Welcome to the That’s What She Said interviews –an exciting series to learn about the woman behind the business. You’ll be meeting amazing women who are sharing their gifts with the world through their work. These are the people who inspire me with their creativity, heart and tenacity.

I want you to know them too.

Meet Corrina Gordon-Barnes

Corrina Gordon-Barnes is a self-employment coach who enables talented people around the globe to enjoy the impact and income they deserve. She leads the step-by-step Turn Your Passion To Profit programme for groups and individuals and through home-study. She’s the author of Turn Your Passion To Profit: a step-by-step guide to getting your business off the ground and has a monthly business column in Om Yoga & Lifestyle Magazine.  Her work has also been featured in Cambridge News, The London Paper, The Ecologist, Caduceus, Permaculture Magazine, Diva Magazine, The Vegan, Earth Pathways Diary and Health 24. And, even Anthony Robbins has referred to her as “an articulate and passionate agent for change”!

I first met Corrina in 2010 when I fell in love with her blog.  She instantly became a resource for me as I grew my own business. Over the last few years our online interactions have grown into Skype meet-ups. And now, Corrina and I have a real, genuine friendship.  We connect every two weeks via Skype and talk about everything from marriage to smoothies to business. We keep it real with each other.  We refer clients to each other. We support each other when times are sticky and celebrate when we’re rocking it out. It’s pretty damn cool when online relationships develop into true friendships like this!

You can learn more about Corrina here.

What She Said . . .

1. I encourage women to build their business by being in their element.  What’s your element?

My element is clarity. I love taking something complex – like marketing! – and making it simple. Self-employed people tend to come to me when they’re overwhelmed by possibilities, foggy about where to get started and unclear on who they are truly here to serve. I ask the just-right questions that give them light-bulb moments; the fog lifts and clarity is what’s left. They’re then able to help more people and receive a healthy income doing what they most love.

2. From your early twenties to today, how has your relationship to yourself changed?

I’ve become more grounded. In my early 20s, I consciously discovered the spiritual path; at first it was blissful and exhilarating but eventually it spun me out and I lost my footing. I went off into a world of my own. This past decade, I’ve come to know a deep and unconditional sense of safety. I now have a solid daily connection with Source and that connection keeps me calm and present and moving forward at a sustainable pace. I’ve also got serious about fitness, healthy eating and my clothing style so my body is a pleasure to live with these days – and from a business perspective, this has a knock-on effect on my confidence on stage, networking, and even on Skype calls. 

3. What are the three most important decisions you’ve made in your business so far?

 1.  Deciding to make money. Like many of us, I love this work so much I’d do it for free and in the early days I was really just running an expensive hobby; I was using my “business” to share ideas and connect with people and I received a trickle of money back in response. I realised it wasn’t fair on my partner to expect her to shoulder the majority of our expenses and it also wasn’t fulfilling for me. Impact and income go hand in hand because they’re both the result of focusing on serving people and running a needs-based business. Many of my clients come to me because they’re not convinced they can make money by following their passion. We absolutely can – yes, even in a recession – because income is a natural by-product of creating products and services that meet real needs. We then have to allow the money in, which can actually be a challenge because there’s that voice inside which says we’re not good people if we accept good money for doing our heart-led work.

 2.   Deciding to take on help. I now have an in-house Tech Genius (Daniel) who’s a God-send. He handles all my back-end tech matters which frees me up to create content and strategise. I write the blog post; he formats it and sends it out. I create a program; he sets up the payment systems and infrastructure that enable me to deliver it.

 3.    Deciding to connect every day with Source. All my business decisions are guided – from setting prices, to choosing the next product to offer, to knowing which networking event to attend. This connection gives me an unconditional sense of safety which doesn’t depend on how many clients I have, or how much revenue came in last month. And the irony is, more clients and money flow in when we don’t “need” them to.

4. What disappointment has given you the greatest gift?

I developed RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury) right in the middle of writing my first book. It was physically painful but also emotionally distressing because I adore writing and the prospect of not being able to type freely again was unthinkable. I was also teaching my first big group program and couldn’t communicate with those participants as much as I thought I should. It became a great gift because it forced me to implement certain practical boundaries for myself. I put RSI Guard software onto my computer which I still use; it freezes my keyboard every 20 minutes so I have to take a short comfort break. It also got me rethinking email use and what constituted “enough”. I communicated new expectations with my clients – namely that I check email just once a day and only reply if absolutely necessarily. I see email and social media use as one of the greatest time-drains for self-employed people so I’m grateful I can model a different, more liberating way of interacting with our inboxes.

5.  What do you wish you had known when you first began your business?

I wish I’d known that I could do less. I wish I’d known about the concept of niche because when I got clear about that, I stopped wasting time. In the beginning, I was creating all these different offerings for all these different people. Now, I’m super focused on who I call my Tribe and everything I do is to serve them.

6. What’s in your “biz tool kit” that you use every day?

 I love Gmail – it makes email easy and most days I achieve the nirvana that is Inbox Zero. I use Buffer to pre-schedule tweets so I don’t waste time playing around on Twitter. I have a very simple paper diary and a one page day plan I write up the night before so I’m strategic about what tasks to prioritise. It also helps me get realistic about how many hours there are in a day! I use the Eat the Frog approach (Brian Tracey) to do the most important tasks first and beat the procrastination beast.  I have wonderful Daniel to bounce new ideas around with and I send him all those tech tasks I don’t want to do. And I use PayPal daily – I don’t mind the fees because it takes the stress out of client payments. 

