Restrictions are lifting here in the UK and things are returning to ‘normal’, but is normal now anyway, and what if you don’t feel ready to get back to normal?
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It’s been a strange time. No social contact, something we all crave. Very little interaction with people outside of our immediate household. Working from home, no travel, nothing really open. We’ve all had to adapt and get used to this new world. Now we’re being told that we can go back outside, meet up with friends, hug – safely – whatever that means and head back to the office.

But after a year or more inside it’s bound to feel strange. You might notice you’re feeling anxious. You might not be ready to hug your friends and family and working back in the office might feel overwhelming.
Give yourself some time. Explain to those around you that you’re easing back into life slowly. Take baby steps and focus on one new thing at a time. Create techniques that work for you – it might be that you want to keep socially distanced, only meet in the garden or keep your Friday night meet-ups with friends online. Don’t feel pressured to slip back into ‘normal’ quicker than you’re ready to and remember if you are struggling or your anxiety is affecting your life then it’s alright to reach out for professional help. This is new for us all and it’s okay to need some help to find out how to live in a post-COVID normal.

How many times have you decided that a list is the answer? How many to-do lists do you have? Does yours get longer every day? Is it filled with things that never get done?
To-do lists can be a great way to help you organise your day, but are they actually tools that help you procrastinate more?
Here are 5 ways to help you make sure your to-do lists help you get things done.

1. Have one long to-do list, but then break that down into smaller, daily actionable lists. This way, you can make sure you are getting the important things done and you don’t feel overwhelmed when you look at the list of things you need to do.
2. Have an order of importance. Don’t push those big or hard jobs to the bottom of the list every day. Choose one important job and then some less important jobs every day so you know that you’re taking the steps that will move you forward and not ignore them.
3. Break down the big jobs. ‘Update website’ is one thing on your to-do list, but it’s a huge thing so what does that task involve. The more you break it down the less daunting it feels.
4. Do your most important task first. Don’t put off the big jobs until the end of the day, get them out of the way first. This way you feel like you’ve achieved something and you’ll be more motivated for the rest of the day.
5. Set a timer. When a job feels too big or you’re not excited about doing it then putting it off is easy. Why not set a timer and only do that task until the timer goes off. That way, you’re getting some of it done without it stealing your time for the whole day.

To-do lists can be a great way to keep you motivated, but they can also be an excuse for procrastination. If your to-do lists are holding you back then give these 5 things a try and let me know how you get on. If you’re struggling with procrastination why not come and join my workshop. You can find more information here .

We all have those big goals, don’t we? It might be a 6-figure income, to write a book, buy that house or create an online income stream that means you can work less. Those are the top-level goals and they are completely possible, but what if your goal feels too big and you can’t see a way to make it happen? What happens then?

When goals feel too big and too far away they make achieving goals harder. Taking the giant leap from where you right now to where you want to be can feel like too big of a step, so you end up doing nothing. Yes, we need big goals to push us out of our comfort zone and help us up-level our lives and our businesses, but you need a solid, achievable plan to get there.
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If you are feeling stuck and unable to move towards those big goals then maybe it’s time to look at your mindset.

• Do your goals scare you? They should, but you should also have interim goals to help you get to where you want to be.
• Can you break your big goals down into smaller ones that you can achieve and see as stepping stones to move you forward?
• Are you looking for evidence that you can do this? You can do this, but you need to remind yourself.
• Is your self-talk supporting you? Don’t let the voice in your head tell you that those dreams and goals are impossible. Make sure you keep your self-talk positive.
• Are you rewarding yourself for achieving those stepping-stone goals? Don’t wait until you reach your big goal. Celebrate along the way.

​Goal setting is key to your business, but you need to make sure you stack those goals so you see your achievements. One day you will look back and see just how far you’ve come.

​Being assertive isn’t about shouting and getting your own way, it’s about learning how to show up in
your business in a healthy way. Here are some ways you can be more assertive and why they are
important.

1. Saying no
It’s easy to feel like you have to say yes to everything in your business. Yes to those clients you might
not feel like a great fit with. Yes to work you might not have time for. Yes to something that doesn’t
fit with your goals. It’s easy to say yes because you don’t want to be seen as awkward or hard to
work with.
Saying no to things that don’t feel right is a good way to be assertive. You don’t need to give excuses
or explain why you’re saying no. No is a complete answer. So, listen to your gut and make sure
you’re saying yes to the things that feel right and no to the others.

