They happen- you can’t escape. The setbacks are out of your control and it’s part of life. Accept that and you’ll feel lighter. They may come along and be a set of circumstances that may appear to block you so you can’t move forward.

Want to bounce back from setbacks? Look inside to see how your thoughts revolve around what you are currently seeing. What have you been focused on, giving energy to, or worried about lately? Remember, when we focus on things in life we don’t want, they come anyway- it’s the Law of Attraction in action.

Get to a place where you now visualize a clear picture of what you really want. Feel that, and know the more you focus on it, that it is your new reality.

How many people would be successful if they only took a chance? Some of us get to the place where we do take risks and challenges, only to self-sabotage ourselves because we fear that we will be successful.  It’s like retreating back to ‘comfort zone land’. For anyone who really hangs onto what is familiar to them, it is obvious that they lack the true entrepreneurial spirit.  This certainly doesn’t mean that fear is not present, it simply means that the approach to fear is one of a journey and challenge to be welcomed not shunned.

Sidestepping risk is turning a blind eye to the door that opens on Opportunity.

As a business owner, we all know business is ‘about’ people. Most entrepreneurs, therefore, tend to be outgoing and social. Having fun while doing what you love is part of what gives it the juice. Experts agree that when you can have fun in your business you attract higher rates of success and satisfaction. When you can share that enthusiasm with employees, and customers alike, it catches on quickly and spreads.

The term ‘autodidactic’ learners mean much of what a person learns is not learned in a formal classroom setting, but rather by using their own way to learn. This includes asking questions, learning from mistakes, doing a personal reading, and research. And one main difference is that they will surround themselves with people who know more than they do.

They have almost a compelling desire to  up the learning curve  by continuing to improve and enrich themselves.

Want to become a better student of human nature? Make an effort to grow your knowledge and share it with others.

Employees prefer to follow someone else’s plan or ideas, because of self imposed limitations. They lack the desire to be self- motivating. Generally, they like to focus on personal security in the form of  a wage, and stick to a comfort zone rather than pushing themselves to have new experiences.

The entrepreneurial mindset offers a take charge approach to have a greater sense of control over his or her life and career. They want to do things their way, and do not make good employees. Submitting to a 9 to 5 routine is not a ‘good time’ in their book.

Business owners love to figure things  out for themselves, and often by themselves. They will assume the risk to make a profit.

Work  or Wealth

Here’s where a fine line exists in the difference between the term self- employed and calling yourself an entrepreneur. Those that refer only to themselves as self-employed buy into the concept of  ‘working’ for yourself. On the other hand, those who would refer to themselves as an entrepreneur, fully embrace the concept of  ‘wealth’ creation.

It is systems that make the difference between just having a ‘job’ and having a business.

Author and successful entrepreneur Michael Gerber once wrote, “The entrepreneur is our visionary, the creator in each of us. We’re born with that quality and it defines our lives as we respond to what we see, hear, feel, and experience. It is developed, nurtured, and given space to flourish or is squelched, thwarted, without air or stimulation, and dies.â€Â

Key elements found in a true entrepreneur;

1)They know their weaknesses and will hire experts  on their team

2)Partner successfully with others

3)Learn from their mistakes

That’s how many rejections Colonel Sanders received before his dream was accepted. The idea he had come up with was a novel one;  pressure cooked chicken. Remarkable. However, he had to face 300 rejections before his dream turned into reality. Now there are over 11,000 KFC restaurants in over 80 countries in the world!

So, have you been facing rejections lately? Look at things this way, if you had applied to UBC and got rejected, nothing bad happened, because prior to the application you weren’t in UBC then either. Stay committed to your cause and your dream.  Mind, however, that you stay away from resentment. There are over 5.5 Billion people on the planet and remember that someone will say yes!  I love this little trick Jack Canfield shares;

SWSWSWSW which he says stands for:

some will, some won’t; – so what? — someone’s waiting!

