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Some of you may have heard a Rumour! The Rumour is shhhhh….

January is the slowest Month of the Year in any Home Based Business!

Well, thankfully that’s just a Rumour!!!!

For the 9 yrs I was in the Direct Sales Company I bonused (didn’t do just the minimum sales) Each and EVERY January!!!!

I’m going to share with you some of my Top Tips on how to maximize your January sales NOW!!!!

Scene #1
So, it’s near the end of the year! September, October, and November have been totally amazing. Sales have been through the roof, you are glad there is a lull so that you can finally slow down for your own Christmas Agenda.

Then, a funny thing happens! It’s January 5th and you have no shows left!

No customers to talk to!

Realizing, yikes, how did this happen? I better get on the phone and do some calls!

So in a panic you start phoning a tonne of customers, hostesses, then you bug your best friends (again!) to please look at the new catalogue and ask,

Sound familiar?

How does this sound instead?

Scene #2

It’s January 5th and today I’m calling my 6 hostesses that I already have booked, letting them know the new catalogue is in, it’s amazing and I give them 3 great New ideas that they can tell their guests about to help get them to the shows!
They are:
1) Fabulous Gifts for each guest in attendance
2) New products at the show
3) Shipping is on me (or whatever you want to offer)

Now, I don’t know about you….but I’d rather have Scene #2 and Know what I am doing…then doing something out of Frusteration and Desperation!

If you had been building Bridges behind you then Scene #2 is totally possible, if not, it’s not too late!

Here are my three Easy Breezy Ways to build some bridges for the New Year!

1) Stay Connected with your Past Hostess’s/Customer’s
2) Have a mail-out list
3) Keep up connections with their family (spouse/parents/siblings)

Let me Expand on each of these for ya!

1) Stay Connected

• Go through all your sales from the past year…YES..the past year. List all your Hostess’s/names/address’   Also make a list from your customer base…put them in 2 categories…those who bought under $50…those who bought Over $50  

2) Have a Mail Out List

• After you have made out your Connections you will now have 3 different mail outs!!!
• One to all your past Hostess’s thanking them for their time and business (include your new catalogue & that you are going to have an event in the New Year…just for them!)
• Second to all your customer’s who ordered over $50…let these ladies know that they are now one of your “preferred customer’s” and that they will Always be in the know of upcoming specials
• Third…will be to your customer’s who ordered under $50…thank them for their patronage..and how happy you were to meet them.

3) Keeping up Connections with Family

• You want to make sure that you get to know every hostess’s family! 
• Make sure you write down in your hostess’s file their husband’s name, sister, brother, mother etc…if you can…then when there are great Christmas specials….Valentine’s Special’s…and in the summer Anniversaries….you know Who to talk to & help them choose fav gifts for your special Hostess

(some of my most successful & lucrative parties have been my Spouse parties….one was well over $10,000 just before Christmas!)

So there ya go!
Some great ideas for how to Jumpstart your January!

I’d love to know how you stay connected with your Customer’s!

JODY )

Jody Maley is Motivational Speaker & Trainer, mom of six,retired entrepeneur, ToastMaster, Queen of the Home Party Plan Biz!

http://www.DesignedforDivineDestinations.com

“Where its not just about the Destination, it’s the Journey to Get there!”

I watched Dr. Phil the other day and this was his topic! Wow!

I couldn’t believe how strongly against working moms, some of the stay at home moms were.  Well, probably just one in particular.  She shared that staying at home was the ‘be all’ for moms, and anyone who chose any differently should be ashamed!

Now, I love my children (4 natural and 2 stepsons), but I distinctly remember when my oldest ones were 4 1/2 and 6 mths old my thoughts and feelings.

I’m a smart person who’s life revolved around changing diapers, potty training, cleaning up puke…and although I love my life the question kept nagging “Is this really all I’m meant to do???”

Entered my first business, and the need for ADULT conversation.

I chose a Home Party Plan biz because of two factors: I chose when I worked & it enabled me to be at home as much as possible for my kids!

I loved getting ‘dressed up’ and talking to a ‘few adults’…without having to intervene in between toddlers fighting over a toy, who’s feelings were hurt and the many things we moms take on.

What a gift I thought I had been given.  Even better, I left for most of my shows at 6:30 and my kids went to bed.  So, on top of making a great income….yup in the 6  digits people…I did around 12 shows per month and since my kids went to bed at 7 I only missed 1 1/2 hours of their awake time.

