How many of you feel very alone in your business? Your family doesn’t have a clue what you do. Your friends think you’ve ‘lost it’. And there are days when you feel so isolated and lonely that you, too, wonder if it’s worth it.

I know – I’ve been there! The first year I moved across the country and worked from a home-based office, I thought I would lose it. Being an entrepreneur can be a hard, lonely, journey – but we can change that.

Everybody needs somebody, sometime. And when it comes to running your business, I would say you need somebody all the time. I know from experience.

At the recent Chick-Fil-A Leadercast conference, there were many speakers who had powerful messages. Dr. Henry Cloud spoke about necessary endings, and I loved his analogies about monkeys. Dr. Cloud spoke about some research that had a monkey in a cage. This monkey was by himself, and subjected to all kinds of loud sounds and flashing lights. He was freaked out, and his cortisol, or stress hormone, was off the charts.

The researchers then kept the lights flashing, the sirens wailing but……. added another monkey into to the cage. The first monkey’s stress level went down by half. And why? Simply put, he was not alone anymore. He had a friend to be there for him. Even when the other monkey couldn’t stop the sirens and flashing lights, his mere presence was calming.

That really stuck with me, as I came to a deeper understanding of why it is necessary to be part of a master mind group and to have accountability buddies. I will now refer to them as my monkeys…

That is a powerful and successful strategy for all entrepreneurs.  You must not ‘go it alone’ – the benefits of having a buddy are phenomenal.

1)      You can no longer hide. It’s easy to go through life being ‘busy’. By the end of the day, it’s easy to wonder just what you achieved. With a ‘buddy, you’re accountable for action.

2)      Someone ‘has your back’, all the time. Just imagine the feeling………someone cares, really cares about you and what’s going on in your world.

3)      You have someone to celebrate with. It can be mighty lonely – especially at times when you’ve just closed a sale, you’ve booked a speaking engagement, you succeeded in a tough coaching call with a client. Your buddy is there to cheer you on. There’s no feeling like it!

4)      You learn from each other’s mistakes. You can try different things – share what worked and what didn’t work – and learn from each other. Masterful.

5)      You make greater progress on a daily basis. When you are accountable to someone else, on a daily basis, you tend to get things done. We are often weak when it comes to the power of our own word – but more often than not, when we commit to someone else, we follow through.

6)      It’s fun! We don’t have enough fun in our lives these days. Getting connected with an accountability buddy and strengthening that relationship can make all the difference in your world. You can end up with a life-long friend!

Many entrepreneurs plug away, each and every day, all on their own. As Dr. Phil would say – ‘how’s that working for you?” We are human beings and we need to be connected – we need to feel connected.

When you do connect with an accountability buddy, it’s important to express your expectations. I have been known to fire my buddy in the past because of disappointing experiences – when it doesn’t work with one particular person, have the courage and clarity to make a change. It’s well worth it.

I would not be experiencing the level of success (and connectedness) that I do, without the relationship with my accountability buddies and my ‘circle of 5’ when it comes to my professional friends. That is why it is so easy for me to succeed, to attract ideal clients, to make lots of money and create a financially solid business and life.

And I want that for you too. Reach out today – hire a coach – get into a master mind group and get yourself a buddy. Then, you, too can join me in song: “Hey, hey, we’re the monkeeeeees so let’s go monkey around!”

What benefits do you see by having an accountability buddy when it comes to growing your business?

Please share your thoughts!

Have you ever returned from an event or a workshop feeling totally overwhelmed with all the information?  When that happens then, typically, nothing happens. We are in a state of paralysis!

I’ve developed a very simple process for getting things done! I’m a simple gal – and that’s what works for me.

While it’s great to get all that fabulous, current, new knowledge – it’s not worth much if you don’t do anything with it. When we get back to ‘the jungle of life’, the workbooks and the handouts get put on a shelf and it then becomes ‘shelf help’. Not much good to you or to your business.

Let me give you some simple steps to taking action and making progress.

1)      Schedule an hour a day to review all your notes.  Depending on the amount of material you have to review, this should take no longer than a week – an hour at a time.

2)      Make a list of all the things you want to implement. Go through all your notes, make a list (it could be a very long one!) and then put the workbooks away. Simply work from this list now.

3)      Separate the items on the list into 2 columns: Revenue Generating Activities and Non-Revenue Generating Activities. YOU are responsible for taking action on the revenue generating activities. The rest needs to be outsourced and delegated.

4)      Send the Non-Revenue Generating activities list to your team members. Communicate with your team in a written manner first. Give them time to review the list, make their own notes and prepare their own questions. (No team members? Ok – that’s your first problem! That must change – at a minimum you should have a virtual assistant handling the administrative tasks for your business. Get that handled today!)

5)      Schedule a team meeting –sooner than later. Have each person come to that meeting prepared with action steps based on the items on the list and their area of competency. Share with them the items that you kept on your own revenue-generating activities list, too, so they get the big picture.

