If you joined me on Saturday for my 7 Deadly Sins of Productivity Workshop (or caught the replay) you heard all about my new Productivity & Planning Master Mind!
As a quick refresh, The Productivity & Planning Master Mind is a 90 Day Accountability Group PLUS 6 Module Video Course to help you identify and achieve your goals by the end of 2017!
The Master Mind Includes 2 Coaching Options:
OPTION #1: Group Coaching and Accountability within the dedicated Facebook Group PLUS the 6 Module CourseOPTION #2: Private Coaching via 3- 60 minute one on one calls with me PLUS everything included with option #1!
Here’s What You’ll Learn:
MODULE #1: GOAL SETTING FOR SUCCESS
ID your goals and convert them into actionable projects so you are working towards what matters to you
MODULE #2: FUNCTIONAL PLANNING PROCESSES
A streamlined method for planning accurately and with time to spare
MODULE #3: PRODUCTIVE EXECUTION TECHNIQUES
Understand your work style and which productivity techniques will help you Work Smarter, Not Harder
MODULE #4: MASTERING HABITS AND ROUTINES
Overcome bad habits and replace them with routines for a successful life
MODULE #5: INSPIRATION THROUGH INTERFERENCE
Learn how to overcome set backs and push through daily issues and interference through inspired action
MODULE #6: THE PERSONAL GROWTH MINDSET
Continue your personal growth and skill set building for a long lasting positive change to your quality of life
If you’ve been contemplating the Master Mind, NOW IS THE TIME TO JOIN before the Master Mind begins on October 1st!
If you have any questions or concerns about whether the Master Mind is right for you, don’t hesitate to email me asap and let me know what’s holding you back before this great price and opportunity EXPIRES!
Hope to be working with you soon inside the Master Mind!
First of all I wanted to say a very big THANK YOU for helping to make my latest workshop “The 7 Deadly Sins of Productivity” a success yesterday!
I know we had a little technical difficulty at the start, but we worked through it and the live stream went off without a hitch.
I LOVE doing these sorts of live events with you because it gives me a chance to really go deep on a specific topic in a way I wouldn’t be able to in a standard youtube video, and it was great to hear how informative, helpful and motivating you found the content of the workshop yesterday.
Now, if for some reason you weren’t able to make the live event yesterday,I want to make sure you get the link to the replay so you can watch it before it expires come October 1st.
Don’t forget to CLICK HERE to download the Workbook to accompany the event as well- it’s great for helping you take notes and organize your thoughts as you enjoy the lecture!
I also have to give a HUGE THANK YOU to those of you who have signed up to join my latest productivity project…
The Productivity & Planning Master Mind!
To refresh your memory, the Productivity & Planning Master Mind is a 90 Day Accountability Group and 6 Module Video Master Class that I will be hostingLIVE from October-December. I cant wait to get started helping each of you who joined identify your big goals for the end of the year, break them down into a solid plan of action and help you see it all through by New Years!
DON’T FORGET…
If you are still thinking about joining the Master Mind, the $100 discount will EXPIRE ON MONDAY EVENING, and then membership to the master mind closes completely at the close of September.
Or, if you are still on the fence and have specific questions, please SEND ME AN EMAILand let me know what’s on your mind so we can determine if the Master Mind is the right fit for you!
Thanks again for helping me make yesterdays event such a success and I can’t wait to start helping you achieve your goals for 2017 in our new Master Mind!
It’s back and better than ever and I want to spend just a few moments giving you some important details about this year’s launch! First of all in case you didn’t know, the Charmed Life Planner is available in A5/Half Letter, Filofax Personal AND A4/US Letter sizes!
2018 Charmed Life Printable Planner A5/Half Letter
The A5 version, pictured above, has a vertical week on two pages layout for your daily planning, along with month on two pages layouts, a master monthly task list and an expense sheet for every month! It’s a complete printable planner solution but this year I’ve made it even better. Printing inserts at home isn’t always the easiest, printers are not all created equal and there are different paper sizing standards around the globe that make designing a single usable file difficult to manage. After talking to many customers who use and love the Charmed Life Planner, this year I’m adding 2 additional files to your A5 Charmed Life Planner purchase to give you options when printing your planner at home.
The three (3) files you will now get for this size are:
US Standard Half Letter File (same as last year’s design)
US Bordered Printing Option (so those with printers that cannot print borderless don’t have to guess on how to scale the file)
True A5 File designed to print on A4 paper (for those of you who use A4 as your standard).
The 2018 Charmed Life Printable Planner in personal size is the same great day on one page design as last year with the muted time table for scheduling a full day of events and tasks! Due to its more compact size that prints well on US Letter or A4 , this planner was easier to print without issue and so there is no major design changes or additional files necessary. This size, as well, includes the month on two pages layout, a master monthly task list and an expense sheet for each month of the year.
