Welcome to Day 1 of the ‘5 Essential Steps for Taking What You Want in 2017’
Let’s dive right in, shall we? We’re going to start from #5 and work down…
5. Mindset
If you’re like me and you subscribe to a few of the popular digital marketers out there, you’ve probably heard the word ‘mindset’ ad nauseam. Unfortunately, much like back pain or quarterly taxes, ignoring it does not make it less critical. But stick with me because I’m hoping to bring something fresh to the advice…
In the last 12 months, I have created a brand new, six-figure business from scratch.
14 months ago I was not in a good place. I was, in fact, a hot mess. It’s a complicated story for another time, but I will quickly summarize with two points:
- Sometimes you can’t really start over without burning shit to the ground.
- Mindset is both enemy AND ally #1
The transformation I’ve experienced in the past year hasn’t just been my own… I have stood side-by-side with dozens of women who have literally changed their whole existence. Yes, getting more clients and earning more money were parts of that – but the most fundamental, game changing stuff was their expanding belief in what is possible, for them.
Mindset is serious business. The bad news, is the work is never, ever done. The good news is, the work changes. You tackle one beastie off your back and then move on to the next one. Even better, the most transformational shifts happen one itty bit of action at a time. Something as simple as changing how you design + send email blasts can be the thing that blows open your whole world. [that’s not an exaggeration, I’ve seen it!]
How to Tackle Mindset to Get What You Want in 2017
1. Feed
Don’t stay hungry – fill yourself up. You need inspiring, not guilt-inducing. In order to avoid overwhelm, stick to books/podcast where you can control your consumption [rather than email newsletters where you can easily get bombarded & distracted].
Some Resources:
- Book recommendations
- ‘Animalhaus’ Podcast full of inspiring petpreneurs with a great mindset
- Free Stuff here on #wwd – ripe with feel-good stuff
2. Identify
A huge part of changing your mindset is identifying the shit that is poison. These are little nasty passing thoughts, negative behaviors you feel like you can’t control, repeating patterns of drama, chaos or despair… even the things that seem totally out of your control can often be traced back to your belief system.
It’s time to start listening to yourself. What do you think before doing or not doing something that scares you? What beliefs do you have about being seen, accumulating wealth, achieving success, being an expert, selling…
Start writing them down [yes this is totally an excuse to go buy yet another awesome journal – as long as you use it!]
3. Make Space
Yes. We are all busy. There is never enough time. When you have enough time, you waste it. Fact. One of the greatest battles I’ve had when making real change in my life – is that it is the EASIEST thing to procrastinate. I would rather do ANYTHING other than the tough stuff [since when did laundry, dishes, post-office runs and poop-scooping the yard seem so appealing!? Yikes!] So you will have to dedicate time to the work. A solid morning routine can work wonders if you can force yourself to wake up an hour earlier… Or a productive lunch break? The key, is that you have to make the mindset stuff a priority like any other obligation, meeting, appointment or scheduled event. Put it on the calendar and reward yourself for following-through. Stick with it for a handful of weeks and you have a new habit!
4. Take Action
Perhaps the most important step of all is to take action. If you know what your issues are but don’t take any steps towards chipping away that them – it’s safe to say you’re probably not going to see any real change and 2017 will be just like any other year. Here are some ways to act on mindset change that work…
- Counselling: Good ol’ fashioned conversation with an objective person who can provide intelligent insights is not to be underestimated. There are tons of ways to find and utilize counselling to help overcome mindset stuff. You may be surprised just how much stuff comes up when you have a safe space to discuss it!
- EFT: Emotional Freedom Technique or ‘Tapping’ is a modality which utilizes the body’s meridian points to promote emotional healing. We have a great bit of training on this topic in Working with Dog [you’ll have to be a member to access it but this post alone is probably worth the investment! you can join here]. I have used EFT to work through several of my fears and limiting beliefs to great success! It feels a lot like magic…
- Exercise: For women, many of our issues can be traced back to confidence. There may be nothing better for confidence than working on our physical strength, stamina and general wellness. What if you found an exercise you genuinely enjoyed and you did it to feel powerful instead of just forcing yourself to endure fitness you hate in order to lose weight? A practice of yoga or running or walking 10,000 steps a day might just be the accomplishment that tips you into a different, more expansive mental space. Of course, your body will thank you too [plus all those added benefits of more energy, easier sleep, etc.] – also see #3 making space – the excuses will come – you just have to weigh up how badly you want change!
- Mentorship / Consulting: Sometimes you simply need to borrow someone else’s mindset for a while. Sometimes, you don’t want to do all the talking – sometimes you want someone else to take a look at you and your business and tell you all the possibility they see and then help you chase it, one step at a time. This is what I do. I absolutely love it and I don’t feel ashamed to say that I am damn good at it. But I am not the only one and you might not need a brand expert or a marketing consultant – you might need a financial expert, or a spiritual healer. Once you have done #2 and identified what areas are causing most of your stress / setbacks you can make an informed choice about what sort of mentorship and growth you seek.
Of course, I should point out, that if your primary focus in 2017 is growing your photography business, you should definitely snag yourself a seat at the P4/Luxe retreat.
Among dozens of other benefits, this retreat will provide a fast-track mindset reboot!
xx Nic
P.S. Use Chrome and want something to make you happy every time you internets? Get the Momentum extension. It greets you every day with incredible images from around the world. Good for a smile and a bit of perspective