Weigh Your Options to Make the Right Decision

February 8th, 2010

Over the last couple of weeks, I have focused on “Making Decisions”; this is SUCH an important topic as your ability to move forward in your business depends on your ability to make those decisions. So, this week, I wrap up this topic with this 3-part post!

When you make a decision for your business, is it bringing you closer to your vision? Will it move you one step closer to achieving your business goals, whatever they may be?

If it will, that’s great – because success happens one step at a time, and every step counts.

As a business owner, you have to make decisions every single day, about so many things. Your marketing plan, your finances, your products – the list goes on and on. And each of those decisions has an impact on the future of your business.

Since all of your business decisions will impact your future, it’s important that you carefully weigh all of the options before moving forward. This can be hard work, but it will definitely be worth it. It requires analysis of the problem and all of the possible options, all while keeping sight of the end goal – your business aspirations.

Once you know all of the options, you will be able to decide what is best for your business. And if you have considered all of the possibilities very carefully, and remained focused on your goal, you will surely make the decision that will bring you closer to the success you seek.

Now, what I’m about to say may surprise you, but it really is a good thing to keep in mind when you have to make a decision. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is that you make these decisions with your “business hat” on. Try to remove your heart from the process when you’re trying to figure out whether the option you’re considering will really help you.

What I mean by this is that decisions about your business shouldn’t be made emotionally, no matter how passionate you are about your business. You have to look at the problem from a value perspective. You have to think of the decision you’re making as an investment. Consider its value and what you will get out of it in terms of future impact or return on your investment.

For example, suppose that you are considering investing in training or coaching. Think about what you will get out of the investment. You will be surrounded by positive people who can help you to achieve your goals and dreams. You’ll learn invaluable lessons from people who have already walked the path that you are on. In short, you’ll get a great return on your investment.

Once you evaluate your options and begin to choose which solutions you believe are right with confidence, those decisions will continue to move you one step closer to your goals.

Until next time! ;-)


Both my blog and my newsletters are updated weekly, but the newsletters are VERY different; while I use my blog to share some information about a particular aspect of mindset, in my newsletters, I go the extra mile!!!

The newsletters are more personal and not at all like the blog, insofar as the tone. With the newsletters, you also get an inside view on my business life, mindset articles, weekly challenges, mindset success stories and more!

If you’re happy with the blog, stick with it. Otherwise, I really want you to consider this free newsletter.

Interested? Click here for more details!


To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Reflect and Monitor: The Before and After of Decision-Making

January 25th, 2010

Last week’s blog post was about making decisions and how important it is for you to do so, as each decision brings you closer to your life and business goals and dreams.

So, this week, I want to follow-up on that post and share with you 2 important steps – often forgotten – of the decision-making process.

There are two very important aspects of decision-making that every business owner must keep in mind.

The first comes before the decision. When you are about to make a decision, it’s important to reflect on your options.

But it’s also important to recognise that a reflective state can be a very “stuck” state. It’s possible to spend too much time reflecting, time that will keep you stuck in the place you are in now, rather than moving you forward.

I don’t mean that you should make decisions impulsively. It’s certainly a good thing to reflect and think, but you also have to act.

The second thing to remember comes after the decision. Once you have made your decision and implemented whatever steps it requires, it’s important to recognise that you still have work to do. You need to monitor your decision, to make sure that it’s going the way you want it to. And if it isn’t, then it’s time for another decision.

If you find yourself in this situation, where one decision didn’t work out and you need to make another, don’t be discouraged. You made that first decision because you believed that it would bring you one step closer to your business goals. But if you see that isn’t happening, there is always another path to choose. You are never stuck on one track; you can always choose a different one.

There are so many tracks you can pick. That’s why you need to make sure you monitor your decisions. You should never feel that because you’ve made a certain decision, you can’t later choose another path. There’s no need to consider it as a setback. Using Tony Robbins’ words “Stay committed to your decisions; but stay flexible!”

Think of it as driving on a motorway and realising that you’re not headed in the right direction. You wouldn’t turn around right in the middle of the road; you would just take a different exit!

When you’re focused and you’re driven to achieve what you want, you will be able to take that different exit. It’s important to monitor your decisions so that you can exit sooner rather than later. You don’t want to be stuck on that motorway, knowing that you should have taken the exit 25 miles ago, and the next one is 20 miles away. In the wrong direction…!

The more attention you pay to the outcome of your decisions, the faster you’ll know if they are leading you in the right direction.

So, make sure that your Decision-Making process does include these 2 steps: Reflect and Monitor.

