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In this episode, I’m talking about why it’s so important to close loops in your business. I also talk about what that process might look like. Many of us are very creative, idea-focused entrepreneurs. We’re really great at creating amazing products, services, and tools.  But sometimes, you just have to step back and take a look at what you’ve created to see if it still fits your business. Case in point: our Off the Charts podcast. This is the last episode that we have scheduled for now, because we’re taking an indefinite break… which sounds pretty harsh, right? But here’s why that’s a good thing: When you take a step back, you might realize you’ve created a lot of things. Each of these “things” might be your blog, products, services, opt-in offers – and many might be a little outdated. But each one consumes energy from you in some way, whether you realize it or not. In my case, I’m being completely transparent and vulnerable: the Off the Charts podcast was a great decision and has been a strong part of our business. But at this point, there are other areas that we need to be focused on. We’re always trying to do fewer things better to make the biggest impact. The concept I’ve come up with to explain this revisiting phenomenon is called The Idea Succession Dynamic. Here’s the analogy: If there’s a clearing or small field, nature wants to fill it with a mature forest. So it wants mature shrubs, bigger trees, etc. The only thing that can set back this natural progress is some sort of catastrophe, like a flood or fire. It’s so similar in our businesses! The natural inclination is to grow things in your business. Over time, you create more mature systems that work together to make your business more stable. But… sometimes you have to make room for that small seedling. And that might mean chopping down (and recycling!) the “big tree” that’s taking up all of the sunlight and room in your forest. Businesses evolve and interact with each other very naturally. We have to be willing to let go of some parts in order to embrace new growth and potential.   This brings me to the Idea Sanctuary  and I’m so excited about it! It’s a brand new video series and ideabook/notebook that dives into that process of taking a new seed in your business and allowing it to grow! As creative entrepreneurs, we have so many great ideas… but there’s a problem. Because not a lot of people talk about the necessary changes that take place between getting that idea and then bringing it into the world. So if you’re ready for new growth in your business, head over to theideasanctuary.com – it’s free to sign up for the video series. Once you do, you’ll also get info on how to get your own Ideabook to begin creating!  

This episode is all about how to capture your best ideas for business… and I’m sharing with you my latest project that’s designed to help! It’s all founded on the belief that: Ideas are a natural resource. The more ideas you come up with and use, the more ideas you get. Of course this only works if you can capture your best ideas AND execute on them. Inside this episode, I’m going in-depth through the 7 best ways for how to capture your best ideas, and the simple paper planner that can help: 1: Designate A Place to Capture Your Best Ideas Ideas need a place to live, just like all of us. If you don’t have a designated spot for them to “land” when they appear, they’re likely to float back to where they came from. 2: Keep An Idea Alive Long Enough To Write It Down One of my biggest pet peeves is when a great idea comes to me when I’m away from my “idea capture space.” Like in the shower, while I’m walking around or driving, or having a conversation with someone. So I’ve got a few memory tips to share that can help you remember the ideas until you have a chance to jot them down! 3: Use an electronic capture device like “voice to text” on your phone One of my best tricks for how to capture your best ideas is really to use what you have access to. For many of us that means a phone or other electronic device. Simply hit “record” on your phone or tablet and explain your idea. 4: Unblock Yourself Creatively Through Movement Maybe you’re not be the type of person who gets blocked creatively… maybe you have TOO many ideas. But it’s possible for all of us to get stuck in an idea rut and to feel creatively blocked…or to get the same kinds of ideas over and over, instead of fresh new ones. That’s where moving your body comes to the rescue! We’re not just brains attached to a body that “does nothing.” Our entire body has cells and receptors that can help you generate ideas. That’s why taking a walk, going for a swim, and carrying something heavy can stimulate new ways of thinking. 5: Work Through an Ideation Process to Generate and Capture Related Ideas Sometimes the first idea you get isn’t the one you end up executing on. (Sad, but true!) That means that having an ideation process that you can work through after you get that first stroke of genius is important. This takes you from the initial “good idea” to the refining and validating stages. One way that I love doing this is the process I walk people through inside The Idea Sanctuary. It’s useful to look at the existing ecosystem that you want your idea to enter into… 6: Empty Your Idea Tank Each Day As a creative entrepreneur, falling asleep can be tricky when there are a lot of thoughts and ideas going through your mind… That’s why I recommend doing a brain dump of thoughts, tasks, and ideas every day. The more often you clear your mind, the better you’re able to generate and act on your ideas. 7: Keep a Pen and Paper Next to Your Bed For Late Night Inspiration If you frequently get great ideas before you fall asleep, in the middle of the night, or around nap time… you might also know that these are the ideas that tend to disappear most easily (hello, slumber!). So the solution here is to keep a pen and paper next your bed to capture these best ideas as they pop up… and definitely take time to check out The Idea Sanctuary ideabook here.