Plus here were some great benefits of having my own business:

• Getting out with other moms/women
• Being the center of attention (ha ha not really, but I just wanted to see if ya were really reading)
• Definitely more $$; in fact, I was soon making more than my ex…who at the time resented that..oh well
• Great tax savings! It’s true, when you have your own home business, you get a tonne of tax breaks!
• I felt like a woman! (to quote Shania)
• Plus my kids NEVER saw the inside of a daycare

If someone years ago had JUDGED me based on my decisions, I would’ve felt very very sad.

After all, what I have learned the most is that being a Happy mom is truly the best gift I could ever give to my children!!!!

Speak up moms, let’s hear your side!

Sincerely

Jody In Beautiful BC

Jody Maley is Motivational Speaker & Trainer, mom of six,retired entrepeneur, ToastMaster, Queen of the Home Party Plan Biz!

http://www.DesignedforDivineDestinations.com

“Where its not just about the Destination, it’s the Journey to Get there!”

Back in June I wrote about why anyone would blog. There is a critical piece I need to add to the reason people blog.

Read the rest of this entry »

Once upon a time…..there was a mom who had two little children.  One was five and the other six months old.

Loneliness and just having that feeling inside of her that there was ’something more’ she decided to run a business that had just literally fallen into her lap.

She bought a ’starter kit’ at a home party show cause it was way cheaper to do that than to ‘outright buy’ all the wonderful things she had fallen in love with.  Candles, crystal and solid brass items…quality pieces that she couldn’t just ‘buy now’ on her family budget.

Once she gleefully opened up her kit of “goodies” she actually sat down and started reading the ‘manual’ that came with it. Mmmm…to think that she could actually make a dollar or two spurred her ‘creative genius’.

Her skeptical husband said, “How are you going to do that? And who would be your customers? This product is too expensive!”
She knew though in her heart that ’something had led her’ to this particular product.

Having invited over for dinner one of her most skeptical friends, who also had a great taste for expensive things, she said to her husband “Look, if Mrs. Skeptical decides to buy what I have, and wants to host a party for me…then I will know that this is, indeed, the business for me!  Not only that, but she will decide this tonite within the first 15 min’s of coming into our house!”

Well, skeptical husband didn’t even wait 15 min’s….Mrs. Skeptical came into the house…saw the mom’s new pieces and within five min’s said “Oh my goodness, this is beautiful! Are you selling this? I used to sell MaryKay and I will host a party for you!”

Born in that moment in the mom’s heart was confirmation that she had indeed chosen a great product, and if she could instantly get Mrs. Skeptical on her side…success would be hers…and it WAS SO!

I guess I don’t need to tell you that I was that mom! I made a decision to start a business & had three key ingredients that made me start, and also three “motivators to my success”. 

Just how successful was I? Let’s try to the tune of $4,200/week average, won National Leadership awards, earned Top Ranking Consultant too many times to count!  I must just add here that I accomplished this in a tiny little town with less than 10,000 people!

Here are the Top three reasons most moms/mompreneurs decide to start in a business!

1) There are just plain lonely and in desperate need for some Adult/Female conversation!  Let’s face it….women on average talk 40% more than men, so if you are planning on your DH (darling hubby) to provide that Convo that you need everyday just to stay sane…uh it ain’t gonna happen!
2) Need for the Extra income.  Whether you have come from the corporate job and have now decided to be a SAHM (stay at home mom) or like our young family the need for that little bit extra is a top motivator for moms!
3) Knowing that your life is missing just that “Something”…that you were meant to do!  After all, every mom at some point wonders if this is all her life is cracked up to be: changing diapers, nursing, breakfast lunch dinner, bath times and puke times!  It doesn’t mean you don’t love these things…maybe minus the puke, but you start to seriously question what your “Better good” is!

Let me continue my story just a little bit more!

At my shows, which I absolutely Loved doing BTW, I had hundreds (yes hundreds) of women in other businesses keep asking me two questions: 1) How do you keep getting so many bookings? (I averaged around 10-15/mth) and 2) How are you getting such high sales? (again I AVERAGED around $750…which mean some were the minimum $250 and some were over $1500!)

At that point in my business these were two questions I honestly couldn’t answer!  I guess I didn’t have a ’set formula’ then for success!  I loved what I was doing, I loved sharing what I was doing and I definitely loved to make the money I was making!

After I ‘retired’ from that business, God has a great sense of humor so I developed ‘allergies’ to alot of the fragrances,  I tried a few other business’s sucked in by the money aspect.  Did I do well in these other business’s? Sadly, no!

I hopped from business to business, trying to find the ‘right one’ for me again!  I tried everything from scrapbooking (mom of six here) to vitamins (health is good right?) to even an on-line self development course (which I found after having been told I had a hrt condition). 

