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Turn Up the Volume!

August 17, 2010

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Summer can be a tough time to make progress on our goals.

 

Summer vacations mean we are often travelling, schedules are inconsistent, and our attention is more naturally focused on things other than goals.   Don’t get me wrong – it is definitely important (critical!) to take these breaks… but we still must remember  to return to our goals.   

We have a little more than one quarter of the year remaining, so we really need to energetically pick up speed so we can reach the goals we set for 2010.  Or to put it another way, if your goals were a sound system, let’s get back up to surround sound, then turn up the volume for WILD success!   

Here are some tips to help you “dial it up” to ACHIEVE  your goals: 

  • Change your exercise routine:  If you are in a rut with your exercise, or not exercising at all, your energy may be low.  Try changing it up a little to bring up your energy levels and give you more excitement toward achieving your goals.  The body/mind connection is important.
  •  Take a realistic inventory of your goals and adjust (or not) accordingly:  Do you have enough time left in the year to achieve each goal?  Are each of your goals still important toward making your vision a reality?  If so, fantastic – keep moving forward!  If not, consider revising goals to make them achievable this year and in line with your current vision.   Just make sure your revised goals keep you stretching to accomplish what will make you proud and successful! 
  • Post your written goals where you can see them each day:      If you stop noticing your goals after a while, move them to a different spot whWhen we keep our goals visible, it is easier to remember what we are working towards.ere they will catch your attention again. 
  • Read your vision story every Monday morning:  Our vision story is meant to be a motivating tool, not just something we write then put away.  Many Big Fish (myself included!) report getting energized by reading their vision story because it reminds them of the exciting big picture of their future.   When our vision is fresh in our minds, each goal feels more meaningful and reachable. 
  • Tell someone else your goals:  Accountability is an amazing motivator – just ask any Big Fish!   Sharing our goals with someone else makes it a lot harder to ignore those “stretch” goals, and helps hold our “feet to the fire.”   It also gives us someone else to celebrate with when we reach each goal! 
  • Sign up for a Big Fish programIf you are struggling to set and reach your goals each year, you might need the extra learning, support, accountability, and energy you can get from the Big Fish programs.  Plan to attend the annual goal-setting teleclass in December, and read about the available Big Fish programs to see which one might fit you best for next year.    We are here to help!

Are you ready to turn up the volume??? 

Let us know in a comment below! 

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Live Each Day From Your Vision

July 13, 2010

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Like others of you, I enjoyed and appreciated last week’s blog post on goals, written by our regular guest-blogger Starla J. King.  We all need those reminders (or as Beth said in her comment, “a kick in the rear”) to review and reset our goals!

It is also absolutely necessary to be clear about our vision and that it too is up to date.  Without a clear vision, our goals can quickly become overwhelming out-of- control To Do lists.

From Entrepreneur to Big Fish by Lorin Beller BlakeThe second principle of my 7 Principles to Wild Success is Live each day from your vision.  

We often think of a vision as something that is only useful for the future, not for today, but a vision is actually about this moment  It is about today and how we choose to live today! Today turns into tomorrow.  Tomorrow is our future.  

Therefore, it is critical that we live today in a way that will enable us to make tomorrow’s vision a reality.

When was the last time you read your vision story?   Do you have a vision story?  If you need help creating your vision (it’s not too late!) read my earlier blog post about creating a clear vision

Another great way to get (and stay) clear on your vision is to create a collage of your vision.  This is a fun way to get an emotional and practical read on what you are drawn to, what you want (aka, your vision!) . 

Go through magazines and cut out pictures representing:

  • things you want to do (travel, projects, accomplishments, adventures, etc)
  • things you want to have
  • the number of clients you want, or number of products you want to sell
  • the number of employees you want
  • where you want to be living
  • etc.

photo by Tory Johnson

Then put these pictures together on a poster board and hang it where you can see it every day.

If you already have a vision collage, take some time this week to update it – add some more photos and remove any that no longer speak to you or carry excitement for you. 

As you review your goals, (see last weeks blog post),  keep looking at your vision collage.  Does each goal actually get you closer to your vision?  If so, fantastic!  If not, consider changing or removing that goal.  Working towards goals that do not further your vision is wasted effort!

