Inspired for more - Gorgeous pics of this Durbs event!!

Two Saturdays ago I hosted a lovely morning {Inspired for more} for young business owners in the greater Durbs area. The heart behind the event, was two-fold:

Number 1...

I wanted to inspire girls who have taken the BIG, brave step of following their dreams and starting their own ‘thing’ with some practical tips and coaching tools.

Number 2...

I wanted them to have a chance to meet other inspiring creative business owners; network a bit and basically just be reminded that they are not alone in this venture to create something sustainable, successful and beautiful!

After making cappuccinos and small talk, we started the morning off with some inspiration & ice-breakers. And where better to be inspired and to let-go-a-little than sitting cross-legged on the grass, barefoot and beautiful! We had such fun finding out a little about each other, after which I ran a fun activity where we all got to tap into the ‘why’ behind our business. I am a firm believer that clients buy into your ‘why’, and not your ‘what’, so before we jumped into what they all did, I thought it worthwhile to zone in on WHY they do what they do. 

{It's so easy to forget why you doing what you are doing, and in that, to lose passion} 

So this activity got us on our feet, thinking, chatting & I even added in a little creative garden hunt to meet the needs of these creative minds J {You can read all about my passion for the ‘why’ behind your business here}

After some garden-inspirational-time, we made our way back up to the house, where we indulged in both healthy & yummy breakfast niceties, more coffee of course and plenty chatter.

With full bellies we dived into our next activity which involved working through a simple but oh-so-effective coaching exercise where I walked the girls through a process that helps to visually reveal where your time {business-wise} is currently being spent, and then to do some reassessing and goal setting around this exercise. We all had little worksheets, which we filled in and {fingers-crossed} were able to take home and put these ideas from paper into practice.

Finally, the morning ended with some networking time, intentional conversations, and swopping of business cards all the while nibbling on delicious brownies sponsored by Liquorice Gourmet.

PS - Special thanks to Desiree Dales for taking these gorgeous pics!!

If you missed out on this event, please don’t fret as…as-of August I will be running monthly networking brekkies, for young, dynamic business owners!! The morning will include an early light breakfast, an active business coaching exercise and then a guest speaker will be presenting on work/ideas from her business – this could be YOU.  These mornings will be ALL about time to build your network, meet other inspiring business owners, grow your company through coaching exercises, goal-set & ultimately remind you why you love what you do!! 

Sign up to be the first to know when these monthly-meet-ups begin

x C

Why I am over taking things personally....and YOU should be too!!

You know that feeling, when you literally sigh with relief after finding out that others also do/think/feel that ‘strange’ thing you do/think/feel.  Kinda like, when I quite-literally sighed with relief after getting my hands on “The five love languages” book – at last it all made sense. Him. Me. Our language. I got it!!

Well along these lines, this past month of May, has been one long sigh of relief for me…and it all centered around ‘my needs’. Yes, my needs. I said it aloud – is that even allowed??

You see for years I, along with most of the world (I feel), have had feelings that simply don’t go away. Certain actions done by others, or situations or a bunch of ugly circumstances often cause me to go into what I call, “My safe space – that’s really not safe at all”. To deal with ‘uncomfortable’, we rely on emotions (which turn into actions) that come naturally to us, and those then dictate how our day, week, or even month will turn out. So someone upsets you, you get sad – and you often take it one step further, and make it personal. Or something you organized doesn’t go as planned and you turn it back on yourself and reinforce all the negative things you believe about yourself already. Or worse still, a problem presents itself that doesn’t appear to have a solution, and so you get frustrated. And it doesn’t go away. And then, you turn that frustration inwards.

This month, for me, was all about networking. I can officially say that I haven’t passed-by one opportunity to meet with mentors in my industry, brainstorm with other creatives & business owners, attend training days and even small conferences. This month, I got out there. And if there is one thing (that for some or other reason) kept creeping into every meeting I had, it was this idea of “needs”.

We all have them. Different but similar. The problem is that, for the most part, we don’t acknowledge our needs and instead we turn to emotions that come naturally to us, and we turn every situation inwards. {I.e: I want to feel valued, but someone did something that made me feel under-valued, I thus turn to angry. I am now angry. Value has nothing to do with this. I AM ANGRY}

But truth be told, it’s not all about you….well, not in the way you think. 

We are all born with a certain set of basic needs. Then, through a mixture of upbringing, personality and choices, we start to form agreements with certain thoughts or ideas, and those become the truths we live by. The thing is, those are your truths, and may not be mine. As soon as we start to see a person’s behavior, speech and ideas in isolation (i.e: according to their belief system they think this is right/wrong), we free ourselves from taking things personally. To take something personally is to admit that we all have the same belief system, agreements/thoughts – which is impossible. I say and do things that protect my needs, you say and do things that protect yours. OURS are different. To take something personally is to submit to someone else’s agreements (what they feel is right/wrong), and yet for the most part – you don’t.