In today’s episode, we’re talking about unprofitable ideas. Those tricky products, projects, or ideas that just don’t seem to be taking off like you expected or hoped. And more specifically, we’re addressing how to know when you should stick it out…and when it’s time to just let go and move on. In our society, we have this idea that if we fail we should “try, try again.” Overall, this is definitely true. Running a business is a big experiment that we have to commit to tweaking and improving along the way. But sometimes, we are caught up in specific products and offerings that aren’t a good fit. They’re not the ones that we should spend time pursuing. Sometimes it’s important to pivot. That’s why, throughout the Off the Charts series, we focus on two things: what entrepreneurs have to “embrace” and “let go of” for their businesses to thrive. And often, what they let go of is more important than what they take on. But we tend to get really attached to our own ideas. This makes it difficult to look at things from an objective point of view. So what I like to do is follow the money and the energy. For example, if you’ve ever done project or promotion that’s really flown off the shelves, that’s the sign you have to listen to. That’s what we’ve done in our business. We’re really focusing on our products – AccessAlly, ProgressAlly, and PopupAlly Pro, because that’s where our energy is. It’s also where we’ve seen the largest percentage of our revenue. In this episode, I also share a bit about the dangers of working on specific projects…just because you see other people succeeding at them. We build businesses that are harder on ourselves than they actually need to be. Make space for the new things that are business-growing by retiring some of the old things that just aren’t pulling their weight. It sounds so super simple… but it can be tough to do. So definitely take time to listen to this episode… I’m sharing a little exercise at the end to help you figure out what’s working – and what’s not – in your business.

Our guest today is Nicole Roberts Jones, who shares her 17-year journey to becoming an overnight success. I really love Nicole’s story because it’s full of realism and practical considerations.  Although she’d been an entrepreneur for 23 years, it took Nicole 17 of those years to actually start turning a profit. What finally changed? Nicole realized that a mindshift change had to take place. For the first several years, she believed wholeheartedly that “sweat equity” could make a business successful. But even though she kept putting in more hours, or meeting more people, she just wasn’t experiencing the benefits. Everything transformed, however, when Nicole began putting “cash equity” into her business. This took the form of hiring a business coach, who Nicole asserts, was “10 times ahead” of where she was. Her business coach was able to pinpoint key areas of growth potential for Nicole. This included the need to create multiple streams of income for herself. And this was just the beginning… From that point onward, Nicole began to see her many years of experience and hard work start paying off. The thing I love about Nicole’s story is that she hasn’t stopped investing in new help to maintain her growth. The concept of self-investment is one that can be tough for entrepreneurs to take seriously! But in the end, Nicole’s words are definitely ones to sit with: how can we ask someone to invest in us, if we aren’t willing to invest in ourselves? More About Nicole Roberts Jones Nicole Roberts Jones is known for her ability to draw out what’s best in YOU. As the creator of the Find Your Fierce Formula, Nicole works in two arenas. With entrepreneurs to build programming that generates multiple revenue streams and a greater bandwidth to serve their clients. To help them Take Their Brilliance to the Bank. Secondly, she works with corporations to develop high-performing employees who excel at work because they learn to operate in their genius. To help them create greater momentum linking Purpose with Performance. A sought-after speaker, coach and author she is also the Founder & CEO of the FIERCE Factor Lab. In it, Nicole created a company that mirrors all that she stands for as a content strategist, talent development consultant and coach. Truth, momentum and power is charged into each business she touches, with a long-term focus and an emphasis on expanding income and impact. Her work with companies such as General Motors, McDonalds, Motivating The Masses and the Steve Harvey World Group as well as with clients across the globe in places like Switzerland, Aruba and the British Virgin Islands reflects the incredible need to infuse your purpose, what she calls your FIERCE, into your work. Nicole has over 20 years’ experience working with entrepreneurs, corporate executives, heads of states, celebrities & nonprofit directors in talent and program development. She has also been an adjunct professor at USC and Boston University where she taught courses on program development.

Hey there, and welcome to today’s Off The Charts episode! We are diving into customer avatars and the reasons why they might actually sabotage your marketing, instead of helping you discover and meet up with your ideal clients. Our guest is Hillary Rubin, a wonderful entrepreneur who’s focused on helping other professionals really learn the ins and outs of coaching. One thing I love about Hillary’s story is her commitment to pursuing her own passion in life. I think sometimes it is tempting to settle into a career that isn’t the perfect fit. But Hillary went through several different careers, and was even a yoga teacher for many years. Finally, she admitted to herself that her life as a yoga teacher wasn’t actually adding up in terms of the time and energy that it was consuming. Of course, this was where she really began to struggle with the whole concept of building a client avatar. Because she was creating amazing ones – but each time it seemed that her clientele shifted, and the avatar no longer applied. So Hillary chose to let go of the idea of focusing on your own content first. Instead, she began to listen to what her own clients were asking and what they had in common. This ended up transforming how Hillary viewed her own business, and how she was able to reach those who would fit best with her services. Definitely take the time to listen to the wisdom Hillary shares in this episode. More About Hillary Rubin Hillary Rubin is a spiritual life & business coach, mentor for coaches, the creator of The Art of Becoming a Coach training program and podcast, The Art of Business for Coaches. She’s on a mission to spread the message that coaching is one of the most rewarding, transformational, and profitable careers to have. Her clients say the best thing about working with Hillary is knowing that she has their back, even when they don’t have their own, and that she’s a cross between a spiritual guide, an ass-kicker, and a marketing genius that brings out the best in them. Hillary has been featured in The Los Angeles Times, Yoga Journal, TheDailyWorth.com and was the February 2014 Cover Girl + Feature for Inspired Coach Magazine. Thank you again, and please let us know if you need anything else! Have a great day!

