Cool F'ree Tool from Slide.com: FunPix makes it easy to tell a story in comic-format

At first glance this tool may seem childish. A parlor-trick in the home we call the internet. But there are several business applications that you can claim as an excuse to try it. Good thing too, because it turns out FunPix is one of those guilty pleasures. Very fun and easy to use.

Here's a 'funpixed' photo of my family and I this summer, celebrating my Dad's 70th. The captions will mean nothing to you unless you read Taiwanese, a feat unto itself especially when I tell you Taiwanese is an oral language and on the endangered languages list. Suffice to say though, the photo is a source of great hilarity to my Taiwanese family and the students of conversational Taiwanese that we're gathering together, and will likely become the backbone for a printed text.

You can also use Funpix for:

• presentation slides
• direct mail advertisements - excellent for attention-getting postcards, especially
• seasonal greeting cards that highlight your own coaching wisdom
• tailored inter-session messages for printing by clients who respond well to printed reminders
• power of intention or dream boards
• spicing up your blog photos, newsletter articles, and more...

If nothing else, send the link right now to your favorite graphic designer. You can bet they'll be happy to keep it in mind for your next website design. Say, what else will you use this tool for? Comment below to share yours...

Coaching Tool of the Month #2

Website Grader is a free seo tool that measures the marketing effectiveness of a website. You plug in your URL and it gives you an analysis of how well your site is setup from an SEO and marketing perspective.
I really like what they cover in their report - along with ‘traditional’ SEO stuff such as meta tags, incoming links and such they also take a look at blogging, social bookmarking and conversion elements too.

With this information you can make some quick/simple changes (ie: add keywords to your meta tags if need be) while others may require some more work... but regardless this tool does give you a simple roadmap to use to improve your site for SEO.

If your score isn't as high as you would like it to be you are in good company, as per these stats from a report they have posted from October 2007 that says:

This report shows the SEO capabilities of the Top 20 Bloggers (from Technorati). Some interesting findings include that out of the top 20 bloggers, 40% are missing a 301 redirect, 65% are missing description metadata, and 80% are missing keywords metadata.

Put your website to the test and post to the blog to let me know your score!

Coaching Tool of the Month

Though hacking is a word mostly used in the programming world, life hacking is a term that now refers to almost anything that solves an everyday problem in a clever or non-obvious way. As I chatted with Marc Sachnoff of SoundWiseOnline recently (SoundWise itself is an example of a great life hack), I realized there hasn't been enough talk about this not-so-little subculture and how it might apply within the coaching world.

What I enjoy most is how playful and curious life hackers are towards life and how to improve it. I've also found the lexicon of how to hack your life a very useful metaphor for coaching clients who are overwhelmed, or live in the duality of 'I can't have it all.'

So in addition to inviting you to learn more about it, here's a favorite actual hack that I personally use, particularly in highly creative seasons like the one I'm in. (Four new funnels of products and services to launch - say no more.) This simple online tool that supports the creation of new habits is called 'Don't Break the Chain' and was inspired by something Jerry Seinfeld said. Here is the short version of how it works:

1. Pick a goal. For example, 'Write every day.' 'Meditate for 5 minutes first thing in the morning.' Or 'Be sure to leave work no later than 30 minutes past 5pm.'
2. Mark off the days on which you achieved the goal.
3. Don't break the chain. Use the increasingly long chain of marked off days as a motivator to continue creating your new habit.

Go here to try it for yourself. Be forewarned that the software does have a cheeky tone - it (kindly) berates you when you haven't met your goal. "You've dropped the ball for 2 straight days." :-)

As no-fee tools go, I highly recommend it. Set it up as your home page, install it on your blog for added public accountability or even use the tool in a group e-learning environment for multiple participants. Who knows, you might start a chain that encourages you to try a new life hack every day for the next 2 weeks! Enjoy.

Coaching Tool of the Month

Ever tear your hair out trying to resize photos?

