Does the techy stuff do your head in? Does the thought of creating a web site, making a video, sending an email with images in it, or creating a blog post stop you dead in your tracks?
If so, you are not alone. This is one of the most common frustrations I hear from my clients and it is often the thing that stops people dead in their tracks when it comes to leveraging the Internet to market their business.
I have the solution for you in this short video.
A word of warning though: You probably will not want to hear what I have to say.
To find out why, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

One of the main reasons businesses fail is cashflow. You could have great revenue over the year but if that revenue comes in peaks and troughs, you may not have the money to pay the bills. In this 4 minute video I share the simplest method for creating predictable income in your business. A method of recurring income that works for low priced items but just as effectively for high priced products and services.

To find out why, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Do you run your business from home? I do and I love it, but that wasn’t always the case. In fact I started running my business from home, then moved into an office for 2 years, then moved back home and each time, the decision was perfect for me at the time. Sometimes running away from home is the best thing you can do for a home-based business. To find out why, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers
Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

P.P.S. This video was inspired by a video from my lovely friend Gideon Shalwick. I refer to his post in my video. You can see it for yourself here. (say hello to Gideon for me while you’re there).

http://gideonshalwick.com/productivity-tips/

There is a word (and more specifically a two-word phrase) that is absolutely banned in our house. This simple, commonly used word, can eat away at your confidence, drain your energy, erode hope, consume you with guilt and stop you achieving your greatness. You probably use it every day without realising its dark power. To find out what the word is, and how changing one letter in the word can remove its power, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers
Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

It may surprise you to hear this from me, but sometimes it is very, very important to dwell on the negative. And I don’t just mean think about the problem. I mean wallow in it, really cut to the bone and feel the pain. In fact, dwelling on the negative can be key to building a profitable business. To find out more, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers
Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Have you done everything right? You’ve created a web site, made an offer of a valuable free gift to entice people to join your list, followed up with carefully crafted emails, written a great salespage for your product and hooked everything up so you can take orders online……….but you aren’t making any money? Do you just seem to have tyre kickers on your list? You know, ones who’ll walk around the caryard, kicking the tyres of the cars, take your time asking lots of questions, but they never intend to buy?

If so, there’s a chance you’ve made the one fundamental mistake a lot of people make and it is simple to fix. To find out more, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers
Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

There are times in your business when it is essential you focus on “the big picture”. There are other times, when doing so will cripple your business growth. To find out when the big picture is important, when it is not and what to do instead, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.
I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.
Cheers
Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

OK so this may sound a bit crazy but one of the best things you can do for your business is to be really, really repellent. Find out why is this quick 3 minute video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Can you relate to this? You start your business in order to have control over your own life. You want the freedom to choose when and where you will work and when and where you will have holidays. But you look back on your year and realise you haven’t had a totally unplugged holiday for ages. There always seems to be the next product, next blog post, next video to do and next thing you know, you’ve got yourself a 365 day a year “job”.

How did that happen? In this week’s short TV episode I show you how to make sure you always get your holidays, plus more. I think you’ll like it. …enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.
I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share.  Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.
Cheers
Janet
P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Can you feel it? The buzz in the air? It’s 2012 and THIS IS YOUR YEAR!
Last week I shared with you an activity I have done with my family for 5 years now that is exceptional to help you finish the year on a high of confidence and enthusiasm with the energy and excitement to dive into 2012. I’ve had a lot of feedback from people who tell me it is now the start of a family tradition for them. If you didn’t see it, you can find out all about it here.

This week I take you through Step 2 where we harness that beautiful energy from the first activity and create a unique, creative intention for 2012. I take you through this activity and am being very open with you by sharing my personal and business goals for the year (a bit of show-and-tell). This video is longer than my usual videos (6 minutes instead of 3) but it’s worth it

Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV, your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

I Hope your Christmas was filled with love and great food. Now the “big day” we have all focused on for weeks is over, has your mind started to turn to 2012? Before you dare think of your goals for 2012, New Year Resolutions or marketing plans, I have an important activity for you to do. I have done this activity at this time of the year with my family for the last 5 years and it is incredibly powerful. You will finish the year on a high of confidence and enthusiasm with the energy and excitement to dive into 2012. I take you through this activity and even share the results of our last 4 years (a bit of show-and-tell). This video is longer than my usual videos (7 minutes instead of 3) but it’s worth it Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV, your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

A while ago I got an angry email from someone who was complaining about one of my most popular episodes of Wonderful Web TV. We get some amazingly grateful emails so this one caught me by surprise. To find out what they were complaining about, what I did about it and why whingers often become your most valuable customers, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV, your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Do you find yourself overwhelmed with how much there is to learn, decide and do when growing your business? Sometimes the to-do list can be so long it can paralyse you before you even start. This week I share a solution to overwhelm that comes directly from one of our own community members. Alisse Bradley was interviewed on our weekly podcast “Wonderful Web Rising Stars” and had an excellent approach. I’d love to know if it helps you too. Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)
http://itunes.apple.com/au/podcast/wonderful-web-tv/id463278036

P.P.S. You can listen to Alisse’s interview and read the transcript over at Rising Stars Radio. You can also learn how you can be one of our featured Rising Stars too.
http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/blog/2011/rising-star-alisse-bradley-learning-to-avoid-overwhelm-in-business

In this week’s episode I take you behind the scenes as I shoot the latest series of videos for Wonderful Web TV. If you thought I was high-tech this episode should change your mind! In this short 3 minute video I share with you a surprising use for a dirty sock and how it solved the problem of missing equipment. Curious? Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV, your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Here’s the link to the microphone we are using. I’m sure it wasn’t that much when we bought it. We probably got it on special so keep your eyes open or use this as a starting point to look for something cheaper. Or just splash out and get this one. If you’ve been good, Santa might hear you.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

