Christine Schlonski [0:02]
Hi Gorgeous! This is episode number 232. And we have the wonderful Rowena List back on the show.

Rowena List [0:10]
Hi, this is Rowena List you’re listening to Heart Sells! Podcast with Christine Schlonski. Enjoy.

Christine Schlonski [0:17]
Well, I am so super pumped to have Rowena back on the show today. Today, we will be talking about making space for magic by getting it together. We already have touched on this in the last episode. But decluttering is so important for your life and your business. And really organizing yourself, your time, and staying organized will support you in everything you do. So Rowena has more than 25 years of experience and expertise in getting it together. She has a natural ability to harness and teach others the best practices for getting and staying organized and for maximizing one’s time. Her non-judgmental, supportive, and caring nature along with her irresistible energy and enthusiasm, makes working with her feel safe and empowering. No matter if you are working with her for full scale, declutter, or reorganizing or move scenario may be coaching or training on how to master all sources of your income to dues and commitments. Rowena is highly interactive speaking engagements have spanned the globe and her organizational tips have led to numerous media attention, including Breakfast TV, Global TV, Fanny Keifer. And you may have also heard of her at the CBC radio or read her decluttering tips in More Magazine, Canadian Living, Vancouver Sun, and The Vancouver Province. So I’m really excited Rowena is back today and she has more of her magic so we can have actionable tips and advice to get our business to the next level by simply decluttering. Well, I’m so super excited to have you back on the show today, Rowena.

Rowena List [2:11]
Oh, me too! That was such a great episode that we did the first one and I know the second one is going to be equally as exciting and juicy.

Christine Schlonski [2:20]
Definitely. And I love the topic of decluttering because every time I noticed that I make my self declutter, amazing things happen, like maybe the next client shows up, or, you know, they get this beautiful opportunity, maybe an invitation or something magical always happens. And it’s interesting. I’ve been like observing this for years. And every time when I feel a little bit stuck in my business or somewhere in my life, I really get this nudge that I need to declutter. And then I find a way to declutter something and that feels freeing, it feels good. And usually, it helps overcoming the obstacle. So we talked about in the last episode, we talked a lot about the home and bringing in and not letting go of stuff. But today we wanted to talk about the mind.

Rowena List [3:20]
Yes, the mind and how cluttered the mind is these days, you know, people, their minds are so full because they’re on their phones or computers, they’ve got social media, they’re trying to run a family, and it becomes overwhelming. And I encourage my clients to do what I call a mind dump. This is just the biggest secret and I’m going to share it with right now. So, you know when you’re feeling so overwhelmed and you don’t know which direction to turn, sit down quietly, and take out a piece of paper and just write down everything that’s going on in your mind as far as what it is that you need to do. And it can be business-related and personal, and family, and everything. You just keep writing it’s just sort of starts to spill out of you. And once you’ve written everything down no particular order, there’s no right or wrong way just get it onto the piece of paper. You then take a look at that mind dump and you put a big red letter A beside the items that only you can do and nobody else can do. And then you put a B beside the items that if you had time to do them, you would do them and all the rest becomes C which is they get delegated. We feel that we have to do it all and we can’t do it all and we don’t need to do it all. As far as you know you going and speaking at your summit your conference only you can do that Christine. But somebody else could be booking the venue and somebody else could be sending out the invitations and, somebody else could be doing the follow-up. So this is the thing that we need to realize that as entrepreneurs to delegate and know that somebody else will do the job is equally as good as us and trust that they will. So that it frees your mind and your energy and time so that you do what you are most skilled in.

Christine Schlonski [5:30]
Yes, such an important fact. I think so many people get lost into or with the belief that they are the only ones that can do it right.

