Business

The Power Of “No”

“And it comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don’t get on the wrong track or try to do too much. We’re always thinking about new markets we could enter, but it’s only by saying no that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.”

Steve Jobs

Saying no has always been a challenge for me, but it especially came to light this week, when I was faced with three speaking engagements – two of them needing all new content. One was a real struggle for me, and I found myself becoming very resentful of the entire thing. The problem was, I never should have said yes to the engagement in the first place. It was not at all a group of my ideal clients, the event was nearly an hour away, and I was not being compensated for my time.

All this because I could not say no to a former colleague and friend who had felt I would “be the perfect person to talk to this group.” It wasn’t his fault for asking, but it certainly was my fault for not politely declining.

Saying no is often difficult for many of us, particularly those of us who always try to do too much. Looking at my current “to do” list, I can identify at least five items where I should have said no.

Why do we have trouble saying no? For me, it’s often not thinking an offer or opportunity through– just jumping right to “sure, be glad to do it!” Or sometimes my ego gets in the way, and I’m so thrilled to have been asked, my immediate response is “of course, I would love to do it!” Even when the opportunity doesn’t have even one of my ideal clients in the audience!

Where do you struggle with taking too much on, and not being able to say no? Is it in your business, your personal life, your community involvement?

It’s often said that the best way to get a job done is too give it to a busy person, but it is also important to apply a little strategic thinking to our commitments. What is the benefit from taking something on? And if we add more to an already full plate, is it something that will help us serve our clients, grow our business, or meet our personal needs? It’s always wise to take a few minutes to think through an offer before the proverbial “of course I can do it” passes our lips.

The silver lining in all this for me was the wake-up call to that I need to take the time to more fully consider new offers and opportunities, rather than always saying yes. Sometimes the real power is in saying no.

Mandy works with talented, bright, high energy self employed professionals and very small businesses who struggle to market their business effectively, stretch their capacity and play a bigger game. And who would like to overcome their fear of sales, change their mindset, increase their self-confidence, and create a step-by-step strategy for taking their business to the next level. Mandy’s client’s receive proven, specific information on what they need to do to get more clients and grow their business. As a result, those who coach with Mandy increase their business, get more clients and make more money, faster and easier than they ever would have on their own. Mandy offers one-on-one coaching and consulting, as well as facilitates workshops and teleclasses and speaks on a variety of topics.

Get a copy of her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” at www.mandyschumaker.com. Or contact her at 207-653-6977

I’ve turned into one of those…

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“Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship”–Benjamin Franklin

I’ve turned into one of those…a cheapskate! At the expense of perhaps making a fool of myself, I’m going to be totally transparent about a decision I made in my business, which has cost me money. As a business coach and mindset mentor, I help people think and play bigger, get more clients and make more money. I ask them to upgrade their life everyday, live it “as if” right now, buy the “best in class”.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t suggest that my clients spend carelessly, but I do encourage them to invest in their businesses and not to scrimp on the resources they need. Indulge yourself whenever you can, because it is about being in a mindset of abundance versus one of scarcity that brings you what you want.

This week however, I realized I was not “walking the talk” 100% of the time, so I’m here to come clean with you. Nearly two years ago, I needed a new website for my business. I met with several experienced local web design firms. But along the way, I also met someone who had used a – let’s just say more economical– web designer from out of state. And that’s the route I chose.

To make a long story short, what I thought I had received from this designer in terms of the ability to manage the site myself and to have effective search engine optimization (SEO) – the ability to get found on the web – hadn’t happened at all.

And to make matters worse, as my virtual assistant made changes to my site over the past year or so, I realized that I had virtually no keywords listed, so my name was not coming up when people were looking for a business coach. Ouch, ouch and ouch!

I am very committed to marketing my business, and spend long hours on it every week trying to drive people to my website. But because I was trying to save a few pennies, I found myself with none of the important pieces in place on my website to help people find me.

