Thought Partners International

Guest Post: Big, Fat, Internet Marketing Lies?!

Andrea J. Lee — Mon, 09 May 2011 15:56:43 +0000

This post is courtesy of Michele PW who is spearheading a Bold, Outrageous and somewhat Provocative stand in the Internet Marketing world. She’s also got a bit of a reputation for a being a lie-slayer in the video series she invites you to opt-in to watch at the end. Lie-slayer is a pretty cool name, Michele! Wish I thought of it. Enjoy.

So how does one become a Wealthy Thought Leader?

Actually, not so much the wealthy part (although that’s important) but the Thought Leader part.

That’s actually the most important part. There are lots of ways to gain wealth, but if you haven’t gotten your head around calling yourself a Thought Leader, you’re never going to become a Wealthy Thought Leader.

One line of thinking is to just call yourself a Thought Leader and be done with it. And while that might work with some people it really didn’t work for me.

For me to truly step into my power and embrace being a Thought Leader, I had to get riled up. I had to see wrongs being committed and finally have enough. I had to tap into my passion for helping entrepreneurs everywhere and stop them from struggling needlessly with their business.

And THAT’S when I was finally able to embrace becoming a Thought Leader.

So what was this wrong that I am driven to make right? It’s this: Believing the lies about Internet Marketing and allowing those lies to destroy your passion for your business or maybe even your business itself.

Let me explain.

It is NOT easy to own your own business. In fact, all of you entrepreneurs reading this should stop and pat yourself on the back right now. (I mean it. Stop and pat yourself on the back. I don’t care how successful or unsuccessful you think you are — you’re doing it. You’ve chosen a path that can be scary and frustrating and risky but it also can bring you the BIGGEST rewards and the HIGHEST highs.)

So if owning a business is tough, why would you make it all that tougher on yourself by believing the “lies” out there about Internet Marketing?

You see, there are a lot of beliefs swirling around out there about Internet Marketing that are either half-truths, sort-of-true-but-you-don’t-know-the-whole-context or just an out-and-out lie.

The problem is you may not know what is REALLY true and what you only THINK is true.

Actually that’s not the biggest problem. The biggest problem is when you believe these half-truths or lies and then you blame YOURSELF when Internet Marketing doesn’t work for you.

THAT is the real cost of these lies. You blame yourself, the Universe, the economy, your products, etc. for what you PERCEIVE to be a failure. When, in actuality, it’s something else entirely. For instance:

Maybe you’re using the wrong Internet Marketing strategy
Maybe you’re using the right Internet Marketing strategy but you’re skipping some crucial steps because you don’t realize they’re crucial
Maybe your expectations are wrong (maybe you’re more of a success than you realize!)
Or it’s something else that is EASY to fix and has nothing to do with the “story” you’ve created around your failure

I want you to take a deep breath right now and open yourself up to this new reality. It’s not YOU that’s the problem. It’s something else — something outside of yourself and something that’s easily fixable.

How does that feel?

What if THAT was the truth? Not these Big Fat Internet Marketing lies you’re most likely telling yourself right now?

So, do you want to hear MY take on the Top 3 Big Fat Internet Marketing lies are? I’ve created a 3-part video series with the co-founders of the Inner Mean Girl Reform School Christine Arylo and Amy Ahlers. Here’s the link: http://www.michelepw.com/bigfatlies/

Desire Lines | Excerpted from ‘Money, Meaning & Beyond’ Chapter 2

Andrea J. Lee — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 19:08:56 +0000

Have you ever heard it said, “The great thing about Delicatessens is if three people ask for a sandwich that’s not on the menu, they put it on the menu.”

We’d like for you as a business owner to start thinking a little like a Deli.

What do you your customers want that you aren’t currently selling?

How many times have you been asked for something by a client, only to have to say ‘no’ and moved on to the task of trying to drum up more business?

There are naturally occurring desire lines in your business; noticing and acting on them means more money, more easily.

Jay Abraham claims there are only three ways in the world to grow a business:

Increase the total number of customers you have.
Increase the pride of what you sell.
Or increase the amount of money each customer spends with you.

