What Does Being A Successful Entrepreneur Have To Do With Going To The Gym?

Last April I joined a gym for the first time in my life! At the time I didn't realize how my entrepreneurial skills would help me reach my fitness goals. One may wonder, what does being a successful entrepreneur have to do with going to the gym?

To the average person, there would be no connection. But to be successful at the gym, just like anything new, we have to push ourselves to do activities that we are not good at, don't know how to do, and in many cases, just don't "feel" like doing. When I started this fitness commitment I signed a 1 year contract.....and to me it was exactly THAT....a COMMITMENT I was making to myself.

When I started I was clumsy in the classes, I was probably the weakest in the class in terms of physical strength, I had no stamina, and I even showed up for my first cardio dance class in sandles and didn't even own a pair of sneakers....much to the eyebrow raising of the instructor! So this was not an area I had expertise in or was a born natural at!

This can be comparable to becoming an entrepreneur for the first time. Many people are like this "fish out of water" scenario. But, like the new gym member, there are some specific strategies I have learned being a successful entrepreneur that I have applied to the gym as well...

-I put all my class commitments in my daytimer prior to each week and I work around them.

-If I have to miss a class due to a commitment, I find a replacement time to get an extra workout in to replace it

-When I was new and felt clumsy when all the class knew the routine - they were going left when I was going right - I just kept with it until I got the routine

-When I started I literally could not lift my body weight off the yoga mat, I was too weak - but I pushed myself to do what I COULD do - today, I held my body up in a push up position on ONE HAND AND ONE LEG! The strength has come because I keep showing up and doing what I can do to the best of my ability.....I have learned in business - this leads to breakthroughs!

-I push myself to keep doing better each time I go - I don't worry about what others are doing, I compete against myself.

-I had a committed attitude right from the start - not "I'll try this for a month or two and see how it goes" This was a commitment I was making to myself.

Here I am 8 months later..... I have never felt better or healthier, I lost a ton of weight, have more energy, and have really taken control of my body, instead of letting "aging" take control of my body. What an empowering feeling this is!

I recognize the growth I have experienced in my physical fitness and how connected this is to the disciplines I have applied to become a successful entrepreneur. It all comes down to the power of our minds, and removing the limitations and past conditioning we have around our thoughts. When you learn to do that in any area of your life, it will transfer great results into other areas of your life as well....

In Your Service,

Debbie Ruston
1-800-576-2917 or 1-519-342-4050

Successful Entrepreneurs - Walk Their Walk AND Talk Their Talk!

Credibility is an absolutely HUGE part of being successful and every truly successful entrepreneur knows to walk their walk and definitely be a person of credibility in every area of their life. You cannot "promote" one way of thinking and being and DO the exact opposite if you want people to believe anything you say!

Today I was going through one of the social networking sites I belong to and came across a "post" from a person that has a yoga practice.... here is that person's post: "Is hating life this morning opening the gym on 2 hours of sleep lying awake dreading how I'm going to feel like crap today" I found this quite fascinating because it was like a red flashing light in the wrong direction! This person's bio goes on to say: "A Yoga mat is a place to turn when talk and antidepressants don't work." When I visited their blog, it is full of positive advice, wonderful suggestions and quotes....but how can you believe any of it, if the first introduction you see is a post about hating life, feeling like crap and dreading the day!

When we are in business for ourselves, it SO important to walk our walk! I had a ladies wear business for 18 years, and while I was in that business I wore the clothes that I sold....I did not shop anywhere else, I was a walking billboard for what I was offering my clients. I felt if I expected anyone to become a committed client to my clothing line, then I better be committed by wearing it myself!

Credibility is something I believe many individuals overlook in their own businesses....but it really is common sense and you can see indications of this in your own every day life to confirm to yourself how important it really is.....

-would you hire a personal trainer that was overweight or not in shape?
-would you buy clothes from a sales person with a poor self image in sloppy clothes?
-would you go to a yoga class with an instructor that is overweight and negative?
-would you hire a decorator that lives in a dump?
-would you go to a hairdresser that hasn't updated her own look in 20 years?
-would you hire a financial planner that is in huge debt and struggling?

I was recently at a networking group and was talking with a lovely woman I have known for years. She and her husband have a thriving decorating store they started themselves. They have grown to about 14 employees and take absolute pride in their employees, the products and services they offer, they have a beautiful home, and it is a priority to them to have staff that people love and can talk to for great advice. They actually look more for great people rather than prior experience, because when you have great people, they can be trained. They know the importance of this because when you have happy, great employees they are adding value to your customers.

It really is common sense, but many individuals just don't realize how important it is to be a person of absolute credibility. When you commit to being a successful entrepreneur, and you absolutely believe in what you do, and what you offer your client, you must also commit to being a "stand" for what you say you believe in - or no one will believe anything you say...and THAT will cost you much lost business. Remember, your actions must match your words....

