Category: Accountability

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Accountability Get Organized Goal Setting Organization vacation

Achieving Balance: Summer Tips from the Overachiever Society

Practical Solutions to Tame Your Summer To-Do List

Welcome to the Overachiever Society. That’s what we might call our monthly Free Wisdom Warriors/UnscatterMe monthly gathering! This week in Wisdom Warriors, overachievers shared their struggles and aspirations. In this video and article, I want to discuss some of their challenges and the solutions we explored during our monthly session.

Our attendees had varied goals for the summer. They wanted to have fun, get outdoors, move their bodies, and enjoy nature. They also aimed to achieve significant milestones like selling real estate and letting go of clients as their businesses evolved. These business people juggle multiple responsibilities and ambitions. One person owns two businesses and works for someone else. Naturally, their to-do lists were extensive.

We focused on solutions to manage these goals during the busy summer months. Here’s what we discussed:

  1. Dump Out Your To-Do List: Start by writing down everything on your to-do list across all categories. This helps you see the full scope of your tasks.
  2. Ruthlessly Remove 80%: Trim your list down by 80%. You don’t need to discard these items permanently; just move them to a “parking lot” for later consideration.
  3. Prioritize the Remaining 20%: Organize and schedule these prioritized tasks. Importantly, schedule activities you genuinely want to do before your to-dos. Remember what you really want – whether it’s getting out in nature or moving your body.

One participant said, “I need to be stronger than my excuses.” This resonated with us because excuses often hinder our progress. We discussed small, actionable steps, like placing your walking shoes by the door to encourage daily walks.

Moreover, it’s the perfect time to re-evaluate your larger year plan with executable steps and a repeatable process to achieve your 2024 desires. Summer is an excellent time to reassess your progress. With half the year behind us, now is the perfect moment to check in, re-evaluate and adjust your plans. 

To that end, I’d LOVE to push your edges and provoke you to think deeper and more powerfully than you ever have in your life. Why not? Life is FOR you and with me at your side, you are both energized and organized.

But that’s not for everyone. Alas, I have 2 places in June and 2 in July. When these review sessions are gone, they are gone.

Will you be the brave, bold, badass person to hit reply and say HELL YES LET’S HAVE A LOOK TOGETHER? Ready, go!

Summer is short, especially here in New Hampshire. Between the black flies, pollen, and rain, it’s easy to get distracted. So, enjoy your summer, stay focused on your goals, and take advantage of these opportunities.

I believe in you. Action takers, this is your sign to hit reply. Enjoy the summer and make the most of it.

See you soon!

Categories
Accountability Goal Setting Mastermind Groups Organization Planning Positive Thinking Time strategies

What are you committed to?

We are in love with our roadblocks, even when we say we are not.

The truth about commitment:

We love to talk about how we want to lose weight. We love to talk about ‘someday’. “I would like to get around to it, but not right now” or “I’m really busy doing …..” 

Finally, you may say, “That’s it. I’m going to do this thing. I really want my next one hundred days/the end of the year to look different. I really do. I cannot stand tolerating this negative cash flow. I cannot stand tolerating the organizational state of my office. I cannot stand tolerating negative people in my life that I just can’t seem to stop being with, and I can’t figure it out.  I go into those negative spirals. Something must be done!” 

If that’s you, you may be saying “Okay, I know Carol’s offering a program that can really whip me into shape. I know it’d be SO good for me. I’d get the result I say I want. I know it’s starting soon. I think I want to do it. Then you ask yourself, “WAIT, what happens if I say yes? Oh my gosh. Well, first of all, I’ll have to commit to it. Well, I can’t commit too much. What if something comes up? Then I’ll fail, like all those other times. I’m about an 8 out of 10, and that’s pretty committed.  I don’t give 10’s. That’s safe.” 

That’s where you’re wrong. Until you commit 100%, you are, my friend, doomed.

Here’s what happens:

  • In that 8 out of 10 commitment – that -2 will not allow you to succeed.
  • In a  9 out of 10 commitment, that -1 will not allow you to succeed.
  • Even in a 9.5 out of 10 commitment, that 0.5 will go in sneakily and *pull you down in ways that you’re not even conscious of*!

We are RULED by our subconscious. Our subconscious wants to keep us SAFE and that means not Doing Something New. Even if it’s Proven.

