Category: victory

Love yourself

Loving Yourself Because of God’s Unending Love :: Dr. Monica Debro

Posted on by Evangeline

Over the last couple of years, I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Monica Debro through a Mastermind group for coaches that we’re members of.  She has a doctorate in Nursing. Every week, I get to see the compassion she has for others. She has a group that ministers to women on Facebook  called “Love Yourself to Life”. I believe one of the most influential things she does is to speak out on domestic abuse.

All of these factors are key in how she views life–that it should always be lived through the lens of God’s love. It’s an honor to have her share her wisdom here.

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

I remember being in high school and not liking myself, let alone loving myself. As a teenager I wanted to fit in and be liked by others. Developing friendships was important to me because I thought it would bring value to my teenage life and help me to like myself even more. Well, I graduated high school, still not liking myself much and my actions definitely didn’t show love for self.

Fast forward to my adult years, I’d learned to like myself and if I can be honest, it was mostly because of my accomplishment of becoming a nurse. Little did I know that I still hadn’t learned to love myself. It wasn’t even a thought of consideration and definitely didn’t take up space in my heart’s desires. How could it? There was no thought of loving myself and embracing the second half of the scripture ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Mark 12:31 NIV. It was easy to love my neighbor and doing for others. However, the “as yourself” part took years to become activated in my life.

My Journey of Love and Self-Discovery

For me to emerge from darkness into His light, I had to make necessary, specific, dedicated, and realistic actions daily.

  • Submerging myself in God’s Word
  • Spending quality quiet time with God
  • Writing scriptures on index cards and reading them daily.
    • This especially helped during moments when Satan was badgering my thoughts.
    • I keep handwritten index scripture cards by my bed to read every night.
  • Reading daily devotionals and affirmations out loud over myself every day
    • Remember, the devil flees at the name of Jesus, so we must speak His name and His Word for Satan to flee.
  • Praise and Worship music
  • Paying attention to my environment, what I listen to and the conversations that I have with others.
  • There were days that I shut off television and social media because I needed to focus on my healing.

Loving myself has been a journey of pain, forgiveness, healing, and restoration. It also involved remembering unhappy times that I’d suppressed deep in my memory. Why was this necessary? God had to uproot what was holding me hostage and not allowing me to see myself as the woman He created me to be. He needed to awaken my inner being to understand the value in loving myself unconditionally. I couldn’t be bound to past sins that had unknowingly been preventing me from embracing Romans 5:8 and God’s unending love for me.

Scriptures for Loving Yourself

God took me on a journey of self-discovery and healing. Through His Word, I discovered who I am in Him and what I can have through Him. Guess what? So can you!  Are you ready to go on a short, not all-inclusive journey of self-discovery? Trust me, there is much more to who God says we are than what I’ve listed below for us.

  • Fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:4)
  • More than a conquer (Romans 8:37)
  • Forgiven (Colossians 3:13)
  • Saved through faith (Ephesians 2:8)
  • Have power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7)
  • I have perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3)
  • A light of the world (Matthew 5:14)
  • I AM A Proverbs 31 Woman!

God’s unending love helps me to believe His Word. It helps me to embrace Proverbs 31 even when I go astray from the characteristics of this woman. Reality check! We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). So, do I miss the mark sometimes? Absolutely. And if you’re truthful with yourself, you do too. But as the open scripture says, “While we were still sinners, Christ dies for us.” He knew that we would need saving. He knew that a demonstrating of his unending love by sending His Son Jesus would help us to learn to embrace self-love and truly, authentically love who He created us to be.

An Action Plan for Loving Yourself

  • Quiet yourself and your environment for a few minutes. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Calm your thoughts before we shift to the action plan.
  • Identify where you are struggling to embrace God’s love and desires for your life?
  • What is the root cause of the difficulty in believing who God says that you are and what you can do/be?
  • Is there someone you need to forgive, or do you need to forgive yourself in order to love yourself because of God’s unending love for you?
  • Take some time to reflect on these questions. Then write out your best realistic action plan to begin healing in whatever areas is holding you bound. Why? Because You Are WORTH IT!

Along your journey of self-discovery, remember that you are worthy of love and forgiveness. Remember to forgive yourself in the process because God forgave you a long time ago.

