How 3 Simple "No's" Can Change Your Life and Business
How 3 Simple "No's" Can Change Your Life and Business
With work, family, social, household and community commitments, you wonder how anyone can make progress these days in building a home business.
We all have the same 24 hours and the same seven days a week, yet some entrepreneurs seem to cover more ground than others at a much faster pace.
It's not because they don't have children or because they're not working a 40-hour week at a j-o-b. If these business owners were like most other people, they'd have that same time filled with other non-business related obligations and activities.
What sets the movers and shakers apart from the slow and often unsteady is how they manage their events, not their time.
You cannot manage time because it will continue to tick away -- one second at a time. You can't put it on hold or save it for later. Time is beyond your control.
What you can control, however, is the events you say 'yes' to within each minute of every day.
Before you read any further, I'd like you to list three things you absolutely dislike doing ... maybe even HATE doing.
There's no one watching over your shoulder to scold you or shake their head in judgment, so be more honest than you've ever been in your life.
Do you have them listed?
Good.
Now …
Stop doing them.
You heard me right. Stop doing them.
What's the first thought that statement brings to your mind?
"You're nuts."
"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"
"Yeah right, maybe in your fairytale world."
If you were able to clearly state three things you don't love to do, there's absolutely no reason why they can't be removed or at the very least, dramatically reduced in your life.
The only thing keeping you tied to those activities is your belief that they HAVE to be done by you. There are always options, however, you can't see them, even when right under your nose.
What's the roadblock?
Your beliefs.
You believe you're the only one that can do them.
It's your responsibility, no one else's.
It's your role in the family/relationship/community.
Your mother did it, grandma did it and great-grandma did it, so you have to do it.
It would go against the role you're expected to play in society.
I remember when I made the list of three things I detested doing:
1. cooking
2. grocery shopping
3. personal shopping
I believed I couldn't stop doing them because they were my responsibility. I was groomed to perform these tasks from a young age and was expected to perform them as an adult.
The problem was, they made me miserable and ate up hours of time that could have been spent doing what I loved, building my business.
I hated doing them. They depleted my energy. And I would get upset at the smallest little thing that stole one precious second of the hour or two a night I was left with to work on my business.
When I announced I was no longer going to perform these tasks on a regular basis, you'd think I'd told the family I was joining a cult.
What's wrong with you? What kind of a woman are you, not cooking for your man?
It wasn't a pretty sight in the beginning, but I held firm. Fortunately, my partner was one hundred percent behind me because the very first day we met, I told him I detested cooking. He never minded preparing meals and even grew to love it. In time, my family warmed to the idea because love and attention was put into the meals and they could buy him neat kitchen gadgets and he'd be excited to try them out.
When they bought me kitchen gadgets I'd put them in a drawer and they'd see them in a box for charity the next summer with the tag still on them.
Because my mother loves to shop, I asked her if she'd be my personal shopper. Again, it turned out to be a win for both of us. She got more of what she loved and so did I.
Although my partner doesn't love grocery shopping, he took on the task after some smart negotiations. He hates paying bills or having anything to do with banking or investing, so I gladly assumed the entire responsibility. It didn't add much in the line of work for me, yet took what he considered a burden off his shoulders. Again, win/win.
As you examine your list, start exploring options. If you can't come up with any creative solutions on your own, bring it to a group of friends you trust. Two, three or four minds are always better than one and generate the loftiest of ideas.
Once you've found your solutions, implement them and stick to them. If others need to adjust, they will. Just make sure to create a solution that creates a win for everyone and takes away from no one.
Eventually, you'll be able to make your next list of three things you'd rather not do, then repeat the process.
During the course of your lifetime, you'll be presented with many responsibilities and tasks, and through time, they add up. The good news is, you have the right to pick and choose what you no longer want to participate in, and if you think this practice is selfish, let me remind you of what "selfish" really means...
Selfish is not doing what YOU want to do ... it's expecting others to do what you want them to do.
Stop doing things you don't like and start with your top three. If your beliefs tell you it isn't possible, put them under a microscope because they're not being honest with you. Challenge them, prove them wrong, and change them.
You have it in you.
2008 © Laurie Hayes - The HBB Source
Laurie Hayes, founder of The HBB Source, and creator of The Complete 12-Step Guide To Starting A Home-Based Business, helps employees become successful home-based business owners. Get her free ezine packed with helpful resources at http://www.thehbbsource.com
How 3 Simple Nos Can Change Your Life and Business - To learn more about this author, visit Laurie Hayes's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Time scarcity is one of the top struggles of the home-based entrepreneur.
