5 Dating
Strategies for the Single Entrepreneur
Copyright 2005 Heartmind Connection, LLC
My friend Jonathan is self-employed and single. He talks about how it would be
so nice to have a relationship in his life and yet I do not see him making the
time for the process of dating. He tells me that his work is very demanding and
that he is barely keeping up with his clients.
Having your own business or being self-employed is very challenging, as well as
rewarding. Add being single to the equation and it can be a very lonely place
to be. I was single while I ran a women’s clothing boutique. Although I worked
incredible hours and had a 7 day a week operation, I made a concerted effort to
date and meet people which eventually led me to meeting my husband. This is how
I recommend you fit in dating into your hectic work schedule:
1.Get Clear on What your Life Goals and Priorities Are
What are your goals and priorities in life?
- Work
- Family
- Finding a life partner and getting marriied
- Community service
- Athletic activities
- Personal/ social activities
Rank them from 1 to 6, 1 being the most important. What came up for you during
this exercise?
Next, where do you see yourself in 5 years? Would you be happy being single at
that time? It’s time to be honest with yourself.
Just like you have a business plan for you business, you need to develop a life
plan for you life. When you focus on obtaining and having the
important things in life, will happen for you.
2. Put your Personal Time on Your calendar and Stick
to it!
When you decide to carve out some time for your personal life which may include
the pursuit of meeting someone for a relationship, then
make an appointment with yourself on your calendar. How many hours a week are you willing to commit to this endeavor?
You need to apply the same time management skills to your personal time as you
do to your work time. Do you consider the event or activity for meeting people
to date urgent, desirable or eventually need to do?
Go ahead, put this date in your calendar and commit to keeping this appointment
with yourself!
3.Decide on What Trade Offs You Are Willing To Make
Life is about trade offs. What are you willing to sacrifice to have what you
want? It may be for a short time or a long time depending on your success on
meeting the right person for you.
Are you willing to work some less hours and make less money? Perhaps you would
be willing to hire someone to do the work that is least desirable to you. I
hired a bookkeeping even though I was very capable of
doing the work myself. I ended up using a mailing service for my promotional
materials when I did the labels for mailing myself at early on in my business.
I thought it was more important to free up my time for what I enjoyed rather
doing the detailed, repetitive tasks. I hired smart college students to do some
of the busy work for me. Even if you bring in help seasonally, it may free you
up for a vacation or a long weekend!
Consider hiring an assistant to help you with writing letters, making
appointments and following up with phone calls to your clients. Now virtual
assistants are becoming very popular with business owners.
4.Use Efficient Dating Techniques
There is a time cost and benefit to every singles event and dating service
available to you. Once you have a handle how much time a week you want to put
towards dating, and then you need to decide how much financial resources you
want to devote to these endeavors.
The best thing you can do for yourself is to get a real clear picture of your
values. Your
values are what’s most important to you in life. For
instance, kindness and compassion may be very important to you. Therefore, this
is what you would want in a mate, as well. Once you have your valued
constructed, then you have a guideposts for which you can evaluate your
potential partner.
Next, it’s important to get clear on what you want in life. Do you want a children? If not, you need to be clear with your potential
dates that you are not interested in children. You may not even want to date
divorced people with kids. Then opposite may be true as well. If you want
children and someone doesn’t then there is no point pursing a relationship with
this person. This will save you much time and anguish!
Now you are ready to see who is out there and who will be best suited for you.
If you are willing to spend the money, you may consider a reputable matchmaker
or dating service. The internet can be a good way to meet people to date. You
can search the net at all hours of the day or night. However, it may take a lot
of searching and weeding out. It can be very frustrating when people do not
return your emails. Try more than one site. Different sites will produce
different results. See my resource page on my website
http://www.heartmindconnection.com/resources for a list of dating internet
sites you may want to consider.
Last, ask friends, family or perhaps business associates who know you well to
introduce you to people to date. Tell them what you are looking for in a mate
so they can be helpful to you. Don’t be shy to ask them to fix you up. One of
my clients was very good about getting the word out that she was looking to meet
someone to date. She eventually got a fixed up with someone she really likes.
5. Combine Fun and Recreation with Meeting People
What is fun and relaxing for you? It is not healthy to
work all the time and not have any play!
