I guess my biggest problem is keeping track of maybe 30-40 little projects that can’t be done immediately and need a few steps to them. I get anxious keeping on top of them and can feel overwhelmed.

Help! Any ideas?

John – UK

Here’s my answer to John.

Hi John

Thanks for writing!

Yes, I do have some ideas.

1. Make a master to-do list of all those projects (there’s a form in the Organising Success Pack for you to use)
2. Can you delegate any? If yes, then definitely do so!
3. Now choose the top 1 – 3 projects in terms of priority and schedule some time to work on them over the next month. If you’re not sure about how long they’ll take, add some buffer time in.
   Keep chipping away at your list every month, and then every week.
4. Break out of overwhelm, might also help you as will Big, juicy goals which you get when you sign up for the Gold VIP Inner Circle.

Let me know if you need any further help!

Many people dream of owning their own business one day.

Some people actually take action in one form or another and get going. Others however, often feel stuck, and battle to get unstuck and get going.

These are the 3 main obstacles I’ve come across in my coaching:

1. Indecision
Most people know they want something different from their life but they don’t know what. Or they’re overwhelmed with choice.

Let’s face it – the internet age has opened all of us to SO MANY POSSIBILITIES. E.g. tonight I have session 2 of my How to become a professional organiser group coaching programme and I’ll be sitting in my study in Johannesburg and speaking to women all over the world. I get a real kick out of that.

Tip
Get really, really clear on what you want to do and who you want to work with before you even THINK about starting up.

2. Time
This is actually the biggest obstacle – “I don’t have time”

Rubbish! You have to make the time. That means choosing to write up your business goals over vegging in front of the TV

If your goal is big enough and exciting enough, then you’ll make and find the time.

If you need help with your time (both big picture and the nitty gritty stuff), then check out Help! I need more time.

3. Money
You don’t have to go ALL OUT when you start.

If your dream is to own your photography business, then keep your day job and start out by doing a course or two. Then buy a better camera.

Start taking pictures of your friends’ kids (birthday parties, portraits, etc.) and build up a following who will pay you.

Post your pictures on a free blog first before transitioning to a website. And so on!

If you’re currently stuck in corporate life, then check out Pamela Slim’s blog, Escape from cubicle nation.

Are you facing any or all of these obstacles? How are you overcoming them?

1. ANY action is better than inaction

God can only direct you if you’re on the open seas not when you’re stationed at the harbour

Remember my last post on a quick way to find your passion?

I also thought I’d clarify just one thing. Usually your passion is expressed WHILE you are helping others.

Mindi mentioned to me once that she’d travel the world while taking photos Mindi happens to be a very talented photographer so I know they’d be gorgeous photos!

BTW, Mindi, sorry to pick on you, but I feel like doing some quick spot coaching…

Now, if she shared those photos with others and used them to inspire creativity (as she already does with me through her blog) or bring beauty to others, she’d be helping people in that way.

See? Easy!

Now over to you —>>

How would YOU most like to help people?

People often email me saying, “I don’t know what my dreams are” or “how do I find my passion”.

It’s something many thirty-somethings struggle with, the age-old, “is this all there is to life?” question

So today I thought I’d tell you a really, really quick way to get in the right direction of your passion.

If money, family and time were not a problem, how would you spend your time?

Most people then say they’d travel the world

If you’re one of those, then question 2 is this…

And after you’re done travelling the world, how would you then spend your time?

Leave your answers in the comments!

P.S. I usually do a 90-minute coaching session to help people discover their passion with a comprehensive assessment – this one question is not meant to replace that at all!

Yesterday, I had a client phone and ask me about my organising services. She has a home office and needed help getting all the paper and filing organised.

After a couple of minutes, she said to me, “are you passionate about this kind of work?”

I love paper organising and home offices, so I said, “YES, I actually am. That is my favourite type of organising.”

And we laughed.

So today I was at her house and she said, “do you remember I asked you if you were passionate about your work?” After I said yes (this is the first client who has asked me something like that so of course I remembered ), she said this…

“I resolved this year to only work with people who are passionate about what they’re doing”.

WOW! Isn’t that powerful?

I happen to agree with her because a passionate person brings a lot more energy and enthusiasm to your interaction – let’s face it, passion is inspiring and you just want to catch it!

Are you passionate about your work? How can you get more passion into your life?

Something amazing happened in November last year.

A reader contacted me with some questions on how to become a professional organiser.

We exchanged some emails and when I realized she was based in Port Elizabeth, I suggested a laser coaching session since we were going to be there in just a few weeks.

