Client Magnets Official Blog

Archive for the ‘Systems’ Category

How many things do you have to do today?  Or this week?  How many of those things are springboards for the bigger and better things that are waiting on the other end of your procrastination?  The things that are going to lead you and your business to satisfying success!

Often, many of us feel overwhelmed with all of the things we need to do by allowing the end results of a virtual to-do list mill around in our heads.  Maybe your current brain-contained list sounds a little like this:

• build a website
• schedule a teleseminar
• research trade magazines
• start outsourcing – find a VA

How many times have these items (or similar items) drifted around the outside of your brain, bouncing off the inside of your skull, clouding your view of current events, and dampening your motivation?

If these words in any way resonate with you, let me share with you my prescription for de-cluttering your head and getting things done.

In order for any grand task to be accomplished, it must first be dissected into small, manageable task chunks.  For instance, building a website might involve defining your website budget, asking business associates for webmaster recommendations, interviewing copywriters, and choosing styles for the individual pages.  And the best way to break that large task into smaller tasks, without further cluttering your brain?  On paper.

To-do lists are the ultimate back-patters.  Think about it.  How good do you feel when you accomplish something that you’ve been putting off?  When you can check an item off of a list, no matter how small, you’ll experience that feeling, and will, in turn, feel motivated to do it again and again…ultimately accomplishing the large task.

Here are some tips for making a list that will work for you:

• Keep the end in mind, and only include tasks that will contribute to that end.  For instance, don’t commit to writing a free report just because it sounds intriguing to write a free report, or because you’re proficient at writing reports.  Everything on your list should contribute to your desired result.

• Remember to delegate, wherever you can.  And mark that delegation on your paper!

• Start with the items that you feel most confident in completing. If you’re most proficient in research, hit the internet and get to know some webmasters.  The quicker you can get that first checkmark, the quicker you’ll fuel your own motivation to tackle the tasks that aren’t as simple.

• View your list-making as a brain dump. Give your tasks to the paper, and envision space clearing in your head.

• Understand that the writing of the list is a checkable item. Simply making the list brings you one step further to accomplishing your grand tasks.

• Don’t stress over every little detail. As you conquer the notable tasks on your list, small details will fall into place.  For instance, if you’re planning a workshop, you’ll need to establish a date, a time, a method of advertisement, and you’ll have to know its main benefit (the problem it will solve).  You’re not going to have to figure out how coffee will be served or whether lunch will be chicken salad or turkey.  Once your motivation is in full swing, the details will fall into place as you move along.

• Commit to your list. Feel the momentum that’s generated when you accomplish even the smallest of tasks and use that to propel you forward…but remember, you can’t experience that momentum unless you keep the check marks coming.

Some of us are natural list-makers.  Others manage our busy lives in our heads…or at least we like to think we do.  No matter our natural or learned tendencies, there is a wealth of potential just waiting to be realized…on a blank page.

Building your list of potential clients is necessary for landing deals, filling seminars, and realizing the revenue that you desire.  But in order to build your list of interested parties, you must first organize your thoughts into manageable pieces of doable tasks.  There’s no better method for accomplishing this than a list.

You want a list of for-sure, ready-to-buy prospects and clients, right?  Then get your pen, grab your paper and prepare to clean your brain’s RAM with your new list!

Most people think of their business assets in terms of things they own, such as buildings, office equipment or machinery. That’s how an accountant would measure your assets.

To me though, your assets are the things that you currently have in your environment that you could leverage in order to achieve your goals.

It’s important to list out what your assets are. This will help you to realize that the path to your vision, from where you currently are, starts right here.

Start by thinking of your assets more as resources than possessions.

Two of the best assets you can have in your business are people and products.

People
The people that are assets for your business can be grouped into a few different categories.

Your Team
If you have a team of people that work with you, they are a big asset. They are your resource for getting your business going, your products developed, your articles written, your website up and running. Joint venture partnerships are also an asset by helping to increase your exposure.

Your Clients
Any clients that you already have are definitely a tremendous asset. If your vision is to double or triple your income next year, your existing clients are the people that will help you achieve that vision.

