The top tell signs of burnout and how to overcome them to stay motivated
Let’s talk entrepreneur life for a bit? Especially the solo-preneur? Have you figured out how to overcome burnout when it hits?
Yup I’m talking to you hard working, highly motivated, stubborn, freedom loving you out there. I know you so well because I am you and I’ve worked with hundreds of others like you.
I remember the first time I hit burnout. It was a sunny Miami day and I realized I’d been indoors for hours working on my monthly content planning that looked more like scratches on a dry erase than a cohesive content map. Hour 2 of getting absolutely nothing done I texted my husband and said:
“I don’t think I’m cut out for this as I feel like such a fraud! I either need to go back to school or figure something out cause this isn’t working!!!!” Insert some teary eyed emojis.
That turned into my first I hit a wall, exhausted, uninspired moment in my 15 years of entrepreneurship. I’d been pulling late nights working on my new program, the funnels, the content, the launch systems and all the things that come with the online business world. I wasn’t really eating right, my sleep was interrupted by ideas and to do lists… and my yoga practice had fallen to the wayside.
Do you relate at all to this?? If so, keep reading.
Definition of burnout and depletion
According to the APA Dictionary of Psychology, the definition of burnout is “physical, emotional or mental exhaustion, accompanied by decreased motivation, lowered performance and negative attitudes towards oneself and others.”
Can you relate at all?
I am sure you’ve maybe experienced burnout at some point when things didn’t go as planned perhaps. Your program launch didn’t make you the 5 figure sales. The size of your email list shrinks with every email marketing newsletter you send and you’ve grown it by a few in comparison. Your social media following is not doing what all your hard work and effort says it should be doing.
Burnout is real and I’m going to share with you how to deal with it!
Identifying feelings of total drain and lack of motivation
First how can you tell if you’re experiencing burnout let alone overcome burnout? I have struggled with this because of my action centered personality that usually pushes through bouts of “not feeling it”.
But let’s identify some real burnout style feelings:
Putting it ALL on the back burner: This is the sign that you’ve checked out. You skipped social media all together because every idea felt like “blah”. You skipped the newsletter because “why does anyone want to read what I have to say”. Stopped promoting your program because last time no one bought it.
This one is an alert! You’re not excited about what you do! You became an entrepreneur because you love what you freaking do! And now… OMG you’re questioning if you’re even good at what you do and if you should find something else.
The question of how good you really are kicks in. Imposter syndrome coming in strong with this one. I understand you get this feeling every now and then, but when it’s burnout it’s constant.
You literally stop everything and wonder if you should get a job or a therapist. I don’t think we need to delve on this one much do we?
The mood for anything other than binging on tv shows, scrolling through social media feeling guilty for scrolling on social media and the thought of working ON your business is like nails on a chalkboard.
How you can overcome burnout
There’s no real trick here I can simply write out because we’re all different and different approaches are necessary but I will go into some ideas that might help you!
STOP, DROP and WRITE! When I feel burnout happening I stop all work related activities, I drop my clients if I can and I start writing. I don’t call it journaling because I write on a notepad… but you’re probably more organized than I so open your journal. I write 3 things: something I’m grateful for, something I’m excited about and something I look forward to doing. Since entrepreneur life eats so much of our time, I like to always have my eye on the prize… maybe it’s shopping, a trip or a nice dinner out.
GO CRY. Yes, go have a freaking tantrum. Cry, kick, punch a pillow, stomp. My toddler is so good at tantrums I’ve now added some new strategies to my repertoire. The lay face down on the ground sobbing is a good one… I do make sure the floor is clean first. I realized when I have a tantrum, drama filled, wail fest I feel good immediately. They last a few minutes usually and it takes pressure off for weeks!
PHONE A FRIEND. This is not the easiest one for me because the last thing I want to do is bother people… so I usually call or text a “work friend”. Someone who I know is an entrepreneur, whom I’ve shared a mastermind with or whom I know has been there, done that. It’s important to have this work friend because they have more empathy that a corporate friend.
EAT SOMETHING DELICIOUS. Food can instantly make you smile. Eat something that’s comforting, that is nourishing and makes your heart smile. I go for something carb laden or that I used to eat as a child. Indulge for once without the guilty feeling. You can walk it off later or take a HIIT class if that’s your thing.
VISION BOARD! Usually when burnout happens we lose motivation right? Grab Canva or a poster board and go to town dreaming and reconnecting to your WHY! I love this video about trying and not being stuck. It always makes me tear up and go do something awesome!
Next steps for motivation
Now that you’ve either cried, eaten and written let’s address how to prevent burnout and step into motivation that’s consistent!
Motivation is a living breathing entity that’s within the heart of most entrepreneurs who are passionate about what they do. It’s not something that you can create, but instead something that’s attainable!
