www.ShiftSpeakerTraining.com

• "Another Year Over, A New One Just Begun..."
• BTS Tip: Free Up Some Time in 2010 with Outsourcing
• Feature Article: Is Your Business Supporting Your Lifestyle or Destroying it?
• Joanna Recommends: "The Lifestyle Shift: Creating Your Ultimate Lifestyle Business in 2010"  Webinar - FREE only for the first 250 to register.

Another Year Over, a New One Just Begun

Hi!

This week's news comes live from New York.  Yep- Greg and I jumped on a plane last week and skipped across here for Christmas and New Year.  I'm really grateful to have such an extraordinary team that allow us to do things like this.

How was your Christmas?  This year for us was a quiet low-key affair, with a sleep in and lots of reading.  Then we caught up with our friends Andrew and Daryl Grant, and their kids Brodie and Cian at the Peninsula Hotel on 5th Avenue for Christmas lunch.  A couple of bottles of Moet and lots of turkey and chocolate later we stumbled back to our apartment.  It was a lovely day, and great to be sharing it with friends.

We missed sharing it with family this year, but it was good to make all the Christmas eve phone calls back to Oz to hear how everyone was going. 

And now here we are in that in between week- half way between the end of one year and the beginning of the next.  I know for a fact many of us are taking stock of the year that was, chalking up the lessons and looking forward to doing things a little differently  next year.  That's why I have chosen this time of year to launch our new venture "The Lifestyle Shift".  You see, while we were on the cruise recently Greg and I really reflected on not just the business we want to build in 2010 but the LIFE we want to lead.  The legacy we want to leave.  The manner in which we lead our lives.  We have personally re-committed to our Lifestyle Values, and I want to give every single one of my valued and special clients (thats you!) the opportunity to take into 2010 the same level of clarity, certainty and purpose about the future that we are feeling.  So please join me!

The whole newsletter this week is focussed around "Lifestyle Design"  I hope it inspires you to start 2010 on the right foot!

After all,  it's all very well to do what you love, but if it consumes your life to the exclusion of other things you love (like family, friends, holidays, travel...) then how long can you love that thing?

So here's to 2010 being YOUR year. My New Years wish for you is that this time next year you are reflecting on the year that was, knowing that every action was taken in alignment with your purpose, weaving a lifestyle you most ardently desire. 

Best wishes,

Outsourcing to Grow Your Business

One of the most common excuses I hear from my clients when they are stalling on doing the things they know they should do is "I don't have the time".

If you have ever said to yourself "I just don't have the time to get these things done that I know I should be doing" then you should consider outsourcing.

This has allowed us to grow our business by implementing marketing strategies that we alsways knew we should have, make changes to our web sites that we always knew we should have - all these things that are on the "To Do" list but don't quite get done you can usually outsource.

There are loads of web sites out there where you can post a job and people will bid to help you with that job.

So whether its help with writing copy, getting your book written or getting your newsletters written - there are so many strategies that you can use as a speaker to draw more attention to your business and build a relationship with your list that you don't necessarily need to do yourself.

Some Outsourcing sites I recommend are:

• www.Rentacoder.com
• www.Elance.com
• www.Odesk.com

Is Your Business Supporting Your Lifestyle or Destroying Your Lifestyle?

If you are too busy working in your business to notice that your life has been on hold for a few years now- then chances are you don’t even have time to read this article.  But I promise you if you do, you will be richly rewarded.  You see, as Michael Gerber said in the The E-Myth most of us get into business because we want to be our own boss- and then our Lifestyle goes down the tube in a flurry of tax preparation, stock taking, hiring and firing and general stress!

But times are changing and more and more business owners are undergoing what I refer to as “The Lifestyle Shift”.  They are waking up to the fact that they are the boss, and they should be able to design their business to match their lifestyle.  From the ground up.

If it’s time for you to have more time for yourself, your family, and for your dreams, then read on...

Your lifestyle is ultimately your life’s work. We are all artists, whether we acknowledge that or not. And every day we are gifted with a canvas upon which to create our design. We are now operating in the Information Age, at a time of great wealth and great possibility. Yet seemingly intelligent people continue to operate under old assumptions. Too many people I know “work hard” for no other reason than they thought that’s what they were expected to do. There has never been a greater time than now to design a life the way you want it.

How do you "Design Your Life?"

The first step is a simple one. 