Rowena List [5:41]
Mm hmm. They get lost in that and lost in, well, I don’t have the money to hire that person. Well, you know, many, many years ago, when I learned this technique, and I learned that, you know, how much do I make per hour compared to say, a housekeeper So if I can bring in somebody to clean my house, and they’re making X amount of dollars per hour, but I’m making maybe double that, then it’s worth my while to have them clean my house while I can be helping somebody get organized or helping a coaching client. And I’m also then helping another person with their business. And as a cleaning, you know what, for example, with the cleaning lady, I have the exact same cleaning lady for over 25 years. And we built a bond and, you know, I helped her family and helped her business. And in turn, she helped mine. So it all works out. And in the beginning, I didn’t think that I could, quote afford to, you know, be paying her to do this, but what I soon realized is that while she was cleaning my place, I was following up with leads and booking appointments and making a better success for my business.

Christine Schlonski [7:01]
Yeah, such an important point that we so often overlook.

Rowena List [7:06]
Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Christine Schlonski [7:08]
So, after I have done this list, I dumped it all out, I put my A, B’s and C’s, I found a way to delegate. What about the B’s like the? Am I delegating those after I delegated the C’s?

Rowena List [7:25]
Well, the B’s are if you get around to it, so it might be something that, you know, let’s say for an example you want to research, you know, famous women, you know, that’s just an interest of yours. That might be a B, and that would be something that what you know, in your spare time or when you get around to it, that would be something that you would like to do. The A’s are the things that are really like I call the pebble in the shoe, they’re niggling at you that you need to get those things done. The important thing, Christine is that once you’ve got the answer So let’s just say that the A for you is to plan your in person conference, you’ve got that down on a piece of paper. Well, that’s, that’s a big job. There’s a lot of tasks that go with that. So now what you do is you take a clean piece of paper, and at the top, you put a plan conference, and then you write down all the steps that are necessary to plan that conference. Then you take a look at those steps, and you say, okay, what is it that only I can do? And nobody else can do? Put an A beside those. And then the rest are the ones that get delegated. And besides the ones that get delegated, you start to make a list of, you know, who is it that could help me out with that? Is there a friend that’s offered to help find a venue? Is there a colleague? Is there a client, that has a caterer service that could do the catering. So then you start to break that down. So that’s sort of a second mind dump a more detailed mind dump the things that have the A beside them, you now take a look at that and you put a timeline beside them. How long is it going to take for you to, let’s just say, for example, you need to write the content of what you’re going to actually say at this conference? How long is that going to take? So you put down let’s say, it’s going to take you two hours. Well, now you slot that two hours into your calendar so that you know exactly when it is you’re going to write the content. Because you don’t want, again, just winging it. Oh, when I got some time I’ll write content or I’ll write 15 minutes here and 15 minutes there. Now, you want to stay focused and get into the flow and get, you know, get your juices rolling. So you would then put that into your calendar, so on Friday, between one and three is when you’re going to write content for your upcoming event. Now that clears your mind. You don’t have to think about it. You don’t have to think about anything else until when that time comes, you look and you go, oh yeah, now’s the time I’m going to write my content, and you put your creative juices on and get going.

Christine Schlonski [10:22]
Yeah. Yeah, you said something like being inflow. So what have you experienced in your life is there? Well, sometimes you just you block the time you sit down, but then you might be procrastinating or flow just doesn’t show up. Are there any tricks or tips of how to get yourself to actually do the task? That is, you know, might be important, but it’s not really required because it’s not a client appointment where another person is demanding your time. It’s something you put into your calendar because you wanted it done. But tomorrow would work as well. How do you get yourself to be a better follower of your own calendar?

