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Author: Kim Woods

Categories
Strategy

Unlock Business Success: Top 10 Astrological Strategies Revealed

Introduction

In a rapidly evolving business environment, staying ahead of the curve is crucial to achieving sustainable success. But have you ever considered leveraging the ancient wisdom of astrology and your energetic signature to meet your business goals?

Believe it or not, major companies like Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and Coca Cola, as well as celebrities like Beyoncé and Lady Gaga, have tapped into the power of the stars to carve out their path to success. Intrigued? Let’s dive into how astrology and the six Intuitive Success Signatures can be your new secret weapons in the world of business.

 

I. Strategic Timing and Navigation

Summary: Knowing when to act can be as critical as knowing what actions to take. Astrology can provide invaluable insights into the best times for launching new initiatives, making key decisions, and avoiding potential pitfalls.

 

1. Discover Industry Trends Ahead of Time 

Astrology can help you identify key economic and financial trends in your industry before your competitors do. For example, knowing that 2025 is set to be a fiery year can help you strategize by preparing for a volatile market. Similarly, 2026 urges you to take advantage of opportunities and understanding that 2027 focuses on getting practical and establishing structures can help you plan ahead.

2. Set Your Strategy with Planetary Themes 

By aligning your business strategy with planetary movements and themes, you can crystallize your vision and approach. If 2024 has been edgy with a need to fill your core, this is the time to bolster your internal infrastructure and prepare your team to handle increasing demands.

3. Capitalize on Big Star Events 

Understanding the timing of significant astrological events, like Pluto’s transition from Capricorn to Aquarius, allows you to make well-informed strategic decisions. Knowing your role—whether as a Disruptor, Visionary Leader, or Awakener—helps you plan your steps accordingly.

 

II. Scalability and Team Building

 

Summary: Astrology isn’t just about timing; it’s also about aligning your energy with your business goals and scaling effectively. By using your Intuitive Success Signature, you can build a team that’s not only competent but also energetically in sync with your objectives.

 

If you don’t know your Intuitive Success Signature, you can take the 12-question quiz here.

4. Identify Your Ideal Team Members 

Understanding your Intuitive Success Signature can help you identify the kind of team members who will best complement your skills and work ethic. For example, if you’re a Ruling Warrior, you’ll know you need to give your team members autonomy to ensure maximum productivity.

 

5. Align with Sun and Moon Cycles 

Harnessing the power of the sun and moon cycles can boost your energy reserves and improve your strategic planning. Knowing when to schedule marketing campaigns or team retreats based on these cycles can make a significant difference in your productivity and morale.

 

6. Combine Astrology with Free Will 

While the stars provide a blueprint, your daily choices define your journey. Integrating astrological insights with your own free will allows you to align yourself more fully with your business’s mission and goals. This integration helps clear obstacles that stand in your way.

III. Prosperity and Resource Optimization

Summary: The ultimate goal for many is achieving prosperity, both in terms of financial success and personal fulfillment. Astrology can guide you in making better decisions that lead to higher returns and more efficient resource allocation.

7. Launch and Promote at Optimal Times 

Using astrology to time your launches and promotions can save you time and money. Knowing the best periods for visibility and engagement ensures that your efforts yield the maximum potential return.

8. Avoid Technological and Communication Pitfalls 

Understanding Mercury retrograde and other astrological cycles helps you plan around potential communication and technological issues. This foresight can prevent costly mistakes and wasted efforts.

9. Attract Your Soulmate Clients 

With insights from Venus and Mars placements, you can fine-tune your marketing and sales efforts to attract clients who are not only profitable but also aligned with your business values.

For a bonus tip, let’s talk money and use your Intuitive Success Signature to align with your prosperity flow.

10. Increase Your Prosperity

Each person has a unique Intuitive Success Signature that interacts with the stars in distinct ways and money aligns with the stars in so many ways. Here are some money tips for each signature:

 

  • Wise Strategist:You excel at managing money and resources. Use astrological insights to identify periods of financial opportunity and align them with your natural strategic capabilities.
  • Intuitive Visionary:Your strength is in attracting opportunities. Leverage Venus’s placement to attract your ideal clients and collaborators, especially during periods favorable to water signs.
  • Ruling Warrior:You are a natural at making money. Use the energies of Mars to drive your sales initiatives during peak astrological periods.
  • Collaborative Explorer:Your talent lies in keeping resources wisely. Focus on building alliances and networks during Earth sign, Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn, favorable periods.
  • Creative Superstar:You thrive on giving and receiving money. Use the moon cycles to plan your creative projects and philanthropic efforts.
  • Loving Alchemist:You are an expert wealth creator. Align with the cycles of Pluto and other transformational planets, such as Saturn, to elevate your business to new heights.

 

Conclusion

Integrating the wisdom of astrology with your Intuitive Success Signature can set you on a path to unparalleled business success. By strategically timing your actions, building a cohesive and effective team, and optimizing your resources, you can achieve not just financial success but also personal fulfillment and lasting impact.

Whether you’re navigating industry trends, scaling your operations, or driving toward prosperity, the stars and your Intuitive Success Signature offer a potent toolkit for achieving your business goals. So, why not roll up your sleeves and dive in? Your star path to success awaits.

Bottom Line

Astrology and Intuitive Success Signatures provide a unique, multi-faceted approach to business strategy. From timing, key decisions and building a cohesive team to optimizing launches and fostering prosperity, these ancient tools can transform the way you approach business. Embrace them, and you could find yourself not just surviving but thriving in the dynamic world of business.