Of these, the last one is most often the quickest way to increase your income and you can start by asking a single question: What would your current customers buy from you – today – if you only sold it?

Making more money really isn’t hard if you’re able to think of yourself as in the business of satisfying desires.

Wisdom nuggets:

Take a moment to integrate the idea that struggle is not a requirement of a business. Even the most successful business owners, when they’re trying to grow, can run into the idea that they ‘must work hard to make more money’. So don’t take for granted that you ‘get it’ before you pause for one more moment.

What requests have you had for additional products or services from your current customers? Which ones are you most interested in providing – directly or indirectly?

How could you satisfy your customer’s desires simply by repackaging an existing offering? There is a reason why there are dozens of types of cheese in the dairy section of the supermarket. What can you learn about repackaging from the cheese department in the grocery store?

I’d like to know what will you integrate, add or repackage in your business to satisfy the desires of your clients. Share your thoughts with me here.

Feature Article | Why Your Launch Isn’t Working (As Well As You’d Like) And Your Stuff Isn’t Selling (As Much As You’d Like)

Andrea J. Lee — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 18:00:46 +0000

It’s a wonderful day in the business: you’ve created a NEW THING and are about to release it to the world. Whether it be a new summer menu at a restaurant, a 6-week telecourse, an person-training or, the proverbial lemonade stand on a new street corner, this should be a great day, right?

But launch day, or selling your wares on any day for that matter, often comes with the entrepreneurial version of post-traumatic stress. Too much effort, not enough result. What’s happening? Here are a few reasons to review, then change, but only if you seek a different result.

1. Less is more.
Too much information, already! People aren’t going to buy just to make you stop droning on, verbally or in writing. Make ONE point clearly, move on. Next time, make another point. And then…enough said.

2. It’s too serious.
Adult education (no, not THAT kind!) needs to entertain. Lighten it up, but also look for where you can counsel your market to lighten up as well. They’ll be relieved and grateful.

3. Do the opposite.
According to the Art of War, it pays to do exactly what your enemy doesn’t expect. Rather than fall into a thrall about what your competitors or colleagues are doing, what can you do that they would NOT expect?

In a bouquet of red roses, there’s a reason white Baby’s Breath is the most common companion. It contrasts.

4. Show, don’t tell.
Instead of telling the benefits, show them, if you can. Before and after stories. Use shorthand with case studies. (See #1)

5. You’re being stubborn about something.
Intense coaching in the last 3 months, I have so much real-life proof (aka ammunition) about this, it’s silly.

Your launch isn’t doing as well, and your stuff isn’t selling as much, because you are being a stick in the mud about SOMETHING. Holier than though? Disconnected to reality? Attached to doing it yourself? Feeling desperate about money? (And yes, I have my own self as evidence too.)

6. Deliver more (karmic deposits) to sell more (karmic withdrawal.)
In a fascinating turnaround of the concept of tithing, where certain individuals even claim to give away the dollar amount they want to EARN each month, look to your delivery. What clients, what services, what products are you set to deliver right now?

Set out to OVERDELIVER. Because wimping out on delivery (letting current clients down, or not fully earning the money you’ve already put in the bank?) is the best way to say you’re not really ready to sell more, just now.

7. Be nimble.
Lots of people say ‘be speedy.’ That works to an extent, but there’s a difference. The insight is that being SLOW does not serve. Sluggishness, taking forever to make one decision, all these things rob you of space you need to manoeuvre, do something again, try a tweak.

If you only have X time, and your thing is untested, you need to step lightly, keep moving, course correct, find what works, nimbly.

8. Get realer.
This one is a toughie. In a time when authenticity has become the plastic word-of-the-day, the succinct (see #1) way I’ll put this is…
Ask…. if a video camera were on you at any given moment in your life (especially when you’re not creating something for YouTube) would we see a different you from the one you want us to see?

How can that change? That’s where the untapped reserves of realness live. And by contrast to the plastic around us, the foresight here is that that’s what will be noticed.

9. Your offer is off.
The price point. The perceived value. Maybe who you’re selling that thing to. Maybe your thing is (sorry, but it’s possible) boring and sounds like everyone else. Something about the ‘it’ isn’t right.
This is a toughie to admit to, but you may as well do it early if you feel it. Admitting it later isn’t going to feel better, is it?

