More Than WE Know

Whenever possible I try to do as many of my “to do” items online.  Not having to run an errand saves me both  money, time and personal energy.   All of which I can turn around and invest in my business.

Recently I learned about an online printing service that enables customers to design and order business cards, brochures, catalogues, calendars, posters, greeting cards, bumper stickers, event tickets and more. 

Psprint has over 150 design templates to choose from. You can use their designs or upload one of your own. 

Standard shipping is 5 days, but they can ship faster and even have a same day service!

But even better than that - instead of shipping the postcards, newsletters, etc. for you and then you having to turn around and mail them out to your customer list - PsPrint will process your mailing list, address your items, presort for the post office and then drop them off at the post office!  (note: they even remove any duplicates you might have in your mailing list)

So - now my to do list looks like this:

1.Design new workshop brochure.

2. Order brochures.

3. Pick up brochures.

4. Buy stamps.

5. Address brochures.

6. Mail.

What about you - how many items could you cross off your list?  

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The number one concern I hear from entrepreneurs is a wish for more hours in the day.   No matter how much time they devote to their business, they never seem to get it all done.

And (especially if they are women entrepreneurs) they want to know how they can be more organized, more focused, more dedicated, and more clever about multi-tasking - so they can be more productive.

So, over the next few posts I’m going to share some of the methods I use to manage the various tasks in my life.  I’d appreciate it if you share some of your best tips as well - so we can all learn from each other.

My first tip is to create a written master list of everything you are trying to do.

While this may sound simple, I’m continually amazed at the number of entrepreneurs I meet who carry their “to do” lists around in their heads - they try to remember all of the outstanding tasks related to their business, their children, their personal lives, their spouse, their health, their friends, their pets, etc.

Without realizing it they’ve added an extra unnecessary task to their lives - memorizing their list!!

There’s no way to prioritize, organize, or make any progress on a list you can’t see. 

So - right now - before you do anything else - make a list of everything - absolutely everything that you need to do. 

Don’t even worry about prioritizing or categorizing - just do a brain dump of it all.  In every category of your life.  Be sure to include the things that wake you up in the middle of the night - like scheduling your long overdue dental appointment, updating your quickbook accounts,  and finding a missing library book.

Write it all down until you can’t come up with a single other thing.

And feel yourself relax.

Then, while you work the muscle cramp out in your hand -  stand back in amazement.

Did you know you were trying to do all of that??

By yourself??

In that amount of time??

Is it any wonder you feel frazzled and scatter-brained? Is it any wonder you forget things, do them late or do them only half as well as you could?

Stop feeling like you Should get more done and that someone else Could get more done and if you were more organized you Would get more done.

Just for today - give yourself a break. 

Shove the list aside. Have a cup of tea. Watch the sun set. Take a nap. Notice how good it feels not to be carrying that list around in your head. 

Now - at the top of the list write:

• Make a list of everything I have to do. 

Then cross it out.

• Make a list of everything I have to do.

Feels good,  doesn’t it??

Don’t worry - we’ll talk about how to manage all those items on the list but the first tip is really this:

• Set realistic expectations and treat yourself with respect.

In other words, if you wouldn’t ask an employee to carry this workload - don’t ask it of yourself. 

(and now tell me - how many items did you have on your Master To Do list???????)

This week I’ve been discussing the various symptoms of Entrepreneurial Spring Fever - an illness that runs rampant this time of year as thousands of previously satisfied entrepreneurs start to feel vaguely dissatisfied with their businesses and their lives.

So far I’ve discussed restlessness, lack of focus and impatience - all slightly uncomfortable symptoms that with proper care and treatment can actually help you improve your business and life satisfaction.  

However, today’s symptom - comparisonitis is much more troubling.

When plagued with this symptom which involves comparing your business, your life and your self unfavorably with others  - many Women Entrepreneurs find themselves disheartened and discouraged.  

Suddenly it seems that everyone else is having more success, making more money, creating better balance and influencing more people.

With this perspective, it is hard not to slide into feeling dissatisfied, disappointed and discouraged.

When this starts to happen, it’s important to remember that dissatisfaction with the status quo is a key motivator to creating change.

All of those great plans you’ve made won’t get done, if you don’t feel enough dissatisfaction with the way things are today.

Change is hard, even when it is for the better.

In order to have the energy and discipline to follow through on your plans and create the business and the life that you imagine, you have to first be dissatisfied with the life you already have.

So, instead of allowing your comparisons with others to discourage you - use them to encourage you.

Consider the idea that “if they can do it - so can you!”

 You wouldn’t have come as far as you have if you weren’t intelligent, creative and resourceful.

You might not have all the skills you need - but you can either learn what you need to know or find someone else to compensate for what you lack.

Those people with whom you are comparing yourself,  have their own shortcomings that they are dealing with - perhaps even some of the same challenges that you are facing. They found ways to get around their challenges - and so can you.

So now, when you see a successful person who seems to be living the life of your dreams - don’t kick yourself for not having achieved all of their success - instead open your eyes to see what you can learn from them, apply the lessons to your own situation and achieve your own dreams.

What people or situations do you compare yourself with?

How do you avoid feeling discouraged by the accomplishments of others?

