5 Creative Planning Tips for a Joyfully Successful 2010

A couple of weeks ago in December, I offered five Creative Planning Tips for a Joyfully Successful 2010. In case you missed them, here they are again in one place. If you like these tips, check out the sale on the Joyful Business Guide at the bottom.

Tip #1: Schedule a creative planning day on your calendar
This time is important. It isn't an urgent fire you have to put out, but it will be some of the most important time you will spend on your business. This time will shape the success of your business, your focus, and the outcome for your entire year! It can be a half day, whole day or a weekend. It will be worth it to focus on what's possible.

Make sure you spend the time planning. Don't use it as a clearing house for all those daily to-do's. Use it to actually plan 2010.

Tip #2: Get out of your home office
I find that creativity, sparks, ideas, and inspiration don't usually come when I'm sitting at my desk. Going to a new environment like a café, a friend's retreat house, the lobby of a beautiful hotel, or even renting a lovely space for the day will shift my energy. What does shifting energy mean? Instead of having a "head down - what needs to be done next" focus, I'm able to have a "heads up and looking at the horizon" type of perspective.

By shifting your location, you are able to shift your perspective, and then you shift what's possible. New ideas come to you. Just the act of planning to go on a creative retreat outside of your office will subconsciously start pulling new ideas and thoughts toward you. Suddenly you will find that you are making notes of ideas to explore when you have your retreat time. Your commitment will cause your creative momentum to start moving in that direction.

Tip #3: Bring creative supplies
You don't want to develop your marketing strategies, creative ideas, and inspiration with a boring yellow legal pad. Pack your favorite markers, pens, or pencils, add some colorful, fun sticky notes to capture spontaneous free flowing ideas, bring paper or a tablet for making mind maps of ideas (a great way to access your right-brain creative thinking before your left-brain logic kicks in).

Do you have stickers or a favorite pen that you love writing with? Do you have cool big planning calendars or pads that you can't wait to dive into?

I find that the more I can support my creativity around planning for making more money, rolling out big marketing campaigns, or committing to a big project or that new platinum program - then the more tapped in I am to my creative flow, ideas, inspiration… And it's so much easier this way!

So - whatever makes you giggle with delight - bring with you on your creative planning day.

Tip #4: Set the stage for inspiration
I find that inspirational ideas don't always just happen when I say it's time. It's better to prime the pump. When I go on creative retreat time, I bring an inspirational book. Something by Wayne Dyer or Marianne Williamson works well when I want to be called into my purpose and passion; SARK books work well when I really want freedom to express my joy.

Bring along your favorite magazines like O, Ode (an entrepreneur type magazine which will help you get you sparked), Inc Magazine (with stories of other entrepreneurs and small business owners). Read a few pages to get the creative juices flowing and ideas moving.

I also find that connecting with my mastermind group or a coach will open up my inspiration in all new, big ways that I would have never thought of on my own!

Tip #5: Bring your Joyful Business Guide™ system
The Joyful Business Guide system provides the smart business tools you'll need - for getting clear about your ideal client, marketing system, team planning, and vision story, along with the attraction tools for setting your intentions and focusing on your projects.

I hear stories all the time from entrepreneurs all around the world using their Joyful Business Guides in cafes, libraries, cabins in the mountains, and at oceanside retreats and having a surprisingly wonderful time planning for their business. (It's like they are breaking all the rules! Planning and joy working together!)

And to help you more joyfully plan your successful 2010, I'm offering $50 off the Joyful Business Guide system.

The Joyful Business Guide usually sells for $249. Through Friday, January 8, you can get it for only $199. Use coupon code JOYFULLYCREATE to save $50 off the Joyful Business Guide. Click here to learn more and get your Joyful Business Guide.

Do you have the tools you need to plan an amazing 2010?

En-joy

Laura
 
P.S. This isn't just a product I sell.... The Joyful Business Guide is a system of tools for right-brain creatives, and I use it myself - everyday. It's helped me grow my business and double my income in 2009. What can it do for you and your business?

Shift Your Energy for More Joy & Success in Your Business

I am so excited to share with you that I recently spoke with Velam Gallant the Queen of Joy, on Welcome Changes Radio! Velma is an author, speaker, teacher, and healer.  As the host of “Welcome Changes Radio," she has interviewed over 100 personal growth and development experts.