So- to say ‘yes’ to something new, maybe that’s Discover Your Greatness, which starts Tuesday Sept 12th, you need to TRICK your subconscious while she is not looking.  To do this, 

  1. take a deep breath
  2. imagine yourself Dec 31 with a clean office and financial abundance
  3. imagine lots of good people around you; no more negative nellies. A fun atmosphere and getting things done effortlessly with loads of support.

Then, RUN. 

You can join this cohort until midnight Eastern on Sunday (that’s assuming there are seats left!). 

Anyway, let’s go into “Okay, that’s it. I’m going to do it. I’m going to plunk my money down and I’m going to say yes to ME!”. 

Watch out for this pitfall: Don’t make the mistake of wanting something NEW- yet wanting NOTHING to change. 

It’s kind of like when you go on a healthy eating plan and you think “Well, wait a minute, I get to just have my candy bars every day. Oh wait, I don’t get to have my candy bars every day. I don’t want that healthy eating plan. I just want to lose the weight”. 

It’s the same thing with this opportunity. Yes, you’re going to have to do things differently, and I promise it will be fun and it works. 

A sneak peek of what is in store for those lucky enough to get in on time:

One of the key tenets of Discover Your Greatness…..is the proprietary DESIRE TEMPLATE forms.  – You set yourself up at the beginning of your workday for a Day of Success. You can also do it the night before. You can do it digitally, or print it.   

The first question is: ‘What is your purpose?’ It’s really important to know what your purpose is because if you don’t know why you’re doing it, guess what y’all, you won’t do it. The procrastination starts before you even begin the list! So we eliminate that problem right away.

The next item on the template is … ‘One thing I must do today, no matter what’.  Now -notice I didn’t say “What are the 25 things you want to do today?” You want to dial it down. Does this mean you won’t get any more than one thing done? No. You will get more than one thing done, I promise you. 

However, you will get that one thing done plus a lot more -because this is what gets you started and keeps you focused, which are two of the biggest problems. Procrastination is one of the biggest issues. Then of course, I know you’re going to have a little carry over from yesterday as that’s usually how it goes. 

The final questions on the template…

Identify your most important things: two of them. 

We then ask: what might get in the way? Hint:  get really specific. 

Finally, what will you do to fireproof it? In other words, put measures in place to be sure you don’t fall short of your intention/plan. 

Once you fill it out, you can print it, and save/send to me. I comment on this and watch your progress and help you along, both live and through my private client portal. 

And that’s just the beginning. It’s just *one* of the game changing resources you will use in the group.

There’s also an end of day form,, which is also very important where we debrief what we went on. You learn TONS with this form. 

Over time, by doing this, miracles happen – because the tiniest little change, little by little, bit by bit, piece by piece, layer by layer in the Productivity Success Cake, immense change happens. 

In Discover Your Greatness, we’ve got 14 weeks together. The nice part about that is it’s not like six months, it’s not like 12 months. It’s not like $20,000, it’s like $2,000. It’s not that much money and what you can get in the end, it’s crazy-good.

Game changing goodness. For example, 

people have:

  • Double or tripled their income 
  • Finally started the business that they’ve been trying to start for 14 years
  • One person had a backlog for a year of work, and finally they are not adding to the backlog anymore, and they are showing up differently with their team. This person is showing up as a bigger and better and more confident leader. 

And that’s what happens. The confidence happens, and the hidden fears that hold us back melt away. 

I’m so excited because I’ve got five people already registered and ready to go, and I’ve got three more openings at the time of writing this. On Tuesday September 12, we’re going to be getting started, and I can’t wait to see if you’re going to be one of those people to march forward together in unison toward Dec 31.

Oh, one more thing!

Did I tell you about the prizes? I also have prizes and giveaways because as we do this work together, we have fun. When you have fun, you get it done. Do you want to have some fun and get it done and finally do the darn thing that you said you were going to be doing for years that you just refuse to do? Well, don’t let this be the thing that scares you to death, so that you keep defining yourself as somebody who does it all themselves all the time. Because you know what? That doesn’t work. If it worked, you would’ve done it by now. You know that.I cannot wait to see who fills those final three seats and says yes to discovering their greatness.