2. Set boundaries
Just like it’s easy to say yes to everything, it’s also to find yourself boundary-less and exhausted.
Setting boundaries and sticking to them is a powerful way to be assertive. Have fixed times when
you work, don’t reply to messages outside of those hours, manage client expectations, and explain
your boundaries to your clients.

3. Recognise your value
Don’t underestimate your importance. You are the expert, you are the key component in your
business, you are responsible for your own success. Assertiveness is easier when you see your value.
When you do you will find it easier to speak up and give your opinions, to say no when things don’t
feel like the right fit, and respect your boundaries. You and your business deserve to be here, so
don’t let anyone make you feel like you shouldn’t.

Being assertive will help you create a business you love, that allows you to build a work-life balance
that works for you and lets other people value what you do.
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Is assertiveness something you struggle with? I’d love to hear if you need a helping hand.

Another year has gone by and another Mother’s Day has arrived.

This year, it's a bit different as we have been hit by the pandemic and although this is the first Mother’s Day in lockdown, last year's still feels like a blur!

With the world in confusion, we were all trying to brace ourselves for what was to come.
There was fear, uncertainty, anxiety, stress… Not knowing what to do, the fear of losing your own life or the lives of your loved ones, not being able to see your loved ones. So many different emotions were flying around.
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But when we look at where we are now, although we have had good moments, not a lot has changed. We are still in a pandemic, and ultimately, still in lockdown! There will be restrictions on our celebrations again but how can we cope with them this time?

Here are my 5 tips to survive Mother’s Day in Lockdown

1) Acceptance
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​Remember that it is lockdown, which will lift soon, and you will be able to meet your mother soon. We can be thankful that at least we are alive. There will be plenty of time to celebrate it later. You can mark a day by contacting them, go for a distanced walk (if you're nearby) or call your mother on a voice/video call. Maybe even arrange a family meet up online!

2) Tribute

If your mother is not around anymore, think of all the good memories you had with her. And if you have children of your own, enjoy precious time with them. Grief is part of life so express and work through your emotions.

You can write a letter to your mother and tie it to a balloon to release into the sky.
You can release balloons in the sky, sit quietly, spend some time with the thoughts of your mother and maybe let her know what you would like her to know.

If your mother is alive but you don't have a relationship with her, then perhaps think about potentially reconnecting with her?

3) Make plans!

You can make plans for when you will be able to see her, what you will do and where you will go. This pandemic has really made us think how precious the time is. Once gone, the time never comes back. So, what could you do now to make more memories to cherish later on?

4) Remember, this will be over!

It’s just a matter of time. This will be over soon, the lockdown, the pandemic. Though we will be still living with the impact. We can learn from this and learn to live life to the fullest and make more time to connect, create memories and be happier. Let’s learn to make the most of what we have now!

5) Send Gifts
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​If you want to, you can send a letter of memories together, some gifts, like flowers, a hamper or maybe even something personalised,  just to make her day special.

​Although life may throw situations at us that we don't expect, we have it in ourselves to be able to manage, accept and make the most of it!

Happy Mother’s Day!

How many times have you told yourself that you don’t have enough time? Your to-do list grows longer, you work more and more hours and you still don’t have time to fit it all in. So, how can you expect to reach your goals when you don’t have the time?

Running a business takes time. You are responsible for most, if not all, of the work and so it can feel like you never have enough time. Will it be easier when you can outsource jobs or decide how you focus your time? Maybe, but there are also lots of things you can do to give yourself more time right now. Here are 4 ways to create more time in your business.

1. Track your time                                                                                                                                                                The first thing to do is track what you’re spending your time on. You might feel like you’re always on social media because it’s a good place to market your business, but if you’re there watching videos of cats or catching up with what your friends have been doing, then that’s not a good use of your time. There are online trackers out there that you can use or you can just keep a note of how long you spend doing each task. I bet you’ll be surprised how much time you can take back from your day by being aware of where it’s being spent.                                                                                                                                   
2. Set boundaries                                                                                                                                    Working harder won’t make your business more successful. In fact, you risk burning yourself out and becoming stressed or ever ill. In order to have more time in your business, it’s vital that you take time off. Setting boundaries helps you make sure that you step away, relax and recharge, which means you’ll have more energy for your business when you get back to things.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Have ‘working hours’, turn your email off, don’t reply to messages late at night, and even switch your notifications off now and again. Boundaries protect your time and mean that you’re more energised and focused when you are working.                                                                                                                            
3. Say no                                                                                                                                                    Saying no goes along with boundary setting. Don’t spend your time on things that don’t make you smile. It’s your business and you’re allowed to create one that feels perfect for you. Say no to the clients you don’t want to work with, the weekend conference calls, the out-of-hours messages, and the things you know won’t add value to your business.                                                                                          
4. Think about the cost                                                                                                                          I know that outsourcing things in your business might feel like something you will get to do in the future. When you’re more established, have more clients, or have more profit in the bank, but sometimes we have to think about the cost of what we’re doing now. Let’s think about your website. You might spend 5 hours trying to update it and make the changes you want to make to your online shop. You get frustrated, nothing is straightforward and you waste a whole day trying to sort it out so you can’t do any of the other things on your to-do list. However, if you’d outsourced it to a virtual assistant or even a website guru it might have only taken them an hour. Paying for that hour of their expertise means you saved yourself from wasting the whole day, you could tick off more things from your task list and you get to save yourself all that stress. So, yes outsourcing costs, but it can also save you time and money in the long run.                                                                                                                          
   You can’t magically give yourself more time to work, but there are lots of things you could do to help you make the most of the time you do have and that will help you be able to fit more into your day.