 7.  If you had $10,000 to spend on your business right now, how would you use the money?

Great question! I’d get Jo Bradshaw  to design bespoke images for all my products and services and all my blog posts going forward. She’s a client of mine and very talented.

8.  What is your six word business memoir? (Adapted from Smith Magazine’s Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure)

Market Well, to Help More People.

9.  What special project are you working on right now?

I’ve launched a new masterclass: How to Blog to Get Clients. I love blogging and understand how powerful it is when we know what we’re doing and we make our blog work for us in our business sales cycle. Many business owners don’t have this enjoyment or understanding so this course demystifies blogging. Participants will discover why and how to blog, the elements of an effective blog, and how blogging leads to paying clients. It’s a 4-week online course and enrollment is now open.

Corrina Gordon-Barnes helps self-employed people to find clients and earn a healthy living; she works with coaches, complementary therapists, designers, editors and other service professionals. She’s the author of Turn Your Passion To Profit: a step-by-step guide to getting your business off the ground and lives in Cambridge, England. Find out more and say hello at http://youinspireme.co.uk.

A special give-away!

To celebrate the wonderful work that Corrina is up to in the world she is giving away a copy of her Getting Clients Starter Kit – If you’re wondering whether to niche, not sure how to set your prices, and keen to help more people become your clients, come along to Corrina’s virtual classroom where you’ll find three audio classes and transcriptions to get you started.

 UPDATE:  Marcie Scudder is the winner of the “Getting Clients Starter Kit”!

Welcome to the That’s What She Said interviews –an exciting series to learn about the woman behind the business. You’ll be meeting amazing women who are sharing their gifts with the world through their work. These are the people who inspire me with their creativity, heart and tenacity.

I want you to know them too.

Meet Allison Dehn Bloom an interior designer and owner of Dehn Bloom Design based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Allison’s work has been featured by Dwell, Elle Decor, and the San Francisco Chronicle, among others. Her work was selected for inclusion in Dwell Modern in Marin 2012 and the 2012 San Francisco Decorator Showcase.

I first met Allison when she participated in my In Your Element business program last year.  I absolutely adore her spacious, functional and light-filled design (just wait until you see some of her work below!) and she shares a strong and resonant point of view on why design really matters. But, beyond her amazing creative gifts, I value and respect the way in which this busy mama of 3 is growing her business while navigating the competing priorities of motherhood. She does so with grace and resiliency.

You can learn more about Allison here.

What She Said . . .

1. I encourage women to build their business by being in their element.  What’s your element?

Everything flows from living what you love.  I’m in my element creating something beautiful, transforming a space, and teaching my clients how beautiful surroundings dramatically and positively impact their lives.

2. From your early twenties to today, how has your relationship to yourself changed?

I’ve stopped questioning myself with criticism; I now question myself with empathy and genuine curiosity.  I used to make decisions based in fear – now I move toward what I love instead.  I have stopped worrying what people think and caring if I offend them.  I live my truth, I am kind to everyone, and the heck what anyone says or thinks beyond that.

3. What are the three most important decisions you’ve made in your business so far?

1. Far and away #1:  to go out on my own and start my own practice

2. Learning not to fear mistakes but to embrace them- I know they are the greatest source of feedback I’ll ever get.

3. To ask for help and guidance from mentors across many different disciplines.

4. What disappointment has given you the greatest gift?

I once worked for someone for several years who didn’t value me creatively; it frustrated me to such a place of discomfort that I had no option but to go out on my own.  I am eternally grateful for that relationship, even though it was unpleasant on many levels: without it, I would never had started my own practice.

5.  What do you wish you had known when you first began your business?

To relax and trust my instincts. My best work results when I am unafraid to take risks and I listen to my gut.

6. What’s in your “biz tool kit” that you use every day?

1. Process guidelines from Jac (specifically around organization, and time management/planning)

2. Tara Mohr’s tips on how to process feedback and on the structure of successful negotiation

3. The knowledge that, for me, working my tail off for myself is 10x better than working even part-time for someone else, even when I am up to my ears in the less glamorous aspects of entrepreneurship.

7.  If you had $10,000 to spend on your business right now, how would you use the money?

I would use it for weekly sessions with Jac – she is a terrific secret weapon that keeps me laser focused on the few things that really matter in my business and my life.

8.  What is your six word business memoir? (Adapted from Smith Magazine’s Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure)

Dream of beauty, take risks, make it happen.

9.  What special project are you working on right now?

I am working on a number of things that really excite me.  The top three are: 1) a Sonoma farmhouse renovation done on a super tight budget, so creativity is essential, 2) an SF Victorian going modern with lots of texture, layers, and brilliant color snuck into unexpected places, and 3) pro-bono work I am doing for the offices of a non-profit whose mission I love.  Everyone, everywhere should be able to work in a place of beauty, and it need not be expensive.