Categories
Accountability Confidence

How to cut your decision time from 20 days to 15 minutes and feel peaceful

Hello and welcome to ‘Nature Today’ with Carol. I recorded the video outdoors, and it is a beautiful May day here in New Hampshire.Today is about overwhelm and how it impacts decision making. When overwhelmed, decisions can be really hard. I just got off a call with a client and she was feeling rather overwhelmed with a big decision she had to make. She is in several courses right now to do several certifications. She needed to decide, do I go for my big certification in November, or do I wait till next April? And she said that she had until the end of this month to decide. Now, I pointed out that that was really only 20 days. And she said, “yes, I have 20 days to decide” but by the end of our 30 minute call, she had made her decision, she had a best-next-step that would get her to that decision. I believe we did that part of the call in maybe 10 or 15 minutes!  We identified what exactly was holding her back from making that next step to make that decision and that was that she needed to reach out to somebody and she wasn’t sure about reaching out to that person. Wow!

Read on, or watch the video

Decisions are multi-level. When we are going for something big, like a big certification or a big life change, I’m going to call that ‘hard change’. ‘Hard Change’ is a phrase coined by Michael Bungee Stainer. Hard change involves saying ‘no’ to what’s worked for you so far, for the present you. Let that land for a moment. The woman that I was speaking to realized that she’s going to have to say ‘no’ to some things so that she can say ‘yes’ to this larger certification. ‘Saying ‘no’ now enables you to say ‘yes’ to the promise of future rewards’. You’re going to be playing a harder long-term, bigger game with a constant temptation, a constant temptation to opt out for a short term win. 

I have another client that at the beginning of our engagement, said “I would like to do X, Y, Z and I would like you to help me out with it” and as this person went along he was finding that he was getting kind of pushed over this way and pushed over that way with things that he wanted to do in the moment. And what he’s begun to realize is that saying ‘yes’ to those things in the moment is not allowing him to get to that bigger, longer term goal. So it’s really important for you to dig deep into that bigger, longer term goal. Ask, ‘Is this something I really want?’ I’ll go back to my client earlier with the certifications – she put herself into that ‘future you’ condition when she was going to have that certification and that had her know from the bottom of the earth that this was what she was meant to do in the world, and how she would then feel. And she was able to say ‘yes, I can now take a step’. The other person that I’m talking about hasn’t done that level of discernment – so that’s why I offer my deep discernment course that starts today – May 11 as I record this. It starts today, and if you would like to join us from week two, there are still a few spots available because I now have two cohorts instead of just one. 

If this is you and you are thinking:

  • I know I need that deep discernment. I didn’t think I needed it.
  • I didn’t think I was a thing. But now that you’re telling me these stories about the ‘hard change’ and the ‘future you’ and what you have to do and how easy it sounds and how hard it actually is, I feel like I wanna know more about this deep discernment and how it can help me

If that’s you, please hit reply and let me know, and we’ll see if you’re the right fit. If it’s not you, I hope that this has informed you in some way, inspired you in some way, and I would love to know a little bit about what your big ‘aha’ is. I’m going to leave you with one more thing. If you over-plant a garden, what’s going to happen is the plants will crowd each other out and none of them will do really well. So that’s why when we garden, we also weed, we take out and we thin out to allow the plants that we want to grow to really flourish. 

That’s what I want for you in the realm of your decisions of what you really want and why, so that you accomplish those things and feel GREAT about yourself!

Categories
Accountability Planning Positive Thinking

3 ways to turn Failure into Raving Success

In our last blog, we looked at failure and our fear of everything associated.  But, let’s flip that failure into a positive with three powerful ways to turn that failure around!

1. Consistency is key.

It’s not about all the things you can do easily, without even a thought – it’s about mastering those things that you once found difficult.  That’s where strength comes from and that’s the key to building success from failure.  If you fall, (and without trying to be negative here), occasionally, you will, instead of examining your bruises and war wounds, dust yourself down and get right back on it. Consistency is the key to success, so set about mastering whatever brought you down.  Consistent action coupled with learning form your mistakes equals consistent results.

2. Watch your mouth!

After a failure, it is all too easy to berate yourself, asking why you did something in a particular way or why you said something in a particular manner.  Stop right there!  Be aware of your self-talk.  Would you really talk like that to a friend (or even a stranger) in the same circumstances?  Don’t allow your self-talk to make you feel worthless.  You are human after all and acknowledging a mistake as human error and treating yourself with the same degree of respect you would show others is really important.  Sure, failure hurts. But, unless you want to stay in that moment of failure, stay positive and get back on track as quickly as possible. Your previous mistakes do not, I repeat, do not define you.  So again. Learn what you need to and then let them go.

3. Don’t be a stranger

Sometimes, failures keep us rooted to the past.  If we dwell on them too much, they become a bad habit that is hard to break.  If this resonates, don’t feel you have to go it alone.  Invite others to give you their take on the situation – whether a coach, a mentor or even a friend, their input can be invaluable. This can often be really empowering as you find different solutions to the problem.  Who knows, that different perspective may be the key to your success!

