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May 6, 2013 by Artem Shevchuk

3 Steps to Diving In and Discovering your Truth while you build a Sustainable, Thriving, Conscious Business

by Suzanne Monroe, Founder of of the International Association of Wellness Professionals

Whether you’re a holistic practitioner, a coach, a healer or other heart-based conscious business owner -

You’re not in business just to make a buck...you truly want to serve your clients to get what THEY need.

Conscious businesses are getting a lot of attention recently. What’s being said is: It’s doing your soul’s work that serves your clients, and contributes to the world.

That’s true!

But it’s time for some myth-busting about what it really takes to build a conscious business....

For starters, a business that truly serves others has to start with YOU becoming completely conscious as the business owner in your business.

It’s not easy and that’s why...

Being an entrepreneur IS the biggest personal growth and spiritual journey that you’ll ever take part in.

Which means You HAVE to do the inner work to get the outer results you want.

And when you do, the results are often way beyond what you ever believed was possible.

When you are in alignment with every aspect of your business, then the outer results you want show up...BIG TIME!!

Ready to learn the TRUTH about what it really takes to build a conscious business that’s in alignment with your true purpose?

Join me for the Season Premiere of Conscious Biz T.V. here.

So what does it take to build a sustainable, conscious business that serves the world and also fuels YOU? Here’s a few gems to help you get started....

Step #1 - Clarity

Clarity is about getting out of overwhelm and stepping into confidence. It’s not always easy to get clear when there’s so much “noise” around you, including social media, the latest system or secret to build your business and other well-meaning distractions. It’s important to know that there is no one-size-fits-all, cookie-cutter approach to building a sustainable, conscious business. Being a conscious business owner starts with YOU becoming completely conscious about your journey, why you are really here and who you are meant to serve. Take some to write about your own personal story and how you can help others. Next, be open to do the inner work as you focus on the outer results. When you bring the two together, that’s when the results really start to show up.

Step #2 - Clients

Let’s face it: If you don’t have clients, you’re not really in business...You just have a hobby. I know deep in your heart you want to have more than a hobby. Learning the tools about how to speak to potential clients and share your message in an effective way are essential components to being a Conscious-Preneur. You’ll learn the the exact script for how to speak with potential clients who say “I can’t afford it” from Sharla Jacobs during her episode on Conscious Biz T.V.

Make sure to register here to get it and more tips on attracting your ideal clients without struggle.

Step #3 - Contribution

Once you’ve done the inner work, gotten clear on how you can serve AND you’ve taken the leap to sharing your message and inspiring people to work with you, then it’s time to consider expanding your reach. Contribution is one of the greatest gifts of being in business for yourself, because you get to decide how you want to make a big impact. Donate to causes you care about? Leave behind a legacy for your children? Help your local community? Consider how your conscious business can effect change in the world and how you can touch more lives.

Ready to dive in deeper? Join us for Conscious Biz T.V.!

When you register you’ll get access to the season premiere of this event featuring 18 extraordinary entrepreneurs who are on a mission to reveal the TRUTH about conscious business and give you the tips and tools to make your dream happen.

Register to watch online here.

About the Author

Suzanne Monroe is a Heart-Based Business Mentor and Leader for Conscious-Preneurs who want to move from struggle to success without reinventing the wheel. Suzanne is the founder of the International Association of Wellness Professionals where she has given away over $100,000 in scholarships to holistic practitioners and coaches to create thriving businesses through the IAWP’s Wellness Coach Certification Program.

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Filed Under: Business Strategy, The Inner Game of Growing Your Business

April 25, 2013 by Artem Shevchuk

Free Sessions: Why They Don't Work & What Does

by Jesse Koren and Sharla Jacobs

A lot of coaches, practitioners and entrepreneurs give free sessions with the hope of getting clients. That's what I (Sharla) did when I first started building my life coaching practice. (But this is such a big mistake!)

This was my process:

  1. Offer a free session (so that they could experience my work)
  2. Dazzle them with how much value they could get
  3. Invite them to sign up for a package with me

At one point, I gave 20 free sessions in a row without getting one client. Everyone raved about how much value they got from my sessions. I just couldn't understand why they weren't signing up for more!

