If you step through the threshold despite your fear, you’re likely to never look back because action replaces fear with inspiration. Your creativity and motivation take over and propel you forward.

But you do have to decide… to risk transforming yourself. Without decision, commitment and action it’s not possible to get any closer to what you want. And, indecision out of fear is a joy and creativity killer.

“It’s fear of outcome, not the outcome itself that causes pain.
– Larry Crane, The Release Technique

So here you are… wanting with all your heart to have a financially successful coaching business helping others make decisions and take powerful actions to get what they want. You have important decisions before you. Who is your niche market? What is your message? What offer will be irresistible to them? And, what can you do today to attract more clients and income?

But if you’re paralyzed with fear and need to make a decision now, what do you do?

Five Steps to Move Through Fear and Decide

1. Greet Fear as An Ally.

Everyone feels fear, no matter how confident or capable they are. Fear is inevitable.

So your goal isn’t to stop feeling fear forever, but rather shift to seeing fear as an ally and harbinger of opportunity. Make it a friend, and then the pain of it is fleeting. (And by the way, it will visit you less often too.)

2. Set Aside 5 Minutes to Visit with Fear

Write down the “tapes” that are playing in your head. You might discover a set of assumptions you’re holding that are biased from a past experience. You are not your past.

What is this wise part of you saying to you? What part of your body constricts or tenses up when you feel fear? Ask that part:

What do you need from me right now?

Often, this part just needs reassurance, such as “I can accomplish whatever I set my mind to.” Then your body relaxes and creativity ignites.

Every time I’ve used this coaching technique with a client it’s astounding how quickly their wisdom opens and fear dissolves. Why? Time. You see we rarely take the time to listen to fear as an ally.

3. Let Go of How

When the dreaded hows start flooding your mind, fear amplifies. As Mike Dooley says: “Do all you can, with what you’ve got, from where you are” and the Universe will do its part.

The path to success will always be outside your comfort zone. It’s okay. You know how to grow. You’ve been doing it quite well for a long time.

Let go of the desire to know it all and have it altogether. Lighten up and access your creativity.

Your goal is to make a decision, commit to that decision and take small incremental actions over time. If you require yourself to know how to do everything now, you’ll go numb and get stuck again.

4. Trust that There Are No Wrong Choices

The only poor decision is one made out of fear. If you cannot make the decision now, ask yourself what you need to decide.

- Information?
- Support?
- Rest?

Go get it.

5. Set a Date When You’ll Decide No Matter What

On that day if you haven’t made your decision yet, do this guided imagery exercise:

Close your eyes and see yourself filled with light. Then imagine opening your eyes to see a bridge over a beautiful stream. Beyond that bridge is a lovely winding path to your ultimate destination – what you really want.

You can’t see the whole path but it’s calling you on a meaningful journey.

Then you see a basket by the side of the bridge and instantly, you know what to do. One by one you leave your past regrets, your worries, bad habits and limiting beliefs in the basket. With each one you feel lighter and happier.

When you’ve filled the basket, walk halfway across the bridge, let your indecision fall off the side and watch it float away on the stream.

Then decide.

So… let’s hear your tribulations and tips about fear and making decisions. Please post them in the comments below.

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: Stop Letting Fear Keep You From Playing Big

You send out an email or two, do a teleseminar, or make a couple of calls (all the while believing you’re “bad at this”.) If your expectations aren’t met you declare “well, that didn’t work!” That starts a downward spiral where all actions cease and you’re officially stuck.

That was me early on in my coaching business. One day I was complaining to my mentor coach about my small clientele, my micro leads list, and my dismal income. I said: “Judy, I’ve worked so hard and it’s just not happening. This must not be what I’m meant to do!”

My coach allowed a long meaningful silence to fall between us for a few moments and then she gently asked: “Rhonda, what exactly have you done over the last 90 days to get clients, build your list and income? How many times have you actually invited someone to hire you?”

I realized, as I gave her my short list of actions, that I’d done very little that could actually result in paying clients. In fact, I’d been spending most of my time on low payoff actions and unrelated distractions! That’s because I’d try something once or twice and then give up quickly with big spaces of inaction and sadness in between.

