Work From Home With Kids

Work From Home With Kids

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

**Author's note: I wrote this blog post home alone with a four-year-old. I moved my laptop once to the other room, took my headphones out three times and took a break twice to answer questions. Sure, it isn’t ideal, but it is possible.

I've spent the last four years building my online business with a baby right next to me. 

That’s right when the world is getting thrust into working from home, doing it with our kids and possibly homeschooling to top it all off, this has been my life for the past four years.

So let me tell you, the questions started pouring in...
...how do I structure my day?
...how do I keep the kids entertained and busy so I can work?
...how do I balance it all without losing my mind?

Let’s all take a collective deep breath really quickly.

**Pauses so you actually breathe**

Ok.

Now, I might not have all the answers for this unprecedented time, but I have some tricks up my sleeves that have served my family over the past four years and we’re getting into all of this inside this blog.

If you find this blog useful, there is also a video presentation which you can find below. Please share this blog out with your friends and family to support them during this time.

Before we dive into it all, I promise it’s coming, let me just remind you that no one is expecting you to have this all figured out on day one. How could you?

You’re learning a new way of working, parenting and moving through your day to day. Give yourself some grace as you navigate and I promise the journey will be much more enjoyable.

ROUTINES WHILE WORKING FROM HOME

I understand that your normal routine is completely flipped on its head and that is a lot to handle, however, this allows you to create a new one #silverlining.

One of the areas I highly suggest adjusting your routine is in the morning.

When you’re working from home it’s all on you boo and so you need to be super grounded and prepared as you take on the day. Skipping this time in the morning (which is now much more flexible if you were previously commuting) can lead to short fuses, anger and feeling all over the place throughout the day.

This might mean taking an extra hour in the morning or just 20 minutes to connect, but some of my favorite tips for this time are:

• Get dressed. Seriously, I know it sounds so stupid, but the days when I’m in sweats I’m way less productive. Just put on the pants with a button and a shirt and get this party started.

• Move your body. Sure, you’re used to sitting at a desk all day, but that isn’t going to work at home with kids. Get your energy going in the morning by working out or taking a walk, you’re going to need it.

• Get grounded. Whether you meditate or not is not important, although I’m a big advocate for 10 minutes of mindful thinking and deep breathing every morning, I just want you to chill. Take some time in the morning to feel connected to your body, your mind and mentally prepare yourself for the day ahead.
  

You might be thinking, “Hello! Michelle, I told you I’m doing this with kids?”

Oh, I know and that’s the joy. From an early age, I was including Cal in all my activities in the morning. To this day, we still workout, meditate and journal together. Include your kids in the activity to teach them an important life lesson along the way and to get a little space.

If your kids have never done this, be a little flexible. They might not do the full workout but might jump in and out to join you. If you have Bluetooth headphones try those while meditating and if you’re journaling you can give them crayons and paper to draw a picture.

As with everything presented to us during this time, it’s an opportunity to slow down from our normal rushed routine.

YOUR SCHEDULE WHILE WORKING FROM HOME

Let’s just address the elephant in the room...you’re not going to work uninterrupted for 8 hours, so you’ve got to adjust, but you do need a schedule.

The biggest tip I can give you when it comes to creating a new schedule at home is to pay attention to your kids' rhythms, I promise they have them!

Paying attention to these rhythms, you might not be as familiar with, will show you little pockets and opportunities for extended work periods.

If your kid takes naps throughout the day then utilize those times to dive into your work, eliminate distractions and hustle your way through nap time.

If your kid has certain times of the day when they play well by themselves or get pulled into a project, then plan to get work done during that time. Cal does well in the morning, so after my morning routine, I would dive right into working until about snack/ lunchtime.

PLAN YOUR DAY IN ADVANCE

If you have older kids I suggest having them create their schedule the night before. Take some time together to plan out what the next day might look like.

Do you have meetings? If so, when are they?
Do you have a deadline that needs to be met?
Is there a project your kid is working on with school?

Then fill in the rest. Give your kids the responsibility to map out their day, this will make them freaking excited, and then hold them to it the next day. Use tools like timers to keep track of everyone’s schedule.

You need to do the same. Identify your big priorities for the day, now is not the time to try and do everything on your list. If you go into your day with 3 main priorities and put your focus around that it will make it much easier to feel accomplished than if you’re not clear on the main goals.

Do this every single day, yes every single day! I like to use a free tool like Trello to organize my day to day activities and if you’re working with a team tools like Slack and Zoom are very helpful for team communication (seriously, can we stop emailing each other) and team meetings.

SET THEM UP FOR SUCCESS - WORK FROM HOME TRICK

I’ve read a lot of information online about working from home over the past four years and I swear no one is talking about this.

Either they know and they don’t want to spill the beans or it’s truly something not enough people are utilizing, but THIS right here is what saved me so many times.

If you have a meeting, a big project or an upcoming deadline set your kids up for success during those times.

I know you’re nervous about being interrupted, we all are, but your kids don’t know you have a meeting or even what that means if this is all new to them, so we’ve got to show some grace to both sides.