Now, don’t get me wrong, I really did love all of these businesses and I’m 100% certain of their merits and value that I could add to peoples lives….but one thing was missing….my heart!  That little voice in my gut saying “This is what you are meant to do!”

I started some real ’soul searching’.  I don’t believe that something happens in our lives for no reason!  So I sat down and for four months really worked out what my passion is!

Here it is: “My passion is to help other moms/mompreneurs learn the three steps I did to Be happy, Love what you do & Make money doing it!”

Here are the three steps that I realized years after many ladies were asking me how I got more bookings and higher sales:

1) I knew that something in my life was missing and allowed something new to open up to me!
2) Once I fell in love with a certain product (or passion) I was not deterred by what other people told me. I was focused and used the simple techniques that I was told by my mentors.
3) I knew in my heart that this was for me, and I believed that it was going to work for me.

Bio: Jody is a WAHM, owner of www.DesignedforDivineDestinations.com, mom of six of a blended family, an accomplished ToastMaster & Speaker and has a passion to work with mompreneurs!

Being a “mompreneur” is the new logo for moms all around of one key essential, Balance.

Having balance today means that a mom can have the option to choose a different path! We wear many different hats today by being a mom. Mom, taxi driver, cook, psychologist and oh yeah, major six figure executive.

I’ve been a “mompreneur” for over 13 yrs and I wouldn’t change one thing.

Choosing to have my own business can sometimes be scary (uh, but isn’t that how one grows and stretches?), it can sometimes be hard to maintain that balance (many business TeleConferences have been interrupted by a bleeding something or just the need for a hug), but I would not choose anything else!

Being a “mompreneur” also has many rewards too!

No time clock! I work when I want to, not when I have a boss pressuring me to get a report in.  BTW this makes my work the best quality I have ever produced, because it comes from True Passion vs Obligation!

My children (six in total) have never seen the inside of the daycare system!  This is something that has no price tags, my time is my most valuable commodity and I will not settle for someone else watching my kids take their first steps.

When I do have to go away for work, yes I get booked quite a bit to speak, run seminars and do Business Coaching, it’s like a mini-vacation.  It’s more Fun than work and it’s always a pleasure knowing I’m getting paid for this too!  When I return home, refreshed and ready with more ideas, my family gets the best of mom.

I always shake my head when so many moms come to me frusterated, burnt out and definitely not in Balance.

Here are some of my best tips to help you restore that Balance in your home/business and hopefully bring back some of that passion that made you start your own business to begin with!

1) Take care of YOU! Set aside a few minutes every day to drink  your tea, write out some things that make you happy and just ‘take in the moment’.  This will literally take about 10-15 mins, but you need to take this time for YOU!
2) Make sure you have a great day planner/calendar for your whole household.  This way your family can see when your set ‘working hours‘ are and you can plan when you are going to have your family time.
3) DreamBoards are essential! How do you know how far you have come, if you have no clue to where you are going?

These are just a few things that I make sure are done everyday to bring balance to my own life.

So don’t hide your light under a ‘bushel’, step out and say I’m a mompreneur and I’m proud of it!

The other day I was driving past a local neighborhood park and I saw a mom with 3 little ones all decked out in collegiate alumni outfits. I like to imagine what scenarios might go with what I see when I’m out. I was prompted by a common scenario… Read the rest of this entry »

Things haven’t always been peaches & cream in my life!

A few years ago I was in the lowest point in my family life.

My new spouse and I had struggled through a few things, my divorce, blending our families, total house fire, new children together and I had finally hit my biggest wall: finding out I had a Heart Condition!

When I realized that my Heart Condition Symptoms were telling me something, something very important, that I was on a road that I didn’t necessarily want to be on.

I think we all have a ‘wake up moment’ in our lives….for me it was listening to the Heart condition symptoms I was having, and realizing that I could be taken away from my family at any given moment.

Suddenly, I wasn’t the same Jody Maley anymore.

Feelings of unhappiness, fear, doubt started to plague me.

I awakened to something deep within me that said “you have not completed what you are supposed to Be yet!”

I was at a point in my life where I was engulfed by Fear! Fear of dying, fear of my younger children waking up & me being a lump in my bed. (no parent wants to have that fear!!)

I was afraid of all the past goals I’ve had that I haven’t accomplished yet!

At this point I realized I had two very specific options:
1) I could delve more Into this Fear and let it Rule my Life or
2) I could Face this Fear and become Stronger in myself

Well, I chose option 2!

Even though I had Fear of my heart condition symptoms, I realized that this was a great Gift from God for me to Start over! To finally realize Who I was, and Why I was here!

