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BRIDGING THE GAP - Simple strategies for moving from desires to
results
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ISSN 1948-1489
September 10, 2009
Volume 1, Issue 12
Published on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays by Cindy Hillsey and Virtual
Partnering. 

Please add cindy@virtualpartnering.com to your whitelist or address
book in your email program, so you won't have any trouble receiving
future issues.


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A NOTE FROM CINDY
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Hi !

Happy September! For those of you in Canada and the United States,
did you have a nice Labor Day? My mom arrives today. Yeah! We are
still getting a few things done and ready for her 10-day visit, but
I'm *sure* we'll be ready by the time her plane touches down
(fingers crossed!). LOL While mom is here, Michael and I are
heading up north for two days to celebrate our 20th wedding
anniversary. Mom has agreed to cat-sit for us while we are gone. I
promise I'll share some pictures in the next ezine of mom's trip
and our trip up north.

One other thing I want to share with those of you who are Virtual
Assistants: Are you looking for another way to obtain clients? If
so, head over to this website: 
http://www.multiplestreamsteam.com/join/. Andrea Lee and her team
are putting together an RFP system to connect potential clients and
Virtual Assistants. This is a no-cost service. Go join now! Andrea
and her team ROCK! These gals are on top of things, and you all
know I don't recommend people/programs unless they are top notch.

And finally, now that fall is here and the kiddos are back in
school, it's time to work on your business. Don't forget
ChatsOnDemand.com [http://www.chatsondemand.com]is here to help 
with that quick business question.

Enjoy the next couple of weeks, and I'll be back on the 24th...

A big welcome to those of you who are new subscribers. I'm excited
to have you onboard with me!

To your success,

Cindy


I would love to connect with you via the following:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cindyhillsey
Twitter: http://twitter.com/cindyhillsey
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/cindyhillsey

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FEATURE ARTICLE
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Overwhelm: What It Is and How to Move through It
by Cindy Hillsey

Picture this: It's a Monday morning and the phone is ringing off
the hook. It's Overwhelmed!not even 9am yet. Your inbox looks like
something blew up (things are scattered everywhere), and your to-do
list doesn't fit on one piece of paper anymore! What's a savvy
entrepreneur like yourself feeling at this particular moment? Do
you want to run? Do you want to cry? Do you want to take the day
off and deal with it later? All of the above? Or do you want to
clean it up once and for all? I vote for cleaning it up once and
for all!

Overwhelm is not a productive place to be. In fact, it is very
unproductive because it blocks the necessary actions we need to
take to do the things we need to do. Yet, many of us fall into
overwhelm very easily. Let's look at what overwhelm really is. To
feel overwhelmed is to feel unable to do. The root of overwhelm is
an acute sense of loss of control. Often, the difference between
being productively busy and being overwhelmed is simply a feeling
of control. For example, when *I* am in charge of my activities I
feel busy and productive. When I feel like someone else (client,
spouse, friend, family) is in charge of my activities I begin to
feel overwhelmed. This suggests a cure to being overwhelmed, right?
Be in control, or have some control over what you are doing.

Let's take a look at how we can be in control so that we are not
constantly in an overwhelmed state, ok?

Following are some examples of how easy it is to become overwhelmed
and how we can move out of overwhelm:

#1: Are you in control of the decisions that affect you? What I
mean by this is: If someone asks you to do something do you
automatically say yes because you think, or feel, you should? Or do
you participate in the decision and then say yes (or no)? Huge
difference. The former takes away your control due to your passive
behavior. The latter implies control because your behavior is
active in the process.

#2: Do you have standards and boundaries concerning your time? If
yes, do you enforce those standards and boundaries, or do you let
others bend them? If you do not have standards and boundaries, it
is easy to understand where overwhelm comes from. You are letting
others dictate your time, and thus your energy. If you have
standards and boundaries and are not enforcing them, now would be a
good time to start! If you don't have standards and boundaries, now
would also be a good time to create some! Remember, *you* are in
control of *your* business.

