Mindset

  • Managing mental blocks

    By Sowmya Narasimhan

    Everyone has days where they think “what should I do now?” 

    A feeling of chaos where you are clueless. 

    Well yes, of course, we’ve all been there. 

    Merriam Webster’s dictionary describes this feeling as “brain fog”. In layman’s terms, it is called a mental block. These are barriers standing in the way of our creativity, motivation, and productivity.

    But despite all of this how do you remain perseverant?

    Here are 6 simple steps that can help you with this

    What to begin with?

    Start with the simpler decisions. Choose which topic you need to first focus on.

    This will help you to gain the initial momentum and interest to indulge in your work.

    Just like “Little drops of water make a mighty ocean” you will be able to pull off your work by making the right start!

    Find a placid place

    Peace brings with it so many positive emotions that it is worth aiming for in all circumstances. Hence, you need to sit in a peaceful environment and stay calm while dealing with your mental block. 

    Pick a place surrounded by greenery, where you can stay away from all the distractions and completely concentrate on your work.

    The 4-R strategy

    • Research- Have quick research about your task. The more you know about it, the better is your flow of thoughts.
    • Refer– Refer to others’ opinions and analyse their point of view. This will help you to look into all perspectives and make a better decision. 
    • Resourceful– You need to have enough resources that can help you with your work. Make sure you look into every single aspect of your task. 
    • Recreation – Take short breaks whenever required, ease upon your mental block in the best ways like listening to music/podcasts or watching videos related to your task, which might help you to make a breakthrough.

    Transcribe and organize your thoughts

    When you are stuck with your thoughts and not able to come to a decision, write them down.

    Now that you have all your thoughts written down try finding leads that can help you with your work.

    Filter your thoughts and organize them according to your needs. 

    This will help you to relax and conclude with the right decision.

    Know the drill

    You can be self-confident but not overconfident. Avoid overdoing yourself. Set an achievable goal and give it enough time. Remember “good things take time” but also keep your limitations in mind and give your best to succeed.

    Ignore all the negative feelings and stay positive but also be well prepared to face the consequences. A bold attitude and readiness to face anything will help you to avoid mental blocks.

    Use your creativity cleverly  

    Creative things always boost you up. Try using some elegant posters and wallpapers that will help you to stay focused and also relax your mind. This way you can motivate your team as well as yourself. 

    Your mental health is very important, especially during these tough times. Don’t feel stressed over your mental blocks instead follow these simple steps and prepare yourself to manage them because “The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today”

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  • Dealing with anxiety

    By Sowmya Narasimhan

    All of us feel anxious and presently with all the predicament going on around, it’s okay to feel so. 

    But what is not okay is to give up and mourn over your failures and anxiety.

    I know it’s difficult. I have been there too.

    I still remember how anxious I was during my first interview yet I managed to bring it off.

    Wanna know how? Read on to find out how I dealt with my anxiety using 6 simple tips.

    1. Identify and learn to manage your triggers: Deadlines, projects, targets, finance…. All these terms do make you feel anxious. But there’s no need to be worried.

    Plan your schedule, make sure you include all your appointments and projects so you don’t miss out on any. This will help you to be punctual and finish your task way before the deadline. Thus you need not feel anxious about the completion of your work.

     2. Optimizing Optimism: Most of the time negative thoughts can distort the severity of the situation. Try to bring about a positive outlook for your business. Turn your negatives into positives. 

    Believe in yourself and motivate your team to pick up the threads. Spreading positivity will invigorate you. 

    Check out this podcast on 6 strategies to stay positive:

    3. Acquire assertiveness: You have to BELIEVE in yourself. Think of yourself succeeding in a specific situation at work and do your best to minimize any thoughts of failure.

    You’ve done it before and you can do it again. So gird your loins and never doubt your worth. When you’re provident there’s nothing to be nervous about. 

    4. Maintaining tranquillity: Indulge in activities that make you feel calm and composed. Perhaps you could paint and sketch or just ponder about the pristine nature.

    This will help you to gain back control over your mind and also help you to yield better and productive results.

    5. Pleasure in your leisure: Don’t waste your off-time. Figure out your new hobbies and interests that can enhance your work.

    Look out for innovative and fun concepts and ideas that you can imbibe.

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  • 3 Must Reads on productivity while #WFH

    By Anusha Bapat

    We share our 3 favorite books to help up your productivity especially now when we the boundaries between work and home are blurred with all of us working from home.

    1. Eat That Frog – By Brian Tracy

    “If the first thing you do when you wake up each morning is to eat a live frog, then nothing worse can happen for the rest of the day.” 

