Business, Mindset, What I am up to | Milana | March 7, 2010 | 
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I don’t know what it was….
- the simple compelling language
- the promising topic of a best-selling title
- the deep thinking it made me do
But I just couldn’t stop reading “The Secrets of the Millionaire Mind”, by Harv T. Ecker.
Have you read it?
No, no….
Have you DONE it?
It made me look back at my upbringing and ask myself: “What did my family teach me about money?”
We definitely couldn’t afford a lot of things, and even if we could, we’d have to be on a mission to FIND it (former USSR in the 80’s is where I spent my childhood).
But then I remembered something else…
My dad has a business on the side…quite illegal in those days, but he was simply responding to consumer demand.
It was impossible to find any European or American music in stores. You had to go to the “black market” to meet with other “moonlighters” and either buy it or trade it there. Then my dad would resell that music to others for a higher price.
He also would create a custom recording from different albums by request, for a special price.
So he was always on the lookout for business opportunities… Unfortunately, that’s as far as his entrepreneurship took him in the socialistic Russia in the 80’s. I wonder what he’d be doing if he lived here in his younger years.
Perhaps that’s where my entrepreneurial “gene” came from…
One of the things that especially hit the nerve from the book was the fact that, just because you’re rich, you shouldn’t feel guilty or bad about people who don’t have as much as you do. After all, your being poor doesn’t make them any richer.
On the other hand, if you’re rich, you CAN help them by doing charity, pro-bono work, fundraisers, etc.
Business, Mindset, Uncategorized | Milana | September 27, 2009 | Comments (1)
Here’s my top 7 business book list I discovered and read over the last 5 years:
Business, Mindset | Milana | September 23, 2009 | Comments (0)
How do you define success in your own life?
Freedom to do what I choose, when and where I choose.
What was the turning point in your life that began your success? In other words, when did things begin working for you?
When I realized that the world puts a huge value on knowledge and expertise, not on time.
What was the toughest personal challenges you have had to overcome, and how did you overcome them?
My mom and I in Las Vegas First Time, 2009
Most people think it’s immigrating to another country. However, I had very little to do with it. My parents made the decision and I followed them. Of course, the challenges came when we actually arrived - language, culture, and financial barriers lasted for a couple of years.
I had three main challenges after that.
Changing my career from music to computers. After spending the first 20 years of my life in music, it was a tough and painful decision to make. But computer programming promised to be a solid and reliable career, so I went for it.
Quitting my job to start my business was another big one. After struggling to find good day care for my one-year-old at the time, I finally took a plunge and gave my notice. My family couldn’t believe it, I would wake up in cold sweat for the first few weeks, but I knew somehow everything would work out. It just had to.
Realizing that I can’t do it all and building a team. Three years into my business building venture, I had more ideas than I could handle on my own. I knew I needed to hire someone, but that required a big mind shift: hiring someone to do what I could do myself? Impossible! Today I have 7-9 people on my team depending on the time of year, and love being able to delegate and outsource many projects and tasks.
What is the best piece of advice you can offer someone who is struggling to achieve success in any area of their lives?
Choose one idea, one strategy, one mentor, focus on it for a year, tune everything else and everybody else out. That’s how I’ve been able to get ahead and build a business without any previous experience.
Who or what inspires you?
I love personal brands. It’s such a noisy world, everybody is an expert, everybody has something to sell. But when I see someone who used their personal story to create a compelling brand in their niche, built a product line for their customers, and was able to rise above this noise in the market, I feel inspired.
My favorite people who have inspired me are Michael Gerber, Seth Godin, and Nido Qubein
Lifestyle, Mindset, What I am up to | Milana | September 12, 2009 | Comments (0)
Every May I get a little anxious…
I think it has to do with my anticipation of the kids being out of school, the heat, and the ants migrating into my kitchen to cool off.
Over the years I learned to prepare for summer time by NOT starting any “heavy” projects and keeping my schedule as open as possible.
I also like to catch up on my reading…In fact, I’ve got an embarrassing confession to make.
You know how you go to events and someone always asks, “How many people have read ‘Think and Grow Rich’ by Napoleon Hill?”
Most people raise their hands…Of course, I raise my hand, too. I have the book and I started reading it…
…about 17 times!
Maybe it’s because English is not my first language, or I simply wasn’t ready for it, but until last week I never ACTUALLY read this classic!
It’s truly amazing! I keep turning back to the first page to check if it really was written in 1937 - it might as well have been written TODAY!
Here are my favorite quotes so far:
“The accumulation of great fortunes calls for power, and power is acquired through highly organized and intelligently directed specialized knowledge, but that knowledge does not necessarily have to be in the possession of the person who accumulates the fortune.”
Get it?
It’s about creating a team!
Another one:
“Riches, when they come in huge quantities, are never the result of hard work!”
YES! I guess that’s where “Work smart, not hard” came from…
On leadership:
“There are two types of people in the world, leaders and followers. Decide at the outset whether you intend to become a leader in your chosen calling or remain a follower.
The difference in compensation is vast.”
Isn’t this what Seth Godin writes about in “Tribes?” Everything truly stems from Napoleon Hill’s masterpiece!
I connect the next one to the major problem in the coaching industry:
“The world does not pay for what people ‘know’. It pays them for what they do, or induce others to do.”
In other words, coach on what you already succeed in, and “riches will follow.” Most coach on what they wish they had themselves, and this lack of authenticity hurts their business.
Is Napoleon Hill really the grandfather of all self-help?
I don’t know for certain…But it does seem like all the books written since then, and all the coaching programs created in the last 20 years, are based on his principles.
