I wanted thank everyone who joined me on last week’s call. On that call I offered a special opportunity. As I mentioned last week, when I started this business, I wanted to work with Black Women who have a passion deep in their soul for their businesses but who, even with all their hard work, just can’t seem to make it work financially.
I remember what it was like for me getting my start helping businesses with their systems 17 years ago. I didn’t have the experience, the resources or the know-how but someone took a chance and invested in me. That is how I got my start and since then, I have been able to go on to build two successful companies but I would never have gotten the chance if someone hadn’t believed in me.
I know I have been so blessed, this time it was my turn to pay it forward. It was my turn to give back an opportunity that was given to me so long ago.
I wanted to make a real difference
I wanted to offer something that would make a real difference. One that I’ve seen make the difference in so many businesses that have been struggling. I wanted to offer something that I’ve seen allow a business to get on the path to 6 figures in as little as two weeks.
I’ll be honest I had second thoughts though because nobody else is doing it and it goes against everything they tell you to do in this business but I felt called to do it and I’m glad I did. I offered a unique opportunity for 4 people. I offered to invest my time and resources to work with them one-on-one to create their Signature System.
If you don’t have a Signature System, I recommend you get one soon. As a business owner, it’s one of your biggest assets and is the cornerstone of your high end offerings where I’ve seen clients begin to charge from $700 anywhere to $10,000 per session and more. I talk about it more here.
In my years working with clients I have seen the transformation they have undergone once they have defined their system. They understand clearly how they provided their service and the value they bring to their clients. It’s key to being able to stand confidently behind your value and finally charge what you’re worth.
I know for these 4 women, my offer to create their Signature System will be a key part of their journey to financial success. All I asked was one thing in return … for the winners to pay it forward to one other person.
I know how it feels to think you don’t have the resources to grow your business. But what I do know is that you can’t focus on what you don’t have when you’re giving generously what you do have. So I know by paying it forward these women are changing their perspective from scarcity to affluence.
I’m glad I listened to my heart
I am so happy I listened to my heart and I went ahead with this unusual offer. I was so overwhelmed by the response. I have to say I was a little surprised but so gratified that so many others were inspired to pay it forward as well.
I’m so grateful for the words you spoke on the conference call it has truly propelled me. ~ L. Dalton
Later today, I am contacting the winners of this unique offer. Even if you did not have the opportunity to participate, I hope you will be inspired. I hope you will be inspired to reflect on the opportunities you have been given and be inspired pay them forward in a way that makes a difference in someone else’s journey.
With all my love,
Janali, your Business Mentor
Last week, I got into my first Facebook fight. It started off with me making a point I genuinely believed in and ended with me reflecting on how I am showing up in my business.
On Facebook I usually tend to keep a low profile liking and making a positive comment here or there. But on this occasion I just couldn’t do it.
My First Facebook Fight
One woman, a business coach herself, was making the argument that if you have your own business and also choose to comment on Fox’s super popular and amazing soap opera “Empire” on your personal Facebook timeline, you’re off brand, you’re hurting your business and won’t reach your ideal customer.
My response? Give me a break!
As someone with over 15 years of working in a corporate environment and who also loves to indulge in the juicy drama of reality television once in a while, I believe it’s more than okay to comment on an episode of Empire and maintain your business credibility at the same time.
Why is it so hard to just be ourselves?
The tagline of our business is “Be Authentic, Be Effective, Be Iconic”. Be Authentic is number one for a reason. As a Black woman working for corporations and large organizations, I didn’t see many people like myself. As a result I became hyper-aware of how I was perceived never really feeling comfortable sharing my personal life or my true personality, never really sure how anything I did would be interpreted.
So it became my dream to have my own business so I could finally just be myself. I think that’s the hope of many Black women who start their own business. It’s one of the reasons why we are are the number one creators of new businesses in America. We want to create a space where we can do things our own way and be who we are without apologies.
But old habits die hard … unconsciously we have a picture of what success look like and it often doesn’t look like us. So we create a business that looks like how we think success should look. And what do we do? We end up recreating that same old environment we couldn’t wait to get away from. We end up putting the same constraints and limits on ourselves we were trying to get away from. We can never succeed that way.
So when I heard this lady giving business advice along these lines, all I wanted to do was roll my eyes. I commented on her post that her perspective was outdated and people want you to be you because it gives everyone permission to be themselves.
Girl you got read!
That’s when I proceeded to get read like a romance novel on a hot summer vacation. She went through my facebook posts on my business page and posted comment after comment on how I was showing up. I wasn’t sharing myself and my personality.
The fact of the matter? She was right. I admire people who feel comfortable sharing themselves so openly online but never felt fully comfortable myself. That’s what I love about business. It pushes you to come out of your comfort zone.
So I have my Facebook foe to thank. Watch out this spring. We have a lot of changes coming. You will definitely be seeing more from me and if you’re ready to rev up your business, you can catch me at a few speaking dates.
Join us at Spring to Life!
I will be joining the fabulous Marilyn Porter in the Spring to Life teleconference on April 19th at 6 p.m. ET. I will be talking about how to get more done in your business in less time. Register at bit.ly/spring2life.
Stay tuned for other dates coming up in May and June. I am so looking forward to sharing and hearing from you!
And one thing I’ve learned from Cookie is she is nobody but herself, love her or hate her. So if you’re watching Empire, have fun, comment on Facebook. You’ll get a like from me!
What a way to launch! We are having our first event, a virtual telesummit – 24 Hours of New Beginnings Power hosted by Stevii Mills. I am honored to be included as a presenter among such a stellar group of women. I am especially excited to share with you our topic How Watching Reality TV can Actually Increase your Productivity: How to finally get the results you want in 2015.
Unfortunately none of us has a Fairy Godmother who is going to magically turn us into a new person at the stroke of midnight New Year’s day. So how about we achieve our goals by being exactly who we are, watching reality TV and all?
In my talk I will share the system I use to successfully set and achieve my goals. It’s the same system I used to lose 60 lbs and keep it off for over two years.
Join me December 30, 2014 at noon EST.
For details register now at www.stevii.com.
Janali