Are you valuing your gifts?

We’ve all had those “turning point” conversations… you know the ones that rattle your cage, serve as a wake-up call, and ultimately create a breakthrough. Here is one of mine…

I was talking to one of my mentors about one aspect of my business where I was feeling a lot of resistance. Said resistance was showing up in some not-so-great ways that were keeping me small, stuck and constantly creating money drama.

She listened patiently as I recounted all of my woes. Finally, I stopped to take a breath. What she said next went straight to my core.

She said, “Elizabeth, stop treating your gifts like trash.”

(Is that a kick in the butt or what?)

In that moment I realized that every way in which my business and creative life was NOT working could be “bottom lined” to one core problem: not valuing my gifts. All the frustration, money drama, wasted time – everything. And in that moment, I made a decision: from that moment forward, I was going to value my gifts, no matter what.

In order to become the prosperous, impactful, change agent that you long to be, you, too, MUST make the decision to value your gifts, no matter what. Why? Because when you don’t value your gifts, they go unused, or you give them away, and you will never receive the abundance you deserve for using them to help others.

The “undervaluing dance” seems noble. After all, it’s what we’ve been conditioned to think and feel. Don’t brag, be nice, be generous, all that.

Here’s the truth: undervaluing yourself and what you offer keeps your peeps unserved. And let’s be honest – it also feels really crappy. Not exactly supportive to creating the life you want!

One thing we tell ourselves is, “Oh, [insert gift here] is no big deal. It’s easy for me. How can I charge for that?” When you catch yourself saying those things, that’s your cue that you’re giving away gifts that should be properly valued.

(6-figure practice hint: when something comes easy for you, it should be valued even MORE highly.)

Here’s my coach’s request to you this week. Take a good long look at the talents, gifts, and skills. You know the ones – chances are they’re related to the work you really want to do in this world. Your calling. The reason why you were put here on this big blue ball called Earth.

Put ‘em in writing. Open your journal to a fresh page of paper. Make a list.

When you’re all done, make this promise to yourself: “I am going to OWN my gifts… even if it’s not comfortable.”

Owning your gifts is THE critical mindset shift that makes a prosperous, purpose-driven life possible… and I want nothing less than that for you. As always, bright blessings and massive success…

How To Heal The Money / Spirit Inner Conflict

There’s something I noticed early on when I began coaching and teaching spirit-rich solo business owners.  When I ask them straight up if they positively impacted the lives of their clients through their work, they say, “Absolutely, no question.”

Many of them can easily call up in their minds a significant list of clients who had experienced life-changing breakthroughs as a result of working with them.  Even if they were brand new, often the people they had “buddy coached” or practiced their craft with received great value from them.

No doubts about their abilities.  No hesitation on the value of their craft and their work, until… money enters the equation.  Then they often told a different story, filled with second-guessing, self doubt, and lots of guilt.

In their power one minute, on shaky ground the next. When you really stop to think about it …. what the heck is up with that?

We’re taught in our society that it’s not spiritual to make a lot of money.  Indeed, we’re programmed every day to believe that having a lot of money is a bad thing, that “rich people” are selfish, insensitive, uncaring, et cetera.  You see it in books, in movies, in magazines… all over.

And that sets us up for an enormous amount of conflict. Because on the one hand, as spirit-rich business owners, we value being a good person. On the other hand, we also want plenty of money in our lives – for our families, to create security, to give to charities, and yes… for ourselves as well.

One thing I know to be true – from my own experience, working with clients, and observing what’s going on in the bigger circle – is that it’s impossible to be successful in an area of your life when you have unresolved conflict.  If you’re conflicted about money and spirit, there is just no way that you will be able to step fully into your true work in the world – your purpose – and impact a lot of people.

That’s why it’s so important that spirit-rich, purpose-driven business owners heal the money/spirit divide within themselves.  Here are 4 tips to help you do just that…

1. Remember that making money is an authentic, natural expression of living your purpose. Money is a mirror for how we value ourselves and our gifts.  When you’re doing the work you’re meant to do and valuing it (in other words, NOT giving it away), you can’t help but make money – it’s just that simple.

Money is powerful feedback for how we’re showing up in the world, living our purpose.  And you get to make adjustments!  If you don’t like how money is showing up for you, you have the power to change that… and it starts from the inside.  So cool.

Having more money doesn’t change who we are, it allows us to bring more of ourselves forward.  I like to think of it as turning up the dial on who we are already.  And that’s a beautiful thing.

