Mastering The Time Demon

Gosh, 2010 is almost gone, but where did it go?

I had a wonderful discussion with the lovely Molly Carlile the other day, miraculously it wasn't about death, instead we talked about time.

Molly has been highly active talking about death this year, publishing a book called "Sometimes Life Sucks" that helps teenagers deal with death and doing radio, tv and a lot of conference and speaking gigs spreading her DeathTalker message.

I was interested in how she was fitting so much in, when time seems to be flying so fast.

Her response was, Marg, if you are doing things you love, then time is manageable and you get heaps done - it's the only way to manage it. If you do things you love and look back on the year, you will find you have done heaps, even if it didn't feel like it at the time."

She went on to describe how when she was writing her book it would seem like hours had passed but when she looked at the clock, she still had heaps of the day left. It was like something magic had stopped the hands on the clock while she wrote.

It was sage advise and even though I haven't been as out there as Mz Molly this year, as I looked back I found her words to be true - if I loved it, then it got done and when I look back a lot has been accomplished.

Then when I thought about it more, all the successful people I know who seem prolific in what they do, actually do a lot.   Its like that old saying states: "if you want something done, give it to a busy person".

But you just can't be busy for the sake of it to get the time thing happening = you have to be what I call "happy busy".  You have to be taking focused actions on projects and topics you are passionate about, love spending time on and could talk about in your sleep (and frequently do!)

I'm assuming you love the work you do - please if you don't love it then go find something that does make your heart sing because life is too short to spend most of it on the hamster wheel.  Even if you love it but aren't quite getting the results yet - so long as you are taking the right actions you are getting close to where you want to be.

So if you love what you do and want to make a difference in 2011 - what needs to be done in the last two months of 2010 is to focus on your business and get your planning done for 2011.

Get eager and excited about 2011 NOW!  

Exhale on Boxing Day.  These last two months of the year are the time to fully embrace your business and be ready and good to go after the holidays.  It you don't do it know you will be really behind when the new year begins ,,, mid Feb!

I'm running several teleclasses that will leap start you if you do them now - a time when we tell ourselves we are too busy with holiday preparation.

Details of the teleclasses are on my website

If you are busy learning and planning and getting ready for 2011, that busyness around your practice is bound to stir up some busyness in your diary at a time when most report going quiet.

The "going quiet" doesn't have to be a fact.  If you think it will be quiet, that is what you will create.  But if you think its going to be your best month ever and set about creating energy that affirms those thoughts - you will find yourself pleasantly surprised.

This time of year is one of the most stressful times for most people and a time when they really need to keep their stress levels down and their health and wellbeing on track.  You might as well be the energy source they find to help them.

Hope to help you stretch a bit of time in the coming weeks!

You can see Molly being interviewed on The Circle here

Rockstar Mz Amanda Waaldyk Pedalling to the Top!

Amanda Waaldyk is a gifted Chinese Doctor with a talent for helping women conceive - nick named "the Baby Maker" - she gets extreme results everywhere she goes.

Not for the faint hearted she will be tackling another extreme challenge this month, competing in the K4 which is the toughest one day cycle challenge in the Southern Hemisphere.  Riding up a mountain in New Zealand, in the dark with no sleep, through some of the roughest terrain on the planet is not my idea of a good time but its all in a days work to Mz Amanda.

She will be raising funds for the Miracle Babies Foundation - you can donate to the cause here

She has done a nice job of getting a little bit of free publicity (two words we love to see rolling together) in her local newspaper.

Its a nice example of how a congruent message can get you into places you would normally struggle to get.  By supporting a cause that matches what you do in your work, the media are much more likely to print your story and in this instance she got a little plug for her and a little plug for the charity.  Its not a big plug but its better than no plug at all and gives her a reason to pump the message out again with a new twist to her database.

Of course the publicity angle is not why she is doing the challenge but its a nice example of someone who loves what they do being able to mix personal passion with a business mission and get great results on all levels .......... by just being herself.

You can read the full story here

Who Was That Tosser in the Corner?

My tummy kept rumbling as several years ago I sat in one of my favourite warm cosy Hepburn Springs cafes wondering why my breakfast was taking so long and why the normally laid back cafe owners Gary and Shane were in quite a state.

The Chowder House is never like this and it all seemed to be caused by what I saw as "some tosser in the corner in a cravat".

Eventually my breakfast arrived along with a very apologetic but worried looking Gary who announced he'd just delivered a big bowl of their best chowder to Matt Preston from The Age. 

I was still non the wiser as to who this larger than life character in the corner was.  But the reverence in the owner's voice explained why this slightly eccentric looking gentleman, who to me seemed to be savouring every mouthful rather longer than needed before frantically writing things down, was causing such a stir.

