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Articles from Melanie Benson Strick | Selfgrowth.com
- The Entrepreneur’s Secret to Speedy Results - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2013 from Melanie Benson StrickMost entrepreneurs spend the first 12 – 24 months of owning their own business feeling like they are crawling with a big anchor attached to their foot – progress seems VERY slow. The frustrating thing is that you can “see” what big success looks like but between learning what needs to be done ...
Views: 1032 - Is Determination Alone Enough to Change Those Bad Habits? - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2013 from Melanie Benson StrickMost of us are taught that if we try hard enough we can accomplish any goal. But sometimes, when we’ve spent years training ourselves into a habit, determination isn’t going to be enough to change that pattern. Of course being determined is an essential ingredient in changing your habits but in ...
Views: 1511 - How to Get Your Life and Business Out of the Constraint Box - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2013 from Melanie Benson StrickThe other day I was at yoga class and was chatting with the owner about attendance. It’s a relatively new studio in a rural area of Los Angeles so I knew that it would take some time to build the word-of-mouth buzz she needed to sustain full classes on a regular basis. I threw out a few ...
Views: 975 - 15 Strategies to Conquer Overwhelm in 12 Minutes a Day - by Submitted on Aug 09, 2013 from Melanie Benson StrickOverwhelm is a state of mind that can sabotage your success and create unnecessary stress. Here are fifteen of my favorite techniques I use to help my clients (and myself) dissolve the feelings of overwhelm and feel inspired and powerful every day. Each of these techniques can be implemented in ...
Views: 1190 - Busyness–It’s Not Just about Business - by Submitted on Jul 31, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickWhen you’re too busy, it has a negative impact on all facets of your life. Those of us in the entrepreneurial world have a tendency to think about the negative aspects of busyness in terms of how it makes running our businesses harder. If we expand our perspective of the problem, it becomes ...
Views: 1238 - 7 Reminders Why You Left your J.O.B. to be an Entrepreneur - by Submitted on Jul 25, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickYour client’s check bounced and now you have to call them (again) to get paid. Cashing checks was NOT why you left your job, was it? Come to think about it, you don’t like having to handle all this financial stuff anyway. What a pain! Your new program (or product) fell short of your revenue ...
Views: 1291 - Disastrous Unconscious Choices Fast-Paced Entrepreneurs Make that Stunt Growth - by Submitted on Jun 26, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickI’ve been watching something happen lately and it seems that the more our fear rises the more this issue has just gotten out of hand. It typically comes up behind closed doors in one of those private conversations I have with a client or a colleague who has hit the wall. The conversation starts ...
Views: 1451 - Lost and Found: Why Clients Who Leave Can Be Your Profit Goldmine - by Submitted on Jun 18, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickI was talking with a colleague the other day about their business. Like me, their ideal client already has an established business and knows they want to grow through scalable strategies and automation. As we were bouncing around some ideas of where those clients are I asked him, “Do you think ...
Views: 1274 - The Sweet Spot: 5 High Payoff Activities to Amplify Your Success - by Submitted on Jun 11, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickKnowing what to spend your time and money on is not always as easy as it sounds. With time being scarcer than money, it’s easy to put our focus on activities that will generate the wrong results. But what I do know is there are a few activities that highly successful entrepreneurs do ...
Views: 1851(2 votes) - Getting Over Idol Fever - by Submitted on Jun 04, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickRecently I watched a somewhat cheesy movie, Rockstar, where Mark Wahlburg plays an obsessed cover band singer who is impersonating a popular 80’s heavy metal band. Chris, the main character, takes his role so seriously that he learns everything he can about the lead singer – and completely ...
Views: 1426 - Do You Have a "Just Get By" Strategy? - by Submitted on May 29, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickWhat if I could guarantee you that I could teach you a strategy that would keep you stuck exactly where you are right now, designed to generate a predictably mediocre results? Would you race to my “buy now” opportunity? Heck no! But yet so many people spend hours a day perfecting a strategy ...
Views: 1833 - Monkey Management: 3 Simple Steps to Get Tasks Done Correctly Through Delegation - by Submitted on May 29, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickDo you ever feel like you are carrying the weight of a thousand people on your back? Somehow no matter how good you think you are at delegating it still feels like you have a thousand things to do. It's a feeling many entrepreneurs, managers and business owners have. William Oncken, author of ...