P.P.S. If you’re not a member of Wonderful Web Women yet this is the month to join. For this month only all Gold members get access to the Mastermind Mastery module. This includes proven templates for running a powerful and effective mastermind group plus help to set one up. This is a great way of getting accountability for your business.

http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/mentoring/this-months-module/

In this week’s episode I share with you how to BE PRESENT in your business, as well as working on and in it. Each day I don’t just set my goals and to-do list. First, I set my EMOTIONAL INTENTION for the day. To find out what I mean and how this can work powerfully for you, watch this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV – your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

P.P.S. If you’re not a member of Wonderful Web Women yet this is the month to join. For this month only all Gold members get access to the Mastermind Mastery module. This includes proven templates for running a powerful and effective mastermind group plus help to set one up. This is a great way of getting accountability for your business.

http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/mentoring/this-months-module/

A few months ago I boarded a plane to groovy Byron Bay to meet up with 4 entrepreneurial girlfriends. Once per year we meet for a retreat mastermind to work on our businesses. This year we did an activity called “Board of Directors”. It is very powerful and a brilliant way to work with your mastermind group. Find out what it is and how you can use this idea in  this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV - your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

P.P.S. If you’re not a member of Wonderful Web Women yet this is the month to join. For this month only all Gold members get access to the Mastermind Mastery module. This includes proven templates for running a powerful and effective mastermind group plus help to set one up. This is a great way of getting accountability for your business.

http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/mentoring/this-months-module/

Can you relate to this? You want to get fit (and not be embarrassed in a bikini or even a neck-to-knee poncho) and decide you will start running of a morning. You buy the new running gear, set the alarm for sunrise and steel yourself for the discipline you will need to start your new fitness regime.

Morning comes, the alarm goes off and you roll back over and go to sleep. Tomorrow you’ll start.

If you had to meet a friend or a personal trainer to run together you would have forced yourself out of bed. You don’t want to let them down and besides, they’ll remind you how slack you are!

The same thing happens in business.

Imagine if you had someone in business who would force / inspire you to do what you know you should do.  Someone to hold you accountable.

In this short video I share with you how to find that person and importantly, how to work with them to build your business.

I think you’ll like it.  Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV. Your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

P.P.S. If you’re not a member of Wonderful Web Women yet this is the month to join. For this month only all Gold members get access to the Mastermind Mastery module. This includes proven templates for running a powerful and effective mastermind group plus help to set one up. This is a great way of getting accountability for your business.

http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/mentoring/this-months-module/

Sometimes you get the most profound business lessons from the most unexpected sources. Last week my 13 year old son left his lunch at home. He only had $3 in his wallet and really wanted to buy a burger for lunch but had a shortfall. Instead of borrowing money or settling for something less yummy he solved the problem like a true entrepreneur.  The result? He got the burger, a drink and came home with a profit! Watch this quick video for his solution:) It demonstrates the simple rule that is the foundation for every successful business.

To find out more, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV – your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Business is NOT the easy path. There are times when you want to give up. A lot of times. That’s why I consider business growth to be the fastest path anyone can take for powerful personal growth. When the going gets tough there is only one thing that stands between you and quitting.

To find out more, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV – your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Us entrepreneurs can be brilliant at setting goals, writing lists and working hard to reach those goals. Then when we complete the task, we wipe our brows and set our sights on the next thing. But there is an important step missing. Too often we forget to celebrate.

But then… can you relate to this? We start thinking “this is a little milestone, I’ll really celebrate when I’ve achieved XYZ” and we never really acknowledge how wonderful each step is.

Today I share with you a technique I have used for years which ensures I really celebrate achievements and takes my rational brain out of the process. I think you’ll like it. Enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV – your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share.  Share your thoughts below.  I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Do you work well under pressure? If you’re like me, when you’re given a long time to get something done you take as long as you’re given. Enter the Day Dream Zone! But if I have a tight deadline I’m incredibly focused and always seem to get it done (by the skin of my teeth). So I use a technique to fool my brain so I can get heaps more done.

To find out more, and how you can develop this habit yourself, enjoy this quick video in this week’s episode of Wonderful Web TV – your Monday dose of Motivation, Mindset and Marketing.

I’d love to hear your comments and any tips you’d like to share. Share your thoughts below. I’ll come back and join in the conversation.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you like this episode, I’d love you to leave a ranking and comment over on itunes.

Here’s the link (you can also subscribe here too)

Last week we celebrated 25 years together in our own unique way. When we weren’t kayaking in the ocean and creeks of Patonga on The Central Coast we were found sitting in our spa bath, drinking champagne and eating gourmet food.

I can honestly say I’m more in love now than I was all those years ago and people ask me often what is our secret?

I’m sure there are many reasons we are so happy but I think the number one reason is we are both serious about fun!

Having fun is one of my personal values I also bring to business and is the number one thing I evaluate all opportunities against.

Which is why I can also say I am more in love with my business now than I was 3 and a half years ago.

So my question for you today is…what is your number one value in your relationships and in your business? Take a good hard look and ask yourself, “am I really living this value”? If you feel like you’ve lost the romance with your business, focusing on this value may be just the thing it needs.

Cheers

Janet

What is the significance of the timing? Well that’s when I started becoming successful.

To hear my full confession and the 2 big  (but very simple) things I did to break my addictive perfectionist habit, take 4 minutes to watch this video below. I’d love to hear your comments. They don’t have to be perfect

Janet’s 12 Step Program For Recovering Perfectionists

This program is based, very loosely, on the 12 step program from Alcoholics Anonymous. In true recovered perfectionist style I wrote the headline and made the video before I had worked out what the 12 steps are. It just sounded like a good idea.

So here goes…..

Step 1: Acknowledge that perfectionism is a disease you suffer and your life has a permanent handbrake on because of it

Step 2: Acknowledge that most people are too wrapped up in their own lives to really notice too many details about yours.

