Archive for January, 2010

The Millionaire Maker and Best Selling Author

Maximizing Success is hosting an awesome event March 20 – 21, 2010 right here in Boston, Massachusetts!  The Wealth Building Seminar will bring together some of the greatest financial thinkers and doers of our time.  Read on to learn about one of the speakers at this event.

Loral Langemeier really does make millionaires of attendees! That is why we have asked her back time and time again to present her powerful presentation “Extreme Financial Makeover.” You’ll see how she takes a volunteer from the audience who is making less than average income and takes them step-by-step to becoming a millionaire at lightning speed.

Loral , author of the best-selling book The Millionaire Maker did not start out in this life with money or connections. Loral, a master coach and financial strategist, built her first business in high school and, by the time she was 34, established a multi-million-dollar portfolio of properties, businesses, gas/oil and notes. She will show you how to do it, too.

Follow this link to learn more and to join all the success minded thinkers that will be there http://tinyurl.com/maxsuccess!  Hope to see you there too!

What’s your story?  You know your money story; what is it?  We all have one.  Some of our stories are simple and some far more complicated.  These stories are all rooted in our past, deep inside of us and where formed when we were very young.

How many of us heard the following statements from our parents growing up:  “Money doesn’t grow on trees”, “Do you think I’m made of money?”, “We can’t afford it”, or, “Do you think there is a money tree growing in the backyard?”  There are countless phrases that our parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles said to use as kids.  We know them all and those statements are part of what has created our money mindset.  Sad I know, but true.

Unfortunately, most of us have negative feelings about money.  We have gathered all of the information that our family, peers, television and the media have told us about money and it has come together into what is now our negative money mindset.  Some of our feelings may be conscious and others subconscious.  It doesn’t matter if they are conscious or subconscious, they are there and they need to be tackled head on if you are going to make the money you desire!

1.  Stop Ignoring Money and Start Paying Attention To It

Money needs to flow and it needs to be paid attention to. If you don’t pay attention to money it will find a way to get your attention.  This will show up in ways you don’t want it to because you are not giving it the respect it deserves.  So stop putting your head in the sand and take a good look at your current money situation and develop a strategy to deal with it head on.

• Develop a Budget and Stick To It

We all understand the importance of developing a budget buy many don’t follow through by sticking to the plan. me ask you:  How do you expect to pay down your debt if you don’t have a plan?  Your budget is part of that plan and a crucial part of your overall success strategy.  So take pencil to paper and develop your budget NOW!

• Pay Your Bills On Time, Every Time

Paying your bills on time is an important step in your money recovery plan.  When you fail to pay your bills on time you are creating the energy of lack and scarcity and that leaves you feeling powerless over money.  Many of my bills are paid automatically some manually but I pay them at the same time each month.  Find a system that works for you and your money flow and stop ignoring your bills.

• Track Your Money Daily

You don’t need a fancy system just paper and pen.  Put down the date and money that was received each day.  You may start out with some zeros on some days but eventually you will see money coming in everyday!  This simple system really works…try it and see for yourself.

2.  Find The Money Leaks In Your Business

Every business has money leaks.  It may be that you are paying for a membership that you don’t use.  Maybe you are paying someone by the hour and they take far too long to complete a task costing you hundreds of dollars in lost cash.  There are countless ways that money leaks right out of our hands and back account.  Find your money leaks and plug them so that you can have more money in your business and life.

3.  Stop Using Negative Money Language

Spending money is always a choice about what you are prioritizing and what you value.  But when you say things like, “I can’t afford it” or “I don’t have the money” it tells the universe that you are not open to receive the money that it is trying to give you.  These statements are constricting, limiting and are based in scarcity and lack.

Instead say things like:  “I am worth it” or “I choose to invest in myself and my business”.  Not only is the language really important but what’s behind the language, the mindset is really important too.  Start focusing on what you say and stop using language that sends the wrong message to the universe.

When you start to pay attention to money, it will begin to flow to you into your business and into your life.  So pick one of these tips today and change your money story.

