Has Twitter Changed Your Life?

How has Twitter changed your life?

I blog less now that I have Twitter. I know I participate less in the forums too and I don't go to as many e-seminars/websinars/chats/tele-classes as I used to. I also use Skype a lot less.

Today I am feeling nostalgic for the good old days of online networking forums, Skype group chats and blogging. I miss having endless room to babble on and on and on and not being limited to 140 characters to get my point across. I also am missing the intimacy of private Skype chats and private online forums where everything I say is not put out there for the whole world to read.

Has Twitter changed your life? Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Twitter! In fact, I think I am addicted to Twitter. I am tweeting or reading tweets 24/7 thanks to my iPhone.

Today I just took a moment to step back from this fast paced world, breathe and think about the good old days of technology.



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Vision Boards for Entrepreneurs

Want to do something fun this weekend? Something that could help bring your business to where you want it to be?

How about make a vision board?

Do you have a vision board? If not, why not?

You probably have some form of a business plan and have at some point written down your goals but seriously how often to you review your business plan or look at your written goals?

A vision board makes your goals visible. If you hang your vision board in a prominent place in your office you will see your goals everyday even if you aren't consciously looking at them.

A vision board can be whatever you want it to be. It can focus on how many clients you hope to have by the end of next year, the kind of car you want to drive, a peaceful relationship with family members, the amount of money you plan to make in the next year, five years or ten years, etc.

Be creative!

It's all about you and what direction you want your life and business to take. Make it fun and something you would enjoy looking at. I made one back in 2006. It's on pink construction paper and actually has iridescent sparkles on it because the sparkles remind me to believe in magical things happening. It's time to update mine because I've met just about all the goals on it.

Besides putting pictures of things on my board I also put positive words on my board. Words like family, friends, peace, health, fun, prosperity... you can put whatever words you want to be the main focus of your life.

Have fun!

For instructions on how to create a vision board check out Christine Kane's Blog.

Just Had To Pass It On

Jaime Lee Mann wrote a blog post for the VAnetworking blog that was so good I just had to share.

She does a great analogy on thinking bigger and getting out of your comfort zone.

Click here to read the blog post How Big is Your Bowl?

It has been awhile since I have picked a blog of the week so this week it goes to the VAnetworking blog!

Are you a member of VAnetworking?

WaMu now Chase - NOT impressed with customer service

So my bank Washington Mutual went bankrupt but Chase took it over so all is well in my world because I still have my money. I was happy with Washington Mutual and have been very happy with them for years. I have my business and personal bank accounts with them. I was sad to see them go bankrupt. I was impressed with the smooth transition from WaMu to Chase, basically everything stayed the same. Everything that is but one key thing - Customer Service!

Chase, the thing I liked about WaMu was their customer service. I was not happy to see my latest statement that had a $10 charge on it for making too many transfers online. Apparently I am only allowed to make 6 transfers online in a one month period. I can go to the branch or the ATM and make as many transfer as I like but if I want to do it online I am limited to six. What is up with that and why did nobody ever tell me this before? Or was it written on one of those tiny inserts that come with your statement that you need a magnifying glass and a lawyer to read it and understand what it says. Okay six does seem like enough transfers but last month I had a lot of things going on (plumbing emergency, flat tire, etc) and I have multiple accounts with you and I like/need to move my money around sometimes. Yesterday, I called customer service and got a representative who confirmed that yes I did get that charge and then started reading that legal babble to me confirming that yes the $10 was a correct charge. I told her I was not aware of this new rule and asked her if she could please waive the charge this time as a courtesy. She said, "No I can't do that. It was not our mistake it was yours." I then asked to speak to her supervisor who basically said the same thing. No apologies, no courtesy waive of the charge, nothing. I told them I was very disappointed in the way they were handling this and that I was going to consider looking for another bank. He then said "okay". I said, so you are willing to lose a customer over $10, he said yes because it was not their mistake it was mine.

So this week I am going bank shopping. I'm sure in this economy most banks would be happy to have a new customer. I'm surprised that the new Chase/WaMu is not sorry to lose a customer.

If someone from WaMu/Chase were to waive the $10 fee and comment on my blog I might actually consider keeping my accounts there.

11/8/09 I've turned off the comments for this post because it's been getting a ton of spam lately.

Worrying About Finances?

It's in the air. It's in the culture. It's everywhere. People are freaking out about money. People are using the excuse of the economy for everything.

Personally, I'm tired of all the negative chatter about money. Let's start some positive dialogs about money and finances.

If you are feeling scared or unsure what to do with your money at this time you might want to watch this Suze Orman video.

