It is a fact of life that you will have roadblocks. How you treat the roadblocks that come up will make all the difference in your success — whether in marketing, or life in general.

While we generally are in control of our lives, many times things will happen that are just external forces making themselves known to us in a way that we are not expecting. Many roadblocks can be prepared for, some cannot.

Having an alternate plan as a contingency for certain roadblocks can be extremely useful and timesaving.

For instance, if you know that there are specific times that your internet can be slow, plan to do most of your online work during other hours — hours where you are pretty much guaranteed to have a good, solid connection and can get some work done and get things accomplished.

The worst thing you can do when faced by an unexpected roadblock is to fall down to the ground and complain about it. Stopping your work and not proactively taking the effort to find another way to reach your goal is completely useless. You’d be amazed at how many otherwise responsible adults do this very thing without realizing it.

Please note that I am NOT saying that you should never take a break — by all means, if you’re at a point where you need to stop for a while to recharge, do so — but if you completely stop each and every time that you encounter an obstacle, you’ll never get very far.

Planning ahead can ease the impact of unexpected roadblocks, but that’s another blogpost for another day!

Every time somone asks what I do, I get met with the very same question. Every. Single. Time. (Now I can just send them to my website!)

What is coaching?

• Coaching is a one-to-one professional relationship that encourages growth, challenge, and focus
• Coaching is a way to gain an outsider’s view of your situation, and a way to receive objective feedback, insight, and guidance
• Coaching is a way to measure progress toward a goal
• Coaching is a mechanism for ensuring positive change in any area of your life
• Coaching is fun!

What I do:

• Bring over 40 years of life experience and over 20 years of small business management experience to our relationship
• Actively listen to you, noting carefully what you say (and what you don’t say) — and ask appropriate, leading, open-ended questions that challenge you
• Provide resources for you to explore in order to expand your thinking and problem-solving techniques
• Encourage you to stretch yourself, to explore new and different possibilities as appropriate
• Support you and your goals appropriately

What you do:

• Agree to be open to new ideas and new ways of looking at challenges, obstacles, and potential solutions
• Agree to meet by telephone one hour each week, prepared to discuss your current challenges, problems, and/or successes

What we do:

• Work together in clarifying and solidifying your goals
• Develop a plan for your continuing growth, both personally and/or professionally

Simple, right? The exciting thing about coaching is that it’s a relatively new segment of the professional service industry; the drawback to that is that it isn’t as instantly recognizable as, say, a washing-machine repairman. However, I truly don’t mind explaining myself over and over again. What makes me happiest and most fulfilled is allowing people to connect with themselves and helping them to reach their dreams and aspirations.

How can I help you discover what’s missing in your life? Leave a comment, let’s start talking about it!