What Do You Do When Your 26 Weeks of EI Are Up?

The great land of Canada has Employment Insurance to help you along but what happens when it runs out?




Over the weekend, I was logging on to the Service Canada site to report my earnings for EI and I got a message saying they did not have a record on an active claim for me.  


 What? I do not have a claim?


  I called them today because yesterday was a holiday and learned that my 26 weeks which I was eligible for ended on January 28th so I received my last payment last Tuesday.  

  I am in a scary situation folks and I have to do something fast. 


  My day job is a teacher but, with declining enrolment and teachers hanging on to their jobs longer, I am struggling by working supply (substitute teaching).  

  The number of days I get to teach vary widely from week to week and I never know what is ahead.  

For example, last week I worked 2. 47 days and this week I don't have a single day pre-booked. I may get calls the morning of or I may not.  


Without EI topping me up to $800 every two weeks, my financial sitatuation is terrifying.  I have three children, rent, food, etc and need to make x amount each month. With EI, I have just been scraping by  . . . so without . . . stress. 


In order to survive, I need to supply teach at least 3 days a week and I have only worked that many times a week a few times this school year.  




What am I going to do? 

I am going to market like mad, that's what!!

 I am going to work my ass of writing so I can get killer content out there. 


I am going to write those books so I can generate an income from them.  




I could get another job but I would have to work a hell of a lot more to make what I do in just 2 days of teaching a week and then would end up having to say no to work which would mean I would not get a long term gig or a permanent position in a field I enjoy and actually pays me to get inspiration for my writing. 




So I turn to this wonderful Empower Network blog and spill my guts out on this page. 




I have been living in poverty my entire life. 




I realized over that last few years that fact. 




I also realized that I have allowed myself to live in poverty because I didn't believe I deserved better.  




 I was holding myself back from reaching my full potential and attaining the life that I so want to have. 






My personal vision of myself and my future has always been simple  . . . 




but I never really stopped to ask why I thought my life would always be a struggle; 




why I didn't see myself financially free; 




why I lived in a one room cabin when I saw myself old.  




I have been doing a lot of soul searching lately and listening to the great entrepreneurs talk about how they got where they are.  And every success story I hear about and read about began with belief: believing that they deserved to have financial freedom . . . that success in business was not code for ruthless and greedy. I have come to realize my own prejudices were holding me back. My belief that being financially free and comfortable could only be attained if you were selfish and greedy. 

Boy was I wrong!

See for yourself . . . How to Build YOUR Personal Brand . . . 

As I follow my path to my own success I surround myself with other like minded successful people, even great people.

 These "gurus" and leaders in their fields are just regular human beings who love, face challenges, and work hard. 

Through my involvement in the Empower Network and network marketing I have been exposed to some wonderful, warm, hilarious, and caring people. 

Read this . . . The power of community

The leaders in this industry that I have rallied around are there because they helped others and worked as a team so that everyone succeeded with them.  


I had always looked at sales and marketing as a solitary venture that was cut throat competitive because of what I learned from my mother's experiences in retail sales and real estate. 

I recoiled at the thought of sales and marketing jobs 

 . . . because I am not a selfish cut throat, aggressive person so I didn't think I was going to be good at it.  I have come to learn, thanks to the wonderful community here at the Empower Network, that no one succeeds alone.  

The most successful in any industry got there by working with other like minded and driven people who supported each other, picked them up when they were down, and celebrated each success along the way. 

Is is an honour and a privilege to be part of such an amazing community of positive, caring, powerful people here at the Empower Network. 




Each person here at the EN is changing the world of business and revolutionizing how marketing and business leadership is viewed.  




I am proof that the Empower Network is powerful.  




I now see that I have what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur with badass marketing skills because I have the compassion, drive, and positive energy required to be just like those leaders I so admire.  


 
                   





You can get in on this revolution too!! 

Take a look at this and let's DO THIS :)

Yours in marketing for success

Randine

To read more of my stuff click here.

Randine's Empower Network Blog

http://ping.fm/HoAPg

learn what viral sustainability is and how to create it in network marketing,

What is Viral Sustainability In Marketing?

