If you’ve been a part of the Sweet Life Sisterhood for a while, you know I share a ton of marketing strategies and frameworks that help you grow your business. You also know I’m all about finding and sharing the strategies that don’t require us to work all day, every day.

It’s about working smarter not harder, right?

We all know that in theory, but most of us will look up at some point and realize that we’re working harder, not smarter. Even I’m guilty of it. I don’t want that for you! 

So I’m going to share a few ways that I am working to flip the script in my own life and business, as well as explain how our mindsets and vision play an important role in working smarter.

 

Working harder is a self-fulfilling prophecy

Lately, I’ve been noticing the parts of my business that just feel like a ton of work and life, and that haven’t felt very fulfilling. 

There were parts of my day that just felt like a slog, like I wasn’t making any progress, like I had none of that spark that helped me get things done.

You know what I’m talking about. You’ve probably been there before, if you’re not there right now. You work and work and work, trying to dig yourself out of that hole… only to feel like the hole gets bigger. Digging out gets harder.

So I decided to do something radical: ask myself what I needed, no strings attached.

Instead of looking at my calendar, my to-do list, my notifications first thing each day, I asked my body and brain what they needed first. Novel concept, right?

What I’ve found, as I’ve started choosing — daily! — to put myself first, is that I do not feel compelled to push harder or keep working. I know when to let things go for the day. 

I’m also happier. Healthier. More energetic. More focused. I can make decisions faster. I can see solutions easier. I can work through my task list faster, and with less mental effort. 

I didn’t get that by working harder or longer. In fact, it was entirely the opposite thanks to my #90daysofjoychallenge.

 

 

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I was writing the August Growing Guide for my #BloomingBusiness Inner Circle yesterday, and I was thinking how 90% of being a business owner is mindset. The other 10%? Well, that is actually performing the service or creating the product. That 90% though? That’s the part we all too often push aside. We lean into the doing and the how and ignore ALL the internal things. We don’t realize the muscle our mind is and how it needs to be worked (and managed). Since I started journaling regularly about 3 years ago, I’ve learned to get out all the thoughts, the feelings, the dreams, the frustrations, the hope...on paper. It’s in those lines you find real gems. The REAL you. Your mind on the other hand? Well when you let it do it’s own thing and run the show, a lot of the times it lies to you. Not in a bad way, but to protect you from harm, risk or pain. Of the hundreds of women I’ve worked with (and myself), we all get tripped up from time to time. We can’t figure out why what we want to make happen isn’t happening. We play small. We tell ourselves we aren’t good enough. We compare. We wait until the conditions are perfect to take action. We wait for someone else to give us permission to live our lives and dreams...but now.....written on paper 📝 you can see the untruths for what they are. You can instead speak light and love to yourself. You realize that your journey is yours alone to uncover and live into. You become your biggest cheerleader. And when you feel joy from the inside out, that’s when your best work, your best service, and your best work of art in being a business owner truly shines.✨ #bloomingbusiness #sweetlifesisterhood

A post shared by Marketing Strategy + Biz Coach (@amberhousley) on Jul 15, 2020 at 8:18am PDT

 

I know that what we allow will continue. So I’m allowing myself more time to care for myself. More time for meditating, yoga, yummy and healthy foods… and journaling. 

Part of my journaling practice boils down to me letting my mind run free. There is NO filter inside of Amber Housley’s private journal, and I think that’s exactly how it should be!

When we write things down, we process our thoughts in a whole new way, and we get so much closer to how we actually feel and think.

As I’ve built up my journaling practice again, I’m finding that I feel more resilient, more confident, more optimistic about what’s ahead.

If you’re wondering, “What can I do to put myself first?” here are just a few ideas...

 

Tips to help you focus on your mindset and vision

• Journal (Amber Lilyestrom has some amazing prompts!)

• Meditate

• Do yoga

• Take a bath

• Go for a walk (no phone!)

• Read a book (not about work!)

• Sit by a pond/lake/river

• Sit on your porch with a cup of coffee

• Take a whole day off work

• Turn off your notifications

• Have a dance party

• Lay on the floor and stare at the ceiling (don’t knock it ‘til you try it!)

 

Remember: self-care is highly unique to each person, but I believe it’s a huge cornerstone of supporting healthy mindsets and making space for us to dream. 

This list might sound like a list of things that only “women with time” can do, but the truth is, you have to make the time. You have to choose to put yourself first. 

When you do, you’ll find that your mindset is more settled, and you are more clear on WHY you’re doing things.

Because the truth is: we lose sight of the WHY by focusing on the WHAT and the HOW. 

Our WHY helps stabilize us. It gives us a direction to steer. When you give yourself time to dream again, you bring that spark and excitement back into your work (and life). 

But we don’t remember our WHY if we don’t slow down and fill up our cups. Now, more than ever, we need to remember our WHY.

 

Mindset + vision will see us through

Business can be hard. Life can be hard. During times like these, they can be even harder. 

I know there will still be hard times, even with my self-care practices, working on my mindset, and finally getting back in touch with my dreams and vision for the future. 

But I have an anchor that’s helping me navigate the big storms (and 2020 is a doozy). 

I’m not bogged down by what I should be doing, or by what I can’t do now that the whole world is changing. I’m not just feeling exhausted. I’m not worried about how I’ll get it all done.

I’m feeling energized! I’m feeling aligned. And I’m clearly seeing exactly how my actions affect my big, juicy dreams for this business and the people I serve.

I have a vision for how I show up in the world. All of it.

That’s what I was missing before. And that’s why I’m calling on all the Sweet Life Sisters to really focus on themselves and let themselves dream. Because when we don’t, we lose sight of how much of a difference we can make.

That’s why I truly believe that our mindset and vision — and intentionally focusing on them — are so, so important.

Right now, we (as in everyone in the world) are in the middle of a big shift. We are being called to change, to level up, to show up.

But if our minds aren’t in the right place, if we’re not dedicating time to ourselves and filling up our buckets, we’re never going to be able to show up for this transformation.

We need to work on our mindsets. We need to spend time dreaming. We need to share our visions for the future, for our lives, for our businesses.

These are the things that help us weather the hard times, that see us through, that show us which way to go when things get hard.

 

How to start focusing on your mindset and vision

If you truly want a thriving business and joy-filled life, no matter what is happening in the world, you need to focus on your mindset and vision. That doesn’t come overnight. It comes with intentional decisions to look inward.

 

So… let me ask you:

 

How are you tuning into yourself? 

 

How are you supporting your mindset?

 

How are you checking in with your vision?

 

And most importantly: are you still dreaming?

 

If you have a pen and paper handy, write down your answers to those questions. What do you see? Are you tuning in? Are you dreaming?

If you’re like most of us, the answer is, “No!” But it doesn’t have to stay that way! You can use the self-care tips I shared, and the free journal prompts from my lovely friend Amber Lilyestrom, or you can find your own.

But if you want my help to go deeper into your mindset, get clearer on your vision, and identify the dream that’s going to help drive you through hard times... that’s what we’re covering in this month’s Growing Guide!

 

 

If you’re not familiar, the Growing Guides are the monthly workbooks shipped directly to Blooming Business Inner Circle members. Each month is a different theme, ranging from brand-new marketing strategies to creating new offers and upleveling your mindset.

Inside the Inner Circle, you also get monthly coaching from me, as well as access to a blooming community of fellow female business owners. Inside the private Facebook group, we support each other, hear each others’ challenges, and work together to create the sort of lives and businesses we want.

Join us, won’t you!?