To recap get the energy moving in your body, mind and soul.
3 Freebie Ideas To Grow Your Email List (Quicker!)
You might’ve been wondering what are some great ways to not only grow your email list, but connect and show your expertise to your, to your audience, to your existing followers and new followers. And guess what? This can all be done with one simple tool called an opt-in page, or in other words, a freebie.
A freebie is a powerful tool that takes your audience off of social media, and onto your email list so you can engage with them regardless of what happens to social media platforms, and which can stand the test of time.
For example, two of my friends and clients, their Facebook got hacked the other day and they lost so many people from groups they had been building. And the first thing I asked them was, “Hey, have you been getting people onto your email list?”
Because the best thing about an email list is that it’s yours. It’s not owned by a third party and it’s not subject to a specific platform. Basically, all your eggs aren’t in one basket.
So imagine TikTok goes away and you lose a hundred thousand followers, or Instagram goes away and you can’t communicate with your 2,000 followers? How would you sell your products and services? What would happen to your business? It’s time to make business platform proof and also a place where you give your followers exclusive access to your content and offers… meaning, you’re not subject to an algorithm since they are willingly saying: “please have my email and I’ll see you in my inbox.”
And consider this… you’re giving people a valuable GIFT in exchange for their email! To me, this is a win win!
Another super important reason why having an email list is so clutch is because it actually serves as clout and is great when you’re ready to start running Facebook and Instagram Ads.
Briefly I realized you also might have said… “Ari, who reads emails anymore? Everyone is on social media!”. I am here to tell you – I read emails, good emails that is. I buy stuff from those good emails I get sent and most of the time, I actually don’t see those people in my social media, which I spend quite a bit of time on (shame on me for not always working on my business!).
We’ll get into email writing tactics on another blog post, but for now, let’s focus on growing your email because without at least 100 subscribers, creating lengthy and value rich email campaigns won’t be your best ROT (return on time!).
Now here are some freebie ideas to showcase your expertise and truly serve your audience the best way you know how!
Freebie 1: A Checklist
It could be a wellness checklist. It could be a diet checklist. It could be a lifestyle checklist. People love to know about themselves. And they love to know if they’re doing things right.
And remember, since you are the expert, you have all the knowledge. People want to get their sources from a trusted individual and you are that person.
A checklist can be easily created on Canva, or you can even start it in a word document!
So now, how do people get this checklist? Well, number one, you could simply ask people to DM you or leave a comment and then you DM them.
You don’t need a whole opt-in page and a landing page, an email sequence, not in the beginning. I love to say, “how can I run my business on bare bones?“
Well, this is one of those ways you could just say, “Hey, whoever wants this checklist, DM me your email.”
Number two, if you are looking to start your digital marketing portfolio, then you’ll want a simple opt-in page where people can leave their name, email and a phone (optional), then get a very simple automated email sequence that delivers the freebie and follow up emails that help the prospective client to get to know you better and nurture the relationship. You’d use softwares like: Go High Level or Active Campaign which are my personal favorites.
Freebie 2: A Quiz
Do you guys remember when we had the Cosmo magazines or like 17 magazines? And there was always a quiz, like an astrology quiz or the love quiz, and you would take it and tallied up all your points. Then you read the results, super excited! This is the energy that we are building with our potential clients. We are creating excitement based on a quiz.
Like I said, people love to learn about themselves. I do too. I still take quizzes!!!
I recently created an awesome quiz with a client of mine called: “What are your love blocks?” And, so far, she’s been able to grow over 180 people onto her email list, just from organic social media from TikTok and Instagram in 2 weeks.
So what does it take to build a quiz? There are some softwares you can build them with like TryInteract and Typeform.
Now the cool part about the quizzes is that then you show up as the one who gives them the results. You create the results based on the questions that they answered. And it gives you a chance to show off again, your expertise and be able to really connect with that person and help them out and give them those initial suggestions on how to be a better lover, how to be healthier, how to sleep better, how to detox their bodies, etc.
Freebie 3: A How to Guide or Mistakes to Avoid
I love my really easy to follow guides that help me avoid blunders and that help me learn something. These guides can be PDF’s or even videos. To me, videos are quicker to make but this is not the case for all. Also, you have to know your audience well- will they consume a video or rather read… OMG you can maybe even do BOTH!
We’ll talk about content repurposing later down the line.
But for real, a good guide that shows me the way to achieve a micro win and how to potentially not make some crazy mistakes is extremely valuable and honestly for you as the expert, might even be easy to make since you’ve worked with clients before and know how you’ve helped them avoid things and at the same time reach certain goals or milestones.
So go back into your client rolodex and start putting together some good ideas!
Freebie 4: A Challenge
Now there’s paid challenges and there’s free challenges. Free challenges are a great way to indoctrinate and work with people. These could be prerecorded or these could be live.
