Your Business, Your Self - Latest Comments

Re: Time to Cocoon!

Sue Mitchell — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 12:32:43 -0000

Hi, Patrick. Yes, I'm sensing a great unmet need in this area! I'll be offering a variety of things from totally DIY to complete hand-holding and ghostwriting. It's going to take me a while to get things up and running, but I'm really excited about it.

Re: Time to Cocoon!

Patrick Ross — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:46:25 -0000

Hi Sue, I missed this post last week while on my writing staycation (thanks for your encouragement of that!) but this is really exciting news! I'll confess you've got me pretty curious. I do know, from this writing staycation I just did and from a memoir-writing class I took recently, there are a lot of people with stories to tell who lack some of the fundamental skill sets to tell them properly, and I'm sure you can help them.

Re: Time to Cocoon!

Sue Mitchell — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 17:08:45 -0000

I want to thank the Academy, but mostly I want to thank Barbara Sher and Marney Makridakis for convincing me that it's okay to be more than one thing. More than okay! Thanks, Carole.

Re: Time to Cocoon!

Carole — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 16:02:59 -0000

Waaay cool, Sue. I admire you even more for being true to you and venturing forth in this new direction. What a great niche!

You really are a lifechanger by your authentic example :)

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business at Risk (Part 2)

Sue Mitchell — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:14:04 -0000

Yes, Brenda, it's all about balance. It's easy to slip into thinking in extremes, but success certainly lies somewhere in the middle.

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business at Risk (Part 2)

Brenda — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 03:39:29 -0000

This is a very common problem people have in their business - the two ends of the spectrum.

Success means different things to different people, and only you can decide what it means to you and your business. Is making a million dollars a year worth sacrificing your relationship time for your partner, your family and even yourself?

For me, there has to be a balance. Of course there are times when business must take priority, but there are also times when you take a break from the business work. By managing to stay happy doing what I do without sacrificing other things I value highly, then I am a success. The monetary gain (or loss) is secondary.

Wonderful that you have come to the conclusions of what your business means for you...just by doing this - you are successful

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business at Risk (Part 2)

Sue Mitchell — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 13:08:27 -0000

Yes, that totally makes sense. And yes, this rollercoaster ride can be exhausting!

The small steps and middle ground are really what keep me going some days. It's so easy to get swept up in unrealistic expectations, but if I remind myself to break it down or look for the middle ground, that takes the pressure off enough for me to move forward, even just a little bit. I'm so glad it's helping you too!

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business at Risk (Part 2)

Donna — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 12:38:29 -0000

Well, Sue, this is something I've been struggling with...my definition of success compared to what I think others think success means for me. Does that make sense? lol I swing between feeling very optimistic and at peace with my path, to feeling panicked and discouraged. It's quite exhausting. :) That's why I love coming over here to see what you're saying...you always seem to be able to break things down into not-so-scary bits. My goal is to be able to find that middle ground...I know it's here somewhere, under my pens and journal paper...

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business At Risk (Part 1)

Beth — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 20:30:00 -0000

I'm guilty of that as well Carol. Great food for thought.

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business At Risk (Part 1)

Sue Mitchell — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:39:38 -0000

LOL, Carole, I think what you're describing is Black Thinking. You're leaving out the white!

You make a couple of really good points here. First, that things often work out better than we allow ourselves to expect, and second, that we need reminders of the lessons we've learned. I think most of us are actually exceptionally wise, but we just forget all the stuff we know when it's time to put all that wisdom to use!

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business At Risk (Part 1)

Carole — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:23:24 -0000

I work out the whole scenario and expected results (mostly negative) in my mind. If I haven't thought about the positives as much as the negatives, I suppose this would fall under 'black and white' reasoning :)

If/when I finally do venture forward, it seldom turns out the way I imagined it would. Sometimes there is a positive, constructive outcome that I didn't anticipate.

So I feel relieved and even momentarily elated by this nice surprise. Then I promptly forget the experience and fall into the over-thinking trap again the next time :)

Time to change the disk!

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business At Risk (Part 1)

Sue Mitchell — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 16:06:17 -0000

Thanks, Beth! I find myself falling into this trap all the time. I agonize about what to do without really having considered all the alternatives.

Re: How Your Thinking Can Put Your Business At Risk (Part 1)

Beth — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 15:48:08 -0000

I think that is a wonderful point Sue! You are very insightful.

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Sue Mitchell — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 00:20:31 -0000

Do Mi, there's a lot to be said for taking it slowly, and it sounds like you have a very reasonable plan. What an exciting point to be at in your business!