Views: 2244 - Why Problem Solving Doesn't Work in the New Era - by Submitted on Apr 23, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickOnce in a while I run into a paradox in life – when in order to achieve something I have to do what feels like the total opposite. Recently I’ve discovered that in order to achieve a certain type of success I’ve had to stop focusing on solving the problem and surrender into it. Now the ...
Views: 1324 - Eoungh Already....Are You a Leader or a Follower? - by Submitted on Apr 13, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickI’ve been seeing a lot of “information” lately about being a leader or a follower. What I’ve come to understand is a lot of mentors, gurus and marketers need you to be a follower. Followers do what they are told. Which means followers will probably spend a lot more money with their “guru” and ...
Views: 1603 - Why Running Your Business Alone Never Works - by Submitted on Mar 26, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickI was coaching a client one day who was feeling rather overwhelmed with trying to launch her new idea. I invited her to start a process of writing down all of the responsibilities, projects, tasks and other “shoulds” that she had swimming around in her mind. When she called in for her next ...
Views: 1297 - Necessary Failure: 3 Stories of Tragedy to Triumph - by Submitted on Mar 19, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickLaying on the floor sobbing, curled in the fetal position, the reality sank in that everything Martin had worked so hard for was gone. His trust had been violated, his life savings that he invested with his partner in an overseas venture, spent. Now what? Martin Howey, President of TopLine ...
Views: 1484 - Is Your Ladder on the Wrong Wall? - by Submitted on Mar 10, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickJohn had a dream. He wanted to live his passion and make a difference in the world. He knew that self-employment was a key to creating wealth and freedom. So John set out to be the owner of his own business. He did everything right. He watched what other successful people were doing. He modeled ...
Views: 1096 - 7 Character Traits of an Extraordinary Entrepreneur - by Submitted on Feb 27, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickIn 2001 I discovered I was a much better entrepreneur than I was a corporate ladder climber. As I turned in my 2-week notice at Motorola after 10 years in business, I was ecstatic to finally be my own boss. Over the next 18 months I was broke, frustrated, overwhelmed and doubting my ability to ...
Views: 1218(1 vote) - It's Time for a Revolution....But Not THAT KIND! - by Submitted on Feb 13, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickSome people think I’m nuts but I don’t watch the news. If I did, I think I’d be in a constant state of panic as the media churns up the frenzy by constantly focusing us on: How our economy continues to decline. That unemployment is at an all-time high. Company leaders that are downright ...
Views: 1098 - It Takes a Village to Raise a Vision - by Submitted on Feb 07, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickAfter years and years of building my business I know it’s a heck of a lot more fun (and a lot less work) to raise a vision when you have a village of people supporting you! I’ve always had a team. To me that’s a no-brainer. But sometimes I lose sight of the other important “villagers” I need to ...
Views: 1391(1 vote) - Should I Pull the Plug or Persevere? - by Submitted on Feb 07, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickTwo years ago I was coaching a client who was significantly in debt, had a service-based business that took him 80 hours a week to run, and was so stressed out trying to grow his business that he had stomach ulcers and slept about 4 hours a night. Of course I started running the numbers – how ...
Views: 1252(1 vote) - Is Giving Vital to Business Growth? - by Submitted on Jan 25, 2012 from Melanie Benson StrickThe other day my friendly Trader Joes check out guy said, “Are you doing anything cool for the holidays?” I think I shocked him with my answer of “Why yes, we just dropped some toys off at the Holiday Drive and I’m enjoying finding unique ways to give this year.” Stunned, he responded, “I ...
Views: 1249(2 votes) - When Being Driven Takes You to the Dark Side - by Submitted on Oct 08, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickAs an entrepreneur we are trained to focus on results – make more money, get more clients, sell more products, and achieve more recognition. It becomes easy to let these hard numbers dictate our daily levels of success, happiness, and even survival. In order to get more results, many of us ...
Views: 1379(1 vote) - When the Pursuit of More Money Costs Too Much - by Submitted on Sep 11, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickMany years ago one of my mentors taught me this saying: “success is only sustainable when it’s good for you, good for the people around you, and good for the world.” That sounds good and everything…but what does it really mean? Do we mean people like Enron can’t just cover up their big oil ...
Views: 1209(1 vote) - 5 Tips to Keep the Romance Alive In Your Business - by Submitted on Apr 07, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickAs entrepreneurs our business is a HUGE part of our lives. We spend every waking hour thinking about how to grow our results and often invest more time nurturing our business than we do our intimate relationships. As a matter of fact I consider having a business a unique form of relationship. ...