Categories
Advice Growth Strategy

Beyond the Surface: Unraveling the Root Causes Behind Entrepreneurs’ Top 10 Problems to Achieving $1M Growth

As an entrepreneur who’s journeyed from the initial spark of an idea to the tangible reality of a $250,000+ business, the path ahead to scaling up to $1 million is both exhilarating and daunting. The problems aren’t just challenges; they’re testaments to your resilience, passion and the depth of your commitment to your vision.

That being said, it’s important to go beyond the surface of your challenges as you want lasting change, and business scalability without losing yourself or your quality of life.

Yes, your business growth is a primary focus, but YOU matter too much to sacrifice yourself to a seemingly one-dimensional goal.

Let’s go beyond each of the top 10 problems you’re facing:

#10. Overcoming Fear of Failure

90% of CEOs fear failure, according to a 2018 Norwest Partners survey, and CEOs’ other fears are top rated as well. High percentages of CEOs fear being an imposter, making a wrong decision and taking risks.  These fears are intertwined and may be less tangible than more practical business requirements. Yet, the fears CEOs face inhibit their ability to achieve success. Some CEOs become paralyzed and stop their growth trajectory, while others race to success points beyond their capabilities in self-sabotaging ways.

The root issue: Fear is the root, so dealing with the fear head-on is required. CEOs cannot overcome, sweep away or business coach their way out of their fears. Business tools that involve dealing with fear are the key to creating lasting success. Getting to the core of who you are without any external impact is critical to peeling away the layers that have inhibited you for too long. Only then, can stop giving your power away to choose your right team members and attract your soul mate clients.

#9. Developing a Strategic Vision that Includes YOU

Crafting a clear, strategic vision that satisfies your personal desires while fulfilling your business goals for growth is a balancing act. Often CEOs leave themselves out of their strategic equation and more importantly, don’t tap into their internal compass as a guidance system. Ignoring this vital tool is a mistake that creates success that’s empty or throws you off your path of soul mission.

Developing a framework that effectively integrates intuitive practices with traditional business strategies is complex. This development includes creating processes and metrics that honor both aspects of your internal compass while demonstrating their impact on business growth and sustainability.

The root issue: Putting you, the CEO, front and center in your business strategy keeps your soul mission at the fore. When you’re out of alignment with your soul, you step out of flow, impacting your business activities as they range from mundane to constant struggles. Frustration, limits and challenges ensue when your mind, heart and will wreak havoc with each other. Understanding you at the core, your energetic signature and your pathway to success utilizing the power of the stars gives you clarity, satisfaction and success.

#8. Access to Resources and Networks

Similar to other entrepreneurs, finding access to resources and networks that support your unique approach to business can be difficult. This includes seeking out investors, advisors and communities that understand or are open to the value of combining intuition with business acumen. Pioneering a leadership style that is not yet widely adopted can be isolating. Finding peers or mentors who share similar values or have embarked on similar journeys can be challenging but is crucial for support and guidance.

The root issue: When you apply your intuitive knowing in your personal life and leave it out of your day-to-day business activities stretches you to the point you feel as if you’re skiing on two different planes. Eventually, you begin to pull apart too much. Your intuition has been patient long enough and is ready to give powerful insights and right direction. When you’re inviting your intuition into your business, you feel isolated when others can’t comprehend its importance. Spending time with like-minded people graces you with the potential to develop your intuition in practical ways for your business.

#7. Adapting to Market Changes

The pace at which market preferences and trends change is daunting. Staying ahead or even keeping up requires constant vigilance and the ability to pivot quickly, which is not always easy for a small business. Breaking into new markets or expanding in existing ones can be difficult if they’re already saturated or if competition is fierce. Differentiation and strategic positioning become crucial. The market is a living, breathing entity, which constantly evolves. Staying ahead, anticipating trends and adapting your strategies accordingly is a relentless challenge that demands not just insight but foresight.

The root issue: Pioneering change requires a boldness that depends on your ability to be unwavering in your commitment and passion for your mission and vision. The largest shift in leadership is here now and being on the leading edge requires using your intuition, aligning with your natural energies and using the cosmic power. Synthesizing these strategies with proven business tools puts you ahead of 95% of other businesses. When you reach for the stars with your roots firmly in place, you achieve lasting success.

#6. Building a Strong Team

As your business grows, your need for team grows in direct proportion. You can escape a portion of this team need with systems and automation, but invariably people are required. As your business growth demands change, you question how best to build the foundation to handle this growth. Are you better with team members or automation? What is the balance of each? How can you attract, hire and motivate team members to share your vision and become cohesive so you can leverage them as a unit? Every time you hire, you gamble – is this person going to help me grow or inhibit my growth?

Knowing how to attract, hire and motivate team has plagued leadership for ages. Statistics on attrition and lost income are astounding. Team turnover ranges between 15 – 31%, depending on the industry and lost income equates to $12,000 for every person who leaves. As a small business owner, you can’t afford these setbacks.

The root issue: Your ability to attract, hire and motivate team is based on your knowing exactly who you are as a leader and manager, who would be the best fit to align with your energy and that of your business. This is in addition to the skills set required. You must define clarity with amazing accuracy, while solidifying your core and reaching for your edges. This is next level and something only an extremely experienced intuitive leadership expert can perform with you.

#5. Validating Intuition-Driven Decisions

In a business world that heavily favors data-driven decisions, one of the key challenges is gaining confidence in decisions that are significantly influenced by intuition. This includes convincing stakeholders, team members and yourself that your decisions are sound. You are the key component in this equation. When you’re certain of your intuitive knowing, others follow without question.

