As I began preparing for my upcoming Earn What you Deserve workshop, I began reflecting back to when I began my journey towards earning a 6-figure income in corporate America. I remember spending  a lot of time in blame mode.   First, I blamed the system for not paying teachers enough. When I left teaching to join the dark side of the corporate world, I blamed my job for not paying me enough money and my boss for not offering me a raise when I was clearly performing above and beyond expectations.

Chances are if you’re dissatisfied with your income you’ve played the blame game, perhaps with different contestants  like your spouse, family, education, background, the economy, or whatever else comes to mind. Regardless of what or who you have been blaming, the truth is you have more control than you think when it comes to what you earn. And more importantly you have exclusive control over how to make what you earn work for you instead of against you.

If you are stuck in a place of consistently underearning, being paid less than what you are worth from an employer or client here are three reasons you are not having the financial success you desire (and deserve):

1. You base your salary requirements on your current expenses instead of what your skills and experiences are worth. How do you answer the question, “What kind of salary are you looking for?” What are you you using to come up with that number. Just because your budget only requires $40, 000 a year, doesn’t mean that should be the limit for your salary.

2. You have no clearly defined financial plan. Wanting to make more money so you can have more things is not a financial plan. When people don’t have a clearly defined plan, it usually means that their job is their only source of short term and long term income. Your plan should provide for your needs, wants, and goals for now and for the future) and include means for investing on others.

3. You are in conflict how what you feel about money and wealth. If you grew up in a home where there was myth and misinformation about how to acquire, manage and grow money, it can be a challenge to develop the habits or mind and wallet that lead to financial wealth. Until you address negative associations you have about money you will always find a way to sabotage the progress you make towards successfully reaching your financial goals. This includes any judgments you have about wealthy people as well.

4. You question your value. The issue of not asking for a raise has less to do with how your boss thinks about you and more to do with how you think about you. It’s the same thing if you are an entrepreneur or business owner:  it’s not that your people can’t afford your services – you don’t have the confidence to go after customers who will pay what you deserve for your product or service.

Ready to get out of this rut? Join me for  the next Earn What You Deserve workshop where you can learn 5 steps to overcome your fears about money and earn what you deserve. Click here for registration details.

As “The Career Makeover Coach”, Tai Goodwin is on a mission to help ambitious individuals reinvent their professional lives by centering on their passion and purpose. Holding as a core belief that we are all called to divine purpose and gifted with a unique passion, Tai uses a results driven, spiritually grounded approach to help clients create career paths to support the lifestyle they desire. Whether it’s helping people go from embittered to empowered professionals or making the transition from employee to entrepreneur, Tai is committed to helping clients tap into their own potential for brilliance. Tai has been empowering others through teaching and coaching for over 14 years. A gifted and insightful communicator, Tai holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Drexel University and a Master of Science in Education from Capella University. She has completed ASTD’s (American Society for Training and Development) Coaching Certificate program and is pursuing professional coaching certification through the International Coach Academy. Originally from Philadelphia, Tai currently lives in Delaware with her daughter. She is currently working on her first book: Reclaiming Your Brilliance: Seven Ways to Take Your Life from Bright to Brilliant.

Web site: http://www.careermakeovercoach.com

As the economy took a hit and began to spiral down, email newsletters went up!  I am getting triple what I use to get.  I did not sign up for the emails, I did not ask to get them, I simply gave someone my business card and they believed that gave them permission to put me on their mailing list.  I am getting letters on a wide variety of topics;  Leadership, Sales Training, Human Resources, Finances and Investments, Marketing, Networking, Health & Fitness, Diet, Massage, Real Estate and on and on.

I don’t mind getting my clients emails, I don’t mind getting email newsletters from people who’s services I use or those that I personally subscribed to.    I don’t automatically put people on my list.  If someone wants my newsletter they have to write that on the back of their business card, send me an email asking for it, or subscribe to it.  I do not assume that because I have their business card I have their permission to email them.

I have tried to unsubscribe and one person became upset with me and sent me an email saying so.  After that I decided to start putting everyone who sends me a newsletter on my list so they will get mine in return.  Gee, was I surprised when MOST of them unsubscribed to my newsletter?  Or that MOST of them did not bother to open it.  I was not, it was clear to me from the beginning that they were only interested in a one way conversation.

So, now I have set up a rule for each newsletter that I did not subscribe to, they are automatically forwarded to the delete file which is emptied every Friday.  Last week, 21 newsletters and Ezines were deleted!  Today there is an equal number that will be tossed.

One technique I use to get permission is a simple follow up with the people I meet, I will “Forward” them a copy of my last Referral Tip of the Week with a note that says.