    Brian Tracy illustrates your most difficult task as the frog and how you should eat it first to boost and maintain your efficiency and zeal for the rest of the day. All your other tasks will automatically seem easier once you’re done with the hardest. It’s plain old practical advice presented in a very animated and compelling way. 

    2. The Productivity Project – By Chris Bailey

    The book explains motivating tactics and experiments in a very coherent manner. It deals with fresh ideologies like “productive procrastination” and “striving for imperfection”. The propositions he presents are very relatable and appealing. His strategies make you look at productivity in a new light and make you want to enjoy and absorb the process. 

    3. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – By Stephen R Covey

    This is one of those classic books you can never go wrong with. A wholesome read that talks about changing aspects of your personality to meet the problem. The book emphasizes the importance of setting a goal and working towards the right direction while having an “abundance mentality” and “synergising” for future benefit. After explaining the struggles of successful individuals, he goes on to describe 7 habits to cultivate that will guarantee you success and happiness.

    We hope you like these recommendations as much as we do!

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  • How to find your purpose?

    By Bhumika Ramesh

    We all might question our will and purpose on the days we feel low. With the uncertainties and doubts looming in the air around us during this dynamic and uncertain time, trying to find our purpose may give us a better footing to face the looming world.

    Ikigai can help us achieve this. This term can be described in simple terms as the reason why we wake up in the morning – the force that drives us to look forward to the day. 

    Once we discover this within ourselves, pursuing it and cultivating it will bring purpose to our lives.

    Ikigai is an intersection of 4 spheres: 

    • What we love to do (passion)
    • What we are good at (vocation)
    • What the world greatly needs (mission)
    • What we are given compensation for (profession)

    By fulfilling these, ikigai can be found and nurtured.

    A person’s ikigai isn’t always stagnant; it changes with one’s perception and ideals. There are quite a few ways we can start finding out our purpose by introducing small changes in our daily routine :

    1. Being present in the moment wholly: By focusing on your presence, you isolate your thoughts and drive them to the most important thing at the moment.

    2. Finding bliss in tiny things: Whether it be eating a cup of ice cream or watching your favorite sport are the small joys you should indulge in. This should be cherished. They give you a sense of ease and can be quite satisfying.

    3. Accepting oneself: Accepting our flaws and strengths, and understanding our limits and potential is one of the best ways to achieve our goals and use our passion to fulfill them.

    4. Finding our purpose is not an overnight task. It takes years to find it and hone it to our satisfaction and happiness.

    The more steadfast we are towards finding our Ikigai, the faster solace is found!

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  • How to Quickly Shift Your Mood

    success with savitha

    By Tanyika Rai

    We all have bad days. Sometimes we wake up on the wrong side of the bed and sometimes the day starts pretty good but eventually goes in the opposite direction.

    Believe me, I have had those days, too.

    It’s exhausting to go to work and complete all of the assignments when you’re not in the best of moods and can’t focus. To be honest, all I want to do on those days is curl up in bed and binge-watch a movie. However, I am unable to do so.

    So for those lousy days and uncertain days, here’s a list of simple but effective ways to quickly shift your mood:

    1. Hug Someone

    Sometimes all we need is a hug. A hug from someone you love or even cuddling with a pet can do wonders to your mood. It’s that simple, and you know what they say ‘ A hug a day keeps the doctor away.

    2. Clean Up Your Space

    Being in a messy space is often the cause of stress in most people. So take a couple of minutes to clean and clear out your surroundings.Clearing out any negative or unwanted thoughts in your head is also considered as cleaning out your space and probably will boost your mood.

    3. Take A Quick Nap

    A quick cat nap when you’re worn out will make you feel rejuvenated and is bound to boost your mood. Fatigue can also contribute to a bad mood. Not only that, but it’ll also help you think clearly and focus on the task at hand.

    4. Meditate

    Breathing in and out will help you relax and unwind. Practicing a short breathing exercise or meditation helps reduce stress hormones and can clear your perspective.  So sit down, concentrate on taking deep breaths and relax.

    5. Have A Dance Session or Listen to Upbeat Music

    Make a lively and upbeat playlist and have a jam session. Be certain that it is music that can, without a doubt, make you happy. Listen to the beat, sing along, or dance to your heart’s content. If you dance around, you’ll also get a decent workout in.

    6. Take A Walk Outside

    Take a long stroll in your neighborhood or a park. Take a deep breath and bask in the light. Take on the wonders of nature around you. Vitamin D has always been advantageous to your health

    7. Focus On The Good

    Reflect on all the good things that have happened in your life. Shift your attention to the good parts of your life. Express your gratitude towards them. When we’re usually not in the best of moods, we tend to focus our attention on the not so great parts. Often this is the cause of us feeling even more upset. So change your outlook and focus on the good.

