Kc Rossi 0:02
Are you ready to scale your business in a way that's aligned with your soul, and profitable? I'm KC Rossi, a business and leadership coach. I've been a full time entrepreneur for 30 years and love business. I help conscious leaders increase their impact and optimize their lives. Join me each week for tips and deep conversations on cultivating confidence, increasing your visibility, elevating your vibration, and leading with purpose without burning out. Let's go.
Kc Rossi 0:37
Welcome, Welcome back to the show.
Kc Rossi 0:39
Are you forever learner thirsty for any advantage that can help you increase the revenue in your business and feel more balanced, but fear, overwhelm and self doubt are holding you back? You're not alone. And I've been an entrepreneur for over three decades. So I'm very familiar with the common stumbling blocks. I also have had a lot of practice when it comes to overcoming nasty jigs and Jags along the entrepreneurial journey.
Kc Rossi 1:06
And today's episode is really about saving you time, energy stress and financial drain when it comes to fear, and how fear holds you back because we are really going to be diving in to seven powerful ways to flip fear in to focus. Alright, let's go right off the bat. Fear sucks it is as plain and easy is that fear can hold you back from putting yourself out there being authentic and creating products and services for your ideal clients.
Kc Rossi 1:41
Now, perhaps at the beginning of your business, you had no choice but to DIY everything from your social media posts, to maybe even your website. And being an entrepreneur, especially when you're starting out. It requires a lot of long hours, and some level of sacrifice. But now is the time. And I feel that so many of you listening, you're ready to change things. You're ready to develop your business without burning out. And perhaps you've come to the point where up leveling to scale your business is literally knocking at your door. So what was once maybe a niggling feeling is now consuming your thoughts. And you must take action to live your life on your own terms.
Kc Rossi 2:26
Yes, yes. And yes.
Kc Rossi 2:29
However, then there's that old familiar feeling. And I'm sure you know the one that I'm talking about. That's the little voice in your head, that sensation that makes you cringe at the thought of doing another launch, wondering if it will be successful, or if anyone at all will even show up. Or perhaps when you scroll through social media, and you get that comparison hangover because everyone else looks like they have it all together and are rocking being a lady boss. I can relate as I'm sure many entrepreneurs can.
Kc Rossi 3:06
So a little snippet about my experience with business in a nutshell. It actually started when I was 10 or 11 years old. I was a Girl Scout and signed up for the babysitting certification program through the Red Cross. And from there, I became the town nanny, and did that until I was 18. Now I continue on to for my first Corporation at age 19, which I grew to a seven figure confections company. Now at the peak season, we were employing 25 local ladies and it was truly like a home away from home. My bestie and I ran that manufacturing facility for 17 years. Now I've had over 10 Ventures at this point. And now coach other female entrepreneurs on how to craft a business that they love that's also aligned with their soul purpose.
Kc Rossi 3:59
When I think back at the very beginning, really, my foundation came from my Father. He was always inventing something and trying to improve systems, no matter how big or small. Now he will be 80 this June at and still works full time as a financial advisor, a career that has spanned over a half of a century. Now in addition to his passion for career, he always maintains strong family relationships and an impressive connection with martial arts. Now this holistic balance has been a strong influence on me.
Kc Rossi 4:38
And I think the three big guiding pieces, if you will, like to me this is a trifecta that can be overlaid on anything. And today we're going to overlay it on the two sides of the coin which is really fear and focus and the very first one is direction. And this is the need to have a clear path of where you're going, and a map so to speak. So number one is direction. Number two is discipline. So now that you have that direction, what do you do now we have to have discipline, we have to have a commitment to daily steps to get where we are, to where we want to go. So really to get you to your destination. And then lastly, number three is determination, that necessary drive to power you through that terrain.
Kc Rossi 5:29
So I built on that foundation, by incorporating positive psychology and natural wellness, to really contribute to the life work balance. Because when we are happy and healthy, our whole world changes. Now, this integrated process to me is the epitome of success. And that is why I'm passionate about looking at the whole picture when it comes to wealth. So wholistic wealth to me incorporates the physical, emotional, spiritual, financial, connective and collective segments of our life.