On one hand, you know without a doubt that the new era of leadership relies on a holistic approach and you know you belong on the leading edge, pioneering the change into the new era. On the other hand, you’re confused on how to rely on your intuition without reservation.

The root issue: You’ve negated your intuition for years or even decades, starting when you were younger, when adults told you your nudges and whispers weren’t real. No one did anything wrong, but these actions perpetuated a mind-only approach. Now, you impatiently seek external validation when you tap into your intuition. Relying on your intuition requires practice and spending time with those who have fully developed their own to demonstrate how it works without agenda or artifice.

#4. Achieving Work-Life Balance

The personal cost of running and growing a business can be high. Finding a sustainable work-life balance while being deeply invested in the success of the business is a personal challenge that affects overall well-being and the health of your business.

The societal expectation to balance family responsibilities with business ambitions can be particularly challenging. This might involve managing childcare, eldercare or household responsibilities alongside the demands of scaling a business, which can be both time-consuming and stressful.

With so many areas demanding attention from the business operations and strategy to juggling personal wants and needs, effectively managing your time and focusing on what truly matters relies on clarity beyond your mind’s capability.

The root issue: Your mind can’t make good decisions when you’re in growth mode. Your mind can only handle what’s familiar or previously experienced. The discomfort of continued growth throws your mind into a tail-spin and when this happens, your mind does everything to hold you back.

Your heart and soul are your go-to power points when your mind runs amuck. Tap into your heart and soul to beat the self-doubt and second-guessing. When you do, you’ll create a smooth rhythm in all areas of your life.

#3. Managing Cash Flow Uncertainties

Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business and managing it is more than just a financial challenge. It’s a delicate dance between investment in growth and ensuring operational stability, a dance where one misstep could spell disaster. You lay awake at night running numbers in your head and wince when you look at your bank balance. It’s frustrating when you see your account figures and measure them against your personal desires and business growth goals. You pay others first and often take the remaining monies, if there are any, at the end of the month.

You know about positive mindset and the Law of Attraction, but neither seems to work for you with any regularity. You talk yourself into a calm and abundant state when things are tight, but oftentimes, nothing manifests in your bank account. You dream, you wish, you hope, when in fact, these are not good strategies.

The root issue: Underlying your cash flow ups and downs are unconscious money blocks, ancestral lack and/or soul DNA poverty vows that inhibit your ability to maintain a consistent and healthy cash flow. Your money blocks require straight-on block removal, your ancestral lack needs energetic untangling and your soul DNA involves multi-dimensional clearance. This has to be done in tandem with any mindset, mantra, law of attraction activity, combined with solid practical profit-focused strategies.

#2. Balancing Quality and Scale

As you aim to grow, maintaining the high quality of products or services that your clients expect while scaling up operations is a delicate balance. The fear of compromising quality for quantity is real and pressing. Utilizing all of the savvy business tools available to you makes the difference between upper limit frustration and busting beyond all of them with confidence and ease. Weaving business acumen, your energetic signature and universal power is the leading edge to effectively navigate quality and scalability.

The root issue: You’re ignoring 80% of the resources available to you when you deny your intuition, your natural energy rhythms and the powerful forces lying in wait in the cosmic sphere. The Earth and her strong foundational impulses are also at your fingertips when you know how to use them.

#1. Allocating Resources for Growth

Deciding where to allocate limited resources for maximum impact is constantly on your mind. Whether it’s investing in marketing, new systems or hiring, each choice comes with significant implications for growth and sustainability. You continuously feel like you don’t have enough time, support or resources to realize your business goals.

The root issue: Compounding your allocation priorities are unconscious growth limits, in the forms of societal expectations, business culture ceilings and even familial conditioning. Your top limit has invisible boundaries you can’t strategize or decide your way through. Whatever you do, nothing seems to work. Overcoming these limits require soul-level potential expansion and deep foundational anchoring.

When reading these challenges, it’s not difficult to understand why entrepreneurs leave themselves behind when reaching for sustainable business growth. The range of these challenge runs across the entire terrain of business, so it’s not only required to be an expert of your offerings, you need to be a savvy business strategist too. And even with both of these strengths, it’s not enough. You also need to know yourself intimately as you grow your business. When your business grows, you transform and in order to keep up with both requires support. Support that has your best interests at heart, sees you at your core without any artifice and has no agenda other than to support YOU.

When you have your sights on being a leader of your industry, you also increase the pressure to expand exponentially, exacerbating these challenges ten-fold. Yet, it’s your birthright. It’s your birthright to be rich and powerful, make big impact and leave your legacy.

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a solution for you that gets to the root causes of each challenge, holds your best interest at heart and provides business tools that are unique to you, your needs and your energies.

Yes. You guessed it. Look no further. Check out my stepping stone Rich and Powerful Leadership Academy to see if it’s a fit for you.

We’re creating rich and powerful leaders every day. One of them can be you.

Categories
Growth Skills Strategy

Harnessing the Energy of Mercury Retrograde: 8 Powerful Business Tips

Welcome to a new dimension of business strategy!

“Oh no, my computer has crashed.”

“He hasn’t received any of my texts or emails.”

“We need to reschedule this meeting and it’s been rescheduled more than once already.”

“My train/plane/bus is delayed – again!”

Yes, this is the quintessential Mercury in retrograde period. When I tell people it’s happening, I hear gasps and groans.

BUT, we can actually use Mercury retrograde to our advantage in business. Because, yes, all of the stars, even Mercury, are conspiring for our success.

The planets actually have so much to say to us if we only listen and Mercury is the most loquacious. He darts and dives around the Sun 3 times a year and each time, when it looks like he’s running backward, it’s known as the dreaded Mercury Retrograde.

