True Profit Business gets shortlisted by Business Book Awards

True Profit Business gets shortlisted by Business Book Awards

If there is one thing that I have learnt about starting up and scaling up a business is that it is through growth that we become.

And it’s how we become that allows our growth to flow.

Now I know that may sound a little Yoda.

But having been a Dominant Do-er for most of my life and spent the first 25 or so years in business believing that I had to think and do my way to success, I have worn struggle and hard work as badges of honour. And over the past 15 years of running my own coaching and training business, I have witnessed, and worked with, many hundreds of other entrepreneurs who have been on the same path.

With more of us in our 40’s, 50’s and beyond starting up our own businesses and social enterprises more than ever before, we are struggling to keep up with the pace of life and unsustainable benchmarks for success.

We do not lack ability or ambition!

But because of factors specific to our age bracket – the Sandwich Generation (caring for both children and elderly parents), mid-life changes and menopausal/andropausal shifts – we often experience high levels of stress, hormonal imbalances and burn out whilst trying to grow our businesses.

Which also means that our society is losing out on an immense monetary and social potential that our micro-businesses can bring to our economy. Now, more than ever, we need to champion ways to help our global political and economic drivers deeply connected to our spirituality and humanity.

Because a large percentage of business growth advice and books focused on topics such as business models and the mechanics of starting up and growing a business are dominated today by digital internet marketers, there are very few practical and easy to read business books written for those entrepreneurs who have ambitions to grow a purpose-led business, but without the hustle-and-grind push to succeed or the sole focus of digital options.

As we start this brand new decade, you and I don’t need business dumbing down or being made pinker or softer. What we need is to fundamentally change the way we all – men and women of all ages – approach business growth to create a purpose-led and sustainable economy.

As many of you may know, my book, True Profit Business, was published last year. The book writing process took almost three years of researching, refining and articulating how to connect the ‘doing-ness’ of business – the mechanics, plans and processes – with the ‘being-ness’ of business – the power of energy flow and listening to intuition.

My mission was to simplify the business growth process so that entrepreneurs like you can make the money you want, but do it in a way that fuels your health and allows you to make the impact you want. So I am incredibly proud to have found out yesterday that my book has been shortlisted for best Start-up Inspiration business book in the Business Book Awards 2020.

To be recognised and have my book sit alongside a list of incredible books on topics such as leadership, sustainable change and promoting diversity is mind-blowing to me, especially as they have had a record number of books submitted this year. It gives me hope that the tide is turning and business mainstream is prepared to accept that our being-ness is not only a powerful economic force but also a critical one to work alongside our doing-ness.

The awards ceremony is in March, and I can’t wait (as well as feel ever so slightly squeaky bum about it all, too!) to attend and proudly showcase my book.

Thank you for all your support and encouragement. There are lots of people in my community who have been connected with me for many years now and the feedback and comments I get each time I write new content really does help motivate, inspire and draw me onwards and upwards. Thank you x

Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

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To see the other books shortlisted for the Business Book Awards 2020, go to https://www.businessbookawards.co.uk/shortlist-2020/

True Profit Business is available to order on all major book sites, including Amazon, Hive and Waterstones. If you do order your book on Amazon, please do leave a review as it really helps spread the word. To find out more about True Profit Business go to www.KarenSkidmore.com/book

“There are so few really practical, ballsy books like this. I love the way you set out those simple business models and give all the practicalities as well as bringing in the beingness of business. That combination is so powerful.”

Published by Practical Inspirations in September 2019 – https://practicalinspiration.com/


 

 

 

Overwhelm and the never-ending to-do list

Overwhelm and the never-ending to-do list

I get it. There are times that you find yourself in the trenches of to-dos. No matter what’s gone on before and how well prepared and organised you may have felt last month, stuff can easily pile up and get on top of you. 

Sometimes it shows up as piles of post-it notes and scraps of paper, but in most cases, it’s a mental overload. You’ve got too much thinking going on and your brain can’t keep up with the number of tabs you’ve got open; you need to close down your mental browser.

Multi-tasking is a productivity myth and the word ‘priorities’ is a modern-day oxymoron. 

You can NOT have more than one priority at one time. 

But we are speeding up and trying to get more stuff done more than ever, so it’s no surprise that the feeling of overwhelm and the never-ending to-do list are common problems amongst entrepreneurs and mico-business owners like you. 

