Inner Game
Unshakeable confidence: a practical guide {po...
It’s easy to let how you feel about yourself be the unspoken force that runs your business. When you’re feeling shiny and confident, you do FacebookLives! You write! You book clients! But when you’re feeling down, or anything less than radiantly magnetic, that energy wanes and everything winds slowly to a halt. This can only reinforce the not-feeling-great feelings and it becomes a tough cycle to break out of, made worse by the pressure on yourself to change!right!now! Building your confidence is a key component of business development. Taking in your impact, accepting that you help people, and anchoring that in so that you can revisit it when you’re feeling down is a huge part of the emotional journey of creating your empire. In this episode, I speak to why we act from Neo in the Matrix, and exactly what … Continue reading
A Few Things You Need To Survive The Holidays...
This American Thanksgiving, I am so grateful for YOU. Reader, Frequency Finder, Client, Entrepreneur Dream Chaser, Empire Builder. Whenever I email my readers, I include a section on “Cool Things From Around The Internet!” this week I wanted to share resources to help you have conversations with your family about what you do. It quickly spiraled into a collection of on point giggleworthy graphics, articles and cartoons about this life we’ve chosen for ourselves. Behold a hilarious round up of the realities of working for yourself. Dive into these for giggles, laughter, moral support and a big ole reminder that you’re not alone. The Oatmeal, Making Things. This cartoon captures the joy, elation and depression perfectly. If you haven’t seen it yet it’s required reading. This listcicle from Buzzfeed about the realities of working from home has me busting up every … Continue reading
Magic Lessons A Podcast By Elizabeth Gilbert ...
I am in love with Elizabeth Gilberts podcast, Magic Lessons. It’s short, powerful, and a great example of how to draw in your everyday listeners AND your famous friends, while still being of mega service. She’s a Wood Frequency, and you can really see here how she wants to help people move forward and achieve big things in the world. (Not sure what that last sentence means? Hop on over here to get the scoop.) I’ve been talking about the episodes a LOT – and people have been asking me where to start, so I am downloading all in one place so you can pick and choose episodes that speak to exactly where you are in your creative business. All episodes can be listened to here. Honestly, start with Episode 12 – her interview with Brené Brown. If you for some … Continue reading
Biz Love Blog Tour: What Kind of Boss Are You?
When I first started my business I was so swept up in what I was going to DO and how much I was going to MAKE and how much free time I was going to HAVE that I forgot to ask myself one simple question, that would impact the entire trajectory of my business: What kind of boss was I going to be to myself? What I didn’t realize when I started my journey of self-employment, is that while I was the founder, the CEO, the bookkeeper, the admin, marketer, social media manager, and every other role in one person, there was one really fundamentally important role I forgot. Boss. I am THE boss, and I am the boss of me. I am my own boss. Normally, when I hear people talk about the word boss, it applied to a lot … Continue reading
Stop Being a Guest Star on Your Own Show
One of my favorite pop culture terms is ‘starring vehicle’. It’s often used with derision to describe a movie or tv show that’s being developed specifically to showcase an actor as a star. Like somehow being intentional with the fact that they want to showcase their specific talents and strengths as an actor undercuts the ‘art’ of it all. That creating a role, tv show or movie specifically for them is somehow cheating, or not working hard enough. Which is crazy to me. Why would you want to keep taking roles and appearances that don’t let you showcase your chops? Why should you be judged for forming strategic partnerships that might enable you to grow your career faster? To me, this maps perfectly to the experience of an online business owner. We feel like there’s a certain route we need to take, a well … Continue reading
If Your Heart Is Not On Board, None Of This W...
I have had one heck of a summer vacation. For the first time ever, I’ve taken time off. I’ve spent almost every Friday since early June unplugged and adventuring. Locally to the river or mountains, or not-so-locally roadtripping to Portland or Los Angeles. I’ve gotten more sun this summer and had more moments of pure relaxation than I can count. I also built a new website. Tadahh! Which honestly was just as challenging and exhilarating as learning to surf. Which I also did this summer. There’s SO many moving parts. We were building this baby custom from scratch, so it felt like really high stakes, slow motion, collaborative art project. And it brought up a ton of my shit. This website is now the second most expensive thing I own, second only to my car. I have poured … Continue reading
How To Keep Going When It Feels Scary As Heck
I have learned one really deep truth over my years coaching, running my own business, and supporting other business owners – and it’s that everyone feels scared, overwhelmed and intimidated by their Purpose, or Bigness. On the outside looking in, most of the time, these purposes, these callings, seem wonderful. They seen wonderful, like the world is just waiting for this person to step into their Bigness and radiate their life purpose and dreams expressed into reality. To the person on the inside, having their Alice in Wonderland everything is different now, moment, it feels scary. Hard. Overwhelming. Because for them, this is their own special challenge. They must walk through the scary forest so they can come out the other side, forged, learned, and shining brightly. I have a theory that we sign up for a heaping double helping of the life … Continue reading
This story is part of a movement – the Busting The Overnight Success Myth: Community Blog Tour, where 21 ladies who have made their dream business a reality (in a variety of different niches) share what it really took for us to make this happen. Including the not so pretty stuff. When Allison Braun (The Business Joyologist) shared her vision for this blog tour with me, I knew I wanted to be a part of it because I want to share the behind-the-scenes truth of what it takes (and keeps taking) to make a business go. So here is my story. It’s raw, real and includes things I’ve never shared before! This is a story about handling your money stuff so you can create the space to grow your business from a place of focus and creativity, instead of scarcity and desperation. I quit … Continue reading
3 Things Surfing Will Teach You About Business
{This is a guest post by my incredible client Karen Pery. She is taking her passion for leadership development through experiential learning to an entirely new level. Surfing + leadership + business development? Yes please!} The stakes are high. You have a lot on your plate. You have a unique vision of the way things could be in the world, you’ve made it your life’s work, and it’s working. Well done! How are you managing the pressure of all of that? How do you stay focused on what’s most important, when EVERYTHING is important? I’ve struggled with this, and the answer I have discovered to help me focus, balance and be more graceful in my business? Surfing. As a Leadership Coach, I realized I can’t just TALK about leadership, I have to DO leadership. As an incredible business owner, I bet … Continue reading
What Type Of Relationship Are You + Your Busi...