Your turn! Why – now that you’ve marinated in the above 9 – isn’t your launch working as well as you’d like, or your thing selling as much as you’d like?

I left #10 open just for you. Because I know you have the muscles to play with the formula. Try it:

Foresight + Insight + Action = Business Success Through Thought Leadership.

What insight do you now have about this question, which everyone goes through, at one point or other?

Feature Article | Seeking the Minimum Level (Excerpted from the Money, Meaning and Beyond Book, Chapter 18)

Andrea J. Lee — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 21:12:59 +0000

People are creatures of habit.

After hearing the same lessons about business for so long, we can tend to accept them without questioning. After doing things the same way for so long, it can take a little shock treatment for us to stop.

However it’s important that we do, because far too many business owners are chronically tired and overworked, yet are still trying harder to do more with their energy and time.

The old way of thinking and old habits can be very costly – to both the success of your business, and your overall happiness.

May I ask:

Do you invest too much energy into tasks that aren’t worth it? Are you using a lot of time on a project that could be done with much less?

If you have a tack in front of you, you wouldn’t use a power tool to put it in, right? It would be a massive, disproportionately powerful tool to get the result you want.

This can be a difficult one, but try to develop an awareness of how to apply just the right amount of energy and resources to the appropriate tasks.

If you’re used to providing a full-fledged proposal for a client, would a two-page summary work just as well? Do you send over five possible ideas for how to ‘redo the living room’ when 3 would be equally delightful to your clients?

When you write emails, do you always proofread and double-check before you send out? If you’re doing a series of follow-up calls that are administrative in nature, could an assistant do the trick?

You get the picture. Experiment with the minimum level.

Based on experience, we estimate business owners waste an average of 20-30% on tasks that would be just as gone and just as complete, if they’d leave well enough alone.

Seeking the minimum level definitely goes against the grain at first, because business owners are used to working hard, and racing to keep up.

Take a moment now to think of just one thing that you could work a lot less hard at to complete, or better yet, one thing you can take off your ‘To Do’ list entirely. Will you share? Please post your comments

Feature Article | Why People Are Afraid of Success (Excerpted from Lesson 56 in the ‘How to Coach Anyone’ Book)

Andrea J. Lee — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 15:41:48 +0000

Because success, while desirable, does come with significant risk.
Meaning they might ‘come back down’ after they ‘make it.’

Fear of loss is usually a more powerful feeling than the pleasure of success. (That’s important to know, and it explains why people don’t always do the cool/great things they could do.)

Because success can take on a life of its own.
Some folks are afraid of being consumed by their success or becoming the tail of the dog, where success wags them.

One can lose control of the ‘situation’, and that’s not a feeling that people like.

Because success will force a change in a person’s source of energy.
If you’ve gotten used to the noise, smell, vibration and tug of an internal combustion engine, it’s quite unnerving to drive an electric car. Missing are the familiar feelings/sensations that come with an internal combustion engine.

The same is true of success. It’s eerie; it can be so quiet and unfamiliar. One gets suspicious. If nothing else, success is stressful, given it’s a fundamentally different feeling than striving.

Because success may redefine the person.
We all want to change a little bit perhaps, but how many of us truly want to be redefined? Yet that’s what success will do in many cases.

Success will have us see life very differently, we’ll be operating differently with perhaps a different group of people and our environments may well change substantially. True, the core of you may not change but just about everything else probably will. That’s scary!

Because success is a new territory.
Anything new/different is bound to prompt cautiousness, even success. Even if it’s something you’ve wanted your entire life.

New territories, as exciting as they are, still carry a degree of risk and someone who is risk adverse will slow down their success pace/track in order to feel safer. Just human nature.

Can you relate to these points? What will you do to eliminate fear of success in your future? Leave your comments below.

Suffice to say, the integration of the BODY, (physical health and movement) into all areas of business is coming…

Andrea J. Lee — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 09:46:31 +0000

As a forward-thinking entrepreneur, are you integrating this thoroughly into your plans on multiple levels? For example:

Like the Wii Fit, 3-dimensional TV, movies and other video games…. are you learning from the entertainment industry about giving people a full-body experience of your service offering?