Poor Mercury! He’s only trying to help and he wants us to know how we can use these periods to boost our businesses.

Business Tips

Here are 8 powerful business tips to not just survive, but thrive during Mercury retrograde:

  1. Revamping Strategy: Everything is up for (re) in this period – think review, refine, reassess, release. It’s a time to revisit or revamp, so let’s embrace this period as an opportunity to review business strategies and fine-tune goals to emerge stronger as Mercury shifts gears.
  2. Reigniting Customer Loyalty: Reengage with clients and reach out to former clients or partners who’ve fallen off the radar. Mercury retrograde encourages us to reimagine connections and rediscover opportunities.
  3. Making Small Decisions: This isn’t the time for major decisions as we’ll regret what we’ve been so firm about during the retrograde period. Mercury is a trickster as he wants us to slow down to ensure we’re building a strong foundation. He clouds judgment, so using this time for research, planning and groundwork is our best bet.
  4. Unleashing Creativity: In retrograde, Mercury is asking us how we can be more creative. He wants us to drop into our hearts and feel our passion. This doesn’t necessarily mean we need to pick up our paint brushes or musical instruments. It means we get to brainstorm fresh ideas, innovative new offerings and imagine solutions to longstanding challenges.
  5. Energizing Vision: We get to restore our vision with a fresh new perspective, find deeper meaning to our mission and/or realign with our higher purpose. This is exciting and reigniting if we reach for our patience and allow new ideas to unfold. It’s an unfurling, not a lightning bolt epiphany.
  6. Being Flexible: Change and change again is Mercury’s cosmic dance, reminding us that pivoting gracefully when unexpected challenges arise makes us shine. By going with the flow, we can define our intent without expectations. As we commit without trying to control the outcome, we actually increase our prosperity flow.
  7. Clearing Communication Pathways: Knowing misunderstandings are more prevalent, we can lead the way by taking the time to foster communications within our communities, replenish connections and fine-tune collaborations. Laying out step-by-step goals, guidelines or procedures is very Mercury retrograde.
  8. Getting Intuitive: Mercury wants us to see, know and hear without using our minds. Yup – this is his mission when he stations retrograde. Our challenge, should we choose to accept it, is to spend time in meditation, reflection and introspection. We can get to know ourselves better, more intimately, to become stronger in our convictions, deepen our passions and position our businesses properly within our niche or industry.

All this being said, Mercury retrograde isn’t kind to anything new or big. However, sometimes we have to sign a contract, negotiate or start something new during a retrograde period. My best advice is to double and triple check on both sides. We don’t want someone to think they’re getting something we haven’t offered or vice versa. Taking extra caution, dotting i’s and crossing t’s laboriously, is the way through these retrograde periods.

Also, if we have a launch or promotion that has to happen during a Mercury retrograde period, recognize it’s not going to be the rocket blast we may desire. It’ll be a slower, longer curve, so I always say, plan for a longer lead in and an extra-long tail. Doing an elegant outreach campaign is excellent positioning for the way of the future.

It’s collaboration, collaboration, collaboration that clears our pathways for expanding our influence and making big impact.

Using Mercury retrograde periods to teach us patience for clarity in goals, communication and connection, puts us in the driver’s seat for the future.

Mercury may be a trickster, but he has our best interests at heart.

Mark Your Calendar!

We’re in the midst of another Mercury retrograde period until mid-September, but never fear, another one is only a few months away. 😬

Mercury Retrograde Dates

August 23 – September 15, 2023

December 13 to January 1, 2024

April 1 – 25, 2024

August 4 – 28, 2024

November 25 – December 15, 2024

For Geminis and Virgos, extend these periods a handful of days before and after each date range – no matter which year. In 2023, Capricorns and Taurians need to do this as well. In 2024, the fire signs are impacted the most, so those in Aries, Leo and Sagittarius are going to join the Geminis and Virgos in the extension periods.

Bottom Line

As leaders, it’s our role to harness the energy around us and transform it into positive momentum. Mercury retrograde is our chance to realign, rejuvenate, and revitalize our businesses. Let’s rise above the common narrative and use these cosmic tides to our advantage!

Tune into my Podcast for more insightful updates to use the stars + strategy to clear the pathway to your success. I’m here to empower you with the knowledge and inspiration needed to lead your business to new heights.

Cheers to cosmic growth,

Kim

Categories
Growth Personal Development Wealth

What’s the revolutionary way to develop your intuition to become rich and powerful?

“How do I develop my intuition?” is the question I’m asked the most during interviews and TV appearances when I introduce myself as an Intuitive Business Strategist and Master Astrologer and talk about my client’s success stories. My response is always the same.

Everyone is intuitive. Period.

Every.

Single.

Person.

So now that we’ve established you’re intuitive, let’s talk about developing your intuition.

Develop Your Intuition

First, you want to say YES to your intuition. Seriously, say it right now, “I am intuitive”. Take a deep breath and say it again, “I am intuitive”.

Second, you want to be able to hear your intuition and the most common approach is to meditate. I know meditating isn’t easy for a lot of people as life is too busy, your mind is too active or you’ve had failed experiments with meditating. I had the same problem, so I’ve come up with another way.

Third, you want to realize your intuition is your most valuable tool in life and business. Your intuition is your best advisor, your effortless jet pack and your most efficient team member helping you get things done.

Next, you want to use your intuition to help you propel your life and business. Your intuition helps you make better decisions, improve your relationships and create satisfying success.

Your intuition is your most powerful tool. Yet, if the only way to develop your intuition is to meditate and you can’t quite do that, what do you do?