One way to combat the need for silence and focus it so set your kids up with a project and resources so they don’t need you unless there is an emergency.

So what does this look like?

“Setting Them Up” can be:

• Creating an activity bin that you pull out during meetings or times where focus is needed is exciting for kids and gives them a “this is a special toy” feeling.

• Moving your office outside. Sometimes I would take my calls outside where Cal could run around, play with the dog and explore. He was often entertained for quite some time because it was a new setting for him and I never complained about the fresh air.

• Give them a project. Depending on the age of your kids you’ll have to use your imagination, but some of my favorites were creating a tent and turning on a movie, building something, doing a puzzle, an activity book or reading.

• If all else fails it’s cartoon time! Look if you have a meeting you have a meeting. I’m in no way advocating for your kiddo to be on their tablet or in front of the tv all day, but once and a while momma...GIVE. YOURSELF. A. BREAK! Some of our favorites were Word Party and Beat Bugs on Netflix and the PBS Kids app.
  

In addition to the projects I highly recommend getting some snacks ready.

We try to have a bin in the fridge with cut-up fruit and other snacks so Cal can grab them without having to ask me. Of course, this only works for older kids, but if you’ve got kids under three you can have those snacks at your desk ready to go when they are hungry.

When you can combine a little preparedness with these activities you’ll handle your day so much better. There is a big difference in knowing you have a meeting at 2 pm, so you eat lunch by 1 pm and have the kids ready to go by 1:45 pm so you can get to your meeting VS. realizing at 1:50 you’ve got a meeting in 10 minutes.

Just sayin'.

TAG TEAM WITH YOUR PARTNER

If you have a partner at home it’s time to work as a team, seriously there is no reason to do this alone. Whether your partner is also working from home or gets home at the end of the day there is an opportunity to tag team this whole thing.

And, when this whole Coronavirus thing brings us back to some normalcy you can also lean on support from your community - think neighbors, best friends or hiring support.

I asked my husband Ben what he would recommend from this period when he was working retail and I was working from home with Cal building my business. He said the biggest thing he remembered was asking for chunks of time.

So let’s break down two scenarios.

IF BOTH PARENTS ARE WORKING FROM HOME
If you’re both working from home then together plan your schedule for the day. If someone has meetings all day virtually or projects to complete the other parent is on deck. Then you're able to flip the role when needed. 

IF ONE PARENT IS HOME ALL DAY
This one is much closer to my heart because this was our life for three years. At the beginning of the week, I would do my best to let Ben know when I’d need “uninterrupted time” for calls, writing or recording. But sometimes you just can’t prepare. Don’t be afraid to send that loving, yet kind of urgent text to your partner saying, “I need two hours tonight before dinner, you’re on call!”

BE FLEXIBLE

The rules no longer apply!

You’re not chained to a desk from 8 - 5 every day with the weekends as the only time to chill, and that’s the beauty of it all.

If you need to rearrange your schedule to work on a Saturday rather than a Tuesday then go for it, I promise your co-workers are doing it as well.

If you find an opportunity to wake up in the morning before the kids do or your partner leaves then explore taking this time to get some work done during this season.

It’s hard when your kids run the show, but I promise you can work in harmony with a little grace and planning (my favorite combo always).

FINAL THOUGHTS

My top tips for you are to...

• Take time in the morning to ground yourself, get dressed and move your body.

• Change your environment frequently throughout the day.

• Take time the night before to plan your schedule and activities for the day ahead.

• Set your kids up. You’ll save yourself time in the long run if you take 10 minutes to prep (just trust me on this one)!

• BABIES: Wear your baby in a baby carrier throughout the day. They love it and it’s super easy to work when you have both of your hands free.

• TODDLERS: Activities. Activities. Activities, oh and snacks!

• TEENAGERS AND OLDER: Now’s a great time to set some boundaries. It’s a life lesson we all need at a young age so don’t be afraid to sit them done and have them plan their schedule and openly communicate with them when you need uninterrupted time.
  

If you suddenly find yourself trying to play full-time employee, parent and teacher I’d love to pass along a bit of advice I received early on. Allow your kids to have experiences. Honestly, this kind of learning can teach them so much more than spending a day in school.

Encourage them to build something, play outside and garden, put on a play, etc… Sometimes the alternative learning opportunities can have the biggest impact.

I hope this post was helpful for you during this season of life. Please share it out on social media to support other parents going through the same thing.

If you want to follow along with daily tips and inspiration be sure to connect with me on Instagram @michelleknightco.

P.S. If you want to learn more about me and my online business Brandmerry.com, I’ve got some great resources for you below.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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MEET MICHELLE

Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.

I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.

I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.

This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.

The #1 Content Creation Mistake to Avoid

If you’d like to watch the full video, you can do that here.

Content creation is so important as an entrepreneur because it is basically how you get your voice and message out into the world.

So today, I want to address the obstacle that I see coming up for entrepreneurs, especially new entrepreneurs, in prematurely creating their content. 

