I decided to apply this “Surf the Waves” mindset to handling the stress of the unpredictability that can show up in business and I have found it very helpful tool for Success. It was not until I decided to accept a position to manage a staff of 15 people on a $2 million dollar project that the meaning of this decision really began to make sense to me. As the project leader, I focused on supporting the strengths of the individual members. In this process, I found that inner qualities of patience and integrity were essential and my communication had to be forthright not only to those I managed but to those I reported our progress. For my team, I had to be willing to be clear about the details of the project, which individual would be responsible for what task, invite them to share any issues with task completion. With the COO, I had to be transparent about the progress of the project, handle when their expectations differed from our current status, and ask for support with external resources. Leading with integrity and communicating immediately, allowed me to surf the waves when team members were pulled from my project on short notice, a department head decided to take actions to interfere rather than support the project, pre-scheduled materials arrived on my staff’s lunch break and I was short handed.

I can say that project was successful because it was completed ahead of schedule; however, there was more to success than completion of the project. Success also lies in the details ~ how well each team member performs each day, what critical information is communicated in a timely manner and to the right people, how conflict is handled and how quickly.

The following is a synopsis of what I have learned from my own experience of the waves that can appear in business…

ISSUE: Although I create a strategy based on a project’s scope, I can an unable to predict all elements of that project.

SOLUTIONS: Know my strengths and limiting factors, and accept them because they are good tools keeping me focused on what I can accomplish in the moment. Be willing to take action even if I cannot see the end result ~ the outcome may be different than I think because solutions often show up in unexpected places.

RESULT: Withstanding the challenges, making decisions from values and priorities, and maintaining perspective are the keys to surfing the waves to success.

I had a particularly challenging day and I felt stopped in my life. I have been working on developing a new service and I was overwhelmed with feeling frustrated because I was not yet clear on the details of the service. I was eating dinner at a restaurant and working through my feelings and, at my lowest point of dissatisfaction, my server came bounding up to my table, placed a cookie in front of me, and said that it was compliments of his manager. Interestingly, I had not seen any manager during my visit.

Now, I can count on few fingers the times that a restaurant server has offered product without a price and without my request. I could have seen this event as merely a cookie that completed my meal. However, I saw it as a sign of abundance because it was something that had been added to my experience. More importantly, the event helped create a feeling of having abundance in my life and it was right around me (assuming the cookie came from their kitchen).

I know that when I feel abundance in my life then my business also thrives in abundance. After that cookie showed up, I released my feelings of lack and the ideas for my services began to flow into my mind. Besides, there is no better cure for feeling lack than feeling the richness and wealth that recognizing my abundance brings me.
____________________________________________________
Remember: Whether you are starting your business or you have been successful in your business for years, there are always “stress points” that are a part of business growth. My 5-step process helps women in business move through overwhelm with ease and focus and attain success.

During the first year of my business, I had one question that kept pestering me, “when am I going stop struggling IN my business and be able to work ON my business.” ~Enter my world ~ A stranger that said, ”you realize establishing and operating a business is equivalent to building a plane and flying it at the same time.” At this point, I said “NOW I understand why persistence is so important in growing a business…ok, now what?” The answer I got back was that I could find the energy to continue to participate wholeheartedly in my business if I had an Unshakable Conviction. OK, so it took me a really long time to figure out what that answer meant for me.

Here is what I have come to understand through my own past struggle to have a profitable company that I believe in and makes a difference in the world today. My conviction in my business IS my conviction in my business and myself to be able to achieve anything in my business. I am NOT separate from my business. The minute my conviction about myself wavers that is the instant that doubt can take over me and my business affected. The results in my business can be difficulty finishing a product in development, difficulty getting all those people who are interested in my services to purchase, difficulty developing a strong strategic partnership. Basically, this is when my mind starts an avalanche of thinking that can keep customers from ‘knocking my door down’.

ISSUE: Lack of conviction in myself, my business, or my services. Doubt is in my mind. Translation: No customers banging at my door; trying to stuff money in my hand.

SOLUTION: Unshakable Conviction is being unwavering in my total giving ~ holding nothing back: Being absolutely undivided about it, no matter what the circumstances are in the moment.

RESULT: Participating wholeheartedly in business, appreciating the business, and gaining momentum for the business to grow at its potential. No more struggling.

So, if you are wondering why the customers are not swarming your door, and why the people that you are working to form relationships with are not coming together solidly then STOP and reflect on your conviction for your business. Is it Unshakable?

TIP:  Pick a moment in your day ~ any moment that feels overwhelming.  Now, STOP what you are doing and breathe three times deeply.  Not those short breaths that say “ok, I’ll do this but I don’t have time.”  Remember, it is your choice to feel stressed and strained?  Want to now feel peaceful and calm?  So, breathe … deeply.

So, here is my question to you now … Since January 1st, where do you feel you have failed? Not enough done on your to-do list, not enough clients, not enough money, not enough quiet time? In other words, where is your business challenging you the most? Wherever the challenge is in your business, then that is likely the very thing that will get you to your success. It has been for me.

The following is an synopsis of what I have learned from my own experiences with the upside of down in my business …

ISSUE: Failure means not getting the results I hoped for when I began to take specific action in my business. Translation: I fail sometimes. Gasp! Because it is a part of life; therefore, it is also to be a part of my business.

SOLUTIONS: I decided to stop interpreting a failure as a deficiency of myself and instead view it as a learning opportunity. I also adopted Nike’s tagline, ”Just do it.” as a philosophy that helps me stay risk averse. I challenge myself to take a risk and flirt with failure so I can have success.

RESULT: Although failure can feel bad, it is actually good for me. In my business, I have to be willing to take risks, and possibly fail, and it is that process of falling down which leads me to getting back up so ultimately I have success. Failure gets me to success because it teaches me things about myself that I could not have learned any other way. Period.