Cara Lumen | Sing a Deeper Song

Sing a Deeper Song

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Some Things Just Plain Cost Money

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by Cara Lumen

money-bags_1He was retired, he had a great idea that could become a lucrative business but he didn’t understand that he needed to invest some money to establish his business and market it effectively.  In his case that investment would have been a web presence and business development and content development coaching. Some things just plain cost money.

Why we are reluctant to pay for ideas

For those of us who are coaches and teachers and writers, we know how much goes into the crafting of our content or courses or coaching.  Because ideas and insights are less tangible than a web site, for instance, we have a tendency to devalue it ourselves, let alone stand tall when we charge for what our mind produces.
 
A web presence is tangible; the value and necessity of well-written, accurately focused landing page copy is not recognized by many of our potential clients.  They don’t know you only have seven seconds to capture a reader’s attention and you need to get it right. But copy writers do, and they know how to do it. And that skill costs money.
 
I had someone who was new to blogging ask, “I have a blog up, now what do I do?” I didn’t know where to begin because there are a whole lot of “next steps” and because she was just beginning she had no idea how many decisions were important to make – target community, purpose for blog, plug in choices, Cornerstone Content for starters. Since it’s my business to help people take those next steps in a positive sequential manner, I wrote her back about how I could coach her through the steps.  I never hear back from her. It may be that she hadn’t realized that hiring a coach could get her through the process faster and more economically.  Hiring professional help is an investment in getting it right the first time. Some things just plain cost money.

You can do it yourself but will you do it well?

If you want to truly save time and money you will hire the help you need.  Whether it’s a web designer or a copy writer, or a professional site optimizer, or a marketing expert, or a product development coach, every person you ask to bring their expertise to your business will help you get ahead faster and farther than you can go by yourself.  
 
For instance, one of my talents is content development.  You better believe writing is a first love for me and that I’ve been writing all my life, read tons of books on the topic, taken courses, practiced, and developed a repeatable system for teaching how to write great content.  I’ve already gone through the process and can show you the easy route. So I save you time and money and help you do the work better than you can do it by yourself. I teach you a process that you can repeat for the next landing page or the next information product.  This is true of any professional.  They spend hours exploring the latest in their area of expertise and deepening their skills.  When you hire them you get the latest techniques and knowledge.  You are immediately ahead of the game simply because they know how to do what they do really well.

Helping you think big

Throughout the entire coaching process there is an ongoing search for greater focus that takes place.  We explore, we clarify, we choose, we discard; we put an idea aside for later. We manage our time to get results.  We work in phases so we see results and stay out of overwhelm.  I keep you from going off on tangents.  I see the steps you need to take in the order you need to take them in and guide you there.  That’s my job, to help you think big and then choose the action steps to make it happen.  
 
How do you put a price on expanding your vision?  

Keeping you on the right path

Don’t you love it when someone shows you a short cut!  It makes the journey faster and more enjoyable.  And starting out your journey with someone who can tell you exactly what equipment you need will not only save you money and but it will make your backpack lighter.  
Part of what I do as a coach is keep people from wandering off the trail.  We entrepreneurs have so many ideas that we are continually chasing one great new idea after another.  But a good coach will not only keep you moving toward your target, she will make certain you complete obvious steps so you know and feel you are moving ahead.
 
Learn what you need to have and go get the professional help you need to get it done effectively and efficiently.  
 
Find someone who knows more than you do and hire them to teach you.  Some things just plain cost money but the return you get from learning how to do it right in the first place is extraordinary. Get the help you need.  Invest in yourself.  You are worth it!!!
 
© 2010 Cara Lumen
 
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What To Do With A Scattered Client

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by Cara Lumen

fix-itI was going in circles with a client – she didn’t seem to remember her own decisions and was very caught in the emotion caused by the fact that she had put something off till the last minute and it might not be ready. I found myself creating all sorts of ways to make the situation come out all right for both of us.

What do I need to address?

It took me two sessions to figure out we were going it circles. In the second session I found we had made absolutely no progress because she had not made a key decision to make a particular change and had not taken any action on it so we essentially had not made any progress that week. And a coach is there to create progress.

I had to look at her decision making process.

On another call she had been too busy doing something else to address her homework. Again very little progress was made.

I needed to help her address her unwillingness to take the necessary action before we could move forward.

She kept saying, “I don’t understand.” But what she was really saying was “I want you to do it for me.” And that’s not empowering. I am a teaching coach. I help people understand why they are doing what they are doing.