Nobody enjoys failure.  It’s tough, after all. But, if you regard any knock as an opportunity to reframe, revise and refocus our thoughts and actions, then aren’t they maybe just a teeny bit worthwhile, too? Heck, yes, and then some. In fact, they might be called a “raving success.”

How can failures be turned into a raving success?

Probably the best thing a person can do to “stop failing” is to begin to see the beautiful nuggets of learning and growth with each “failure.” In fact, Sarah Blakely (founder of SPANX) had a father who ENCOURAGED his children to fail, so that they’d be fearless. And those who are fearless are ultimately leaders. And we all are leaders of our own lives. Here’s a video of her, explaining this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TeV9op6Mp8

What might happen if you resolved to count your failures, to challenge yourself to fail at LEAST one time per day? (Hint: get ready for fame…)

—

Like this? You’ll love the Club!

Try on the Lunchtime Club (monthly virtual coaching group) on us for 30 days FREE!

  • Quick answers to your current dilemmas…in real time. Don’t know what to ask? No worries, we have a new HOT theme each month.
  • The solution to the #1 issue for Entrepreneurs: Collaboration!  You can Collaborate with like-minded individuals for additional support…in real time AND outside of the group. Did anyone say accountability partner?
  • And even more goodies:  You get MUCH more than live calls once a month! You get unlimited Access to past and new group session recordings – to enhance your learning and growing OUTSIDE of our monthly calls.

Curious? Learn more about this low cost, low commitment, high results, high energy program:

  • Click here if you have not worked with us before
  • Click here if you have been a client of ours in the last 12 months

Let’s get you more focused, organized, and productive than you have EVER been! Let’s see what might happen if you dare to just “read the blogs” to taking the steps to get you to where you want to go, but perhaps have not dared to…. until now.

I’ll be there! I can’t wait to meet you.

Categories
Accountability Get Organized Planning

Why we are afraid to fail and what it’s costing us

Failure.  One word guaranteed to strike fear wherever it lands. It happens to everyone.  Even those who we see as “living the dream”. But that doesn’t make it any less of a bitter pill to swallow when it comes a-knockin’ at our door.

So, you have two choices. Either, you can shrug it off, with an “Oh well, it wasn’t meant to be…” kind of approach, OR you can look for other ways to handle that F-word, a way to not only look at it more optimistically, but also to find clues within it for future success.

Now, for the purposes of this article, I’m going to assume that you’re all for taking option two.  So, how can you flip that negative to a positive and come out the other end oh, so much wiser?  Here are my three top tips:

1. “If I don’t start, I won’t fail” – how this mindset is killing you slowly

How many times have you caught yourself in this mindset?  You procrastinate over a task so long that it (in your mind at least) becomes so much bigger and more complex than it actually is. You set yourself up for failure before you even start.  You know, if we tell ourselves we are going to fail, then it becomes almost a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Remember, it is far better to do something imperfectly than nothing perfectly.  Inaction is the biggest risk you can take. You end up nowhere…fast.  Fear of failure is what keeps us rooted to the “now”.  But, like any other fear, the only way to get the better of it, is to stare it straight in the eye and remember that failure comes from productivity – fear from doing nothing, from inactivity – which is better?

2. The benefits of thinking ahead

We have all heard Benjamin Franklin’s quote, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail” – yep, that old chestnut – but it’s absolutely true in this scenario.

Many fail because they don’t take time to think ahead and plan for success. Without a plan, you have no roadmap, and wouldn’t you rather be on a super-highway heading to success, rather than a bumpy one-track road leading to who-knows-where?

Instead, head failure off at the pass by identifying risks at the planning stage.  By “shooting holes” in a plan (either do this yourself as part of a review, or, even better, get someone you trust to do this for you).

By planning ahead, you get to envision your success – what will it look and feel like? And this is an important part of the process.  By planning ahead, you switch from reactive to proactive, with a better view of any roadblocks or diversions in the path, allowing you to take action in plenty of time, and with confidence.

3. The hidden anchor of worrying too much.

We somehow think that one or two failures throughout our lives translates to us being a total failure.  And, with that sort of mindset, that set of self-limiting beliefs, how can we ever hope to succeed?

