She Owns It

Celebrating, Connecting, and Supporting Women Entrepreneurs

The Easy Way to Improve Productivity

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by Jess Penesso

As I left the office, the street outside was dark. A feeling of exhaustion washed over me as I thought about the night ahead and I thought to myself “I better go straight home”. It was only 5pm but I didn’t have an ounce of energy to keep going. This pattern repeated for months until I finally said no more and added this game changer into my routine. Once added – I found more energy than I could ever imagine & moved up in my career while growing my side hustle business. I was happier & more energized than I had ever been in my life!

What is this game changer for my mental game you ask? The answer may surprise you – It’s exercise . Now stay with me – we can use all kinds of tools to shift out mindset to be more productive and one of these is physical exercise that can have immense mental benefits. Which is pretty cool once you realize.

We know exercise is good for our bodies but for our minds it has INSANE benefits. Let’s talk about the top 2 today:

1. Increases Productivity

You can sky rocket productivity when you make exercise a non-negotiable in your week. Exercising increases the amount of endorphins that are released into your body and that in turn increases more energy & productivity. You’re more excited to get back into work when you have a workout high. So when you think you have no time to exercise – schedule it in and you’ll be more productive for it & get everything you need done.

2. Increases Memory

Do you put a ton on your plate every week? Yeah me too. And remembering every detail and staying organized can be a challenge! Exercising increases the production of cells that are responsible for learning and memory allowing you to put more time into learning development & remember all of the details you need to.

So next time you’re leaving the office and you stare at your gym bag with disdain think about this – you’re going to get more done in the next day if you show up & make this time for yourself. Cheers to a more productive & memorable week ahead!

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Jess is a mindfulness strategist and yoga teacher in New York City. As an advertising executive and side hustler, she teaches women how to be happier and more successful at work using mindfulness and wellness strategies. You can sign up for Jess’s Mindful Monday newsletter and listen to her podcast.

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Need a Time-Out? 3 Time Management Mistakes affecting your Health by @Jodi_RD

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time management healthy lifestyle

by Jodi Robinson RD & Dr Lisa Adams ND | Featured Contributors

Lacking time is one of the most common obstacles cited by our clients. It’s still early in the year and we are still hearing about their shiny new health goals, but then we also hear how difficult it is for them to stick to their plan because they believe they don’t have the time.

As female entrepreneurs we have, like you, strived to balanced work, health, family, and life’s ups and downs. We understand the challenges, and we’ve also played the ‘not enough time’ mind-game with ourselves. Let’s face it: It’s not easy to find balance in our busy, often messy, sometimes complicated lives. Even the most intelligent and disciplined of us have struggled with lifestyle balance.

Just look at the life and journey of Arriana Huffington, co-founder of the Huffington Post and author of Thrive: the Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder.* She literally had to pass out, hit her head on her desk and wake in a pool of her own blood to finally embrace healthy habits! She had been growing her company successfully for a couple of years, but was also neglecting herself and her needs which left her completely burnt out. After her lifestyle overhaul she went on to achieve astounding success in her business and enjoyed the multitude of other benefits that a healthy lifestyle provides.

With this is mind, it’s time to let go of excuses and embrace the wisdom found in the following mishaps worthy of a time-out:

  1. Automatically saying “I’m too busy” or “I don’t have time for that.”

 Do you often tell those around you, or yourself, that you just don’t have time for ________ (insert health promoting activity here)? If so, then you are actually putting yourself at a disadvantage when it comes to your health and business. It’s important to take a step back from our packed schedule and evaluate all of our goals and priorities. So yes, it’s time to stop what you’re doing and invest a little time here and now! Hoping we’ll have time tomorrow or next week just isn’t going to cut it.

We need to outsmart the overdrive

If you have a goal, write out what your first small and easy steps might be. Your goal could be completing a five kilometer walk for charity in the next few months to keep you on track for losing some weight. The first step could be as simple as going for a five to ten minute walk three times a week for the first two weeks and the next may be walking for fifteen minutes five times a week, and so on. Reality check – ten minutes a day IS NOT going to interfere with your daily schedule or business goals!