If you’d like to know more about time management and how to create more time in your day then why not join me on 19th March 2021 for Time Management to Achieve More in Your Personal and Professional Life Workshop.

Imposter syndrome is defined as the internal experience of believing that you are not as competent as others perceive you to be. Sufferers can feel severe inadequacy and self-doubt, fearing that they will be exposed as a fraud. It can affect anyone regardless of their success and can have a huge negative impact on people’s mindset.

Lots of things can trigger the feeling, but often starting a new job, setting out in your own business, or taking things to the next level can leave you feeling inadequate and wondering if people will ‘see through’ you and see how incapable you are.

When you’re self-employed imposter syndrome can hinder your business in lots of different ways.
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• Making you avoid doing those jobs you need to do.
• Worrying about what people think of you.
• Staying hidden because you don’t want to be visible in case people ‘see through you’.
• Not charging what you’re worth.
• Finding taking payment difficult.
• Turning down business or speaking opportunities

Has it stopped you from doing something in your business or made something harder?
So, how can you overcome imposter syndrome? Is it something that you can beat or do you simply have to learn to live with it?

Firstly, stop comparing yourself with others. You are on your own journey and doing it your way, so stop looking at what others are doing. Focus on what you can do and what’s working for your business, because that’s what really matters.

Also, look for evidence that you can do these things. You’ve got this far and you’re doing great. Yes, things might be new and unfamiliar, but find evidence that you can absolutely do this. This will help silence that imposter syndrome.

If you’d like to know more about imposter syndrome and how to stop it and stop it impacting your mindset and your business then why not come and join me online on the 26th February at 10am where I will be teaching a workshop on it. You can find out more and sign up for your space here.

Valentine’s Day is here again! 
What a year we've had. 
We've been hit hard with this virus, restrictions, and several lockdowns! 
As a result, we have experienced shock and trauma. It has been really hard to come to terms with what is going on and we can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel yet. 
We have gone on autopilot and are just doing what we are asked to and supposed to! 
For so many, it has been very hard to come to terms with the high level of uncertainty we're currently experiencing. Some of us have lost our loved ones, some have not been able to see their loved ones for months on end. Most of us have felt isolated and lonely. There are so many relationships that have broken down and/or many just surviving on a thread!
These unprecedented times have stopped us from enjoying and celebrating many festivals and occasions, then here comes Valentine's Day! 
So how do we embrace this Valentine’s Day? Do we celebrate it or not? If we do how do we celebrate it, as we are restricted in so many ways? We have so many variations of relationships. Some are together and some are separated. What do singles and those who have recently broken up do? 
5 tips for couples to celebrate Valentine's Day: (Don't worry single people, I haven't forgotten about you! )

1. Take away the pressure of having to break the bank to impress your partner. Instead, make small special or sentimental efforts to express your feelings
2. Surprise each other with small gestures showing appreciation and acknowledgment
3. Create an atmosphere of fun and romance to give you a spark
4. Go for a walk and talk
5. Create a calming environment and talk to each other without distractions and get to know each other more​

5 tips for single people to get through this Valentine’s Day:

1. Remember Valentine’s Day is about love, so focus on loving yourself!
2. Treat yourself with something that reminds you to keep loving yourself.
3. Embrace the time you have with yourself and remember it's ok to be single
4. Create a bucket list for you to achieve whilst you are single
5. Know that when you value yourself, every day is Valentine's Day!

Hope you have an incredible day, whether you're single or in a relationship!

