Is your business starting to feel stagnant?
Or is it at a standstill completely?
Are you just not as enthused about it as you used to be?
Or does it feel just OFF and you’re not quite sure why?
There are many reasons this could be happening to you (especially with how much has changed in online business) but some of the more simple things to look at are if your current look and feel, messaging, and model are aligned with who you are and the work you most want to do as well who you want to do it with and for.
Often times, a simple ‘refresh’ of what we’re doing, that’s more closely aligned with who we are today and the work that makes us light up inside, and being of service to just the right people, can move the energy and rekindle your enthusiasm.
Here are 3 simple ways you can hit the refresh button in your business today:
1. Look and Feel
When you look at your website, what does it feel like to you? Does it make you smile? Does it give off the energy you want it to? Does it work the way you want it to? Do you love it?
When you look at your marketing materials, ask yourself the same questions. If you’re not feeling it with your stuff, chances are that your target market isn’t either.
As you grow personally and as your business grows, your look and feel should change to reflect more accurately your current state of being.
Where in your business can you refresh the look and feel to more accurately reflect where you are in your business today?
2. Message
Think about the main message you deliver to your market. Is that message still accurate? Has it changed over the last year? Does it feel like it needs to change to more accurately reflect who you serve and how you serve them?
As you become more clear about what it is that you do and to whom you do it for and with, you’ll want to adjust your message accordingly.
For example, my message for many years was about mentoring women entrepreneurs to break through to 6 figures and beyond so they can live the life they ache for. And while that is still true, it became clearer to me what really matters is not the 6 figures necessarily, but what really matters to them personally – and that’s reflected in my new brand, Lively Biz.
A Lively Biz is playful, purposeful and profitable and part-time. It inspires you to live your life first. It allows you to enjoy this crazy entrepreneurial journey without making you crazy. And it enables you to make a lot more money.
3. Model
Take a mini-audit of your offerings. What parts of the work that you do do you love to delivery and in what way? What parts could you let go of and feel really great about?
For example, after two years of year-long coaching programs, I reduced them to 8-month programs. When I restarted a monthly membership, I changed from live teleclasses to pre-recorded ones. I now offer virtual retreats in addition to in-person retreats. All of these changes better suit my chosen lifestyle and resonate with my best clients as well.
What changes can you make in your business model to better serve you?
I am a big believer in making decisions and moving forward while course-correcting along the way.
And one of the ways I know my business grows is through making decisions and setting clear intentions.
So every summer while we’re at the lake, I review the last business year, releasing anything that no longer feels good and right for where I’m headed, and take with me the lessons and insights learned along the way while I set new intentions.
Then I get really practical. 😉
I decide what my intentions are for moving closer to my business and lifestyle goals and the big picture decisions that will help get me there. I share these in-depth with my private clients, so I thought it might be helpful to give you an idea of what I mean too.
For this business year (for me that’s September-May, with summer being allocated to travel, rest, and creative space), here’s what I’ll be focused on:
1. List Growth.
I’ll be leading a List-Building Mastery monthly training because I’m a firm believer based on my own experience and that of my clients that growing your list supports a thriving business. I’ll be focusing on specific strategies to growing my lists consistently each and every month, so that’s what I’ll be doing with private clients too.
2. Storybrand.
If you don’t know Don Miller’s work, I strongly suggest you check it out here. I’ve been working through this material this summer and it’s been very helpful for gaining so much clarity and definition around what I do and for whom that I’ll be using it with clients this year specifically as well. Don’s free information is a super-helpful place to start if you know you need help in clarifying your message (and don’t we all?).
3. Facebook Growth.
Because Facebook is my main social media channel for connecting with more of my audience, I’ll be working on growing my Facebook page and group and will be sharing what’s working for me, my before-and-after results, and more with private clients. (My personal not-so-secret weapon for all-things-Facebook? Rachel Miller – check her out here).
I see this as imperative to growing my brand-new Lively Biz Business Club membership, which leads me to…
4. Membership.
The Lively Biz Business Club launches this fall (private clients get membership for free, of course), so it’s going to be a lot of membership-focused stuff going forward! I’ve been a part of Stu McLaren’s Tribe for the past few years and it’s been invaluable for helping me create the foundation for what will ultimately be one of my two main revenue streams.
So now that I’ve covered the tangibles, a piece that’s even more important going forward is this…
5. Money Mindset
Yeah, that old clunker is still kicking around. With so much of my mental and emotional energy focused on intense family matters the last 18 months, much of the time I was just letting the flow take me and support me.
That said, without any effort on my part going forward from here, I’m not going to get where I most want to be!
My plan this summer was to focus some time on learning new business growth strategies and making a plan of action for the fall because that’s what I do and what I’m really good at.
