Where do you get your best ideas?

Where do you find you get your best ideas?  I’ll bet it’s not when you’re looking for them! 

I was  working with a client the other day on his marketing plan for the next 12 months.  He said something that made me realise he hadn’t read the notes from our previous meeting. 

So I did what any good coach would and asked him a couple of questions to find out why.  For me, it was one of those ‘duh’ moments (not as good as an ‘a-ha’ but often just as illuminating!).  This client does not like reading, so my carefully written notes had passed right by him.

Without saying anything, I started to use a Mindmap to illustrate the strategy we were discussing.

The difference was quite amazing.  My client became quite animated, asking lots of questions and making some suggestions of his own.  It was a very productive meeting.

Afterwards, when I came to put together the notes from our meeting, I drew a mindmap to summarise (using software from smartdraw.com). 

With written reports it can be easy to ramble on with too many words.  Mindmapping helps you get straight to the point!

It's great to put another tick in the box!

Like most small business owners, I struggle sometimes to get focused and make headway with projects. Even though I know all the tricks and techniques, sometimes they don’t work for me!

I’m ashamed to admit that I used to give in and do something easier or more pleasurable – like phone a friend for a chat, or even take the rest of the day off! What has really changed for me is working with a coach who doesn’t stand any nonsense! My clients will rejoice in hearing that I’m getting a taste of my own medicine!

The benefits of having a coach are many. There’s a desire to work harder, to achieve more in the knowledge that someone else is going to celebrate your successes. There can also be an element of discomfort if you have to report that things didn’t get done.

What I’m finding interesting is that I’m setting bigger targets for myself than before, and I’m really striving to reach or even exceed them! My motivation levels have never been higher and I am getting through an amazing amount of work.

Even though I already knew that coaching produces great results, it’s nice to have my recent experiences continue to confirm it!

Act to counter low motivation

I don’t know about you, but when I feel overwhelmed at how much is on my To-Do list or I’m not sure how to move forward with a project, it can affect my motivation for everything else too!

Now, one fact that I absolutely know for sure, is that time is so very precious to all small business owners, and we have to make every minute count or it’s gone forever!

So whenever I feel my motivation slipping because of overwhelm or uncertainty, I have learnt that the best antidote is action. Often it doesn’t matter what that action is, just as long as I am doing something to move my business forward.

One great benefit of working with a coach is that you report in regularly on what you’ve been doing. It’s easy to forget just how much you have achieved when motivation levels are low, so writing everything down is a good reminder and encourages you to take more action. Taking action and celebrating achievements are both vital elements to staying motivated.

Is your motivation flagging?

This week, I thought I’d look at the subject of Motivation for small business owners, especially as I had some classic ‘I don’t want to do this’ moments last week and then felt guilty because I hadn’t done as much as I thought I should have. Has that ever happened to you?

When I explored in more depth why I should be feeling like this, I uncovered the following 3 factors:

1. Over the previous 4 weeks I’d been working 14 hour days, mostly hunched over the computer.

2. I had worked every weekend since the beginning of the year.

3. I was just plain tired!

Was it really any surprise that my motivation had taken a dip? I had to do something. First, and most obvious, I needed to recharge my batteries, so I took the whole weekend off. OK, so I did turn the computer on for a couple of hours yesterday to check emails, but that was all. I rested, I read a book, I caught up on sleep, I switched off.

I know that it will take more than one weekend off to put things right – but it’s a start. This morning (Monday), I am getting on with things. I’ve got a meeting with my coach later on and know that I’ll be fired up afterwards. But how long for? .....

Shifting the Business Model

The last few days have been really amazing! I now have a new coach who is really going to help me do for my business what I do for other people's. She really understands the business model that I want to use and has already got me working to it.

Another exciting thing that has happened is that, on Friday, I took delivery of a home study Training Program I've been longing to do. It's from a truly inspirational marketing mentor I've been learning from for over 2 years. It is the most expensive program I've invested in so far, and I just know that what I learn and implement from it will take my business to the next level.

While I was debating whether I could justify spending so much on training, my inner critic was telling me that there were other things the business needed and I shouldn't do it. But my own personal 'inner coach' reminded me that I'd been wanting to do this program for the last 2 years and that, if 2008 is to be the growth year I want, then it was high time I stopped procrastinating and got on with it.

So I went ahead and took the plunge. After all, if I coach my clients about the need to invest in themselves, how can I do any different?

One of the lessons I've been reminded of is that it's important to make decisions quickly and act on them. So I did the right thing! I'm looking forward to learning more - and to taking more action.