I have been lately.

Craziness at its finest…

But it pains me to admit something.

The most therapeutic thing I have done over the past 5 months, I have been slacking on.

Writing.

Daily.

Nothing has proven itself to be more beneficial to my business, my client’s businesses, and my head-space.

VERY, very therapeutic.

Yet I let busy-ness get in the way.

Battling my way back now.

What about you?

When you find a ritual that brings you success, do you ever struggle keeping that ritual going?

Much like my writing, your ritual may be writing, or blogging, or videos, or phone calls.

Are you slacking on them?

Here is a quick and easy solution.

It works best if you use Gmail.  But there are ways you can set it up in any of your mail systems.  If you use Gmail – get this plugin http://www.boomeranggmail.com – (not an affiliate link) – it is pure brilliance!  What it does is allows you to set reminder emails to yourself at whatever frequency you want. Or you can “Boomerang” an email that comes to you for a later date (not urgent today, but may be in a week – Boomerang it to email you again in a week).  There are so many ways to use this wonderful little tool, I can’t even begin.

Once you have Boomerang setup – schedule an automated reminder to come to you every 14 days.  In it describe whatever your goal is.  Want to write daily? Set it up in Boomerang to remind you daily. Want to make more phone calls? Reminder yourself daily.

It actually helps you hold yourself accountable.

If you are constantly being reminded to do something, chances are you will.

It is a beautiful thing and I hope you give it a go.

I have and love it.

Have a great day.

Troy

…I recently got hooked on True Blood.

I have watched the first season, and it is fantastic!

Between the darkness, the characters, the blood and the fantastic story lines they use… I am a fan.

Much like Sons of Anarchy that I wrote about before.
http://blog.smallbusinesscopywriter.com/biker-babes-and-bad-ass-story-success/

For far too many years, the shows that were playing on late-night television were awful. No creativity. Copy-and-paste plot lines. Crap characters.

Every once in a while one would pop up that was ok… but most stunk up the bloody screen.

Something shifted and the writers and creatives are cranking out some genuinely good shows.

Considering I am not much of a tv guy, it pains me to admit I am taken in by some of these new series.

Like True Blood.

The story of Vampires and Humans co-existing on earth.

The story of how the vampires feed, and convert humans to vampires.

The stories of some very unusual personal powers that some of the humans have… bordering on as scary of a power as fangs are.

And Anna Paquin is just hot in this show!  

She makes True Blood shine.

I also LOVE the names they have created for the show. “Fangbangers” is one I love!  This is the name of the humans who love to get bit and banged by the vampires.  It’s a whole subculture of humans that take great pleasure in this.

Creating unique names like this is a skill and art in itself.

One you should be practicing!

It makes book titles more interesting.

Subject lines.

Headlines.

Product names.

Even dog names.  My daughters and I have a game we play at the dog park.  We go around and create new names for each dog we see, based on how they look and their personality.

We have a blast doing this… and it is teaching my girls how fun it can be to create names like this and to use their creativity in all kinds of innovative ways.

Try it.

True Blood also makes me think of a few other things that relate to you and I.

…and our ability to shine in our own businesses.

The first thing us humans need to be weary of… Time Vampires.  They are everywhere!  Those innocent looking phone calls or emails that drain you of a precious hour out of your day.  It may not seem like much to the person calling, but each hour sitting on the phone is a significant chunk of real, money-making, work not getting done.

Be very, very careful of the time vampires.

Avoid them like the plague if possible, and cut off their blood supply (your time) at the pass.  “I have another call in 10 minutes” usually repels them like garlic.

Also be very careful of the entrepreneurial spirit vampires.

They are the ones who try and suck the passion out of your entrepreneurial drive.

They try and make you believe that going back to a job is the most honorable thing a mere mortal can do.

They do everything in their evil power to suck you dry and make you feel completely drained…

…energy-less and ready to sink deep into the deep dark hallows of depression.

Been there, done that… got the bumper sticker.