The 2018 Charmed Life Printable Planner in A4/US Letter size is a unique design introduced last year and comes with two design files, one week on two pages and one week on one page. When you purchase the A4/US Letter size you get BOTH styles so you can choose which layout works best for you. Not only does the A4/US Letter design excel in providing amazing space and dedicated planning elements for multiple areas of your life, but it’s also very easy to print in the full size design.
This year I am continuing to offer the Functional Planning Bundle for all three Charmed Life Printable Planners. The bundles will include the Charmed Life Planner in your choice of size, the Yearly Project Tracker, Project Planning Sheet and an additional Task List.
For a limited time, when you purchase ANY 2018 Charmed Life Planner or Functional Planning Bundle, you will receive two (2) great freebies!
#CharmedGTD Quick Start Guide: Inspiration and instruction for working smarter, not harder
Exclusive Downloadable Graphic “I’m a List Lover with a Planner Problem!”
◦ Both Freebies are included in the downloads for your purchase automatically!
Make sure to check out my recent planner set up video for my full announcement and my updated planner set up video and I can’t wait to see how you set up your 2018 Charmed Life Planner, so make sure to take a picture and share it on Twitter or Instagram, tag me @MissTrenchcoat and use #CharmedGTD so everyone in the community can get inspiration from you as well!
Can you believe TOMORROW is September 1st? To be honest, I feel like September is starting a little late this year haha! After a fun in the sun- filled summer, I am more than ready to get back to the grind! Which is why I am hosting a September #FALL4PRODUCTIVITY Challenge to help us all get back to our daily hustle as accountability buddies. If you haven’t signed up for the FREE Challenge yet, click here to get on the list which gives you access to FREE printables, graphics, giveaways and MORE.
I hope you are having a wonderful week and close to your August.
I’m just popping in today to invite you to join me for my #Fall4Productivity Challenge that begins on September 1st!
#Fall4Productivity is going to be an interactive Instagram Photo-a-Day challenge mixed with giveaways, live streaming events and fun freebies!
After a long summer of fun in the sun, I’m ready to hustle hard for the last four months of the year and I designed this challenge for some personal and community accountability and motivation. Nothing gets me more motivated to work than YOU in my community, so if you are looking for some inspiration to get back to work and start working smarter, not harder this September, THIS IS THE PERFECT CHALLENGE FOR YOU!
Of course, it’s completely FREE and a sure-fire way to get you fired up for Fall Productivity, so…
August has arrived and as we enjoy the end to our summer vacations, don’t forget to grab your FREE Planner Inserts and Tech Wallpapers to help you make the most of the month!
Discbound Planners 101: How to Get Started Using a Discbound System
For quite some time now, my planner binding method of choice has been the discbound system. If you are not familiar with the disc binding concept, it is similar to the idea of a spiral notebook, but instead of a solid metal spiral holding the notebook together, you have metal or plastic discs that can pop in and out of a cover. These discs being removable means that you can add and remove paper to your disc bound system as you like, so long as the paper has been punched with a disc binding punch. I love the custom planner I created with the help of the discbound systems, so today I would like to share some key information and resources with you to help you get started creating your own custom planner system using discbound notebooks and binding accessories.
The BEST Features of a Discbound System
1. Customization: The main reason I love using a discbound system as my planner is because it is completely customizable. I can create my own custom planner inside the binding and add and remove items on a whim. I find the disc binding to be very secure, but also easy for you to add and remove elements at the same time.
2. Interchangeability: The next feature I love about discbound system is that they are interchangeable for the most part. Below I will outline some of the most popular discbound planner systems to give you an idea of the options available, but with each system the discs, refills, accessories are interchangeable so you can pick and choose what you want to use from one collection or another to build your perfect system.
3. Flexibility: The final feature I love about discbound systems is that they fold over onto themselves like a spiral bound notebook. I love this flexibility because I am someone who does like to fold a notebook over to write. Although my personal discbound planner is kept inside a notebook cover, I frequently remove my planner portion from the cover to write in it, and of course I fold the system over like a notebook when I do!
The Most Popular Disc Bound Systems
As I mentioned earlier, there are a number of discbound planner systems out on the market currently. Here is a list below with clickable links to help you browse some of the most popular systems to find the right elements to help you build your perfect system.
3. Punch: Of course, if you are interested in creating a customizable system like me, you are going to need to get a discbound punch. I recommend getting one from the system you use most. I personally use the Arc version and love it because although it is a bit larger, it has wonderful guides to help you punch a variety of sizes of paper.