White Guys Can Dance!

There has been a lot of talk around my home this week about the way white guys dance. I won't go in to details but my teenage daughter's went to a high school dance this week and we've been having some fun talking about the "white guy dance".

However, there is one white guy that can really dance! Have you seen this video? My good friend Coach Emily sent it to me today and I thought it would be a fun video to pass around this Indigenous People's Day (a.k.a Columbus Day).

Twitter Rant and Time Saving Tip

Are you a Twitter addict?

I know many of you are on Twitter because I see your tweets. Here is a quick little time saving tip about Twitter.

Don't let Twitter take over your life! Twitter is awesome and it is fun! It's a great way to keep up with the masses and to meet new people. But... it can take over your life if you are not careful.

One little bit of advice I heard from someone at a VAnetworking seminar (I can't remember his name at the moment) was to treat Twitter like the water cooler at the corporate office. You know how you walk by the water cooler and hear the end of a conversation and join in if it is interesting. Well... that is what you should do with Twitter. Like the water cooler you don't get to review the last 15 minutes (or 24 hours) of the conversation that you missed you just get to jump in where it is at.

I hear many of you saying you are catching up on your Tweets. When I hear that I get nervous. I think oh that person is going to wonder where all their time went. The people that catch up on all their missed tweet's are probably the same people complaining they don't have enough time to finish their client work, they don't have enough time to spend with their family, and that there just never is enough time to do everything they want to do.

It's okay if you miss a few tweets.

Looking for Some Good News?

I happened upon this Website yesterday. I think this is where I am going to start reading my morning headlines from now on. It's called the Good News Network. If you need a break from all the doom and gloom check out this site: http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/

Lack or Prosperity?

Where is your focus these days? Are you choosing to focus on lack or on prosperity?

Are you listening to the news everyday and freaking out? Or are you focusing on your business and on being prosperous.

If you lost a bunch of money in the market do you think watching the news, complaining and worrying about it is going to help get the money back?

At times like these I try not to let the mass hysteria get to me. Instead of watching the nightly news and reading the headlines I pick up books such as Barbara Stanny's OverComing UnderEarning or I read prosperity minded information online.

I'm not suggested that you put your head in the sand and live in denial. Just suggesting you pay attention to where your thoughts are focused these days.

Wishing you prosperity!

Stop the Negative Chatter

I am seeing a pattern develop with many of the women I coach who are feeling stuck. The reason they are stuck is because they have been listening to the negative chatter in their head. No they are not crazy and they are not hearing voices, they are hearing the self talk that we all do.

What does your voice say? Have you ever heard it say anything like this?

• I'm not good enough.
  
• I'm so stupid.
  
• Who do I think I am trying to run a business?
  
• Nobody cares about what I have to say.
  
• I can't do this.
  
• I'm not smart enough.

Next time you hear yourself saying something negative to yourself say STOP. Tell that voice to be quiet. Take this one step further and replace that negative talk with something positive. Pick one sentence or phrase that works for you. Something like I am a successful business woman. I am smart. I think it was Heather Jacobson that first gave me this idea and she liked the phrase "I am a very intelligent woman".

In summary, stop the negative chatter and replace it with positive, affirming statements.

You are a successful business woman (or man)!

Referral Etiquette

When someone refers business to you what do you do?

Do you thank that someone? Do you give them a referral gift? Do you let them know how things are going with your new client?

I'm just wondering what the etiquette is around referrals. When someone refers a client to me I thank them and send them a referral gift if the client signs on.

Since my business has gotten busier I've been referring clients out a lot. Some people thank me, some send me me a gift, some send money and others just respond with a quick thanks and never report back to me whether they got the client or not.

I personally want a thank you and an update if I refer someone to you and you get the client. I've had to find out from my clients, friends and acquaintances that they are working with the person I referred them to.

What are your thoughts on referral etiquette?

Where Did All The Money Go?

I hear a lot of people saying they feel broke, they don't have enough money, they can't afford that right now, etc...

I'm wondering if they know where all their money is going? If they have taken ownership of their spending habits?

Money is always a sensitive subject with people so I don't want to my push myself on them with my thoughts and opinions but if they ever asked here are the questions I would ask them to think about.

• How much money do you make each month?
• How much money did you make over the last 8 months?
• How much money do you spend each month?
• How much money have you spent over the last 8 months?
• What do you spend your money on?

Were you able to answer all those questions or find the answers to those questions? If so, great! If not, it is time to start looking at your finances. Wealthy and successful people know the answers to these questions. Struggling people usually do not.

