Calling myself a sales professional used to freak me out.
I mean, really, I loved communications and connecting with others – I even have a degree in it!
But like most of us, I didn’t learn sales from college courses or a certified program. It wasn’t until I started working for my first small company outside of school that I learned some of the foundational pieces as to how to actually sell and market to people.
Holidays bring about the best and worse in everyone. Are you filled with joy or pain having to do Christmas or Hanukkah shopping, house decorating, attending parties, and visiting family within a short period of time?
The average Entrepreneur’s mind is already spinning with these things, plus all of what they have to do to keep their business afloat or rockin’ during the holidays. These times can often sneak up on us all, and when they do, we often find that money starts flying out the door for gifts, networking events, and cooking family’s favorite dishes.
It is easy to feel overwhelmed with family obligations during these times when they compete with the income that sustains us. In fact, it can be downright draining, which which leads to a lack of stamina in sticking with what needs to be done to keep your business growing through the holidays. So we often see a downturn in business, particularly for entrepreneurs who are trying to make it on their own and have too little time to accomplish everything that needs to be done during this busy season.
However, if you are a business owner, entrepreneur, or sales professional, I am living proof that there are still some things you can do to attract more of your ideal clients during the holiday season and make it work for you. Below is a quick breakdown of time-tested strategies I use to make an impact helping others for the holidays, while also attracting my ideal clients.
Tip #1: Call Old Clients
Tip #2: Connect with New Prospects
Tip #2: Create Holiday Specials
These are my quick tips, and I’m curious what else have you done over the holiday season to attract your ideal clients and get more business? We want to hear! Share, like, and post your comments below!
This past weekend I did something that took me way out of my comfort zone. I shared a stage with 32 other amazing speakers at the Habitude Warrior Conference here in San Diego.
My colleagues that day were not just any amazing speakers, but the people whose work I have studied and long admired such as Denis Waitley (a legendary Productivity Coach), Bill Walsh (the President of Powerteam International-Multi Millionaire), Brian Smith (founder of Uggs Boots), Rhonda Britten (Emmy Award Winner), and Cheri Tree (Multi-Millionaire).
Sounds amazing and thrilling, right? It was. But I have something I have to confess – the entire time, I was so scared!
That’s right. I was scared of going on stage to share my story and message in front of the 200 people before me in the audience – plus the 4 million others watching via live streaming around the world.
One of my intentions for my presentation was to inspire the audience to step into their greatness, and share my Recipe for Success. However, instead, I found myself caring too much what others thought of me. Oh yes, I was a nervous wreck.
Have you ever put a person on a pedestal and then later realized it wasn’t necessary, and that they weren’t so different from yourself? After all, we are all people, and we all go through the same things in life. Sometimes we forget that everyone is a person just like ourselves, especially when it’s a large group and all eyes are on us.
At the conference, I found that my breath became shallow and my body tightened up so much, that I was like a wind-up doll about to pop a spring. In my moments of fear, I didn’t even realize that I was in pain.
After the conference, I went downhill. You name it, my body was sore and my head was pounding. It was in this moment that I realized that I couldn’t keep moving forward doing what I loved, if I was going to hurt myself physically with my stress and fear each time.
Once I stopped and had this realization, and I felt into the pain I was experiencing, I realized that this happens anytime I get severely stressed or want to make a good impression in my life.
If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, you too know what it’s like to live in a constant state of change, stepping out day after day, being vulnerable and visible to the world.
Once I became aware of my own pattern, I was able to transform my future in dealing with stress. I did it by asking myself the following questions, which I would suggest that you too, ask yourself:
Managing stressful situations has become a practice that I now feel is necessary to help me share my gifts to the world. It’s easy to check out when stress appears, (like eating fatty foods, drinking, shopping, TV, or anything else we do to check out of our current reality); however, these will only temporary ease the pain and stress. It will come back if we don’t stop it in its tracks.
Therefore, I’ve created 3 quick healthy practices you can do when you start to feel overwhelmed when a stressful situation strikes.
1. Notice your breath
When something starts to feel stressful, notice how your breath is in a shallow state. Once you acknowledge your breath feels stuck or repressed, it’s time for deep breathing:
First, place your hand on your stomach and start to take some deep breaths from your stomach, up through our solar plexus, then through your chest.
Second, in the nose, out the mouth, 3 times
Third, in the nose, out the nose, another 3 times
Forth, add counting as you take a deep breath in for 5 counts, then out 5 counts. Always make sure your counting is the same on both ends.