Views: 1521(2 votes) - Diversify or Focus: The Sand Pail Approach to Stable Income - by Submitted on Feb 19, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickDo you have all your revenue eggs in one basket? It’s the classic situation many entrepreneurs find themselves in – and it’s a precarious place to operate your business from. If you have one big client, one main offering or one key industry that provides you most of your revenue, then you ...
Views: 1372 - Too Many Ideas? How to Know When You Have “The One Brilliant Idea” - by Submitted on Feb 15, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickNancy is like every entrepreneur I know. Highly creative and visionary, she has a million ideas. First she wants to be a coach. Then a mentor tells her she should offer workshops. Then she decides she should offer consulting in her old industry. Then, confused and full of angst, she hears about ...
Views: 1517(7 votes) - Six Ways to Spend More Time Doing What You Love - by Submitted on Feb 15, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickDid you start your business with the high hopes that you’d spend every waking moment pouring through piles of receipts trying to update your bookkeeping reports, chasing down past due payments from customers or struggling to keep up with the growing list of marketing tasks to hopefully attract ...
Views: 2724(5 votes) - Being Brave And Letting Go: How This Can Revolutionize Your Business - by Submitted on Nov 25, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickIf you’re an entrepreneur you’ve probably come across this situation before: You’ve invested big into a new project, new venture, new employee, or new system… You’ve spent months preparing this new thing, you’ve long been excited about it’s potential, and you’ve planned on it being a ...
Views: 1648(6 votes) - Four Business Partnering Ideas for Colossal Expansion - by Submitted on Nov 25, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickJohn is a highly creative person who loves to do one thing – write. And he makes a really great living at it. But when it comes to running a business and dealing with the operations John would pretty much prefer to get a root canal in the middle of the Sahara desert. Dan is a brilliant ...
Views: 1774(3 votes) - How to Conquer your “Control Freak” to Increase Results - by Submitted on Feb 15, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickAs entrepreneurs, our strengths can become our greatest weaknesses. By nature we are fast paced, highly creative risk takers. But when it comes to building a team, it’s like forcing us to take a nap at 10:00am. It’s just not our natural way of doing things. The most important aspect of ...
Views: 1644 - 5 Key Elements to Quick-Start a High Payoff Virtual Team - by Submitted on Sep 20, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickOnce you realize you are ready to delegate to other you are probably going to want to get started quickly. That’s how we work as entrepreneurs, an idea gets in our head and we leap forward. Typically we rush to bring a new team member on board because we need help now – we can’t wait to get ...
Views: 1105 - Are You An Over-Delegator or an Under Delegator? - by Submitted on Sep 20, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickI know you’ve heard me talk over and over about the importance of delegation. It’s crucial to business growth, but figuring out how to do it correctly isn’t always easy. I view it as “part Art, part Science”. The “Art” is knowing which tasks and responsibilities are most beneficial to ...
Views: 1157 - The Insider Secret To Paying For Your Growth - by Submitted on Sep 20, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickWith credit lines diminishing and debt rising, how does one go about paying for all the resources to grow? It’s a common challenge facing many in the entrepreneurial community but it doesn’t have to be the roadblock that keeps you from investing in the right growth opportunities. I’ve ...
Views: 927 - A Must Have Tool For Your Delegation Toolbox - by Submitted on Sep 20, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickOne of the biggest frustrations of having a business can be managing staff. It’s frustrating to have a team member who is constantly off the mark in terms of what you need from them. This is also one of the easiest problems to solve when you use the right tools that allow you to hire the right ...
Views: 975 - 4 Must-Have Factors for Consistent Predictable Growth in an Uncertain Economy - by Submitted on Feb 15, 2011 from Melanie Benson StrickIn today marketplace, uncertainty seems to be the constant as we embrace our new economy. What used to work for many businesses to generate sales and increase profits now does not work. Many in the information marketing world have had to face the fact that buyers now want something ...
Views: 2082(4 votes) - Do You Have a Clear Vision of Your Life as a Successful Business Owner? - by Submitted on Aug 12, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickCreate your ideal lifestyle vision first. It's hard to shove your ideal lifestyle into a busy business, but if you create that vision first, you can then build your business to support it. Vision is the ability to create something wonderful in your imagination. There's a spiritual connotation ...
Views: 1230(1 vote) - The Power of Business Leverage For Entrepreneurs - by Submitted on Aug 11, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickLearning how to leverage will free you from the burden of feeling constantly overwhelmed and scrambling to succeed. What is leverage? Leverage is the ability to apply a little bit of effort and get a massive result. Think of a lever - you move the lever a little bit and the lever applies the ...