However, I found myself reading three different books on money, re-opening a course I invested in over a year ago, and listening to inspirational audiobooks on my walks along the water (namely Rachel Hollis’ Girl, Wash Your Face and Tosha Silver’s Outrageous Openness – both excellent).
So, there you have it – a peek inside what’s happening here at Lively Biz.
I’d love to know what decisions you’re making and intentions you’re setting as well, so please share in the comments. 🙂
Good morning from the lake!
The sun has broken through after the storms overnight… there’s so much beauty and peace at this time of day…
Even so, I’m only compelled to get up with the birds when we’re at the lake. 😉
But I do treasure these early mornings at the water, with my journal, sometimes a book, oftentimes just my thoughts – and my coffee. 😉
It usually takes me a couple of weeks to fully decompress and relax into the summer’s ease… but it’s taking quite a bit longer this summer.
The last year has been difficult personally, and I’m just now feeling as though I’m getting my feet back under me. Being at the lake always helps to heal my spirit and for that, I am so grateful.
People often tell us how lucky we are to spend the whole summer at the lake – but I always tell them, it’s not luck. It was a decision to do so a long time ago and then taking action to make it happen.
The first summer we were here for 2 weeks, and now we’re here for almost 3 months. We just kept adding weeks every year until we were staying from Father’s Day to Labor Day.
But it all started with a decision. I knew what I wanted and I decided to make it happen. And this is our 13th summer doing so.
What decision could you make in your life or your business that would bring you more peace, joy, ease, freedom, happiness, laughter, wisdom, abundance?
I’d love to know – please share with me below.
Until next time…
Cheers,
~ A
During a recent conversation with my husband James about business and life, this phrase dropped into my mind: Mediocre Middle
What’s the Mediocre Middle?
At my live event, I talk about the Comfortable Minimum (which I’ll write about in a future post).
Mediocre Middle struck me as a place where it’s not comfortable but it’s sustainable with very little effort.
It’s not extraordinary, but ordinary.
It’s vanilla versus wild berry walnut with salted caramel drizzle.
In Latin, mediocris is a compound of the adjective medius, “half” or “in the middle,” and ocris, “rugged mountain.”
Something that is mediocre is only midway up a mountain or rises up to only half a mountain’s height—the thing goes just halfway to the highest point of excellence.
When we don’t have a high level of enthusiasm for what we do, or we lose our enthusiasm for our business, we get stuck at or start sliding down into the Mediocre Middle.
And, my friend, it’s a slippery, slippery slope.
If this is resonating, here’s your 4-step protocol for getting out of the Mediocre Middle.
Step 1: Identify what’s going on in your business that you don’t absolutely love or enjoy
In the spirit of Marie Kondo’s decluttering advice, first, make a list of all the offers and income streams and activities, etc. you do in your business.
For each one, ask yourself if it sparks joy, and if it doesn’t, thank it for its service and delete or delegate it immediately.
For example, if running your online course no longer brings you joy, it’s time to let it go and make space for something that does.
Or if populating your social media platforms with content doesn’t float your boat, delegate it to a capable assistant.
Step 2: Organize and prioritize what remains
What’s left should only be the things you truly enjoy offering, leading or doing.
Organize and prioritize them into your newly-opened space, both physically in your office, on your computer, and on your calendar.
Just a note here: Ideally, there should be no ‘sometimes’ or ‘maybes’ on this list. If your business is in transition from one business model to another, there may be some ‘not yet’ items on your list to let go of, so for those, commit to an exit plan and a date when you plan to be done with them for sure.
Step 3: Realign your marketing message
Now that you’ve pruned your business, it’s time to take a close look at your marketing message and make sure that it still aligns with what you offer to the world and to whom you offer it to.
Part of being in the Mediocre Middle is having a marketing message that’s only ‘half-way up the mountain’.
Make your message more succinct, more impactful and more specific to your market, and then refresh or create a new opt-in to further lift you to the summit.
Step 4: Take a stand and share it often
One of the fastest ways to move from the ordinary to the extraordinary is to take a stand for your message and your market and to speak publicly often about it.
You don’t need to shout it from the rooftops. Even quiet stands can have great impact. The point is to have one.
Ask yourself: What do you believe it? What are your values? What do you know to be true? What would you go to the mat defending? What’s your philosophy as it pertains to your business, your life, even your purpose on this planet?
Once you answer those questions for yourself, start sharing more about your answers with your market.
What will happen is that more of your perfect people will start finding and connecting with you, and your audience will grow much more easily.
Truth-telling time: Are you in the Mediocre Middle?
If you are, what are you willing to do to move out of mediocrity today?
I’m generally a quick decision-maker and fast implementor.
