I woke up this morning with two questions on my mind: (and no, one was not, “Do I have time to run to the local coffee shop before my family wakes up?”) “Is what I’m doing in alignment with where I want to go in my life both personally and professionally?” and “What are the things I can do now to move my Big ideas, dreams, and goals forward at a faster pace?” These are two essential questions that all smart women should be asking themselves on a regular basis.

Have you ever been in a situation in your business or personal life where you are frustrated with the process or outcome?  Do you ever find yourself asking, “How did I get here?” or “How did this happen?”  This is why it is so important to make sure that your actions and decisions are in alignment with where you want to go.  An example would be taking on a client or project that you know is not a good fit because you don’t want to say no to the work.  Or maybe you commit to an outing with friends or family because you don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.  We, as women, tend to say “Yes!” too often and become frustrated with the outcome because we are “nurturers by nature” and we tend to the needs of others before our own.

Is your current action plan moving you forward at a faster pace toward your goals?  I exercise in Santa Monica in an area where a few of the running clubs meet to train for the LA Marathon.  If you are training for the Marathon, you can choose to do this on your own or you can train with a running club, which appears to move everyone forward at a faster, healthier, injury-free pace.

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This past weekend, our family went out to Palm Desert to visit my in-laws for Mothers Day.  I had the opportunity to spend some quality time with Greg’s father, Lowell.  I enjoy my “chats” with him.  He loves business and marketing and always has great ideas.  One of the topics we landed on was how some people move forward with their big ideas, dreams, and goals, and others never seem to be able to get out of the starting gate.  Why is this?  What makes it happen for some but not for others?  Women will say to me, “I have an idea, but every time I get to a certain point, I can’t seem to “pull the trigger!”

I have been fortunate to have a lot of coaches and mentors in my life.  It’s been a key to my moving ahead with my big ideas, dreams, and goals.  You know the old phrase, “Ready, Aim, Fire?”  Years ago, one of my mentors shared with me, that in order to make something happen, it should really be, “Ready, Fire, Aim!”  Sometimes we want to make sure that everything is “perfect” before we “fire” our new idea into the world.  We want to take that last class or read that last book written by the expert.  (more…)

As I was unpacking a box in our new house the other day, I found a beautiful drawing that my son Jack had done when he was in Kindergarten last year, in the spring. It’s 4 pieces of paper layered together with drawings and these 4 words: seed, roots, stem, flower. There is a lot of sunshine and rain above to illustrate how growing something meaningful needs both. When Jack saw it, he immediately began to explain to his younger sister Jenna how this works. “You plant a seed, give it water, then a root grows, then a stem and then you have a flower one day.” Wow, if only it were that simple!

Realizing a big idea, dream, or goal is a lot like planting a seed in your garden. The first step is to decide which seed (idea) you want to plant. There are so many choices. Which one seems to be the perfect fit for you right now in your life? After you decide what seed you want to plant, you need to learn about that seed and how it needs to be cared for to get the best results. When you have a big idea or goal, you need to find out everything you need to make it successful so that you can realize a meaningful outcome. Now you need to plant the seed. For example, if it’s a business idea, you need to take all the necessary steps to start a business. Next you need to make sure the seed gets enough water and sunshine so that it will form good roots. This can be challenging for some of us. In this example, I’m talking about starting a business. We come up with a winning idea; we give it a name, print business cards, tell a few people we are in business, and wonder why the phone isn’t ringing off the hook with customers? Remember the water and sunshine? In the business example, you need to have a solid marketing plan for your business that includes plenty of networking and support. This is how a business develops “roots” in a community. (more…)