It is an art to start to see people’s behaviour and words from where’s they came, and to not take them on as our own. By reflecting on why a certain person may have felt the need to behavior or act in such a way, you are able to free yourself up from self-judgment and make it ‘their issue and not yours’. I am not saying that everything everyone says should be said, but that’s their journey (their set of truths they live by) and it’s their responsibility to deal or challenge those beliefs; it’s not for you to take on.

My little month of ‘needs’ didn’t stop at “not taking things personally”, it went further, deeper. I was given access to a coaching tool that digs into the reason behind your frustration, anger, disappointment, PROBLEM and I have seen incredible results through using this tool with clients and on myself…but that is for next week 

J

May you be empowered today, to see each set of actions or words spoken by both yourself and others, as mere expressions of their/your personal agreements (thoughts) and thus not for anyone else to take personally. It is freeing, and I am working on it, alongside you.

Multi-tasking...vice or virtue??

One of the buzz words amongst psychologists and life coaches for 2013 and definitely running into 2014 is “mindfulness”. Simply put, Mindfulness means “being aware”.

In this fast moving, chaotic world where it’s probable that by the time you’ve bought your new Iphone the next model is already being released, it’s no wonder that people are feeling overwhelmed, overworked, vague and forgetful. The truth is that we were never meant to focus on twenty things at once. It is not in our design to multi-task (at least not as much as we currently are) and it sure doesn't have any long term benefits on our way of life, work standards or even brains.  

Forgetfulness is often blamed on age (which of course plays a part) but for the most part, the reason you walk into a room and forget why you’re there, is due to one cause and one cause only. Multi-tasking. What was previously considered a behavioral characteristic of the ‘successful’ is now seen as an easy excuse for getting a lot done, badly.

Mindfulness, minus all the new-age chatter, is a simple concept teaching us to slow down. To slow down and to focus on what we do, think, eat, feel, how we behave and even how we relate to others. To be mindful, is to be awakened. It is to tune in.

Mindfulness may sound heavy, but in truth it’s freeing and oh-so-easy to start applying to your life.

3 tips to try today that will move you towards a more mindfulness YOU…

#1 – Set aside 10 minutes at the start of your work day, to focus. Rather than arriving at work and getting caught up in tasks with little planning, still yourself for 10 minutes

#2 – Cut down on multitasking – this doesn’t mean cut it out completely, but rather try to really focus on the task at hand, this way giving each activity the time the task deserves. Doing this exercise three times a day, will help you zone in on what needs to be done and in turn you will find that you get more done, more effectively.

#3 – Sit down when you eat. This is not a hard and fast rule, but it definitely plays a role in helping us be more mindful of what’s going into our bodies and why. Eating for what your body needs and not merely out of habit, boredom or emotionally driven will help you control your weight and feel more in touch with what your body needs and how it feels. 

The day my blog became my journal...

As you may know I spent the past 2 months backpacking through South East Asia with H, my husband. Our trip was incredible; we got to see amazing places, eat incredible foods and both felt that our adventurous sides were fed in abundance, but you can read all about our travelling adventures here….what I want to share with you today is my own little blog rethink & why rethinking your blog's purpose is well worth your time!!!

Getting away from ‘it all’ is sometimes just what we all need. And for me, having scheduled all my blog-posts in advance and sold my cellphone, I knew that this time away would give me a well-needed break from the blogging, social media world.

To backtrack a little, I used to be one those types who owned a shelf of journals, and spent at least an hour a day filling these pages with thoughts, dreams, fears and prayers…but then social media stole my heart and so what was once saved for the blank pages of a book only I would read became a bit of a free for all. Running a blog is all things wonderful but like most things in life, it can start to take up more time than it needs to and so balance once again needs to be attained and prioritized.

Before leaving Korea I bought a new journal. In true Korean style, the front page reads “Someday, Dream will come true. When you are bright eyed and bushy tailed you should try to achieve your goal.” There is no other way to explain this jumble of words and adjectives that don’t fit together at all and yet still make you smile, other than, ‘welcome to English in Korea’. On purchasing this delightful bright pink journal, I knew that deep down it was going to be more than just a travel journal. It was my time to rethink this whole blogging, social media thing and come up with a new game plan.

