Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola

Start Your Year Getting Out of Your Food Comfort Zone!

Being a smart young entrepreneur or seasoned business owner means you develop the whole person. This includes taking not good, but great care of yourself so your mind is clear and your energy level high to strategize and create the business of your dreams.  And besides, it’s just plain time to mix it up and throw in some fun, so here’s my coaching tip for the month – eat GRANOLA!  Here’s a yummy recipe.

MIX THE DRY TOGETHER:

3 C. Rolled Oats                         1 C. Organic Fair Trade Powdered Chocolate  (great antioxidants

1 C. Millet                                    1 C. Dry Roasted or Regular Peanuts

1/2 C. Sunflower Seeds            1/4 C. Soy Powder

1/2 C. Sesame Seeds                 1 C. Chocolate Chips (add to mixture after cooked & barely warm )

MIX TOGETHER WET INGREDIENTS:

1 C. Hot Water

1 C. Cold Pressed Oil  (pour in oil before honey and it slides right out of the cup!)

1 C. Honey

Jar of Peanut Butter of your choice

Combine both mixtures, and if you’ve doubled the batch, as I always do, cook it in a Turkey Roasting pan 1/2 hr. at 350 degrees.  Stir, then turn oven down to 275 degrees, stirring thoroughly every 15 minutes.  If you like it chunky, don’t stir too much at the end, just enough so it doesn’t burn.  Usually done after an hour.  When the mixture is warm, almost cool add the chocolate or carob chips so they melt just a little bit. The least you cook this granola the more nutritional value you get.  The chocolate is Sweet Earth Organic Fair Trade we buy online.  Place in large Tupperware containers.  Enjoy!

ARE YOU PREPARING YOUR GOALS TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN 2012?

ENTREPRENEURS CAN LEARN PREPAREDNESS SKILLS AND UNSHAKEABLE CONFIDENCE FROM MICHAEL JORDAN

Michael Jordan was being interviewed regarding how he would respond if he were faced with 0:01 second left on the clock at Game 7 of the NBA Finals, and his team is down by only one point.  He’s holding the ball at the free throw line, giving him two shots.  If he makes it, his team wins their first ever championship, but if he misses, they lose. The questions the interviewer, Susan Guzzetta, posed to him that day were the same ones I want to ask of you if this were your situation:

• How would you feel?

• Would you be nervous?

• Would you be distracted by all the opposing fans screaming, stomping and waving their hands, purposefully attempting to move you off your game by breaking your concentration?

“Michael”, she said “How do you handle an uncomfortable situations like this, whether it’s in basketball, business or life?”  And what he said, as business owners/entrepreneurs, we can take to heart and implement ourselves!   He said, “That’s easy, that situation wouldn’t bother me because I would have already disciplined myself to make sure I had already prepared for success in that or any other situation!”

Are you?  Are you disciplining and preparing yourself for success in every area of your life?  Are you hoping and wishing that this is the year that will be different, but haven’t made the plans necessary to see it come into fruition?  Or are you taking the steering wheel of life, and making plans, setting goals, and practicing the preeminent skills necessary for you to BE prepared to be a SUCCESS in 2012:

• Set GOALS in every aspect of your life and business, specifically high impact goals which will most affect the change or transition of your life/business

• Chunk them down to be bite sized

• Make a plan to accomplish them with a

• Create a date by which each goal be accomplished

Remember, without a strategy, you’re just wishing, just as you’ve done every year!  This is the year to take a wish and make it a believable PLAN of ACTION whether you’re a boomer, Gen X’er or Millennial business person!  Every generation needs an ACTION PLAN.  Then once you have this, don’t stop there, go one step further and hire a coach to hold you accountable, and to support and cheer you along the way.  Do each of these steps and I can guarantee, with this you will gain unstoppable confidence and will reach your goals in 2012.

Want to Learn to Blog, and Need a New Website?

Bea is offering her fabulous blogging program.  This can then be your new website, like I did.

