I'm a Millennial Mom and a Successful Entrepreneur. Stop Asking Me How I Manage It All.

[ad_1]

It can be hard to avoid the biases others have about my age and gender, but I don't let it stop me.

July 5, 2018

6 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

As an entrepreneur, a mother and a member of the oft-discussed millennial generation, I feel I'm being positively pummeled with expectations, joys, demands, judgments and revelations. With too little time and more goals than I can count, I often feel overwhelmed. Yet, despite the dizzying whir of business and life, I feel absolutely certain about a few things.

Owning my age

According to recent research by the Kauffman Foundation, the average age of an American entrepreneur is 40 years old. For high-growth industries, the average age skews significantly older.

Related: 6 Reasons Moms Make the Best Entrepreneurs

I'm 30 years old, and I co-founded Pink Lily alongside my husband, Chris, four years ago at age 26. Since then, we've grown the business to $50 million in revenue and have set a revenue goal of $100 million for the year 2020. From one perspective, this makes me a tremendous success story, on the very early end of the typical entrepreneurial arc. From another perspective, I am a young leader who some may believe is getting in over her head.

It's true that leading and managing a fast-growing team of dozens of employees would be a challenge for any business owner. But our cultural perceptions about age, relative to status and success, sometimes weigh heavily on me. Flickered expressions, cutting remarks, ill-timed jokes, whispered conversations -- these perceptions and judgments are not easy to call out, but always easy to sense.

Unfortunately, our society is only just coming to terms with the damaging effects of workplace ageism as it affects older people battling to obtain equal opportunities and young people entering the workforce. The conversation has not yet evolved to include the struggles of young entrepreneurs, executives and leaders seeking respect despite their perceived youthfulness. And this means that it's up to me to own my age, along with the opportunities and challenges afforded by it. Before I gear up for a tough conversation with an older employee, walk into a high-stakes meeting, announce a revenue growth strategy or take any other decisive action befitting my role as co-founder and CEO, I take a minute to reset my thinking. Yes, I am 30 years old, but I am also much more than that. I am a natural leader. And I am fully capable of steering a company and its workforce into the future.

Related: This Former Dating App CEO Wants to Make Motherhood Less Lonely

Fearless focus

Even as the mother of two young children, I'm not afraid to say that I love work. In this country -- especially in the South -- these words don't exactly roll off the tongue. Sure, work may be necessary. It may be a chore and a duty. But, if it takes you from the responsibilities and joys of home and family, how could a woman possibly love it? How could she possibly want more of it? Why would she seek to grow and rise if she doesn't absolutely have to do so?

In ways direct and indirect, I encounter this attitude on a regular basis. The often-implied subtext is that mothers who are ambitious and passionate about their full-time careers are somehow less invested in their family's well-being. It may be 2018, but this sentiment is a seemingly unshakable vestige of decades past. We see glimpses of this thinking in the questions we ask of successful, business-minded women who also happen to be mothers. One of the most common is "How do you manage it all?"

This question is meant to determine how in the world these powerful women are managing to juggle their work, marriage, home and family responsibilities simultaneously. Trouble is, we rarely ask our male leaders and fathers the same question. How different would this conversation be if we stopped quietly judging our ambitious young women and successful female business leaders, but instead started asking them what they love about work? What gets you excited about work each day? Which of your professional accomplishments most shifted the trajectory of your career? Why do you do what you do? Perhaps before we can reach the point where we embrace our ambitious working mothers, we need to better understand their points of view.

Related: 'You Can't Do Everything Well.' How This Advice Helped the Founder of TwoBirds and Hatch Focus Her Priorities.

Flipping the switch

When my husband and I are home, we're home. Because we work incredibly hard during the work week, our weeknights and weekends with our children, families and friends are sacrosanct. This means that we both do everything in our power to resist the ever-present temptation of our myriad devices. There are always emails and texts begging to be checked, but while we're at home we endeavor to resist the siren song. I like to think of the light switches in my house as not just switching on our light fixtures, but also switching us over from work time to personal time. We walk into our home, flip the switch and suddenly everything is different. It may sound silly, but it helps us to have a physical anchor that reminds us we're no longer under the pressure of work. At home, we're softer, lighter and more present. We're less consumed with metrics and deliverables, and more consumed with the mechanics of Lego skyscrapers. Our eyes are focused on each other, not backlit screens.

The respect we have for the sanctity of home and family stems from when we first started our business, some years ago. We ran the entire business from our living room and had zero separation between these two competing aspects of our lives. It took a toll on our well-being, as individuals and as a family, and we learned our lesson. Today, the preservation of our home as a protected space -- free from the endless notifications of our professional lives -- keeps us sane. I'm relieved to know that home will continue to be our safe haven as we grow into the future, both as a business and as a family.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

The Top 10 Features of a Successful Mobile Commerce App

https://www.quicksprout.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/image5-9.png [ad_1]

Launching a mobile app is a great way to increase sales for your business.

If you already have a live app available for download, you’re headed in the right direction. That’s because your customers are active on mobile devices.

It’s more convenient for them to shop from their phones and tablets because they use these devices on a regular basis.

Yes, you still need to have a web design optimized for mobile users. But that alone won’t be enough.

Having a mobile app will definitely help you maximize your potential revenue.

In the last six months, 62% of smartphone users have used their devices to make purchases. It’s clear people are willing to shop from their phones.

But just having an app doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be successful.

There are certain features that successful mobile commerce apps have in common. If you have an app, you need to implement these features if you want to share a similar success.

If you are building an app, make sure you include these features so your app is in great shape to perform well when it finally launches.

I’ve narrowed down the top 10 features of successful mobile commerce apps.

1. Personalization

All the best apps offer personalization to the user. That’s because personalization has many benefits.

Take this information into consideration. These are some of the top challenges faced by marketing professionals:

As you can see, coming up with tactics to reach customers in a meaningful way ranked first on the list of responses. But personalization can solve that problem. Here’s how.

When a new user downloads your app, they create a profile. Make this process as easy as possible for them by integrating it with their social media profiles.

Now they can set up the account with just a few clicks instead of creating a new username and password and filling in all other information. But once the account is created, regardless of how you do it, you’ll be able to get valuable information about the user.

You’ll discover things such as their gender, age, and location. Now you can modify their homepage and mobile experience to match this information.

For example, let’s say your mobile commerce app sells clothing. You don’t want winter coats to appear on the homepage of someone who lives in Southern California.

You’ll also track information when the customer shops. You can make additional suggestions based on their browsing history and previous purchases.

This will enhance the user experience and increase the chances of them buying from you in the future. It is also a great opportunity for you to upsell and cross-sell your products.

2. Eliminate bugs and errors

If your mobile app wasn’t developed properly, it’s going to have lots of glitches, crashes, and error reports.

This will frustrate a user. Don’t think that’s a big deal? Think again.

Just look at how significant app performance is to your customers—84% of customers agree it’s important:

But what happens when your app doesn’t perform well? Very bad things.

In fact, 48% of mobile users are less likely to use an app if it doesn’t perform well. An additional 34% of people say they’ll use a competitor’s app after a negative experience.

This is obviously bad news for your mobile commerce strategy.

You can’t afford to lose any customers, especially not to your competition. You’ve invested too much time and money into this venture. You’ve got to make sure you prioritize performance.

Don’t get me wrong, nobody’s app is perfect. But you should always be trying to make improvements.

