The bad news is time flies. The good news, you’re the pilot.

Time Management Tips for Your Work/Life Balance

I once heard that the city I live in has a reputation of everyone lives to work and that the city I love to vacation in has the reputation of everyone working to live. This really stuck with me because all of a sudden I realized it was true.

Here, in my hometown, everyone is always working. Work seems to be all anyone wants to talk about or do, then they do not understand why they are stressed, burning out, and want to call it quits. Work is a necessity, yes – I understand but we should all work to live and not live to work and in order to do that we will need to determine the balance between work and life.

What is balance, really?

Balance, seems to be the trend today, doesn’t it? That everything is all about balance. Well, there is truth to that – balance is the key to everything. However; this doesn’t mean that balance is about equal parts. Having a 50/50 balance between work and home life is not going to happen, and I truly hope it never does happen to you! To me, that means you are spending too much time on your work and not enough time living.

To be able to maintain the balance, you first need to decide on what you want – then schedule around that. You will need to know how to better maintain time than maintaining a balance. There are so many factors on finding that work-life/home-life balance but today, I am just going to talk about time.

Time Management

Time management is something that most entrepreneurs struggle with. Getting pulled into the world of distractions that are: social media, email inbox, and “multi-tasking”. (I put that in quotes because I think multi-tasking it is more of a mythical unicorn than a skill but that is a topic for another day…) When you have good time management skills you will find that there is a lot more freedom in your workday and a lot of pressure to get things done starts to subside. Why? Because you have more time, well, not really. It is the same amount of time, only with time management skills it is better spent.

Look at it this way, time is truth. The truth of time is that there are only 24 hours in a day and 60 minutes in each hour. This we cannot change, yet we are caught saying “There are not enough hours in a day.” That isn’t true, there actually are enough hours in a day – there are 24 of them! Once you accept the things you cannot change, your world becomes a whole lot better and it is that much easier to better utilize the time you do have available.

To do this, start with using only one calendar. I am willing to bet there is a good chance you have more than one or none at all. Be it a traditional planner, a wall calendar or an online calendar – one is all you need. I am guilty of previously having 4! I had Google calendar, my paper planner, the pretty one on my wall and finally my Outlook calendar. What a mess. I would put my shooting schedule in one, family schedule in another – goals in yet another, and finally the fourth was supposed to tie it all together. Ha, I can laugh now… Anyway, now I have one that I use, and one on my wall that I don’t use but it is pretty to look at…. Okay, that is the ONE acceptance of the rule. Pretty to look at, but not written on, calendars are acceptable to have as a second calendar.
(They are more art, right?)

Under plan your time.

Now, when using your calendar, try to under plan your time. What I mean by this is try to leave 5 – 10 minutes for every hour where there is nothing to be done. As a photographer, I always plan sessions and events in 1 hour and 15-minute blocks. Yet, I would ensure that each would only take an hour. With the Virtual Studio, for example, a 45-minute coaching session is always scheduled for 1 hour in my calendar. For both my photography and coaching schedule, that extra 15 minutes gives me time to recollect my thoughts, travel, and for any unexpected surprises. Doing this also allows for tasks to be done at a more relaxed pace and has proven to be a lot less stressful.

A few other things you want to keep in mind to better manage your time are to set deadlines, delegate, stay motivated, and stop multitasking! (There is that magical unicorn again!)

The Virtual Studio’s will be launching a Work/Life Balance System that will go further-in-depth into time management! So stick around, that way you won’t’ miss the launch!

How are you going to better utilize the time you have each day?

What one calendar are you going to use moving forward? Let me know in the comments, I love hearing what systems they have in place!

Affirmations for business success!

Affirmations For Business Success

I am a huge fan of affirmations and use them as part of my daily morning routine – not only do they help make major shifts in your mindset they also serve as prompts and daily reminders on what you are truly capable of.

They help ensure you have an amazing and successful day, every day. Personally, every morning before I get out of bed, I read 3 affirmations. Each affirmation is said 5 times then followed by:

“This or something better now manifests for me in perfect timing!”

