Take regular holidays and feel more productive

How are you feeling in your first week back? Many of you will still be enjoying this stunning weather. 

Personally for me, I love being back a little earlier than most. It gives me time to connect and catch up on those things that often get avoided. AND I have the added bonus of being back in the sanctuary of my office for the first time in nearly two months (my broken wrist prevented me from accessing it).

So it might seem a little obscene, talking about holidays when you are not even back from your Christmas break. And some of you might be about to hit me now, and say, "all very well for you, but you don't live in my world, I can't POSSIBLY take holidays!" 

But come on, what if you suddenly got sick, or your kids did? Work CAN be left for a week or two (and it's a good reason to own a practice rather than a business, refer to this video for more information).

We have all heard the adage, no-one ever got to the end of their days and said 'I wish I'd spent more time in the office', and with a little bit of planning, it can be done.

Plan your holidays in advance 

What I mean by that, is work out when you are roughly going to have them. For Geoff and me, that means at least one week off every school holiday, and two to three weeks over Christmas. The actual location doesn't need to be agreed until closer to the time, and will often depend on finances available.

We have three types of holidays;

1. Get by on the smell of an oily rag.

This is where wonderful friends who are happy to host a family of four come in handy, or even camping/holiday parks, and cheap hotels. Some of the best family holidays have been these kind; the kids, if you have any, are none the wiser, and you can have fun being creative (but don't be stingy to your hosts!).

2. A nice middle of the road affair.

This means holiday house accommodation, hotel accommodation, paid activities, the odd dinner out and maybe even a plane ride and rental car. 

3. The big splurge.

Something offshore and indulgent  - this might not happen very often, but they are real memory makers and are great to aspire to. And speaking of memory making; every holiday we now take lot of snaps, and pop them into a photo book; just such a perfect way to keep the memories alive for young children.

Take a pre-holiday!

And if that's not decadent enough, I also think it is great to take a pre-holiday. If you are going away for more than a week, it might pay to take a long weekend the week before. How many of you have attracted a holiday headache or cold? Your body starts to wind down, and then realises how tired it actually is, then whump an illness appears. If you can shake it out of your system the week beforehand, you will be perfectly fine by the time your real holiday occurs!

If this really does sound out of left field for you (and I am constantly amazed at how often I hear people remark that they haven't had a holiday for over three  years), then ask yourself why you are tolerating it? If you are in business, then it sounds like the business is too reliant on your presence, which poses a high risk. If you are an employee, then it is definitely worthwhile reflecting on why you aren't being allocated your leave, or aren't asking for it!

Holidays rock!!

What is your definition of winding down?

I was having a lovely conversation last night with one of my fellow thought leaders business school students, and we were comparing notes on what our holidays were going to look like.

"I'm not really taking any time off as such" she said. "I won't be doing any delivery but I WILL be working on my thinking, and getting myself sorted for the new year. The fact is, I really enjoy it, and I am hardly going to stress about it" (this is one very grounded person at any time!). 

She is planning to do a few hours work, most likely in the morning, and then enjoy the rest of the day, doing what she likes.

It got me thinking about my version of 'winding down'. I get ferociously protective of my right to blob out on holidays (and I am very good at blobbing out). I also tend to exercise less and adopt a more er relaxed approach to what I am eating. I convince myself that I absolutely need to take it easy, and SOOO deserve to do absolutely nothing!

But there are a couple of things I have noticed on reflection;

1. I am not 'relaxed' about these choices; I am quite attached to them

2. At the end of my holidays, I often don't actually feel refreshed, and that's most likely because my boundaries are out (sleeping, drinking, eating).

What is your definition of winding down?

Does it include time away from devices? More time with your loved ones? A more leisurely approach to cooking and no rushing. These definitions I think are great, but I do wonder if I should lighten up a bit on my current pledge of doing nothing work related.

For example,why don't I catch up with some non fiction reading? I have so many good books that I presently don't make the time to read in my day to day living. Even, shock horror, enjoying a little bit of writing or editing?

There are countless statistics on the health benefits of taking a holiday, but not so much on how much you wind down on that holiday. Sure, if you in a highly stressed role, and haven't taken a holiday all year, OR you simply feel like it, then have a complete break.

But if you are like me, doing what you love, and taking regularly holidays throughout the year anyway, then it might be an interesting exercise to review what winding down looks like for you, and no one else!

Why is December is a great time to reach out to prospects?

What is your favourite time of year? For me, it’s Halloween through to Easter. I count down the days to Halloween, because even though it gets some slack for being commercialised and American, I think it is the one time of the year when we can enjoy meeting others in our communities, that is, where we actually live! 