Well, Rae and I met for our session in PE and it was fabulous. I always have lots of ideas so these sessions are really creative and inspiring. Rae is such a compassionate, caring person and is a great listener!

And here’s what Rae sent me in an email afterwards:

I was stuck in a lifestyle rut with my world “just ticking over”. I needed a new challenge but hadn’t been doing anything to make it happen.

Then I contacted you, Marcia, and everything changed. What a vibrant and enthusiastic person you are. You encouraged me to become a professional organiser and even gave me a contact.

I now believe that this will be my year and that it is never too late “to make things happen”.

To a very special person, thank you so much, you have given me back my confidence.

Rae Bradbury

Professional Organiser

If you’re thinking about becoming a professional organiser, this is your year too.

I “fell into” professional organising quite by accident (helping out a friend) but I found that this supported my coaching business very nicely, especially since I’d always coached on time management, goal-setting and other such topics.

You can book some coaching with me (I have a 27-page workbook which I throw in free – oh, probably a R150 value).

If you’re not sure, then book an intro session with me and we can take it from there.

Here is another testimonial…from another PO I helped for 3 months late last year

WOW I loved being held accountable and as a result got so much more done.

Taking my goals and breaking them down into bite sized pieces was super, having your creativity to bounce ideas off of, was phenomenal.

I enjoyed our relaxed phone chats, and in no way did you make me feel as though I’d failed. In fact your encouragement that poured through was soul refreshing and spurred me on to greater things.

Thanx Marcia for your input into my life, I felt as though we connected well and I appreciated your sensitivity and encouragement in my life.

Thanx

Debbie Herholdt
Sunshine Organizer (her website was one of the goals she accomplished while working with me)

Does this sound familiar?

1. I can’t do that.
2. I have no choice.
3. They always do this.
4. I’m too old.
5. I’m too young.
6. I’m too fat.
7. I don’t have experience.

These are some of the negative things we say to ourselves every day.

I heard once that 50 000 messages flash through our minds every single day. Wow!

Now imagine if even just 10% of those messages were negative? That’s a huge mountain of self-doubt to climb!

What if you started changing it around? Say…

1. I can do it. If I get stuck, I can always ask for help.
2. I do have a choice. I will accept responsibility for my life.
3. Yes, I am overweight but from today, I will start doing just ONE thing every week to take care of myself better.

You would be empowered with taking your life back, feel better about yourself and actually get more done so you can move towards your goals.

Every time you catch yourself saying something negative, STOP and rephrase what you just said. Make it a habit and you’ll soon not even need the self-confidence shower curtain

What are some negative things you tell yourself?

Do you prefer taking risks or do you like security?

I am naturally someone who likes being secure about 80% of the time and there’s really only a small part of me who likes taking risks.

But I do know it’s good for me to step out of the box occasionally so now I do so much easier than before.

One of the biggest risks I ever took was putting myself out there by starting a newsletter. I never labelled myself a writer so I thought I had nothing to say. I’ve always been a talker though so eventually I just started writing as if I’m talking to one person. Yes, you

I wrote my first monthly newsletter in July 2002 on my favourite topic (goal-setting), sent it out to 20 of my friends and that’s how the whole thing started!

And from just writing the monthly newsletter, I now write ebooks, ecourses, articles and blogs. All of which would never have happened if I hadn’t taken a risk.

If you’re also not a natural risk-taker like me, start small and build up.

1. write to a blogger and offer to guest post
2. ask for the sale
3. set a big, juicy goal
4. tell your hairdresser that no, you don’t want that hair cut
5. volunteer to do something difficult for you (like make a presentation)
6. schedule a teleseminar, announce it and then do the preparation
7. be honest about what you want and don’t want with your friends and family

Are you a natural risk-taker? What other things can you do to step out?

I heard a great example linking goals and cooking that I thought I should share with you.

When you follow a recipe, you have…

1. specific ingredients (flour, eggs, milk, etc)
2. a sequence of events (first cream butter and sugar, then add flour)
3. a time line (bake for 25 minutes)

You know if you follow those directions perfectly, you are guaranteed success.

Goals are exactly the same.

If you add all the correct ingredients (setting SMART goals, writing it down, etc), follow the correct sequence of events (set the goals before making the plan) and set a deadline (by 31 Dec), you are guaranteed success.

When I do talks on goals and goal-setting, I like to say, “the principles always work if you work the principles”.

And that’s exactly right!

What kind of success have you had with goal-getting? And which goals would you really like to achieve before the end of 2009?