This month I attended my first class in a 9-week Meditation Instructor Certification Course and I’m excited to be back in student mode. There’s so much to learn when we take on a Beginner’s Mind. I’m soaking up all knowledge I can while still pacing myself and I’m showing myself compassion when I start to feel like I’m “never going to get it” or I am overwhelmed.

I’m noticing how this idea of a Beginner’s Mind is super helpful to apply to business as well. Whether you are indeed a beginner brand new to your business or you’ve been running your company for years, approaching your work with a Beginner’s Mind can help you see your offers and opportunities in new, innovative ways.

Here are a few prompts to help you embrace a Beginner’s Mind in your business:

• Openness: What do you notice when you look at your business with fresh eyes? What new information, sensations, insights, and experiences can you allow in? Sometimes hints about your next move are right under your nose but you have to be open and willing to receive them. Quieting down helps with that, too (I share some tips on that in the Creative Heroes interview with RBBP Facilitator Stephanie Dyke on her Creative and Mindful blog).
• Eagerness: What are you passionate about? What can you not wait to get your hands on? What’s lighting you up now? Give yourself permission to follow those hunches and curiosities with no expectation of where they will lead you.
• Letting go of your preconceptions: Your routines, habits, and engrained experiences can keep you stuck in a rut and innovation far from reach. What assumptions, judgments, or beliefs about your business, your customers, and your goals can you leave at the door? What possibilities will this open up for you?

If you were to start your business over from scratch, imagine what you would you begin with. What would be the first building blocks? Even if you weren’t going to completely tear down and rebuild, this can be an enlightening reflection exercise, especially as you prepare for 2017 planning.

From a more incremental perspective, give yourself permission to “begin again” over and over in your business. This gives you latitude to conduct small tests as you go and learn from them so that you can continue to evolve and innovate.

So many creative entrepreneurs I know have big dreams of launching products such as e-books, courses, kits, and more. But often times they get stuck in overwhelm or just don’t know how to get started packaging up their know-how so their idea never sees the light of day. That breaks my heart because that means folks are missing out on their special gifts.

I know it can be helpful to see inside peeks so you can see what’s possible. So, in the Facebook Live video below I shared a few early prototypes from some of my books, kits, and programs. I hope my show and tell inspires you to start small and get your ideas on paper.

If you want help developing your digital or tangible products, my team and I would love to support you in our upcoming 6-week Product Development course that starts on Monday, September 26th. The early-bird rate ends tomorrow, Friday, September 23rd, so join us now for best savings!

Want to get a sense of my creative teaching style and learn about how to diversify your income? Sign-up to watch my FREE video class series on Maximizing Your Moola.

Guest post by by Lisa Dolce, Right-Brain Business Plan® Licensed Facilitator,

Where’s your Pepper?

When I was a kid, I had the great honor of having my Grandmother live with us for a few years. On the outside, she was this cute little Italian lady, with a warm smile and twinkly eyes, and usually dressed in an unassuming floral housecoat. She spent most of her day reading and sipping tea at the kitchen table.

But on the inside, she was a force to be reckoned with. As the matriarch of the family, she spoke her mind freely and no one messed with her. When I was a little girl, I saw her push the tax assessment man right off of her property. They’d had a difference of opinion—hers won out!

At the time, I remember feeling shocked and thinking I could never be like her! But secretly—boy, did I want to be like her!

On some days when I came home feeling let down by a problem with a friend or because I did not speak up about something that was important to me, she would always say, “Where is your pepper, Lisa?”

My pepper? I listened intently as she counseled me, in her own fearless and feisty way, on what I should have said or done. It was great advice—but not really my style. I was a more sensitive type and remembered thinking again…I could never be like her.

But over the years, the question haunted me: Where was my pepper? WHAT was my pepper? And what was at stake if I didn’t find it?

And then I realized as an adult … my Grandmother’s “pepper” was actually the courage to speak my truth (and do it my own way).

Then as a small business owner, when struggling with marketing and trying to “stand out from the crowd”, I realized what was at stake…

Your pepper—your ability to to be comfortable in your skin, to be seen and heard, to ask for what you want and need—is crucial to the growth of your business.

∼ If we don’t value what we have to say, neither will others.
∼ If we don’t stand up for what we believe, we keep ourselves invisible.
∼ If we try to be like everyone else, we lose what makes us unique.
∼ And here’s the biggy… if we fail to put ourselves out there, hiding behind a cloak of inadequacy, we lose the opportunity to share our wonderful talents and gifts that are so needed in this world.

Our beliefs expand or constrict us. There is no in between. I watched and compared myself to my Grandmother, thinking I had to do it her way. I believed that in order to be heard, I had to be aggressive. (And society reinforced this.)