2. Set boundaries. When you’re trying to figure out on the fly if something is okay with you or not, it’s really easy to question your judgment or let doubts creep in.  Decide ahead of time where your money-and-spirit boundaries are, and stick to them.

For example, in my spiritual tradition, we do not accept money to teach our tradition.  That’s neither a “good thing” or a “bad thing” (and not everyone in the surrounding community agree with us, which is ok too) but it is a boundary that I happily agreed to.  As I move forward with my work in the world, I seldom feel conflicted because I know where that boundary lies.

Another example is scholarship clients.  Many practitioners want to work with people who may truly not have the money to pay their fees, as a give-back or some other reason that’s important to them.  If that’s you, set a clear boundary as to how many scholarship clients you will take and what those scholarships look like.  Be very mindful of who gets those spots and when they’re gone, they’re gone.

There is incredible personal power and healing in setting a clear boundaries that honor you, your clients and spirit.  Remember, you are here to serve many people, not just a few!

3. Find role models. Look on the shelves of any bookstore, in the self-improvement or mind-body-spirit sections, and you’ll see the work of many leaders who are both spiritual and financially prosperous. Indeed, I’d be willing to bet a milkshake (my favorite wager!) that at least one of your favorite spiritual authors falls into this category.

Select one or two of them to study.  What values do they hold?  What do their organizations or businesses look like?  How do they show up with money and teach about money?  Come up with questions of your own.

4. Reject the status quo programming. You can choose to say no to the “rich people are greedy and insensitive” message.  Turn up your radar for these messages and as they come to you, ask, “Is that really true?  Is this a belief I want to take on?”

Your research on role models will give you evidence to the contrary!  Use your new role models – those who are kind, have integrity, do the right thing, are caring, are serving people in a big way AND are financially prosperous – to shape your thinking and your new, healthy beliefs about money and spirit.

© 2009 Elizabeth Genco Purvis.  All Rights Reserved.

Elizabeth Genco Purvis, “The Marketing Goddess” teaches spirited solo business owners and conscious entrepreneurs how to attract an abundance of clients, income, freedom and satisfaction in their business while staying true to their values.  Visit MarketingGoddess.com to claim your copy of “Grow Your Business With Spirit And Soul,” a 7-part audio workshop with everything you need to begin attracting more clients right away.

Next Free Training Call: January 26th

Is it time for a new money story?

One of my favorite things in the world is… stories! Not surprising, given that I’m a writer. And I bet stories are among your favorite things, too.

Am I psychic as well as a storyteller? Well, yes, but that’s another, er, story. In this case, however, I’m making an educated guess.

You see, as a tribe, we human beings love stories. They’re how we communicate, how we persuade, how we entertain, how we learn. Indeed, stories are among the most powerful forces we use to shape our lives. And no stories are as important as the ones we tell ourselves over and over again – especially around money.

Sometimes these stories are really old. For example, an old money story that I picked up while growing up is that I couldn’t make the money I wanted doing what I loved. Or its variation, that financial abundance doing one’s “heartwork” was for other people, not me. And oh yeah – it would be a hard road (implicit story: I was bound to fail), so why even go for it?

Very damaging story, that one. (Sooooo over it!)

One of my favorite parts of my work is watching my clients release their old stories around money. One client changed her story from “A psychic business isn’t a real business” to “My business is the sacred business of healing others, and I demand that it be taken seriously.” As you might imagine, her income shot up. Plus, she started having a heck of a lot more fun.

Note that a story doesn’t have to be old to be damaging. Yes, you may have just crashed your car, had your wallet stolen, lost a check in the mail, or any number of financial hiccups. Yes, said hiccups are a pain in the butt. Let yourself be grumpy about it for a few minutes, then let it go. It’s time to get resourceful or that baggage will just weigh you down.

(If you experience these kinds of ‘bad money luck’ incidents often, I guarantee that’s something you want to take a look at. What’s really going on there?)

What kind of stories are you telling yourself around money? If your financial situation isn’t where you want it to be, it’s time to tell yourself a new story. You get to make it up.

One of my personal favorites is “I am resourceful and can create the money for the things I want.” (That one changed my life!) Another is, “Making fantastic money is part of my spiritual path.”

Also, if you find yourself talking out your negative money story to other people, it’s time to stop. Telling your story only keeps you stuck in your story. (Yes, I’ve been guilty of this too… until I cracked down on myself. Because it’s so important.)

Remember, you create the story of your life. The stories you tell are the stories you live. I invite you to step into an abundant 2010 by telling yourself and others supportive, resourceful stories around money. Bright blessings and massive success!

