Tax Advice For Women In Business

 

Overcoming Fear. Embracing Courage.

I 've been absent from this blog for quite a while. Well over a month. I've been doing some soul searching and deep inner work. 

You see, my business is heading in an entirely new direction. One that is more aligned with my heart. Which meant decisions had to be made.

New website? Revamp the old one? Did I even need a website?

Ditto with branding. New logo? New photos? What could I keep? What needed to be discarded to make room for newer stuff?

What new skills would I need to learn? Definitely needed to up my video game. Instagram. YouTube. I'm even starting a podcast. 

And this blog. Keep it? Start over with a new one? Give up blogging all together?

Decisions!

It's a little overwhelming . I am making a HUGE change in my business. And as much as I am excited, exhilarated, and enthusiastic, there is a small amount of fear. 

What if I fail?

Yes, even after 23+ years in some sort of business, I can still experience doubt and fear.

And as a more "mature' woman, navigating through it can be particularly challenging in a world that sometimes feels like it is stacked against us. If I mess this up, there isn't a lot of time to correct course. Let's be real. 66 means there are far fewer years ahead than there are behind.

However, I am here to tell you that fear, even though at my age it can be formidable, is not unconquerable. In fact, it can be the very thing that propels us forward toward our dreams.

Understanding Fear

Many years ago I wrote an article about overcoming objections while recruiting for your network marketing team. And in it I said that no matter what the objection, the root cause was always the same.

FEAR

Fear of failure. Fear of the unknown. Fear of rejection. Even fear of success. It's a natural response, designed to protect us from harm. But it can paralyze us if we allow it to dictate our actions. And for women, especially older women, it can be even harder to overcome. After lifetimes of being told we have to be strong to succeed, fear can make us feel vulnerable. And that is scary in itself!

It's Time To Embrace Our Vulnerability

Contrary to what many of us have been told all our professional lives, vulnerability is NOT a weakness. It's a strength. When we acknowledge our fears and vulnerabilities, it allows us to confront them. Honestly. Authentically. By embracing our vulnerability we open ourselves to transformative experiences...like launching the project that sets your soul on fire!

Cultivate Self-Compassion

Self-compassion is the cornerstone of overcoming fear. Stop berating yourself for feeling afraid! Would  you treat a friend facing similar challenges like that? I get clients all the time that are afraid to take a big step with their business. I certainly don't scold them! It's time we treat ourselves with the same empathy and compassion we would offer to our friends. We need to talk to ourselves with the same respect and guidance I give my clients. 

I Had To Set Realistic Goals

Obviously, since I'm here writing this today, I managed to overcome my fears, at least enough to move forward with my vision. And yes, I decided to keep this blog active. It might be different in future than what you are used to. But I think you'll actually appreciate it more! 

Breaking down my aspirations into small, manageable goals helped me overcome my fear of failure. It helped me create action steps that make my objectives attainable. I'm not so intimidated anymore! In fact, I just celebrated one of my first achievements. The successful launch of my Designing Your Best Life Vision Board Journal! And I'll be celebrating more milestones along the way!

Challenging My Limiting Beliefs

I had to realize that some of my fears stemmed from some deeply ingrained beliefs about myself and my capabilities. I won't go into all of them here. If you read enough of this blog, you know all the things I have overcome in my years. Even so, I sometimes have to challenge those limiting beliefs that can still creep in. Thankfully I am very adept at self-coaching! By questioning their validity and reframing them in a more positive light, I was able to put them aside and move ahead. 

Remember, you are not defined by your fears, anymore than I am. You are defined by your resilience and determination to overcome them!

I Have Support

I also know I don't have to face these fears alone. I am surrounded by a supportive network of ladies...friends, family, mentors...many who are also making big changes in their lives. We uplift and inspire each other. By sharing our experiences and seeking guidance, we draw strength from our collective wisdom and encouragement. If that sounds like the kind of place you'd like to hang out, you can join us here. There's always room for one more!