Just inserting the photos in this ezine can make me want to eat a pound of chocolate or call my coach for an emergency session.

Sandra DeFreitas, the Tech coach extraordinaire at the Multiple Streams team, told me about www.ResizeYourImage.com, a free tool that does wonders with photos.

The site works very simply. You just upload your image in any format; .gif, .jpeg, .tiff, etc, and then use the buttons on the site to crop it, enlarge or decrease it. You can even rotate it if you like.

When you have the image just the way you want it, just press a button, download it back to your computer, and it’s ready to use.

If you use photos in your emails, ezines, websites, or ebooks, try this free tool at www.ResizeYourPhoto.com and look like a pro!

No-Fee Tool | The Coaching Entrepreneur's Surrogate Boss

Andrea told me about this cool little free tool since she knows I have a tendency to go at full speed, and like many of you, tend to work too long without a break.

Instant Boss is a piece of software that you download to your computer. After you set it up, you will get a small grey reminder box popping up on your screen telling you to take a break.

When your break time is over, you get another box telling you to get back to work, complete with a funny graphic of a screaming boss- perfect for those days when you long for the corporate world.

Set the time intervals up as you see fit in the control panel shown above. Two hours of work, 10 minute break. Two and a half hours of work, half hour break. Whatever it is, remember that when you are self-employed, it is easy to fall into unreasonable working hours. The bad thing is that you can’t complain to your co-workers around the water cooler!

Keep yourself focused and healthy by taking breaks. Instant Boss will help.

Download this no-cost software at http://www.appsapps.info/instantboss.php

"These photos have a job to do; To help sell our customers' products!" - R.H.

So you've created a coaching product, now what? The above quote says it all. You want to sell your stuff - effortlessly and elegantly - getting your message out and making a difference to the world.

To that end, a supplier like Robert House Photography, creators of the images at left [of Laura Howard West's stunning new 'Joyful Business Guide' a Law of Attraction-based cure for the difficult-to-do, life-sucking Business Plan] are worth their weight in gold.

Thankfully they don't cost quite that much and they do accept credit cards. Reasonable, a pleasure to work with, and - God bless them - they understand that their job is not photography, it's marketing.

Another bonus? They list their pricing table right at their site and best of all - the images are 100% royalty free.

[Look for future posts featuring Laura as she notches up success after success with her product. Big name testimonials...nation-wide joint ventures, etc.]

Click 'continue reading' below to see the photos enlarged. Yummy!

Are you interested in collaborating with Laura to bring a coachable planning process to your small business clients? Email her here to discuss: laura@joyfulbusiness.com

» Continue reading

"Dear Andrea,

I have a client who doesn't like to plan. She is definitely living in the moment, yet she doesn't like her situation - money, love life, business - she's even unhappy with herself physically. How do I coach her when she resists planning ahead, even as far as a month or two?

She says she wants help building her business which is speaker training, and her business is doing ok as far as it goes - six figures, just. I just can't seem to find a way 'in' to help...is she uncoachable or am I missing something?

-- A.N., Missouri

Thanks A.N. for your great question. On the face of it, this may seem like an unusual circumstance for a coach to find a client in. However most coaches will work with clients who resist things - planning, focusing, letting go of control. So is this an issue of 'not planning' or 'resistance' or both?

Let's see what our community of coaches has to say about this one and I'll blog an overview with tips on how you can proceed in a separate blog post.

Coaches, post your suggestions and tips below - remember this kind of 'situational practice' is an excellent way to sharpen the saw. And even if you're unsure but want to give it a try - you can't hurt this website, whereas 'trying' in certain situations when you're out of your depth with a real client - can have damaging effects.

So comment on, and I will select a winner of the Coaching Question of the Day from the what unfolds.

P.S. The prize will be juicy - I'm still choosing! Lest you think the prize is a ploy... ;-) let's put a bit of a parameter around it shall we? Minimum five posts required before the winner will be selected.