Allison is an interior designer based in the San Francisco Bay Area.  She founded her own practice in 2011, Dehn Bloom Design.  Allison grew up frequenting commercial and residential construction sites with her father.  As a Seattle native, natural light and a connection to the outdoors feature prominently in Allison’s work.  On a personal level, Allison has relocated with her family several times, and through the repeated experience of turning house into home, she has learned that good design –meaning both beauty and functionality– is vital to a peaceful, practical, inspiring and enjoyable home.   Allison has worked in design at Remodelista and Big Daddy’s, where she was an editorial contributor and a stylist respectively.  She has also worked in management consulting at Bain & Company and in brand marketing at Blue Nile.  Allison has a B.S. from Stanford University.  Allison’s work has been featured by Dwell, Elle Decor, and the San Francisco Chronicle, among others.  Her work was selected for inclusion in Dwell Modern in Marin 2012 and the 2012 San Francisco Decorator Showcase.  Allison is the mother of three children.

A special give-away!

To celebrate the wonderful work that Allison is up to in the world she is giving away a 30 minute skype Design Consultation to help you map out a path to tackle your next design project, whether it’s pondering a full kitchen renovation or trying to re-invigorate a tired space with new energy.

UPDATE:  The winner for Allison’s 30 Minute Design Consult is Leslie Forman!!!

Welcome to the That’s What She Said interviews –an exciting series to learn about the woman behind the business. You’ll be meeting amazing women who are sharing their gifts with the world through their work. These are the people who inspire me with their creativity, heart and tenacity.

I want you to know them too.

Meet Tara Sophia Mohr  the creator of the global Playing Big leadership program for women and the co-creator of two anthologies of contemporary women’s writings. Tara’s “10 Rules for Brilliant Women” have struck a chord with tens of thousands of women around the world.

I first met Tara when I was doing research for my own website. I came across her site and really connected with the fact that she is committed to amplifying women’s voices in the world. I really appreciate how Tara has positioned her business around a particular point of view and topics rather than a refined group of people.  I also respect how Tara is playing bigger in her own business by including mainstream media to grow her reach. That takes a lot of courage to do–and do well.

The most important piece to share here is the fact that Tara followed her own advice in the 10 Rules for Brilliant women, #10 in fact: “Let other women know they are brilliant.”  Tara knew I was holding back on putting my first online program out into the world so she told me “You’re ready Jac. It’s time. I believe in you and you’re work.”  Having someone call me into greater leadership and action was exactly what I needed to launch my signature online program: In Your Element.  I am so grateful that she saw my brilliance and told me.  Thank you Tara! xo

You can learn more about Tara here.

What She Said . . .

1.  I encourage women to build their business by being in their element.  What’s your element?

I have a few. My element is the blank page – writing. It’s being on stage. It’s the dance studio. And it’s being in circles of women.

2.  From your early twenties to today, how has your relationship to yourself changed?

Now, I’ve accepted what my real strengths and dreams for my life are. In my early twenties, I was still fighting the truth about what I love and what I wanted to do with my life.

3.  What are the three most important decisions you’ve made in your business so far?

1. I bucked the conventional advice to “pick a niche” up front and instead allowed myself to have an organic process of blogging about my ideas and coaching widely to see who showed up – and then, from there, letting my niche come into being. I believe in discovering your niche, not deciding on it.

2. To keep questioning my inner critic over and over again, and to question the voice in me that says “I’m not ready yet” to go for that next bigger opportunity.

3. To neither under-price my work or to charge the steepest prices I could.  I love having a price point that supports me fincancially but that also allows my work to be accessible to women who want to experience it.

4.  What do you wish you had known when you first began your business?

Oh gosh. That the first year is uber hard and draining for everyone.  And that no matter how good your content, you can’t grow a blog audience without getting outside your own blog and writing / speaking / sharing your work elsewhere.

6.  What’s in your “biz tool kit” that you use every day?

A good night’s sleep. Green tea. Some time for reading spiritual literature. In that order.  Healthy food. Writing time. A great team. And breaks to scratch a golden retriever’s belly.

7.  If you had $10,000 to spend on your business right now, how would you use the money?

The cool thing is, I do have $10,000 to spend on my business. Lots of $10,000s actually. I can tell you what I do spend it on: a great team that provides administrative, graphic design, tech, and customer service support.

I really do feel I have all the funds I need from my business revenue to invest in the business in the way I want to. That feels really good, and I want more women entrepreneurs to experience that – which is why I teach women about how they can play bigger in their work.

8.  What is your six word business memoir? (Adapted from Smith Magazine’s Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure)

She lived out her authentic dreams.

9.  What special project are you working on right now?

Personal: today I took my first tap dancing class, and it was just as fun as I imagined it would be.

Professional: getting ready for my next Today Show appearance, next week!

A special give-away!

To celebrate the wonderful work that Tara is up to in the world she’s giving away a copy of her mini-course “This is Your Brain off of Self-Doubt:  Quieting the Inner critic”. Please leave your comment here on the blog and we’ll draw for a winner on Friday, March 22nd/13.

Registration opened March 14th for Tara’s Playing Big program for women.  This is a comprehensive 6-month journey for women who want to play bigger in their lives and their work.  I hope you check it out!! {Not an affiliate link. Just an AMAZING course I highly recommend!}

 UPDATE:  The winner of Tara Mohr’s mini course “This is Your Brain off of Self-Doubt” is Susan Stitt.  Congratulations Susan!!!

