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.

#2- Who am I to Shine? Deep down, you question whether being in the spotlight or standing out from the crowd is really for you.  This core belief that you aren’t “good enough” usually stems from your past.  Listen to me on this, it is not real and it’s not an accurate assessment of your talents and abilities.

Breakthrough: We are all brilliant in some ways- including YOU!  You don’t serve others by playing small.  You serve others by connecting with your brilliance and shining it on the world.  Hire a mentor coach who can teach you the tools to really step up and earn a healthy income serving others with your innate talents.  As you take baby steps in that direction, you will learn through experience that radiating your brilliance is a natural extension of being yourself.

#3- Avoiding FOCUS. You are constantly enrolling in new workshops, signing up for different programs or buying the latest business or self-improvement book.  You love to learn and you constantly jump from workshop to workshop, mentor to mentor, method to method.  However, unless you are running a business with the level of success you want, you may be hiding in “information overload” as way to avoid real success.  This is an expensive and ineffective habit.

Breakthrough: Use workshops and events to learn specific techniques that you don’t already know and to network.  Know that they supplement your learning, but do not give you everything you need.  For real business success, invest in ONE mentor who is where you want to be, and whose values you respect, and follow his/her methods and plans for success.

Incorporate these tips to ditch those habits that are holding you back and breakthrough to healthier, more effective habits and watch as your success soars!

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!

I can tell you that I saw big leaps in my income when I hired someone to assist with what drains my energy at home AND in my business. I now employ an assistant to drive my kids, grocery shop (love this one!), do laundry, pay bills, and wash our cars. For my business, I employ an experienced virtual assistant, web assistant, audio assistant, and bookkeeper.

You can only focus on what YOU love and do best if you delegate the smaller pieces to others. Lots of entrepreneurs get stuck with trying to do it all and it’s a shame because nobody can “do it all” and remain happy and energized.

If you are thinking that you can’t hire more help- you are stuck in the wrong mindset. Once you step up and delegate the smaller stuff, and the activities you dislike, you ENERGIZE yourself to focus on “the big stuff”. And, it’s “the big stuff” that pulls you forward!

So, rather than set yourself up for failure- hire MORE than you think you need and use that extra time to GROW your business and take great care of yourself.

Remember, business growth, self-care and balance are inter-related if you want to run a profitable, soul-inspired business and be happy. Get more help with energy drains at home. Focus your attention on the BIG parts of your business that you enjoy, delegate the rest, and watch your business, money flow, and happiness expand.

Today’s intern is a far cry from the clueless 18 year old college student looking to waste time over summer vacation.  Never before have there been so many qualified people looking to build their resume as a way to improve their chances of landing a paid job.

Many people who have a college degree, or are in the midst of completing one, already have some valuable work experience, and are eager to build their resumes.   They will hit the ground running and can be a tremendous asset to your business.

Several sites exist that match businesses and interns.  USAIntern.com, Internships.com and CareerRookie.com are just a few of the rapidly growing companies that assist with placing interns.  You can also contact your local college or university’s career placement office for help with finding an intern.

Here are top tips to consider:

• Set clear start and end dates

• Schedule work hours

• Clarify expectations and challenge them

• Meet regularly to communicate about challenges and progress

Consider hiring them long-term at the end of their internship or write them a letter recommendation

If you follow these tips, an intern may just be the boost you need.

• 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!

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!

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.

How can you stand out?  Highlight your unique experiences?  Create a “premiere signature system”?  Develop more personalized service?  Offer a one-of-a-kind package? Work with your business coach to create your distinction and become an original.

2) Seize new opportunities.  Recessions may slow spending habits, but it doesn’t stop them.  Needs may be altered, but they still exist.  What do people want today and how can you meet that need?

As an example, business coaches are realizing that many others in the coaching world are saturated with information on how to grow their business.  However, opportunities abound in other untapped industries that are really struggling with how to accelerate their business.   My top business coach clients are finding NEW clients in NEW niches.

3) Flex your flexibility muscles. Too many entrepreneurs want a magic ball to gaze into and …presto… the instant answers to rich success!  It doesn’t work that way.  Don’t let yourself get stuck with that self-sabotaging mindset.

Instead, be willing to try out innovative ideas, test the results, and then evaluate whether you should tweak the ideas, continue the ideas as they are, or try out something else.