On the 21^st Feb, the day before we left Korea, I wrote on page 1 of my new journal, “For a while now I’ve needed a new outlet for my thoughts, ideas, longings and fears, away from blogging, facebook and coaching. And here I sit having just found it. Thank you Lord.” And so began my new little journaling journey. Over the past two months I got to rethink blogging, what the purpose of my specific blog was and distinguishing between what was meant for journal space and what for blogging. This shift in thought not only gave me back a sense of privacy in my life, but it also reawaken my love for blogging and the topics I actually want to write about. So stay tuned for mixture of inspirational living, the pursuit of happiness, career advise and tips for starting your own business.

For the bloggers out there – I challenge you to spend some time today rethinking what the purpose of your blog is, why you started your blog and who your target market is. Then, according to your answers, figure out what in-fact you should and shouldn’t be blogging about. It’s not about limiting you or boxing you in, it’s all about letting go of ‘vague’ and giving your blog a stronger voice, presence and purpose!! This may mean you buying a journal like me, or possibly the opposite and maybe you are needing to give your readers more access to you and your beautiful, but either way – a little blogging-purpose rethink will remind you of your strengths, your vision and your blogging voice.  

Happy blogging…
xC

I get to do what I love...everyday!!

Today, I get to share on another blog tour run by Halley from Evolve and succeed. By 'another', I mean that I got share on a past blog tour she ran too...You can read my post HERE.

The hot topic today is 'What has been the hardest and the best part of owning your own business??

So firstly I thought I’d give you a quick run-down on what exactly, I do…and then I’ll answer the 2 BIG questions.

So, what is a Life Coach anyway?? Life Coaching is an incredible methodology that can take you from where you are at today to where you want to be!!

We have all seen and tried the 5-ways-to-a-better-life/weight-loss type programs, and somehow even after months of maintaining, we all ultimately seem to fail miserably at following someone’s else’s plan for our lives. I, as a Life Coach believe this to be due to the fact that you will only ever achieve a goal that is defined by YOU, on your own terms – a goal that you have fully thought through, a goal that you have bought into. Now this sounds a little soft and cushion-ey, but in reality, it is so far from that.

Each of us is the only ‘master’ of our own lives. No one else truly knows what you need and who you want to become. Sometimes these desires are so deeply hidden within us though, that we fail to ever recognize them or if we do recognize them, to achieve them. That’s where I come in!!! My skills, as a life coach, are about knowing which questions to ask you and having the right tools and techniques to challenge and nudge you towards finding these answers within yourselves. Whether it is looking at your life, your career or your dreams, I can help you discover what your ‘BEST’ looks like…and then together we brainstorm, strategize and set goals towards achieving the life you always dreamed of living!

OK, so what's the hardest part of owning my own business?

This may sound silly but I know that all business owners will get me when I say that the hardest part about owning my own business, is that it’s mine. This simply means that nothing happens unless I make it happen, and that can be tiring. But insanely exciting too!! Finding a balance between work and play is tough too when you create a career centred around your passions, as so often the two collide, get mingled together, and you forget that play outside of work, is important too.

But let’s leave the bad bits and focus on the positive side of owning your own business.

So, what’s the best part of owning my own business?

I could answer with an “expected”...my time is my own. But that would be a big mistake, as as much as having your own time is wonderful, it can also be disastrous if you end up sleeping in every day, running a business that isn’t making any money, or moving forward. So for me, I’d say that the best part of owning my own business is a simple, I get to do what I love, everyday!! When it comes to one's career, I’m ALL about “Love what you do, do what you love”. I get why people avoid it, I get that it can be hard to match your passion with a career and that we all need to make a living; but for me the sacrifice has been more than just worth it, it has changed my life.

As a life coach, I get to seek out your potential, hear the insights of your dreams and help to put the stepping stones in place between where you are at today and where you would like to be; and that is why I love what I do!!!

And finally, a motto I live by…

“I can’t promise that you will always be comfortable... but I can promise that it will be worth it!"

{Click on the bird to tweet}

Laser Launch blog party (part deux) is a collection of behind the scenes stories of other online business owners. Check out the other links here.

Guest post: Lana Joubert - Let's talk small business finances

Meet Lana Joubert...AKA Small Business Finance expert 

Today I've asked Lana to share some secrets about how to take control of your small business finances. Her tips are easy to understand and so informative for anyone needing some direction when it comes to planning, spending, taxes and getting your business registered :) 

Hi there...

I am so honoured and excited to be writing this post for Caitlyn’s blog today… my first guest post and one of the first few posts that I’ve written (my own new blog included). While I may be new to blogging, I’ve been involved with all aspects of business for a while now and am absolutely passionate about helping creative business owners in taking their business ideas and turning them into realities, or growing their businesses by taking control of their finances and the “Business” side of their companies. 