Today’s episode is a very fun and special one because it concerns cash flow and money in your business. And the great thing is that my guest today, Justin Krane, is actually a professional money strategist for business owners. In this episode, we hear some amazing insights from Justin about the type of things we deal with as entrepreneurs… We also learn a very simple, transformational rule about investing in your business. Justin notes that, while personal spending and savings issues (IRAs, life insurance, etc.) are important…the money matters of entrepreneurs tend to revolve around 4 key concepts. So naturally, he created a program to solve these 4 concepts/pain points: 1. Experiencing overwhelm from tracking cash balances and invoices. Sometimes, the numbers can make us feel paralyzed! 2. Pricing to make a profit. Obviously this is important… but it’s even more important to ensure that our pricing model is coming across as valuable to our clients. 3. Feeling like you’re throwing away money with business investments. Sometimes, we hear things like “big risks bring about big returns.” But what I love about Justin is that he offers a reasonable, practical, rule for investing in your business. 4. Investing in the right marketing to bring about a successful campaign. Many entrepreneurs live launch to launch. It can be exhausting. But even worse is knowing that the money you invested into a particular campaign isn’t bringing enough income back to cover the cost. … any of these sound familiar? If so, you’ll absolutely love listening to today’s episode. More About Justin Krane Justin Krane, a Financial Life Planner is the founder of Krane Financial Solutions. Known for his simple, savvy, holistic approach to financial planning, he advises his clients on how to unite their money with their lives and businesses. He works with entrepreneurs to create a bigger vision for their business. Justin loves business strategy. He is all about achieving business growth. Justin believes that every business owner needs to know where they are with their business money. Using a unique system developed from his studies of financial psychology, Justin teaches business owners how to plan their cash flow and be strategic with their business finances. Prior to founding Krane Financial Solutions, Justin was a Vice President, Investments, and Sales Manager at UBS Financial Services Inc., for 12 years, in Beverly Hills, California. Justin is a Certified Financial Planner professional. He received his Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA®) designation from Investment Management Consultants Association and in conjunction with The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Justin has been featured in The Wall St Journal, Entrepreneur Magazine, and CNN Money. He is married, has three children and lives with his family in Calabasas, California. An accomplished athlete, Justin was a former junior ranked tennis player in Los Angeles. He loves to cook, travel, and speak Italian.

This is a really fun Off the Charts podcast episode – because we get to hear from Melinda Chen, and it’s all about the mindset shifts needed to land bigger clients for your business. Melinda Chen has been in corporate sales for 15 years… but it wasn’t something that she was really good at, at first. In fact, she really struggled to make any sales at all. And even though she invested time and energy into making more and more sales calls, she ended up feeling frustrated and confused. Melinda found that she was uncomfortable with the idea of pitching to other corporate reps, and just wanted to get off the phone as quickly as possible. She shares how this lack of confidence really came to the forefront during a pivotal conversation with an executive… who noticed that she was only contacting smaller clients. So he asked “Well, how are you ever going to be able to sell to big clients if you’re surrounding yourself with small clients?” This simple question began the mindset shift that shaped the future success of Melinda’s career. Melinda discovered that it took exactly the same amount of time to close a big sale as it did to close a little one… and with that realization, her career took off. From there, you’ll hear how Melinda continued to grow, to the very top of her field. Listen in to hear her wisdom on the sales process – which is such an important area to our lives as entrepreneurs! More About Melinda Chen Melinda Chen is a sales coach helping female entrepreneurs sell to big clients. She is also a sales executive with an impressive sales track record of 8 figures. Her company, Women Making Big Sales, allows female entrepreneurs to start connecting and sell to big clients in 5 weeks. Melinda grew up in an entrepreneurial family. When she first started her sales career after university, she wanted to know everything about selling. So, she spent years reading over 20 books in sales, made over 5,000 cold calls and worked with agents, reps and corporate clients around the world. Since then, she has mastered the art of selling to big companies and made sales in Americas,Europe and Asia covering a wide range of industries. She is inspired to help women take control of their lives by going for big clients, closing important deals and dramatically expand their business.