Take a look at your product or service to see how you are delivering the message. Perhaps the rejections are a blessing. It may cause you to see where you can improve, and the key is to analogize, improve, and keep going forward.

Short term memory is our amazing friend. It is said that we can remember things best in up to four chunks of information.  Here’s an example of what I mean. Take a phone number, and break it down. Let’s use 866.700.5555

so you can remember the first part of the middle part and the last part and perhaps a name associated with that number. That would be four parts. Do you trust it to stick though?

Best bet? write it down. We have so much to remember, especially if we are in business, that we better not push the envelope.

Get in the habit of writing down your daily tasks or goals, and have that all recorded in one place. Namely a day timer of your choice. Most of us are visual, so writing things down in a place where we can see them is huge. However, you may the ‘techy type’ and recoding your tasks in a Blackberry is fine for you. Not for most of us. We need to see the list and be able to cross of our completions.

Still not writing down important ideas? Memory research tells us that a new idea only lasts 40 seconds! Imagine. Do you have a new project you are ready to embark on, a website for example?

Valuable TIP: assemble a simple binder together and give it a name; like

Cathy’s Big Book of Website Ideas

record everything in one place. If you don’t, who will?

Ideas are nothing more than thin air if they get away on you!

Confidence-  defined as; “the state of being that comes when you rise above situations while achieving your goal”.

Here are 4 physical ways to build up your self-confidence

1. Step it up- yes, walking faster actually helps. It’s what confident people do.

2. Work out- this raises your physical energy and helps you think more clearly.

3. Practice good posture- lose the slumped shoulders- sit tall and breathe deeply.

4. Sit in the front row- don’t hide in the back- get upfront where you can hear, be seen and feel like you are part of the action

Think of the most confident person you know. Picture them, and see that they practice all four physical elements. You can too, and see how it makes you feel.

TIP for the week- practice saying these 3 phrases to yourself in front of a mirror, “I choose to be confident in myself. I have confidence.I am confident” say them out loud at least a couple of times a day for a week.

“Who has confidence in himself will have the confidence of others”

Leib Lazarow

how many ways can you make a person feel special?  Being authentic, and going that extra mile to recognize another’s value.

When was the last time you sat down and wrote a card to the support person that just helped you on the customer help line?

I was really impressed with Josh, the other day, that I made a point to take a minute out of my day to write him a thank you card.  All I had to do was look up his name on a staff directory, and let him know how he made my day. Well, today, guess who I received a card back from ??!! yes,- Josh.

I can picture this fellow on the phone for 8 hours speaking to people who pretty much are all calling with a problem. Yikes, that’s a lot to hear all day long. I get that.

I want to help people feel valued. I value Josh – a lot.

A card can do the trick. Need a speedy way to get the job done?

Use what I use-  check out my other website for  information all about this on line system. Cards can be used for many reasons, and one of the most  powerful reasons is to let someone know you appreciate them.

Take advantage of the free trial card available to you when you set up your own mini gift account. Now think of someone you appreciate, and send them a card. You’ll feel good and so will they.

remind  yourself that you get to give, not give to get

Why that’s simple: ( only after I had someone explain it to me!)

URL – Uniform Resource Locator

The full unique address of a file, such as an individual webpage, on the internet. An example of that would be my page for this blog- it reads as;

http://www.coachingwithcathy.com/wordpress/

Similarly, the word Domain Name is the unique name used to identify and locate computers on a network- the internet or email.

Or, as I call it in plain English, your website’s name.  here’s mine:

www.coachingwithcathy.com

In my business, I speak with many new business owners, who are not sure of the jargon that lies in the world of the web. It can seem overwhelming. And, to be fair, at the time, many people in the technical side of things, forget we don’t all speak ‘web’.

That’s ok. Here’s a place you may want to bookmark;

Jargon Buster is a dictionary that has everything covered really well. Get to know what’s going  in the development of your website, as you work with your designer, so terms won’t stump you.  It’s like my grade 3 teacher would say “just look it up in the dictionary, Cathy”