I am still chugging along - reading chapter 10 right now…
I even skipped watching my favorite “Friends” episode to read it…and in my world it says a lot 
Milana
Lifestyle, Marketing, Mindset, Passive Income, Systems, What I am up to | Milana | May 13, 2009 | Comments (15)
I finally cracked the code!
After nine years of people telling me that I couldn’t build a million-dollar company working 4-5 hours a day, while raising two small children, I proved them wrong.
(I only wish I would’ve known about this business model sooner and not listened to those who slave over their businesses into the night!)
I found an amazing business model that allows you to cut your work time in half and still experience massive growth in your business.
I call it “The BLISS Factor” and this April I’ll be personally coaching a select group of entrepreneurs in creating a high- income business with unlimited growth potential using the same model.
“The BLISS Factor” is designed specifically for coaches, consultants, authors, speakers, trainers, and other expertise- based business owners who are tired of being chained to their business and ready to break free from it, while creating a highly profitable company.
REGISTRATION for this unique and highly experiential 3-day live event will open next Wednesday, February 18 at 1:00 pm EST and will accept people on a “first-come-first-serve basis” (watch for more details soon).
In the mean time, get a copy of “The BLISS Factor” business model outlined in my “Unlock Your Business Growth” toolkit:
=====================================================
F R E E T O O L K I T D O W N L O A D
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“UNLOCK YOUR BUSINESS GROWTH: Do Less, Make More,
and Turn Your Natural Ability Into a Million-Dollar Company”
***Available in PDF and MP3 format***
If you’ve been frustrated with your business lately, feeling tired and discouraged, what I reveal inside this toolkit may transform your business and change your life.
Don’t let any “gurus” out there tell you that you need to put more hours in, do more public speaking, attend networking events, work harder etc. You can create an amazing company on YOUR terms, and I show you exactly how to do this inside.
Be sure to watch the video on the page above! I share two specific mindshifts I had to make before I could implement “The BLISS Factor” business model and create a business full of complete personal freedom of time and money: http://www.TheBlissFactor.com
Business, Dream Team, Lifestyle, Mindset, Passive Income, Systems, What I am up to | Milana | February 10, 2009 | Comments (2)
To hear this topic in audio format, click the link below:
Finding the Right Business Mentor
This happens all the time…
You see someone successful, you’re amazed at their accomplishments, you subscribe to their newsletter, buy their products, go to their events, and start modeling what they do.
A year later you find yourself overwhelmed, frustrated, and not even close to the results you expected to see.
There are several reasons why this might happen:
…Or, there might be another reason, which is often the case:
When you see a successful entrepreneur, what you don’t really know is how they got there, and most importantly what their life looks like today.
Many successful business owners give up their lives to build a business. Or, at the very least, they decide to put their lives on hold while they build it.
Late night product launches that last for weeks, being chained to their computers for 10-12 hours a day, missing a family vacation just to complete a project - that’s what it takes many times to build a profitable business. We just don’t see what happens “behind the curtain.”
And here’s the kicker…
The person you chose to follow may NOT be the right person for YOU! What worked for one entrepreneur may not necessarily work for another. I spent months trying to create a program my mentor suggested, only to discover that I didn’t want to run it at all!
Be careful who you listen to:
I know for a FACT that you can build a highly successful and profitable business on *your terms*, doing only the things that fit into your lifestyle.
So….Do you have the right business role model? Or, is it time to find a new one?
Business, Lifestyle, Mindset | Milana | February 4, 2009 | Comments (6)
Last week I took a very unique personality assessment; it tells you how you perceive others, how you are perceived by others, and how your perception style impacts everything you do in life. This includes how you approach conflicts, how you are perceived in a leadership role, how you are perceived by your team, and so on.
Lynda-Ross Vega then spent an hour with me on the phone interpreting my results. Want to listen in? It’s really personal and I hesitated before posting it here, but I figure what the heck. Here’s the audio.
If you’d like to take VRFT Assessment, here’s where you can get it. I had my 14-year old take it, and he was fascinated reading his results!
Mindset, What I am up to | Milana | February 2, 2009 | Comments (0)
Last week I ran a survey asking you about your biggest challenge in running and growing your business.
I LOVE surveys because they’re very eye-opening! Here is a quick glance at the results:
Of the 346 people who responded:
Business owners with a lower income level said they have trouble:
- Identifying their specialty and niche market
- Building a mailing list of prospects
- Getting customers and clients
Business owners with a higher income level shared that they are struggling with:
- Getting things done
- Finding the right people for their team
- Creating efficient business systems
While there are many differences between “beginners” and “advanced” business owners, I noticed one common thread. OVERWHELM - not enough time to implement all ideas; too many great opportunities and constant feeling of missing out on them.
I find this absolutely fascinating! No matter where you are in your business, overwhelm can easily take over your business and life.
I found several very powerful ways to get things done and drive my business forward without experiencing the overwhelm most entrepreneurs complain of.
Here they are:
Brandon hours before the Inauguration 2009
My son has just returned from the inauguration youth conference, totally pumped up, excited, inspired, ready to do something grrrrreat!
After the first day of being in school, he said to me: “I felt so inspired and motivated, but everyone else stayed the same.”
This is exactly what happens at live events, conferences, bootcamps, etc. While you’re there, you feel like you could lift the world! When you come back, most people around you are not on the same page….So it’s now up to you to stay motivated, to find opportunities to stay connected to that emotion and to the people that you loved in those few days!
Most people don’t have that when they come back, so they lose the momentum and go back to their old routine of doing business and living their lives.
I told my son, “The good thing is that you have an advantage: I understand you, can relate to what you’re saying, and will be here to help you keep your “game” up.”
Hundreds of buses going to the Inauguration 2009
Mindset, What I am up to | Milana | January 23, 2009 | Comments (0)