Stop following the herd.  By becoming an original, seizing new opportunities, and remaining flexible, you position yourself to SUCCEED, even in a struggling economy.

#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.

#2- A business that adds more value to your clients. Does your business really add tremendous value to your clients?  Is there a way to add MORE?  If so, a re-design or re-brand might be necessary.

To give you a quick example, in my high-level coaching business, I’ve found that my clients perform at their best when they receive structured, high-level training and are in SMALL masterminds with people who are in OTHER businesses.  It’s the hybrid of coaches, entrepreneurs and small business owners that has the biggest impact.

The foundation of our new business, Excelerated Success ™ is built on these principles. A new brand for us, BETTER results for our clients.

#3- A business that will be more financially successful. Sometimes re-branding is necessary to help you make more money.  Don’t discount this one as unimportant-  money helps you pay your bills,  live your values, and enjoy your freedom.  As long as your business is honest, helps others, and is something you care about, if you see an opportunity to make more money with a re-brand, by all means, go there!

Depending on the degree of re-branding, it can be quite time consuming.  However, if it takes you in a direction that is more aligned with your passion, adds more value for you clients, or makes you more money, then it is time well spent.

Learning what you need to let go of in life is essential not only to your business, but to your happiness and financial success as well.

Here are some areas where you might need to “let go” in order to boldly expand your income.

#1) Let go of allowing “mistakes” to defeat you.

Things happen for a reason. It’s our job to take a step back, learn the lesson and incorporate what we’ve learned. Mistakes are an opportunity for growth.

In essence, the “mistakes” that we briefly let bother us usually turn into wonderful opportunities.

#2) Let go of allowing fear to stop you in your tracks.

We ALL have fears and doubts. They take us to a crossroads where we can either hold ourselves back or courageously push through our fear and enjoy rich success on the other side.

When you feel fear and doubt, ask yourself- What do I need to learn from my past experiences? Then, incorporate those lessons, ask your coach to help you manage your fears, and keep marching forward. A breakthrough is just around the corner!

#3) Let go of saying yes all the time.

You MUST become masterful at saying “NO” if you want a 6-figure, or high 6-figure business. Saying yes to all your client’s requests or to solving friends or families’ problems can distract you from the bigger picture. Agreeing to attend too many business functions or social engagements can drain your energy and sabotage your business.

Stay focused on your highest priorities, including your business goals, and get comfortable saying NO!

#4) Let go of thinking you can powerfully grow your business without investing in a masterful coach.

Jumping around to different workshops and events can provide some excellent information. But it does NOT help you masterfully align your business and add 6-figures to your income.

In addition to cutting-edge information, you need high-level coaching to help you manage your fears and overcome the inevitable obstacles that arise. You need to invest in a coach to help you pinpoint and implement what is missing in your business – whether it is designing your programs and services, creating a signature system, implementing effective marketing, launching your offerings, crafting your Bold 12-Month Action Plan… OR the daunting task of coordinating all of these essential components.

Let go of thinking you can do it all on your own- by piecemealing together your learning. Rather, invest in ONE masterful coach who shares your values and is where you want to be. This is the most effective way to powerfully PULL yourself forward.

Does this sound familiar?

If you want 6-figure, and multi 6-figure success, you MUST clearly integrate and express your UNIQUE expertise. You have to KNOW your walk, and then walk it, before you talk it!

Here is a simple exercise to launch into 6-figure expert status- quickly:

1) Think about your ideal client. Describe every detail you can about him or her- age range, personality, work, core challenges in business and in life- everything you can muster up.

2) Why should your ideal client hire YOU to help them? In what ways do you excel in helping that client? Think about what you do well AND you enjoy. Describe.

3) Now, picture that ideal client after working with you for 6 months to one year. How is s/he different? How has s/he been transformed? What is better now for him/her? Describe in detail.

4) What would that client tell you is the BIGGEST change for them in their life or business- as a result of working with you?

Your answers to these questions will help you hone in on your expertise. And when discover your UNIQUE expertise, and begin to walk YOUR walk, your talk must follow- loud and clear.

The external side of your marketing- what potential clients and customers see- is NOT the time to be shy. It’s the time to SHINE and SHARE the best of what you can offer your clients. Be sure that your authentic expertise is splashed on your website, blogs, and in all of your marketing.