I’ve been triggered to write this article this week because the conversation of how to deal with too much to do has come up in several client sessions these past few weeks. It’s Week 5 of my Momentum members’ 90 Day Plans and, at this time, I ask them to complete the 4 Week Review & Re-Do process. 

Making time to review your progress every 3 or 4 weeks and map out the detail of the tasks for the next few weeks is critical to avoid overwhelm. I know this may feel counter-intuitive to stop and take time out but if you don’t, you run the risk of getting stuck in the trenches. 

This is why I wanted to share this with you today because I know how easy it is to find yourself in overwhelm. 

1) Dump it

The first step to take is to get everything out of your head on to paper. Having things swirling around your head is exhausting and your brain simply can’t cope. Don’t try to organise your thoughts at this stage; simply dump what’s in your head onto a piece of paper. 

This isn’t a brainstorming session; you probably DON’T need new ideas right at this moment in time, yes? You are simply getting everything out of your head so you can then organise them and see when and where you get them done. 

2) Chunk it

There’s every chance your to-dos are covering a multitude of projects; from updating your website to preparing for a new product launch to planning out your content for the next few months. So rather than just write a big long list, get a piece of paper for each project and chunk out your tasks in relation to the project. 

Mind mapping can be a useful tool for this as this allows you to spider out your thoughts and get the detail out. The more ‘little things’ that can get out on to paper, the less of these ‘little things’ are going to take valuable space in your head. 

If you manage a home as well as a business, I would also recommend you have a separate piece of paper for Family Inc stuff, too. You’re making it even harder for yourself by constantly switching your thinking from one to the other. So separate them out and don’t try to mix Family Inc stuff with business stuff. 

3) Diarise It

This is the ‘magic’ step that most people don’t do and will make a HUGE difference to you getting the ‘right’ stuff done. 

You have to stop using linear to-do lists and start to put your tasks into your diary. If you don’t decide when and where you are going to take action on what needs doing, you will find you will never get to the bottom of your list because you will simply keep adding more stuff. It’s a game you are never going to win.

Stephen Covey’s quadrant is a simple decision making task tool that I’ve used for a long time. When you ask yourself how urgent and important each item on your paper is to you right now, you will discover that very little on these lists you’ve written out will need doing RIGHT NOW. 

80% or more will fit into either the DIARISE IT box or the DELEGATE IT box. 

You may even find that 10% or more fits very nicely into your DUMP IT box as you realise that task you’ve written down is simply a busy-thing. If it’s not urgent or important, then cross it out. 

By thinking about when and where each thing on your list needs doing, start to work out which order they need to do in. Sometimes it’s helpful to write out each task on to a post-it note and move them around until you feel you’ve got them in a reasonable step-by-step order. 

For example, if you are dealing with a website update project, it maybe you have to finish writing two pages of content before your website designer can move ahead with giving you the next design draft to look at. Get clear on what deadlines you are working towards (quick check: do your deadlines need to be pushed back?) and then see what needs to happen first before the next thing and this way you can stop your mind seeing everything as important. 

Once you’ve got your tasks in order, decide how long each task is going to take you (always over-estimate … never kid yourself that something will take ‘just 5 minutes’!) and then get your calendar open and decide when you are able to get these done.

If you really can’t see how you are going to get everything done in the time that you’ve got available, then re-check your tasks against the DELEGATE IT option on your Covey Quadrant. Are you trying to do too much yourself? 

4) Psychology before technology 

Grace Marshall from Productivity Ninja introduced me to this phrase recently. I love it because this simple phrase articulates perfectly what I’ve been advocating over the past 10+ years whenever someone asks me which productivity tool I’d recommend. 

There are hundreds of really great productivity apps and dashboards on the market, however, a productivity tool will NOT help you get stuff done. They will only give you a place to organise your thoughts so you have to work out how you work first.

I know I am not the only one who has spent hours setting up a new productivity dashboard, set the colours and added my to-do list, to then never use the bloody thing. We think a tool that is designed to make us productive will make us productive. But that is simply not the case. It is just a tool to support us in the way that we work. 

So work out the way you like to work first and, in my experience, analogue pen and paper systems are often the simplest and most efficient ways of keeping focused week by week. Yes, if you have a team working on different parts of a big project, an online project management system can be critical to keeping everyone aligned and ensure the deadlines are met. But my advice to you is to try a simple analogue system first; flip charts, whiteboards and an online diary are the three productivity tools that have worked best for me over the past 15+ years.

