Are you working too hard in your business? Are you spending too much time on the busy-ness of the business and not enough time on those activities that generate or lead to generating revenue? Are you spending so much time trying to run your business that your life has become unbalanced. You have no or very little personal life. All your efforts are geared toward your business.
If you own your own business you know that you are wearing most if not all the hats in the organization. You are probably working long hours, sitting before your computer late into the evening trying to get all the things done that you couldn’t get done during the day. You may be spending less and less time on those activities that generate your revenue because you just can’t get to them.
STOP!
Take a cold hard look at what you are doing. How much do you really need to do. How much of what you are doing needs to be done at all. Look at every task you do and evaluate whether it needs to be done at all. Look at all the remaining tasks and evaluate whether you really need to be doing them or could they be done by someone else. Look at your remaining tasks and evaluate them. Could they be done by someone else with just a little tweaking? After all this separation the only activities left should be those that only you can do.
Next, determine how much revenue you generate, on the average, when you are actually selling your products or services.
Now take your average revenue amount and subtract from that what it would cost you to pay an administrative assistant to do all the jobs that you just eliminated from your personal task inventory. The difference (assuming you can generate more revenue than you’d pay an assistant) is the revenue you lost by doing all those tasks yourself.
There are a lot of people who can take care of the small stuff for you. Let them. Spend your time generating revenue. Your revenues and profitability should all prosper from your decision to get some help. Bonus: You should have more time for yourself.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Questions, questions
Have you ever just sat some place with a lot of foot traffic and watched the people go by? Do you ever imagine what their lives are like; their joys and sorrows, what makes them tick? Do you ever imagine that their lives are not much different from yours but experienced differently. Are they more in tune with the Universe and their place in it? Are their insights more penetrating? Do they have insights or are they just coasting through life, never realizing that there are lessons to learn and work, soul work, that needs to be done? Do you ever wonder if at some point their lives will cross with yours and how that might happen? Do you ever wonder what that might be like?
For the most part we live our lives in an insular fashion, only letting a select few enter our circle, our space. We protect our space keeping at bay people who are “different”; people who think, act or live differently than we do. Differences intimidate us. Differences scare us. Differences make us aware that our way is not only not the only way but may not even be the “best” way. Those strangers who pass us every day reflect back the aloneness that we feel about ourselves. Or do you feel alone. Are you surrounded by people. Do these people mean any more to you than a reinforcement of how you have chosen to live; who you have chosen to be?
Do you ever wonder if you are living the life you came here to live? Does it ever cross your mind or do you just exist without thought or curiosity? Do you ever wonder if there is a purpose for you being here and now and if so what that purpose might be?
Do you ever allow yourself to sit, watching the world go by and just wonder, not directing your thoughts in any direction but letting them wander where they may. Where do you go? What do you find when you get there? Do your thoughts change your life?
When all the wondering and consideration of other people is done do you feel a restlessness inside? Do you feel like something is missing but can’t quite put a finger on it? Have you ever gotten real quiet, shutting out all of the random thoughts that constantly inhabit your mind and listened to the quiet? Have you ever let the quiet voice inside you speak when all the other voices are quiet? All the answers are there inside you. Do you listen? Do you have the courage to follow the course it asks you to set? Do you?
For the most part we live our lives in an insular fashion, only letting a select few enter our circle, our space. We protect our space keeping at bay people who are “different”; people who think, act or live differently than we do. Differences intimidate us. Differences scare us. Differences make us aware that our way is not only not the only way but may not even be the “best” way. Those strangers who pass us every day reflect back the aloneness that we feel about ourselves. Or do you feel alone. Are you surrounded by people. Do these people mean any more to you than a reinforcement of how you have chosen to live; who you have chosen to be?
Do you ever wonder if you are living the life you came here to live? Does it ever cross your mind or do you just exist without thought or curiosity? Do you ever wonder if there is a purpose for you being here and now and if so what that purpose might be?
Do you ever allow yourself to sit, watching the world go by and just wonder, not directing your thoughts in any direction but letting them wander where they may. Where do you go? What do you find when you get there? Do your thoughts change your life?