Then write out why you want to reach your goal: This is important to overcome our natural resistance to change. Everyone’s reason is different, but it’s critical to qualify so we can be sure each step we take is aligned with who we are. This will build motivation for change.1

Making ourselves a priority should always be a priority in our business. Many workplace studies have now demonstrated positive health and productivity outcomes when implementing physical activity programs.2 Let’s face it, if we aren’t ‘running well’ how can we expect our business to be well-run?

  1. Thinking we can magically find time for our health somewhere in between running errands and our meeting with so-and-so.

This second time management mishap is perhaps the most common. Health needs to be scheduled, just like your meetings and other obligations. You will struggle to get past the starting line if you don’t give your healthy habits a time slot in your calendar. You are solidifying a commitment to yourself and your goals!

We need to schedule well to get out of schedule hell

This can be as simple as writing it on the family calendar in the kitchen; putting a recurring alarm in your phone or online calendar; or telling your spouse or child that after you go grocery shopping every Saturday, you’re going to the gym. Create a set routine for your health and wellness activities, just like you do for your business and household.

  1. Taking on too much and being hard on ourselves if we don’t achieve a goal

We are always our own worst critic and making changes with our lifestyle can bring out that little devil voice inside: “Yeah, you tried this last time, didn’t work. You just don’t have time!” or “You slept in, so now you won’t make your yoga/fitness class; may as well just quit now since you can’t commit.” Sound familiar?

We need to pitch the perfectionism

The truth is that a little goes a long way: Research shows that committing to small, simple, and sustainable health changes over time are what lead us to achieve and maintain our health goals and create a vibrant lifestyle that lasts.3 So we need to tell that little voice to “shut-it” and give ourselves permission be human. This means that if we accidently sleep in we can still do ten minutes of exercise at home and maybe just next time put our alarm on the other side of the room.

What’s the Bottom Line?

There are only so many hours to work with a day and we all juggle many different responsibilities each and every day. If we can prioritize and schedule the business side of our life, then why aren’t we doing the same for our health needs and goals?

Our mission is to empower female entrepreneurs to put themselves first in their business and in life through reserving a top slot on their schedule for healthy habits and taking small, realistic steps to reach their wellness goals.

It’s not just the children in our lives needing to take time to re-think their daily choices and actions.

So please go get your favourite bevy, your schedule app or book, and give yourself a time-out!

Cheers to you and your healthy habits,

Jodi & Lisa

References:

  1. Motivational Interviewing in Health Care: Helping Patients Change Behavior. Rollnick S, Miller W, Butler C. Guilford Press, 2008.
  2. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Meta-Analysis of Workplace Physical Activity Interventions. Conn VS, Hafdahl AR, Cooper PS, Brown LM, Lusk SL. 2009 Oct; 4(37): 330-339.
  3. Making health habitual: the psychology of ‘habit formation’ and general practice. Br J Gen Pract. 2012 Dec; 62(605): 664-666. Gardner B, Lally P, Wardle J. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3505409/

*See more on Arriana Huffington here:

https://www.theguardian.com/women-in-leadership/video/2014/jun/10/arianna-huffington-on-meditation-sleep-balance

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/233691

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Jodi and Lisa Fit & Fab Fempreneurs is a support hub created by Jodi & Lisa to support entrepreneurial women on their journey towards a healthier lifestyle. As a registered dietitian and naturopathic doctor, respectively, they have been challenged over many years in practice to balance running their businesses, striving for optimal health, and keeping their focus, fitness, and food in fabulous balance.

They love to empower and support other entrepreneurial women to bring more of themselves to their business by investing in their health, all while getting stuff done!  Through creating simple, realistic, and sustainable health habits, women can discover healthy eating, better fitness, more energy, and achieve a healthy weight. They are passionate believers in self-care, self-love, grit and gratitude, and work hard to kick-to-the-curb cookie-cutter diet & fitness programs, food fads and guilt.

Are you looking for a supportive space to take a breath from your frantic and frenzied lifestyle?

Connect with Jodi Robinson RD & Dr Lisa Adams ND: Facebook | Instagram

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From Resistance to Change: Tolerating Exercise to Build Good Habits by @mayachendke

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Quote about resistance to physical exercise by Janis Isaman of My Body Couture.

by Maya Chendke  | Featured Contributor  

“Eat well!”

“Be mindful!”

“Exercise!”