Then comes Melbourne Cup, Guy Fawkes, Thanksgiving for those who honour it ( I agree with a comment I heard recently that this is what we SHOULD be importing from the US – it is a great tradition), lead up to Christmas, Christmas and New Year, Summer holidays, then Waitangi Day and Easter. The fact that this time of the year is warmer helps of course too.

I particularly like the lead up to Christmas. Everyone generally seems just a little bit more….playful! I do get that it can be a particularly stressful time if you are financially stretched. Personally, I love what both Geoff’s and my extended families have agreed to do, which is buy for one person and pick a name out of a hat. Children under 14 get presents, but you aren't spending countless hours and money getting presents for everyone else.

We all hear that sales drop at Christmas time, and often people just let lead generation go. But personally, I find that this is one of the best times to reach out, and particularly by telephone and to those who you have been in touch with over the year. Here’s why;​

1. They are generally more relaxed, and consciously winding down for Christmas
2. You are generally more relaxed, and that comes across in your style!
3. Ringing someone I think is more personal than sending a Christmas card
4. You can offer to catch up before Christmas, or in the New Year, but DO make the appointment (my diary is looking nice and full already in January)
5. Often people come back from holiday having reflected on their life, so are potentially more open to change and looking at ways people like you can support them
6. Most industries wind down a bit, so you aren’t so busy doing your normal day to day stuff, and have the capacity to pick up the phone.
7. You can use the motivator of going away for Christmas knowing that your pipeline is looking good.

There is a part of me that would love nothing more than to have a wee day time snooze, and take it easy for the next two and ½ weeks, but I know that it’s not long until I actually can do that and in the meantime, I may as well set myself (and my prospects) up powerfully for 2015. 

Have a great week.

It’s what happens in between the sessions that count.

I can’t believe that it has been nearly two years since I graduated from Sally Anderson’s brilliant Freefall Coaching certification! It has been a life changing two years, and I am truly inspired by the clients who have partnered with me to support them; either through a Freefall partnership, a lead generation partnership or latterly, a Thought Leadership mentoring program.

One thing that I am still working on is my ‘need to be liked’ and my ‘good girl’ sentence. Essentially, in the past, I have had a pathological wish to please, and the way this has manifested in some coaching partnerships, is to personally take on responsibility for my clients’ progress. At the most basic level, this means taking lots of notes, filling out the journal and putting together the weekly to do lists. However, I have also at times been overly attached to their progress, particularly with regard to lead generation strategies. If they are not making huge shifts with their commercial success, I have tended to feel like a bit of a failure.

What I have recently realised, is that the clients who really succeed, are the ones who do the work in between the sessions. I know that this sounds obvious, but sometimes it is the basic things that make the difference. Most clients are time poor, and some struggle to complete their agreed tasks between the sessions. Those who not only complete their agreed actions but go out and do even more are the ones who enjoy the results. It’s about making it a bit of a game, and challenging yourself to ‘level up’; an expression which was discussed at the last Thought Leader’s Business School session recently.

One client, who had real issues even ‘cold inmailing’, took complete responsibility for shifting the paradigm. He decided to play a game, where he was searching for a ‘no’. He got over the resistance, and became very active in lead gen activities, realising that actually, most people in his case said ‘yes’! That is certainly a case of levelling up.

I have recently commenced a new coaching partnership myself. It just confirms this concept; the results are showing up when I commit to doing what I say, and I am very excited about how this partnership is elevating the game that I am playing.

If you have been smart enough to engage a coach; make sure you do the work, and get the best out of your partnership. If you find yourself using busy as an excuse, read the life changing book by Christina Guidotti, ‘How to Have it All’. Christina is a powerhouse in the area of productivity, and can show you how to have it all by delivering on the promises you make to yourself (AND your coach!).

I am publicly declaring that I am publishing a book in the next 12 months. What about you?

That is a little bit confronting for me to put down in writing, and to share. Actually as a mentor and participant of the incredible Thought Leader's Business School, I am required to do this anyway, but I have been conveniently not telling anyone outside of this community...until now.

The book is going to be something along the lines of 'How to give up your day job/business, slowly if you have to'.  

As one of my mentors said, it could be a different slant on the Four Hour Work Week. Personally, I am not interested in creating an online marketing company that sells widgets or ‘muses’, but I do want people to realise they can work 50 to 200 days a year, doing what they love, and earning some great money doing so. The challenge is, unlike the book, we see this as a longer term journey, and so in order to alleviate any stress as a result of just resigning from your job (and losing the income)  I am showing the reader a smarter and slower (if necessary) way to transition. I do have some great case studies to share, and welcome more!

A couple of years ago, Geoff and I planned to travel to Spain with the kids, and live there for around a year. Before that, living in Wanaka was in our sights. We went around telling anyone and everyone, and of course, now that we haven't actually done it, I cringe a bit about how confident I was that it was actually going to happen.

But, there is definitely power in public declaration.