Avoid it.

Do whatever it takes.

My mission this year is change.

BIG CHANGE.

Positive change.

Forward change.

…And I have made many changes already.

But they weren’t easy to do.

Nor will they ever be.

BIG CHANGE takes guts.  It takes ‘testicular fortitude’ as one friend says.

Few can do well on change…

…but the new era of entrepreneurs THRIVE on change.

Care to join me in a whole new world?

One where YOU are in control… and one where YOU know what types of garlic, sunlight, or wooden stakes it takes to slaughter the vampires in your life.

You in?

Good.

Start with the biggest areas of your life that need change right now.

List them out.

Pick one.

GET IT DONE.

No more excuses.

Just do it.

Fight the fear and do it.

Deal with the tears that may come…

…and move forward faster.

I am there at your side right along the way.

Promise.

Let me know how it goes and what I can do to help.

Troy

PS: One of the greatest things I personally did to help myself make the necessary changes at a faster pace was to start writing more.

There is a therapeutic quality to writing that can propel your business forward at breakneck speed.

But again, it takes guts to do and motivation to start.

If you want to start now… get the Story Selling Home Study and I will also give you my 31k club training series.  For the next 31 days I will fire you up and get you writing more often, with greater profits as your goal. http://www.storysellingtips.com

The 31k club has transformed many lives of those who went through the Story Selling Coaching.  Now you get it free with the Story Selling Home Study course! http://www.storysellingtips.com

If you are frustrated with having to compete on price,
“sell” yourself all the time to make the sale, cold call
 to make sales, and then and have your customers and 
prospects ‘price-shop’ before they buy from you, then I would urge you to…..

Read This FREE Book – http://www.EntrepreneurProfit.com

I think he’s a little nuts, but I had to let you know

No Cost Book, Money-Making Marketing for Canadians

If you want to make a lot more money, a lot easier from your business or professional practice, then you need to grab a copy 
of the book my good friend Dave Dubeau and I wrote,  called
 “Money Making Marketing for Canadians” ASAP…

Right now Dave is actually giving our book away…

and if you grab one of the complimentary copies he is actually
 going to donate $2 to the Make-A-Wish foundation or Habitat for 
Humanity- you even get to choose the charity!

You already know about me, but in case you forgot…
 I am a self-professed Corporate World Flunky that left a six-figure-a-year career in the computer industry 10 years ago to start my own thing.

…Since then I have been privileged to live and work on my own terms, while helping entrepreneurs from all over the world build their own dream life as well.

I have been writing for Dave’s private paid newsletter membership for a number of years now and can speak to Dave’s ability to over deliver on everything that he does.

…and here is what “Canadian Rich Dad”
 Darren Weeks has to say about Dave Dubeau:

“I’ve know Dave for years. Dave is a friend and a business partner of mine, and with his marketing know-how we have 
grown my Fast Track Group of companies from 4 employees
in 2005 to over 100 employees with over $100M a year in gross 
sales and a ranking in the prestigious “Profit 100” list of fastest 
growing companies in Canada.”

He continues to say…

“Quite frankly, I would not have been able to grow this big, this 
fast without Dave’s amazing marketing skills and knowledge.”

Pretty high praise from a very sharp business owner… and I agree.

And, modesty aside, I have to say that this book is outstanding.

http://www.EntrepreneurProfit.com

In it Dave, myself and the 9 other Canadian expert marketers and 
business growth experts involved do what no other book I have seen
does… take you by the hand and show you exactly how to start from
 wherever you are in business and grow it FAST, even with a very small
budget.

And what I like the BEST is that everything we talk about in
 this book is proven to work here in Canada! None of the usual re-hashed stuff that “doesn’t quite work” here at home.

Get this complimentary book and…

* You’ll discover the “ONLY” 3 ways to grow your business (simplifies it doesn’t it?)

* You’ll learn how to double your profits in 90 days…or less.

* You will be able to quickly tell if your friendly advertising rep
 is ripping you off.