Each day, then, we need to ask ourselves, “Is what I am doing today, this moment, moving me toward my vision?” 

Let us know what you do to help you live each day from your vision!

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Best Practices for Building & Leading Tribes

June 22, 2010

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Seth Godin, TribesIn a recent blog post, I shared some important ideas about tribes based on Seth Godin’s must-read book, “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us.” 

This week, I will add some practical tactics so you can get started right away with building and leading your own tribes.  I will use one of my tribes, Big Fish Nation, as an example. 

Last week, I had a wonderful teleconference with one of the Big Fish “sub-tribes,” the Mastery group, as we discussed our favorite parts of Godin’s book (hard to narrow down!), then shared our own tribe-building best practices.  This is what I love about spending time with my tribe members…  I always learn and get motivated just by being in the same space with them (virtually or face-to-face)! 

It is important that we share information and inspiration across tribes, so here are some of my (our!) tribe’s  learnings from last week’s teleconference:      

BEST PRACTICES* for Leading & Building Tribes:

  • Create and Communicate a Clear Vision:  If you don’t know where you’re going, your tribe won’t either.  Create your vision of, as Godin says, “something that could happen but hasn’t (yet),” and communicate it regularly to your tribe.  Then have faith in the vision.   Believe it. Plan for it. Lead to it!
  • Set the Beat:  Lead by example…  be organized, meet your deadlines, speak and act with integrity, be accountable, turn work around quickly and professionally, show your enjoyment, etc. Show your tribe how to reach the vision! 
  • Lean In:  Commit to the vision and “lean into it” with passion, confidence and fearlessness.  We don’t always need to plunge forward (although sometimes that’s how we get started!), and a steady forward-leaning attitude keeps us moving ahead and thinking ahead. 
  • Lean Back:  Each tribe also needs followers.  Sometimes the most effective thing a tribe leader can do is to lean back and allow someone else to lead.  Each tribe member has different strengths and all are needed to make the vision a reality.  Just remember to follow eagerly and continue “leaning in”!
  • Just Do It:  Godin says, “The largest enemy of change and leadership isn’t a ‘no.’  It’s a ‘not yet.’”  If you sense that NOW could be the time for you and/or your tribe to act, then JUST DO IT.   Don’t miss your opportunity. 

These are just a few of the ways we can build and lead our own tribes.  

What are some of your Best Practices?

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*A special thank you to Big Fish tribe members Gail Benmosche, Peg Calvario, Amy Cotter, Amy Hart, Starla King, Sonya Mittleman, Andrea Russo,  and PJ Sparks for these Best Practices!

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Support Works! Julia Rhodes of KleenSlate Concepts

May 18, 2010

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“At the end on the day, it’s about the relationships.”
- Julia Rhodes, owner of KleenSlate Concepts

In last week’s blog post, I talked about the global similarities of successful business women, and one of those is a strong support system. 

I got an exciting email a couple weeks ago from a wonderful Big Fish, Julia Rhodes, owner of KleenSlate Concepts.  She was celebrating the news that she had been selected as the Central California 2010 Small Business Person of the Year!  (Click here to see the full Press Release on Julia’s blog).

Julia founded KleenSlate Concepts in 2001 without even having a product — just with the idea for a product to solve the common problem of “the missing white board eraser” (click here to read more about that). 

Yet now, less than 8 years later, KleenSlate Concepts is a highly successful international product development company!

What was it that made Julia’s company so successful?

In her announcement email, she says that her success is in no small part due to the support that I have received from all of you.”   So I asked her to share more about that for this blog post.  

Julia explained that:

 “Having a support team is essential!  As I built my business,  so I built my relationships.

From day one I sought out women role models- in both business and  inventing.  It was the women that opened the doors and helped make things happen.

Anne-Marie Richards and Shari Francis from Office Depot  walked me through the intricacies of doing business with corporate America and mass market distribution. What I learned from them I have been able to use in all my business dealings. 

Diane McClelland from WBENC affiliate Astra  made sure I received the help I needed when seeking certification and encouraged me to sit on boards and  give back to other women in business.