We should all be doing these things – things that we know are good for us, will improve our quality of life and things that are actually quite “simple” to do. For example, eat carrots, not chips; meditate, instead of watching Game of Thrones; and walk around the block instead of watching more Game of Thrones.

As an entrepreneur, my best avoidance tactic usually looks like skipping Thursday-night yoga so I can cram in more work. But then something comes up – an injury or an impending swimsuit season – and I’m forced to face the consequences of neglecting myself. A couple of years ago, I had a horseback riding injury and I took the path of least resistance, avoiding the one thing that would make me stronger when I got back in the saddle – exercise.

So why do we choose to not do the things that we logically know could make life a heck of a lot better? I asked corrective exercise guru, Janis Isaman, and professional coach, Cheryl Keates, what we need to do – physically and mentally – to overcome resistance to change and bring out the best of ourselves.

Commit, Don’t Quit

Isaman is the owner of My Body Couture, a private movement studio in Calgary, Alberta. She provides a customized approach to health, fitness, and nutrition and works with injured athletes and executives whose sedentary lifestyles have led to injuries they need to heal. I asked Isaman to explain the physical reasons that we resist good habits like exercise.

“Generally people jump to programs or plans that require major, jump-to-the-deep-end-of-the-pool kind of changes,” she says, noting that we’re setting ourselves up to fail when we do that.

“I’ve heard dozens of clients say something like ‘I should start running.’ But they actually don’t enjoy running,” she muses. “There are a few scientific facts about exercise, but basically it boils down to ‘get off your ass and move,’” she says bluntly.

Isaman’s approach to her own training involves doing things that she actually enjoys, like Yamuna Body Rolling and Pilates, as well as scheduling “non-negotiable” sessions with her trainers. (Yes, trainers have trainers, too!)

Her biggest recommendation is to break things down into smaller steps toward your goal. So if your objective is to eat healthier, then set the goal of trying a new fruit each week, but don’t try go vegan “cold turkey”.

“Commit to five minutes,” Isaman says. “If you can’t do that, commit to two minutes. Or one minute!” The point is – commit to something do-able and then move.

Like Attracts Like

With something like a fall or injury, it is all too easy to stop trying. Using my back injury as an excuse, I have avoided jumps and skipped many a gym workout, laying the blame on my old-lady back. But after embarking on this quest to build better habits, it quickly became apparent that I wasn’t only suffering from scar tissue and soft muscles; there was a broken record playing in my head.

“Motivation comes from something being really desirable or really intolerable,” explains Cheryl Keates, a certified professional coach. Keates works with clients globally via Skype, and helps them balance emotional, physical, and financial health while working through resistance and fear.

“We attract whatever we put our attention, energy, and focus on. So those who are more positive, [and who] commit and execute will have greater success,” she explains. “If one focuses on the negative or what’s not possible, they will achieve more negative results.”

Just like Isaman’s observations about physical training, mental training is an area where we can expect too much, and be quickly disappointed because we can’t meet our goals.

“One can get shifts quickly, however, it takes time and consistency to form new, sustainable habits,” says Keates.

When she coaches clients to overcome blocks, she helps them to identify the negative thoughts or emotions that may be getting in the way, and then teaches them re-framing techniques. But even the strongest of us have to fight moments of weakness.

“Whenever I start to see myself going down the road of self-sabotage or procrastination,” says Keates, “I practice the same techniques I use with my clients. And if I need to go deeper, I reach out to my coach.” (Yes, coaches have coaches, too!)

But you won’t get anywhere without mental commitment.

“Taking ownership, investing in one’s self and being willing to do the work is critical,” she says. “When one operates from a place of overall health and balance, the possibilities are endless.”

The Mirror of MyselfChendke See You On the Yoga Mat

So rather than longingly (and enviously) stare at the strong, toned bodies of Monday night’s Dancing with the Stars pros, the wisdom from Isaman and Keates has inspired me to set some goals and step into the shallow end. My weak riding is either going to get depressing or land me in the hospital, neither of which will get me back over a cross rail. These words from Isaman have become my new mantra, and maybe they’ll stick with you, too:

My results will mirror my efforts.