New and seasoned entrepreneurs often come to me after starting their business and showing up on social media. They start creating content out of the gate and find themselves feeling overwhelmed, like their message is all over the place, struggling to come up with content ideas or not getting enough engagement.

The truth is there is a misconception around when we should be creating content and what we need to have in place in order to be doing it in a way that brings in the right people and leads to a revenue-generating business. 

The truth is so many entrepreneurs are skipping the branding process which is why content works or why it doesn’t work. It’s really not about using cool tricks and trying to beat the algorithm.

It’s not about a specific number of characters or writing your title in a certain way.

It’s about understanding the fundamentals of your brand and building a strong foundation in which every piece of content is created.

CONTENT CREATION MISTAKES AND WHY THEY ARE HAPPENING

Unfortunately so many educators, coaches and consultants are telling people that they’ll figure it out if they keep posting content.

Okay, there's some truth to this in that you find your voice along the way, you start to see what people resonate with and don't resonate with and that tells you what you want to expand on. 

But if you think that just posting random content with no clear plan is going to help you decide the pillars of your brand and business, that's backward.

We need to figure out the foundational pieces first so the content that we create, mimics that and is in alignment with that and again, draws in the right people. 

Too many entrepreneurs are putting content out there, without a clear brand strategy in place and finding themselves building a community that they hope to sell too. Then when they finally sell...nobody buys.

The reason is you’re attracting people who aren’t in alignment with what you’re ultimately selling.

BRANDING FIRST THEN CONTENT CREATION

Branding at its core is what gives us the foundation so we don't ping pong all over, so that we don’t struggle to come up with ideas and so we don’t struggle to connect our community to our offer.

If you’re experiencing these pieces, let me tell you it’s a branding problem.

SO WHAT IS BRANDING?

To fix it we need to first talk about what branding is. There’s this lie that’s been floating around the internet for too long that your brand is your visual representation, i.e. your logo, fonts and colors.

While the visuals play a role they are only part of the finished product. They are the result of deciding on the experience you want to create.

Branding is an experience we’re creating for our target audience and what they’re taking away from the experience we’re creating.

So branding is so much more than just the color you use in a photo, and finalizing the true brand, the experience will help you decide on those visual components much faster.

It’s something that can’t wait or be done later. All of the pieces you want to create now, your website, content, free offers, promotions, etc...rely heavily on finalizing the core pillars of a brand.

The belief that branding can wait is very harmful to online entrepreneurs.

SO HOW DO WE FIX IT?

Lucky for you, I’m a Personal Branding Consultant and Marketing Strategist so you’re in good hands.

Depending on where you’re at in your business you need to:

1. Build your brand from the ground up (New and aspiring entrepreneurs)

2. Find the holes in your branding process and fill them (Seasoned entrepreneurs)
   
   
   

Before I share the 4 steps needed to have a solid brand, you must understand I’m not suggesting you go into hiding for 6 months, figure this out and then start again...NO!

Please don’t do that. So many of my clients do this in as little as a week, with some guidance.

If you’re wanting to fast track that then sign up for my free class on The Build a Better Brand Method here.

The key is to put in the work, yes, sometimes extra, on the backend, so you can start creating better content, growing your community with targeted leads, experiencing more engagement and ultimately making more sales.

As you do the work, you’ll notice a shift in your content creation strategy and results.

4 STEPS TO WRITE BETTER CONTENT + BUILD A BETTER BRAND

These four steps are 4 of the 6 steps in my Build a Better Brand Method. You can learn more about each detail and get the full picture of the branding process and how it plays a role in not only content creation but also increased revenue in my free class.

Watch The Build a Better Brand Masterclass here >>

1. NICHE

FIGURE OUT WHERE YOU FIT IN THIS ENTREPRENEUR SPACE

I don't care what you sell, you have to figure out your specific market. Niching down is one of the best things that you will do for your brand, for your business and as we're talking about for your content. 

You need to understand what specific niche you provide your audience.

For instance, if you’re in skincare you won’t grow your business if you offer every skincare product under the sun, but you could focus on skincare for adult acne. 

I’m a Branding coach, but I focus on personal branding with an emphasis on storytelling. So I'm not for the woman who isn't ready to be the face of her brand who isn't ready to share stories. That's what I'm about and I've carved out a very specific niche that addresses that issue. 

This clarity is going to help you to understand how you're going to show up and communicate with your ideal audience. It's also going to help you get discovered online because people are searching for very specific things.

If you find that your market is full (aka saturated) you’re not alone. And while so many people think this is a bad thing it’s actually working in your favor. If someone is successfully doing it, then there is a need and demand.

Not one person can serve everyone! Find the gap, what they’re not doing, that you can bring to the table. This is your specific niche.

This knowledge around your niche is going to influence how you show up, create content and communicate with the world.

