Entries Tagged 'Strategies' ↓

In my last post, I talked about why I’ve begun to trade goal-setting for visioning, and how to create compelling 3-year visions that propel you into action.

I find visions to be so much more exciting than goals. But I haven’t given up on goals entirely! Income goals remind me that ultimately, I’m in charge of my income. And you know what they say - what you focus on expands.

Here’s how to set income goals that get results:

1. Be realistic. I will be completely straight up here and admit that when I first quit my job, I “intentioned” a lot of ridiculous numbers within even more ridiculous time frames. Not only was I completely frustrated by not meeting them, I was also confused (”wait, why isn’t it happening?” *wail*).

Don’t get me wrong - it’s important to pick a number number outside of your comfort zone (see next point). And my numbers weren’t entirely unrealistic, just unrealistic for right then. But the result was a lot of emotional energy down the drain. Very counter-productive, needless to say.

Here’s what I completely failed to take into account: the growth-value-income equation. Your fees and income are all about what VALUE you provide to your clients. Want bigger fees and more money? Add more value. And sometimes that means you have to grow, both as a practitioner and a person.

2. At the same time, pick something that will be a bit of a stretch. You don’t grow when you’re in your comfort zone. What number would make you a little bit uncomfortable… make you wonder, “Hrm, could I?”… inspire you to push yourself… and most importantly of all, invite you to grow?

If you pick a number that’s a little higher than you’re used to, you’ll s-t-r-r-r-etch a little to get there. Ask yourself, “What kind of person do I need to be in order to (charge X / serve Y clients / offer Z)?”

3. Pick an emotional number. I learned this one from SEO expert Colin McDougall, who spoke at The System earlier this year. When Colin quit his job as a systems administrator (ie, computer geek) to pursue Internet Marketing full-time, he set a goal of earning $5,000 per month. Why? That was the monthly income at the “day job from hell.” A goal of replacing the day job income kept him focused on never going back, and kept him motivated.

4. Work backward. Once you have a ballpark number, now it’s time for brass tacks: how many clients/sessions/classes will you need in order to meet that goal? Is it realistic, but a bit of a stretch? If yes, hooray! If not, go back and adjust.

5. Think averages. Income goals are kind of like losing weight - it takes time to see results. Just as you wouldn’t hop on the scale every day when you’re on a diet, thinking in averages is more realistic and will help keep you from getting discouraged. You may not make your target number for a given month, but if you divide up your entire income for 3 months and divide by 3… you get the picture.

6. Review your goal regularly. Post it where you can see it, put it in your day planner, or work it into your scheduling and/or time management system. Whatever you do, make sure you review your goal regularly. In this case, “out of sight, out of mind” might as well also mean “out of bank account.”

And remember: your goal is not set in stone. If later you find that you need to tweak it down, that doesn’t mean you failed! Success never comes in a straight line. It’s those little adjustments that count. The more you focus on what you want and implement the marketing to get there, the sooner you’ll find yourself “tweaking” your income goals in the “right” direction: up, up, up!

This time of year always gets me thinking about vision and planning. It’s a good time for taking stock. July marks the end of the first half and the start of the second half of the year - plenty of feedback (from the first 6 months) and time to make adjustments (6 more months to go). The energy of this time of year is perfect, too - the fiery energy of Midsummer!

I’ve always been a big goal-setter (it’s a habit I picked up from my dad). Indeed, I can’t really imagine life without goals of some kind. But I have to be honest. Lately I’ve been questioning the whole goal-setting thing.Why? Well, if there’s anything I’ve learned from working for myself, it’s that nothing stays the same except change. I don’t know about you, but here’s an experience I’ve had more times than I’d like to count: I make a long list of goals - beautiful goals! - and I’m movtivated and pumped up and excited to meet them - I’ve even started working on ‘em! - and then… something gets in the way. A prject spiraled out of control, a better idea, or just… life.And all momentum comes to a screeching halt. (Sound familiar?)

I don’t know about you, but it’s enough to make me feel like making goals are a big waste of time. (quite literally - I can’t tell you how many times I’ve spent HOURS on a list of goals only for them to become irrelevant a month later). So, more and more, I’ve traded goal-setting for visioning.