If you enjoy socializing, then the singles events may help you get out and be
with people. Who knows, you may pick up a client if not a date! For the
athletic types, sports activities such as biking groups or tennis parties may
be a way to have fun and meet someone to date. If you are into working out to
keep your shape and stamina, then the gym can be a place to meet those of the
opposite sex who also share this desire to keep fit. Perhaps you will entertain
taking a ski trip or a hiking trip with a singles group.
Taking vacations are critical to maintaining sanity for an entrepreneur. If you
love traveling, you may consider joining a singles travel group to see various
parts of the world. There are even singles cruises for those who enjoy
traveling by sea. I know a woman who loved yoga and found a travel group that
incorporated daily yoga into the trip. Imagine finding your soulmate
while doing what you truly love!
As an entrepreneur, you have already experienced what happens when you have a
vision of what you want and focus on that goal. You have built your thriving
business with your drive and determination. You can also have a fulfilling
relationship if you apply your same drive and determination to that area of
your life. It may just take some rebalancing of your energy and focus.
Nonetheless, the benefits of finding that rewarding romantic relationship can
last a lifetime!
5 Easy Steps to Help You Lose Weight
When loosing weight, most of us don't have the time to
drastically change our lifestyles. We need a practical and convenient way to
integrate effective habits into our daily lives. The following steps are easy
and practical ways to get you on the track to loosing weight and feeling
better.
1. Drink Water! Water doesn't just help quench your thirst. All metabolic
processes within the body utilize H2O and drinking plenty of it helps your body
function optimally. It also helps you feel your best---many of the common daily
headaches and fatigues we experience can result from a lack of water intake.
2. Eat Breakfast! Many Americans fail to realize the true value of a morning
meal. It not only boosts energy for the long day ahead, but keeps your
metabolism regulated. Skipping a meal can put the body into "survival
mode" which means that it actually begins storing and saving fat as
opposed to burning it.
3. Exercise! There is no easy way around it: successful and sustained weight
loss requires a commitment to physical activity. The best way to be loyal to
physical activity is to work it into each day. Take a small part of each day to
go for a walk, do aerobics, do yoga, or whatever other type of activity you
enjoy. Mix it up so that you don't get bored with it. Soon, you will not only
get used to it, but you will feel better too!
4. Choose Variety! Don't let popular dieting trends
fool you: Carbs are good for
you too! In fact, carbohydrates are what your brain run on and are very
important for proper body functions. Following a high-protein diet over a long
period of time can not only cause headaches, but also places considerable
stress on the kidney. The important thing is to eat a variety of foods. This
includes fruits, vegetables and even carbs. Just
remember to be smart about the types of carbs you eat:: whole wheat instead of white.
5. Eat Slowly! We all get in a hurry from time to time, but it is important to
take the time to listen to our bodies. Eating quickly doesn't give our bodies
time to tell our brains that we have eaten enough. Consequently, we continue
eating and are left filling stuffed and bloated. Eating more slowly allows us
to recognize when we actually have eaten enough and stop—it also helps us savour and enjoy the food we do eat.
Essential to loosing weight is giving our bodies what they need. This means
drinking plenty of water, eating timely and proper meals, staying active, and
giving our body the time to tell us when it is full. Our bodies will reward us
for our attention.
Blast Away Your Negative Stress With
Yoga
Will you be able to manage
the stress in your life?
It seems that everyday
brings more and more stress. Yoga is a terrific way to counter all the
stressors in today's fast-paced society.
Now it's clear, not all
stress is equal.
All stresses place demands
on your life. Stress turns negative if you perceive that demand to be outside
of your control.
Yoga is a powerful way to
bring control back into your life, allowing you to change the way you percieve demands reducing negative stress in your life.
Your yoga program will
directly confront the negative stress in your life, making you more prepared to
take on the demands of positive stress - helping you to grow spiritually,
emotionally and intellectually.
The more relaxing Hatha Yoga could easily be used to wind down from a very
stressful day, or you could choose forms of power Yoga such as Ashtanga where you can loose
yourself in yoga poses that help you build strength
and stamina.
Too many people turn to
harmful methods to help overcome the lack of control in their lives.
They turn to alchohol, cigarettes, overworking, drugs or simply giving
up on their dreams and ambitions in life.
Will you escape the life of
the captive monkey who eventually gives up trying to escape their prison?
Will you open your mind,
heart and schedule to Yoga?
Use relaxation yoga to free
you from life's negative stress, you will be amazed at the results.