Rowena List [11:09]
You need to make yourself as much of a priority as you make your clients. Bottom line, writing that content is equally as important as sitting in front of a client. And I know what people are thinking, well, what if a client comes along and they want to see me on Friday between one and three? Well, then that’s when you get to decide as an entrepreneur. Can I adjust when I do my content writing and see this client? Or do I say to my client, I’m actually booked. And you don’t need to tell them what you’re doing. You could be off scheme. You don’t need to tell them, you know, your whole life. You’re just saying I’m booked on Friday between one to three but I can see you at 10 or I can see you at four. It’s about being disciplined. And if the goal is big enough and the desire for the successful is big enough and the outcome is big enough for you, then you will stick to that. And if your mind is clear, because you’ve done the mind dump, then the flow will come for writing the content. Because your mind is clear. Quite often what happens is when I’m working out, and I’ll be, you know, say on the treadmill or elliptical or something like that, that’s when I do a bulk of my thinking. And I get my mind wrapped around what article I’m going to write next, or what, you know what I’m going to be doing next with the client or so forth. And then when I blocked in that time, that’s all already in my flow, because I’ve given it some thought.

Christine Schlonski [12:45]
Yeah, I love this idea. Because I think when you’re moving, when you’re working out when you have a good blood flow, so to speak, you get creative ideas. I often get creative ideas when I’m out for work. Do you think discipline is something that can be learned?

Rowena List [13:01]
I do. If the outcome is big enough that you need. So if you are, and there’s nothing wrong with being motivated by money, we need money to pay for our accommodation of where we live and our food and so forth. So if money is a motivator, as long as it’s not greed, as long as it’s a need for building that commitment, then the discipline needs to will follow. You know, if you’ve got these big enough goals, but if you don’t have I will say to people they need to know what their WHY is? WHY. So why is it that you’re in business? Why is it that you’re putting on a conference? Why is it that you’re putting in this effort? Why do you need to follow up with your clients so when you know what your why is, the discipline will follow.

Christine Schlonski [13:53]
Yeah, that’s that’s profound because it will just it will pull you towards the goal. And it’s easier for you to get started. Yeah, I’ve just seen especially when people start their businesses, sometimes there’s like this overwhelm of all the things they have to do. And also they kind of misjudge how long some things take. Right? For example, they plan to put up their next opt-in page. And they think, well, I’m done in two hours. And then it turns out, they need five or maybe even more. And that’s where the frustration gets in, as well. So I think another good idea would be plan some extra time so you don’t get stressed and you can stay in the flow.

Rowena List [14:41]
Oh, you’re so right, Christine. People always underestimate how long something is going to take to do. And you know, in our previous episode together when we talked about organizing and clearing out the clutter in your home, that’s where people really underestimate they think, oh, this is not going to take so long. I can organize my papers I’ll allow, you know, an hour. And you know, No, it doesn’t work like that because it took much longer to get disorganized, so it’s going to take a long time to get organized. And same with setting aside time to write content or do an opt-in page. That’s where I get them to really break the task down. Because to do an opt in-page means that you need to write content and you need to be in touch with your web designer, and there’s many steps. So I would break that down even more. And I would look at the steps that I need to do, and then schedule that in. And if I underestimated the time, and I was still in the flow and the writing was coming, then I would carry on if I had time to do that. If not, then I would schedule another time of when I’m going to carry on with that task.

Christine Schlonski [15:58]
Yeah, so basically you’re saying like, keep at it. If you run out of time because you didn’t schedule enough time. Just put in the next time block right away. And don’t let it fall. Yeah.

Rowena List [16:11]
Yes. You know, we need to take time to plan. We need to take that time to plan. We can’t just be winging it and say, oh, you know, when I’ve got some time, I’ll finish this off. That’s where most people fall short. Just, you know, when you go to the dentist, they always book your next appointment. They don’t say, oh, well just call us when you’re, you know, six months is off or your year, whatever. And, you know, they don’t wing it. They’re professionals, who are professional. So they schedule it. Right then and there. While you’re standing there. Your hairdresser does the same thing. They schedule it. So we need to be doing the same thing with that same kind of importance and urgency for ourselves.

Christine Schlonski [16:53]
Hmmm. Yeah, I love that and how you value yourself, right? You need to value yourself as much as you value your clients. You cannot always be, you know, at the back of the line serving everybody first, because if your cup isn’t full well, you don’t have anything to give.