But being aggressive and speaking your truth are two very different things. I’ve learned that you CAN speak your truth, in your own sensitive way, and still make an impact in this world.

So how DO you find your pepper?

You begin by breaking through the beliefs that keep you playing small. You “unprogram” the ideas that hold you back from speaking your truth, marketing your services, or asking for that sale.

Ask yourself:

-Who are you comparing yourself to? Who are you thinking you have to be like?
-What beliefs are no longer serving you now?
-What do you need to let go of?
-What could you do if you no longer had these beliefs?

Remember, YOU get to decide. Your pepper is YOURS.

Find it, claim it, and get your gifts out there.

My Grandmother would approve.

Lisa Dolce is a Small Business Coach, Start-Up Mentor and Licensed Facilitator of the Right Brain Business Plan ®. She helps heart-centered entrepreneurs bring together their brilliant ideas and beautiful gifts and talents to design, launch and grow their own profitable business.

So many creative entrepreneurs, myself included, are driven to succeed. It can be seductive to go after the holy grail of hitting six-figures. And once you’ve checked that off, to keep on pushing toward the next milestone. Believe me, I get it!

Yet, when I talk with creative entrepreneurs from all walks of life and at different stages of their business and I ask what they really want, that’s not the whole picture.

When we dig deeper they share from their heart how much they crave more quality time with loved ones, to be more present for their children, to enjoy playful creative time just for the sheer joy of it, to meditate regularly, to do yoga or go on retreat, to take a vacation, or simply to have some white space in their day to breathe.

What is it that matters most to you?

Yes, if you’re in business it’s important to earn income, but that’s not the only currency. Remember to honor your values and what matters most to you, because isn’t that why you went into business for yourself in the first place? To live the life of your dreams?

If you’re making big moola at the expense of your relationships, health, personal values, and joy, the cost is much too high.

I hate to admit it but in the past I was so busy with work that I missed out on a dear friend’s wedding because I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to speak at a conference in Australia, I bailed on my book club, birthday parties and the like to gear up for my launches, and I ignored signs of a chronic health issue. I’d pull all-nighters and would scoff at my husband’s observations that I was working too much. I even let my my house fall apart with a leaky roof and weeds for a lawn. All because I was so wrapped up in my business “success.”

While I don’t regret what I’ve been able to achieve thanks to my ambition, over the past couple of years as my business (and I!) have matured, I’m learning a new way to approach my work. I’m making conscious (and sometimes tough) choices to really honor what matters most to me. And while the adjustments and transitions can be painful at times, I know that I’m working smarter and that I’m cultivating my right balance of moola and meaning.

If you find yourself relating even just a little bit to what I shared here about my journey, I urge you to take another look at what matters most to you. If you say that your family matters but you’re so obsessed over creating the perfect sales page that you miss having dinner with them yet again, or you know you need to tend to your well-being more but you pick an Instagram binge over afternoon yoga, have an honest conversation with yourself about the choices you’re making.

This is something that I’m becoming increasingly passionate about in my work with more seasoned entrepreneurs.

So, if you’re nodding your head because you’ve found yourself relating and saying yes I’m missing out on experiences, and it’s not worth the price I would love for you to join me at a LIVE video class 10am PT Tuesday, Sept 13th and learn how to Maximize Your Moola!

This is an interactive webinar where I can help show you how you can make money AND not sacrifice those things that matter most to you.

Click here to sign up.

The class is newly updated with even more tips and teaching in my signature creative and visual style.

If you want to be able to spend less time working and more time doing what you love, this class will open your eyes to new possibilities.

Guest post by by Cass Mullane, Accountability Coach, Right-Brain Business Plan® Licensed Facilitator, Prosper Creatively, LLC

When you look at it objectively, changing a habit is actually a relatively simple process. You just do the new thing, then repeat it over and over. That’s the old 21 – 30 days to make a new habit. So why is it so hard to make a new habit stick?

What makes it complicated is you. For one thing, you let your mind monkeys get into your head start swinging around chattering away about how hard it is to make a change, how you never could do anything right and how you’ll never be able to do this new thing.

But you can deal with the mind monkeys. Simply interrupt their chatter by throwing them a mental banana, and while they’re off chasing the banana, replace that chatter with better, more productive thinking.

What’s probably more difficult is to identify the routine that triggers the habit that you really want to change. You may think it’s one thing, like not eating the whole chimichanga, when, in fact, it’s tied to something entirely different, like going to the same restaurant with the same group of friends where you order the same chimi every time. Think about it… it’s easier to change the habit by simply changing the social routine. You can still meet up with your friends for a fun meal out, just change up the restaurant. Then the chimi is out of the picture and you’ve given yourself a fighting chance to set up a new habit that is tied to a familiar routine. This will shorten the time it takes to make the new habit stick.

