Partnership at its best… my business partner, Janet Cook, and I complement each other in that we are like and unlike each other. We are alike in our passion for helping people, learning new skills, being entrepreneurs and loving life. We both appreciate how magnificent people are and look for it. For us, the glass is always half full, even in the face of circumstances that might say otherwise, like bill collectors or a broken furnace. We dream and act to reach those dreams. People close to us have said at times that we are unrealistic (or even a little crazy). But we aren’t.
We are unlike each other in that Janet is more outgoing and I have to deliberately be accessible. Naturally, I am shy and could happily sit in a corner and read. But I can’t have the voice I want in the world if I don’t learn to interact in crowds, even when I am uncomfortable. I am married 14 years to an amazing artist, David, and Janet dates so I live vicariously on that front. I had almost forgotten about the dating world. Janet is more playful and I am more serious, tall and I am short. I am great with marketing, systems and online tools. She has owned successful businesses, including now. I have a job with businesses on the side. She is more organized about prospecting, following up and closing. I struggle to fit all my activities into my schedule. We complement each other, learn together, are brilliant models for each other, and consider ourselves lucky in our business partnership. Who are your business partners and what, together, do you bring to the relationship?
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Here I Am, Stuck in the Middle With You
Bills to the left of you, paycheck to the right, here I am, stuck in the middle with you… OK, so I changed the song a little. Have you ever had a time when you stacked up the bills (lots of them) and the single check that’s meant to cover them and, despite your best efforts, there is just not enough income? Me too. What is the solution? Consider getting another job or two, online or work from home business, real estate, hobby, Craigslist or eBay?
Try another solution instead. You can still go back to those other options later, if you like. Think of and list your talents… do you cook like a chef, knit fast and easily, read or write exceptionally well, twitter, market, do graphic design, shop, do spiritual healing or feng shui? What is your transferable skill set from your work or business? What are your marketable hobbies? What are you passionate about that could be another way to earn income?
Now here’s the game. Add up the bills so you have an exact number then subtract your income to figure out the money gap needed to pay them all (sigh of relief). Then look at your list of marketable skills and talents. Take each one and figure out how, with that single skill or talent, you can make the extra money you need. At the end of the exercise, if you have a list of 10, you will have generated strategies for earning or generating 10 times the amount you need. Why bother, you ask? In a serious and perhaps unnerving moment, this game incites your natural resourcefulness that fear might have shut down. I have negotiated my way out of a lot of tight spots this way. Try it for yourself and let me know how it works for you.
Try another solution instead. You can still go back to those other options later, if you like. Think of and list your talents… do you cook like a chef, knit fast and easily, read or write exceptionally well, twitter, market, do graphic design, shop, do spiritual healing or feng shui? What is your transferable skill set from your work or business? What are your marketable hobbies? What are you passionate about that could be another way to earn income?
Now here’s the game. Add up the bills so you have an exact number then subtract your income to figure out the money gap needed to pay them all (sigh of relief). Then look at your list of marketable skills and talents. Take each one and figure out how, with that single skill or talent, you can make the extra money you need. At the end of the exercise, if you have a list of 10, you will have generated strategies for earning or generating 10 times the amount you need. Why bother, you ask? In a serious and perhaps unnerving moment, this game incites your natural resourcefulness that fear might have shut down. I have negotiated my way out of a lot of tight spots this way. Try it for yourself and let me know how it works for you.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Only Where Love and Need Are One...
“Only where love and need are one and the work is play for mortal stakes. Is the deed ever really done for Heaven and the future’s sakes.” Robert Frost wrote that and I have been thinking lately about what it means practically. My grandfather, whom I love dearly, is 98 years old, sharp as a tack, so I am very aware of mortality these days.
Need drives many of my actions and probably yours too – need to pay the bills, work at a job(s) or business(es), spend time with family and much more. I notice that love gets left out when I am focused on need but, in the world perception, need is a more legitimate reason for most actions. Why is that? How did they become separated? You see, I think what the Robert Frost quote means is that love and need are two sides of a whole and so are work and play. But we don’t live like that is true, do we? I see this quote as a path to wholeness and balance. I invite you to focus on love in your work and play and I suspect need will come along for the ride. Let’s experiment. It might be FUN!