When all the wondering and consideration of other people is done do you feel a restlessness inside? Do you feel like something is missing but can’t quite put a finger on it? Have you ever gotten real quiet, shutting out all of the random thoughts that constantly inhabit your mind and listened to the quiet? Have you ever let the quiet voice inside you speak when all the other voices are quiet? All the answers are there inside you. Do you listen? Do you have the courage to follow the course it asks you to set? Do you?
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Realignment
It’s a curious phenomenon, when we find ourselves finding faults in others, especially faults that we’d like to “fix”, we are usually looking at faults in ourselves that need fixing. It’s true, people reflect back to us what we need to see in ourselves. Wow! What a concept!
What is even more curious is that if we recognized it and started working on our self, we would be too busy to interfere unduly in the lives of others. Then another curious thing happens. When we work on us and begin to exhibit a true change, the people around us begin to change. They can’t help it. Things that used to push our buttons, don’t push them anymore. Unconsciously, the people around us are looking for a button that is no longer there and so they are forced to make changes to meet the new situation.
What a concept, we change others by changing ourselves!
There will always be people who will try to control us, make us cry, angry, feel inferior or any number of negative emotions if we let them. They unconsciously feel that makes them superior. It doesn’t really. It just makes them more afraid. When we refuse to let ourselves succumb to these controls, the person trying to control us has to change. In my experience the change is generally an improvement, at least from my point of view. Oh, the change doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not too consistent in the beginning, but by changing yourself you are forcing the other person to learn new tricks. Interesting, change others by changing yourself; teach others, by changing yourself.
There are some who will refuse to change, to learn. They are too afraid to change their old status quo. They will probably drop out of your life. You have learned your lesson and are now moving on. They are still learning their lesson and so are stuck. Wish them well, then let them go. They have their path, you have yours.
These episodes are painful enough when it is with people who are passing through your life, but it’s much more difficult when it is someone in your life. Then we must take a harder but more compassionate look at the lessons that both they and we are learning. The lesson may be much deeper than it first appears. It may have many layers, many levels of learning to absorb. In my experience, patience is the key here, not only for the other, but for myself. In my experience, the most profound lessons are learned from the people who are in my life.
We are taught patience growing up, but it’s mostly for the other guy. We seldom practice patience with ourselves. Nor do we think often on forgiving ourselves for our mistakes and shortcomings. But it’s true, in order to truly love others, understand others and forgive others, we must love, understand and forgive ourselves; one of those Cath-22s in life.
So the next time someone really ticks you off and won’t do what you want them to do, stand back. Take a breath. Relax. Then thank them for the lesson that they were trying to teach you. Then smile as you walk away while they are frowning in confusion.
What is even more curious is that if we recognized it and started working on our self, we would be too busy to interfere unduly in the lives of others. Then another curious thing happens. When we work on us and begin to exhibit a true change, the people around us begin to change. They can’t help it. Things that used to push our buttons, don’t push them anymore. Unconsciously, the people around us are looking for a button that is no longer there and so they are forced to make changes to meet the new situation.
What a concept, we change others by changing ourselves!
There will always be people who will try to control us, make us cry, angry, feel inferior or any number of negative emotions if we let them. They unconsciously feel that makes them superior. It doesn’t really. It just makes them more afraid. When we refuse to let ourselves succumb to these controls, the person trying to control us has to change. In my experience the change is generally an improvement, at least from my point of view. Oh, the change doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not too consistent in the beginning, but by changing yourself you are forcing the other person to learn new tricks. Interesting, change others by changing yourself; teach others, by changing yourself.
There are some who will refuse to change, to learn. They are too afraid to change their old status quo. They will probably drop out of your life. You have learned your lesson and are now moving on. They are still learning their lesson and so are stuck. Wish them well, then let them go. They have their path, you have yours.
These episodes are painful enough when it is with people who are passing through your life, but it’s much more difficult when it is someone in your life. Then we must take a harder but more compassionate look at the lessons that both they and we are learning. The lesson may be much deeper than it first appears. It may have many layers, many levels of learning to absorb. In my experience, patience is the key here, not only for the other, but for myself. In my experience, the most profound lessons are learned from the people who are in my life.
We are taught patience growing up, but it’s mostly for the other guy. We seldom practice patience with ourselves. Nor do we think often on forgiving ourselves for our mistakes and shortcomings. But it’s true, in order to truly love others, understand others and forgive others, we must love, understand and forgive ourselves; one of those Cath-22s in life.