Rowena List [17:11]
Yeah, you need to put yourself at the front of the line. Most definitely. Most definitely. Which means, you know, working on your health and around your business.

Christine Schlonski [17:21]
Yeah, totally agree. So you started your business at such a young age? Is there anything else you’ve sold before? Like what is the very very first thing that you’ve ever sold in your life?

Rowena List [17:35]
What a cute question. When I was in Brownies and Girl Guides, the very first thing that I sold was Girl Guide cookies, and I was the top Girl Guide cookies salesperson and I went around door to door selling the cookies. It’s not like it is today where the moms help out I went off on my own and sold the Girl Guide cookies. I was totally motivated to be one of the top sales person’s. And so that was the very first thing that I sold. When I was growing up, my mom was a part-time Avon Rep and I used to put the deliveries in my basket of my bicycle and go around and deliver those to her clients in the neighborhood. And then I started selling a product called Regal, which is giftware. And it was greeting cards and paper wrap and things like that back in the day. I think it’s much bigger now but I would sell that from my bicycle basket as well. You know, I was raised with very, very little money and if I wanted to go to camp or get a new pair of jeans or something like that, I had to do it myself. So I was motivated to get out there. Highly, highly motivated. I returned pop bottles. Beer cans that I found at the local park after baseball games are be so many beer bottles. I bet oh, this is like Christmas and I go and collect them all and return them to the store and save up money to go to camp. So because I knew what my WHY was, you see, even as a young age, I had my WHY in place. And then I became very involved with Mary Kay cosmetics. And that’s where a lot of the training came in. I was in senior management, well over 30 years with them. And that’s where I saw the need for entrepreneurs to be more organized because they’re bringing in a business into their home. And that’s when I created about over two years ago, I created gettingittogether.ca because I found that the Reps were not as organized as they could be. So they weren’t as productive as I felt they could be doing successful as they want it to be. And it was the missing link was they weren’t organized. And so I created all these systems for leads and follow up and, you know, how to keep your office organized and it just morphed into wardrobes and kitchens and, garages and, so now I do it all. With all house organized, even I’m cooking for people nowadays that aren’t organized enough to cook for themselves. So it’s fine.

Christine Schlonski [20:17]
Yeah, what a business.? So let me ask you when you as when you were selling cookies, do you remember the very first time when somebody gave you money like how this felt?

Rowena List [20:31]
I don’t. And the thing is, they were giving me money, but it wasn’t for me. You see, when I was selling Girl Guide cookies, all that money, everything went to the Girl Guide, the organization, and my WHY at that time was that I really wanted to still be a part of the Girl Guides. I knew that you know, they had informed us that you know, we collect this much money, we can put it towards camp, we can you know, make Campgrounds better we can, you know, help out with uniforms so that your parents don’t have to pay for so much for the uniform. So it was a community effort. And what my highest love language if we take a look at the Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman, mine is acts of service. And so out of that young of an age, seven years old, I was, you know, showing my love language by my acts of service.

Christine Schlonski [21:33]
So what do you think that you are a natural salesperson?

Rowena List [21:40]
Well, I think that I am but I think that people can learn that technique. Yeah, because really, a natural salesperson or even a salesperson is really finding out the need of the other person and fulfilling that need. So, it means listening, asking questions, and being genuinely interested in what the other person is needing. So for an example, if somebody said to me, well, I’m allergic to sugar and gluten, I’m not going to try and sell them Girl Guide cookies. I’m going to say, well, you know, who do you know who isn’t allergic to gluten and sugar and would enjoy supporting Girl Guides for you know, if somebody is completely organized and has their spices alphabetized, they’re not going to be a client for me. I’m going to say, well, who do you know, who is always running late? And they’ll say, oh my gosh, a friend of mine, she’s always late for everything. I said, okay, well, she would be a good referral for me. So why would I try and talk these people into things that they don’t need? And people sometimes will say, well, they don’t know that they don’t need your service. Well, no, they do. They’re intelligent people. They know what They need and don’t need and let’s just find a better fit.

