Business owners invest in the business by purchasing equipment and hiring staff, but how often does the business owner invest in him or herself? Taking time to invest in yourself will help you reap rewards.
Here are some ways the entrepreneur can invest in himself:
Education matters. Continuing education in your profession is always a wise investment. Are there certifications you can earn? Courses you can take that will help keep you up on current technologies? Any education that can set you apart from the competition?
Investing in yourself outside of the realms of the business is crucial to mind and body. What can you do that will advance your life’s purpose? Are there goals you are working toward? Take steps every day to achieve them.
Stay healthy. As an entrepreneur the stresses are many and varied. You need to take time every day to exercise and eat with mindfulness. Better health will help you perform at your peak and will also give you more energy and reduce your stress.
Cultivate relationships. Yes, it takes a lot of hours and effort to sustain a business that will support yourself and your family. You also need to invest in your relationships though. Schedule time off for family time. Cultivating relationships also extends to business and networking events. No entrepreneur can exist in a vacuum.
Plan for the future. Whether the business is brand new or if you’ve been working it for decades, the future will be here before you know it and you need to be prepared to face it head on. Whether that means, saving and investing for retirement or working toward a goal for the time when you close the business and move onto other endeavors, you need to have a conscious plan for it.
Because we spend so much time at work — whether you work from a home office, corporate America or somewhere in between. The feeling of stress and feeling out of control while in our work environments will spill over into your home and personal life unless you regain control.
Here are my tips on regaining control, managing your time and reducing your stress:
Quantity versus quality. Just because you can say you put in a 12 hour day doesn’t mean you accomplished everything you set out to do. Chances are you’re not productive the entire 12 hours, are you? You’re better served, and so are your clients, if you concentrate on the quality of the time you work rather than chalking up quantity.
Is your work space and your desk conducive to getting your job done in a stress free manner? A clean desk, a welcoming work environment and being comfortable where you’re working will help you be productive… and happier!
Most entrepreneurs are “idea factories.” Problem is, there are times you need to shut the factory down and concentrate on the tasks at hand. You always want to capture your ideas in a note book or on your computer, but know that you don’t have to act on all of them all the time.
Are you working on personal growth? Professional growth is a given, but neglecting personal growth leads to stagnation. Learn a new skill. Make a new habit. Take time for yourself and incorporate healthy habits into your work day.
What’s on your agenda on the weekend? If your weekends are necessary as a way to unwind and recharge to face the upcoming week, you need to rework your time. The way to do this is to look at your weekend as “you time” and family time and time to pursue activities you let slide during the week. Your weekend should be a time for family and recreation and yes a little bit of planning for the week ahead.
There is no one size fits all when it comes to growing your business. One methodology that is true though, is that no entrepreneur should rely on only one marketing stream for all of the business’s income. Multiple strategies help ensure that the cash is flowing, productivity is enhanced and if one marketing strategy is not producing you merely shift focus to the higher producing effort.
Here are my five tips for implementing multiple marketing strategies:
“Ordinary excellence” is as important as stupendous strategies. Companies that are in it for the long haul understand that they should be undertaking the “Little Engine That Could” methodology. Strong and steady efforts will keep your business viable. Additionally, entrepreneurs need to drill down and identify those tasks (or even clients) that bring negative energy to the project and remove them if necessary.
Business owners need to embrace a mindset of being an entrepreneur rather than a technician that is working in the business. True entrepreneurs work on the business. It’s crucial that you spend your day to day activities focusing on your core competencies and keeping your business competitive.
How many items do you have in your “sales funnel”? Strive for at least three lead generation activities and work those generators regularly. Ensuring your sales funnel is always full relieves pressure and keeps the machine humming along.
Focus your time on high leverage/high producing tasks. Spend your time working on those tasks that will grow your business. Put systems in place to streamline those activities and your productivity and the company income will likely soar!
If you’re introducing a new product to the market, spend some time beta testing it. Work with trusted clients as test groups and launch the product or service as a test. Gauge reaction and work with the test group to hone the process prior to implementation.
10 Primary Differences in Men and Women When Multitasking….
1. MULTI-TASKING
Women – Multiple Process Oriented
Women’s brains designed to concentrate multiple tasks at a time.
Women can Watch a TV and talk over phone while cooking.