Need drives many of my actions and probably yours too – need to pay the bills, work at a job(s) or business(es), spend time with family and much more. I notice that love gets left out when I am focused on need but, in the world perception, need is a more legitimate reason for most actions. Why is that? How did they become separated? You see, I think what the Robert Frost quote means is that love and need are two sides of a whole and so are work and play. But we don’t live like that is true, do we? I see this quote as a path to wholeness and balance. I invite you to focus on love in your work and play and I suspect need will come along for the ride. Let’s experiment. It might be FUN!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
How Do You and the World Define You?
Are you defined by your job, your status or how much you earn? By the quality of your relationships? By your age or looks? By where you live or who you know? By your commitment to organic living or environmental sustainability? By your entrepreneurial or internet skills? By your level of education or what schools you attended? Historically, for men, they have been defined by job status and income. For women, it has usually been appearance and excellence at taking care of relationship connections.
What is it for you that, if you lost it, you might not know who you are anymore? And who is making these distinctions up? Is it you knowingly choosing or are you simply getting sucked into cultural assumptions and embracing them as your own?
For me, most recently, it was AGE. Next week, I turn 50 and, over the last 7-10 years, I have seen my energy dwindle, weight increase and mood become subdued. I said to myself, "Well, I'm getting older. It's only natural." In March, I noticed I had bought into an idea that I did not agree with - that I could expect continued deterioration of my physical body and spirits as I grow older. My energy level was no match for my busy life. I ran out of breath, panting harshly, after climbing the stairs or playing tag with kids. I worried about the stress on my heart, knees and ankles of that extra 40 pounds.
NO! I dug in my heels and catapulted into action with delicious, natural Isagenix products on March 20, weighing 169 lbs and measuring 367 inches overall. In the last 20 days, I have released 10 pounds (today at 159 pounds) and 18.75 inches. People are asking me what I am doing because the change is so evident in my shape and mood. I have reclaimed my joy and am gladly sharing my life-changing experience.
Last year, I was out of work for 9 months, like so many others nationwide, and watched my savings dwindle, gaining an intimate knowledge of how to set up payment plans and feeling shame about my inability to earn a living. How could this happen to me? But it did, despite my considerable skills. I got a terrific job in January which I love but I plan to match or exceed the amount of my salary with my Isagenix business income (www.alisonpena.isagenix.com) in 2010.
I vowed that I would never again be solely dependent on any company paycheck so I am building an alternate stream of income with Isagenix that I expect to exceed my paycheck within a year. Care to join me on this exciting journey to health and wealth?
What is it for you that, if you lost it, you might not know who you are anymore? And who is making these distinctions up? Is it you knowingly choosing or are you simply getting sucked into cultural assumptions and embracing them as your own?
For me, most recently, it was AGE. Next week, I turn 50 and, over the last 7-10 years, I have seen my energy dwindle, weight increase and mood become subdued. I said to myself, "Well, I'm getting older. It's only natural." In March, I noticed I had bought into an idea that I did not agree with - that I could expect continued deterioration of my physical body and spirits as I grow older. My energy level was no match for my busy life. I ran out of breath, panting harshly, after climbing the stairs or playing tag with kids. I worried about the stress on my heart, knees and ankles of that extra 40 pounds.
NO! I dug in my heels and catapulted into action with delicious, natural Isagenix products on March 20, weighing 169 lbs and measuring 367 inches overall. In the last 20 days, I have released 10 pounds (today at 159 pounds) and 18.75 inches. People are asking me what I am doing because the change is so evident in my shape and mood. I have reclaimed my joy and am gladly sharing my life-changing experience.
Last year, I was out of work for 9 months, like so many others nationwide, and watched my savings dwindle, gaining an intimate knowledge of how to set up payment plans and feeling shame about my inability to earn a living. How could this happen to me? But it did, despite my considerable skills. I got a terrific job in January which I love but I plan to match or exceed the amount of my salary with my Isagenix business income (www.alisonpena.isagenix.com) in 2010.
I vowed that I would never again be solely dependent on any company paycheck so I am building an alternate stream of income with Isagenix that I expect to exceed my paycheck within a year. Care to join me on this exciting journey to health and wealth?
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