Monica DebroDr. Monica Debro, DNP, MSN, RN

Dr. Monica Debro, owner of Love Yourself to Life™, is a leader who is transforming the lives of women through inspirational writings, events, and speaking engagements. She is the host and keynote speaker for The Elephant in the Room and the Love Yourself to Life™ conferences. Dr. Debro also hosts the Always Wear Your Tiara™ event in which women have received intimate breakthroughs in their personal and professional lives.

As a practicing Nurse Educator and Life Coach, Dr. Debro engages in life-changing conversations and action plans to help women embrace the essence of who they are and not allow the past to interfere with their future.  Being transparent allows her to be influential in helping others identify current concerns and develop specific and realistic action steps to heal from their past and reach their goals.

Dr. Debro is a member of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence and has been a guest speaker at several domestic violence and community violence awareness conferences. She is the author of Broken Believer No More and Love Yourself to Life. Broken Believer No More has received recognition at the Los Angeles and New York book festivals. Dr. Debro is also a co-author in Grace to Recover: How to Divorce Hurt, Addiction, and OVERCOME Trials with the Power of a Loving God.

 

Monica Debro

giving up

When You Feel Like Giving Up

Posted on by Evangeline

The enemy would like nothing better than for us to give up on our God-given desires and goals.

When we feel like God is not following through on His promises…

When we don’t see the results we anticipated…

We need a plan. A plan that we can count on to pull us through the tears, the fears, and the dread that comes when we experience delay. I think the best plan for maintaining hope and for changing any circumstance in our lives always needs to include the power of God’s Word. The Word is what helps us remember that the God of the universe loves us without fail and is always on our side. The Bible makes it clear that God loves us with a no-matter-what love. Incorporating His promises into our plan makes it an effective battle plan so that we maintain hope and strongly resist giving up.

The Alternative to Giving Up

David encouraged himself when he was on the verge of giving up (1 Samuel 30:6).  You could do the same, couldn’t you?

Here are 4 examples from Scripture that you can use as a part of your battle plan to ultimately live as the victor God created you to be. Use them to keep yourself encouraged about experiencing what God has promised:

  • “But as for you, be strong and do not give up.” – 2 Chronicles 15:7
  • “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial.” – James 1:12
  • “Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” – Mark 10:27

  • “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then.” – Ephesians 6:12-14

What other scriptures would you add to this list? Please share one in the comments! 🙂 

The Word is what helps us remember that the God of the universe is on our side and loves us with a no-matter-what love. It makes our plan into an effective battle plan so that we maintain hope and strongly resist giving up. Share on X

A Live Online Event TONIGHT for Live to Win — Join Me!

Posted on by Evangeline

For the past 2 months, it’s been my privilege to have members of the Woman2Woman Book Club (on Facebook) reading my book, Live to Win. I LOVE helping people transform their lives for the better. That’s why I wrote this book. The fact that women around the world have been sharing with one another and encouraging each other because of the contents of my book is marvelous! My prayer is that they are now living more like victors rather than victims.

Tonight, at 7pm PDT, there will be a live event to discuss how you can live to win in every area of your life.

So consider this your formal invitation to join us tonight! If you’re in the Phoenix, AZ area, come be a part of the audience. I’d love to meet you!

If you live elsewhere, join us online. You can watch the discussion via live stream at Fcc-phx.com.

It’s been fun and such an honor to be a part of this effort to have more women reading my book.

Are you a member of a book club? I’d REALLY appreciate it if you’d make Live to Win recommended reading for your group too.

 

Believe It or Not, God’s Word Covers It

Posted on by Evangeline

So often, we forget that God’s Word covers everything that we could possibly need or want. Yes, even in 2016, God’s Word is still relevant and able to affect change in our lives. We can choose to believe what God has said…or not. He has given us the freedom to choose.

I recently read a passage from the Believers Voice of Victory Magazine that drives this point home:

“No matter what kind of situation we are facing, no matter how terrible, dangerous, and confusing it appears to be, God’s Word covers it, sees through it, and reveals the answer to its defeat. The living Word of God will penetrate the darkest difficulties and shed light on the most impossible situations.” ~Kenneth Copeland

God’s Word Covers It!

If you’re involved in a struggle or facing an impending challenge, rest in knowing that God’s Word covers it. It’s up to you to find what He has said about it and then stand on it until you see it manifested. Ask Him, ” Lord, what is it that I still need to see in Your Word that will bring me victory?”  God will always gladly answer this question!