Kc Rossi 6:07
Now, business isn't easy by any means. But it is an incredible opportunity to develop yourself, while sharing your gifts with the world, it can be really magical. So here's what I've learned that can help overcome that all too familiar, uncomfortable. And at times debilitating emotion of fear, that keeps us stuck and unable to get out of our own way.
Kc Rossi 6:33
The very first step is to recognize awareness is truly so very important. It's a foundational piece, when we are trying to change anything, so no different here. Without the space to observe, we typically just keep doing what we always do. And that includes repeating the automatic thoughts in our heads. Now, it said that we think between 60 and 80,000 thoughts a day. And the majority of those are negative. In fact, you've heard me talk about them as being called ants, automatic negative thoughts. So what we want to do is pause, label your feelings, and ask what's the message, this helps to dissipate that power and mystery and overwhelm. So we don't just kind of fall down the rabbit hole.
Kc Rossi 7:27
Now, I love Byron Katie's work, which in a nutshell, is all about asking for questions. So you have this thought coming through? Question one is, is it true?
Kc Rossi 7:40
Question two is can you absolutely know, it's true?
Kc Rossi 7:45
Question three is how do you react? So what happens when you believe that thought?
Kc Rossi 7:52
And Question four is who would you be without the thought?
Kc Rossi 7:57
And I want you to really think about this, you can always refer back to the transcript of the show, to cut and paste these questions, because they're simple, but they're effective. And they're extremely powerful, especially when you have these thoughts that are stimulating fear, because what these questions will do in a very, very short period of time, will allow you to immediately gain perspective. And then you can flip fear into focus. So really, really important.
Kc Rossi 8:31
Number two is honor, honor where you've been. Now, this is a big one. And I don't think you realize the amount of effort, work and rework that you've accomplished to get where you are, it's more common to feel behind the eight ball, beat yourself up for not doing more, and continue to feel less than perfect. So really, taking the time to journal out some of your wins, big and small, is going to be very, very helpful. Now a great way to capture kindness, because we, I think, to also don't realize that kindness is coming to us, it may be coming to us in a text message, it may be coming back in a you know, feedback form, or reviews, whether it's on LinkedIn or podcast reviews, or testimonials from clients. There's a lot of things going on, maybe it's even a comment on a post, and how your post was really impactful, or it was exactly what they needed to hear when they saw it. And so I think when we are, like consumed in the scroll, we don't allow those kind words to soak in. Even though we're very thirsty for it. Sometimes we can almost be waterproof to it, because we're not taking the time to allow that beautiful validation to be absorbed and assimilate.
Kc Rossi 9:57
So I think a great way is to just catch You're screenshots of any of those kind words, and keep a little digital folder of happiness. So when you do need a shot in the arm, you do feel like you need something that's going to help you propel forward or help you, maybe quiet or soften that fear voice that's coming in, you can just open up that folder, and immediately change your mindset, change the feelings and change really everything that's going to come right after that.
Kc Rossi 10:30
Alright, so speaking about that, and the power of thoughts and feelings, you know that neuroscience shows us the intimate connection between our thoughts, feelings, and actions. You've heard me talk before about the mindset cascade. Now think of this cascade as a waterfall, a waterfall that gently progresses from at the top, and then trickles down. In the same way, this mindset cascade begins at the top with a thought that thought or idea in your head stimulates an emotional response. That feeling state influences taking action or not. And then action reaction or in action contributes to producing a result or lack there of.
Kc Rossi 11:23
So to recap, your thoughts trigger your feelings which trigger your actions which produce your results. So putting special effort into grooming your thoughts will help you gain a massive advantage. Here's the thing, the journey has to feel like the way you want the destination to feel. For example, if you want to feel more free. So freedom is maybe one of your core values, then focus every thought, word and deed around freedom. And you my friend will kick off your mindset cascade. With that intention, I want you to remember that you can be anything, do anything, and have anything. And it all starts with your thoughts. So define your primary desire, how do you want to feel be absorbed in the why.
