10 New Year’s Success Habits For The Divine Entrepreneur
So the tree is taken down, the Yule log burned out, the eggnog all gone and the lights put away. The new year is here! It’s a time of reflection, looking forward, and making positive changes. Perhaps you’ve made a few New Year’s Resolutions for your life and business.
Personally, I’ve never had much luck with New Year’s Resolutions because the vibe feels punishing, not promising – like I’m going to have to work hard or struggle to create the positive change that I want.
That’s when I hit upon the idea of creating New Year’s habits. Habits are small, simple shifts that support you. They’re manageable, so you’re much more likely to succeed, especially if you take them one at a time. Best of all, habits create an environment that pull you forward and add up to BIG results over the long haul.
Below are 10 tried, true and simple Divine Feminine success habits for the new year. Turn even 2 or 3 of them into new habits and you’ll be amazed at how quickly you make positive shifts in your life and business – without effort, strain or struggle.
1. Honor your Divine Feminine Gift of Creativity daily. Your creativity, not your list, is your true source of income because it’s your creativity behind your programs, services, partnerships, relationships, marketing and all the other yumminess in your business.
That’s why you MUST protect your creativity (and creative time) like the valued asset it is. Remember, you simply can’t manifest when your energy is depleted!
2. Receive support daily. Consistent daily support is a necessity, not a luxury, for the Divine Feminine Entrepreneur. You simply cannot go it alone and expect to succeed. Coaches, mentors, assistants, web designers, and your emotional support system are all critical members of your team.
Receiving power tip: When you feel yourself pushing or struggling, that’s your cue to stop and check in: “Would a million dollar business owner be doing this task?” If not, delegate!
3. Pay yourself twice per month. Yes, you can do it! The secret is to focus on the action, not the amount, and take a no-excuses policy. Paying yourself first is a key practice in activating the Divine Feminine Gift of Receiving, which will allow you to receive even more.
4. Follow up with potential clients. Contrary to popular belief (and what your squishy mind is probably telling you), follow-up is a gift. When you get out of your ego (“they’re not really interested,” “I don’t want to pester,” etc) and check in from a place of caring and consideration, your clients will feel seen, acknowledged, and deeply appreciated. Check in at just the right time, and they’ll hire you.
5. Reconnect with current and past clients. Most spirit-driven entrepreneurs neglect past clients – a big mistake. A high percentage of satisfied clients will want more support from you, once the first program or contract is finished.
Make a habit of personally connecting and checking in with your peeps from time to time. They’ll feel the love, and you’ll both get the benefit of working together more often.
6. Track your income daily. This deceptively simple practice is one of THE most powerful, potent steps you can take to automatically start making more. (One of my clients reported 3 five figure months in a row shortly after starting this practice.)
Important tip: your motto when tracking is “it all counts.” Spouse’s income, gift money from Grandma, pennies on the street – it all counts. (Got a question about this? The answer is, “it all counts.”)
7. Commit to “just one thing” daily. To keep your marketing truly simple, stick to basic tried and true principles and adopt the magical practice that I like to call “just one thing”: every day, do just one thing to build your business, no matter how small.
“Just one thing” uses the Japanese principle of kaizen: big results come in continuous small increments over time. Commit to just one thing daily and you’ll never have to worry about where your clients are coming from ever again.
8. Let go of just one thing daily. Obligations, mundane tasks, and administrivia all chew up your precious Divine Feminine energy. So do damaging emotional habits like comparison, fear and doubt, and being too hard on yourself. Create the space for your Divine Feminine Gifts to flourish by asking yourself this question daily: “What can I let go of?” (Here, too, it all counts!)
9. Invest in your learning, growth and expansion. When you invest time, energy, attention and money in your own growth, you are essentially paying yourself… and the results can never be taken away. Find a coaching group or mastermind, schedule time to read or listen to the content, and implement.
10. Gratitude. You know it feels good. You know it works! Now all that’s left is to make it a habit. If you haven’t been giving thanks DAILY for all the money, business and success you DO have, now is the perfect time to start. Complete this sentence 5 times: “Today, I feel rich because…”
Best wishes for a rich and successful New Year!
