Every year, I look forward to summer to refresh and reboot my entire life and work. One, I’m a summer baby, so entering into a new birthday cycle is always a source of joy and gratitude (plus the occasional “grey hair” panic). Second, like for many, it’s a time to pause mid-year, wind down, and observe a bit of a break, whether we do it through some well-deserved vacation time, a welcome staycation, or just weekends at the beach. These past few summers, I’ve made it a point to really stop, reflect and use this time as an effective life and work reboot system.
Reflecting on the first half of the year can bring major positive insights into the direction you’re taking going forward. One of the biggest misconceptions so many have is that we, along with our circumstances and the environments around us, do not change. Once we begin to realize that we’re in constant flux, down to our very beliefs and thought processes, it becomes crucial to observe a much-needed pause and evaluate where we stand, especially mid-year. It’s when we fail to do this that we tend to find ourselves stagnant, lagging behind, and ultimately frustrated at our lack of progress.
If you’ve been considering your progress so far, and have been looking to refresh yourself over the summer, literally and figuratively, there are a few ways to get started, even as you’re sipping a margarita on the beach or lounging poolside:
Re-visit your why
You’re not the same person you were when you began this year, or even this week. You’re constantly evolving and growing. Your perspective is changing, and so are your motives, and rightfully so. No one stays the same, it’s called growth!
Has the why behind your life and work changed? Maybe you were motivated by the thought of starting your own business, and have realized it’s no longer for you. You may have experienced some drastic changes in your personal life, such as a divorce or the loss of a loved one, which may make you reconsider your entire life goals. Whatever it may be and at whatever stage of growth you may find yourself, stopping to re-visit your why can help you refresh and reboot your life and work.
Re-evaluate your goals
If you’ve set goals or intentions at the beginning of the year, you may want to re-evaluate them again. Have you progressed towards getting that degree or certification? Are you any closer to getting the promotion? Have you started writing the book, or setting up the business?
Re-evaluating your goals allows you to measure your progress, and adjust your target for the remainder of the year. It can also help you assess if your goals still make sense for you. Maybe the promotion is no longer in the cards now that you’ve decided to quit the job and start your own firm. You may need to adjust your expectations when it comes to some of the intentions you set, so you don’t have to sacrifice your sanity at the expense of achievement. Or you may just need a reminder that you still have work to do for the rest of the year.
Refresh your skills
Take some time this summer to assess where you are in terms of your skills. You may have to complete a Skills Gap Analysis, whereby you evaluate whether the skills you have are still the skills that employers and businesses are requiring. Technology and ideas are advancing at a mind-numbingly rapid pace, which also means that what you may have learnt in school and at the start of your career may be seriously outdated.
Schedule a meeting with your manager as part of your performance review or just on an informal basis to get some feedback. This is also a good way to update the powers that be of any new courses, certifications or experiences you may have had and get the credit you deserve. Look up some current work descriptions in your field to compare the skills required to yours. Study successful entrepreneurs in your area of business and learn from them. There are many ways to reboot your skills, and they don’t necessarily require you to exhaust yourself.
Learn something new and practice it
Summers are a great time to invest in your learning. You don’t have to sit in an air-conditioned classroom to do so either. Grabbing a self-help book, listening to an informative podcast or an audible book on-the-go, attending a couple of outside networking events, or visiting a new place are great ways to increase your learning capital. Invest in mentorship resources by asking someone to be your mentor, or mentoring someone else.
Yet, you don’t just want to accumulate knowledge without the hands-on practice part. Try and put at least one thing you learn this summer in practice. It could be a new mindfulness practice, some great networking tips, or a new recipe from that new place you checked out last week. The point is to dust up your knowledge bank and refresh it as much as you can.
Take care of your body
We get so busy most of the time, especially as working women and working moms, that taking care of our bodies tends to fall by the wayside. Observing a pause in the summer to refresh our self-care routine makes a world of difference.
This is not so much about getting the proverbial “beach body”, but more so about re-connecting with ourselves and our sense of self-love and self-esteem. It’s also a great way to set the tone for the rest of the year when it comes to our health.
Welcome to the Let It Be Friday!, where I say hello (and TGIF), and round up the lifestyle, career and business news that inspired, excited, made me smile (or laugh out loud).
Hi there (and Happy Friday!)!
Happy Summer Solstice Day! This week has literally flown by, it’s the first week of summer vacation for my kiddos, which means my whole schedule needs to be reshuffled, again! How many of you working moms can relate?
Well, in the middle of running out of cereals for breakfast, finding ideas of creative activities (because of course it rained all week!), and stealing some hours of productivity here and there, here are a few items that you may want to read about, use, or you know, procrastinate on…
In “women crushing it” news, CBS reports the U.S. women’s team beat Sweden this week, and is taking names! Yet, despite generating more revenue than men’s, Business Insider reveals they’re still making $100,000 less than men!