Step 3: Accept that what you may consider a half-done job and no-where near as good as you can do, with heaps of steps missing, and glaring unprofessional gaps, and embarrassing mistakes, and leaving yourself wide open to criticism and such a bad hair day and……….. other people think is actually pretty good.

Step 4: Make a commitment to yourself that this is your year for taking imperfect action

Step 5: Tell 3 people that this is your year for taking imperfect action

Step 6: Write the phrase “Count to 3 and jump on 2″ in thick texta and stick it near your work-space (close to where you can see it all the time, like on your computer)

Step 7: Go to your nearest pool. Stand on the high board. It has to make you a bit nervous, so whether it is high or the water is really cold or some sort of similar situation.  The idea is find a situation where you have to jump off an edge, you will be perfectly safe when you land, but the act of jumping is scarey.

Step 8: Stand on the end, count slowly to 3 and, without thinking too much, jump on 2.

Step 9: Repeat step 8 over and over again until you can jump on 2 without really only counting to 2 in your head.

Step 10: Teach another person how to jump on 2. This will help you own this solution and the act of teaching others is one of the most powerful ways for you to see, from the outside, that others have the same struggles as you and if you can help them, well you can help yourself.

Step 11: Set a tight deadline to do something you have been procrastinating over and announce the deadline publicly (you can do that here if you like). You need to tell someone and ask them to keep you accountable.

Step 12: Meet that deadline no matter what. Accept no excuses from yourself and accept that to meet that deadline you will probably have to do only a fraction (probably 80%) of what you would like to do. But do it anyway.

Step 13: (OK so this is a baker’s dozen) Congratulate yourself on actually doing something you have put off for ages. You can watch this short video if you like on the very clever way I use to celebrate that is a lot of fun.

Now don’t be tempted to then stuff around for ages making your 80% project 100% perfect. You can tweak it a little but never. ever try top make it perfect. While you’re doing that your next project is lying dormant, nagging you at the back of your mind and wearing down your confidence.

Rinse and Repeat.

I’d love to hear your comments below. They don’t have to be perfect.

Cheers

Janet

Before you hit the ground running with your exciting business plans for the year do the following activity.

Get your beautiful, blank diary for 2011 and block in your holidays NOW.

Then block in personal development, business development time THEN schedule your business projects.

You’re building a lifestyle business NOT a 24/7 job.

I share with you how I do this and something special I’ll be doing on Fridays this year. You may want to do the same.

I’d love to hear your comments below. Go on….tell me what you think

P.S. I should be camping on the beach while you watch this video so I’ll log on in a few days and join the conversation here. All part of Operation Automate Janet I’ll be teaching you on a special call in a couple of weeks.

Over the last 4 years I’ve developed some very real and practical strategies to keep myself focused and very productive. Over the first few weeks of the year I’m sharing some of these with you.

This video below shares the second step I take at the beginning of every year and it is simple but very powerful. It is absolutely essential you only do this AFTER doing step 1. You can get the details on the first step over here.

I’d love to hear your thoughts below. Tell me what YOU do to stay focused all year. I’d love to hear your big goals for 2011. Leave you comments below and I’ll make sure I check in here this week and join the conversation.

P.S. This video and post is part of my “Project Automate Janet”. Watch your emails over the next week because I’ll be running a very special tele-class to share with you how you can set up your own “Automate you” while you are on holidays.

You’ll see in the video that learning the djembe drums was on my goals sheet for 2010. This week my little family and I are rehearsing to be part of a drumming ensemble, with 180 other community drummers, to open The Festival of Sydney. How exciting! We’ll be playing the drums in front of a quarter of a million people. Yep, this simple process works big time!

If you want to check out our drumming style, you can see us in action in our Christmas video (we’ve only been learning a few months but we have a lot of fun).

Wow I can’t believe it is only a few days until 2011. Before you set yourself too many goals for 2011, and get caught in the frenzy of New Year’s Resolutions, I want to share something important with you.

There is a very important step I recommend you take BEFORE you set your goals. There is an activity I have done for the last 4 years at this time of the year. It is incredibly powerful. Take the time to watch this video I have made for you that shows you in detail the exact strategy I have used to help me achieve so much in the past few years. I’d love to know what you think. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts with me. I’ll check in here this week and join the conversation.

Would you like to see an article I have done in the past that shows you step by step how this simple process works?

You can check it out here.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. This video is part of Project Automate Janet.  You know you can spend just a few hours and have videos, blog posts, emails, twitter posts and facebook posts all set up automatically to keep in contact with your readers while you are holidays?  I had fun making these videos to share with you and I’m sure I’m enjoying my holidays as well.

This week I interviewed Kim Castle who has amazing success helping her clients build big brands. Integral to this is helping her clients sort through these fears and energy blocks FAST so they can get on with building their businesses.

Or as I think of it “Before you can have a mind-shift you first need to clear out the mind-shit!” Classy I know, but I think you get what I mean

Kim has a total  no-brainer offer on at the moment to help you clear through these blockages fast. You can find out about it here.

In my video below I share with you the 5 archetypes of how people deal with fear. Maybe you can identify which one is you?

I’d love to hear your comments below and also any tips you can share with readers on how to move past fear to success. What works for you?

Below are a few notes I took from Kim’s web site about the 5 archetypes. Love to hear your thoughts below.

