Having A Hard Time Staying Motivated

When I taught special education, the IEP team would come up with a set of criteria to consider the goal mastered.

That criteria usually sounded like this.

“Between now and July 30th, Ceri will, when given change of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters be able to count the change correctly up to one dollar with 90% accuracy in three out of four attempts.”

If you’re having a hard time staying motivated toward a goal, there’s a good chance I know what you’re NOT DOING!

Keep reading, this is IMPORTANT!!

Let’s break down what I’ve learned about goal setting from my time as a special education teacher to understand what you’re NOT DOING!
  • Make the criteria very specific. I didn’t just say count change. I said, “When given a change of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters… count the change correctly up to one dollar.” Sometimes the goal would be set to count only pennies and nickels and up to 50 cents. Even the goal of learning to count change needs to be specific to know what has been mastered and when.
  • Determine ahead of time what mastery will be. Because we are human, there are going to be mistakes, That’s why I wrote goals that said, “with 90% accuracy in three out of four attempts.” With money, I often set the criteria for 100% accuracy in 3 out of 4 attempts, but things like answering reading comprehension questions might have been 80% accuracy in 4 out of 4 attempts. This means the criteria for mastering reading comprehension at a specific grade level is consistently scoring 80% over time (4 out of 4 attempts).
  • Set the time frame for what you will learn (do) and when you will learn (do) it. “Between now and July 30th” Ceri will…”

And here’s the TRICK to the time frame.

Let the time frame be your guide, be your motivator, something to help you know if you’re making progress, not the final word or deflator.

If a child had not mastered the goal by the time set, we didn’t give up on or abandon the goal. We kept working on it until it was mastered. If a child had not mastered the goal in a certain time frame, progress was still made. The child had learned things to help them, and if they keep working at it, eventually they become the master.

Let the time frame keep you focused, but stay focused on the PROGRESS, not the time frame!

I don’t teach you this to make goal-setting feel EVEN MORE complicated.

I tell you this to help you feel more CONFIDENT and motivated in your goals.

It’s so helpful to know exactly what you need to do and how often, in what amount of time, and with what accuracy to master a goal.

We’d master and stay motivated to many more goals if we took the time to make them very specific and create room for being human.

What if your goals sounded more like this?

Between now and March 30, 2024, I will post 3 out of 7 days on Instagram with 90% accuracy.

That means you shoot to post 3 times each week and over the time set (between now and March 30,) you have 10% wiggle room for your humanness.

Whatever your goals sound like, take a look at them and ask…

Is the criteria of what you will do very specific? Not just close “more” consults or post “more” on social media.

Have you determined what you will consider mastery? 100%, 80% 3 out of 4 times… it’s up to you, but know ahead of time what it will be.

Have you set a time frame for when you will reach this goal and allow that time frame to help you stay on track towards your learning/progress, rather than defeat you?

Strengthen These Two Things

Are you feeling overwhelmed and stuck juggling the demands of motherhood and your burning desire to grow your successful business?

You’re not alone.

Every successful woman you admire once stood where you are now.

All the entrepreneurs I work with faced this same challenge at one point because I specialize in helping women like you strengthen the two most crucial aspects needed to create the success and impact you desire without sacrificing motherhood or the values you hold dear.

What do you need to strengthen?

NUMBER ONE

Believe in Your Success: believe that success is possible for you with the time and abilities that you have. God didn’t place a desire on your heart without blessing you with the skills and capabilities to make it happen.

Think of that ambitious woman you know who has achieved the balance you seek. She’s not just a figment of imagination but a real testament that with the right mindset and strengthened self-belief you can do it too.
Let her story inspire you to believe in your success, too.

NUMBER TWO

Mastering Time Management: Knowing how to use your time effectively is pivotal. Knowing WHAT to spend your time is just as pivotal!
I help women use their time to support the actions they must take to create the success they desire.

This is different for everyone, and there’s no one-size-fits-all to YOUR TIME MANAGEMENT!

Imagine if you had a clear plan aligned perfectly with your goals each day, leaving you feeling accomplished and closer to your dreams.

I know what you are thinking,

“But I have kids, and so many unexpected things pop up; how can I have a clear plan?”