2. IDEAL CUSTOMER OR CLIENT

YES, YOU NEED TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

If you're just starting out, your fear of focusing on one core person is hurting you. Because when you're not clear on specifically who you want to attract, you're creating messaging, content, offers that are trying to attract a bunch of different people and then guess what happens? You're so confusing to your ideal client, that they back out and can’t handle it.

Confusing your audience will result in lost sales.

Please do yourself a favor and take some time, if you haven't already, to do ideal client research. And if you have done it in the past, but it's been a while then give yourself a refresher.

There is so much to the ideal client research, but the top three points to identify are:

1. What specific person do you want to attract, sell to and work with?

2. What do they need help with? This is what you want to begin to create content around.

3. What do they ultimately want or desire? This will help you guide them through the process and help you identify obstacles standing in their way, which can also be addressed in your content.

If you can speak to the pain points of your ideal customer, you can give them solutions, and also speak to their obstacles; I am telling you, you will be the person that they hire.

Another perk of the ideal customer work (hey, that rhymed) is understanding who they are at a core human level. YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS!

Your audience is human and the more that you can understand this and speak to their everyday struggles and desires, not just how they pertain to your product or service, the deeper the connection.

For instance, my audience also loves to hear about time management, productivity, mindset, being a mom and running a business, so I get to create content that fits in all of those pieces and keeps my audience entertained and engaged.

3. MESSAGING AND BRANDING CONSISTENCY

REMEMBER, IF YOU CONFUSE YOUR AUDIENCE THEY WILL MOVE ON.

Having a messaging structure in place will help you to avoid posting one thing on a Monday, something different on Tuesday and completely left field on a Thursday. We want to avoid this off the wall approach (think spaghetti at a wall) and focus on having a clear structure in place.

One of the ways to combat this is with brand containers.

BRAND CONTAINERS

Brand containers piggyback off of the idea that your audience is freaking human. They want to see and hear about more than just your one offer, your products or your photographs, they want to build a know, like and trust factor with your brand overall.

This is why we want to identify the different ways we can support our ideal customer through our content. Like I mentioned above, I might do this with time management, productivity, mindset, being a mom and running a business.

Consistently creating content in these buckets builds you up as a credible resource for your audience, makes a more personal connection and also doesn't overwhelm your audience with sell after sell after sell.

These brand containers are life savers when it comes to creating content.

4. YOUR OFFER

WHERE ARE YOU LEADING YOUR ONLINE COMMUNITY?

This is a really important question that not enough people are asking. It’s one of the reasons I consider your offer or framework one of the foundations of branding.

Again, let’s imagine you’re showing up online. You’re spending time creating content and consistently post. Then after months you decide I’m going to make an offer, but that offer doesn’t connect to the community you’ve built online...your sales won’t be great!

When we have our offer or framework in mind from the start, we can reverse engineer our content to bring in the right people and lead them to the sale in an authentic and genuine way.

Building a targeted community requires building a strong brand.

If you know exactly what you want to teach or sell, amazing! This is where you would start getting clear on what that looks like and how it supports your ideal customer.

But, let’s say you’re not 100% sure yet, that’s ok too. You can build out your framework and then use that to influence your content and eventually your offer.

Ask yourself…

“If I were to create something, what would it look like?”

“How would I want to support my idea client on their journey?”

Just having that awareness in your head will allow you to create content and build a community that will then effortlessly lead to your product. 

CONCLUSION

It’s important to remember that this process is part of branding and is necessary when building your business. I often say the brand is the beating heart of your business, without it, you’ve got nothing.

So by clarifying your niche, it will allow you to stand out when other people are talking about the same freakin’ thing. 

Knowing your ideal client will not only allow you to create better copy that pulls them in and keeps them engaged but if you struggle with what to create content around, just pay attention to what your ideal client is asking for. It's like the easiest thing in the world. I never run out of content, because I'm listening or I'm asking questions of my audience. 

If you're all over the place with your content and messaging, people are going to be very confused with how you can support them. Get clear on your messaging and brand containers, based on what they need the most support with.

And finally gaining clarity on your offer will allow you to create content that attracts the right people, nurture them and warm them up so that they're ready to take action on your offer.

Without these pieces done correctly, you'll struggle and we don’t want that.

That’s why I’ve put together a free guide for you called The Personal Brand Roadmap. 

It gives you the full step by step in an easy to consume guide so you can get to work. I’m also sharing the top 3 mistakes I see entrepreneurs making when building their brand that you definitely want to avoid.

Download your free guide below.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE GUIDE

P.S. Planning and creating your content doesn't have to be a constant struggle. There is a better way to research, plan, and create your content as an entrepreneur and it's all inside the Content Planning Blueprint!

The Content Planning Blueprint is perfect for online business owners who know the power of content creation but are tired of spending all of their time coming up with ideas, organizing their content, and wondering what will attract their dream clients.

In just a few hours, you'll have 90 days of content planned, a repeatable workflow to save you hours on creating and distributing your content every week, and content topics that will keep performing for your brand for years to come! Get your blueprint now >>

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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MEET MICHELLE

Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.

I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.

I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.

This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.