• SPIN IN IT: Revisit the inciting incident over and over until you decide you’re ready to move on. This psychological approach encourages you to sit and spin in the emotion until you stop. Typically this takes a long time and gets very expensive. (I’m not ragging on it, but really, do the emotions ever stop?)
• WALK WITH IT: Walk with the fear and spend the rest of your life getting to know it inside and out is the favored tactic. This Buddhist approach takes a long time as well, PLUS, you can get lost in the exploration of the fear itself and forget that you are trying to accomplish something—umm, like your business. (Time is money.)
• ATTACK IT: Attack the fear so hard that it goes scurrying away. Often this, “eat fear for breakfast” approach used by sports coaches and sales trainers around the world eventually sets you up to get chomped on yourself.
• FEEL IT, DO IT ANYWAY: Admit the fear and say “what the heck.” And then what? While you may temporarily suppress the fear, it always comes back and hits you harder…often when you least expect it! (This is my fear face I must admit)
• DENY IT EXISTS: Often referred to as the “cancel, cancel” approach, you simply pretend that those thoughts don’t exist. This is the “false evidence appearing real” camp. Pretend it’s not there? But fear IS real. (By the way, this was Kim’s fear face. A rose-colored glasses kind of thing.)

What emotions do you choose today in your business?

It’s that time of the year again! Christmas is getting close and there’s so much to think about and organise. Christmas can be a very stressful time – presents to organise, parties to attend, end of school stuff to deal with, food to buy, not to mention all the money leaving your bank account! In theory, the festive season should be a fun time but for many of us, it means additional stress in our already hectic lives.

You have a choice

A couple of years ago after a particularly taxing Christmas, I realised that I have a choice about how I’m going to approach things. Am I going to be stressed or do I choose to treat Christmas like fun?

There’s nothing stopping me approaching Christmas exactly the same way my kids do. So now I can’t wait for December 25th! It’s going to be fun! I can’t wait to open my presents and I’m excited about watching others open their gifts. I don’t really care about what we’re going to eat, as long as we have fresh food and great company. As long as I’m with the people I love, it doesn’t matter if the house is not spotless.

Exactly the same thing can be applied to your business. Either you can get stressed about all the things you should be doing in your business – endless to-do lists, stuff to learn, bills to pay, how much money you’re bringing in. It’s all too easy to forget to have fun.

Here’s my challenge to you

So that’s my challenge to you: what emotions are you going to feel when it comes to your business?

Do you choose to have fun? Is this going to be an adventure that will enrich yours and other people’s lives? You have the choice: you can choose to be stressed and take everything seriously, or you can choose to look at your business as a fun, enjoyable journey.

Step back from your feelings of overwhelm and make the conscious decision to inject fun and laughter into your everyday business life.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Let me know if you do this already or if you decide to give it a try. You can join the conversation by leaving a comment below. I’ll come back and read every comment and join in the conversation.

You know, the one of lying on the beach, hanging out in cafe’s and doing very little while the money gets deposited in the bank? I’ve made a short video for you explaining why this is absolute rubbish and sharing with you a simple concept that means you CAN live the Internet Dream.

Be warned though..you’ll either love this idea or totally hate it.

I’d love to hear your comments. Just eave them below or over here at Youtube.

Cheers

Janet

It’s been on my mind a lot this week and so I have created a video for you on a big Ah Ha I had, which is all about the practical application of the emotion of love to your business. You can see the video below.

My ah ha is not about “love your customer and your business will grow” because, even though that is true, this is a bit deeper. Which is why I feel like I’m going out on a limb a bit here. This is about the practical application of the emotion of love to your business.

Curious?  I explain it all in this 5 minute video I made for you today. I’d love to know what you think. Is my ah-ha a case of the obvious for you? Can you see how to apply this concept to applying the Law of Attraction in your life? Please leave your comment below, or on YouTube where the video is hosted.

If you’re wondering why I’m focused on love at the moment it’s because I’m wondering where Doug The Wonderful Web Man is taking me for our surprise wedding anniversary weekend in a few days? It’s his turn this year (24 years).

We have very strict rules.

1. The destination and activities are a secret.
2. The person being surprised can ask 1 question per day in the week before to try and guess where we are going.
3. The organiser has to answer – but they are allowed to lie!

Because of rule 1 combined with rule 3, I have travelled to outback pubs, packed with cocktail dresses and stilettos, 5 star hotels packed with walking boots and a beach holiday packed with beanies and gloves. I have learnt to pack for all occasions!

I’ll let you know where we go. If you are my friend on Facebook I’m sharing the daily clues there to see if you can help me work it out.

Illustration by Michael Vittitow

Last night I submitted my application for the Telstra Business Women’s Awards with 9 minutes to spare. OK so I was nominated by the gorgeous Lenore Miller weeks ago but “diamonds are made under pressure” you know! As the dust settled from my screeching dash over the finish line I thought about why I left it to the last minute and the lessons I can share with you from this.

Entering Awards Challenges Your Self  Belief

What goes through your mind at the thought of entering an award? Especially a business award?

In theory you see it as an opportunity and you consciously visualise yourself walking up the stage on presentation night and accepting your winner’s trophy. There is an aura of success around you………….

Reality Check

Self doubt raises it’s ugly head. There are so many amazing people out there, how could you possibly win? You really should wait until next year or the year after or in 5 years time when you are sure you will be so much more competitive.

Admit it. Why bother?

Another Reality Check

The reality is, you will always be aiming for something more. It’s the nature of entrepreneurs to always see what is possible. I was nominated a few years ago for this same award and thought “I’ll wait until my business reaches 6 figures”. The following year I was nominated again and thought “I’ll wait until my business is mid six figures”. This year I thought “I’ll wait until my business reaches 7 figures”.

When is enough good enough? Do you postpone opportunities until you get things perfect?

The Ultimate Reality Check

Opportunities will not wait for you to take action. They’ll be taken by the person who believes in themselves enough to act.

That’s why I submitted my application with 9 minutes to spare.

That’s also why I entered the MCEI Women in Business awards last year, and sent in my application at the very, very last minute. I knew there were some amazing people entering but also knew that if I didn’t demonstrate belief in myself, then how can I expect others to believe in me too?

I won the MCEI award and then to my absolute shock, went on to win the overall prize of Australian Marketer of The Year!

My Challenge To You

I want you to be brutally honest with yourself. What opportunities are you ignoring because you have not achieved what you think  you MUST achieve before you can hold your head high?