6)      Break it all down into month/week/day. Create a timeline for action. Get things done. Ensure it is clear as to responsibility and accountability. Have regular meetings to update the list – handle questions – changes – and anything that affects the progress and implementation of this information.

7)      For my own list, I break it down to 3 items a day. I focus solely on those 3 revenue-generating activities each day and do not stop until they are done/handled.

8)      Celebrate achievements each week! It is critical to your success, to the success of the team and of the business that you celebrate. And remember, it’s all about progress, not perfection.

It’s fabulous and exciting to go to events – to learn, to network, to celebrate. But to return to your business and not take action is a total waste of time, energy and resources.

You are better than that! You want to become a wealthy woman leader? You want to attract ideal clients and make money now? Then you must implement – take action – and make progress.

What step will you take this week to implement something you’ve recently learned?

Please share your thoughts!

I was attending a live event in Orlando recently and, boy, did I get ticked off!  At the same time, I felt a deep sadness for many entrepreneurs who were there – all with good intentions – but with very bad ‘event etiquette’, as I call it.

When you are invited to someone’s event, it’s their party, people! Unless you are a paid sponsor or exhibitor or speaker, then you are a guest. Which means, there are rules…… etiquette…… professional behavior that is expected.

I have come to the conclusion that many of you just don’t know what you don’t know about attending live events. I know you are entrepreneurs and you want to grow your business and, at this particular event where there were in excess of 900 other self-employed individuals, I recognize it is a massive opportunity to grow your business.

But, please, mind your manners. Let me share some of my top tips with you to successfully grow your business while attending live events. And you SHOULD be attending live events – it’s the best way to get face-to-face with potential clients, joint venture partners, possible team members and vendors.

1)      When you are a guest, act like a guest.  Show up on time! Participate. Be polite. Do not disrupt what is going on in the main ballroom and on the main stage. Be focused. Learn.

2)      Stop pushing your products and services on people! Once I mentioned that I have a sensitivity to fragrances, holy crap  – there were healers all over the place trying to help me. I get it. I appreciate that you’re an expert. But, I’m a smart woman. If I want your help, I’ll ask you. When I politely decline your aggressive offer to heal me, then back off and move on, ok? Pay attention to the signals and go learn some networking skills, please. There is a time and a place for offering support – you might just need to learn the skills to do so professionally. Go take a class.

3)      Offer a business card when asked. I love to get into conversations with other entrepreneurs to learn about their business. And I appreciate that you offer your services to me – but when I say ‘no thanks – I’m good in that category’ – take a hint, ok? Do not shove your business card(s) in my face and suggest that I may want to pass them on to my colleagues. Not going to happen when you handle it that way, believe me! Pay attention to what people are saying to you – and stop focusing just on what you have to sell and promote – watch the body language. You’re far better off just moving along and finding the person who really IS looking for what you have to offer and they are more likely to become your ideal client.

4)      Keep your promotional materials to yourself. Again, unless you are a paid sponsor, exhibitor or speaker, then it is totally inappropriate to be passing around your program materials to drum up business. And, if it’s a ‘speak to sell’ type of event, it is downright rude to be doing that especially if the host has not yet made her pitch/promoted her own program. Host your own event – then promote all you want. Otherwise, this is not the time nor the place. This is when you promote and support your host in what she has to offer to the people she invited to her event. Women helping women – it’s a beautiful thing.

5)      Get focused, set your goals and seize the opportunities. One of the reasons I was at this particular event was to scout out potential sponsors and exhibitors for my own up-coming event in Toronto. I wandered around to see how people ‘worked their booth’, interacted with people, manner of dress and so much more. It was quite an eye-opener for me. I did have some conversations with some ideal candidates and it was quite fun to see many of them ‘shine’ in this capacity at this session. I know that, should they decide to come to my event, my delegates will be in great hands. I had set my goals before getting to Orlando – and came home totally satisfied with my experience.

6)      Be gracious. We all know that some people just complain all the time. But, again, when you are a guest at someone else’s event, be gracious. So, perhaps they aren’t serving the snacks and refreshments that YOU want – do what I did………go back into the hotel area and get/buy what you want – and enjoy. Take charge of your happiness.

Live events are an amazing way to grow your business. You are already in a room filled with similar minded-people. People have needs. They have pain points. They are looking for solutions.

The way you do anything is the way you do everything. Take a good look at my key points above. If you recognize yourself in any of those comments, then take charge and make some changes. I really do believe that many people just aren’t aware of how to act at these large professional events. Learn. Ask questions. Check with your mentors or coaches.

Become the type of wealthy woman leader that people are excited to invite to their events. Then watch your business grow as you surround yourself with ideal clients who need just what you have to offer!

What event will you be attending next? What tip will you take away and apply?

Please share your thoughts!