WHAT BEA SAYS ABOUT HER PROGRAM:

BEFORE YOU REGISTER:

This program is not well designed for the true beginner (meaning you have never touched a blog in the past.)  It is designed for a self-starter who enjoys weekly participation in a live group and who also enjoys self-paced online training via a library of training materials and video tutorials. If you are brand new to blogging, I recommend considering one of our blog mentoring packages below , which will help get you ready for the Become a Blogging Maniac Program.

ABOUT THE BECOME A BLOGGING MANIAC START UP PROGRAM

PLEASE NOTE: We will be using the WordPress self hosted (meaning the blog is hosted on your own domain) blogging tool for this course. You will need a WordPress blog hosted on your own domain.  If you use another blogging tool such as Blogger or Typepad, you can still benefit from the program, but the bulk of our materials presented will focus on using WordPress.

If you are in need of a hosting company that easily installs WordPress using a one-click installation feature, please contact http://Hostgator.com or http://BlueHost.com .

If you currently have your own website, and you would like to manually install WordPress to your existing website, please visit this link for installation instructions:

How to Install WordPress

If you want your blog to match the current look and feel of your website, you will need to hire your designer or contact Bea Fields at beafields@beafields.com for names of someone who can help you with this.

PROGRAM DETAILS AND DATES:

This Webinar is held on the following dates via webinar and telephone:  (PLEASE NOTE:  We are not going to be using Voice Over IP during these calls.  The telephone number is not toll free, so if you do not have unlimited long distance, I recommend purchasing a 1 cent or 2 cent per minute phone card with a company like http://callingcards.com or http://pennytalk.com ).

Call Dates:

Monday, October 24 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

Monday, October 31 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

Monday, November 7 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

Monday, November 14 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

Monday, November 21 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

Monday, November 28 from 1:00-3:00 PM Eastern

(All calls are both video and audio recorded for later viewing)

Faciliator: Is Business Coach Bea Fields

Benefits:

The Become a Blogging Maniac Start Up Course is designed to teach you how to become fully comfortable with the set up and technology side of running your own website using a WordPress blog platform.  At the same time you’ll gain influence and credibility with your niche’.

For cost and all the details, click on the icon above.

The link above provides Sue with an affiliate fee, but does not increase your cost.

Over 20 Values an Executive Coach Provides

The Key Benefits of Enlisting a Business Coach 

The other day I was meeting with a woman who asked me, “Sue I know what a Life Coach does, but I don’t know the purpose of an Executive/Business Coach?”  Well, it’s not counseling, and it’s not consulting, although I shift into this mode frequently.  The best way I can describe it is for you to think of a coach of an Olympic Athlete.  Now, that elicits exactly what we do, but for a business leader.  We are your greatest supporter, your cheerleader, and a bit of a velvet brick.  Our purpose is to ensure you become successful:

• To challenge, develop, and assist you in improving your leadership skills.
• Uncover and develop your unique leadership style.
• Provide essential feedback regarding gaps in your skills and abilities. Discovering feedback in a safe, private environment.
• Reveal so you can abort any self-sabotaging ways which would jeopardize your leadership and your job.
• Expedite the improvement of your time management and organizational skills.
• Help you to develop greater abilities in making appropriate, time bound decisions.
• Establish concrete goals for change and progress.
• Someone to hold you ACCOUNTABLE to do the things you know you need to do, to become the leader you aspire to be.
• A uniquely rich development opportunity to truly discover all you were meant to be.
• Have a non-partisan, non judgmental, objective third party who is an impartial sounding board.
• Assistance to execute key business initiatives.
• Help in balancing work and life priorities.
• Cultivate exceptional ability to influence those you lead.
• Development of your unique personal mission, vision, and values.
• Reduce turnover while building loyalty and retention.
• Successfully navigate the white waters of conflict.
• Enhance and fine-tune your decision making skills, learning to appropriately evaluate business risks, while navigating any politically entrenched environment.
• Inspire peak performance in employees by employing fresh leadership insights.

