Friday, June 26

Lessons for You from the Book “Do You” by Russell Simmons

Chapter Nine: “You Can Never Get Before You Give”

“The possession of material riches, without inner peace, is like dying of thirst while bathing in a lake.” Yogananda

For me this has been a subject which led to small wars with some infopreneurs. I have always struggled with “pricing” or “fees” in trade for simple information.

How should you give from your heart and empower others with your services for a fee?
Geesh! Over the years I have seen valuable information being sold in a packaged price of $4000 on one side of town and the same info being sold for $150 on the other side of town. It was the same dang information.
Where is the balance?

When I ask this question among some colleagues, I notice everyone has a different answer. I believe it’s because they have made decisions that are right for their lifestyle. But I still can’t help but stumble at times trying to find my place within all the hustle and bustle of selling information.

In reading this book, chapter eight and nine spoke volumes to my soul. Yep, even with the urban lingo, Russell’s book allowed me think deeply about the balance and the fairness of my business.

Chapter Selection… “I want to make it clear that I’m not suggesting that there’s anything wrong with making money. How could I? I’m a business man by trade and I work hard to try to make sure that all my businesses are successful….However pilling up zeros in your bank account, or cars in your driveway, won’t in and of itself make you successful. Rather, true success is based on a constant flow of giving and receiving. In fact, if you look up affluence in the dictionary, you’ll see its roots come phrase meaning “to flow with abundance.” So in order to be truly affluent, you must always let what you’ve received flow back into the world.”

I feel comfortable in charging a fair price for my services. I know that others are charging way more; perceiving that more, means more value. Sometimes it does.
But for me, I will only charge what I would be willing to pay. I have noticed that by following basic fairness principles, my business is growing with a steady stream of clients who appreciate my efforts.

Chapter Selection… “Giving, not trading or selling is the basis of success. The most rewarding thing you can do is to give the world something good.”

Do what you love, charge what you feel is fair and share something really good with the rest of us!

Friday, May 29

Lessons for You from the Book “Do You” by Russell Simmons

Chapter Eight: “The Science of Success: Plant the Good Seeds”


Chapter Selection: “ …When you give the world love and respect, the world will give you love and respect in return. When you give the world negativity and contempt, the world is going to return that negativity to you.”

This has been a touchy subject among quite a few of Moms Making Money Premier Members. They want to plant good seeds but they are worried about being too giving. I’m always asked during my talks, “What if I give too much? People can take advantage of me and I could lose money!” I always reply “Just be fair, honest and smart in all that you do-- then you won’t have to worry.” After years of mistakes and straying from my core beliefs for the interest of few more dollars, I now use my homemade check list before I start any new project or venture:

Is it:
--Right for me and everyone that I will be serving (my core market)
--Sincere, straight-forward and easy to comprehend
--Unique, meaningful and empathetic to those I will be serving (my core market)
--An opportunity to expand and improve within my field of business
--A pathway to increase my business visibility and/or revenue

I must say that since I have been using this checklist; I have not made another knuckle-headed mistake regarding the growth of my business. (smile)

Chapter Selection….Just as your actions have to be positive, the services you provide to the world also have to be positive if you want to reap any lasting professional success. A lot of things you can sell will create temporary happiness and success, but to be truly happy, you have to give things of lasting value.”

Try not to get caught up in fast results. Instead, look for permanent results.

Chapter Selection “… Every religion and culture around the globe teaches a version of this law. It’s truly a universal concept. That’s why no matter what you look like, where you live, or what flag you stand under (or what business you are in), this law applies to you—you’re only going to get out of the world what you put in it”

Do You!: 12 Laws to Access the Power in You to Achieve Happiness and Success

Friday, May 22

Lessons for You from the Book “Do You” by Russell Simmons

Chapter Seven: “There Are No Failures, Only Quitters”

People quit because of their Achilles heel, metaphorically speaking.
I can’t tell you how many times I quit a promising new venture when I was younger.
Oh, I didn’t mind investing and working hard-- I still don’t. My Achilles heel was my concern with what other people thought of what I was doing. At that time, if a friend made a negative comment about an idea I was trying to bring realty, I would immediately give up. That was my method of operation with any business venture that I chose. What a mess, huh? But I bet you can relate!

What changed my destructive behavior?

My 1 minute old son was placed in extremely unsure arms. I knew at that very moment that I had to stop the nonsense and get serious. In an instant, it no longer mattered to me what anyone thought because quitting was not an option in my new life as a mom-entrepreneur.

Chapter Selection: “ …When it comes to courting success, I consider a “never-say-die attitude” to be more valuable than wealth, connections, or sometimes even talent. In fact, so many of my competitors were smarter than I was and had greater resources, but only got halfway down the road before they quit the first time that they stumbled.”

As my little one grew, he found his mom plucking away at her computer for hours... building her dreams one brick at a time. I stayed in front of my computer so much that my now 7-year old boy can type and download files as fast as I can! Okay...faster.

Chapter Selection “… As I said, resilience is one of the most valuable characteristics you can develop in life. Faith, dedication, compassion and hard work are good. But resilience is what makes them great. That’s because no matter how hard you are working, or no matter how great your faith is, at some point you are going to hit a wall. Whether you lead a successful life or not depends on how you deal with that wall.”

I chose to either step around or go through the walls as they come up.
It gets easier with a little practice. Now friends call me the bulldozer!


Do You!: 12 Laws to Access the Power in You to Achieve Happiness and Success