Use beta testers before a launch to help you identify and work out any bugs. Get notifications when something crashes so you can get it fixed as soon as possible.

Come out with new updates on a regular basis. All of this will improve the user experience and make it easier for them to buy.

3. Retail integration

If you have a mobile app in addition to a physical store, have them compliment each other.

Your customers are already using their phones when they shop at your store. Here’s a look at what they’re doing with these devices:

Embrace it. Make this experience even better for your customers.

Start off by offering free Wi-Fi in your stores so that they can easily connect their devices and access the app when they walk in, without using their data plans.

When someone browses for items from within the app, they may be interested in buying a product. But for one reason or another, they may want to check out the item in person.

Have a feature that allows them to save the item to a “want” or “favorite” list. Then, they can check the inventory at local stores to see if it’s available.

When they get to the store, your app should tell them exactly which aisle the product is in to make it even easier for the customer. This will increase the chances that they’ll buy it.

You can have the reverse feature as well. If someone sees something in your store but wants to think about it before buying, they can scan the barcode through the app and add the product to their “want” list. Then, they can purchase it later.

Integrating your app with retail locations also gives more people a reason to download your app in the first place.

It will encourage downloads from customers when they enter your store. More downloads will usually translate to more money for your business.

4. Flash sales and discounts

You want to give people a reason to buy.

What do customers love more than anything? Getting a good deal.

Send them a discount from your mobile app. This could also be part of your strategy to get downloads in the first place.

Check out this example from the Jabong shopping app:

They are offering new users a 20% discount if they make a purchase from within the app.

Once the app is downloaded, you can offer additional exclusive deals not found online.

Have a section designated for items on sale. Run seasonal discounts and build hype for holiday promotions as well.

You can also run flash sales by sending push notifications to app users, but we’ll talk about that concept in greater detail later.

5. Detailed product descriptions

Just like with your ecommerce site, you need to have detailed descriptions of all the products on your mobile commerce app.

However, these descriptions will have a slight variation on your app.

That’s because when you’re viewing items on a mobile device, there is much less room on the screen. You’ll need to have detailed but concise product descriptions.

Cut out any unnecessary words and use bullet points. This makes your descriptions easy to read and scan.

Clearly explain what the product does, without adding unneeded information. Start with a basic description, and then have expandable text that provides more details.

These descriptions will work together with your product images, which we’ll discuss next.

6. Quality product images

As I just said, you’ll need to include images on your mobile commerce app.

Each product should have lots of images. Think about how people shop. If they are in a store, they’ll pick up the item, try it on, or test it out.

But you can’t get the in-person experience of looking, touching, feeling, or tasting a product on the phone. OK, so you probably won’t taste a product before you buy it in a store either, but you know what I mean.

The consumer relies on your product images to get a sense for what the product will look like.

Show it form every angle. Zoom in on the most important features. Give a demonstration.

If it’s a piece of clothing, don’t just show it lying flat on a table. Demonstrate its fit by showing what it looks like on a model.

The ability to see pictures is the most important feature for mobile shoppers.

Your images need to be high quality and professional.

If they are blurry, with a shadow, under poor lighting, or aren’t centered, etc., they’ll make the product look unappealing.

Sure, it’s going to take time to upload lots of pictures for each item. But it’s worth it in the long run because it’ll be easier for you to generate sales.

7. Customer service

No matter how well your app performs, people will still have questions and problems.

It’s inevitable.

When this occurs, you’ll need to be able to handle the situation appropriately. How do they contact your customer service team?

If they are in the app, they should be able to do this directly from the mobile platform. Don’t force them to go to Google or visit your website to find a phone number or email address.

Offer this type of communication from your app.

Live chat. Phone support. Email.

As a result, you’ll be able to boost revenue by optimizing the customer experience.

8. Fast and secure checkout

Your mobile app needs to be smooth. Just like with your website, you’ll want to avoid common navigation mistakes.

It should be easy for app users to find what they are looking for through your search and menu options. Once someone decides they want to buy something, you don’t want them to have to jump through hoops to get it.

That’s where a mobile app stands apart from a mobile website:

With a mobile site and ecommerce site, the shopper has to input all their information each time they make a transaction.

This is tough to do from a mobile device. It’s too easy to make a mistake with the smaller buttons and screen. Plus, people can’t type as fast without a full keyboard.

But with an app, they have to do this only once, and then their purchases in the future can be made with just one click. You’ll have all the necessary info saved to their personal accounts.

Now checkouts will be fast and convenient. This also helps with personalization.

Less friction in the checkout process will lead to lower cart abandonment rates and higher sales.

Here’s something else you need to keep in mind. When you’re storing important information like this, your app needs to be completely secure.

This will protect not only your customers but also your brand. If your app gets hacked or has a credit card breach, it could destroy your reputation.

When you store a credit card on file, don’t display the entire card number. Just show the last few digits, card type, and expiration date. This will prevent someone from accessing the credit card if the user’s phone is lost or stolen.

App users will know you’re protecting their information and be less hesitant to make purchases.

9. Alternative payment options

Your mobile commerce app needs to accept all major credit cards. I don’t care if certain ones charge you a higher processing fee, you still need to give your customers as many options as possible.

In addition to accepting all credit and debit cards, you need to offer more options as well.

I’m talking about alternative payment methods such as:

For security reasons, people may be hesitant to enter their credit card information into an app. But they know these other methods help protect their funds, and you don’t want to miss out on those sales.

Plus, you don’t know someone’s personal financial situation. They might have credit cards that are maxed out, or they may have funds on a Venmo or PayPal account they want to use instead.

Further, if one of these payment processing apps is already on their phone, it’s one less step for the user. This is perfect when they’re shopping on the go.

They can buy something with just one click, without having to enter any additional information. This is much easier for them to do than having to take out their credit cards while walking, taking transit, or grabbing a coffee.

10. Push notifications

So you’re running a promotional deal. How will you tell your app users?

Just send them a push notification, like in this example from Charlotte Russe:

This method is better than an email because the message gets sent straight to your customers’ phones, like a text message.

Just be careful with this approach. Sending too many push notifications can be annoying. You don’t want users to turn off your push notifications.

Once that happens, you won’t be able to communicate with them as effectively.

Use them sparingly, but definitely use them. In addition to flash sales, you can send personalized notifications based on customer preferences and location.

Conclusion

You can’t build an app and forget about it. There is always room for improvement.

As a business owner with a mobile commerce app, you need to do whatever you can to increase sales.

There are certain features you can implement that will increase your chances of having success.

Review the list of features above, and figure out which ones need to be added to your app.

Don’t be discouraged or intimidated if your app currently doesn’t have these features. Once you add the ones I’ve described above, I’m sure you’ll see an improvement in your app performance, user experience, and profits.

What are the most profitable features of your company’s mobile commerce app?

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

The 3 Most Essential Points to Keep in Mind for Your Next Accelerator Pitch

http://img.youtube.com/vi/CQFL1njMSMA/0.jpg [ad_1]

No surprise that a great source for for inspiration and lessons on speaking technique are TED talks.

July 5, 2018

5 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Startup accelerators have been around since about 2005, when Y Combinator was founded in Cambridge, Mass. Since then, they've exploded in popularity -- expanding from startup hotbeds like Boston and Silicon Valley to assorted locations around the globe.

Milwaukee, though not traditionally known as a tech hub, is home to Gener8tor, an accelerator that recently launched an artist fellowship program. Sydney is an international city in its own right, but it's also attracting tech entrepreneurs with its Future Transport Digital Accelerator.