Men – Single Process Oriented
Men’s brains are designed to concentrate upon one work process at a time. Men cannot watch TV and talk over the phone at the same time. Men will typically pause or mute the TV while talking. They either watch TV or talk over the phone or cook.
2. LANGUAGE
Women more easily learn multiple languages, but find it more difficult to solve problems.
Men find it more difficult to learn languages, but can more easily solve problems.
On average a 3 year old girl has three times higher vocabulary than a 3 year old boy.
3. ANALYTICAL SKILLS
Men’s brains more space allocated for handling the analytical process. They can analyze a process and map solutions more easily.
When women view complex maps, they find it more difficult to understand. Women labor more in easily understanding the details of the map or process.
4. DRIVING A CAR.
The more analytical functioning of a man’s brain improves his ability when driving fast. When seeing an object at long distance, his brain immediately classifies the object, (bus, van, car, etc.), the direction and speed of the object, and he drives accordingly.
A woman typically takes longer to recognize objects, direction, and speed.
Mans single process mind automatically blocks the audio in the car (if any), blocking out the distraction, then concentrates only on driving.
5. LYING
When men lie to women face to face, they are more easily caught.
A woman’s more intuitive brain observes facial expression 70%, body language 20% and words coming from the mouth 10%, then combines the data to discern if the statement is true with surprising accuracy.
Men’s brains do not have this same intuitive capacity.
6. PROBLEMS SOLVING
Men’s brains more clearly classify problems, compartmentalizing them into different areas of the brain to find the solution one by one.
A woman’s brain does not classify the problems in the same way. She often deals with problems by wanting someone to hear them. Once her story is told she can resume life in peace. She is not as inclined to worry about the problems being solved or not, she want to know there are others who know and are concerned.
Relating this to the advanced intuitive characteristics of a woman’s brain, it may be that she is “designed” to identify and communicate problems a man may not see coming. Her expectation is that a man will assume and correct the problem using his more advanced analytical ability.
When a man fails to assume this responsibility, the woman may intercede, but not without some internal stress and anxiety as the result.
7. WHAT THEY WANT
In a nut shell…, (yes far over simplified, but characteristic)
Men want status, success, solutions, big process, etc…
Women want relationship, friends, family, etc…
8. UNHAPPINESS
When unhappy in their relationships, women find it difficult concentrate on their work.
When men are unhappy with their work, they find it difficult to concentrate on their relations.
9. SPEECH
Women more frequently use indirect language in speech. But men more frequently use direct language.
10. HANDLING EMOTION
Women often talk without engaging a significant amount of logical process.
Men tend to “act” without engaging a significant amount of logical process..
Have you ever felt a little discouraged, a little down, maybe even a little hopeless? We all have and it’s what you do when this feeling begins to creep in that makes all the difference.
I was sitting this morning writing in preparation for an upcoming “Keynote” presentation when my mind drifted… (does yours ever do that?). I thought back to a time not that long ago, when a series of events, one right after the other, left me exhausted, and I felt discouragement slipping into the recesses on my mind.
It all begins so innocent, so subtle. A little thought enters… “you could have done it better”, or “you should have been more prepared”. We can be quite harsh on ourselves at times. But as soon as I realized these thoughts were taking over, driving me down, I paused to take a different view of the thoughts.
You see, unless you interfere with the pattern, break the flow of self-condemnation and abasement; you will rapidly lose the strength to combat the problem. Before long, you become overwhelmed, with your focused shifted to a direction where solutions seem too far away to reach.
Before I go on, I want you to know, that no matter what has happened, it’s never too late to turn it around, and turn it around in a big way…, but first you have to “turn it on”.
“Turning it on” refers to the release of an endless source of energy, ideas, and creativity that lies within all of us. It never goes away, but we can allow it to become hidden, buried, and disguised so that we do not recognize it any longer. In fact, in time we can completely forget it is even there.
Let’s first take a closer look at discouragement so we can better understand the challenge.
Discouragement is:
Universal. Almost everyone has been discouraged at one time or another.
Recurring. You may overcome discouragement one week, only to face it again the next.
Contagious. Watch out for those who want to pull you down by indulging in negativity and self-pity.
Unpredictable.You never know when it will strike you or a loved one.
Temporary.It will pass if you respond correctly.