Like airlines, new cars and RVs, and other transportation services… are you adapting to our increasing understanding of comfort through ergonomics, the use of space, and translating that into more income for your services?

Like the most innovative coaching, consulting and teaching/information businesses, are you creating whole-body experiences such as music at your conference, a touch-pool of props for your video participants, tools your clients can literally touch while learning from you?

The tactile, physical realm is infiltrating many business sectors and will continue to do so…

Here are some immediate ways in which to apply something physical to your business…

1. Address the 5 senses. If you aren’t already using visuals– through video, et al – to accent your information business, you will continue to find yourself behind.

If you’re already using video, ask how you can push the envelope and lead the pack – are you being intimate in your videos, creating real connection, or broadcasting? Are you just a talking head, or are you creating a real tv-like experience including detailed B roll footage? How are you invoking the sense of smell, taste and more through your visuals?

2. Address physical needs. This means more than offering a bio-break in the middle of the day.

Is the setting for your workshop as powerful as it could be? Are you giving people a carbohydrate dump with your well-intentioned Danish breakfast? Could your writing – book/blogpost/worksheet – be less of an eye-test and more delightful to read?

3. Address your language and mental orientation toward the physical world. Are you integrating the client as a whole person in your service?

What is your language giving away about any limits in your thinking here? A hotel can provide basic accommodations or it could provide rain gear on the west coast, foot-washing basins for the beach, motion-sickness assistance for the amusement park! We have an opportunity to acknowledge the physical experience our clients have in our business- are you taking it?

Are here are some immediate ways in which to integrate this to YOUR physical self not (just your business)…yes I mean that body of yours that’s sitting there reading right now, moving eyeballs left to right, heart beating, breath moving, perhaps smiling…

1. Read the Four-Hour Body. This is an extremely exciting and eye-opening book, one I will be recommending as essential reading to all clients this year. Better yet, don’t just read it, alternate reading a few pages with a walk or set of burpees. I predict you will be astonished by the time you’ve read a chapter, and will pay you the price of the book from my own pocket if you don’t. (Although he definitely has it, Tim doesn’t need my support, so this is just my way of making this point clear for you.)

2. Radically reconsider those New Year’s Resolutions about losing weight. If we try to get fitter in increments, it’s very difficult to sustain. A radical, perhaps even extreme approach to your physical health is often better. Plus, extreme can be simple. What is a BIG goal for your fitness you could get excited about? For me, it’s Stand Up Paddle Boarding in a competition this year. (If you heard my heart beat faster there, you’re really listening and I’m glad!)

3. Get support for this conversation. The integration of the BODY into all areas of business, in big and small ways requires more than your will power alone to enact… whether by requesting it of your current mastermind group, your board of advisors, or your coach, you have many options available. Will you be one of the business owners who seizes this window to be at the forefront of the conversation…perhaps to the dismay of others in your market? The evidence shows it will pay off – more than MANY other pursuits/investments – in both business and life.

What other ways can you apply this Megatrend? Comments, questions or debate?

And while we’re on this topic…we are gearing up to go much, much deeper into the #1 Megatrend for 2011++ for coaching and service businesses.

Do you want to integrate the BODY into your business for your clients and YOURSELF?

Would you like to effortlessly move gears – quickly – into understanding how important this trend is and will continue to be?

The Tour de Coach 3-day live workshop – including workouts, boot camp style, and the significant AHAs that derive from that body work is coming to you…

Feature Article | The Paul Principle: For Better or Worse, It’s All About You. (Excerpted from the Money, Meaning and Beyond Book, Chapter 26)

Andrea J. Lee — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 22:42:11 +0000

In any given business, the growth of the business will rise or fall to the level of the business owner’s personal development.

I see it frequently.

When people grow, their business grows. When people don’t, their businesses don’t. and sometimes, when businesses get inherited or acquired, the business will show a spurt or dive, based on the ethos of the new owner.

When opportunity knocks, are you ready?