4. Inserts/Refills: Another very necessary element of a discbound system are the inserts or refills you use. Now, as you may already know, I use the Functional Planning Bundle of inserts from my own shop to create my planner system, but most of the major brands also sell calendar, project planning and note taking pages and refills, so if you are not into creating a custom planner with printable inserts like I do, you do have some options. More and more, however, I see that sellers on Etsy are also giving the option to purchase pre-printed and pre-punched discbound compatible inserts, so you have that option as well. You could also use another set of inserts and punch them with your discbound punch as well, if you are looking for something very specific that might not yet be available. I’d recommend checking on size compatibility for your inserts with the system you are using before proceeding with this option.
How to Create a Custom Planner with the Disc Bound System
If you are interested in a creating your own custom planner using the discbound system, here is a video tutorial I created that walks you through the very simple process. Definitely check out this video and the links I’ve left in this article to help you find the different elements of your ideal planner system so that you can build a planner that is all your own and custom to your needs!
I hope this information has been helpful to you as you evaluate the discbound planner system for yourself. If you have any other questions about the system, feel free to leave me a comment and I’ll do my best to help you get the information you need to create your perfect planner system!
One of the most frequently asked business questions I receive revolves around how or what to name your business. I can understand why, names are important. Your business name could make or break your business. A good name can evoke solid brand recognition and a bad one can cause confusion or even legal trouble. I’m sure there is plenty of advice I could give you on naming your business that would most likely cause you indecision and make the process more difficult for you, so today I want to keep things simple and share three major rules to follow when naming your business.
Rule #1: Choose a name that is available
This first rule sounds like common knowledge, but let me tell you, I see examples of people using unavailable names for businesses all the time. So, I’ll keep this black and white for you- if you want to use a name for your business you MUST do your due diligence to ensure it is not the same or similar to another existing business that operates within your industry. Google the heck out of the name you want to use and check for social media handles as well. Using the same name as another business is problematic because it puts you in a situation where you could be in legal trouble, and using a name that is similar to another business is an issue for your branding because it causes confusion. I have seen examples of businesses that have used names that are similar or variants of another more popular existing business, and although I don’t know for sure that all the business owners where trying to piggy back on the success of the original, that is definitely something people do and it always, ALWAYS ends up hurting the variant business while boosting your competition. Choose an original name and if you are in any doubt over whether your name is too similar to another business, go back to the drawing board. No name, no matter how seemingly perfect, is worth the headache and hassle that results if it’s not wholly original.
Rule #2: Choose a name that is relevant
Again, I think this seems like a common knowledge rule but I suppose the concept of relevancy is subjective. When choosing your business name you want to make sure the name you select is relevant to the products or services your business sells. Names that are “inside jokes,” convoluted or infer a meaning that is not in line with your products WILL confuse people. How do you know if a name is relevant to your business? Ask people. Literally tell people the name of your business and ask them to guess what the business does or sells. Don’t tell them ahead of time what your business does, make sure they are going in blind when they give your opinion or else you could get mixed messages. Now, there are some examples of business naming techniques that are not necessarily relevant but still work. For example if you come up with a business name that is an original word or term (think Uber) or if you use your name for your business (and the business revolves around you or your services) those situations are common and acceptable.
Rule #3: Choose a name that is flexible
Once you have a name that is available and also relevant, you then need to double check that the name is flexible enough to apply even if your business expanded. Sometimes business’ start off small with just a small niche of products and then over time grow into new niches and new markets. No matter whether or not you ever intend for your business to expand in the future, do a flexibility check on the name. Think about some different business directions you could move into with the name of your business remaining relevant. If you do have plans for your business in the future, it’s definitely important that you think about how your name would be affected by that growth and plan for that ahead of time.
Now that you know these key rules, there is one more piece of advice I have for you when it comes to naming your business- don’t overthink it! I know this post may have a serious tone that could cause some of you to hesitate on naming their business and therefore hesitate on moving forward with your business but the truth is that there really is no perfect business name and if you do make a mistake naming your business it’s not the end of the world, or your business, in most cases. You can change your business name in the future if success causes a necessity- I’d say that’s a good problem to have. And if you use a name that doesn’t work and your business doesn’t take off, you can change it and try again with no one much the wiser. For most of you out there, you won’t even fall under either of those two situations and you will be able to make due with whatever business name you started with. Yes, your business name is important, but there are so many more important things that will reflect on your business like quality of products, customer service and overall branding. So don’t sweat it if you can’t come up with a genius business name, because most of the business world makes it work without a knockout name!
I hope these rules have given you some valuable advice as you move forward with naming your business. Of course, once you get your name worked out the real work begins if you intend to create a successful brand and business. So if you need more strategies and advice for creating a business, particularly an online business, I welcome you to sign up for my FREE On-Demand Video Training ENTREPRENEURSHIP IS THE NEW BLACK. This training is jam packed with key information and strategies for you to use as you build your business online!
