[quote style=”boxed”]Every day, decide on the most important task you need to accomplish that day and get it done.[/quote]
Barrie Davenport is a certified life passion coach and the founder of Live Bold and Bloom, a blog about bold and fearless living. She coaches people to help them investigate themselves, using their own, internal wisdom and some practical tools, in order to doggedly go after what they want in life. If they don’t know what they want, she helps them dig around inside until they find it and then create a plan to put it into action.
She’s taken her work as a coach and translated it into the written word, sharing her vision, experiences, and ideas on her blog, Live Bold and Bloom. She is the author of Discover Your Passion: A Step-By-Step Course for Creating the Life of Your Dreams, The Bold Living Guides, and 7 Key Ingredients for a Meaningful Life. She was a public relations executive and consultant for more than 20 years, and she’s the mom of three teenage children.
What are you working on right now?
I just wrapped up a four-week, interactive course with Leo Babauta (of Zen Habits) and Katie Tallo (of Momentum Gathering) called The Habit Course, which helps people learn to create sustainable habits for life. Of course, every week I write posts on personal development and living boldly for my readers on Live Bold and Bloom. I usually write two posts per week, as well as a weekend newsletter. I create regular videos with specific ideas and tips for self-improvement on my YouTube channel.
I’m also working on a book of weekly ideas and actions for an entire year to help people uncover their life passions. The book should be available in early November. And I’m working on expanding my Discover Your Passion course to focus on how to integrate your passion into your life once you have found it. But the biggest thing I’m working on is a re-branding of my blog. I can’t share all of that now, but keep an eye out over the next few months for some exciting changes.
Where did the idea for Live Bold and Bloom come from?
I initially created the blog simply as a marketing tool for my coaching work. I started out with a very simple Blogger blog. But the more I learned about blogging and about how many people I could reach, I found another passion in writing, creating and teaching courses online. The blog has evolved over time, and I have learned so much over the past two years since I began the current version of the blog.
I just celebrated a real milestone in the life of Live Bold and Bloom when I reached more than 10,000 subscribers. That was so amazing for me, as I never envisioned when I started out that it would become so successful.
What does your typical day look like?
I still have two teenagers at home, so during the school year, I’m up with them early to get them off to school. Then with coffee in hand, I’m usually at my desk by 8:00. I’ll answer some emails and respond to comments on my blog posts, and then I begin whatever the most important task of the day might be. It could involve writing a post or guest post, working on my book, working on a course or joint venture project, or doing some task related to my upcoming re-branding.
The exciting thing about my work is that every day brings something new. I’m at my desk until hunger sets in around lunch time. I’ll eat and then maybe go ride my bike (I live near a beautiful bike path beside the Chattahoochee River in Roswell, Georgia). Then I shower and get ready to pick up my daughter from school. I’m back at my desk around 3:30, and often I have a coaching call or a Skype meeting during the afternoon. I usually leave my desk around 6:00 to start dinner and spend time with my family. When I’m teaching a course, like the Habit Course or the Simple Self-Confidence Course, I might have a webinar to host or be involved with in the evenings. But as full as every day is, the time seems to fly by because I really am passionate about the work I’m doing.
How do you bring ideas to life?
Through action. If I have an idea I think is worth pursuing, I’ll do the due diligence to make sure it’s viable (by talking with peers, doing research, surveying my readers, etc.). Then I break down the steps of the project into small actions, create a timeline, and begin the work. Often I’m involved in joint ventures (which are so much fun), so I have a partner who serves as accountability for me. I don’t want to let my partner down, so I make sure I follow through on my responsibilities. I worked in public relations and special events for more than 20 years, so I am used to bringing ideas to life. It’s all about planning and the discipline of taking daily actions.
What’s one trend that really excites you?
I love seeing how many people all over the world are finding ways to make a non-traditional living through online work. It has provided so much freedom and flexibility. And more importantly, it allows people to follow their passions–what really excites and inspires them. I’m seeing the generation behind me becoming less focused on material things and more focused on doing meaningful work and having great experiences. That is life-changing.
