I would never ask you to do anything that I’m not willing to do myself…

…even if it’s scary, even if it feels like a big risk.

And since I’m all about playing a bigger game in business and in life, activating your potential by fulfilling your calling and leading boldly with your heart, I’m pleased to tell you that you’ll be seeing some BIG changes here soon.

Our amazing Team has been working for close to a year on shifting our brand to reflect what we actually do with our students/clients/members of (what will soon no longer be called) Client Attraction and The Client Attraction Business School.

Yes, Client Attraction is on its way out, which is bittersweet for me.

We are ushering in something really bold. (It might give you whiplash at first, but know that if it takes a while to get used to, it has been in the planning for a long time and will begin making a lot of sense to you very quickly.)

So, in celebration of all that Client Attraction has meant to so many thousands of people over the years, and as a farewell of sorts…

…we are sharing the BEST of the BEST in the next couple of weeks, some of my most popular videos from the last few years. This week’s video is from 2012.

It’s all about how to stop doing everything in your business yourself…and how to start making it all happen…without you. Watch it now:

This is a good one! It’s been viewed thousands and thousands of times and it shares the exact steps to go through so that you can scale and grow your business.

Systems are your ticket to freedom.

I believe that this video has been so popular because you’re likely ready to get yourself out of the day-to-day of your business to work ON your business.

The key takeaway I’d like you to have from this week’s video is this:

If there’s something you still have to do yourself in your business, it’s simply something you haven’t systematized enough yet.

(Case in point: This blog is coming to you while I am in Rome during my two-week Italian adventure with my family. The only way this could happen is because of the systems we have in place. Now it’s your turn.)

It’s your time,
Fabienne

P.S. Next week’s “best of” is all about one of my favorite topics ever…so make sure to keep your eyes open for it. (Sigh.) This trip down memory lane is a bit emotional for me, because of people like you. Client Attraction was my first “child” as she came before my 3 children. I’m sad to see her growing up. At the same time, I simply can’t wait for you to see what’s next!

 

In case you think I don’t ever feel resistance or fear in my own business, I’ve got news for you.

I DO sometimes have fear around making radical changes, especially when it would allow my business to experience big leaps. (I’m human.)

But, I’ve figured out a process to help me get past the resistance, and I think you’re going to find it really useful too.

In this week’s video, I have some vulnerable sharing for you, and more importantly, I’m sharing how I’ve moved through resistance and into massive action that would make most people’s heads spin:

I know how difficult it is to let go of any aspect of your business, let alone the parts that you believe can only be done by you.

These are the things we want to hold on to for dear life… (I call it white knuckling.)

Hey listen, we’re all human. We all experience fear to some level.

Yes, I can see the path for the global expansion of my own business, AND I also have to watch out for the resistance that could keep me exactly where I am now. But, despite some fear, I have learned to hone my own entrepreneurial confidence (and pardon my language)…

…screw it and do it anyway.

Here is the process to Entrepreneurial Confidence:

– Mindset
– Strategy
– Accountability

This is where the giant leaps that transform your business happen.

So, what parts of your business do you currently believe can only be done by YOU?

Would you be willing to loosen your grip on this part of your business, in the name of your growth and the evolution of your business?

I know that this is super vulnerable, and yet, please share these with me in the comments, OK?

And then I invite you to get bold with me and release the white knuckling.  

We can jump together.
Fabienne

P.S. Successful entrepreneurs are those who do the things that others are unwilling to do. And 99% of the time, the thing that they do FEELS scary, but they do it anyway. Just sayin’. 😉

As a business owner, you have to make a lot of tough decisions. One of them is when to let someone go or hire someone new for your team. If you plan this well, you can create a system for employee transitions, having the person who is leaving actually train your new hire.

Let me share an example. One of my students followed this series of steps for bringing on a new social media manager.

1. Put training in the contract. In the employment contract, a new team member is made aware that part of the responsibility will be to train a replacement should you part ways. This sends a clear message that people will explain duties and responsibilities of the position before departing the company.

2. Create a checklist. Have your current team member develop a checklist for all training that will be covered. This will work like a table of contents and can go at the beginning of all documentation for the position. For social media, you would include how often to post on each platform, details if you use a scheduler, credentials and passwords, etc.

3. Write an operations manual. Have the employee write the operations manual for the position, explaining all duties and responsibilities. This must be specific, going over all the actual tasks they complete as part of that job. Now you’ll have a handbook so someone new can look up how to do a particular task. Documenting the duties is extremely helpful for creating a smooth transition between employees and having a reference guide once the transition has been completed.