Maximizing Success is hosting a phenomenal event March 20 – 21, 2010 right here in Boston, Massachusetts!  The Wealth Building Seminar will bring together some of the greatest financial thinkers and doers of our time.  Read on to learn about one of the speakers at this event.

Bill Bartmann isn’t one of those “I did to – so you can too” guys. No, he is remarkably different. His presentations aren’t “about him”, they are about YOU. Bill demonstrates clear and simple techniques that produce amazing results. You will discover the simple formula to archive personal and financial success and how to change your focus and change your life forever. Bill will also share the 9 steps to achieve any goal, the 5 rules for every privately held business and the Billionaire Secrets to Success.

Bill is the leading authority on Entrepreneurial Business in America and has been inducted into the Entrepreneurs Hall of Fame. His expertise has been featured in Forbes, Fortune, Business Week, Inc. Magazine and USA Today.

Don’t miss out on this event!  Early Bird Pricing ends February 1^st which is only days away.  Follow this link to learn more and to get your tickets:  http://tinyurl.com/maxsuccess

I look forward to seeing you at this event!

I have been writing a lot about money over the last several weeks and I want to continue along those lines with a couple of  quick money tips.   The focus today is on Money Boundaries.

Money Boundaries are vital to your overall money health. When you don’t have clear and solid money boundaries you create money leaks.  Money boundaries are vital in creating the energetic alignment so that you can have all that money flowing into your business that you desire.  So what are good money boundaries?  Here are two tips to help you create great money boundaries.

Tip # 1:  Don’t Discount Your Services

Often times as women business owners we have that nagging need to discount.  It creeps up, sometimes out of nowhere and hits us between the eyes.  Why do we do it?  Sometimes it is as simple as assuming that our clients can’t afford what we are offering.

It is NOT your job to assume anything about your clients ability to pay  for your products or services.  It IS your job to offer what you have to them and allow them to decide for themselves if the price is right for them or not.

Remember,  discounting is more about your fear about charging what you are charging and less about what people can or cannot afford. Start working on the issues that hold you back from charging what you are worth and in the end it will help you bust through your current income and move into greater and greater abundance.

Tip #2:  Offer Your Clients Full Pay Options

For all you coaches, consultants and other professionals offer full pay options for your service and include a great incentive to paying in full. Why?  Because when you have a client pay in full you are opening up yourself to the ability to receive a large amount of cash all at once.  Failure to offer full pay options and you rob yourself of greater cash flow.  Which would you rather have a large amount all at once or money coming in dribs and drabs?

Follow these simple tips and create solid money boundaries to ensure the money flows to you!

There are so many ways that we as business owners prevent money from flowing to us.  Look around.  What do you see?  Which areas of your environment are likely holding you back from making more money?

Not sure what I mean?  Well let’s start with Physical Clutter.  Now you might be asking what physical clutter has to do with opening the floodgates to making more money; but rest assured it has a lot to do with your ability to attract and make more.

Is your office or home a mess?  Do you have papers strewn all over the place that need to be filed?  Does your office have files that should be removed and put in storage?  I want you to look around and see if you have clutter in any of the following places:

• Desk Clutter
• Email Clutter
• Bookshelf Clutter
• Newsletter Clutter

Take the time to clear out this clutter.  This clutter is an energy drain which takes your attention away from and blocks your ability to make more money.  Make the commitment necessary to clean out the clutter from your life.

The second area worth exploring is Schedule Clutter.  Schedule Clutter is things like interruptions in your daily activities, other priorities that seep into your day and feelings of overwhelm when working.

These too are all energy drains and block the natural flow of abundance and money.  Develop a schedule and stick to it.  Answer emails only once or twice a day.  Turn off that little bell that rings on your computer when you get new emails or better yet close out your email while you work.  Don’t say yes to appointments or other distractions that interfere with you accomplishing what you want and need to do each day.  This will help you to accomplish even more in your day and will reduce those feelings of overwhelm.

The next area is Emotional Clutter which includes difficult relationships, draining relationships and people that have poor boundaries.  You probably read that last line and said, “oh boy, I know exactly what she means.”

