Yes, surround yourself with the responsibility of a dog or a cat.
We all know that the vagaries of being in business, regardless of the venue can be stressful and in the beginning, it can be a challenge to stay the course.
I have always since childhood accepted the responsibility of a pet and found that responsibility to be a benefit in keeping a focus on other important aspects of my Entrepreneurial lifestyle.
Pets are a great way to beat the blues. Not only are they known to they offer unconditional love, but they may also give their owners a sense of purpose, which can be crucial for those feeling down in the dumps. Pets also combat feelings of loneliness by providing companionship, which can boost your overall mood and even bring you feelings of joy and happiness.
And a Happy Entrepreneur seems to get the Job done more easily.
The health of the entrepreneur and growing an effective business mindset is critical for a less bumpy Journey to Abundance and your pet can provide assurance to better health according to a couple of studies.
A study, written by Dr. Deborah Wells of Queen’s University, Belfast, for the British Journal of Health Psychiatry, found that dog owners tend to suffer less from ill health, have lower cholesterol, and lower blood pressure.
Citing a 1995 study, Dr. Wells stated that dog owners who had suffered heart attacks were 8.6 percent more likely to be alive one year following their heart attacks than patients that did not own dogs. “It is possible that dogs can directly promote our well-being by buffering us from stress,” said Dr. Wells. “The ownership of a dog can also lead to increases in physical activity and psychological human health in a more indirect manner.”
There are literally hundreds of substantiated article regarding this topic.
Just Search: “benefits of owning a pet”
In a non-scientific observation, my successful friends and colleagues in the business world seem to have strong relationships with a pet. A very close friend James Strauss and associate recently lost his cat, Harvey, I had the privilege of meeting Harvey several times and saw the power of the relationship which was beneficial in Jim’s ability to write so vividly. Harvey was the catalyst to keep Jim’s publishing business on track. When Harvey passed away earlier this year Jim was devastated, could not write, and felt he was losing touch with his business.
We are both convinced Harvey was instrumental in directing him to Bentley. As the new “pet” settled Jim felt a surge of creative juices flowing and his ability to focus on his myriad of Businesses increased.
That same experience was played out in our home 3 years ago. Our 11-year relationship with the wonder dog, Flo, ended with her death and that led to my quitting my business focus for short time. Routines were difficult to follow. But as soon we rescued Lacy and she immediately took over the house and showed us her demands the ability to follow the routine was revived, and business success of course followed.
Flo, our Schnauzer, Border Collie, Basenji cross. 11 years of faithfully keeping my Business Mindset on track
Lacy our rescued Parson Russell Terrier. We believe we were directed to her by Flo and she took over the CEO responsibilities very quick
Do you ever do anything business-wise from a solo perspective?
Yes. And no.
Yes, because sometimes you will choose to go into a business solo, meaning you have no company or corporation behind you. If you run a blog you tend to be in this crowd.
No, because no venture is ever truly a solo venture, meaning you partially rely on others to make your business go.
Solopreneurs are individuals who run their own businesses but without the help of a corporation, company or full staff. Being a solo entrepreneur feels challenging at times. Learning how to build a thriving business without a complete staff or company behind you may seem daunting but if you follow a few tips you will become a successful solopreneur.
1: Double Down on Mindset Work
Double down on mindset work.
Do the inner clearing to see outer success.
Foolish solopreneurs attempt to work on outside conditions without doing the inner clearing
Since you will face your deepest fears on this solopreneur journey, the wise thing to do is to jump full bore into mindset work.
Raise your energy level. Consider meditating, doing yoga, exercising and building a gratitude list regularly to purge fears. Feeling your fears allows you to release your fears. Releasing your fears allows you to do things from a place of love.
Loving, generous, patient, persistent solopreneurs build thriving ventures over the long haul.
Do the inner work. Align your energy to follow the remaining 3 tips.
2: Study Successful Solopreneurs
The happiest, most successful solopreneurs are studies in time and energy management. These dynamos teach you how to succeed despite not having a full workforce at your disposal.
If you don’t have a secretary, human resources guy, tech gal or other specific resources you can succeed business-wise by following the top solopreneur pros. Tap into their creativity. Feast on their ingenuity.
These folks will point you in directions you had not foreseen if you feel lost and hopeless as a newbie or struggling solopreneur.
3: Master the Art of Delegating Tasks
Micromanaging is the enemy of any solopreneur. You only have 24 hours to work with today. Make every second count by hiring people and using free and premium tools to hand off specific tasks.
Either you have no knowledge or passion for certain work or you simply despise boring repetitive tasks. Either way, hiring someone or using tools to do the work frees up your energy for more important, pressing work. Master the art of delegating work to qualified parties. Build your solopreneur venture by handing off non-critical tasks to virtual assistants. Pay people to free up your schedule and to focus on your passions.
