Why Vacations Just Don't Work
When you’re exhausted from working, overwhelmed, burnt-out, little visions come visiting. Visions of distant beaches, cabin hide-aways, foreign adventures. Vacation-land. And so, off you go, on vacation. And, when you come back, by noon on Monday you’re as exhausted as you were when you left. Did you take the wrong vacation? Or is there something […]
Why Dreaming Big Can Keep You Small
I remember when I was in another business, and as part of my support network we were dreaming up vision statements. I don’t exactly remember what I came up with, but something that included words like “huge,” “global,” “number one,” “best-known.” It was fun to dream that big for a little while. But… we’re only […]
Why Less Passion Is Better for Business
I just googled ‘Passion in Business’ and came up with 82,900,000 hits. And, according to the first several pages of hits, everyone says that you must have passion to succeed in business. ‘Fuel your passion’ is the watchword. Why this quest for passion? Of course, passion can feel wonderful, but do you really need it […]
How to Get Fear Off Your Business' Back
You want to know a secret? My clients and class participants all trust me to hold confidentiality with the most intimate details of their business, but I’m going to go public with one detail I know. I’m going to tell you the straight-up fact, the one that no one tells anyone else. They all get […]
Are Your Empty Actions Creating Empty Results?
Let me tell you the story of a hard-working business owner, who slowly wore himself and his business down to dust, and how he turned it around again. For those of you with a lot on your plates, I’ll tell it to you quick: Once upon a time, empty actions = empty results. Then, (dah-dah-dah-daaaaaah!) […]
Why You Should Never Discount Your Prices
It seems like such an easy fix: “25% off!” “Buy now and I’ll reduce the price by $100!” Discounting as a selling tactic seems as natural and easy as all get-out. Which is why you should never, ever discount. Discounting is a cancer in business, that eats at your heart, and at the heart of […]
How to Deal with "Freeloaders" in Your Business
‘Can you give me your (class/product/offer) for free, or reduced cost? I’m in a tough situation, and need the help.’ Have you ever had anyone ask you this in your business? If you haven’t, it’s either because you’re invisible, you’ve only been in business for five minutes, or because you look mean. 🙂 Years ago, […]
Why It's So Hard to Ask for Money and How to Make It Easier
“What’s wrong with me?” Someone in the marketing class was complaining to us, about himself. “My bank account is near zero, and I have twenty thousand dollars in accounts receivable- and all I need to do is send out the invoices.” “Why can’t I send them out? I feel out of integrity with myself.” In […]
Profitability: How to Get From "Just Enough" to "Extra."
During the last Heart of Money class someone was asking why scraping by is the norm, and it’s so hard to come by having extra money. It came up in the context of paying yourself first. I had told them that you have to pay yourself first, into a savings account or other account, before […]
When Business Planning Becomes Necessary
Recently we watched an exciting video “Bear and the Potty.” I think that was the title. Anyway, it was about a big brown bear teaching all these little animals, who were outgrowing their diapers, to use the potty. Of course, we were watching it as we were babysitting a four year-old for some friends. There […]