There were a few very Obvious things in my life that I knew I could change that were not making me very happy:

• I was in a J.O.B. (just over broke) that I absolutely hated!
• We were living in the tiniest two-bedroom trailer in a Park
• I didn’t feel I knew what my Life Purpose was and since my divorce felt like I was “wandering and surviving” in my day to day life
• Obviously I was having Heart Condition Symptoms several times a week ( I have a spasm in my artery BTW which can feel like I’m having a full blown heart attack, very painful & leaves me Very tired after an episode)
• My spouse had been out of work for almost a year so our relationship was very strained

When I realized that these things were happening (I had actually sat down and wrote out my Fears and things I knew were upsetting me) I decided right Then that changes Had to be made!

I didn’t want to die, and this was a Very Real scenario I was dealing with!

How could I change those things above though? I knew I was in a “Survivor” and “Victim” mentality but I also knew for myself, my health, and most importantly for my Children (we have 6, 2 his 2 mine and 2 together) that Changes needed to be made!

My first order of business was to get rid of the J.O.B. that I absolutely Hated!  So I went online to search for a ‘real’ at home business for myself.

It was in this searching that many of my answers came to me from a Higher Power.

Everytime I would search something a pop-up would come up about a new book called “The Secret“.  This happened about 2 times, and I read the inserts and was definitely intrigued!

My background though as a very strict christian kept telling me, oh this is just a new-age thing, nothing for Me to take Seriously.

I was getting a little frusterated and took a break from searching and checked my email….I had a message from Oprah from her book club info and guess what the message was about? Yup, “The Secret”!

I thought “Ok God” I guess this is what You are trying to tell me!

I bought the book, and also got myself a Self Development home-course and with using both of these together some amazing things took place in a VERY short time period! (in Less than 4 MONTHS)

• My spouse got a new job offer!
• We moved onto LakeShore Property
• I realized my “True Passion“ to work with ladies in a Party Plan Biz and started my own company!
• And best of all ***I have not taken One Single Pill for my Heart Condition Symptoms***

I think what has made me the saddest is when I see other amazing women who just aren’t Happy in life!
They jump from business to business, job to job & spend thousands of dollars doing this!

Now you can discover a new way to live your life, boost your business sales & be your authentic self at the same time! This is my ‘gift’ to you!

Sincerely Jody Maley
www.DesignedforDivineDestinations.com
“It’s not just about the Destination, it’s the Journey to Get There!”

In today’s times its important to be more conscious of WHO we are BEING.

I strongly believe in BE DO HAVE!

Being is how our Family, Friends and people in our Business “See Us!”

“We must Be the Change you want to see in the World” Mahatma Gandhi

To me, BEING the great and dynamic woman & mom & biz expert that others look up to means BEING:

Authentic Creative Ethical Funny & Loving (just to name a few of my ethical traits …smiles)

Having Ethics Important in Business also means having those same Ethics in LIFE!

Now how about the DOING part?

For myself I decide EveryDay what I’m going to accomplish!

Here are 5 key things I DO every day to take me closer to my goals:

• Personal Self Development *reading *writing *yoga
• Visualization *Seeing Who I want to BE *Feelings of Having that Now
• Mentoring with Other Leaders *Envision Circles (I lead these with other Amazing Women) *reading positive books *listening to another Great Leader
• 5 Daily Business Activities to move Forward
• Expecting Great Things to Happen

Lots of people get ’stuck’ on the HAVE part, and its definitely here that I can help you!

If you have “Monkey Chatter” in your head, You can change that!

Our language (even in our heads) can be changed!

So, are you ready for Be Do & Have?
Jody Maley owner of www.DesignedforDivineDestinations

 ”It’s not just about the Destination, it’s the Journey to Get There!”

I am a strong believer of the adage that “What GOES around COMES around!”  That if we are a ‘positive’ person more ‘positve’ things keep happening in our lives (the same is true for the ‘negative’) 
    My dad comes to mind whenever I talk to people about this subject, for years his motto around our home was G.I.G.O. (Garbage In Garbage Out) and as a coach and teacher for over 38 years he really LIVED by this example. 

   For years people would ask me if Mr.Maley was my father? And since my father had a reputation of being a ’strict teacher’ I’d always reply “yesssss” Read the rest of this entry »

We have all found ourselves sabotaging ourselves. Most of the communication we participate in any given day is internal dialogue. At some point or another we have all said to ourselves “I’m not good enough” or “I don’t deserve this“. It’s not a good dialogue to have. Certainly this sort of communication with yourself is something to be changed.

Read the rest of this entry »