This episode is all about online retail and ecommerce tips to help you reach your goals. In the first half of the episode, I’m sharing a bit about how online retail is changing retail in person. I’m also sharing three ways that you can adapt: 1. If you have an online ecommerce store you have to get to know your customers. Survey them – what attracts them to your brand or products. Are they loyal? Some people purchase month after month or year after year. It will help you adapt and make changes to how you market your business. 2. Prepare for gift seasons. This could be the holidays, birthdays, summer, depending on what kind of products you have. Know what your seasons are and prepare your promotions around those periods. This doesn’t always means discounts – but your campaigns, etc., and everything that would work for you business. 3. Be there when they come looking. When it comes to online retail and ecommerce, it’s still a lot about search and search engines. In the second half of today’s episode, we hear from Chloë Thomas, who’s been working ecommerce since 2003. Chloë points out that there’s a common disconnect with the way many of us approach our marketing. She recommends that entrepreneurs – especially those in ecommerce – stop thinking marketing method first and application second. In other words, don’t approach your marketing with the thought “We have to do Facebook, email, or Instagram.” Instead, think about what the problem is that needs fixing first! Is your problem that you’re not getting enough people to your website? Or is it that they’re not signing up for your business? Or is it that they’re buying once and not again? Because depending on what your needs are, your methodology will change! She also emphasizes the utmost importance of listening to your customer. The one thing in common about all businesses who are doing well is that they are listening to their customers. They’re building services, marketing, etc. that their customers are responding to. It’s such solid advice, especially if you’re really focusing on making an ecommerce business succeed! Take time to listen in to today’s episode to catch all of the great info we share. More About Chloë Thomas Author, International Speaker, and host of the eCommerce MasterPlan Podcast. Chloë Thomas has been working in eCommerce since 2003, learning how to increase orders, up customer retention, and recruit new customers cost effectively. Working with businesses from the high street right down to start ups. eCommerce MasterPlan is the result of Chloë’s years of experience, the books, blogs and courses have all been created to help eCommerce business owners and marketers to make the right decisions as they build their own path to eCommerce success. The eCommerce MasterPlan Podcast exists to bring a weekly dose of inspiration direct to the desks of eCommerce business people all over the globe. Power Retail (Australia) named Chloë as one of the top 10 eCommerce commentators in the world, and within 6 months of launch the podcast was already the top eCommerce podcast in the UK.

In this episode, we talk about how balance and congruency can help build your business movement and make amazing things happen…all with the wisdom and experience of Dana Malstaff. Through the course of building a massively successful movement, Dana Malstaff came to terms with the fact that she couldn’t – and shouldn’t – try to do everything. This is a theme that we’ve seen with a lot of entrepreneurs: the developed ability to say “no” to some opportunities so that you have the time and freedom to say “yes” to the right ones. And this is so important, especially for moms! There’s a lot of competing priorities out there: family, kids, paying the bills…not to mention taking care of yourself! By being super intentional about your no’s, you empower yourself to be super focused on your own brand and uniqueness. In the end, this is the real money-making potential behind your business. But in this interview, Dana also shares that one of the facets of business she really had to embrace was making sure that everything in her business was congruent and connected. Her “no’s” gave her the ability to remain ultra-focused on bringing everything in her brand together in a super succinct way. And it’s through this congruence and focus that the Boss Mom movement has been able to grow to such an amazing place. So if you’re a mom, an entrepreneur, or both, be sure to tune in to this episode and definitely take time to become even more familiar with the Boss Mom movement! More About Dana Dana is a mother, author, business & content strategist, coach, podcaster, and blind spot reducer. Dana is the author of Boss Mom: The Ultimate Guide to Raising a Business & Nurturing Your Family Like a Pro, and the founder of the Boss Mom Movement. She serves Boss Moms who yearn for more time and less guilt when it comes to building their business and raising their family, by providing the tools they need to get more out of their content and business, without sacrificing their family goals. When she is not creating new courses or building new strategy tools for creative entrepreneurs, she can be found, chasing her son on the beach, watching her daughter take her first steps, or thinking of the next fun new family adventure.

