Part 1 of this series about procrastination dealt with some strategies on how to overcome the “Habit of Procrastination”. I’d like to dig a bit deeper this time and address the possible causes of procrastination and how to blast through the things holding you back.

The Revelation of Procrastination: If you are putting something off, maybe there is something underneath that you aren’t aware of. Sometimes procrastination is really a signal that you may be on a mindset land mine! I’ll give you an example – imagine you have a big project to do that would generate a nice chunk of $. Suddenly, in spite of all the pushing and encouragement from those around you, inertia sets in. No matter what you do, this puppy isn’t getting pushed out! If you use the process below, you can discover what’s underneath.

1. Acknowledge you are stuck.
2. Find the ‘part’ of you that is stuck or blocked.
3. Ask what it’s afraid of?
4. Ask what it’s trying to protect you from?
5. Listen for the answer…even if it seems a bit crazy to you.

What you may discover is that there is a part of you who feels undeserving of that success and the $ that was coming in. The procrastination is just the part’s way of keeping you safe. (This is a big coaching trick I use when my clients are stuck! If you discover you can’t move past this, you may want to have a Mindset Breakthrough Session, and we’ll knock it out!)

Do I have you on the edge of your seat to find out in my next post about how procrastination can actually serve you, if you let it? Stay tuned for part 3, “The Perfection of Procrastination”.

Blessings,
Therese

While that was an amazing movie, and I usually love the concept of building first in your mind, as a marketer I have to warn you that it may bite you in the butt!

I was recently talking to one of my mastermind buddies, Natasha Allrich, about this very concept.  We were sharing the programs we were providing, and I told her about one I had done earlier in the year that truthfully, didn’t get the results I wanted.

Natasha asked one powerful question….

“Did you ask your market what THEY wanted, or did you just create a program based on what YOU wanted?”

OK, she busted me!  That is exactly where I went wrong.  I loved my concept, wrote killer copy, threw in loads of value….but never did the research to see if the offering and price point were what my fun lovin’ business owner types would want.

Have you ever made this mistake?  More than likely, yes.  We all do.

The secret is to go to your ideal clients and have them tell you what they would pay for.

I want to give you some tips on how to survey your audience.

1.  Online Survey – I use www.SurveyMonkey.com – Super easy and very low tech!  Make it short, but ask a few questions about price, content, and how to best deliver the program.  Example, would they like a day time workshop live or an evening virtual teleseminar?

2.  Pick up the darn phone – Calling your old (and ideal) clients about what they would want is a great strategy.  You have to stay away from folks who aren’t your market.  Example, your brother the plumber doesn’t get to tell you that you are charging too much….unless you are serving plumbers, that is!

3.  The power of social media – using Twitter or LinkedIn polls to get answers is another effective way.  You are getting access to way more people that you probably have in your neighborhood, so this is a no cost and easy way to gain some valuable information.

4.  Offer an incentive – you can add something to your newsletter or survey that if folks take a few minutes of their time, you will gift them with xyz.  It could be a free report, a $25 off coupon, entered into a drawing for a session with you, etc.

5.  Make sure you keep it short – no one is going to answer 47 questions.  But if you can come up with 3-5 questions that will get you the info you need, you are probably going to be able to get some good answers.

And finally…I’m gonna ask, because I’m not making the same mistake again!

Can I get your two cents?  I have a quick 3 question survey that I’d love you to answer to help me better design my 90 Day Marketing Makeover Program.  You can grab that here:

http://bit.ly/8gkwb

If you fill it out and email me telling me that you read this on the blog, I’ll enter your name into a drawing for a strategy session which is valued at $297 – cuz I REALLY appreciate you taking the time!

Now go out there and start asking your market what THEY want.

Blessings!