Direct Selling Leaders Experts

Like I said, I’ve been talking about freedom a lot lately.

I even looked it up in the dictionary to see how it was defined.  It said that “freedom” is “the enjoyment of personal liberty; a not being a slave or prisoner”.

Over the past 13+ years, I’ve discovered that the process of accessing abundance (which, needless to say, includes freedom - financial and otherwise) requires us to regularly ask ourselves challenging questions.    I’ve been asking myself some challenging ones about freedom lately - questions like “What’s robbing me of my freedom?  What, if anything, am I imprisoned by or enslaved by?”

In my “Fast Track” teleclass and my Debt-FREE Direct Seller™ Training program, I talk about how debt robs us of our freedom - and not just our financial freedom.  That’s why becoming debt-free is such an important and necessary part of the process of accessing all of the abundance that is available to us.

But that’s not the only way we give away our freedom - that we become imprisoned.  We can also become imprisoned and enslaved by the choices we make and the thoughts and beliefs that create those choices.

I’ve REALLY been thinking about and working with this lately - and it’s all led up to me making a different (and freeing) choice.  As a result of that choice, this will be my last blog on this site and, at least for the near future, I will be taking a “leave of absence” from being one of the DSL experts.

That wasn’t an easy choice - or one I took lightly.  But as I began to consider it, especially in terms of the concept of freedom, I realized that my “heart” was telling me that I needed to give myself some space for reflection and rejuvenation.  I first began my company, Access Abundance!, nearly 13 years ago and have been growing it (AND myself!) ever since.  Lately, I’ve been practicing some of the same principles I coach my clients on.  I’ve been taking a step back and asking myself (once again), “What do I want in my life?  What is abundance to me?  What do I want my life to be about?  Who do I want to be? What do I want my business to be about and how is my business going to support and enhance my life?”

[I’m sharing these questions with you here because it will serve you to regularly ask yourself the same or similar questions.]

As I began to ask myself these questions, I began to see how “enslaved” I had become by all the commitments I have in my business - commitments that I thought I HAD to keep or couldn’t change for any of a number of (scarcity-based) reasons.  And as long as I kept running “full throttle” trying to keep all those commitments, I wasn’t able to really get clear on what I want, where my business will go and I was in REACTION rather than ATTRACTION mode.

Some of my thoughts that had been keeping me enslaved included “what will people think?” and “I don’t want to let anyone down” and “I should be able to do all of this and more” and “Once I start something, I have to finish it” and “If I don’t keep my commitments, I’m out of integrity”.  I even discovered I had been thinking ” I HAVE to keep building and growing Access Abundance! and being an “abundance coach” because that’s what people expect and/or because it’s what I’m “supposed” to be doing.”

[Question: Do you ever find yourself in REACTION versus ATTRACTION mode? If so, what are the thoughts, beliefs or “rules” you have that keep you enslaved rather than free?]

And what I realized is that if I don’t give myself the same opportunity that I encourage my clients to take to reflect, reconsider, regroup, change direction, change my mind, do something different , then I’m not walking my talk and I’m limiting myself and my abundance.  I’m imprisoning myself - I’m not enjoying personal liberty.

What I also saw is that if I’m being an “abundance coach” and continuing my business as I’ve always done it because I am afraid to consider the possibility of change, then I’m not only limiting myself, I’m doing a disservice for my clients.  At some level, I start doing it because I HAVE to and not because I WANT to.

[Note:  I hope you realize that the same holds true for you and your direct selling business.] 

So, my direct selling friend, all of this has led me to make the decision to “lighten my load” for awhile and get clearer on what direction I want to take as an abundance coach, with my business and in my life.  I’m excited about the new “freedom” classes I’m teaching for direct sellers and want to bring a lot of my creative energy to those projects - which is difficult to do if I have a zillion and one other projects and commitments.

And one of those commitments I’m choosing to “let go of” - at least for the near future - is being the “Abundance Expert” on this site.  I talked with Sarah Robinson and received her full support - but that did not make my choice an EASY one.  That doesn’t change the fact, however, that is is a FREEING and empowering one.  And in choosing freedom, I am still open to the possibility that I may again soon - with greater clarity, purpose and energy - FREELY offer my support and services to you as “The Abundance Expert”.