It's Time for Another Growth Spurt

So yes, I'm pushing forward with my passion project. It might not work out exactly as I envision it. So what? That is not the end of the road. It's a stepping stone on the path to my best life. It's an opportunity to learn and grow. I might even have time to make some course corrections! After all, I'm only 66! I have a lifetime ahead of me! And as I navigate each setback or speed bump, I get valuable lessons and insights that just help me move closer to my goal.

I have my "Power Hour" activities to help keep me grounded. Meditation. Affirmations. Journaling. Reading books on business and personal development to keep me informed. Exercise, hydration and good whole food to keep me healthy. Self-care to nourish your mind, body, and spirit is vital when you're growing.

Celebrating My Strength

I'm proud that I decided to take this step. It brings all of my strengths, accomplishments, and unique experiences and qualities together to offer something that will empower other women to do more, see more, and most importantly, BE more. 

Overcoming fear is not something you do one time and that's it. It's a continuous process. Every new experience can result in growth, self-discovery, and empowerment if you'll let it. As women, we are inherently resilient. It's in our blood! We have the fortitude to face our fears with courage and grace. It's in our genes! I know I am not the only one facing big changes right now. Some of them of our own choosing. Some of them out of our control. And some of you may be afraid. Embrace those fears! Use them as a catalyst for transformation. You have the power to conquer them! It's already inside you! 

Dare to DREAM.  And when you dream, dream BIG! Dare to aspire. Dare to fearlessly pursue your passions and purpose. Come join me! Together we will rise above fear and forge a brighter, bolder future for ourselves, our families. And maybe even for generations to come!

Ending Overwhelm with Essentialism

As a business owner, I love helping my clients. But because I teach on marketing topics, I receive a lot of messages from them asking questions and sharing problems they've encountered,

It finally got to the point that I was spending most of my time in my inbox, replying to customer emails. I was overwhelmed and frustrated. I was afraid to take a break from my computer because I want to be on-call for my customers.

This created problems in both my business and my personal life. I felt like I was chained to my desk. Then I read the book Essentialism and learned to ask three questions about every task.

Does This Have to Be Done?

Think about your business and what you want to accomplish with it. Then consider why you're completing your current task and if it's truly necessary for the health of your business. If it's not necessary, they why are you doing it? Could you just let it go?

I know that answering customers emails is essential. But I also noticed that I receive some of the same questions again and again.

To answer these questions faster, I created this blog, and some ebooks, and now a YouTube channel. When I get a common question, I copy and paste the link to the information directly into the email, saving me time. And as customers learn about these resources, they now often go there directly instead of emailing me.

Is This Important or Merely Urgent?

Important tasks are the ones that move your business forward. They get you closer to meeting your goals. Posting fifteen updates on your Facebook page might seem urgent but it's not necessarily important.

Urgent tasks feel important but they don't get you closer to meeting your goals. An example of an urgent but not necessarily important task is replying to comments on your social media posts. Sure, it feels good to monitor those little heart notifications. But unless it is a request for info or a question about your business, it isn't vital to reaching your current goal. Save it for when you're scrolling during your lunch break or while having your morning coffee.

Can This Be Done by Someone Else?

It can also be helpful to ask if a task can be handed off to someone else. Many business owners think of outsourcing as an expense. But it's smart to think about it as an investment. That's because you'll be able to work on the areas of your business where you shine without constant interruptions.

Answering these three questions can reduce your feelings of overwhelm. To make it simple, choose to implement these questions in one area of your business first, like customer support, social media promotion, or list-building. Once you start seeing results, you can apply these questions to another part of your business that you want to overhaul.

The Pareto Principle is All About Essentialism

You have probably heard me talk about the Pareto principle before. Only I may have mentioned it as the 80/20 rule. The idea behind it is that 80% of your results will be achieved by 20% of your work. Most entrepreneurs find this to be true, often realizing that 80% of their income is generated from just 20% of their work.

