I’ve had several different conversations with clients about selling in the midst of the coronavirus.
Is it ok to keep selling? Do I need to cut my prices because of the struggle people are having?
It really boils down to not feeling comfortable selling and knowing your value.
So I ask you, does selling feel uncomfortable or even scary to you? Particularly now?
Only 10 minutes to more creativity? That sounds doable, right? It is, and it’s as simple as sitting quietly and focusing on your breath.
For the past several years I have been recommending meditation to my private clients. It has been significant to most.
At our Creative Arts Business Summit, I would lead a guided meditation. For some of my clients, this was a powerful exercise.
Today in our times of stress with the coronavirus, meditation can have a profound effect on us.
I also have my own meditation practice that is part of my morning ritual. I was around meditation for a long time before I started to practice. My sister has taught mindfulness meditation for more than 15 years after many more years of a personal practice, and my husband has also had a long-time practice.
Despite their encouragement, I could not think of myself as someone who meditated. After all, I couldn’t possibly sit still that long. The first time I tried, I stopped and looked at the clock and barely two minutes had passed. And, I could not shake the long-held idea that meditation somehow was for hippies or new-age types.
I somehow got over that.
Read, I stopped self-sabotaging myself. And, I began a meditation practice. I have found that it has a positive impact on my life. I can see this in my everyday activities and in my own creativity.
Especially in today’s uncertain times, I find it grounding.
I had a conversation last week with a client who was stressing about spending so much time on and in her business that she was feeling stuck. Claire told me how she used to love to create just for herself, without a business outcome involved. Only now, she just did not even have time to do that. And, she was suffering. She felt lost and was beginning to be “stuck” with the creating that was important to her business growth. I suggested that she schedule “Claire time” into her calendar for creativity and stick with it, no matter what. By allowing time for herself, I believe Claire would show up better in her business.
As we were talking about how to schedule that time, I remembered the lecture Elizabeth Gilbert gave at the 2009 TED Conference entitled “A Different Way to Think About Creative Genius.” It was about nurturing creativity. I went back and listened to it again. What struck me then, as well as now, was when Elizabeth was having a hard time writing, she took time and just spoke out to the corner, to let genius come to her. If it didn’t, well, she showed up for her part of the job. Isn’t that what you do many times when you create? You just show up. Sometimes it is a wonderful effort; other times it’s just an effort. But you showed up.
Do you ever get that sinking feeling when you look around and start to compare yourself to others — their art or their business success?
You start to think that no one will every want what you have.
And, then you start to believe the one or two people who have ever commented negatively on your work.
And, then the spiral starts. Really, who are you to do this anyway?
If you want to do a few small things right, do them yourself. If you want to do great things and make a big impact, learn to delegate. ~ John Maxwell
Many people die with their music still in them. Why is this so? Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes
“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.” Proverbs 11:25
“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully. I’m actually as proud of the things we haven’t done as the things I have done. Innovation is saying no to 1,000 things.” ~ Steve Jobs
Time is the most valuable coin in your life. You and you alone will determine how that coin will be spent. Be careful that you do not let other people spend it for you. ~ Carl Sandburg