I had no plan, I had no strategy, I was shooting from the hip and hoping, hoping, hoping that some single effort would unleash an avalanche of clients ready to spend thousands on my coaching and I’d never have to market again.

My coach helped me take a long look at my scarcity mindset and loathing for marketing tasks. She helped me open my mind to see things differently. Then she had me put together a promotional campaign for the next six months and break that down into daily activities. What a huge relief it was to wake up in the morning and focus in on those high payoff tasks.

That’s when I stopped being a reluctant entrepreneur and became a true entrepreneur. But there was another sea change too… I stopped expecting everything to work out immediately. I realized that to become truly prosperous meant taking one action after another without judgment, allowing things to germinate in the unseen world and letting the Universe surprise me, which it often did!

Get Out of Stuckville

Ready for some unstoppable momentum? Here are the five things to put in play now:

1. Commit to one decisive direction
If you know what you want to do and you’ve confirmed that it strikes a deep resonant chord with your target audience, commit now to becoming a master at reaching and serving those people.

If you’re uncertain what to do or who to serve, commit to one focused direction — anything! (You know that I favor the niche market method because it requires no particular expertise, specific knowledge or skills.) Then, pursue that direction with steadfast determination.

Let the magic begin! Some of the best things in life come from simply showing up day after day and doing your best even if it doesn’t seem like your high calling or life’s purpose. This is how the Universe conspires to bring you incredible opportunities, great alliances and meaningful connections!

The only real mistake is not deciding, not committing and not taking consistent action. The Start-Stop-Stuck pattern is a form of self sabotage.

2. Play big
Play for keeps. Be as bold as you can to stand out in the crowd. Do it your way and let your brilliance shine. Okay, I know that’s a lot of “rah, rah!”, but it’s true… no one ever gets to six or seven figures by playing small.

3. Plan your work
If you don’t have a step-by-step plan for your next promotional campaign, you’re more likely to fall into the Start-Stop-Stuck pattern and end up feeling alone and discouraged.

If you’ve ever caught yourself thinking that other entrepreneurs easily get all the clients or make a huge income, take the time to watch closely what those people do. They have lots of things in play ALL THE TIME! Anyone who earns well and has lots of clients has set in motion a well-laid plan. For example, they post a series of 10 – 15 emails, use their blog and social networks to reinforce those emails, deliver enrolling webinars– all sorts of things done in concert to bring about their big results. You can do those things too with a plan.

4. Work your plan without expectation or judgment
So much is happening in the unseen world. The seeds you plant will germinate in their own time. That’s why it’s wise to plant a lot of seeds and keep watering them in faith!

Absolutely, set intention for a specific result. Vision for what you want in living color and high detail. But then release attachment. Expectations become feelings of entitlement and then quickly… disappointment. If you didn’t reap the results you wanted, ask yourself: “What ELSE can I do right now to improve my results?” Then get to it.

5. Develop the “Gift” mindset
Have you ever noticed that people who seem to expect little, but think big and act boldly seem happier? They are often healthier too. Great opportunities and money flow to them thank to their positive mental attitude.

Try this… look for the gift in everything. No matter what happens in your business or life, no matter what results you get from your actions, see the gift. Be grateful for the results that have come your way, for the clients you do have. Believe that more are on their way. Stay in action.

Share your comments and your own power plays to stay out of stuckville here.

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: 5 Power Plays to Get Out and Stay Out of Stuck-ville in Your Business

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We’ve all heard the phrase, “Ideas are a dime a dozen.”  Especially when bright shiny object syndrome kicks in and you start chasing all kinds of opportunities without any real clarity of what’s a viable business idea.

But what about a big idea?

How is that different from all the other ideas swimming around in your head?

The Big Idea is different.

It’s the idea that energizes you to play a bigger game while tapping into the core of your purpose. It’s probably something very similar to what you have always wanted to do (and started your business to pursue in the first place) but you couldn’t ever figure out how to make money with it. So you dismissed it.