So I had more to address than mere action steps. I had bad habits and emotional blocks to release too.

Look beyond the obvious action steps when you start to work with someone. Examine their work habits and follow through and resistance.

Why me, why now?

You can imagine that as this coaching relationship progressed I had to think “”why me, why now?” But there is a good lesson in everything even if you have to look for it. I had helped this person in the past but it had been several years. I knew how she works; I know the distractions in her life. And I said “yes” anyway.

In case we all forget, it’s OK to say “no” to a potential client. We do have the right to refuse to work with people; we do get to select our perfect client.

But a lot of good came out of this circumstance. What I didn’t have set up in my business at the time was a good way to do the technical set up around creating a WordPress blog that some clients cannot do. What I wanted to do was help people get their blog set up but I was thinking my part was more along the lines of the writing strategy, creating cornerstone content and the optimizing that goes with writing blog posts. But the technical part is not my forte. This client gave me a gift – she had a need I could not fill and I went out and filled it. I formulated a new business partnership with a woman who does know the technical aspects of Word Press. We are the Magnetic Blog Builders www.magneticblogbuilders.com and we came into being because of this client.

There is a reason for the choices we make and the opportunities that are presented to us.

How emotion clouds the mind

I have a relative who is going through a divorce. I am her sounding board and sometimes a guide. It is an emotional time for her and I see her going in circles, not able to absorb some of the crucial decision-making factors, not able to consider the reality of down-sized living and still hanging on to past dreams that will no longer come true. She can’t hear the advice she is getting. She jumps from one idea to another, never following through on any of it. And she is operating from only her own narrow frame of reference so she’s going down paths that do not lead where she needs to go next. Emotion clouds the mind. Anxiety gets you nowhere.

Sometimes you have to help the client separate the emotion from the need.
Look for new ways to disseminate information

OK, I have a person to help that is emotionally charged, not educated in the next necessary steps, and it’s my job to help her get the best results. What do I do?

What handouts can I make to explain her next steps? Every time I coach a person through a process or answer a question they pose, I write it as an article and put it in my coaching library. My coaching library is well stocked. Maybe I have something to address her need and maybe I have to write something new.

How should I outline the coaching sessions to be certain one step is completed before moving on? Create a Project Management form. Send the next steps to them in the Coaching Prep Form. Even your intake form could give you a clue as to how well they follow through. Get clear how your client processes their work as early as you can.

How can I reassure them we will ultimately address every piece but not all at once? I do that by periodically reiterating their vision. I assure them this is another step toward their goals and acknowledge them for their success. Have them acknowledge their own progress on a regular basis. I use my Momentum Builders 5:15 form.

How do I keep their frenetic energy from putting me off stride? That’s a hard one. Breathe. Keep very calm when you are talking to them. Drop your own personal agenda and tune in to what they need next and try to deliver it. It may be reassurance, a boost in confidence or an actually detailed explanation of their next step. What do they need – answer their need not yours.

Stay in your role as coach

There is a difficulty that arises if you get too involved in your client’s story and circumstance. Picture a high wall with you on top of it and your scattered client at the bottom. From where you are you can see the whole view, you can see the possibilities; you can even see the path that is open once they get over the wall. You have to stay high on that wall with your higher vision. If you drop down to be with the person who is scattered or confused and buy into their energy, there you will both be, looking at the bottom of the wall and seeing nothing but the barriers. Do not get emotionally involved with your scattered clients – it serves no one. Be patient, creative and persevere. And stay in your role as coach.

Patience and Perseverance

If you have people like these in your life or business you have a choice. You let them go (easy enough with a client, not easy with a family member) or you set your boundaries, define your limits, put on your most patient hat and stay with them and their process. You offer only small steps, constant clarity of information in small sequences so simplistically drawn that they get it. You need to drop your own agenda and expectations and set new ones that are based on the reality you see before you.

What tactics do you use when faced with a scattered client, customer or friend? I’d love to know.

© 2010 Cara Lumen

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Are You as Coachable as You Think You Are?

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by Cara Lumen

partnersA coach is a professional guide, an accountability partner, a skilled motivator who can only do her best work if you do yours. Here are some ways that people have sabotaged their own success.

We were both shaking our heads in dismay. “She’s gone back to where she was before we started, she’s shutting down again.” I said to my web designer partner, Judy. “And she doesn’t listen” she added. And she can’t make a decision,” I added, “I have to write an article about how to be coachable,” and we started listing the important qualities you must bring to the mix if you are going to be coachable and reap the results of the knowledge and guidance of the people you hire to coach you.