What is visioning? Quite simply, visioning is painting a picture of what you’d like your entire life to look like - work, money, relationships, family, spirituality, everything - within a given time frame.

Visioning allows you to drop the inhibitions and “shoulds” of goal-setting and think BIG: what would you like your life to look like in 1 year, 2 years, 3 years? (I suggest a 3-year vision because it’s plenty of time to make the vision come true, but not TOO much time that it seems unreal.)

What would stretch you, push you, challenge you? Better yet, what motivates you, gets you really excited? A good 3-year vision should scare you a little.

Be sure to write down your vision in the present tense. Pretend it’s three years from now. “It’s July 1, 2011. So many things have happened since July 1, 2008. I left my day job in January, 2009 to become a full-time Reiki practitioner and I now have a six-figure income…”

But don’t stop with just your calling and your income. What does your home look like? Who is with you? What trips have you taken?

Don’t hold back! If your vision doesn’t get your heart racing, you’re not stretching far enough. Your vision should make you want to jump out of your chair. Make sure, though, to add plenty of specifics; i.e., tangible results that you can measure. If it helps, get a goals book or a vision book, where you can place pictures and talismans that remind you of your vision.

Once you have your vision, it’s time to work backward. What do you need to do to make it happen?

Don’t worry if you can’t figure it all out right now. But it is important to get into ACTION as soon as possible. Avenues you haven’t dreamed of to make your vision come true will open up to you… but only once you are in motion.

Lastly, print out your vision and keep it close at hand. Read it often, and allow yourself to really feel it happening now.

Karen Mahony of Baba Studio (home of some of the grandest Tarot decks of the past 5 years, including the Victorian Romantic and Bohemian Gothic) is writing an inspiring and thought-provoking series of posts on her Live Journal:

How To Be Creative And Successful

Here are the posts in the series so far (she has 23 in all):

1. Take risks – even big ones.
2. Don’t worry about starting in a small, modest and slightly embarrassing way.
3. Accept you’ll be laughed at. Welcome it as a good sign.
4. Work hard. Then work harder.
5. Forget the “exit strategy”. If exiting is that important to you, maybe you shouldn’t have gone into it in the first place.
6. Don’t moan, don’t blame.
7. Let some things go - that might include your own sense of your own identity.

Karen’s focus is on artists in particular, but hers are words of wisdom for anyone following their heart and trying to merge soul and livelihood, especially metaphysical and holistic consultants. (Laughed at? We never get laughed at! :))

Even parts of the entrepreneurial crowd has some conventional wisdom, and I love how Karen flaunts it here. I’m not for making poor choices (very easy to do when you start out in business), but I AM for burning your bridges in your own mind. Go ahead - forget the exit strategy! As Yoda says, “Do, or do not. There is no try.”

I’ve pondered long and hard about creativity and business over the past few years. Personally, I started my business in order to give myself the freedom I need to live my vision of the creative life. More and more I’m coming to realize just how much business IS that life, and how the separation between “creativity” and “business” is an arbitrary one.  I wouldn’t go as far as to say that the separation is made for us by others (personal responsibility, y’all!), but I think it’s fair to say that the “dominant paradigm” (ha!) presents them as such.  For me, merging the two has been such a relief.

The act of business (starting, running, growing) is, at its core, a creative act. The services we provide are acts of creation, too. The fruits of creation have real value. I could go on and on.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

In the last post, I gave you 25 things you can do in your business on a regular basis to attract more clients. I promised to follow that up with the most effective strategy I know to get a steady stream of clients and build a stable, fun, successful practice.

What I’m about to reveal truly is one of the best pieces of marketing strategy I can ever give you. I’ve used it myself - not just in marketing, but in many other projects. If you combine just this strategy with the “25 things” list (and your additions), you’ll double or triple your business - I guarantee it.

(Even though I’m giving it to you here and now for free, please don’t underestimate what this one strategy can do for you. Marketing guru Dan Kennedy used this strategy to become one of the highest paid consultants on the planet; as far as I know, he still uses it.)

I call it the “just one thing” strategy. (I don’t know what Dan calls it.) Like most things magical, its power lies in its utter simplicity:

Every single day, no matter what, do just one thing to market your practice.

