Oh, I feel like one proud mama!  Why, because my friend and client Mary Pat Kavanagh just today is launching her Savvy Mompreneur Telesummit.  Designed for the busy moms who have to balance family life, and a bit of self care, all while striving to be great business women at the same time.  Click on the link after you read this because she has an extraordinary line up of mompreneurs (including me!) who will be sharing our secrets of success.

So why am I sitting here with my heart full as I watch Mary Pat ‘birth’ this dream of hers?  Why?  Because I got to ‘midwife’ it into existence you could say.

I remember the day so clearly, about four months ago when we were working on a strategy for which direction she’d take her business in.  As her coach, I saw her getting stuck.  See, she started out as a marketing strategist, is now known as the Queen of Social Media/Networking, and is very good at both of these things.  But her heart is all about connecting with Savvy Mompreneurs to give them the tools they need to really have success in both their businesses and in their homes.

The problem though is that like many of us, Mary Pat wasn’t owning it.  She had the same litany of thoughts many people get into when their soul’s direction takes them on a new path.  It sounded something like this:
“But everyone knows me for Social Media, what will they think if I go into another new direction?”
And this:  “Do you think there really is a need for this?  Can I really be a voice in this community and help lots of women?”

Being the good coach I am, I gave her a gentle ‘butt kicking’ to help her take ownership of this passion.  It’s so funny that we very often know exactly where we want to be and what our next steps are, but allow our ’stuff’ to get in the way.  On that call, on that day, four months ago – Mary Pat finally said YES.

Fast forward a few months, and the ‘baby’ has been birthed.  Mary Pat started asking for some experts to share their stories.  She thought she’d get 5 or 6, but was blown away when 22 mompreneur experts stepped up and practically begged her to be a part of the telesummit.

In fact, Kristi Frank of season #1 of the Apprentice (who is also one of the special guest experts) wrote Mary Pat this note:

By the way – the talk I’m presenting for the telesummit is on February 19 at 10am Pacific.  It’s called:

Saying Goodbye to the Super Woman Complex: Ways to Take Care of Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business Without Losing Your Mind.  I’d love to ‘hear’ you on the call.

To your success!

You get to be right.

My ten year old hates it when I tell him that!

It’s usually when he’s worried about a school report or something, but when he comes to me and begins to state how he’s probably going to fail…I tell him one thing:
You get to be right.

He’s heard me say the famous phrase, “If you think you can’t or think you can, you get to be right” so many times, that when we heard it quoted on TV recently, he lit up because it rang true for him. See, as a parent, the most important thing I can teach my boys is that they are in control of their lives by what they think and believe about their situations. And for you, my business owner friends….I wish the same level of empowerment and freedom.

As we move into the next year, during this most fertile time for setting our goals, remember these words:

You get to be right – all the time.

But what if you are ‘right’ about the wrong things?

What if you believe that clients won’t pay higher fees because of this economy?
You get to be right.

What if you fear that you won’t be able to fill your practice?
There too, you get to be right.

And what if deep down, there is a little part of you who doesn’t quite believe you can deliver what you say?
Unfortunately, you get to be right.

So I want you to be super vigilant about what you are thinking, believing, and mostly feeling, because…. (You already know what I’m gonna say)
You get to be right.

Here are a couple of things I am going to be right about this year –

• I easily attract amazing clients to my business that is ready to make massive action.
• Speaking opportunities come to me easily, and I’m able to share my empowering message with thousands
• My relationships are nourishing and I have a joyful, balanced, life.

What is it for you?

Why don’t you take some time to write out all the things you are committed to ‘being right’ about this year? Make sure you post it in the comments section so we can hold that space for you!

And stay tuned, because in March I’ll be rolling out a new program designed to give you lots of mindset tools…visit www.InnerGuruExperience.com

Have a happy and prosperous New Year! Thanks for letting me share part of your journey.

Blessings,
Therese Skelly
Coach/Marketing Strategist/Speaker
“Transforming Mindset and Marketing for the Enthusiastic Entrepreneur”
Phone: 602-369-0091
www.AcceleratingYourSuccess.com

I just got off the phone doing a ‘laser’ coaching session with someone who really inspired me.  She inspired me because in just 20 minutes, I was able to get her back on her right path which is always very cool in my book.

This is a gal who is working a full time job but yearns to be a life coach.  She has a passion, has great ideas, and wants to quit her job by December.  She came to the call asking for help with clarity because she was overwhelmed and seemed not to be able to get past obstacles in her life.

Her solution to her desire to become a life coach????  Join a network marketing company.  She began the call by telling me how important it was for her to be able to spend time with her kids, and that she worked full time, but she thought that doing network marketing would get her income.  (It sounded pretty crazy in my book!)

Here’s the deal….when I listen to folks in a coaching situation, I always listen for the passion – or the lack of it.  In her case, I said, “It seems like you are living in San Diego, wanting to go to Seattle, but you are traveling there via New York City.”  Catch the metaphor, gang?

The reason she was bumping into blocks and couldn’t move forward was because she wasn’t on her right path.  Not that determining one’s path is up to me, but particularly when working with moms who have only a few hours to build a business, I’m a bit militant about making sure their time is spent on high payoff activities.

