Have you ever wanted to be a rockstar?
Well, guess what? I’m going to tell you how.
Of course, I guess I should tell you that this is probably not the kind of rockstar that you might be imagining right now. But it is a way to become the star in your business and in your life by taking simple, actionable steps in your life—starting today.
So, let’s play a little game.
Imagine you have 5 cups.
4 are the same size and one is slightly larger.
Cup 1: Full of big rocks
Cup 2: Full of pebbles
Cup 3: Full of sand
Cup 4: Full of water
Larger cup: Empty
Now, take a moment to consider which of the cups you could empty into the larger cup before it is full? Could you add the water and sand? Or, the pebbles and water?
What combination would work? Or, would they all fail?
The answer is…if you put them into the larger cup in the right order, it should all fit.
Well, what’s the right order? I’m glad you asked.
We always start with the largest rocks first. By putting those in first, you can then fill in the spaces with the smaller pebbles. Then the sand, then the water will absorb into the sand. Viola! Success.
Well, Rachel, that’s all nice and good but what does it have to do with making my life and business successful?
It has everything to do with it. Take a moment to consider what the “big rocks” are in your life. What needs to be done first so that everything else fits in as well.
As business owners and as parents, it’s easy for us to focus on taking care of everyone else first. We manage our spouses, kids, partners and deal with their needs. We handle our clients or customers and put out their fires daily. We are busy—beyond busy—and it is exhausting.
So, what if you stop to consider focusing on your big rocks first? What would that look like for you?
What are the BIG ROCKS in your life and business?
What is most important for you?
No one else can tell you what’s most important for you. I can’t tell you what you should do on any given day. For example, if I tell you to get up at 5:00 a.m. and you’ll be more successful, there’s a good chance that this won’t produce results for you. It all depends on your personality type and personal work archetype. What works for one person will not, inevitably, work for anyone else.
YOU have to decide what your own BIG rocks are. So, here are 5 steps to get you started in filling your own cup.
Step 1: Your rocks are different from my rocks.
So, get busy and make a list of all your big rocks. There are no right or wrong choices, but here are several different categories that might come up for you:
Building Your Business (Increase Client Portfolio)
Increased Revenue
Continuing Education
Family Care
Community Outreach (Impact)
Travel
Social Life (Friends & Fun)
Fitness/Health
Spirituality (Meditation/Prayer)
Self-Care (Journaling/Rest)
Giving Back (Charity/Volunteer)
Step 2: Decide which of those rocks is most important to you.
This might surprise you, but I believe the answer to this question should be the same for everyone no matter what your goals are.
And that answer is…YOU.
You should be the biggest rock and, therefore, the most important. If you don’t take care of yourself then you can’t show up and take care of your family or your business.
So, I recommend blocking out a chunk of time each day for self-care. Take time to figure out what really “feeds” you in life. What feels like love? What does self-care mean to you?
Is it taking time to read a good book? Getting more sleep? Getting a massage every week? Binge-watching a show on Netflix?
Once you decide what self-care means to you and you block out the time to focus on it—commit to doing that every day.
The bottom line is that if you leave filling your own glass to the end of the day—your glass will be empty. You’ll be frazzled. Screaming at everyone and pulling your hair out. And no one wants to come home to this or work with this version of you.
We have to take care of ourselves first. So, take time to pour into you.
You simply cannot build your clients or your business without taking care of yourself first. In the long run, you’ll be able to accomplish all the other things—if you take care of yourself first.
Step 3: Get specific.
Once you choose that first rock, take it and break it down into as many smaller bullet points as you can. Get very specific. Here are some examples:
If you want to work on your health, what does that mean?
I want to workout more.
Okay, but how often and for how long and what exercises?
I will to go to the gym twice a week and for 1 hour.
Or…
I will do Pilates three times a week for 30 minutes.
Or…
I will walk/run for 15 minutes a day at least 5 days per week.
You see, breaking it down into a small, actionable goal that you can schedule makes it doable and sets you up for success.
Let’s look at a business example.
I want to increase my client base.
How will you go about making that happen?
I will create a simple Lead Magnet.
Or…
I will write a 4-part Email Nurture Sequence.
Or…
I will schedule Social Media posts for the next week.
Start with just one of these things and schedule a small chunk of time to work on it each day until it is complete. Keep focused on that one goal. Don’t get distracted by all the other little things that you think you need to do.
Decide what is a realistic time frame that you can commit to each goal each and every day. Is it an hour or only 10 minutes? There is no right or wrong answer. You must consider all the factors in your life in order to make this decision.
The important thing is that we make a decision and take action. You can always adjust it later.
Step 4: Repeat Steps #2 and #3 for each of your big rocks and let go of perfection.
Your assets are the rocks that you want to spend the majority of your time on. So, what are the assets in your business? The real “needle movers” are what you should focus on first.
For instance, having “inbox zero” at the end of the day is not a needle mover. (Inbox zero = you’ve replied to or handled all your messages by end of day.)
But the needle movers may be creating a product or course or getting an offer out there so that you can start to produce revenue.
It will differ from person to person and from business to business, but making those decisions is the first step. Once you’ve decided on your big rocks, you have to take each one of them and plan on how you will break them down. Start taking action and you’ll start seeing results. And, then you can start to fill in the pebbles and the sand.
Quite often, we waste too much time going down rabbit holes. We get stuck on one small thing (like learning to build a website) when we may not even need a website right now. Maybe we only need a landing page.
The reason this happens is because we tell ourselves that things have to be perfect before we can move on. Then, when you don’t see results, you feel as if you’ve broken trust with yourself. This is not about perfection. It is about YOU keeping your promises to YOURSELF.
If you say you’re going to do something—then do it!
You are worthy to that commitment to yourself. This is about you being accountable to YOU! Don’t lie to yourself. Your brain will call you on your bluff.
Keep moving forward. Small steps, not perfection, is what creates real results.
Step 5: Learn about the power of intentions.
For those of you who love “to do” lists, I invite you to consider changing your “to do” list into intentions.
Here’s what I mean by that…
If you have a never ending to do list, it can often feel like a chore. But, if you create intentions for the day instead—it suddenly puts you in control of your life.
Sometimes those lists are not even truly important things. They are just busy work to make us feel productive. Society has trained us to believe that the longer our list and the busier we are—the more productive we are. That “to do” list feels exhausting.
But, your intentions are important because you decide on those yourself then no one else can do that for you. Those intentions need to be something you want to don’t just feel like you have to do.
No one else’s morning routine will work for you—it will be exhausting.
No copying and pasting other people’s successful routines.
Remember, look at your own rocks—this is what is most important to me based on my life. Then, suddenly, the actionable items will feel possible.
That is your glass!
Ultimately, we get to decide what is in that glass. Your priorities. Your life.
The bottom line is that we spend most of our time running around for everyone else—fulfilling the needs of everyone else. From now on, I want you to live like the star that you are…you can’t do “all the things” every day. If you try to, you’ll start to dread waking up every morning.
Instead, remember that all those little things are just the grains of sand that fill your cup. To make true progress and to establish true success—you have to choose the big rocks and build those long term results one rock at a time.
Do this and you’ll feel pride. You’ll move that needle one notch further along than yesterday. And you’ll truly rock your business and your life!
If you want to learn more about becoming a rock star in your business, you might be ready for my mastermind and mentorship program, The Social Clique. You can apply now: https://www.cliqueforlife.com/apply-now