If you want to learn more about productivity tips and tricks, then I can highly recommend spending some time over at Grace’s blog https://grace-marshall.com/category/tips-tools-tricks/

It will be time well spent … especially if you then spend the time to implement her insightful and practical advice. 

That’s all from me today. I’d love to you know how this has helped your thinking around getting stuff done so leave a comment below. 

Thank you for reading. Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

 

 

Why motivation is not the answer to helping you play your bigger game

Why motivation is not the answer to helping you play your bigger game

Everyone doubts themselves at some points of their business journey. Sometimes feelings of fear and doubt can come from nowhere; one day you’re feeling great about your growth plans and then suddenly you’re reminded of an idea or a decision you haven’t taken action on, and you feel cross with yourself. 

It’s easy to get triggered by what you see on social media. You’re scrolling down your Facebook news feed and up pops someone pictured holding their new book. Now you may not have *really* wanted to write a book, but suddenly you feel inadequate. 

‘How did she manage to achieve all that AND find the time to write a book?’

Everything you have achieved so far gets forgotten. You get frustrated with your progress. You berate yourself for having not worked harder or taken bigger action.

You pull back. 

Maybe all that you need is to feel more motivated; to be braver, to do something to feel stronger. 

But the truth about using motivation to get back on track is that it is a short-lived tactic. 

Getting motivated to combat your fears and doubts and shake yourself into action is like trying to mix oil and water. At first, it mixes. But, in no time at all, the molecules separate and the two layers of fear and motivation can be clearly seen again. 

Motivation is a short term fix. 

It’s your high energy workshop or weekend retreat. It’s listening to an inspiring podcast. Or seeing the latest Helen Mirren ‘%&*$ Off’ quote pop up in your Insta feed. 

They can all give you a boost but it’s short-lived unless you keep giving yourself repeated hits, similar to drinking more cups of coffee to keep you awake; at some point, you’re going to give yourself the caffeine shakes and then feel even shittier the next day. 

I have had my fair share of fears and doubts. 

They’ve shown up in bucket loads over the years and have often appeared as a gentle tight grip on the inside of my throat; almost like a child’s hand trying to silence me. 

I used to let this feeling in my throat silence me and pull me back, like a bungee cord. I’d come up with an idea that initially excited me; I would let my motivation play with the idea for a short while, maybe for a few days or even a few weeks. But as soon as the motivation wore off, the bungee cord of fear and doubt would snap me back.

Each time this happened I’d either dilute the idea to end up with a smaller, simpler version of it or would decide not to do it at all.

Yes, these bungee cord moments have been frustrating phrases in my business. But these moments have provided valuable lessons to help me learn how to feel into my uncomfortableness; the feeling of vulnerability, shame, guilt and whatever else my inner shit throws up at me every time I’ve wanted to step up and play a bigger game.

What I’ve learnt over the years is to see that gentle tight grip on my throat as my sign that, whatever I was thinking when I felt it, it was actually the right thing for me to do. 

The fear and doubts I felt were actually all signs of my potential stretching as I started to feel uncomfortable with playing bigger and thus help me see where I needed to take a risk and step up.

Much of what I teach on business growth focuses on the practicalities of business structure, systems and processes. But in order for you to move forward and grow, you also need to go within and feel into when your fears and doubts appear to realise the power of your potential to play bigger.

Yes, fear is a helpful emotion to help keep you safe at times. If you were to find yourself wanting to take a short cut home, down a dark alley late at night, fear and doubt would probably reason with you that it would be safer to stay to the lit roads. But if you let your fear and doubt help you take only the safe roads when you go about your day to day business, then what potential growth are you missing out on? 

Fears and doubts are actually your strengths. 

They are reminders that you have the potential to stretch and even though you feel you don’t have the answers, it’s a sign that your heart, body and soul wants to grow.

So if you’ve been using bursts of motivation to try to give you the courage and bravery to step up and grow and wondering why it hasn’t been working, maybe it’s time to open yourself to feeling into your fears and doubts. 

Thank you for reading. Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

 

Hello. Is anyone listening?

Hello. Is anyone listening?

Do you ever wonder if anyone is actually really and truly reading, listening or watching your content?

Today, all our content can be tracked by metrics; number of likes, comments, click-throughs and shares.

But do they tell the whole story?

