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Browse published articles attributed to Rev. Anne Presuel, with full-archive search.
On a coaching call I had with a client a while ago, we talked about what was holding him back from creating what he wanted in his life. "I think I have a fear of being myself in the world," he told me.
“A belief is just a thought that you keep thinking over and over again.”rn- Abraham-Hicks I was recently working with a client who has been struggling to build her business. She feels as though no matter what she does, she just can’t get a break. The economy collapsed. The person delivering her products took her money and ran. The assistant who was helping her turned out to be a nightmare. And so on.
Recently, I was talking with a client about her financial situation. The conversation went something like this: "I do so much of this spiritual stuff, and I'm happy all the time," she said. "Why am I not more financially abundant?" "Great question," I answered. "Why aren't you?" "I really don't know," she answered. I knew she was talking about the fact that she doesn't feel as though she has enough money. (This type of feeling is considered an inner conversation, a belief, or a vibrational place from which she is creating, by the way.)
Recently I found myself in the hospital with acute appendicitis. After my appendix was removed, I had a several-day hospital stay recovering from the surgery. In the book "A Stroke of Insight", Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, the author and a brain scientist experienced a stroke and recovery. Jill talks about how clearly she saw and felt different people’s energies as they came into her hospital room; sometimes their energy was very painful and sometimes it was very loving and supportive.
One day last year, the Divine (or Spirit or God or the Universe – whatever you like to call it ... I call it the Divine) showed me something that validated this journey we are all on together: when you put your intention out there, when you speak it to others, it shows up in your life. Now this isn’t something new; I’ve been talking about this for years. And yet, I discovered again how true it is. Let me tell you what happened.
That’s a rather odd thing to say, don’t you think? Well, actually you probably don’t, because you are likely familiar with the Law of Attraction and the power of your thoughts. Still, in our society, many people don’t really believe they think things into being. Rather, they believe they do things into being. And, well, maybe they’re right. At least, partially. I mean, you have to DO something in order to get what you want done. The dishes don’t do themselves, do they? And a house doesn’t build itself. You do have to take action. But the thought comes first; then the action.
Several weeks ago I wrote an article entitled “Are You A HO?”. The article was about making the distinctions between being a Hobby Owner vs being a Business Owner in your business. To my surprise, that article generated some interest -- and not all of it positive. While there were new subscribers and some wonderful email responses, there were also some unsubscribes, and one colleague got upset and challenged my appropriateness in using the word "HO". Worst of all, I learned that I had not given credit where credit was due. Uh-oh. Time to take care of that.
As you reach out to your target market to share with them about your services, you'll want to connect to their "pain". Their pain is the area in which they are struggling, and the area where you have the solution to their problem. Here is a really great example of how my pain met up with a service provider's solution ... beautifully.
Many entrepreneurs, just like you, suffer the thought of wanting to quit their businesses … At least sometimes. (If you’ve never thought this, then this article just isn’t for you.) Who can’t relate? There are those moments, aren’t there? And yet, something keeps you going. Something keeps you trying. Something keeps you taking action; it keeps you holding onto the dream. What IS that something? It is the dream that each one of us has, one that has ahold of us and won’t let go.
A while ago, I was dragging around with very little energy. This is pretty unusual for me because I am accustomed to getting up early and starting work immediately -- and being able to work straight through the day (with a yummy break for swimming). However, less than two weeks before, I had had major surgery.
Recently, I had an opportunity to meet Jack Canfield. Jack Canfield is the famous author of TheChicken Soup for the Soul book series. He is also star of the movie, The Secret, and author of numerous other books on success. Jack is practically a house-hold name. Jack and Pamela Bruner, my coach, have co-authored a book on using tapping for success.
If I had a dollar for every time I've either heard someone say, "What if I can't do it?" (or said it myself), I think I'd be rich! This question is one of the most challenging questions that every spiritual, heart-centered entrepreneur faces as they grow their business. I faced this question over ten years ago when I first started my business. I was terrified, and at the time, I was a single mom to a teen-age daughter. Seriously ... what if I couldn't build my business? But I had two things going for me: 1. My desire to create my business was stronger than my fear of failing.r
There was a time in my life when I had no money. I was just out on my own, working in downtow Washington, DC, and living in Arlington, VA, and I didn't have bus money, so I had to walk to work. It was about 3 miles (each way). I remember what that was like.
"Jerk!" I said, annoyed. "I can't believe he just pulled out in front of you like that!" My husband said nothing, but his hands tightened on the wheel. As we passed the other driver, I glared at him, wondering from what planet he had just come. Reckless drivers or thoughtless drivers are a bit of a pet peeve of mine -- particularly after my sister died in a car accident in 2004.
Years ago, when I began my practice, I found myself in a challenging situation. I needed more clients. Yes, people were trickling in, but I didn't have the level of clientelle I wanted, or in fact needed. So I began to do the usual marketing things: I gave talks, handed out flyers, advertised, told people what I did for a living, and so on. But what I didn't do (at least not right away) was to envision my practice filled with clients. That seemed too big a step for me at that time.
I’ve been swimming most of my life, and have loved it from the very beginning. I remember my first swimming lesson at around age 5, where we had to put our faces in the water and then turn our heads to the right to learn to breathe. The teacher pointed at me and said, “Yes! Everyone look at her! That’s how I want you to do it!” In that moment, the water and I merged into one, and a life-long love affair was born.