To learn  what viral sustainability is and how to create it in network marketing,
Check this video out:
How to Create Viral Sustainability So You Can Work Less and Make More

In a nutshell, viral sustainability is what happens when you write content or create a video and then share it with as many people in as many places as possible.

This video shows you some of the many ways how you can do this.

Some of the up and coming greats are squidoo and pinterest. So get on them and make them part of your link building regimen.

Changes in Language Lead to Big Changes in Behaviour

Success in a Home Business Demands A Perspective Shift That Places Emphasis on the Business Not the Home

   Andrew Cass said it best at last year's No Excuses Summit, when he said   

"Changes in language lead to big changes in behaviour."

Andrew Cass is a well-respected and seasoned Network and Internet marketer who has made 7-figures several times over. He is definitely worth listening to and not just heard. 

click image to watch. We all know there is a difference between hearing and listening, right? Listening requires all our faculties and demands that we internalize, synthesize and apply what we are hearing.    I want you to really listen to what Andrew has to say in the presentation above.   Andrew asked that we alter our language by first turning everything we say we will or want to do into active I statements. Rather than saying it would be nice if . . . or one day I want . . . , we need to be saying "I will . . . " "I will  . . ." statements are powerful and demand action and commitment that other statements just do not. The most powerful understanding that I will take away from this experience is an understanding that most of us who decide to start a business from home fail to realize.  

More than we are now our own boss, we are our own employee.

Working from home has some great advantages. We can go to work in our pjs, skip the shower, make up and personal grooming, and choose our own hours. We can snack and take breaks when the mood strikes and have the freedom to work around our responsibilities in the home. But we need to remember that we are still operating a business and we need to hold ourselves accountable for our productivity just as we were held accountable out in the physical world of work.    We should actually hold ourselves more accountable because as home business owners and operators . . .  

we are our only source of revenue producing activities. 

  Thinking of myself as my employee who needs to be accountable was the single most revolutionary perspective shift I have had to wrap my head around since I made the decision to work for myself.    Here are the Creeds that I internalized - and I hope you will to - during and after listening to him speak at last year's No Excuses Summit:   

I will . . .

work within my "Productivity Strength Zones."

  Andrew introduced me to the phrase "productivity strength zones" but I already knew that he was referring to the importance, in terms of revenue producing and success, of doing what you enjoy and are good at.   

If you are great at direct sales either in person or on the telephone, focus your efforts on those revenue producing activities. 

  If you are someone who has a talent and skill with the written word, focus your revenue producing activities on blogging, copy writing, email writing and sending, info content writing, and so on. 

 In order to maximize your revenue production, you must focus your time and energy on using your natural strengths. 

I Will . . .

break from the time management myth.

 

We all have the same number of hours in the day. We cannot manage time we can only manage ourselves in time.

The difference between me and the most successful out there is how we use the time we have. 

Andrew broke down the hours we have in a week and demonstrated how

just focusing 2 extra hours a day on our highest revenue producing activities (those that will make us the most money) can elevate our productivity level to superior. 

 

And we still have 5 extra hours for free time or personal activities and 8 hours of sleep!

 

I will . . .

devote 2 hours to my highest revenue producing activities each day to go from average to superior. 

 

I will . . .

not check or respond to email, text or phone messages until my revenue producing activities are completed first.

    Seems like a no brainer, I realize, but think about it and answer honestly:  when you start your day, do you focus on your revenue producing activities first?   

I know that I start out with great intentions and then get sidetracked with searches, or go into email to get a link and end up spending an hour checking messages. 

 

It is tempting to do all of that social media surfing before and during your revenue producing activities when you are at home and no one is watching. You forget that you are accountable to your self and any one else who depends on your success. 

  This creed forces us to remember that we are our employee and must focus on business before pleasure . . . even when we are the only one looking.   

I will . . . 

track or record my revenue producing activities in a journal.

 

This too speaks to the fact that we are employees of our own business and need to behave as such. 

Get a day planner from the dollar store or wherever or make one on your computer outlook or on your phone. Whatever method you prefer but just make sure it is a method that you will use daily. Treat it like punching a time clock or recording your hours for a client. This is how you will be able to keep track of what revenue producing activities you utilized, evaluate them, and assess your value as an employee of your company.   

If at the end of the week, you would fire yourself, you need reevaluate and make adjustment to how you use your time. 

