Old habits are hard to break.  And yet… some habits MUST be broken for 6-figure success.  The ones that keep you running in circles, rather than moving FORWARD are the ones that need to be shattered.

And thankfully, once you identify what is keeping you stuck and learn HOW to breakthrough them, your old limiting habits can be replaced with new, effective ones.

Read on to determine if any of these pesty habits are holding you back- and learn how YOU can ditch them.

#1- Perfectionism and Inflexibility.  You believe that everything must be “perfect” before you get yourself out there.  You want things to go “exactly as planned” or you are in a twit about it.  The problem is, perfection is impossible to achieve and in the entrepreneurial world, things rarely go “exactly as planned”.   If this is a habit of yours, you are setting yourself up for constant frustration.

Breakthrough: Stop being so hard on yourself.  Know that successful entrepreneurs zigzag their way to the top.  (Trust me on this one, my business is booming and I have taken routes I never would have envisioned even one year ago).  Be prepared to make mistakes, learn from them, and keep on going!  Be flexible and aim for progress over perfection. [Read more →]

After a banner year in 2006, Michelle Wie, the young female golf pro lost her edge.  She kept practicing but wasn’t improving.

According to the NY Times, she returned to superstar status after a friend, a neuroscience major at Duke, told her that she was too focused on her left brain (March 30, 2010).  She needed to integrate that technical, intellectual side with her more creative, intuitive right side of her brain.  She started drawing and painting magnificent pictures and before long, her golf game improved.

What is the takeaway for us business leaders and entrepreneurs?  Find your intuitive, creative side.  Perhaps it’s pure creativity- painting, cooking new dishes, playing piano and so on.  Or, perhaps, it’s a different form of soul time- walking in nature, doing yoga, getting massages, etc.  Whatever it is for you, don’t neglect it.  Honor it.  Make time for it.

I know that when I make my soul time and self-care a priority, my business and my happiness improves. Yours will too!

As an entrepreneurial spirit, you may have many business ideas swirling through your head. Creativity is the essence of successful entrepreneurial businesses but only if your niche market passes these three criteria:

• Your market has to WANT what you offer.
• Your market has to KNOW that they want what you offer.
• Your market has to be willing to PAY YOU WELL for what you offer.

You can test out your ideas with your market by surveying them. Make sure your niche market passes all three criteria. If it doesn’t, change your niche market OR change what you offer to better serve what they want.

This single tip can save you years of wasted energy!

I was running outside this morning amongst beautiful trees and quiet.  (Ideas always come to me when I run alone in nature- part of my “quiet soul time”).

As I was peering up into the huge trees, I thought about how they begin with seeds.  Very tiny seeds.  And I thought about how ALL businesses- even multi-million dollar businesses- begin with the seed of an idea.  With the right system in place, the seeds of ideas can grow into lucrative, soulful businesses.

The clients I work with who are successful in their businesses are not afraid to start small and grow.  They are able to look at their simple ideas with bigger vision and put the steps into place to get there.   They create the proper environment to nurture their seeds of ideas into something bigger.

And it’s pretty awesome to watch the transformation!

Savvy entrepreneurs don’t let the economic downturn stop them.  Instead, they seize the opportunity to learn, stretch themselves, and breakthrough barriers while others struggle.

Here are 3 ways to succeed, and even outperform, in this challenging economic climate:

1) Be an original, not a copy.

“Every man (and woman) is born an original, but sadly most die copies” ~Abraham Lincoln

A common mistake many business owners make is they try to mimic those who have preceded them or those around them.  This no longer works in the current business world.  You need to STAND OUT and SHINE in some area of your business, so your ideal clients are attracted to you over the competition. [Read more →]

Re-branding your business is often a part of savvy business growth.  As you and your business evolve, you may notice ripe opportunities for a new direction.   Consider re-branding when you see these scenarios:

#1- A business that is more aligned with your passion. Is there a direction that is more exciting to you?  Perhaps you work with many types of people, you find a smaller niche with whom you prefer to help.  Maybe there is a piece of your business that you really love and you’d be happier just focusing on and growing that smaller piece. [Read more →]