Marriage vows are our prime example of this, and some people renew their vows, such is the value for them.

Last weekend, I facilitated my first weekend workshop for people who were committed to being more commercially successful as an expert, but who weren't yet ready for the thought leader journey. One of my key concerns was how to fit in all the content, in just two days.

 I originally planned to facilitate the 'hot seat' process with only three of the six participants.

The hot seat is where, as a group, we support the participant in the hot seat in getting clear on their offering, their market, how much they are charging, and how much they want to be earning within three months. They then declare it in a little ritual in front of the group. It became clear very quickly that everyone wanted a turn in the hot seat, so the content was quickly revised, so that everyone could be accommodated.

The absolute power of this public declaration astounded me. It was a very moving process, and each participant identified it as undeniably the best part of the workshop.

Peter Cook, in his extraordinary book, The New Rules of Management explains his accountability model, which moves from private through to public accountability. If we don't keep our promises to ourselves, we are disappointed. However, if we don't keep our promises to our communities, then we can feel ashamed. Yes, it is a hot topic right now, thanks to the revolutionary Brene Brown, but it is also very powerful. I am not talking about putting yourself into some kind of emotional state (and really, I would say I feel more embarrassed about the Spain no-show rather than shamed!), but why not use it positively? Peter wrote a blog around his commitment to obtaining Black Belt (in thought leadership) within the year. He actually managed it in 125 days.

One of the participants in the workshop, Karen Oates, has since sent out her 'coming out' email, where she is publicly declaring herself as a coach and practitioner. You can see it here. Funnily enough, Karen says that it was actually the declaration to herself that was the most powerful distinction.

What would you like to declare either to yourself, or to your community?

Go on, take a risk and write it down, or share it.

And feel free to bail me up in a year's time if you haven't seen my book!

By the way... next workshop dates are 17th and 18th May, and 28th and 29th June, click here for more details.

Are there too many coaches in New Zealand and Australia?

I was enjoying coffee with a wonderful woman last week, and she posed this question. It wasn’t the first time I have been asked. Other versions of this question go something along the lines of ‘doesn’t it seem that every second person these days is setting up shop as a coach’?

The answer to this is…. NO! There are absolutely not too many coaches!

For every one person who is a coach, there are literally thousands of people who have decided not to be a coach. Of course, coaches also need coaches. It is one of the few professions where, unless you are coaching a very niche market, there are many individuals and businesses who could be considered your client.

 And when you consider that within any given week, each coach would generally be able to provide value to up to 20 clients maximum, there is a wonderful level of opportunity.

Now I am not suggesting that every person on the planet needs a ‘life coach’ (although, why do we find it so acceptable to engage an architect to help us design our house, but often can’t digest doing the same for our life?). I am suggesting paying someone else, who has been through the life experiences and done the study in their chosen field, and can skilfully provide you with some knowledge to elevate you in that field, in less time!

Coaching typically falls into four categories;

(1)    Wellbeing, spirituality and faith

(2)    Finance and abundance

(3)    Relationships and community

(4)    Career and purpose

The wonderful coaches I know provide such powerful services across all of these areas. I do have people in my life who claim that coaching isn’t for everyone. I know that there are some individuals who have no interest in ‘bettering their situation’, but wouldn’t you agree that most people would welcome strategies for more success in at least one of the above categories?

The return on investment on coaching is huge.

That is of no doubt, as long as (a) you are prepared to be accountable and responsible and (b) you choose your coach wisely (that’s another blog in itself). The challenge is that the quantifiable return can be difficult to measure, unless you are working with say a finance coach.

Here is an example. Jan Stein is a powerful wellness coach, who I have engaged, and highly rate.  Her sessions were extraordinary, and since I started seeing her in September last year, I have not been sick… once (touch wood)! Ok, there was a gastro incident that I would rather not talk about, but in terms of general unwellness -fluey, coldy, sicky stuff – nada. That is a huge return for me, if you consider the days I would have normally lost to illness; but to quantify it to simply some extra billable time doesn’t do what I have got out of our partnership justice.

You all know I have other coaches who have played a massive role in me now living a life I love, the way I like, with people I love, and getting paid well for it. Without them, it simply wouldn’t have happened. Again, how can I talk about that in ROI terms?

The Connection Economy

Seth Godin’s brilliant book, The Icarus Deception refers to the Connection Economy, where the artist creates ideas that spread and connects the disconnected. Art is new, real and important and it’s about building bridges between people that generate value. Forget jobs that are still based on the industrial or information age (if your role can be outsourced or automated, its days are numbered), it's about standing up, standing out and making a difference. This was a life changing book for me; I recommend it highly (I am not providing the most elegant explanation here), and I believe, that for us all to embrace our own art (which can be difficult, risky and frightening), we need support. One of the most effective support mechanisms available is that of a coach.

