Over the last several years as a physique coach and then a mindset and business coach, I've whittled down some of the biggest challenges most women face when it comes to reaching their potential. And I am going to describe the three keys for handling them in this email for you.

 

 

In case you missed it yesterday, I announced that applications are now open for my annual Best of You Coaching Club Mentorship for 2014. 

 

 

As a woman, it can often feel like you have to not only do everything, but you have to be perfect at everything too. I get you. It's the Superwoman thing. Don't let them see you sweat. Well, if you've been reading JillFit for any amount of time, you know I cop to my struggles frequently and I truly believe that it's only through challenges that we get better.

 

And my goal in life, always, is to get better. Not be perfect right out of the gate (besides, what is 'perfect' anyway?). But what I do do is push the envelope, mess the hell up, then learn, grow and improve. 

 

In fact, I'd even argue that if you believe that 'perfect' is attainable, that you're never going to be the most effective you could be in your life because you're hung up on all the things you need to do for approval or affirmation, rather than just doing for you.

 

 

Make moves to do that thing you've always thought about but then immediately thought, "I could never do that!" (that's how I felt before I trained for my first competition). Take steps to move toward that big, hairy goal you've always kept on the horizon. 

 

"But, but, but..." 

 

I get it. This is soooo, super scary :) But the good news is that when you take action, even when you don't really know what you're doing (and you certainly can't predict the outcomes), you start gathering small wins. You see that, "Gee, it's not as scary as I thought out here on this ledge." You start building your self-confidence and your self-TRUST. It's only through action that you see how far you can go.

 

My Best of You Coaching gals always laugh because whenever they get caught up in the "what ifs" and the tiny details, my response is always, "You won't actually know if it will work or not unless you try." Take action, learn and get better as a result.

 

 

Huh? What does that mean? 

 

Here's the thing. Trying to be Superwoman is old school. It's unattainable, and those who are still trying to achieve will never happy. So how about getting one area of your life--your body--to the point that you don't have to think about it every second? Because obsessing about every morsel of food passing through your lips and counting down your daily cardio minutes is no way to live. 

 

And it's certainly no way to take other areas of your life to the next level.

 

See, your mental energy is finite. Your focus is finite. When I was competing and modeling, I never had ANY mental space available for say, blogging, traveling, reading, creating products and programs to help people, building a website. Are you kidding me? I was busy helping myself try to shed a million pounds by photo shoot time! It was all-consuming. 

 

And it's not to say don't apply mental energy to your physique goals, but just realize that when you do that, you're going to be left with less focus for other things like relationships, business endeavors, family, creativity, etc.

 

So find a way to eat and exercise where you can maintain your weight effortlessly, and open up your available mental space for the other things you want to accomplish. 

 

This is a mindset issue--at some point, you have to drop trying to drop a thousand pounds. At some point, you have to relax into the process and own your stuff. At some point, you have to look in the mirror and say, I'm okay. At some point, you have to get over yourself :) 

 

Does this mean you give up and eat with abandon? No, because, really, that's not effortless either. It just means that you find a way to think about it all a little less and simply let 'good enough' be good enough.

 

 

When I hired my first business coach in 2011, the #1 most important thing she taught me was a consistent success mindset. 

 

So what does that look like? 

 

Here's an example. At the time, I was writing 12-week customized meal plans and training programs for clients online--the standard model in the industry--and I was making good money doing it. My biz coach told me point blank that I needed to hand them off to other JillFit coaches and stop writing them. Give away not some of them, all of them. My first instinct was, "But that's my money. I need that money." She said that if I was working in my business, I couldn't be working on my business. In other words, if I was the trainer and meal plan writer, how was I going to be the entrepreneur, and the visionary and the content creator too--the things I actually needed to be in order to have a real sustainable business? How would I get my business to the next level if I was just writing programs full-time? 

 

Huh. 

 

A light bulb went off. I was operating in a lack mindset, rather than an abundance mindset. I was worried instead of self-assured. I didn't trust myself enough to know I could be successful. I doubted my worth. 

 

These feelings are certainly normal. We're only human. But they also don't serve us when the goal is to elevate ourselves and realize our potential. No one ever achieved greatness while doubting themselves the whole way.

 

This is a mindset switch, and like all mindsets, they take time and practice to adopt. It took me a full year to finally "get it." And it's made all the difference in my personal and professional endeavors.

 

Want more insights, tools and mindset hacks? 

 

My annual Best of You Coaching Club mentorship is open for applications now through Wednesday, December 11th only (only opens once a year). I am taking 13 women to work up close and personal with me in 2014--both online via daily interaction and in-person throughout the year in the realms of mindset, body and business.