Lorin Beller Blake, founder of  Big Fish Nation, reached out and encouraged me to dream big, create a vision and them take bold actions in my life! 

Now I show up, participate and give back- since that is what I learned along the way. I take my female role models with me wherever I go and lend a hand when I can. 

At the end on the day, it’s about the relationships.”

Whether our business is Dry-Erase Paddles or financial consulting or something completely different, the importance of relationships is exactly the same. 

Every business owner needs a strong support system, and we can all learn from Julia’s example of building a business through building relationships!

Thank you, Julia! 

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Click here to see the full Press Release on Julia’s blog

Click here for KleenSlate Concepts website

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Big Fish eStory: Emily Knudson

April 20, 2010

Filed under: Big Fish eStory, Thought Leader, Women Leadership, success, vision — Lorin Beller Blake @ 10:22 am

It is time to feature another amazing women business leader….

 

Emily Knudson
Owner of: Empowered Fitness
Big Fish Case Study

 

 

What Kind of Business: Personal Training Studio located near Charlotte, NC

Before Big Fish, I was a business owner that was an expert in fitness but felt I was not the best, most savvy, business woman. I was all about my work. I have a family but I was not spending quality time with them. My work phone was forwarded to my cell phone after work every night and I took the calls each time the phone rang. I was ready for help and direction in my life and business. I was ready for a whole new level of income and lifestyle.

What is different about me as a leader because of being a Big Fish during the past year:
1. Core Corporate Values made a huge difference in how we assess and hire staff.
2. Developing written protocols and documentation for staff and functioning of the studio allowed the business to function better without me allowing me to now own a more sustainable business.
3. The goal wheel has helped me have higher functioning intentions. I go about things in a much more intentional manner making life easier and more fun.
4. I feel much more balanced and connected to family not because I am at the studio less really but more because I know my values, know my priorities and have a clear vision of what I am creating both as a mom, wife and a business owner.
5. As a leader, I spread my leadership skills out into the community this past year (via NAWBO and a local Business Advocacy Group of which I started). I also have inspired my staff to step into a bigger leadership role at the studio which has them take more responsibility. I am definitely a much more confident leader in every aspect of my life.
6. We assessed and added many more profitable services and cut out unprofitable services.
7. I have expanded and integrated as a woman, a person, and a business owner. I love the fact that Big Fish Nation is a goal oriented program. I thrive in that setting.

Bottom-line Impact:

• In 2009 compared with 2008, we grew the business 555.8% in net income!
• 2010 first quarter compared to 2009 first quarter, we increased our net income 32.1% and 42.9% better in gross profit margin also
• Last year we served a max of 32 clients at any one time, this year current clients served thus far is 54 and it is only April!

If you would like to speak with me, Emily Knudson, about the Big Fish Program, you can reach me at: emily@empoweredfitness.net or 980.621.2060 or check us out at: www.empoweredfitness.net

Don’t you just love great stories about real women that inspire?

I do!  Make it a terrific day.

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Spring Cleaning Your Goals

April 13, 2010

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For many of us, spring is a time of high energy and excitement. Longer daylight and beautiful weather keeps us going for more hours, and we quickly fill our days with tasks and activities.

Our work lives tend to follow a similar pattern. Our To Do lists grow, and we multi-task even more until we start to wonder how long we can keep up this high energy.

This is a time when our goals are even more important than ever. Our goals help us focus our energy on our priorities at those times when we are tempted to try to pay attention to everything at once.

Big Fish Goals Wheel

Spring energy and the end of first quarter make now a perfect time to check in with your goals (you did set them in January, right? See recent blog posts  re: goal-setting).

Take a few minutes right now with your written 2010 goals, asking the following questions for each goal:

  1. Am I still excited about this goal?
  2. Does this goal motivate me to action?
  3. Does this goal still fit with my current vision? (see recent blog posts re: vision)

If your answer to any of those questions is “no” or “I’m not sure,” consider revising the goal. And if you aren’t able to come up with a revision that makes the goal exciting and motivational to you, consider simply removing that goal. As our lives and businesses change, it’s important that we also allow our goals to change.