So I invested more in my own business education (through teleseminars, CD-sets, and seminars) and discovered why free sessions don't work. I also learned a whole bunch of strategies that do work - some of which we share here so you can stop wasting time and start gaining clients!

Why Free Sessions DON'T work...

When you provide a FREE SESSION, and most likely, end up giving away too much, your clients need to digest what they've been given, and are no longer hungry to do further work with you.

Making an offer to continue working with you AFTER a free session is kind of like the server who comes over to your table after you've just had a HUGE meal and asks, "Would you care for dessert?" The response? "Sorry, I'm full!"

So, if Free Sessions DON'T work, how do you get lots of clients fast?

If you want a lot of clients fast, you still want to be generous. But instead of giving away free sessions, give away free consultations.

What's the difference between a Free Session and a Free Consultation?

In a free session you may ask them what their biggest problem or challenge is and you actually begin to help them solve or relieve it.

In a free consultation, you do not solve their problem! You ask them a series of questions that are designed to help them see their problem clearly and discover what they want instead.

Then you can share how you can help them solve or relieve their problem over the course of a 3 or 6 month package.

And, if you do your free consultation right, about half of the people will sign up for a package of your services.

So how do you do your Free Consultation "right?"

Check in with us next month and we'll tell you more about this!

Meanwhile, let us know if you commit to stop doing free sessions and start offering free consultations:

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Filed Under: Heartselling/Enrollment

April 23, 2013 by Artem Shevchuk

The Truth About Open Rates

The Truth About Open Rates

by 6-Figure Newsletter and Email Marketing Expert Linda Claire Puig

How many of your subscribers open the emails you send?

Many coaches and service professionals new to email marketing get discouraged when they look at the measurement called "open rate." Those who've been at it for a while do, too.

Why is only a third of my contact list opening my emails? There must be something wrong. Is it worth all this effort if only a few people are reading what I send?

Before you throw in the towel, I want to let you in on a secret that a lot of folks don't know:

Your open rate isn't really your open rate.

As a measurement, the open rate is highly unreliable, imprecise and inadequate.

To show you why that is, I have to explain a little about how open rates are calculated and tracked.

The open rate is actually a ratio calculated as the number of people who opened your email divided by the total number of emails that were successfully delivered to your list.

Email marketing software automatically adds a tiny, invisible image to each email delivered. When this invisible image is called to show up (invisibly) from the server where it lives, that tracks the email as being opened.

But this number is skewed -- perhaps significantly -- by what are known as "image blockers." More and more people use web mail providers (such as Gmail or Yahoo) or applications (such as Outlook) that allow users to decide whether to view their emails with the images turned on or off.

When you see things showing up in your email with all the images turned off, that's what's happening: you have a setting somewhere that is saying "Ask me first if I want to see images." Your images are "disabled" until you click to "enable" them. So...

If a person elects not to view images when reading an email, it will NOT count as an open.

Likewise, the people that elect to receive text-only emails from you (if you give them the option of text or HTML), also will not register as an "open." Some mobile devices only allow emails to be viewed in text form.

Your open rate reporting could actually be off anywhere from 11% to 35%, according to generally accepted metrics in the email marketing world. That's quite a bit!

So while it may look like nobody is opening them, your emails may actually be doing quite well.

So should you just ignore open rates then?

No. Despite their shortcomings, open rates can still provide valuable marketing information. Tracking your open rates can help you:

  1. Spot trends. For example, if you notice a significant downward trend in your open rates over time (not just occasional dips, say during summer when folks are out of town more), it may be a signal that you need to do something to re-engage your subscribers.
  2. Learn your audience's preferences. You may be able to notice what days and times of day are better for sending by comparing your open rates.
  3. Test subject lines. Split your list into two or three groups, and send the same email with different subject lines to see which one generates more opens (which may indicate more interest).

Is there anything you can do to improve your open rates?

Yes, absolutely! It may not be the most accurate measurement in the world, but there are proven ways to improve your open rates. And improvement is always good.

