One of my fondest memories of spring as a kid is watching the winter snow begin to melt and hunting for pussy willows.

My brother & I knew the places to tromp through the woods to find the best pussy willow bushes and, each spring as the snow melted & formed muddy ground, we'd don our boots and go in search of those wonderful plants.

The pussy willow is actually a scrubby willow bushy type of plant and those small, silky buds are actually flowers before they bloom.  Those flowers are called catkins.
​
Catkins usually don’t rely on pollinators to spread their pollen. Instead they simply release their pollen into the wind, where it may or may not land on the female flower parts. In order to hit their targets, the catkins must produce a tremendous amount of pollen.

Have you ever accomplished something that took a lot of effort and made you feel proud, but you still felt less than confident about yourself in general?

In psychology, this feeling that we don’t really deserve what we’ve earned is described as the Impostor Syndrome.

No matter how much you accomplish or acquire, it won’t satisfy you unless you have self-confidence on the inside.

True self-confidence has nothing to do with what you’ve accomplished and everything to do with your belief that you have the ability to accomplish anything you want to do.
​
Your confidence is based on who you are, not what you did. No one or no adverse outcome can take that away from you. It makes sense, doesn’t it?

Have you heard of the term a fake? That's what Impostor Syndrome refers to. It's the feeling that no matter what you do, you are inadequate or incompetent despite that you are knowledgeable, skilled, and successful. ​

Impostor Syndrome, also known as Impostor Phenomenon, knows no particular boundaries -- it happens to men and women, in different cultures, with different upbringings.

These feelings stem from your background, your personality, and your life's circumstances. It's a combination of these that often bring on a lack of confidence.

The way to overcome that is to begin with accepting who you are and embracing your uniqueness.

We all have something very special to offer and, once you internalize this, it is just the beginning of a new way of kicking that impostor syndrome to the curb.

As a small business owner, there are so many hats that we wear on any given day and this is what can prove to be overwhelming --- with good reason!  Let's be honest.  As a solopreneur, if you don't do something, who will?  

You can start with taking a look at all the smaller pieces that make up your business.  For some, that may look different, but for a service-based business you have essentially five roles:

It's no wonder that so many of us --- yes, me included --- have found it difficult to stay focused and productive.  

My husband and I moved to our place on March 1.  We barely got moved in when it seemed that the entire world took on a whole new meaning of what normal life looks like.

Things we took for granted, such as going to a grocery store, have now become a plan & prepare type of situation.  Visiting with friends, family, and colleagues is now all done via teleconferencing of some type.  I find myself looking forward to our weekend "Happy Hour" visits with our friends and I've never been so excited when the Duo Call from my family rings!  

But how do we take the situation that has impacted us to the very heart & soul and figure out what our new normal is so that we can remain productive?  The first step is being open & honest with yourself and everyone else around you.  Let them know that you are still finding your footing in this temporary new world.

If you've visited my website and looked around, you already know that this quote by Joshua Marine is one of my all-time favorite quotes!

I want to share with you five of the biggest misconceptions around business planning that I've found over my years of talking to others and working with my clients.

Learning how to prioritize your tasks is key to having a productive day.

Being more productive plays a huge role in your success.  

Higher productivity simply means optimizing your daily schedule.  By staying organized and focused, you'll become more productive.  However, finding the right things to focus on can be overwhelming when your task list is a big one.  

As Steven Covey wrote in "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", "The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities."

I am going to walk you through a couple of the more well-known and well-used methods. Whichever one seems to resonate best with you is how you can start assigning priority levels to your tasks.

Why is it important for you to know what productivity type you are? You want to know what kind of task-driven person you are.
 
Maybe you are somebody that can’t stand to see unchecked boxes on your to-do list, or you are driven by deadlines and can’t seem to get started until the deadline is looming over your project.

Alright, let’s go over the four different productivity types:
 

1. Prioritizer
2. Planner
3. Arranger
4. Visualizer

 
You might see yourself in one or more, but you will also find that you identify with only one of them on a much higher level.