Garry the owner then again whispered  in sacred tones that Matt could "make or break them" and they were very nervous, yet also excited.

Every time I re-visited for breakfast I asked if the article had been published but the sad and long faced shaking heads indicated that the tosser in the corner probably got a free of chowder.

THEN MASTERCHEF STARTED and I immediately recognised Matt Preston as the tosser in the corner who held up my breakfast!  I was ever so slightly amused that this man who I came to instantly like on TV for his warmth, passion and quirky sense of humour, was a hollowed food critic.  No wonder he caused such a fuss.

Matt Preston is a fine example of someone who is instantly recognisable and memorable even if you don’t know who he is.

He has branded himself with the very clever use a cravat.  A small piece of clothing most wouldn't be seen dead in but coupled with his vibrant personality and serious passion for food - he has created something out of nothing.

Could anyone don a cravat and make it work? 

Well not now with Matt Preston quickly moving to celebrity status with the success of Masterchef anyone in a cravat is now just a Matt Preston knock off or wannabe. 

The reason it worked so well for Matt is that he has a strong sense of who he is, a strong personal style or brand and he lives the cravat - Matt's cravats even have names.  They haven't just been styled in - they are an integral part of his personality that was there even when food plebs like me didn't know who he was.

When he stepped into the limelight the cravat part of his personality just erupted and coupled with his talent and passion for food - magic was created.

There are many gifted food critics in the world but Matt stood out from crowd with a small piece of silk being the icing on the publicity cake.

In business it is not enough to just be talented and gifted – you have to figure out what your cravat is or what makes you different and makes you stand out and will draw people toward you.  If you don't dare to be different and are afraid to stand out from the crowd you will just melt into a vat of sameyness and end up rotting in the slops bucket of business.

So have I forgiven Matt for holding up my breakfast?  

Well no actually - The Chowder House eventually got its day in the newspaper around about the time that the first years finals of Masterchef were running.

Their chowder was rocketed to instant success after Matt gave them the tick of approval on the chowder dish he had tasted a year before – as my breakfast sat on the bench hmmmm! 

The cafe became so popular with the Melbourne foodie set that we locals couldn’t get a seat for love nor money on the weekends.  One long weekend there were so many people queued up on the footpath waiting to get in that I had to cross the road to walk down the street.  Ah the price of fame!

Who thought a tiny little cafe in a sleepy hollow tourist town could get that sort of attention specializing in one dish – ah the reward for being different.

You can read Matt Preston's review of the Chowder House here

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Why Being Recognisable Is So Important

While attending a Thought Leaders Summit in Melbourne City this week I was reminded just how important it is to express who you are in any crowd.

I absolutely love any Thought Leaders event because they take me right outside my comfort zone.  The attendees are predominantly high energy presenters, speakers and entrepreneurs who make a lot of money just by being themselves.

At these types of events I always sense a definite hint of testosterone in the air, which tends to activate my fight or flight senses. My inner nerd kicks in at any networking event and as I'm registering I always have an urgent need to leave - FAST!

This is all about me and nothing about what anyone else in the room is doing but it can be challenging and brings up memories of all those Kleenex moments as I drove home from my early networking attempts believing I had to sell the room and feeling like a failure when I inevitably didn't give so much as one business card away. But yesterday I managed to stay all day and was richly rewarded for my tenacity.

Not only did I get mind shattering clarity on how to promote myself I also met some awesome like minded people. I'm still finding my place in it all and confess to feeling a little duck out of waterish after lunch because I hadn't found the inevitable kindred spirit I usually find anywhere I go.

Then close to the finish of the event I looked over and saw a lady wearing a pendant I recognised. It was like a bolt from the blue because the pendant was one of the amazing sacred geometry pieces made by  Zakay Glass Creations.  These pieces are energetically extraordinary and you would only be drawn to them if you had some kind of woo-woo connection.

So it was very easy for me to get into a conversation with the wearer in the bar after the formal part of the event closed.

Seeing as I don't drink its a miracle I was in the bar in the first place.  I was all rugged up (ready to hit the road at any nanno second) in my "growlly" coat, which was aptly named by one of my old bosses because of its distinctive leopard print fabric.  It is fully reversible but the dull grey suede side rarely gets a airing.

So when I spotted that pendant I was very quickly in deep conversation about spirit and how it fits with the corporate business world.  Within minutes we were joined by the only other person with a growlly jacket on who also had a interest in things spiritual.  

If any of us had decided to take the safe route in a predominately corporate crowd we probably wouldn't have met.  It was awesome to drive home feeling energised and happy with not one Kleenex in sight.  Shows if you stick with the plan and stay in the game eventually things (including networking) get better with time!