Contact Sue right now, with the e-mail below, to set up a complimentary Discovery Session to explore if Executive Coaching is right for you right now.  Sue will be doing the same, discerning if you’re a good fit, as a client, for her.  If all is compatible, we then co-create a plan that works specifically for you, and your specific needs. Contact Sue at AccidentalLeader@comcast.net for more information, and to set up our Discovery Session.

Stop Being Frustrated with What You’ve Not Achieved!

Five Ways to Get back into, or Stay in SDM, Success Driven Mode

Having lived with chronic physical issues, I live in the world of being frustrated with how little I’ve accomplished each day.  Even today, here I am sitting at the computer with my adorable co-dependent kitty draped over my shoulder wishing I had gotten more done.   We live in the desert where we have the most wonderful monsoon weather, which simultaneously creates a monsoon in my back.  (A monsoon is very stormy, violent weather)  Yesterday, I began the day filled with visions of all I wanted to achieve, yet as the day progressed, so did my challenges.  Now, you may not have a physical challenge, maybe you still have children at home, while attempting to work, or parents you’re taking care of, been there done that too!  Or, you may have some other issue hindering your output.  This said, I am truly a blessed business woman, and I’m sure you are as well, if you look hard enough to find those things to be thankful for.   So, how do I keep directionally moving forward toward my dream, when my body goes south?  Here are five ways to quit being frustrated, and coach and manage yourself to keep moving forward to be the leader you were meant to be! This is how to make a demand on yourself to stay in SDM -  Success Driven Mode:

YOUR COACHING MOMENT with Sue, The “Accidental Leader“:

1. Set your goals for the day the night before. Then be sure you’ve gone back and chosen the 20% that will give you the 80% ROI for your time and effort. PUT THESE ITEMS ON YOUR LIST TO DO FIRST.
2. Be sure to start your day off spiritually.  I spend time with the Lord in prayer and meditation on His Word.  The more I need to get done, the more I know I need this focus and centering in my life, and in my business.
3. Stick to your goals for the day – relentlessly!  Only substitute if it is the kind of emergency only you can do, that can’t be done by someone else, some other time.   Delegate otherwise, or delete altogether!
4. Be grateful at the end of the day for the small things you’ve accomplished.  Write them down.  I guarantee this will chase the grumpies away.  And while you’re at it, don’t compare yourself to the high performers, instead look at someone worse off than yourself, then take the time to be thankful that you have the strength, skills, and especially physical ability to do your dream job in this country.
5. Lastly, DON’T QUIT!  Just don’t quit.  Some day all this effort will amalgamate into something stellar, but you can’t quit.  Remember, quitters never win and winners never quit.

Are You A Loner Leader, Or Do You Need Support?

Catch the Fire Of a Mastermind Team

I’ve recently come across a great opportunity to be connected to other like-minded business leaders/owners who want not only business support and business coaching, but accountability. It’s a brilliant mastermind group, built on a phenomenal platform where right on the call the moderator can break you out into teams to work one-on-one with your accountability partner. Already I’ve learned some great information and resources I would have otherwise missed, and not only that, but there is also a 20 minute training given by some outstanding business person. Did you ever know you needed something, but weren’t sure what it was until you found yourself smack-dab in the middle of it, and the lights go off? Well, for me, this mastermind group is it. It’s virtual, it’s laser focused, and best of all, it’s professionally organized by a very sharp leader in our industry, Cathy Demers . I just hate it when my time is wasted, and I could have accomplished 10 or more things on my list instead. I don’t feel this way when I’m in my mastermind.  I love sharing with you the best of the best resources out there, so check it out, it just might be that “thing” you’ve been looking for to take your business to the next level as well.  To learn more, either click on the banner to the upper right hand side of this post, or above on the word Mastermind.   Here’s to your success, cheers!

Managing to Succeed as a Boss and Leader!