What was the worst job you ever had and what did you learn from it?
Working at a dry cleaner when I was in high school. I learned that I never want to work somewhere without air conditioning.
If you were to start again, what would you do differently?
I would be less fearful of failure, be less cautious because of fear, and have much more fun. I was way too invested in appearances and what others might think of me. I became an adult during a time when the path to success and happiness was linear and involved going to college, getting a job, getting married, etc. Now I see that success means being supremely happy with what you are doing right now.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Every day, decide on the most important task you need to accomplish that day and get it done.
What is one problem you encountered as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
Feeling overwhelmed by so many opportunities and so much information, and not knowing what to do first. I strongly recommend having a mentor or coach to help you stay focused and on track with what is most important and what will lead you to successful outcomes. I have a marketing coach who has really helped me focus my business goals and take the steps to reach them.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
It is very easy to get isolated when you are an entrepreneur, especially an online entrepreneur. There is huge value in making connections with other entrepreneurs, both peers and those ahead of you. By offering your help, insights, ideas, compliments, and time, you are building real relationships that will pay off in so many ways in the long run. Every entrepreneur needs to take time away from the business to work on these relationships.
If you could change on thing in the world, what would it be and how would you go about it?
Wow, that’s a big question. I would change the anger, hatred, vitriol, and mistrust between people and nations. The only way to impact change is to become the change you want to see. So hopefully I am spreading the seeds of love, kindness, and peace through my life and work.
Tell us a secret.
Sorry, I don’t tell secrets.
What are your three favorite online tools or resources and what do you love about them?
- Google because so much of my work is dependent on Google’s products/services–the search engine, gmail, YouTube, Google+, etc. I’d be really crippled if Google went away.
- WordPress because it’s the platform for my blog.
- AWeber because it allows me to capture emails and communicate directly with my readers on a more personal level.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
Narrowing it down to one is really hard, but a book that made a huge impact on me was Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now. It helped me to really embrace the truth in the idea that the only real power is in the present moment. Life is a series of present moments, and once you truly understand that, you won’t ever want to waste a moment again. What you do and how you feel right now is a microcosm of your entire life. So make the best of it.
Three people we should follow on Twitter and why?
- Me because I’d like to get to know your readers and hopefully offer them something really useful for their lives.
- Corbett Barr because he is a genius at helping you build a meaningful business online, and he’s just a really great person.
- Chris Guilleabeau because his creativity and unconventional life were a huge inspiration for me and for thousands of others. He is always bringing amazing ideas to life.
When was the last time you laughed out loud? What caused it?
This morning when my friend texted me a really funny photo. But it is not appropriate for your viewing audience!
Who is your hero?
I don’t know that I have a hero. There are many, many people I admire and respect for various reasons. One person who has blown me away recently is a coaching client and now JV partner who has completely turned her life around. She has lost over 200 lbs., started her own business from scratch, wrote a book, and completely changed her life in the last two years. Her name is Stephanie Wetzel (from the blog Trading Pounds). She constantly amazes me with her courage and tenacity.
What do you hope to be doing in the next five years?
I’d like to expand my online work to be able to reach more readers and help them to find and live their life passions. I’d like to teach more courses and workshops and do more group coaching. I’d also like to have several books published and create a thriving business from my online work that allows me financial security and continued freedom and flexibility–all while doing work that really matters to me.
What is the most important concept you’ve learned as a coach and as a person?
Be true to who you are and live that way every day. If you don’t know who you are, do the work to find out. Create your own personal operating system based on who you are and what you value, even if it means making waves or disrupting others. Life is too short to live it any other way but authentically.
Connect:
Barrie Davenport on LinkedIn: Barrie (Burgess) Davenport
Barrie Davenport on Twitter: @CoachBarrie
Live Bold and Bloom on Facebook:
Live Bold and Bloom’s blog: www.liveboldandbloom.com
Barrie Davenport on Pinterest: Barrie Davenport
Mario Schulzke is the Founder of ideamensch, which he started a decade ago to learn from entrepreneurs and give them a platform for their ideas.