Kc Rossi 12:16
So you are crystal clear about what that desire will provide you. That's a really important piece. Because I think when we miss the feeling part, we become robotic, and the universe responds to energy. So we want to pump up that feeling state. And I think this is where a lot of people go wrong when they do affirmations or visualizations. And they're like, Well, I'm doing it but nothing's happening. And I think it's because there is still that layer of fear and uncertainty behind the words. One way to turn that around, is to be absorbed in your deep white. Why are you doing this, then do what someone who has already accomplished that desire does.
Kc Rossi 13:04
So if it's a desire to be a best selling author, think about all the best selling authors that are out there. And what are their actions? Well, they probably write every day, you know, they're probably networking, maybe they started out with a blog. So they're building an audience, they're really talking about the value that their work is going to have on their audience. So you want to be looking at the action states of someone who's already accomplished what you want, is doing. And then repeat that because success leaves clues. And because one person has accomplished it, it is proof and validation that you two can accomplish that, then you want to be in the desire in motion.
Kc Rossi 13:48
So it's kind of bringing that all those pieces together. So you're connected to the deep, why you're knowing what action steps are going to get you there. And then you want to be that desire in motion, you want to walk your talk, you really that is the key to crafting your destiny is putting it into action. And having that desire manifested from a dream into a reality. It's very powerful. I know I'm kind of going through it quickly.
Kc Rossi 14:18
But you can absolutely press pause, you can go to the transcript, you can kind of break it out and even take a screenshot of those bullet points and pop it on your you know computer or your whiteboard or your bathroom mirror and really ask yourself are you connected with how you want to feel? Are you absorbed in the why? So you're crystal clear about what that desire is going to provide you? Are you looking at action steps of someone who has already accomplished what you desire is doing and are you putting those into motion so you are able to walk your talk because that is really kind of the four step process of crafting Your dream into a reality.
Kc Rossi 15:02
Alright, the next step is really making a plan. And all great things usually start off with a plan. Like they say, if we don't know where we are going, how will we get there. And I have to say, if it wasn't for GPS, I probably wouldn't get anywhere. So I'm so, so thankful for that technology, because it provides me so much security. And that's really like side note, whenever we can have like a sense of security or a map, it eliminates the fear. So when I drive somewhere new, if I didn't have a plan, or a map, or the GPS, I would be afraid of getting lost, maybe getting lost to the point where I would run out of gas, you can kind of see all of these kinds of mental thoughts that could really spin you out. But one of the remedies is just having a plan. And there's some competence now there's some context around our goals.
Kc Rossi 16:01
Now, setting goals is a personal endeavor. And some people like old school pen and paper to scribble out their to do list every morning. Others use Google Docs to set up their plan. Some people are visual, and they like mind maps, and there's some amazing free apps that you can literally make these beautiful mind maps and see how it all connects together into the big picture. Whichever tool works for you. The main thing is just to commit to using it to utilizing it, because inking it does make it feel more real. And it also gives us something to reference. Personally, I like to write my daily plan out the night before. So it eliminates any anxiety or potential distractions when I arrive at my desk at 8am. Because all I have to do is glance over at the plan and then plug in systematizing our day helps things become predictable.
Kc Rossi 17:01
So your mind lights what's familiar. And the more you can create a system and a routine to plug into, the less fear of the unknown will arise and derail your day. So that's a really, really important piece. Even if you just pick one thing of the seven tips that I'm sharing with you today, you can always start with this one because this one is something that we all have tasks to do, we all can get extremely distracted, overwhelmed or anxious. And this particular tool is something that can apply no matter who you are. And no matter what stage of business that you're in, you can absolutely start to feel more grounded and secure just by pulling this one tip out and beginning a practice on your own.
Kc Rossi 17:51
Alright, number five is work on your goals daily. So when you look at your goals in one chunk, it can bring up fear, it can bring up the imposter syndrome, it can bring up procrastination. So I like to chunk down the big goal into mini tasks. For example, if your big goal is to launch a rebranded website, you may have 10, or more mini tasks to accomplish before that can happen. So things like rewrite your copy.