What encourages you?

photo credit: MegElizabeth

If you’ve already felt yourself coming down with the first two symptoms of Spring Fever: Restlessness and Lack of Focus, it’s likely that the third symptom: Impatience is not far behind.

Ironically, the treatments I advised for Lack of Focus - “give in to your daydreaming”, might even make this symptom worse!

The more you imagine the way your business and your life could be - the more impatient you can become for it to happen. 

You want what you want - and you want it Now!!

This can be frustrating and irritating.  But it is actually a good sign.

Like a fever spiking and finally breaking when you have the flu - impatience is a sign that you are done dreaming - and are ready for action!!

Without impatience - you might spend forever living in your beautiful technicolor fantasies of the life you will have Someday.

But with impatience - you find the energy and the motivation to make that Someday come Sooner.

So - how do you channel the nervous energy that comes with impatience?

A byproduct of all that daydreaming you’ve been doing is that you’ve been building up your creative muscle. Now’s the time to flex that strength by channeling your creativity into constructive action.

1. Imagine that you have achieved the life you dream of - successful business, balanced homelife, whatever it means to you.  Now imagine you are being interviewed by a talk show host (Oprah? Larry King?)  and they ask you - “How exactly did you achieve this success?”  Imagine your answer and listen to what you have to say.
2. Now imagine that they ask you, “What advice do you have for other women entrepreneurs who want to achieve the same success you have?”  Again, imagine your answer and listen to what you have to say.
3. And then, they ask you “What’s next for you? Where do you go from here?” This is an interesting question - because you’ve already achieved your success - but you might be surprised to find out what comes out of your imaginary mouth - even more success than you’ve already imagined!! 

I could have just said take your dreams, turn them into goals and come up with an action plan.  But that’s a routine task for New Year’s Day. 

This is Spring when imagination, creativity and zeal rule the day.  We need to keep those creative juices flowing to keep the enthusiasm high.

And once you’ve done this exercise (and the imaginary audience has given you an imaginary round of applause!!) you will be left with:

• an action plan of how to achieve your goal
• cautionary advice of what to avoid or what to remember to do
• an even bigger and more exciting future goal to keep you motivated for achieving the next level of success

You’ll be ready to channel your creativity and energy into action.  So, welcome that Springtime impatience and use it to hurry your success along its way!! 

In yesterday’s post I touched on some of the symptoms of Spring Fever.

The first symptom was Restlessness and the second one was……hmmm?…..sorry, my mind wandered…. where was I?…oh yeah - Lack of Focus.

Spring Fever brings a disturbing inability to focus on the tasks in front of you.  You start working and then all of a sudden your mind starts to wander.

You think about what you were doing last night, what you will be doing tonight…. You remember the knitting project you started a year ago and try to remember where you put it….. You consider taking up the piano…… You wonder what your living room would look like if you painted the walls sky blue….. or what it would be like to move to an island with a stack of books and eat nothing but bananas and coconuts……

….and then you realize that 15 minutes have passed and you’ve gotten nothing done.

Before you know it your work day is gone and you really aren’t sure what you’ve accomplished.

So, what is a woman entrepreneur to do when plagued with an inability to focus?

Similar to my advice from yesterday - I say to give in to this symptom!!

Spring is a creative, optimistic time. It’s a time when the juices are flowing - the sap is running in the trees and the blood is stirring in your veins. While January may be the time when we set goals - Spring is the time when we dream dreams!!

So when you seem to be having trouble focusing on the task at hand - stop trying to force yourself - you’ll be miserable and the results will be disappointing.

Instead, realize that your creative self is trying to speak to you.    Instead of trying to silence those impulses - turn your focus fully on your daydreams and ask yourself - What do I want to do? Who do I want to be? What am I building with my business? How big and grand and glorious and amazing can it become?

Springtime daydreaming is different than the lazy dreams of summer. It can get you excited and restless - anxious to take on the world.  Channel that energy by keeping your body busy while your mind roams free.  You’ll be able to tap into your creativity for a longer period of time, and will be amazed at what you think of!!

• take a walk outside - the rythmic movement will free your mind to wander and the exercise will increase your energy
• engage in a repetitive task - knitting, crocheting, cooking, even housework - anything that keeps your hands busy while your mind runs free will help you sustain the moment

If you prefer quiet contemplation, try these approaches to tap into your creativity:

• Free-write in a journal. Now isn’t the time to worry about punctuation and grammar. Just let your thoughts flow.
• Create a collage.  Cut out pictures and words from magazines, old photos, postcards, advertisements, or fabric. Add illustrations, stencils, and paint. Create a visual representation of what you and your business are becoming.
• Listen to music. Follow your impulses - something loud and fast with a strong beat, something playful and jazzy, something soothing or haunting.  Let the music overtake you. What do you see, feel, imagine?
• Take a bath.  Add your favorite oil or bubbles. Light a few candles.  Close your eyes and see your life as it could be.

Don’t worry if none of this feels productive.  

If you actually give yourself some time to set aside your “to do” list and focus instead on your desires - you’ll be amazed at the things you think and the places your mind with take you. 

In fact, you may even find it’s the most productive time you spend all year long!!   

photo credit: Lin Pernille Photography