3 Time Management Strategies No One is Teaching

3 Time Management Strategies No One is Teaching

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

Time Management is so important as an entrepreneur.

I’ve found throughout my journey that by not only planning better, scheduling my time, creating more time, but also changing my outlook around time, I’ve been able to do more.

Before I can give you all the strategies I’ve used, I want to talk about how your beliefs around time are actually limiting it.

The truth is it isn’t about the strategies, if it was the new planner every year, the new calendar and the use of a tool like Trello, would magically make your time management better, but that just isn’t the case.

If the strategies work for a little while, but then you fall off the wagon, it’s time to look deeper at the root cause.

If you feel like you’re running out of time…

If you feel like you never have enough time to start…

Or you feel you’re wasting time…

This is for you!

1. MAKING TIME A TOP PRIORITY

THE VALUE OF YOUR TIME

I firmly believe that time is our greatest value.

A very significant part of my story is that I lost my brother to childhood cancer at the age of 18. It didn’t happen right away, but over the months and the years I started to change my view around time.

I know we all recognize that life isn’t infinite, but is this knowledge translating into how you spend your time daily?

How are we spending our time on this earth and are we doing the things we truly want to do?

When we put more emphasis on time as our greatest asset, we enjoy life more and the other pieces, like money, success and strong relationships, fall into place.

The biggest mindset shift I want you to take with you today is how to make time your greatest priority.

Actionable Step: Answer this question

How do you value time? How are you spending 24 hours a day?

If it’s true that we can’t get our time back then why do we use it so poorly?

HOW WE SPEND OUR TIME

When I started my business, I had to figure out how to fit this whole business into my schedule.

I had to learn very quickly that how I was spending my time wasn’t conducive to the goals I had for myself.

And before you start to think you have to make sacrifices in to reach your goals and create more time, I encourage you to focus on the choices.

It is a choice.

Where do you want to be?
What are your dreams?
What are you working towards?

You’re not going to get there if you don’t make the choice and yes sometimes the choice requires making hard decisions.

Actionable Step: Complete a time analysis

Spend the next 72 hours to track your time and how you’re spending it. This will give you a great overview of where the “time sucks” are happening. When you have this information you’ll be able to see just how much time you’re actually wasting.

Imagine if you spent 10 minutes less (minimum) on social media that’s over an hour. What could you do in an hour that will get you closer to your dreams.

If you’re not making the choice of where you’re spending your time, none of the strategies will matter.

2. IDENTIFY YOUR PRIORITIES

When is the last time you sat down and thought about your top priorities?

It’s not something that comes up in typical conversation, but it’s so important.

Actionable Step: Answer this question

You have 24 hours tomorrow to do whatever you want to reach your goals and dreams, what do you do?

We need to be asking ourselves this question because it’s so easy to get sucked into priorities with our jobs, children, spouses and more.

When you answer this question those are your values and priorities.

Maybe for you it’s:

• Going outside

• Exercising

• Snuggling your babies

• Traveling more

It’s not just about moving up the corporate ladder or having a $50k launch it’s about the things that bring you the most joy. 

Identifying your values is just one step, the next part, and the part that’s up to you is how often are you living those values daily.

Please remember that you get to choose how you spend your time.

Yes, I know many of you work a 9 to 5.
Yes, many of you have children.

Of course, there are things that are required of you, but how are you spending the other hours in a day.

You will prioritize in your schedule what you prioritize in your life!

When you decide the techniques, tools and strategies will work.

3. CREATING MORE TIME DAILY

Use your calendar. We have calendars everywhere, yet so many people are not using their calendar correctly.

If you struggle with time management and aren’t scheduling EVERYTHING in your calendar, then it’s time to start.

I used to schedule date nights with my husband at the beginning of my business.
I used to schedule friend time (I still do)
I would schedule my content, coaching time and my time with my son.

By doing this, we can make the things of value to us a top priority. They are on the calendar and everything else can fit in where it can.

Get as detailed as possible to get yourself into a routine.

If you are a modern woman you are busy, there is no shame in using your calendar to prioritize your values. Put those in first and fill in the rest.

Create Boundaries. If you need to create more time you need to be clear with others and yourself about your priorities.

Find your people that you can trust and open up to about your dreams to ask for support and help. Creating boundaries with yourself allows you to ask for support from others.

This support can look like exchanging babysitting, asking for kid-free time from your husband (try for the same time every single week), it could be moving money around to invest in an assistant 2 hours a week to grow your business.

Not only is it important for you to understand that you can’t do it all, it’s also important to understand you don’t have to.

Creating boundaries with others frees up more time in your schedule to focus on the things that matter most.

You sometimes have to say no to things, to do things that get you closer to your goals and dreams.

Again, it’s not a sacrifice! 

If you’d rather be doing something else, maybe it’s time to see how invested you are in your dreams.

TIME-SAVING HACKS: TOOLS I USE TO MANAGE MY TIME

Trello and Asana. Any task management platform will work, but these are my favorite.