Kc Rossi 18:25
So it exactly represents your message to your ideal client, craft new sales pages with fresh, more aligned images, maybe you need to get professional photographs, or layout the design to stay in your brand palette and pattern for a consistent look and feel across all platforms. So when you break down the big goal into these bite sized nibbles. It's not only so much easier to tackle, but it takes away this fear and overwhelm, because then it just is like Oh, those are doable. And so obviously tools again, whether you're using your favorite journal or tracking out a project management app, like click up Asana or Trello.
Kc Rossi 19:11
The point is what we break down into doable tasks that get accomplished. This is how we are going to kind of get it all into place. So because we know that what gets measured gets attended to so this is almost like a built in accountability tool. On top of squashing that fear and procrastination by just looking at it as one big giant lump of clay. We're looking at it in little bits and pieces and we can plug in in a much more effective way.
Kc Rossi 19:45
Alright, number six, I know you're resourceful. And when you are in fear, then you probably you probably have a tool or a go to risk says that helps you feel better, at least temporarily, we have so many tools and resources at our fingertips, plugging into YouTube or reading a passage in our favorite book or grabbing a motivational deck, you know, I love quote, Dax, just to feel a little better. And that's awesome. But it doesn't necessarily have staying power. So maybe you hear a motivational speech, and it gives you a burst of energy, which probably lasts a day, or maybe even a week, if you're really lucky. And then you start tackling the mini tasks, and then you hit a snag, and life happens, or there's a fire that needs putting out stat.
Kc Rossi 20:41
And you're not alone, like this absolutely lately is like this common scenario. But the most important thing, so you don't landslide back into the land of procrastination and fear is to just get back at it and keep going. There is a power in momentum. It's like a wave, you don't necessarily jump on every single wave. But when a wave comes in, you want to ride that sucker hard before it loses steam. So you want to cherish it, when you're in the zone, really commit to carving out a slice of sacred space to give your business the time and attention it needs to thrive. In order to get to the next level.
Kc Rossi 21:29
One tip that I like to do to ride that wave is to schedule in deep work blocks for this. So you may need to change the settings in your scheduler. So no one can book during your development block, or your deep work block whatever terminology you want to use for that, it's literally just a chunk of time that you are going to be focused on plugging in to that to do list the one that you've written out the day before, the one that you broken down into micro tasks, you want to silence your phone, you want to close down the slew of computer tabs open and then pedal to the metal until you check off those many tasks on your map.
Kc Rossi 22:12
Little by little day, by day, you will craft this new habit, it's not going to happen overnight, because we just have so many distractions. And sometimes there's a little bit of anxiety to even silence your phone or turn off those alerts. And so it's gonna take a little time, just be compassionate with yourself, approach it with grace. And eventually you will train your brain to support you to stay focused and productive. Now you can always reach out to a work peer and see if they'd be interested in being your accountability buddy. It helps when you've got someone to check in with and to kind of keep this party going. There's a lot of different opportunities there. But definitely if you're struggling in that section, you might need an accountability partner.
Kc Rossi 23:01
Number seven, and I love this one, this this piece really is about engaging holistically. Now this is huge. And you may be thinking engage holistically. Kc, what does that mean? It means to be fully present with yourself and your business, mind, body and spirit because growth is a precious gift. It's also a time when we may be more vulnerable than usual and get triggered easier. So don't worry if that is resonating with you because it's completely natural. For goodness sakes, we are putting ourselves out there so the whole world can see us. And that can add a level of fear and pressure. But it's really important to prepare for this time, you need a clear head and an open heart for all that it's going to take to pull off really who you want to be. And perhaps it's even that next level identity of who you desire to be. So you also may need to ask yourself, if you have the support team in place that you really need. You may need to hire additional support like an online business manager, virtual assistant, or honestly even a cleaning service to lessen your load at home because all of these pieces will give you more time to not only replenish but to really stay in that CEOs zone so you can get those most important things done. The big piece here is don't be afraid to ask for help no matter how small or big it is. So that's one piece of this engaging holistically.
