Posts Tagged ‘Building Online Presence’

It takes a leader to create momentum. Followers catch it.  And managers are able to continue it once it has begun.  But creating it requires someone who can motivate others, not one who needs to be motivated.  All leaders face the challenge of creating change in their organization.  Just as every sailor knows that you can’t steer a ship that isn’t moving forward, strong leaders understand that to change direction you first have to create forward progress.  Without momentum, even the simple tasks can seem insurmountable.  But with momentum on your side, the future looks brighter, obstacles appear small, and trouble seems temporary.

My heart skipped a beat when I read these words from John C. Maxwell, the Maxwell Leadership Bible during my morning devotion time.  Thoughts sprang to mind of how I sometimes struggle with momentum and most important how my clients struggle with momentum.

During this last couple of years, it has become very clear to me, as an entrepreneur and a service provider, that a primary pain that I have witnessed in my consults and clients is one of momentum.  The pain of trying to build and grow a business while struggling to create and keep momentum.  Many people start a business with a passion, a passion to serve the world sharing their gifts and talents, but they didn’t bargain on having to actually build a business at the same time.  Every day they are faced with the challenges of time, money, work-life balance, strained relationships, insufficient skills, and need support and don’t know what they need or where to get it.  All of these things can cause us to stop in our tracks and not move forward – loss of momentum.

While it is tempting to wait for the next new superstar hire or bright and shiny program to magically create the momentum we need in our business, it is not always the wisest strategy.  We are the leaders of our own business destiny.

It does not matter what kind of business you run, or what kind of organization you lead, the number one key that will determine your level of your success will be momentum.

One definition of momentum is the “force or speed of movement”.  It will decide how high your business will go and how quickly you will get there.

Momentum, by its nature, requires a lot of upfront push to get the ball rolling.  Here are a few things that I have learned that can help you create positive and life giving momentum to you and your business.

1. Get clear –

• What is important to you?  What are you passionate about? How do you want to serve others in powerful ways? What do you want to achieve? How do you want to distinguish yourself from your competitors?

2. Write down your goals, mission -

• After getting clear on what you want, create a mission statement for you and your business.   Next, write down your goals to help solidify that which you have gotten clear on.  Create the steps needed to push forward, give yourself a target date, and don’t forget to write how you will know that you achieved it.

3. Put away the notion of perfection –

• Growing up in a home with impossible expectations, I lived most of my life chasing after illusive perfection.  Every now and then it can still rear its ugly head, but I have learned to strive for excellence, not perfection. When you are waiting around for things to be perfect before you move forward, you don’t move– that’s the other side of momentum.

4. Take control of fear -

• Fear is a major killer of momentum.  Afraid to fail, afraid to succeed -we simply don’t move, we become paralyzed.  We were not designed to walk in fear, but to walk in freedom.  Freedom is where energy, creativity and focus live.  Make no mistake, I know very well that this is a difficult emotion to acknowledge, accept and embrace.  Fortunately, when we acknowledge the fear and its hold on our lives that keep us from where we want to go and meant to be – fear miraculously begins to loosen it hold on us and freedom begins to show up almost saying, “I can’t wait to show you all the great things that are in store for you”.

5. Put one foot in front of the other -

• As Nike’s campaign commanded us “Just do it”!  Take that first step, complete that first task, even when you don’t feel like it.  Make the commitment to move forward.  Each step that you take and complete will propel you to the next step.  It is extremely energizing to our spirits to” just do it”. I am reminded of the little ditty from Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer that runs on television during the holidays, “put one foot in front of the other and soon you will be walking across the floor, put one foot in front of the other and soon you will be walking out the door”.

6. Stay positive, seek inspiration

• Read books, listen to audio programs and watch videos that will uplift and inspire you – not only related to your industry, but related to life and managing life with more freedom.  Inspirational books of faith and courage, and biographies of others who have gone before and succeeded.  Too many times we fall into false thinking that we are the only ones that are being challenged in certain areas.  Great news – not so!!

