Push Past Your Limits

 

     Are you struggling to reach your goals? My daughter gave me a birthday card this year with the perfect message.  Dreams come a size too big so that we can grow into them.  So if your dreams are feeling larger than life, looks like you’ve got some growing to do. It can be anything from fear, to doubt, maybe even lack of skill set. How can you push past the limitations in your world? The natural tendency is to give up when things get too challenging, but this is the precise time to push harder, change things up to break past getting stuck in a rut. Take action and put a plan in place.  

Recruit someone or something to help push you. Top achievers work with coaches and mentors. Find an accountability partner to flush out the negativity surrounding you. An encourager can be anyone that gives you much needed support and positive feedback. A compliment on your nail art, an encouraging word when you’re down. Reach out to people in your network that are positive role models for a boost when you need it. Subscribe to positive feeds on social media and turn off the negative news feeds. Find a cornerstone, something that you can have around you to remind you of the goal. A vision board, beautiful photos, thank you cards. Surround yourself with good vibes to ward off bad mojo.

 

   Take on something larger than your current skill set.  Enter an online contest, pick up a new art technique. Decide to master your numbers and your budget. Doing what you’ve always done is a sure fire way to staying exactly where you are.  Stuck in the confines of what you believe you can or can’t do. Stretch your limits and grow into them along the way.

Find something that truly inspires you. Get inspired by watching videos, reading inspirational books, or even just a great quote taped to your mirror. Inspiration is great for motivation. I have a ton of motivational quotes and a vision board on my fridge. Every time I walk past I am drawn to what motivates me.  What I’m dreaming of doing and becoming.

Push yourself to exhaustion. To truly break past barriers you have to be driven. Work on something that challenges you, and stick with it till you get your breakthrough. I’ve said it before but it bears repeating, all growth comes from outside your comfort zone. What is it you need to move forward? New tools? A class? A better video camera to work on tutorials? Research what it is you need to improve and take the leap. With much encouragement from my positive role models, Braden, I have taken the plunge and invested in recording equipment to start recording my content. Yes very soon you will be able to get my content in audio format.  I too was stuck in the grips of my limitations. I didn’t have the right equipment, would anyone purchase it? I struggle with the same fears and doubts just like anyone else, but I move past the fear by believing  my encouragers, my positive inner circle that says, yes you can. 

 

Cut off the negative naysayers, the ones that are stuck themselves. Break out of your limits and grow into your dreams. You will get farther than you ever imagined, just like this hometown girl, that is on the radio. If I had let fear win, you wouldn’t have Millie’s marketing segment. You too have great things to offer the world, now get to it!

Where You At?

     So we are at the end of the second quarter, which also means one half of the year has gone past us. Do you know where your numbers are?  Are you on track to meet your business goals for the year? Did you set any business goals? Some say to add 33% to your annual figures from last year and push toward that figure. So if you did 50 thousand in revenue in 2013 you should be on track to hit 66500.00 Maybe 30% is too lofty. Maybe some of you will do well this year to stay the same and not go backwards.  Each year you truly should be able to grow your revenue. Even if it’s by reducing costs. Could you downsize to a smaller suite and cut your overhead considerably for the rest of this year? If it makes sense, why not? Don’t be married to a space that you are only hoping to fill. Get real with yourself and your numbers. Don’t stay in a space that no longer suites your needs. Let go of ego, or whatever it is you are holding onto and make the right move. It’s also time to reevaluate every fixed cost in your business and see if you can cut some of those as well. I am looking at encouraging all my guests to pay with cash or check so I can eliminate those pesky charges from my merchant service account that add up over the year. Do you have another area business you can share Wi-Fi with? Another nail tech in town you can split bulk purchases with? Each dollar you carve off your expenses is another dollar in your pocket. Can you consolidate clients into 4 days instead of 5 and save on utilities? Or rent if the case may be? 

 

      Ok so if you are not growing, you have to ask yourself why not? Are your marketing efforts not as effective as they could be? Are you tracking how new people find you? Each person in your chair is a window to at least 100 other people. 250 if they are on social media. If you are not getting referrals you must ask for them.  Word of mouth is a great way to get new clients. Ask for testimonials, ask for Yelp reviews, ask ask ask. Some will, some won’t, so what, move on. Remember it’s all in the asking. Try something like “You know you are one of my favorite clients I truly enjoy and I’m sure you have a lot of wonderful friends I would love to service as well. Would you consider sharing a few of my referral cards with some of your contacts?  Let them know there is something in it for them as well. I automatically reward my client with 5 dollars off her next visit. I don’t keep track and wait until she reaches some unrealistic amount. I reward on the spot. For the high referrers, why not comp an entire service? Appreciation goes a long way.  I heard in relationships women only want three things. Attention, Affection and Appreciation. Our clients are no different.  Most of my clients enter with a smile and leave with a hug.  Figure out which marketing efforts are resulting in new clients and wash, rinse, repeat.

 

     Is it time to up your game? Are you keeping current? Are you able to offer the newest services that can add on service and revenue dollars? Think about what service, if you offered it could up your ticket prices. Think about this, if you ad reflexology to your menu, you probably need education in it right? Well where is that money going to come from Millie? Tell your clients I am going to be offering reflexology in the fall, the first 10 clients to pre-purchase two $50 sessions can take 20% off. So 80 times 10 is 800 dollars right? There is your education fund right there. Plus once those clients have been serviced the rest is all profit. Change it up; look for opportunities to serve in a new way. Read back through some of my blog posts for inspiration and motivation. Make sure the next half of 2014 is your best ever.

What are you feeding your brain?? Part 2

So I've decided to really make the commitment to walking for at least 30 minutes every day. Those of you that know me well know....I hate to exercise. So I searched for a good cd to pop in the cd player, seriously, maybe I'll splurge on an ipod one of these days for myself instead of just for the kids...Anyhoo....back to my search. Oh, here's one. Larry Speaks on Salon Success, by Larry Curtis. That was a pretty good one. I got this from Larry himself at a show can't remember where or when, within the past few years. So I pop it in, Wow ever notice when your mind is moving in a certain direction things you really need seem to manifest? I have been looking for new content for articles and classes and this CD fits right in. I consider it a must have. GREAT strategies for success. Larry is another hunter/gatherer of information much like myself. Knowledge is power, BUT ONLY when implemented and acted on. It's is not enough to know, you must GROW with that knowledge. So what are these great strategies you ask?? Well you really must listen to the cd to get the most bang for the buck, but just to whet your appetite.....

Never Stop Learning. How good do you WANT to be?

Commit to a few personal missions

Take personal responsibility. For things to get better YOU have to get better.

Stay flexible, life goals don't always fit in exact measure.

Control your attitude and committ to having more fun. Having a good attitude will make inevitable challenges easier to deal with.

Take ACTION. When all is said and done.......more is SAID than DONE.

Your success is up to one person and one person only YOU

Stay tuned for MORE success tips.