🍍Piña coladas, making sales, and landing clients

There I was, piña colada in hand, sinking deeper into my lounge chair as I took in the scene and sipped my icy beverage. The umbrella was in juuuust the right position— fully in the shade but still feeling the sun’s glow on my skin.

The light danced on the surface of the pool as though it was the Universe giving me that knowing look that I’d finally surrendered to full-on vacation mode. The beach jams were pumping and the buzz of chatter and splashes filled the air.

Yes, vacation looks good on me, I thought to myself as I snapped a selfie in the Instagram app.

A DM popped up at that exact moment, and I couldn’t help but indulge my curiosity.

“I’m ready for Future You, Amanda,” it read.

“Holy hell, that was fast,” were the first words that came to mind.

Not because this particular client made a decision quickly (she took time to sit with the prospect of working together further after a Consistent Clients intensive, and I totally respect that!) but because I’ve seen time and time again that fun, flow, enjoyment, and surrender does it every time.

They’re the energetic ‘levers’ I do work around, again and again to manifest more of what I want (and it’s the work I love supporting my clients in so they can get more of what THEY want, too).

Because honestly, I knew I would LOVE to work with this particular client further, but I’ve learned (with a lot of mindset work) that the energy of releasing and letting go is what allows more of what I want to flow to me—rather than desperately grasping for it and being frustrated and impatient with the process (shocking I know).

It’s kind of like dating: When you’re feeling good about yourself, where you’re at, and are enjoying the process (aka having fun going on dates) is when you almost always find your match.

When you’re in this grasp-y “must meet the love of my life NOW because the clock is ticking” mindset—is when it’s less than enjoyable to date (and you’re probably less than enjoyable to be around, just sayin’ 😂). Meaning, you typically repel the very thing you’re trying to call in.

Same thing is true in sales—and yet it seems almost counterintuitive at first.

Why? Well, probably because you have a lifetime of programming telling you that hard work and struggle is the path to success.

But have you ever checked in with that? The way I see it, if that was actually true then anyone doing road work would make millions on the regular because that sh*t looks real hard.

I’m not saying don’t work in your business. I 100% show up for the actions that create the results I desire.

The difference is—I’m also doing the inner work to reprogram the thoughts, feelings, and emotions I bring to that. Aka I’ve made feeling good the most important thing when it comes to showing up in my business.

And when you feel good, you’re more detached. You’re more surrendered. You don’t bring that desperate grasp-y energy to what you desire.

And the results of that? Are pretty damn incredible. Not to mention, feeling good was probably the reason you started this business in the first place, right?

Even practically speaking, no one is jumping to get on a sales call with Eeyore and it’s THAT much harder to show up for your biz when you hate every bit of what it’s doing to your life.

Feeling good is magnetic. Sales starts in your subconscious mind (in believing you are WORTHY of sales) and feeling anchored in your self-worth brings in more leads, clients, and money in the bank.

So this week, I’m talking about how having more fun in your life actually creates more success in your business and allows you to reach those big business milestones THAT much quicker.

Make having fun a priority

Self-care is SUCH a buzzword these days. So much so, that I think sometimes our eyes just glaze over it without really focusing on the deeper meaning behind it.

Perhaps your thoughts go straight to massages and bubble baths and you think, “That’s nice lady, but my budget and schedule don’t allow for weekly mani-pedis.”

Now hear me out. Those are all amazing ways to practice self-care, but they’re not the ONLY ways.

What if we just went back to basics? What if you just simply tried to have more FUN in your life and business?

In fact, I think that deep self-care means being aware of the best ways YOU know how to take care of yourself and chances are, having fun is a pretty good way to do exactly that.

Maybe for you, that means working outside from your patio or planning to make a fun themed dinner with your significant other.

It doesn’t have to be extravagant or expensive, but no matter how you choose to spend your “me” time, it all comes back to this: You can’t pour from an empty cup.

Meaning that you can’t take care of your business, or more specifically your clients, customers, products, or team, if you’re running on fumes.

Meaning, taking care of you IS taking care of the business.

This is actually business-building advice that I dish out all the time.

Because the more fun my Future You clients are having, the higher their vibe and the more opportunities arise for them. I see it time and time again. (Note: not to be confused with feeling high-vibe all the time which is simply not sustainable because we believe in being human around here!)

It’s on those long hikes and paddle boarding trips that they step into the success they’ve built for themselves and new inquiries flow into their inbox.

It’s in embracing that time off to catch up on errands that they bump into and chat up potential clients.