And, while Cairo certainly has a rich history, it's also preparing for the future of innovation with the Flat6labs accelerator, which celebrated its 10-year anniversary in 2018.

Related: 12 Reasons You Should Join an Accelerator to Advance Your Startup

As the number of accelerators has grown, so has the number of applicants. For example, for the Ameren Accelerator, our own 12-week program for energy-tech startups here in St. Louis, we went from about 200 applications in 2017 to in excess of 330 this year. Such explosive growth, however, can be a double-edged sword for those hoping to earn a spot in an accelerator:

More opportunity may abound, but the competition is also stiffer than ever.

Standing out in a sea of applicants

Responding to the increase in applicants, accelerators these days are asking tougher questions: "How close are you to revenue?" "What's the business model?" "How do we [investors] ultimately make money?" Therefore, if you're one of the applicants, you need to not only know the answers to all these questions, but to deliver them clearly, succinctly and in a way that sets you apart. That's a tall order, to be sure, but if you follow these three key steps, you'll be on your way to nailing your pitch.

1. Cut out the "maybes" -- focus on the facts.

Most startups fail because they don't solve a problem. Just look at Juicero, the now-famous startup that raised about $120 million before it shut down last September. That $400 juicer simply wasn't filling a need, and as a result, couldn't find a solid customer base. Juicero is not the first or the last company to make this mistake. According to an analysis by CB Insights, 42 percent of startups go under due to "no market need."

Related: Want to Join a Women-Only Accelerator? Read This First.

Accelerators always want to know that there's an actual customer need. In fact, this is critical. Don't recite a laundry list of problems your solution might solve; instead, focus on the most important one -- and detail step by step how you came to that conclusion. The best way to prove your problem exists is through market research. Engage directly with potential customers by conducting surveys on pain points, wants and needs. When you come with hard research in hand, accelerators will take you much more seriously.

2. Lay your cards on the table.

Once they're convinced of the problem, accelerators want to understand your solution. That sounds simple enough. Yet according to research from Marketing Experiments, companies often struggle to identify and articulate their value proposition.

A good value proposition is easy to understand, concrete and unique; it doesn't rely on fluff, superlatives and jargon. So state your solution, and more importantly, state how it's different from all the other ones already out there. Ideally, people will be able to understand your value proposition in fewer than five seconds.

Take Uber's value proposition, for example: "The best way to get wherever you're going." This simplistic copy accurately captures its offering. And its homepage copy expertly sums up what makes the service more appealing than a traditional taxi: "Tap a button, get a ride; always on, always available; you rate, we listen."

Additionally, accelerators want to know what you, as the founder, bring to the table. Show up, add to the chemistry and culture and be an active participant. At the Ameren Accelerator, we specifically look for leaders who come in ready to roll up their sleeves and drive growth.

3. Stay on track and weave a story.

There's nothing worse than an applicant who drones on and on. Try to keep your pitch clear and simple. For inspiration, look at TED Talks. Though those speakers pitch ideas rather than businesses, they are coached to become master storytellers. Most talks are fairly brief -- they can't be longer than 18 minutes -- but more importantly, they're succinct. An analysis of the top 20 TED Talks showed that all speakers stated their "big idea" within the first two minutes. Follow this format in your accelerator pitch.

Additionally, rather than spouting off statistics to make your point, try telling a dynamic story, lacing supporting facts throughout. Stanford University professor Jennifer Aaker tested the power of stories through an informal study. She asked her students to give one-minute pitches and then had the others write down what they remembered from each pitch. Sixty-three percent of participants could remember the pitches that were stories, compared to the mere 5 percent who could remember statistics.

Related: Accelerator vs. Incubator: Which Is Right for You?

Since I started working in this field, I've seen enormous growth in the number of accelerators across the country and around the world. However, those who wish to participate in these programs are up against fierce competition, and gaining one of these accelerators' coveted spots will take more than passion and a potential patent. By following these three tips, you'll set yourself up for success on your next pitch.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

Why Online Success Is Not a Spontaneous Experience

http://cache.johnchow.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/idea-688x387.jpg [ad_1]

The dot com lifestyle is one that is defined by its freedom. You are free from your boss, manager or supervisor, because the only one in charge of your business is you. You have no one to answer to and every decision is wholly your own. You are free to work from practically anywhere in the world, so long as you’ve got reliable access to the Internet on the device of your preference. Have laptop, will profit. And you are free from the confines and restrictions of the conventional Monday to Friday, nine-to-five rat race, because you don’t have to hold conventional office hours.

But should you?

It’s true that time and location freedom are the two greatest things about making your living on the Internet. It means that you are free to attend your daughter’s ballet recital without the worry about being called into the office. You are free to choose that dentist appointment at 11 a.m. on a Wednesday morning, because you don’t have to be at work at that time. You are free to hop on a plane to Barbados or Bali on a whim, because all you have to do is grab your passport and your laptop.

And whether you decide to forge out on your own as an Internet marketer, a freelance writer, a graphic designer, an app developer, a professional blogger or any number of other possibilities, you cannot rely on inspiration striking you out of the blue in order for you to be successful at what you do.

Many people fall under this false illusion that the biggest “Eureka!” type moments in the lives of hugely successful people come about spontaneously. They think that they can just sit under a tree in the park, have an apple fall on their head, and they’ll suddenly come up with the next Instagram or launch the next Problogger. It doesn’t work that way. Great ideas (and great execution) are neither spontaneous nor magical. You’ve got to put in the work.

Even when you don’t really want to.

Absolutely, the flexibility afforded by being your own boss and living the dot com lifestyle means that you can adjust and adapt your working habits to best suit your specific circumstances and situation. Absolutely, it means that you can step away from your work at the drop of a hat if needed. But it also means that you are completely and utterly reliant on your own sense of self-discipline to get the job done and to get it done well.

The only assured way that you will be able to find success, in any field but especially when you work for yourself online, is by sticking with a predictable routine that is predicated on self-discipline. Of course, it is easier to get side tracked by social media and YouTube. Of course, it is easier to bugger off to the shopping mall for a few hours just to kill the time.

See, but that’s the thing. Everyone else is choosing to do the easier thing. Everyone else is melting into their couch for yet another Netflix binge session. Everyone else says that they want to start a blog or get into affiliate marketing. Everyone else says they have a great app idea or they want to write a terrific book. But everyone else isn’t putting in the work. Everyone else is taking the easy route. And you don’t want to be everyone else.

The only way that you’re going to find inspiration is if you’re willing to meet it halfway. The only way that you’re going to have that breakthrough moment is if you commit yourself to putting in the work on a consistent basis, constantly flexing those entrepreneurial muscles because that’s how you’ll make them strong and flexible and durable, just like any other set of muscles. Michael Phelps didn’t win all those gold medals because he decided to skip a day here and there, because he knew it would become a slippery slope.

What so many people tend to forget about achieving any sort of success is that just showing up, and showing up consistently and even when you don’t really feel like it, is the hardest part. But you won’t be able to find success if you don’t show up to greet it in the first place. Success isn’t spontaneous. It’s strategic. It’s planned. It’s constructed, built brick by brick. And you’ve got to show up to lay those bricks.

Click Here To Download John Chow’s New eBook, and Live The Dot Com Lifestyle!

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

Want to Schedule a Productive Workday? Follow These 4 Really Simple Strategies.