If you knew you could have everything you wanted right now, would you know what to say?

Are you – your character, your development, your greater Self – ready?

If there is one thing I invite you to really embrace as you go about life in the next thirty days, it’s this. Work the Paul Principle. Make it work for you by:

Saying NO to bland. Stand for something.
Cultivating a vision. Get clear about what you believe and mean it. Lead.
Conditioning yourself emotionally. You and your business will weather many ups and downs. Nurture your strength of spirit just like you work out your body for the great race.
Articulate what you want and why. Don’t worry about how just yet.Being prepared to say a resounding ‘yes’ to help that wants to find you, and that many times, is sitting right on your doorstep.

Be diligent and unflinching about yourself and your growth. Start now in whatever shape or form that looks like to you.

Your success (financial and other) as a business owner is DIRECTLY linked to your ability to evolve yourself. It’s the Paul Principle and it’s at work in each and every one of us. Remember it.

How will you work the Paul Principle in your business over the next thirty days? Please post your comments here …I look forward to receiving them.

Feature Article | 15 Ways to Evolve More Quickly and Easily by Thomas Leonard

Andrea J. Lee — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 00:31:39 +0000

1. Surround yourself with new ideas instead of recycling your beliefs. Beliefs can limit your ability to experience life as it unfolds.

2. Make chaos your friend. The unexpected is a good thing as long as you’re open to it.

3. Let your environments do most of your evolutionary work for you. Evolution occurs as you adapt to such environments.

4. Use tolerations to your advantage. Every single thing you are putting up with is an opportunity waiting to be leveraged.

5. Constantly experience. Synchronicity is the reward.

6. Spend more time in nature. Nature nourishes and recalibrates our natural systems.

7. Become the host of a thriving network. Let your network evolve you as you serve them.

8. Continuously integrate all aspects of your life. Integration evolves you from being needlessly complicated to being richly complex.

9. Invest in your virtual environments, not just your physical environments. Life is becoming more virtual.

10. Design your sources of energy. You can then operate at a higher frequency.

11. Become superconductive. Reduce the energy you consume by 90% by reducing your resistance to life.

12. Master the evolving set of Cyber Skills. Extend your intelligence by connecting with everyone.

13. Surround yourself with people who are eagerly evolving. They spark you. You spark them. Evolution occurs effortlessly.

14. Stop resisting.

15. Assimilate events the first time they occur.

Which way will you choose to quickly and easily support the changes you want to make?

Are You Taking Really Good Care Of Your Golden Goose?

Andrea J. Lee — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 17:56:42 +0000

Here’s a question I’ve received from several of my clients: “I’ve made a name for myself and am earning pretty darned good money, but I’m still exhausted and feel blue. I don’t feel like doing anything new in my business. What should I do, Andrea?”

My response:

“In your business, you are the proverbial golden goose. You’d take really good care of a golden goose, wouldn’t you?”

May I ask you a question?

Are you taking really good care of YOUR golden goose? This includes exercising it, nourishing it and even challenging it regularly.

If your answer is yes, is there room for you to take even better care of your golden goose?

If no, what will you do differently to support greater care? Will you embrace the teachings – even ones outside of your ‘norm’ to help you not only develop your business, but yourself also?

I’d love to hear more about your commitment to yourself to better care for your Golden Goose. Please click here to share your comments.

There’s an opportunity for you to strengthen your Golden Goose in both body and mind at the Tour de Coach live event.

Read more about how it make you a better person and a better business owner >> www.TourdeCoach.com There’s still time to register for the early bird pricing and 3 payment option but note these expire on January 18^th!

5 Qualities Needed to Make, and Sustain, a Significant Change | Excerpted from the How to Coach Anyone Book, Lesson 40

Andrea J. Lee — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 21:27:14 +0000

For significant behavior change to occur, the client needs these five things in ample supply:

1. Willingness

Willingness in terms of being open, not only to changing their behavior/attitude, but to making changes to thinking, behavior, physical and intangible environments, sources of energy/motivation, paradigms, assumptions, frameworks, and the like. Willingness is FAR more than just saying “I really, really want to change X.”