Kc Rossi 24:40
So it's really almost kind of getting the logistics in place. And seeing what's practical, what really needs to be in place for the desires that you have because if you don't set yourself up for thinking about it in this way, then it is a surefire way to burnout If You Are the Only One Everything is centered around you to make that goal happen, you may burn out because there is a tremendous amount. If you're dreaming big and you have big audacious goals, you may need to reach out for support, or change the timeline, change the timeline. So that expectation kind of fits a little bit smoother.
Kc Rossi 25:21
Now, when we're talking holistic, we don't want to forget about our physical body because our physical body is intimately tied to our minds. So we want to remember to move our body connect with your breath, because that can tremendously release tension, and more over free up stagnation. So scheduling in time every day for a 15 minute brisk walk in the sunshine, or going out and grounding you know, maybe, when if you're if you're lucky enough to have warm weather right now, maybe you can take off your shoes and socks and go and step on the ground and feel GROUNDED, GROUNDED to nature grounded to Mother Earth, breathe in that fresh air Breakaway, some of that screentime interaction, that's going to do wonders, maybe you need to tap into YouTube to find out who you resonate with the most and discover a new yoga teacher. So there's so many opportunities, many are free, where you can really refresh. And speaking of refreshing, you want to definitely be drinking your water as you know, just to keep things flowing energetically.
Kc Rossi 26:30
And big one here is giving your soul time to rest to you know that I'm a fan of digital minimalism. And and this downtime where we're really closing down our computers, our devices, anything that beeps and activates our nervous system. When we have this downtime. It's a beautiful way that we nourish on a cellular level. And at that point, it enhances our creativity and promotes overall well being. The best part of all of that is when you feel more balanced and at ease. Fear is less likely to creep in. When you practice things like meditation and mindfulness. Fear has less of a grip hold, because you have a grounded sense of tranquility, and you become less wobbly. Alright,
Kc Rossi 27:23
I know that was a lot of information. I'm really passionate about this topic. I'm curious, what's your favorite tip. Or maybe you have a secret weapon, one that I didn't touch on that you want to share with me share a tip that helps you flip fear into focus, you can reach out and let me know at [email protected], calm, I'm all ears.
Kc Rossi 27:47
And for the action part. It's really about a daily practice. So remember those three tips for my dad that I told you about in the beginning, direction, discipline, and determination. These three qualities will help you create a step by step mindful strategy that will help you flip fear into focus. So what do you commit to trying from today on. And again, this is not about perfection. This is about showing up for yourself. And realizing that you have the power to become aware of a fearful thought, lean into the discomfort and either turn it around or take action anyway, to stimulate momentum. So creating a system will help keep fear at bay. And then focus will be the new F word.
Kc Rossi 28:41
So if you need help navigating, you can always reach out to me for a strategy session because together we can map out your perfect progression plan to reach your desired goals. Okay, my friend, I hope that this was helpful, you can always re listen to it you can dive back into the transcript, you can screenshot things that resonated so you can keep them front and center in your mind because new information without implementation is a waste of time. And I know that if you're here, you are committed to momentum, progress and results. So I'm wishing you the very very most success on your journey. And until next time, breathe joy.
Kc Rossi 29:25
I hope you enjoyed today's episode. If so you can head on over to love the podcast.com/brilliance and rate and review the show. Joshill from the US says five stars "Amazing podcast! I love Kc's guests and topic selection. The show is always inspiring and informative, yet casual, great production." Thank you so much. I appreciate you taking the time to share feedback. I read each and every review it absolutely touches my heart. Again it goes back to taking the screenshot so When I need a shot in the arm when I need motivation and to propel myself forward, I can just go back into that happiness folder on my computer and read the feedback that listener shares. It means the world to me. And if you want to rate or review the podcast again, you can head on over to love the podcast.com/brilliance Thank you
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