[ad_1]

If you're the type who stops to view every new email, one word: STOP.

July 5, 2018

7 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

There are some days in the life of an entrepreneur when it seems that there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything that needs doing done. OK, make that more than some.

Related: Simple Tools You Can Use to Manage Your Time and Increase Productivity

In light of this fact, the key to being more productive may be not to work harder, but to work smarter. A recent study from Vouchercloud showed that in the course of an eight-hour workday, the average worker studied was productive for only two hours and 53 minutes.

If this sounds like you, how can you make the most of your work time in order to be more productive?

While no one productivity hack is going to make your to-do list go away, there are steps you can take to ensure that you get the most out of your valuable time at work.

Here are four tips to help you schedule a productive workday.

Keep your to-do lists realistic and consistent.

Keeping a to-do list is one way to make sure you stay on track to achieve your goals over both the long and short term. But keeping the goals and tasks you assign yourself realistic and achievable is crucial.

Otherwise, you run the risk of turning your to-do list into “a daily failure list,” Laura Vanderkam, author of 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think, wrote on her blog. “You put stuff on there that you have no intention of doing.”

Consider keeping several to-do lists based on how long each task and goal will take to complete. For example, you might create separate lists for daily, weekly, yearly and life goals. Make sure to break down complex tasks into discrete and achievable steps. I personally covered the principle of achievable lists in an Entrepreneur column on Atul Gawande’s The Checklist Manifesto, and they apply here as well.

Related: To Boost Your Productivity 1,000 Percent, Practice This One Habit Daily for One Year

Whether you prefer to make your to-do lists on paper, or you use one of the many dedicated to-do list apps available, be consistent and keep all your lists in one place.

Determine priority tasks.

While it may be tempting to tackle the easiest items on your to-do list first and save the more time-consuming and demanding tasks for later, this strategy can quickly lead to procrastination. Instead, it's vital that you prioritize the tasks that will bring you the most benefit.

It can be helpful, moreover, to keep in mind the Pareto Principle, more commonly known as the 80/20 rule, when you decide which tasks to tackle first. The 80/20 rule posits that 80 percent of your results come from 20 percent of your work. Use this as a guiding principle to identify which tasks really belong at the top of your to-do list, and don’t let less important items get in the way.

Another effective technique for prioritizing your to-do list is the ABCDE method. Popularized by Brian Tracy in his book Eat That Frog, this method encourages you to categorize your to-do list items based on urgency, as follows:

• “A” signifies “very important” -- something you must do. Serious negative consequences will result if the task is not completed.
• “B” signifies “important” -- something you should do. This level of task is not as important as your A tasks; only minor negative consequences will result if it is not completed.
• “C” signifies tasks that are “nice to accomplish;” but not as vital as A or B tasks. There are no negative consequences for not completing this category of tasks.
• “D” signifies “delegate.” D tasks should be delegated to someone else. Once you’ve delegated, don’t forget to follow up to make sure these items are on track.
• “E” stands for “eliminate.” Non-essential tasks should be culled from your to-do list in order to free up your time to focus on the tasks that are higher in the hierarchy.

No matter what method you use to prioritize your tasks, try to focus on the most essential items first rather than simply ticking off less critical tasks because they’re easier to complete.

Don’t multitask: Monotask.

While many entrepreneurs equate the ability to multitask with success in the modern workplace, studies increasingly show that this thinking is misguided. Attempting to complete multiple disparate tasks at once often leads to none being executed as effectively as they would have been had undivided attention been given to each.

Earl  Miller, a neuroscience professor at MIT, has gone so far as to state that, “Multitasking is not humanly possible,” and that, “people are much more efficient if they monotask.” Miller's also said that focusing solely on one task fosters creative thinking, as the brain is free to “follow a logical path of associated thoughts and ideas” without distraction.

Culprits in this effort? Social media and email are two of the biggest  when it comes to productivity-killing distractions. If you can’t bring yourself to stop checking your Facebook or Twitter feed, consider using one of the many social media blocker tools, such as Stay Focusd for Chrome or (OFFTIME), which both allow you to set limits on your access to social media and other distracting sites.

If your workflow allows for it, consider allocating specific times of the day for reading and responding to email rather than pouncing on every email notification as it comes in.

Sprint to the finish.

Don’t beat yourself up if you're unable to focus on one task for hours at a time. It’s human nature to become distracted during periods of intense concentration and focus, according to the journal Science.

Rather than attempting to achieve superhuman focus for extended periods, consider breaking your work day into a series of “sprints,” followed by intentional breaks that you devote to rest or to indulging distractions.

The Pomodoro technique, pioneered by Francesco Cirillo in the early 1990s, advocates working for 25-minute periods of intense focus followed by five-minute breaks. After four 25-minute work periods, individually known as pomodoros, take a longer break of 20 minutes before beginning the cycle again.

The Pomodoro technique encourages short bursts of deep focus and helps build a positive habit of ignoring external distractions, to focus on a specific and important task.

If the Pomodoro technique isn’t for you, at the very minimum consider taking a 10- to 20-minute a break every 90 minutes. Tony Schwartz, author of The Way We Work Isn’t Working, has noted that science has shown this is the maximum amount of time the average person can concentrate on a given task without experiencing diminishing returns.

Final thoughts

Getting the most out of your workday doesn’t necessarily mean working longer hours. So, objectively evaluate the way you work, identify areas where you can see room for improvement, and take deliberate steps to optimize your efforts.  

Related: Simple Tools You Can Use to Manage Your Time and Increase Productivity

Utilizing to-do lists effectively, prioritizing your tasks, monotasking instead of multitasking and employing the use of “sprints” can all serve to help you get the most out of the hours you invest in your work.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

Launch Your Big Idea by Starting with Why

[ad_1]

Building a successful business is hard work. If you're not strongly rooted in why you're doing it, it's much simpler to quit or fail.

July 5, 2018

6 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

The following excerpt is from Scott Duffy’s book Breakthrough. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | IndieBound

Every business starts with an idea. It’s the thing that keeps you up late at night and gets you up early in the morning. Sometimes it’s never been done before. Other times it’s been done, but it can still be improved upon. Thinking big, recognizing that business ideas and break­throughs may be right under your feet, and taking risks are all part of turning dreaming into doing. That’s what will take you from sitting on the sidelines to launching a business and making your dreams come true.

As you’re searching for the business idea that best suits you, it's important to look for those “aha” moments, those pieces of the puzzle that have the power to create breakthroughs in your life and business. One of the keys to harnessing the power of a breakthrough is believing that anything is possible, even when it seems unfathomable.

A few years ago, I was in the Caribbean with the Virgin Group’s global leadership team and about 40 Virgin CEOs from around the world for “The Gathering,” as Richard Branson called it, to share information and grow from one another’s experiences. With night falling, we all climbed into small boats and shoved off from Necker Island, which had been Richard’s private retreat for about 20 years, heading toward the nearby island he had just purchased.

Unlike Necker Island, Moskito Island was no resort. It was completely deserted, and by the time we got there, the sky was pitch black. As we approached the island, no lights greeted us until we circled around to the opposite side, where we saw torches flickering on the lone strip of beach.

We went ashore and grabbed dinner at a small buffet. Looking for a place to sit and eat, I came across Richard and a group of Virgin executives eating and talking passionately about something Richard apparently wanted to buy.

I sat down next to Richard and asked him what he was interested in buying.

“The rain forest,” he said.

“Which one?” I asked.