Which makes you want to ask...is the remaining 80% of their work essential?

Know Your Branches

Let's start by defining the different branches of your business. Suppose you offer web design services to your clients. And then you also run a web hosting company. And maybe you designed book covers for some authors who also had you design their sites. And then you decided to teach a DIY course on Canva. 

All of these branches may be contributing to your income. But some are probably more profitable than others. 

If you actually examine your own business, you may find that you do have multiple branches with different levels of income.

Prune Your Branches

When you note your business branches, write down how much income you earned from each one in the last year. Once you have an idea of your profitable branches, you'll want to consider if some of them need to be pruned. As you organize your branches, be sure to write down how much each is earning you as well as how much time you're spending on it. That's because sometimes you may want to prune a branch that's profitable but taking up too much of  your time.

Focus on Your Branches

The amount of income a branch brings in should never be your sole consideration. You should also take into account what your business goals are. Then ask yourself, "Is this branch bringing me closer to my goal or further away?"

Ideally branches that aren't in line with your goals should be the first you prune. However, there may be a reason that you leave a branch in place temporarily. For example, if you are trying to shift from a service model to a product model, but you're earning the majority of your income from the services you provide, you may want to leave them in place for now while you shift the focus of your business.

The Pareto principle is a great way to look at essentialism. By eliminating business branches that are no longer a good fit or that aren't in line with your goals, you'll be able to focus on the branches that truly matter.

What is Essentialism? And Why Should You Care?

You have probably seen photos of my "to read" stack. There are books galore! Well I also have a "to reread" stack. It's not quite as tall. But the books in that stack have impacted me and my business greatly. They have impacted me enough that I keep them at hand to go back and read them again. Sometimes I get fresh insights based on new experiences. Sometimes I am reminded of things I may have forgotten.

One of those books is Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown. This book changed how I thought about my business. It helped set me on the path to actually making consistent money, not the sporadic and unpredictable income I had been earning. It taught me about eliminating the unnecessary so I could focus on my best work. It taught me about essentialism.

If you have ever felt busy but not productive or just stretched too thin, it might be time for you to embrace this concept as well. I know it sounds kind of "woo-woo" and "new-ageish", but it isn't hard or complicated. It can be practiced by anyone, seasoned entrepreneur or newbie. Either way, you will reap the benefits!

Like clarifying your message. I wasted so much valuable time trying to be everything to everyone. I was a health coach, a marketing coach, a network marketer, an agency owner. But rereading the book helped me choose to focus on creating Ninja Marketers. And my passion project, The Rebel Tribe.

And I'll be honest. I expected my business to dip as I made the transition. But it hasn't. Because I'm more focused on my overall message.

Essentialism will help you define your focus. It's tempting to believe you can do everything, isn't it? We're told that as soon as we start our business. You can do anything you put your mind to. And that may be true to some extent. But what they neglect to tell you is you can't do everything WELL! Even more importantly, you'll be distracted as you try to balance all the areas of your business.

When you define your focus, you're working on the tasks where you truly shine. You're zeroed in on projects that are within your "zone of genius"

Pursuing essentialism has another benefit. It helps create accountability. When you're trying to tackle everything by yourself, there's no time to stop and analyze what's working. You're just in survival mode, trying to keep all the balls in the air. There's no time for tracking, measuring, or analyzing. You're flying blind.

But when you embrace essentialism, you know what to focus on. You know which metrics truly matter. You can take the time to measure and analyze results.

I know. You're thinking essentialism is just another buzz word. But it's not! It's a powerful concept. I had forgotten just how powerful it can be until I reread the book. It can transform the way you look at your business and how you serve your customers.

I'm going to be talking about how to embrace essentialism in your business over the next few weeks. If the concept interests you, just keep reading my stuff!