Christine Schlonski [23:04]
Yeah, I love that. So what means Heart Sells for you?

Rowena List [23:11]
Heart Sells, oh goodness or heart, you’re saying heart, Heart Sells? Yes. Sorry Christine, Heart Sells. That’s definitely, again coming from your heart coming from a place of what does the other person need and not doing hard sales which is what they don’t need. So really just being compassionate, empathetic, and really just coming from that kind place of what is it that will fill their heart and fill your heart and what will be the best for everybody involved?

Christine Schlonski [23:54]
Yeah, like the win, win, win situation.

Rowena List [23:56]
Win. Yes! Win. Win. Because, you know, if you do hard sales, people have a bad taste in their mouths afterward. And then they’re talking bad about you or your company. Whereas if they have a heart sale, then they are going to be sharing with their friends and family and saying, Oh my goodness, I just met this person and she’s got this amazing job or I just met this person and she’s putting on a live conference. Let’s go because she’s so nice and she’s very kind and genuine and she is sincere. That’s the key is sincerity. People don’t want to be around people that are fake.

Christine Schlonski [24:39]
Totally. And to help people to get organized and get to that authentic core where they can declutter, you have those 10 tips for us. We already talked about them. I just want to invite people again to go to gettingittogether.ca and obviously, it will be in the show notes as well and all the links that are leading to you so people can connect and dive into the work that you’re doing. Because it’s so important. Once you are organized and you are in a space that you love surrounded by things you love, you will have a different energy and drive that will reflect in your life and in your business.

Rowena List [25:26]
Oh, most definitely. Most definitely. And I think the key point to Christine is that you know, follow up on your leads, think about how you and I met you’re in Germany, I’m in Vancouver, Canada. And we’ve met through social media through doing follow up and through genuinely getting to know each other and finding out how we can serve each other and help each other out without just trying to sell something right off the bat. And send all that promo info It’s been a relationship building experience. And one that really fills my heart because I think about how small the world is and how we can connect with entrepreneurs throughout the whole world. If we do it from the heart, and we do it with sincerity, and how is it that we can help the other person and serve the other person? It will come back to us tenfold.

Christine Schlonski [26:26]
I totally agree. Well, thank you so, so much for sharing all of your wisdom. And, yeah, I really enjoyed these episodes. So I’m super excited. And yeah, I think I’m gonna schedule in those 10, 15 minutes decluttering every single day. And I’m just gonna do it for two weeks and see what happens.

Rowena List [26:47]
Ooh! Let me know I want to hear the results.

Christine Schlonski [26:49]
I will. Well, thank you so so much, have a wonderful day and bye for now.

Christine Schlonski [26:55]
Well, I hope you like the actionable steps you learn from Rowena today. How you can declutter your mind. For example, on top of decluttering, your environment, your home, your computer, your laptop, like everything needs decluttering from time to time, that helps energy move, and that helps you to get to your next level. So whenever you feel stuck, have a look around like where are you stuck? Are you stuck in your mind that needs some decluttering? Are you stuck in your home? Because you know, there’s some clutter that has accumulated and now it’s time to declutter. Hop on over to christineschlonski.com, find the podcast tab for the Show Notes and the Transcript, and also the resources and all the links that lead to Rowena. So you can connect. And once you’re over there, sign up for the Empowerment Notes. That’s Empowerment right into your inbox, where you get all the updates of Heart Sells! Podcast, and where I share amazing content that I usually do not share on social media. And you will get also an invitation from time to time to one of my wonderful online events that are really life changing, like the Sales Mentality Makeover Masterclass, or any Summit I might be doing. You can find that as well by joining the Empowerment Notes, and you will be always up to date. Thank you so much for tuning in. Have a wonderful day wherever you are in this beautiful world and I’m saying bye for now.