 

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Maya Chendke She Owns ItMarketing consultant, entrepreneur, writer and horse mom Maya Chendke is going through a powerful start-up year. Her company, mPath Creative Consulting, works on website, marketing, content and social media projects that flex her signature hybrid style of creative/analytical. She is also part of a virtual anti-agency, Horsefly Group, where she leads clients with clever ideas and her color-coded iCal.

Her entrepreneurship track record includes a couple of start-ups and a self-published novel (Awake but Dreaming). A rogue introvert, you’ll spot her at start-up meetings sporting riding breeches and a messy bun as the Woz to her Jobs-like partners (or the Sandberg to their Zuckerbergs).

Maya has an MBA from the Rotman School of Management where she was a standout presence in the male-dominated business school environment. She has a certificate from the Stanford Graduate School of Business Summer Institute for General Management and a Bachelor of Journalism from Ryerson University.

She loves to help people make the most of their marketing budget and has an addiction to analytics. She is always on the lookout for great talent and great projects and loves to facilitate introductions.

In her downtime, she’s diligently rehabilitating her rescue horse and reads ~20 books a year. Tweet her @mayachendke

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Do You ALWAYS Feel Like You Should Be Working? by @ArtistThink

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Should you always be working? by @ArtistThink

by Carrie Brummer | Featured Contributor

When you are working for yourself and are caught up in an engaging project, it is really easy to lose yourself in the flow of your ideas, enthusiasm and motivation. In the zone, feeling your flow, you keep going without realizing you’ve skipped lunch. Then, all of a sudden, its 6 pm and your family is home from their days. You realize with a start you have no food for anyone to make dinner.

You are so tired from your effort, you can’t possibly bring yourself to the store nor conjure another idea out of your head (in this case: what’s for dinner). So, you resort to your go-to delivery place (mine is called Shang Thai over here in Muscat) and not only do they know your voice, they know your order.

Flow states can be difficult to come by, so its understandable on those rare days you’d take advantage of it. What about on the days you keep working because you want to get something done, or because you are excited about a new project? This may be a symptom of something more insidious, something entrepreneurs don’t fully acknowledge:

Do You ALWAYS feel like you should be working?

I do. I quit my job to move for my husband’s work. When I got to Muscat, it was easy to jump into my business dream, which had been percolating for 4 years. I love it. Not only do I get to make art every day, I get to encourage others to do the same thing! I get to shout from rooftops about why it is important to be creative and then offer people tools to do the same.

When you truly love what you do, it is fuel for your fire. Yet, there are times you feel guilty. You feel guilty having this opportunity to build your dream come true. You feel guilty that your family is so supportive and giving for you to have this time. What about them?

Then you place a sense of responsibility upon yourself: you must show everyone you love, who is supporting you with your “crazy” idea (how will you make money from that again?) that their trust and belief in you is worthwhile. So, you hunker down and work long and hard. Because you want your dream realized. Because you owe it to your family and friends…

Whoa. No pressure. Hello there, recipe for burnout.

That’s how I started my business and almost burned out in the first 3 months. After a holiday break I decided no more of this non-stop work. I begin each day making art, because it makes me happy: 15 minutes to an hour of art every day. Then, exercise, and finally, my business. Oh, and don’t forget a lunch break.

A funny thing has happened: I’m one thousand times more productive now when I focus on my tasks for Artist Think than I was when I was always working.

An article in Fast Company explains that NOT taking a break actually reduces your creative ability. And while they encourage you to walk, nap, sit out in nature, they forget an obvious use of your lunch break: make art!

Why not bring a little sketchbook with you to the park while you eat? Art can actually be an act of meditation. You turn the verbal part of your brain “off” while you create, which helps quiet and recharge your mind. As a result, art can be a great release for people accustomed to being on the go. And, for all you A-Types, art offers a feeling of accomplishment.

All you need to do is take 15 minutes from your work every few hours. The Mayo Clinic reports that remaining seated in front of your computer and/or in front of your TV for 4 or more hours a day can actually be correlated with an increased 50% death rate (from any cause)!

There is NO reason we should be constantly working. In fact, we could literally be killing ourselves!

Of course, one reason all of these articles can be discussed and nothing changes returns to our adult notions of responsibility: “I should be working.” “Fun is for kids.” “Breaks are for lazy people.” So, despite research and advice that tells us what we know: taking breaks is helpful for our jobs and health, we continue to ignore it. We continue to feel guilty, or obliged.