Inspiration alert! The Glassdoor Blog lists 14 women who won the 2019 Best CEO awards;
On the hunt for a new job? US News lists the best job search sites at the moment;
Business Insider reveals that 1 in 3 professional women admit to being harassed at work, but don’t report it;
Have you seen director Ava DuVernay’s new series “When they see us” on Netflix? According to Black Enterprise, watching it is an act of social justice;
Want to make the modern tech workplace more welcoming to women? Entrepreneur has a few suggestions as to how.
Not sure if you can sport leggings at work? Working Mother lists the 5 best leggings with pockets for women to wear at work;
Throwing a summer cookout these days? Food52 shares their 13 favorite tips to throw the chillest cookout ever;
Hello parents! We know you love your kids, but Lifehacker has a few tips on how to get a break from them over the summer (you know, for sanity’s sake!);
Are you a sensitive person? The Corporate Sister reveals that it’s actually a superpower (plus some tips on how to work it at work)!
If you read the title of this post while vigorously nodding your head, then you may already have dealt with what it means to be a sensitive person in the world, and more specifically at work. You may have been labeled as “too nice”, “introverted”, or even as a “pushover”. You may have had to deal with your emotions running haywire when faced with challenging situations such as confrontational relationships, less-than-stellar performance reviews, or toxic office environments. While your generosity, dedication and attention to detail may have earned you the sympathy of some of your colleagues, you may have been at the end of some serious pet peeves from others.
Dr. Elaine Aron, a clinical and research psychologist and expert on high-sensitivity since 1990, has authored five books on the topic, among which one of my favorites, The Highly Sensitive Person. In her books, she defines high sensitivity’s characteristics as a more elaborate depth of processing, easy overstimulation, emotional responsiveness, acute awareness of stimulations, and empathy. Her research, among others, associates these characteristics with the personality trait known as Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS). Individuals born with the SPS trait have been proven to be more likely to be bullied at work and suffer from psychological injury. Often, these injuries are inflicted by managers and colleagues with low Emotional Quotient (EQ), and poor self-esteem and interpersonal skills.
In a world, and a workplace at large, that tends to favor those who speak the loudest and the most, often mistaking free speech with assertiveness or smarts, sensitivity can easily be mistaken for weakness. As a sensitive person, I’ve experienced this multiple times, and have had to learn to reframe my own sensitivity from an undesirable attribute to what it really is: a strong, unique, competitive advantage. Here’s why and how your high sensitivity can actually work for your benefit at work:
With the rise in technology, leaders like you, with empathy, intuition and creativity are needed more than ever!
In one of my fields of expertise, which is accounting, tasks of all sorts are being taken over by bots and computers. Similarly, the traditional role of many professions is rapidly evolving towards almost complete automation. The good news is that the more professional tasks are automated, the more need there is for those qualities and attributes that machines do not possess, such as intuition, creativity, and empathy. These qualities are the trademarks of sensitive people, which makes them incredibly gifted and attuned leaders.
As a sensitive person, you are already equipped for exceptional leadership, which is now in high need and even higher demand in our modern career landscape. Have confidence in your leadership abilities and do not be afraid to display the qualities that make you YOU!
You have incredible communication skills: use them!
One of the biggest misconceptions around sensitive individuals is that they are poor communicators. Nothing could be further from the truth. One of the hallmarks of high sensitivity is the ability to “read people”. It’s not just about perceiving others’ actions and reactions, but rather catching on to their intrinsic feelings, emotions and motivations. This in turn allows sensitive individuals to tailor their communication style, content and delivery to their specific audience.
This means you can actually understand and address the needs of your team members, superiors, and management. If you’re an entrepreneur, you are in a perfect position to identify and attune to your ideal audience and market. Now how is that for a superpower?
Harness your unique attention to detail!
As a sensitive person, getting easily over-stimulated also lets me pick up on the tiniest of details. While this can create perfectionist tendencies, which can be harmful, the upside is that I can also pick up on what may have been overlooked. I also notice this trait in most of the sensitive people I know.
In fast-paced professional environments where change is the new normal, this attention to detail is an invaluable asset! Don’t hesitate to use it and let your voice be heard about it as well!
You are so creative you can solve pretty much any problem!
Repeat after me: I’m an idea magnet! Great ideas just come to you, because you’re so in tune with your inner world and experience amazing clarity breakthroughs. As a sensitive person, your intuition is the gateway to the most innovative solutions and experiments that exist.
Don’t be afraid to share your incredible creativity with the world and be noticed for it! You also may want to consider downloading a note-taking app like Evernote, or just carrying a notebook around just in case the next million-dollar idea hits you! Just sayin’…
Now do you see how what you may have been told from an early age on, was more of a weakness and a disability, can actually propel your career and life forward! When I finally realized what a super power sensitivity really is, when harnessed and used in a productive way, I began truly and authentically thriving in my work and life. However, since sensitive people get easily stimulated, even by subtleties in their environments, the key is to learn to manage your emotions and be as prepared as possible. For me, understanding what triggers me and training myself to either confront it or avoid it, as needed, makes a world of difference. Similarly, preparing for new circumstances, learning to be more flexible, and anticipating changes helps me give my best without the stress of overstimulation.