* You’ll find out the #1 way to make more money FAST from
 your existing customers.

* Never throw money away on wasted marketing again!

* Radically Reduce (or even Eliminate) Cold Calling Forever!

* Discover Dave’s #1 Money making marketing strategy, and
 how to put it to
use and much more….

So if you have been frustrated with the growth of your business,
sick of having to compete on price, or worried about making ends meet, I 
highly recommend that you grab a copy of the book now – and you 
can’t beat the price (GRATIS)…

http://www.EntrepreneurProfit.com

But don’t wait or think about it because Dave only has 83 copies 
available to give away and there are over six thousand three hundred 
business owners, entrepreneurs and independent professionals
 who will hear about this. (If you wait, your book will have to be on back-order for 2-3 months).

To Your Success, Profits and Ideal Lifestyle,

Troy White

PS: An important note on this book: The title says Money Making Marketing for Canadians… but the information applies to EVERYONE. There is no difference in how we grow businesses in Canada over the US, or Australia, or {insert your country here}. In the past 10 years I have written marketing campaigns for entrepreneurs all over the world – the EXACT same principles of marketing work everywhere.

Master it once and use it anywhere!

Here’s how… http://www.EntrepreneurProfit.com

Nestled away deep on the north side of the lake is a hidden gem we luckily heard about through our neighbor. The only way you would EVER know this place existed would be through word of mouth, or by accidental discovery.

You won’t find it on a map (other than google maps which shows the beach, but you can’t see any possible way to get there by road). Even the name of the place we stayed is miraculously missing from a Google search.

It’s one of those places that ‘those in the know’ keep secret…

My own view of heaven...

We went with some friends who also have kids about the same age as our 10 yr old twins, so fun was had by young and old alike. We also had other friends visiting here and there for a few days at a time – so we had a fantastic trip (our 5th or 6th annual summer visit to this little gem).

This was not a luxury trip by any means: we actually tented it the entire time this year.

Deep in the woods and she is still happy )

My daughters could care less where we stayed – as long as there was sand, water, and our ski boat (which they have affectionately named “Sparkles”).

We ate GREAT the whole time. Remember, no power, no running water… but we still ate: East Indian food, Turkey, Prime Rib, Steaks, Beef Dip, and a whole bunch of other incredible meals that were whipped up over the Coleman or camp fire.

It all started off miserably, waking up the first morning at 5 am with the sound of 40 mile an hour winds and huge waves crashing to the shore 50 feet from where we slept.

As soon as I looked out at the storm, I knew this was not a good start. I could see the waves crashing over the back of the boat, which was tied up on the beach. As I got closer, I could see the water was a foot deep in the boat, and getting deeper every second. The bilge pump was useless as the water that was crashing into the boat was filled with sand and lake debris and it had plugged up the pump.

So… I got my trusty bucket and got busy.

400, maybe 500 bucketfuls and I FINALLY won the battle against Mother Nature.

The waves were crashing over my head while I was bailing water (as I was scooping water out, two TIMES as much was crashing over top of my head into the boat!). I knew it HAD to stop eventually, but I was very tempted to just wait it out and see…. but I didn’t.

If I had waited the water would have been deeper and even more work to get out… so I chose the more difficult path and battled it out.

From then on, the weather only got better and fun was had by all.

There were some incredible things I saw during my trip that taught me some lessons about marketing done right… and marketing done wrong.

First was the marina we picked up our supplies from. The Mabel Lake RV and Airpark is the closest place to pick up food, ice, cold beverages and ice cream for the kids… and it is a gold mine for the owners.

Thousands of people pass through their gates every summer. Some come to stay in their overnight campground. Some rent their cabins on the lake. Some own property in the resort area, with some incredible ‘cabins’ they spend their summers enjoying. Others fly their private planes in and land on the private airstrip right next to their cabins. Others use the marina for fuel and supplies.

Needless to say, it is a very busy place!