There is no magic potion to change our mindset, only a choice. You must choose to take care of yourself first. If you don’t, who will?

Of course, if your office isn’t in your own home it may be hard to explain why you now have a tuba residing in the corner space where you once had a coffee table. But, art, or reading, or meditation can be a wonderful, quiet break from the intensity of your entrepreneurial focus.

Celebrate your choice to take breaks. Model it for your employees. Your business will reap great benefit from your acute and creative mind. But more importantly, so will you.

Carrie Brummer Carrie Brummer – Educator, Creative Play Advocate, Arts Empowerer – living in Muscat, Oman (for now!)

My name is Carrie Brummer. I am an artist, educator and entrepreneur all wrapped into someone who loves traveling, eats way too much sugar in the form of chocolate chip cookies and currently lives in the country of Muscat, Oman. My biggest passion at the moment is to encourage creative play in the lives of as many people as I possibly can: engaging with our creative interests makes us happier, healthier, more fulfilled human beings. Seriously, what’s not to like? That’s why my company Artist Think is now alive and kicking: it’s my vehicle to art-educate and art-empower.

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Recovering Overachiever Confession #2: I Nap. by @McDermott_Chime

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From the series: Confessions of a Recovering Overachiever by Cortney McDermott, Chime

Before my four year old daughter Gaia Ray lies down for a mid-day nap, she always lists the things she’s going to do “tomorrow” when she wakes.

JackieBrown

“Domani I’m going to read Duck for President and take Jackie Brown [her doll] for a walk and make tea and cookies with candy hearts.”

Naps are like that: They turn one day into two.

Siesta is obligatory in my house, in my town, in Italia. Maybe it’s just 20 minutes and you don’t even sleep, but that ‘time-out’ gives you a whole fresh start.

As a recovering overachiever, I can now clearly see that certain ideas I used to link to productivity (e.g., Go! Go! Go!) simply don’t hold up to scrutiny. We are not more constructive when we spend 10 hours a day in front of our computers with recurrent caffeine injections.

Even Henry Ford knew that!

Still, sometimes I still let my old-school mentality get the better of me: “You can’t possibly take a nap today! You have far too much to do!”

But on those days I find I accomplish much less, feel more stressed and less fulfilled.

Now, I realize that taking a nap in the middle of the day is quite a luxury, especially for corporate employees (even if in some cases it is possible). Luckily, meditation works the same magic and is something anyone can integrate into office break time. Even just booking a private conference room for ten minutes can do the trick, or going outside for frequent breather breaks.

Maybe you’re thinking, “Not at my company!” or “Yes, if you want to be regarded as the office freak!” If so take a look at what ESPN has to say about it.

If the winning team of the Super Bowl can find the time and the courage for meditation before heading out to the field, so can each and every one of us. We must, in fact, if we want to win the game.

How do you break away from ‘Go!Go!Go’? Please leave your own recovery confession in the comments below.

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Cortney McDermott – Co-founder & CEO,  Chime

Cortney McDermott Cortney McDermott is an internationally sought after sustainability and communications expert. After nearly a decade in the Fortune 500 world, Cortney decided to turn her passions into her profession. “The real crisis humanity faces is not planetary. It’s personal. At the heart of every poor decision, flawed system, or unhappy person is wrong thinking. We may not realize it, but we shape our world. It’s up to us whether we do so intentionally or not.”

An award-winning author and official blogger for The Huffington Post, Cortney helps others understand how to shape their reality with intention. Her 7-Step process to personal and professional transformation starts with what she calls simplicating: cutting away the unnecessary so we can hone in on the strategies and actions that spark success, enhance value, and create a better world. “It’s amazing the opportunities that open up when you build a discipline around doing the right thing.” Cortney has advised global corporate leaders on sustainability, corporate communications, and business strategy. She has also served as an executive at Vanity Fair Corporation, Vice President at Sustainability Partners, professor of graduate studies for Top Ten universities, and chair of multiple global business organizations.

She’s done all this without sacrificing her life as a wife, mother, marathon runner and yogi in a small mountain village in the North of Italy. Join her and thousands around the world chiming in to Work Life Harmony.

Follow Cortney on Instagram and Twitter and Facebook.

