There are basically two situations we get into as self-employed people. Either we are completely overwhelmed because we don’t have enough clients, and therefore, don’t have enough money coming in, or, we are completely overwhelmed because we have so many clients, so many projects to get done and what would seem like not enough time.

Been on both sides of that fence? Yeah, me too. While the latter is obviously the ideal situation, it can be equally as stressful as the former. Having too much to do, and too many clients, especially when you’re self employed, is what my friend and former boss, Andrew Moizer, would classify as a “good problem”. But a good problem is still a problem, and even the best of problems can quickly turn into bad problems if they aren’t dealt with.

The thing about both of these problems – the one of not enough business, and the one of too much business – is that they have the same solutions. You see, both the good problem and the not-so-good problem create the same feelings of being overwhelmed. Therefore, it stands to reason that the path to stop these overwhelming feelings would be similar, right? Let’s explore some ways we can fight this, and reclaim our sense of calm and serenity in the midst of the chaos.

Always Baby Steps. I often equate self employment to climbing a big mountain. You start the journey, and you feel great. You are moving fast, and seeing the infinite potential and opportunities that lie ahead of you. Then, after a while of this, you realize you’re still climbing. You’re getting a bit tired. You’re running out of resources, and you still haven’t reached the first plateau. You slip, and slide back down the mountain, and have to start climbing all over again. Eventually, you get your feet under you, but not for long. Yes, you’re stronger now, but obstacles become more complex the higher you climb. You climb up a bit, slide down a bit, until eventually, you can see the summit.

Sound familiar?

The only way to get to the top of a mountain is one foot in front of the other. If you think that the moment you open the doors of your business, the money and clients are just going to fly in, well, I’m here to tell you you’re mistaken. (Don’t worry, we all made the same mistake.) It takes work, and sacrifice, and more work, and hustle, and courage, and not much sleep to start and run a company and make it successful. It also takes near infinite amounts of patience. Everest wasn’t conquered in a day, and every day you are working on your business you are on Mount Everest. And to get to the top, you have to do it like everyone else – baby steps, one foot in front of the other. Don’t overwhelm yourself by focusing everything you have on reaching the summit. Focus on the task at hand, then the next one, then the next one. Eventually, the top of the mountain will come into view.

How are you DOing? At the present time, I have somewhere in the neighbourhood of 20 projects on the go. I wrote them all down on my white board the other day, just to see what it looked like. At first, I thought it was going to send me into a panic. But when I saw it all laid out in front of me, it wasn’t so bad. In fact, I was kind of excited about it. There’s a lot of cool stuff going on!

A lot of people assume that when I say “projects” I mean “paid work”. I have a tendency to lump everything in together. That way, I can be sure that even the stuff I’m not being paid to do gets enough of my attention. I have some fun little creative side projects right now. They are a good break from my professional work, and that balance is critical.

So, do two things. First, make a list of all your projects…and I mean ALL of them. Yes, that scrapbooking project counts as a project. So does your podcast, your blog, and that going away party you’re planning for your cousin. Writing it all out helps you to see where your head is at and where your focus is. You can group them and categorize them any which way that makes sense.

Then, once you have your high level categories, start to make your task lists. Take each project, and write down all the associated tasks you need to get done. Put them in a To Do list. I use a combination of Evernote and Egretlist, because they are integrated and sync across systems. I tag each item with a priority and group it under a project. That way I always know what needs doing where and when. You can even keep your list in your calendar, or (GASP) a paper notebook or Daytimer.

What’s cool about having all your tasks laid out is, it becomes super easy to get started at something. Simply pick something from the list, and do it. I tend to have times where I’ll bang off a bunch of shorter items, like sending emails or small writing or research tasks in a group, then slot in some time to tackle the larger things. Crossing off 4 or 5 things in one go is a great way to feel like you’re accomplishing things, and it frees up space for the larger tasks too.

But whatever you do, don’t try to keep your To Do’s in your head. It never works, and you’ll forget stuff, and chaos can quickly become catastrophe. Writing it down gets it out of your head, so you don’t have to keep thinking about what needs doing – and you can just focus on doing.