10 Ways To Practice Gratitude, Every Day
Back when I was struggling in my business (and well before I figured out the practical steps to generate more clients and income), I was blessed by the Goddess with a powerful awareness:
In order to change your life, gratitude must come FIRST.
It was giving that gratitude FIRST that opened the space for the way to solve the problem of creating a thriving business to finally show up. Without gratitude, I never would have seen my way clear to a solution. And I never would have healed.
As a spirit-driven entrepreneur, you’re undoubtedly already familiar with the transformative power of gratitude. One thing is certain: gratitude is NOT for a single day in the year. Gratitude is a practice.
Which means it’s not always easy. You won’t always be perfect! (Who wants perfection, anyway?) But…
When you make the commitment to LIVE in gratitude, it will create a space for you to experience the ultimate blessing: to change your life while transforming the lives of others.
That is what I wish for you, and that’s why I’ve created what might be my most life-changing checklist ever:
10 ways to practice gratitude, every day.
- First thing in the morning.
My very first step with gratitude was to choose gratitude first thing in the morning – to condition myself to be in gratitude the very second I opened my eyes. To this day, “moment of awakening” gratitude is still my favorite practice. May it transform your life as it has mine. - Last thing at night.
If your last thought at night is the thing your mind is going to work on all night long, it only makes sense to choose gratitude as your last thought, as often as you can. - Keep a journal.
There are so many ways to keep a gratitude journal! One way is to make a list of at least 10 things you’re grateful for, every day. My favorite sentence starter: “I feel rich because _____________” . - Bless the jerks.
One of the most powerful business and life lessons I have ever received is this, from my mentor Maria Gamb: people are in pain, and you have a choice as to how you react.
The next time someone cuts in front of you, cuts you off on the highway, says something nasty or whatever it is, I invite you to take part in the ultimate gratitude practice: remember that this person is a human being, and as a human being, they are in pain. Bless them. - Smile at strangers
What’s free to give, fun to give, and a joy to receive? A smile. Yes, I know that may sound corny. Try it.
What’s also fun about smiling at strangers is that it’s a little subversive. Forget about what the other person will think, and give freely. - Thank your clients.
Your clients have given you a great gift: they chose YOU to change their lives with. Thank them! Your gratitude will come back to you (in the form of referrals, repeat business and word-of-mouth marketing) as it expands and enriches them. - Thank your team.
Without your team, you can’t grow. Thank them! You gratitude will come back to you in the form of amazing contribution on the part of your current team, and perfect team members showing up in your life.’ - Thank your mentors and mastermind.
When I think about where I’d be without my mentors and mastermind partners over the years…
On second thought, let’s not go there.
What you create with the help of brilliant mentors and mastermind partners simply cannot be created on its own. Thank these people for enriching your life. - Call home.
Have you told your family you love them lately? Whether it’s your family by birth or your “heart family,” there is nothing that can shift experience and put you in a state of grace like thanking and honoring those you love. (For those closest to you, one of my favorite ways is to tell them at the end of every day, “You did great work today.”) - Give back.
The power to give is one of the greatest joys of being in business for yourself. Freely give of your time, energy, attention and money, in a way that is in integrity with yourself and supports you… so you can continue to give and receive.
A Hidden Secret To Raising Your Fees With Confidence
Have you ever wanted to raise your fees – but felt totally scared to do it?
You’re not alone! The first time I sold a high-end package, I was just out of coach training. I barely had any coaching experience. Even though I knew I knew my stuff (I’d been doing the marketing thing for a while), and I knew I was smart and really cared about my peeps… I had a serious case of the Fraud Factor. Who the heck was I? How did I really know I could help clients get results?
(The problem was that I’d given my mentor my word – in front of nearly 40 people! – that I’d sell a program at a significantly higher fee than I’d ever charged. I couldn’t back out even if I wanted to!)
When I finally got out of my own way and really thought about what was triggering me so much about raising my fees… I realized that my discomfort around charging those fees actually had less to do with deserving (“am I really good enough?”) and more to do with alignment.
