Beyond Time and Money

[00:00:00] What if your most valuable business asset isn't on your balance sheet? Today, I'm going to start talking a little bit more about how to understand your resources beyond time and money.

[00:00:10] I hope that you will stick around.

[00:00:13] We often hit a wall in business by fixating on just time and money. This episode will expand your view of resources, for some new possibilities, you'll discover hidden assets that you already have and how to leverage them for a more sustainable and fulfilling business journey.

[00:00:29] We often had a well in business by fixating on just time and money as resources. This episode will expand your view of your resources. So you can look at some new possibilities. And potentially you'll discover hidden assets that you already have.

[00:00:45] Picture this. You have a full day of meetings and deadlines, and you've got about an hour to put together your podcast outline. And your blog that needs to go up because your newsletter comes off your [00:01:00] blog and you sit down in front of your computer and all of a sudden your mind goes blank. And now it's five after and you're just like, I'm going to run out a time.

[00:01:08] I have to get this done. Now. If you're like me, a lot of times you just sit there and keep trying to force it to happen. He gets to the end of the hour and you've got something. Decent, maybe not what you really wanted, or sometimes you don't have anything.

[00:01:22] . I'm confident. Most of you can relate to this situation. I bet. You're wondering, what does this have to do with resources? Well, . One resource that I see getting overlooked a lot is inspiration. And I attribute that to a little bit of mysticism about what inspiration is.

[00:01:40Um, many of us perceive inspiration as something that sort of happens upon us. . And as long as we believe that, then we aren't really going to look for ways to feed our inspiration. So. To how back to my earlier example.

[00:01:59] [00:02:00] I could keep sitting there trying to force that inspiration to come. Or. I could try accepting that right now. I'm a little blocked. And if I'm.

[00:02:14And if I know the inspiration is the resource that I need right now. I can think about ways that I feed that resource. For example. I could hop up and take the dog for a walk.

[00:02:27] And oftentimes while I'm out walking the dog, That inspiration or those things click right into place. And I'll just take a little voice note. And when I get back, I have my outline and I get it done

[00:02:40] and I have maybe 10 minutes left to go have a cup of tea or. Take the dog for another walk. She loves that. Point being that. My inspiration. Needed me to give it a little space. And going out in nature is a great way to inspire myself to really [00:03:00] connect to the back brain work that I do around putting things together and that creative problem solving that exists for me.

[00:03:07] And the important thing about understanding that what I needed was inspiration is that. Obviously the other resource in that example was time. And if I only fixated on time and the brevity of time I had to do this task.

[00:03:25]I might've forced myself to stay sitting in front of the computer.

[00:03:29] Not complete the task. And also not, um, and not, and not cultivate their resource. That I needed to complete that task.

[00:03:40] So that's what I mean when I talk about this unexpected resources, places that you can feed in yourself that are really kind of low effort and have a yeah high yield.

[00:03:52] With that in mind, I'm going to talk about the resources spectrum. And what I mean by that is we know that time and money are absolutely [00:04:00] resources that we need to do our business and our lives. Right. And I'm going to talk about some other resources, motivation, satisfaction, inspiration, relationships, and creativity.

[00:04:13] Those are also part of your resource spectrum. And then there's other things like experiences and skills, and those are a little bit more concrete in. I think they can be talked about or have been talked about, by people. With certainly as much to offer or more than I have.

[00:04:29] So I'm going to focus more on these energetic resources and how to understand those and incorporate those into your planning process. And my motivation for that is if you want to have a fully effective business that aligns with you and has a feeling of ease and flow.

[00:04:49] You have to, you have to consider the whole package because what happens is you'll draw on those resources, but not replenish them.

[00:04:55] For example, Relationships is a really easy one. A lot of folks have [00:05:00] partners and friends that support them. And . It can be really easy to lean on those relationships and not replenish them intentionally or effectively.

[00:05:10] If you think about them as the benefit that they are to your life and to your work.

[00:05:17] Then you can be more consistent about reflecting on or have you been replenishing them? And make sure you're being intentional about it. Because life moves fast. And oftentimes the people that show up for us. We might take them a little for granted, we don't think about that friend. That's always willing to edit our newsletter before it goes out. Or that it gives us really great feedback. Bright before we do a workshop. or is willing to listen to us, do our talk 17 times before we get on stage.

[00:05:50] Oftentimes the people who are the most consistently there for us are least likely to ask for anything back. And making sure that [00:06:00] you're paying attention to what's flowing in. So you can be equally thoughtful about how to give back. Is a really great way to make sure that your Homelife friendship circle and community life stays in. Stays in good balance and that everybody feels a sense of mutuality and support. That when I think about relationships to community and connection, and it's not meant to say like, oh, somebody did something for me.

[00:06:32] So I have to have to check box of what I'm going to do for them. It's more just making sure you're paying attention to. Showing up. In that way,

[00:06:44] Creativity is another resource it's similar to inspiration. I, I don't put them in the same exact category, but they do often feed one another. And . Creativity is another resource that people frequently. I think overlook as a resource [00:07:00] because they either feel like it's just part of them.