God's word cover itI remember hearing Dr. Bill Winston say that he found his ministry airplane in the Word. That got my attention! There were no airplanes 2000+ years ago when the Bible was written; how could it be in the Word? But he had prayed asking God to show him how to pray to meet the needs of his fast-growing ministry which was requiring an inordinate amount of travel for him to preach. Some time later, a preacher from Africa was speaking at Dr. Winston’s church and in the middle of his sermon, stopped, turn around, looked at Dr. Winston and said, “Your airplane is in Ecclesiastes 10:20” and then turned back around and went right on preaching. Of course, Dr. Winston feverishly flipped through his Bible to find that passage and there it was…his airplane:

“for a bird of the air shall carry the voice”

Don’t tell me that Scripture isn’t applicable in 2016 (and beyond)!

No matter what you’re facing today, rest in knowing that God’s Word covers it. Your solution is embedded inside the Bible. It’s up to you to choose to discover it and the use it as a tool that will manifest the victorious life that God intended for you to live.

After all, He wants you to LIVE TO WIN!

Will you take time today to find a Scripture that addresses your need/challenge?

You can find more information and encouragement about effectively using God’s Word in my book, Live to Win.

God's Armor - eph 6

God’s Armor: Real Protection for Real Life

Posted on by Evangeline

In Ephesians 6, the armor we are to put on is not our own and it’s not made by human hands. It’s God’s armor.

The Armor of David’s Choice

When David decided to face the giant Goliath, King Saul wanted David to put on his royal armor for protection against the powerful enemy. But David told Saul that he’d prefer not to put on the king’s armor. It was unfamiliar and uncomfortable. David had no confidence in that armor.

He was accustomed to God’s protection. God had protected him when he fought against a bear and a lion while he watched his father’s flocks. As he talked with Saul, he recalled how God had come through for him so many times. Reminiscing about what God had done increased David’s confidence in God.  He chose to trust God in his impending battle against the giant.  David refused man’s mode of protection– he didn’t want to fight in his own strength.  Instead he put on God’s armor. He had faith in God’s love for him and he was confident that God was willing to protect him  (1 Samuel 17:23-46).

” We must all be aware that our defeats have mainly come from one of two errors– the one being that of fighting in our own strength and the other being that of leaving unused our God-given power.”  

Alexander MacLaren

Putting on God’s Armor

Putting on God’s armor means having an attitude of dependence on Him. This provides a higher level of confidence in His power. It makes it easier to have an expectation of the fulfillment of His promises. As we draw closer to Him and commune with Him, we rest and receive His power. It’s all about receiving Him. It’s all about receiving His love.

Hear Jesus encouraging us, “Be of good cheer, I have already overcome the world [the troubles that we face].” If He has already overcome whatever we are facing,  why would we try to defeat an enemy who has already been defeated? If He has already finished doing everything it takes for us be more than conquerors, why would we try to complete a work that’s already been completed? He wants us to rest in His victory.

Jesus accomplished the vanquishing of every foe on our behalf (Colossians 2:15). He stripped them and disarmed them, publicly shamed them, and triumphed over them on the cross and through His resurrection. That’s why we can now stand as more than a conqueror. He did all the work in order to let us enjoy the spoils of His victory.

Would it make sense for a soldier to only wear one piece of armor and then expect to enjoy complete protection? No! A soldier can expect complete protection only when wearing the entire armor provided. It is likewise with God. We’re instructed to put on the whole armor of God (in its entirety) so that we can experience all the blessings He has planned.

Your Pieces of God’s Armor

  • Put on the helmet that your salvation provides so that your mindset is one of belief in God’s love for you.
  • Put on the breastplate that your righteousness in Christ provides so that your emotions will reflect the knowledge that you have been made “right,” in God’s eyes.
  • Put on  the belt that the Truth provides so that God’s armor is securely fitted on you and you can believe that His Truth is protecting you at all times.
  • Put on the shoes that the peace of God provides through the promises of God, equipping you to stand your ground erect and to move forward.
  • Pick up the shield that faith provides. Faith believes and speaks the Word of God in order to quench the devil’s fiery tactics. Faith enables you to take hold of God’s strength, so that you can rest from trusting in and using your own strength.
  • Pick up the sword that the Spirit provides so that you can make preemptive strikes and enforce the victory Jesus has given you by telling the enemy what God says about your situation.
  • Pray consistently so that your attention is on the One who is able and willing to dissipate and dispel any fear caused by the enemy.

