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Why you need a growth mindset

Do you have a growth mindset? Because as a solopreneur you are going to need one to sustain you and your business for the long term.

First, let’s define exactly what a growth mindset is. A growth mindset refers to the mindset or viewpoint that talent and intelligence can be developed. ie. you can grow and develop your skills and intelligence. The opposite to this is what is known as a fixed mindset. A fixed mindset refers to the viewpoint that all intelligence and talent is innate and that we are all given a certain and finite amount of ability. ie. what you already have, is what you will always have.

Which mindset do you belong to?

This is an important question because of the impact this directly has on the performance and development of yourself and your business. Your growth or fixed mindset impacts your motivation. It impacts your reaction to mistakes and failures. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but the path of a solopreneur is often generously sprinkled with mistakes and failures 🙂 So, the way you view these mistakes and failures is really going to impact your journey and results.

Do you view mistakes as learning? Do you expect that not everything is going always work out the first time, or maybe even the second time, and that’s okay? Do you truly believe that you can develop your talent and skills through hard work, feedback and good strategies? If you can answer yes to these questions, then you are safely planted in the growth mindset zone.

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5 signs your coach is not right for you

The relationship you have with your coach is a very unique relationship. The rapport between you both is the foundation of the whole coaching process. When this is aligned, you will have a great coaching experience and create great results. When this relationship is not quite right then you will not get the results you want. So here are 5 signs to watch out for, that indicate that your coaching relationship is not right for you:

  1. They always do most of the talking
    Do you find that your coach is doing most of the talking in every coaching session? If you feel like you don’t get much “air time” then this is a red flag. The other side of this same issue is do they really listen to you? When you do get a chance to talk, are they listening and responding to what you are saying? Or do they instantly follow up with their own comments and suggestions? 
  1. You’re doing what they want
    Are you working on goals that are important to you? Do you see the purpose of the work that you are doing together? If you feel you’re working on goals that aren’t important or relevant to you, then this is a sign something’s not right.
  1. They don’t seem to “get” you
    You don’t seem to be on the same page. You explain yourself but they still can’t seem to see things from your perspective. You just don’t feel like they understand you or what you’re about. This is a big problem and a sign that it’s not a good fit.
  1. You don’t feel comfortable sharing
    You don’t feel comfortable sharing details about your business or yourself with them. You feel that you might be judged and so you hold back on being completely open. This is a trust issue. Without trust, there is no coaching relationship.
  1. You’re not learning anything
    You don’t come away from the coaching sessions feeling that you’ve learnt anything new about yourself or your business. Results take time, but learning should be an ongoing outcome of the coaching sessions. If you’re not learning anything, you should consider that your coach is not a “good fit” and you may need to move on.
Just remember that it’s okay if you don’t find the “right” coach the first time. You need someone who is a good fit for both you and your business. Taking your time to find the right person to work with will make all the difference to your results.

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What are you feeding your mind?

Are you aware of what you are feeding your mind? What I mean is, do you know exactly what you are putting into your mind every day? As we can be aware of the food we use to fuel our bodies for optimum health and peak performance, so too can we be aware of what we are putting into our minds. Why? Because what we feed our minds directly impacts our mental health and peak performance. And this ultimately impacts upon our business success and our quality of life.

When I talk about “feeding” I’m talking about all of the various information and entertainment that we consciously and unconsciously let into our minds on a daily basis. News media, social media, podcasts, books, Netflix, You Tube are all examples of what we often feed our minds on a daily basis. It’s important to become aware of exactly what we are feeding our minds as this directly affects what we will think, believe, how we will feel and how we will ultimately show up and take action (or not take action).When building and growing your business, you need mental clarity, motivation and a positive attitude. The question is, are you creating that through what you’re feeding your mind each day or not? The quality of what you feed your mind will directly affect the quality of your output. So, what are you putting in? Think about what you watch on tv/Netflix, what you view on social media. Even the conversations that you have, the people you surround yourself with, are part of that input. Are you exposed to gossip or negative people, or are you engaged in positive discussions?

I have a quick 3-step process to help you assess your mental inputs. Just answer these questions:
  1. What are the top 5 inputs that are influencing your mind each week and how much time do you spend on each?
  2. For each input, ask yourself: Is this input serving me? What are the benefits I get from this time?
  3. Am I happy with the amount of time I spend with this activity? Would I like more or less time with this activity?
Awareness is always the first step. We need to assess what we are actually doing first, then consider what we’re really getting from each particular input, and finally, we decide what’s working or not working for us and make a change accordingly. I originally did this 3 step process many years ago and I haven’t looked back. My current “mind food” consists of quality podcasts, inspiring and informative blogs and news feeds. Of course we’re all prone to veering off path, so I just  make sure I review the process a few times each year, to keep things on track.  My mind food keeps me constantly learning and helps maintain my positive attitude. Undoubtedly it impacts the way I show up in my business and relationships. How about you, how is your mind food influencing you today?

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Be aware of your expectations

Today I have a quick quiz for all Solopreneurs: Have you felt any of the following emotions about your business in the last month…
frustration?
disappointment?
despair?
disillusionment?

If you’re answering “yes” to any of those, you’re not alone! The solopreneur journey is a challenging one. It can be a winding path that seems to be littered with these potholes of various negative emotions. You set yourself right again and then, wham, another setback. Is it really going to be like this all the way?

Good News: It doesn’t have to be!

While you can’t control all of your outcomes and successes, the good news is that you can control what you think about them. More specifically, you can control what you expect.

You can reduce the emotional rollercoaster if you become aware of what you are expecting. Having expectations about things means having a view of the way we think things will play out. If things don’t play out the way we expect, we’re suddenly disappointed and it takes us by surprise. It sounds crazy when you put it in black and white like this. But yes, we humans expect things to go a certain way (somehow predicting the future?) and then we beat ourselves up when we are wrong. In this way we suffer the emotional ups and downs acutely.

By becoming aware and acknowledging our expectations about things, we can take responsibility for any emotions that may result. Basically, we can create less drama when we look at the expectations that we have of our goals, our relationships and ourselves. Become very aware of what you’re expecting and notice how that influences your emotions.

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The influence of your network

At Edward Zia’s marketing event on Tuesday evening he said “your network is your net worth”. Today I wanted to discuss what that means for us as solopreneurs because guess what? It’s not just a marketing concept. This idea applies to our greater experience of life and growing our businesses.

In the marketing context our network is the people we know, who know us and our business. This applies to your online and offline connections. So your email subscribers and facebook followers are your network as much as the people you meet at networking events in person.The quality and size of this network will determine your net worth. ie. your business success.

In a more broader context this also refers to the influence that others have upon you and your business success. The people you spend the most time with influence your outlook, attitude, what you talk about and how you behave. Jim Rohn said “you become the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with”. It’s true. Human beings are social animals, we cannot help but be influenced by our peer group (network). So who’s in your network? Who are you spending time with? As solopreneurs growing our businesses, we need to consciously choose our network. The people in our network will impact upon our own personal mindset. So choose positive and supportive people for your network. Choose people that challenge you, help you and bring out your best. Choose people that make you feel good for knowing them. Choose people that are on their own path of growth and development. When you surround yourself with great people, your life and your business will flourish.
And here’s the kicker, be this person yourself! Be the person others want in their network and this will surely increase your net worth.