There is a rise in hidden (and not so hidden) agendas in our online world.

Game players. Pretenders of generosity. Fake friendships.

We see it.  We feel it.

We gawk at the pyramid-like schemes for affiliates.

We see our peers promoting other people’s stuff with more gusto (and more bells and whistles) than they would use to promote their own programs.

We notice people offering extra prizes to appear generous and giving and in support of. But it feels off.

We watch the cliques forming and circling one another with obvious under currents of competition and insincere cross-promotion.

We observe the celebrity bandwagons people jump on because they think someone else can take them somewhere.

We feel the fake in the friendship.

We feel the pretend generosity.

We feel disappointed that you don’t see another way.

Because for us, there is another way forward.

We crave integrity. Genuineness. Substance.

We’re here to do great things, not only for ourselves but each other.

We believe in giving without getting.

We believe in thoughtful strategy, wise decisions and honoring our own goals.

We believe we can do this and honor our relationships and our community.

We believe it’s time to let go of hidden agendas.

Will you join us?

Love,

Jac

[Image by ignitelight.tumblr.com]

Welcome to the That’s What She Said interviews –an exciting new series to learn about the woman behind the business. You’ll be meeting amazing women who are sharing their gifts with the world through their work. These are the people who inspire me with their creativity, heart and tenacity.

I want you to know them too.

Meet Anna Guest-Jelley the Founder of Curvy Yoga, a training & inspiration portal for curvy yogis and their teachers. She is a writer, teacher & lifelong champion for women’s empowerment & body acceptance.

I first met Anna when she was interviewed by my good friend Amy Kessel.  Her story and approach were so compelling I instantly clicked through to her site to find out more.   I remember feeling an instant connection to her.  That’s the power of sharing your personally powerful truth–that unique story of you –in a way that connects deeply with your right people.

Like many women, I have had a tumultuous relationship with my own body, I especially struggled with this in my early twenties.  And although I’ve come along way in learning to love myself I still look for reminders, encouragement and teachers to keep me headed in the right direction.  Anna is definitely one of those teachers.

You can learn more about Anna here.

What She Said . . .

1.  I encourage women to build their business by being in their element.  What’s your element?

My element is transformation–both my own and others’. I’m not happy, and I don’t do good work, unless I feel I’m effecting positive change in the world. For me, being in my element looks like keeping my ear really close to the ground of my own experience and then sharing the nuggets of what I learn along the way in hopes of speaking a truth someone could benefit from.

2.  From your early twenties to today, how has your relationship to yourself changed?

Well, I actually have a relationship with myself, so that’s a pretty big change. In my early 20s, I was a ball of go, ambition, drive and anxiety. I prided myself on barely sleeping, working harder than anyone I knew and achieving more and more and more.

Not too surprisingly, I got exhausted, sick, burnt out and cynical. Finally, I realized I had to start making myself a priority or else I was on a road to much worse. These days, I’m more easeful. I do my best to structure my time around what feels really good. Some days that looks like working for 12 hours on a creative idea that I want to explore, and other days it looks like spending the day at acupuncture, lunch with a friend and spending 30 minutes responding to emails. I find that when I follow the rhythm of what I want and need, everything gets done perfectly fine (or at least this is what I remind that perfectionist version of me who is still around when she freaks out that we’re not working a set schedule anymore).

3.  What are the three most important decisions you’ve made in your business so far?

1. Getting help sooner rather than later: When I started Curvy Yoga, I had a very busy and stressful full-time job, and I knew that without someone to design my website and give me a bit of a boost, I’d never get it where I wanted it to go in the timeframe I wanted.

2. Spending money to make money: I kind of hate that phrase, but the concept has been extremely helpful to me. I have a standard for how I want my work to show up in the world, and that standard has required me to spend what has often felt like quite a lot of money. Of course, what “a lot” of money is will look different to each person, and I certainly wouldn’t advise anyone to make potentially harmful decisions. But for me, when I really invested in my business financially in a way that worked for me, my other investment grew, too (emotional, energetic, etc.), which helped everything bloom.

3. Knowing when I don’t need help (AKA trusting my gut): When I began Curvy Yoga, I read everything I could get my hands on, took every course and worked with several different coaches. This support has honestly been invaluable to me, so I don’t know that I’d do it differently if I had to do it again. But one of the things I learned along the way is that when my gut says I don’t need something to trust it. I’ve fallen into the trap of “I should get this program, book, etc. because everyone else is talking about it,” only to be disappointed when it didn’t turn out to be what I’d hoped. Now I always do a gut check before purchasing new things for my business, and things turn out much smoother.

These three items all speak to each other and ask me to do ongoing check-ins about what’s working when and where in terms of how I grow my business, which helps things never go too far off the rails.

4.  What disappointment has given you the greatest gift?

Last year I was slated to go on a 7-city teaching tour. I was so excited to finally meet all the wonderful people I’ve connected with online. And I was beyond honored and humbled that these folks actually wanted to meet up with me in person.

But then I had a fairly major knee injury right before the tour was set to begin, and I had to make the decision to prioritize my long-term health over my desire to do this and not disappoint people.