“The Amazon,” he replied.  

Then I said what I suspected everyone else was thinking: “That’s impossible.”

Richard got a look in his eyes that I’d never seen there before. It said: How can you get in the way of possibility?

I’ve come to understand that this way of thinking is absolutely invaluable for any entrepreneur who wants to build a successful business. Not one of the successful people I know started with everything they needed, but they understood that if you have the right mindset, people, and resources, you can achieve virtually anything.

Back at Moskito Island, Branson responded to me by saying, “If you want to learn how to buy a rain forest, I’ll teach you how to do it.”

Always start with your “why.” Why are you doing this? Because building a successful business is hard work. And if you’re not strongly rooted in why you’re doing it, when times are tough, it’s too easy to quit.

All of us on the island knew Richard’s “why.” He wanted to stop the slashing and burning that was destroying the rain forest and protect the indigenous animals. So if we think like Branson, now that we know our “why,” the next question is: “How” are we going to do it?

“First of all,” Branson said back on Moskito Island, “Imagine you wanted to buy the rain forest. How would you do it?” In less than five minutes, Richard Branson made buying the rain forest sound easier than eating a bowl of soup. That’s part of the difference between business rock stars like Richard and everyone else. They’ve opened themselves up to true possibility. Richard helped me understand that if we have the right mindset and the right people, and are truly resourceful, given enough time there’s nothing that he—or, when I thought about it, any of us—can’t achieve.

But Richard is far from alone in setting lofty goals and doing something to accomplish them. There are dozens of entrepreneurs who’ve succeeded with revolutionary ideas that at first seemed so big as to be impossible for mere mortals. They saw openings, they came up with solutions, and they applied them. Sometimes the solutions seemed crazy, but the entrepreneurs didn’t let that stop them. They paid attention to those “aha” moments.

Indeed, if you look at the history of capitalism, you’ll see that while there are myriad ways to make a fortune, the real mega-fortunes are held by the entrepreneurs and innovators. These folks don’t just think outside the box; they don’t even recognize there was a box.

Many of the most successful entrepreneurs of our age achieved their success because they were the first to grasp the potential applications of new technology. Bill Gates became Bill Gates because the Mother’s Club at his school bought an early computer with the proceeds from a rummage sale. In the eighth grade, young Bill started writing code when virtually no one else his age even knew what a computer was. He saw this as an opportunity: If only he could make it easier for the average person to use one of these machines, they could be very useful. MS-DOS was born.

Many of the most successful entrepreneurs had breakthroughs that began as either “crazy ideas” or as improvements on what someone else had tried. They did it first, or they did it better. In fact, many of these business legends simply came up with a better way to do what was already being done.  

So the next time someone throws out a wacky idea—like, say, printing books on a press, using electricity to light a house, broadcasting radio waves, watching moving pictures on a TV, surfing the internet, developing commercial spaceflight, or buying a rain forest—know that there’s someone out there who thinks with no limitations, is assembling the right resources, and is intent upon making his or her dream come true. That person might even be you.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

Amazon Reportedly Printing a Holiday Toy Guide! 3 Things to Know Today.

[ad_1]

Stay in the know in 60 seconds.

July 5, 2018

1 min read

1. With Toys 'R' Us out of business, Amazon is apparently looking to fill the void. The ecommerce giant reportedly plans to publish a holiday toy guide. That should make browsing its seemingly limitless options a lot easier.
2. Yelp can not be forced to remove negative reviews from its site, the California Supreme Court has ruled. The court's 4-3 majority ruled federal law protects internet companies from liability for statements written by others.
3. In 2011, the United States Postal Service used a photo of the commissioned replica Statue of Liberty located at Las Vegas’s New York-New York Resort & Casino on a stamp. Now, the Postal Service has been ordered to pay the sculptor $3.5 million for its accidental copyright infringement. 

Watch the previous 3 Things to Know video: Turn Fourth of July Traffic Jams Into a Your Own Personal Business Class

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

Desktop, Mobile, or Voice? (D) All of the Above - Whiteboard Friday

http://d2v4zi8pl64nxt.cloudfront.net/desktop-mobile-voice/5b3e945f90da12.72574379.jpg [ad_1]

We're facing more and more complexity in our everyday work, and the answers to our questions are about as clear as mud. Especially in the wake of the mobile-first index, we're left wondering where to focus our optimization efforts. Is desktop the most important? Is mobile? What about the voice phenomenon sweeping the tech world?

As with most things, the most important factor is to consider your audience. People aren't siloed to a single device — your optimization strategy shouldn't be, either. In today's Whiteboard Friday, Dr. Pete soothes our fears about a multi-platform world and highlights the necessity of optimizing for a journey rather than a touchpoint.

Click on the whiteboard image above to open a high-resolution version in a new tab!

Video Transcription

Hey, everybody. It's Dr. Pete here from Moz. I am the Marketing Scientist here, and I flew in from Chicago just for you fine people to talk about something that I think is worrying us a little bit, especially with the rollout of the mobile index recently, and that is the question of: Should we be optimizing for desktop, for mobile, or for voice? I think the answer is (d) All of the above. I know that might sound a little scary, and you're wondering how you do any of these. So I want to talk to you about some of what's going on, some of our misconceptions around mobile and voice, and some of the ways that maybe this is a little easier than you think, at least to get started.

The mistakes we make

So, first of all, I think we make a couple of mistakes. When we're talking about mobile for the last few years, we tend to go in and we look at our analytics and we do this. These are made up. The green numbers are made up or the blue ones. We say, "Okay, about 90% of my traffic is coming from desktop, about 10% is coming from mobile, and nothing is coming from voice. So I'm just going to keep focusing on desktop and not worry about these other two experiences, and I'll be fine." There are two problems with this:

Self-fulfilling prophecy

One is that these numbers are kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy. They might not be coming to your mobile site. You might not be getting those mobile visitors because your mobile experience is terrible. People come to it and it's lousy, and they don't come back. In the case of voice, we might just not be getting that data yet. We have very little data. So this isn't telling us anything. All this may be telling us is that we're doing a really bad job on mobile and people have given up. We've seen that with Moz in the past. We didn't adopt to mobile as fast as maybe we should have. We saw that in the numbers, and we argued about it because we said, "You know what? This doesn't really tell us what the opportunity is or what our customers or users want. It's just telling us what we're doing well or badly right now, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy."

Audiences

The other mistake I think we make is the idea that these are three separate audiences. There are people who come to our site on desktop, people who come to our site on mobile, people who come to our site on voice, and these are three distinct groups of people. I think that's incredibly wrong, and that leads to some very bad ideas and some bad tactical decisions and some bad choices.

So I want to share a couple of stats. There was a study Google did called The Multiscreen World, and this was almost six years ago, 2012. They found six years ago that 65% of searchers started a search on their smartphones. Two-thirds of searchers started on smartphones six years ago. Sixty percent of those searches were continued on a desktop or laptop. Again, this has been six years, so we know the adoption rate of mobile has increased. So these are not people who only use desktop or who only use mobile. These are people on a journey of search that move between devices, and I think in the real world it looks more something like this right now.

Another stat from the series was that 88% of people said that they used their smartphone and their TV at the same time. This isn't shocking to you. You sit in front of the TV with your phone and you sit in front of the TV with your laptop. You might sit in front of the TV with a smartwatch. These devices are being used at the same time, and we're doing more searches and we're using more devices. So one of these things isn't replacing the other.