Which is what amazes me.

With all these people here, and nowhere else you can go without a 60 minute drive, you’d think the owners of the resort would find ways to leverage that and make money with it.

Nope.

Their store has very little to sell other than beer, wine, liquor and ice cream (all necessities of summer camping, of course). But they
don’t offer any decent foods, they don’t offer kids toys, they don’t offer a million other things they should be offering.

So people pack up the car and drive into town to spend all their money.

Money that could have, and should have, stayed right there in the resort.

Not only that… their docks are pitiful.

95% of the people who spend their summers their have to dock their boats at another marina down the lake. Considering that many boat slips go for hundreds, even thousands of dollars per month… this is a HUGE mistake and costs them a fortune in lost revenues.

People like me have to find a spot to beach the boat while we run in and pick up supplies… there is zero space on the docks to tie up (I would easily pay money to dock the boat for 30-60 minutes… but it just wasn’t an opportunity).

Last, they have a small place in the basement area you can order burgers and fries. Nothing fancy… but what a LINE UP!

People line up and wait for 30 minutes for burgers and fries… because there is no where else to go.

Get this: They only open at noon. And they close at 5.

If they opened at 9am and closed at 8 pm… expanded to bacon and eggs in the morning and a few other items on their menu, they would make a killing.

Don’t get me wrong… I would LOVE to own a place like this.

• A HUGE starving crowd.
• A crowd with money to burn (when you take a family vacation, isn’t it fair to say that a lot of money is spent in a short period of time… and you love every minute of it?)
• Few other options for people to spend their money on.
• Hundreds of different ways you could use our type of marketing to get these people back, spending more, more often, bringing more friends each time they come.

The downside to this type of business is the short season. Up here in this area, we have a 3-4 month summer season… after that the water gets colder and people don’t go camping like this.

Which is EVEN MORE REASON they should be doing everything in their power to offer more services, more products, more deals, more of everything to their clients.

Some great lessons learned at this marina alone…

1) When you have a unique position (or location) with little to no competitors, make sure you do everything in your power to give your customers every chance possible to spend their money with you over others.

2) When you don’t have the luxury of being that unique in your marketplace, make sure you create unforgettable experiences that keep them buying more and more. They have a food stand for hot food (nothing unique about it), that they could easily expand into a breakfast, lunch, dinner selection. Adding on a few more hours a day with an expanded selection, their revenues from this stand would triple. People get tired of cooking their own food and are always open and willing to spend a few dollars to get someone else to cook!

3) If people are willing to pay big dollars for additional services (like boat slips), FIND A WAY to give it to them. If you don’t someone else will. Every single one of us has an opportunity to add on more products, more services, higher prices, greater bundles… and there are a percentage of your clients that WILL pay it.

4) If you are seasonal like this business… your downtime should be spent communicating with your clients and finding ways to get them to pre-book (and pre-pay) for the next busy season. Keep them excited about you and your business… always be telling them what is new and improved… or they will find someone who does have a new and improved offer for them.

5) Always be on the lookout for additional products and services you can offer that aren’t available. They didn’t offer water ski or wake board lessons – which could be a HUGE revenue stream for them. They could be selling maps for the HOT fishing spots. They could be offering guided fishing tours for mega money (a friend of mine owns a fishing camp in Northern British Columbia and they charge $2500 for 3 days of fishing… and are booked solid through the season).

There are so many opportunities out there for you and I to expand our offerings and build our businesses faster.

Even though the lessons shared here may be basic to you and I, chances are VERY good you aren’t doing everything possible to maximize cash flow and client relationships.

I challenge you to try implementing one idea from here into your business.

If summer is slower for you, get busy and be prepared for the busy season with more products, services and bundles for your clients.

If summer is your busy season, NOW is the time to survey your clients and ask THEM what they would like to see from you. Then give it to them.

My last word of advice for you… find some time this summer and escape from email, cell phones, internet and Twitter. It was just incredible to be completely unplugged from the grid for that long.