When you look at a challenge because it’s a more of a time investment and it’s a longer build out of the project. And at the end of the challenge, you are selling a higher level offering or service. Whether it’s a physical product, an online course, coaching, retained services, or an experience – all of it can be sold in a challenge.
Think about the challenge as a very invested experience. It’s a wonderful way to generate leads and to have them experience a transformation over a series of days so that they get a result, they get quick wins and gives you the opportunity to really show up as the expert that you are and offer your services
Freebie 5: A Video Series
A video series creates education and solution-awareness. It could perhaps be three training videos, or a recording from a recent talk you gave. It’s very easy to reach out to your audience and say, “Hey, put your name and email here and get these three training videos to help you XYZ.”
I always tell people to give the transformation, the benefit of what’s going to happen when they watch these videos. And you could once again, let the videos come via email, or you give them access to a little online course or membership site, and they can experience the videos, maybe have a question or two that they answer and then see what the next steps are
Remember, it’s your responsibility and opportunity as the entrepreneur to keep the connections with your audience alive, strong, and really meaningful.
Here’s your call to action: what can you be doing to grow your email list? What are the steps you can take to create a meaningful relationship with your audience via their inbox?
Today, we’re talking about something super important called offers and being a marketer. That’s right. Why is this so important? Because it’s the foundation of your entire business.
What ends up happening with a lot of us who are holistic entrepreneurs, yogis, and service providers is that we get so caught up in inconsistent one-on-one services or an occasional group, but not really having a stack of offers that work together strategically. I do want you to think about how you can get more clients with your time, but also while working smart.
As a business coach, I love to talk about offers, also known as offerings, because they are the foundation of you being able to show up as a credible expert, who gets paid well to do what they love to do all day every day.
The 2 steps to making more money as a wellness entrepreneur…
Step 1: Play to your strengths!
Ask yourself…
Do you like to work one-on-one with people?
Do you like to be in group settings?
Do you like to speak in front of big crowds?
How do you like to show up?
It’s important to determine how you like to work so that we can make sure you are comfortable, that you are going to shine, and that it is going to be fun for you. That’s it!
So once we understand how you want to show up, now we can start creating your magical business layer cake!
Step 2: Examine all of the different revenue streams available to you
1. Trade Time For Money
Although a lot of people say that you shouldn’t trade time for money, this is still a fabulous way to generate an income. And it’s an essential part of every offer ladder.
Plus, guess what? As wellness entrepreneurs, I am guessing that you love to work with your clients. You love to interact with them. You love to treat them. Are you an acupuncturist, massage therapist, yoga teacher? There’s still such value in working one-on-one with clients or in a group setting. It’s okay to still trade time for money.
What’s not okay is relying on that being your wealth strategy. One-on-one, small group classes, large classes, being a speaker. This is still trading time for money, and some are scalable, and some are not.
So let’s go over the ones that are limited, and also the ones that you can also charge premium prices for.
So, for example, if I want to get fit, or I want to get flexible quickly. Instead of going to group classes or going to the gym on my own, I might hire a private teacher that way we can address my needs, my concerns, and my body. That’s going to cost me money. If I hire a trainer, if I hire a private teacher, I’m going to pay premium because it’s 100% of their attention on me.
So when you are positioning yourself as a one-on-one teacher, please make sure you charge accordingly.
Now, this is going to vary on your town, your city, your state, your country. Every time I’ve gone to Peru to teach whether it was yoga or Acro Yoga, or even Thai massage. I had to lower my prices a little bit because the currency there is very different, and I wanted to be of service for the people.
What I would charge here in Miami, where prices are a little bit higher, we have premium rates I wouldn’t do down there. So be smart about where you are and how you create your prices.
Next, determine how much value you’re delivering to decide on your price. This makes sure that your one-on-one prices can become up-leveled, and make it easier to charge a premium because you’re delivering more value.
Maybe your one-on-one work comes with a membership to your online yoga studio, or essential oils, a beautiful treatment, a tote bag, something that is going to allow you to raise your prices a little bit without also feeling icky because I know we’re of service and I don’t want to ever make you not feel like you’re showing up fully as a holistic entrepreneur.
So that summarizes one-on-one work. Pros? You give 120% of your attention on your client. Cons? There’s only one of you, which makes it very limiting. Typically, you could only take five clients a day.
2. Group Classes
I love group classes! I love people. I’m a group person. If you could just hug me. That’d be great. Why? Because I feed off people’s energy. So for me, group classes is one of my favorite ways of working. Now, pro. Lots of people, lots and lots and lots of people can mean lots and lots and lots of money.
But depending on the situation, for example, when I used to own my yoga studio, yes, there was be lots and lots of people for my teachers, but their pay rate was not all the money. Why? Because the model of being an employee isn’t the most fruitful.