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3 Practices to Increase Your Feminine Power and Your Income by @NaturallyJoanne

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by Joanne Ameya Cohen

Women entrepreneurs are inundated with the notion that in order to be successful their business should reflect a feminine model. Telesummits, teleseminars, and programs tout that embodying your feminine nature will increase your bank account.

And I have to agree. If you are to run a successful business, there are feminine qualities that will allow you to nourish yourself, slow down and dream, and of course, use your intuition along with your rational mind to make important decisions. All in all, this will give you more freedom, both personally and financially. Freedom is what many of us are seeking, yes?

And yet, there is a piece missing in all of this. How are we to use a feminine business model when many of us are still figuring out what it means to be a woman in 2014? We are often more comfortable in our masculine energy of doing and taking action. From a young age, we are taught to strive and achieve more so than to slow down and listen to the inner wise woman within.

So, we are left with many women feeling disconnected from or even confused about their own feminine nature. Images everywhere remind us that our menstrual cycles are a disturbance, our intuition is to be ignored, our bodies do not work properly, and vulnerability is considered a weakness. Spending our lives with our number one priority being avoidance of our Feminine nature is a losing battle. Did you know that 40+ million women are suffering from menstrual cramps, chronic yeast infections, painful sex, mood swings, low libido, fertility challenges, fibroids, weight gain, heavy bleeding, and/or endometriosis? And not only that, they are getting used to their symptoms as normal.

It is time to come back into relationship with our Feminine. This is truly the first step in running a business from a feminine perspective. If we do not relate to our full feminine glory, how can we run a business in a more feminine way?

Here are 3 practices that will assist you in becoming a Healthy Feminine Leader.

Self-Care
As women, we are innate nurturers. We enjoy caring for others and being of service. And yet, many of us are overburdened, overwhelmed, and depleted. We are trying so hard to please others and fit in to a male dominated world that we have forgotten to tend our own resources. If we are to be the changemakers this world so desperately needs, then we must nourish the vehicle through which we offer our gifts. Imagine how much more powerful of a nurturer you will be (hint, hint… you are constantly nurturing and holding space for your clients to transform!) when you make your self-care a priority. Think of one self-nurturing act that would leave you deeply nourished. Schedule this in your calendar to be done in the next week.

Feminine Inquiry
Every woman reading this article has a different definition of what it means to be a woman. Take out a piece of paper and write down a detailed list. This becomes your roadmap. Every day you can do something (wear more feminine clothes, turn off your phone at 6 pm, have an afternoon off per week, journal, increase your pleasure thermometer, dance, etc) to claim MORE of these qualities. Owning who you are as a woman allows you to truly experience more of your feminine energy.

Align with Natural Rhythms
As women, we are aligned with the Earth’s natural rhythms. Our menstrual cycles mimic the tides of the Ocean and the phases of the moon. For many of us, we have become disconnected from Nature as we sit at our computers, talk on our cellphones, and eat our meals on the go. I invite you to reconnect… put your bare feet on the Earth, take a moonbath (stand in the light of the full moon), set aside time everyday to go outside. When we align with the natural rhythms, we come back into alignment with our own feminine rhythms.

When we follow these 3 practices, we own who we are as women. Embodying our feminine essence allows us to access the divine spark of creation that exists within us. We birth our gifts and expertise in the world. We claim our power. We use our voice. We heal our reproductive and hormonal health issues. We attract ideal clients and charge what we are worth.

Personal and financial wealth awaits you.

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Joanne CohenJoanne Ameya Cohen shows women entrepreneurs who are struggling with hormonal and reproductive health issues (fertility issues, PMS, endometriosis, fibroids, mood swings, low libido, excess weight) how to heal themselves holistically and in the process, have more access to their feminine essence and ultimately, claim their role as Healthy Feminine Leaders.

Joanne combines her expertise as an Herbalist, Flower Essence Therapist, Shamanic Practitioner, Psych-K, and 12 years of Counseling to facilitate deep transformation in women’s lives. This makes her an ideal mentor for any women who is ready to reacquaint with her Feminine Power. Please visit http://joanneameyacohen.com to read more about her programs and to pick up your free Ebook “3 Ways To Tap Into Your Innate Feminine Wisdom & Balance Your Hormones — Right Now.”