You couldn’t get cell, email, or internet if you tried… and it was the best part of the trip for me.

Not only that… I asked all the kids near the end what their favorite part of the trip was. Their answer? Getting away from texting, internet and gaming! ALL OF THEM SAID THIS.

An important lesson there – even the MOST plugged in generation in history quickly realizes how enjoyable life can be without all the electronic tools.

UNPLUG.
MORE OFTEN.

Funny thing was… as soon as we got back to Calgary, all the kids were instantly wired back in and back where they were!

Unplugging from technology for at least 10 days is guaranteed to give you a completely new outlook on life and on business.

Always love to hear from you… and if you want any specific small business marketing subject covered, please let me know!

Thanks again.

To your success,

Troy

Ever day we booted the kids off the island for "adult time" - more like marguerita time on the beach!

All a good busy… but something I have struggled with… as do many entrepreneurs I know.

How do you focus when new opportunities come rushing at you at break-neck speed?

So how do I, and anyone else who all of a sudden becomes swamped with new work, handle this?

Focus.

First thing is first… you need a plan.

1. Write down all of the projects you have to work on.
2. Estimate how much time per week each project will take
3. Add 50% to each of those numbers – reality shows that it almost always takes longer than we initially think
4. Now add up all the numbers – and divide by 5 or 6 days -you now have the number of hours a week you will have to work to keep on top of it all

…scared yet?

5. Next, start looking at what other distractions are on your plate – email, phone calls, distractions, newsletters -and start saying NO to things. You MUST stop doing the things that won’t help you be productive on your big projects.

With 4 new companies needing 4 new marketing campaigns – I have a ton of work to do…

And reading 100 ezines a week won’t help me get things done.

Answering silly emails is another time waster

Surfing the net – got to go

Answering the phone every time it rings is a serious distraction

Sleep – ah, who needs it? (Kidding)

Need to factor in family time – make quality time for it

Not an easy task for anyone – but we are all faced with it. The question is – how will you deal with it?

Create your plan, then stick to your guns. Get used to saying no, and get used to firing troublesome clients.

And get to work!

Troy

PS: One way to get more done is to outsource more.

Join me this Thursday night for a fantastic teleseminar with Heather
Stevens.

Heather has just brought out the KING and QUEEN of personalized
follow up systems.

NOTHING else beats this that I have ever seen…

…and it is designed to scale from the one-person operation… right
up to the $50 million a year company.

Join us here: Hands Off Marketing Systems -
http://www.smallbusinesscopywriter.com/handsoffmarketing.htm

I love it when the teacher becomes the student.

July of 2008 I hosted my Wild West Wealth Summit in Calgary. We had a great time, provided ample valuable advice for the astute, and some attendees made a boatload of money since.

Like Chris.

In 2008 he had a business that he enjoyed, but it wasn’t his passion.

So he did what any astute entrepreneur does… he went home after the Wild West Wealth Summit, sold his main business, and started over with something he was highly passionate about.

He took a ‘hobby’ of his, combined it with all the tools he discover at Wild West, and created the ultimate business model for his new vision.

2.5 years later he has made over $2 million dollars.

He is still in his 20s. With a young family. And he just paid cash for his dream home on the beach.

I take great pride in hosting the event that inspired him to do this.

And I also take great pride in something he taught me, that I am thoroughly enjoying.

Chris made a comment to me a year or so ago that I took to heart.

He said that he loves to work really hard for 4-6 weeks, then take a week off.

Religiously.

Every 4-6 weeks, another week off for R&R.

Not a bad idea – hey?

Well, I am proud to say that I am on a roll this year.

Sun and Cervesas... gotta love it

Then back to the snow in Calgary.

Katrina and Hailey styling in the sun

My daughters had an absolute blast! We hiked, we swam, we shopped. We had a fantastic break and I came back to Calgary this weekend feeling relaxed and raring to go next week.