We really enjoyed discussing how to Shift Your Energy for More Joy & Success in Your Business. We talked about how I went from the highly intense and stressful corporate world to my Joyful Business today. I even shared the 4 C's for a successful business, one of the many tools from the Joyful Business Guide!

Listen in here and join Velma and I so you can begin to achieve more Joy and Success in your business! 

En - Joy

Laura

How Large is YOUR Joy Container?

I just had to share today’s message with you from my friend, mastermind partner and a Joyful Business Guide owner, Thea Sheldon.  We are so connected…I’ve been thinking over the weekend about how much joy do I actually ALLOW in…how about you….? Here’s a beautiful touchpoint visualization to help you connect to and expand your Joy Container…

From Thea…a masterful, visionary coach,

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being the more joy it can contain. Is not the cup that holds your wine the very cup that was burned in the potter's oven?"

- Kahlil Gibran

How large is your joy container?

In what ways do you let joy be who you are? .

Breathing deeply--acknowledge the deep caverns of sorrow within you; observe your sorrow without being drawn into it and express gratitude for each time sorrow has inhabited your soul; Breathing again, let go of sorrow and begin to see the shape of the container that holds your joy; notice its size and marvel at its elasticity and flexibility; feel your joy container being filled, expanding and overflowing into your whole life; allow the bubbles of joy to rise in you like the effervescence in a glass of fine champagne; Carry that effervescence with you as you move fluidly through the activities of your week...

En-JOY!

Laura

Gratitude Adjustment from a Joyful Business Guide owner!

I love to feature successes and stories from Joyful Business Guide owners.  Karen Hughes, Certified Image Professional and Style Coach recently invited me to speak for the Atlanta Chapter of the Association of Image Consultants.

She also shared with me this great tip...

I was listening to an “old” call of yours on my walk and it was talking about the Gratitude Journal.  One of the ladies on the call talked about being ‘stuck’ and wanted a suggestion how to get into gratitude.  I wanted to share something with you that helped me last summer.

I just went through the alphabet A-Z and wrote down positive words that each letter could stand for.  It helps to put you in a more grateful mood even if you are not in a grateful spirit and may open the door for a gratitude adjustment.

Thanks Karen!  I love the inspiration!

En-JOY!
Laura

Laura West on Thrive Connect Radio!

I had an incredible interview with Jordan Mercedes of Thrive in Balance. What a joy it was to connect with Jordan, she has this great enthusiasm about her. She is definitely a Joyful Business owner in action! Her show, Thrive Connect is right in line with the Joyful Business philosophy - showing entrepreneurs how to get organized and live your most exuberant passionate life. We had such fun talking about how you can create and experience a Joyful Business.

To listen in on this episode and find out more about Jordan click here:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Thrive-In-Balance/2009/04/14/Laura-Howard-West-Founder-of-the-Center-for-Joyful-Business

En-JOY

Laura

Kathleen Ann of Australia interviews Laura West - Business Attraction in Action

I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Kathleen Ann of Power Up Your Marketing, and from Sydney, Australia.  Kathleen is a real attraction marketing fan and a generous spirit!

Here is a copy of our interview for your listening pleasure.  The topic - one of my favorites - Business Attraction in Action!

Listen Now:

You can also checkout Kathleen Ann and her resources at her website for Power Up Your Marketing!

En-JOY!

Laura

Joyful Business Sightings - Pat Altvater

I created the Joyful Business Guide™ system to help creative entrepreneurs bring together the power of law of attraction with smart marketing strategies.  I love sharing stories from Guide owners about their experiences and thought you'd love to hear about it too!  

From:  Pat Altvater, Transformations Institute   

"Hi Laura - I LOVE my Joyful Business Guide. The Daily Giggle Goals cards are my favorite and they WORK! Just the other day I wrote a "Universe goal" that said people looking for speakers would contact me and sure enough the next day I got a call out of the blue from a woman that owns a speakers bureau who found me through the National Speakers Association. How's that for fast?

Loving it, Pat"

En-JOY!

Laura

Are you an Intelligent Optimist?

I love this month's cover story in Ode magazine, "In Praise of Intelligent Optimists".  So much better of a name than being called "pollyanna", don't you think! This article really speaks to us as small business owners and in particular our entrepreneurial energy and skills.

The feature article talks about how the world has fallen into a dark state...as well all hear constantly and see results daily...and yet it's times like this when we need optimism.  It's easy to be an optimist when things are going fine but it's a real mark of character when you can be optimistic during tough times.