Now, if you’re going to do group classes, always get people onto your email list and always, always, always have an upsell.
Cons of group classes is that obviously, you’re not giving 100% of your attention to one person. So maybe people won’t feel that 100% focus on them. But if you’re a good instructor or you’re a good service provider, guess what? You can still have great outcome.
In my yoga conferences, the Global Yoga Conference, and my Yoga Expo, sometimes the teacher teaches to a hundred people. Obviously, there’s no way to personalize that, but there’s still a great way to cue, message, give information that can serve somebody at each part of their experience, their practice, or their journey.
But again, be sure to always have an upsell and always show up as inclusive as possible.
3. Small Group Private
Why do I love this one? Because it has a blend. You can still charge a high amount, and provide your clients the attention they need, but the difference is that it is scalable.
For example, I run two types of consulting and coaching. I do one-on-one work, and I do group work.
Now, when you’re doing group work, this means you have scalability. You are you to many. It’s going to give you a lot of potential, not only to connect but to also make great change. You can have a deep impact on people because you’re solving lots of problems, and there’s also a sense of comradery and union that gets formed for your members
4. Info Products
This is where your knowledge is shared to many people. So now this becomes a product consumed by groups of people. This is where the most scalability and leverage lies.
I get this done through my online courses where people are consuming the material in a way that doesn’t take any additional time. When you create an online course, you complete it once and don’t have to add more work as more people join. There’s so much maximization potential.
So think about you positioning yourself out there in these four different ways so that you have a variety. You want to be able to help people in different ways so that you’re also supporting yourself, your self-care, connection to others, and your bottom line, which is your revenue.
Pick the one that’s going to give you the most money right away. Why? Because if you’re looking to grow your financial side of your business, then pick the one that gives you the highest revenue. That might not be your one-on-one. That might be a group. Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean teaching classes for low amounts of money. It could be a program. It could be a retreat. It could be a training. Now, this is what I love to teach! The potential to have scalable business through a group setting with also a nice price point. Teacher trainings, retreats, transformative programs, or group plus one-on-one. These all can have price points of a thousand and up. And it’s the best way to change your financial outcome without needing a ton of people.
If we look at the concept of pricing, we’ve got to see that if you’re like a Ferrari, or you’re a Louboutin, Louis Vuitton. You don’t need to sell a lot. You might only need five clients a month to double your income.
Now, if you need a ton of people to meet your baseline. It might take longer. When you’re creating your products, have a variety and think of it like a menu. When you go to a restaurant, there are lots of things for you to choose from. And in the middle part of the menu is going to be chefs’ choices. So I want you to make your chefs’ choices for the day and see what product you want to promote. What do you want to create that makes sense for you? And you probably want to start at a higher price point.
So what can you put out there that’s worth $200 to $1,000? Is it a certification that’s specific?
For example, chair yoga or Reiki atunement. Maybe it’s a modality of massage. Again, this is where you also start showing up as an expert. So your confidence level, your credibility, your professionalism gets to shine through even more.
The last thing that’s really important is that I want you to do a goal. How much money do you want to make a month? So let’s say it’s about $5,000. Maybe it’s $10,000. If you are trying to fill your calendar with 40, $50 an hour average, you’re going to need a lot of those hours. But if you can do a few that are $30, $40, $50 an hour, and a few that are $200 an hour.
Now you also want to make sure that when you’re creating your menu of services, that as you figure out what your monthly revenue goal is that we create the price points accordingly.
And then all we have to do is fill in the amount of students that we need per thing.
So let’s say you’re leading a certification. You are an amazing massage therapist, like my husband, and specialize in lower back. And you’re going to lead a certification training or give educational credits. Now, perhaps you do a one-day seminar. You charged $85 per person, and you get 10 people. That’s an $850 a day. Pretty cool, right?
Or let’s say that you are a yoga teacher and you have your E-RYT 500. You can give workshops and you do a weekend that is for yoga teachers, all about adjustments, cueing, how to become a better teacher. And you charge $250 for this because it’s only a couple hours a day. 20 people, you’ve got a $4,000 weekend.
So start looking at the possibilities of growing your offerings in a way that feels good to you, to where you’re at in your career. So when you’re doing your menu of services, see where you show up. Are you showing up as a credible professional that can give more value? Are you using your knowledge and turning it into a product?
Are you creating opportunities for people to really get an immersive learning experience from you, maybe through a retreat?
So this is your opportunity to shine in the way that you create your offers that match your goals, that provide the results. At the end of the day, we want everyone to look good, to feel good, and to be good. I’m so excited to see what you put out there!
Drop a comment below if you have any questions, and please share if you think somebody can benefit from this blog.
Do you consider yourself a marketer? And if not, why?