P.P.S. If you're someone like me who hasn't been to coach training school for a while - or maybe even ever? Be sure to stay tuned for an upcoming announcement of 'The Sound of Coaching' and self-study training on the IAC Masteries.

Have you presented at a live event lately? Perhaps you have a few talks lined up for the fall. Good stuff. Many, many conscious entrepreneurs have a natural gift for building trust when face-to-face, and presenting your material as a speaker in front of groups is a solid leverageable business-building activity.

But here's the rub.

No matter how great your talk, workshop, training, keynote speech is, if you don't have things in place to take care of everything that happens after the applause, you've only done half your job. Remembering that everything is energy, think of your time in front of the group as prepping the vegetables for your stir-fry. After you're done, you have to carry through, follow forward - you still have to fry the veggies in order to make a meal.

How do you do that? Pay attention to the table at the 'back of the room.' (Or the booth in the exhibit hall, etc.) This is where the proverbial 'cash register' lives, yes? Where folks can now sign up for your program, request to be put on a waiting list, buy your book, join your newsletter readership, etc. etc.

Emphasizing: No matter how much caffeine you have in you, or how energizer-bunny you otherwise are, you alone cannot handle the table effectively, even if it's a small talk. So, best to learn how to enlist help - the good kind - and make the most of that help. Here's where you imitate an octopus.

A very useful step is to give a copy of the sample note below to every helper you have. Without you having to 'train' them per se, you can customize the note so it acts as your ambassador. It will cut down the amount of time you need to spend with each helper - a blessing for time-pressed you - and you'll marvel and how good a job it does at creating goodwill among the folk who are helping you.

Personally, I've found it seems to work even better if I handwrite the note. (Try handwriting it once and then photocopying it.) But remember this is just a sample - it happens to be a short one I used a few times this year - make sure you mess around with and elaborate on it to suit your purpose and personality.

---- Begin Sample Note ----

Dear Multiple Streams Volunteer!

Thank you so much for lending a hand today - you are very much appreciated!

With your extra set of hands and heart, we'll be able to quickly and simply facilitate folks getting hold of the additional books and CDs they will use to grow their businesses - fun, right?

So here are just a coupld of guidelines in case I haven't already been able to touch base with you personally - they're really easy points but important.

(1) When you receive an order form from someone, quickly scan each line to see that it's all legible. If you can't read something, especially things like names, credit card numbers, expiry dates, etc., ask the person for clarification and fix the appropriate spots on the form itself.

(2) Keep all completed order forms, cash, checks, etc. in a safe place with you in the folder provided or face down on the table next to you until you can pass these to Andrea/me after everything wraps up.

(3) For cash, we don't make change at local events so either collect the exact change or let the person know unfortunately we don't make change - is that okay with them? Of course this is entirely up to them - if it's not okay, they are welcome to pay by check or credit card.

(4) When we run out of stock, which we often do fairly quickly, we will still take order forms and will ship the items at our cost, just as our gift to them. This sometimes incentivizes people to order while still at the event, that's a-okay with us.

(5) After the purchase is complete, you can go ahead and invite them to find me - I'm happy to sign their purchases if they'd like. Even if you see that I'm busy or there is a line, that is okay. I will be happy to stay behind if needed so you can reassure folk of that okay?

(6) And last but not least, after things have all wrapped up, please do NOT forget - this is important - to come and track me/Andrea down. I have a final thank you for you - and a big hug - sorry, no slipping out without that okay? :-)

Alright, that's all - pretty simple right? And if you have any questions at all, do not hesitate to just find me, or ask the person to find me, or last resort, write down their question with name, email, phone and me or my office will get back to them asap. Hopefully that covers everything so that you can enjoy meeting with folk - just remember, there is no such thing as a stupid question AND I trust your judgement on things.

All that remains to say is thank you again...you are making a BIG difference, not just to me through your help but by making it possible for people to take the next step towards multiple streams...

With love and respect,

a

---- end sample note -----

Kinda cool, right?

