Stress can truly wreak havoc on your life, both personally and professionally. Symptoms of extreme stress can take both emotional and physical forms. Especially if you have any disorders to begin with.

Some common physical symptoms include aches and pains, diarrhea or constipation, nausea and/or dizziness, chest pain, rapid heartbeat, loss of libido, and frequent colds. Emotional symptoms may include moodiness, irritability or short temper, agitation or inability to relax, feeling overwhelmed, a sense of loneliness and isolation, and depression or general unhappiness.

When feeling overwhelmed by stress, it’s important to try to identify specific stressors and to examine how you cope with them. You can then work to avoid, alter, adapt to, or accept the stressors in your life. You can also pay attention to the fact that they are brought on by a specific stressor or a general symptom.

* To avoid unnecessary stress, learn how to say no. Know your limits and stick to them, in both your professional and personal lives. Whenever possible, steer clear of people who cause you stress. Take control of your environment – if scary movies make you anxious, for example, don’t watch them. Stay away from hot-button topics like religion or politics if they make you upset or cause conflict. And finally, pare down your to-do list. Separate the “shoulds” from the “musts” and drop anything that is not truly essential.

* To alter stressful situations you can’t avoid, express your feelings rather than bottling them up. If something is bothering you, convey your concerns openly but respectfully. At the same time, remain open to compromise. When you ask someone to change their behavior, be willing to do the same so that you can find a happy middle ground.

In addition, be assertive and deal with problems head on, doing your best to anticipate and prevent them. And finally, manage your time better. Don’t stretch yourself too thin and end up running behind.

* If you can’t avoid or alter the stressor, you can adapt to it. Learn to view stressful situations from a positive perspective. You can reframe a traffic jam, for example, as an opportunity for some reflection time. Also, look at the big picture of a stressful situation. Ask yourself how important the stressor will be in the long run and whether it’s really worth getting upset over. If not, refocus somewhere else.

Adjust your standards as well. Don’t set yourself up for failure by demanding perfection from yourself and others. Focus on the positive by thinking about all of the blessings in your life, including your positive qualities and gifts.

* A fourth way to deal with stress is to accept the stress you cannot change. Don’t try to control the uncontrollable – a category that encompasses many aspects of our lives, including other people’s behavior. Focus instead on things you can control, such as your reactions to problems.

Again, look for the upside when facing major challenges and try to see them as opportunities for growth. When the stress gets to be too much, confide in someone you trust. Expressing your feelings can be cathartic, even when you’re powerless to change a situation.

* Last but not least, learn to forgive – yourself as well as others. Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world, and people make mistakes. Let go of anger and resentments and move on.

Remember that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so take time to relax and have fun when you detect symptoms of stress in your life. Set aside to time to rest, spend time with positive people, and do something you enjoy every day. Your family is there to enjoy. And most of all, keep your sense of humor – including your ability to laugh at yourself.

We’re over half way through July and there’s no time like the present to make some more money.  Do it right this second as a matter of fact.

Take a look at your income so far for the month or a past month.  What is the thing that is making you the most income?  Write it down at the top of  a computer document or notebook paper.

Write down 5 ways you promote this product or service that work the best.  Now go and quickly do those 5 things.  Put this at the top of your list for the day.  These are proven things to earn you money and if they are working then you should be pushing them.

Next brainstorm 3 news ways you can promote your product or service.  Try and get them to be quick ideas if you have a big to-do list already that needs to be completed.  A few examples of quick things would be:

1.  Hit your twitter account with a link to a blog post or just a quick tweet and affiliate link or sales page link.

2.  Use your facebook account. Add a status update to promote this product or service.

3.  Add a blog post, it doesn’t have to be a long post.

4.  Add a link to your sidebar.

5.  Swap links with a friends site.

6.  Swap guest posts with a friends site to promote each others products.

Don’t neglect those things that are already making money as you look for more avenues.  If something is working then you need to jump on it and see how far you can push the income towards your goals.

The WAHM community is a small community.  If you are just starting out, it may seem huge, but the core has been interconnected for years. It’s taken me a while obviously to post this and I really struggled with how personal it hit me. But I’m always about everyone learning from what I learn, so here I am all out there for you to pick-a-part.