More from the article: "Optimism isn't about denying reality; it's about creating a better reality than you're facing...The Intelligent Optimist knows a half-empty glass is also half full. And she knows more can be gained by focusing on what she has than by focusing on what she's missing. You learn to become optimistic by concentrating on things that give you a sense of satisfaction and you remain an optimist by feeding those things to make them grow.   Intelligent Optimists know that for every problem there is (at least the beginning of) a solution andd that the search for that solution can be inspirational in itself."

Ode goes on highlight their first ever list of 25 Intelligent Optimists featuring individuals around the world who are doing their best to bring positive change to their communities, their countries and the world.

What I get about this view is that optimism is a choice.  It's not about denying reality - in fact, there is power in being able to confront the real issues of what's going on around the world or even in your own bank account.  What I see is that my clients are paying even more attention to their business.  This is when your entrepreneurial creativity really gets fired up.  You look for ways to create solutions - you hae to be more ingenius when the flow of abundance shifts. (notice I didn't say dried up...it hasn't dried up...just shifted) 

This is a time to listen to your business - what is it telling you? It will point to places that are broken and need your attention. It will whisper areas of abundance just waiting to be picked.  Really hear your clients and customers - they will tell you what they want now in their circumstances...sometimes they want more access to you, sometimes they want it packaged differently...listen.....you will see it, hear it, feel it...the solutions are right in front of you.

You do have to slow down to hear the whispers.....

In my Joyful Business Guide system we get you to focus on JoyFlow Sightings.  This seems like a perculiar activity for marketing system but let me tell you...looking for the joy that is flowing in your business at this very moment will do more to shift your energy, help you tap into your creativity and get you into inspired action than anything else!  Check it out at Joyful Business Guide...

En-Joy!

Laura

Joyful Business Podcast #22: When Nothing Goes As Planned...

Don't miss another episode - subscribe today and be the first to know when a new podcast comes out  - Join our "Creating Your Joyful Business" newsletter - http://www.joyfulbusiness.com/subscribe.html

Here is the latest episode of the Joyful Business Podcast featuring interviews with some of the most talented and joyful entrepreneurs on the Internet. Each interview is full of nuggets of wisdom about how being joyful and mindful in your business brings you the success you deserve. You'll find tips, stories, and real life ideas for keeping the joy, passion and creativity alive.

Join us every two weeks in Cafe Entrepreneur for a new interview.

In episode #22 Jeanna Gabellini visits with us about her passion for using the laws of attraction to get you what you want.  Jeanna is a prosperity coach, and is the founder of MASTERPEACE Coaching and Training.  In 1998, she was one of the first coaches in the world -- and the youngest -- to receive the designation of Master Certified Coach by the International Coach Federation. She has developed teleclasses, workshops and seminars on ways to implement the laws of attraction into her client's business.  Jeanna also co-authored the book, "Life Lessons on Mastering the Law of Attraction."

Jeanna has so many stories to share of how the laws of attraction have influenced her life.  She has learned that in order for you to reach your goals, sometimes you have to let go of time lines and just let things be manifested when it is the right time for them to come.  Listen in to hear her amazing story, and be ready to jot down her golden nuggets on how to keep positive even when it seems that nothing is going how you planned.  For our listeners, she has also graciously offered a free gift!  Go to: www.masterpeacemarketing.com/giveaway.htm.

Listen Now: 

If you enjoy this Joyful Business Podcast then you'll love our bi-weekly newsletter, Creating Your Joyful Business, filled with resources and how-to's for creating a financially successful business while honoring your lifestyle, your relationships and your creative expression!  Subscribe at: www.JoyfulBusiness.com  and receive your Free Business Attraction Success Kit!

Enjoy!

Laura

Join Me in Boston Next Week!

Join me at a Live Event in Boston!

If you are a coach or are interested in Coaching, please join us!

I'm speaking at the International Coach Federation - New England Chapter - live and in person!

Monday, January 12.

I'll be presenting a workshop "5 Powerful Attraction Marketing Strategies" and an evening presentation "Leverage Your Marketing Message for More Visibility, Credibility and Clients!"

Then, Monday, January 26 we'll have a special teleclass: "Want to Make More Money with Greater Freedom and Flexibility? Learn How To Package Your Passion"!

Register here for these events -- I'd love to meet you in person!

Let's set the intention that the weather is beau-ti-ful!

En-JOY!

Laura