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What I Learned in 2009
2009 has to have been the wildest ride ever! My business has gone from Point A to Point B to Point C and pulled me along with my hair flying behind me. I’ve coached and been coached, mentored and been mentored, delegated and been delegated to. The people I’ve met in person or virtually have impressed me beyond belief. I thought I knew a lot about being a business owner, but 2009 raised the awareness of my business potential to the nth power. My to-do list is crazy long; to the point that I’m almost stuck spinning my wheels. Thank goodness I have someone starting to help me soon. Maybe this week!
Here are some of the key things I learned along the way.
- Find a mentor or business coach. It should be someone who has been down the same road as you and reached success. You will need to invest in yourself for this one. But the amount you invest will come back to you (many times over) if you put into action what they tell you to do.
- Delegate! If you don’t know why or how, consider getting help in cutting the control strings. Check out Delegate or Bust!. Jessica can help you find the right match for what you need done.
- You need to have systems in place for everything that you do. It’s impossible to grow your business without them.
- Hang out or mastermind with other entrepreneurs who are on their way to greater success. Help each other with great ideas and accountability.
- Pick up the phone and stay in touch. As much as we rely on our computers, social media and email, the key to more sales in 2010 may be at the end of your phone cord.
Read, read, read. If you don’t have any recommendations for business books or magazines (just ask someone), go to the nearest bookstore, or log onto Amazon and see what they are displaying for sale. There are so many “classics” as well as new books. Keep a book at your bedside or in your car to read while sitting in line at the bank depositing all your checks! Better yet, download the audio version and listen while running errands or puttering around the house. I always have teleconference replays and books on my MP3 player. (Santa brought me a new Sony version in shiny red that I love.) You can load tons of audios so you never have to be without inspiration.
Stay tuned for more details about each of these in upcoming blog posts. Y’all have a safe and Happy New Year! Here’s to our prosperity…
30 Days of Thanks – 30
Today I am grateful for the amazing life I have. My family, my church, my friends, my clients, and my work – all blend perfectly for me. This month of blessings has been fun to share with everyone. I hope you all have learned something worthwhile about me, and that it has been enjoyable to read. I’m thankful to have been able to post to my blog almost every single day. (My recently dreadful internet connection made it impossible once or twice!) Wishing each of you a grateful December and 2010!
30 Days of Thanks – 29
I’m so grateful for all the abundance that my family has received this year. And I’m happy to know that God will always provide everything we need, exactly when we need it. Abundance doesn’t mean excess to me – it means just the right amount. This thought is so freeing and hopeful. I’m certain that the right direction will always unfold to me and to each one of us.
30 Days of Thanks – 26
It’s Thanksgiving Day, and as I write, the turkey has been in the oven for a couple of hours already. Hubby got up pre-dawn to put it in the oven. I’ve given him instructions on making gravy, so we will see how that turns out! I’ll be heading for church in a bit. I’ll probably get choked up during the testimonies of gratitude from everyone there. I don’t know if anyone else from the family is joining me at the service, so they will pick me up on the way to Grandma Sue Sue’s house – turkey in tow. This year I am grateful for the abundance of good that my family has received. “I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.” ~ Psalms 69:30
30 Days of Thanks – 25
I love family traditions. We only have a couple. The one I look forward to is Movie Day (or Night.) I think it started on vacation 20 years ago. It rained one day while we were at the beach, so we took our little ones to a movie. That started something, so that during every vacation, we always save one afternoon to see a movie. The kids have always humored me; sometimes it was difficult during the teen years, but we did it despite the protests. Most often we have seen the family blockbusters that were playing during the summer. It could have been Star Wars, Harry Potter, or Pirates of the Caribbean. We next added a movie over the Thanksgiving holidays and right around Christmas – often Christmas Eve afternoon before church. After my daughter started college we added movie days whenever she came back home.
So this holiday weekend we are going to see “The Blindside.” I always give my son fair warning so he doesn’t go off with his friends to see it first. He understands that he might end up seeing something twice otherwise.
Hope you have some neat holiday traditions, too.
30 Days of Thanks – 24
I’m grateful that each year the President of the United States issues a Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. It’s always interesting to see what it contains. This year is very plain and simple, but it still is the “official” word to me. My church has a Thanksgiving Day service, and this is read aloud at the beginning of the service. It’s been a tradition every year of my life to go to church on Thanksgiving morning, hear the proclamation and to stand up and express my gratitude. It’s a highlight of my year. Seriously. I love it that much. I hope you will click over and read the proclamation this year, and every year.
30 Days of Thanks – 23
On this Monday morning I am thankful to live in a climate that doesn’t get too cold for too long. Don’t get me wrong – snow is pretty. But for a day or two tops. And maybe just every few years. Our winters are a sprinkling of days when I break out the wool sweaters and hand knit wool socks. Or the occasional night when my wool coat is required. Boots? Not found in my closet. Unless you count the cowboy boots I’ve had for 30 years. The few really cold days are interspersed with many requiring only long sleeves and a fleece jacket. Often, I can still throw on a pair of shorts with a sweatshirt and be comfortable. Winter is maybe the month of January and February. Thanksgiving and Christmas are often “outside” days. It works for our lifestyle – more golf for hubby, more outside time for me.
I hope you live in a climate you enjoy, too!
30 Days of Thanks – 21
Today I am thankful for so many people who have been my mentors this year. It’s been an amazing year of learning and I am thrilled that so many have shared their amazing knowledge and skills with me. A lot of what I learned I paid for. (good to invest in yourself) But a lot has come from the talented people I have met along my journey in 2009 who have given freely of their passion and information. Some of the people were and are my coaches, and to you I send a special thanks. You have enriched my life and business in ways that I can not adequately express. To the rest of you, I hope to individually let you know how much you mean to me.
In 2010, I hope to freely share my talents with many others. It’s time to give back!
30 Days of Thanks – 20
Today I am thankful for clarity. As in, having enough clarity to know what the right decision is. Knowing what projects are right for me and which ones are not. Knowing what clients to work with, knowing what to spend my time on, knowing in what direction I want my business to go. As a business owner I can do whatever I want, but having the vision, the clear sense of direction, is a blessing.
Wishing you clarity, too!
30 Days of Thanks – 19
Today as I drove down the interstate with Anita Baker playing on the XM, my sun roof open, glorious blue, fall skies, it occurred to me that this was my perfect kind of day. I was wearing my favorite suit with my heels and panty hose (egad. do they still make those?) and excited to be the speaker at the Chamber of Commerce luncheon. It makes me very happy to go to a networking event. Call me crazy, but I love it so. I’d do this every day of the week. Love dressing up and meeting new people. Love sharing and helping other business owners. Love thinking about how they can use new marketing ideas to boost their businesses. Love the feeling of unlimited potential in the room. Today I am very grateful for networking events!