What Great Managers Do With their Employees, To Add Value to Their Company

Here’s where the rubber meets the road in successful businesses where people feel valued for their contributions! Managing people is all about developing other people to bring out their unique:

• talents
• gifts
• personality
• knowledge, and education
• skills

to meet the needs of their position at work.  Great managers develop and release their employees by assisting them through training, coaching, directing, supporting, encouraging, and delegating.  Lee Iaccoca managed to lift Chrysler Motors back from varying challenging issues including labor disputes and bankruptcy.  Through it all he managed to maintain his value of “succeeding at the people level”.  What this meant was that he insisted, and I quote:  “In the end, all business operations can be reduced to three words,

“PEOPLE – PRODUCT & PROFITS.
PEOPLE come first.”

If fact one of my very favorite quotes states that to be a superb leader, or manager:

“You need to develop the skill of:
MAKING OTHER PEOPLE FEEL IMPORTANT.”
Dr. John C. Maxwell

In fact,

“No man will make a great leader who wants to
do it ALL himself,
or to get the credit for doing it!”
Andrew Carnegie

Again, management isn’t about you.  It’s about what you can do with and through others to build and develop them, while simultaneously meeting the mission, vision, and strategic plan of the company. J. Paul Getty, the wealthy oil mogul, when asked what was the most important quality of a successful executive replied:

“It doesn’t make much difference how much other knowledge
or experience an executive possesses.  If he is unable to achieve results
through people, he is worthless as an executive!”

Are you hearing a similar theme?  As a leader, it’s about extracting from your people, their very best on behalf of the company, in ways that honor, value, and build them. You get to make a difference in someone else’s life.  Because of you, they can gain a new skill, learn a new competency, or even be directed toward their dream position and ultimately live a fulfilling work life.  You have the opportunity to “be” the difference in each and every employee who calls you their boss. So, it’s important that you get the right perspective on your position, and learn what great leaders/managers say and do to create great employees.  A great leader says, as they work with their employees, “How can I make those around me more successful?” In fact, one of the very best questions you can ask yourself to evaluate why you are a leader, to discern what your motive is in carrying the title leader/manager/supervisor while you support, coach, direct, and lead the people under you is:

“Am I building people?
Or, am I building my dream
and using people to do it.”
Fred Smith of Federal Express

This question goes to the heart of why you are in this role, what your motivation is.  In fact, when you correctly understand what your “Job Description” is, you will begin to understand that everyone you work with is hungry. Yes, that’s right.  They’re hungry to be understood, to feel worthwhile, important, and ultimately in their own way, to be recognized as valuable . . . valuable to you and to the organization you both work for.  And you know you’ve reached this level of leadership when instead of feeling like you’re going to throw-up when you’re reading or hearing something like this, that speaks to the soft side of business, – like I myself use to feel;  instead, hearing this now resonates with you, motivating you to work toward finding out how you can genuinely meet the unspoken needs of those who are a part of your tribe, who call you boss.

Your “Emotional Fortitude” and “Set Back” Factor Determine Your Success or Failure as a Business Owner or Corporate Leader pt II

March is dedicated to “Overcomers!” Those who won’t be held down!

So, let me ask you, do you:

• Complain about your employees at least once a week?

• Freak out about customers, and how they treat you?

• Feel like you’re going to have a melt down, or are having regular melt downs?

• Have issues once or twice a week that throw you into emotional turmoil?

• Feel like everyone takes advantage of you at some point?

• Feel like your employees are lazy, unmotivated, getting away with things? Then as a result, come home to your family in knots a lot?

• Blow off steam at home regarding your business or work, once or twice a week?

• Have difficulty making decisions, or sticking to them?

• Hold back from making changes because of the possible consequences?

• Keep thinking things will change, but aren’t doing anything to create the change?

• Have customers or clients that are frustrating, demanding, and are holding you hostage because you allowed them get away with treating you a certain way once, and now they keep expecting it?

• Keep employees who shouldn’t be there? Won’t deal with their issues?