Photo courtesy of Sattva | FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

You Can Smell the Fragrance of Victory

Posted on by Evangeline

This is a revised article about the fragrance of victory I shared a few years ago. I hope it encourages you and that you’ll expect to triumph in your circumstances!

“Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.”  2 Corinthians 2:14 [NKJV]

fragrance of victory

The first part of that scripture, has been one that I’ve believed in and stood on through multiple and various struggles. I frequently have to remind myself of my victory in Christ so that I don’t concentrate on the problem and sink into a pit of despair about my circumstances. I depend on that verse because it contains the word “always.” “Always” means without exception, on every occasion, continuously. When I have consistently put my trust/faith/belief in that victory supplied by Jesus to every believer, I have always see its manifestation.

 

The Fragrance of Knowing Him

But only today did the second half of that verse stand out to me—“through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.” Occasionally, I’ve had the privilege to teach Bible study class at my church about the unmerited, unearned favor (grace) of God. Having done so has opened my eyes to an entirely different way of looking at things! Now it’s easier to see that knowing more about Jesus’ perfect and complete work on the cross multiplies the manifestation of His grace in my life (2 Peter 1:2). His grace does not depend on our efforts/works.  It is dependent upon our believing that His grace is for us and that His grace gives us continuous victory. We did not do anything to acquire grace because Jesus did it all. Knowing Him imparts a beautiful fragrance to our lives because increased knowledge about JESUS multiplies grace and peace.

To know Him — His love, His strength, His sacrifice, His work —  is to know victory, and it smells good!

Do you smell the sweet fragrance of victory in the midst of your troubling circumstances?

Victories :: Guest Post

Posted on by Evangeline

In conjunction with the release of my book, Live To Win! 5 Essentials for Victory and Success, I’m excited to have provided a series of guest posts over the last few weeks. These folks are special to me, having coached me in one way or another to achieve my career goals and experience victories at various times and in various areas of my life.

Today’s guest post is the final installment in this series. I’m pleased to share with you the insights from Shelly Ryan. She is a certified life coach who helps people dig into their dreams and take action to make them happen. She helped me to take action and host my first iHope Fertility Retreat. Shelly has experienced many victories in life and shares a few of them with us.

Victories in This Game Called LIFE

When I received my “Thank You for Working for the Federal Government for Five Years” certificate it felt like a slap in the face. I know some people would be thrilled having a comfortable federal job with a Thrifty Savings Plan account, but for me, it felt like a death sentence. I was working long hours, had no work/life balance, was extremely unhealthy and had to drag myself into work every day. I was completely caught up in the hamster wheel…wake up, go to work, come home, watch TV, go to sleep, repeat. I felt unhappy for a while, but my discontent was not strong enough for me to do anything about it. When I read that certificate, I knew it was time to take action.

So I quit! I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that to everyone, but for me, I needed to slow down and figure out what was important and I knew I couldn’t do that while I was still working at that job. It took me a few months to figure it out, but once I did, I haven’t looked back even once.

It hasn’t always been easy, but taking that leap of faith ten years ago has led to so many victories. Here are some of my favorites.

I Love My Work

When I was figuring out what was next for me, I spent time getting really clear about my gifts, talents, passions and values. Prior to that, I applied for jobs that had position descriptions that I thought I was qualified for and found myself fitting into those criteria. I honed some valuable skills and learned a ton along the way, but never did I have a job that fully utilized my true gifts and talents. Nor did I ever work for anyone that was terribly concerned with helping me figure out what those were and how to best utilize them. Once I took the time to figure out what was important to me, I have been able to choose work that is in alignment with my true self and I fully enjoy all of the work that I do!

Victories-Shelly RyanI Increased My Faith

Since I made the decision to become an entrepreneur, I gave up the comfort of a paycheck every other week. That decision brought up a lot of insecurities – can I pay my bills this month; do I have enough money to do the things I want to do; can I give what I want to give; will I have enough to retire? These are all things I worried about even when I had a regular paycheck and were exacerbated when I didn’t. What has been truly amazing is that during these ten years, I have always had enough. I’ve developed a new belief and reliance on God that He will take care of me no matter what. When one project started to get really slow, another would develop. When my savings started to drop, a new opportunity would appear. I tell my clients regularly that you have to be very clear about WHAT you want and leave HOW it will happen up to God. That has become my practice.