7. Create a circle of trust -

• Create a small group of select people that you trust to share your journey as an entrepreneur with.   Confidants that you can bounce ideas and challenges off of without the fear of being judged and betrayed.  Personally, I found early on in my business that I needed to create a circle of trust with fellow women business owners.  Typically people who are not entrepreneurial in nature do not really get us and the challenges we face every day as business owners and service providers.   When I need a strong kick in the pants I know that my circle of trust will tell me the truth – in love of course.  When I leave those conversations I feel stronger for myself and for my clients.    I also feel strong and powerful enough to return the favor when my circle of trust peeps are in need of a kick in the pants – in love of course.

8. Get a support team for your business, you don’t have to do it all, you shouldn’t do it all -

• Hire a business coach, maybe even a personal coach to help you clarify and set goals and business plan for success.  In your business, spend time on only those activities where you must to deliver personally to your clients, such as coaching or speaking, and leave the rest to other professionals such as online business managers, virtual assistants, copywriters, web designers – you get the picture.    You can’t do it all yourself without losing momentum.

9. Embrace momentum –

• In John C. Maxwell’s book “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership”, he says that, “Momentum is really a leader’s best friend. Sometimes it’s the only difference between winning and losing.”  I can’t really add more to that – kinda says it all!

I hope that you have enjoyed this article and pray that it has been an inspiration to you – maybe even a kick in the pants.  Please feel free to share with me your comments, thoughts and struggles around momentum or any other struggle you are having in your business in the box below.   It will be my pleasure to share back.

As you go through your day, how many projects are you working on for your business? Presently, are you the only one who can complete these projects? What if you were to turn these projects over to a project manager? How much more time would you have available? What would you do with that time? Create new products? Add new services? Take on new clients? The list is endless.

If you want to forecast your full business potential by relieving yourself of these necessary but growth blocking projects, set up a few interviews with some potential Online Business Managers. Let them suggest what might be blocking you from your success and how they can help. This will give you an excellent idea of what your business could be like, should you choose to partner with an OBM.

In addition to being your project and team manager, a good OBM will implement business strategies and resources to save you time and money.

If you would like to learn more about how partnering with an Online Business Manager to grow your online business to new heights be sure to download my new free eBook, “Grow Your Online Business To New Heights With An Online Business Manager” on this web page.

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Just recently, I was asked to speak to the Fast Trac New Venture class at the University of Hartford Entrepreneurial Center.  This opportunity was a great thrill for me as I have a passion to help people build and grow their business dreams.  In performing the exercise of deciding what kind of information will be shared with the class, I was asked to include in my talk what I considered to be the key entrepreneurial traits that will lead to business success.  Certainly there are many.  Listed below are just 7 that I discovered was and are critical to my business success.  I invite you to share with me any traits that you have discovered along the way to add to the list.  Click Here to read more about 7 Key Entrepreneurial Traits That Can Lead To Your Business Success.

I am having such a great time listening and sitting at the feet of the experts this week during List Attraction Week.

One of my favorite calls was yesterday with Kim De Young – How to Leap Your List by Creating a High Traffic Blog.   There were three golden nuggets that I pulled from this call that I feel is important to share with my Online Business Manager clients and audience.

Why does every business owner need a blog?

1. to get your message out
2. build your list
3. educate your audience
4. establish your credibility and your expertise

Thank you Kim DeYoung for sharing.

PS: Copyblogger.com is a great resource to come up with great headlines.

Come and join me for List Attraction Week, March 8 – March 12, 2010.

Focusing on meaningful social networking strategies is an essential aspect of generating sustainable growth and higher profits. Signing on for a membership in a social networking site such as LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook can create far reaching ripples that jump start your company or career into a new path of positive growth. Through social networking sites, you gain access to new people, reconnect with old acquaintances, discover different points of view and insights, and develop greater exposure of your business or particular set of skills.  To read the full article:  Social Networking and Your Online Business