Blah Blah Blah….by the way I do a weekly article called Referral Tip of the Week.  Here is a copy of the last one I sent out last week,  I thought it might interest you.  If you like it and want to get it regularly feel free to subscribe or forward it to a friend.  I hope you enjoy this one. Blah Blah Blah.

Now it is up to them to decide if it is something they would like to get regularly or not.  This has increased my open rate and that is more important to me than the number of people getting the information.

So, remember just because you have someones business card – does not mean they want your newsletter.  ASK FIRST!

Hazel M Walker, owns three award winning franchise’s. She is a 10 year owner of two BNI Franchises where she teaches members how to leverage their time and network to build each others businesses. She is also a Referral Institute franchise owner and teaches Business Owners how to harness the Science of Referrals to develop Referrals for Life. Hazel is a published author in New York Times best sellers Masters of Networking and Masters of Sales. As a member of the National Speakers Association she travels the world speaking to businesses and women’s organizations on the topics of networking to create a life you love.

My take on an article from the Harvard Business Journal

1. Cash is king – if you’ve got it – stash some; invest the rest. If you don’t have it, then figure out a way to get some!!!

2. Innovation and creativity matter – it is a time when American business simply has to change. You may not be able to figure out how to create a better product right now (that takes significant investment), but you can probably figure out how to market better, sell better, and provide better service for little or no cost. (Need help? Call me 310-453-7008!)

3. For better and for worse, information moves at lightning speed – make sure that you are on top of your communication strategies and know what is being said about you and on your behalf on the street, in print, and in cyberspace!

4. Focus, focus, and focus – keep your eye on the ball, and focus on the above three points. If you do, you will end up succeeding!!!

Virginia Ginsburg is an entrepreneur and business & marketing consultant who delivers strategic, affordable marketing services through her company accordionmarketing. She also writes a blog called Body > Mind > Business, which discuses the connection between business health and personal health, and the struggles she faces in pursuit of work-life balance. Virginia has an MBA from the University of Southern California and is currently (slowly) pursuing a Ph.D. in Psychology at UCLA. She has more than 12 years of experience as a senior marketing consultant, and has served as a trusted partner, coach and consultant to more than 100 sole proprietors, partnerships and corporations. 
  Virginia lives in Santa Monica, CA with her husband and daughter. As part of her passion for working with entrepreneurs, Virginia is actively involved in small business development projects in the U.S. and in developing countries.  

What a bust! Mexico City’s Fashion Week this year was shorter then expected this year; opening on Tuesday and closing on Thursday. But why? Fashion just cannot take a backseat to the world around us! 

Can we blame the worldwide flu pandemic known as the Swine Flu? Or the worsening economy that has finally trickled it’s way down to my friends just a few hours south of San Antonio? 

Zuma Press

To be fair, to date Mexico has 125 confirmed fatalities linked to the (A)H1N1 virus (better known as Swine Flu. So, backing out of a fashion show because the whole country has shut down right before a show is fair. However, the travel warnings have been lifted and the show must go on! And it did. The shows continued to small audience with some designers showing some pretty fabulous collections. 

Much like shows from earlier in the year these shows did not shy away from the downright depressing emotional state that the world is in. The colors were dark, the hair was frazzled and unkept, and the make-up was deep…in almost every show I happened to find photos of.  Not that any of this is bad, of course. Fashion is like any other creative outlet, designers need an outlet to express what is going on in the world. For writers it is words, for painters it is colors and for fashion designers it is textiles. 

Throughout the next few entries we will take a look at these few shows that made it through Mexico City’s D’Fashion Week and how the small audience and economy may have impacted their shows.

Ashley Shute spends eight hours a day working as a blue jean and t-shirt wearing community organizer in San Antonio. The other 16 hours are dedicated to dreaming about and shopping for the latest luxury fashions. Her style icon is Jacqueline Kennedy; classic, clean, and always professional. You will never find a fake bag in her closet and she wants a collection of Manolo Blahnik shoes before she turns 30.

This post has been graciously submitted by The Grub Spot:

Nassim Taleb has been out in front of this crisis with his Black Swan theories.  Like Nouriel Roubini, he has become a media phenomenon as of late.  Today, the FT has Taleb out front and center with 10 principles to Black Swan-proof the economy.  Like a recovering drunk or drug addict, this economy requires punitive measures and the right incentives for such dangerous financing activity to never occur again, according to Taleb.

I like principle #3: People who were driving a school bus blindfolded (and crashed it) should never be given a new bus.

Taleb says:

The economics establishment (universities, regulators, central bankers, government officials, various organisations staffed with economists) lost its legitimacy with the failure of the system. It is irresponsible and foolish to put our trust in the ability of such experts to get us out of this mess. Instead, find the smart people whose hands are clean.