So the lesson I’ve learned is to listen to myself and the words I impart to my clients on a weekly basis:

“Think bigger, don’t play small. Invest in your business. Buy the resources you need to successfully run your business, and don’t scrimp. Because it’s about being in a place of abundance – not scarcity – that brings you what you want!”

Get a copy of her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” at www.mandyschumaker.com. Or contact her at 207-653-6977

3 Tips for Getting Unstuck

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“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” Ayn Rand

We all have been in that place of feeling stuck at some point in our lives. You know, that place that feels as if there are few, if any options for relief. That place where no matter how many times we play it over and over in our minds, we keep ending up with the same outcome. It’s just stuck, plain stuck.

And it is a story. It’s the story we tell ourselves over and over. “I can’t travel, because I don’t have the money”, or “I couldn’t possibly go to that workshop, who would take care of the kids? Or “I’d love to start my own business, but at my age?” These are the stories we tell ourselves that keep us stuck-right where we are.

And until we STOP telling ourselves our stories, becoming really present with what is, and begin telling ourselves the truth-we will remain stuck forever. When you are feeling stuck a couple of questions you may want to consider are, “Who should be doing what differently?” and “Who is holding you back?” The answers might really surprise you.

Here are three strategies for getting yourself unstuck, or unhooked from your story…

1-Tell your truth

First you need to recognize when you feel stuck, that you are telling yourself a story. Get curious about the story-is it true? “I can’t afford to take that workshop”, “I can’t get traction on my business, because I have to take care of the kids”. Where are the true parts? Did you make it up? Are they excuses? The first step is to STOP with the stories and start telling the truth. What is it that you really want? What is real for you? Then start crafting a new story, the true story.

2-Ask for what you want

Many of us are not able to ask for what we want. We think we’re asking, but mostly, we are complaining, whining and criticizing others because we don’t have what we want-and we’ve never asked for it. Get clear on what you want, and make the request. Do you want your husband to do more around the house? Then ask him. Do you want your wife to be more supportive of your dreams? Then ask her. Do you need your neighbors to watch your kids for an hour a week? Then ask them. Many of us would rather complain and stay stuck than risk hearing a “no” from our request-so we never ask.

Just ask!

3-Take action

One of the ways to get yourself unstuck is to just get momentum going. Take massive action. Start moving forward, one step in front of the other. Not willy-nilly. Not without direction, but start making some decisions. Believe me, by just changing your story to your true story and begin asking for what you want-every time-you will already start to feel better, and start becoming unstuck.

Get a copy of her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” at www.mandyschumaker.com. Or contact her at 207-653-6977

Why Does This Keep Happening?

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Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results Albert Einstein

This past week, I had the opportunity to hear an old African tribal story about the tribe who lived near the river and each week they observed rafts coming down the river with lots of maimed and injured bodies. Week after week, they waded into the water, pulled the injured people out of the water, bandaged up their bodies and struggled to nurse them back to health.

This went on week after week, month after month, year after year. Finally someone in the tribe said, “Why don’t we go upstream and see what is causing injury to these bodies? If we can find the source of the problem, and fix it, then there wouldn’t be all these injured bodies and we wouldn’t have to work so hard taking care of them week after week.”

The moral of the story: fix the root of the problem, not the symptom or by-product of the problem. So often in our businesses we keep “nursing back to health” the same issues in our business over and over, week after week.

Perhaps we keep struggling with too many things on our plate. Or we struggle keeping our focus and procrastination sets in. Or maybe it’s working with clients that give us a headache from their incessant demands, week after week. Maybe we’re frustrated we don’t have enough clients or we’re not making enough money.

Whatever it is that is a struggle or challenge week after week-has a source or root to its origin that you must get fixed.

Suffering from overwhelm week after week, means there is too much on our plate and we need to remove some of it-perhaps just temporarily, but make some choices to unload a portion of it.

Lack of focus may have to do with too many distractions in our life, i.e. e-mail, social media, or experiencing what many entrepreneurs’ experience: the-next-bright-shiny-object syndrome.