Is Your Business Model Setting You Up For Success… Or Failure?

Every business has a business model, including yours! The question is, does your business model allow you to create incredible income while serving lots of your choice clients, or… not?

If you’re like most of these business owners, you started in business by hanging out your shingle and serving clients one-on-one.   Working 1-on-1 is the prevailing business model for self-employed service businesses, including spirit-rich, purpose-driven owners like coaches, metaphysical consultants, designers, and healers.

Trouble is, in the 1-on-1 business model, you’re always limited by one key factor: your time. When you’re out of time, you’ve also capped your income… and you’re overwhelmed and exhausted to boot.  Not good!

Luckily, the problem of 1-on-1 burnout is completely avoidable… with the right business model. A robust business model will grow with you (instead of breaking down), frees up your time, and creates generous income for you.  Best of all, the right business model helps you transform more lives while actually working less.

To help you get started shifting your business model from one that drains you to one that sustains you… and so much more, here are some quick tips taken from the proven business model planning system I share with my clients, The Profit Pyramid^TM….

Tip #1. Select your income streams. You’ll want a variety of income streams and price points, starting with freebies (articles, free teleseminar, mini audio courses, short video tips) all the way up to high-end offerings.  By creating offers at different price points, you’ll give many more people the opportunity to be served by your work AND create more opportunity to receive income for that transformation.

Bonus tip: Create your income streams using the “rinse and repeat” strategy. Start with one signature system – your expertise packaged into a step-by-step system that your clients can easily follow to get results.  (Examples: one of my signature systems is The Abundant Business System, another is Clients & Cash Flow Secrets.)  Then offer your signature system in a variety of formats, such as a teleseminar series, a 1-day intensive, a 30-day bootcamp, and more.  Creating a signature system and offering it in a variety of formats keeps you from burning out on creating new content and provides “readymade” income streams that you can tailor to your clients and situation.

Tip #2. Always know what comes next. Part of the beauty of a correctly designed multiple streams model is that it creates leverage – big results (income) through very little effort (your time, energy and money).  To get leverage, one stream of income must flow into the next, into the next.  The design can be summed up in a simple question: “What comes next?”

All too often, solo business owners create an offer, get a few clients, then complete the work… with no next step.  There is almost always an opportunity to serve your clients again – additional support, deeper work, solving a new problem.  Ask the question “what comes next?” after each offer and make sure you have a new offer to solve that problem.

Bonus tip: Know where 1-on-1 fits into your business model. Does creating multiple streams mean you have to give up the juicy 1-on-1 work you love?  No!  But you do need to know where it goes in your plan: your most exclusive, biggest ticket offers.   Your 1-on-1 time is of the highest value in your business – treat it accordingly.

Tip #3. Focus on your big-ticket (high-end) offer first. One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make when getting started with multiple streams of income, passive and leveraged income is… they spend waaaay too much time on freebies and lower-end offers.   They spend all their time on “the small stuff,” run out of clients & cash… then panic.

Instead, focus on the offers that will bring in immediate income first, such as a well-designed higher end program or VIP mentoring day.  Note that this might mean getting a little uncomfortable, as it involves reaching out to clients, having a conversation and asking for the business.  Remember, you help no one when you hide your light under a bushel!  When you come from a place of true service, your clients will appreciate your sincerity and are much more likely to say yes to your offers.

When is the best time to implement the right business model?  Right now! Even if you’re brand new in your business, now is the time to put your multiple streams of income business model in place.  Your multiple streams business model is critical to creating the impact and income you want while maintaining time and financial freedom in your life – don’t put it off!

Want  step-by-step instruction and my personal help on creating your own Profit Pyramid^TM, Signature System and high-end offers? I’ll coach you through each of these topics in depth when you join me for my next group training, The Abundant Business Marketing & Manifestation Mastermind, starting in February.  But HURRY – space is strictly limited and spots are filling fast. Get all the details and reserve your place here: http://www.6figuresoulbasedbusiness.com

© 2009 Elizabeth Genco Purvis.  All Rights Reserved.

Elizabeth Genco Purvis, “The Marketing Goddess” teaches spirited solo business owners and conscious entrepreneurs how to attract an abundance of clients, income, freedom and satisfaction in their business while staying true to their values.  Visit MarketingGoddess.com to claim your copy of “Grow Your Business With Spirit And Soul,” a 7-part audio workshop with everything you need to begin attracting more clients right away.

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