This was a huge lesson for me on so many levels: not to push too far just because I can, that if I feel exhausted by an idea before I even begin, it probably needs a second consideration, that it is okay (and even needed) to allow my life to influence my business, and that people are far more loving and understanding than you might expect them to be (especially if you fall into the camp of us who tend to be fairly hard on ourselves).

5.  What do you wish you had known when you first began your business?

I wish I’d known that while strategic plans are awesome, running a business also involves a fair amount of responsiveness and flexibility. When I first started my business, I spent too much time crafting and re-crafting plans of what I’d do without actually doing much of it. It’s only once I started trying things, to greater and lesser degrees of success, that the true learning began.

6.  What’s in your “biz tool kit” that you use every day?

I’m all about my biz systems! I have a marketing/blogging calendar that I check in with daily. I also have systems for writing/scheduling my blogs, updating social media, responding to emails, prioritizing to-dos (and making sure none fall off the radar) and tracking my money. My favorite resource is my wonderful VA, Erin Blaskie and the crew at BSETC. I connected with them last year and never, ever want to be without their support. I consider them a part of my business. Having their support has really given me some space to explore and produce programs/products that would have taken me much longer without it.

7.  If you had $10,000 to spend on your business right now, how would you use the money?

Interestingly, what first came to me was help around the house. I’m not one of those people who cleans when they’re stressed. While I do find the occasional fulfillment from tidying, I usually feel more drained by it than anything. So I’d sock that money away and use it to pay someone to take that task over, freeing up more of my time for work, family, friends and yoga.

8.  What is your six word business memoir? (Adapted from Smith Magazine’s Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure)

 Self-acceptance through yoga changes everything

9.  What special project are you working on right now?

I’m excited to be offering my first retreat with the lovely Rachel Cole in September. The retreat is called “Wise Body, Wise Hungers: Yoga & Coming Home to Our Desires” and will be held at Green Gulch Farm Zen Center in San Francisco. Details are coming soon; folks who are interested to learn more can sign up for my mailing list to get the first heads up!

A special give-away!

To celebrate the wonderful work that Anna is up to in the world she’s giving away a copy of her book Permission to Curve, it’s a collection of 60+ poses & sun salutations for yogis of every size, age & ability. At its root, this book is about radical self-kindness, finding a yoga practice that works for uniquely wonderful you. Click here to read more about the book.

Please leave your comment here on the blog and we’ll draw for a winner on Friday, February 22nd/13.

Anna Guest-Jelley is the Founder of Curvy Yoga, a training & inspiration portal for curvy yogis and their teachers. As a writer, teacher & lifelong champion for women’s empowerment & body acceptance, Anna encourages women of every size, age & ability to grab life by the curves. And never let go.

Explore Curvy Yoga programs, classes & certification courses online at CurvyYoga.com. And connect with Anna on Facebook and Twitter.

Image Credit: Meghan Davidson via Flickr Creative Commons

I’ve been immersing myself in client research these past few weeks and one of the things I keep hearing in these conversations is:  I don’t even know what I need right now! 

Women are telling me again and again that they’re feeling inundated with opportunities for growth.

Their inboxes are filled with invitations, sales pages and announcements for enticing programs.  And most of the invitations are for well respected programs on how to grow your business, how to shift your energy alchemy, how to play bigger, how to position your brand, how to write good copy, and even how to uplevel your entire life.

Sound familiar?

Some women are telling me that because they’re unsure of what they need, they’ve pretty much subscribed to every cool person they meet online. They’re hoping that the creator of program “X” will deliver a message or a sales page so compelling that their decision to say yes will be an easy one.

Other women are telling me that they’ve already invested thousands of dollars in business building programs and now they’re left staring at binders of tactics and strategies waiting to be implemented.  They feel daunted with where to even begin.

Too many opportunities and too much information can lead to feeling shut down, tuned out, or disengaged.  “I don’t know what I need so I’m opting out of all of it.”

Is there a theme emerging here, where we’re collectively feeling “burned out with business development”?

I believe there is.  And I believe what’s at the heart of it is not being clear about what we need right now–if anything.

In today’s post, I share 3 powerful questions to help you get clear about what you need right now—even if the answer that comes back to you is “do nothing, right now”.

3 Powerful Questions for Getting Clear on What You Need Right Now:

Q 1:  If you were to invest in a program right now and the experience had a significant impact on you and your business what exactly would be different?

Q 2:  What are the repeating messages, nudges and intuitive hits you keep receiving? [Think about what you keep circling back to--what is that?]

Q 3:  What would your wise future self tell you right now?  [Haven't met her yet?  No problem.  Listen to a powerful visualization and inner journey to access more of your inner knowing.]

 Here are a few ideas for how to work with these questions:

• Sit with pen and paper and write your response free form.
• Take these questions with you as you walk in nature.
• Call your best friend or your mastermind sisters and have them ask you each question.  Talking out loud can bring about massive clarity.

My work is about helping you build a business that’s a true and accurate reflection of the woman you are when you’re at your best.  It’s about designing your business in a way that reflects your innate gifts, your preferences, and your voice and addresses the critical challenges of your best clients.

I teach women solopreneurs how to move forward with clarity and courage so they can consistently make decisions about their business (and life) from a place of integrity, intuition and inner wisdom.