I Understand My Worth

I finally learned how to love me. Even though it sounds cliché and that we should all know that, I honestly didn’t know what that meant. I was very reliant on the input I got from my bosses and colleagues to understand my worth. If I got a good performance review, I felt good about myself. If someone asked me to take on a new project, that made me feel needed. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why I was working so many long hours…I produced because I wanted to get accolades to feel better about myself and because I produced, more was given to me. It’s not that feedback and input isn’t important to me now, but I understand that it is just that—feedback. It isn’t me. It isn’t what makes me valuable or worthy. I still produce, but for very different reasons.

I Take Care of Myself

I would never think of missing a 10:00 staff meeting, but I can’t tell you how many times I put a 6:00 workout on my calendar and it would get pushed because of either being too tired, or I had to finish a project. My priorities have most definitely changed since I made that decision ten years ago. I now exercise regularly doing things I never even dreamed of before — hiking, yoga, stand up paddle boarding, meditation and boxing. I’ve learned to eat healthy (green drinks, gluten-free, reduced sugar—seriously???). I take quarterly rejuvenation adventures (just got back from a yoga/meditation retreat in Oregon this quarter and went to Africa last quarter.) And I make a solid effort to get eight hours of sleep every night (in spite of much teasing from my friends that I go to bed at 7:00 pm!) All of these things were nearly foreign to me just a few years ago but are now a part of who I am.

These last ten years have been an adventure for sure! I’ve gotten to travel all across the world, open my heart up for love, care for my father during his battle with cancer…all of these opportunities opened up for me when I decided to take action and make a change. Loving what I do, increasing my faith, understanding my worth and taking care of myself are some of my victories as a result of that change. I can’t wait to see what the next ten+ years have in store for me! 🙂

Victory in life-Shelly Ryan

 

 

 

Sometimes You Have to S-t-r-e-t-c-h Your Faith for Victory :: Guest Post

Posted on by Evangeline

In conjunction with the release of my book, Live To Win! 5 Essentials for Victory and Success, I’m excited to provide a series of guest posts over the next few weeks. These folks are special to me, having coached me in one way or another to achieve my career goals and experience victories at various times and in various areas of my life.

Today, I’m pleased to share with you the insights from my friend, Kendra Tillman. She encourages women who work from home to apply spiritual principles in order to grow their career. She helped me to stretch my faith and rely on God as I launched out as an author and speaker. Keeping the faith is a way of life that Kendra espouses no matter the challenge or difficulty.

When Victory Feels Out of Your Reach

Live to win - FaithI love to read Hebrews 11. Hebrews 11 chronicles what is referred to as the Faith Hall of Fame. It’s the Who’s Who of the faithful, the persistent, the imperfect, yet, still strong in faith. The lives of Noah, Abraham and Sarah and Moses are all detailed in the Old Testament. Hebrews 11 briefly shares their stories and the stories of several other ordinary men and women who wrestled with the same fears, insecurities and uncertainties we all face.

Do you know the one thing the Bible says all these men and women had in common? In Hebrews 11:13 we are told that “all these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it.” They all died…in faith. They were in faith that what God promised He would do. Yet, they died without seeing the promise fulfilled. In this chapter we are assured we are in good company, when we feel we haven’t received an answer to every prayer we’ve prayed.

Even though they didn’t see the promise fulfilled when they expected, they still believed.

How many days, weeks, months, years have passed since God has spoken a promise to your heart? Has the length of time caused you to waver in believing it will happen? I pray this post will stir your faith.

If we keep reading in Hebrews, God drops another nudge to our faith at the very beginning of Hebrews 12. “We are surrounded by a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith.” Have you ever been to a race? One of the best things about races is the crowd of family and friends that gather along the race route to cheer on the runners. They hold up signs. They yell encouragement. It’s wonderful!

Hebrews 12 tells us there’s a similar crowd that gathers for us in this race of faith that we run. These witnesses are not only the men and women mentioned in Hebrews 11, but all the men and women of faith who’ve lived since. They are waiting to see you cross the finish line. They are there to watch you win! The interesting thing is winning might look different than you expected.

No matter what you are facing today you are destined to win in the race of faith! Your victory may not look like mine and it may not even look like what you imagined, but you will win. I John 5:4 tells us that we receive victory through our faith. This is a promise from God’s word – our faith gives us the victory over the difficulties we experience in this world.