If you said yes to two or more of these, then you are a “VICTIM OF YOUR OWN CIRCUMSTANCES”. It’s your interpretation of the circumstance that is holding you hostage. And because of the interpretation, you haven’t been taking the responsibility necessary to “be” a confident leader that rises above his or her circumstances! Instead you need to:

· Communicate your feelings and standards of operation, then make it stick, along with consequences. Establish boundaries of behavior, for yourself and others. Clearly communicate what your expectations are. If you haven’t done this, then it’s not the fault of your employees or customers/clients. You are allowing yourself to be the “VICTIM”. In fact, if this has gone on for any length of time, then you are not only used to being the “victim”, but you probably continually put yourself in this position, because this is how life goes for you, and you expect it. It’s what you’re use to. If so, you need to get some coaching or counseling, depending upon how deep this trend goes. It is not a sign of failure to get help. Everyone, and I mean everyone, at one time or another, needs this kind of assessment and help!

· Learn to take charge of your emotions. YOU CAN dictate your emotions and circumstance, and how they affect you, rather than allowing your emotions and circumstances to dictate and run your life. Refuse to allow them to throw you into the whirlwind ever again. Say “no” to being a victim – take charge – and accept responsibility from this day on. Here are some great resources for you:

o “Maximum Achievement: Strategies and Skills That Will Unlock Your Hidden Powers to Succeed by Brian Tracy

o No Excuses!: The Power of Self-Discipline by Brian Tracy

o Great Little Book on the Gift of Self-Confidence by Brian Tracy

o Awaken the Giant Within : How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny! by Anthony Robbins

o Developing the Leader Within You / Developing the Leaders Around You (Signature Edition, 2 Best-selling Books in 1 Volume) by John C. Maxwell

o The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey

And these are just a few to get you started. Don’t wait. If you’re not a reader, get them on CD and listen to them in the car or when you’re getting ready in the morning. The key is to get started and do something to change your thinking to change your life!

WHY YOU HAVEN’T PICKED YOUR NICHE MARKET MAY REVEAL HOW YOU ARE SABOTAGING YOURSELF IN OTHER AREAS OF YOUR BUSINESS pt. I

As a Business Leader, Have You Asked These Questions or Used These Resources?

I’ve recently had a couple of new clients who were struggling with moving forward. After assessing their business, I discovered one element holding them both back, which you may relate to. So let me ask you, do you have a niche, a target audience? If you do, have you collected market intelligence on it? Before you do much marketing at all, this is imperative. Do you know what your target audience is watching, reading, listening to? Are they male or female? What size is their business? What do they do in their free time? Most know a specialist makes more than a generalist, and is also seen as an expert in their field. I could write an entire chapter in a book filled with ways to discover and narrow down your niche, with questions you can ask like: “How do you differentiate yourself and your business from every other person who targets your niche?” and “What can you provide to your niche that no one else does, in a way in which no one else will?” I can also elaborate on all the tools you can use to research your niche, like Digg , where you can find the most interesting and best content your niche is using on the web, or Google Trends , which will clue you into what’s hot in the search engines, and Quantcast.com , that gives you public information for your niche on the popular websites, so you can discover and then visualize what it might be for your own. I could do this, like hundreds of articles you can easily find on Google that describe these tools, and how to use them. As a matter of fact, I have other materials I’ve written where this is included, but pt. II of this article deals with WHY YOU HAVEN’T or WON’T choose your niche, and more profoundly its implication! If you haven’t picked your niche, then from this I can extrapolate you’re probably stuck, and may have been for a while. You’re stuck on a treadmill that’s going round and round, marketing everywhere to everyone, with every method, and you’re genuinely working harder but unfortunately not smarter! And, you may be on the verge of burn-out. You see, if you haven’t isolated you niche, found your tribe, your target audience, one that moves you, inspires and motivates you, then you’re, like “The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey ”! That teaches when you’re trying to be all things to all people, you’ll ultimately loose the very thing you’re trying to save.  This will paralyze you, or at the very least limit you from your most brilliant self where you’ll have a laser sharp focus. Don’t stop reading here, because Part II of this article will deal with “why” you are finding it difficult to choose your niche, your target market, and the implications of this to the rest of your business, as well as how to get unstuck and build confidence!