4. Set up a calendar for upcoming projects. Have your new team member work with your outgoing employee to create a calendar of the projects that are coming up. This ensures everything is planned and organized so your new employee knows what needs to be accomplished without any gaps. For example, with social media, you can plan Facebook posts that cover promotional messaging, content sharing and posting of photos for a few months into the future.

5. Schedule web sessions. If your team is not on site, using software like GoToMeeting allows employees to share screens for training purposes. This is excellent hands-on training so the new hire can see exactly how things are done. Many people learn best by actually going through the steps.

Here are a number of safeguards to keep in mind:
• On occasion, when there is a problem with an employee, make sure there isn’t going to be a lot of animosity while training the new hire. If you pick up on this, you may need to rethink your training process.
• Watch over how the training is going. Ask your new hire if there are any unanswered questions.
• Make sure your operations manual document is locked, so that once it’s finished, no one can change it or sabotage the process.
• Be sure to review the manual to ensure everything is in there and nothing gets left out or overlooked.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Do you have training or operations manuals for all the positions in your company? If not, make that one of the goals for your next 90-day plan. This is a big project for your employees, so be sure you give them enough time to complete it and do a thorough job.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

When I talk to students who need to start leveraging or expanding their businesses, I often refer to where they are as being “in the soup.” It feels like you are swimming in a mess of things that need attention, and keeping your head above water (or the “soup”) is hard. This is a challenging time for most small business owners.

In addition to working with clients, you have all the back office work, and many owners say they are working practically 24/7. No one wants that! I’ve had students talk about losing friendships, not getting the exercise they need and not taking any time off. Or, they feel stressed out with no end in sight. This is when you know something has to change.

The shift begins as you get clear about your new direction. Maybe you want a system that automates a particular process or need to hire staff to create a team. Your business might require more structure for running certain programs. Sometimes business owners need to duplicate what they do so they can step aside to let the team handle day-to-day tasks and work on the bigger picture.

A team will help you stop working so hard “in your business” so you can start to work “on your business.” That’s where the business expansion really starts to show up. When you’re ready to leverage your business and create systems, your business requires two very important elements:

1. Planning
2. Patience

Plan your moves step by step
One way to ensure you start on the path to leveraging your business is to creat a 90-day action plan. After you decide on your goals, map out the steps to get the changes underway. That’s the beauty of planning. Once you define your direction, you can clearly see what needs to be done next.

Seeing what needs to get done is one thing… making it happen is another, and it can still feel overwhelming. Breaking your plan down into manageable pieces helps you feel these smaller steps are very doable. Take time to map out the steps so you can attack them one at a time. Your 90-day plan organizes the work, provides a time frame and gives you a date for completion.

Patience is more than a virtue
Executing your plan will take time. Creating systems and adding structure – these types of business changes don’t happen overnight. This is why patience is essential for you to carry out your vision for expansion. You cannot hurry the transition if you want it done well.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
My students in the Leverage Track of The Client Attraction Business School often have a buddy for support and accountability. When you share your 90-day plan with your buddy, you are making it real and putting it out there into the world. Find a friend who will help you stay on track (and you will do the same for him or her) so you both complete your 90-day plans.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

So, you have created your own proprietary system. Your clients work on one step, chapter or class at a time before progressing to the next. A system like this allows people to focus on and complete one segment, which is often needed before the next step can begin.

During your “get acquainted” calls with prospects, you might encounter questions about why someone needs to wait for weeks (or months depending on your program) to get all the steps. This is natural, because most people want to know everything as soon as possible. Yet, you know that’s not how your system works best.

My original proprietary program, The Client Attraction System, featured 10 steps. People were not be able to do step 10 until they had successfully implemented steps one, two, three, etc. all the way through nine. That’s how we now teach our curriculum of The Client Attraction Business School, So for example, you can’t put together marketing materials that pull the right people if you haven’t completed the section about identifying your ideal clients.

If I were to give students everything, all the steps upfront, they wouldn’t get the full benefit. They would get results, but not nearly as much as they would working through each section in chronological order. That’s why it’s important that I take students through this process in order.

If you have a system or long-term packages that work the same way, first describe your system and answer this objection before prospects even ask about it. Explain that you have created your step-by-step system for a reason. You found people need time to implement and see how each step builds on the one before it. Say something like, “The beauty of this program is that it provides a foundation to build on one step at a time.”

Learning one piece at a time helps people digest the material, act on it and get questions answered before moving forward. Getting ahead of yourself can make you feel confused and stressed.