Marketing stems from confidence and HeartSpace. And I want to highlight how important marketing is in order to have a successful business.
Traditional marketing is tied to sales. The both co-exist, and still do in holistic marketing. But what holistic marketers different from traditional marketers is the magic that happens when they decide to be one with their audience. Holistic marketing is about focusing on where you can give your audience value and providing an essence of support that speaks their language.
One thing that I’ve been focusing on more is seeing how can I provide my audience, not just value, but not making them feel like they’re not complete already. How do we elevate the audience in a way that your service or your product will be an add on to their already existing, and thriving abundance?
I always get a hot seat moments when I sit down with my coach. And he gave me the best way to create a really engaged community: to inspire them to join a movement, to be part of a mission, to be part of a greater vision. And this is the most effective form of marketing – it just so happens to also be holistic!
So in your own marketing, hunker down on your mission, and solidify with the movement that you want to create with your services or products.
For example, if you sell yoga clothes. Do you think that you can create a movement where people are more aligned and more in line with the why behind your products?
A percentage of profits are donated to a specific cause.
Sourcing your materials from a local community you support.
Practicing eco-friendly and sustainable business operations.
So every piece of your marketing has to have a bigger purpose to it – it really has to nothing to do with the right words.
If you think of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Purpose is ranked as the #1 priority. Second to purpose is wants, and finally we have needs. The main idea is that once we work downwards from purpose into desires, then what do you think happens? We now have a purpose-driven business.
So if your business has a movement that people can connect with, your marketing will be so much more effective. It emanates authenticity, and comes from a place of heart. It comes from a place of, of abundance versus from a place of needs and scarcity.
And then you’ll be able to serve a bigger purpose, and have a greater impact on the world. And people want to align to that.
Look at so many companies out there, like, let’s say Nike with Colin Kaepernick. “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything,” Kaepernick says in the ad campaign. People really rallied to that – especially young people. Gillette also had a whole campaign around the “me too” movement. People really rally for a good cause, or they rally against them. Now this really brings in light. You know, what team are you on?
I recently heard a successful fitness coach say at a conference, “Give your tribe their cause.” Once you give your tribe their cause, they will be so much more in alignment to how you do things, and will support you through your programs and events and practices.
To be independent. This word INDEPENDENT I feel gets used often and thrown around a bit. What does it really mean?
I write from this from England on the day the United States celebrates it’s independence from England which made me think quite a bit.
As humans we love independence. We love freedom. We long for making our own decisions and not be dependent on others for our livelihood.
Not only that, but as creative and holistic entrepreneurs we are drawn to be completely on our own, leading our businesses, creating our schedule and having the life we want because being independent is a top value we hold dearly.
What happens when you loose freedom and independence? How do you feel?
This word and feeling is something hundreds and thousands of people have lost their lives for. Who have given everything to be free.
What does this mean in your life and business? As you know to me as an entrepreneur they go hand in hand.
Freedom To Create
Having freedom to create is a gift that makes us human and those of us with ideas that want to be seen and heard are constantly on the search of how to get those ideas out and express.
This is why many of us turn to be instructors, coaches, creative entrepreneurs. Because of this calling to be independent to express and share.
What happens sometimes is that we are stuck not knowing what to do or how to do it so that our essence of freedom, liberty and independence is stifled under how to make this lifestyle and underlying value work. By the way, this is when most people call me asking for help and advice.
Dependently Independent
So knowing we are on this lifelong search for freedom and being independent, do you feel like you’re dependent on others to achieve your independence.
Let’s name some ways we are independent:
Financially independent – This is a dream come true for many of us yet we are dependent on clients (unless you’re a trust fund baby) to pay us to achieve this.
Relationship independent – If we’re married or single we’re dependent on others affection to fill this area of our lives.
Religious independent – This is a trickier one because many people do not have this freedom. But many are dependent on religion to serve as a backbone for their lives.
As the Huff Post states there are 2 types of independence and one is being free with rules. They used this quote “Any yachtsman knows,” he replied, “that in order to enjoy the freedom of the high seas, one must become a slave to the compass.”
So in order to have freedom and independence we are subject to being connected and tied to other circumstances to achieve the ultimate freedom.
Why This Matters
At the end of it all, your independence should make you feel happy, satisfied, proud and fulfilled. Whether it’s attached to others (like clients, income, spouses, and then some).
If you are not vibing where you are right now, if you feel stifled, over dependent or not connected to your highest self ideals, I invite you to do something.
First take time to make a call with me then check out my last post about the 9 Environments and do the wheel and the exercise.
Lastly, create a vision board of what it means to be independent to you, regardless of your external situations.
I leave you with a quote from Cicero: “What then is freedom? The power to live as one wishes.”