I can’t meditate, now what?

I’ve come up with a revolutionary method to develop your intuition for the those who can’t meditate. The good news, my revolutionary method is familiar for business leaders.  It’s all about the know-like-trust (KLT) factor.

Anyone in marketing and sales knows the KLT factor, as your customers need to know, like and trust you before they work with you as it’s been around for decades.

I learned about it while getting my MBA and have worked with it since my days at Oracle. Being a $MM intuitive business strategist, it was easy to use with all of my clients to get them from where they were income-wise to where they wanted to be.

The better news, my revolutionary Do You Know, Like and Trust Yourself™ method is wildly effective. In fact, I used it in my own journey when my corporate career was catapulting into the stratosphere and my son was born with significant issues. When the doctors said he wouldn’t be able to walk up the stairs naturally, throw and catch a ball or have a normal social life – I said absolutely not.

I realized how powerful my intuitive gifts were, but I had been too busy checking off all of the boxes for my next promotion, so I had forgotten about them. Things were so fraught, I wasn’t able to meditate to access my intuitive guidance. Instead, I had to know myself to follow my own inclinations, instead of following the doctor’s predictions.

I had to like myself enough to listen to my own council, ask for support and coordinate all of this support to heal my son’s brain-body connection.  I had to trust myself enough to follow my own strategies for 8+ years for complete transformation. The results were so successful, I realized turning the KLT factor inside out would work in my business too.

The best news, my revolutionary Do You Know, Like and Trust Yourself™ method works for my clients. I have countless stories and here’s one you may relate to as one of my clients had 3 businesses and wasn’t making any real money. She was constantly chasing the marketplace for the next trend. She didn’t know herself to follow her own path. Once I helped her see her unique gifts and the best business approach for her, we crafted her business based on who she is at the core.

Now, she’s running ONE successful business, making high-6 figures, has 40K+ followers and is a magnet in the marketplace.

Do You Know, Like and Trust Yourself ®

Answering this question isn’t an easy one, however, I have recommendations on stepping into it.

Know yourself to discover your purpose:

  • Follow your gut instinct
  • Start a conversation with your intuition by asking questioning
  • Go within to follow your heart instead of paying attention to other’s success
  • Give more credence to your inner voice than the voices around you

Like yourself to feel your power:

  • Choose to be center stage in your life
  • Be aware of your energy and the energy of others
  • Stay in your own energy
  • Ask for support and receive it when it comes

Trust yourself to manifest prosperity:

  • Commit to yourself – your own needs and desires
  • Leverage opportunities by saying Yes – strategically and with discretion
  • Open your ability to receive – OFTEN and in BIG WAYS
  • Let go of attachment to outcome

When you do follow Do You Know, Like and Trust Yourself®, you stop second guessing yourself and start making strong decisions; you stop ineffectively delegating to others and start becoming a great leader and you stop distrusting your value and start increasing your top and bottom lines.

If you would like to gain a deeper understanding of yourself, take my FREE quiz to receive valuable insights and tips that can help you leverage your success.

As always, wishing you satisfying success,

Kim

Categories
Leadership Personal Development Skills

My Foot in My Mouth: Leadership & Parenting

“All parents should be leaders and all leaders should be parents,” I say a few weeks ago to a group of managers who I am leading through a strategy session.

What?  Where did that come from?  Although not completely off-topic, it does not directly relate to the discussion at hand.  Uh oh. I’ve lost it.  Perhaps I am doing too many different things and I have lost my edge.  Crap.

So far I have managed to keep the two companies completely separate.  So far I have managed to keep my business clients separate from my Men in the Head ® initiative. So far I have not irrevocably let one interfere with the other.  So far, man, it must be the heat.

Crap. Crap. Crap.

Well, too bad for me, because I now have to speak to this subject as if I meant to bring it up.  I look around the room and notice many eyes on me waiting to see where I am going with this comment.  I take a deep breath gathering my thoughts…

“With leadership, you lead a group of people to a common goal with an eye on the long game, but managing the day-to-day details,” I pause, “How many of you are parents?”

I look around the room and see that most of the people have raised their hands.  Oh, thank you God, perhaps I have dodged a bullet.

“With parenting, it’s the same thing, but with parenting you have more compassion while with leadership, you have more objectivity.  You actually need both for each role, so perhaps the better way to describe it is leadership and parenting share many of the same activities and you need to apply both objectivity and compassion in equal measure.”  Oh yeah, that’s what I meant to say.

Thankfully the meeting’s not derailed and we actually accomplish what we set out to do.  Phew.

However, on the ride home I start thinking about my comment and I realize while it’s not necessary to have one person be both a parent & a leader, there’s much to be said for looking at parenthood through the leadership lens.

According to Kouzes and Posner, there are 5 practices of good leadership:

  1. Modeling the Way

As a leader, you need to be a good role model. As a parent, you are a role model with every look, thought, deed, act, and engagement.  Your children are observing and following everything you do – every single day.  They watch the way you drive, how you talk on the phone or to your neighbors.  They observe how you treat yourself, your friends and your family.  They monitor how and what you eat, watch on TV, how much time you are on your laptop or mobile device, and whether you have a beer or glass of wine with dinner.  You are modeling everything to your children, every minute of every single day.  So, parents as role models – check.  

  1. Inspiring a Shared Vision

A good leader inspires a shared vision. As parents, we have a vision and sometimes it may be just to get through the day, but most times, it’s to provide a foundation for our children from which to launch their lives.  Everyday, we get our children ready for school, drive them to their activities, help them with homework, allow them to spend time with their friends and take them on family vacations.  All the while, we are talking to them about making good choices, advising them on navigating the pitfalls of growing up, and motivating them to make the very best lives for themselves.  So, parents inspiring a vision – check.

