I learned a valuable lesson this week about commitment after a coaching client of mine decided to now follow through with the coaching program we were working through. He called me and said that he didn't have his accountability items for the week completed and was overwhelmed with the whole process. Instead of being a good coach and reminding him of his commitment, I only thought of myself and the rest of the money that he owed me that I wouldn't be receiving! Then I asked two fellow coaches to coach me a bit on my reaction and the situation as a whole. What they helped me discover was that not only had my client not followed through with his commitment, but I had not followed through with mine. If I was truly in it to help my client reach his goals and hold him accountable for the necessary action steps, then I wasn't holding up to my end of the deal either! So I called my client back and let him know that I was committed to his success, even if that meant not being his coach. He was so grateful that I called back!
Think about the word commitment and what it means to you. I just looked up some definitions of online and found one that really struck me...
COMMITMENT: the trait of sincere and steadfast fixity of purpose
WOW!
Think about the commitments you make and if they are really worth your time and energy. Are they in alignment with your overall purpose and goals? If not, that's OK! Learn to say "no." My client said that he felt that he often "over-committed" himself. Do you feel that you do the same thing?
Remember the most important thing is that any commitment you make is really with yourself. When you don't follow through with your commitments, you send a powerful message out into the universe and into your subconscious mind. Continuously not keeping your commitments will lead you to lose faith in yourself and confidence in your abilities.
The next time you are decided whether or not to make, keep or drop a commitment, repeat to yourself "Any commitment I make is really with myself" and then make your decision!
Friday, January 25, 2008
Friday, January 11, 2008
Rise and Shine!
This week has been especially busy and productive for me! I had my first teleseminar, got my book off to press, attended at least 5 teleconferences, updated my website, attended networking events and so much more. I have accomplished many wonderful things, one of which has been especially helpful: getting up every morning at 6:15. Until this week, unless I had an early morning commitment, I would sometimes stay in bed until 8:00. By the time I got my coffee made and checked my email, it would be 9:00. Now that I'm getting up earlier, I find that I have plenty of time to check my email, post blogs, update my website and do many other "behind the scenes" tasks before most people are even awake! I remember when I was a child my dad would go to work at like 5:30 in the morning to take care of things before he had any interruptions. Now I understand why. You should try it to, especially if you work for yourself. Get out of bed at least one hour earlier and see how much more you get done for the day!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
"Live with Intention" finally goes to press!!
After several months of editing, re-writing, changing the title, reviewing proofs etc, my book finally goes to press today! That means that in two weeks or less I will be holding the first copies of my book in my hands!! If you don't know about my book, go to my website www.adaircates.com for a brief description and more information.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Ready, Fire, AIM -- Finding my Target Audience Through Action
Ready, Fire, AIM is one of my favorite motivational phrases and the motto of my latest success-- defining my target audience (it's also the title of one of my husband's songs! www.chriscates.net).
Here is a brief history of my experience:
After discovering that I wanted to inspire and empower others to live with intention, passion and purpose, I quit my community college professorship in May 2007 and spent the rest of the year "firing" (I think I skipped the "ready" part of the equation). I joined Toastmasters, the Chamber of Commerce, attended two trainings, wrote a book, created a website, made a My Space page, put videos on You Tube, led some Mastermind groups, wrote a Mastermind group workbook, coached a few clients...phew! I was busy!! Lots of firing and seed planting with little avail in terms of making money.
The aiming part of the equation came along in bits and pieces all along but was solidified when I began working through the book Get Clients Now! by CJ Hayden (which I HIGHLY recommend!). The basis of the whole book, which was written for professionals, consultants and coaches with service-based businesses, is that people focus on too many steps in the marketing cycle (filling the pipeline, following up, giving presentations and closing sales) at once. I have to admit, I didn't even know what the marketing cycle was!!! The book guides you to focus on one stage of the marketing cycle for 28 days straight and to follow an accompanying action sheet. I chose the filling the pipeline stage of the cycle and chose as one of my "success ingredients" Market Niche Description. The book guided me to answer a series of questions including: Who needs your service the most? and What sort of people do you enjoy spending time with?
To answer these and other questions, I went back to some information I had received from my aunt and my mother concerning "millennials" or people of "Generation Y." I watched a clip from a 60 minutes program and was completely fascinated! Here is some basic information about this generation of young people: we were born between 1976 and 2000, we are very tech-savvy, we are more concerned with life than work, we prefer to work in teams, we embrace diversity, we are excellent multi-taskers, we own IPODs, cell phones and computers and use them ALL the time, and we love to be challenged and get bored with mundane tasks.
After relating to all of those qualities and more, I decided that millennials (and their employers, parents and teachers!) would be the perfect audience for my speaking and coaching services and that my book Live with Intention now also had a great target audience. If you want to learn more about this population and their needs check out my website www.adaircates.com for a definition and free quiz!
I've always heard that you "get rich in a niche" so I am happy to have decided on my target audience through my Ready, Fire Aim methodology. I've found my niche and am I'm ready to get rich (btw, another characteristic of millennials is their desire to be rich overnight!) I am looking forward to helping millennials live with intention, passion and purpose!!
Here is a brief history of my experience:
After discovering that I wanted to inspire and empower others to live with intention, passion and purpose, I quit my community college professorship in May 2007 and spent the rest of the year "firing" (I think I skipped the "ready" part of the equation). I joined Toastmasters, the Chamber of Commerce, attended two trainings, wrote a book, created a website, made a My Space page, put videos on You Tube, led some Mastermind groups, wrote a Mastermind group workbook, coached a few clients...phew! I was busy!! Lots of firing and seed planting with little avail in terms of making money.
The aiming part of the equation came along in bits and pieces all along but was solidified when I began working through the book Get Clients Now! by CJ Hayden (which I HIGHLY recommend!). The basis of the whole book, which was written for professionals, consultants and coaches with service-based businesses, is that people focus on too many steps in the marketing cycle (filling the pipeline, following up, giving presentations and closing sales) at once. I have to admit, I didn't even know what the marketing cycle was!!! The book guides you to focus on one stage of the marketing cycle for 28 days straight and to follow an accompanying action sheet. I chose the filling the pipeline stage of the cycle and chose as one of my "success ingredients" Market Niche Description. The book guided me to answer a series of questions including: Who needs your service the most? and What sort of people do you enjoy spending time with?
To answer these and other questions, I went back to some information I had received from my aunt and my mother concerning "millennials" or people of "Generation Y." I watched a clip from a 60 minutes program and was completely fascinated! Here is some basic information about this generation of young people: we were born between 1976 and 2000, we are very tech-savvy, we are more concerned with life than work, we prefer to work in teams, we embrace diversity, we are excellent multi-taskers, we own IPODs, cell phones and computers and use them ALL the time, and we love to be challenged and get bored with mundane tasks.
After relating to all of those qualities and more, I decided that millennials (and their employers, parents and teachers!) would be the perfect audience for my speaking and coaching services and that my book Live with Intention now also had a great target audience. If you want to learn more about this population and their needs check out my website www.adaircates.com for a definition and free quiz!
I've always heard that you "get rich in a niche" so I am happy to have decided on my target audience through my Ready, Fire Aim methodology. I've found my niche and am I'm ready to get rich (btw, another characteristic of millennials is their desire to be rich overnight!) I am looking forward to helping millennials live with intention, passion and purpose!!
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