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3 Steps to Kill the Limiting Beliefs That Sabotage Success

What beliefs do you hold to be ‘true’ that really aren’t? We all have some – those little self-sabotaging thoughts that act as constraints in our business.

Here’s a few common ones: It’s impossible to earn a profit in this economy, I can’t get good help, customers are never satisfied, customers only care about price, marketing doesn’t work, I can’t get my people to do anything unless I’m there watching over them or I can’t make more money unless I work more hours.

Any sound familiar? The problem with paradigms like these – they give you an excuse to settle for less, accept mediocrity or give up completely. After all, how committed will you be to ACT if you believe your actions won’t matter.

Create Positive Thoughts

So how do you make them go away and get on the path to success? Here’s a simple way to turn negative beliefs into positive thoughts.

First, write down all the negative beliefs that you hold to be true. Big or small, write them down.

Next, turn each negative belief around – and create a powerful statement of what the ideal would be. For example, replace ‘It’s impossible to earn a profit in this economy’ with ‘I’m so grateful my profit has tripled in this economy’.

Finally, write all your ‘new’ positive statements on an index card. Each morning and evening, read them out loud, with passion, like they are already true. Add a little visualization – envision how you feel with your new ideal belief — and you are on your way.

It may sound crazy, but it works because the brain believes whatever you tell it. It doesn’t judge! You can change a negative belief, attitude or behavior into a positive one within 30 days. Once you kill the paradigms, you have the foundation for taking action.

Don’t let attitudes held by others, but not supported with fact, hold you back. Kill the paradigms and start taking action to go from where you are to where you want to be.

Ready to Put Your Business on the Path to Success?

Would working with a business coach help you take your business to a whole new level? Then let’s explore the possibilities with a complimentary consultation. It’s a chance to get to know each other, discuss your goals and the obstacles that hold you back. Together we can determine if there is a good fit between your needs and my services.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, call me at (856) 533-2344 or drop me an email Joan@HybridBizAdvisors.com

Personal growth

Invest In Yourself: It Pays Dividends

Accelerating your success does not always require huge increases in effort, time or money. Brian Tracy uses a great analogy to make this point. In a horse race, the first place horse might earn $100,000 while the second-place horse might earn $50,000. The first horse got twice the money not because it ran twice as fast as the competition. It only had to be a nose ahead.

So what can you do personally to create distance between you and your competitors or improve your results and income? The answer is simple – invest in yourself by learning new things and developing new skills. As Ben Franklin said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” It also translates into higher earnings and income. And it doesn’t require a lot of time or money – just a commitment to personal growth and passion for success.

Reading: A Competitive Advantage

Consider the fact that the average person reads 12 books in a lifetime. While this is a sad statistic, it clearly demonstrates an opportunity! According to Dr. Donald E. Wetmore, if the average person read for just 15 minutes per day, they would read 12 books per year and well over 600 books in their lifetime. Talk about a competitive advantage – and for just 15 minutes per day!

If you spend a lot of time on the road, invest in audio books and turn your car into a learning center. Today, most of the best-selling business and personal development books are available on CD or audio download. They are also available for Kindle or other readers — so you can always have a book handy while on the road! Don’t feel a need to listen or read them once. I’m always finding new ideas from books I’ve read or listened to previously.

Want to maximize your learning while leveraging your time? Here are a few tips you might want to consider. First, invest in an executive book summary subscription. The summary provides a recap and key ideas contained in the book – without reading the entire book. Busy executives and professionals use these to stay abreast of changes and develop new ideas – you can too! Second, join a book club and gather with others to discuss and learn. Some professional organizations offer these as a member benefit.

Do you learn more effectively with the help of others? If so, attend interactive workshops, seminars or webinars to improve knowledge gaps or simply to get new ideas. If you can take away and implement just one new idea in your business, you’ll find the results will amaze you.

Finally, make an effort to meet and build relationships with other successful business owners – inside and outside your own industry. Sharing information is a great way for both of you to learn and improve your businesses. Whether you do this with a group or one-on-one, make spending time with other successful owners part of your personal development plan. A word of caution here. Surround yourself with owners who have a similar passion for success. Avoid those who constantly play the role of victim since they will simply pull you down.