Views: 1027(1 vote) - How to Get a 10x Increase in Revenue in Record Time - by Submitted on Aug 11, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickThe last few weeks I've been testing a new high performance technique. Having been trained in Neuro-Linguistic Programming, I'm always fascinated by how when you give your brain a new directive how it responds. It all started on a phone call with a client of mine who was planning out a ...
Views: 1373 - The Six Building Blocks of a Profitable Thriving Partnership - by Submitted on Aug 11, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickHave you ever entered into a partnership with someone then found, much to your surprise, that a few months (or years) down the road that the partnership has blown up? Kinda like the moment you discover your wife/husband/girlfriend/boyfriend is no longer the person you want to spend your life ...
Views: 1004(1 vote) - An Easy 3-Step Formula to STOP Overwhelm - by Submitted on Aug 11, 2009 from Melanie Benson StrickI'm looking around the room at glassy-eyed stares. It is day three of a big marketing event where these entrepreneurs have been learning all kinds of new ideas, opportunities and strategies. I've been brought into help these entrepreneurs prioritize and focus on the right steps at the right time ...
Views: 1044(1 vote) - The Power Of Small Steps - by Submitted on Sep 17, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickWhen we consider setting goals or making changes we tend to overestimate what we can do in the short run (and create goals and expectations that are too big) and underestimate what we can accomplish in the long run. I believe that we completely underestimate the value and the power of small ...
Views: 1090 - Octopus Balance: Insights On The Myths And Realities Of Life Balance - by Submitted on May 23, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickJeanette was a typical go-getter who wanted it all. Mother to three children, owner of a thriving consulting firm to Fortune 500 companies, chairman of her industry association and wife to a successful doctor. Jeanette had goals, dreams and visions of a billion dollar company but there was just ...
Views: 1072 - What Billionaires Know About Getting Things Done Fast! - by Submitted on May 23, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickWhat do Donald Trump, Oprah, Richard Branson and I have in common? Well I may not quite be at the billionaire level yet but what we do all have in common is we are all entrepreneurs who get things done in record time. Consider this: Over 80% of the entrepreneurs I mentor have great ideas with ...
Views: 1092 - How to Boost Your Bottom Line by Strengthening Your Power Factor - by Submitted on Apr 15, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickHave you ever noticed how hard it is to fill a bucket that is full of holes? Imagine for a moment how silly it would be to try and keep the bucket full of water when the water just keeps pouring out the bottom. Well that is what most of us do when we try to leap forward in our growth with a ...
Views: 948 - 6 Keys to Solving Any Challenge with Out-of-the-Box Thinking - by Submitted on Apr 15, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickAs my friends and I hovered in the lobby of the Gaylord Opryland Hotel, the reality was sinking in that American Airlines had cancelled all of our flights and we were stuck in Nashville for one more day. As we mentally reviewed the checklist in our heads of all the rescheduling, rebooking and ...
Views: 1084 - How To Breakthrough Your Glass Ceiling - by Submitted on Mar 14, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickYou are working your buns off every day, with the pedal-to-the-metal and yet, the realization has sunk in, you can't squeeze any more in. The experts however are telling you that to make more money you have to fit in these tasks: • Set up a blog and post 3 times a week • Systemize your ...
Views: 1061 - How Control-Freak-Itis Can Derail Your Success - by Submitted on Mar 14, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickImagine what it would be like if you could run a profitable six, seven or eight figure business and enjoy as much freedom as you desire? For many, the moment you decide to grow your business you simultaneously think of all the hard work ahead. You begin to question the dream and wonder if it’s ...
Views: 1132 - Six Sanity-Saving Scenarios To Turn A Massive Breakdown Into A Powerful Busines - by Submitted on Mar 14, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickThere I was. Depressed, frustrated, and overwhelmed. Despite my best efforts to have a smooth running ship and organize my event, I realized I had a significant breakdown in my process. I admit, it wasn’t the end of the world, but come on, I teach this stuff! It was one week before we went live ...
Views: 1002 - The Single Greatest Revelation For Your Success - by Submitted on Jan 25, 2008 from Melanie Benson StrickI've surveyed hundreds of entrepreneurs about what gets in the way of achieving their goals. The two highest responses are: "I don't have enough time," and "I don't have enough money." Now I don't want to seem callous or unsympathetic as I'm sure that many people do really have a lot of things ...
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