As Earl Nightingale, motivational writer, says, “The more intensely we feel about an idea or a goal, the more assuredly the idea, buried deep in our subconscious, will direct us along the path to its fulfillment.”

Goals are not supposed to be something we struggle through just so we can check them off our To Do lists. Goals are intended to invigorate us in ways that move us and our businesses forward by taking BOLD ACTIONS and creating HUGE SUCCESS.

Today is the perfect day for some “spring goal cleaning” — why wait??

 

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Where Are Your Money-making Energies?

February 9, 2010

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[text and photos by Starla J. King, Big Fish 2009-10] 

My brother uses this wonderful term called “awfulizing – where you take a scenario and visualize something bad turning into something very bad which turns into something terribly bad which of course ends (in your mind) in utter catastrophe.   

Then there’s the other end of the spectrum – where you think about an exciting possibility, start getting wonderful ideas, then everything seems possible and suddenly amazing opportunities present themselves.   

Either scenario is what happens when we give energy to that which we want to grow – a concept important enough to be the foundational principle of the 7 Big Fish Principles to Wild Success.

We  women entrepreneurs tend to have high energy, energy that makes things happen.  And it’s up to us to decide how to use that energy to move our lives and our businesses forward in positive ways.   That’s where our visions come in.

Our vision is the perfect guide for channeling our energy toward that which we want to grow.  (make sure you read Lorin’s recent blog for more information on creating your own written vision story).

Quick example:

I was talking with my (Big Fish) friend Rebecca yesterday, and it went something like this , “You know, this week I’ve gotten a web design/development company for our new business (yes, new biz #2!), I’ve updated and sent out about 20 repeat-client contracts for our gardening business and I’ve published three blog entries, but I haven’t brought in much money…what the h*** have I been doing all week?!??”

We both immediately started laughing… realizing how mis-directed my energy was!  All those significant forward-moving milestones, yet the bulk of my energy has been focused on not making money.  (You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?)

So I turned to my vision story.  To re-feel that inspired, hopeful, forward-moving, everything-is-possible energy.  To remind myself that I’m an entrepreneur so I can choose where to put my energies.

Shortly thereafter I got an email from Rebecca, connecting me with people who will be key in the vision of my new business. 

And after that I got an email from my brother (yes, the one who awfulizes) speaking to the heart and soul of my new business (one he’s not even aware of).  And this morning he used the words “Let this interchange be our mutual vision statement for some of our mutual journeying ahead.”   

Talk about “that which we want to grow”!!

Take some time to think about it – where are your energies?

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Clear Vision

February 2, 2010

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“We [my family] all listen to ourselves as we do each other.  We have adventurous human experiences and our moments are filled with many spiritual experiences each day.  Life is decadent yet simple…”  

These words are part of my vision story, the description of my life 10 years from now.

As you can see, this vision story is not just about what I will have accomplished in my business by then (although it does include that), it’s also about what my relationships and my life will be like.  

*Having a clear vision is the key ingredient to a successful business.* 

You see, (pun intended) a vision gives you something to look toward… and look forward to.  It helps you “see” the path you need to take to meet your goals and get the results you pictured.

Coming up with your vision is a creative process, unique to YOU because we all have different definitions of success.  You get to decide where you want your life to be in 10 years!   

Don’t worry right now about how you’ll get there (that comes later), just focus on what the “there” will be and how the “there” will feel.  Step into your WILDLY SUCCESSFUL  life and describe it in your vision story.  

It’s important to remember that rarely is success JUST about money.   Writing your vision story is your chance to discover other areas of your life to include in your definition of success.  For example, consider what you want from/for:

  • Your health
  • Your relationships:  with yourself, your significant other, friends and family
  • Your recreation/play time
  • Your community / environment
  • etc.

Write it all down, give yourself that roadmap to success then start making that vision a reality TODAY!   I’d love to hear how it goes!

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From Entrepreneur to Big Fish

RoadMap to Success

Need to get your “vision energy” jump-started?  Try these books, From Entrepreneur to Big Fish, and Roadmap to Success, both available online (click here)!

 

 

 

 

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