It was shocking and horrible to get up late this morning (6/28, yes that was a bit ago now) and find out that Denise Willms had passed away suddenly on Sunday.  Devastating for a few reasons.  The unexpectedness for one thing.  She’d just celebrated her birthday on Friday turning barely older than I.  Our kids are of a similar age.  I can remember when she was a complete newbie and took over WAHM-articles from my good friend. It’s been awesome to watch what she’s done over the years with it.

Being the same age and being so young this is hitting home for me. I can take a look at my life right now and like the direction I’m going with both family, friends and work. No, I’m not making the money I would like to, but that’s not what people will remember about me anyway I hope. My hope is that I’ve left everyone, especially my family, with many moments that they can start with…”Do you remember when…?” I want to be home to leave those moments, not away working so many hours that I miss out on the moments.

If you would like to leave your condolences a memorial page has been set up. I know Denise touched a lot of people’s lives and many will miss her.

I felt it hard because I am not where I want to be. With my family and friends, yes, but in biz…NO. I felt it extra hard because I have more than I want on my plate and more than I want associated with me if something did happen. Telling isn’t it? Drop the crap woman!

Denise will continue to touch my life. It’s unbelievable to me that she won’t hit me on twitter at any moment. I’m wondering if it’s even worse for online relationships to move onward than the offline? I’m not comparing how much more she touched those in her life she had daily interaction physically with, but I am wonder because I didn’t have the daily. So here I just keep waiting for that quick blurb from her It’s difficult to believe it will never happen and my heart goes out to her family. She will be missed and I will put her memory to great use. I will keep my priorities in check and keep enjoying every second with my family that I am given

What’s for dinner? Do you dislike hearing this question as much as I do?

Whether getting home from work, running the kids to activities or getting to our own evening meetings, dinner can sure get in the way. It’s not easy to find a schedule on some nights that is perfect for everyone to eat, let alone a time to cook that meal.

I do enjoy cooking, it’s just that being such a busy mom I don’t have the time most nights or I’m too tired to enjoy it. Menu planning and once a week cooking have changed this.

Each week I take a few hours. I head to the grocery store with my pre-written shopping list and then get cooking my main dishes. I can enjoy cooking again and have found I love it even more. It feels great to have all the dinners cooked up and ready to go for later use.

I always toss a couple of the meals in the freezer for the end of the week. This way there’s a quick answer to, “What’s for dinner?” I keep the week’s meal list on the fridge and cross them off as we eat them. It also helps to let one kid pick which meal will be next. Less arguments about eating said meal.

Plan for the week and spend less time in the kitchen!

Always a learning experience, did some right, did some the hard way, and will completely revamp some things. lol

But numbers, you want numbers right?

I didn’t hit the $500. However, with the extra marketing and pushing I have one other VA client that will be signing up June 1st, but until that money is exchanged I can’t count it towards my goal. That client would put me at $473 extra from this challenge. So my true number was $378 in extra income for the 15 days. But beyond the money, I put some better habits in place and saw some great traffic increases as well. All of this documented for my next 15 day goal and for daily business.

Original quick post of ways to accomplish this goal were:

1. Push my affiliates at Once a Week Cooking (This didn’t get put in place at all)
2. Tweet daily on the Once a Week Cooking account (Did much better at this!)
3. Get blog posts up there daily. (Planned on 12 and got 9 up. SO MUCH BETTER THAN IT HAS BEEN! Great habit formed.)
4. Get 5 new PLR packs added to Busy Blogger PLR (Have 10 packs loaded now and another 5 to add as I type this)
5. 5 blog posts added to the Busy Blogger PLR site about PLR and it’s uses. (Only got 3 fully written and added, have another 10 posts started)

What also was added was a big Mother’s Day sale at Mom Chats and more blog posts on other blogs. I made sure and got atleast 1 affiliate link in each post I put up on other blogs.  I added a big VA special and took on 1 client that way and then the other client that would like to purchase hours in June.