Trust your coach

First be really clear that you need help. Your business is stuck, you don’t know what steps to take, you want to start a new blog or signature information product and you don’t even know where to start.

Second. Decide that a coach can get you moving forward. Then you go coach hunting. Sometimes that person just shows up on your radar when you most need her. Sometimes she’s someone you’ve been following and knew when you were ready that would be your choice, and sometimes you really go hunting. But you will know your perfect coach when you find her. You will feel a connection. You will choose her because you resonated with what she or he does and how they do it. You are excited to work with that person and ready to learn what they can teach you. You are going to pay good money for this learning experience and motivational jump start. To get the most out of the coaching experience there are several things you must learn to do.

Listen to your coach. Listen to yourself.

You coach is going to listen carefully to you. She is going to ask you questions that help you recognize and make your choices. And then, she is going to set up a program to get you to where you want to go. She can see the overview and knows which steps come first.

But you won’t get there if you don’t listen. If you don’t do what she says, in the order she gives it to you, you are sabotaging yourself.

I know you are filled with ideas, but my job as a coach is to recognize, out of my own experience and training, which are the best ideas for the goals you say you want. If you disagree, do so, but express clearly why you disagree. Sometimes you’ll discover that the barrier or resistance is from another source. Let your coach help you discover what is holding you back. Your coach will help you reevaluate your direction based on those objections. For instance, I always ask my clients if they are willing to do the assignments I give them. If not, we talk about why and adjust it according to what we discover together. It may be a reality check time issue; it may be the suggestion needs to be tweaked to increase the clients’ willingness. You are a partner participant. Let your coach help you in and around and through your stuck places.

Make decisions with confidence

You are the captain of your business ship. You are the decision maker. Be in charge. Make those decisions based on what you feel, what you know about yourself. I had one client take ten days to decide between a web site proposal, working on a Mac in a program she knew nothing about or having a WordPress presence up in ten minutes for very little money. Ten days and two coaching sessions! And she didn’t understand why the process took so long. She was in an indecisive mode partially because she didn’t understand her options. I explained them to her and she made her choices.

When Nancy Hendrickson and I decided to partner on Magnetic Blog Builders we had a site up within 48 hours. Sure we may tweak it, add content, change a few things, but we were open for business in 48 hours. The professionals you work with are fast and capable. Make up your mind. Trust yourself to know what you want.

As a web designer Judy Stewart  is incredibly good at capturing the essence of the person she is designing for. But sometimes the person doesn’t recognize it and suggests small changes and shows her three more sites she likes but can’t tell her why. And inevitably the client comes back to the original design. Begin to look consciously at what you want – what colors do you like, what shapes are you drawn to; what feeling do you want people to have when they arrive.

Know yourself and trust yourself

Which brings me to the cornerstone of being a good coaching client – know yourself. It’s not about being inflexible, or being unwilling to change direction, it’s about trusting your intuition, listening to the discovery questions offered by your coach and taking time to go within to find your answer and then making a decision. “I’ll know it when I see it” is a bit hard for a designer or a coach to work with. Begin with a vision. Understand your target community. A web presence is not about you, it is about the people you plan to serve – what they like, what they will respond to, what they need. Know yourself and know your clients.

Take responsibility for doing the work

The most disheartening thing to have happen with a client is for that client to disengage, to not do the work,, to not make the decisions. When the client is excited and making decisions and allowing the results to happen we are all feeling productive and successful. But when a client shuts down, puts off making decisions, will not take the responsibility to learn how to do the next step, we are both soon stuck and disheartened.

Commit and give it everything you’ve got

What point is there in taking a class if you never pick up a book? What point is there in hiring a decorator then insisting on ignoring their advice? What point is there in hiring a coach and ignoring her suggestions? If you have the wrong coach, change. But when you have the right coach, commit to doing the homework, making the decisions and go search out new information and ideas to bring into the project.

Hiring a coach in an investment in your success

A coach has developed an area of expertise. She spends a lot of time developing coaching systems and learning more about her field. She offers you’re her expertise, her knowledge and her insights which translate into short-cuts to success.

In Magnetic Blog Builders we focus on creating a web/blog presence in 4 weeks. Nancy will have it physically up for you in one week, but you and I have some decision making to do – branding, community development, marketing and content development. We develop a magnetic web presence.

As a Book Yourself Solid Coach I help you build a strong niche-targeted foundation for your business and help you decide what marketing strategies are best suited for you and your target community.