Hey there, so glad you’re listening today! This episode with Luisa Zhou is all about focusing in and growing your business past that million dollar mark. It’s kind of a mini case study of “what to do right” for your business! Luisa Zhou is definitely a strong, multi-passionate woman. But even though she found herself with a desire to grow her business into a bunch of new directions, she realized that too much expansion can actually be a bad thing. So instead, she opted to focus on one thing really well. The lesson here is to simplify, simplify, simplify! And I totally agree with her decision! Because at each stage of your business, there’s often a single goal that you should be focused on and striving towards. Your job is to figure our that one goal, eliminate distractions, and then make it happen. After this fundamental lesson was applied to her business model, Luisa had the freedom to really dive into getting her next paying client…and it all snowballed from there. So IF you find yourself relating to that term “multi-passionate,” Luisa Zhou is definitely an incredible woman to relate to. Listen into this episode to hear more about her business lessons on growing a million dollar business on the side. More About Luisa Zhou Luisa is the founder of LuisaZhou.com, which shows ambitious individuals how to use their skills and interests to build a business — that has the potential to generate 2x-10x their full-time salary. Having started her third business while in a 9-5 and made $106K in sales in 4 months while working full-time, Luisa subsequently built it into a 7-figure business, making over $1.1M in sales within 11 months. / Through her work, she helps people overcome their fears and limitations to live the life they’ve hardly even dared to dream about.

This is a really special episode because we’re going behind the scenes in my business to talk about publishing with a content calendar. I’m joined by Maria Myre, AmbitionAlly’s own technical writer & editor. Throughout this episode, the focus is on the importance of publishing regularly with a content calendar, but also how to streamline the process so that it works for us. Publishing regularly is such a huge part of staying at the forefront of the online business game … but it can really get stressful without the right organization in place. And that’s why Maria points out that our editorial calendar only works with a lot of planning and organization. For us, this consists of two main tools: CoSchedule and Asana. CoSchedule lets us to see at a glance what we have coming up in the schedule, and create social media campaigns to promote the content as it’s published. Asana allows us to create templates that outline every step that goes into creating and sharing our blog posts. These templates totally save valuable brainpower for coming up with new ideas and crafting amazing articles to answer the most pressing problems of our clients. In addition to the tools, we also dive into what our keyword research looks like and why topic brainstorming is so high on our priority list. So if you’re wondering what someone else’s content planning process looks like, you’ll definitely love the insights shared in this episode. And you get to hear from Maria, our own in-house content strategist who’s built her own career by making sure our blog (and other word-needs!) are super high-quality and effective. Listen in!

Carrie Green is an amazing entrepreneur…and someone I’m so proud to be able to talk to on this week’s Off the Charts episode. Today, we’re talking all about what it looks like to be behind the scenes of building a successful membership site with over 4,000 members. So tune in! Carrie Green, founder of the Female Entrepreneur Association, shares a bit about her background and the path that took her from her first business in college to where she is today. Her words totally speak to my own experience and feelings of isolation, especially in the early years of running my own business. So if you’ve ever found yourself asking “Where are the people out there that are like me?” Carrie’s story definitely helps to pinpoint the solution. We also chat about the challenges of growing a unique business, the marketing strategies she used, and how feelings can really make or break your message. And in the final portion of the interview, Carrie dives into what prompted her to create her own membership site … and how one simple tip from her coach was key in a surplus of new membership signups. And since her membership site currently houses over four thousand members, her words are definitely worth Carrie already has an amazing legacy of brilliance and persistence, which is even more accessible now with the upcoming release of her brand new book She Means Business. (Check it out here!) More About Carrie Green Carrie Green is an amazing entrepreneur and the founder of the Female Entrepreneur Association, which has over 400,000 women involved from all over the world and she also has a private group members club of 4000 women entrepreneurs. Her new book She Means Business is currently available for pre-order.

Today, I wanted to talk about the 5 necessary business skills that I’ve discovered that can truly make or break your success as an entrepreneur. These hold true regardless of the type of business you own – whether you’re a freelancer, online business owner, or even have a physical business to tend to. Here’s a sneak peak at the 5 topics we cover in this episode – listen in to hear more explanation of why they’re so important, and how you can make it work for your business! #1: Writing As business owners, we’re definitely caught up entirely in the communication era! Emails, ads, tweets, product descriptions – we’re constantly faced with really important written communications. And each area of writing has a different impact on your business. Because of this, I’ve noticed that when my writing improves, my business improves. #2: Speaking In my opinion, speaking is just as important as writing, since it allows you to communicate in a whole new way. Sometimes, people even connect with your mission a bit better when they hear it spoken vs written out. One of the reasons this makes such a difference is because, when you’re speaking, people can really get to know you and your personality a bit better. #3: Listening At first, I thought this one would be “sales,” but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that listening is the foundational skill. If you’re able to listen to someone’s pain points, you’ll be able to figure out what they need help with. You’ll also be able to more quickly pinpoint the win-win situation that benefits your clients and your business. It’s a skill that a lot of us just don’t practice enough… #4: Hiring Hiring is key for a number of reasons, whether you’re hiring full time, part time, or looking for help with just a small project. But in order to really hire the right talent, you have to have those writing, speaking, and listening skills honed down pretty good. For example: you’ll first need to write an ad that attracts the right applicants. Then, you have to be to-the-point and engaging when you speak to them during the interviews. Finally, being able to listen allows you to understand what they’re really saying… not to mention helping you determine right away if they’ve been truthful on their resumes! #5: Adapting and Learning Ahh, this one can be so tough at times! But definitely as an entrepreneur, I’ve had to learn to go with the flow when things change unexpectedly. And this is true no matter where you are! Marketing is changing, your clients are changing, and even you are changing! Having a spirit of adaptability as one of your skill sets is key in preventing burnout and staying focused on your real goals. Now, all five of these skills are called upon daily to help in my own business… but they’re also lifelong skills that you can continue to improve and sharpen personally. I’d love to see what skills you feel strong in – and which you want to practice and hone in on a little more.