Wanna know where she was stuck?  She didn’t think she was ‘enough’ to be a life coach. She had researched coaching schools, but discovered it would take six months to earn a certification.

So her plan was to jump into network marketing and HOPEFULLY, earn enough $$ to quit her day job. But I’ve coached enough people over the years that it takes a ton of time and commitment to earn $$ that way, and for this woman, it seemed like a really bad plan! (Note that I’m not trashing networking marketing because that can be a good strategy for some, but not in this case.)

This is where as a coach I have to really check in and see how bold I can be.  But what I know is that showing someone the truth, or helping them get back on track isn’t the same as being a dream stealer.

I took a deep breath and asked if she wanted my opinion.  “Yes.”  I asked if right now she had enough content in her coaching repertoire to help people.  “Yes.”  Did she have a group of folks she could help?  “Yes.”  And finally, would she be willing to take those six month and put together something (even if it’s free or low cost) just to start coaching?  “YES!”

She already has the passion, vision, ideas, creativity, determination, market, and time.  But she had convinced herself that without going to coaching school, she couldn’t do anything in the direction of her dreams. My plan with her was to roll something out to be able to test her theories, build her list, confidence, and actually earn some $$ doing it.  I really believe that in six months she could earn more doing what she loved than showing up half-way to try a network thing that she’d quit a short time later.  And….she can still go  to coaching school because its a great idea to get the foundational pieces, but my whole point to her that she was enough right now, with what she had, to get started.

Here’s the truth – there’s no way this woman would have been successful.  Or if she had gotten some income, she would not have been fulfilled.  Why?  Because she was creating a business that didn’t serve her life nor her values.  That’s the key.  So look now at your business.  Is it in alignment with what you love?  Do you have passion, or are you just chasing a buck?

So let me asked you my dear readers…what’s your excuse?  What are you waiting for?  What is the ‘if I only had this’ story that is holding you back?  My encouragement is for you to see what it is that you want to be doing and find some way….even if it’s small….to start doing that.  You may not be able to have the whole enchilada, but a few chips would be nice!

Remember – you are fully cooked.  Now get out there and BE!

Did you ever just wish you could be a fly on the wall when great coaching happens?  People make shifts all the time in this process, so I thought I’d share one of my cool client stories with you so you get to ‘eavesdrop’ on the process and apply the questions to your own business.

A couple of days ago I did a strategy session with one of my newer clients, Karen Kanakanui of www.wordsareus.com.  Karen came to the call looking  to figure out how the info product she was working on would fit into her long term plans, but WHOA Nelly………..she got WAY more than she bargained for!

You see Karen is a copywriter who calls herself an “expert in using audio to grow your business.”  I often listen with an ear for how a consumer hears our ‘elevator’ pitches, so the first place I intervened was in suggesting to Karen that what she thought she was an expert in wasn’t really THE THING.  See, she’s really an expert in helping people drive traffic to their sites using copywriting, and then using audio to get them to take action.  (We call that magical concept conversion!)  We discovered that when Karen only spoke of the tools she used, her audience probably didn’t connect as powerfully with her because no one really cares about the WHAT….customers only want the RESULTS.  First big breakthrough……

Next we looked at Karen’s business model.  Oh, this is where it gets juicy for me!  She currently offers copywriting and voice over.  She has an idea for a product where she would interview people, then create an audio product (like an opt-in piece) do the technical stuff, write the ‘hooks’ and then get it back to them.  This is a good idea, don’t you agree?

But it came to me like a lightening bolt while we were discussing this………..

“How else can I consume you,” I asked.

Of course this is such a WEIRD question that Karen stopped and said, “WHAT?”

How else can I consume you,” I asked again…….

Let me put it a different way for you just as I did for Karen.  “If I were to want to buy some of your time or get more of you or your knowledge HOW ELSE COULD I DO THAT?”

See, as Karen was telling me the amazing things she was up to, I was getting really excited because I just happen to be her target market and could use her services.  But she hadn’t yet told me how I could! Do you see how big of a challenge this is?  Karen had one thing she offered – copywriting – yet she’s such an expert in so many areas that could help me as I design a new website and do marketing for my clients.

Breakthrough #2 was when I basically blew Karen’s business model apart and said, “OK, let’s look at all the ways folks could get access to your knowledge.”  We began with her audio product, then added two more components to it.  (Some folks are DIY’s – Do It Yourselfers – while others just want to hand it off and have it done.)  I then added a consultation level because there are some of us who may just want a few hours with someone who knows so much about traffic/conversion.

Karen started the call with the idea of adding a very one dimensional offering, and ended the call with about 5 new things!  It’s funny because when I called Karen the next day to ask if I could share this story, she said, “Yes, tell them that it was overwhelming, amazing, and mind boggling to walk away with all of this.”  I do have to admit that sometimes I get on a roll with these strategy sessions and it’s a bit like drinking water from a fire hydrant, but hey….it’s a gift!  What can I say. 

Your task, my dear reader is to sit in that question……….How can someone consume more of me? That one powerful question can literally generate thousands of dollars in new revenue.

I’d love you to comment on what you come up with as you ask yourself this wonderful question…

Go for it!