Brendon Burchard

Listening to Brendon Burchard was a turning point for me. He believes each and every one of us can generate income as an expert based on our ‘life apprenticeship’ so far. I know some of you are attending his expert’s academy in Sydney in July (again, thoroughly recommended). You ask anyone there, if they think there are too many coaches, particularly those who are generating really healthy incomes as a result.  We need to adopt prosperity, not a scarcity mindset.

My upcoming weekend for experts.

I am thrilled thrilled thrilled about the calibre of thought leaders, and emerging thought leaders who have signed up for my weekend courses in both March and May. If you are an expert earning less than $150,000 per annum selling your thoughts, or are yet to start up your expert business, then this is a highly practical intensive, where we will actually be working on you generating more leads in the workshop (no cold calling required!). There are a handful of spots available in March, and more in May. If you are earning more than $150,000 per year, it will still be worthwhile, but I would recommend Thought Leaders mentoring or Thought Leader’s Business School as a more commercially viable option.

We don't like to talk about money... do we?

Ok, I am the first to shy away from explicit money conversations. Blame it on my conservative, South Island protestant upbringing, money was never talked about.

I want to apologise in advance, if this blog comes across as yukky, brash or out of touch. I did have some big concerns about posting it, but I am taking a risk, and just doing it!

One of the criticisms about the Thought Leader Program is the relentless focus on how much you earn.

This can really push my boundaries, as a thought leader mentor. I have just returned from Thought Leader's Business School, and believe me, the focus on what you earn (argghhh!!) was extreme. In one session, we were actually separated into groups, depending on what we earn. I could have REALLY made it mean something, that I was the only thought leader mentor in the 'lowest earning' group.

The irony, is that the lowest earning group is identified as those earning less than $240,000 per year. How does that resonate with you? In New Zealand, earning that kind of money is considered as pretty successful. Especially when you look at how much some employees with huge responsibilities bring home annually. And don't even get me started on social workers, mental health workers and researchers.

Do you believe that your own views around money can be a help or a hindrance?

Certainly, there is some brilliant evidence to suggest that this is so. Ask Jasmine Platt, Catherine Newton or Trish Love, and they will show you why they believe that.

So! Why not have some shifts around what is possible? The way we move our thought leaders through to being 'black belts' are by focusing on launching one new offering a quarter, with that offering generating you $10,000 per month. Once you have that 'plate spinning' as it were, you focus on the next one. It certainly has taken me a while to get my head around it, but now that I have, suddenly the goal doesn't seem quite so out of reach. Also bear in mind, that we say that it takes on average three years to reach black belt status ($60,000 per month).

I have made the decision to focus on growing the community of New Zealand thought leaders!

Another confession coming up. I find it way easier to attract clients in Australia than NZ. Maybe our Aussie friends have a healthier relationship with money, maybe there genuinely are more opportunities over there to generate revenue, but I am not going to let that be an excuse.

I am for now, totally focusing on supporting NZ thought leader to be more commercially successful. It breaks my heart how many of my wonderful expert colleagues are really struggling. We have an unfair advantage following the curriculum (45 plus people attending Business School last week are a testimony to that), and I would love more kiwis to experience that.

For some, the investment of Thought Leader's Business School or one on one private mentoring with me is cost prohibitive for now. I have therefore decided to launch a new offering (following the methodology to the core!), of a weekend intensive. Coming up in Auckland (5th and 6th April at the GORGEOUS Hotel de Brett), this weekend will be a brilliant opportunity for you to focus solely on how to be more commercially successful as an expert. Limited to 12 people, and very hands on, you will learn all you need to know about clarity, cleverness and conviction ( along with a bit of playfulness and daring!).

Last week for me felt like 'coming home'. I have truly found my tribe. Yes, there is talk about the money, but what these people are really  about is doing what they love, having freedom, and making a contribution. What is even more exciting is that the tribe is growing here already ( around 12 of us meeting tonight who are already on the journey).

Is belonging to this tribe something that resonates for you?

Congratulations to the inspiritional Marc Fountain for winning the gliding competition as the first person to sign up to my mentoring program after my last blog!

Who wants to come gliding with me? For real and metaphorically?!

Ok, so it's been a while! So excited about what 2014 is bringing for me, and my clients, and never before, have I heard such optimism around this being a transformational year for many individuals.

Many of us struggle and strive to make our practices and businesses more successful, and I have decided that this year, it is all about

Joy, ease and flow.

That translates in Thought Leader speak to positioning; ie becoming THE authority on something, so that you are actually known for known something, rather than simply knowing something!

Our wonderful expert to authority model, explains this in more detail. Under the line (marketing, sales and relationships), where many of us solely focus, is definitely more struggle based. Above the line (referrals, recommendations and position) is more flow based! Basically you want to elegantly and uniquely get your message out there, so that people come to you, rather than you going to your market. Of course, in order to be successful, you will always need to deliver across this entire spectrum, it's just a case of where you prioritise your activity.