In conclusion, learning new ideas and ways to do things better is one of the keys to success. But at the end of the day, you must take action or do something with what you learned in order to impact results. Remember, the only difference between YOUR income and lifestyle now and in five years will be the people you meet, the knowledge you build and the actions you take – applying what you learn. So start investing in yourself and you too will reap the rewards.

Are you looking for some great books to help you learn and grow?  Here are some of my recommendations for business owners.

New Monthly Article & Business Tools

For new business improvement articles, exclusive tools and insights on entrepreneurship, click here to subscribe to my monthly eNewsletter. When you do, I’ll also send you my free eBook, How to Build Profit Through Leverage.

Entrepreneurial Success Insights

7 One-Minute Insights for Success

As a Ken Blanchard fan, I find his One-Minute series of books are packed with common sense ideas and practical advice for business owners or professionals.  One of my favorites, The One-Minute Entrepreneur, is loaded with success concepts and a lot of one-minute insights.

I thought I would share some pearls of wisdom from this book – along with my take on them. Hopefully, these will provide some light-bulb moments as you plan your own entrepreneurial success.

#1 – A good life is built on strong, solid values such as integrity, love, honesty and purposeful work. I would suggest that the same is true of your business.  When you love what you do and do it with purpose, integrity, and honesty, you build a reputation that attracts quality people – from customers to employees and more.  Be the business others want to be associated with.

#2 – Becoming a successful entrepreneur and having a spouse are not mutually exclusive. Balancing work and family (spouse and children) takes planning and a commitment to both. Things that are important to your business get scheduled so they get done.  Apply the same principle to your family.  Build your business to work FOR you.

#3 – You’ll never achieve more than you think you can. So why not dream big? Don’t let little, safe goals hold you back from achieving more in life and in business.  Take a look at the goals you’ve set for the coming year.  Do they WOW you?  If not, think bigger or better.

#4 – To create a successful business, you must first master the basics. Here are four things that are obvious – but worth mentioning:

  • Sales must exceed expenses. While you need to invest in growth, build overhead expenses as you build customers.
  • Collect your bills. Be reasonable, but don’t be your customers’ banker.
  • Take care of your customers. They are the lifeblood of your business – and they pay the bills.  You work for them!
  • Take care of your people. Nurture them as they are the ones who make it happen. In the eyes of others, they are your company!

#5 – The best management includes day-to-day coaching. It catches your people doing things right and re-directs their efforts when they are off base.  A serving leader helps others win.  Teach,  delegate, inspire, engage and congratulate them.  It’s a recipe for building a winning team – one that serves your customers and helps you achieve your goals.

#6 – Success occurs when opportunity and preparation meet. Coming up with new ideas is rarely a problem for entrepreneurs. Implementing them is another issue. It requires preparation.  What is the goal?  What do you need to do to accomplish it? How do you get it done consistently within the company? Get others engaged and remember, ideas without actions are simply dreams. Results come from doing.

#7 – Take care of your numbers and your numbers will take care of you. While financials may not be your favorite thing, winning in business requires that you understand them. So here are two things to keep in mind.  First,  sales growth is important, but cash flow and profit are the keys to staying in business.  Make sure you put the focus on all three.  Second, little issues become big problems when they are ignored.  It’s not enough to know you have a problem, you need to take the right corrective action to fix it.  If you are not sure how to fix a problem, ask for help.      

Create your own one-minute insights

Form a new habit this year by writing down your own one-minute insights.  Whether you use a notebook or electronic device, capture pearls of wisdom you gain from reading, listening or learning.  Over time, you will have a log of quotes, tips and other information to inspire and remind you to focus on what’s really important to you in business and in life.

New Monthly Article & Business Tools

For new business improvement articles, exclusive tools and insights on entrepreneurship, click here to subscribe to my monthly eNewsletter. When you do, I’ll also send you my free eBook, How to Build Profit Through Leverage.

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A Lesson For Winning In Sports and Business

Lessons for Winning in Sports and BusinessSports have a way of teaching us valuable life lessons. Growing up it taught me to work as part of a team, win or lose with dignity and never give up or stop trying.  While my playing days are behind me, I am still a big sports fan — and yes, I do prefer the teams in Philly!

So when the Philadelphia 76ers opened their season with a win over the world champion Miami Heat another lesson emerged.  No, they are not the next world champions. The media had reasons to explain the Miami loss – back-to-back games, missing key player, etc.