This is exactly what we will cover today because it sometimes feels daunting to always be moving in a direction… motivation sometimes just isn’t there right? And when shit hits the fan, how do you stay motivated?
I am excited and motivated about getting back to my blogging.
So many shifts in my life that kept me from stepping back into my zone of magic and one of those was actually not finding motivation.
This is all about motivation today. The 5 tips to keep yourself going.
How to keep moving forward when you just feel like you can’t
Well what if I told you one of the easiest ways is to actually stop sometimes.
I have an awesome chat group with some fellow master minders and today’s chat was all about being lazy.
Why is being lazy so important to keep you motivated?
You become an efficient and effective producer. These are 2 very different concepts by the way. Being efficient isn’t always being effective, so put the 2 together and you are an accomplishment machine!
Procrastinate! In my online course I teach all about using tools to be an effective procrastinator. Now this doesn’t mean waiting until the last minute and getting all stressed out about it. It means using the essence of it and setting a deadline!
Community. Being motivated when you are alone sometimes is so hard. This morning I even woke up with sadness and frustration and 1st thing I did (after letting myself wallow for a few minutes) was call a friend. And the result is we are setting some time apart to work together and get some shit done.
Set boundaries on what you invest in. I should also say who. By creating a NO answer you curate time for yourself to focus on what makes you happy. You stop moving your energy horizontally and move in deeper into your self and your goals.
Be the clever self you are. Give yourself a pat on the back and say thank you for being clever and discerning. In Sanskrit buddhi, which means intellect, holds discernment as a quality that refers to the higher mind This is the observer that watches how our inner world works and makes decisions of what’s important (or not important.
Let me tell you a story of how my client chose to motivate vs give up.
I’m sitting helping my client create her training manual and sales page for her training she’s putting out. I suddenly see the smile disappear from her face.
She looks up and says I can’t do this.
I see the frustration in her eyes.
I know this feeling because I have been there many times.
What happens I say if you don’t do this training? What happens if you actually launch it and it’s successful?
Sometimes being an entrepreneur and a self starter gets really really hard. It’s not always easy.
But you know what her answer was… “If I don’t do this then the people who would take my training wouldn’t get this new modality to teach”
And then what if they don’t?
“Then students won’t get to take my awesome classes all over the city… AND I’ve disappointed myself with ALL the hard work I’ve already put in”.
Close your eyes and picture 1 thing that motivates you!
Let that be your one thing. Your one reason for not stopping. It can be completely self-less or maybe a bit self-fish. And that’s OK!
Paying off your credit card debt is what motivates you… perfect.
Going on a vacation for the 1st time in 3 years is your motivation… perfect.
Donating to save the elephants is your driver… perfect.
And always don’t forget to meditate as whether it’s anger, frustration, fear or all the other things, meditation will keep you grounded. 🙂
I had a great convo yesterday with a potential client and she asked me – Ari I’m seeing so much of your stuff lately and wondering what you’re doing exactly. I’d like to tell you a story so you get to know me… and here’s the cool thing – I’m going to ask you the same! Let me know how you started your journey into doing what you do and why you do it.
I loved this question and it made me giggle in a great way. I’ve worn so many hats in this small human experience that I can see how one can ask this question. Not only that but I feel it’s important to share our story as it helps us see clearly once again where we are in life!
Reinventions are part of life. Transform into your next vision of you and how you want to lead your life. That’s exactly how this story begins
2 years ago there was an AHA moment when I was the owner of Trio Yoga when I realized I wasn’t playing to my own strengths or life goals. I was stuck inside a studio almost 7 days a week and feeling a bit miserable amongst the amazing community… no one really knew this but it was so. Depressed. Lonely. Un-Inspired.
What did happen (my aha moment) is that I re-kindled my entrepreneurial bug I was born with. It sparked the I WANT MORE LEADERSHIP! It was a bit shocking because I had been this laissez faire yogi traveling the world teaching, doing what I wanted, when I wanted and never had huge responsibilities other than making sure I was on time and taught a damn good class. I wanted to leave a mark that was bigger than 4 walls.
Have you ever felt that?
2 years ago Bizzy Yogi was born. My life changed forever. I finally allowed my brain to expand where it had never gone before as I had set limits and a useless story around WHO I was. It was how I could step up and create waves and make ripples that played in a larger way. By the way, this was some scary shit!
Fast forward to now.
What do I do?
Give ideas to you who are stuck in HOW.
Create a plan to you who love to follow a path.
Provide a color by number book of your business and brand.
Align your ideas to execution, hold you accountable for doing them and keep bringing clarity and truth to the foreground while slicing doubt away like a ninja.
And Yes, This Story Also Deals With Yoga.
YOGA = UNION.
AcroYoga = HIGH UNION
Samkya Philosophy for example. It’s a duality that can’t exist without the essence of working together. You have the witness and the doer. Consciousness with nature.