I was enjoying a coffee with a brilliant fellow thought leader Andrew Melville yesterday, and was sharing with him my metaphor around this phenomenon of ease and flow; it's like riding 'therms' on a glider. These naturally occurring ridge lifts, thermals and lee waves, enable a glider to soar, without any engine. 

Gliding is something that has always fascinated me, something about the absolute silence while up high in the sky and certainly less scary than something alternative like hang gliding!

So, today I have decided that I am going to experience gliding; to more fully connect to this metaphor! And what's more, I would love to gift a gliding experience to the next person who signs up to my 90 day private mentoring thought leadership program. Conditions apply ( but location not so much, as long as you reside on the east coast of Australia or in New Zealand), and if that doesn't interest you specifically, then I will make sure I thank you with something more suitable.

It does mean getting over my fear of getting air sick!

In other news...

Matt Church's Speakership program is coming to Auckland!

This is a world class program for anyone who is interested in bringing a whole level of uniqueness and elegance to their keynoting (or are considering speaking as a career).

Come and join me and a select bunch of others on March 5th and 6th. Click here for more details.

Sally Anderson is holding two Freefall retreats in Auckland!

This will be the first time in nearly two years that they are being held here, and they are simply extraordinary. The difference that 3 days has made to countless graduates of the program is unfathomable. We know Sal will soon be spending most of her time in the United States, so I urge you to commit, if this has ever resonated for you. Let me know if you would like to have more of  a chat about it.

March 14th to 16th, and May 2nd to 4th. Click here for more information.

Our Thought Leaders webinar for NZers will be on my website shortly

Thanks to those of you who attended this informative and entertaining webinar,hosted by myself, Matt Church and Peter Cook in December. It was quite a commitment at this time of year, but there was a fabulous response to it, so much so, that I am now  hosting monthly catch ups for those of us thought leaders who are NZ based and either mentoring with me, watching MDE online, or coming along to Thought Leader Business School. I plan to have this up by the end of the week. I  will send the link to those of you who registered. If you would like me to send it to you, let me know.

What is this year going to be all about for you?!

Cult leaders and gurus

 I have been known to invest some significant funds into furthering my education, both from a professional and personal perspective. Some of my nearest and dearest (including my hubby Geoff) have (half) joked that I have joined a cult, or am following my latest guru. Yes, I totally get that I am whole, complete and perfect just as I am, but I also get what a difference investing in experts and coaches makes, not only to my own sense of fulfillment, but definitely to my commercial success.

Why do people find it so strange?

In fact, it kind of intrigues me that people find the idea of paying someone else to guide/mentor/train them so unusual. Those coaches and mentors who I have engaged have spent more money and time than I have, perfecting their craft, and personally, I think it is smarter for me to rely on them to teach me the gold as it were, rather than me spending time and money up-skilling myself on my own.

Last week I was in Sydney, becoming accredited in the thought leadership mentor program. The thought leadership community is all about helping clever people become commercially smart. We all know there are too many smart poor people out there. I am now thrilled to be able to partner experts to earn a bunch of money, doing what they love, working with people they like, the way they like. Most people don't believe it is possible, but there are nearly 1,000 graduates enjoying significant commercial success across all kinds of expertise. AND it takes hard work, this is no pay through the nose social media strategy that promises financial success by making a few videos.

Is this another example of me spending money on my latest guru? Try, an extraordinarily smart revenue generation strategy, where my ROI was almost achieved less than a week after I completed the course.

A shout out to my anything but 'cult leaders'

Anyway, there are a number of experts who I am eternally grateful for me being almost annoyingly happy and fulfilled.  Sally Anderson will always take top prize for being my top  supposed 'cult leader', followed closely by Matt Church. Other amazing individuals who have touched my life include Lucille Henry, Jasmine Platt, Dr Jason Fox and Janelle Fletcher. The money and time I have invested in these superstars is so insignificant compared to what they have given me in return.

Net time you are thinking about paying someone to coach/guide/mentor you in their craft, just get on with it and find someone. Ask around, and be smart (aha snake oil gurus still exist) and go with your intuitive choice.

Hail the mistaken Gurus and Cult Leaders on this planet, who dare to dedicate their lives to sharing what they love!! ...and what a privilege for me to be honoring my calling in now supporting them in generating significant financial return for doing so. 

And of course, if you want to find out more about being commercially smart, let's connect! I would love to share some possibilities.

My delusion part two: the currency of pleasing

Last time I wrote, I detailed my revelations around getting present to the cost of not focusing, and being too seduced by the future and bright shiny objects. Well, another home truth has since revealed itself to me...

'Permission marketing' could be one of the worst strategies, for someone like me to adopt!

