PebbleStorm: Reflect and Find Your Unique Genius

Oct. 3, 2009

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Intentions for “Reflect”

Get clear on what you want from your(work) life, and how you want to do it

…What is your Unique Genius? …What is a Dream Business to you?

If You Built a “Dream Store”…

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What do you want?

Blueprints Attract

partners & customers

Stock itRing the register!

Reversed!

Where are we going?

1. REFLECT on what you truly want & enjoy– What is your Unique Genius? Dream Business(es)?– Result: a “Vision ___” (a representation you can share with others)– Aaron: answers came ~2 months after asking the questions (June 07)

2. PLAY with how your Unique Genius manifests– Play a game that you win by creating a next, 90-day game to play

that’s inspiring to both you and to others– The 90-day game carries you through to “Receive”– Aaron: my game gelled after three months (Aug 07)

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1. 2.

3. ATTRACT an audience, fans– Result: you have your “first 5” (collaborators, affiliates or opt-ins)– Aaron: began attracting after 8 months (March, 08)

4. PACKAGE products & services for your audience– Result: you create products or find others’ products to share (you

have your first Layers of the Onion that produce $)– Aaron: launched “Come Play With Me” after 20 months (March 09)

5. RECEIVE income and growth…and it’s time to reflect again!– Result: you have monthly revenue, and are familiar with financial

and commerce tools– Aaron: Year 3 for PebbleStorm

Where are we going?

Unique Genius

/Magnets/Seeds

Why Unique Genius Matters

• It’s the foundation of your Dream Business house• Enjoyable success: more “success” in something you

don’t enjoy creates more unhappiness• Lasting success: easy come, easy go!• If a business is easy to start for you, it’ll be easy for 100

others to start too

• Differentiated success: people WILL rip you off, but they can’t take your unique genius or audience

• Sustainable success: The audience and fans attracted by your Unique Genius will stick with you

Unlocking Your Unique Genius

• It’s like watering a plant

• Constantly watering it will kill it

• Give it a little water (attention) each day, and eventually it’ll sprout

Like Musicians‘ Uniqueness• Fans are eternal• Musicians collaborate, rather than

compete• Authentic talent lasts

– Key is unlocking your authentic talent

They Will Copy Your Site, But Not Your Unique Genius & Audience

“Fresh, customized and B2B customer data”

1st: What Are Your Puzzle Pieces?• Are you committed getting real answers from the

worksheet, or not taking it seriously? • Shared any of it with your team or friends yet?

2nd: What Can You Build With Them?

• What is a Dream Business for you?

• Or any fun project?• Consider both what it

does, and what it does for you

What Is A Dream Business For You?

• How can you mash your enjoyments?

• Who would you want to help, & how?

Try saying or writing “My dream business is…”

Breakdowns & Backsliding• They are ok!!! • Breakdowns happen when we try new things• I still backslide:

• I forget my enjoyment points• I forget to make work fun• I fall back into “work is hard” habits

• It’s just like returning to your breath in meditation…

1. Relax2. Choose another babystep and make it tiny!

3. Ask for help

Feeling Stuck?

What are YOU creating?

• Keep doing what you’re doing = keep getting what you’re getting

• Onna: “I used to create ‘not good enough, no special skills, nothing special to give, too busy’ LOL!”

PebbleStorm’s ‘Inner’ Hard Work• “Selfishly”

committing to your happiness

• Letting go of limiting beliefs & neediness

• Letting go of ego • Patience• Having fun

I still work on these too

Help Yourself By Helping OthersHelping people with their ideas and businesses

will help you see yours!

A Heartbeat Should Have Pauses

Enjoyment Enemies

Dream Killers

• Eeyores• Energy vampires• Crazymakers• Party poopers• Bozos• But-ers (“But…”)

Appreciate real feedback…and follow your intuition

DO

UBT

Impatience

• I want it NOW! Waaah!!

• Crying won’t make Xmas come faster

Fear BOO!

Why be afraid of the boogeyman?

• Take a babystep

• “Throw a rock”!

More Enemies• Ego– Let go of titles, turf– “What would ______

think?”