Don’t doubt this. If you think you don’t have enough clients or that they wouldn’t be interested or willing to pay as much as you want, those are excuses and obstacles. I guarantee that a percentage of people from your existing client list will be the same people who can help you achieve your revenue goals next year. Maybe not directly; maybe not even as clients. But they are excellent sources for referring business to you, and are also your best case studies and testimonials.

Your existing clients are, without doubt, one of your best assets.

Prospects
Your prospect list is an asset. I am a big proponent of building a list, and have done this for years because it is such an asset in my own business, and will be in yours.

If you’re experiencing a lean period, you can always mail out to your list. Do a special offer to generate some income. Some of those prospects are bound to become existing clients, making them an even greater asset.

Products
Products are an essential asset that can help you achieve your goals. If you don’t have any products yet, you may need to consider creating some. Like your team, they go a long way in generating business and revenue. Create a hard copy or downloadable recording that can serve as an independent, self-supporting source of revenue.

The path to your business vision starts with what is currently around you. There are most certainly opportunities and possibilities in your immediate environment that are tremendous assets to you, and could well be the starting point of this being a dream year for you.

Bernadette Doyle specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract a steady stream of ideal clients. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, sign up for her free weekly e-zine at http://www.clientmagnets.com

Let’s say that you set a goal to quit smoking, or to lose 20 pounds or to make a million dollars. What is your very next step?

In any of those instances, the first step is basically the same. You need to make a decision. Whatever goal you want to achieve is the direct result of the decisions you make to achieve it. Everything you’ve experienced, in your career, your personal life, in your financial status, is a result of the decisions you’ve made.

And, if you don’t like the results, then you need to change the decisions.

In fact, I encourage you to take that even one step further. Don’t just change the decisions, change your decision-making process. The decisions you make are a result of your decision-making process, and you just might have a faulty process.

Only you know for sure if your decision-making process is flawed. How is your year going?   Are you living the glory days or just a mediocre existence?  Are you achieving outrageous success or is your business just full of challenges? You know because you’re living it.

Learn the three key questions you should ask that will help you to improve, not simply the decisions that you make, but the way in which you make them.

1.    “What’s the worst thing that can happen?” Consider the worst-case scenario when you make a decision. Asking yourself this will help you learn how to take risks in your business. It will toughen you against the possibility of any little thing going wrong, and will give you the confidence to move forward in spite of that possibility.

The thought of losing money holds a lot of people back from taking risks or making changes. But if you consider the worst that could happen, it’s impossible to lose money. If something doesn’t turn out the way you anticipated, you may not have received the expected return on your investment, but you didn’t lose. You learned. Consider it an education expense.

2.    ”What will it cost me if I don’t do (or buy) this?” If you ask yourself, “What will it cost me to do this (or buy this)?” instead, you are allowing the cost of something to be the prime motivator in your decision-making.

How much money you have or don’t have should not govern the decisions you make in your business. The key is that when you’re not afraid of losing money, you make different decisions about money and it no longer governs your business decisions.

3.    “What do I need to get an instant return on this investment?” When you invest in something, like a product or a mentor or even a virtual assistant, you want to know how to ensure that you see that investment back quickly. In the end, what you need is for that investment to not actually cost you money but end up making you money.

Notice that not one of the questions asks, “What’s the cheapest way to do this?” That’s not how I want you to think. That’s not how you should make decisions.

Apply these questions to an investment you’ve been considering – something that you’ve been thinking about doing in your business, something that you’ve been wanting to do and that you know would help you grow your business. Maybe you’ve been telling yourself you can’t afford to do it.

Approach that investment with these three questions and you’ll see what happens. These questions will lead to different solutions for you. These are some of the very questions that I include in my own decision making, and I know that they will open up some new possibilities for you.

In order to take your business from where you are now to a soaring success by the end of this year, chances are you’re going to need to make some investments.