What promise from God seems distant or impossible for you? Surround yourself with people who want to see you win. Strengthen your faith by meditating on faith stories of men and women who persevered in faith. Stretch your faith beyond what feels possible.

 

Victory -Kendra TillmanKendra Tillman is the founder of StrongerThanYouThink.co, a growing movement that energizes working women with resources for making their personal, professional, and spiritual growth a priority. She is also the author of You’re Stronger than You Think.

Victory Over Career Boredom and Being Stuck :: Guest Post

Posted on by Evangeline

In conjunction with the release of my book, Live To Win! 5 Essentials for Victory and Success, I’m excited to provide a series of guest posts over the next few weeks. These folks are special to me, having coached me in one way or another to achieve my career goals and experience victories at various times and in various areas of my life.

Today, I’m pleased to share with you the insights from Ellen Violette, The Ebook Coach. She’s helped me in my career so that I understand how to write, finish, and market ebooks. Experiencing victories in your career is important. Ellen’s business insights may help you with that. Her insights can also be applied to life in general, as you’ll see as she shares some life-changing decisions she had to make.

How I Reinvented Myself and Found My True Calling

L2W career quote- E. VioletteWhen I started my business, the economy was humming along and people were hungry for Internet-related information, so I started offering copywriting to clients. But, I had always wanted to write books and the timing was right. My husband and I had been buying, fixing, and selling real estate, but the market was getting too hot and there was nothing to buy. So, I started researching ebooks.

I loved the idea of writing ebooks because I could get directly to my potential buyers and I didn’t have to wait for some middleman to approve of my work, which had been the case in the music business where I worked as a songwriter and producer for almost 20 years. I kept winning music awards, (I beat out 30,000 writers for Grand Prize in lyric writing in the Music City Song Festival) but I wasn’t getting the cuts because of the politics involved. I even got a Grammy nomination, and still the work wasn’t coming my way. That’s why I was so excited to discover ebooks and self-publishing. Nobody was going to stop me or get in my way with ebooks!

I wrote my first ebook on writing ebooks and I was finding the process overwhelming and hard to follow, so I looked for an ebook coach, but there weren’t any. My husband and I were already immersed in learning Internet Marketing and since we were going to the BIG SEMINAR, a fabulous event hosted by marketing great, Armand Morin, I thought, surely, I would find an ebook coach there. But, I didn’t. And that’s when I knew I was going to become the first ever ebook coach!

I put together a writing workshop, and then a marketing workshop, and it worked! I made $13,000 on my first offer and was making a 6-figure income in 2 ½ years. I thought I was on my way. I bought a Mercedes and moved to the beach; life was good.

But, then the recession hit, social media came in, and everything changed. Whereas before people had been throwing money at me, now I was hearing more and more from people who wanted to take my courses and workshops, but they couldn’t afford them. I was working harder than ever, but my income was shrinking. So, I started taking more programs trying to figure out what was wrong and how to fix it, but nothing worked. I continued to make a living online while others in my position simply perished. But I wasn’t happy.

In the meantime, Amazon introduced Kindle and that revitalized the ebook industry, I got really good at doing bestseller launches for myself and my clients (I have a 100% success rate taking authors to #1 whom I coach) and that was a lot of fun; it kept me afloat; but more and more people were writing ebooks, launching ebooks, and calling themselves experts. How was I going to continue to differentiate myself and get enough work to stay in business? In addition, I was so pigeonholed that I could only talk about a narrow range of subjects, and boredom was setting in. Something in my career had to change.

So, I went back to the basics. I didn’t have the money to hire a coach so I became my own coach and put myself through the same paces that I put my clients through. I asked myself, “What do I love to do?” “What makes me unique?”, and “How can I leverage my business, so I don’t have to work so hard?” “Or at least work so hard at things I don’t like doing?” And once I could answer those questions, things started to change.

But, I had to be honest with myself. I decided I would only do what I was passionate about, so I am doing my first collaborative book called, “How to Crush it in Business Without Crushing Your Spirit, How Entrepreneurs Can Overcome Depression and Find Success” and loving it! I’m helping more entrepreneurs with a subject people struggle with, but are embarrassed to talk about and finding real solutions! And it’s become more of a mission than a job.