#3: Do you have a difficult time separating essential and
non-essential tasks, activities, emails, requests, etc? Do you find
you lose your focus rather easily on these items? If so, the remedy
is to have a system in place that allows you to make a decision on
the relative importance of each item. This system does not need to
be complicated! On the contrary, the system should be simple and
straightforward so that you are able to use it without feeling like
it's one more task. In its simplest form, the one question you
should ask is: "What is the one thing I want to accomplish this
year/month/week/day?" Based on your answer, all decisions you make
should support this statement. If what you are being asked to do
does not support this statement you need to reschedule, reframe, or
refer!

To wrap this second phase up, the best thing you can do to support
yourself and your business is to be in control. I know. Easier said
than done sometimes, right? If that is how you feel, then I would
encourage you to think about hiring a coach to help you move
through this process so that you can be the effective, efficient
entrepreneur I know you to be!

Want to comment on this article? Have a thought to share? If so,
you can post it on my blog. [http://www.virtualpartnering.com/vp-blog]

Are you ready to hire a coach? Want to explore the possibilities?
If you would like to schedule a 20-minute pre-qualifying call,
please email me at cindy@virtualpartnering.com

or

If you just need that quick 30-minute laser coaching session, head
over to http://www.chatsondemand.com and get signed up! "Chat" with
you soon. ☺


++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You are free to use material from the Bridging the Gap ezine as
long as you include complete attribution, including live website
link. The attribution should read: "By Cindy Hillsey of Virtual
Partnering. Please visit www.virtualpartnering.com
(http://www.virtualpartnering.com) for additional
information."

==========================================
CINDY RECOMMENDS
==========================================
Below are some of the products and services I've used in my
business. I highly recommend each of them without hesitation.
Please check them out and see how they can benefit you and your
business!

Internet Resources for the Busy Entrepreneur!
(http://www.virtualpartnering.com/ebook) - 
This Guide provides 800+ useful websites broken down into 10 
different sections and is designed specifically for those who 
work on-line.

Practice Pay Solutions
(http://www.profcs.com/app/aftrack.asp?afid=896220) - You need a
merchant account so your clients can pay by credit card. I use
these guys.

Data Deposit Box
(http://www.datadepositbox.com/?friend=2e943f801180) - Online
backup. Remember, it's not if but when your computer will fail.
They've saved my bacon a few times.

AWeber 
(http://aweber.com/?307586) - I use them for my ezine and for
autoresponders. Highly recommend them.
 
Ali Brown 
(http://www.netofficetoolbox.com/app/?af=891446) - The Ezine Queen.
If you are looking for help on how to put out an
ezine, Ali wrote the ebook!

Robert Middleton 
(http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?af=893311) -
He's a Marketing Guru. Excellent information on marketing, and how
to put together a website that sells. 

Alicia Forest 
(http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/?af=875837) - Want to learn how
to attract more clients, create profit-making products and
services, and make more sales? Take a look and see if she can help
you!

VA Classroom
Are you a VA who wants to learn more about Internet Marketing or
Social Media for your clients? If so, check these guys out.
Excellent materials at an affordable cost. They offer Certified
Internet Marketing VA training
(http://www.vaclassroom.com/aw.aspx?A=148)and
Social Media Marketing Specialist
training.(http://www.vaclassroom.com/socialmarketing/cmd.asp?af=9462
87)

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ABOUT CINDY
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I am a Small Business Specialist Coach, and I *love* to work with
Virtual Assistants, Coaches, and other Solopreneurs who are either
in the start-up stage or have been in business a few years. As the
founder of Virtual Partnering, my passion is to be: able to
brainstorm with you on those terrific ideas, a mentor/coach who has
been there and knows what you are going through, someone you can
strategize with in a safe place, and keep you accountable while
simultaneously moving forward toward your goals.

Have questions, or just want to reach out to me?
cindy@virtualpartnering.com (mailto:cindy@virtualpartnering.com)
877-215-5661

Thanks for reading! If you know someone who could benefit from
Bridging The Gap, feel free to forward it to them. We always
appreciate your referrals! 

Not a subscriber yet? Sign up to get future issues delivered
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http://www.virtualpartnering.com


(c)2009 Cindy Hillsey and Virtual Partnering. All rights reserved.