Last week, we discussed the first 3 insights to a sensational strategic planning session.

As we continue this discussion, here are the final two insights:

1. Get clear about the impact you want to have on your client, community and the world in general! This insight underscores the power of having a Mission Statement that everyone can get behind. As we got clear about our Mission as a company, we got really excited because as a team, we committed to it; and we were excited to be innovative about this mission driving us on a daily, weekly, monthly basis. It’s a common thread across our team.
2. Give it the full time it deserves! Clarifying your plan for growing your business is one of the most important ways you can invest your time.  It will give you direction, peace of mind, clarity about where to invest your time and above all… improve the results you are getting from your business. So decide right now, that you are going to invest time to get this done. Grab your planner and schedule it this week! Whether it’s 2 hours with a buddy or 2 days with your team I PROMISE it will be an investment time that will return to you 10 fold.

Commit to your strategic plan this week:

1. Decide WHO you will enroll in the process of planning.
2. Decide WHEN you will invest time in beginning or furthering your plan.
3. Revisit a few pieces before your planning session – reconnect with what you’ve already done: your VISION, your PROJECT LIST and your REVENUE PROJECTIONS.

I’ll leave you with one final thought: trust your instincts—encourage yourself to move forward and have fun with this idea of strategic planning and get in action!

Business Growth, Business Vision business growth, strategies

As you may know, I am a huge proponent of strategic planning. Strategic planning translates to knowing what projects you will focus on when, why they are important and then how you will implement each one of the ideas to bring it into reality. Your strategic plan will help you get to your vision faster, it will allow you to be more profitable and it also maintains your sanity in the process of growing your business.

Recently, I reflected that with three businesses to manage, it was time to do some strategic planning for my own companies…I brought in 2 key team members in for 2 days of strategic planning, which allowed me to identify some brand new insights. Here are five of ten insights I gained during this session:

And, oh, by the way, these planning tips work whether for a team of 1 or 100 or whether or your sales goals ranging from 10 thousand to 10 million—these apply to every entrepreneur’s path.

This week, I am sharing the first three insights, here they are:

1. Choose an environment that supports you in being creative, comfortable and abundant. Make yourself comfortable and surrounded by abundance. What do you need to create in your world to be comfortable when you are doing strategic planning?
2. Get support. Whether you’re an entrepreneur with a team or a solo-preneuers doing it on your own, you can get the support you need. If you do not have a team, find an accountability partner to do your strategic planning together. If you have a team, and you can afford it, bring them in—having them physically in the room with you (or even via Skype) it helps your team to have more ownership and allows them to implement with greater ease.
3. Begin with a clear sense of who you are.  One of the most valuable hours of our two days of planning was the very first hour.  We took that time to talk about what was important to us individually and as a team. We found commonalities and then drew up our list of Corporate Values. I encourage you to create a “top 10 List of Values” for you personally and in your company.

Commit to getting in action on your strategic plan this week:

1. Set up your environment to support you in being creative, comfortable and abundant.
2. Get support—reach out for that accountability partner or get your team scheduled to gather for your strategic planning session.
3. Start with what is important to you…identify your values and those for your company.

Business Growth, Business Vision business growth, strategies

OK… I admit it. This is a bit of a trick question because for many of you your response is something like “Umm… what’s my zone of genius?”

Well, that my friend, is the “Million Dollar Question” and the underlying key to your personal and financial success in direct selling. So let’s explore it together!

Your “Zone of Genius” is the area of your business in which you 1) feel a state of flow and effortlessness and 2) create the greatest results for the time you invest. Notice, it’s not one or the other—it requires that both elements are present.

When you find your zone of genius and spend as much time in it as possible your income and level of happiness will soar.  Brush this off as mumbo jumbo and you’ll continue to get the same results you’ve been getting. Need I say more?

So let’s say I have sparked your curiosity and you are willing to go on a hunt for your Zone of Genius… where do you begin?

Step 1: Be aware. You can’t improve upon something you are not aware of. It’s essential to know where you are strong, where you need to grow and then commit to take steps to get there. In fact THIS is the name of the game for all of us.

Because this step is such an essential step we’ve designed a tool to help you find the missing links. Click here to take the assessment.

Step 2: Measure results. To discover your Zone of Genius you must take note of where your results are coming from. Look to where your best clients have come from thus far. If your answer is referrals from people with whom you have a connection, this may be a clue that “relationship building” is a Zone of Genius for you. Eureka!