Wake up to the fact that YOU  ARE THE BOSS.  Your life is the way it is because you let it be that way- either by your actions or non-actions.   You are tolerating it, or fostering it, or forcing it to be just how it is.  Most of us get so busy just getting the work done that we forget to take stock and remember who's in charge.

You started your business.  It is a direct reflection of you.  So isn't it time to take responsibility for your deepest desires and start making it JUST HOW YOU WANT IT?

My greatest wish for the world is that everyone lives a life of self-expression. By that I mean that one’s life is an expression of that unique identity within them. It honestly breaks my heart when I speak to business owners who describe their lifestyle as anything less than awesome. As business owners we are in pole position to craft our lives the way we want to. For heaven’s sake, if the guy or girl running the show can’t have it they way they want it, what hope is there for anyone else? I think it’s just that we get lazy. We get lazy because questioning our assumptions and making changes in the way we operate is actually harder to do than work 70 hours a week! 

So what can you do? 

Take a half a day for yourself.  Get out of your routine.  Go to a place that conjures up "the sacred" for you.  That is different for everyone.  For some its a church, for some a park, for some a bookshop or the Virgin Megastore!  Wherever you feel connected to your creator, the universe or your higher self.  Spend a couple of hours just hanging out with yourself, and then in that space - ask yourself one simple question:  "is your business supporting your lifestyle or eating away at it?" 

Make no mistake- if it is not actively building it up, it is wearing it away slowly through attrition.  There is no middle ground here.

Commit to taking one action this week that will allow you to reclaim your lifestyle.

Would you like to use this article on your website or in your ezine? You can, as long as the information below stays intact.

About the author:

Dr Joanna Martin

Dr Joanna Martin is an internationally acclaimed speaker and sought-after educator who has taught over 40,000 people on three continents. She is also the author of the new book "The Lifestyle Shift".
Today, she trains entrepreneurs and professionals alike in key communication, leadership, and presentation skills. With her partner Greg, through their business, Shift Lifestyle they provide strategy and support for business owners who want a lifestyle, not just a living.

For more information go to: www.Shiftlifestyle.com/Laws

If you need a speaker for your upcoming events, please contact our office.

Joanna's travel arrangements for the next few months:

• London 6th of January- 28th January
• Australia: 28th January- end of March

If you require international travel, we are open to this.  Please contact us at info@shiftlifestyle.com or call our office to discuss.

Upcoming Events

Here's where you can see me live...

• 9th February, 2010: Nationwide Networking Melbourne, Australia
• 19th - 21st March, 2010: Presentation Profits Intensive Melbourne, Australia
  

The Lifestyle Shift: Create the Ultimate Lifestyle Business in 2010.

This webinar is FREE for the first 250 people to register.  It'll only take a minute.  Register now- and tell a friend!

If you want to double your income in 2010, AND double your time off to enjoy it, you must join me on the 6th of January.  This webinar is a preview of content from my upcoming book "The Lifestyle Shift: From Frantic to Freedom in 5 Easy Steps."  It's my second book after the success of "Our Internet Secrets" in 2009, and this little sneak peak is going to change your life:

Click here to join me on the Lifestyle Shift Webinar

Regardless of your current plans for January the 6th, if you are certain that you will never again get to the end of a year as TIRED, if you are committed that next year you WILL have TIME FOR YOU and time for the people you LOVE, if 2010 is your year- join me on this webinar.

The webinar is valued at $67 but for the first 250 people to register, it is free.  So make sure you get yourself registered immediately.

In this day and age, there is NO REASON to defer your Lifestyle Dreams.  Join me on this webinar and let's make 2010 your Ultimate Lifestyle Year.

Click here to join me on the Lifestyle Shift Webinar

Opportunity International Australia provides people living in poverty with access to basic financial services – including small loans, savings accounts, insurance and business training. These services are know as microfinance, and they assist people who wouldn’t usually qualify for regular banking services because they have no form of collateral or formal identification.

Here’s how it works…

By helping a mother to buy a sewing machine to start a tailoring business or a father to buy seeds to plant a vegatable garden, small loans enable people in poverty to earn an income and provide for their families. 97% of loans are paid back, so the cycle can continue for years! Each successful business feeds a family, employs more people and eventually helps to empower a whole community.

Did you know that for only a $200 donation you can help one family start a business and employ one other person? This one loan once paid back can be used again and again. Many of us spend more than that on a night out with friends and once that money is gone, it’s gone!

Find out more about Opportunity International and how you can make a difference by visiting their website:

www.Opportunity.org.au