In this Off The Charts episode, I’m diving into the answer to a question I received the other day. Here’s the question: I’d love to know how you nourish your creative mojo? Not only regarding new products but also creating new posts and fb inspirations or newsletters consistently with love, joy and true value for your audience. 1. Prioritize quiet time. Balance how much consumption time and creation time you give yourself. If you do too much “consuming” in the form of other people’s material like books, movies, blog posts, podcasts… it can block your own creativity because it limits how much time you have to create. You don’t have to ignore everyone completely – but you do want to make enough time to reconnect with your own self and voice. 2. Re-connect with your why and your people. Whenever I feel like I don’t know what to write about, usually it’s because I’m on a deadline…but also because I don’t know why I’m working on this particular project, or who it’s going to help. Always take time to reconnect with your people to put yourself in their shoes. It’ll help you understand better what they need to hear from you. 3. Batch and automate. If you’ve ever been to my Facebook page, you’ll see that we don’t create new content every single day. We’re not reactive on a day-to-day basis…instead, let automation tools repurpose your content. This frees you up to do your content creation in longer chunks of time. 4. Let ideas come to you, and then use them before they expire. When I get an idea, usually it’s when I’m doing something other than work. But it’s important to capture the energy and essence of it before it goes away. When you get those inspirational nudges, it’s usually for a reason. So treat those ideas with respect and give them the attention they deserve right away, before you lose insight or enthusiasm to make it happen! 5. Take time off to rejuvenate. When I was starting my business, I used to work all the time…but what I realized is that never having any time “away” really affected my thinking and abilities. I had to truly dedicate myself to having time away from the business. Now, that means weekends, especially. I try to stay offline and use that time to rejuvenate myself and get some clarity. Enjoy Your Holiday Season! I hope you enjoyed this episode about how to nourish your creativity! – the Off The Charts Podcast will return again at the end of January!

In this Off the Charts episode, I’m spending some time talking about when (and why) to transition out of 1-1 coaching to a membership business model. The original question I received was this: When and how did you decide it was time to transition from a one-one coaching model to a membership/online model and what system did you put in place to make it possible? In my business, there was a time where I did both 1-1 coaching and consulting, and offered online courses. The first few online courses I created were priced affordably, below $100, so it wasn’t bringing in enough money to replace my services. I realized that I could offer a higher end online group coaching and training program when I started repeating the same advice to my consulting clients. In essence, I had created a repeatable system or process that I could teach. That’s when I designed the Launch It and Profit program, which was born out of working with clients on their launch strategies behind the scenes. I priced it high enough that I knew if I filled it, I could surpass how much I was earning from 1-1 clients. This helped me justify the time investment it would take to work on this project (it’s always longer than you think!) and I also knew that the people who signed up for program might still want to work with me 1-1. So I didn’t phase out my 1-1 services completely, I just added products to my business model. After running this course successfully a few times, I phased out the one-off consulting projects, and moved to a 9-month commitment for 1-1 clients at a higher price point. This stability gave me the space to do my best work with fewer clients, and also gave me the time to focus on list building. Once I got the list building “ball” rolling, I was able to sell more of my products and I eventually phased out the more 1-1 offerings in my business. It took several years to get there, and I still love working with people 1-1 occasionally because I love seeing the results people get, but it’s not the main revenue generator in my business. Essentially, the membership business model allows me to reach more people than I could possibly have done through the original 1-1 coaching model…and while every business is going to be different, it’s definitely an option that’s available for a lot of entrepreneurs.

In today’s episode, our guest Chris Ducker shares a pretty powerful lesson for all entrepreneurs … and one that he had to learn the hard way! Most of us entrepreneurs are pretty familiar with the persistent idea that, to be more successful, you have to do it all yourself. But this idea is probably one of the biggest misconceptions out there. ..And it’s a misconception that Chris Ducker definitely bought into wholeheartedly a few years back. In this interview, Chris shares his journey from an extreme micromanager (of a highly successful 7-figure business), and how it took a pretty drastic burnout to make him realize that some things had to change. That journey took him to back in 2009, he had an incredibly successful, 7-figure business and 130 employees working for him…yet was a constant and extreme micromanager. The subsequent burnout and recovery period led Chris to implement some pretty drastic – and necessary – changes in how he ran his business. He realized that, truly, as a successful entrepreneur, you have to stop doing everything yourself in order to achieve more. Learning how to step back (eventually becoming a virtual CEO) brought an entirely new measure of successful pursuits for Chris. It gave him the freedom to develop a personal brand all to himself, and take his pursuits up to the next level. Listen in to learn how Chris Ducker was able to become a master delegator, going from micromanaging 130 employees to now stepping back and having personal freedom once again. More About Chris Ducker Chris Ducker is a serial entrepreneur, keynote speaker and author of the bestseller, Virtual Freedom. Originally from the UK, Chris has lived in the Philippines for 15-years, where he hosts the annual Tropical Think Tank mastermind event and has founded several businesses, which combined house over 450 full-time employees. He is also a popular business blogger and podcaster at ChrisDucker.com and the founder of the personal branding business community, Youpreneur.com.