Now write a list of all the achievements you have made, no matter how small they seem. Keep that list close by so you can refer back to it in times of self-doubt. To get you thinking, here’s an exercise my family and I do at the end of each year and hang in our living room to remind us.

Celebrate those achievements. You can see a clever way to make sure you celebrate in this short video I shared a while ago.

Ready? Now go get ‘em!

Janet

P.S. Over the rest of the week I’ll share some of the questions and answers from my application to give you an idea of what is involved and also what makes me tick. If you join my rss feed (top right) you’ll get notified when I add any new posts here.

Janet & Douglas, Photo by Anya Klay

This week I got a great email from one of our members that made me laugh, and then think seriously. Cath Resnick has booked to join us at The 4th Dimension Workshop in Sydney on 6th to 8th of August. In her email Cath said “I still have to get the final OK from hubby – but he seems pretty OK about it BECAUSE IT IS YOU! (Is convincing hubby the 5th Dimension?).

I laughed out loud at her 5th Dimension joke but you know what? Whether you are male or female and whether your life partner is male or female, we all have the same problem. How do you get the support, or the “buy in” from your significant other?

Getting your partner’s support could be for coming to our workshop (or any workshop for that matter), buying an education program, starting a business, spending the money on your first domain name or getting that new pair of shoes.

It doesn’t even have to involve spending money as time is just as important.

How do you convince your partner that the late nights you spend learning how to set up your online business are a good investment of your time, and their loss of your attention?

I often am told “You are so lucky to have the support of your husband” and I know I am. But you know what?

Like anything, getting support for your dreams is just like making a sale. You need to know how to make the sale and how to keep the sale. This counts for every thing in your life.

So, If getting support from your partner for your goals is just like a sale, let’s look at the tried and tested formula for a sales letter, sales audio and videos. Like any genuine sale, it is not manipulation or deception. A genuine sale provides all the information a person needs to be able to decide if they want to “buy in” and the environment to make the decision without stress.

7 Steps To Sell Your Partner On Your Dreams

Welcome the viewer: In the case of talking to your partner about something as important as their support of your dreams, create a welcoming environment. Don’t try and discuss this in the middle of getting dinner ready. Grab a cuppa / bubbles and sit down.

Establish Credibility: In this case you will be establishing how serious you are about your dream or goal. This will show them this is not just another fad that is not worth spending time on.

Use a hook or cliff hanger: This keeps the viewer wanting to stay to the end. Everyone, yep even people who love you, will be thinking deep down “What’s in it for me?”. Let them know that you’ll tell them at the end, something that will make it all worth while for them.

Share Your Story: In sales, this is so people can relate to you. This is because people like to do business with people they like and relate to.  Hopefully, with your partner, you have a bit of that groundwork covered. This is the place to share your passions. Why you are so passionate about this and go into a bit more depth on what ground work you have already done.

Paint the Problem: Remember, this is a sale so we’re not talking about YOUR frustrations and problems. We’re talking about them. So this may be they are living with someone who is frustrated, or they are tied to a nine-to-five job and would love to have more freedom. You may have children one of you wants to be home with. Think about why YOU have this dream and it may also be a similar motive for your partner.

Provide The Solution: In a sales letter, audio, video this is the main body. So it works similar for your sales pitch here. This is where you want to lay down some facts and case studies. Examples of what has worked for others and why you think it may work for you.

This is also the place to deliver  on your promise you alluded to in your hook.

To know what promise will work best (equivalent to your offer in a sales pitch) you need to know what their biggest fears are and the biggest benefit. You need to think long term and short term here. So long term it may be lifestyle freedom but in the short term, you will need some other offers.

For example, if their biggest fear is the time it will take you, I suggest you negotiate the amount of time you will spend on your venture, balanced with time with them and family (this is a good discipline for yourself as well).

If their fear is money, you can assign a budget together. You can point them to the number of free resources you can access to learn how to build your business.

If their concern is time AND money, then you can present information on mentors that will save you both time and money in the long run.

HINT: You can also have some fun here. I’ll leave it to your imagination

Call To Action: You don’t want to spend all this time and action, moving towards a sale and not close the deal. In sales it is “fill in your email” or “click here to buy”. With your partner it may be:

• Let’s work out a time table together of times I will devote to my new venture, and time balancing my life with yours, or
• Let’s agree now if I have your support to book a workshop, invest in a program, take a sabbatical from my work, or
• Lets agree now that you will not undermine me with doubting language (if this has been a problem) and instead you will re-frame your language to be one of support.

A Word of Warning on Crafting Your Message

I made this mistake myself and I have seen many people (both men and women) make exactly the same mistake.

You cannot expect your partner to have the same dreams as you. In your ideal world, you and your partner will be inspired by the same passion and both strive towards the same goal. They too, will want to be at the same events, working late at night to learn how to master Internet marketing and be fascinated by SEO and Opt-in rates.

Don’t aim for this. It is unfair to expect your partner to get sucked into your jet-stream just because you want them to. The sale you are after is their support. You want them to encourage you, not undermine you.

Anything that comes later, is a true bonus and you know that it comes from genuine personal interest rather than just kindness. In many cases, your partner can get involved doing things that you do not have a natural ability for, and they have the satisfaction of doing something practical to help you achieve your dream.

After all, in my books, a great relationship is one that helps each partner be the best they can be. It works both ways. Your partner may have hidden dreams as well and will appreciate your support. You may be surprised at the common ground your different dreams may have after you work through this process.

I’d love to know what you think. I’m sure for some people, the thought of approaching their partner in this way is horrifying. For others, I know it can change your life. Love to know what you think.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. If you are coming to The 4th Dimension Mastery Workshop you will have the chance to meet Douglas The Wonderful Web Man. He works full-time as an ecologist, because his passion is conservation, but as you’ll see, he is also very much a part of the success of  our company, Niche Partners.