Discouragement differs from disappointment.When our expectations aren’t met, we feel disappointed. But discouragement, a feeling of despair and despondency, is a choice. We can choose to remain dejected or determine to work through our feelings and overcome them. So we may ask, “what are the causes of discouragement”?
The causes of discouragement are…
Inability to please others
Physical or verbal abuse
Unanswered prayer
Lack of proper recognition
Financial pressure
Health problems
Unexplained adversity
Feelings of worthlessness
Fatigue
We may also ask, “what will happen to me if I allow discouragement to remain”?
The consequences of discouragement are…
Divided attention—If you are discouraged, you may not be able to work wholeheartedly.
Placing blame—When you feel down, be careful not to dwell on the wrongs of others.
Anger and depression—Unless you address the inner roots of discouragement, you will never overcome negative feelings.
Estrangement—People push others away by constantly grumbling.
Loss of confidence—Every aspect of your life will suffer when you feel unsure of yourself.
Negative spirit—Remembering and rehashing painful events.
Unwise decisions—Discouragement can cloud your judgment.
H.Spiritual drift—Depression is fertile ground for seeds of doubt.
So how do you find the inner strength, remove the mask that hides the assets required to depart from the discouragement and “turn it on”. Let’s take a look at the cure!
The cure…
Look within yourself. Ask, Why am I discouraged?
Look up. Faith has the ability to rescue you from harmful attitudes.
Look back. Don’t dwell on hurtful things in the past. Instead, think about God’s faithfulness to deliver you.
Look ahead. Focus on what God is doing now in your life. Realize the fact that you are special, designed with a purpose and part of a much larger “strategic plan”. Then, be encouraged by what He has planned for your future.
Then, once we have mentally and spiritually dealt with the challenge, there are some specific steps we can take.
Rest. Physical and emotional exhaustion often lead to discouragement.
Nourish. When your body is depleted from the healthy foods it needs and the water it craves, your resistance to discouragement is weakened.
Reorganize your life. In other words, evaluate your use of time, energy, and other resources. Make sure you’re doing the right things in the right way. Clean house, organize your desk and make ready for a new flow of energy.
Resolve to trust God. Believe that He is in control (Ps. 103:19), loves you, and will never leave you (Heb. 13:5). He can turn any adversity into something beautiful, something good.
Resist discouragement.Ask God to reveal the best response to your difficulty. You will be amazed at the difference a positive attitude makes.
Are you tired of being discouraged? You don’t have to stay that way. Whether or not the situations around you change, you can experience joy, peace, and contentment. Circumstances don’t have to dictate emotions. Read the Bible and allow Scripture to permeate your mind and heart. Discouragement will lose its foothold, and joy will return.
Then there’s one last step…, the step that can make all the difference.
Take action!
You see at the root of the problem was some thought, plan, or responsibility that you did not act upon, or that you acted incorrectly upon. Now with renewed energy and cleared thinking, take action to resolve the challenge, do the work, and make the most of your newfound clarity and direction.
There are countless examples of discouragement in the lives of famous and accomplished people. In fact it is almost without exception found in the lives of those we respect as the greatest leaders of all time. But though discouraged, they did not allow it to take their lives from them. They “took action” and turned the darkness into light.
You, as I, as many others, can do the same thing. The best time to start, is always…, now!
Are you happy? Does it seem like a stressor to have to be happy? Did you know that there are ways to switch on the happiness switch that will help you get more out of your day and make it less stressful? The power of positive thinking is an incredible power to harness.
Here are three steps you can take to flip the switch on your brain to happy:
Start your day with time for reflection. Take the time to reflect on the successes of the prior day and plan for success on the day ahead. Take the time to answer the questions: Who are you? What do you want to do? What makes you happy? Answering these questions will steer you toward positivity and help you to reflect on you own existence and its place in the world.
Endeavor to make one small change today. Keep your brain active and engaged. Break out of a rut. It could be as simple as shaking up your morning routine to completing a crossword puzzle to learning a new task.
Go with the flow. This is probably one of the most difficult changes for some individuals. You need to let go of anger at interruptions and adapt to the changes. What is within your control and what is outside of the realm of your control? Knowing which are which will help you more easily let go of those things over which you have no control. Take time for deep, meditative breaths or a quick, relaxing walk.
What will you do to make your day a happier, more productive one?