If you discover that what you need right now is clarity on your niche, messaging, right people and signature service then please join me in my 12 week online program In Your Element.  This is a small group program with plenty of personalized attention for you and your business.

****This is the last call for participants!  Registration closes tonight [midnight Pacific].  Click here to learn more and to register!

In the comments below, I’d love to hear how you discern what you need when it comes to personal and business development.

Welcome to the first That’s What She Said interview –an exciting new series to learn about the woman behind the business. You’ll be meeting amazing people who are sharing their gifts with the world through their work. These are the people who inspire me with their creativity, heart and tenacity.

I want you to know them too.

First up:  Meet Christa Gallopoulos an artist, writer and certified Martha Beck coach, who mixes all her gifts together to make magic!

I first met Christa when she joined my In Your Element program last year. Christa has found a compelling way to infuse her personally powerful story into her artwork, her coaching and a much-needed online alliance called WomenHeal where women gather, share & heal themselves, each other and the world.

Christa helps people see themselves with clarity and compassion, through creativity and intuition, allowing them to access their own guidance. You can learn more about her work here.

What She Said . . .

1.  I teach women how to build their business by being in their element.  What’s your element?

My element is creative expression – and it comes out in all I do.  I see beauty everywhere, and bring it to the world through my photographs, art, writing and intuitive work.  It’s always there – whether I’m cooking dinner or watching birds fly over my head. For a long time, I didn’t know that not everyone sees what I do!  Inspiration weaves through every area of my life and when I allow it to, it all becomes magical.  While I may not follow the rules around keeping business and personal separate, it works wonderfully for me.  Being in your element constantly creates a good, good life.

2.  How does your work serve others?

I help you to recreate your life – after big change, illness, trauma, or just because you’re ready.  People work with me when they want to hear the voice of their soul – that truth that gets buried beneath the rules, the should and the doing.

3.  What are the three most important decisions you’ve made in your business so far?

1.  I listen to myself – deeply and often.

2.  I make time for stillness despite a miles long list of ideas.  I figured out that creative time is not to be saved for last, like dessert – that it fuels everything else.

3.  I learned that what makes me different, what I was taught to think of as my “faults” and “wrong” – all of that is where my greatest gifts were hiding.

4.  What disappointment has given you the greatest gift?

For a long time, I was really disappointed that I didn’t have parental support to go to school or the financial means to do it without working a couple jobs.  Part of it was the credentials, yes.  More of it is that I never had that experience of figuring out who I was and experimenting within a university setting. The gift in that was that I found my own way, blazed my own path.  I may not have had much of a childhood or the chance to form lifelong friendships in a sorority house, yet my world now is so big, so full of the most incredible people.  I have dear friends all over the world, a network of incredible peers and a beautiful family.  And my career has spanned diverse fields, giving me a phenomenally well equipped skill set.  I’m never bored!  All’s well that ends well, indeed.

5.   What do you wish you had known when you first began your business?

I wish I had known that I had everything inside of me already.  I wish I had known that no amount of formal education would ever teach me what I learned by just jumping in and trying things out. I wasted a lot of time and energy worrying about not having a college degree, not having the right credentials, that sort of thing.  I see now that so many things in my life that seemed like huge crises taught me well and made me who I am today.  I wish I knew that doing things my way was much more than okay – that ultimately I am my brand, and my business is an extension of me.  For me, that works beautifully.

 6.  What’s in your “biz tool kit” that you use every day?

My intuition.  It never steers me wrong.  I know, if I take the time to settle and be still, whether something is right or not.  I forget  to do this – just as we all do – and then I remember and have a good laugh.  Beyond that?  My community.  I can toss a question out on social media and get instant wisdom on any subject.  Anything!  Or just know that I’m not alone, that I’m in good company, which is pure gold.  The time I take to create and sustain that support system is an investment.  A great one.   My lens – literally, in that my camera shows me so much, constantly.  And my inner one, which helps me to bring my own unique point of view to all I do.

 7.  If you had $10,000 to spend on your business right now, how would you use the money?

I would create the fully integrated and interactive web site I’ve been dreaming of for WomenHeal: an Online Alliance.  It will be, whenever the $10,000 arrives, a place where women can gather from all over the world and share their creativity with each other, inspiring both individuals and the collective to create unlimited amounts of good in the world.  I’m very fortunate to be connected to incredible women doing phenomenally brilliant work and I want women everywhere to have access to those gifts.  They, in turn, can bring their own wisdom and magic to all they do, whether it be gardening or running a corporation. We need each other, now more than ever, and we have the means to connect in ways that seemed impossible a decade ago.

8.  What is your six word business memoir? (Adapted from Smith Magazine’s Six Word Memoirs from Writers Famous and Obscure)

Joy is energy freed through creativity.

9.  What special project are you working on right now?

Something I’d like to share with you today is a hope that you’ll find time to bring creativity into your life. Confucius said: “Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it.”  I believe that beauty is a necessary part of life for us human beings.

I invite you to find a way to create – a valentine, a garden, a story. Whatever floats your boat.  I believe in beginning at the beginning, and so I’m offering an opportunity to do just that with “Walking the Artist’s Way”.  I will be leading a group of women through a year long, more in depth program called “The Creative Swashbuckler” this spring, too – something I’ve wanted to do for a long time!