Starting a business can be one of the most exhilarating times in a person’s life… feeling like everything is possible and that you are finally following your dreams and turning them into a reality… you walk around on a constant high and there is nothing that can pull you down from that. However, this feeling can fast fade and be replaced by a very stressful daunting situation that feels more like a jail cell than walking on air when suddenly you find yourself with no fixed income, bills coming in and no set plan moving forward.

So how then do you enjoy the exhilaration of making your dreams come true while ensuring that you don’t fall into the pitfall of not knowing what’s going to happen next? A Clear vision, backed by definite plans and a sound knowledge of all aspects of your business, gives you a tremendous feeling of confidence and personal power.

When you first think about starting your own business, you generally have a clear vision of what you want, and the only way of turning that vision into a profitable reality is by having DEFINITE PLANS. The first of these plans will form long before you even take the leap into the role of full time business owner, and that is to plan your finances. The reality is that you are not likely to begin to make a profit in your newly formed business for some time. In fact most businesses, in the first 4 – 6 months of business, will make a loss. From 7 – 12 months, you may break even if you are lucky, and only thereafter is it likely that you will begin to start to show small profits.

Sometimes life doesn’t give us too much chance to plan thoroughly before catapulting us into the entrepreneurial world (situations such as job losses happen) and we just have to make the best and work really hard at a difficult situation, but where possible I strongly recommend you look at the following pointers before starting your own business…

1.    Pay as much of your debt off as possible. This will just take off the pressure each month when bills need to be paid and income is scarce.

2.    Build a Cash cushion. Remembering that you will need to carry yourself and your expenses for at least 12 months.

3.    Put Key Benefits in place where possible. This is probably the “luxury” on this list but if you can, look at taking out disability & income loss protection plans. Remember that as a business owner, if you don’t work for any reason, you don’t get paid.

Next let’s look at having a SOUND KNOWLEDGE of your business. I know this is the one that most people like to ignore but at the end of the day you can control only what you can measure. Businesses do well and succeed when they make a profit but can be destroyed if money & finances are not managed properly or at all.

It is essential for every business owner no matter how big or small your business is, to undertake the process of managing and tracking cash in your business (this is called Cash Management), whether you do this yourself or you find a reliable Bookkeeper to assist.  After all this is the life blood of your business. Cash management involves knowing where cash is coming from and where it’s going. You may be thinking, “It’s obvious… cash comes from sales,” but from what product or service, which customer and when. If you want to grow your business, it is essential you think and look at all of these things.

There are 3 main financial documents that you as a small business need to ensure you have compiled:

1.    Cash Journals– these record how money has come in and how money goes it, but it also shows you which products/services are best sellers, which customers purchase the most, and where you are spending your money. This is day-by-day record of every transaction that goes through your business. The Cash journals give you a clear indication of actual profit/Loss on a monthly basis. You record these entries from each of every slip, invoice, purchase receipt etc that goes through your business. (These by the way MUST be kept on record for SARS)

2.    Cash Flow Analysis– this is generally a 6 – 12 month projection of what income you can expect to be coming in and what expenses you can expect to incur.It gives you an indication of what months you will be short and where you will have some profit that can then carry you through the quieter months.

3.    Income Statement & Balance sheet – An income statement is basically a summarised version of your Cash Journals and shows at a glance your profit/Loss. The Balance sheet shows you where your money is sitting (if it is in Cash, or in the bank or in assets such as stock), your receivables coming in, where you can pull money from and where to invest into your business.

The last topic that I want to touch on quickly with you is the one I think we all dread even more than keeping financial records… TAXES. For most of you starting a business, you will be starting out as a Sole Proprietor. This means that your business is you and you are your business – income earned by the business is income earned by you and losses or debt incurred by the business is yours as well.

When you earn income, you are expected to pay over a portion to SARS. For Sole Props, this is done by means of 2 payments throughout the year, Provisional Tax and Income Tax Payments, based on the profit that you have made less certain deductibles. As an individual owning a Sole Prop, you need to register with SARS for a Tax number, which then allows you to submit your returns and pay over your taxes.

It is never too late to get your tax affairs in order and I strongly recommend that you do so. The penalties are not worth the avoidance.

We all know the hard work, long hours, blood, sweat & tears that go into pursuing your dream and turning it into your own business, why then run the risk of putting it in jeopardy or stunting its longevity by not really knowing what’s going on within the business. Whether you choose to take on this task yourself, or find someone who can help, It is imperative that you keep financial records for your business so that you can use them to make informed decisions about how your business is doing and where it is going, ensuring that you get to keep building your dream.

Lana is passionate about helping people turn their dreams and ideas into realities by helping them register their business, build it, market it, develop a brand and set up proper procedures and records. In her words, “I love accounting and business management and feel it is vital in any business no matter how bog or small. I offer consulting and business coaching, as well as run workshops which teach people how to run their own finances and understand their financial documents.”