2. Readiness

Readiness in terms of being available or prepared for what is called for to effectuate the change, either internal or external. Someone who is ready, is likely to do something significant. It’s quite possible to be ready yet not willing.

3. Ableness

Ableness in terms of having sufficient power, strength, force, skill, intelligence, creativity, genes, means talent or resources of any kind to accomplish the objective. A lot of clients are willing to make changes to be successful and they are available/ready for it, but lack the means (ableness) to reach that objective.

4. Havingness

Havingness in terms of a person being able to accept and handle, and most importantly, maintain/sustain the success that finds them. Thing of the lottery winner who goes through the million in less than 2 years. Many of us have emotional ‘set points’ that ‘limit’ our ability to be successful and maintain that success.

5. Desire

Desire in terms of passion, very strong wanting, an urgency for something; either to make a change or to have a result. Desire can work either way: Either a desire for the end result or a desire for the ‘absence of” the problem/current behavior/situation.

Based on these five items above – how ready are you for change? Please share your thoughts below.

Perhaps these qualities above relate also relate to the area of sports coaching more than we realize. Join me and David Goldsmith on Thursday to learn more about the 5 Principles From Sport Every Life/Business Coach Needs to Know. Learn more at http://tourdecoach.com/preview-call/

What’s the Fastest Path to Money | Excerpted from the Money, Meaning & Beyond Book, Chapter 10

Andrea J. Lee — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 22:38:59 +0000

If you have been complaining about not earning enough money for more than one month – not earning enough money is not really an emergency for you.

Somehow, some way, you are surviving without more money. Yet you are still complaining, or worrying, or not sleeping at night because of it.

Either stop worrying about it because you’re clearly making it somehow, or – come to realize it is truly serious and do something about it.

A case study to consider:

A professional trainer told us he was in a ‘very bad’ financial situation in his business. He needed to earn $5000 in the next 2 months or he would go out of business.

We asked him, “What is the fastest path to making money today?”

He replied, “Maybe I’ll create a new program and see if it sells.”

We repeated the question. “What is the fastest path to making money – TODAY?”

What your fastest path to making money – TODAY? I look forward to reading your posts.

Five Unexpected Things Business Owners Can Learn From Sports | The Peanut Butter Cup Strikes Again

Andrea J. Lee — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 20:18:43 +0000

I know, with the holidays upon us, the last thing we need is another sweet, right? But this is too good a fresh combination to ignore.

Peanut butter cups are an important analogy for business owners who want to stand out from their competition. To get heard by your customers and find NEW customers, it’s critically important to find fresh combination’s for your business.

Maybe you’re a car wash owner who now also offers dog washing. (The setup is the same, so why not?)

Maybe you’re a workshop leader who now also simulcasts your events around the world. (You’re already leading the event, so why wouldn’t you scoop up the extra registration income, right?)

Or are you a lemonade stand who now also delivers the lemonade from car to car in the lineup to get on the ferry, instead of waiting for customers to come to you?

Sometimes it’s the simplest of new combination’s that bring the biggest business breakthroughs. Once you start looking for the Peanut Butter Cup principle of business, you will start to see it everywhere…

Here are just 5 short slices of fresh wisdom from the sport world that are important for you to absorb for your business. They’re going to be part of an ongoing discussion and learning for business owners in 2011:

1. In sport, measuring is key. Everything is measured so it can be improved.

In ice dancing, how do the athletes know if they’ve improved? They can’t, if they haven’t measured every jump, every turn, every routine. If they didn’t care about improvement, well, they wouldn’t measure!

You care about improvement in your business, right? So…measurement — the statistics, if you would, of your business, are vital. If your business had a baseball card to its name, what would it say?

2. In sport, overexercising is killer. Working TOO hard is as bad as working too little.

Actually, it’s worse. Working TOO hard looks just like you aren’t working hardly at all. Think about it. Burnout, in your business, looks like you’re being a lazy slob, doesn’t it? So why burn yourself out? Why not instead work just enough to produce the result?

In sport, coaches and athletes concern themselves a GREAT deal about working too much, because there is so much at stake. Working too much today, or playing too hard in tonight’s game, could sacrifice the entire season and the run-up to championship!