A special give-away!

To celebrate the wonderful work that Christa is up to in the world she’s giving away a 1:1 Insight Journey Session (a 45 minute personal visualization, via phone or Skype, recording available).

Please leave your comment here on the blog and we’ll draw for a winner on Friday, February 1st/13.

UPDATE:  The winner is Judy Nathan!!!

Image credit:
www.flickr.com/photos/healingmoments/

A mother of 5 told me once that children act-up or act-out right before a major developmental milestone. I figured that after raising five children, this dedicated mama probably knew a thing or two about behavior and development.

Over the years, this pattern has also rung true for my girls.  Ever since my little ones were babies, I’ve seen sleep patterns go off the rails right before they started to walk. Intense tantrums right before their bank of words increased exponentially. Nasty sibling squabbles right before they started to read independently.

Knowing that something really cool is about to happen has made it easier for me to parent the icky and unexpected behavior changes.

Which is exactly why women solopreneurs need to hear this too.  I’ve seen this behavioral pattern again and again in myself and the women I work with.  There’s a sudden increase in negative anticipation, a feeling of paralyzing indecision and an out-of-left-field urge to throw in the towel right before the good stuff appears.

It’s known as The Dip.

Whenever I witness a bout of complaining, thrashing or pretend quitting I know what’s on the other side is going to be big, exciting, even transformational.

It’s the goo before the good.

Here are a few recent examples from the women I work with:

The new executive coach who’s been putting herself and her writing out there consistently for weeks who started to thrash, doubt and complain about her lack of visibility right before she was unexpectedly featured in 3 high profile articles.

The seasoned nutritionist who felt crushing defeat about the lack of sign-ups for her program just days before she was invited into an opportunity of a life-time with a trusted colleague.

The stay-at-home mom wanting to launch her healing business but was convinced she’d never land on her resonant niche and 3 days later had a major revelation and clarity about her messaging and positioning–and the website is now underway.

So, why do we experience The Dip?

I believe your inner critic knows when something amazing is about to reveal itself to you so she gets highly agitated and starts to act out. It’s like she’s predicting the greatness that’s on it’s way to you (or from you) so she creates a lot of emotion, distraction and reactivity to try to derail you.  You see, when you’re small she feels safe.  But your bigness and light make her uncomfortable.

Your inner critic is both sophisticated and dramatic.

If you’re in The Dip right now . . .

Here’s what a dear friend said to me, and it shifted everything:

“Jac, 

I know that deep down you know this, but I’m going to hold it for you while it’s maybe out of sight for you:  this is a dip and you’ll rise out of it (maybe even sooner than you think) and will get back in the flow again.”

Her words gave me permission to feel the depth of the dip, knowing full well she was holding my greatness in sight so that I could go off and be dark for a while.  She also reminded me that this is temporary and that I have everything I need to rise up and out of it when I’m ready.

We all go through dips.  They feel horrible and all-consuming at the time, but if we can weather the storm we’ll see that the light—our light– is on it’s way.

Hold tight sweet woman, you’ll be on the other side of this soon.  I just know it.  And you do too.

Love,

Jac

In the comments below, I’d love to hear what tools, strategies and resources help you through The Dip?

Ever sit around and wonder why isn’t this working!? I use to. Except I didn’t just ponder this question thoughtfully. I pounded my fists on my desk, I cursed, I cried.

When your calling is to share your gifts with the world through your work and nobody’s buying, it hurts.

I remember the days when it felt like I was going crazy. I had the voice of my inner critic on one shoulder threatening me and despairing and then I’d feel a rush of calm, hope and courage, thanks to my wise intuitive self sitting on the other shoulder.

When your business is off to a slow start emotions can run rampant. When you’re feeling like this, sometimes the best news is to know you’re not alone. And sweet woman, you are so not alone.

Too many brilliant entrepreneurial women get stuck at the starting gates unsure of which way to go. They spend hours scanning the internet looking for that one right answer that will help them move forward.

I wonder, are you searching too?  You and I both know that when it comes to building a successful business there’s never just one right answer. But there are a few helpful clues along the way that can make your path easier to find and follow.

Here’s an opportunity to do a self-inquiry assessment on your business right now. Grab a pen and paper and let’s check for resonance with the following 8 critical clues to discover why your business might not be thriving (yet).

Clue 1 ::

Ambiguity is the antithesis of a thriving business. Is your current message vague, ambiguous or lacking you-ness?  What’s the core message of your business?  What’s the real ‘why’ behind what you do?

Clue 2 ::

Rarely do people buy ‘high level,’ ‘meta,’ or ‘woo-woo’ messaging. Can you chunk your messaging down and make it even more accessible for your right people to bite into?  Where exactly will your clients begin and end with you?  What might happen if you used more specific examples from past clients, like before and after shots, to explain the work you do?

Clue 3 ::

Brand admiration can lead to stall outs. Are you getting too hung up on what your peers and mentors are up to?  What is your unique point of differentiation from other folks who are doing similar work to you?  If you were standing at the podium to your right people, what would you tell them about you and your brand?

Clue 4 ::

Creating offers from “guess-work” leads to more guessing. What information informs the development of your products, services, programs?  What are you assuming about your right people?  What are they assuming about you? What would be different if you had a direct line of communication with a group of your right people? What would you want to know?