I also made some life-changing decisions; I would write books for other people because I enjoy it; I would no longer coach people who were energy burners because I don’t enjoy it; I would only work with action-takers because they are the ones who get the results I offer; I would joint venture more and stop trying to do it all myself (I now run a mastermind that I thoroughly enjoy with a co-leader, so when I have a speaking opportunity that’s too good to pass up, she can run it and I don’t have to feel guilty!); I would value what I do more and not give into people who wanted my expertise, but didn’t want to pay me what I am worth; I would outsource more of what I don’t like to do; and I would focus on what I love to do that pays me well.

I had to make some changes in my career strategy to accomplish this. I started spending more time on LinkedIn and going offline to networking meetings. I also started reaching out more to contacts I already had— to colleagues, former clients, and prospects. And when I did this, I found that some of the tasks I had hated doing in the past, I no longer hated because there was now a much desired payoff! They have given me more opportunities, more leads, and better clients and I’m doing what I love!

So, I want to encourage anyone who’s struggling to re-evaluate what they are doing and find another way. And if you need help, I offer a free Extraordinary Results Consultation at http://ellenlikes.com/schedulefreeconsult.

 

Ellen Violette - Career Victory post

©Copyright 2016
All Rights Reserved
Ellen Violette

info@bestsellerbusinessblueprint.com
818 970-6132

 

How to Experience Victorious Living::Guest Post

Posted on by Evangeline

In conjunction with the release of my book, Live To Win! 5 Essentials for Victory and Success, I’m excited to provide a series of guest posts over the next few weeks. These folks are special to me, having coached me in one way or another to achieve my goals at various times and in various areas of my life.

Today, I’m pleased to share with you the insights from John Burton. He helped me as a business coach a few years ago and was instrumental in helping me take the leap of faith to become an author. I’m sure the way he breaks down how to live as a winner in life will help you toward that end.

7 Keys To Victorious Living

In the game of life, there are WINNERS and there are LOSERS. The last time I checked, the universe doesn’t hand out participation trophies. Sometimes we find ourselves “on a roll” and other times we seem to be in a “downward spiral”. So what is the secret to living VICTORIOUSLY? How can we WIN more than we LOSE?  The dictionary defines VICTORY as “an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in a battle, game or other competition”. For many of us, the battle keeping us from living a VICTORIOUS life is a battle we consistently wage in the 6 inch space between our ears. Our thoughts, programs and mental conditioning prevent many of us from experiencing the truly VICTORIOUS life we deserve.

Let’s take a closer look at the word VICTORY and examine what I believe are 7 keys to what Pastor Joel Osteen refers to as “living our best life now”.

VICTORY…..Victorious living- John Burton

VIGILANCE.  We must be vigilant in all our efforts and actions. When we take consistent action, we produce consistent results. The key is to do more of what works and less of what doesn’t.  Frustrated people tend to be inconsistent people.

INTUITION. I believe our inner voice is the voice of our creator. Every challenge presents us with an opportunity to make a CHOICE. The CHOICE we make is more empowering when we trust our intuition. We are wise to listen to other points of view but ultimately our decisions and choices must be made by us.

CHARACTER. As stated in the opening sentence, sometimes we win, sometimes we lose. Showing ourselves grace in defeat and exhibiting humility in victory is a true sign of character.

TOLERANCE. We live in a diverse world. We can’t live victoriously if we constantly find ourselves in judgement and disagreement with others. We all have our own set of personal beliefs and values. Living victoriously means that we respect different points of view and learn to separate the other person from their position. This is often referred to as spiritual maturity.

OWNERSHIP. There are three undeniable truths…We ALL make mistakes. We ALL have flaws. We are HUMAN. Our ability to take responsibility for our decisions and subsequent actions (or lack of) is the foundation for victorious living. When we ditch the blame game and embrace personal responsibility, we send a message to the universe that we can be trusted with abundance.

RELATIONSHIPS. Our success in life and business is a team effort. Parents, spouses, friends and associates have all played an important role in our success. Remember, hermits don’t have anything or anyone to celebrate with. Quality relationships are a cornerstone of victorious living.

YESTERDAY. It’s hard to live victoriously and move into our future if we are always looking in the rear view mirror. I once heard a great quote that stated, “yesterday is history, tomorrow’s a mystery, today is a gift, that is why it is called the present.”

Victory is found in the present moment. The next time the past calls, let it go to voicemail, it has nothing new to say.

Here’s to a VICTORIOUS living!

Victorious living- John Burton

 

John Page Burton is an Author, Business Consultant, and Keynote Speaker.

To learn more, visit www.johnpageburton.com