The Relationship between Fence Sitting and Personal Branding

I want you think about the people in your industry who stand out as the leaders. There is something about them that draws people to them and often they have a polarising effect in the market. Some people LOVE them and other people can’t stand them. You may even find yourself saying sometimes “What would so-and-so say about this” or “What would they do in this situation”.

You may also find yourself thinking “geez, I can just imagine what so-and-so would say about that if they heard it”.

How do you know what they think and why do they resonate with you?

People who stand out as leaders in their field take a stand. They don’t sit on the fence and try to please everyone. They decide what they stand for and what they stand against. Now I’m not saying that leaders need to be inflexible. I’m saying they know what things matter.

This “taking a stand” is an important part of your personal brand but this is where it gets important (and powerful). To attract customers like a magnet in an online niche / community / tribe (which name you choose depends on the differing degrees of identity between the people in that group) it is essential that the stand you take resonates with the people you want to attract.

You can only be sure there is congruency between your values and those of your target market if you take the time to get to know them. Find out what makes them tick.

Here’s an example from my own experience

In online marketing people tend to fall into 2 camps.

There are some who teach that it doesn’t matter what topic or niche you build your business around as long as you make money. Your personal passions are not important. All you really need is to follow the steps.

There are others who say it is essential that you build your business around your passions because you won’t last the hard times. When the going gets tough it is your passion that gets you through and in addition, your target market can tell if you are passionate or not and this will impact on how successful your business is.

I can certainly understand both points of view and I have friends who have built businesses on both models. But me…I see business development as the most effective form of personal development so I only want to help people build a business around their passions (unless their true passion is business systems and that’s where they get their buzz).

So it should come as no surprise that I attract customers who want to build their business around their passions. This is part of my personal brand.

I share a story in a video of what happened when (ONCE) I promoted a product that was out of alignment with what I stand for and what my “tribe” believes. Woah did they burn me for acting in-congruently! This was an important lesson on how loyal people DO feel if you act in alignment with their values because they wouldn’t be complaining of betrayal if they didn’t feel loyal in the first place!

How Can You Apply This Idea To Your Personal Brand?

If you want to attract customers that YOU want to work with, they need to be able to identify that you are the person THEY want. There are just too many dull and boring people in the market place who sit on the fence and so blend in with the rest of the crowd. They sit there so long they get splinters in their bum and things really start to hurt (how far can I draw this analogy?)

Do some soul searching and market searching NOW and decide what things are important enough for you to jump off the fence and so stand out from the crowd.

This is one of the first steps to developing what I call a “Congruency Checklist”. If you’d like some help I’ve created a series of videos and worksheets to guide you through the process and they are my gift to you. They are just one  part of a new concept I’m launching this week called “4th Dimension Mastery”. Love to know what you think.

I’ve seen first hand numerous times the impact a mastermind group can have on my business, the business of my mentors and those of my students.

There is nothing more powerful to help you grow your business.

I feel so strongly about it that we help all our customers  join one of our mastermind groups. It doesn’t matter if they have purchased our $47 per month Wonderful Web Women membership or our higher end products and mentoring that run into the thousands, we help them you find other people from our community to support you.

I’m a member of 2 mastermind groups myself and another faculty that meets a few times per year to help each other grow our businesses. I can’t imagine being in business without them.

There is a good reason a Mastermind Group is listed as the 9th Step Toward Riches by Napoleon Hill in Think and Grow Rich.

OK so you know this is something I’m passionate about. Let’s look at what a Mastermind group is and how to run one.

What Is A Mastermind Group?

At its simplest, a mastermind group is 2 or more people who share a similar purpose and meet to help each other achieve that purpose. Now that purpose could be for many things, but here I’ll be talking about the purpose of building successful businesses.

Each of the groups I am personally part of formed to help each other create a successful business. Interestingly, we all have a very strong personal development focus as well. This makes sense really as I’ve found business development to be the fastest tool for personal development I’ve ever experienced.

Mastermind Groups can meet in person, or via a phone meeting. You may meet on a regular basis, such as weekly or every 2 weeks or maybe you only get together for focused days or retreats.

As an example:

• One of my mastermind groups meets for breakfast as a coastal cafe every 2nd Friday.
• Another group used to meet via conference phone every 2 weeks but now we meet for a retreat once per year and a second weekend later in the year (this shows that a mastermind can change how they meet to adapt to the dynamics of the group)
• Another group only meets once a year or more for a structured “closed door” faculty meeting to share latest business building methods.

Rules To Run a Mastermind Group

Over the years I’ve found the perfect structure to run a mastermind group. It doesn’t matter if you meet in person or via phone, the structure works in all situations. We give our customers a detailed structure to follow but here it is in a nutshell;

• The group must agree to why they are meeting. For eg, is it to focus only on business, or is it on personal issues etc
• Anything discussed in the group is confidential. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas…not on Facebook
• There needs to be a facilitator for each meeting to keep people on track and time. The facilitator should change each meeting so no-one is seen as the boss
• No whining. The group needs to focus on solutions, not complaining and making excuses as to why a problem exists in the first place.
• No personal criticism. Judge the actions, not the person. Each person must feel safe to discuss their failings.
• Strict time-keeping is essential to make sure each person has an equal opportunity to get help from the group
• You must allocate time at the beginning and end for the group to socialise and catch up on each others lives. If you don’t the group is nowhere near as much fun.
• Be on time. This shows respect for the group
• Laugh a lot. Life’s too short to take it too seriously.

I’d love to know what experience you have had with mastermind groups. Please leave a comment below and if you have any handy tips it would be great for you share.

In this video I share with you a clever idea suggested by my entrepreneurial friends (and Wonderful Web Women Faculty Members) Stacey Barr and Belinda Jackson. They recognised this common problem and have a wonderful solution. Love to know if you use this simple idea yourself.

