[N374]Now Youre Really Living

For years, I'd wondered what my life purpose was, what my calling was, especially in business. I've always known that I was good at marketing, but I also knew I was here for something bigger than I could dream, yet I couldn't figure out what that was. I'll admit I had a sometimes painful upbringing and early adulthood, and I always wondered WHY this was all happening to me. If there's supposed to be a reason for everything, then what was the reason I experienced so many deeply trying times? What was I supposed to do with all of it? I just couldn't figure it out.

In the last few years, I've made it a habit to TiVo Oprah on a daily basis and am familiar with her saying, "Use your life." Countless times, I've heard her inspire her viewers to look for the meaning in something that's happened to them, and then ask them to turn around and do something useful with it. The concept seems to be: Don't necessarily wallow in what's happened to you.

Instead, use the experience and the learning to help others, to make a difference, to create change. THAT is your life purpose. THAT is your calling, and it's super important for businesses like ours because we can affect people and businesses so directly.

Since then, I've realized why all that happened to me and why I'm here. From my experiences, I learned to overcome my once very low self-esteem, as well as the negative beliefs and playing small, to have more confidence and to really go for what I want in life. I also learned about having compassion for others (including my clients), to know that we all have painful experiences that shape who we are today; we all have fears and things holding us back, but these don't need to continue to hold us back.

At the same time, we all have massive potential for success, and to make a difference, especially being self-employed. It's just a question of getting out of our own way and then getting out there in a BIG way.

Using Client Attraction, I use my 'calling' on a daily basis with my clients. Yes, early on and for the majority of the time, we focused heavily on the marketing. (Listen, if you're sitting on the sofa WAITING for clients day after day, you're not going to make a big difference in this world.) You were given a gift, so you need to get out there to tell people about it and start helping people get results. Therefore, the marketing is absolutely crucial.

But once the marketing systems are in place, the 'calling' piece of it extends also to the other stuff that most entrepreneurs never put their attention to: increasing their confidence, getting out of their own way and into their true potential success (it's already IN them, they just haven't accessed it fully up to now). Especially women.

That might mean noticing how they get stopped by a chronic conditioning of playing too small, limiting thoughts, not deserving, subtle self-sabotaging behaviors, and fears that may or may not really exist, but are DEFINITELY getting in the way. In addition to the marketing, that's where I can make a massive difference in someone's business success and in his or her life. I'm a marketing junkie, but that's the juicy stuff for me. Best of all, it works and clients love the outcome.

When you're coming from your 'calling,' clients get better results, give you amazing testimonials, and more referrals. You begin to make a more substantial difference and that automatically translates to more success, more in-come, and all that stuff.

Wondering how to tap into your own calling? Here's what I learned about finding mine:

When you're NOT aligned with your life purpose, life is more of a struggle. Hardship is actually good. It's a sign from the Universe that you're not necessarily on the right track. See hardship as a blessing and a clue. It's not about necessarily CHANGING your business (I'm still doing Client Attraction and marketing, at least for now); it's a clue that you may need to change your direction a tiny bit or tweak it just slightly.

Your Assignment:

Find a way to weave your 'calling' into your work. Ask yourself these questions for clues on finding yours:

What section of the bookstore do you hang around in the most?

Look around you for signs about your purpose. They're everywhere if you look for them. Little happy coincidences aren't coincidences at all. They're ALL signs.

If you act upon the signs and take inspired action, you'll expedite your journey to living your purpose.

Find what comes easily to you, what helps others AND makes you feel good at the same time. If something brings you joy (like, for me, teaching and inspiring entrepreneurs to get out of their own way, play BIGGER and live a rich life) then it's something to pursue.

Once you've found it, start weaving it little by little into your every day work with clients, or start doing it a little at a time. Instead of doing a complete 180, test out the waters. Look for how you FEEL. Look for the subtle feedback. Then add a little more, so that it feels authentic to you. As you keep going, add even a little more of it until it feels really good and you'll notice a difference in your clients' results and how they relate to you. Start weaving it in your talks, your teleclasses, your networking, and your articles. Over time, when it feels right, you can start adding it permanently to your marketing materials. That's what I've done.

Your calling is to help others AND to feel good doing it. Once you find it, throw yourself into it. Success, clients, and increased revenues will naturally come to you when you do. You won't believe you get paid to live it. I'm still pinching myself.

Copyright (c) 2008 Fabienne Fredrickson