One Question That Will Change Your Business
I have a list of questions that I run through in my daily morning practice. I sit with them for about 15 minutes each morning and really give myself to my morning practice.
One of the questions I ask myself is really important. It helps me stay productive without pushing myself into an overcaffeinated GRIND MODE that ultimately leads to burnout.
Here’s the question:
What is ONE thing that I’m excited about today?
First of all, why even ask myself that question?
Real talk: Because living the dream is not always so dreamy. There are tasks that will not be your favorite or will be outside of your comfort zone.
Here’s an example:
I don’t like cleaning the litter box but I love my cat, Ollie. He is the best cat. When I think about getting rid of him it makes me sad so I clean the litter box.
So when we slow down and ask ourselves this question, often times we can hype ourselves into doing even the least fun tasks, like accounting or copywriting because we can regain perspective around WHY we are doing it.
And you may surprise yourself and say, I’m actually excited to get up go LIVE on social media or write that next blog post etc.
It’s also a great cue to help see if consistently you are NOT excited about something that maybe you need to pivot, reframe or outsource that piece.
Using the litter box example again:
I hated looking at the box. I hated how much mess the cat made around it.
So I made a bench seat to hide it and create space for him to shake his paws everywhere and keep the majority of litter inside the bench box and not sticking to the bottoms of my feet.
Now it’s way faster to clean, more contained and less of an eye sore. It’s just a little more tolerable.
There are a lot of reasons we may not enjoy something. It just may not be fun.
Or it could be overwhelming. Or it feels like it’s not working.
So slowing down and saying why am I am excited or not excited about this is actually a very powerful question.
STORY TIME
I have two client calls today. Both of which are dream clients in the truest sense. I got here by asking myself this question that I’m posing today.
I want to share a bit about why I got started in 2015 in my business and show you how that happened.
Once upon a time in 2015 I was working and living in Nicaragua doing full time missions work.
At the time, my husband and I had to raise support for the work we were doing and so I was thrown headfirst into the murky waters of marketing and fundraising.
But I quickly started treading water and noticed a trend. There were a lot of people with missional vision, powerful purpose and tons of passion but they did not have an ability to compel people to get on board with their vision in terms of financial support.
For whatever reason, my husband and I excelled at this a bit more naturally and I, being wired the way that I am, began looking for ways to improve our online presence and donor relationships.
Why? Because we were in the field a lot. Like literally, out in fields hiking and hanging out with farmers.
Electricity and internet were often spotty and I had to have systems in place that would work with our situation.
So I started to learn about online marketing and email marketing systems like Mailchimp and ConvertKit and ActiveCampaign. I started to get excited and started implementing these things in our workflows. Our relationships flourished!
I tried to help others in our non-profit world understand what I was talking about so that their visions and networks could be amplified.
But I was met with blank stares. They just had NO IDEA what I was talking about.
However, I found that there non-profits on line who were aware of what I was talking about and just needed help with Implementation.
Not only that but regular FOR PROFIT businesses as well needed help with branding and visibility. I got excited.
Today, I’ve worked with over 40 clients some non-profit some for profit and that has been an absolute gift.
Literally dream work.
But not everyday has been a dream. There have been bumps along the way and I’ve never had a client I didn’t love but there were some that I definitely enjoyed workign with more.
They were the ones with strong missions who were REALLY ready to go the next level in their dreams.
Today, I get to work with 2 non-profit clients and here is why that still really excites me.
Non-profits have strong missions. They are passionate. They know how to make a dollar go far. So when they invest with me, I know they are super serious about getting results for their people and for themselves.
It’s not a whim, it’s not half hearted interest. These are HEART-CENTERED ENTREPRENEURS in the most literal sense who happen to have a non-profit label on them.
And when they get unstuck and light bulbs start flashing over their heads, man, that means lives are going to be impacted positively and I got to be a part of that process.
That’s what lights me up.
So what are you excited about today? Tell me below.