2. Feel where the pain is coming from in your body.
Your body is always sharing messages with you and when we hurt, it’s our chance to listen and send love to the area that is hurting. This may sound counterintuitive because when we are in pain, the brain registers it as “something is wrong.” But the more we acknowledge that nothing is wrong, we are able tune into our body. Our body is communicating and bringing up something for us to listen to, thus the more we appreciate and acknowledge the pain, the easier it is to move through the pain to the other side.
First, feel where your pain is in your body.
Second, focus your breath and energy there.
Third, picture a white healing light around the area. (you may even want to rub your own hands together fast to create that hot feeling of energy, then place them on your pain.)
Forth, say these words out loud to yourself: “I’m sorry, please forgive me, I forgive you, thank you, I love you.”
Fifth, send the pain loving energy and sit with it until it dissipates.
3. Visualize What Brings You Peace
Visualization can be so powerful! Where do you feel most at peace and tranquil? Most of us feel great when we are surrounded by nature. Maybe you are sitting by a lake, an ocean, in the midst of trees, or in the middle of a forest. The important thing is to engage all of your senses while clearing the mind. Smell the air, feel the elements on your skin, hear the soothing sounds around you.
If I’m in a stressful situation, I picture myself in nature, surrounded by trees. I’m feeling the light breeze in my hair and smelling the air or flowers around me.
I’m curious to know how you handle or manage stress when it rears its head in your life. Have you ever practiced with the healthy ways I mentioned above? Please leave a comment below and let me know.
And P.S. The conference went amazing! I was informed thereafter by one of the founders that I was one of the top 5 speakers out of the 32 that presented over the weekend. Another moral to this story, we are often harder on ourselves than we need to be because we want to do well and leave a lasting impression. Use the strategies above to move through stress quickly, claim your greatness, and keep shining bright!
Halloween is now over but those Five Monsters of Success are still lurking – as we head into the hectic holidays, there’s one last monster to watch out for – the straining, draining, energy vampire.
Energy Vampires
Have you ever met people and notice how exhausted you feel after hanging out with them? They talk about themselves the whole time you are with them and the conversation feels very one-sided. Or, they might be stuck in emotions of complaining, blaming, or discontent? You then leave your meeting or hang-out feeling completely drained and unfulfilled. This is what I call an Energy Vampire situation. Three words: get out now!
These people suck every last once of positive energy out of you. There are many in this world, and it becomes even more clear when we’re gathered together for the holidays when so many of us who don’t normally get together join for extended visits. It is important to practice becoming aware of your feelings once you leave these interactions, instead of trying to push it away without dealing with the emotion it invokes.
Jim Rohn says, “We become an average of the 5 people we spend most our time with.” Therefore, even more important than one-off gatherings, is to pay attention to who you allow in your space on a daily basis. Allow friendships that aren’t fulfilling, positive, and inspiring to fade so they don’t suck all the life out of you.
Missed the rest of my series? check out Monster #1: The Inner Demon , Monster # 2: The Comparison Monster , Monster #3: Zombie Zappers, and Monster 4: Ghosts of Regret by clicking on the links.
This Halloween little ghouls and goblins will be roaming the streets, looking for treats. And in your very own life, five “monsters” lurk around every corner, looking for opportunities to trick you out of your success. I discussed monster #1: The Inner Demon , Monster # 2: The Comparison Monster , and Zombie Zappers. Today, it’s Ghosts of Regret.
Ghosts of Regret
What happens in the past, stays in the past.
Or does it?
We all have things that we’ve done that we may have choose differently had we been in that situation again. Whether we think about these on a daily basis or not, having things in our past that bring up anger, frustration, or any deep-rooted feelings, may be hindering you more than you realize in the present.
If you are sitting with regrets, you are stuck focusing on the past. Staying focused on the past robs you of the beauty in the present. We all go through lessons and experience adversity in life. Practice noticing how this incident has redirected you in your thoughts, emotions, and in your life, what you can learn about yourself and others regarding what happened.
To rid yourself of any energy that feels like it’s holding you back or leaving you feeling stuck in the past, practice forgiveness. Forgiveness of self and others doesn’t mean what happened is okay with you, it just means you are no longer willing to hold onto the negative emotions you have been carrying in response to what happened. Forgiveness in this way frees all of you.
Tomorrow, as you’re dusting off the cobwebs, check in for my final installment – Energy Vampires.
This Halloween week little ghouls and goblins will be roaming the streets, looking for treats. And in your very own life, five “monsters” lurk around every corner, looking for opportunities to trick you out of your success. I discussed monster #1: The Inner Demon here, Monster # 2: The Comparison Monster here, and today: it’s the dreaded Zombie Zappers!