You don’t see Lance Armstrong courting burnout during practice for a reason.

3. The big goal is essential. Not having a goal is anathema to a business.

You got out of ho-hum, so-what, I’m punching a time-clock work so you could experience something different, right? So why are you – a little or a lot – feeling that ho-hum-ness in your business?

Could it be because you haven’t locked onto that big goal that makes you sit up and focus?

Do you think Olympic athletes would train as hard, be as dedicated, or as clear-eyed if they weren’t an Olympian? There’s a difference there that’s important to business owners.

What else can you learn from sport that would enrich your business? How deep does the analogy go? Can we squeeze more juice and smarts from the way we run our businesses by listening to the coaches of great athletes and championship players in all walks of life?

Click here to comment.

And click here to visit the Tour de Coach event information page, where we go deeper into the discussion about the Peanut Butter Cup of YOUR BIZ (Peanut butter) and Sport (chocolate). Be sure to watch the videos – especially the ones where Chris Carmichael, Lance Armstrong’s coach, speak out!
http://www.TourdeCoach.com

Fly the Coaching Banner High | Great Coaching Deserves High Praise – Are You Generating Your Best Coaching Results and Are Your Clients Raving About You Yet?

Andrea J. Lee — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 17:44:29 +0000

Endorsements of coaching are not heard often, it seems, but when they are accorded, they are high praise indeed.

Have you ever wondered why that is? Could it be because as coaches, we’ve played it safe until now? Could we stand to aim for the fences and knock it out of the park far, far more, with each of our individual coaching clients?

The following collection of mini-banners is free ware for your use on websites, in print promotions, or elsewhere (except resale for profit.) Fly the banner high and proudly, won’t you?

The Money Game | Excerpted from Money, Meaning & Beyond, Chapter 10

Andrea J. Lee — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 18:19:19 +0000

At the top of a blank piece of paper, write the words ‘My Money Game’ and make a note of the date.

For the purpose of this exercise, decide on a figure that we’ll call your financial goals for the next 12 months. Write this on the first line:

My goal for the business is to earn $ ___________ in the next 12 months.

Now sit back for a moment, and consider your financial goal for the next 12 months.

If we take the figure $120,000 as an example, thinking about building your business may feel pretty daunting.

But when you break down a single large financial goal into chunks, things instantly become more achievable and your chances of success are immediately much higher.

So consider this:

If 100 people pay you $100 each month for something, that’s $10,000 per month or $120,000 over the course of the year.

But if you don’t sell anything – yet – for $100 a month. Alright, try this on for size:

If 100 people pay you $39, that’s $3900 per month or $46,800 over the course of the year.

Based on the size of your current newsletter list, customer databank, or existing customer list, if 50 seems like a more reasonable number than 100, simply substitute the numbers.

When forecasting the revenue for your business using the Money Game … you can use a slide rule for each of the pertinent numbers.

How will you break down your targets so that you reach your yearly goal? Tell us how playing the ‘Money Game’ has helped you.

Pulling a Constanza | Excerpted from ‘Money, Meaning & Beyond’ Chapter 19

Andrea J. Lee — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 17:31:30 +0000

You’re probably familiar with the television sitcom called ‘Seinfeld’. Whether you’ve watched the show once or too many times, you probably remember that one of Jerry Seinfeld’s friends was a character named George Constanza.

George was one of those people who couldn’t do anything right. In his thirties, he still lived at home, had no job, no relationship and was losing the rest of his hair.

Nothing every worked out for George. He had so much promise yet his life was the opposite of everything he wanted it to be.

Sound familiar? We all have our ‘George’ days, when we feel like we’re getting nowhere, and we don’t know what to do about it. We feel miserable and unworthy, useless and helpless. We feel like George.

When you’re stuck, spinning your wheels, or just generally feeling thwarted by life, stop pushing your energy in the same stuck direction.

Instead, try the opposite. Close your eyes for just one moment and visualize yourself turning around. Now, open your eyes.

You might be surprised at what looks you in the face.

Do you have a ‘George’ day here and there? Tell us about it – how did you turn yourself around?