To best monitor your use of time in order to see where you can make adjustments, record every activity you engage in during your day and how long they took. Record this daily and at the end of each week, you can assess your value as an employee.        This leads me to my next creed. If I have managed my time well and did my revenue producing activities first each day . . .  

I will . . .

reward myself for hitting my benchmarks for the week. 

 

Rewarding yourself for a job well done at the end of each successful week will not only increase your productivity but make you happier and healthier. 

I will . . .

 have a regular fitness regimen. 

  It is easy as an individual running a business from home to fall into the sloth trap. We don't have to look presentable to the public and we are often sitting for hours on end alone staring at a computer screen.   

 

We are not managing our time well enough to schedule in exercise so we let it slide because we tell ourselves that we are focusing on the revenue producing activities. And there just isn't time. 

 

But Andrew showed us that we can increase our revenue producing activities by 2 hours each day and still have 5 hours to spare. So we have time we just don't make time. 

As the sole owner and employee of our business, we need to stay healthy and strong. Our survival depends upon it.

  Even just 30 minutes a day or two or three times a week will do wonders. For some fantastic High Intensity Interval Training that requires nothing more than your own body weight and dumbells, check this out.   

To watch a short video on HIIT, click link or image above.  

 

The best source for workouts that I have found is 

IntervalTraining.net

You will find mp3s that are designed to fit the interval workouts so you don't have to keep track of time.  There are many different workouts so you will never  get bored.   

HIIT is the best form of exercise because you will never plateau, your body is always being pushed to its maximum and you will continue to benefit from the metabolism boosting and muscle strengthening for up to 72 hours after!!

  I found this after hours of searching for something that fit my lifestyle and lack of budget. I wanted something that would force me to work to my max, not take hours to get the results, be challenging yet simple to execute, and not require a ton of space or equipment. This type of training can be adapted to whatever you already enjoy doing as you saw from the YouTube video.  Give it a shot. You won't be disappointed. I honestly felt my muscles twitching and working for 24 hours :)

I will . . .

have a clutter-free environment.

  I think that is self-explanatory. A cluttered space is a cluttered mind. 

I will . . .

batch my personal activities. 

  This goes back to managing your us of time. Schedule your personal errands and activities so that they happen in a dedicated time slot. If they break up your day they will make it hard to stay focused on your revenue producing activities. 

If you are like me, you need time to get into the right mindset and groove before you can actually engage in those productivity strengths that produce revenue for you and your business.

If you have personal errands like picking up the kids, doing landry, cooking meals, cleaning, housework, car care, hair cuts, and appointments scattered throughout your work day and work week, you will not be able to stay focused on those vital revenue producing activities. 

  Do as many of those personal activities as possible at the same time so that they eat up a couple hours and you are able to plan mentally and physically for them and your time back building your business.       Along with this . . .  

I will . . . 

schedule distractions.

 

I will . . .

create self-imposed deadlines.

  You are your employee so treat yourself like one. Giving yourself deadlines allows you to reward yourself for a job well done and gives you goals to focus on that will help motivate you.  

I will . . . 

 associate with winners.

 

 In order to be a winner you need to surround yourself with winners.

  Surrounding yourself with people who are successful does so many things for you.  First and foremost, it will inspire you and they will teach you things about what it takes to get to the top that you would never learn on your own.  Second, positive energy creates positive energy. In order to do positive things with your life and move in a positive direction you need to be positive and surround yourself with others who are positive and moving in a positive direction.  Being around positive people will help your business and help you personally grow into the successful person you know you can be.  

I will . . .

associate with winners.

  This last creed compliments the one before it.

If you want to be a winner you have to hang with the winners. Learn who they are, what they are doing and how they are doing it. 

Listen to Andrew Cass and other successful entrepreneurs, read their stories, find them online, this will improve your business exponentially because you will learn how to be like them personally and professionally just by being present. 

    In turn, others will come to associate you with the winners and your value will increase as a result. 

 

So I encourage. . .

 no . .  admonish. . .  you to watch Andrew Cass

speak at the No Excuses Summit,

do what he asks,

and apply it to your life and business. 

What have you got to lose?  

Those bad habits?

Sounds like a win win to me. 

To your success and mine, 

Randine. 

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