Permission marketing is a really brilliant strategy by the way; the challenge is the boundaries. It plays totally into my currency of 'wanting to please', so I tend to go the full hog with it. Here is an quick definition of what permission marketing is, for those of you who aren't aware of it.

It is basically sharing your valuable content, with people who have given you permission to market to them.  The premise is, the prospect receives value; by way of whitepapers, online videos, e-books, speaking or even a one on one catch up. This gives them the opportunity to experience you, and get to know you better, so that they are more likely to buy from you in the future. 

As I have mentioned, this is a very powerful strategy. The danger is in the extremes. I was  giving alot away, and by the way, my lovely prospects didn't ask for it.

I was so driven by my  underlying need to be liked and to please, that I just went overboard; it was almost an addictive trait.

Here is just one example;

If I was meeting up with someone to discuss their lead gen strategy, I would listen intently to their present concerns, and contribute full out in the session, with suggestions from my years and years of business experience and research. But that wasn't enough for me; I would record the whole session on my iPhone, listen to it at a later date, create a multi-paged recommendations document, including doing some research on their industry, and then send it to them (and no, this was not chargeable work). Can you imagine how much time I spent doing this?

The feedback I got was heartwarming and extraordinary, which of course the pleaser in me loved. But, just like my bright shiny object delusion, this habit of giving TOO much away impacted my commercial return. I gave away the farm! There was no longer a perceived need to engage me.

One interesting justification that's often quoted, that I used to love parroting off was that giving away your absolute best during the prospect stage, would lead them to think,

'wow, if this is what she gives me when I am not her client, imagine what she will give me when I pay her!!' 

Guess what, I don't say that anymore! I simply don't believe it. Please, if you have some great examples of how that has worked for you, do share them.

Now don't get me wrong, one of my values is generosity, and there is nothing more I like than connecting with those who are passionate about what they do, and supporting them with some concepts that I know will make a huge difference in their lead gen success. BUT...there is  a limit, it is all about boundaries!

Have a look at your own permission marketing collateral. Are you giving too much away?

By the way, an update on my declaration from the last blog re focus. I had given myself 7 weeks to reach a new business target, focusing purely on one offering. I am still pinching myself when I share that I achieved that target in 3 weeks! AND the program itself has entered a whole new level of value for my wonderful clients. This focus thing appears to work.

My delusion and bright shiny object syndrome

Are you deluding yourself about where you are spending your time?

I have just returned from another life changing week attending Matt Church's MDE program in Sydney. As always,  I am completely inspired by this approach, and one observation I made about the community is there are people who are generating very healthy revenues from all sort of areas of expertise. These include relationship counselling, productivity, non violence in remote communities and even a kind of feng shui approach to making workspaces more motivating! So what was my biggest (of the many) a-ha moments?

I have been a bright shiny objects addict...

and it has been making a big impact not only on my workload/life balance, but also my revenue!

Man, have I been deluding myself! Here I have been, working like a little maniac, every day, but my focus has been too future based. For example, I spent 90 minutes on the Friday eve before I left (having cancelled my lovely drinkies with my neighbours) talking to a (really interesting!) JV guy in Atlanta about mobile magazines (did you know there are only 4000 magazines on ITunes??!). Ok, all very exciting, but is that going to make me revenue for next week? I listen to people's stories and where their frustration is, and get all inspired, seeing their global future/huge expansive vision... but do they engage me? What they are actually looking for is stuff that helps them today!

What has been the cost?

I think it became clear to me, when one of my dearest friends rang me and said 'Laurel, I know you are too busy to talk to me, but I am going to keep ringing you anyway, just in case you have a bit of time'. How crap is that? Thank you dear friend (you know who you are) for giving me the wake up call. And I haven't even mentioned the time I spend away from my kids. Or the fact that I have been earning less than I earnt 12 years ago in my last full time role....enough!

Things have shifted DRAMATICALLY in a week...

The good news, is that it is all behind me now (ok, recovering addict, I still need to have my fun exploring shiny new things). I made a decision to focus on one core offering of mine, Seize the Quarter , where I partner experts and SMEs to build their own tailored lead generator machine over 12 weeks, and experience a dramatic shift in their lead quality and conversion rate. That's it! And I know I am really good at that. And yes, there is time to talk about the bright shiny things for their future, but that is where we put it.. in the future.

I gave myself a new business quota goal to achieve in the next 7 weeks. By Tuesday, I had achieved more than 25% of it. I am confident I will be 50% complete by the end of the week. And I am walking my kids to school every day.

What are you focussing on? Are you deluding yourself with where you are placing it?

Are you the wizard or the wand?