As business owners we want success (otherwise, why would we ever start), but there are things we are doing that are actually holding us back. 
We don’t set out to self-sabotage but it happens more often than you’d think. In this blog, I want to show you 5 common things I’ve seen in my coaching practice, so you can start to watch out for them in your business. If you’d like to know more then you can sign up for my free 10 mistakes report here . 

1. Procrastination

How many times have you gone online to post something and then spent an hour on social media or promised yourself to get something done that’s important and then done everything else on your to-do list, but that one important thing? 
There are lots of reasons we procrastinate – stress, tasks feelings too big, the love of shiny objects that distract us, fear of failure. Procrastinating can really hold you back and stop you from reaching your goals. 
Try tracking your time, turning off notifications while you focus on the task at hand, and breaking down your to-do list, so you don’t put off what you need to do. 

1. Fear

Fear of getting it wrong or fear because you’re lacking confidence are both big things that could be holding you back. Ask yourself ‘what’s the worst that can happen’? It’s ok to get things wrong, it’s ok to need to practice and learn and it’s ok to reach out for help/support from other experts if you need it. 

1. Mindset

Now, this is a big one and one I love to talk about because your mindset is everything in your business. You can’t build a successful business, tick off the goals you set or make the income you want to make unless your mindset is in the right place. Monitoring your thoughts is a good place to start. 

1. Imposter syndrome

Telling yourself you’re not expert enough, not qualified enough, that people will see through you or question you are all signs of imposter syndrome and it’s so detrimental to your business. You are an expert and you deserve to be here, so check your mindset, look for the evidence that you can do this, and wave goodbye to imposter syndrome for good. 

1. Not investing in yourself or your business

You can’t expect to be the expert at everything and you will need to add to your skills as your business develops. Trying to do it all on your own or putting off your development until a date in the future, when you have a more stable income, won’t help your business. Learning new skills will boost your confidence and help your business, so don’t put off investing in yourself. 

Have you ever been in that place? Where everything feels like it’s going wrong or you’re worried
about everything? Where you question if you can really do this or if you’re ever going to feel good
enough? The more you think and talk to yourself, the more you start to spiral, and the more you
start to spiral, the more evidence you seem to find to support your negative thinking.
That negative spiral can really impact on your business, your confidence, and your mental health.
How many times do you think you’ve ended up in that place?

What if we could reverse the spiral? What if there were 6 steps to help you turn things around?
I’ve spent years supporting and working with business owners on their mindset and goal setting and
I’ve seen these 6 things in action. I know how powerful they are and how much they can help you
shift things in your business.
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Let me tell you what they are and how they can help you.

1. Self-positive talk                                                                                                                                                             It’s time to start believing in yourself. Make time to look at your past achievements, so that you have
   evidence that you’ve done it before, and you can do it again. Surround yourself with positive, driven
   people who have similar goals to you. Read books that empower you, listen to podcasts, watch
   videos, anything that reminds you to have a growth mindset, and that leaves you feeling positive and
   upbeat.
2. Promise                                                                                                                                                                        Promise yourself to change your mindset to a more positive one. Start by taking small steps to get
   out of your comfort zone. Be kind and compassionate to yourself as you make those changes.
   Promise yourself to put an end to any self-sabotaging behaviour and reducing any negative self-talk.
3. Invest                                                                                                                                                                          Decide that you are worthy and invest in yourself. Get help, guidance, support, find a coach or
   mentor to help you overcome a negative mindset. Take steps to build your confidence to help you
   achieve your personal and business goals.
4. Recognise                                                                                                                                                                Recognise when your thoughts are negative or your behaviour is coming from a negative mindset.
   Challenge those thoughts and practice turning them into positive ones. Use that positive self-talk to
   remind yourself that you are capable of more than you’ve been giving yourself credit for and you
   have the evidence that you can do it when you put your mind to it.
5. Acceptance                                                                                                                                                                  Learn to accept that we can’t control everything that happens and sometimes we are met with
   challenging situations and obstacles. Try to use the other steps we’ve gone through here to learn to
   deal with them as objectively as possible. Try to make light of them, see the positive, and don’t take
   them personally. Remember, no matter how big something seems right now, in a few weeks it
   probably won’t seem as important.
6. Language
   Pay attention to your language. Is it positive or negative? If you find you’re using negative language
   try to rephrase it. It takes just as much energy to speak positively as it doesn’t negatively, but
   negative language has much more of a negative impact on your mental health.

​These 6 steps can help you transform your mindset and shift your confidence levels, so you can go
after your goals and make them happen.

I’d love to hear how you get on with introducing them into your life and your business.