In Your Service

Debbie Ruston
1-800-576-2917 or 1-519-342-4050

Successful Entrepreneurs Know Their Purpose & Have A VISION Bigger Than Themsevles

I have had the opportunity to learn from and observe many successful entrepreneurs over the years and I realize that every one of them has a commonality....they all know WHY they do what they do, or put more simply - they have a sense of purpose and are completely passionate about their vision!

Why is this important? Well, there will be times that we are challenged....this could be in personal life or in business. It is really interesting to observe how differently people react in the face of challenge or adversity, or even change. Many people will totally give into fear, abandon their original vision and jump ship on what they said they were totally committed to. This happens every day in basic every day things like physical fitness as an example.

Many people go through life jumping from one job to another, from one business to another and from one relationship to another. Always thinking the grass is greener over "there" somewhere. And as soon as the grass needs watering, or there is a draught, or bugs eat their grass, they move somewhere else. Always wondering, always searching, always coming up short. These people can be referred to as "opportunists". In life and in business, opportunists are just looking for that next "big" win....and as soon as they are challenged in any way, they are on to find the "next big win". If these individuals spent time getting absolute clarity on their purpose and committing to it fully, they would learn to ride out the draught, or the bugs or whatever challenge because they would KNOW that they are going in the direction of their purpose...they would KNOW they are absolutely steering their ship in the direction of their own North Star.

True success comes from really knowing what your true vision is and staying committed to it. In relationships and in business, it doesn't matter if there are challenges - when you have made a total commitment to what you stand for, nothing gets in the way of that.

True success comes from this success principle...having that knowingness of what your purpose is gives stability, and successful individuals use this assurance to keep a steady pace, ride out whatever "storm" may be happening around them, because they have a "North Star" they are following. They KNOW the desired outcome....they KNOW what they believe in and NOTHING can shake their confidence, belief or vision. This is one major difference between successful entrepreneurs and opportunists.

How Do You Prevent Interruptions When You Are An Entrepreneur Working From Home?

Organizing yourself and your workload in a way that prevents interruptions is a pivotal entrepreneurial skill that must be developed. However, that can be easier said than done, especially for new entrepreneurs starting up, when you are responsible for many of the day to day functions of your business, and you are working out of a home office. Many day to day distractions can get in the way....unexpected drop ins, family/friends calling, demands of children or spouse, dogs need to go out, laundry, outside chores.....the list is endless. When we work from a home office, we tend to "see" all the other things that need to be done in our home and it is so easy to get distracted or interrupted. I read a study recently that people are interrupted an average of 15 times in their 8 hr work day, and the challenge with these interruptions is even if they are only 5 min, when we lose our train of thought, it takes an average of 20 minutes to get back in the swing of things again, and if you were on a roll with something important, it takes time to get the ball rolling again.

So how do you get yourself organized, get important things done and maintain balance in your life? Well it actually starts with the word "organized", as lame as that sounds.....if you are not organized, everything and anything will get in your way.

Here are some key strategies in keeping yourself organized so that interruptions do not get in the way of your success:

-Be very clear on the fact that when you have work to do, you must be COMMITTED to yourself. Do what you say you are going to do and give yourself more loyalty and commitment than you gave to your previous employer. You deserve that!

-Use a daytimer - slot in all the important tasks you need to personally look after and put time frames on them. I recommend doing this a week in advance. Each Friday I look at the following week and slot in all my commitments, starting with my fitness classes....these are not flexible so I put them in first to keep that commitment I have made to myself to go to the gym 5-6 times per week. Then I slot in everything else....including my down time to be with family and friends.

-Be sure you have a voicemail system. If you are busy with another task, let the calls go to voicemail. You will get far more done if you stay focused on what you were doing and then return calls, than if you allow an interruption in the middle of something. This applies to all other technological interruptions - email, skype, social media, etc....

-Set appointments with friends or family that want to drop by rather than having people drop in "whenever". You are self employed - if you want to spend time with someone that is coming over you can time slot as much time as you want - but if it is a surprise drop in, your time spent with them will not be of the same quality because you will be thinking about all the things you should be doing.

-Make sure you have a private work space, preferably with a door! When your door is closed it is a sign to anyone else in the home that you are "working" and can't be disturbed unless it is an emergency. Some successful home business entrepreneurs even have an unwritten rule in their home - if the door is shut, unless someone is bleeding, do not open that door:)

-When you have calls to return, sit down and return the calls and do not get sidetracked with getting a coffee, throwing in some laundry or any other household task you see on your walk to the kitchen. Do not allow yourself to move from that phone until you have returned all the calls you have.

Really this all is just common sense. Decide what you want to achieve and remember that nothing will interrupt you unless you allow it. When you are an entrepreneur working from home, YOU call the shots, YOU have the control....be at cause, not the effect of things going on around you.

In Your Service,

Debbie Ruston
1-800-576-2917 or 519-342-4050