I realized that some of the habits I had around money simply didn’t jibe with the high-end coach I was quickly becoming.
Truth is, if you’re engaging in money behaviors such as…
- Discounting (either offering or caving in when asked)
- Assuming people can’t pay or deciding in advance what they can pay
- Taking on “heartsink clients” (your heart sinks when you work with them)
- Not following up on declined payments and clients who owe you money
- Owing vendors money without a payoff plan
- Bartering your services
… and other disempowering money actions, it’s very difficult to ask for and receive higher fees. It’s like your heart and spirit know that something is “off”… even if you don’t realize it consciously.
Cleaning up even just one or two “money leaks” is going to give you a feeling of personal power and confidence that simply wasn’t there before. Why? Because when you’re in alignment, you feel better about yourself and what you’re doing. It’s easier to ask others to invest with you because you are BEING a coach, healer or practitioner who takes her business and her money life seriously.
Try this…
The next time it’s time to raise your fees (like, say, right now ), instead of going to that icky place of “am I good enough / experienced enough / ready enough,” try a different question. Ask yourself,
“Where am I giving up my power with money in my life or business?”
Remember, you don’t have to be perfect (nor do you have to wait to clean up every money leak) to raise your fees – just take the first step and then the next. Your clients will feel it, you’ll hear more yeses… and next thing you know, asking for and receiving more will feel as natural as passing the salt!
Getting masterful results for your clients and masterful results in your business begins with mastering YOU: committing to a continuous journey of self-improvement, especially around your wealth consciousness and money actions. Cleaning up your “money leaks” is one of the first and most important steps in growing your Personal Money Mastery, one of the 4 key elements of creating a sustainable 6-figure business in record time. You’ll get my rich content and step-by-step systems for each element in Goddess Business School starting in January 2012. Are you on the priority notification list yet? Simply email my team at teamgoddess@marketinggoddess.com with “GBS priority list” in the subject line.
How To Gracefully Say No (Without Feeling Guilty)
As spiritual entrepreneurs, our mission is to be of service to others through our unique brand of transformation. Seems simple, right? Yes… until you look at the experience of many spiritual solopreneurs: overwork for too little money, giving oodles away time for free, saying “yes” at the drop of a hat and putting everyone else’s needs before their own.
The intention is pure of heart and spirit. But all these forms of self-sabotage block your message, leave you feeling resentful and keep you from truly making the kind of impact you’re here to make.
The problem it’s simply that most of us were never taught to do the ONE thing that will empower us to take back our time and our energy, more than any other: set clear boundaries without feeling guilty.
If you’re frustrated because you know you’re “giving it all away” but don’t know how to break the cycle of saying yes when you really want to say no, here’s how to use your Divine Feminine Gift of Boundaries to empower yourself AND those you help.
Tip #1: Get fully on board with gracefully setting boundaries.
After working with hundreds of spiritual entrepreneurs, it’s been my experience that one reason why they give away so much is because they truly don’t understand how much it costs them to do so. They get pulled into the old patterns of “I should do XYZ” because everyone else is doing it, “it’s the spiritual thing to do,” or whatever.
It’s time to get REALLY clear, here: the shadow belief lurking behind boundaries violations is this: “The other person getting what THEY want is more important than I am.”
(If you’re as horrified at that as I was when I first read it, you’re not alone! I can say that this ONE awareness has probably kicked more “client butt” in my practice – in a very empowering way! – than any other.)
The key to gracefully setting boundaries without guilt is to adopt 2 new breakthrough beliefs:
What serves me, serves others.
People find a way to get what they need. (more on that in a second.)
Tip #2: The less said, the better.
When women say no, we instinctively want to jump in, justify, and explain. We want to make it okay for people. While these instincts come from a well-intentioned place, the subsequent behavior just opens the door for “negotiation”… which can lead to caving in.
The urge to make everyone feel better is simply conditioning. It’s a pattern. You can make a new choice at any time by simply saying, “I’m sorry, I’m unable to do that.” And leaving it at that.