When I attended Infusioncon in March this year,  I was very impressed with one particular speaker, Jay Baer. He has published a book called Youtility, and essentially encourages us to generate marketing that is SO good, that people would  be prepared to pay for it. This fits really nicely into my philosophy of practising the value of generosity, and moving away from that old software adage of 'protect your IP', driven primarily from fear to 'freely share it', driven primarily from love. You can sometimes feel like you are giving too much away, but I do think that Karma is at play too, and that it will come back to you, in time, and not necessarily from that particular source.

The  video is below, and I recommend you watch it, but just in case you don't have the time, here are the key points; 

1. Better understand what customers need from you. Make it bigger than your products/services, think about the larger issue that they are trying to solve
2. Focus on helping better, not selling better; be the best teacher in your industry
3. Understand that the future of business is not creating customers for today, but for life. We want to nurture them long term (I know this sounds REALLY obvious, but actually it is something many of us are still forgetting to do)

Tools like Infusionsoft are brilliant, but they are simply the wand; it is what the wizard (you!) does with the wand that counts.

I was ignoring my own wand for a while.

For me personally, I know what that is all about. I have been working very hard to support my clients to use their wands, whether it is Infusionsoft or other clever lead generation strategies, but have been largely ignoring it myself. It has happened for me, more like an accident rather than by design. 

Take the lead in using generosity for lead generation in Australasia. 

This approach to sharing information freely is being embraced in the US, and we are talking about quality content here, not thinly veiled 'sell jobs'. In Australia and New Zealand we have such an opportunity to lead the way with this, so start having a think about  how you can do so, aside from the more traditional newsletter. 

For example, I now hold regular workshops, where I freely give away as much value as I can about how to create your own lead generation engine. I also happily provide what I call one hour 'brainstorming sessions'. This is entirely focused on the practice or business owned by the person I am catching up with, and I also follow up with a report where I document a number of suggested key actions. They  can then implement these actions if they choose and significantly increase their lead generation, nurture and conversion success. I will also shortly be releasing a micro series, where I go into each stage of the lead process in more detail. 

Maybe this sounds like a 'sell-job' sharing this! But the thing is, none of this is me  telling my client how they can engage me. It is all about giving THEM value, and getting them excited about what's possible, without any expectation from me. I genuinely love supporting others with this, and am so grateful I have discovered something in which I truly believe. 

What workshop, webinar, takeaway PDF can you create to add value? 

Have a look at the video, and see how it resonates for you. Focusing on helping rather than selling is definitely something to consider for your future lead generation.

Click here to retweet

What do the best thought leaders look for in platforms?

I am presently sitting at Melbourne airport, waiting to board my flight back home. I love this city, my highlight on the cuisine front would have to be Movida Aqui and Red Spice Road - both just outstanding.

The key purpose of my trip was to launch my mini workshop on lead generation for speakers, authors and workshop facilitators.

This was a very successful launch and I loved the powerful discussion that came out of the session, and the one on one brainstorming sessions that followed. Here are the top tips according to those who attended my workshop.

1. Investing in an SMS capture app for use in keynotes to pop those who partake instantly into your crm like Infusionsoft is a no brainer. One participant purchased it immediately and it was used 2 days later to successfully capture a number of leads at a keynote in real time, something they had never been able to do before.

2. Leveraging your keynote or workshop is another obvious win. What that means is offering an ongoing interaction via playbooks, videos, remote sessions and emails. This doesn't just prolong the value exchange for your client but also brings significant commercial gains for the expert.

3. While word of mouth is a key strategy for lead generation, you need to have a plan to expand your profile into communities who haven't heard about you this way. This can be best achieved by creating something valuable that you give away ( eg white paper or regular complimentary mini workshop) but you need to be mindful that a) there will be an element of push required ( eg connecting via inmail on LinkedIn or even ringing them to extend the invite) and b) you do not at this stage make it conditional on them 'opting in', this is done without attachment. It is amazing what can transpire when you practise this principle, what occurs without your knowledge can lead to very significant opportunities, not just re lead generation but across all areas of your life.

Boarding call! Stay tuned for more...

Some key learnings from Infusioncon 2013

I attended Infusioncon in Arizona, earlier this year. Infusioncon is the annual Infusionsoft users conference, which attracts over 2000 entrepreneurs, experts and thought leaders from around the world. This year we were lucky enough to experience a number of brilliant keynotes including David Allen, Daymond John and Jay Baer. The stand out for me was Jay Baer, who has published a book called 'Youtility' which is all about smart marketing by helping, not by hype.

Here are my 7 key tips I learned about building your profile as an expert or thought leader;

(1) VIDEO PRINT is the new way - online magazines, check out 3Dissue - it is seriously powerful AND you can track who clicks on your video, engages in live chat AND have different people on the cover, who can each then go and promote to their own database.

(2) You can upload your books onto Amazon Kindle for free;  charge your books at between $2.99 and $9.99 because then you get 75% of cover price; what are you waiting for??