I was out last night with a group of wonderful women who I’ve got to know quite deeply over the last couple of years. I’ve shared wine with them, lots of laughter and, at times, tears.

We got talking about my new book due out this September and I realised how many of them not only subscribed to my email updates but also read every email.

Now I do look at my email marketing metrics.

I can see that my average open rate right now is at 38.5%, which I know is high for my industry.

But I also know that open rates don’t tell me who actually reads my emails.

It’s one thing having a cookie sent back from their email server to mine that the email has been opened, but it’s another to know that the human being who signed up for my emails has actually read it. That would be a little bit creepy, yes? Having access to your camera on your phone to see if your eyes scan through the copy … too much ‘big brother’, thank you very much.

So to hear from several of the ladies last night that they read EVERY SINGLE email from me woke me up.

It gave me a much-needed reboot and reminder that the impact that we can make from the content we create cannot be measured by metrics alone.

It’s the same with our like counts on our social media accounts.

It’s easy to believe that a post with just one or two likes hasn’t done anything; it’s just slipped through the newsfeed and allowed the algorithm to swallow it up.

But this is simply not the case.

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of the ‘right’ people who will feel inspired by your content without reacting to it. They watch, listen and read without leaving any trace, such as a click or a tracking cookie (because more people are switching these off than ever before).

What does this mean to you and me?

Firstly, it is important to recognise that you are here to run a commercial business. If you produce content for entertainment value only or just create content for the sake of creating content (think robotic, automated sharing systems that do nothing but create white noise), you end up with an expensive hobby, rather than a purposeful, profitable business.

But the feedback that I had last night from my buddies, inspired me to see that the content we create can have a greater impact than our metrics tell us.

Whether I get an email from you or not (although a reply to one of my emails boosts me no end – seriously – that quick moment of recognition makes a real difference to me), I am reminded that not everyone has time nor knows what to say to show me that they’ve read, watched or heard my content.

It’s the same for you, too.

If you ever find yourself wondering if anyone is actually really and truly listening to you, take a moment. Have the faith to stick to your plan and the impact that you are here to make. You don’t need hundreds of likes and click-throughs to tell you whether you are a success or not.

And it’s a reminder me, too, to take the time to comment or reply to the content that inspires me. A simple ‘thank you’ may be all that it takes – it doesn’t need an ‘intelligent’ or a mini-blog response that may take a half hour out of my day – but that response is my payment in kind for the content that inspires me and helps me reflect, grow or take action.

Thank you for reading. Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

 

 

How to get through the Festive Fog

How to get through the Festive Fog

Happy New Year!

It’s the first blog post of the year and it feels wonderful to be back in the office, albeit for just for an hour to write this. I know there are plenty of people who have been dreading the return to work; having to face the daily commute or office politics again. But I hope, like me, that is it not the case for you.

Whatever reason spurred you on to work for yourself, being your own boss has its ups – freedom of where and how you work and time off when you want it – but it also has its downs. I wrote to my Ready Steady 2019 members yesterday about how excitement and fear are only one step apart; it can take just one step to go from anticipation to apprehension.

You see, coming through The Festive Fog can be one of those downs of being your own boss.

I know your Facebook and Instagram feeds are probably filled with upbeat, motivational quotes, just like my feed. Perhaps you’ve even been one of those people posting your word-of-the-year and 2019 intentions. Some of you reading this I know will be rocking your first week back.

But what if you’re not?

Coming through The Festive Fog can mean you don’t feel terribly motivated, particularly if you’ve been overindulging, clocking up hours on the sofa watching TV and enjoying wakeups without the alarm. So I thought I’d share a few things that I do that helps get my business head get moving and grooving again.

1) Be kind to yourself.

You wouldn’t go out for a 10K run without a) seriously training for it first and b) warming up your muscles. So if you’ve set yourself some seriously ambitious goals this month to kick start the year and it’s been a few weeks (and maybe even a few months!) since you’ve been on form, make sure you’re warmed up and have the training plan in place to build up gently.

It’s very easy to ROOOAAARRR yourself in the New Year … and then find yourself exhausted and emotionally wrung out when you get to the end of January without achieving all your high expectations of yourself.

Been there, got that T-shirt!

2) Be clear on where you are headed

If you haven’t planned this year out yet, now is the time to do it. Without knowing where you are headed, you have no idea where to set your compass.