Hiking in Superstition Mountain

…and the snow storm hit.

Uhg.

April 2nd and a foot of snow predicted.

Double uhg.

Snow in Calgary... Again

But, rather than getting depressed and angry about it (like many of my fellow Calgarians), I am happy.

Not about the weather…but about the week ahead.

You see, Chris gave me an invaluable tip to aim for.

This regular refresher has been wonderful for my productivity and outlook.

And I highly recommend it for you as well.

You don’t have to go to Mexico or Phoenix.

You don’t even need a full week off.

..but you do need an escape.

Something that gets you away from it all.

Something that you love to do.

Something that lets you rest and relax.

It will do wonders for your clarity of thought.

Which means better marketing, better sales, and much more creative outlook on your business focus and direction.

Thanks Chris!

And to all of my fellow Calgarians… it sucks… but there is nothing we can do about it… except for build a snowman.

When summer does hit Calgary, ENJOY every second of it.

Get outside. Go for walks. Find some water and swim. Get lots of fresh air… and enjoy what we do have.

This monthly R&R exercise is something I highly recommend to everyone, whether you are in snow storm or not!

Off to shovel all this snow, again.

Troy

For example… much of my business is focused on writing. Articles. Reports. Sales copy. Emails. Direct mail. Scripts, etc. My clients rely on me for the copy, and my own business relies on me to keep providing content.

So I need to write at least 4 hours a day.

Which sounds easy, but I find it challenging many times.

Why?

Meetings.
Phone calls.
Emails.
Conference calls.

I haven’t been able to find ways to get rid of these things or outsource them to competent people. I have tried… but lost the battle.

It’s interesting to watch peoples reactions when they try to book meetings with me and I battle back. It is also just as interesting to watch how much time is wasted in meetings. I don’t understand why – but many people think a one hour meeting is necessary.

Makes no sense to me since much of the content discussed in these meetings could easily be shortened up to 15 minutes… easily.

Much of it is small talk, wishy-washy chatter, and ramblings about things that could have been much easily said in a fraction of the time.

Half the time in these meeting, I have no choice but to mute the phone and get real work done in the background while someone is going on about something.

3 one hour meetings a day is a HUGE drain on the day.

Every day of the work week like that and you have just sucked up 2 FULL WORKING DAYS in meetings. Time that probably accomplished little that couldn’t have been done over email in far less time… or in a much more focused and productive meeting.

Dan Kennedy always talks about how he keeps all of his meetings to 15 minutes. At first I was amazed, and dumbfounded on how this could be. Now I get it. If every party is prepared before the call with questions and answers – and KNOWS they have 15 minutes ONLY… stuff gets done much faster.

Start tracking where your time goes in an average day. Keep a little piece of paper by your desk with 15 minute blocks of time. Each time you check and answer emails, block off a 15 minute square. Reach time you have an hour meeting – block off 4 squares. Lunch out of the office? block of 5 or 6 squares. You very quickly start to see why your days go so fast and you feel like nothing productive got done that day… because it DIDN’T!

You need to take control of your time… or others will GLADLY use it up for you.

Troy

Recently I met a multi-millionaire entrepreneur named Steve Little. After speaking with him for only a few minutes, I knew that his message would change entrepreneurship forever.

He has created a fantastic video training program that helps wanna-be, early-stage and veteran entrepreneurs generate big-time success results FAST!

http://www.entrepreneurprofit.com

You’ll learn how to design your business so it really delivers the personal fulfillment and financial rewards you want.

You’ll learn the powerful techniques and methods used by legendary super-successful entrepreneurs.

And he’s made it all available to you for free

http://www.entrepreneurprofit.com

Go check it out. It only takes a minute to enroll and the insights you get are truly invaluable (downright amazing actually).

Let me know what you think.

Troy White

PS. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking to start a business right now or not, you’ve got to hear what Steve has to say about creating a powerful advantage-making success mindset.

1/12th the year is near gone… are you 1/12th the way to reaching all your goals?