Here’s an example. Today I shot 5 videos to be used on my website sales pages and to send you messages while I am away in Thailand for the most of April. One take, minimal script, no edits and nothing fancy. Over and done in 30 minutes then another 30 or so to upload. Sure they’re not slick and professional but they get the message across and they are authentically me. And importantly….they’re done. What have you been putting off because it needs to be perfect?

OK, so some takes just don’t work. Thought I’d share with you a blooper that didn’t even make it past the 5 second mark

[flvplugin flv=http://wonderfulwebwomen.com/wp-content/uploads/videos/blooper.flv player= buffer=5 autoplay=false loop=false border=false preload=false infobutton=true ]

It was a bit like having your horoscope read!

I’ll describe each type below and see if you can identify which of the profiles fit you. There may be profiles for where you have been, where you are now and where you’d like to head. Michelle calls them the “5  Janes” from her “Jane Out Of The Box”.

You can take this quick (and free) survey to find out which Jane you are and get some great advice on what steps to take to meet the common challenges of that Jane type. I’d love to know what you learn.

The Many Faces Of Jane (in alphabetical order)

Accidental Jane:

Accidental Jane has created a business kind of by accident. She never set out to create a business for businesses sake. Instead she does something well, really enjoys it and provides this service or product to her clients. In a way she has created a really nice job for herself doing what she loves. She is often a solo-preneur or may have an assistant or 2.

Does this sound like you? This is how I started and so did Michelle. In my case, people said “you’re really good at building internet businesses, you should charge for your advice” (more than a cup of coffee or glass of wine anyway).

Challenges Accidental Jane may Face

Because Accidental Jane loves what she does, she will tend to get really involved with a client or project and stop marketing. Then when the client project ends she has no new work coming in. She needs to set up consistent automated marketing so she won’t get the peaks and troughs.

Go Jane Go

Wow hearing Michele describe Go Jane Go took me back to a time that was really hard. Does this sound like you? This Jane is very focused on giving great service, often has a very busy business and could also be making some great money. She doesn’t just stop at delivering results in her business. She is often active on community groups, helps out at her children’s school etc.

This is a Jane I can really identify with from my previous business running an Internet Art Gallery. At the time I also ran the local community fund-raising art show (huge commitment), helped out in my children’s classroom, was secretary on a regional committee for art and culture and was the unofficial organiser of social get togethers for my friends. My life was full and interesting, but I also got very sick.

Challenges Go Jane Go may Face

This Jane has trouble saying no and has very little time for herself. In fact, she is probably the only one she CAN say no to. She needs to schedule time for herself in her calendar and may have to trick herself into keeping the commitments to herself. For example, Michele hired a personal trainer when she was running her business as a Go Jane Go. She only kept the commitments because she knew the trainer wouldn’t be paid if she didn’t turn up so she didn’t want to let them down.

On a personal note: If you are a Go Jane Go, I send some love and caring just for you. Accept it and take some time out to give yourself some extra love. (OK that was also a message to the Janet of a few years ago)

Jane Dough

This is the Jane that people think of when they think of entrepreneurs. She is a visionary and intends on building a big business that she can eventually sell or pass on to her family. She focuses very much on systems, team building and leverage.

Sometimes, people are just natural Jane Dough’s. These are the people who tell stories of running entrepreneurial enterprises when they were children and obviously just saw business opportunities that others couldn’t see. Others (like Michele and I) were Go Jane Go’s who had a huge wake-up call and started to see that the business was a separate entity to them, not an extension.

Challenges Jane Dough may Face

If Jane Dough gets too caught up in the running of her business she can get very frustrated. She needs to schedule time out to focus on strategy and systems. She also needs to concentrate on her management style as she can often envisage a project outcome and think very fast but may not slow down enough to delegate with adequate communication to her team. Oh dear….when Michele described Jane Dough that’s when it started to get really spooky. After doing Michele’s survey, this is the profile I fitted and the challenges she described were the exact things I know I have. And I thought I was unique

Merry Jane

So called Merry Jane because she is happy doing what she is doing. Merry Jane has other priorities in her life other than her business. For example she may describe herself as “a stay at home mum with a part time business” rather than “a business woman with a home based business, who happens to be a mum”. She wouldn’t mind bringing more money in but she is careful that her business doesn’t grow too big and take her time away from the things that are her priority. She may also be an artist or crafts person who uses her business for self expression and supplementary income.

Challenges Merry Jane may Face

Merry Jane wants to increase her part-time income but needs to be careful she doesn’t get a big influx of new customers as this will threaten the time she spends on her first priority. She needs to make sure her marketing strategies provide gradual supplies of new customers rather then waves of new referrals.

On a personal note: This is the only Jane I have never been in business, and interestingly, either had Michele. Also, this is the Jane I most envy! I’ve tried to approach my business in this way, focusing on family and content to build my business as a part-time second income but it just doesn’t come naturally. I can do it for a couple of weeks and then my head gets filled with visionary plans for “world domination” and I’m back into Jane Dough mode again. It will be interesting to know if I’m the only one who does this?

Tenacity Jane

Michele spent quite some time talking about Tenacity Jane. This is because this business profile accounts for the highest proportion of women entrepreneurs and one that is very close to her heart. Michele shared very candidly a story of her struggles as Tenacity Jane and I know many people on the call could really relate to it. You see, Tenacity Jane is determined to make her business work. She is committed and will keep on working hard until everything falls into place. Unfortunately, even though her business may seem successful, she is not making enough money. This breaks her heart. Often her business is a start-up or is suffering due to circumstances she may not have a lot of control over (such as the economic downturn).

I can so relate to this as I have spent a lot of my business life as Tenacity Jane and it can be soul destroying. Moving through this  though, is also one of the most personally rewarding things you can do.