Major thing I learned for next time:

1.  Check the calendar before committing to the 15 days.  I chose a time frame that hubby was home quite a bit, this makes it difficult to work as much as I’d like to.  Next challenge I will schedule around that.  Believe me it will be soon.  I want to get another one finished before kids are out of school and that’s not very many weeks out.

2.  Have daily tasks written out and focus completely on just 1 or 2 sites for the major 15 day goal push.

3.  Figure out what I am going to outsource for those 15 days and give work list to my VA ahead of time.

4.  When pre-planning the dates of my goal, get a daily schedule written out of the extra’s needed to accomplish this goal.  Also look at any site design or setups that need to be completed before the challenge starts.  During my goal is not the time to create new stuff, it is the time to push things I already have in place.

5. I have a disaster plan in place for daily work, but I didn’t for the extra stuff.  I had a death to contend with during this time and we also ended up having 2 birthdays, plus some other things on the weekends.  My last week didn’t get put to use like I’d hoped and and that really cut into not hitting my goal.  So pre-planning is going to be key!

I’m excited for what I did hit with no real planning.  Now to push the next challenge well beyond and put into place all the things I learned.

Most business owners experience a creative block at one time or another.  Um most?  Yes, I’ll let you know, it’s going to happen some time down the road. It’s not uncommon, but it can be very damaging to your business if it lasts for too long. Whether you’re a writer, virtual assistant, or marketer, creative blocks quickly turn into stumbling blocks and stop you from doing your best.

Here are a few tips to help you eliminate creative blocks from your business:

#1 – Take a break. It may seem counter-productive, but a creative block is often a way of your body and mind telling you that it’s time for a break. When we’re in the thick of it, it can be difficult to see things for what they really are. A short break will help you clear your mind and get focused on the task at hand.

The most effective breaks are those that help you clear your mind of your current situation altogether. And it can be anything from sitting in the sunshine for 10 minutes to going for a brisk walk. Try not to think about your creative block or task at hand and simply let your mind relax and unwind.

The idea is to simply step away from the problem for a few minutes and to come back refreshed and re-energized.  Of course, since I’m a personal trainer I always suggest some form of exercise to clear your head.  Most blocks are created by stress, exercise burns your endorphins and helps relieves that stress.

#2 – Think outside the box. Sometimes the solutions to our problems are right in front of us but simply require a little outside thinking. For example, if you’re experiencing writer’s block, instead of pressuring yourself to write the perfect article, simply jot down your research and “raw” thoughts. This will make up the bulk of your article. Then you can come back to it later and add your creative flair to make it all flow together.  If possible, you can outline those “raw” thoughts into more of an outline form.  This will make it easier to turn into sentences and paragraphs.

Say you’re a virtual assistance and have been given a task you’re not sure how to complete. Then maybe you can join a networking forum and ask for advice. You can even subcontract that aspect of your job to another virtual assistant.

Sometimes a little creative thinking is all it takes to get rid of our creative blocks. There is no set formula for what needs to be done and you don’t necessarily have to do it all yourself. The key here is to find solutions – whatever they may be – and to not concentrate solely on the problem.

#3 – Journal it. Journals have been known to help bring clarity, peace of mind and solutions to many problems. By simply jotting down your thoughts and how you feel about certain situations, you may come to a conclusion.

If you’re experiencing a creative block about the direction or growth of your business, for example, journaling those thoughts may be all it takes to come to a the conclusion you’re happy with.

Putting our thoughts and ideas into writing can often bring clarity and closure to many of our issues.

#4 – Talk to a Coach or Mastermind Group. There are many out there to choose from, but a quick post to your favorite mastermind group can bring clarity to many creative blocks.  They will help you brainstorm and sometimes just hearing that others have had the same issue will break the block.  If the block just won’t budge and it’s been a little while, I highly suggest purchasing a few hours of business coaching to get you back on track or to figure out that your direction may not be what you had in mind.  Other business owners and coaches have a more objective view of your issue and can help push you through it.

Creative blocks are frustrating for any business owner. The above tips will hopefully help you overcome those blocks and help you gain clarity and focus once again. Many times I come out of these creative blocks with even more business energy than ever.

You can check out the original post for my 15 Day goal here. I’m in the middle of day 6 and so far it’s been an extra $140 earned out of the $500 goal. Not bad, but not where I need to be. Let’s review.

