a new program note if you want to take three weeks to develop the content or six.  Do you want to launch it on a Tuesday or Saturday? What does the order page look like? What is your pricing strategy?

When you start, you don’t have to know all the answers. Just take one step and make one decision and record it so you have a system to follow.  Then, in the next launch, you can refine.

This process is one that you’re already familiar with when it comes to traditional learning.  We practice writing letters, solving math problems, shooting baskets, and even public speaking, each time refining and learning from the process. The person who studies the perfect football play or reads about drumming techniques will not be as effective as the one who picks up the ball or drum sticks and begins to play.

So think back to the one thing you want to do in your business ‘someday’ – what is it? What’s the first step you can take today to move it from someday and into action?

Please share in the comments and if you’re absolutely stuck let me know and I’d be happy to support you getting unstuck!

Are You Fully Engaged in Your Work?

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I want to share with you today a resource helped me when I was building my business. It’s a book called The Power of Full Engagement, and the authors worked with athletes to help them manage their energy throughout the game.

The athletes have a very physically demanding jobs, but the more they worked with them, the authors realized that traditional office workers and entrepreneurs need this support as well.

It can be really difficult to manage your energy. If you find that you’re exhausted at the end of the day, there are ways that you can manage your energy in four key areas. There’s so much in this book, and I’ll go over some of it in this video.

 

 

Types of Energy

Emotional
Physical
Spiritual
Intellectual

Challenge this week

Notice when your energy is high and low. When it’s high you feel like you can take on any challenge, conquer anything and go for hours. When your energy is low even simple work tasks seem herculean.

I’ll be sending out some additional resources from the book in my weekly e-zine so if you’re not receiving it already fill in the boxes on this page to get updates.

Planning for the New Year

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I’ll admit, I’m a planner. My family would laugh at this understatement since I tend to overplan when it comes to most everything. I was the kid who packed her bags a month before camp, just to see if everything would fit. I also like lists and have been known to make a checklist of things I already finished just to have the satisfaction of checking it all off.

So when it comes to a New Year, you wouldn’t be surprised to hear that I have plans, oh do I have plans! But instead of the typical, Type A, O.C.D. list with sub points and bullets and footnotes to denote exactly what I’m doing every month, every week of the year, I’ve taken a different approach.

While I do have goals for the months ahead, my priority in the past few days has been finishing my first Mind Movie. If you’re not familiar with the process keep reading, it may be something you want to do in 2012.

The process started a few years back when I was asked to write out, in detail, my perfect day. That appealed to me, it was like a list and covered many aspects of my day on a “perfect” typical day. Even completing the assignment was helpful and eye opening when I honed in on what made me tick and actually made a new friend with a similar perfect day.

Recently I reopened that doc and tweaked a few things before incorporating it into my Mind Movie. Since I have very little patience for video software I used Powerpoint to create my movie. It’s about 4 minutes long and consists of a series of pages with words and pictures that represent the life I want. It’s not incredibly detailed but enough.

In the slides about travel, for example, I used a Polaroid frame for images of the cities and monuments I want to visit in the next few years.

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Instead of looking at a list, now I daily watch this short movie about my life. It’s a little like a future looking autobiography. And the images evoke a much stronger connection than simple words.

So if you struggle with coming up with a 2012 business ‘plan’ or you’d just like to do something a tad more creative to represent the life you have on December 31, 2012 then try a Mind Movie. Begin each day watching your movie and then get to work making those images reality.