This episode is really for you if you find yourself getting distracted while working from home …especialy when you’re in the early stages of setting up your business. As a solopreneur who’s now home full time, you might notice quite a bit of a change in your working habits, especially if you’re used to working in an office or with your boss close by. Sometimes, it can really be a struggle to set your goals and actually stick to them. So in this episode I’m sharing three strategies I’ve learned to really hone in on the focus when working from home and how to avoid getting distracted. 1. When you’re just getting started, you need a clear path and to create structure for yourself. Goals really help us to stay focused on what we need to do, and help us to prioritize the path we take to get there. In fact, even if you’re not sure “what to work on next”, you can always reverse-engineer from your goals. Along the way, keep track of what worked and what didn’t. This will give you the ability to be more efficient and productive during future projects. 2. Working from home full time, by yourself, means that you need to be your own boss. One of the most beneficial parts of having a boss comes in the sense that you have some external motivation to get your projects done. When you’re working from home, don’t let yourself off the hook! It’s easy to get sucked into Netflix binge watching, doing household chores instead of important tasks… but you have to essentially act as your own boss. 3. Write down a list of your top 3 most important things to get done each day. Three is such a manageable number to work on so that you can better keep yourself focused and motivated on the right areas of your work life. I also re-write my focus list at the start of each week to make sure I’m working on my priorities. In short, the ability to stay focused on your work and not let yourself be distracted has a lot to do with self-discipline and manageable goals that can be achieved on a daily or weekly timeline. If you have another tip or trick that helps you stay focused when working from home, please share it below!

Welcome to the next episode in the Business and Babies series, where I’m joined with my husband and co-parent, Robin Li. In this episode, we’re talking all about scheduling your days post baby so that you can take care of your baby, yourself, and your business. Plan on Being Absent From The Business For At Least A Month Or Two In the first couple months after having our little girl Tegan, though, there wasn’t much of a pattern at all. But now that she’s about 6 months old,we’ve definitely got more of a rhythm or groove that makes it so much easier to balance baby, personal, and work needs. As far as planning goes, it’s realistic to decide that you’re not going to work at all during those first two months. While I was definitely away from the business for that period of time, Robin did try to maintain a presence with the team…even though a lack of sleep made it a total struggle. But then, when Tegan was 2 or 3 months old, she started sleeping through the night. And that’s really the time when you’re able to start maintaining a balance. Planning A Workday With A Baby Now that Tegan has more of a rhythm, we can plan out our workday a bit better. There are some things that have to take place during a certain time, like scheduled calls or interviews. Since we both stay at home, one of us will primarily focus on taking care of Tegan, while the other one spends more focused time with business matters. If your co-parent isn’t able to take over, having someone else there during your scheduled focus times is going to be somewhat necessary. That other person might be a nanny, a grandparent, or a neighbor – anyone who can pop in for a few hours to help with the baby when you really have to pay attention to business stuff. Because realistically, life after baby is all about being flexible and having your expectations calibrated. Take Advantage Of Your Focus Times We’re trained to believe that when we sit at a desk, we’re automatically productive. Realistically, we can only focus on a project for about 30 – 45 minutes. Even before the baby arrived, Robin would stand up after a project and walk outside to relax a little before he sat down for another focused work session. So even though our work time with Tegan isn’t as continuous, it’s actually ok. The periods of time when she’s sleeping is prime time for us to tap into that ultra-focused mode and be productive with work. Of course, time spent with baby doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive with work. In fact, there are a lot of work-related projects that you can do while taking care of your baby.  You can attend and facilitate meetings (our team members love seeing Tegan on the screen!), for example, or review projects. Some Days You Are Just Tired As an entrepreneur, we often put our business before ourselves…but as a parent, our baby becomes priority #1. This shift has required us to be very intentional about giving ourselves the permission to take the day off…from work AND baby! Sometimes one of us is feeling particularly drained and exhausted and we just need to take a step back from everything. Don’t feel bad if this happens to you! Give yourself permission to take time away, and communicate your needs with your spouse. Keep Yourself Healthy With Your Lifestyle     The other main points that Robin and I discuss in this episode is the need to really prioritize your own self-care with plenty of rest and nutrition. As entrepreneurs it can be really hard to start putting our own needs higher on the priority scale, but in the end it translates into increased productivity (whenever you can fit it in!), a better relationship with each other, and a much happier little one. And there’s absolutely nothing better than to be able to spend time with your baby and watch her grow and discover the world for the very first time.  