Of course, your list should be an opt-in (permission-based) list. If not, that's the first place to start improving. Otherwise, look to some of these areas to improve your rates:

  1. Make sure your content is relevant and valuable. Know what your audience wants, and provide it. Relevant content is read content.
  2. Examine your frequency of emailing. Too much emailing can cause "list fatigue" and too little can cause the "who's that?" syndrome.
  3. Write HOT subject lines. These short phrases are often the golden key to unlocking your open rates. Make people hungry to open your emails and see what's inside!

A NOTE FROM Thrive Academy: Linda is offering a free training on how to create HOT subject lines on Tuesday, April 23, and I highly suggest that you join her! Among other things, she'll be showing you how improving your subject lines can double your business, the 7 biggest subject line mistakes sabotaging your email results, and the #1 secret to avoid getting your emails reported as spam!

Please join her here: http://www.profcs.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=878767&u=www.7deadlysubjectlinemistakes.com

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Filed Under: Leverage, List-Building

April 3, 2013 by Artem Shevchuk

Get More Yes's From Potential Clients

More than 95% of entrepreneurs that we meet are missing one Element in their Heartselling™ conversations and are leaving thousands of dollars on the table.

This one Element is the Wood Element where you give your potential clients a choice (and increase your chances of getting new clients and doubling your income).

Why? They feel uncomfortable asking potential clients to boldly MAKE A CHOICE because they are afraid of hearing the word NO. So they shyly hand out their business card and hope the potential client calls them for a session.

What is the Wood Element about?

Think about an acorn. Housed inside of it is the plan to grow into an oak tree. It has to burst from its shell and grow around all the rocks and roots before it finally breaks the surface of the ground. Then there are huge trees surrounding it. However, it is going to grow towards the light no matter what. This "no-matter-what" decision is what enables it to thrive.

This drive and commitment is the power of the Wood Element. And it calls forth boldness to take a stand for other people's lives, giving them a choice that can lead them to making "no-matter-what" decisions for themselves.

In the Heartselling™ system the Wood Element instructs you to "Give Them a Choice."

Giving your potential clients a choice may feel uncomfortable at first. However, eventually it gets easier and will become second nature.

What does it mean to "Give Them a Choice?"

First, it doesn't mean handing out your business card and saying "Call me if you would like a session." This is not giving someone a choice. Instead, we invite you to ask a bold question, such as, "Can we follow up on Tuesday about our conversation today?" or "Would you like to get started?" Your potential client gets to say Yes or No.

Remember that giving them a choice doesn't always mean a choice to sign up right now. Until you've connected, served, acknowledged, and gotten curious with them, they are probably not ready to be your client.

Heartselling™ conversations take time, and if you only have 5 or 10 minutes, it's usually not enough time to ask them to be your client. In that case, give them a choice by inviting them to talk with you at a future date and time.

For example, you might say, "I would love to follow up with you by phone since we need to get back to our seats now. Do you have a business card?"

Then ask, "Would Tuesday of next week be a good time to connect further?"

Be sure to take it one step further (if Tuesday does work) by asking, "What time would work best for you on Tuesday?"

Unless you get a specific time, you could play phone tag for weeks. By the time you reach each other, two weeks may have gone by and she barely remembers the conversation she had with you.

Because when you don't ask, the answer is always No. When you do ask, you give people the opportunity to say Yes to what their heart is calling them to say Yes to.

Remember that when you first get to know someone, it isn't wise to try to "close the sale." The key is to use the Fire, Earth, Metal and Water Elements first to make sure that they're leaning in, excited, and open to their highest commitment before you step into the Wood Element and boldly give them a choice to sign up for your services.

Here are some questions to get you started with giving your potential clients a choice.

Wood Element Questions:
- "Would you like to sign up for the program?"
- "Would you like to schedule a session?"
- "Would you like to get started?"
- "Can I follow up with you in a few days?"

Because most entrepreneurs don't give their potential clients a choice and instead wait for their phone to ring, simply giving your potential clients a choice to follow up or giving them a choice to start working with you can double your income in a very short period of time.

Share your stories with us about using these "Wood Element" questions with us on our Facebook page.

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Filed Under: Heartselling/Enrollment

April 3, 2013 by Artem Shevchuk

Are They Talking THEMSELVES Into Working With You?