People looking for a solution to a problem are in a rush to fix things. By including your description of how your system naturally builds step by step, you help prospects grasp how your program works and encourage them to get started right away. Following this formula will help you close more sales and get clients.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

[youtube width=”600″ height=”367″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA_idflHwy0[/youtube]

My video tip for you today is all about the importance of creating your signature system – and how to get started today. Your signature system is really key to multiplying your business over and over. It becomes the basis for your bootcamp, three-day workshop, even the book you’ve always wanted to write. I’ve done this with my own Client Attraction signature system and I teach my Platinum and private level clients to do the same in order to leverage their business. So, where do you even start? Come on, overcome your analysis paralysis with me – watch this short video for this important strategy for growing your business.

Your signature system is actually rather easy to put together. You want to start by getting everything you know about your system down on paper. Document your unique process from start to finish – and don’t worry so much if you’re leaving something out. Your signature system brings your clients in so you can always give them more later.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

1. Write down all the key components. Use bullet points. Include everything you know for sure about your system. Brainstorm.
2. Group all your bullet points into categories. Then give each category a label.
3. Put your categories in logical, chronological order. You want them to follow a step-by-step order that makes sense to the user.
4. Lastly, give your system a results-focused title. And Voila! You’ve got your Signature System.

An effective signature system is the basis for multiplying your business in so many ways. It’s an essential tool for multiplying your business to that next BIG level. Have some fun with it – the key is to just get it done.

© 2011 Client Attraction LLC. All Rights Reserved.

If you enjoyed this video, please post your comment or question below and share it with your friends and colleagues who would find it beneficial.

[youtube width=”600″ height=”367″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwJfD7abZMc[/youtube]

Today’s video is about how to stop doing everything yourself in your business. No matter what level of business you’re in, you need the right resources and systems to grow your business to the next level.

Ever been to a restaurant and notice the number of resources they have on hand to serve you? It’s all about the “front of house” and “back of house.” Front of house means the Maitre D’ and the servers, all the beautiful tablecloths and flowers, and more, all the things that belong to the experiential part of your visit. Back of house refers to all that goes on back there in the kitchen that you never really get to see, the” administrative stuff,” if you will.

Most likely, you’re trying to do both “front of house” and “back at house” in your business, at the same time, all on your own. There are so many behind-the-scenes aspects of running your business, that at some point of your business success, you can’t actually do them ALL, however much you want to hold on to the controls. When you do so, you leave a lot of money on the table.

For you to grow your reach (and grow your income), you need more time to focus on what actually brings in more clients and income. How do you get more time in your solo business? LEVERAGE. Leverage is getting the necessary resources (people, systems, automation and delegation) to free up your time so you can focus on the money-generating activities (client work, marketing, business development, etc.).

Your assignment today is about leveraging certain aspects of your business by using systems and support. Create more time in your day so you can attract more ideal high-paying clients and make more money.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

1. Make a list of ALL the tasks you’re doing during the day.
2. Add a dollar amount to each item you think you can pay someone else to do that for you like errands, filing, scheduling, shipping, editing, phone calls, etc. (it’s actually more inexpensive than you think).
3. Group similar tasks together by dollar-amount and then by category (website, administrative, personal, etc.).
4. Identify the resources (assistu.com, craigslist.com, elance.com, odesk.com, guru.com) where you can hire someone who would be happy to take these tasks off your plate.
5. Start to delegate the lowest dollar amount tasks first and focus your available time on further business development and marketing to your ideal clients (and making room for more clients).

If you enjoyed this video, please post your comment or question below and share it with your friends and colleagues who would find it beneficial.

Fabienne Fredrickson, The Client Attraction Mentor, is founder of the Client Attraction System®, the proven step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to attract more clients, in record time…guaranteed. To get your F.R.E.E. Audio CD by mail and receive her weekly marketing & success mindset articles on attracting more high-paying clients and dramatically increasing your in.come, visit www.attractclients.com.

It’s a question I get ALL the time. Fabienne, how do you do it? How do you balance running a successful business with your busy family life as well? Well, Yesterday during my segment on Lifetime TV’s The Balancing Act, I talked about just that! Tune in for some of my best tips because achieving a peaceful balance in your life can absolutely be a reality. Then, I want to hear from you! Comment below and tell me what challenges you face with balancing it all and how have you overcome those challenges?

Enjoy the segment! Oh, and I’ve started a new media page on my website. I hope you’ll stop by often to see what’s new!