Ideally, your affirmations should be the first thing you think of when you wake up and the last before you go to sleep. Here are a few of my favourites!

Affirmations For Business Success
Affirmations For Business Success

Be sure to follow the Studio’s Facebook Page, leave a comment and let us know your favourite! I’d love to hear from you. The page is a free space where you will find business-focused training and support for female entrepreneurs, as well as inspiration and Studio updates!

Follow Your Passion

Defining Your Brand Identity

Starting your own business and becoming your own boss isn’t a pipe dream, it isn’t exactly a fluffy daydream either. It is stressful and demands a lot of your time and focus. That being said, once you get into your groove, it is fulfilling and a wonderful experience. So, let’s have some fun creating your brand identity! Defining Your Brand Identity

“A brand is the way a business is personified in the minds of consumers.”
Melissa Bolton

Once you have a business plan, a mission, and a vision for your company and you are ready to jump in, you will have to start thinking about your company brand. Aside from what service or products you offer your brand is going to play a very large role in your success. Ms. Bolton is right, your brand is a visual representation of you to your customers, which is why it is imperative to put together a good strategy.

You should have a solid strategy in place and implement it so you will have an edge on the competition. Your brand will be derived from who you are because you are the only thing that no other business has. Therefore, you want to make sure your brand is a strong and genuine representation of you. So, when building your brand there are a few things to keep in mind.

Be authentic.

It is hard to try and be someone or something you are not. It is a lot easier to be yourself than to try and be someone else, not to mention how much easier it will be to keep it consistent. So, just be you. Because you are a real person and your brand is a reflection of who you are; build your brand on things that you believe in. Your values, your beliefs, what you stand for, and who you strive to be. Your business should have the same values, beliefs, and passion. As you grow as a person, your brand will grow and be more successful.

You probably already have an online presence, to stay connected with friends, family, and to express yourself. So, why not put your business out there? Create social media accounts, pages, and profiles for your company. Have these link back to your website, and vice-versa. A website isn’t 100% required to be successful in business, however in today’s day and age, it is a good investment because you don’t know how long each social media platform will stay on top.

Know your ideal client.

If you follow any of my work, you will know how important I feel knowing who your customer is. Now, asked yourself “Who is your ultimate client?” You have done the research on who you are going to market to, now implement this into your brand strategy. How will your brand appeal to them? What do they want? What do they care about? If your target audience is the DIY Mom, you do not want to go out and build a brand that uses girls in bikinis on cars for any part of your strategy.

Chose a name that delivers your message.

When deciding on a company name be sure it is in line with your business message. There is no secret formula for choosing the perfect name for your business. To make matters worse, once you have decided on a name that you are100% happy with, you will still second guess yourself. So when you start planning the company name, it should be simple, to the point, and easy to remember.

Be sure to avoid annoying, random words with no meaning, double meanings, awkward puns and spelling no one would consider. If Siri can’t spell it, your audience probably can’t either.

Use professional design for your brand identity.

If you are just starting a business or looking at tweaking one that is already up and running, I can understand being on a budget. However; using a professional-looking logo and design is imperative when creating your business brand. If you are able, hire a brand strategist, such as AW Design Co., to create the perfect logo and brand style that fits the vision of your business. If that is not an option, look into purchasing a pre-designed brand and logo packages from a designer or community website like www.creativemarket.com.

Just keep in mind when you are purchasing a pre-designed package, there may be others that have that exact brand design and logo. So do not just buy the first one you like, keep digging! It is a budget-minded option, but it may not be the absolute best. You do not want to look like a box store brand, so be sure you make the right decisions for your business and your brand moving forward.

Be sure to choose a defined colour palette.

Having a defined colour scheme for your brand is just as important as your name. No matter what stage you are at in your business, your brand colours will create consistency and easy brand recognition. To do this, make sure you minimize your colours for maximum impact. Your goal is to have your chosen colours be associated with your business. For this, I suggest narrowing your colour choices down to two main colours with only 1 accent colour.

When you choose three different colours, not shades but colours, try using the 60-30-10 rule. By this I mean use your main colour 60% of the time, your secondary30%, and the accent only 10%. Following this rule will provide a simple way to create a professional colour scheme for your brand.