Being busy, whether it’s hustling for new clients or managing the ones you have, is a good, good problem to have. As overwhelming as it can be, it’s important to not let it get to you. By focusing on putting one foot in front of the other, crossing off one task at a time, you’ll walk away from each day having climbed a bit higher up that mountain.

So, get yer hiking boots on. We got a hill to climb.

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“You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get people interested in you.” — Dale Carnegie

We spend so much time and energy talking about the next big thing, the killer app or technology that’s going to help us be successful in achieving our goals. We talk strategies, toolsets, and ROI. We want to know what the secret is, and we lean forward into the future, hoping that some incredibly insightful thought leader is going to share with us the big revelation that will change our lives.

We focus intensely on what’s next. We forget that Dale Carnegie wrote those words in 1936.

I spend a lot of time with other entrepreneurs. We share our ups and downs. We commiserate about what a struggle it is to win new business, in a market that’s gun-shy about spending too much, one that’s intent on measuring every penny in for penny spent. It’s exciting, frustrating, and sometimes, we reminisce about our former cubicle-dwelling days and wonder if that’s the easier option.

I hear a lot of rumblings, people puzzling about how to “convince” clients to hire them. I see online seminars and Twitter chats about personal branding and how entrepreneurs can go about marketing themselves in this rough terrain. Don’t get me wrong – personal branding is important. But it’s only the first step. Once your exceptional personal branding efforts have paid off and gotten you in the door, then what? How do you translate your brand to paying clients?

Don’t pretend to know everything. Meeting a prospective client for the first time can be unnerving, even for the most social and outgoing type (if you’re shy it can be downright stressful). You run the scene in your head…you’re going to try to talk about yourself in a positive way, and hope to heck that they don’t ask the dreaded question, “So how much will this cost me?”, before you’ve had a chance to tout your value. You worry that you might not say the right things, or come off as “the expert” that your prospect is seeking.

Forget the impression you want to make by saying all the right things. It rarely works, and there is an easier way. Don’t claim to be an expert (ever). But DO ask questions. Lots of them. Find out what makes that person sitting across from you tick. Understand what their problems are. It’s not your job to be an expert in everything. It IS your job to help your clients figure out how to solve their problems. And you can only do that by asking questions.

Get people talking. You’ve heard before that the best way to strike up a conversation with someone is to ask them questions (I think that may have come from Mr. Carnegie too, now that I think about it). The part that’s often overlooked is by far the most important…listening to the answers. Want to know the secret to finding out what people are passionate about, even when they don’t think they know themselves? Ask questions. When you hit on their passion, you’ll know it, but only if you pay attention to what they are saying, and how they say it. Suddenly, their body language will shift. They might sit upright, or lean in. They’ll move their hands around. Their eyes will get a little glint. They will smile more. They will apologize for “rambling on”. That’s when you’ll have discovered their passion. Make note of it. That’s valuable information.

Keep on asking questions. Once you’ve nailed someone’s passion, ask more questions about that passion. Get them to tell you some stories. Everyone’s got stories. The more they talk, the more you listen and understand, the more they’ll want you around. This is not a trick…it’s human nature. It works both ways, too. Nobody wants to be around someone who’s a downer. Everyone wants to be around someone who is excited about what they are doing or saying. If you are genuinely interested (genuinely is the operative and essential word) in what the other person cares about, not only will that person be more inclined to be around you (and ultimately, maybe hire you), but you’ll enjoy being around them too. You’ll feed off their positive energy just as they feed off yours. That’s not a tactic…that’s physics. And as Mr. Carnegie said so wisely all those decades ago, being interested in other people is the best way to get them on you team, and ultimately, to win their business.

We’re all working hard on our brands, and that’s great. If Dale Carnegie were alive today I bet he’d be astounded at all the ways we have to connect with and influence others today. But I bet he’d also be using the same lines as he used back then. The tools have changed. The principles have not.

You’ve nailed your brand…now how are you going to nail your influence?

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