We have all been there surrounded by people who suck the life out of us, intrude into our lives, and are just plain awful people to deal with.  Don’t put up with it any longer.  These relationships are so detrimental to your ability to increase the flow of abundance and prosperity into your life that it’s scary!  When you stop trying to manage the situations that drain your energy you find that you have more energy to devote to the really important areas of your life.

The final area I want to discuss today is Money Clutter.  This includes unpaid or unopened bills, account  that are not current, being unclear about how much money you bring into your business and debt.  Can you feel how just reading this creates a heaviness and energy drain in your body?  Is this you?  Can you see why this needs to be addressed immediately?

I teach my clients a simple but effective way to keep track of their money.  Just take out a piece of paper and run the date down the left hand side of the  paper.  Next put  the dollar amount that comes to you each day from all sources next to the corresponding date.    If you are married or in a partnership where you share expenses put all money that comes from all sources for both individuals.  That’s it!

By clearing up these clutter areas in your life you will remove the energy block that is preventing you from attracting money into your life. Don’t know where to start?  Pick one area and take it one step at a time.  I would love to hear how you are going to clear out the clutter to make room for more money in your life!  Best of luck!

I attend a lot of networking events each month and I often have the opportunity to watch the interactions between the participants.  There is something very different that happens when you put men and women in the same room together, unleash them and have them network versus when I watch what occurs at women only events like the DARE To Be Phenomenal’s Networking Events.

Typically at a Chamber event I see something strange happen to the women.  They suddenly forget how to connect.  They aimlessly go around shaking hands and exchanging business cards without “connecting” to the people they are meeting.  Fast forward to one of the women only events I attend and you see something almost magical transpire – true connections being made.

So how to you stay true to you when networking?  Follow these simple tips to make your next networking event more authentic for you.

Remember  Your Heart

In a nut shell, be yourself! Real connections come from the heart.  They are heart-felt, honest interactions between two or more people.  No one is phony, inauthentic, or out solely for their own benefit.  The difference is dropping that phony business persona you have created and instead interacting with people as if they were your friends.  Now this doesn’t mean being unprofessional, but it does mean allowing people to see the real you.  Others want to connect with like-minded quality people and will be more apt to introduce you to friends and associates if they like you.

What are the keys to business success?  Honesty, curiosity and vulnerability coupled with intimate connections are the foundation of a successful and satisfied business and life.  So stop thinking you have to be something you are not and start being yourself!

Have the Right Mindset

If you come from a place of service first and not from a mindset of what’s in it for me you will be more likely to make the kinds of true connections that you are looking for.  Use your intuition to help you discern who would be a good connection for you and who would not and let this be your guide as you navigate your way.  Not every person you meet will be someone you want to do business with.  Always trust your gut, it will never steer you wrong.

Have Clarity

Be clear on what you want to accomplish at each event.  Taking the time to meet with two or three people at an event where you can share some quality time learning about them and their business is better than running around collecting business cards of people you will never remember and who probably won’t remember you.

Networking is a great tool to build your business but it’s in the relationship building and follow up where true business connections are made.  Be yourself, have the right mindset and be clear on your goals and networking success will be yours.

This week we had our first DARE To Be Phenomenal:   Success Minded Women’s Networking Event of the year.  We had 74 women mixing, mingling, networking and having fun!  As usual we had many new members join this month.  It was fabulous or dare I say phenomenal.

After the event someone commented to me that they like the evening events better than the lunch events because there is more room to move around and meet new people.  Although I understood her comment, it got me thinking about the purpose of these two events and how I see their function as being quite different.  Let me explain.

The evening event is a more structured event; we have a presentation followed by a Q & A session.  There is more opportunity to speak with more women as the event usually has somewhere between  85-90 women in attendance.

The lunch events are more casual and were always intended to provide an opportunity for the membership to get to know each other more personally.

Networking is never about how many people you can meet in a single event.  It is about meeting people with whom you can build a relationship and begin to work together to help strengthen each other’s business.

Whether you come for to the lunch event or the evening event you are guaranteed to meet a phenomenal group of women that are truly interested in taking their business to the next level.  Our next networking opportunity is January 26, 2010 at the Boxwood Grille, Methuen, MA. I look forward to seeing you there!