In this economy, that word, investments, makes most people shudder. But, the kind of investments I’m talking about aren’t nearly as risky or as scary as placing all your money into some fund, speculating on the market and hoping to see a good return.

The investments I’m talking about are much more secure than that. And, they are guaranteed to produce results.

You may need to invest in software, or in building your team. You may need to invest in attending an event or in recruiting the right people, or getting the right experts to assist you with a certain part of your business. You may need to invest in your education.

Rest assured, there is always some type of investment that you need to make in order for your business to grow.

Personally, I’ve invested a lot in my business. I’ve done all of those things I just mentioned, from building my team, to belonging to mastermind groups and purchasing software systems. These things are all essential to growth.

Before you think, “Sure, Bernadette, that’s easy for you to say, with all this money, your nice big house, your nanny and your housekeeper,” I want you to know that this is not a recent habit for me.

I didn’t allow cost to be the prime motivator in my decisions, even when I was broke. Not that long ago, when I had a small baby and was paying so much of my income to childcare, I was presented the opportunity to jump onboard Yanik Silver’s marketing mastermind group. This was far more than I had ever spent before. But it is one of the best investments I’ve ever made.

Yes, you’ll spend a lot of money on these things year after year, but they’re good investments. They help to grow your business.

Your bank balance shouldn’t determine your decision making. If it does, your balance won’t actually change until you stop making your decisions that way.

The decision to make an investment in your business is as much a psychological stretch as it is a financial stretch. Like any investment, you have to weigh the factors to determine if the investment is sound for you. But, instead of asking, “What will it cost me to do this?” the better question is, “What will it cost me if I don’t do this?”

Even if you think that you simply, physically don’t have the money to invest in software or an assistant, you need to look beyond that. This is where the leap of faith comes in. By putting that person in place or buying that software, you will free up time so you can then go out and bring on one more client.

If that additional client spends $1,000 with you and the assistant or software cost you $300 a month, essentially that investment saved you or made you $700 more per month.

Start looking at investments in your business as what you will be losing by NOT making them. You stand to GAIN SO MUCH MORE by giving your business the support and backing it needs to grow. The returns on your investment will be well worth it in the end.

Can you envision yourself making $500,000?

I don’t mean imagining that you’ve won the lottery. Can you actually see yourself earning $500,000?

If you set a goal that is believable for you, you’ll not only realize that goal, but as you break through it, even more will become possible for you.

If you can’t envision such a high number and think it’s beyond your reach, don’t set your sights on that number straight off. Doing this will just cause a disconnect between what you want and what you think you can make. You will be starting out with a limiting belief.

I worked with a mentor who shared a story about his wife. She worked for an insurance company as a sales manager, making $29,000 a year. When he asked her if she could see herself making $100,000, she said “no.” When he backed down that number to $50,000, she said, “yes.”

Once she settled on that amount, which felt reasonable and comfortable, she not only achieved it, she far exceeded it. By the end of the year, she had made $499,000.

The important point is that she started out with a vision she could believe in.

What do you truly believe is possible for yourself?  Follow these steps to set believable goals that you can achieve.

Step One
Pick a number that’s a stretch from where you’ve been before, but one that you can actually believe in. If you go too far in the other direction, and begin with a very high number, you will stall out. Your non-belief in making that money will be stronger than your belief in getting it.

Step Two
Start where your belief system is. If the most you’ve ever made is $30,000, stretch that number to the very edge of what you can actually see yourself making.

Step Three
Honor small advances. If you only see a $5,000 or $10,000 increase, that’s fine. Start there. As you make that little advance, you will increase your belief system in many different areas and rapidly advance that number.

Step Four
Once you make that little jump of $5,000 or $10,000, not only do you see yourself make it, but you start to believe in the whole process. When you actually believe in the process, it will have an expansive effect on you. Now you are able to see that this can go anywhere.

You will open yourself up to what is actually possible and really start believing it. That’s when you will take off.

Your ability to make that higher end income is really about knowing where you are in what you believe. Not only will you set believable goals, you will be successful in achieving them, and in surpassing them as well.