If you love writing hand off other duties to focus exclusively on writing blog posts, guest posts and eBooks to render service and to grow your solopreneur business.
Invest in premium tools to handle non-essential tasks. Is your time best spent creating content and building bonds with other bloggers or tweeting updates every 45 minutes?
Outsource to people and tools. Spend all of your business day engaging in business-building activities. Practice the art of release. Think and act like a successful solopreneur.
4: Master the Art of Leveraging Your Presence
Guest post on top blogs in your niche.
Comment effectively on top blogs in your niche.
Leverage your presence quickly.
Reach large, targeted audiences to grow your solopreneur venture.
If you go into business solo learn how to render service to big, interested audiences. Guest posting is one of the best ways to help people through the art of leveraging.
Example; if you write and place a guest post on a niche blog with 30,000 community members you just reached an extra 30,000 people interested in your niche. Some of these people will dig your content, click through to your blog and learn more about your business.
The eBook
If you want to navigate the sometimes crazy solopreneur experience
buy my eBook:
6 Tips to Embrace the Solopreneur Rollercoaster Ride
Your Turn
What successful ‘solopreneur’ tips can you add to this list?
Should a Business Mindset focus more on Blogging Content or Social Media Content?
This question has been the topic of webinars, group narratives, forums and social dialog for a few years.
It is true that Social Dialog seems to dominate,especially with the move toward more mobile web access. But so much of that has a short lifespan and in some cases, not much depth.
Blogging on the other hand allows the writer time to fine tune the content and, if they are self-hosted, to know there is an Never Ending Story. Plus the opportunity for comments to build and , in many cases become a substantive source of relevant content to the initial article.
In a discussing web/blog commenting with good friend and SEO Guru, Jack Humphrey of Brick Road Media, he mentioned that commenting has seemed to decline because it was easier to post to Social Media. I tended to agree until we studied the remarkable and seemingly contrary results seen on a site we are both vested in, James Strauss
Jim Strauss finally decided to publish a story about his ‘Thirty Days Has September’Vietnam experiences, almost 50 years ago, and sought ideas on how to generate interest because the traditional publishing business is truly a “den of thieves”. I suggested posting the chapters as written on his website and using social media the announce the updates of new chapters.
His Facebook page, James Strauss Writer, has 7,900 fans but when he posts each post receives about 600 shares creating an organic audience of 15,000 to 20,000 per post. That is impressive BUT the website receives 4,000 to 6,000 page views daily and MOST IMPORTANT in depth comments of serious readers salivating for the print and kindle versions not yet published.
To date in the past 4 months there have been over 3,800 comments.
Example of some the 3,800+ comments:
From Ray: Jim—Not going to tell you your doing a good Job as that is a given. l check a couple of time a day to see if there is a new episode and if there is I make myself wait maybe the rest of the day before reading, that way do not have to wait as long for the next one. I’m not too bright but think it works for me. You may have answered the before,but is this 30 days a ruff draft and will be turned into book form with more text or just turned into a book? Either way I have to get book to pass around to others. Semper Fi
From Roy.. I once read a series of 6 books; only the first was written when I read it. It took eight years and as each book came out I reread each of the others again before the new book. I think waiting the two to three days between installments of “30 Days” is as bad if not worse. I see little mistakes you make but I hope they’ll be found by a good proof reader before publishing (I won’t critique). An engrossing tale so different from the war I fought. But then war is a very personal experience no matter how similar or dissimilar each’s experience happens to be. Keep up the great work…works like yours should be required reading…and service should be mandatory!
What James Strauss has done through blogging the content and directing referrals from Social Media is to create an eager to buy audience and we feel that is an excellent Business Mindset strategy
Social media does direct a lot of traffic traffic, but our Business Mindsets are convinced the quality of CONTENT, and the lively input and dialog in the comment section, is what is building the loyal customer base. Some major websites have quit allowing comments. We feel that may prove to be a mistake?
The crew at Best Business Mindset Alliance are still convinced a Business,large or small, and regardless the venue will still benefit form delivering quality content to their targeted audience through the time and capital investment in a blogging website.
P.S. if you would to discuss your direction and have a desire to increase results, give us a call
Self Esteem, if you believe all the media, seems to be lacking in Society today and that may be the reason for aspiring Businesses to be suffering in growth.
Personally, I feel it is the emphasis on becoming a societal clone is why Self Esteem may be a diminishing personality trait.
The excitement is building as I progress in Week #2 of the Master Key Master Mind Alliance journey.
At least as fast as this 70+ year subconscious and conscious mind can assimilate ~smile
Reviewing Week #2 of the Master Key, by Charles Haanel, reinforced my earlier commitment to the Power From Within that is generated when we learn to TRAIN our Subconscious Mind. The Subconscious is such a dynamic, always available, machine of greatness or emptiness and negativity.
