She sat across from me, tired, drawn, and with a beat up look in her eyes I’ve seen from so many other business owners who were just plain wiped out. Not the newbie ‘deer-in-the-headlights’ look of someone completely overwhelmed with not knowing what to do at all. No. This woman had the road warrior look. You know the one. She had a previously successful business. She’d gotten tons of coaching she paid dearly for.

But now it was no longer working and she was tired. Tired of pushing. Tired of using last year’s marketing that no longer got the same results. And tired of having the money flow slow down.

“Please…I need a VIP day with you because I have to shift something” she had said to me earlier in the month. So we set it up, and I went about doing the work of tearing down her existing business. We took on her model, her pricing, and of course….her mindset. Because without the right foundation, a business becomes like a house built on quick sand. And the more you throw time and money at it, the quicker both it and YOU sink.

So keep reading to hear what I did with this client and the places you can look to see if your biz could use a little remodel.

I’ll take you on a journey of my business ‘deconstruction’ process. In sharing the story of the VIP client, you will also be given some questions for you to answer to see if you may need to be booking the wrecking crews to coming in to your biz to make room for the newly designed one. (Metaphorically speaking, of course!)

Here’s the process I go through with my clients that they have found to be most helpful:

DIAGNOSE: This is easy (sorta) because there are certain results that can’t be denied, like if you are bringing in money or not. We can start with the following questions…

• Is your business making you money?
• Do you feel good working in your business?
• Is it serving YOUR life?  (Not just the clients)
• Do you like who you are being in your business?
• Are you enjoying the clients you have attracted to you?

The tangible one is money. Business success is largely determined on how much profit you have. That’s the no-brainer. But what about the intangibles? When I sat with my VIP client, what was striking was how much energy she was LOSING by doing the work in her business. She wasn’t enjoying the clients she had; they weren’t getting great results, and so the money was drying up. The problem? She was stuck in a business model given to her by past coaches who told her what THEY thought would sell. She made that work for a few years because she’s really skilled. But now, if we looked at just the variables of profit and energy, she was hurting on both counts.

Your turn. Answer the above questions and see where you are. The most important thing here is to be HONEST about your answers. There’s no need to pretend or avoid the truth. You know what they say about the truth setting you free…..

DIVE: Wanna know the biggest problem this woman had? She was selling the wrong thing! Again…those coaches she had entrusted a few years back took her on the path of selling what was sell-able. They were very well meaning. And many who purchased their system went on to get good results. But NOW was the time I had to do some loving butt-kicking to my precious client and say this: “Excuse me, but YOU are an expert in x. Why do you keep trying to sell u, t, v and k? You have confused your audience and are hiding your brilliance by not being known for x.”

And here’s where she and every other client I do this “Inner Marketing” work with goes a bit south…. She got afraid that if she led with just x, maybe no one would buy. But the reality is, by leading with u and v and t and k, her brilliance wasn’t out in the world. Because this woman is CRAZY amazing and has skills few others have, but she hadn’t had the courage (nor the butt kicking coach ☺) before to finally step up and own it.

Your turn.  What are you running from? Finish this sentence…..

“If it wasn’t for the fear, in my business I would………………..”

That’s the work to do. Doing the deep dive to find the thing you are to be selling that is uniquely yours.

DREAM: Imagine sitting across from an architect who will design the home of your dreams. Do you tell him to give you what he thinks you should want? Do you look at the other houses on the block and see what’s already created? Or do you crumble under the pressure of having to actually give voice to your heart’s desire? (And as entrepreneurs, it’s common to do all three of these)

With my client, the ball started rolling when I said: “If you could work with someone for a year, and do WHATEVER YOU WANT with them/for them…what would you do with them?”

Of course she hit the wall of not knowing where to find these high paying clients, or getting stuck on how to market/sell them, so I once again threw her the question. “If you didn’t have to worry about finding them (knowing that once you create the program, they HAVE to be there) what would you love to do to serve them at the absolute highest level?”

Finally, after a few stops and starts and bumping up against some resistance, she shared from her heart.

Your turn. Throw away what’s been done before! We get stuck because we don’t know the ‘how’ of the thing we want to create, so we stop. Remember….you don’t have to know the how right now! (Sounds like Dr. Suess.)

All you have to know is the thing you want. What you desire to create. I guarantee that once you follow the steps I’m showing you, the “how” will be revealed in exactly the right way in the right time. (Trust me on that!  It’s Universal and Spiritual Principles at work.)

DESIGN: This is where it gets fun! Even though I’m known for the mindset work I do, the STRATEGY piece is where my inner ‘artiste’ gets to come out and play. So for this client, we set out to design a program based on the ‘x’ factor that she sold. We factored in how much she wanted to work, what her income desires were, what kinds of clients she wanted, and how it could be delivered in a way that served her energy while supporting her clients.

She loved the new programs we crafted. And the best part? The new offerings will position her as much more of an expert, are far more leveraged, will allow her to serve MORE people, and help them get better results. But it’s designed first and foremost with her energy in mind. That’s the key!

Your turn. Now if you are selling screw drivers in a hardware shop, I’m not sure how sexy we can get with some new offerings! But most of my readers are the service based entrepreneurs who can leverage their talent in different delivery vehicles and use info-products as well.

This is the place you get to break out of the old way of being. If you have to look around at what others are offering, do so. But you may also want to look outside your industry to see what other folks are doing that is new and creative.

The most important thing is the willingness to allow the old to break away in service of creating the new. Ya ready?  And the final “D” of the formula really ties it all together…..

DECIDE: The world’s finest strategy will fall flat if the foundation of the business owner’s identity or mindset is faulty.

Here is where you decide to be the rock star you are meant to be. You decide that you are willing to walk through whatever you need to do to release the inner blocks that have held you back. You make the decision to have the COURAGE to stand above the crowd and sell what’s in your soul to sell….not just what you think the market may buy if it’s not your highest and best.

That’s what my client did. By the end of our time together she was excited…and scared as hell! But that combination is exactly what’s needed to deconstruct what’s broken in your biz, so you can give birth to the new creation that will be THE THING that will energize you, serve your clients, and make the money you’d love.

Your turn. My favorite questions are these:

• “Who do I have to be in order to create a business at that next level?”
• “What kind of beliefs do I have to give up that no longer serve me?”
• “What identity do I need to embrace?”

That’s the work. And if you want to be happy and profitable in this new economy, this is the work you HAVE to do. I’m happy to guide you on the path.