  1. Challenging the Process

A good leader takes risks, makes decisions, makes mistakes and then learns from them. Yeah, I think parents have that covered.  Who knew there would be so many risks, decisions, or mistakes?  Yikes, parenting is not for sissies.  I remember one of my friends said to me, “The last day you knew anything for sure was the day before your first child was born.”  (Thanks Kathy) She was JUST SO RIGHT. As parents, we make decisions on every single thing from the smallest, should they have a blanket covering them to the largest, where should they go to college and everything in between. I could go on for hours on this one, but I won’t.  We all know what we do all day – everyday.  So, parents as challengers – check.

  1. Enabling Others to Act

A good leader is a mentor, disciplinarian and coach.  He or she encourages, motivates, and yet has a strict operational code. Parents provide boundaries for their children while giving them the freedom to live their lives.  The limit of the boundaries depends upon their ages and as I say to my two, their attitudes, as does the extent of their freedoms. So, parents as mentors, disciplinarians and coaches – check.

  1. Encouraging the Heart

A good leader recognizes and rewards their employees for their efforts and accomplishments. I think parents do this better than most leaders.  I especially like it when it involves family time together as a reward instead of a material good, but that’s a personal choice.  So, parents recognizing and rewarding their children – check.

One thing is for certain, both leadership and parenting are living breathing things that need to be tended and nurtured every minute of every day.  You need compassion and objectivity in equal measure.

For me, I feel that my leadership experience has helped with my parenting.  I am more objective and can take a long view on some things that I don’t feel I would be able to do otherwise and that is particularly helpful these days in the tween and teen years.  I also would like to think that my parenting experience lends itself to my leadership skills.  I think I have more patience and compassion and am more apt to celebrate accomplishments.

However, next time I’m in a strategy meeting and I mention the parallels of parenting and leadership, I will be sure to handle it more elegantly.  Yikes, that was a collision I could have done without.

Because of this experience, I am pleased to present my Rich and Powerful Leaders Academy stepping stone program. Together, we will unlock your full potential as a leader and help you achieve success on your own terms. So let’s embark on this exciting path to greatness.

 

Categories
Growth Leadership Strategy

How to use the Zodiac to your Advantage

The zodiac is for everyone. No matter race, religion, gender, age or geography. The stars are here for every human to use to their FULL and COMPLETE advantage.How can you do that?Astrology is tied to astronomy, so the first step is understanding that the stars and planets hanging beautifully in the sky have impact on you.Then, here are a few simple tips:Appreciate the limitations of horoscopes.Here’s why astrology gets such a bad rap. There are horoscopes aplenty online – everything from daily to weekly to monthly and are based on your Sun sign. Most people know their Sun sign, so it’s easy for people to search and connect with their solar horoscope. However, these horoscopes are severely limited.  Yes, the Sun is central to your astrology, yet it’s still only 1 of 10 planets. Plus, there’s so much awesome information in your chart – house behaviors, planetary aspects, lunar nodes, your heart’s desires, soul mate imprint, life mission destiny and arc of intimacy to name only a few. It’s your complete cosmic blueprint. Completely ignoring it is unreliable. But, you can have fun with horoscopes. I’m not saying don’t read them. I’m just saying take them in complete awareness of their limitations.Understand the cosmos.Knowing what’s happening in the cosmos every month is really helpful to navigating your best interests on a daily or weekly basis. This is the reason I spend hours analyzing and interpreting the monthly energies and lunar cycles every month. It’s important to know what’s going on generally with tips on what to do throughout the month. Other people do this too. Find your person – the one you like, the one who speaks to you – then sign up for their monthly messages. I offer a FREE monthly forecast to help you navigate each month’s energies. Here you can sign up for my monthly forecast to be delivered to your inbox each month.Follow the Sun.Here’s some fun for you. It doesn’t matter what your Sun sign is, you can lean into the solar energies every month. You just need to know the zodiac calendar and what it means. I’ve done it for you here:
Dates (ish) Sun Sign Meaning
Mar 21 – Apr 19 Aries – ♈ Aries likes to lead. Be brave, bold and confident. Go on an adventure. Get physical. Start something new. Seek inspiration and act with enthusiasm. Get others to follow you.
Apr 20 – May 20 Taurus – ♉ Taurus likes stability. Take a deep breath and seek the silence of nature. Explore anything sensorial – taste, smell, touch, sight or sound. Play with animals. Find the ability to simply be.
May 21 – Jun 20 Gemini – ♊ Gemini likes communicating. Talk, travel, explore, learn – anything and everything. Open your mind to the wonders of the world. Read, teach, speak. Present. Debate. Solve problems, think critically. Do everything mental – literally.
Jun 21 – Jul 22 Cancer – ♋ Cancer likes to experience emotions. Sink into your intuition, Nurture yourself. Be affectionate, sensitive and caring. Heal yourself and your family. Go inward. Stay at home – feel safe and loved.
Jul 23 – Aug 22 Leo – ♌ Leo likes to be in the spotlight. Get cheery, have fun, be generous and inspire others. Be regal, kind-hearted and charming. Express yourself. Open your heart to joy. Trust and celebrate life. Delight in being alive.
Aug 23 – Sep 22 Virgo – ♍ Virgo likes order and neatness. Get to work. Assume your duties and responsibilities. Get organized and set a schedule for routine. Check in with your health. Analyze, research or gain a skill. Find your mentors. Be in service to the world.
Sep 23 – Oct 22 Libra – ♎ Libra likes balance. Collaborate, find your teammates and work together in harmony and justice. Seek balance. Discover calm through art and beauty. Make a commitment in relationship. Find your partners.
Oct 23 – Nov 21 Scorpio – ♏ Scorpio likes to live a secret life. Dive deeply into honest self-reflection. Pursue the mysteries of life. Confront uncomfortable topics. Tell the truth. Investigate the darker edge of your life and heal with penetrating intensity. Forgive and let go of the past.
Nov 22 – Dec 21 Sagittarius – ♐ Sagittarius likes meaningful experience. Socialize, communicate and explore new experience. Open your heart and mind to differing viewpoints. Travel to learn other cultures. Expand through higher learning. Broaden your philosophy of the meaning of life. Begin your quest.
Dec 22 – Jan 19 Capricorn – ♑ Capricorn seeks Great Work. Focus your will, assume responsibility and get to work. Go inward to know yourself to determine your true desires. Be discerning and achieve greatness. Make effort to discover your mastery.
Jan 20 – Feb 18 Aquarius – ♒ Aquarius likes individuality. Be original. Shake off conformity. Go your own way. Express your truth. Create your own rules and structures. Use technology. Invent. Reach for the future. Be a visionary, create and innovate.
Feb 19 – Mar 20 Pisces – ♓ Pisces is one with the world. Imagine. Dream. Intuit. Connection to the oneness of the Universe. Love universally. Find joy in the wonders of the world through your imagination and sensory perceptions. Be gentle with yourself.
Note: ‘Dates- ish’ as the dates may vary by a day or two. It depends on the year.Have fun with this. I encourage you to lean into the strength of the solar energies each month to take the most advantage of the zodiac.For example, get stuff done during the early part of January, have so much fun in early August and delve deeply into introspection in the later part of October. The zodiac signs are more supportive of these activities due to the Sun’s entry into them at these times.Have fun – the stars are here for you!As always, wishing you joy,KimPS Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to receive my short weekly energetic tips
Categories
Culture Personal Development Women In Business