Clue 5 ::

Know yourself first. How do you create a sense of competence and connection on your About You page?  In what ways does your personally powerful story inform and influence the work that you do in the world?  What if making the connection between your story and your work could clear a path between you and your right people?

Clue 6 ::

Essentially, you’re a problem solver. How would you describe the sweet spot between your innate gifts and the critical challenges of your right people?  When you’re at your best, what are the key problems you are helping your right people address?

Clue 7 ::

The inner work is the most important work. What if you didn’t look to the gurus and the experts but instead looked inward for the wisest and most resonant answers?  Where would your business be if you didn’t play down to the fears of your inner critic but instead felt an inner knowing and confidence to play bigger in your business?

Clue 8 ::

The lone wolf needs a pack. Who’s got your back?  Where is your soft place to fall?  Who can you go to for support, encouragement and calling forth?

As you dig around in these clues, what are you noticing? What rings true for you?

Building a thriving business requires inner work, outer skills and a community of supportive allies.

Today, registration opens for In Your Element!

In Your Element is a 12-week virtual intensive for women solopreneurs who are ready to trust their own internal wisdom and answer the calling of their right people through a well defined value proposition, clear messaging, and a compelling service offer.

This community of women will meet on equal ground at the intersection of inner work and business strategy, through online group learning and 1:1 coaching.

This is your wise self’s invitation for clarity in your business.  You can learn more about the program here.

Source: MursBlanc via Pinterest

On Saying Yes

I believe that financially viable and deeply satisfying businesses are built on a mountain of  “Yes-es”.

Yes, I will work with you. Yes, I will partner with you. Yes, I will guest-post for you. Yes, I will raise my rates.  Yes, I will create with you.

. . . and on it goes.

One of the first exercises I have my clients complete is their powerful list of “non-negotiables”— you can read about mine here.  The earlier you can declare what is most important to you, the sooner you can begin saying Yes and No with intention and power.

Here’s the exercise I walk my ladies though:

Commit to Step 1:  Respond to all requests with “I’ll get back to you, I’m going to think about it.”
Give yourself the gift of time even if it’s an itty bitty request.  Delay responding to email requests for 24-48 hours.  If you’re worried that you’re leaving someone hanging then send them a quick email that says “Got it–thank you, will be in touch soon.”  Respectful and powerful.

Step 2: Create an Intentional Checklist or Filter of Questions:
This is a 3-5 question checklist or filter that sits beside your computer; visibility matters.

Consider the request, invitation, opportunity or BIG idea that has come to you and filter it through these questions.

1. Is this opportunity/invitation/BIG idea aligned with my grander vision?
2. Does it feel resonant (i.e., exciting, warm, thrilling + scary, delicious, comforting, or like alignment or synchronization)?
3. Will it interfere with family time or personal time?
4. Will I grow, learn, or feel proud of myself because of this?

Grab a pen and paper.  Write down the questions that need to be on your checklist.  (Please, share them in the comments below!)

When you are intentional about why you are saying yes, it will lead to the most amazing growth, self-actualization and meaningful relationships you could ever imagine.

BUT, what happens when you’ve made a commitment to yourself, your business, another person—or even thousands of people — and what felt good in the beginning is now starting to chafe?  What then?

It’s time to Re-design your Alliance

One of the most important skills I learned in my coach training was how to redesign an alliance.  If you consider your current commitment —the one that might be chafing—you can see how you are in a relationship with this opportunity, person, or like I mentioned above— even thousands of people.

When you said yes, you entered into an agreement.  Also known as: the rules of engagement, the logistics, the expectations, the parameters.

Re-designing the expectations begins with being vulnerable and honest.  What you might say:

“I am committed to the process and I need to tweak this piece.  I’m wondering what you need to tweak?”

“I would love to maintain the spirit of this assignment while honoring my own [insert: needs? values? capacity?].  From this point forward, here’s what I can do . . .:

“I said yes to you and now this is feeling hard.  Here’s why . . .  I’d love to brainstorm some possible solutions together?  I’ll start . . . ”

If there’s a chafe, it needs to be addressed quickly, professionally and honestly.  We all know what happens to our skin when we ignore clothing that’s rubbing in all the wrong places—it blisters, turns raw, becomes inflamed.

In business, you need to learn how to confidently redesign your alliance every now and then.  It allows you to honour yourself, the other person and the BIG idea.

So, here’s my re-design:

I said yes to a very special writing project called “30 Days of Imperfection”.  And, I invited all of you to join me.  It was exactly what I needed to rise above my inner critic’s harsh judgment of my writing.   It worked! I have fallen in love with writing— yes–blogging (did I just say that?).

But, the frequency of writing every single day for 30 days started to chafe.  It was too intense for me.  I was staying up until midnight writing, exhausting myself and on the verge of resentment.

So, in the spirit of  honouring this important process and my commitment to writing, I have decided to write once per week.  Phew!  That feels SO damn good.

And, thank you for supporting me in this.

What commitment is chafing you?  What felt great in the beginning but not so much now?  What do you need to give yourself permission to ask for?

In the comments, please share the alliance that you need to re-design?  What do you need to ask for?

Love,

Jac