[00:07:02] They are a creative person, or sometimes they don't think of what they're doing as being a creative endeavor. So people often associate art. With creativity. However a really strategic problem solving usually requires a lot of creativity. The, I think that business term that we use the most for that is innovation. So if that's easier to wrap your head around. And, and similar to inspiration, creativity needs to be fed. And. One of the things that I know, and I hate this cause I have my own, I love scrolling. At times in watching, you know, the short videos and trading them back and forth with my friends. And. When I say, I'm not going to do that for a few days.

[00:07:46] I'm going to focus on reading or having more quiet time. I find it that well of creativity and those problems that have been just a little bit hard for me to tackle. Like I felt. Like I'm missing [00:08:00] something. They fall in place a lot easier. And then I suddenly see that very obvious solution. So. That's the other part about really understanding your resources. How, how they benefit you in your life and in your work and how you feed them is a really important part of having a successful business as a startup or a thought leader, creative entrepreneur.

[00:08:24] Then you can also really. Put effort into replenishing them in ways. That will feel better to everybody yourself included.

[00:08:34] Okay. That's really great. Aicila. We all have resources we don't dry draw on how do I know what they are? I'm glad you asked. Let's look at some of the things that are resources and assets that you have that maybe you're not aware of.

[00:08:51]: We've covered three hidden quote-unquote resources.

[00:08:55] So far our relationships, our inspiration and our creativity. And so you can kind of [00:09:00] ask yourself some questions on each of these to to dig in a little bit.

[00:09:03] What are the connections and relationships you lean on most who helps you when you feel spun out? Uh, who do you find yourself supporting? It's not always, or even often going to be even in one place or another. You really want to look at an overall trend and make sure you're keeping that mutuality flowing. And take a moment to consider what inspires you. Good music, quiet time dancing, a good book.

[00:09:28]: And what do you use your inspiration for? What happens when you're inspired, try to notice when you feel inspired and see what's up. Now do the same with creativity.

[00:09:40] When you need to put together a proposal or build a website or a workflow system, what helps you get to those unusual and special solutions unique to you? I personally need to study the problem set intensely and really absorbed the details. And then I need three. To five hours of quiet uninterrupted time to let things [00:10:00] percolate. It's even better when I can come back to something a week or two later. So I build in stretches of time between intake and delivery

[00:10:07] when I'm working on a project. To make sure I can give my best work to my clients.

[00:10:11] Maybe if you have a second here, you're not driving or something, sit down and pause and write a list of, answers to some of those questions or journal on it, you know? But take a minute to sort of. Really notice what's in your resource bank.

[00:10:25] Something that's definitely in your resource bank. That might be an asset hidden in plain sight. Is one of your core offerings or it is your core offering. And it's a little tricky because you absolutely know what it is. That's why I say it's hidden in plain sight. Because it's something that you constantly do. And it's so intuitive and natural to you. That. Frequently as seen entrepreneurs, creative entrepreneurs. And people in general be very unaware of [00:11:00] it.

[00:11:01] And what I mean by that is. We all have a thing. And some of us have many things that we've learned to understand and do. Almost instinctively. That are unique to us. And it's very difficult to know where that is because it's so instinctive.

[00:11:17It just feels like the way things are. And interestingly, this approach to resources is one of the things that I've realized is my offering, because I just think of this as something that you do. How, how do you not notice all the things that go into something so that you can be thoughtful about it. However, Every time that I've talked about this with people, I get, I get a reaction of like, oh, I hadn't thought about that.

[00:11:41] : Or that's really helpful. And so think about for yourself, like when P when you SOC talk about certain things, there are people that will say, oh, I hadn't really thought about that. And start following that thread. And thinking about. Where that fits for you. Is it as natural as breathing? That might be the thing that [00:12:00] you have.

[00:12:00] That's really exceptional. And think about like, what do people seek your help with on a regular basis?

[00:12:08] And take a moment and pause if you're able to list some of those skills or those things that people say about like what they appreciate about you.

[00:12:16] Now you've got the beginnings of a resource map for yourself.

[00:12:25] Definitely include the, you know, skills, experiences and you know, time and money. Those are for sure, a part of your resource map. However, also include these other things that we're talking about. And if the questions that I asked earlier, aren't helpful, or you need a little bit more

[00:12:41] You can always go to my website. I have a resource calculator there and some other worksheets and tools, and I'm hoping to develop more things to help people with this process. . Feel free to email me. My email is on the website.

[00:12:53] I'm always happy to answer your questions.

[00:12:56] And to help you

[00:12:57]: get a sense of what your resources [00:13:00] energetically are and how you can maximize them for best effect in your business and in your life.

[00:13:06]: Resourceful thinking will expand your view and grow your business. Success is not just time and money. Embrace diverse resources for a sustainable fulfilling, and more profitable business.

[00:13:17This week, I challenge you to choose one under utilized resource and brainstorm three ways to leverage it this week. Not using all your resources, limits your growth, potential, and leads to overwork.

[00:13:28] For those of you out there writing a book you'll definitely want to tune into the next episode. I'll be joined by Kate larking who specializes in book marketing, driven by author values.

[00:13:40] Thank you for tuning into business. As unusual. Remember in this ever evolving world of modern business, it's not about fitting in. It's about standing out. See you next time, stay curious, stay innovative and always keep it unusual.