Bernadette Doyle specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract a steady stream of ideal clients. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, sign up for her free weekly e-zine at http://www.clientmagnets.com

Are you setting your goals according to what you truly want or what you think you should get?

There’s a very big difference between those two. If you’re only setting your goals according to what you think you should get, you are probably missing out on so much potential for your business.

Here’s one way you can figure out if you’re setting your goals too low. If I were to sit down with you in a coaching session and ask, “Tell me how much money you want to make this year,” how would you respond?

If your answer is vague or your answer is more in the form of a question, your goals are more in line with what you think you should get rather than what you want to make.

When you set a vision for your business, get this kind of thinking completely out of your head. The potential for your business is so far greater than you could perceive if you’re only looking at it from what you think you can do or what you think you have to do.

One way to avoid getting caught up in this mess is to do projects that you want to do; not projects that you think you should do because they might be the right way to launch a program or sell something.

Doing business this way will afford you the life you think you should have – living in a moderate home, making good money while working 6 days a week, always thinking about but rarely going on a real vacation.

Your goals have to be based around what you truly want. When you truly want something, you have what is referred to in Think and Grow Rich as a burning desire. If you don’t have a burning desire to achieve your goals, it is not going to be enough.

Here’s why that burning desire is so important. When you’re setting after something that you haven’t had previously – something that is a big, daring goal for you – you’re going to hit challenges. You’re going to hit obstacles because anything you want and don’t have is outside of your comfort zone.

On your way to achieving the things that are outside of your comfort zone, you’re going to be stretched. That’s the moment when you will be most tempted to give up, unless you have a really strong burning desire.

This desire, that yearning for something more, is like your higher mind calling you to your true potential.

So, when you’re setting your goals – both revenue goals and lifestyle goals – consider what it is that you truly want.

The bigger house? The 3-day work-week? The 3-month dream vacation?

If these are the goals you truly want, set them. Once you name what you want to achieve, once you know what is your burning desire, we can figure out a way for you to achieve it.

Bernadette Doyle specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract a steady stream of ideal clients. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, sign up for her free weekly e-zine at http://www.clientmagnets.com

There was a children’s TV program aired in England about 20 years ago, where the primary prop in the setting was a lighted floor. Basically, the lights on the floor were off, and only as the people on the show took a step did the light appear.

They had to take a step forward before any light went on.

This is quite the opposite of how people really want to move forward. Most of us prefer to “see the light” before we take the next step. We want to know where we are going, and see all the steps illuminated and lined up, so that we can go from point A to point B, B to C, C to D, D to E and so on.

But the truth is, that is not really how we move forward. The truth is that often, only the first step you take will be visible. The only way to see the second step is for you to be one- hundred percent wholly committed to taking step one.

That is truly what change is like. There’s no denying that change is uncomfortable, but if you want to accomplish your goals, you’re going to have to step up, move forward and make changes as you go along. The more comfortable you get at doing that, the more stepping up will be a constant experience in your life.

So, if you are serious about doubling or tripling your income, for example, you could go to Vegas or play the lottery, but the real way to accomplish your goal involves doing some things that up until now, you’ve been resisting.

You may not even realize that you’ve been unwilling or unable to make changes. It’s amazing how creative people can be at avoiding change.

But, whether you want to make ten thousand, a hundred thousand, a million, or ten million, whatever the level or the goal, the process is exactly the same

In order to affect any kind of change, in your life or in your business, you have to take the first step without being one-hundred percent certain about where your foot is going to land.

That takes courage, and it takes faith. That is what change requires.

Commit one-hundred percent to taking step one. You don’t need to know what’s going to happen after step one if you never get there. You will only know what happens next when you take that step. You won’t ever get there if you keep asking questions.

You’ve got to act, and jump right in with both feet, even when you don’t know where that jump will land you.

Once you master this process of change, and just keep stepping through it, you will find yourself more and more comfortable with moving forward without knowing where the next step leads.

As you find the courage to take one step after another, I promise, things are going to change for you.