A Big Idea is aligned with what’s important to you – so instead of compromising your freedom or diminishing your bank account the big idea feeds it.

When you launch the big idea it takes your credibility and impact to new heights, positioning you as the thought leader in your industry.

The key is to find the “Big Idea” that is the right one – the one that aligns with what your prospects are craving that you have a fire in your belly to bring to the world. One that isn’t a copy-cat of someone else – it brings your unique genius so it stands out as the only logical choice to the people your serve.

The Big Idea is a game changer. It causes you to shift into being the person you’ve always meant to be – someone who has the confidence to pull off an idea at this level.

Here are some examples of how a few of my clients tapped into their Big Idea:

-          A well-known six figure coach wanted to bring her trademarked branding system to more people but didn’t want to coach them all. She felt her lifestyle freedom was shrinking and she deeply desired to have more time to create and recharge. We developed a certification system to train other coaches how to use her branding program. When she launched this level of a program, she skyrocketed her credibility into a new dimension while positioning herself for an additional seven figure income stream.

-          A former Fortune 500 market researcher uncovered a way to integrate her research with profiling women entrepreneurs, wrote a book on it and propelled herself from being a best kept secret in the corporate world to a thought leader in the entrepreneurial marketplace (and added a seven figure income in the process.)

-          A dating coach who spent hours a day coaching one woman after the next, feeling completely burned out and disenchanted with the job he created for himself, uncovered his client’s most unanswered question – and developed a new line of education materials that brought him over half-a million in new revenue, his dream home and a whole new inspiration!

So what’s the key to uncovering your Big Idea?

1. Liberation. You have to commit to let go of the stories, beliefs, habits and resources that are holding you back from accessing this next level of your evolution.
2. Recharge. In many cases, doing things the way you’ve done them up to now has burned you out or exhausted your spirit. You may need to fuel yourself before you’ll be ready to get fired up again.
3. Hone In. When you learn how to make decisions that are totally in sync with your genius factors and lifestyle priorities, unleashing your big idea will feel easy!

Ready to get your big idea making big money (and impact?)
http://prosperouscoach.com/thebigidea.

About the Author: Melanie Benson Strick, the Big Idea Catalyst, helps visionary entrepreneurs and thought leaders take their ideas from conception to seven figures. From firing up your idea to activating the resources to pull it off, Melanie’s Big Idea Incubator helps you create – and sustain – big money and impact with your Big Idea.
Melanie is CEO of Success Connections, is a popular speaker on success strategies across the globe, is on faculty with StomperNet as their delegation expert, is co-author of Entrepreneur.com’s Start Up Guide

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: What is a Big Idea worth to Your Bottom Line? – by Melanie Benson Strick

Our businesses need that kind of clearing to be healthy too. But it’s not just about catching up on filing or clearing off your desk. It’s about reducing energetic drags… the things that get in the way of innovation, creativity, and courage to take big leaps.

I’m on a big jag to clean up my life and business. Something came over me. Maybe it’s something in the stars. A friend told me today’s eclipse is all about letting go of big things that are holding you back.

Or maybe it’s just that I’m tired of feeling tired. I’m done with that! So I’m cleaning up my act in every corner and cranny of my life and biz.

Last weekend, my husband and I cleaned out our garage (our storage unit really). We did a lot of recycling, shredded old documents, cleared out the stuff from our mother’s passing and moves, passed forward things others need that we don’t any longer, and took stock of what we still have.

I felt like a huge weight was lifted off me with one project. And I’m ready to get back even more energy.

Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Release. Receive.

How does this relate to your coaching business?

In 1997 when I took my coaching training from Coach U (now Coach Inc.), Thomas Leonard taught us about “tolerations” – that long and growing list of things we put up with day to day that drains our energy and sucks the joy out of life.

It’s stuff like:

• Old worn out obligations that don’t align with who we are anymore.
• Piles of clutter and the detritus of a fast-paced consumer based life.
• Relationships that aren’t current and need a touch.
• Things we’ve been meaning to change about ourselves.
• Chores that desperately need doing that keep getting forced down the list.

