Good morning! I'm not going to make excuses about why it's been so long since I've written a post here on my blog.

Note: the picture here is 3 of our grandbabies and their cousin–we had the pleasure of having them spend the night a few weeks ago…we are also expecting 2 more granddaughters and are so excited about that! So we'll have 5 granddaughters and 1 grandson (sorry my little buddy).

I've been busy working with my partners and my team (not MLM).

February of this year I had 6 Filipino's on my outsource team and only me, myself, and I in my home office. Since then my team has increased; 12 Filipino's, 3 full-time State-Side employees, 2 State-Side virtual assistants, and 1 State-Side part-time assistant.

When I quit my job in October 2009 with an "I Quit" email I had one client–yup–one!

What a leap of faith, huh? Some would call it down-right stupid–to quit a job of 17+ years with free benefits to work for at the time 1 client. But I did and I have NEVER looked back. When I sit outside in the morning and watch the cars driving by my home–with folks who are headed to their J.O.B. I am so thankful for the relationships I have developed that allow me to take 10 more steps and walk into my home-office and do what I LOVE–every day–I am more and more thankful.

I know some of you reading this are thinking how cool that Holly can work from home–but I have to tell you the truth. It's NOT a 4-hour work week, I do have clients who expect (and rightly so) that we do what we say–when we say it. I probably work more hours now than I did when I worked at the school system!!!

BUT–I can and do take naps when I want or need to. I can and do take 2 or sometimes 3-hour lunch breaks! I can and do leave the office to run errands! I can and do take time to just do nothing–and I don't have to send someone an email that I am "out to lunch" or gone shopping!

I don't have to fill out a form and get approval from 5 different people in order to get paid when I'm off.

With this "freedom" I have the responsibility to pay my team on-time, pay my vendors on-time, and get the reports for clients finished on-time.

I can't leave work at work–it's staring me in the face every day. And because all of my State-Side team are family members I consider myself responsible for their financial well-being!

Soooooo, before you go out and make the decision to QUIT your J.O.B.; remember, that even when you finally accomplish the life-long dream of working for YOU–you will still have responsibilities and dead-lines and have to be accountable to someone!

Me? I wouldn't trade it for the world–as a matter of fact, thinking that I would have to go back to a 9-5 and take breaks when I'm told, go to lunch when I'm told, work on days that I don't want to–makes me sick to my stomach!

So, I will continue to work hard for my partners and my clients and for my team!

Are you really ready to work for you?

Stop and re-condition your mindset and your way of working. Develop strong leadership skills. Don’t’ wait for someone to GIVE you permission to stand out! Don’t just stand out…stand up and step out and be NOTICED!

Today, make the decision to do whatever it takes to make the kind of money up until you’ve ONLY dreamed about! Stop following the “old school” methods of building your business. It is your day to SHINE!

Here is a COLD HARD FACT! If you don’t give yourself permission to be successful; you NEVER will be a SUCCESS! Huh? That’s right. You must give yourself permission to be successful.

Only then will you be able to “clean out the ingrained mindset” you grew up with. Remember, when you were younger and you dreamed all the things you’d accomplish when you got older? Why did you stop dreaming?

Because, somebody and the sad but true facts are it was probably a parent or someone you respected—even a teacher–told you that you would NEVER amount to anything…or you can never….ever…well write all that negative down and then take it outside and burn the piece of paper it’s written on.

Go ahead, I’ll wait! I’m not kidding! Do this exercise….write all the negative things you were ever told in your life and go outside and burn it!

This exercise is your Cleansing Fire! Just as fire serves the forest by cleansing and renewing; you too should write down those “old hurts” and go outside and “burn” them! You may find yourself doing this several times a year!

As soon as you’ve burned or cleansed those “old hurts” begin your “New Leadership Journey”. Your mindset or your brain will let you start to think as a leader. Then go and start on a nice clean white sheet of paper the “My New Leadership Journey!”.

Oh, you thought I was going to tell you what to write! Sorry, that’ part your job as a leader. Think of the type of person you want to be! Not a dictator, not a babysitter; but a leader and write your journey down.

Think of people who have had a significant impact on your life. Think of your past POSITIVE experiences (not the burned ones) that have molded you. Those are the thoughts that will help you recondition yourself as a true “Leader”.

Call this your “Bank of Life Repository”. Add to it daily, weekly, monthly. Then go out and be the LEADER starting TODAY!

You are going to have to re-program your thinking. If you’re used to being the follower; and you don’t change your mindset you’ll NEVER be a Leader! OK, I might have just made some of you mad.

I don’t mean you CAN’T ever be a leader; it’s just going to take some reprogramming. You must think like a leader. What if your upline leader quit your company? Would you be lost? Or would you be able to carry on and work your business?

Now, your upline leader may be the hardest working person you’ve met…but do they teach you the skills you need? Or are they keeping it all to themselves?

Another question, are you developing the skills you need to be a leader? Or are you going to stay the follower forever? I’m urging you to quit being the “follower” and volunteer to be a “leader”. Put yourself out there and volunteer your time to do some training. What better way to learn your business than to actually have to teach it?

Do you know your back office systems? Do you know how to reach the home office? Do you know the “tools” of the trade? Do you know how to answer the “simplest” of questions that you may receive from your prospects? If you don’t—then learn it—now! Instead of calling your upline leader EVERY TIME you have a question—look for the answer yourself FIRST! Then if you can’t find the answer call your upline leader.

If you’ll take the time to do the research you’ll retain the answer. You’ll know the next time someone calls you how to do something in the backoffice. You won’t have to call your upline…thus “creating” the perception (fake it til you make it) that you’re the true leader.

Here’s another mistake that people make. They don’t’ act like leaders from the FIRST person they put on their team. They let their upline “take care of their downline”. Instead, I challenge you from today forward to call your downline and keep in touch with them on a weekly (not weakly) basis.

Stop wasting your time on tasks that don’t make you money. If you develop leaders from the first day they join your team; eventually you’ll have a WHOLE downline built on strength and leadership.