(3) SOCIAL PROOF is the new buzz phrase, it's all about choosing based on what your customers say, NOT what you say.

(4) To get to be a #1 Amazon best seller, you only need to hold the most books sold in your category in a given hour!

(5) For an outrageous amount of statistics, go to Google Insights - it will change the way you see the world.

(6) e-reading is the way of the future, the average traditional reader reads 19 books a year, the average e-reader reads 26. The 2 categories where traditional books are still preferred are reading to children at night (assumed to be due to the nostalgia effect) and how to manuals.

(7) Mobile marketing is the way of the future (surprise surprise) - when developing an app, make sure you make it 'one finger easy'; you can get your audience to opt in via SMS instead of webforms

The mobile opt in particularly is interesting. I am presently working with a couple of providers who offer this service in Australia, as well as Europe, US and Canada. It is powerful if you frequently deliver your keynotes to a large audience, and would like to capture their details so that you can continue to market to them ongoing. All you do is offer them something of value (say a whitepaper on the topic you have just  spoken about) and ask them to text their name to a predefined number to receive it; the system will then ask them for their email details, and either send a thank you reply or ask another question (eg if you would like to segment your audience to customise the follow up communication).

I do recommend Infusioncon for any Infusionsoft user. We can learn something as Australasians about their unflagging enthusiasm of all things entrepreneurial, and how they truly love sharing their success stories with passion. 

Head shots and indulging in a bit of Hollywood!

One of the things that I was putting off in my practice, was getting some decent head shots. It was a combination of the following;

• not feeling like going to all the fuss (and cost) of professional make up and hair artists 
• projecting my past experiences into the equation; I do tend to get a bit of a gormless look on my face when I am super aware of someone snapping away at my mug.
• not having any real reason to do so. 

So of course when I agreed to publish this website, in super quick time, I had to get my act together fast.

Firstly, the hair and makeup. I recommend doing what I did and going the whole hog. I got a wonderful hair makeover at my favourite salon, Servilles Ponsonby. They also have a Smashbox stylist, who can do your makeup even while you are getting your hair done! Here is where I felt like a Hollywood movie star, getting my hair and make up done at the same time. Actually, I didn't REALLY feel like one, because I was suffering from a bad cold, so it was a shame that I didn't totally embrace the experience.

They did a surprisingly good job, so then it was off home, for the talented Natalie Fox (what is it with my wonderful support people with last names of Fox?)  to work her magic with the camera. She brought a white screen with her, so that we could create the cropped effect for the web banner and we had a huge amount of fun. Her key strength, apart from being majorly talented as a photographer, was to engage with me in a way that I felt totally relaxed, and didn't feel silly or like a real poser.

The results are brilliant, and I am thrilled. Here are a couple of crazy ones that were more for fun (does anyone else think I look like Dame Edna?)  I thoroughly recommend you invest in head shots; it is a great way to have a confidence boost AND make your website just that much more professional looking. 

Mentoring seriously matters

I have often considered mentoring to be a key strategy in moving your business or practice from one level to the other. But I have never experienced the true value of one, until now. Only recently I engaged the amazing Dr Jason Fox (drjasonfox.com) as a thought leader mentor. I completed Matt Church’s powerful MDE (Million Dollar Expert) program in late November 2012. Since then, I have experienced a few life hiccups, and only recently did  I decide that rather than trying on my own to work through this fantastic new approach, I would engage a mentor. I was a little spoiled for choice, there are some incredible thought leader mentors available to this community, but Jason and I resonated from the outset, and I think that the fact we are both redheads cemented the deal.

Where I was at the beginning, and where I am now, is unrecognisable. Seriously, the support and guidance I have received has been mind blowing, and I can now tick all these things of my ‘must get done’ list, that were stagnating in my ‘one day’ pool for weeks, if not months.

The cool thing is, that Jason is simply guiding me to bring out the best in myself, and to support me and manage any roadblocks in the way. We agree the priorities, based on the proven thought leadership approach, I go away and get them done (sometimes kicking and screaming inside my own head, because basically, I do get confronted when I finally choose to step up), and then we check in and see how things are tracking. The fact that Jason manages it whilst navigating a speaking schedule that requires many plane hours, AND writing a book in a very short period of time, is a testimony to the capacity of this guy.

This month is a particularly intensive month for me, while I work towards presenting to a clever community in Melbourne, and hopefully secure some strategy sessions while I am over there. What I know, is that in the true mantra of the thought leadership approach, which is ‘think once, deliver often’, is that this work is providing a brilliant foundation for my future, and that is what keeps me going, even when I have a bad head cold like today. Well, that and my unflappable cheerleader Jason.

If you are thinking about taking things to the next level, think about a mentor.  I thoroughly recommend it! Thanks Jason!!