Until next time! ;-)


Both my blog and my newsletters are updated weekly, but the newsletters are VERY different; while I use my blog to share some information about a particular aspect of mindset, in my newsletters, I go the extra mile!!!

The newsletters are more personal and not at all like the blog, insofar as the tone. With the newsletters, you also get an inside view on my business life, mindset articles, weekly challenges, mindset success stories and more!

If you’re happy with the blog, stick with it. Otherwise, I really want you to consider this free newsletter.

Interested? Click here for more details!


To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

Signature
__________________
Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Your Decisions Define Your Future

January 18th, 2010

Where you are today – in both your business and your life – is the direct result of the decisions you have made in the past.

Think about it for a moment. You would not be where you are right now if you had made different decisions. So all of the decisions you’ve made in the past are impacting where you are today.

And there’s something really great about this, because it means that where you want to be tomorrow will be the direct result of the decisions you are about to make. It gives you a tremendous element of control over your business goals and aspirations, and moving them in the direction you want them to go.

We’ve all made decisions that we’re not happy about. And those have played a role into putting you where you are right now too. But this is not something that should make you feel regret or remorse. Quite the opposite, really. Because as of today, as of this very moment, you can make a new decision that will move you onto the right path. From here on, every time you make a new decision, you will just straighten out that path to your success.

The way that you make decisions is actually the cornerstone of your business mindset. And having the right mindset is the cornerstone of a successful business.

Whenever you make a decision, you are doing so in response to something that requires your input. Basically, you are trying to solve a problem. The first thing you need to do is to identify that problem so you can figure out the best way to address it.

In a business situation, the problem might be that you’re not generating enough revenue. Or perhaps you’re having a problem with a business partner or client. Whatever it is, it’s important that you define that problem so that you’re absolutely clear on what is happening and why it is happening.

You need to put a reason behind the decision you have to make, so that you fully understand why you must make it. It’s only when you’ve identified the problem that you can focus on finding the solution.

Once you have defined the problem to be solved, you will have taken the first step toward making a decision. And remember, that decision will be another step on the path to your future success.

So, identify the problem, think about where you want to be, and make the decision to choose the right path.

Until next time! ;-)


Both my blog and my newsletters are updated weekly, but the newsletters are VERY different; while I use my blog to share some information about a particular aspect of mindset, in my newsletters, I go the extra mile!!!

The newsletters are more personal and not at all like the blog, insofar as the tone. With the newsletters, you also get an inside view on my business life, mindset articles, weekly challenges, mindset success stories and more!

If you’re happy with the blog, stick with it. Otherwise, I really want you to consider this free newsletter.

Interested? Click here for more details!


To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

Signature
__________________
Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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What is Your Current Mindset?

January 11th, 2010

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you know what I believe your most valuable tool in your arsenal is, right? It’s your mindset. So, this week, as we are starting a new year, I’d like to talk to you about your mindset and review with you the importance of having the right one.

Your success is all about you having the right mindset. Before you can get to work on developing the right mindset, though, you have to understand what it is. Only when you clearly understand it can you become fully aware of your own.

Think of your mindset as your philosophy of life. It drives every single thing that you do in your life and in your business. Your current mindset is derived from a combination of factors – your background, culture, education, upbringing, religious beliefs – everything that has gone into creating the way you view life is part of your mindset.

Notice that I mentioned your current mindset. I’ve used that word deliberately, to show that it is something you can change. And in order to change something, you first need to know exactly where it is, so that you can shift it to where you want it to be.

Successful people know this to be true. They have learned the importance of having the right mindset, and making the transition they need to achieve success in your life and in your business.

Once you make the decision to think differently, you will be on your way to acquiring a different mindset. This new way of thinking will be your key to success in your life and in your business.

Mindset is what sets people apart.

Some people have a stronger and more powerful mindset than others because they have taken charge of their own mind.

The great news is that you have the power to do the same. You have the power to change your mindset; just as you have the power to change your thoughts, your habits, attitudes and actions.

Decide TODAY to change, and get your results TOMORROW!

Until next time! ;-)

To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Happy New Year!!!

December 31st, 2009

Hello,

Today is the last day of 2009 and I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family an excellent and successful New Year!

And to let you reflect on the following quote:

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day.”
Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Looking forward to discussing, sharing, exchanging, and networking some more in 2010.

I will continue my weekly posts and share more tips, strategies and techniques, which will help to create/enhance the strong mindsets that will propel you toward personal and professional success.