The other day my friend Illana Burk (of Makeness Media, she’s amazing. I’ll link you at the bottom when you’re done reading) talked to me about business being an abusive relationship. As soon as she said it, I leapt to my businesses defense “It’s not abusive! My business has been the BEST relationship I’ve ever had, because it forces me to deal with my shit, keep showing up and choosing me, love and possibility instead of cowering in fear.” <– that’s a direct quote from my reaction to her. That might sound mellow dramatic, or romantic, but I do believe that my business has been one of my greatest relationships to date. It’s TOTALLY taught me to be a better person. With the exception of loosing a loved one, nothing else has made me look at all my stuff, and work it out in … Continue reading
3 Steps to Build Your Confidence & Stop Struggling
{Guest post by my brilliant + talented sister, Alice Walker}
Last Sunday I was driving up a sunny, blissfully open freeway, windows down and the surrounding hills green and inviting. The weather was hot, and the cows that dappled the side of the road where all laying down, or jostling for the prime spot under stretched oak trees. A warm breeze picked up, and began to blow hard, whistling through the car window. I glanced up to the sky and saw a hawk (or similarly sized bird) hanging suspended mid-air. Its wings were flapping furiously, it was clearly working as hard as it could to stay in place, and not get knocked off course by the wind.
I was struck then, with how much easier the bird would have it if it simply extended its wings and let the warm air take it on its flight. It could go so much farther, with the wind at its back, only needing to work intermittently to stay afloat.
For all I know this hawk likely had a larger purpose, a prey in its sights it was waiting to pounce on, or maybe it just didn’t feel like getting pushed around. But one thing was for sure, this bird was killing itself to stay in place.
And I, driving by, with only a glance at the struggling bird couldn’t help but see myself in it. I have been that bird – trapped in the relentless tug of war to stay in place, to not make huge changes, to not soar into the unknown, because after all – the unknown is, scientifically speaking, scary as hell.
Sometimes, we get so stuck about the way our lives, or our business should be, that we fight tooth and nail against any winds of change that might knock us off course. Surely we – the type A’s, the planners, the executers, the entrepreneurs know best. We have made a life plan and we are going to stick to it no matter what.
When really all we need to do is feel the breeze, spread our wings and ride that wind current.
For some people, the concept of change comes so easily, they move from marketing strategy to content plan updating with ease – never doubting that the direction they are heading in is the right one. But for so many others the idea of changing from their original intent (think launching a new service line changing your target audience) can be terrifying at best and paralyzing at worst.
We working so hard to stay place we tire, we burnout, we don’t make and dang money.
I believe this all comes down to confidence.
Confidence in your business, in yourself and more than anything else confidence in your own intuition. When you are tuned into what your gut is telling you, and you believe in yourself and your vision, then you have to ability to let go. Take chances, take flight.
I have seen time and time again that the more people become confident in their own gut, the more wildly successful their business becomes. And it is so much easier than you think!
First step: start listening to yourself. When you have a new idea, or start to second guess your existing plan, take a moment. Stop going on the internet to hide from your feelings or thoughts when new things come up for you. Pay attention to your thoughts try and break yourself of the “bottle up and put aside” habit that becomes so ingrained in us as we get older.
Second step: start asking yourself quietly what you really think, and what you really want. Then, slowly at first – do that. Listen to what your intuition is telling you, then follow through on that and see how good it feels.
This doesn’t have to have anything to do with your business. Maybe your gut is telling you to flirt with the cute new barista at your coffee shop. Maybe it’s telling you to call an old friend.
Third step: take a beat and be proud of yourself! Notice how your gut got you to the end result you wanted all along. Pat yourself on the back and watch as your confidence expands.
Rinse. Wash. Repeat. Soar.
Alice Walker is the founder of My Everyday Awesome, an inspiring podcast for busy women who want to live happier, healthier lives without quitting their jobs or spending a fortune. A lover of hot rollers, crochet, and binging on Netflix, she can often be trying out new and crazy health experiments to podcast about. You can check her out and listen to her podcast out here.
Accepting that Business Doesn’t Need to be So Hard
Here’s the thing – I come from a very strong family work ethic. It’s a BIG part of our cultural identity. And, in my family, work ethic is synonymous with hard work. We, are Hard Workers. It’s what we do, it’s who we are, and it’s part of what ties us together. When I quit my traditional, insurance paying, consistent paycheck giving job many moons ago, it was HARD for me. Not to give up those things, but to understand where I fit in my families cultural identity now that I wasn’t Working Hard any more. I mean, I was working hard, but it didn’t FEEL hard. It felt passionate, it felt creative and fun. I was shocked (and elated!) I was getting paid for it. Every now and then I still look around and get confused about how I … Continue reading