#270
“You must lose a fly to catch a trout.”—George Herbert
Marge Thompson is my bookkeeper. She is a smart businesswoman from Central America with one of those melodious honey voices that lulls you just listening to her. An ace bookkeeper, she efficiently crunches all my numbers one morning per month. I look forward to “Marge Morning.” I feel quite pampered when she comes, especially since I’m a bookkeeper myself. I could certainly do my own books and save money—right?
Wrong. My goal, my mission is to help people make more money and have more time off for fun. Performing tasks like bookkeeping or house cleaning are off-purpose to that mission. They are subsidiary activities that cost me time and energy away from my purpose. I always tell people the workshop business is a simple one consisting of only three main tasks: 1) network to find people who are interested in the class, 2) call the people and enroll them in the class, and 3) teach the class. Everything else is of minor importance.
I hired Marge when I saw I was dreading bookkeeping day—and that it was keeping me off of the telephone talking with people, which is my primary task. So I decided to shell out the money to have it done for me. It seemed like a big luxury at the time, and I was a little nervous. My demon voice told me I was being ridiculous, that I could do this work so I should do it.
The first day Marge came to do my bookkeeping, I took my phone into the bedroom and enrolled two people in my class during the four hours she was here. That’s one thousand dollars times two, which means I made two thousand dollars. I paid Marge two hundred dollars, so I figure I made a profit of eighteen hundred dollars from hiring a bookkeeper, a decision which at first glance looked like it would cost me two hundred dollars.
The next time she came, I took a nap. The profit I made from that activity is less obvious, but a profit nonetheless. I had started to get into overwhelm and overwork, which leads to burnout. I had networked morning, noon, and night, given speeches, coached people, and made call after call on the golden phone. Money was great, but my number one piece of business equipment—my body—was shot. Burnout was approaching. It’s hard to look successful when you’re tired! So I put my body in the body shop—my bed. I used my “Marge Morning” to nurture myself, relax and replenish my energy. That, too, is profitable for me.
Marge is not a luxury. She is a necessity. And she always makes me money!
You might want to look for a Marge yourself.
Today’s Affirmation:
“The more I delegate the more money I make!”
George Clooney’s Big Success Secret Revealed
George Clooney knows the secret to success.
I’m always reading biographies of successful people looking for clues, and George gave a very important piece in an interview:
“I was a baseball player in school. I had a good arm, I could catch anything, but I was having trouble hitting. I would be like, ‘I wonder if I’ll hit it; just let me hit the ball.’ And then I went away for the fall, learned how to hit, and by my sophomore year I’d come to the plate and think, ‘I wonder where I want to hit the ball, to the left or right?’ Just that little bit of skill and confidence changed everything.
“Well, I had to treat acting like that. I had to stop going to auditions thinking, ‘Oh, I hope they like me.’ I had to go in thinking I was the answer to their problem. You could feel the difference in the room immediately.”
Now, you may not be an actor, sports figure, or other celebrity. But wouldn’t YOU like to be a STAR in your field?
You already have everything it takes – there’s just a few little tweaks that will put you over the top!
Marilyn Monroe knew it. She and her friend, Susan Strasberg, were walking down a New York Street one afternoon and no one was paying them any attention at all. Susan remarked how strange it was that no one noticed the famous movie star Marilyn Monroe was right in their midst. Marilyn turned to her and said, “Oh, you want to see me be her?”
Marilyn straightened up, threw her head back, smiled, and lit up the street with charisma. Suddenly, heads started turning, people pointed and the crowd rushed to surround the star!
Now, I’m not saying you should try to be Marilyn Monroe. Or George Clooney, either. Trying to copy someone else is the biggest mistake you can make. But you can turn heads with your own brand of charisma, and attract the people who need, want, and can benefit from what you have to offer.