To your Mountain Moving Mindset, and to reaching new heights in 2010!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Acknowledge Your Accomplishments

December 21st, 2009

If you’ve been raised to act respectful and “proper,” it’s probably been instilled in you at some point in your upbringing that modesty is a virtue. You shouldn’t point out all the things you’ve accomplished or sing your own praises too loudly.

Rubbish! ;-)

Be thrilled and proud of what you’ve done. Keep a list of your accomplishments. When you accomplish something and when you succeed at something, don’t file it away somewhere. Don’t keep it a secret. Do acknowledge it. Do celebrate.

That can be difficult to do sometimes. We’re taught to be humble. If we’ve done something well, we don’t want to appear arrogant by bringing it up.

But, if you’re actually on the path to doing what you really want in life, I say, shout it from the roof tops. Or, at least keep a list.

Why should you do this? Because we never hesitate to point out where we fail. We always seem to recognise what hasn’t been done, what could have been done better, what wasn’t a good idea. Yes, it is important to know these things because they will help you to succeed by learning from the past and your mistakes.

But it’s equally important to know where you’ve succeeded, what you’ve done well. Recognising the positive results you achieve will give you confidence in your abilities to make decisions and perform your job. It will also keep you on track and focused.

Acknowledging your successes keeps you motivated. And, motivation is essential so keep a log of your accomplishments.

When you, and the people around you who are impacted by your actions, see your accomplishments, right there in print, it just brings everything into focus.

Accomplishment and success is about so much more than money. One accomplishment might be that you landed an extraordinary client. One might be that your business revenue has doubled in six months. And, it’s not all about work either. One of your accomplishments could be that you were able to attend your child’s school function because you schedule your own office hours.

Don’t play down and do not underestimate what you’re doing. You should congratulate yourself and tap yourself on the back for following your passion and living life on your terms. Acknowledge your accomplishments.

And, you are accomplishing something else too. You are setting an example for the next generation. When they can visually see what you’ve done, they will be inspired to pursue their own passions.

They will have living proof that anything is possible.

Until next time! ;-)

To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Dreams Are Goals With Deadlines

December 14th, 2009

When your vision and your dreams are big – surely, they are big, right? no point, in playing a small game… – at some point you’re going to ask yourself, “Exactly how do I do this?”

Of course you can achieve your dreams. But sometimes they’re so big, you don’t know what to do. Or maybe you know what to do but you’re not sure where to start.

One of the answers is that you are going to make a pretty huge “To Do” list. Making a to-do list will help to keep you on track because you’ll be marking off little goals toward that ultimate big dream.

What you should do, though, is chunk down that list. Break it into little chunks and steps. If you try to look at the whole list, you’ll get very overwhelmed because you’ll feel you have too much to do. You could sit there and check off things all day long and at the end of the day, there’s still an entire list left. Maybe it even got bigger.

Giving the tasks on your “to-do” list deadlines is key.

Some people will make a big master list and then designate the various tasks to specific days. I actually don’t do this. I’ve tried assigning tasks to certain days but I felt that it was too constraining. If something happens and you don’t do the thing on Monday, but you do it on Tuesday, you end up feeling disappointed or feeling off schedule.

Here’s an alternative that I like. On Monday morning, make two lists. List One is your master “to-do” list – literally do a brain dump of all the things that you’re thinking. Then, once you’ve hopefully looked at your vision board, and you are refocused and ready to go, take out a smaller piece of paper.

Look at your big list. Maybe it has 20 things on it. And you know that you can’t accomplish those 20 things in one week. The last thing you want is to feel overwhelmed with this big list at the beginning of the day. So go through the big list and hand pick the things that you’re going to do that particular week. This is much more manageable.

Be careful not to pick too many things. When you don’t finish what you set out to do, you end up frustrated. And then you just sort of give up, thinking that you’re never going to get it all done, so just forget about it. Less really is more. Put fewer things from your master list on that weekly list. You will feel more accomplished and on track by accomplishing them. And here’s more great news. If you actually finish all of the things on your list, what can you do? Just go back to your master list and add a couple more.

Approaching your list this way will take you out of the place where you are overwhelmed and frustrated by all the things you have to do to achieve your dream. It will make your ultimate dream more attainable because you’ll be successfully accomplishing all of the goals on your list toward your dream.

Until next time! ;-)

To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Visualise Your Goals: Ready, Set, Go!!!

December 7th, 2009

One of the biggest challenges we all face is the ability to consistently concentrate on our goals, our aspirations, our career, our dreams. With all of the many tasks and obstacles we encounter each and every day, how do we keep on our toes, and focused on all of those? I know I do, let me share with you one of my favourite techniques!