The first step to getting out of debt and becoming financially independent is getting out of denial and facing your financial reality.

If you are interested in reaching financial independents here is the first step/challenge: track every penny you spend over the next 7 days.

• Get a little notebook or create a spreadsheet in Excel.
  
• Write down how much money you think you are spending each week
  
• Start saving those receipts and tracking those expenses daily (without judgment).
  
• After you do this let me know if you were spending more or less than you thought.
  

Did doing this exercise make you think more consciously about each purchase you made?

I'd love to hear your thoughts, questions or tips about facing finances.

Some things to think about (possible money drains).
On average...
A 12 pack of Coke costs $6.00 X 52 weeks = $312.00
Big Mac: $3.50 X 52 weeks = $182.00
Starbuck’s coffee: $3.00 X 365 days = $495.00
Credit Card interest average = 16% - 18%
Late Payment fees: $25.00+

Oprah's Soul Series

Have you seen Oprah's Soul Series?

I found some of the interviews very inspiring.

Visit Oprah's Soul Series site see the interviews.

Attention to Detail

How closely do you look at your credit card statements each month?


I comb through mine line by line every month and I often find unauthorized charges and mistakes. Usually little charges here and there... small mistakes that add up. I always take the time to call and get the charges corrected. This month, I'm thankful that I took the time to check my statement and balance my account. I found a charge of $295.00 that I did not make.

In August I stayed at a hotel in Orange County. The La Quinta Inn Costa Mesa. (By the way if you like to breathe don't stay there, it is located right on the 405 Freeway... literally.) You walk out the door of your room and your view is the freeway - the noise and the smog level are toxic. The service was great and the people were nice but the location is horrible!


Back to my credit card story... I paid for the hotel in advance via Travelocity. Everything went smoothly until now, when I opened my credit card statement. The La Quinta Inn charged me $295.00 on a random day during the middle of my stay. I called La Quinta they had no record of the charge and didn't know how to help me with the problem. I called my credit card company and they offered to reverse the charge and deal with La Quinta directly. My credit card company (United Visa - Chase Card Services) has great customer service. In the end after about an hour of phone calls, transfers and being put on hold I got my $295.00 back.

Just thought I'd share this story as a reminder to check and balance your credit card statements every month. You might be losing money you aren't even spending.

Feeling Overwhelmed?

Are you feeling overwhelmed? Could it be because you are surrounded by clutter?


I've been noticing lately when I visit friend's that their homes & offices are completely filled with clutter. People often ask me how I keep my house/office so clean. I tell them I get rid of stuff. It's a lot easier to clean when you aren't constantly picking up stuff. Some people I know have so much stuff their stuff doesn't even have a home. If they wanted to organize they wouldn't be able to because there would be no place to put their stuff

Take a look around your office. Do it. Right now. What do you see? Are there piles of paper everywhere? Are there things in your office that don't belong? If so, how about scheduling 15 minutes today to de-clutter your office. See how much you can do in 15 short minutes.

Rules for de-cluttering:
1. Set timer for 15 minutes (and don't give me the excuse that you do not have a timer. You can use this one: http://www.timeme.com/timer.htm just reset the preferences to 15 minutes).
2. Stay in your office the whole 15 minutes. (I learned this trick from reading Elizabeth Hagen's book Organize With Confidence. She suggests anything that goes in another room to put in a pile to put away after the 15 minutes is up.
3. Toss/Recycle everything you do not need or love.
4. File any paper that needs to be filed.

Now that wasn't so bad was it?

Unplugging when you're "on" 24/7

This post was written by my awesome coach Lisa Hunter who has given me permission to reprint.


Extraordinary Women Dilemma: You're beating yourself up because you can't seem to turn off when it comes to your business. Whether you're excited about a new project and you're thinking about it while you're out having dinner with friends or you're trying to have the day off and your thoughts are dominated by the next thing that you need to do for your business, it's a strange mix of guilt, excitement, sometimes-worry and always a constant ants-in-your-pants feeling. You've tried "letting go", but that almost never works and then you just feel like an over-obsessed spaz.

What There Is For You To Know: The general sentiment for us passionately-driven entrepreneurial women is that we need to "balance" and tone down the obsession with our businesses. We hear it from friends, loved ones and we beat ourselves up for it. But here's the thing: being passionately-driven about your business is great for your business! It's when you come from a place of seeing that never-ending drive as "bad" and then trying to stop it, that you get into trouble.