This is life and business. It’s the story I’ve written for how I work with my clients and really the basis for life. Why I created Yogi Hearts, Business Minds group on Facebook. Because it’s ALL ONE to me.
So see what’s really cool is I teach business and yoga with this ancient philosophy. After teaching Yoga & AcroYoga for close to 15 years I realize that it’s all the foundations you need to create and build your new iteration of you. I said to a student yesterday to change the position of her foot in triangle pose, she asked why… I said cause it affects the ENTIRE pose.
Yoga is the foundation of life. Asana is the seat. Poses are how you maintain strength and stability. Breath keeps you alive and fluid. Meditation provides clarity and space.
In business it’s the exact same process. Desire of your life is yoga. The idea is the foundation mixed in with values is the seat. The strategy is the asana which leads to action to keep the business alive (breath) and the meditation is being in flow connected to your higher vision.
I help you re-write your story according to this formula which keeps things so simple and yet can go so deep!
So whether you’re looking to re-align your business or your life, follow the steps above!
It’s almost as easy as 1-2-3. I’m so glad my client asked what I do! I help formulate how the above makes sense in your life and in your business. I see the truth and clarity behind it all with love and spirit as the basis for a new version of your desires turned into actions, sustained by a clear path.
Always if you need anything… I’m a click away HERE 🙂
I’m jumping on here to talk and ask- what’s the deal with business and yoga? In light of recent articles in Elephant Journal (check it out here) regarding Kino, Cody, Alo and all one word named businesses I want to have a dialogue about WHY when it comes to yoga business tends to shift into irregular practices.
15 years. I’ve been in this business first of all as a student, then a teacher and now a mentor and leader. I own a HUGE yoga festival called The Yoga Expo, run an international business consulting company and well delve into all things yoga industry related. In the past weeks, I have seen the beautiful and ugly head of yoga and business rear its head.
“I think you trying to make money off a sacred science is appalling and if you truly understood the teachings the last thing you would be doing is sending out a dumb ass email commercializing a sacred science that was meant to be passed down teacher to students…you need Togo back to school”
I posted this as a copy paste to also highlight his grammar… you all know I am a stickler for spelling. Anyways, that got in my inbox a few days ago. But also this:
“I was on a journey of spirit to unearth those of authentic purpose whose actions spark the divine when I discovered your meaningful Essence. You are doing work you should be very proud of. You are having a profoundly positive effect on people.”
Yoga business is the same as all other businesses by the way, the only difference is who’s behind the business that makes the world of difference.
What’s going on?
Opinions will always create a ripple effect. The opinions in the article referenced above are really interesting because I am a businesswoman. Cody and Alo are businesses. Kino is also a savvy businesswoman. When values and integrity are so deeply ingrained in how you operate your business it’s an interesting play on how kind you are and how much of a stickler for contracts and rules as well. Why do I say this… because I have seen it first hand.
Several times when I operated my business from a place of generosity and kindness, whether it was offering discounts, extra flexible payment plans, I have gotten burnt. People never paid, didn’t show up or decided that it wasn’t in their best interest to continue paying.
What happens here is the ripple effect. And the same thing Cody’s co-founder speaks of. For a customer it is very easy to say I no longer wish to pay. What about the people on the other side? The employees of Cody are affected by 1 decision. My family is affected by 1 decision. Yoga business practices are truly the BEST in the world. As long as us, the leaders continue to make an effort to hold highest levels of integrity – on both sides of the coin.
The Yoga business isn’t different than other businesses. If you develop and establish your value, your non-negotiables from the beginning, guess what… you don’t get burned. I take every client that stops paying, that wants to change agreements to what works for them as a lesson. It makes me more organized, it makes my contracts tighter and payment plans also more on point.
The main point behind this post.
I want to shed light on many sides of the coin. Our society is so easy to point a finger. We take the moral high ground on issues that we really don’t even know anything about. When I read Kino’s first article I was totally like “WTF!” how dare these large companies do whatever they want! Shortly after I caught myself and said, wait, my business is growing and I would like to avoid these types of situations. And then today I read the reply and I also attest to several things he mentioned.
How do I prepare my business so from the beginning there are non-negotiable value systems in place of trust, honor, commitment, fun, exceptional quality and passion?
Is yoga business the anti-business?
Learn about foundations of your business. Set yourself up to always see things as a learning experience will help avoid massive issues in the future. It’s how you operate, how you treat others that will always leave a good mark on your side. I wrote this article on analysis paralysis a few months ago that reminded me of how it was like setting up my business – but guess what – nothing is perfect and things will always come up that make you re-work and re-do and re-word. Nothing is perfect and as long as you are open to the flow, your business will improve daily.