Again, you wouldn’t go out for a 10K run without having planned your route first. It may feel like a fun adventure just to set off and see where you end up, but you are in danger of being miles away from home, with no idea where you are at the end of your 10K.

You certainly don’t need every path mapped out in detail but know your endpoint and the milestones and you can relax and enjoy the passing scenery as you go about your journey.

I simply couldn’t start a brand new year now without having focused milestones and financial targets set.

3) Don’t try and do it by yourself

If you are feeling like you need a reboot to get going this January, please don’t just hide away in your office. Reach out to a buddy or someone in your close network and set up a virtual coffee date. I have found shooting the breeze with someone who knows what it’s like to be your own boss an easy way to help ignite my mojo again.

But be careful who you reach out though; avoid anyone who may drain your energy or whose call could end up being a moan-fest.

4) Get some dates in the diary

Dates in the diary really help set structure to my work rhythms and flow. Don’t overbook and schedule yourself so that there’s no space for surprises and interesting opportunities. But having a few conferences, meet-ups and events lined up throughout the year can give you focus on what skills you want to develop and who you want to meet.

Be strategic about some. Schedule others for the sheer fun-factor. It’s your choice but the start of a new year is a great opportunity to make the time now for where you want to be hanging out with this year.

I’d love to know what you do to get through The Festive Fog. Maybe you haven’t experienced it this year. Perhaps you’re right in the thick of it. Comment below with your ideas and insights.

Thank you for reading. Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

 

 

Claiming back any power you may have lost in your business

Claiming back any power you may have lost in your business

As we approach the last few working days of 2018, I am reminded to share with you my thoughts about claiming back any power you may have lost in your business.

The Winter days here in the UK are an ideal time to give us the gift of reflection and review our past 12 months before we embark on the next year. Short days, long nights. It’s easy to hunker down and work harder to get things done before the turkey has to be carved or your mince pies get baked (sorry, scrap that – your mince pies get warmed up … no time for baking LOL)

But today, I’d like to ask you to find 20 minutes or so to cosy up under a blanket, move away from the big screen of your desktop and grab yourself a notebook to write down your thoughts about where your power maybe right now.

The power I’m referring to here is the ability to feel your worth; to be able to show up and work in partnership with prospects rather than just take whatever work comes your way.

When you think of selling, what shows up for you?

I’ve been told by many of my clients over the years that selling can feel icky. It’s can feel a forced energy, akin to a stereotypical cold caller or telesales rep.

If you are selling yourself – your skills, expertise or talents – it is much harder to detach yourself from rejection than if you were selling a “thing”. And so this icky feeling can often filter into your marketing messages and how you respond to enquiries or decide to reach out to potential prospects.

Who am I to _____ ?

Am I really worth ______ ?

Why would someone really ______ ?

I will let you fill in the blanks. I have my own versions and you will have your own because you are not alone to think like this when what you sell is you and usually from isolation; from your office at home without the bravery of others to cheer you on when you’re feeling lost or overwhelmed.

Sometimes you can have days or even weeks with these questions swirling around your head, clouding your ability to market and sell yourself.

More often than not, these questions hide away in the shadows of your subconscious so that even on days you are feeling courageous and fierce about who you are and why your clients think you are amazing, they never go away.

And that’s OK.

Because they are questions worth addressing.

Why?

Well, if you don’t know the answers to who you are, what you are really worth and why someone would really spend money with you, then your prospects certainly won’t have a clue.

Am I right?

And these questions are worth addressing every year because as you grow, your experience expands and your worth can go up.

So this is what I’d love to you to do, even if you feel pretty comfortable in your power right now.

Answer these questions before you retire for your Christmas break because you’ll need the answers when you start up again in the New Year.

Who am I to _____ ?

Am I really worth ______ ?

Why would someone really ______ ?

You’ll need to know and feel your worth as you take back the reins of your business in January.

Not necessarily in a 7-figure hustle or ROOOARR boss-lady kind of way. I’m not asking you over-power and get all pushy about your selling.

I’m asking you to step into your power so that selling and marketing becomes a partnership, rather than a push-pull experience. When you feel into your worth, marketing is simply the process of engagement and selling is simply the act of letting someone buy from you.

And from this place, it’s far easier to go about taking action on your 2019 business plans.

Let me know how you get on with this exercise. I’d love to know what shows up for you.

Thank you for reading. Until next time, do less, be more, play bigger.

 

 

 

 

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