You see, there is nothing wrong with you when you take a day off and you're not able to stop thinking about your business. It may not be the experience that you want to have, but you are not a workaholic or failing at balance. This is why when you say, "I've got to stop thinking about my business", it doesn't work. Because you actually can't stop that flow and you don't need to. In truth, it's a wonderful thing for your business that all this juice for it is pulsing through you.

It is nice, however, to be able to take a break from it! So here's how without having to stop the flow...

Think Like An Electrical Outlet: Picture a standard electrical outlet - the kind that has two places to plug stuff in and shows up in every room of just about every house ever made. Think about how there is always electrical current available in an outlet. It's present 24/7 and you can tap into it whenever you want by plugging something in.

As a passionately-driven entrepreneurial woman, your thoughts, "obsessions" and constant focus on your business are the same as the current in that electrical outlet - present and flowing all the time. It's on-tap juice for your business 24/7! But as go-getting women, we tend to naturally plug into that current all the time. The thing to remember is that, just as you do for your toaster or any other appliance, you can unplug from the current at will. The beauty of unplugging from the current is that you are not trying to stop the current and you're not feeling bad that the current is still flowing. You are allowing the current to keep doing it's thing AND you're unplugging so you can take a break.

Try It On The Fly: Experiment this week with unplugging from the constantly-flowing current of energy that you have for your business. When you're with your family or friends and your business is dominating your mind, rather than trying to stop this juicy flow of business energy, instead imagine yourself unplugging from it. Know that, while you're unplugged, the current is still there - full of energy and forward movement and ready to go once you decide to plug back in.

It's the trying to stop the flow of thoughts and energy for your business that gets you into trouble. And thinking there's something wrong with you for not being able to stop it. But you can't stop it because it's naturally "on" all the time! You can, however, unplug for stretches at a time. Play around with it and let me know how it goes...

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Women and Money

What's holding you back from reaching financial success?

I learned a little history about women and money while reading Barbara Stanny's book, Secret's of Six-Figure Women.

Here are a few excerpts from Stanny's book:

Psychotherapist Olivia Mellan, coauthor of Money Shy to Money Sure says, "this fear of power is perfectly understandable. It's embedded in collective unconscious. Powerful women were burned at the stakes"

Did you know the word money is derived from the Latin feminine noun moneta?

"Moneta was the name of Juno, queen mother of heaven. Making money is part of our heritage, a legacy it's time to embrace."

Attitude of Gratitude

I've been watching the Oprah Soul Series interview of Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. She just said to have an "attitude of gratitude". I love that quote!

Have you heard of Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor? She is the Harvard trained neuroanatomist (brain scientist) who had a massive stroke and studied and remembered what was happening while having the stroke.

Here is the Youtube video from when she spoke at TED.
(It's about 20 minutes)


She had some amazing insights from her stroke experience that she talks to Oprah about during the interviews.

I am a Workaholic

Hi, my name is Sally and I am a workaholic.

I'm not sure when it happened but it did! All I do now is work, work, work.

As much as I love the work I do I would also like to bring some balance back into my life.

I'm tired of saying no to friends and family every time they extend an invitation.

I'm tired of not having time to participate in my favorite online forums.

I'm tired of being a grouch.

And, I'm especially tired of not having time to blog!

It is time I start practicing what I preach. It's time to set new boundaries and communicate those with my family, friends and clients.

If you have been feeling anything like I have lately (or resemble the strange looking photo above in any way) I have a suggestion for you.

Stop multitasking!

I've found the days I am most productive are the days I actually take a few minutes to plan and not just follow the emails on a wild goose chase.

Let me explain the wild goose chase analogy. I have a couple of clients who feel every task they need assistance with is urgent and must be done ASAP. So, if I don't take the time to look at the big picture of my business and to look at each clients individual needs and projects I end up focusing on the squeaky wheels and not the wheels that are moving along quietly and smoothly. Hence, I end up on a wild goose chase trying to keep up with the "urgent" requests of those few clients and forgetting about the quiet, stable ones that plan ahead. My day ends and I feel no sense of accomplishment, just a whole lot of frustration.

Instead of diving head first into email I am now reviewing all my clients and projects to see what needs to be completed first and committing to doing that project first.

I then do that A1 priority project and don't check email or answer the phone until it is complete.

After I complete the project I check email and voicemail and follow up with anything that I have to follow up on and then review my projects again and decide which project I am going to fully focus on next.

I'm amazed at how much more productive and how many more billable hours I get in a day when I stop multitasking and start seriously focusing.

I'm excited to say I'm on the road to recovery and will keep you posted on how my work/life balance is progressing.


Let's not even discuss that I am blogging about being a workaholic on a Saturday... yes it's going to be a long road to finding the perfect balance.