What other things are you curious about managing after your public appearance? Questions about maximizing the opportunities? Other 'post-event' ools or templates you'd like to see here?

Photo credit: Thank you to Byron Van Arsdale who snapped the above photo of me at the ICF Conference last year. Click the photo above to enlarge, or visit the Coaching Electric for slides, notes, visual map and report card from the presentation.

A quickie invitation for you today, to a useful open call about Real Estate with my very own Real Estate Coach!

If you've always 'wondered' what Real Estate could mean to you, your business and your life, here's a chance to stop procrastinating and learn more in a no-pressure safe environment.

The call description is below with a registration link. Just remember it's an Open House call so there is no charge. I hope you choose to join in - I could think of no better person to introduce to you for real estate wisdom than my personal investment coach. And no worries - you can be ready this very minute to begin investing OR you can be just curious. Everyone's welcome.

===========================================================
"Making Real Estate Real" Open House Call with Investment Coach Cassandra White
===========================================================
sponsored by Andrea J. Lee of 'Money, Meaning and Beyond'

If you had $25,000 or more to invest right now, would you know what to do? If you knew real estate was where you'd like to put your money, what would be your next step?

As conscious business owners, not all of your hard-earned money need be reinvested back into your business. At a certain point in your business life cycle, real estate investment makes real sense, and that's just what Andrea and her husband Mike have been doing the last 4 years.

Now with four properties, some of which have appreciated over 50%, and looking at a fifth, Andrea credits her latest mindset shift to her investment coach Cassandra, who at the age of 33 now juggles joint ventures and investments for over 25 properties.

How does she do it and what does she advise? "Everyone with a little determination and creative thinking can do the same as me." "You don't have to start out with a ton of money." The great thing is, there are real investment opportunities available today, for investors who are ready to make the leap.

Join this one hour Open House call to learn about specific opportunities to pursue real estate coaching with Cassandra if the time is right for you.

Or, if you're new to this topic, register at the link below to hear Andrea interview Cassandra about how to get started, and generally get her to demystify the whole real estate game. You're right, you could pay thousands
of dollars to attend real estate training seminars to do the same thing.

But why not save those dollars and put them into the investment properties themselves instead?

There's no charge for the call - it's our way of opening up this conversation in the community. Just help us spread the word by forwarding this invitation, alright?

From Thursday June 14, 2007 | Audio Recording UPDATED WITH CORRECT AUDIO 6.22.07

Use the player below to listen to the audio recording from this call:

If you've been looking for a Mentor Coach to guide you to inner shifts and outer bigger income following the Multiple Streams model, I am opening a new set of Group Coaching calls beginning in June. Here are the details:

Title: Advanced Group Coaching | June to November 2007

This is a 6-month small group coaching format with:

• 3, 60-minute sessions per month on Tuesdays from 100 to 200 PM Eastern

• Calls will consist of 1 content/information-rich call organized around an advanced business-building theme; 1 hot seat & laser coaching call and 1 group brainstorming call. (Brainstorming will center on feedback and ideas from the group on your chosen project - first-come first-serve. While Hot Seat and Laser Coaching will be more Coach-Client oriented.)

• There will be a mailing list format for email communication with fellow coaches and e-coaching. Please note registration in the group indicates permission on your part to share your email address with the rest of the group unless you specify otherwise.

• Recordings, notes and any links will be shared via mailing list and/or webpage dedicated to the group.

Please Note: The month of July will feature Tina Forsyth as Coach on the theme of Teambuilding and Business Management.

As always the emphasis in Advanced Group Coaching throughout the 6 months is on tangible-nuts and bolts steps you can act on as well as big picture mindset shifts. Our goal is (always) money AND meaning, sustainably in a way that suits you as an individual.