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How to Unlock your Feminine Power & Increase Your Income by @NaturallyJoanne

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by Joanne Ameya Cohen

Women entrepreneurs are inundated with the notion that in order to be successful their business should reflect a feminine model. Telesummits, teleseminars, and programs tout that embodying your feminine nature will increase your bank account.

And I have to agree. If you are to run a successful business, there are feminine qualities that will allow you to nourish yourself, slow down and dream, and of course, use your intuition along with your rational mind to make important decisions. All in all, this will give you more freedom, both personally and financially. Freedom is what many of us are seeking, yes?

And yet, there is a piece missing in all of this. How are we to use a feminine business model when many of us are still figuring out what it means to be a woman in 2014? We are often more comfortable in our masculine energy of doing and taking action. From a young age, we are taught to strive and achieve more so than to slow down and listen to the inner wise woman within.

So, we are left with many women feeling disconnected from or even confused about their own feminine nature. Images everywhere remind us that our menstrual cycles are a disturbance, our intuition is to be ignored, our bodies do not work properly, and vulnerability is considered a weakness. Spending our lives with our number one priority being avoidance of our Feminine nature is a losing battle. Did you know that 40+ million women are suffering from menstrual cramps, chronic yeast infections, painful sex, mood swings, low libido, fertility challenges, fibroids, weight gain, heavy bleeding, and/or endometriosis? And not only that, they are getting used to their symptoms as normal.

It is time to come back into relationship with our Feminine. This is truly the first step in running a business from a feminine perspective. If we do not relate to our full feminine glory, how can we run a business in a more feminine way?

Here are 3 practices that will assist you in becoming a Healthy Feminine Leader.

Self-Care
As women, we are innate nurturers. We enjoy caring for others and being of service. And yet, many of us are overburdened, overwhelmed, and depleted. We are trying so hard to please others and fit in to a male dominated world that we have forgotten to tend our own resources. If we are to be the changemakers this world so desperately needs, then we must nourish the vehicle through which we offer our gifts. Imagine how much more powerful of a nurturer you will be (hint, hint… you are constantly nurturing and holding space for your clients to transform!) when you make your self-care a priority. Think of one self-nurturing act that would leave you deeply nourished. Schedule this in your calendar to be done in the next week.

Feminine Inquiry
Every woman reading this article has a different definition of what it means to be a woman. Take out a piece of paper and write down a detailed list. This becomes your roadmap. Every day you can do something (wear more feminine clothes, turn off your phone at 6 pm, have an afternoon off per week, journal, increase your pleasure thermometer, dance, etc) to claim MORE of these qualities. Owning who you are as a woman allows you to truly experience more of your feminine energy.

Align with Natural Rhythms
As women, we are aligned with the Earth’s natural rhythms. Our menstrual cycles mimic the tides of the Ocean and the phases of the moon. For many of us, we have become disconnected from Nature as we sit at our computers, talk on our cellphones, and eat our meals on the go. I invite you to reconnect… put your bare feet on the Earth, take a moonbath (stand in the light of the full moon), set aside time everyday to go outside. When we align with the natural rhythms, we come back into alignment with our own feminine rhythms.

When we follow these 3 practices, we own who we are as women. Embodying our feminine essence allows us to access the divine spark of creation that exists within us. We birth our gifts and expertise in the world. We claim our power. We use our voice. We heal our reproductive and hormonal health issues. We attract ideal clients and charge what we are worth.

Personal and financial wealth awaits you.

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Joanne Ameya CohenJoanne Ameya Cohen shows women entrepreneurs who are struggling with hormonal and reproductive health issues (fertility issues, PMS, endometriosis, fibroids, mood swings, low libido, excess weight) how to heal themselves holistically and in the process, have more access to their feminine essence and ultimately, claim their role as Healthy Feminine Leaders.

Joanne combines her expertise as an Herbalist, Flower Essence Therapist, Shamanic Practitioner, Psych-K, and 12 years of Counseling to facilitate deep transformation in women’s lives. This makes her an ideal mentor for any women who is ready to reacquaint with her Feminine Power. Please visit joanneameyacohen.com to read more about her programs and to pick up your free Ebook “3 Ways To Tap Into Your Innate Feminine Wisdom & Balance Your Hormones — Right Now.”

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