It has been a privilege and honor to have been able to serve you through these blogs all these months.  Know that even though I’ll no longer be on this website, I’m still around!  So if you want to stay in touch and see what new directions I head in - especially in my new programs for direct sellers - come visit me at my website at www.accessabundance.com.

Remember, always, to FOCUS on and enjoy the abundance you have in your life and within yourself - each and every day!   And remember to CHOOSE freedom and abundance!

Teresa

 IAMNOWHERE

Did you FIRST see the words “I am nowhere” or “I am now here”?

Let’s explore and learn from this a little more…

When you see the words “I am nowhere” – what happens to your energy?   How powerful do you feel?   How motivated are you to take action?

Now – contrast that with your response when you see the words “I am now here”. 

When you see the words “I am now here” – what happens to your energy?   How powerful do you feel?   How motivated are you to take action?

That being said, did anything on your computer screen change?   Did the IAMNOWHERE letters magically move around or change color so as to produce the shift in your energy, power and ability to act?

Of course not!

The ONLY thing that changed was how you SAW them!   The EXTERNALS didn’t change in the least!

What changed - and what made a difference in terms of your sense of empowerment (or disempowerment) - was how you SAW the externals!   The thought you had - your perception - changed and that made all the difference in the world!

Here’s my point - and it’s the same point I emphasized repeatedly in my training this past weekend.

If you’ve been thinking (even subconsciously) that when you are making $$$$ money in your business, THEN you’ll feel confident, empowered and abundant - you’ve got it backwards.  

If you’re thinking that making the next level in your compensation plan, getting out of debt, quitting the job you hate, moving into your dream house, etc. etc. is what’s going to have you feel confident, empowered and abundant - you’re saying that the Externals Create the Internals!  Not only is that the EXACT OPPOSITE of how things work - it’s a SET-UP for scarcity.

Changing the externals is not what’s going to make the biggest difference in terms of you experiencing scarcity and/or abundance.  What WILL make the difference is how you PERCEIVE those externals (current and future) and what you THINK about them.

One of the oldest and most powerful principles of success and abundance tells us this… 

What you FOCUS on the most is where your energy will flow and is what will show up and grow in your life. 

So, my friend, my question for you today is this…

What are you FOCUSING on in your business and your life?  Are you focusing on scarcity, not enough and “I am nowhere”?

Or are you SEEING things differently… focusing on the progress, success and abundance you’ve already experienced?

Are you judging your current actions, progress, and results as “not enough” and “nowhere” - or are you able to drop your judgment and see your “reality” in a way that empowers you to take action, i.e., “I am now here”?

This one shift (which you can consciously train yourself to make) will have a huge impact in your business and all areas of your life.

So much so that I’m going to continue focusing on it (no pun intended!) in my next blog.

Until then, begin paying attention to your FOCUS and how you are SEEING yourself and your results, i.e., “I Am Nowhere” or “I Am Now Here”?

The choice is yours.  Your external results do not have to change for you to feel more empowered and motivated - your internals do.

“Talk” to you soon!

Teresa

The Internals Create the Externals

Claiming it for yourself is much more empowering, however.  When you do, it sounds like this:

MY Internals Create MY Externals

In other words, all of the conscious and subconscious thoughts, beliefs, emotions, experiences and expectations you have are - bottom line - what influences the actions you do (and do not!) take.  While your actions most directly impact your results - what ultimately makes the biggest difference is not your action - is the sum total of the thoughts, energy and emotions that PRECEDE your action!

In many ways, your internals - and they may be conscious or subconscious - act like a thermostat.

If your thermostat is set for 58 degrees, it’s pretty safe to say that the temperature in the room is going to be pretty close to 58 degrees.

If you wanted the room to be warmer, you could jump into ACTION and start building fires in the fireplaces and start baking bread in the oven and, at least temporarily, it would seem to work - the room would feel warmer.

But then what would happen?

You bet!  The thermostat would take over and turn on the air conditioning and start cooling the room back down to 58 degrees!

Talk about struggle, huh?  Talk about wasting time and energy and even money, huh?

But if you simply turned the thermostat up to 68 degrees, the thermostat would turn on the heater and the room would start warming up - EASILY - and would stay warm.

Your INTERNALS (conscious AND subconscious) are like that thermostat in your life.  They impact your actions and they impact your results. 