    8. Move Away From Technology  

    And finally, put your phone and laptop away and stay away from social media for a few minutes. Do a little exercising, grab a bite to eat or even try journaling and writing your thoughts down. Interact with all that is around you. 

    Taking these short breaks will keep you in a good mood.

    Having a bad day is absolutely OK. Sometimes we do need to have bad days and just binge watch a show with a bowl of ice cream.  

    Feeling down or being being in a bad mood can affect your productivity but these easy ways will help you out.

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  • Reclaiming your boundaries

    The good girl archetype is obsolete and every day is Women’s Day.

     I mean, we women are going places, smashing internal and external glass ceilings, and reframing our narrative.

    But again, that archetype is only obsolete in theory.

    Why?

    Raise your hand if you

    –Have trouble saying no to friends, family and colleagues

    –Shy away from conflict even when you know you’re right

    –Think taking time out for yourself is wasteful

    –Have trouble standing up for yourself when people don’t show you the respect you deserve

    Also, raise your hand if you had a running ticker in your head going “…but women shouldn’t do all these. That’s not lady-like.”

    Ladies, it’s time to reclaim your boundaries.

    How to reclaim and set boundaries consistently

    1.    Let your personal preferences and wellbeing guide you

    Sounds like the most obvious thing doesn’t it?

    But I’ll be honest, it took me a long time to acknowledge my preferences and realize I can have boundaries to set.

    The first step is understanding what you’re willing to let slide, and which are hard “nos.”

    Next, repeat after me: “Boundaries are helpful and I deserve to reclaim mine.”

    2.    Communicate your boundaries

    As much as we’d like to our spouses, family members, friends and colleagues to be mind readers, they’re not.

    So communicating your boundaries is on you – don’t chicken out, you can do this!

    3. Enforce them consistently

    Once you’ve put them out in the world, stand by them.

    If going all out scares you (it’s normal), take small steps everyday. The next thing you know, you’ll be so much better at communicating and enforcing your boundaries.

    Confidence comes from competence, so keep going.

    4. Don’t let the fear of “not belonging” stop you

    As human beings, we always desire to be liked by those around us.

    Sure, it’s okay to do nice things for people you care about. But when you operate from a place of crushing your own sovereignty to serve others, that’s when you’ll be in trouble.

    Breaking out of the “people pleasing” cycle is tough – but once you start understanding your core values and bask in the headspace that comes from not being the “yes” woman, you’ll be happy to do it more often.

    Let’s have a candid conversation in the comments – how do you communicate your boundaries? And if you don’t, what’s stopping you?

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  • How to create your 90-day marketing plan in a day

    Building awareness for your business is no cake walk. But hey, you can make it easy if you do the groundwork and create a strong foundation.

    And one of the key players that helps your business turn heads while turning profits is your 90-day marketing plan.

    Why 90 days? Well, in my experience of working with 200+ 6-7 figure businesses, that has been the sweet spot for

    a. taking action without procrastination

    b. seeing the effects play out

    c. pivoting fast if you need to switch things up

    Ready to create yours?

    Let’s go!

    1. Understand why you’re creating this plan

    Understanding why you’re doing what you’re doing in your business can be a game changer and take a lot of the pressure off.

    Here’s why: your business is unique and you should avoid the “shoulds” of entrepreneurship or copying your competition to actually be known as a giant in your space.

    So think about it – are you creating your marketing plan to

    • Create brand awareness?
    • Conduct market research?
    • Announce a new product or service?

    2. Get crystal clear on your goals

    Now that you understand the “why,” it’s time to get clear on “what” you want to achieve on that particular front.

    Here’s my tips to create crystal clear marketing goals

    • Make sure they’re aligned with your brand vision, values, and beliefs
    • Make sure they’re measurable and achievable

    3. Know who you’re marketing to

    This seems like a “duh?!,” but you’ll be surprised how many businesses only scratch the surface of their audience profiles.

    If you’re creating a 90-day plan to conduct market research, make sure you pick a clearly defined segment. You should already have an idea of who you want to sell to and goal in this phase to gather specifics about your audience’s preferences.

    If you’re creating a plan for brand awareness or to launch a new product/service, make sure you have the following info under your belt:

    • What does your audience value?
    • How can you link it with your offer?
    • What are they trying to push away?
    • What are they trying to pull towards themselves?

    4. Pick your platform(s)

    Ever had a SNAFU moment where you planned to meet up with your friends at a cool new restaurant but the group got divided and ended up in different places?

    Yep, your marketing plan will fail to gain any traction if you’re talking to the wrong people.

    So make sure you pick the right platform(s) to deliver the goods.