Step 3: Be Mindful. Since your income and your happiness are impacted by the actions you take — be more mindful of where you invest your time! This tip transformed a client’s business and life in less than a week.

Program your smart phone to ring a simple “chime” on the hour. Let that trigger you to ask… “Is what I’m doing now moving me closer to my goals.” If the answer is no… make a more powerful choice!

This week… look for ways to work in YOUR zone of genius!

Much Love, Jane

Business Growth, Business Vision, Personal Growth business growth, growth, strategies

The truth is…no matter how good you are, and no matter how carefully you plan, things will go wrong in your business! There will be times when people aren’t entirely thrilled with you!

Here’s what inspired today’s message. Our tech team recently took on the huge task of upgrading our servers. One client came up against a hiccup during the upgrade and lashed out with a pretty scathing email that was both accusatory and tough to receive. In this case, despite our best efforts, I realized we just couldn’t appease this particular customer.

I wanted to share with you how I worked through it because what came out of it is actually something really beautiful, something valuable for the team, and something we’re going to use going forward.

I wrote down and answered five powerful questions.

1.  What’s true about this?
   When you’re triggered and feeling defensive, you can’t always see what’s true.  But, there were things that were accurate in what she said.
2. What’s not true?
   There was a lot that was unfounded.
3. What am I willing to own?
   What will I take responsibility for in order to make the most of this situation?
4. What can I do to remedy this?
   How can I mend this client connection and what can we do to prevent it from happening again?
5. What am I going to take from this going forward?
   While we all get triggered when we’re feeling wrongly accused, if you access the truth about something and you access your desire to serve and make a difference in the lives of your clients, you can respond powerfully and purposely.  Good things can come from any situation.

So, while it was not an easy morning for us, our team walked away with more clarity about what we can do in the future in similar situations.

We also came away feeling as though no matter what, we can manage.  We can go through this journey because our vision for our business is so much more important than any triggered state. And as long as we come from a place of service and we’re willing to take responsibility and make changes going forward, it’s all good.  It’s all good.

So that’s my message to you, straight out of the life of Jane Deuber and her amazing team, growing this amazing business.

Take responsibility for what you should own.  Practice self-love and let go of what you shouldn’t own. I’m wired to be a pleaser.  This sets me up to take “client dissatisfactions’ pretty hard.  My guess is that is true for you as well.

So, next time you’re triggered by something that has gone wrong, write out and answer the five questions. You’ll find that it will center you and allow you to respond from a place of power and clarity…and you will then uncover the beautiful take-aways from the experience.

For further advice on managing difficult moments in the life of your business, schedule a strategy session with one of my business mastery coaches. Get started here.

Personal Growth inspiration, strategies

The other day I asked myself… “What are the common threads among those who succeed in business?”

I looked at my own experience of growing five businesses.
I looked at my friends & colleagues who are also building successful business.
I looked at my clients who are making great progress – taking huge leaps.

And then it hit me… while there were many similarities and best practices among all of them – one totally stood out for me.

A common thread among all my successful, entrepreneurial friends is that they are all…
genuinely grateful, joy-filled HAPPY people!

So then I asked another question… “What do successful entrepreneurs do to stay happy?”

Following are my discoveries as I went on a HUNT for the strategies, perspectives and SECRETS of the HAPPY entrepreneur.  While the list was long, I’m sharing SEVEN that you can apply to your life and business TODAY to increase your level of HAPPINESS and become a magnet for success!

Read more…

Business Growth, Business Vision, Masterminding, Networking, Personal Growth business mastery program, marketing, progress, strategies

“I want an on-line presence that is more than a blog. One that brings in additional revenues and builds my brand. Problem is… I don’t know where to begin – help!”

This is the frustration we hear regularly from small business entrepreneurs who sense it’s time to create an on-line presence that builds their credibility, grows their community, provides opportunities for online profits and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg.

The good news is… it’s possible! Yes!
You can establish a powerful on-line presence with efficient forethought and good old-fashioned planning. True, there will be additional twists and turns along the way unique to your on-line presence, but that’s what makes the journey fun and so rewarding.

Consider these 10 steps to creating an online presence and remember we are here to help! Our expert web design team has been with us for 10 years and have mastered the web launch process – from simple cost-effective websites to full blown community web communities. We’ve got your back!

Step #1: Define Your USP (Unique Selling Proposition)

No matter how high tech and visually pleasing your site is, if you don’t have a compelling offer that’s unique and clearly defined; on-line success will likely elude you. The answer is to begin your on-line journey with a well-defined USP that speaks to the needs of the people you want to serve. By taking time to enhance your competitive position you will lay the foundation for a long and prosperous on-line career.