Leave me a note as I’m interested to hear your side and how you operate your yoga business.
I don’t have a split personality really, I have (had) a split brand problem. Let me tell you the story…
It was one of those days, on a warm winter day (I’m based in Miami) where I had a massive realization. I had been living a double life, with 2 brands (really 3 but will get into that).
I noticed not a lot was moving forward and I was working my ass of. It was really frustrating and at the end of the day, counterproductive. I had this ideal of who I was and how I could serve. So of course, being the creative yogini that I am, created 2 brands, 2 websites, 2 newsletters, 2 business cards (and the list goes on). If you want to read more about me, check this page.
Now, was this serving me? NO! It was driving me crazy, but since I had a belief that why would any of my business students want to hear me talk about ROI and email marketing and why would any of my business clients and audience hear about my events and classes. Mind you, these are all perceptions, not truths.
So how can this serve you? It goes back to energy and where you are putting it. Are you living a double life in any aspects. Maybe have 2 jobs very disconnected from each other? I have friends that are bartenders at night and yoga teachers by day. Some client who take care of their bodies at the gym and yoga class, yet, have really negative feelings about themselves and their bodies.
Where is there the limiting belief that is stopping you from being successful, productive and happy? Where is the opportunity to expand your reach into what would serve you best? As you know, by serving yourself in the highest way you can serve and be the most amazing person for others.
Split Personality Syndrome IS OVER!
So here is the big question? What are you gonna do about it?
I’m re-launching my brand and I hope you keep loving what I send and the messages I share. But most of all, I want to know what you want to connect and feel whole with. What are your issues, disconnects that prevent you from your greatness.
Manifesting your inner magic is one decision away.
Yoga retreat mania has hit the yoga scene like an avalanche! And let me tell you why I think this is a great thing… but a double-edged sword.
First of all, I love yoga retreats. I have led them for close to a decade and they never cease to impress me with the quality of amazing people who come together. Retreats are a way for you, the teacher, to affect your students in a much bigger way and in usually gorgeous locations. They also provide a bigger income but before setting anything up please take the time to assess where you are in your practice as a teacher and leader. I suggest you do some soul searching as I don’t want you to set up a retreat and it not meet your expectations.
Yoga retreats gone wrong…
Not only is taking people on an adventure a huge responsibility but the planning process, if not done correctly, can leave gaps in your retreat that could possibly make your life challenging.
I not only have heard of disasters when planning the retreat but also during. This leaves a really bad taste in your participant’s minds and can sour your reputation, to say the least.
Let’s go through a laundry list of things you will need before you even get there:
Don’t worry! I know that seems like a LOT but the payoff is so sweet. This is why having a plan and a guide is so important as it will allow you to get to your destination happy. Here is one super important tip you want to always be conscious of- don’t book out an entire center without having some for sure YES clients first. This means you had conversations with people, you did your legwork, you even took deposits. YES you took deposits even before sending deposits to the center. I have done this in my last 2 retreats and worked amazingly. Have the right conversations with possible locations and ask them to hold the dates for you at no charge or maybe a small fee while you get your people.
Apart from this, your mental capacity for planning should be in for the big vision. Let’s say you project a $3500 profit from having 7 people attend the retreat for 5 days. Is this what you would make normally in 5 days doing your classes and possible side gig? If it isn’t, then, create time to plan and get all your ducks in a row. Having this foresight to larger income will put things into perspective nicely.
Is leading a yoga retreat right for me?
Here is where I can’t tell you yes or no, but I can definitely give you more insight into qualities of a leader. If you connect to some of these, then most likely you are on your way. Another thing is having enough material to offer during your retreat (and remember it’s not enough to just teach a couple classes a day… this is mediocre). Lead people to an experience. Help them uncover or re-discover something (your specialty). Have the boldness of stepping into your leadership and guiding from the heart with the full knowledge that you are there to serve on many levels.
Qualities of a leader:
Honest
Vulnerable
Authentic
Flexible
Resourceful
Deep listening
Creative
Supportive
Intelligent
Ability to delegate
Big vision
Caring
Kind
Fun
Speaks the unspoken
End result
Not only will you feel happy you planned correctly and took the right steps, but your retreat will be smooth sailing. I really can’t stress enough people who are leading retreats want to offer the best experience with quality teaching, special attention to details, good communication and extreme awareness to your students needs (the spoken and unspoken). The more retreats there are, the bigger reason why you should be the BEST and most special one. Doing that will help you rise above, cut through the clutter and feel authentic that you are giving the best of you.
First how can you tell if you’re experiencing burnout let alone overcome burnout? I have struggled with this because of my action centered personality that usually pushes through bouts of “not feeling it”.
But let’s identify some real burnout style feelings:
What happens when you loose freedom and independence? How do you feel?
The main point behind this post.
