Hey There —

I just seem to be behind all month! I had great hopes for getting this e-zine out two weeks ago while away at Marina Del Rey, but was just too busy soaking up the learning from the workshop I attended. More on that in a moment.

First, I’m excited to share I was one of a few local “Mompreneurers” featured in The McHenry County Magazine article, “It's a juggling act” by Jennifer Zegler. All of the women interviewed share how they are balancing their business and family lives. Click on the magazine cover to the right to read the article.

Don’t forget, it’s not too late to snatch up this month’s anniversary gift to you. Gift #3 is an audiobook version of Napoleon Hill’s famous book Think and Grow Rich that has literally helped millions of people to lead richer, fuller lives.

This month's Guilt-Free article

As I eluded to above, I spent April 14th - 19th in California attending a Marketing and Mindset workshop. Oh sure, you hear California and think it was all fun and sun. Well, I did have some fun, but I learned a great deal and left with renewed confidence to take my business to the next BIG level! Learn the top 5 reasons I believe attending live events is essential for your personal and professional growth below.

To your continued success!

Victoria Cook, ACC Your Guilt-Free Coach Connect with me:

PS: A great big "Welcome!" to all the new readers who have recently joined my guilt-free community! You're going to love the resources you'll find here to help you create more time and focus to get done what's most important...Guilt-Free! Enjoy!

It´s my 5 year business anniversary and I´m celebrating, but YOU get the gifts!! For the next 5 months, I will be offering you a different gift each month. To see what gifts you might have missed, go to www.TheGuiltFreeCoach.com/anniversary.

Gift #3 - Think & Grow Rich complimentary audiobook.

"Anything your mind can conceive and believe --- you can achieve."
-- Napoleon Hill

It is said that Napoleon Hill has made more millionaires and inspired more successes than any other person in history.

Think and Grow Rich revolutionized the whole concept of self-help writing. To this day the book remains the standard against which all other motivational literature is measured, and it has helped literally millions of people to lead richer, fuller lives. Now this audiobook edition is adding to those millions.

GET YOURS NOW!

Our BONUS Best Year Ever Coaching Call is THURSDAY, April 30th, 12 pm CST

"Getting Beyond Stuck"

Have your emotions or fears ever stopped you or held you back? Then you will want to attend our BONUS call this month on April 30th at Noon CST covering “Emotional Release.” Use the Emotional Release technique to:

• Process and release difficult emotions, instead of reacting (and regretting)
• Overcome stress
• Move beyond fear (like cold calling or attending networking events)
• Better cope with relationship issues
• Get into action when you’re stuck and immobilized
• Handle intense emotions such as anger, rage, extreme sadness, anxiety, fear, frustration, pain, or resentment

To attend this call for ONLY $10 click here

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Our Best Year Ever Coaching Call on MONDAY, May 4th, 12 pm CST

"Got Clutter?"

You probably do. If so, you won't want to miss either of the May BYE calls!

On the first call, you'll learn what benefits you'll get from decluttering, what your clutter is keeping you from, and some very simple tips to get you started. ALSO, you won't want to miss Victoria’s “Ancient Decluttering Secret" that will help you make a room look better in minutes!

These calls are ONLY for Best Year Ever Group Coaching members. Not a member?
Join now to access this call with Victoria's special FREE 1-month Membership trial
(plus a small $5 shipping/handling fee).

One of the biggest challenges in achieving goals is sticking to the necessary action steps with focus and consistency. If that´s been a challenge for YOU and you´re tired of your plans fizzling out before year end, then you've got to check out my Best Year Ever Group Coaching program.

The purpose of the Best Year Ever Coaching Program? For you to make SIGNIFICANT improvements in your life and business, and to ensure that 2009 is your best, most successful year— EVER! Each biweekly call includes a brief lesson on a relevant topic and expert coaching to keep you focused on creating your Best Year and give you the specifics to get going with momentum. The calls will also provide accountability, support, and the resources to implement strategies that will keep your business and your life continually getting better and better.

I am so sure that you´ll get incredible value from this program that I´d love to give you the opportunity to try it out —for F.R.E.E.! When you sign up for the group program, you will receive your first month for free* along with an audio CD including introductory information and detailed notes to get you started before your first call.

Join now to access my special FREE month membership trial

*$5 for shipping and handling of the CD

Top 5 Reasons Attending Live Events is Essential for Continued Personal & Professional Growth

I recently attended an intense 4-day workshop in California with Marketing Mentor Fabienne Fredrickson (see left). Oh sure, you hear California and think it was all fun and sun. Well, I did have some fun, but I learned a great deal and left with renewed confidence to take my business to the next BIG level! I’d like to share with you the top 5 reasons I believe attending live events is essential for your personal and professional growth:

1 – Get more personal: Live events provide the opportunity to meet your mentor personally and really get to know them. Successful people think and act differently. Spending several days with mentor provides great insight into how they do it so you can see how to do it too!