Read more…

Business Growth, Marketing Innovation, Website Essentials marketing, productivity, strategies

OK, it’s time for some true confessions. How many emails are in your Inbox right now? I don’t mean just the bolded emails that have not been looked at. I’m referring to all of them – opened and unopened. Over the years, I’ve heard it all, from a few dozen to over ten thousand! Yikes. Here are a few questions to see if you are suffering from inbox overwhelm.

• Are you keeping any emails in your inbox as a reminder of an action step you need to take?
• Do you have emails in your inbox simply because you don’t want to lose the information or forget a point?
• When you open your email do you have a “not-so-good” feeling when you see the mass of emails screaming for your attention?
• Have you ever felt like blocking the entire slew of emails and sending them off to the recycle bin?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, you are not alone. Inbox Overwhelm seems to afflict even the most successful entrepreneurs. How about you?

Read more…

Business Vision, Maintaining Mindset, Personal Growth, Uncategorized productivity, progress, strategies

One of the greatest gifts (and challenges) that business owners face is the juggling of the many roles of the entrepreneur. On a daily – even hourly – basis we are called to shift gears and perform tasks that are as varied as the items on our “to do” list. It’s the source of entrepreneurial stress that sends some into overwhelm and others to the sofa in an effort to shut out the demands of business ownership.

Knowing that not a lot gets done eating Bon Bons on the sofa, I’ve honed a strategy that supports me in moving through my day with greater ease and effectiveness. It’s my way of calling forth the traits and skills that are required for the myriad of tasks on my plate. Call them roles, archetypes or alter egos, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that they help me experience my days with more joy and effectiveness and that’s pretty cool. Meet the many parts of me…

The Visionary is the Dreamer with their eye on the future and their feet firmly planted on the ground. When we step into the role of Visionary, we stand in possibility and see trends and opportunities that the other parts of us can’t see. It’s the Visionary that can champion a cause, align the team with what needs to get done and rally the masses around one unifying vision. The Visionary measures the short and long term strategy against the core values of the company, making sure the team never loses sight of their overriding purpose. It’s also the Visionary that inspires others, stimulates collaboration and ultimately understands that the vision only happens when the right team is aligned. Read more…

Business Growth, Business Vision, Maintaining Mindset, Personal Growth inspiration, productivity, strategies

Having delivered fourteen virtual courses to more than 4000 students, I’ve learned a few insider secrets that can make or break your virtual training success.

I offer them here in the interest of shortening your learning curve as you join the virtual training movement.

1. Give Them Your Best – Your first E-Learning Platform should be based on your most popular program – your signature content upon which your brand is built. By transforming your content into an ongoing, step-by-step experience we allow participants to settle into our message and gradually weave our strategies and the principles into their lives.

2. Begin With the End In Mind – As the saying goes, you can’t hit a target you can’t see.  So no matter what your topic, begin the program with a pre-course exercise that helps participants create a clear vision of where they want to end up after experiencing your course. From hitting a financial goal, defining their ideal weight, or indentifying a personal dream they truly desire, you want participants to see and feel the results before they begin.  This keeps them focused on the end goal and inspires them to take the action steps you’ve outlined for them.

3. Give Them A Starting Point To Measure From – One important way to keep participants engaged in your e-course is to help them recognize and measure their progress along the way.  I recommend you start with a series of pre-course assessment questions that provide a numerical representation of where they are with regard to your topic. This assessment provides motivation to keep taking the steps you suggest and provides evidence of their progress. Clients who can measure progress are more likely to stay in the game and tell others about their experience. Read more…

Business Growth, Business Vision, Marketing Innovation, Sales marketing, progress, strategies

Today’s post is inspired by four “on-purpose people” who, without knowing each other, all posed a similar question…

“Jane, I get that vision and mindset are important to my business success, but right now I feel I need PROVEN STRATEGIES on how to take my business to the next level. Would you please share exactly what you are training on at the Retreat? I’m considering coming but not sure if it’s for me.”

I LOVE this question because it points to what EVERY entrepreneur is asking themselves… “What do I need? What’s missing from my business? Who can help me?”

What’s interesting is that all four shared that they’ve done a lot of work – attended events, invested in tele-classes, hired coaches… you name it!  And while education is important to your business success, the undeniable truth is this… Read more…

Business Growth, Business Vision productivity, progress, strategies