    5. Create your success metrics

    Remember what I said about setting measurable and achievable goals up top?

    Well, now it’s time to create your success metrics to track your daily, weekly, and monthly wins.

    This is so you exactly know what’s working (so you can do more of it) and what’s not (so you can change things up).

    6. Have a content creation and content repurposing plan

    Now that you’ve laid the ground work, it’s time to solidify your efforts with the right content.

    • Take stock of the type of content you’ll need for each platform
    • Schedule a day or week to batch create your content
    • Want to keep going full steam? Keep your eyes open for repurposing opportunities. Sure each platform has its nuances of content consumption, but that doesn’t mean you have to come up original content for each platform.

    7. Automate and deploy

    After creating your content plan – check out what you can automate.

    • Do you need to create a lead magnet and a welcome sequence? Research the best platform for your business stage and needs (Our top picks are ConvertKit and ActiveCampaign)
    • Want to schedule your content so you can kick back and relax? Go ahead and choose your scheduler (Planoly and Later are pretty cool)
    • Need to link some apps to track your success metrics? Check out Zapier.

    The idea is to get more done without getting your hands burned.

    What was your biggest takeaway from this post? Let’s chat in the comments!

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  • The incredible power of visualization

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    Did you know there’s a thin line between how your brain remembers the past and imagines the future?

    It’s time to swing this in your favour through visualization.

    Here’s how:

    1. Write down your visions as though you are living them now, in the present tense.
    2. Next, create a vision board with vivid and detailed images either on Pinterest or a physical one that you can hang in a prominent place in your house.
    3. Look at the detailed visual representations of all that you want to achieve at least twice daily.
    4. Now, close your eyes and let those montages run through your mind as though you’re in that exact situation. Say your vision out loud and direct positive emotions towards it. Gets your heart racing, doesn’t it?
    5. It also helps if you attach sounds, smells, and tactile aspects to your images as you sit down for this meditative and energizing session. If you can imagine a place, situation, or action vividly, this will trick your brain into thinking this is an actual memory. In fact, doing this daily will stomp out any fear or trepidation you may have about “dreaming too big” because your brain learns to recognize the perceived future as a familiar space.

    Essentially, visualization enables you to rise above the fear and anxiety that comes from the anticipation of negative outcomes.  Visualization also tells your mind what to focus on by convincing your reticular activating system or RAS (a network of neurons in your brain that filters which information is essential and which is not so your brain doesn’t become saturated or overwhelmed from all the inputs from your environment) that what you’re visualizing is essential to your safety and survival.

    At the end of the day, visualization calibrates your mind to concentrate on what’s most important to you, which over time helps you take purposeful actions to achieve what you desire.

    Simple but impactful, isn’t it?

     

     

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  • Your Vision Statement

    Why having a defined, clear vision will orient you for success

    Guys, when was the last time you sat down and really thought about your dreams?

    No, I mean really gave it a thought whether what you’re doing right now is aligned with your goals or even what you’d actually like to be doing?

    Here’s the thing: We all have a certain (amorphous) idea of what we’d like to achieve in a certain period of time, whether for our business or in our personal life. But sometimes this gets diluted. Which essentially means, the needle stops moving.

    I know exactly how that feels.

    As a millennial go-getter, I have juggled many roles and donned many hats: corporate boss lady, a mom, and now an entrepreneur with a successful coaching business.

    And let me tell you something: it’s hard to slay those goals if you don’t know where to aim.

    Enter: Your vision statement.

    But first, what exactly is a “vision”?

    A “vision” is a defined picture of what you want to achieve in a particular sphere of your life. A vision helps you chase those dreams and opens up your mind to the endless possibilities in the future. Your vision helps you unearth your passions and enables you to implement practical strategies to achieve your goals.

    But Savitha, how’s a vision different from my goals?

    Good question.

    There’s actually a fine line between a vision and your goals.

    While both push you towards living your best life, your vision is the “what” and your goals are your “how.”

    For example, if your vision is to start making profit after you have break even in your biz, your goals would be small steps like assessing your current financial situation, improving current products or testing new ones, or even overhauling your marketing strategy.

    Overall, a strong, clear vision serves two important purposes: prediction and inspiration. That is, you can leverage your vision to understand your market, your product or service, and your business better and make decisions that hit the sweet spot. Moreover, you can bank on your vision to keep you inspired and motivated when you need to fight the good fight.

    Because let’s just put it out there: Entrepreneurship is hard, and it’s definitely not for everyone.

    But if you have what it takes, your vision will take you and your business places.

    If you need help crafting your Vision plan, work with me in a 90 Minute coaching session. Click >>here<< for more info

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