"Do you know how hard it is to hold onto a vision when so many people and situations are telling me I can't do this?" Alana asked. "I find myself getting caught up in the reality of what I see and hear, and then, before I know it, I've lost touch with my dream. I just don't know what to do about that." I could relate to what Alana was saying. How many times had I gotten sidetracked or dropped a dream because I just lost faith that I could create it?
My client's problem: I really want to start offering programs to my clients. I love what I do and my clients really get a lot of value from our sessions together. The challenge is that I don't have a whole lot of clients and when I do offer workshops, they are sparsely attended, which frustrates me and makes me want to give up. How do I get to the point where I am successfully offering programs to my clients and people actually show up for them? Dear Divine One:
Several years ago, I was attending a nephew’s wedding, and the day before the wedding, his younger brother suggested we go play miniature golf. Unbeknownst to me, my brother Steve often played miniature golf with his family, while I had played it perhaps five times in the past 20 years. So, we all went out to this beautiful course and began to play. Well, let me tell you, it wasn’t long before some old childhood competition began to arise in me. Steve is older than me and used to “cream” me at numerous games we played together. (To this day, I won’t play Monopoly!)
"I don't know what to do!" I overheard this statement as I walked back into the auditorium at the event I was attending. Two women were behind me discussing a coaching program that was being offered at the event. I could still hear them talking. "What are you going to do?" one asked the other. "I'm not sure. I really want to, but that's so much money!" "I know! But I really think it will make a difference if I do it," the first one said, finally.
“I feel like I did something wrong,” my client, Sarah, said. “I tried and tried to think myself healthy, but somehow I ended up back in the hospital! I don’t understand!”
Imagine finding yourself on an early morning flight. 5 am. Which means being at the airport by 4 am. The plane boards and takes off, the pilot turns off all the interior lights. It is completely dark. And you’re awake. Wide awake. And you want to work. But working means turning on a light. And turning on a light means disturbing other people. For the next 10 minutes, you agonize over whether you should turn on an overhead light. Then you think,
Many times people share with me that they have difficulties keeping their minds focused upon what they want, rather than what they are experiencing. (Does this sound familiar?) For example, perhaps you want more money, but you aren't making very much. It seems as though most of the time, you feel the lack of what you want (sometimes intensely!).
Women are amazing care-givers. We care for our children. We care for our spouses and partners. We care for our friends. We care for our homes. We care for our animal friends. We care for our neighbors. We care for our community. We care for our bosses and colleagues. But somewhere in the midst of all of this caring, we have a tendency to forget ourselves. We often put ourselves at the bottom of the list. What this looks like is that someone else’s emergency becomes our emergency. And when that happens, our plans and our needs get placed on the back-bu er.
“How do you know if you're intuitive?" someone asked recently. "I mean, I think I am, but I'm not really sure what that means." She's not alone. Many people wonder if they are intuitive. Let me start off by saying "Everyone is intuitive." Now, before you go "Yeah, right!" let me explain. Intuitive abilities are inherent in each one of us, just as our ability to breathe is inherent.
Many gifted healers ache to bring their gifts to the world, but then find themselves stuck when it comes to marketing those gifts. In coaching these dedicated, spiritual entrepreneurs, it is clear to me that their marketing challenges occur because they are unclear about one of the following three elements: their message (what they are offering), their market (whom they are serving), or their media (the vehicle through which they are conveying their message).
"I feel like I have all of these gifts I want to share with the world," Karnie said. "And I keep taking trainings, and when I'm taking them, I think, I could be doing this! I really want to be teaching other people how to help others heal, and how to be happy, and how to have a great life!" "That's awesome!" I said. "So what is getting in the way of doing this?" "Well, I just don't really know how to do it," she replied. "I mean, I know how to help other people get what they want, but I don't know how to really market that."
"The economy has really hit me hard," Marilyn told me. "I just don't know what I'm going to do. I work so hard, but I don't seem to be getting where I want to go." As we worked together in releasing her fears, I realized that the challenge she was struggling with is the same thing many spiritual, heart-centered entrepreneurs are struggling with. And then I thought about the number of spiritual entrepreneurs who have not only survived this economic experience, but thrived.
Several years ago, my nephew, Kevin, paid me the greatest compliment. "Aunt Anne," he said, "You're the biggest kid I know!" Those of you who have been following me for some time know I'm a big believe in having fun and laughing as much as possible ... no matter what. Why is this? Because being happy is one of the highest vibrations you can use to create the Divine life you so greatly desire. Really.
I had a client with this problem. I really want to learn how to attract more clients. And better clients! My income goes up and down depending on what's happening in my business and how much marketing I'm doing. Sometimes, I feel very overwhelmed, because I know I'm not doing enough marketing. How do I get better clients (and more of them) and not be so overwhelmed while doing it? Help! Dear Divine One -r
After someone has "done you wrong" and profoundly hurt you, why should you forgive them? Why should you spend all the time and effort letting it go? And should you let it go? And if you forgive them, what does this mean? Does it mean you go back for more? I have gotten these questions a lot from clients through the years and I believe I have some answers not only because of my own experiences (yes, I've had to forgive big-time!), but also because I've spent years studying what forgiveness does for you. (Did you hear that? What it does for you.)
Dear Anne: I feel really stuck. I'm really afraid if I make a move in my business, I'll make the wrong move and it will cost me time and money. So I don't do anything! But this doesn't work either, because well, I'm not doing anything! I want a straight and clear path that I can take to build my business. Help! Dear Divine One - If only. I hate to break the news to you, but there are no straight lines to building your business. (sorry)