As many of you know I came down with pnuemonia this weekend.  What a signal that I needed to slow down and take care of myself.  I am not always able nor willing to sit back, relax and do nothing.  It’s just not in my nature.  So for the last several days I have been struggling with doing nothing, resting, catching up on some reading and some extra sleep.

I have received countless suggestions from friends and fans about how to go about taking the time necessary to heal my body.  I have been blessed with daily deliveries of hot soup and fresh bread.  Been the reciepinet of regular phone calls from friends and family checking to see how I am recovering.  And still I want to get out of bed and go about my day.

Since I have so much time on my hands I figured I would go back to the basics that I learned when I was in coaching school and revisit the concept of extreme self care.  The concept is simple but easy to forget when you are not focused on practicing the skills.

What is extreme self care?  It is the practice of fully committing to a nurturing lifestyle and then following through to make it happen.

Here is a list of self care stategies that I am going to focus on over the next several weeks:

1.  Focus on feeding my body healthy, nouroushing foods to speed my recovery

2. Make sure I make time EVERY day for quiet meditation.

3. Get enough sleep each night.

There are plenty of other self care strategies I can list here and while I am recovering I am going to take the time to further develop my list.  In the mean time why not start developing your self care strategy.  I’m going to finish mine right after I wake up from my nap.

The new year is already 8 days old and I was looking at my calendar of networking activities for January amazed that I didn’t have more in my date book.  So I got to wondering if it was the threat of bad weather or the fact that January feels like one of the longest months of the year as to why their wasn’t more networking opportunities available in January.

Now I keep track of three different Chamber’s list of events, the Friends of Kevin Networking group, several women’s organizations and some others and I can’t even think of right now.

I will admit that I hate to travel into Boston to network.  It is always such a hassle to find a parking space or if you have to take the train walk in the snow and ice.  I much prefer networking locally and I know that I am not alone in my thinking on this one.

Anyway, the point of this rambling is to ask my readers if they feel there is less networking opportunities available in January or if I am mistaken.  Let me know if you know of any great networking meetings coming up over the month.  I would love to hear about them and possibly venture out and attend.

“Let me think about it.”  Ugh…those are dreaded words to someone attempting to make a sale and gain a new client.  Designing your payment plan options can make or break how many people actually say yes to your offer.

This applies to offers you make through service offerings, programs and even products you may sell on your website or store front.  So let’s look at a few simple tips to help your clients say “yes” to you!

Payment Strategy #1:  Offer a Great Incentive for Paying In Full

I have seen this happen over and over again.  Clients will pay in full in order to save money or get some juicy, high valued, special bonus I‘m offering!

For example in my new 2010 Money and Mindset Mastermind, clients will receive a special “preferred client” bonus day with me to map out their business plan in addition to a generous savings of $1000 if they pay in full!  That is an incentive that I know will not only compel my clients to sign up for the program but to also choose the full pay option.

Payment Strategy #2:  Try to Have All Those Juicy Bonuses Add Up To More Than The Original Service Being Offered

In this day and age your clients expect more, much more.  So when deciding on your bonuses make sure the bonuses you are offering are compelling to your clients.  Don’t just throw a bunch of stuff together that no one would want and expect your clients to jump for joy at all the extra’s you are offering.  Second, try to have them add up to more than the initial offering.  Lastly, offer a bonus that can’t be bought separately to really compel your clients to sign up for your offer.

Payment Strategy #3: Create A Reason Why Your Clients Should Say Buy NOW Instead of Later

For some reason most of you reading this probably think that giving a long amount of time for your clients to say yes to your offer is much better than a shorter amount of time.  Actually, the opposite is true!  Human nature dictates that the longer you give someone to make a decision the MORE likely they are to say no.

Keep the dates short and your marketing activities longer to build the excitement around the offering so that people will say “yes”.

There are so many pricing strategies that you can use but start with these three simple tips and you will be adding more income to your bottom line while keeping your clients thrilled at the difference you are making in their lives!