Bernadette Doyle specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract a steady stream of ideal clients. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, sign up for her free weekly e-zine at http://www.clientmagnets.com

Think of your business as a building. Perhaps you’re just starting out at the foundation level, or maybe you’ve climbed to the third storey. Wherever you are, when you want to add more storeys to your structure, you need to support the building.

Your support is like scaffolding. It’s the first thing that’s needed when a building is going up. And it’s the first thing you need to help you grow your business.

There are several different types of support structures that you can put in place. These are the things that will protect you and help you to focus on your business.  With these 5 support structures in place, you will be ready to grow your business to new heights.

1.  Set Boundaries… It can be very useful to set boundaries in your client relationships.

Do clients ring you whenever they like and expect you to drop everything for them? If that’s the case, you can’t have the time and energy you need to focus on working on your business. You need to have some boundaries in place, where you allot certain times for responding to clients’ calls.

2.  Manage Your Time On Your Terms … You can be so much more productive if you set definite times for when you are working and when you are not working.

For example, I work three days a week. Everyone in my house knows when I’m working, so they don’t interrupt me. People don’t ring me during those hours. If they do, I won’t answer the phone And when I’m in my time off, I’m not working. These are really clear structures that I adhere to.

3.  Work With A Schedule… This is be a great way to stay on track and focused on getting things done.

Put everything that you need to accomplish on your calendar. Make sure to block out enough time for the task, and stick to it. Whether it’s a meeting, a phone call, working on your blog – include it in your schedule. When you see that each item has its own set block of time, you will be able to focus more clearly. This is amazingly helpful in keeping from feeling overwhelmed.

4.  Build A Team… If you are mired down in day-to-day tasks that keep you from working on your business, consider hiring an administrative assistant or virtual assistant.

You may think of this as an expense that you can’t afford. Reverse that line of thought and consider it as an investment instead. By delegating the routine tasks to an assistant, you will free yourself to do the work that will bring in clients and grow your business.

5.  Get Emotional Support… Encouragement and support from the people in your personal life goes a long way toward keeping you motivated in your business.

Perhaps your partner is busy, or your family doesn’t understand what you are doing. If the people close to you don’t offer enough inspiration and support, you may begin to feel frustrated and become less productive.

Should this happen to you, look to other sources for the motivation and encouragement that you need. A mastermind group or other similar group of like-minded people will boost your confidence and help you in countless ways. In addition to emotional support, they can offer specific business knowledge and advice.

So consider all of the structures that can support you as your business grows. It’s critical to have these in place so that you can be productive and concentrate on your talents and expertise.

Do you remember the story of the Elves and the Shoemaker? The Shoemaker and his wife were very poor, until a pair of elves began making beautiful shoes for them overnight. The Shoemaker was able to sell the shoes for a lot of money, and became rich and famous.

I sometimes feel like I’m in a similar situation to the Shoemaker.

I first experienced the power of this a couple of years ago when I sent an email that was copied to two people, one in India and one in Australia. In this email I gave instructions for a specific project, the first part of which had to be completed by one person before being handed over to the second person for completion.

And from that single email, while I was sleeping, the project that needed to be completed and the webpage that needed to be uploaded just happened. So when I woke up the following morning, it was really like the elves had been working overnight and doing the work for me.

And it’s so easy for you to invite the same kind magic into your business. All you need to do is start outsourcing routine tasks.

So where should you start with outsourcing? First of all, ask yourself where you have profitability blocks in your business. To work this out, answer the following question:

“My business would make more money if I could do more of _______.”

You already know what the answer is. You can spend more time marketing. You can spend more time developing products and programs. You can spend more time writing your web copy. You can spend more time developing a newsletter.

Then ask yourself this question:

“I currently spend most of my time on ________.”

The answer to this will help show where you are putting your time that you don’t need to. This will likely be one of the first areas where you’ll going to get a quick return on outsourcing.

For example, when I first started out, I found that I was spending more time updating my webpage than I wanted to. It wasn’t part of my vision for my business, and I wanted to use my time in a way that would generate more income. So I found people who do that for me for less than £10 an hour. It was a no-brainer to pay someone else to do that and win back that time which was put towards growing my business. Now, I’m in the position of knowing that while I’m asleep my website is being updated for me.