• Perfectionism • Ill health – mental, physical, spiritual• Perfectionism• Your programming– “I can’t make money at that!”– “Work isnt’t fun”

• Cloudy mind - intoxicants, drama

Impatience = Unhappiness

Doubling the temperature

won’t bake a cake faster

Patience: Enhances clarity

Increases enjoyment

Creates time

A ToyBox For Reflecting

• Writing• Ideas Bowl• Meditation• Buddy System• Enjoyment Points– Rewards Calendar

• Morning Pages• Questions cheat sheet• Self-reminders

Writing

• Journaling, blogging, Morning Pages…

A Patience “Ideas Bowl”

• Toss ideas into a bowl

• Every few weeks, toss the junk & save the golden nuggets

• Savor the time created by not chasing every idea!

Med

itatio

n

The Buddy System

Find a buddy (or several), in or out of PebbleStorm, and meet regularly

Follow Your Fun!

Fun 101: Winning Enjoyment Points

• Follow your fun!• Find a playmate• Keep it simple• Shrink it to a babystep• Add color & pictures• Break out some toys• Make it a gift

• “Let’s play a game”• Take recess• Build something cool• Mash it up• Make your sandbox fun• Mix in some silly• Do it outside

Keep your hands (issues) to yourself, play nice, and no raining on parades

Follow Your Fun!• Keep coming back to Enjoyment Points• How can you remind yourself to win them?• How can you track what you enjoy, with

yourself or with others?

Example: Rewards Calendar

A Questions Cheat Sheet

• “I make a list of questions I want answers to” • “Every few days I scan the list to see if I now

know any of the answers”• “This way I can learn to trust that the answers

are within me (or will come naturally to me)”• “The most interesting questions become

spring boards for new products and services”

Cheryl Miller, www.CherylMillerVille.com

Make

Rem

ind

ers

For

You

rself

Crafting A Vision Blueprint

How Can You Share Your Vision?Get help from your team & create one by May 1

• A self-manifesto• A simple paragraph or blog post• An ‘About’ page on your blog/website• A Dream Tree• Your Trading or Play Card (not business card)• A Business Vision Board, Collage or Painting • A Visual Business Plan• An audio or video recording• A “2020 Biography”

My “Small Pebble, Big Wave” Self-Manifesto

• “How can I make the biggest impact with the least effort? (And with the most happiness?)”

• “Small pebble = least effort, big wave = biggest impact”• “I want to work on what I want, when I want, with whom I

want, and make plenty of money at it.”• “I want to…

– Be in control of the work/business, not have it be in control of me. I don’t want to be a slave to a company, even one that I start.

– Enjoy work, by working from a place of desire, not obligation or ego– Contribute from areas of strength…”

• Posted this exactly one year ago (4.17.08)

pebblestorm.com/2008/04/17/the-original-small-pebble-big-wave-self-manifesto/

My Dream Business, PebbleStorm, helps others create their own

Dream Businesses.

…while working when, how, with whom and from where I want.

Even a Single Sentence

A Dream Tree

• Goodies– What do you want to have?

• Experiences – What do you want to do?

• Meaning – How do you want to help?

• Values

Another version

• Projects– What are your project ideas?

• Themes– Help entrepreneurs, help

CEOs, give back…

• Umbrella Mission– What ties it all together?

Ex: PebbleStorm / Make Money Through Enjoyment

• Values

“Open to give, open to receive”

Cards can create intrigue and resonance even without many words

“Hug-Giver, Love-Maker & Tickle-Diva”

A Visual Business

Plan

Write your 2020 biography

• Who was I?

• What was I known for?

• Who did I help and how?

• Why & for what were people drawn to me?

Onna Young’s 2020 Bio• “Onna Young, an innovative e-entrepreneur, life-coach, and

author…“• “In 2009, Onna created her first philanthropic organization,

became a consumer advocate and lecturer to teach good credit practices, launched a national financial curriculum for schools, wrote her series of Daddy and Me children’s books and through e-entrepreneurship achieved her goal of 1M in net income.”

• ”She was CEO of Cold Calling 2.0, a PebbleStorm partner, founded the Idea Factory, Literacy Lab, Passion Projects, Think Forward, Foodies, Dream Dates, The Man Code, Manonymous, Baby Steps, and an E-book publishing house...”

The fun we’ll have, today!

Babysteps

With sharing throughout!

Babysteps Should Be babysteps

It is impossible for them to be too smallWhat can you do in a few minutes?

People Enjoy Helping – Ask For It!

Make it easy for them to help (help them help you)

...Now What?

• Join the mailing list –• Join the PebbleStorm community• Look for our upcoming seminar!

• THANKS FOR COMING TODAY!