Don’t worry, I coach on strategies to help you prioritize tasks, eliminate time-wasters, have time for the unexpected, and ensure that every action you take moves you closer to success.

Every successful woman you admire once stood where you are now.

They had doubts, fears, and numerous responsibilities, but they strengthened their belief and applied effective strategies to use their time and their mind to support their dreams.

I’ve witnessed transformation after transformation of women like you who create more success in less time while strengthening their motherhood and relationships.

Clutter Is Not Just Physical Stuff

Do you know that closet (or drawer) that you’ve been putting off cleaning out?

What’s even in there?

How much clutter is in that space that is

  • literally junk
  • stuff that should have already been throw away
  • things have no purpose
  • junk that hides the good things
  • crap you will never miss?

Our brains get like that closet too.

There’s stuff in our brains we don’t even know is in there too! Thoughts we think are helping us but are of little value. Old ideas just take up space, keeping us mentally scattered and physically exhausted.

If there was a way to clean out your brain clutter,
  • clear the thoughts that keep you stuck & Afraid
  • remove the lies you think about yourself
  • the bad habits you keep repeating
  • the junk thoughts that make you think you’re not capable

Would you want to hire that person to clean out your brain?
I am that person.

When we don’t have enough time or the success we want, that’s a sign that our brain is cluttered with a bunch of stuff we should throw away, with junk that hides the truth and good stuff.

Once your brain is decluttered, you will have more time to tackle the physical clutter and streamline your home and business processes to help you reach the results you desire in both.

Do you know how good it feels to clean out that closet and see the huge trash bag leave your home??

That’s the same feeling you get when you let a coach help you clear your brain clutter.
It’s liberating.
It’s powerful.
It’s the only way to make room for the good stuff!

Goal Setting Questions

As we dive into the new year, many of the ambitious women I work with are thinking about setting and achieving new goals!

What I’ve noticed working with women entrepreneurs is that it’s very easy to complicate the process with really, good intentions.

Elaborate plans, several action steps, and detailed strategies don’t often empower us as we hope but rather leave us overwhelmed and, ultimately, farther from our goal.

Let’s simplify 2024!

Instead of getting bogged down with an intricate plan that becomes more daunting than the goal itself, let’s take a step back.

ONE: Set your goal – be clear and concise, and know the result you will create when you achieve that goal.

TWO: Uncomplicate your goal-setting process by answering just two transformative questions:

1. What is one simple thing I can start doing to help me achieve my goal? 

This question prompts action. It encourages you to identify new habits, skills, or activities that propel you forward. It’s about adding something to your daily routine that aligns directly with your desired results.

2. What is one simple thing I can I stop doing to help me reach my goal? 

Equally important, this question is about elimination. It’s recognizing the obstacles or time-wasters in your life that hinder progress. Many think goals are about doing more but doing less of the time-wasters that hinder progress might be even more important.

By focusing on these two questions, you streamline the result-creation process. You make goal setting a simple and responsive experience, adjusting as you learn what works best for you.

This approach is adaptable to any personal, professional goal, or something in between. So, as you ponder your 2024 goals, keep these questions in mind and enjoy reaching your goals more simply!

Here’s to setting goals that inspire and motivate, not overwhelm.

Value Your Time

When working with women who feel like
  • they don’t have enough time
  • are always too busy and overwhelmed
  • feeling behind and failing
  • frustrated with the results they aren’t getting,

they tell me the reason why is about  “all the wrong things” they are doing with their time. ⁠

But that’s not why they are feeling overwhelmed!

Instead of wasting YOUR time blaming yourself for how you’re spending your time, I want to help you do something more effective with your time (and your thoughts about yourself)!

Here’s how!

Define your top 5 priorities and begin to spend your time doing things that complement them rather than compete with them. ⁠

That’s it!  Use your time (more often) in the way you genuinely value!  

⁠

Schedule Results, Not Tasks

If you’re going to bed each night feeling like you didn’t get “enough” done even though you worked tirelessly; try this one tip to get more done and FEEL more accomplished each day.

Change the way you schedule your tasks!