Challenges Tenacity Jane may Face

Cash flow is the big issue for Jane and her financial struggles may make her feel very isolated. After all, no-one talks about their financial problems at networking events! But as Tenacity Jane makes up more than 33% of female business owners, know you are not alone.

Michele has launched a 30 day program especially for Tenacity Jane that starts this week (there are recordings). You can get the details here.

When you order, please email Michele and let her know I introduced you as she is offering a limited number of personal coaching sessions to my community. And of course, because Tenacity Jane has cash-flow problems, there is a payment plan

I’d love to know what type of Jane you are now after you take The Jane Out Of The Box survey. Or who you have been in the past or aim to be. Why not share your thoughts here? You may also have some advice for women who are in the same Jane Profile that you have been in the past or may be now.

Cheers

Janet

P.S. Michele has also kindly offered my community (that means you) a free copy of her book “See Jane Succeed”. You only need to pay for Postage. You can get your copy here. I’m getting one!

The Fridge Door

Refrigerators are like a great whiteboard in the kitchen. We always have whiteboard markers on top of the fridge and use that lovely clean surface to write messages or display a countdown to the next big family event (it now says there are 43 days until we fly to Thailand).

For a long time, it was used to teach our children an important concept. Well, OK it was also to remind myself of its importance. Here’s what was on the fridge…

A horizontal line.

Above the line were written the words:

• Take responsibility
• Think of solutions
• Look for the lessons
• Keep my power

Below the line were written the words:

• Blame others
• Make excuses
• Whinge
• Victim (give my power away)

Here’s How We Use The Concept In Our Family

If you’re a parent you’ll relate to this (if you’re not, just think back to when you were at school). It’s 7pm and your son is in tears because he has an assignment due the next day and he hasn’t started it yet. He’s angry because his sister is always on the computer so he can’t get his research done, his teacher didn’t remind him it was due, his parents expected him set the table bla bla bla. You get the picture.

In our house that is called “Below The Line Behaviour”.

I wish I could remember where I first heard the concept, but I’ll credit my friend Sharon Tieman because she uses the same concept with her staff.

Instead of going into lecture mode (very tempting as a parent) we simply refer to the fridge and concentrate on “Above The Line Behaviour”.

My husband and I continuously call each other out about “Below The Line” behaviour. It’s not always easy to accept

I knew the concept had sunk in when I heard my daughter chastising our new puppy for “Below The Puppy Line Behaviour”!

How To Use The Concept In Your Business (and personal life)

Personal responsibility is the absolute basis of successful behaviour. Sure, other people do the wrong thing but it is up to YOU to accept the responsibility for how you will respond. In the example above, it is my son’s responsibility to negotiate with his sister for equal computer time. In business it is up to YOU to decide what behaviour you are willing to accept.

I recently had a huge challenge to “Act Above The Line”. Last month our entire online business disappeared because our web host went “belly-up” without warning. I must admit, my initial response was “Below The Line”. I had a great excuse to just quit. It was all his fault and I wallowed in the comforting muddy pit of blame and complaining.

But then I remembered my fridge.

By accepting personal responsibility for how I would respond, I reclaimed my power. I could look for the solutions and lessons to be learned and make a decision based on what I COULD do, rather than what I COULDN”T. I chose to rebuild. I could also have chosen other options but as long as I made those choices from a place of personal responsibility, and not as a victim, then I was acting above the line.

Do You Make Excuses?

Be honest with yourself? Do you have excuses for why you haven’t created the success you want?

Just to give you a quick example, here are some  (paraphrased) comments I have received while interviewing different successful women:

• “It’s OK for her being a single mother of 2, it is so much harder if you have to deal with a partner”
• “It’s Ok for her, she has a husband, it’s hard when you are raising kids on your own”
• “You have to be a technical person to have an Internet business”
• “Everyone expects you to pay for their coaching, it’s not fair. Why don’t they support us for free when we don’t have any money?”

Reclaim Your Power

It can be tough acting “Above The Line”. That’s why the majority don’t do it most of the time. That is why people selling “Magic Bullet” products do so well. You know, the products that promise you will make a heap of money without doing any work? Of course it takes effort and persistence to succeed but that is nowhere as sexy on a sales letter. That’s why so many people get disappointed because they thought they were buying a solution but what they were really buying was hope. They thought by handing over money they could transfer the responsibility for their success to someone else.

Don’t give your power to others. Reclaim your power and accept that if you are to succeed, it is YOUR responsibility. It is up to YOU to implement the programs you are studying. Up to YOU to ask questions of your mentors if you have trouble implementing. Up to YOU to challenge yourself to not act like a victim and look at what you DO have the power to do.

As you can see, my fridge gets me pretty fired up. Tell me what you think? What challenges face you when it comes to acting Above The Line or Below The Line?

A couple from Vancouver, Sue and Steve Soucy, made a monumental decision last year. They’re going to be millionaires. They’re so serious about this they both abandoned their careers to pursue financial freedom full time. Pretty gutsy move in the face of this global recession.

That’s not all. They’ve gone viral. The entire Internet community is watching (or will be soon). And that’s the whole idea. They’re documenting the entire journey. And they’re beginning by asking lots of questions. That’s where I come in.

I’m honoured to be one of 10 entrepreneurs Sue and Steve have tapped to mentor them. We’ll do it in webinar format. An hour a day for ten days. That’s where you come in. You get to eaves drop, ask questions and get involved for free. There are already more than 3000 people registered and it doesn’t start for a few days yet.

Get all the details at http://themillionaireaffair.com/

Lessons from Vegas:

In this thrilling, incredibly high quality video you will discover:

• What colour Janet’s swimmers are
• How gamblers in Vegas are like entrepreneurs
• The big mistake many entrepreneurs make
• What you can do about it
• You get to hear Janet mention, yet again, that she just won Australian Marketer of The Year
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0pQhOkw1gA

Go on, leave a comment. It will inspire to make more.