But something James said to me recently really struck me. And reminded me instantly of the Rule of 3* (at least my interpretation of it).
He was good-naturedly teasing me about my tendency to procrastinate.
As soon as he said that, my first thought was about launching the Lively Biz Business Club. Or more accurately, my lack of launching it.
It’s 90% ready to go. What needs to be completed before opening the doors is easy and can be done within a couple of days.
So… why haven’t I opened it yet?
I lamented about this to my mastermind group. They reminded me that I’m still grieving. I showed the sales page and membership site to a private client as an example for her own, and she told me with certainty that I was going to open it in the fall. When I talked to James about it, he said, “It’s hard to put your heart into something when your heart’s breaking.”
Oy.
And in that moment, I knew what I needed to do. I need more time and space to heal. I need more time and space to be fully present for this program. I need the summer, I need the lake, I need to breathe in so I can breathe out come the fall.
So I’m honoring that, knowing that it is the best decision, for me and for you. What a release that is.
Here are three things that helped me get from feeling off about launching this new program to feeling really excited and good about it again:
1. Trust that things are unfolding as they’re meant to
I know that when I don’t move forward with something, there’s a reason. I don’t usually know the reason at the time, but I do trust that there is a reason that in some way is supporting my best and highest good.
That doesn’t mean it’s easy to sit in that place of unknowing. When it’s really hard, I have to remind myself of all the other times I’ve been in limbo and how it always works out. Always.
2. *Listen to the whispers
I trust my own intuition AND I tend to pay far more attention when the “whispers” show up in 3’s. When my mastermind group offered insight on giving myself more time and space, I listened. When my private client said to wait until the fall, I listened. When James understood my heart and expressed it so succinctly, I listened. And then I made a new plan.
3. Make a new plan
Once I decided that I wasn’t going to launch the membership before the summer, that cleared my mind and my desk so I could figure out what I was going to do instead, which took about 10 minutes. That alone affirmed this was the right decision.
Where in your business (or your life) are you not moving forward? Are you open to hearing the whispers to guide you to making a different decision?
How often do you find yourself in this scenario?
It’s Monday morning and you’re all geared up for a productive week ahead. You’ve got your to-do list (massive as it is) at the ready and you sit down at your desk to start checking things off.
As you begin to read down your list, you start to feel something in your gut. It’s not a physical pain necessarily, just a feeling of something heavy starting to grow. You ignore it and continue reading your list, making stars next to the things that seem to be the most important to get done that day.
But the more you do this, the heavier that feeling gets, until it starts creeping up to your shoulders and finally settles in your head. All that enthusiasm you had when you first sat down is gone and the only thing you feel now is utter and complete overwhelm.
Sound familiar? I’ve been there, too, so I understand.
And it’s not that all the tasks on your list aren’t wonderful and/or doable. There are simply too many of them – and they all seem important right now – to expect that you can accomplish them all in the hours you have to work in any single day.
So what happens? You do a little of this, a little of that, and you really never complete a single project!
But you don’t have to let another week pass without really accomplishing anything. Simply create a Priority Card.
A Priority Card will help you organize all your tasks in a way that will SHOW you every day what you should focus on.
There are a lot of details that will threaten to take your mind off your priorities (this is where a virtual assistant can be of immense value), but those details are not necessarily what will move you forward in your business. To do that, you need to consistently focus on completing the projects that will move your business ahead big-time.
You can create a system for helping you focus on your priorities in a number of ways, but I’m going to give you mine. I only work about 15 hours a week on my business, so adjust your own plan accordingly.
At the beginning of each week, I choose 3 projects with looming deadlines (self-imposed as they may be) from my master task list (which really is so massive that it has its own notebook).
For example, at the moment, I am working on a sales page, content for a program, and a new offer.
On a colored index card, I write down those projects and prop the card in a standing clip holder, right in front of my computer screen. When I start to feel that sense of overwhelm, or when I find myself getting distracted by new ideas or other tasks (all of which seem important), I remind myself to look at my Priority Card and focus only on what’s written there.
Once I started using my Priority Card, my own business growth leapt forward ten times faster than when I was doing a little of this and a little of that, working on a dozen things, but taking much too long to actually complete just one project.
Know you won’t be able to stick to this process 100% of the time, but even 80% will help you make dramatic strides in your business growth. You’ll actually finish the projects you set out to do, and you’ll not only feel great about doing so, you’ll be inspired to do it again, and again, and again. Once you make this shift, you’ve learned the secret to wiping out overwhelm for yourself and your business!
Want to know more of my best tips for beating overwhelm and simplifying everything in your business so it’s less stressful and much more fun?
Be sure to check out my Lively Biz Business Club – get on the wait list here.
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