So the next time someone really ticks you off and won’t do what you want them to do, stand back. Take a breath. Relax. Then thank them for the lesson that they were trying to teach you. Then smile as you walk away while they are frowning in confusion.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Alignment
The person who is in alignment with Purpose, who is living authentically, experiences an inner sense of knowing that he is traveling along the path that he planned. There is a certain peace in that knowing and a certain acceptance of the obstacles that are certain to come.
Traveling with purpose and authenticity does not mean that life is all “good” and that there are no challenges. There may actually be more challenges. After all this is the Earth school and we came here to learn. Sometimes the lessons may be relatively easy while with others we may be tempted to stray from the plan and take the easier road.
Most of our challenges have to do with overcoming fear. This is as true for both the person living in alignment as well as the person not living in alignment. The difference is how each of the two addresses that fear. The person living in alignment will acknowledge that fear and recognize it for what it is but then renew his faith and trust that all will turn out as it should. This does not mean that he sits passively by. He will still do his fair share of work to see that all turns out as it should.
It is the person not in alignment that experiences an even greater challenge. In his fear he may choose control. Instead of letting events unfold he may choose to control what events unfold and how they unfold. In this he may be creating more challenges for himself and withholding help from others. This does not really help him to control his fears but actually heightens them. This fear may manifest in undo concern for others and interference in their lessons. We seek to control the lives of people around us, thinking that we are helping them. But if we were to look inside we would find that in this helping we do not experience peace, nor do we have a true sense that we are right.
We are fooling ourselves. When we try to control the lives of those we know, we feel that we are exercising more control over our own. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are actually exercising less control. Instead of operating out of trust, we are operating out of fear. But we are not operating out of fear for others, we are operating out of fear for ourselves.
We must let people choose their own paths so that they may learn their own lessons. Oh, it’s all right to give them information and advice and a helping hand, but when you sensor their choices you are interfering with their life path and that creates a burden for you. Allowing people to live their lives as they choose does not mean a policy of non-interference in the sharing of knowledge, or extending a helping hand, it does mean not forcing them along a path that you consider to be the right path.
As you let others choose for themselves, you will experience a greater peace within. You can enjoy watching both their lives and your life unfold in a harmonious way. You can revel in your differences and laugh when you stumble. You can lend a hand to help them up and brush them off as you continue down your individual paths. This is operating from trust. This is operating in alignment with your purpose.
Traveling with purpose and authenticity does not mean that life is all “good” and that there are no challenges. There may actually be more challenges. After all this is the Earth school and we came here to learn. Sometimes the lessons may be relatively easy while with others we may be tempted to stray from the plan and take the easier road.
Most of our challenges have to do with overcoming fear. This is as true for both the person living in alignment as well as the person not living in alignment. The difference is how each of the two addresses that fear. The person living in alignment will acknowledge that fear and recognize it for what it is but then renew his faith and trust that all will turn out as it should. This does not mean that he sits passively by. He will still do his fair share of work to see that all turns out as it should.
It is the person not in alignment that experiences an even greater challenge. In his fear he may choose control. Instead of letting events unfold he may choose to control what events unfold and how they unfold. In this he may be creating more challenges for himself and withholding help from others. This does not really help him to control his fears but actually heightens them. This fear may manifest in undo concern for others and interference in their lessons. We seek to control the lives of people around us, thinking that we are helping them. But if we were to look inside we would find that in this helping we do not experience peace, nor do we have a true sense that we are right.
We are fooling ourselves. When we try to control the lives of those we know, we feel that we are exercising more control over our own. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are actually exercising less control. Instead of operating out of trust, we are operating out of fear. But we are not operating out of fear for others, we are operating out of fear for ourselves.
We must let people choose their own paths so that they may learn their own lessons. Oh, it’s all right to give them information and advice and a helping hand, but when you sensor their choices you are interfering with their life path and that creates a burden for you. Allowing people to live their lives as they choose does not mean a policy of non-interference in the sharing of knowledge, or extending a helping hand, it does mean not forcing them along a path that you consider to be the right path.
As you let others choose for themselves, you will experience a greater peace within. You can enjoy watching both their lives and your life unfold in a harmonious way. You can revel in your differences and laugh when you stumble. You can lend a hand to help them up and brush them off as you continue down your individual paths. This is operating from trust. This is operating in alignment with your purpose.
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