The Benefits of Integrating Astrological Insights in Your Business Strategy

Case for AstrologyThroughout history, astrology has been a useful tool for scientific methods, political strategy, business growth and the pursuit of fame. The earliest Popes used astrology either through other’s interpretations or their own.[1] Scientists such as Hippocrates[2], the Father of Medicine, believed astrology was invaluable to medicine, even teaching astrology to his medical students. He’s quoted as saying, “A physician without the knowledge of astrology has no right to call himself a physician.”Galileo Galilei was both an astronomer and astrologer, drafting horoscopes[3] for nobility and students and Johannes Kepler, the calculator of planetary motion, was also the official astrologer for the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II[4]. Carl Jung incorporated astrology with his psychological counselling work, calling it ‘synchronicity’ and is quoted as saying, “Your psyche is the breathing of the cosmos.”[5]A famous astrologer, John Dee[6], counseled Queen Elizabeth I, Theodore Roosevelt hung his horoscope in the Oval Office, Franklin Delano Roosevelt quoted horoscopes and President Reagan used astrology when making decisions[7].J.P. Morgan is the most recognized businessmen to use astrology, being quoted as saying, “Millionaires don’t use astrologers, billionaires do.” [8] Gloria Vanderbilt, heiress to a huge fortune and successful business woman in her own right, was a keen follower of astrology.[9] According to Fast Company, “astrology has officially infiltrated work culture.”[10]The former U.S. Secretary of Treasury, Donald Reagan, once said “It’s common knowledge that a large percentage of Wall Street brokers use astrology.”[11]Angelina Joile uses astrology daily and to make important decisions about movie roles and premiere dates. Cameron Diaz, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Madonna, Princess Diana have been avid fans of following astrology for their life and career choices. Beyonce even has a song titled, “Signs”.[12]According to a 2018 Pew Research poll, about 29% of American adults now believe in astrology. Likewise, the poll found that women are more likely to believe in astrology (37%) than men are (20%).[13]Astrology in BusinessAstrology is important for business because it creates certainty and calm amidst chaos. Astrology helps business leaders with decision making, setting strategy, creating plans and scheduling. It helps inform teams of direction and next steps, as well as gives insight into team strengths, communication abilities and effective skill building methods.Astrology supports timing and course of action for marketing events, sales promotions and outreach, product launches, travel, staffing, communication and investing or divesting. Astrology increases self-awareness and empathic relations for business owners and their staffs. It’s useful for branding, positioning and informs business modeling for success.Across the organization, astrology is a useful tool, creating results on the top and bottom lines.Results based on Astrology in BusinessKim Woods, MBA Business Strategist and Master Astrologer, uses astrology in her own business as well as all of her clients. She and her team of Intuitive Leaders have consulted with over 350 business leaders in either 1:1 customized solutions or in small group programs.For her own business, everything is based on astrology, from decisions regarding high-level multi-year strategy to timing during the day for reaching out to a prospect or associate. She uses the Sun and its power to leverage each monthly zodiac sign for coordinating launch cycles for seasonal programs and relies on the Moon for timing of the business growth and optimization phases. Kim’s organizational planning is dependent on her personal astrology as well as the worldly annual forecast. Each of her leadership team also consults their astrology when front-facing with the marketplace. Big star events are scheduled and communicated to her company’s audience to take advantage of the star energies for expansion or deepening, depending on their particular influences.Astrology is effective as Kim’s company has grown an average of 378% over a three-year period, even during the pandemic.For her clients, Kim begins every engagement with a ‘Big Reveal’ into the business owner’s birth chart by walking into their stars the minute they’re born and opening them to their full potential. She assesses their foundational personality characteristics aligning these with their life mission, bravery, mastery and soul destiny signatures. She compiles themes based on their evolutionary DNA, success factors and satisfying love, money and relationship expressions.The client’s personal star roadmap constructs the foundation of their work together, continuing to relate to their business models, success blueprints, marketing and sales energies. The work doesn’t end with business, but involves partner relationships and family dynamics in order to achieve the client’s goals for creating ease and satisfaction as well as growth and abundance.  Additionally, she reviews team, client, prospect, vendor and collaboration opportunities for her clients as well as advises on buying and selling personal or business properties.For corporations, Kim uses the astrological ‘birth’ chart of the business itself to further inform about the most successful direction for the business.Kim also relays timing based on transit analysis to give her clients notice of positive growth-oriented periods for outreach, negotiations, promotions and sales versus the right timing for streamlining, optimizing and divesting.Aligning business opportunities with the stars is something unbelievably valuable, it’s almost priceless. Kim has seen her clients grow an average of 51% across the board during the pandemic, even with brick and mortar businesses. She’s experienced her clients double their revenues, or gain 30% revenues while lowering effort by 40%. She’s seen triple digit jumps month-over-month when her clients align themselves with their astrological signature, as well as the astrology going on in the world.Connect with Kim for a FREE strategy call to see how your astrological chart can be leveraged in business so you can gain a competitive edge in the market!
[1] “Leaders Who Followed the Stars”, Orlando Sentinel, by Sam Hodges, May 17, 1988.[2] Astronomy, Astrology, Medicine, by Dorian Gieseler Greenbaum, July 7, 2014.[3] Galileo’s Horoscopes, Swerdlow, N.M., Journal for the History of Astronomy, Vol 35, Part 2, No. 119, p. 135 -141, 2004.[4] “400-Year-Old Horoscope Shows Kepler’s Sideline”, New York Times by Associated Press, March 9, 1999.[5] “Carl Jung and Astrology in Psychoanalysis”, Exploring Your Mind, February 8, 2018.[6] “Painting of John Dee, Astrologer to Queen Elizabeth I”, by Marissa Fessenden, Smithsonian Magazine, January 18, 2016.[7] “White House Confirms Reagans Follow Astrology, Up to a Point”, New York Times, by Steven V. Roberts, May 4, 1988.[8] “Can Planets Affect Your Portfolio?” Forbes, by Kenneth Rapozza, February 20, 2012.[9] “The Surprising Ways Successful Business People and Presidents Used Astrology”, Numerologist, August 29, 2019.[10] “From Tarot Readings to Gemini Memes…”, Fast Company by Pavithra Mohan, September 9, 2019.[11] “Famous People and Their Astrologers who Guide Them”, St. James Chicago, December 15, 2017.[12] 10 Celebs Who Believe in Astrology”, The Things by Anja Grcar, January 8, 2021.[13] “‘New Age’ beliefs common among both religious and nonreligious Americans”, Pew Research Center, by Claire Gecewicz, October 1, 2018.
Categories
Advice Leadership Women In Business