Do not fall into the 'me too' mentality.

When starting a business it is common, and smart, to check out the competition. You want to know what the leaders in your industry are doing to be successful but you do not want to be just like them. As I mentioned before, you are the one thing no other business has. Use that to your advantage. What makes you different from your competitors, and how can you use that in your branding? Focus on being unique so you will stand out amongst the crowd.

Try not to forget that branding is a lot more than creating a logo and colour scheme. It is a representation of your business and it is how you intend your business to be perceived by others. Having a strong and professional brand will make your business memorable and will help build trust with your audience. So, when you are creating your business’s brand identity remember to be authentic, know your audience and choose your name wisely. Try to work with a professional design, define your colours with purpose and follow your own path.

If you already have a brand in place, step back and look at it. Ensure it is a genuine representation of you and your business values.

If you are just creating your brand and are in the planning phase, get planning! Peek at leaders in your industry and head over to Pinterest for inspiration!

Be sure to follow the Studio’s Facebook Page, leave a comment and tell me all about your personal brand! I’d love to hear from you. The page is a free space where you will find business-focused training and support for female entrepreneurs, as well as inspiration and Studio updates!

This is a Premium Article, more like this are available only inside the Entrepreneur Essential library! If you are not a member, don’t fret! You still can be AND it is totally FREE!

Sign up below, if that isn’t your thing, I still want to help you the best way I can! So be sure to check out other available resources I have that will help you grow your business!

ing Your Brand Identity

Defining Your Brand Identity

Inspiring Greatness: How bad do you want it?

Eric Thomas (aka ET The Hip Hop Preacher) shares The Secrets to Success in an energetic and passionate speech to students at Michigan State University.

Take ten minutes to watch this video, or just hit play, close your eyes and listen because it is so inspiring and motivational. And when says “When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you’ll be successful.” Take a deep breath and realize just how bad you want to be successful.

Find more inspiration on the blog go here and be sure to check out Eric Thomas at etinspires.com.

How bad do you want it?

Inspiring Greatness: Women who are changing the world.

Women who are changing the world
There is no better way to start my Inspiring Greatness: Women who are changing the world series, then with the new trailer for Firsts, TIME’s new video series on 46 groundbreaking women.

For the past year I have been planning and preparing for the launch of The Virtual Studio, and the Path to Success programs, and to be honest, a good number of the women in this series have been true inspirations for me on my this journey.

I don’t think women need to do anything other than what they are doing right now, and that’s moving forward.

Aretha Franklin

The launching of this project could not have come at a more perfect time in my life. I do hope that these women, and many many more, can inspire and motivate you on your journey.

Take a moment and be inspired, by something as simple as the trailer for the project! I hope to post more on this project as I continue to watch the videos.

Head to the Time Magainze website to learn more about the project!
TIME Firsts: Women Who Are Changing The World

5 Essential Tips on Branding

“Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.”
– Jeff Bezos

Aside from what service or products you offer your brand is going to play a huge role in your success. Mr. Bezos is right, your brand is a representation of you, which is why it is imperative to put together a good strategy.

Use this infographic and remember these 5 essential tips when building your brand.

5 Essential Tips on Branding

Take a peek inside our new accountability group!

Accountability benefits you in several ways as you pursue your dreams. Being held accountable isn’t only for those who are struggling with a particular issue, but for anyone with a goal. Working with an accountability partner or team is a key to success for anyone who wants their business to grow. If this is something you need, please, join us inside the Study Hall!

Become a founding member of the Study Hall community and gain access to exclusive content from the Studio Library, Mentorship, and experts in all areas of small business.

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What is balance, really?

Time Management

Under plan your time.

How are you going to better utilize the time you have each day?

“This or something better now manifests for me in perfect timing!”

Affirmations For Business Success Affirmations For Business Success

Defining Your Brand Identity

How bad do you want it?

5 Essential Tips on Branding

Take a peek inside our new accountability group!

Affirmations For Business Success
Affirmations For Business Success