This interview with Brianna Borten is totally amazing; it’s all about peace, purpose, and getting stuff done in your business. Take time to listen in and discover how developing a balanced life can help you both personally and in your venture as an entrepreneur. Developing Your Business Organically One thing I really love about Briana’s story is that it demonstrates a slow and organic success. I think that, especially in the world of online business, we can get so caught up in stories that advertise a 6-month journey to 6-figure income. And suddenly, we find that we’ve lost sight of what it actually means to grow a business. But in Briana’s case, she “grew” from a single spa location to a holistic lifestyle approach to life. Her business encompasses the interior and exterior life of the human person. Through this journey, Briana has been able to dive deeper into her passion of helping others to live a more peaceful and balanced life. Focusing On Your Big “Why” One huge reminder that I got out of this interview was that it’s worth re-focusing yourself on the big, underlying why of your business. Briana shares that her why consists of this: “We really believe we can create a more peaceful world while creating more peaceful individuals.” She’s been able to see and connect with the impact that her business has on the world at large. This realization – that she can make a difference – gets her through the challenging times. On Working With A Spouse Briana and her husband Dr. Peter Borten are co-owners to their business…but it wasn’t always the case! Listen to this interview to hear how they’ve been able to make it work. She also shares why their unique arrangement has really helped them to grow in leaps and bounds. Learn More About The Well Life Briana Borten is such an incredible woman and entrepreneur! If you’re interested in learning more about what she does, take the time to pre-order her new book The Well Life. This book really hones in on her philosophy for living a peaceful, balanced life…and can help you re-discover the gift of your own life, too! Even with a healthy body and mind, life can still feel like a struggle. We may find ourselves stuck in discouraging circumstances, always reacting and keeping up, rather than shaping our life as we’d like it to be. A truly well life goes beyond usual measures of health. It includes qualities such as: Feeling light and at ease when we’re challenged Having plenty of healthy, loving relationships Using our gifts and doing meaningful work Enjoying ample income, laughter, and play In The Well Life, you’ll learn how to transform yourself and your life through healthy Structure, Sweetness and Space. Structure will allow you to manage your life and achieve your goals without feeling overwhelmed Sweetness will feed your body, mind and soul Space will give you inspiration, peace and the ability to connect and grow By balancing these elements, you will be able to let go of the stress and tension that gets in the way of being happy, authentic and fully present—living The Well Life. Preorder the book here.

This Off The Charts episode is all about membership sites! Our guest today is Mike Morrison, co-founder of The Membership Guys. I’m excited to introduce him to you because he is definitely an expert when it comes to membership sites, and is willing to share his insights on the subject. Top Strategies To Growing Your Membership Site As Mike notes, there isn’t really any single “one size fits all” strategy. All of the best and most successful membership sites have multi-track marketing. But he does share 3 things that typically work in any market niche & product offering: 1. Producing solid content marketing, in the form of a blog, podcast, video channel, etc. The key is to build trust and prove your expertise by providing consistent, high-quality value. 2. Setting up a free Facebook group that’s focused on your content. It’s a way to get people interested in your topic, and will naturally lead to fans who are excited about your service. 3. Using a membership program as an upsell and a downsell for your high-ticket product. If someone’s paying $1000 for your product, for example, it’s an easy upsell to add a mere $50 for the first month’s membership. But if that high-ticket item isn’t making the sale, you can always downsell to your membership program. When compared with a $1000 product, $50 a month looks pretty good! Don’t Rush Your Membership Site Idea One thing that Mike and I both see a lot in the membership world is that people tend to get all excited about the idea of a membership site… but the first real question they ask is: what plugin should I use? Which is totally the wrong route to take. Always validate your actual idea first! If you haven’t tested your idea properly, what often happens is that you invest a ton of time and effort into building the site itself…and then wonder why no one’s joining. It’s because the idea wasn’t a good one in the first place. Membership Sites Outside of The Business Industry The last thing Mike and I talk about in this episode is the fact that pretty much any industry can host a super successful membership site. So if you’re looking for some sweet ideas to kickstart your planning process, definitely take the time to kick back and listen to this episode. More About Mike Morrison As one half of The Membership Guys, Mike Morrison and his partner Callie Willows have spent years guiding the growth of membership websites, e-learning businesses and online communities, helping clients to attract hundreds of thousands of members and generate millions of dollars in revenue. Now they run the Member Site Academy, where they teach small business owners and entrepreneurs the skills and strategies they need to build and grow a successful membership website.