 

The Endless Chase

I see it every day. People endlessly chasing their tails trying to make a buck. Chase chase chase. Sell sell sell. Run run run. First in one direction, then another. And then when nothing works, they START ALL OVER AGAIN! Or as so many others do, they quit altogether.

I just don't get it. I watch people I have known for years go from deal to deal. Next "big thing" to next "big thing". Jumping on one marketing trend after another. And yet they never create stable income.

They never stop to think, "Wait a minute...this isn't working!" And that's why I have decided to focus in on the thing that made all the difference for me. The one thing I know can change a person's business and make them leaders. And that one thing is proper marketing.

I'm not talking about creating fancy funnels or running paid ads. We're not going to be counting clickthroughs or conversions. You can do that if you want. A lot of hardcore internet marketers do. But I'm not one of them.

And chances are you aren't either. You're probably just like me. An average home business owner who wants to get off the treadmill and find something you can do in a couple of hours a day around your daily life that will yield you a couple thousand a month. And maybe even building that up to more over time.

And so it's time to learn marketing properly in the NETWORKING way.

So I'm about to embark on a mission to teach these skills to as many people as I can in 2024 and beyond. ANYONE can do this. It takes very little time. It gives you ever increasing leverage. The longer you do it the better you get. And the better you get the more income you can make.

It will give you influence. Recruiting power. It will let you stop having to spend time with looky-loos and tire kickers. It will let people tell you EXACTLY when they are ready to buy.

I could tell you more, but I won't. I'm just going to go work on the project and the training and bring it to you the minute it's ready. 

And what if I told you I can share resources that will make marketing easier than ever before? And what if I added the opportunity to join my team and learn from me directly at absolutely no cost to you?

SERIOUS!

So that's the good word today. I am telling you if you are not marketing on all cylinders, you are missing out. 

Some people will tell you my methods are outdated, dead, obsolete. I will tell you that I make money all day long using these exact methods.

The proof is in the pudding my friends. You decide if learning bona-fide SKILLS is worth your time. Or you can keep picking up the pieces and starting all over again, if you like that kind of thing.

 

What's Your Purpose?

I believe in serving your audience before you sell. But how are you called to serve in your business?? How can knowing your calling help you serve your audience better?

I've been pondering this as I slowly figure out what Rebel Tribe will look like as I build it. I've had some thoughts and will share a few ideas. 

When I first started talking about the new direction for my business, I mentioned that I felt "called" to do this. But what exactly is a "calling" and how do you find yours? It's not something we're born knowing. And we aren't taught to find our calling in school. So what is the best way to find your calling?

I can only tell you how it came for me. It was a feeling that my business in it's state at that time wasn't personally satisfying. The money was great but it wasn't emotionally or spiritually gratifying. I felt like something was missing. That there was definitely more I could be doing to help people than simply teaching them about marketing skills. So I guess it starts by listening and engaging with yourself and your surroundings.

What are you passionate about? For me, it's helping others live the life they have always wanted. Whether that's as a 7-figure earner in an online business or a young man just starting out on his journey who simply wants to take his camera and a backpack and photograph the world.

Your calling is that thing that sets your soul on fire, and makes your heart sing and causes you to jump out of bed in the morning ready to get to work or stay up late at night working on a project because you're too excited to sleep.

And finding it can be a process that often starts with that little nagging voice in the back of your mind that says something is missing. There has to be more to life than this.

If you're struggling to hear it, try meditating. Or journaling. Or simply talking it through with friends. 

Your calling makes you feel like all your hard work is connected to your values or a higher purpose. It can take a lot of work to pursue your calling. Finding the meaning of life isn't easy! There will be ups and downs. There may be struggles as you try to figure out how exactly to bring your dream to fruition. 
There will be days when you it will simply be exhausting. But remember one thing.

YOU ARE WORTH IT!

Because once you find your true calling, you will discover a life filled with more meaning. You will discover a sense of purpose. You will LOVE what you do. And be happier doing it.

So now that you know what a calling is, is it time to find yours?