And personally, it’s when I’m sipping piña coladas by the pool and soaking up the sunshine that contracts get signed and deposits are paid.

Minimum input for maximum output

In the same vein, having fun doesn’t have to be a long, drawn-out process. I mean, DUH, but you’d be surprised how difficult us, high-achieving entrepreneurs, like to make even the simplest of things. Or maybe you wouldn’t be. 😉

You don’t need to have hours to devote or take entire days off for activities that refill your cup. (Though, you have my full permission to take the day off and go to the pool if you want to!)

But, I think the best self-care practices are ones that take minimum input but have maximum output.

Because the moments that you’re MOST in need of good, old-fashioned FUN are typically the moments when you have the least amount of time to devote to it (and subsequently would feel the MOST guilty for carving out time for it!).

I have a list of go-to things that help me to have more fun and experience more freedom and fulfillment in my life and business.

Things like taking a bath in the middle of the day, curling up with a good book and a glass of rosé champagne, working from my patio, or going for a walk with my hubby and puppy.

But to me, this time is absolutely magical because it’s minimal input (I mean, these are not crazy ideas!) for maximum output, totally transforming how I show up each day.

Do yourself a favor and jot down a list of three ways you’re going to have more fun, that don’t take a ton of time, resources, or energy, but have a tremendous effect on how good you feel.

THOSE are the ones to start weaving into your business now. Not when you hit the next income goal. Not when you’re fully booked out. Make it a priority NOW and watch how those results show up so much faster!

It’s an equal energy exchange

I have an incredible biz coach who helped me to shift my mindset around feeling good for bigger business results.

More specifically, by thinking of my business as a relationship and an equal energy exchange. Meaning that there are seasons when my days are full and I’m being stretched, and in those instances, I’m pouring a generous amount of energy into the business.

But in the same way, there are times when I want to take the month off to travel and I specifically structure my business so there isn’t as much work on my plate and I have more free time available.

Those seasons are the ones when my business gives back, funding that downtime and truly making it possible.

Thinking of my business in this way helped me to alleviate some of the guilt around stepping away in the smaller instances as well.

It helped me to see that I was already pouring time and energy into my business and that taking a lunch break to go on a hike with my hubby is actually one of the ways in which my business gives back to me and that makes it even easier for me to receive other things like more clients and money.

Think of it this way: if you were an artist and you released a new collection of paintings every quarter, you might be in a busy season of CREATING initially, working longer days to produce the collection.

But as you move out of creating and into more of a marketing role, you have more free time AND you’re making sales.

Your business is giving back by funding that slow season and that’s a good thing! And the same is true for online business.

In fact, it’s usually when we let our businesses give BACK that the biggest results show up, creating more profit and fulfillment rather than simply trying to hustle it out all the time (and consequently burning out too!).

Notice when guilt isn’t serving you anymore

Our brains love to keep us safe. They love to default to the ways we’ve always been doing things, not taking any unnecessary risks or putting ourselves in harm’s way.

It’s a survival instinct and serves us well in many ways. But it’s also what makes it difficult to stretch outside our comfort zone and to push what we’re capable of.

Knowing that, I like to think of guilt as one of the emotions my brain uses to keep me safe.

It’s essentially going, “Whoa now, are you sure you want to take that time off to have fun? Don’t we have money to make to survive? Shouldn’t you really be by your computer right now.”

But when I take a closer look at that thought, I know that I do my best work WHEN I step away and have more fun.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s definitely a balance. If it was all play and no work, there wouldn’t BE a business, but if you’re anything like my Future You clients, not working hard enough is rarely a problem.

For me, more time at my desk doesn’t necessarily mean more productivity, or heck, even more dollars in the bank.

There’s a part of me that deeply knows I do my best work, and hit more of my goals, when I’m having more fun both inside and outside of my biz so that I’m healthy and happy (funny how that works, huh?). It’s literally what supported me in booking out my coaching practice.

I mean, hasn’t that pretty much always been true for you as well? Think back to the last time you felt amazing, and consequently, created amazing results in your business, because the two go hand in hand.

Here’s where the work comes in though: I have to actively choose to think differently.

I couldn’t let those old holdover thoughts from working a 9–5 run the show. And you may have to put that very same work in.

So the next time you feel the guilt creeping in for having fun and taking some much needed time for self-care, ask yourself, “Is this a useful emotion?” Because you may be relying on “old programming” (old ways of thinking) rather than what will serve you best moving forward.

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Tell me in the comments below:

What’s one way you’re making feeling good and having fun a priority in life and business this week?

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