The cross-device journey

So a journey could look something like this. You're watching TV. You see an ad and you hear about something. You see a video you like. You go to your phone while you're watching it, and you do a search on that to get more information. Then later on, you go to your laptop and you do a bit of research, and you want that bigger screen to see what's going on. Then at the office the next day, you're like, "Oh, I'll pull up that bookmark. I wanted to check something on my desktop where I have more bandwidth or something." You're like, "Oh, maybe I better not buy that at work. I don't want to get in trouble. So I'm going to home and go back to my laptop and make that purchase." So this purchase and this transaction, this is one visitor on this chain, and I think we do this a lot right now, and that's only going to increase, where we operate between devices and this journey happens across devices.

So the challenge I would make to you is if you're looking at this and you're saying, "Only so many percent of our users are on mobile. Our mobile experience doesn't matter that much. It's not that important. We can just live with the desktop people. That's enough. We'll make enough money." If they're really on this journey and they're not segmented like this, and this chain, you break it, what happens? You lose that person completely, and that was a person who also used desktop. So that person might be someone who you bucketed in your 90%, but they never really got to the device of choice and they never got to the transaction, because by having a lousy mobile experience, you've broken the chain. So I want you to be aware of that, that this is the cross-device journey and not these segmented ideas.

Future touchpoints

This is going to get worse. This is going to get scarier for us. So look at the future. We're going to be sitting in our car and we're going to be listening — I still listen to CDs in the car, I know it's kind of sad — but you're going to be listening to satellite radio or your Wi-Fi or whatever you have coming in, and let's say you hear a podcast or you hear an author and you go, "Oh, that person sounds interesting. I want to learn more about them." You tell your smartwatch, "Save this search. Tell me something about this author. Give me their books." Then you go home and you go on Google Home and you pull up that search, and it says, "Oh, you know what? I've got a video. I can't play that because obviously I'm a voice search device, but I can send that to Chromecast on your TV." So you send that to your TV, and you watch that. While you're watching the TV, you've got your phone out and you're saying, "Oh, I'd kind of like to buy that." You go to Amazon and you make that transaction.

So it took this entire chain of devices. Again now, what about the voice part of this chain? That might not seem important to you right now, but if you break the chain there, this whole transaction is gone. So I think the danger is by neglecting pieces of this and not seeing that this is a journey that happens across devices, we're potentially putting ourselves at much higher risk than we think.

On the plus side

I also want to look at sort of the positive side of this. All of these devices are touchpoints in the journey, and they give us credibility. We found something interesting at Moz a few years ago, which was that our sale as a SaaS product on average took about three touchpoints. People didn't just hit the Moz homepage, do a free trial, and then buy it. They might see a Whiteboard Friday. They might read our Beginner's Guide. They might go to the blog. They might participate in the community. If they hit us with three touchpoints, they were much more likely to convert.

So I think the great thing about this journey is that if you're on all these touchpoints, even though to you that might seem like one search, it lends you credibility. You were there when they ran the search on that device. You were there when they tried to repeat that search on voice. The information was in that video. You're there on that mobile search. You're there on that desktop search. The more times they see you in that chain, the more that you seem like a credible source. So I think this can actually be good for us.

The SEO challenge

So I think the challenge is, "Well, I can't go out and hire a voice team and a mobile team and do a design for all of these things. I don't want to build a voice app. I don't have the budget. I don't have the buy-in." That's fine.
One thing I think is really great right now and that we're encouraging people to experiment with, we've talked a lot about featured snippets. We've talked about these answer boxes that give you an organic result. One of the things Google is trying to do with this is they realize that they need to use their same core engine, their same core competency across all devices. So the engine that powers search, they want that to run on a TV. They want that to run on a laptop, on a desktop, on a phone, on a watch, on Goggle Home. They don't want to write algorithms for all of these things.

So Google thinks of their entire world in terms of cards. You may not see that on desktop, but everything on desktop is a card. This answer box is a card. That's more obvious. It's got that outline. Every organic result, every ad, every knowledge panel, every news story is a card. What that allows Google to do, and will allow them to do going forward, is to mix and match and put as many pieces of information as it makes sense for any given device. So for desktop, that might be a whole bunch. For mobile, that's going to be a vertical column. It might be less. But for a watch or a Google Glass, or whatever comes after that, or voice, you're probably only going to get one card.

But one great thing right now, from an SEO perspective, is these featured snippets, these questions and answers, they fit on that big screen. We call it result number zero on desktop because you've got that box, and you've got a bunch of stuff underneath it. But that box is very prominent. On mobile, that same question and answer take up a lot more screen space. So they're still a SERP, but that's very dominant, and then there's some stuff underneath. On voice, that same question and answer pairing is all you get, and we're seeing that a lot of the answers on voice, unless they're specialty like recipes or weather or things like that, have this question and answer format, and those are also being driven by featured snippets.

So the good news I think, and will hopefully stay good news going forward, is that because Google wants all these devices to run off that same core engine, the things you do to rank well for desktop and to be useful for desktop users are also going to help you rank on mobile. They're going to help you rank on voice, and they're going to help you rank across all these devices. So I want you to be aware of this. I want you to try and not to break that chain. But I think the things we're already good at will actually help us going forward in the future, and I'd highly encourage you to experiment with featured snippets to see how questions and answers appear on mobile and to see how they appear on Google Home, and to know that there's going to be an evolution where all of these devices benefit somewhat from the kind of optimization techniques that we're already good at hopefully.

Encourage the journey chain

So I also want to say that when you optimize for answers, the best answers leave searchers wanting more. So what you want to do is actually encourage this chain, encourage people to do more research, give them rich content, give them the kinds of things that draw them back to your site, that build credibility, because this chain is actually good news for us in a way. This can help us make a purchase. If we're credible on these devices, if we have a decent mobile experience, if we come up on voice, that's going to help us really kind of build our brand and be a positive thing for us if we work on it.

So I'd like you to tell me, what are your fears right now? I think we're a little scared of the mobile index. What are you worried about with voice? What are you worried about with IoT? Are you concerned that we're going to have to rank on our refrigerators, and what does that mean? So it's getting into science fiction territory, but I'd love to talk about it more. I will see you in the comment section.

Video transcription by Speechpad.com

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

How to Implement Diversity Training the Right Way

[ad_1]

Employ a strengths-based approach to diversity to improve your company as a whole.

July 5, 2018

7 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Learning to effectively interact with people who may be different (ethnically, culturally, etc.) from you and your team members is essential for any startup.

This concept isn't particularly new, but the risks of approaching diversity training the wrong way are especially clear today.

In April, Starbucks was in the spotlight after two African American men were arrested inside one of its Philadelphia stores. A Starbucks employee called the police on the men after they were told they couldn't use the restroom without purchasing an item (they were waiting for a third before doing that).

The incident became a video on Twitter that has since accumulated more than 11 million views. A storm of reaction followed, in which both the employee and the corporation were called out for racial discrimination and profiling.

After issuing an apology, Starbucks announced an "anti-bias" initiative. The first action took place the afternoon of May 29, when the coffee chain shut down more than 8,000 U.S. locations to focus on anti-discrimination training. The gesture was nice enough but unlikely to make a true difference: Implicit bias runs deep, and a handful of hours devoted to training hardly scratches the surface of the issue.

Related: Achieving Diversity Demands Less Talk and More Action. And Good Intentions Alone Won’t Do It.