Ok, so, think of a particular goal of yours – now, you have it? Great! Do you find it hard to stay on the path? As we previously discussed, one of the best ways for you to stay on the path is to actually know why you are on that path.

You may be thinking, “Of course I know why I’m doing this.” But, sometimes with the daily distractions of life, you can lose focus. You don’t think about it anymore because you’re getting stuck in the daily thing. You may still be on the right track, which is great news, but you just can’t see the light anymore.

One way to keep motivated is to consistently remind yourself of why you started this in the first place. I’m a very visual person, and I actually create a vision board to help me stay focused on my own end goals. Basically the concept is to put your passions, your dreams and your goals onto this board. Tear out pictures, phrases from magazines and newspapers – whatever you see that inspires you or means something to you. Then take a big piece of paper and paste them on there to create this vision board of your dreams.

If you have these visual reminders, it’s actually like you are refocusing. You can even use things that you’ve written about your passion and your dreams, or pictures or video that you’ve taken.

But as long as you do this visual reminder on a frequent basis, you can’t help but stay focused. It will refresh your memory, recharge your passion and refocus your energies.

So, use that vision board whenever you need inspiration. Whatever fire is inside of you will always stay connected because you will have a physical look at why you’re doing that particular thing you were thinking of! ;-)

Visualise Your Goals: Ready, Set, Go!!!

Until next time! ;-)

To your Mountain Moving Mindset!

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Frederique Murphy
Simply Transformed

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Unlock the Door to Your Success

November 30th, 2009

There is a secret in life and in business that you may not be aware of. It is the biggest one, the one that, without your uncovering it, will stand in your way on the path to success.

Here it is: Where you are today in your life and in your business is a direct result of only one person – and that person is you.

Where you are today is a direct reflection of the words, the decisions, the thoughts and the actions that you took days, months and years ago. In other words, your results are directly your responsibility. And if you’re not achieving your desired results, it’s your current mindset that has been preventing you from doing so.

Don’t be discouraged. This is not meant to be negative, because there is also great news. If you are the reason for your results or lack of results, the great news is that YOU have control over the cause of your results – you have control over yourself.

You can use that control to develop the mindset that will help you to achieve the success you seek.

Try this analogy to help visualise the concept…

Imagine your life, your business as a closet. It can be as small or as large as you desire it to be. Inside the closet are all of your aspirations, goals and dreams. But the closet is closed – and there is a security system in place. You don’t know how to open it.

Despite your expertise in your field, unless you learn how to open that closet door, you won’t have access to those aspirations, goals and dreams. If you can’t access them, you won’t be able to achieve them. But you’ve just learned that you are the key, and with the key you can open the closet.

Remember, though, that your closet is also protected by a security system. You have to enter a special code to bypass that alarm.

If you don’t yet know that alarm code, look on the bright side. You already have the key, so you are one step closer to opening the door. Isn’t it nice to know that you actually are the key to your own success? By using the key – your power to control your mindset – you are on the way to uncovering the code that will unlock the door to your life and business dreams.

Until next time! ;-)

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Frederique Murphy
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Find Your Purpose, Success Will Follow

November 23rd, 2009

I was recently interviewed and asked for my definition of success; well, for me, true success means that you are living your life on purpose. You have reason, cause, motive and direction.

Once you find your purpose and your destiny, you’ll feel such a sense of alignment and inner peace, because you’re doing what you are supposed to be doing.

Perhaps you’ve discovered that working for a company isn’t your thing. You made a decision to form your own business because you don’t enjoy working for somebody else or for a big company. When you just know deep down that something isn’t for you – well, then it’s time to grow and to find your purpose.

There’s a saying that growth is uncomfortable. And this is so true. When you grow, you’re stretching outside of your box. You’re moving outside of what’s comfortable and familiar to you. But you need to keep pushing, because it’s so much nicer to be in a bigger box! ;-)

Maybe you’ve always known that you would have your own business. It was just a matter of time –and confidence – until you were ready to take that leap of faith. And then, you just went for it.

It is so important to keep that “go for it” attitude. The more you do, the more you are on your purpose and are thriving in life. You are no longer on a treadmill, because you are doing what you’re really passionate about. That alone gives you such a sense of independence and freedom. When you own your business you really can take it wherever you want.

When you are able to do that and share it with the people in your life that matter most, that is success. When you can wake up in the morning and not work because what you are doing is your passion and purpose, that is success.

That is living your life on purpose.

So take charge of your life. Know that everything is possible. Anything you set your mind to, you can achieve.

Until next time! ;-)

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Frederique Murphy
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