Does your schedule look something like this? ⁠

  1. Get the house cleaned⁠
  2. Work on my business ⁠
  3. Make phone calls⁠
  4. Finish Christmas ⁠
Want to get more done, feel organized, and FEEL MORE ACCOMPLISHED at the end of each day? Write down the results you want, not the task in its entirety!  ⁠

GO FROM THAT TO THIS!  

  1. Not get the house cleaned: sweep and mop the kitchen and vacuum the downstairs⁠.  Write the exact things you’re going to do.  
  2. Not working on my business: writing three emails, coaching two private clients, and finishing proofreading the webinar series emails.  Knowing what you’re going to do will help keep you more focused.  ⁠
  3. Not make phone calls: call Mom and ask about the Christmas party, change ortho appointment, and call the pharmacy to renew meds. Nothing motivates you to want to do more than getting to check, check, check off all those boxes.   ⁠
  4. Not finish Christmas: put all the bows on the Christmas presents, place them under the tree, and create the menu for Christmas dinner. Know what you’re aiming for so you can determine if you hit your targets. 

There’s nothing like having a list of results and getting them done to help you feel more accomplished at the end of each day, stay motivated, 

AND GET MORE DONE!

When you say clean the house, and at the end of the day, it’s not clean because of children and your family living in it, you’re going to feel defeated.

When you say work on your business, but your business work options never end, you never feel like you did “enough” that day.

Scheduling your time for the results, not the tasks is how you create that feeling at the end of each day that you did, in fact, accomplish what you set out to do!  

Accomplishing more of what you DEFINED keeps you motivated to keep at it!  

First Half

Disclaimer: Even if you’re not a runner or have zero interest in running EVER, this email is still very much for you!

This week, I was working with a client who was hesitant about her goal, her first 5K.

I could tell she had “expectations” for how her experience “should” look.

Did she think…

  • training had to look a certain way, or it wasn’t “good enough?”
  • she had to get a specific time for her first race, or it wasn’t worth telling anyone about?
  • that by signing up, it meant she had to RUN the entire thing?
Completing my first half marathon weighing over 220 pounds, I had a lot to share with her, and it might be helpful for you too! 

As you read, consider your next goal, business project/idea, or motherhood challenge you want to go after. 

Do you have it in mind? If not, think about it! 

Do you think it has to look a certain way to “count?”

When I went to pick up my race packet and received my 

t-shirt, I was made aware that I was the only size XL shirt on the roster, and that was for both the men’s and women’s races. I certainly didn’t look (or weigh) the way most 1/2 marathon runners look, but does that negate my success?

Do you think, if it’s not done by a specific time it’s any less of an accomplishment?

I had one main goal for my first race.

Finish the Race

When we think a goal, project, or challenge has to be completed/solved/obtained by a particular time, that “made-up time frame” often stops us from even starting. 

Ditch the time frame and dedicate yourself to moving forward a little bit more each day. 

Do you think you have to have it all figured out or have the best idea, perfect certification, a big network, or fancy equipment to be successful? 

I didn’t look like your typical 1/2 marathon runner, but I also didn’t have a water supply around my waist, no fancy fuel packs, no watch to time my pace, I ran alone, and I wore hand-me-down running shoes. 

All those “strikes” against me, and I still 

completed the goal.

Remember that goal, business idea, or motherhood challenge that you thought of at the beginning of this email? 

What if you dropped the expectations of what it is supposed to look like and just started?  

Drop the excuses keeping you from going after your next big thing!  

It didn’t matter what I weighed or didn’t have because I was running my OWN race, I set my expectations, and my timeline, and I reached my goals by taking baby steps MY WAY!!  

Those principles are exactly how I grew my six-figure business in less than 18 months while teaching full-time school and parenting my three daughters!
Run your own dang race in life, business, and motherhood!

Run it on your terms, with your OWN goals, fostering your strengths, without excuses, and in a way that makes you proud. 

If you reach your goals, and you’re not proud of how you got there, did you really reach it?   

Treadmill

Do you ever feel like you’re on a treadmill set just a little too fast?

Do you feel like your days are spoken for by endless tasks, roles in family and work, too many expectations, and the pressure to “keep up” in a society that never seems to slow down?

If so, you’re not alone. It’s a daunting situation we all face.

If only there were an emergency shut-off button in life, like on treadmills.