The days and weeks fly by so fast, it sometimes feels like you are moving faster backwards than forward.

That said, there are still 11 months left, and some fantastic opportunities out there for entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Some rules of engagement for 2011:

Rule #1 – Focus. Take a long hard look at all of your projects that you have on your plate. Write them down. Each. One. This is difficult to commit to – and the results will SHOCK you if you are honest. Write down every single project you have on the go right now. Honesty will set you free here.

a) Get rid of those that have no residual or ongoing revenue. Is this a one-hit-wonder project? Or is there something here that you can repurpose and leverage for years to come? A winning promotion can easily be run again next month – or next year. As long as you have new, fresh leads coming in, your promotion will continue to work for you.

b) take a look at the remaining projects. If they are niche or narrow in reach then sell them or close them down. Only look at projects that have a broad reach (can affect many).

Rule #2 – Get your priorities straight. Your main goal this year is…? Number one priority is YOU, then your family, then your business. You cannot run a successful business for the long term if your health is falling apart, you are stressed out, and an insomniac. And if you aren’t looking after yourself, you won’t be looking after your family properly. And if you aren’t looking after yourself or them, your customers certainly won’t be ‘feeling the love’. And if they aren’t feeling it… your main goal doesn’t have a chance!

a) Take daily time for you (rest + play). Make sure you are getting a decent sleep, are eating properly, and getting in some daily exercise (if you are in Calgary, and looking for a like-minded workout partner, I would love to have you join me in my M/W/F Tae Kwon Do Classes (12-1) – let me know if interested). You need to be fully exploiting your downtime, and you need to start doing fun stuff with fun people on a regular basis.

Me and my daughters waiting for the 'old guy' to finish the Black Belt Test

Full disclosure: For far too long I have avoided going out to local networking events in Calgary. I had a good reason – 3 years ago there was nothing really solid in the entrepreneurial space here for meetings. That was 3 years ago. Just last week I went to a fantastic event with over 100 entrepreneurs. Great people – a great event – and a realization that things HAVE changed in the past 3 years. Resources like meetup.com have changed this space. It is now easier than EVER to find like-minded people to talk to… use this service for finding others… and setting up your own meetups.

b) Appreciate your spouse and children. If your home life is a mess, your business life won’t be any better. Give them time, and a FOCUSED you. Not you with nose buried in a crackberry or iphone. You. Just you. No technology.

My daughters LOVE going for walks with me and the dog – no ipods or phones allowed. We talk. We laugh. We solve all of the world’s problems. Create a one hour rule.

My Assistant, 'Casino'

c) Are you working harder for others or for you? Stop running on adrenaline. This is an exhausting treadmill to be on. Constantly pushing to help others, do good, be more, connect more, etc. All sounds good in theory – but if you aren’t worrying about your own good (and ability to pay the bills), the rest doesn’t matter.

Serving and helping more people is a great thing… but change things if it isn’t paying the bills. Now is NOT the time to get deeper in the hole, while you wait for the miracles to happen. Get busy helping others, as long as it is helping yourself as well!

Rule #3 – Say NO! Lots. For many entrepreneurs, this is one of the toughest things to ask of them. We all LOVE new ideas. New ventures. New possibilities. But that love for ‘new’ costs us all dearly. You know it. I know it.

a) Decide what you want in 2011 and don’t want. Are you going to launch a new venture? Then launch A new venture – not 5. Are you re-focusing your marketing on your top 3 products? Then narrow it down to ONLY 3 products and create new marketing campaigns for ONLY those 3. Get rid of everything else – not an easy thing to do – but a necessity!

By far the most empowering thing you can do in 2011 is to start saying no every single day to new distractions. Keep track of how many times you say no a day. How can you double that?

b) Manage your time and STOP letting others manage your time. Emails. Facebook. Twitter. Phone calls. Instant messages. Texting. I get exhausted just thinking about it all. The biggest lesson? You have NO control over your life and business if these so-called ‘tools’ run your life.