But one broadcaster put it best when he said “Youth has no boundaries.” Despite being a 12 point underdog, someone forgot to tell the young players on the 76ers that they were going to lose.  They executed, avoided a lot of mistakes and did not quit when they got behind.  They didn’t let others expectations hold them back.

Winning in business is no different.  You need to execute your game plan, avoid killer mistakes, and keep trying – even when faced with obstacles.  Most of all, you need to believe you can!  To believe in yourself and the team that surrounds you.

Don’t let years of experience or maybe mediocre results hold you back.  Tomorrow is a new day.

5 Reminders to Avoid Self-Sabotage
  • Fail Forward.  Mistakes happen.  Learn from them and move on. Nothing positive comes from dwelling on it.
  • Dream Big.  If you fall a little short, you are still far better off than most people who think small.
  • Avoid Pessimistic People.  Nothing zaps a positive attitude more than people who complain, whine or only see the negative in every situation.
  • Be Grateful.  Appreciate the small successes and bigger ones will follow.
  • Use Positive Self-Talk.  Sounds corny, but what we tell ourselves about ourselves is often more powerful than what others say about us.

More Ideas to Grow Your Business

For new business improvement articles, exclusive tools and insights on entrepreneurship, CLICK HERE to subscribe to my monthly eNewsletter. When you do, I’ll also send you my free eBook, How to Build Profit Through Leverage.

 

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7 Signs You Need a Business Coach

Ever wonder why a business owner would invest in a business coach?  While the answer will vary depending on the owner you ask, it often comes down to three things:  time, money and freedom.  In other words, they want a business that works for them – that provides the income and lifestyle they want – but hit some roadblocks or obstacles along the way.

#1 Challenge for Small Businesses

Many of you are probably thinking, “I need more customers, revenue, time or maybe more profit” – and that is likely true.  We always tend to want more.  Now ask yourself this.  What can or should you do to turn this around?  Again, you could probably come up with a lot of ideas. And there-in lies the problem.

The biggest challenge most small companies face today isn’t coming up with good ideas – it’s implementing them.  Business coaching is the most effective way to bridge the gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it.

7 Reasons You Should Work With a Business Coach      
  1. You are working too many hours and feel “I never have time for myself and my family”. Taking time off or being out of touch is stressful — things don’t work well when you aren’t there. You are ready to work a whole lot less – without sacrificing sales and service.
  2. You’re ready to make a whole lot more profit. Profit is your reward for excellence in entrepreneurship. If you’re not making enough money to justify the effort, risk and investment you’re making in the business, then it’s time to turn that around.
  3. You are ready to build a team of people – from employees and contractors to alliances – who can help you grow the business whether you’re there or not. In other words, you need people supporting your business that are committed to your customers and company’s success.
  4. You need to fall in love with your business again; you feel burned out, bored or maybe sick of your business. Time to get the passion back – to get re-focused and re-energized.
  5. You have ideas and know things need to improve, but are not sure where to start or how to get things done. You need to bring in some expertise and support to help with implementation – to turn ideas into results.
  6. You need someone who can see the forest for the trees, an outsider who isn’t blinded by your industry and too many years in your business. The obvious is not always obvious to you, the business owner.
  7. You need someone to hold you accountable. Knowing someone is in your corner, and on top of you to do what you commit to doing, brings a higher level of motivation and passion that translates into results. Imagine having an accountability partner to encourage and support your goals, teach you new things, push you to new levels and congratulate you on a job well done.

Building a successful, profitable business won’t happen overnight.  A business coach can help you go from where you are to where you want to be – a whole lot faster than you can on your own. With templates, proven systems and a track record of success with small businesses, he/she can save you valuable time and help you avoid common mistakes others make that lead to frustration.

And with the business improvements and increased profit, it’s an investment that pays for itself over and over again!

Ready to Put Your Business on the Path to Success?

Would working with a business coach help you take your business to a whole new level? Then let’s explore the possibilities with a complimentary consultation. It’s a chance to get to know each other, discuss your goals and the obstacles that hold you back. Together we can determine if there is a good fit between your needs and my services.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, call me at (856) 533-2344 or drop me an email Joan@HybridBizAdvisors.com