The Water Element is the secret behind enjoying every Heartselling™ conversation you have. When you bring the Water Element of curiosity to each conversation, every potential client will be fresh, fascinating, and intriguing.

Think about the ocean. If you go below the surface and into the depths, there is so much to discover. Your potential clients are the same way; they each have an ocean of depth beneath the surface.

So how does this work in Heartselling™?

When you get curious about your potential clients and give them the opportunity to talk about themselves, they open up. Your listening itself can be very healing for them.

The more curious and interested you are in your potential clients, the more they'll share with you and trust you. Instead of trying to convince your potential clients to try your services (something that many salespeople make the mistake of doing), you ask questions. If your services are a match for your potential client, they'll discover that for themselves. And you'll find them talking themselves into working with you.

There are three types of curiosity: unadulterated, agenda, and intentional. Unadulterated curiosity is great to use at the beginning of a conversation.

Examples of unadulterated curiosity:
"How are you?"
"Oh, tell me more about that."
"Very interesting. What's that like for you?"

Just as a compliment can open the way for acknowledgment, unadulterated curiosity can open the way for more intentional curiosity. Use unadulterated curiosity to explore the "surface" of your clients...to discover the "way in" to their depths. Then, move into intentional curiosity to explore their depths and their potential match for your services.

There's a fine line between agenda curiosity, which can be damaging, and intentional curiosity, which can be healing. When you're in the energy of agenda curiosity, you're thinking, "I want this person to be my client no matter what." When you're in the energy of intentional curiosity, you're thinking, "I want this person to be my client, if it's for the Highest Good of All Beings."

Now, ultimately, you can't know what the Highest Good is, so it allows you to go on a journey of discovery with your potential client.

Here's an example of how to use intentional curiosity...If you are a chiropractor who specializes in helping people with migraine headaches, you might say something to potential clients like this: "Wow, after hearing all about your job, it sounds really stressful. Do you ever get headaches from all that stress?"

If they do get headaches, ask them to tell you more about that. Keep exploring with them. You can ask questions like, "What is that like for you?" or "Tell me more about that."

If they don't have the problem you can help them with, that's okay. This is a great time to let them know what you do and ask if they have any friends or colleagues that do get headaches. And, you can continue to be curious to find out what they are looking for. That way, you can still offer them a resource, it may just not be your services.

The deeper you go, the more they'll trust you. The more they trust you, the more open they will be to sharing what they're most committed to. Once they share what they're looking for next, you can step into the Earth Element and be of service to help them get what they most want. Or you can acknowledge them for their deep commitment and their courage. Or you can get even more curious, and ask them more about it, like "How would it feel when you get what you are looking for?"

Do you see how the Elements work together?

Before you leave the Water Element of curiosity to move into the Wood Element, which is to boldly give them a choice, there is one last question you must ask. This is SO important!

The question is: "If we were to work together, what would you see yourself getting out of it?"

Let them tell you what they see. Then you can say, "Yes, exactly, you'll get a, b, and c, plus x, y, and z."  Or, "You know, I can't promise you that, but what I can promise you is x, y, and z."

There are two reasons to ask this. First, as their trusted advisor, it is your job to make sure you can offer what they want to get from working with you. And second, to help them get really excited about what they could get from working with you and to paint the picture in their own words. When you ask them this question, they actually talk themselves into working with you. And you want them to be really excited before you ask them to take the next step, which might be to sign up for your services.

Ultimately, the deeper they go with you, the more likely it is that they'll become your clients. So it's important to use the Water Element of curiosity to go deep beneath the surface in your Heartselling conversations with your potential clients.

Here are some questions to support you in that.

Water Element Questions:
- "How's your ... (neck, job, life, dreams, or whatever you help people with)?"
- "I'm curious. Would you tell me more about that?"
- "What's that like for you?"
- "How is that affecting... (your life, your business, your relationships)?"
- "What do you want instead?"
- "How would you feel if you got that?"
- "If we were to work together, what would you see yourself getting out of it?"

You'll be amazed to see how your potential clients talk themselves into working with you - if you're a match - and if you're using the Water Element.

We want to know how it goes with your Heartselling conversations once you start using the Water Element!

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Filed Under: Heartselling/Enrollment

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