A couple of other follow up posts:
Day 2 of 15 day goal
Quick Check in on 15 day goal.

My original quick post of what I was going to do to accomplish this goal of $500 in 15 days are:

1. Push my affiliates at Once a Week Cooking (still need to do)
2. Tweet daily on the Once a Week Cooking account (had at least 1 tweet of my own and one RT or @ reply each day)
3. Get blog posts up there daily. (planned on 12 posts in the 15 days. I have 6 done)
4. Get 5 new PLR packs added to Busy Blogger PLR (put new packs up today)
5. 5 blog posts added to the Busy Blogger PLR site about PLR and it’s uses. (have 6 posts up in draft form)

So I’m doing ‘ok’ with the goals. The posts have made a major difference and the tweeting to my main account @busymommaval has brought a lot of traffic. I’m almost half way to my goal of new subscribers for Once a Week Cooking. This means it is time to get the affiliate angle working. I’m setting a new list below of things to accomplish. This includes what hasn’t been finished yet above.

1. Push affiliates to menu plans.
2. Keep tweeting daily and start to push the affiliate program as well.
3. Finish last 6 blogs posts to OAWC
4. Finish the 5 blog posts to busy blogger plr
5. Get next 10 autoresponders done for 102 scrapbooking ideas
6. Email drafted to go out to lists about May Madness when it goes live
7. 1 article written for directories to promote OAWC

Alright, that will keep me busy for the next few days. I still have about 3 hours to work today and I want to get 1 article done for each site and then a guest blog post done for Shelly. Oh and go grab something health for lunch. K, I’ll get 1 blog post finished up and then go make a salad. Have to keep my energy going!

More posting tomorrow.  Oh and I have to get a post up here about spam comments.  I’ll get that out in the morning.  lol

Well today was shot to all h*ll, so I’m not counting today for much.

Yesterday I got a bunch of blog posts up to be scheduled out for the week at Once A Week Cooking.

I also started another little program that I’ll post more about tomorrow.

Sadly, one of my long time attendee’s in my seniors fitness class passed away over the weekend. Even though she was in her mid 80′s, it was still a big shock to the system to know that I won’t see her three times a week in my class anymore. It’s been 2 years with her and she was so fit. You wouldn’t have had any idea her age. I’ll miss her.

I didn’t get much done on my to do list today and that is ok. I did get my to do list a little more focused today, so I’ll get it rocking right away in the morning after the kids and hubby get off to school and class. I only have so many hours to work tomorrow before everyone is home. Tomorrow evening I’ll have a lot to post about

Well it’s midway through day 2 of my 15 Day Goal of an extra $500. I’m happy to report that with an unplanned site sale and a couple of new subscriptions, I am $120 towards that goal. So 13 days to go and I’ve earned $380 left to hit.

Some things that I have done so far:

~ 4 posts set to go up at Once a Week Cooking. Have a goal of 12 total by the May 7th.
~ Put my goal up on my mom masterminds group, with some more detailed numbers
~ Sent newsletter out to Once a Week Cooking
~ I have an article started that I’ll get up in some article directories
~ I got my special in for a big may madness push, again through my mom masterminds group
~ I put up a special for VA hours to this group, I’m looking for 1 new client. Then I’ll add a special here for 1 more VA client.

Considering I barely got online yesterday and I was super warn out when I was online, I’m happy how much has been done so far.

I still need to get the new PLR packs added and that is a major one. Also need to work on building the list there some. Other 8 blog posts up and I’ll have a major dent in my to do list towards this goal.

Alright, I tossed it out there yesterday. I have a goal of $500 extra in 15 days. Those 15 days start today.

Just some of the ways I plan to do this are:

1. Push my affiliates at Once a Week Cooking
2. Tweet daily on the Once a Week Cooking account
3. Get blog posts up there daily
4. Get 5 new PLR packs added to Busy Blogger PLR
5. 5 blog posts added to the Busy Blogger PLR site about PLR and it’s uses.

There will be more, but this is the quick to it that I need to do today or did last night. lol Also, I have more accountability numbers, but those are reserved for my Mom Masterminds group.