And working with clients we don’t like-well, it’s clear; we haven’t created an ideal client profile, nor set up expectations with our clients, on how to work with us.

What’s showing up in your life, week after week that’s a toleration, a challenge, headache, or frustartion? Isn’t it time to head upstream to figure out the source-so it can be permanently fixed, once and for all?

Why People Don’t Hire You

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Obviously, there can be hundreds of different reasons why a prospect might not buy your product or service. Perhaps they don’t see or understand the value, maybe its price, maybe their spouse is opposed to it, or maybe they just don’t like you. The list can go on and on.

But one thing I know for sure. People don’t hire you because they understand you. They hire you because they feelunderstood by you. In other words, your prospect may know everything about your product and service, all the features you offer, even the benefits. But if they don’t feel like you understand their needs, their struggles, their pain, they will not hire you.

Knowing who your ideal client is, how they would describe their struggles and challenges, (in their language) is so important for you to understand.

Here are some things to learn about your ideal client, so they feel understood by you:

Where do they congregate? What do they read? Where do they network? What personal clubs or professional associations do they belong to? Who do they do business with on a regular basis? What are their issues? What do they need most right now?

Knowing the answers to these questions will help give you the insight into your ideal client andhelp you know more about them at a deeper level. And the more you understand who your ideal client is…really know them, the more understood they will feel by you.

One way to get to know your clients on a deeper level is to interview your ideal clients. Make sure these are the clients that you just LOVE. Ask them the questions I mentioned in the above paragraph. What else would you like to know about them? Get curious about who they are and make sure you take careful notes on their answers. Write down verbatim what they share with you. You can then take their answers (in their language) and use them in your marketing materials to attract even more ideal clients.

Because when you have marketing messages that are in your ideal client’s language, coupled with your understanding of who they are, together these become the linchpin that will bring cash into your business!

Get a copy of her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” at www.mandyschumaker.com. Or contact her at 207-653-6977

Create Your Ideal Work Week

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When I start working with a new client, I’m always interested in how they have been scheduling their week. And the answer I typically get is, “Well, to be honest, it’s never really much of a schedule.” Everything just kind of runs together. When I ask, “When do you do client work?” they might answer, “Well, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, can be some on Saturday, and usually a little on Sunday.”

In order to create a successful business, you must create your ideal working schedule. And that means creating AND KEEPING boundaries. First, you must figure out the days or time blocks, in which you will see clients. Even is you are just starting your business, and don’t have many clients, this is an important discipline to master now. Then as you start to grow your business, you know what days to schedule your new clients.

Our tendency, particularly when starting out, is to see a client whenever they call. Not only do we sometimes end up geographically zigzagging all over the place serving clients, but we also usually have a very inefficient work-day schedule filled with lots of holes.

Start by figuring out what days, and/or time blocks you will see clients. This will also help you start to figure out your capacity and when you need to become more scalable. For instance, if you’ve structured your client time between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm four days a week, that’s 28 clients you need to fill your business or practice.

I also highly encourage my clients to spend a minimum of four hours a week (preferably a day-but at least four hours a week) on marketing and business development for your business. This might include writing, contacting prospects, putting together your newsletter, researching networking events or speaking events. Because if you don’t schedule it, it won’t happen. And if you aren’t disciplined to keep this sacred time for marketing your business, instead filling the time with other things, you will not only find your pipeline of prospects empty, but it will take a lot more effort to “start again”.

If you are writing a book, then you need to schedule writing time for yourself-preferably everyday, for at least an hour. If you are starting a second business, or a new line or product, you’ll need to carve out the time in your schedule to put the attention and focus on it. Otherwise, all those great ideas you have will be just that-great ideas!

This is the way successful entrepreneurs grow their businesses and become very successful. So I encourage you to create an ideal work week for yourself, making time for clients, business development, and most importantly, time for yourself!

Get a copy of her free Cd “7 Productivity Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs” at www.mandyschumaker.com. Or contact her at 207-653-6977

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