Massive Action

That was the common thread this past weekend at what was hands down the most empowering three days of my life.

I was invited by Mari Smith to attend an event called JV Alert Live which happens three times a year and is headed up by Ken McArthur who is a brilliant man and an amazing human being. This event is the cream of the crop of internet marketers and brilliant speakers.

I met Mari over the past few months via Facebook and Twitter. You might know her as "The Pied Piper of Facebook" as she's been described by Fast Company Magazine. I listen to everything she says because the woman knows her stuff when it comes to exploding your business with social media. Mari and I tried to meet face to face a few weeks ago when she was in town for a conference and I tried to attend but I fell ill and it didn't work out. I was crushed because I wanted to meet her so badly. Much to my surprise she told me she was coming back to Vegas in a few weeks for something called JV Alert Live and would I be interested in going as her guest. Ummm let me think, YES! I said yes without even knowing what it was about because I knew if she was going to be there it was going to be worth being at.

One of the first things Ken McArthur said to us on opening day was that in order to be successful you had to "Take Massive Action to Completion". Not only did he say it but nearly every other speaker over the next few days said the same thing in one form or another.

It really got me to realize that so many of us (myself included) are GREAT starters. We get a big idea, get all excited, start making plans, then somewhere along the line life gets in the way and it fizzles out. We then sit there and wonder what went wrong, why nothing ever works and when will we ever be successful. I believe it is because of what Ken and others said. We don't take massive action to completion. TO COMPLETION!!!! We can't expect any idea no matter how brilliant to work for us if we don't follow through with it. So that has become my new motto and it is how I plan to run my business and my life from now on.

I decided I was going to start my new way of doing things by making myself network a little during the conference. Keep in mind that I am the LEAST social person on the planet. I hate crowds and I hate networking. It's just not something I'm good at and I avoid it like the plague. However, I knew that this event was going to possibly be life changing for me and my business so I better bring my A game if I was going to bother even going! I took a deep breath and forced myself to walk around the room and talk to total strangers. Even the speakers who I had on such a pedestal, I'd walk up to and shake their hand and tell them what a great job they did. I made some amazing connections with people I never would have if I had just sat there and did nothing.
Let me tell you, life changing is not even the words I can use to describe this event. Each presentation was more powerful than the next. I took notes fast and furiously. The days were long but they didn't seem long enough. I wanted more!

I met incredible folks like Carrie Wilkerson (a.k.a "The Barefoot Executive"), Dave Lakhani, tons of incredible attendees from all walks of life and areas of business and of course, the man himself, Ken McArthur who so graciously signed my copy of his book "Impact" for me.

And in case you're wondering I did meet Mari and had a chance to hang out with her a bit. She even let me buy her lunch on our last day. She is an amazing woman who offers such great information and inspiration to whoever she comes in contact with. I am blessed to have met her and honored to now call her my friend.

I'm still reeling from this experience and plan on reabsorbing the priceless information I gathered in my notes over the next few days. Over the next several weeks you can expect a series of posts from me on different things that I've learned from my time at JV Alert Live, how I plan to implement these things into my business and how you can too.

A big thank you to Mari for giving me the opportunity to meet you and have this powerful experience and also to Ken McArthur and his Impact Team for putting on a fantastic event. You are all my new heroes.

What kind of massive action are you going to take to completion this week? There's no better time than now to begin!

Delegation Means More Control Not Less

Many business owners have a difficult time delegating because they feel like they are giving up control. I'm here to tell you that statement couldn't be further from the truth! Delegating doesn't mean giving up control. It means gaining control.

As a business owner, you wear many hats, President and CEO, Director of Marketing, Bookkeeper, Public Relations Coordinator, and the list goes on and on. Doing all of those tasks every day means you have less and less time to focus on building your business, networking or even spending time with loved ones. You may become overwhelmed, feel out of control and wonder why you decided to go into business in the first place. But what if you could delegate some of that work to a skilled and trusted professional that you knew would get the job done leaving you more time to do all of those things you've been putting off? Wouldn't you feel relieved, energized, focused and even IN CONTROL?

A virtual assistant is that skilled and trusted professional you need to keep you moving forward in your business instead of wading through a black hole of "to do's" that may never get done because you don't have the time. Here are just some of the things you can delegate to a VA:

• Updating your blog or website
• Organizing and maintaining your contact list
• Creating and updating a monthly newsletter
• Designing your PowerPoint presentation
• Organizing a webinar or teleconference
• Research
• Formatting an ebook
• Marketing your business on the internet
• Creating marketing materials like postcards or brochures
• Monitoring your email
• Proofreading

Are these some of the things you're doing in your business or have thought about doing but can't seem to find the time?

Having someone you trust handle these tasks and others means:

1. You are saving time by not having to do them yourself
2. You are focusing on money making activities in your business
3. You are saving money by not paying for overhead costs that come with an in house employee
4. You are able to set goals and do things that make you happy

All of this adds up to MORE CONTROL!

So the next time you are wondering whether or not to delegate something ask yourself one question, "will delegating this task give me more control of my business by saving me time and money?" If the answer is yes congratulations! You're ready to take the next step and call a VA!