Defensiveness instead of diversity

In a Time magazine opinion piece, Joanne Lipman --  former chief content officer of Gannett and former editor-in-chief of USA Today -- explained that men often leave diversity training infuriated, and defensive white women and minorities find themselves in worse positions than before.

That statement echoes a 2016 study by Frank Dobbin, professor of sociology at Harvard University, and Alexandra Kalev, professor of sociology at Tel Aviv University. In the study, the researchers tracked the hiring and promotion practices of 830 companies over the course of 30 years.

They found that when managers are forced to go through diversity training, they hire fewer women and minorities. This outcome most likely occurs because the action of trying to be unbiased can actually result in unintended prejudice.

Under stress, our brains are wired to do the opposite of what we want them to do. When people are prejudiced, this physical reaction often reflects an underlying anxiety about the "other" group and increases amygdala activity in the brain.

This activity occurs because the amygdala processes anxiety and fear, and unfamiliar people and events activate this brain region, which often leads to some form of prejudice as a defense.

Related: 6 Simple Actions Startups Can Take to Foster Diversity

Look to the brain for more effective diversity training.

Emotional approaches to diversity training are likely less effective than psychological and brain-science perspectives. With that in mind, here are several concrete steps to improve your company's diversity training:

1. Avoid shaming, bullying and threats. As a leader, emphasize the opportunity to learn and grow in diversity. Many diversity program leaders implicitly reprimand aggressors or attempt to shame them into feeling sympathy for minority groups. This will likely only make them more aggressive.

When people are threatened, they become more implicitly biased, and that can deter any diversity-training goals. For example, I recently spoke to an employee who said that she'd received so much diversity training that she now resented people of color. This is obviously the worst-case scenario for inclusivity, but it's a good example of how our brains can turn information into prejudice and prejudice into threats.

Combat this outcome by eliminating threatening language and rules in your diversity training. For example, "no tolerance” approaches should be avoided or reworded. After all, the goal of diversity training is to inspire people to respect and cherish a new norm, not be threatened into compliance.

2. Lean on unconscious bias training. One way to avoid shaming is to focus on unconscious bias training. Brian Welle, director of people analytics at Google, implemented this type of training by introducing employees to the fact that we are all biased -- period.

Consequently, there is an expectation that the brain will always come up with ways to categorize people and form stereotypes. However, with awareness, consciousness and support, you can help employees recognize their biases.

These trainings are popular because, given their basis in neurology, they take some of the pressure and blame off the employees in the room. They also put people in a forward-thinking mindset that allows them to feel more in control of their reactions to others. Knowing this is, of course, is not enough. You must be prepared to examine and act on any poor outcomes, as well.

So, first, educate people that bias is unconscious. Then, when working with a team, tell each member that even though bias is unconscious, everyone is responsible to point it out when it occurs. This will create a culture of tolerance and change rather than one of accusation and fear.

3. Don't obsess about "diversity." People who experience workplace prejudice don't usually look for emotional handouts. Whether you are a woman, person of color, immigrant, introvert or all of the above, you want people to give you a real chance rather than feel sorry for you or be irrationally afraid of you.

A Rycroft-Malone study found that collaboration works best if it is authentic and flexible and if there is identity diffusion rather than an emphasis on identity. To put it simply, overemphasizing diversity in the workplace doesn't foster better teamwork or acceptance.

When designing diversity training programs, ask yourself whether your perspectives on generosity and focus on pointing out the diverse people in your company are strategic or natural.

Overdoing this kind of recognition is an easy trap to fall into, but you're not doing employees any favors. Tone down any efforts that point out that someone is different, and instead make sure to empower people for their strengths and values. Emphasize how different perspectives can make your team or company stronger -- don't focus on categories.

4. Take a developmental and exploratory approach to diversity. When designing programs on diversity, be able to understand and explain the brain's instinctual responses to members of groups as well as to personal threats.

One reason diversity programs fail is that they take a politically correct stance rather than examine the specifics associated with them. If someone has a view that's different from yours, listen to him or her and talk about it rather than immediately resort to judgment. Try to understand this person's perspective, and then talk about how you could achieve your shared objectives despite these differences.

In 2017, organizational behavior professor Diether Gebert described one reason tolerance may be a neglected dimension in diversity training.

He explained why diversity training that emphasizes "equal opportunities" or "integrating minorities" doesn't work. His research found that individuals should be prone to acknowledging the more complex aspects of diversity rather than react to its absence; only then can real learning occur.

You can embrace this exploratory, developmental approach by being mindful of the tone and messages your company uses in internal communications. When sending out memos, don't rely on stock phrases that utilize "all or nothing" policies.

Instead, emphasize growing together, trying to understand different points of view and setting up meetings to explore diverse perspectives. And always acknowledge that some biases can't change, but you can still learn to work together.

Related: Why It’s Still So Difficult to Hire a Diverse Team

Unleashing shame, guilt, rage and intolerance within your diversity training will only help your company continue to lose ground. Rather, seek to emphasize the opportunity, tolerance, true generosity and pride inherent in the varying perspectives, viewpoints and people on your team. By doing so, you will extend a strengths-based approach to better your company's inclusion as a whole.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

10 Fears Keeping You From Achieving the Career of Your Dreams

[ad_1]

What fears are holding you back from achieving the career of your dreams? The best first step in moving past fear is to name your fear and confront it.

July 5, 2018

6 min read

This story originally appeared on Ellevate

Several years ago, I worked with a very talented media professional who wanted a career change. But she had a senior role and bristled at starting over again. She was the breadwinner for her household and worried about imposing on her family. She was already overworked at her job and couldn’t fathom the additional work required to bring about significant change. Frankly, she worried that the change she thought she wanted and needed might turn out to be worse than where she was. So we worked together on a plan to get going, but she never implemented it. 

Related: 6 Tips for Building a Strong Support Network from Unlikely Sources

Her story is actually pretty common with aspiring career changers I’ve met who dream big but don’t execute. A lot of what holds people back is fear. The media client above had fears of starting over, of disappointing her family, of the struggles ahead and possibly regretting the change. 

What fears are holding you back from achieving the career of your dreams? The best first step in moving past fear is to name your fear and confront it. Are one of these 10 fears keeping you from achieving the career of your dreams?

Fear of failure

You take the steps toward the career of your dreams, and you fail at it -- your startup goes under, you can’t get hired in the new field, or you do get hired but you’re not good at your new gig or you don’t like it as much as you thought you would. If you try, you might fail, so you’re stuck at the point of not trying.

Fear of loss

If you do go after the career of your dreams and it doesn’t work out, now you’ve lost your other job. You’ve lost all this time and effort making an enormous change with nothing to show for it. You probably have lost money, too -- hard-earned dollars spent on classes, conferences, networking events. You might even still owe money -- for school, for your startup loan. You’ve also lost the credibility you built up in your earlier career. How much are you willing to lose?

Fear of embarrassment

A big career change won’t go unnoticed. Even if you’re just in the beginning stages, your friends and family might worry for you. They might think you’re having a crisis (mid-life, quarter-life) or going through a phase. You might look foolish, as you make your trials and errors at achieving the career of your dreams.

Fear of disappointment

It’s not just what people will think, but some people depend on you, and you can’t let them down. What if your career change means a pay cut and then you can’t support your household? In addition to disappointing others, you might also disappoint yourself. Who wants to be that person who can’t get it together?