In the most insidious way, tolerations get in the way of true creativity, innovation, and the ability to complete things. Getting rid of them helps you play a bigger game, with a bounce in your step and sparkle in your eye.

Like a clogged drain, tolerations can slow the flow of prosperity – your ability to receive the true joys of life, your financial success, and the deep meaning in your business.

Ready to lighten your load and your step? Take the 90 Day More Joy & Prosperity Challenge.

The way to tackle tolerations is simple, but you do have to dedicate time to it. Start by scanning these categories of your life. You may have your own categories too.

Environment – clean up and repair your household, your office, your car.

Relationships – get current, clear the air, touch base, endings and beginnings.

Finances – know your net worth, accounts, stocks, make plans.

Business/Career – shift what’s not working, improve mindsets, make plans.

Health – catch up on checkups, renew fitness & good diet habits, plan vacations.

Spirit – renew daily practices, worship or meditate more, get back to nature, slow down/reduce time commitments, be at choice.

Here’s the challenge:

1. Scan your categories and make an exhaustive list of all the things that are bugging you.
2. Go through the list and pick off the things you can take care of quickly. It feels good to get a bunch of them crossed off and gives you immediate energy.
3. Then look at the rest and rank them this way – Get it done, Delegate it / Hire it out, or Forget about it!  That last one is about releasing the hold the toleration has on you and crossing it off your list forever. It’s an option to admit and accept what is.
4. Give the big stuff a done-by date and put it in your calendar.
5. Enlist the help of your family or friends. Divide up the list and band together to get the big things done. Make a party out of it.

Share your thoughts and some of the biggies on your list in the comments.

• What do you know you’re tolerating?
• What has that cost you?
• What will it do for you to be free from your big tolerations?
• And what are your tips for reducing energy drainers & joy suckers?

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: 90 Day More Joy and Prosperity Challenge

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I’m waxing a little philosophical in this post. I caught myself this morning bouncing around from past to future and then opened my eyes to the lounging Buddha before me.

I’m big on ambition and so are my clients. But really… all this yearning is a little much sometimes. There’s lots of good stuff in the here and now. And now is the only time we have for receiving it.

If we let the moment go by without receiving the depth of what has come to us, how does THAT impact our future? What are we saying when all we want is more, more, more?

So, I’m offering this moment to myself and to you. A moment to drink in NOW.

• What’s engaging you? What is wonderful, nourishing, satisfying, delightful, rich, delicious, valuable in your life in this moment? The gift of being an entrepreneur in itself is huge. That I get to work from home. Ah!
• Have you admired nature today? The shape of the clouds or the buds on the trees? The smell of the air? Or how the birds are more excited because the sap is rising? At this moment, where I am near Boulder, Colorado, there’s a light snow coming down and still tons of birds are chirping, squirrels are digging it, leaping around in play.
• Think of the people you love. Think of all the people who serve you day in and day out. Think about someone who has taught you something, even if it was hard. Send them your gratitude. My incredible husband, my inner circle of friends, the vast and beautiful world of colleagues and coaches I get to play in!
• Think about all you’ve accomplished so far. All the ways you’ve evolved.  Think of all the tools, skills and talents you’ve developed. Oh my! I’ve come a long way. I know you have too.
• What did you have for breakfast? Isn’t it a miracle that was available to nourish you? And feel the fire in your belly always there for you. A happy chicken gave me eggs, a spunky goat gave me chevre, and the earth gave me these amazing herbs. And thousands worked hard to give me that fuel.
• Bless your heart and feel it beating in your chest. Think about how incredible your body is, all that it does for you without a single thought or push from your busy mind. Feel your aliveness. If I still myself enough, I can feel the blood in my veins and my nerves unwinding into bliss.

Five minutes and I feel better! It’s about slowing down enough to realize the depth of the riches you already have.

What about you? What did you notice? Share in the comments below. What other ways do you have to stay in touch with the truth of your prosperity?