And today I have seven people around the world working on different parts of my business, which is something I would never have anticipated when I started outsourcing.

One unexpected benefit of outsourcing for me was that I hired someone who was also working for another person whose business was at a more developed stage than mine. This person was a tremendous resource because she had insight into a business that was 18 months further down the road from mine. That’s just one area where a virtual assistant can really start to add value, because they’re bringing in outside knowledge and they’re exposing you to ideas or suggestions that you wouldn’t have got on your own.

You need to think about what you’re ready to turn over right now. You need to be both physically ready and emotionally ready to outsource. If you’re someone who in the past has tried to outsource and has experienced a big disappointment or has been let down, then understandably you’re going to be cautious about outsourcing again. You’re going to want to ease back into it gently, to build your confidence back up.

What you need to do is write out an initial job description or scope for the work you want done. Be specific about what results you want. You want this to be outcome oriented. You want to think about what you want done and in what timeframe. Start to think about the skill sets this person is going to need, and whether it’s reasonable to find these skills in just one person or if you’re going to need a team.

And while I don’t know where you are with your particular business, I still say that it’s never too soon to start outsourcing.

And the fact is that you’re already outsourcing lots of things. You’re outsourcing the legal aspects of your job. You’re outsourcing your website hosting. So, to be correct, the question is really about how much more you should be outsourcing.

Don’t you want to be able to go to sleep knowing that the magic elves will come in during the night and take care of your work for you?

When you take steps to move ahead, in your business or personal life, they usually involve learning the things you need to start doing.

Would it surprise you to learn that one of the most important things you can do to achieve success in your business is to consider what you need to stop doing?

When you move from one level to another, whether in life or in business, there is always something that you need to leave behind. You have to figure out what you need to let go of.

Letting go can be a huge stepping stone. You might even find that much of your growth comes from the things you stop doing, rather than those you start doing.

For example, if you are overly involved in every detail of your business, you risk creating a bottleneck. When this happens, the business slows down because you have to take the time to personally oversee everything.

Let something go. Give up some of the specific tasks that create the bottleneck. Change the process so that you are less involved. You’ll find that not only will things run more smoothly, but that you will have more time to do the work you want to do.

When you are starting out, it’s usually possible to control everything that goes on. In a smaller business, you can see all of the e-mails and every correspondence. But as your business grows, you have to give up some of that control. You simply don’t have the time to be involved in every single thing. But again, when you give up control, what you get back is freedom.

Work smart rather than harder…  One of the behaviors you need to let go of is working so hard. Driving yourself into the ground and flogging yourself to the bone really won’t get you anywhere.

You are the number one asset in your business. It is built around you – your skills, talents and time. You have to take care of yourself as the valuable asset that you are. Rest and recovery are essential to your success.

In his book The Powerful Engagement, Tony Schwartz writes about how we humans are not like machines. We can’t run for eight hours straight. We have from 90 to 120 minutes of energy at any one time.

Begin to block out your time in segments of 90 to 120 minutes. Totally focus on one thing for that time period, and then take a break. Make sure it is a proper break – stand up, walk around, do something different. Staying at your desk and checking e-mail is not a proper break.

Working this way will increase your productivity because it helps to conserve your energy. You are no longer driving yourself like a machine, but using your energy efficiently and treating your body well.

One of the best things you can do is to spend the first 90 minutes of your day focusing on your most important goal. Before you start to work, before you do anything else, concentrate on working toward that goal. Do this every day, and you will probably meet that goal before the end of the year.

Begin to let go of the things that keep you working too hard. Learn to work in shorter blocks of time in order to stay energized and fresh. Focus each day on your goal. You will be amazed at how much more productive you will become.

Bernadette Doyle specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract a steady stream of ideal clients. If you want to get clients calling you instead of you calling them, sign up for her free weekly e-zine at http://www.clientmagnets.com