• Theme for June - Simple Multimedia | Exactly How To Create Compelling Products (Includes Resources, Suppliers, Recommended Sub-Contractors and A Step-By-Step Process we will walk through together)

  Registration Closed

  *** Note: If you are interested in more than one month, or other discount options, be sure to see below for alternate payment methods. ***

• Theme for July - Increasing Your Biz Capacity | Hiring, Managing and Retaining Your Core Team led and facilitated by Tina Forsyth (Includes 'Who's the Boss of You' material)

  Registration Closed

• Theme for August - Identifying and Real-Time Implementation of Key Joint Ventures | Access to More Clients/Customers Equals More Money

  Registration Closed

• Theme for September - Closing the (eep!) In-Person Sale | Taking the Easy Route In Workshops, Seminars and Other Speaking Engagements and Earning More Money (Also applies to Virtual Speaking Opportunities or TeleSeminars)

  Registration Closed

• Theme for October - Strategic Planning for 2008 | What's Next for Your Biz? Possibilities, Planning and Implementation

  Click here to reserve your spot for October Only: http://tinyurl.com/2uqsok

• Theme for November - The Paul Principle | Businesses Grow and/or Shrink Based on the Capacity of the Business Owner - Let's Work on Your 'Who,' Open Your Money Chakra and Continue Working Less

  Click here to reserve your spot for November Only: http://tinyurl.com/3adlpq

NEW: We've also added a monthly Integrity Day the last Thursday of each month - the better to support you in getting real work done. Integrity Day Calls will be 12noon - 5pm Eastern (9am - 2pm Pacific) - calling in once per hour for support and to celebrate progress!

And here are three alternative options for registration:

Option #1: 3 60-minute sessions per month as outlined above $175 per month, one month at a time recurring for six months

Bonus to the first 5 to register: Your choice of one of two cd packages

Click here to reserve your spot: http://tinyurl.com/3drdbp

OR

Option #2: 3 60-minute sessions per month as outlined above $150 per month in one lump sum of $900

Bonus to the first 5 to register: Your choice of one of two cd packages

Click here to reserve this option: http://tinyurl.com/32ww2l

OR

Option #3: All of the above plus ONE 45-minute individual session per month with Andrea or Tina (your choice)

Note: Scheduling will be done first-come first-serve and individual time must be used each month.

$325 per month

Bonus to the first 5 to register: Your choice of one of two cd packages

Click here to secure this option: http://tinyurl.com/39kqmc

If you'd like to do some comparing, use this webpage to review regular 1-on-1 coaching fees and details:

http://www.MultipleStreamsCoaching.com

And here are a few kind words from previous coaching clients and Advanced Group Coaching attendees for your warm and fuzzies. :-)

"Andrea, I cannot say enough good things about our time together. You were business consultant, business coach, personal coach, and couples coach – all in just three hours!!

I loved the way you cracked open our business model to find the holes that needed to be plugged. I loved the way you were able to cut to the heart of every problem and concern, while still having compassion for the personal and emotional feelings surrounding it all.

Most of all, I loved the way you were instantly able to see the real reason I was struggling with my book. You were more right than you will ever know. "

-- Jennifer Koretsky Founder, Head Coach & Chief Visionary Officer
www.ADDmanagement.com

---

"Not only did we strategize exactly how to take my business to the next level, but Andrea also addressed ALL the pieces essential to creating the business and life I most want. I left our meeting with the big picture firmly planted in my mind, an action plan in hand, and no doubt that everything I’m envisioning for my business and my life will become my reality.”

Alicia M Forest, MBA
www.ClientAbundance.com

---

"I'm thinking in new and more powerful ways! I make decisions more quickly and decisively, I'm more focused and less frantic, and find it much easier to "let go" and drop or delegate work."

Terri Zwierzynski
www.Solo-E.com

---

"My business has completely changed because of this coaching. I have let go of a partnership and am now working with a new partner; this has been a huge shift for me. I get stubborn about how I think things are supposed to look, and Andrea's yoga for the mind, as well as no bull way of talking has really helped me rearrange the way I work. And thank God for that!"

Kristine Carey
www.LifestyleCatalysts.com

Got questions? Happy to help. Just email andrea@andreajlee.com and Tina or I will get back to you.