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: Too Much Yearning? Try Just Being Here for Now

If you want to bring in more consistent results in your coaching business, pay attention to the archetypes you embody – the pattern of thoughts and behaviors that you play out – they will help you consciously change and grow.

The 3 Coach Archetypes

Watching myself and my clients closely for the last decade, I’ve noticed that coaches often default into one of three behavioral patterns:

• Some coaches are perpetual students, always engaged in consuming information. These knowledge seekers may be steered by possibility thinking, but they distract themselves from taking persistent high payoff actions.
• Some coaches are perfectionists. They may “tear up the ground” getting things done, but their belief that nothing they do is good enough takes the power out of their actions.
• Some coaches are brave hearts who are 100% committed to their own success. They cultivate both the courage and capacity to manifest what they most want, by adjusting to a powerful mindset while taking high payoff actions.

Let’s take a closer look at the three archetypes. While you do, notice which one is your default for now. This doesn’t define who you are; it’s just the pattern you’ve currently settled into. You have the power to love yourself into a more powerful way of thinking and doing. Trust that.

The Perpetual Student

The main message these folks feed themselves is: “I don’t know enough.”

They say: “I’m just learning. I still don’t know enough to be a professional. The answers I need are out there…”

Are you desperate to fill the holes in your understanding?

Do you often spend more on programs and certifications than you earn through coaching?

Do you ever feel like a fraud — and then reach for the next “bright shiny object” to fill that feeling of lack?

If you recognize yourself in these statements, you’re not alone. Many coaches get stuck in this pattern. Set intention to break free from this now!

Any strength overused becomes a weakness. Over-consumption of information, without fully implementing what you learn, leads to overwhelm — which can weigh you down and dissolve your courage. Take these steps to shift:

1. Turn off the flow of information coming in, until you have implemented what you already invested in.
2. Get most of your learning from doing, as a professional in the field.
3. Your new mantra is: “Everything I need to be successful is inside me now. I implement what I learn and take daily actions to manifest what I want most.”
4. To get on track and stay motivated, reach for mentoring support and accountability processes, rather than more training or information.
5. Trust yourself and your calling. Recognize the vast knowledge and skills you bring to the table, and use them to serve and earn well.

The Perfectionist

The internal tape these coaches play is some version of: “I’m not good enough.”

They say: “Once I have everything perfect and all my ducks are in a row, then I’ll get out there for real.”

Do you find yourself obsessively re-working everything before you put it in front of your target market?

Do you chronically over-deliver, sometimes do your client’s work for them, and undercharge?

Are you working hard but not on the things that will actually bring you ideal clients and income?

If you’ve got impossibly high standards, welcome to the club. But we both know those high standards cause more stress than success. The coaching business full of star clients that you long for, will come from relaxing your standards and taking intuitive, decisive actions. Take these steps now to shift:

1. Limit your time on each task. Aim to be in the flow for a single “power hour” each day and accomplish as much as you can that’s “good enough”. Then do another power hour to work on other tasks, or take a break.
2. First thing each business day, complete one to three bite-size high payoff actions — things that take you out of your comfort zone and have a big impact on your coaching business success. (Hint: it’s not reworking your web content the third time; it’s something like making calls to invite people to consults, and enrolling new clients.)
3. Make this your new mantra: “I am enough as I am now. My target market prefers intuitive to overworked materials and programs.”
4. Realize that your prospects and clients want to connect with the real you, not the plastic version. Whatever you do for your coaching business will have more impact when it comes from your authentic heart.
5. When you set out to do something, set intention that you will “bake it” to 60% done, and then get feedback from your market before you tweak it further.

The Brave Heart

The mantra of these coaches is: “I am on my power path.”

Do you feel the fear and do it anyway?

Do you summon courage, rather than looking for confidence to try something new?

Do you look for the answers within yourself before looking outside yourself?

You recognize this archetype. When you feel decisive, are focused on high impact tasks and 100% committed to your own success, it feels great and brings more of the results you want. Coaches living this pattern will sometimes plod and sometimes leap toward their goals, but they know they are on a hero’s journey. As they move forward, they adjust to possibility thinking, and adopt an attitude of gratitude.