IS FAILURE A PREREQUISITE TO SUCCESS?

How You Can Expedite Success as a Leader by Learning From,and being Mentored by, the Mistakes of Others.

We all experience failure. In fact, the most successful people fail hundreds, if not thousands of times, before they succeed.  One of my favorite books, “Failing Forward” by Dr. John C. Maxwell , teaches you how to handle failure maturely, and to grow through it.  In fact,

”Success is failure turned inside out ”

Although, this is not what this blog is about.  Instead, my question to you is; do you have to make all the failures yourself, to learn the necessary lessons to be a successful owner/leader/manager, or,

Is there a better way to expedite the process

and skip certain mistakes and failures altogether?

Although there are inevitable instances where “You just don’t know WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW’. Therefore, you have to experience it for yourself to “get it”.  Could there be another way to beat the learning curve here?  Unequivocally, I believe there is.  We all possess blind spots which are obvious to others, while simultaneously hidden from our view.  The good news is:

These blind spots CAN BE uncovered, exposed,

and eliminated before impending disaster.

This, along with the amalgamation of education and training, you can expedite the learning process of a leader, circumventing problems and crisis altogether!

So again, I believe failure does not have to be

the prerequisite to your leadership success!

Brian Tracy says:

“You can have anything you want in life if you can first decide exactly what it is, and then do the things that others have done to achieve the same results.”

As the “Accidental Leader”, my passion is to help you eliminate the very mistakes and poor judgment which owners/executives/leaders commonly make.  This is done through a process of assisting you in:

1. Self discovery; while
2. Setting up processes and systems that put the needed accountability and ongoing training in place to lead a well run company or organization.

Through the use of a:

• “Needs Analysis” to assess where the gaps are in your training, skills, education and processes
• A Behavioral Style Profile – “DISC” to understand yourself and others.  So you will be able to inspire, motivate, and lead your team effectively.
• 360 Degree Profile to acquire a complete view of how you’re doing all around, by measuring where you are according to what makes people successful and . . .
• Personal interviews to get to the heart of the issues

Together we can uncover and discern the blind spots that could sabotage you and eventually implode your company, while at the same time, strategise and putting systems and processes in place for success.  Assessing and training are some of the best skills I bring to the table as an Executive Coach, and why I’m in this profession in the first place.  Because I personally lacked these when I first landed my leadership role, it is:

My mission and passion is to assist leaders

in avoiding the mistakes, failures, and pain

I could have averted myself with the above system

and a good mentor!

Along with reading the numerous excellent:

• books,
• blogs, and
• articles on leadership and business

and a strong compatible mentor, you can circumvent a tremendous amount of:

• mistakes,
• failure, and
• pain.

Besides, I’m sure there will be enough of your own mistakes you will make.  You might as well skip mine, and those of great leaders found in the books and blogs.

Is it too late for me? No, it’s never too late to learn from your mistakes and start all over again.  In fact, it’s the perfect time to take stock, learn what you need to do differently next time, and change.  However to work with me I require that you be:

• willing (willing to try things that are suggested)
• teachable, and
  
• have a positive attitude, or are working on growing with positive outlook.

Through the support, encouragement, direction, and powerful suggestions given to you in coaching, I believe you can leap ahead of the normal leadership success curve!

Napoleon Hill once said:

“When defeat comes, accept it as a signal that your plans are not sound, rebuild those plans, and set sail once more toward your coveted goal.”

YOUR COACHING CONNECTION: Write out three mistakes you’ve made.  Second, write next to them what lessons you learned.  Third, find one other person to share them with.  Someone that you can see would benefit from your knowledge and understanding, so they could hopefully avoid the same mistake.

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