I visited your blog, and I suspect the next time you check in with this rubric, you and your business will be a hot item! You obviously have a lot to offer people.

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Do Mi Stauber — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 17:18:11 -0000

Great rubric, and a good way for me to think about my new business. Here's where I am now: Time: living together, Energy: dating, Money: bar chatting. But this feels appropriate now. I am working with free clients (I call them Test Kitchen clients) and developing the first program I want to teach/write about, writing about it on my blog, and figuring out what the broader business really is. When I've finished the process with these clients and gotten feedback from them, then I'll decide if this is a viable business. Then I'll be ready to invest. Then I'll have to decide how to invest--how much help I need with the website, which coaching/advice/class program to use...!

I'm going to save the rubric and come back to it periodically. Thank you!

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Sue Mitchell — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 01:15:26 -0000

Hey, maybe we could make a whole new rubric around the tourism theme, LOL! Love it!

It's true those early stages aren't profitable, but they can be an incubation period that leads to greater commitment in time, just like in personal relationships. You just don't want to get stuck there.

I created this rubric as an awareness tool. If there's a discrepancy between your commitment levels (like spending lots of money on info products and a fancy website but not devoting time to creating content and marketing), then you might need to either scale back in one area or move forward in another.

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

JuliaStewart — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 22:39:23 -0000

Great metaphor Sue - I often compare people in the chatting-to-dating phases as 'tourists'. And they wonder why they run our of money...

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Sue Mitchell — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 20:52:17 -0000

Another thought that popped into my head while I was making dinner... There's no judgment here, and I don't mean to imply in this post that it *is* time for anyone to marry their business. You can't rush these things. A reasonable period of dating and living together is certainly prudent. But just like in a romantic relationship, it can be helpful to occasionally ask, "Where is this going?" :)

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Sue Mitchell — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 17:56:45 -0000

I hear ya, Carole! I'm a debt-phobe, too. I've been doing a lot of thinking about the way the stakes feel higher when money is involved, making the fear of failure that much more intense. It's an important mindset piece that I'll be writing more about soon.

Re: Is It Time for You and Your Business to Get Hitched?

Carole — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 17:18:19 -0000

Oh Sue, I REALLY like that rubric you created. Ingenious! I also love how you compare our commitment to our business to an intimate relationship (marriage). So true!

After assessing my relationship with my business using your rubric, I discover (not a surprise) that I'm a little 'all over the map'.

I've always been almost phobic about incurring any debt and I think I've found it difficult to justify spending money on my business (except for the necessary administrative expenses) because I don't have an existing source of income any longer (back up plan) with very little money in my bank account. I'm still presently carrying a very small debt load from returning to school full-time last year.

I guess the fear in the back of my mind is perhaps I wouldn't make enough money to ever clear the debt I do have currently. Then at the end of the road, I'd have to give up my business anyway in order to get a paying job to pay off my debt.

Your post is very insightful because I do indeed feel like the proverbial commitment phobe who dearly loves her partner (business) but her business had asked her to truly step up and make the commitment official...or they will be moving on (the business will fail or the successes will go to all the other creative businesses that are moving ahead in a healthy way).

As usual, you've given me (all of us) so much food for thought.

Re: The Counterintuitive Key to Achieving Goals

Sue Mitchell — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:07:33 -0000

Thanks, Donna! That's a big part of what I'm about too...being kind to yourself, having realistic expectations, giving yourself credit and protecting yourself from things that dampen your energy and spirit.

Re: The Counterintuitive Key to Achieving Goals

Donna — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 09:13:42 -0000

Excellent article! I think all too often we stop going after a goal and just assume we've failed, or have no will power, when there's something more going on under the surface. I'm learning to treat my inner self with the same kindness and caring and patience that I'd show anyone I love. Isn't it funny how we can be so supportive for someone else, but we're so hard on ourselves? Thanks for a great post. :)

Re: A Field Guide to Our Unproductive Selves

Sue Mitchell — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 12:20:31 -0000

It's similar in many ways to your post, don't you think? But we each put a different spin on it. For other readers, here's the link to Tammy's post on procrastination: http://tammyvitale.com/4-po...

Re: A Field Guide to Our Unproductive Selves

Tammy Vitale — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 12:12:37 -0000

Wow - this is great! Thanks for posting on my FB so I could come read!

Re: The Counterintuitive Key to Achieving Goals

Sue Mitchell — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 18:05:45 -0000

Glad you found that amusing. :) As adults we can take ourselves so seriously, but doing silly stuff like this can really help motivate...at least for me it does!