But, picture yourself in x years’ time, as an elderly person.  Wouldn’t you rather be laughing, remembering life’s hiccoughs, the bumps in the road and reminiscing about how things eventually played out, rather than lamenting the opportunities missed because you were too worried about “what could have happened” to accept them?

Failure is a fact of life, which everyone faces once in a while.  Some you win, some you don’t – all you can do is roll with the punches.  Change your mindset to one of reflecting on every failure as a lesson learned.  A means, perhaps, of opening up new potential and new opportunities to explore.

—

Like this? You’ll love the Club!

Try on the Lunchtime Club (monthly virtual coaching group) on us for 30 days FREE!

  • Quick answers to your current dilemmas…in real time. Don’t know what to ask? No worries, we have a new HOT theme each month.
  • The solution to the #1 issue for Entrepreneurs: Collaboration!  You can Collaborate with like-minded individuals for additional support…in real time AND outside of the group. Did anyone say accountability partner?
  • And even more goodies:  You get MUCH more than live calls once a month! You get unlimited Access to past and new group session recordings – to enhance your learning and growing OUTSIDE of our monthly calls.

Curious? Learn more about this low cost, low commitment, high results, high energy program:

  • Click here if you have not worked with us before
  • Click here if you have been a client of ours in the last 12 months

Let’s get you more focused, organized, and productive than you have EVER been! Let’s see what might happen if you dare to just “read the blogs” to taking the steps to get you to where you want to go, but perhaps have not dared to…. until now.

I’ll be there! I can’t wait to meet you.

Categories
Accountability Growth Mastermind Groups

The power of more than one mind – Leverage your impact in 2019

Is there a honeymoon period when running a business?

You know the deal.  You start your business; you don’t miss the water-cooler politics, the commute, the endless meetings for the sake of it.  The rosy tint on those self-employed glasses leads to a romantic vision of what self-employment means… but, at some stage, reality bites! You miss the camaraderie with colleagues, the feelings of “we’re in this together” and you find yourself overwhelmed with plans, ideas, lists. Not to mention the headache from wearing all those hats.  CEO one minute, office clerk the next.

So, what can you do about it?  Where can you go to bounce around those ideas, while obtaining valuable feedback from like-minded individuals, all the while making valuable progress towards your end-goals?

The answer is a Mastermind Group. A group of individuals striving for a common purpose and supporting each other along the way.  Not convinced?  After all, won’t this all take valuable time?  Time that you could have dedicated to working on your business? Sure, you’re going to have to commit to regular meetings (either in person or “virtual”), you’re going to be held accountable for your actions.  You’re going to have to realize that “it’s not all about you” But, what about the benefits?  Let’s look at how you can leverage your impact with a Mastermind Group:-

  1. Business Idea Support

You’ve got a great business idea, right? Everyone thinks it’s a winner… except the “everyone” in this case is your partner and your mom.  Not exactly objective opinions, then? This is where a Mastermind Group comes into its own.

There is a real synergy of energy, commitment and, dare I say, excitement that emanates from a good Mastermind Group. Members support each other with total honesty, respect and compassion.  After all, the group should be made up of people in a similar position to you, so whilst it may not always be plain-sailing in terms of pitching your ideas, you know that any criticism will be constructive and aimed to challenge, rather than destroy.  We all love being Devil’s Advocate sometimes, don’t we?

Your peers are there to give you feedback, help you brainstorm new possibilities and set up accountability structures to keep you focused and on track.

Use your members to gain a different perspective and iron out any wrinkles before you take your idea to market.

  1. Social Support

Sometimes your self-employed solitary efforts can feel like solitary confinement!

Remember your employed days, when you were surrounded by others and could regularly tap in and out of human interaction? Wouldn’t it be nice to have some compatriots to celebrate your success now? Commiserate with your failures (we all have ‘em!) and to just, well, listen sometimes?

With a Mastermind Group, you’re part of an exclusive community (and, hey, there’s no admission charge!) The feedback you receive can transcend just business issues and extend to your own self.  It can be so liberating to review yourself and get impartial input. Being around those you feel comfortable with stimulates the “happy hormone”.  The result? Better mental and physical health.

  1. Referral Partners

Members of a Mastermind Group all come with their own “tribe” – their own network of contacts.  Over time, as you build your relationships with your peers, they will generally share their contacts with you.  This gives you access to a greatly-extended personal network – no elevator pitch necessary – the recommendation has already been made for you.

In our next blog, we will look at how you can put your success into turbo-drive with focus, productivity and those Mastermind Groups, too.

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