With work, family, social, household and community commitments, you wonder how anyone can make progress these days in building a home business.
We all have the same 24 hours and the same seven days a week, yet some entrepreneurs seem to cover more ground than others at a much faster pace.
It's not because they don't have children or because they're not working a 40-hour week at a j-o-b. If these business owners were like most other people, they'd have that same time filled with other non-business related obligations and activities.
What sets the movers and shakers apart from the slow and often unsteady is how they manage their events, not their time.
You cannot manage time because it will continue to tick away -- one second at a time. You can't put it on hold or save it for later. Time is beyond your control.
What you can control, however, is the events you say 'yes' to within each minute of every day.
Before you read any further, I'd like you to list three things you absolutely dislike doing ... maybe even HATE doing.
There's no one watching over your shoulder to scold you or shake their head in judgment, so be more honest than you've ever been in your life.
Do you have them listed?
Good.
Now …
Stop doing them.
You heard me right. Stop doing them.
What's the first thought that statement brings to your mind?
"You're nuts."
"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!"
"Yeah right, maybe in your fairytale world."
If you were able to clearly state three things you don't love to do, there's absolutely no reason why they can't be removed or at the very least, dramatically reduced in your life.
The only thing keeping you tied to those activities is your belief that they HAVE to be done by you. There are always options, however, you can't see them, even when right under your nose.
What's the roadblock?
Your beliefs.
You believe you're the only one that can do them.
It's your responsibility, no one else's.
It's your role in the family/relationship/community.
Your mother did it, grandma did it and great-grandma did it, so you have to do it.
It would go against the role you're expected to play in society.
I remember when I made the list of three things I detested doing:
1. cooking
2. grocery shopping
3. personal shopping
I believed I couldn't stop doing them because they were my responsibility. I was groomed to perform these tasks from a young age and was expected to perform them as an adult.
The problem was, they made me miserable and ate up hours of time that could have been spent doing what I loved, building my business.
I hated doing them. They depleted my energy. And I would get upset at the smallest little thing that stole one precious second of the hour or two a night I was left with to work on my business.
When I announced I was no longer going to perform these tasks on a regular basis, you'd think I'd told the family I was joining a cult.
What's wrong with you? What kind of a woman are you, not cooking for your man?
It wasn't a pretty sight in the beginning, but I held firm. Fortunately, my partner was one hundred percent behind me because the very first day we met, I told him I detested cooking. He never minded preparing meals and even grew to love it. In time, my family warmed to the idea because love and attention was put into the meals and they could buy him neat kitchen gadgets and he'd be excited to try them out.
When they bought me kitchen gadgets I'd put them in a drawer and they'd see them in a box for charity the next summer with the tag still on them.
Because my mother loves to shop, I asked her if she'd be my personal shopper. Again, it turned out to be a win for both of us. She got more of what she loved and so did I.
Although my partner doesn't love grocery shopping, he took on the task after some smart negotiations. He hates paying bills or having anything to do with banking or investing, so I gladly assumed the entire responsibility. It didn't add much in the line of work for me, yet took what he considered a burden off his shoulders. Again, win/win.
As you examine your list, start exploring options. If you can't come up with any creative solutions on your own, bring it to a group of friends you trust. Two, three or four minds are always better than one and generate the loftiest of ideas.
Once you've found your solutions, implement them and stick to them. If others need to adjust, they will. Just make sure to create a solution that creates a win for everyone and takes away from no one.
Eventually, you'll be able to make your next list of three things you'd rather not do, then repeat the process.
During the course of your lifetime, you'll be presented with many responsibilities and tasks, and through time, they add up. The good news is, you have the right to pick and choose what you no longer want to participate in, and if you think this practice is selfish, let me remind you of what "selfish" really means...
Selfish is not doing what YOU want to do ... it's expecting others to do what you want them to do.
Stop doing things you don't like and start with your top three. If your beliefs tell you it isn't possible, put them under a microscope because they're not being honest with you. Challenge them, prove them wrong, and change them.
You have it in you.
2008 © Laurie Hayes - The HBB Source
Laurie Hayes, founder of The HBB Source, and creator of The Complete 12-Step Guide To Starting A Home-Based Business, helps employees become successful home-based business owners. Get her free ezine packed with helpful resources at http://www.thehbbsource.com
How 3 Simple Nos Can Change Your Life and Business - To learn more about this author, visit Laurie Hayes's Website.
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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