2 – Deep Submersion: Multi-day events allow you to really submerse yourself in the subject matter with no distractions. Four days focused on just Marketing and Mindset created more depth of understanding on these subjects for me. I also had time during the break out portion and down time to begin thinking about how I would begin applying the information to my business right away.

3 – Learn about things you didn’t know you needed to know: Often at live events other fantastic speakers are invited to share the stage. That was the case at the last event I attended. Mari Smith (@marismith) was a special guest speaker during one of the evening sessions. I’ll be honest; I had NO IDEA who Mari was prior to the moment she took the stage. Turns out, she’s been dubbed “the Pied-Piper of Facebook” by FastCompany.

Mari is a social media trainer and social media marketing expert. I learned SO MUCH from her talk and was blown away by her ideas and knowledge on using social networking for business purposes. I guess TWITTER and Facebook aren’t just for kids! It’s a great way to get your message out there and increase the “know, like and trust factor” with your market. You can now follow me on TWITTER @Victoria_Cook or see my Facebook profile http://profile.to/victoriacook/.

4 – Meet other likeminded people: Chances are if you are going to hear a particular speaker, you’ll meet others with whom you have some things in common. I met so many great people during the workshop I attended. I enjoyed discussing what we were learning, sharing ideas and resources, and hearing how others were planning to utilize the information. Who knows, I may end up partnering with one or two folks on future business projects.

5 – Gain valuable strategic time: As a solopreneur, it’s so easy to get swept into the day-to-day tasks working IN my business that I consciously have to carve out time to be more strategic to work ON it! Being away from the office and the usual distractions allows for greater focus and time for strategic thinking.

BONUS - Have some fun! If you’ve gotten to know me even a little bit, you’ve learned that I like to have fun! Life’s too short not to!!

If your event is in a different city, it’s fun to explore and see some new sights. I have family in California, so I was fortunate to stay with my Aunt and Uncle and enjoyed catching up as well as partaking of their hot tub! I also visited one evening with my sister Tina...again for the 3rd time in 5 months. That's a record since she moved away!

Attending multi-day events is a commitment of time as well as finances, but one that can have a huge return on your investments. I left with tactical strategies I can immediately implement, excitement and inspiration to get into action, and belief in getting it all accomplished!

Your Guilt-Free Assignment (should you wish to accept it)

Even if a live event isn’t in your immediate future, you can still gain some of the above benefits with a little bit of effort on your part:

1. Carve out large chunks of time in your schedule and devote it to studying from your mentor. It could be a book, their audios, or a home study system. This will increase your knowledge and provide loads of inspiration!

2. Plan a mini-retreat for yourself at a local hotel, retreat center, or nature preserve. Spend the day(s) creating your own vision for what’s next and a strategic plan that’s going to get you there. You’ll find several articles on my blog to get you started including 5 Keys to Guilt-Free Success, 10 Steps to Mapping Out Your Plan.

Can’t get out of town but wish you could meet with a group of like-minded people who are excelling in their personal and professional life? My new group coaching program can provide just that. Each biweekly call includes a brief lesson on a relevant topic and expert coaching to keep you focused on creating your Best Year and give you the specifics to get going with momentum. The calls will also provide inspiration, accountability, support, and the resources to implement strategies that will keep your personal and professional life continually getting better and better. You can get this and more through my Best Year Ever Group Coaching Program. Visit www.BestYearEverCoaching.com for details or to register so you don’t miss another call!

© 2009 Victoria Cook. All Rights Reserved.

Want to use this article on your website or your own ezine? No problem! But here's what you MUST include:

Victoria Cook, The Guilt-Free Coach, is a successful entrepreneur, speaker, Certified Professional Coach, and creator of The Guilt-Free Results System™. Through coaching, classes, and workshops, Victoria helps professional women accomplish huge goals guilt-free. To get YOUR F.R.E.E. resources for increasing you time and reducing stress, visit www.TheGuiltFreeCoach.com/gift.

Victoria Cook, The Guilt-Free Coach, is a successful entrepreneur, speaker, Certified Professional Coach, and creator of The Guilt-Free Results System™. Through coaching, classes, and workshops, Victoria helps professional women accomplish huge goals guilt-free.

As a coach, Victoria sees her role as a catalyst to help her clients identify and implement greater self-care and her 7 step system for creating the guilt-free results they desire.

To begin experiencing Victoria's coaching, you can enjoy one month of her Best Year Ever group coaching program at no charge, beginning right now (plus a small $5 shipping/handling fee).

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© 2009 Victoria Cook. All Rights Reserved.