I use them every single day for my business, but I also use them for our travels as well. You can use it while working your 9 to 5, with your weekly schedule, for project management and more.

Prepare for your week. Do yourself a favor and spend 20 minutes every single Sunday to plan out your life. I spend 20 minutes to see what my priorities are, where I’m dedicating my time, any deadlines and how I’m going have fun. This allows me to head into Monday prepared and not flying by the seat of my pants, which we all know leads to procrastination.

Have batch days. You can bulk write your content on a specific day, or meal prep on Sundays. In addition, I suggest choosing specific days that you do backend things in your business and different days to work with clients. When you batch your tasks together you will actually save yourself time.

CONCLUSION

Time is our greatest asset and it’s important to remind yourself how valuable it truly is. If you’re struggling with time management it’s time to go deeper than any strategy, it’s time to shift you’re thinking.

I promise you do have enough time, it’s all in how you use it.

If you want more tips on time management, creating boundaries and productivity be sure to subscribe to my new podcast, The Beautiful Climb on iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher.

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DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

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START HERE ↠

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MEET MICHELLE

Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.

I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.

I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.

This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.

Mindset Techniques for Female Entrepreneurs (Create a Mindset Routine)

Mindset Techniques for Female Entrepreneurs (Create a Mindset Routine)

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

When thinking about my own mindset journey it’s always been very ebb and flow. The times when I lacked any sort of mindset consistency or deep inner work it definitely showed in both my role as a mother, my marriage and as a businesswoman.

For me, the 3 main areas affect my mindset most are: 

1. Morning Routine

2. Money Beliefs

3. Consistent Messaging
   

Today on the blog, I want to break down each of these pieces to support you in creating a mindset routine that works for you and your life.

Too often I see entrepreneurs feeling shame, been there done that, around the “traditional” techniques not working for them. I encourage you to take the lessons I’ve learned and use them to inspire you!

Ok, let’s get into it.

1. CREATING YOUR MORNING ROUTINE AS A FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR

Let’s just clear the air around something super important. Yes, we call it a Morning Routine, but that doesn’t mean you need to do it in the morning. That doesn’t mean that if your morning doesn’t go as planned, it won’t work.

The keyword here is routine and I hope you’ll remember that.

Ok, now that we’ve covered that let’s talk about shame (oh so fun Michelle)!

When I started my business and left my 9 to 5, I reached out to entrepreneurs inside of a Facebook Group asking them what I needed to do daily and the response was a morning routine. And they got specific with it, stating that an hour was ideal (i.e. 30-minute meditation, 15-minute writing and 15-minute movement).

So, I did it, because trust me when I tell you enough people were telling me the same thing that I thought they had to be on to something.

We’ll surprise, I found myself struggling for two reasons:

1. This timeframe didn’t work for me and 

2. I needed something else and for me, that was physical intensity (more time dedicated to working out).

This all came from my own awareness.

Awareness is one of the best mindset skills you can create. Awareness is at the cornerstone of everything, it brings things to the surface you might not recognize day to day. This includes limiting beliefs and blocks, emotions that need to be tended to, as well as the awareness that rest is needed. 

And this awareness is so important when we think about the seasons of life.

Just like the seasons in nature, we have the same seasons in life and often each season is asking something different from us. It’s our job to recognize that and make decisions on what’s needed most to create a life on our terms.

For me, this awareness and particular seasons were telling me that I needed to start the day with more energy and shorten the time I was dedicating to my morning routine.

GIVE YOURSELF PERMISSION and release the shame and expectations that one way is the only way.

At this particular time and even today, I realized I needed something more intense. 

With this awareness and knowledge, I created a new intention (that’s what I call goals) that apply to my morning routine.

“I’ve created a morning routine that serves me with movement, meditation, mindful writing and nourishment.”

This is important because it’s made for me and allows me the flexibility to do what feels best.

What would your ideal routine look like?
What 3-4 areas would you want to focus on?

When you’re creating your mindset routine, remember that mindset is the best form of self-care.

THE MORNING ROUTINE OF A 6-FIGURE ENTREPRENEUR

I know you love examples, I’m the same way, so here is a glimpse into my own mindset routine and the time I dedicate to each.

Remember, everything is based on my intention, “I’ve created a morning routine that serves me with movement, meditation, mindful writing and nourishment.”

MOVEMENT: I get my blood pumping and body moving first thing in the morning and aim for 30 minutes to 1 hour at least 5 days a week.

MEDITATION: I don’t do a full meditation daily. I aim for 3x a week (other seasons it’s been more like 5 or even 7). My meditations are typically no more than 10-15 minutes in length and I prefer meditations that are led by someone else. Check out YouTube or Spotify to find one that you enjoy. 

MINDFUL WRITING: This is my release. I do this 3x a week, except in high seasons of creation like when I’m launching, writing or speaking. I’ve found that asking myself a prompt or question helps with the flow.

I always start with two questions and let my writing go from there.