Not only have the daily recitals of Og Mandino’s Scroll One been beneficial, the direction from Mark and his crew regarding the use of Index Cards for focusing thought and creating good habits.
The Letter of Transmittal for Week 2 of The Master Key has an impact every time I read for the past 5 decades.
Listen for yourself
Click the arrow
As mentioned previously I have wandered several times from my Definite Major Purpose (Established in 1960) and let a few of my solid Habits get pushed aside by external pressures. Being part of the #MKMMA Master Key Master Mind Alliance has reinforced my original Life commitment and I have been experiencing the thrill of getting back to ME and how I was destined to live.
Do those statements sound Egotistical and Full of Self?
In some ways they should, with the exception of EGO. The writings of Hill, Haanel, Marden and Mandino all point to fact that EGO (as defined by society) is devoid of a person who Knows the Keys to unlocking and mastering the Subconscious Mind.
Being Full of Self is a good. We cannot give to others that which we do NOT possess. The Law if Dual Thought explains that unique life force very well.
From Week #2 The Master Key, by Charles Haanel
…..3. The subconscious soul, like a benevolent stranger, works and makes provision for our benefit, pouring only the mature fruit into our lap; thus ultimate analysis of thought processes shows that the subconscious is the theatre of the most important mental phenomena.
4. It is through the subconscious that Shakespeare must have perceived, without effort, great truths which are hidden from the conscious mind of the student; that Phidias fashioned marble and bronze; that Raphael painted Madonnas and Beethoven composed symphonies.
5. Ease and perfection depend entirely upon the degree in which we cease to depend upon the consciousness; playing the piano, skating, operating the typewriter, the skilled trades, depend for their perfect execution on the process of the sub-conscious mind. The marvel of playing a brilliant piece on the piano, while at the same time conducting a vigorous conversation, shows the greatness of our subconscious powers.
But we must Exercise that talent…….
and this what The Master Key Master Mind has helped so many understand.
These words seem to emerge in many conversations about a Business Mindset. Since revisiting some of my old Favorites and being active in the Master Key Master Mind Alliance, I have realized that Proactive trumps Reactive all the time
“If you’re Proactive, you don’t have to wait for circumstances or other people to create perspective expanding experiences. You can consciously create your own.” – Stephen Covey
It did not take me long into the book to realize Stephen Covey and I share the same thought of living a Proactive life, rather than waste time wallowing the mire of Reactive Victimization. Stephen Covey sees Proactive living as the foundation of the other 6 Habits, and therefore goes into great detail in defining PROACTIVE behavior in the 1st chapters.
We both agree that Proactive Behavior is the act of taking charge of our lives is being responsible for it and taking all actions necessary to become the master of our own destiny. We are all born with the opportunity of choice and that becomes a principle underlying a Proactive Mindset since we have the choice on how we respond to what happens to us in our daily lives and it is our reaction to those circumstances that determine how things affect us.
Those who lack the Proactive Habit are seen as being more Reactive, seeing themselves as victims of circumstance, and are usually unable to change their reactions and therefore tend to feel enslaved.
I have observed over the past couple of decades that the word Victim crops up in daily conversation on a regular basis. Those who feel victimized are Reacting to what other people or persons are saying about them instead of focusing on the facts that they command about themselves. This Mindset that causes phrases such as “he makes me so mad” or “she made me feel bad” are examples of a victim mindset language.
This attitude is fostered, in my opinion, through the Education System and in many instances, the Pulpit.
A central government is more likely to grow if the populace can consider themselves in a Reactive, Victim, Mindset.
Instead of reacting to circumstances and waiting for opportunities, get off your duff and create your own events and opportunities.
Being proactive allows YOU to consciously engineer your own events.
Stephen Covey points out that there’s a gap between stimulus and response, and within that gap lies the potential for us to choose our response.
The gap seems to be the spot where we may rely on our intuition?
Do we choose based on the information from others or based on our personal experiences and/or that sixth sense, that seems to be most powerful.
Four special human endowments give us this power:
Self-awareness – Understanding that we do have a choice between stimulus and response. If you are offered a dietary temptation, YOU can choose not to eat it.
Conscience – We are all born with the ability to consult your inner compass to decide what is right for you. You can make decisions based on unchanging principles, regardless of what is socially favored at the moment. OR you can follow the herd into a Reactive direction
Creative Imagination – By using our imagination, we can mentally generate and evaluate different options. Napoleon Hill emphasizes the Power of Imagination in Think and Grow Rich Click on Link for Free Audio and Text
Independent Will – We all have the freedom to choose your own unique response. You are not forced to conform to what others expect from you. Learn to Unleash Your True Authentic Self.
IDEAS about S.M.A.R.T Goals
How have you applied those those Four Special Human Endowments?
Instead of reacting to circumstances and waiting for opportunities, get off your duff and