Fear of the unknown

Maybe these fears already mentioned you don’t quite match what you’re feeling, and that’s the problem -- you don’t know what it is, but some unknown thing scares you. Or you want to achieve the career of your dreams, but you don’t know where to start, and that unknown first step scares you.

Related: 5 Keys to Making True Connections

Fear of struggle

Maybe you do know where to start, but you know you’re going to need some new skills, additional expertise, a significant stretch of time where you’ll be juggling the current job you hate with the changes you’re trying to make. This is going to be a lot of work for an uncertain outcome, and doesn’t it make sense just to stay where you are and skip the struggle?

Fear of change

You don’t fear hard work, but you do like your routines. You like knowing what your typical day, week and month look like. When you make a career change, you change your activities, your schedule, your work environment, your colleagues, your boss, your compensation, your lifestyle, your credibility -- that’s a lot of change.

Fear of starting over

When you make a career change, you change your career credibility. You’re a beginner in what you’re doing now. Your startup is new and doesn’t have a reputation. You haven’t been in this industry or line of work for long, so you are not the expert. Your colleagues see you as the newbie. Do you really want to start over and rebuild your credibility all over again?

Fear of not being enough

Can you start over and ever build up as much success as you had before? Are you too old to learn something new or too young to be taken seriously? Are you missing a degree or over-educated and wasting the ones you have? Are you too unskilled to get hired or too over-qualified to be given a shot? Much is required in making a career change, so there is a lot of fear around falling short.

Fear of regret

Will you achieve the career of your dreams and find out it wasn’t what you thought it would be? What if you regret the hard work, the money spent, the emotional upheaval, the imposition on the people you care about? What if the dream isn’t worth it?

Use the above list to clarify and name your fear or fears. Play out the worst-case scenario for each one so you feel the fear and live with it, even just for a few minutes. Get to know your fear, and get comfortable with it emotionally.

As you learn more about your fear, see if you can take steps to minimize or eliminate any tangible downsides. For example, if you fear a financial loss, build a savings fund specifically earmarked for your dream.

Related: 3 Keys to Future-Proofing Your Business

Finally, find a motivation bigger than the fear. I’ve made multiple career changes -- from arts to business, from employee to entrepreneur, from big company to startup. I used fear to quell my other fears! I looked at the fear of regret, in my case regret of not making a change, and I used that as my motivation past the other fears. You might use a compelling vision or a powerful why as your motivation. Find something that encourages you to move forward more than the fear keeps you staying behind. 

(By Caroline Ceniza-Levine. Ceniza-Levine is a career and business expert who has launched several companies. Her latest venture is CostaRicaFIRE.com.)

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »

How I Used My Wheelchair as Leverage to Become an International Speaker

[ad_1]

Sometimes what you think is holding you back is actually an incredible asset.

July 5, 2018

6 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

When I was a young boy, a doctor told my mother and I that because I was born with spinal muscular atrophy (a condition that weakens the muscles), I would end up in a wheelchair by the age of 15. I didn't want to accept it, let alone believe that this was actually happening to me. While I didn't end up in a wheelchair until I was 22 years old, at that point I thought my life was over. As my muscles began to fade away, so did my hopes and dreams. I thought I would never be capable of doing anything great or significant in my lifetime. I settled for the average lifestyle, barely making it.

Related: How I Escaped Domestic Violence, Built a Seven-Figure Empire, and Found Love Along the Way

It wasn't until I changed the story I was telling myself that things started to change in my favor. I remember telling myself, There has to be more to life than just living and dying in this wheelchair. I searched deep within to figure out what I was good at doing and what abilities I had that I could use to excel and become successful at.

What makes you different? Use that uniqueness as leverage.

Finding your purpose in life is what most people spend a lifetime searching for, asking the question, "What on earth am I doing here?" I've asked myself that question several times. It took me several years, but I finally learned how to turn my pain into my purpose, my purpose into my platform and my platform into a profit.

I used to think this wheelchair was my weakness and that I would automatically be at a disadvantage in life. At first, I was insecure and embarrassed to step outside of my comfort zone due to the fear of being stared at, judged and ridiculed by the world. But, then I thought, They're going to stare and judge me whether I'm in a wheelchair or not, so I might as well make it worth their while. I figured, I don't have the ability to stand anymore, but I do have the ability to use my voice, and I will use that to stand up for myself.

You may not be in a wheelchair, but I know you have something different that you can use as leverage.

Related: 4 Things My Battle With Depression Taught Me About Entrepreneurship

Be willing to step outside of your comfort zone and take action.

From that moment on, I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I wanted to help people use their minds to become mental beasts and succeed in life. I wanted to help others learn to dominate whatever struggles they had and overcome them. I wanted to become a speaker, so I spent months studying the greats, taking notes and practicing my craft. I was preparing myself so when the opportunity came along I would be ready to dominate it and step into my greatness. A wise man once said that if you stay ready, you never have to get ready.

In December 2015, I saw a Facebook ad for free tickets to see the legendary motivational speaker Les Brown. I really had to take a leap of faith because even though the event was free, I would have to take the day off of work unpaid. I couldn't really afford to do that, but I did it anyway. I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. There was a long line to meet him, so I pushed my way through the crowd until he noticed me. I asked if I could give him my speaker kit and he said yes. I was prepared, I was hungry and I was ready to work with him. Brown called me the very next day and we've been partnering ever since. Who would've imagined that the very thing I thought was a weakness would actually turn into a strength that I could use to win in life. In November 2016, less than a year later, I was speaking on the same stage with Brown (see the photo above).

Today, I am an author, mental toughness expert and speaker taking a message of hope to millions of people and organizations around the world. What steps are you taking to increase the impact on your customers/clients that's outside of your comfort zone?

Related: How a Near-Death Experience Inspired This Entrepreneur to Change Her Career and Plug Into Her Purpose

You don't have many resources? Use what you have right now and make it work until you're able to level up.

Many people spend unnecessary amounts of time focusing on the things they can't do and on the things they don't have. You must learn how to reverse that type of mindset into a positive one by focusing on the things you can do and the things that you have right now. When I first started in the speaking business I didn't have much, but I also didn't let that stop me, either. I used what I did have, and I made it work until I was able to level up.

Whatever you think may be a struggle, figure out a way to leverage it to turn things around.

Being in a wheelchair is one of those things that attracts people's curiosity. The fact that I don't look "sick" gives people an itch to wonder what happened to me. And I'm OK with that because now it sparks a conversation, which often leads to a speaking engagement. I definitely use my wheelchair to my advantage every chance I get because it gives me the opportunity to get in front of the right people.

I remember getting an invitation to a huge business conference that real estate mogul Grant Cardone was having called the 10X Growth Con. Out of 2,800 people in attendance, there were only two people in wheelchairs, and I was one of them. I definitely stood out among the crowd. I made my way into the VIP area to meet Cardone and I wasn't even a VIP, again using my wheelchair as leverage. As a result, I met some of the world's top entrepreneurs and have spoken for their multimillion-dollar companies!

Do whatever it takes to get out in front of everyone else. https://t.co/Oi2h0r1z4x #10XGrowthCon #10X #Success pic.twitter.com/668HaM5mIs

— Grant Cardone (@GrantCardone) June 24, 2018

I was honored when Grant took notice of my hustle and posted this picture of him and me on his Twitter account that says, "Do whatever it takes to get out in front of everyone else." I've held on to that advice ever since to become a successful entrepreneur, and I would encourage you to do the same.

[ad_2]

Read_more MMO mastermind

Read More »