1. What do I need to hear today?

2. What do I need to work through today?

NOURISHMENT: Again fueling my body is part of my mindset. I’m a firm believer that you can have a great mind, but an unhealthy body or even a healthy body, but an unhealthy mind. I strive for both, so daily I’m making my morning breakfast a big part of my mindset routine.

As you can see, the intention I st is my only rule, how I perform each piece is open to what’s needed most at that time of my life.

2. MONEY BELIEFS AS AN ENTREPRENEUR

Money beliefs are so important to address as an entrepreneur because we are the ones bringing in the money. 

Your view of money is often deeply rooted in what you’re taught or saw growing up. For many of us it lives in the subconscious and it’s our role to bring it to the surface. We can only do this through heightened awareness and bringing it into our mindset routine.

If you find money isn’t coming easily to you, or you’ve reached a cap you need to uncover what’s blocking the flow of money - we all have this block at some point by the way.

This is where daily meditation and writing can help remove this block because you’re digging deeper than you might do in the normal day to day of living your life.

I have very specific seasons where I do deep money work and I’m in one now.

A few things to keep in mind:

1. No one can do the work for you. If you find you’re struggling to make progress there is so much support available online. We have a mindset coach inside of Roadmap to Freedom, my group program for new and aspiring female entrepreneurs.

2. Focus on not only identifying the beliefs but also releasing them (forgive). This doesn’t happen just once it must be repeated over and over again especially as you reach a new level in your business.

3. Create a habit of catching yourself daily with the messaging you’re putting out into the world and what you’re receiving.

3. CONSISTENT MESSAGING THAT AFFECTS YOUR MINDSET

While I love talking about messaging as it pertains to your brand, it’s also so important to talk about the messaging you put out into the world and the messaging coming back at you daily.

If you’re constantly surrounded by people, media or information that brings you down or talks negatively about money or your potential, you will start to mirror that belief. 

Make more deliberate decisions about what and who you surround yourself with.

Listen to a podcast, I highly recommend my new podcast The Beautiful Climb, watch videos that inspire you or read uplifting articles. 

Your vibration matters and needs to be high the majority of the time to attract the things you want in life.

It’s also important to catch yourself and what you’re saying daily. 

For example: If you tell yourself and others you don’t have time, that will begin to be true for you. You absolutely have the time, it’s how you choose to view it and use it. 

We have the decision in how we respond to things that come our way. We might have things that happen to us or for us (depending on your views) and it’s up to you on how you respond.  

This is a muscle you have to flex. It’s not always easy, but making a habit is so important!

TIPS TO MAKE YOUR MINDSET A DAILY HABIT

• Create affirmations + post them in prominent places (I like the bathroom)

• Set daily alarms multiple times a day with reminders to breathe, think positively about money or just to evaluate your thoughts at that moment and change them.

• Catch yourself when you’re using a specific language like “I don’t have time!” 

• Write your intentions (goals) daily so they are at the front of your mind.

• Create a mindfulness playlist to ground you when you’re feeling low energy or overwhelmed.

• Schedule it! This is so important, it doesn’t happen by chance, these changes don’t fall into your lap you have to practice them and make them a priority.
  

CONCLUSION

I’ve felt like my routine or mindset wasn’t resilient enough in years past, because I felt like I wasn’t doing enough. This was a belief that only contributed to more doubt and resistance towards attracting what I wanted in life. 

Through the years I’ve made my mindset a top priority to overcome perfectionism, remove internal and outside expectations and create a life on my terms.

I chat about my journey and give you the tools to do the same on my new podcast The Beautiful Climb. Learn more at TheBeautifulClimb.com and subscribe on iTunes, Spotify or Stitcher.

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DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

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MEET MICHELLE

Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.

I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.

I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.

This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.

How to Sell Authentically Online (3 Changes to Make Today)

How to Sell Authentically Online
(3 Changes to Make Today)

BY MICHELLE KNIGHT

I’m really passionate about the topic of selling because I see so many entrepreneurs struggling with the idea of selling their products and their services. 

Many of the clients that I work with, especially in those beginning stages, are really worried about sounding sleazy or sounding pushy or being aggressive with their audience in any way. And, and a lot of that really comes from the way that they look at selling. 

I’ll give you an example...I call her Susie.

Susie as the girl in the Facebook group who sees that you're also in the Facebook group, maybe her Facebook group maybe not. About one day after joining the group you receive a message that says, “Hey, I'm also in this Facebook group [inserts Facebook group] and I'm just wondering, do you build sales funnels?” She then proceeds to pitch her mini-course she just created or her freebie or her masterclass or whatever.

And of course, you’re like, “Ok, but I don’t know you and you don’t know me!”

It's these types of strategies that people are using that we're on the receiving end of that give us this bad taste in our mouth when it comes to selling or promoting our services. 

But at the end of the day, if you want to create a revenue-generating business, a profitable business, you have to sell, right? You have to talk about your products and your services. 

So how do we do that? How do we do that in a way that feels authentic to us and that is focused on our community and as a result leads to what I think is a more reputable, a more energetic, a more attractive brand overall.