And that’s why reading and learning from this blog is so critical for your own success and that of your associates.  Because my commitment to you is to have my blog posts support you to “program your internal thermostat for abundance”.  

And that will make taking the actions you’ll learn from the other DSL experts all the more powerful and effective!I’ll continue that process in my next blog post… between now and then, I highly recommend you re-read some of my earlier posts (especially the ones addressing “money messages”) to see which ones are affecting the setting of your internal thermostat!

Enjoy your day!

Teresa

This is a message I heard all the time growing up!

Funny thing, I still hear it all the time from the people I coach and train - especially direct sellers!

While this message may not deal with money directly, it has a direct influence on the abundance or scarcity you experience in all areas of your life – especially as a direct seller.

If you’ve incorporated this message into your life “verbatim”, you probably work hard in your business - but rarely let yourself relax and have fun.  When you do, you probably feel guilty because “you should be working on your business” and you think of “all that you need to do”.  You might be perceived as a “workaholic” or, at the least, you limit the amount of fun you have because your work is never done.

But let’s get real.  As an adult AND as a direct seller, when is your work completely done?

The problem that results from accepting this message (even subconsciously) is this.  When work and business consumes our lives and we do not give ourselves the opportunity to have fun and recreate (i.e., “re-create” ourselves), we do not experience the abundance we say we want.  We experience burnout, deprivation and scarcity instead.

You might even expect your associates and team members to do the same thing - and think they’re “not dedicated enough” or “serious enough” if they don’t work as hard as you.  In subtle ways, you might even make them feel guilty if they’re not working as hard as you.

Given “The Law of Attraction” principle that “like attracts like”, keep in mind that your workaholism, scarcity, burnout and deprivation will likely attract more of the same.

After all, given how hard you work and how little fun you truly let yourself enjoy - would YOU (looking from the outside) want to join your business and be part of your team?

But accepting this message is not the only way it can influence you and impact your abundance.

Believe me, I know! I can be downright rebellious at times - especially with messages like this.

If you “rebel” against this message, you may be determined to have fun “no matter what” and, as a result, you do not do the work that is necessary for your business to grow and thrive - for you to experience the abundance you say you want.

If you are rebelling against this message, you may be living with the motto of “I’m not going to start to work until I’m done having fun”.  Of course, because having fun can be so addictive and you never have “enough fun”, a lot of necessary and important work will not get done, e.g., making phone calls, doing your bookkeeping, prospecting, work around your home, exercise, etc..

Just like avoiding fun can result in scarcity, so can avoiding work.  And, of course, since having fun sometimes costs money, you can often experience the added scarcity of debt when you rebel against this old (and inaccurate) message.

Again, I don’t know how or if this message is influencing you - consciously or subconsciously - in the ways I’ve described.  But look and see.

Because until you become aware of the influence this (and other “scarcity messages”) has on you, you can’t do anything to reclaim your power from it.

In truth, the “abundance message” includes BOTH. You need to work to grow your business and you need to relax, have fun and “play” in your life at the same time.

As always, I’d love to hear what you discover and/or other “messages” you realize you have - as well as any questions.  Simply send me a message in the “reply” box below and I’ll get back to you.

Now… go and have some FUN today!

Teresa

So - how many times have you heard, thought or felt that “money is hard to come by” or something to that effect?

If so, have you stopped to recognize exactly HOW it might be influencing you and limiting your success and abundance - in your business and in your life?

Let me give you an idea of what I mean…

If you have this message and have incorporated it into your life “verbatim”, then the only way you know for making and having money is difficult, hard, and filled with struggle.

So - have you ever felt like your business is hard, that you should work harder, that it can’t be too easy?

If so, this message might be one reason why.

Have you ever “shut down” and refused to be open to possibilities to make or have money in ways that are easier, simpler or more efficient? Do you have a tendency to make things more complicated than they need be?  Or are you one of those skeptics who think that it can’t be easy?

Perhaps you’ve incorporated this message in another way.

Are you excessively frugal and “tight” with your money?  Do you have a difficult time spending any money for something you “don’t need” - that’s purely for your enjoyment?

In light of this message, that behavior would make sense - after all, if money is hard to come by, you wouldn’t want to waste it.  However, that behavior won’t necessarily result in success and abundance.

Of course, if none of these examples “resonate” with you, it could be because - unknowingly - you have been “rebelling” against the idea that “money is hard to come by.”