This also applies to your businesses. For example, how many of you want to make calls first thing in the morning but don’t seem to get to it because you spend so much time checking emails and getting lost in the associated rabbit holes of links and downloads in the morning? Let’s look at how to do this.

Of course you could set a timer when you start to look at emails, then stop after the alarm goes off. That’s easy and it’s doable. But will you continue to do it for 21-30 days? Let’s look a little deeper.

What’s your morning routine at work? Let’s say you grab a cup of coffee or tea, turn on the computer and immediately check your email. What’s the habit, checking email first thing? Nope, the trigger is getting your get coffee or tea first and the other things fall into a familiar routine. So the trick is to tie your new habit to an existing routine, in this case, the morning beverage.

Today, when you get your coffee, instead of flipping on the computer and reading emails, choose to settle down to make some calls first. You’ve now tied the new habit of making calls first thing to your morning routine that starts with coffee. I think you’ll find that your new habit will get ingrained SO much more quickly than the old repeat for 21-30 day thinking.

And there’s a bonus: when you’ve made your calls and you go to check your email, you’re doing it later in the day when you probably have more activities that will naturally limit the time available for email rabbit holes.

So give it a try and let me know how this works for you!

Cass Mullane is an artist with an MBA. Cass’ calm, comfortable approach consistently yields positive results for clients. Her business and personal coaching practice, www.ProsperCreatively.com, specializes in delivering solid left brain business skills to right brainers and creatives in a fun, visual way. She’s a best selling author, textile and mixed media artist and creator of the Cool Stuff Jar™ coaching program. You can also visit Cass on Facebook!

Guest post by by Cass Mullane, Accountability Coach, Right-Brain Business Plan® Licensed Facilitator, Prosper Creatively, LLC

It’s the Olympic season and I’m really enjoying watching the athletes compete in Rio. I’m also continually in awe of what the human body is capable of. The strength and flexibility of the gymnasts, the amazing control of the shooting athletes, the speed and endurance of the cyclists, all I can say is wow!

But what I most appreciate is the tremendous amount of work elite athletes put in without anyone watching. It’s what goes on day after day, month after month, year after year that prepares them for the various competitions that lead up to that single moment in the spotlight in Rio.

If you’re an athlete, here’s what you do: get up and train, put in a full day at work so you can pay your bills, then cap it all off with your evening workout. Day in and day out. There are no cameras, there are no cheering crowds, it’s just you. You make the daily choice to do the hard work to reach your goals. Now that’s commitment and discipline!

So several thoughts are popping up for me:
1. Training – you’ve got to build the right skills and you have to keep honing them over and over and over to excel
2. Mindset – if you’re head’s not straight, you take yourself out of the game before you even start. Pay attention to your thoughts and your resulting actions and make appropriate adjustments.
3. Discipline – do the hard work, even when you don’t feel like it. Be self-motivated, make the sacrifices, follow the plan, keep the focus on the goal every single day
4. Commitment – show up every day and be your best
5. Deliver the Goods – do your thing often, whether on a local level or internationally

Does this sound familiar? It’s what you do to be a successful entrepreneur.

You train in your specialty and your industry to stay on top of your game. You read, attend conferences, take classes, get coached and you practice your craft consistently.

You make sure you have the right mindset to invite success. You know how important it is to quickly clear your head of useless self-talk and replace it with productive thinking. You know what’s important and what can drop off the plate. You know what to do to get yourself out of a funk and back into the joy of doing what you love.

You are crystal clear on your goals and you focus on them when making decisions. You make a plan and you do the hard work to execute that plan. You show up consistently every day and you deliver the goods to your customers and clients worldwide.

There’s no one sitting on your shoulder watching you 24/7. You’re the one making the choices and setting the goals. You’re the one developing a plan for success then choosing to do what it takes to make that plan work. You’re the one who decides how you’re going to spend your time and who you’re going to hire to do the other tasks. You’re the one choosing to put in the time to make sure your business flourishes. You’re the one choosing to go for the gold.

So, what do you do when no one is watching?

Cass Mullane is an artist with an MBA. Cass’ calm, comfortable approach consistently yields positive results for clients. Her business and personal coaching practice, www.ProsperCreatively.com, specializes in delivering solid left brain business skills to right brainers and creatives in a fun, visual way. She’s a best selling author, textile and mixed media artist and creator of the Cool Stuff Jar™ coaching program. You can also visit Cass on Facebook!