Tip #3: Hold your clients (and yourself, AND everyone else) firmly in their power
One of my clients is in the process of “upleveling” – moving away from clients who she loves but can no longer serve in the same way because it asks too much of her. She’s struggling with guilt because she doesn’t want to leave anyone behind.
Here’s what I shared with her: people find a way to get what they need. (I recently learned that we humans are actually hardwired for this – kinda wild, right?) That means YOU don’t have to give yourself away – your clients (and everyone else) can take care of themselves.
I firmly believe that one of the keys to creating massive transformation is to hold them as powerful, always, no matter what. When you hold people as powerful, you create the space for them to step out of needy mode. And you empower yourself to release feelings of guilt as you make the choices that support you.
“Boundary Leaks” Are A Gift In Your Business
Here’s my invitation to you…
Next time you know you’ll have a situation where you’ll be tested on your boundaries (saying no to a client, standing firm in your pricing, sticking to an established agreement)… instead of dreading the conversation, look at it as an opportunity to stand firmly in your power. AND to hold your clients in theirs, too.
It may feel a little funny at first, but the more you set boundaries (and realize that the world isn’t going to collapse!)… the stronger you’ll get. You’ll feel soooo good when you direct your energy in ways that serve you first – so you can serve many, many more people through your Heart Work than you ever could before.
How To Use Your Intuition To Make Business Decisions
Running a successful business means that you’re going to be making a lot of decisions on a daily basis. Some are big (who to hire?), some are fun (what to put in the goody bags?), and some are tricky (how to handle this client who keeps missing her payments?). All require energy and attention.
Inability to make a decision is one of the top reasons why entrepreneurs fail. Without the ability to make decisions quickly, your business will come to a halt.
Luckily, you have a gift for making decisions quickly – your Divine Feminine Gift of Intuition. Most spiritual women entrepreneurs value their intuition and would agree that when they use it, both life and business “just flows.” But here’s the problem…
It’s easy to trust your intuition when it’s the little stuff. But what about the BIG stuff, like hiring the right person, investing in a mentor, or investing time, energy and money in an event? These kinds of decisions can trigger doubt, fear, second-guessing and other static created by the ego – which can take you way off course and waste even years of your time.
Be the decision big or small, your intuition can ALWAYS be counted on to guide you in the right direction. Using your intuition is a skill that you can master with practice.
Here, then, are my top tips on how to use your Divine Feminine Gift of Intuition to make the right decision, every time:
1. Learn to listen.
You don’t need a ton of information to make every decision, but you do need the key information. When you’re in “discovery” mode (such as on the phone with a client, vendor, potential hire or mentor), be truly open, fully present and listening, so that you receive exactly what you need to know.
And don’t forget to create space in your life for meditation and quiet time every day. Connecting to your intuition in this neutral space creates trust over time, so you can follow your inner guidance in the moment.
2. Know how your intuition shows up.
For years, my intuition used to show up as a very clear, firm voice in my head. (That voice has saved my life – literally – more than once.) Then, a couple of years ago, something changed and now intuition shows up on the physical plane as a specific sensation in my body. Intuition can take as many forms as we have senses: auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and beyond. Know how it shows up for you so you can recognize it in an instant.
3. Is it intuition or is it fear?
This is the biggie – is it intuition or is it fear? Remember, whenever you grow, your ego is going to be challenged. It will throw up everything it can to stop you – that’s it’s job! Your job is to learn to tell the difference between true intuition and fear/ego masquerading as intuition to stop you in your tracks.
How do you tell the difference? Practice. In the moment, “first thought, best thought” usually applies. Regardless of the situation, make a quick mental note of your first thought or “flash.” You can act on it or not – either way, you’ll be able to go back to the decision later and see how accurate that first thought was.
4. Take action quickly.
Intuition is like a muscle – the more you act on the guidance you receive, the easier the guidance will come and the harder it is for the ego to take you out. Successful people are quick to decide and slow to change their minds. Make your decision quickly and keep moving!
Elizabeth Purvis, a.k.a. “The Marketing Goddess” mentors extraordinary spiritual women entrepreneurs to 6-figures and beyond.