I talk about productivity a lot- and I share a lot of different tips, techniques, strategies- you name it! For someone just starting out, however, I realize too much information can sometimes be a bad thing, which is why I gave it some thought and narrowed down my top productivity tips to these key 3 things you should do if you want to get more productive. So if you are someone, right now, starting at zero on the productivity scale, meaning you don’t actively think about or pursue ways to increase your productivity, these three tips are going to help you get started working smarter, not harder!
1. Use a Planner
Yep- of course this is my first tip! It doesn’t have to be a paper planner, use whatever system works for you, digital, physical, a filofax, your iPhone calendar. The point is that in order to be productive, you first need to get in the habit of planning. When we use a planner and think about our days, weeks and months ahead of time, we are able to be more effective and efficient with our work. That doesn’t mean all your days will always go according to plan- in fact, they most likely won’t- but having a general idea of what you need to do and have all your plans and ideas mapped out in a system can help you do more of what matters and spend less time on what doesn’t!
2. Set a Daily Top 3
The Daily Top 3 is a productivity concept I love because it’s all about getting focused. Essentially, each day (or evening before) you will choose three things on your to do list that are priority items. These can be items with a deadline, things that need to be accomplished before other sequential tasks or just something important to you personally. You list out these three individual tasks and try to finish all three during the day, the sooner the better! I know we all have more than three things to do in a day, but forcing yourself to choose just three that are priority for a single day forces us to focus in on what really matters and teaches us how to sort through our messy task list for items that will truly impact our days.
3. Create White Space
So this is probably a tip that you would never expect a productivity guru to share with you, especially not in a top three list of the most important strategies but creating white space, essentially planning to do nothing, is too important. When you create white space in your day by setting aside time in your schedule to do nothing, you end up becoming more productive in a few ways. First of all, if you plan for some white space in your day and you have tasks that end up taking longer than expected, that white space can be used to buffer other items on your list so you don’t end up with tasks that need to be carried over to the next day. Second, studies have shown that people who have free time are more creative and produce better work. Why? Because when you can give yourself time to just do nothing, think and relax, you are able to dive deeper on your thoughts and come up with more creative ideas and solutions for your work. When we are forced to quickly complete a task, we usually rush and create a less than desirable result, but if we had time in our day to think about our work, we can come up with better solutions and better outcomes!
If you enjoyed these tips and would like to learn more about planning and productivity, I highly recommend signing up for my FREE Planner Peace Master Class. This video class will teach you my fundamentals of planning and productivity so you can get started using your planner of choice to organize your life and work smarter, not harder!
I hope these three tips give you a good foundation for productivity in your life. I would love to hear how you are integrating these ideas currently into your daily routine or if you have other must-have productivity tips you think might be more important, I’d love for you to share in the comments!
As a frequent planner user, I find that I am always changing up little bits of my system from my planner cover, to my inserts and of course my many planner supples and accessories! No matter how much I change up, however, I always find that there are a few favorite planner supples that I rely on over and over again. If you watch my YouTube videos on planners or follow me on Instagram, these may be items you see frequently inside my planner, so if you’ve ever wondered what they are and where you can get your hands on them, here is a quick reference list for you!
Russell+Hazel Sticky Notepad Set (Marble): I am a sucker for sticky notes AND marble print, so when you combine those together, it’s a no brainer for me. You’ll always find a number of these throughout my planner pages with extra notes, details and phone numbers and I like to keep a stack of them in the back of my planner inside a zip pocket so I have them with me on the go as well!
Sweet Water Decor Boss Lady Pen: I feel like the pen you keep in your planner is a major choice. Not only does it need to write well and be the proper point width for your writing preference, but I think it also needs to look good. I love this beautiful turquoise Boss Lady Pen because it fits with my branding and I love the extra reminder in my planner that I am in charge of my life, business and plans!
Post It Notes 1.5″ x 2″: Like the marble sticky notes, post-it notes are a frequent supply found in my planner, but specifically I love the 1.5″ x 2″ size because its compatible with the vertical square boxes found in many planners like the Erin Condren Life Planner, MAMBI Happy Planner, and of course, my Charmed Life Planner! These little sticky notes fit perfectly in my planner columns so they integrate nicely for adding notes to my days without using a huge post it that takes up space across numerous days.
Empire Building Favorites Notebook: Along with my discoid planner, I like to keep a spiral notebook in my planner cover for extra notes that may be more permanent or need to be referenced again in the future. But I’m soo picky when it comes to notebooks, I always want that perfectly inspiring quote on my cover with the perfect chic blend of my favorite colors and patterns. Which is why I end up designing my own! Yep- this lovely notebook has a cover designed by yours truly, so if this check list of my favorite things resonates with you, definitely check it out!
I’d love to hear about your current favorite planner supplies as well, so please make sure to leave me a comment below and let me know what you love to use in your planner!
