I love showing people the process of building their most influential life. Looking at how you become the extraordinary you are meant to be, is about understanding the six core influencers in your life, and how you develop them holistically. These core influencers are:

1. career,
2. health,
3. spirit,
4. relationships,
5. finances,
6. home.

When I developed The Vision of your Most Influential Life program in graduate school, I realized that these areas are much like the classic Beachball. Each of these areas support and build upon one another. So if your health core is not at maximum influence in your life, it will impact career, home, spirit, relationship.

I did a quirky little video about this in the online course that you are welcome to preview and get a stronger sense of what I mean. Look at Section 2, Lecture 4 of The Vision of your Most Influential Self

I often find that people think that all of their areas need work. Congratulations if you never settle for mediocrity and continue to develop into your highest self, at the same time you have to know where your strengths are in these areas to build upon them and get them to where you want them to be. This will create your influential life.

Ask yourself:

Which area is my strongest?

How can I build upon it to strengthen my other areas?

What can I do to support growth in my influencer that needs development through the places I am already strong?

Then dig deeper and ask:

What are my core values that tie my influencers together? That incorporate my entire Beachball, and way of life?

Where do I need to focus to build my most influential life?

Leadership: They will follow your lead!

Leadership is a powerful skill set that can influence others to new heights and excitement, but what about when they are disappointed or want to give up? I had an experience where a group of multi level marketers, in the same downline, were disappointed with a online assignment they were working on. I was surprised to learn that she backed up their disappointment.

Here are my thoughts to leaders of teams who want inspired leadership:

1. There is huge learning for you, and leadership opportunity. I cannot tell you how many times I have had a team, disappointed, and my job, as their leader is to help them see value and move through the work. To motivate them to complete it. To help them understand why and how they react to things like this.
2. If they give up over something honestly as silly as a broken url, than what will they do with larger disappointments growing a business? How will they react when they are disappointed in results they are getting?

There is a bigger message here for you.

As a leader, your job is to inspire them to continue, even when they are not happy, it’s not perfect, or as expected. Your job is to help them find value when they don’t see it. You job is to help them keep going even when they are making the mistakes you feel are so obvious. You know the value of the assignment you give them, even through they might not see it yet. So as a leader inspire them to see it as well. Coach them on what they are feeling and how it will relate to growing their business. Bigger yet, who was the person on the team that said: “so what, it isn’t as we would do it, but there are still things we can learn, let’s finish it.”

Honestly, until you as a leader coach disappointment with your team you will be disappointed in their results. Because you will see this with them again. There is power here for you as their leader, and how you learn to inspire leadership in them and YOU though disappointment.

Me in April 2012, and me in Sept 2012 still 10 pounds shy of goal.

My weight loss journey over the last two years (stared in November 2010) has been an amazing influential journey. I am in, and have been for about 4 months now, in the “last ten pounds”phase. Holy cow, this has been so hard! Down, and up, up and down, not yet even under five!

Then, I thought about running my business and how similar the journey is. When I started in 1997, the beginning was easy, I had some immediate business, I felt successful. Weight loss is the same way. In the first few weeks you loose several pounds. Then like my business, I moved into the “steady as I go phase,” making small movement towards my goal.

Last year loosing the weight I even went through a phase where I gained. I saw this in my business in 2007 as the economy tanked. I had to rethink what and how I am doing what I do to be influential. I realize that sometimes a ROUTINE is the worst thing towards achieving success!

These last ten pounds? This is the “have to stick to it phase.” This I think, for most entrepreneurs is the hardest phase of business. It is the time when you have to really focus. The time when you really have to know and believe in your influential self. It is easy right now to change course, or settle in, saying your close enough. It is a time when many give up, because you aren’t quite reaching your goal.

Weight loss and business. Interesting how achieving your most influential self is the same no matter which core influencer you are working on.

I actually wrote this in November 2012, and NEVER posted it, but I still think it is relevant. And FYI, because HEALTH is one of the 6 CORE Influencers to your authentic calling, I have exceeded my goal weight, and optimal health

Becoming INfluential is a journey, not an event. And success requires more than just focusing on ONE THING. Years ago, I remember seeing Laurel Langmeyer speak. She said: “your house must be in order, if you want to be successful as a work from home entrepreneur.” She proceeded to talk about the importance of home organization, when do you do your laundry? Are the piles organized, and out of your way? How have you organized your children when you work? A sound argument that home gets in the way when working from home! That the things in your home can get away from your success in your business.

I have realized that in order to be your most INfluential business self, you must be willing to take the journey from with in. Your six core influencers of your life and the balance of those core influencers in your life, will ultimately lead to greater success in any thing you want, including a successful business.
So when I hear: “your house must be in order, if you want to be successful as an entrepreneur,” I hear that you must work on these influencers in your life to create the balance you need to be successful. In graduate school I developed a program regarding these influencers, and have had the honor of working with abused teems, high achieving women, corporate leaders, even entrepreneurs to develop their most influential self.

For example, one of the six core influencers is related to health. Over some struggles in my personal life my health was out of control. I was 35 pounds overweight, tired, depressed, and not taking care of myself. My business was affected by that. As a matter of fact one of the other six core influencers in your life is career!

To be influential you must understand the six core influencers and work on them

Becoming the vision of your most influential self requires that you look with in. It’s a willingness to understand that you become the best you and all areas of your life when you do not neglect any of them. Over the next few weeks I will share these core influencers and give you ideas about how to work on them to become your most influential self.

For right now, are you looking within? Are you wanting to become your most influential self?

Critical as entrepreneurs, or in life!

So if you might’ve noticed I have taken a significant time off from blogging! I really needed to take the time and go within. I made one of the biggest, most critical mistakes entrepreneurs can make.

See, it’s really easy to fall into the trap of “I can do that.” What do I mean by this? I mean that as entrepreneurs, we often see opportunity in everything. We often believe that just because we are good at it, we should monetize it. And trust me my ass can monetize anything!
But that doesn’t mean I should.
So over the last few months I have had to go within, and get clear about who I am and my most authentic calling.

It has also meant saying no to things that might make me money…right now. Because I want to be known for the things I am most authentically passionate about. The funny part? Is that I’ve always tried to weave what I most love into the things I even monetized. But my heart, and soul were not happy.

Here is what I know is true about me (and has been true for years):

• I am great at breakthroughs(mine and others)
• I am great at influence
• I am great at achieving beyond wildest dreams
• I am great at showing others that they can do it too and how to do it not just that they have it in them!

So I hope you are ready to bring on your Warrior-Preneur fself! Let’s make it happen! I hope you are excited read this blog and the journey it might lead you on with me. As you look around the site you will see new clarity and focus- that is yummy as my friend Tambra Harck says!

Have you ever made a critical mistake like this leading you from your most authentic calling? Entrepreneurs or not, we often get lead down paths that are not true to US!