All of us can summon our courage any time. It requires no special training or certifications, and has nothing to do with perfection. If you want to be the brave hearted coach:

1. Step fully onto your power path and stay the course.
2. Cultivate an “unstoppable” attitude and new skills, while you fully utilize what you already know.
3. Raise courage, rather than looking for confidence, to cross thresholds into the unknown.
4. Believe that you are enough, you know enough, and you are meant to achieve your dream.

Are you ready to take a big leap in your coaching business? Entrain your mind before you do anything else. Thoughts are the fuel that stoke your fire and put you in motion.

Turn on your power of observation. Keep it on, and watch your patterns of both thought and action. What you tell yourself will determine how you leverage your actions to manifest what you really want.

What messages are you feeding yourself today? Are there other “archetypes” you’ve identified? What will you do today to cultivate your brave heart?

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: 3 Coach Archetypes – Which Are You Today?

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Everyone has fear. Some “feel the fear and do it anyway”. They consciously suspend their disbelief that they can do it, long enough for the combination of their trust, persistence and subtle energies to coalesce dreams into reality. Our favorite stories are about regular people persevering to reach their destiny despite all odds. Without super powers, people do this every day.

To get to where you want to go, first suspend any disbelief that you can arrive there.

Break Through by Letting Go of Attachment

When I was eight I thought I’d never be good at downhill skiing, because experience told me I’d never be good at any sport. Totally psyched out, I struggled pitifully. Then one day, when I wasn’t scrutinizing my general lack of coordination, I hit the zone!

And then of course, I knew I could ski. There was no longer any question of that. Before long I could make it down a black diamond and practically float down the rest of the slopes. Having crossed the unknown and come out the other side, it was easier to become a pretty decent skater and halfback in soccer. I broke through the belief that I couldn’t do sports.

Believe in Stories of Success

We all need role models to grow to our full potential. It’s helpful to know that others have achieved your dreams. And to believe with all your heart that if they can do it, you can do it too.

Something really poignant happened last week…

I was helping my friend, Milana Leshinsky, promote her free video series about recurring revenue. The email I sent out said in the subject: This coach made $8K while on vacation. I received several excited emails from coaches planning to attend Milana’s recurring revenue program. I also received a courageous email from a coach asking me not to share these “misleading messages” with coaches. She took the subject line about the $8K for an “easy money” scheme. But actually it’s a success story – a true and inspiring account encouraging others towards what’s possible in their coaching business.

Maybe this coach didn’t yet know that it is absolutely possible to earn $8K through recurring revenue in one month. Maybe she was in unknown territory and had given up faith. I’ve lost faith in my dreams so many times. I can relate.

Disbelief is completely normal and understandable. Every one of us has achieved something that eluded us at first, and we’ve also stood on that pre-side of the unknown, wondering if it’s possible.

Find stories of success for what you want, and hold them before you as a beacon to show the way. You too can be that successful coach or ski down a black diamond or most whatever you long for. And then you will be the success story for others.

Believe Beyond Your Imagination

In all the interviews with successful people there’s always a wildcard in their story. A twist they couldn’t have foreseen. They were heading for one end goal and the unexpected showed up. Something they would have never imagined or strived for. But it was a boon that opened up their mind and possibilities.

This happened for me in my coaching business. Frightened yet faithful, I took a step into the unknown. And some very surprising yet prosperous turns of event have happened…

I had no idea that I had what it takes to co-author best selling coach training curriculum. I would not have guessed I’d become a writer and teacher with sought after expertise. Is the unknown behind me? Oh no. I still cross that territory again and again to keep growing.

I hear from coaches all the time that choosing a coaching niche to champion has opened up doors to places they never knew existed, bringing them income and joy they didn’t imagine before. They credit their success to taking a courageous, committed step forward and then another and another, always entering into the unknown and coming out the other side to something wonderful and unexpected.

What has suspending disbelief brought you that you never imagined?

SHARE YOUR COMMENTS ONLINE AT: Suspending Your Disbelief Opens Doors to What You Want

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