Doesn’t matter how small it is. In fact, it’s good to do just a small thing more often than not - you’re more likely to do it.

Some days, you’ll do big things, like spend three hours working on your website or a brochure. Most days, you’ll do something small, like pick up the phone and say hello to a client, just because.

Size does not matter. The important thing is that you DO it. Every day.

Because next thing you know… three months have gone by, say, and you’ll have done NINETY THINGS.

Every little bit of marketing you do adds up… to increased demand for your services, increased fees, increased leverage, and a bigger business. (We’ll talk about each of these in turn on the blog and in the ezine.)

And because you’re not putting pressure on yourself to do any one particular thing on a given day, the prospect of a three hour project wonn’t freak you out. After all, you don’t have to do it today. (Oddly enough, without that pressure, the chances of you actually doing it increase significantly.)

Just one thing doesn’t seem like a lot, but 90 things really add up. (In case you ever doubt this, just take a look at your closet. Me, I look at my bookshelves and smile AND groan at at the same time. Heh!)

So I challenge you: what “one thing” can you do to market your business today? (See my last post for a few ideas.)

As the title of this post says, this is my favorite marketing strategy ever. It’s also my favorite strategy to complete any project. Why? Because it’s so painless.

You can always do just one thing.

[This work is copyrighted material. Please visit http://www.buildyourmetaphysicalbusiness.com to claim your free 90 minute marketing brainstorming session with Tarot Pro James Wells.]

Has anyone ever made you a promise like this one?

“Do this one ‘magic secret’ and you’ll get a TIDAL WAVE of new clients, INSTANTLY!”

If you’re new to marketing your business, okay, maybe not. But if you’ve explored some of the marketing resources out there, chances are good you’ve run into this one before. Just do this one thing and the floodgates will open! Whoosh!

Yeah, right.

Marketing your business isn’t about doing one magic thing. It’s about doing a lot of little things. Regularly. Consistently. And (here’s the big one) when you already have a full dance card.

Nobody wants to hear this, of course. The instant gratification world we now live in has trained us to want the quick fix. The quick fix is very seductive. (Straight up: I’m not immune either!)

Alas, the quick fix is a pipe dream. That’s ok. What do the financial planners always say? Spread your resources around. Diversify… and do!

In that spirit, here are 25 small things you can do to build your business. You’re probably doing some of these already. Others, not. Some of them work together well. Others are more stand-alone.

1. Write down, in very specific terms, what makes you different from all the other Tarot readers, astrologers, numerologists, etc out there

2. Write down, in very specific terms, who your ideal client is

3. Make a list of your top 5 or 10 clients are and focus on them for referrals

4. Make a list of “advocates” - people who know you, love you, are in your corner - and ask them for referrals

5. Define very specifically where your best clients come from (or might come from)

6. Design a simple flyer or brochure

7. Design a business card

8. Carry your marketing materials with you

9. Make a simple website if you don’t have one. Start with a free service or social networking site.

10. Buddy up. Find a partner to share goals, encourage you and hold you accountable.

11. Tell everyone what you do

12. “Fire” a problem client

13. Increase your confidence in the tricky stuff (networking, stating your fee, talking about what you do) by practicing

14. Check in with a past client and see how he or she is doing

15. Throw a party for your clients

16. Start a mailing list for your clients (don’t add them without permission, though!)

17. Give a workshop

18. Focus on building relationships, not getting clients

19. Create an email signature that communicates what you do and attracts clients

20. Write an article

21. Don’t give discounts!

22. Ask a thrilled past client to give you a testimonial you can use in your marketing

23. Don’t leave your marketing to chance - create a low-stress 30-day plan

24. Use birthdays in your marketing - give your clients a birthday gift or incentive

25. Give back, both time and money - especially if you don’t have much of either.

What can you add to the list?

Next, I’ll reveal how to combine these with my absolute best strategy to get more clients than you’ll ever know what to do with. “Do this one thing and the floodgates will open!”

Got carried away there. But it IS crazy effective and is entirely congruent with what I’ve said here. You’ll see!

[This work is copyrighted material. Please visit http://www.buildyourmetaphysicalbusiness.com to claim your free 90 minute marketing brainstorming session with Tarot Pro James Wells.]