I have something even better than the emergency shut-off button to share with you. I have the solution to keep you from feeling like you need to reach for that button in the first place.

Working with hundreds of women over the years, I’ve noticed they think they don’t have “enough time,” but usually, they are trying to plan too much in their time that’s impossible to complete in the hours they have!

They are trying to stuff a size ten “schedule” into a size two space.

To help you fit everything in with the time you have, you MUST KNOW THE DIFFERENCE between your S.O.F.T and T.R.U.E priorities.

When you make something a priority for S.O.F.T. reasons, you are stuffing the “wrong things” into the limited time you have.

S.O.F.T. priorities are based from

  • SHOULDS – thinking you should do certain things because that is what “good” women, mothers, and entrepreneurs “should” do)
  • OTHER’S PERCEPTIONS – you do things you don’t want to do because you want to control how others think about you). You say yes so they WILL think “really amazing things” about you. Or, you don’t want them to believe you are incapable so you say yes… stuffing extra things into your already full schedule.
  • FEARS – adding things to your schedule because you’re afraid of what could happen in the future if you don’t do something. If you don’t work out you’ll get a terrible disease. If you say no, people won’t invite you again. Fear that if you slow down or don’t work 24/7, things will fall apart.
  • THEY OR THEM – doing things so you don’t let “them” down or because “they” will be upset if you say no.
If you’re adding tasks to your to-do list for S.O.F.T reasons, you will ALWAYS be over scheduled and trying to stuff too much into a tiny window.

5 Things to Automate in Your Business

5 things you can automate in your business right now for very little cost.

1. Scheduling:

Say bye-bye to back-and-forth emails trying to schedule meetings. Automate regular meetings to the same time/day each week. For those variable meetings, create a free scheduling link using Calendly to automate that process.

2. Create canned emails, and responses, and use templates.

If you’ve sent out the same response, email, or invoice more than once, create a system (as simple as using the notes apps on your phone or creating a Google Doc page) to copy and paste your response or use templates to save time and mental energy.

3. Social Media Posting Service.

Batch your social media content creation and schedule it using a posting service such as Canva or Later (less than $100 a year). These services can be posted on all platforms. Saves time posting and keeps you off social media!

4. Automate Expense Tracking.

Platforms like Expensify, Receipt Bank, and Quicken can automatically track, categorize, and report your business expenses.

5. Automated Surveys & Feedback.

Use tools like Typeform or SurveyMonkey to collect customer feedback automatically after a product purchase or service completion.

Automation doesn’t mean losing the personal touch. It’s optimizing repetitive tasks to focus more on value-driven activities for your business.

Here are My 5 Tips For Productivity

I’ve got 5 practices for you to consider trying!

They are very simple!

But don’t let the simplicity fool you, these practices produce amazing results and save you time!

1. Plan your day the night before

Look at your calendar the night before to prepare for the next day. Notice any obstacles you might have and solve them now. Write down your top 3 things you want to accomplish and set a time for when you will do them. When you plan when you will do something, it’s more likely to get done.

2. Use Results Based Planning in your blocks for time

If you plan to work in your business for 2 hours, don’t just block it off, write down what results you will create during that time.

Example: 9-11 am create 4 social posts, write and send out a newsletter, and follow up with Friday’s clients.

3. Use Automation

If you’ve done something once in your business and you know you’ll do it again, find a way to automate the task.

  • Canned email/SM responses
  • Templates for EVERYTHING newsletter, social media, invoices, etc.
  • Schedule posts, newsletters, & emails
  • Have set days of the week for certain tasks

4. Batch like tasks

  • Create all social media posts or weekly emails on the same day.
  • If you cook dinner, make 2 and set the extra in the freezer to save time for another day.
  • Have set days you run errands or appointments and stick to those days.
  • Laundry, ironing, paying bills, or other home chores on the same day each week.
  • Do specific tasks (client emails, chores, start dinner) at the same time each day to reduce decision fatigue.

5. Have set work hours & protect them.

Designate work hours and honor them. Don’t let anyone or anything (notifications, alerts, SM, the doorbell distract you.) If you honor your work hours, it will teach others to honor them as well.

Were these helpful?