Unlocking My Hidden Formula to Make Your Biggest Dreams a Reality, Against All Odds!

Maura was living in a constant state of low-level anxiety that was taking a toll on her life. As a high-performing realtor who took the risk to follow her dreams, Maura was overworked and overwhelmed, which left her feeling stressed, anxious, and exhausted. 

However, Maura’s entire life has profoundly changed in just one year of working with me at Kim Woods.com. She has closed her lucrative real estate business in MA, moved out of state to a town where she said there are more cattle than people, and just launched her new business as a healer of homes. 

Maura shared, “Kim’s astrological guidance, combined with her impressive business background, is like rocket fuel. This powerful combination propelled me to take the risk I thought was impossible and live the life I so desired. She made it a reality for me. I no longer live in constant anxiety; I’m now so happy, grounded and balanced.“

 

With Maura’s constant state of stress, I knew that we needed to start by helping her reduce her stress levels. 

Here are a few of my rocket fuel techniques that I used with Maura to help reduce her stress and propel her into the life she is now living and no longer just dreaming about:

  1. Giving a glimpse of what the future can look like: Understanding astrology and how the stars were aligned for Maura the moment she was born, I could see all the possibilities available to her. This helped her shift her focus from just going through the motions of life to focusing on the outcome she desired. By doing this, I gave Maura the hope and motivation she needed to make the necessary changes in her life.
  2.  Be accessible but not available: This meant that she could be reachable through various ways such as text, Voxer, and email, but with parameters. Only responding during certain times of the day. This helped Maura set the right definition and structure in her work and personal life. 
  3. Pattern interrupt: There’s a quick technique that interrupts the stress spiral of feeling overwhelmed and anxious. Interrupting pattern techniques range from taking a walk, phoning a friend, meditating, or finding a code word. By interrupting the vicious cycle, Maura was able to regain control of her thoughts and emotions.

It’s remarkable to see how my clients have been able to transform their lives by shifting their focus to what they want to achieve rather than just going through the motions of life. 

Clients like Maura, who are willing to step into their power and see how powerful they are by mastering their mindset, are forever changed. The changes Maura has made in her life have reduced her stress levels and enabled her to live the life she has always dreamt of, creating success on her terms. 

If you aspire to make your biggest dreams a reality against all odds, you’ll be amazed at how believing in yourself, staying determined, and pushing forward, can turn your biggest dreams into your greatest achievements, no matter how unreachable they may seem now!

Connect with Kim for a FREE strategy call to see how we may be able to help you live your dreams.