Since 1988, I've endured the chill of rain, wind, and snow as a resident of the Pacific Northwest. Having grown up in sunny Southern California, it was an adjustment to say the least.
Last fall, the boiler went out in our home during a cold snap. Weeks passed before a technician could come to the house because so many other locals were suffering far more than were we.
Sweaters, space heaters, hot mugs of coffee, and long windows of time hovering near the fireplace were the order of the day for weeks and months on end.
Taking a look at the weather report became an exercise in exasperation.
For years, my hubby and I have dreamed about trying on what it would be like to be snowbirds.
This year, we decided to bring the dream to life.
What did we learn?
- Escaping the snow, rain, and wind to welcome daily sunshine is a mood enhancer and a productivity trigger.
- I successfully compressed my work week into 3 days, and he did, too. That opened up time for adventures, excursions, and time to enjoy the weather without reaching for mittens, boots, and scarves.
- Making that choice forced me to focus on what is most important and kick distractions and tinkering to the curb.
- Wowing my clients every single day does not require that I work from the home office. I can wow my clients from wherever I happen to be as long as I have a secure internet connection and a Zoom account.
- During our time away, I test drove a new offer that drove revenues, collected on newly introduced payment plans from a recent launch, welcomed online product sales, and earned generous affiliate commissions.
- During this trip, I set up 4 amazing collaborations to support influential partners and welcomed commitments from 8 leaders to lend support to the June 6-14 Podcast Visibility Live Lab .
- Whether I am at home or away, I can speak up virtually and earn rave reviews for my talks and invite spin off engagements and podcast guest spots on influential shows,
- My business doesn't stop working when I pull back on posting to social media. Best of all, the quality of my life improves.
Where we live, winter still has some runway. Having enjoyed a timely and somewhat lengthy escape, I feel I can hold my breath for a little while longer until signs of Spring start to emerge.
In the meantime, my plan is to continue to compress my work week into 3 days with relentless focus on the most important initiatives that drive revenue and delight and surprise my clients with WOW service and results — regardless of the weather.
We're already planning our next snowbird escape. The next time, we'll stay even longer.