As a Signature Product Development CoachI help you organize your ideas, develop and create your product, and create the landing page to help people buy your book, or telecourse, or product.

Choose a coach  that has your same values. Choose a person who is supportive, smart, focused and is the guide you want to help you move forward. Then be the most coachable person you can be.

©2010 Cara Lumen

Why It’s a Good Time to Hire a Coach

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partners A coach can save you money.  What, you say? But a coach costs money and that’s a consideration in today’s economy. But can you remember a time you didn’t read the directions and ended up with several mysterious pieces left over?  Or the preverbal don’t-ask-for-directions-I-can-find-it-myself attitude that put you miles out of your way?  A coach helps you create a map of where you want to go and then gives you step-by-step GPS directions. Of course you’re going to get exactly where you want to go. And that straight line from here to there can save you money.

A coach can keep you from making mistakes – wasting time and money going in the wrong direction

A coach holds your vision, sees the best route and clears the path ahead for you
 
Here’s the deal – if you don’t know where you are going you will certainly end up someplace else.  A coach knows the territory.  She knows the shortcuts and the pitfalls.  She knows the watering holes and rest stops. She is a valuable guide for your journey.
 
But first you both have to figure out exactly where you want to go.  That’s called laying the foundation – your target community, your niche, your branding, and the type of service and products you want to offer.  
 
This work, done right, will save you hours of going in the wrong direction  
 
Step 1 – Know Where You Are Going

A Coach Knows What You Need to Get You There

Remember the old trail bosses? They helped the travelers know what supplies they needed and how much they could actually carry.  You know the stories of scattered furniture along the way because those items, beloved or not, were just too heavy to carry.  Well, a coach can help you choose only the things you need to move you to your destination.  You can leave the rest behind for another time and trip. You travel light, you travel fast.
 
I have a client who is an extraordinary visionary.  She thinks up fabulous projects.  Big ones.  Time-consuming ones.  And my job is to keep her grounded so she completes basic things like her web presence and sets up systems to begin to build her community.  It’s hard sometimes, her ideas are tantalizing to me too, but my job is to be certain she has a strong foundation and puts the basic things in place like a web presence and personal branding.
 
Step 2 – Trust your coach to take you one step at a time and choose the steps you need to take next.

A Coach is a Source of Wisdom

Do you want to get your guidance from someone who is just learning or someone who has been there, done that?  You want the expert, of course, the person who is excited about their area of expertise and continues to study it and grow wiser in it and explore ways to teach it to others.  That deep knowledge and experience helps them guide you on your journey and choose the right path for you.
 
Once you find that perfect coach/guide pay attention.  When there is homework, do it on time.  When you start to go off on yet another great idea, allow her to pull you back.  If you have a project, allow her to help you break it down into small steps and stay with it till that phase is completed.  A good coach will honor your personal way of working, but she won’t let you aimlessly wander off the path
 
Step 3 – Listen to your coach and do what she says  

A coach can keep you from overwhelm

Entrepreneurs have tons of ideas and we can get pulled off course and get stuck in the mud of overwhelm.  A coach can see that pitfall ahead, and will help you focus on one step at a time instead of the mountain you are trying to climb. That saves you time, and preserves your energy for the task of moving forward.
 
Step 4 – Trust the coach to help you choose your best ideas.

A coach is your motivational partner

Working alone is great and it can be lonely.  How do you keep yourself on target when you are the boss?  A coach is a motivational partner  – a person who will call you on your “stuff”, creatively find ways around your blocks, shore you up when you falter, and stay by your side as the partner she is.

Is it time for you to hire a coach?

I’m a coach. I’ve had a lot of training.  I’m a Certified Book Yourself Solid Coach which makes me really good at building strong foundations.  I’m a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach which makes me really good at creative, innovative, inexpensive ways to market yourself.  And I’m a prolific writer, so developing rich content for the internet is a talent and a passion. I can help you build an authentic business from your inside out.
 
And I’ve added a partner to help you with one of the steps. We are the Magnetic Blog Builders   If you want to establish a magnetic web presence, you begin with me.  We center and focus your vision and start moving toward your goal.  Shortly after we begin you work with my partner Nancy Hendrickson, the WordPress expert, who will help you create either a web site, a blog or a combination of the two. It takes both of us to get your web presence positioned and aimed in the right direction. Then you’ll be off like the proverbial arrow – right on target to attract the people you are meant to serve.
 
© 2010 Cara Lumen