I promise there is another way to sell online that doesn’t feel gross to you or your audience and increases your conversions and we’re going to dive deep into that today.

YOUR MINDSET AROUND SELLING ONLINE

We all know that strategy is so important when it comes to building a profitable business, but if your head is not in the right space, those strategies don't work. 

The biggest block that I see entrepreneurs have when it comes to selling is their view or belief about selling. 

The sooner that you change your mindset from selling in terms of pitching and you focus more on the connection, the easier all of this will become. 

When you’re focused on connection, over selling, you’re focused on your audience.

When you’re focused on selling, you’re focused on the product or the service. If in your mind you're like, I'm going to sell this person. I'm going to get this person into my program because then I'll hit my number. Or then I'll hit my monthly goal. You're just focused on the product and the service.

But things start to really shift when you decide that you’re going to show up and you’re going to listen to this person tell you their pain, their struggle, their problem, then you’re going to offer up what you have as a solution to that problem and they have a choice to take it or not take it. 

When you can switch your mindset in this way, I am telling you it changes everything, not just for your audience, but also for you because the process doesn’t feel inauthentic.

This simple change in your own mindset, your own belief on what selling really is will have a big impact on your conversion rate and the success that you experience from selling your products and your services. 

YOUR MARKETING IS THE SALES PROCESS

When you think about online marketing and sales, it’s crazy. We are asking people we’ve never met before to invest in our product or service, often sight unseen. And the reality is there are a lot of people offering the same thing, so not only are you asking them to do this but to also make the decision to choose you.

And that’s really what it’s about...the brand as a whole.

This is where your marketing comes in; more specifically relationships and human marketing.

The selling is happening long before the pitch or sales conversation. All of the branding, content and interactions that are part of your marketing strategy are meant to lead people closer to buying your product or service.

Zig Ziglar says, “If people like you they’ll listen to you, but if they trust you they’ll do business with you!” 

The foundation of every sale you make comes from the consumer trusting you over another brand, and that trust happens long before you make an offer, send a link or have a phone call.

IT’S NOT A SALES CALL, BUT A SALES CONVERSATION

Look, I no longer have sales calls - I have sales conversations.

This small shift in my mindset and in my actions changed my conversion rate from not so great, to 90%. 

Let’s break this idea down.

When you’re getting ready for a Sales Call, you’re prepping for that call. You’re mapping out how and why they should buy from you, what you need to say in order to close the sale and once again all of your focus is on the service or product.

When you switch to having a conversation you actually listen!

When you frame the conversation to listen more, it is no longer about you and your product, it’s about your audience and your problem.

It’s no longer about what my product offers, but what about my ideal customer specifically needed.

When you’re listening to your ideal customer, it’s important to listen for a few key points (p.s. This counts for email communication as well).

• What are they struggling with?

• What do they want?

• What obstacles are standing in their way?

And because you’ve listened to these three main points, you’re able to frame the offer specifically for them.

If you’ve ever struggled with what to say in a sales conversation, try listening and you’ll discover they will tell you everything you need to know.

5 SALES OBJECTIONS

Zig Ziglar states that there are 5 core sales objections, and I’ve got to admit I believe him 100%.

1. No need

2. No money

3. No hurry

4. No desire

5. No trust

Why is this important? Because not only can you address these objections in your relationship marketing leading up to the sale, but you can also use this knowledge to pinpoint where your ideal client is on a sales conversation.

When you have this information you’ll become a better marketer and you guessed it...sales queen!

CONCLUSION

When you look at the info above, you’ll notice it comes down to three core areas; mindset, relationships and sales conversations. It’s important that you identify the area you feel you need to put the most energy in your business to start seeing better results and feel more aligned with the process.

Selling is so important, because without there’s no money! That’s why in my signature group program Roadmap to Freedom, we dedicate an entire phase to the Art of Selling. I know how important it is to not only work on confidence around selling but also how to prepare for sales conversations, how to handle objections and so much more.

To learn more about Roadmap to Freedom visit brandmerry.com/freedom.

P.S. If you want to watch this blog content + learn 3 of my favorite selling strategies be sure to watch the video below.

P.P.S. I’ve got another video on boosting your Confidence While Selling, which you can read and watch here.

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- FREE GIFTS YOU'LL LOVE -

DISCOVER YOUR BRAND STORY IN UNDER 5 MINUTES

START HERE ↠

LEARN HOW TO WRITE AN ‘ABOUT ME’ PAGE THAT CONVERTS

START HERE ↠

MAP OUT 30 DAYS OF CONTENT IN UNDER AN HOUR

START HERE ↠

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- READ THE LATEST POSTS -

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MEET MICHELLE

Hey there, I'm Michelle Knight and I an online branding and marketing consultant for female entrepreneurs.

I believe in the power of storytelling and using that superpower to brand and market yourself online...oh and to set yourself free.

I'm obsessed with living a life of freedom, so much so, that my family and I now travel full-time while running my business from the road.

This blog serves as a home base for all things branding, marketing, content creation and more.