My gift to you this Christmas is some advice I’ve shared with my clients for years-NIKE! No more procrastinating-NIKE!. No more creating distractions-NIKE! No more excuses-NIKE! No more talking yourself out of it-NIKE!
You don’t fail when you try. You only fail if you don’t try or your quit-NIKE!
Make 2019 your NIKE year!
Take your career, practice or firm from good to great-NIKE!
My wish for you is that 2019 is your year to get out of your head and into your future. Try new things. Go for it. You have nothing to lose.
It may sound simple because it is. I’ve found that most practical advice that actually works is simple. Why complicate it? Why make it more difficult than it needs to be.
As a coach I am acutely aware of how people in general look at change. It’s big, scary, unknown, and can be intimidating; filled with apprehension. The funny thing about change is that it is one of the most ‘constants’ of our daily life.
If you are looking to change something, anything, it all starts with forming new habits. I encourage you not to look at how far you need to go, but look at what you can do today to start on the path forward.
Based on my work and my own life and business experience, the most important thing about forming new habits is consistency. It’s less important how much time you devote to this new habit, and far more important to do it every day-that builds the habit! Let’s face it, we are all busy, Some days you will have more time than others to focus on your new habit. That’s ok.
The other day I was at the gym. I had a busy day but decided a short work out was better than no work out. I was chatting with a couple of personal trainers about this. They work with people every day, just like me, helping them to form new habits. They both totally agreed that it was far more important to establish the ‘habit’, than how long you were doing it.
So, one day at a time. Whatever new habit you are looking to form, whether it’s about eating, exercise, business, relationships, giving more time to yourself; do something, even it it’s just a little focus, everyday. Before you know it, this new habit will become second nature, a part of your daily routine. And you will be one step closer to your goal. In fact, keep it up every day and before you know it, you won’t be able to live without it.
Although this might be self-serving, I didn’t write it or speak to it. If you’ve ever thought about getting a coach to help you grow and manage your business, I highly recommend you watch this TED Talk. Warning! There are some graphic images. And it gets a little emotional at the end. It’s inspiring, uplifting and real life proof of what coaching can do. Enjoy.
We all get them, those pesky Negative thoughts. It might be when you are waiting to hear back from a potential client and you don’t know why it’s taking so long for them to get back to you? Do you find yourself going negative? Coming up with a back story that may or may not be true? Or waiting to hear that a deal has closed. Whatever it may be, how well does that serve you?
How about turning those negative thoughts into positive action? So instead of being in ‘scarcity’ worrying about where the next file will come from, pick up the phone and call a client. Invite a prospect out for lunch. Write an article. Look at your client list and see who you can reach out to?
Negative thoughts often come as ‘warning signs’. Use those warnings in a positive way and get into action. Your goal should be to get to a point where you have so much positive around you, you don’t have time to think, wait, dwell or create a story (negative). You are simply in positive action. #businesscoach #intoaction #moveforward
98.7% of my clients are perfectionists at heart. I am a perfectionist at heart. What’s the problem with being a perfectionist? It holds you back from actually getting things done. Nothing will ever be perfect, including perfectionism.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Striving for, and achieving excellence should be our number one goal as professional service providers. And for that matter, as humans. But if you wait until something is perfect to get it out there, you will never get it out there. It’s an impossible dream.
How many times has procrastination come into play because of your perfectionist tendencies? You fear getting started because you don’t know if it will be perfect. So you hold off. Time passes. More time passes and still nothing is done. If some of the top companies of all time waited until they perfected their product or service, they wouldn’t be in business. They wouldn’t have pushed the innovation envelope.
So the next time you are confronted with your perfectionist tendencies, ask yourself, “Is it excellent?” “Is it good enough for now?” And then remember, it can always be improved upon later. Get it out there. One of my favorite things to suggest to my clients is ‘NIKE’. Just do it!
Over time little drops of water accumulate and form a puddle; growing into a stream, flowing into a river and eventually creating a lake, rushing into the ocean. And that’s exactly how growing your practice or firm works. New habits take time, and with repetition create lasting and impactful results. It all starts with that first drop; or in your case, first step.
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