If you can’t go to the bathroom without a phone in your hand…or you can’t eat dinner without checking email…or you can’t sit and enjoy dinner without the phone ringing… you AREN’T the one in control of your life. Electronics and clients are… and something needs to change.

c) Think BIG. Successful CEOs don’t tackle it all at once, or on their own. They quickly figure out if the project s leading them in the right direction or not. Either turfing the idea overall, or delegating it to someone else who can implement the idea. Implementation is the nemesis of most entrepreneurs… taking on too much and not picking up the pieces after. CHANGE THAT THIS YEAR. If you are always saying yes and trying to do it yourself, then you are in the mud all the time and someone else is making the money off of your hard work.

Rule # 4 – Must take action on a daily basis. Sounds easy… but most of us don’t take the proper actions on a daily basis. We start the day with email… then fight fires answering emails and letting them direct the rest of our day.
Eugene Schwartz gave us one of his greatest secrets – a timer set to 33 minutes and 33 seconds. Let that little electronic device determine the direction of your day.

Start blocking off your day with the help of that timer and you will get more done in 5 of those 33 minute blocks than you normally do in an entire day, maybe WEEK!

All it

takes is one thing a day…

* Write an email to your clients
* Send 1 card to 1 prospect
* Write one press release and submit online
* Ask one person for a referral
* Write one blog entry
* Ask one person to endorse me to their list
* Write one article for your newsletter
* Compliment one person who has helped you
* Add one page of content to your website
* Send one monthly promotion to your clients
* Test one new upsell offer today
* Bundle 3 products into one and create a new name
* Ask one customer for their feedback
* Ask one customer what else they would like to buy
* Create a customer survey to find out what they want
* Offer one free bonus “just as my way of saying thanks”
* Find out what your clients fear the most
* Offer your clients a teleseminar – ask them for content
* Offer your clients a live seminar – bring in guest speakers
* Visualize your perfect business and life for 5 minutes
* Ask 5 clients if you can take them for a brainstorming lunch

Simple… right?

That is exactly what you need to do to make the most of 2011.

One.
Simple.
Thing.
A Day.

Real success is NOT about shiny objects and miracle pills. It is all about systematically doing the right things that pull you one step closer to your goals. It doesn’t happen overnight… rather one simple step at a time.

Here’s to a fantastic year ahead!

I would love to hear YOUR additions to this list!

What is your greatest tip to getting more done in less time?

To your success,

Troy White

PS: If you are ready to rock and roll the rest of the year – get your Cash Flow Calendar and have me help you create the perfect marketing plan for 2011. All the details are at Cash Flow Calendars… The Ultimate Marketing Plan (also very much underpriced – according to many, many buyers who used it and got 20:1 returns on their investment the FIRST time they used it.

Wacky marketing ideas galore! Over 1,200 marketing prompts, templates and blueprints

…and you wrote 31 different articles
…that could be used as blog posts, articles, video scripts, autoresponders
…or could be compiled into a few different special reports
…even giving you the material you need to compile a winning sales letter or follow up sequence

You did all of this in a half hour a day of focus time.

And it became a new habit that propels you further and faster in 2011.

Focus has a way of changing lives.

Yours. Mine. Anyone who commits to it.

I have one of the leading trainers in the world on focus waiting to show you how.

Les Hewitt is the best selling author behind The Power of Focus and I have his 3 hour Focus and Productivity workshop waiting for you. http://www.31kclub.com

…as a side bonus with Les’ bootcamp… I will put you in the 31 k club free.

And I will personally guide you to get in massive content creation mode over the next 31 days.

Each day I will give you training tips and tools to help you become a prolific writer.

To get more sales campaigns done.

To write more articles.

And to develop your ‘personality in print’.

That is just a small snippet of what is available in the 31k Club Special at http://www.31kclub.com

We are starting the club today – and I would love to see a new hyper-focused you in the club.

Troy