Zombie Zappers
You are born certain wants and desires, and as you age, you constantly cultivate these wants and desires around what you want out of life.
We dream so big as youngsters. Do you remember what you wanted to be and do when you were a child?
As time flies by, we might not think we are capable of doing the things we once dreamed about. But many times you will feel that pull (or zing) to do something. The key is to listen to that pull you feel in the pit of your stomach. Feel your feelings, and act when you feel inspired.
If you don’t practice listening to yourself, you will often miss the chances of a lifetime.
Don’t let your dreams die within you. If you do, you may start to experience Monster #4, Ghosts of Regret (check in for that post tomorrow!)
This Halloween week little ghouls and goblins will be roaming the streets, looking for treats. And in your very own life, five “monsters” lurk around every corner, looking for opportunities to trick you out of your success. On my last post, I discussed Monster #1: The Inner Demon. Today, I tackle #2 – The Comparison Monster.
The Comparison Monster
Who has caught themselves saying that they are going to check Facebook for just a second, and then 2 hours later we find ourselves deeply engrossed in someone else’s life and newsfeed? The Internet makes it so easy for us to get sucked into anything and everything. Those catchy titles telling us we can make 100,000 in a month or become the next multi-millionaire if we invest in this, this, and that.
It’s easy to catch yourself drooling over someone else’s life.
However, as you read about their amazing marriage and how they traveled all over the world and now speak 8 languages and are multi-millionaires, you are left with an uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach. At this point you are probably asking yourself, “Why can’t that be me?
Take a step away from the computer!
We are a society that’s used to judging someone within the first 7 seconds of meeting them, but does that truly mean that our judgment is correct? W’re glued to our screens for hours checking out profiles and pictures and making those judgments, but are these people’s lives really as amazing as they make it seem?
Comparing yourself to others robs you of the beauty that’s in your life right now! Comparisons leave you drained and trigger inner emotions of unworthiness, lack of self-love, belief in self. You may not like exactly where life is right now, but you created this life and have a chance to change what isn’t bringing you joy.
When you catch yourself headed down the comparison highway to hell, notice your actions and thoughts, and actively choose to step off the hamster wheel and notice the amazing things that are present in your life. A simple jump back to gratitude for all things within or around you, will bring you back to feeling great in the present.
Join me tomorrow for Monster #3 – Zombie Zappers!
This Halloween week little ghouls and goblins will be roaming the streets, looking for treats. And in your very own life, monsters lurk around every corner, looking for opportunities to trick you out of your success!
Success is defined differently depending on whom you ask. The dictionary definition of success is, ‘an accomplishment of aim or purpose.’ So in order to create a fulfilling life that is connected to any amount of personal or financial success, we need to be aware of these five “monsters” that get in the way of that aim and purpose:
“It is a frightening thought that man also has a shadow side to him, consisting not just of little weaknesses and foibles, but of a positively demonic dynamism. The individual seldom knows anything of this; to him, as an individual, it is incredible that he should ever in any circumstances go beyond himself. But let these harmless creatures form a mass, and there emerges a raging monster.”
– Carl Jung, On the Psychology of the Unconscious.
If you are on a path of self-discovery you may come across some traits about yourself that you find disturbing or difficult to accept. In the realm of psychology, Carl Jung developed extensive research to this concept, and called it our Shadow Self. He said that the Shadow Self is an archetype that forms part of the unconscious mind, and is composed of the repressed ideas, instincts, impulses, weaknesses, desires, perversions and embarrassing fears we may have. As we age, Jung believed that our process of maturing and civilizing requires us to repress the aspects of ourselves that do not fit in with the structured ideal of our society, in order to fit in.
The key here, in dealing with your Inner Demon is to practice embracing your inner darkness. That’s right – it’s necessary for us all to acknowledge that it exists within and ACCEPT IT. When you accept your dark traits without judging yourself, you will start to take responsibility for yourself and release yourself from their control.
What does this mean? By taking a step back from your dark thoughts, you will also give yourself the opportunity to see that your thoughts, feelings and desires can come in and leave as quickly as you allow them to. For example, you cannot simply get “past hatred” if you don’t admit to yourself that you have hateful feelings. Embracing our Shadow Self helps us truly live authentic lives and create a deeper understanding of ourselves. This is one step in cultivating a deeper love of all aspects of yourself and live a truly expressed life.
Next up – Monster #2 – The soul-sucking Comparison Monster!