If so, you may experience the scarcity that comes from not even trying to have or make [more] money.  After all, if it’s hard to come by – why bother?  Who wants to do something that you know is going to be difficult and may not even be successful?

Maybe you got into your direct selling business because you thought it was going to be an “easy” way to make a lot of money.  Then, when you discovered you actually might have to WORK at your business, your interest quickly waned.

If you are rebelling against this message, you may be constantly looking for the “easy” ways to make money, e.g., gambling, lotteries, “get rich quick schemes”.  You may even be avoiding taking those necessary (but often difficult) money-producing actions in your business - you know, like making phone calls on a consistent basis, asking people for the sale or the booking, etc.

Because of your “rebelliousness” against any “hard work” that may be required for making money, you might spend a lot of money and/or time looking for ways to make your business EASY or, if that fails, then moving from one business to another to another - looking for the one that will be “easy”.

Do you want to know the ironic thing about all of this rebelliousness, my friend?

It’s the fact that all of your rebellion has, quite possibly, actually made money hard for you to come by!

You know, it’s that whole “what you resist, persists” idea… 

Now - there’s no way I can know if this message is influencing you in any of the ways I’ve described or in other ways.  I just offer these examples to give you some ideas.  What matters is that you start to pay attention to your thoughts, actions and results - that you start to become aware.

Why?

Because until you become aware of the “scarcity messages” that are influencing you, you can’t do anything to change the way you think and the actions and results that follow.

So, start to pay attention. Is this message influencing you and your business?  If so, in what ways?

As always, I’d love to hear what you discover and/or other “messages” you realize you have - as well as any questions.  Simply reply below.

I’ll either address the questions or comments I receive or highlight another scarcity message that shows up A LOT for direct sellers in my next blog.

Until then, practice becoming AWARE of the thoughts and messages that are influencing you!

Enjoy your day!

Teresa

MONEY… and the relationship you have with it (even if you’re not aware of it)! 

In my last blog, I suggested that one of the reasons you or members of your team may not be experiencing the prosperity and abundance you desire is because the relationship you have with MONEY (conscious or subconscious) has been created by the scarcity-based “money messages” you’ve absorbed and reinforced over the course of your lifetime.

These “money messages” can influence you and impact your actions and results in one of two ways (or both).   At a conscious or subconscious level, you may have accepted and incorporated a message into your life “verbatim”.

For example, let’s say that you grew up with the “message” (spoken or implied) that “you can’t make money doing something you love”.  If you accepted this message (even at a subconscious level), then - even though you love your direct selling business - you probably won’t make much money at it (and maybe even despite your efforts and for no apparent reason).

However, in the work I do with people, the reason is QUITE APPARENT!  It’s because this old message is influencing you - you’ve accepted it at some level - and you might not even be aware of it!  Your results then confirm the original message.

The other way a “money message” could impact you and your success is when you rebel against it, i.e., all of your energy is spent avoiding, resisting or acting out a “not that” response to the old message.

Using the same message, i.e, “you can’t make money doing something you love”, this may show up in your life as a pattern that has you only willing to do things you love no matter what the results.  You may have an attitude of “if I can’t do something I love, then I won’t do it”.  The only problem is that, taken to an extreme, doing what you love may not result in you making the money you want.

Case in point…

Think about all of the phone calls you need to make to grow a successful business.  Now think of all the days you “aren’t in the mood” or “don’t want to make phone calls”.  Maybe you HATE making phone calls.  Yet making phone calls are necessary actions for you in your business - at least if you want to make money and experience financial abundance.  Thus, to make money, you need to do something you don’t love - and you might rebel.

Are you getting the idea????Remember what I said in my last blog, i.e., unless and until you become aware of your “money messages” and the influence they have over you, you can’t do anything to change them or REALLY change your results.

Which is exactly why, my friend, I’m going to use my next few blogs to support you to start recognizing some of the specific “money messages” that might be blocking or limiting your abundance!

I have LOTS of “examples” I can write about - and I will.

But, trust me, it will be much more empowering for you (and fun for me!) if you email me some of your own “money messages” by replying below… Just start paying attention to the thoughts, messages and beliefs you have about money and how they might be influencing you, post them (below) and we’ll take it from there!I look forward to hearing from you!

Enjoy your day!

Teresa