Are you a sensitive person? How can you start using these tips to reframe your sensitivity as a superpower instead of a burden?
Did you know that 40% of self-employed people average at least one overdue invoice of at least $2,500? If you’re self-employed, you may be familiar with this statistic. You may have experienced unpaid invoices and their disastrous effects on your business’ cash flow. You may also be wondering how your invoices can get you paid well and fast. I know as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and consultant, I have definitely felt the effects of it.
This has brought me to ask myself, like so many other entrepreneurs and consultants, the following question: “Is there some secret to invoices that actually get paid well and fast?” As it turns out, there’s a science behind it, and a pretty accurate one at that. As one of the most effective invoicing software companies on the market. Freshbooks has conducted a research on the types of invoices that actually generate positive payment. What they have found is as comforting as it is effective. Certain types of invoices written in a specific way tend to be paid in full, while others, well…tend to linger on businesses’ back burners indefinitely.
Based on Freshbooks’ study, the below infographic lists 7 tips you can use in your small business to write the kind of invoices that will get you paid faster and better:
Based on Freshbooks’ study, the below infographic lists 7 tips you can use in your small business to write the kind of invoices that will get you paid faster and better:
Additionally, the new Freshbooks Retainers option helps you manage and regulate your cash flow through recurring invoicing, time tracking, and reporting. The new Retainers option allows you to plan for and forecast a certain number of hours to clients’ retainers. Invoices are then automatically set up, which helps run the business on auto-pilot, so you can actually focus on doing what you love. Most importantly, you can avoid the trap of setting wrong expectations with clients, and wasting time with unending discussions and negotiations. Lastly, you will look more professional with the ability to create streamlined reports for yours and your clients’ use. Overall, any change in project deliverables and scope will be dealt with more easily with this tool.
What changes will you make to your bills going forward?
Please note this is a sponsored post for which I may be compensated.
Did you know that 85% of businesses fail because of poor cash flow? If you’re an entrepreneur, this figure may be making you shudder. After all, your business depends on a healthy and consistent cash flow. However, the sad reality is that many entrepreneurs are subjected to poor billing methods that hurt their cash flow. As a Certified Public Accounting (CPA), keeping track of billing is my least favorite business activity. This is where Freshbooks Retainers, the new option for Freshbooks customers on Premium or Plus plans, comes in.
If you’re not familiar with Freshbooks, it’s an invoice software that helps you add simplicity to your small business invoicing and billing. Not only does it allow you to create professional ooking invoices in seconds, it also lets you accepts various forms of payment, including credit cards and ACH. As a result, you can automate your business’ invoicing.
Basically, with the new Freshbooks Retainers option, you’ll be able to bill clients upfront. You’ll also have the ability to track your time and adjust it based on the actual work completed.
Ensuring your biling is done accurately and on-time
Consolidating your invoicing process without having to use multiple systems and apps
Focus on doing what you love and providing your clients with quality work
Most importantly, Freshbooks Retainers help you set clear guidelines and expectations with your clients. The amount, details and overtime billing are already set in the system, which will clarify the conditions for delivery. It’s also a great way to look professional and on top of your business.
The new Retainers option also gives you valuable insight into your business’ time tracking, trends, and future forecasts through efficient summary reports. This is a precious source of information that you can leverage to grow your business and achieve more profitability.
If you’re not familiar with Freshbooks, it’s an invoice software that helps you add simplicity to your small business invoicing and billing. Not only does it allow you to create professional ooking invoices in seconds, it also lets you accepts various forms of payment, including credit cards and ACH. As a result, you can automate your business’ invoicing.
Basically, with the new Freshbooks Retainers option, you’ll be able to bill clients upfront. You’ll also have the ability to track your time and adjust it based on the actual work completed.
Ensuring your biling is done accurately and on-time
Consolidating your invoicing process without having to use multiple systems and apps
Focus on doing what you love and providing your clients with quality work
Most importantly, Freshbooks Retainers help you set clear guidelines and expectations with your clients. The amount, details and overtime billing are already set in the system, which will clarify the conditions for delivery. It’s also a great way to look professional and on top of your business.
The new Retainers option also gives you valuable insight into your business’ time tracking, trends, and future forecasts through efficient summary reports. This is a precious source of information that you can leverage to grow your business and achieve more profitability.
Start by creating your Retainer by clicking on “New Retainer”Next, continue by setting your retainer terms and invoice schedule.Your new retainer is now set up.
What struggles are you facing with your small business’ cash flow?
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