Do you notice how some projects practically finish themselves, while others crawl along, or worse, fade away before they reach the end?
When a project flows, you feel amazing
You know that you’re focusing on the right idea for your business. And that when it’s finished, it’s going to rock the socks off your favorite clients and raving fans.
You can hardly wait to spend time with your project. And when it’s time to sit down and get to work on it, you know exactly what’s next and it all just pours out of you.
Ease. Focus. Clarity. And a deep sense of purpose about why you’re doing what you’re doing.
But, man, when a project gets bogged down, it sucks big, hairy donkey balls
No matter how many ways you look at your ideas, none of them stand out as the Right One to focus on.
Or maybe you’ve chosen but then suddenly your idea looks like a massive, thick wall with no door. Where on earth do you start?
Or all the excitement you initially felt about your project has completely disappeared and all you can do is second-guess everything between watching episodes of Battlestar Galactica on Netflix.
Procrastination. Overwhelm. Anxiety. And a project that feels like you have to drag it along like an unwilling accomplice.
Maybe you’ve tried “project management techniques”
Once you have one those fancy project plans, shouldn’t things be easy?
I don’t know about you, but most of those “systems” seem to either drain ideas of all their sparkle, or it becomes a full-time job just to follow the system.
When all along what you really want to be doing is creating.
Projects don’t have to be painful…in fact, the creative process can be fun
Systems and plans are good. But they’re not the only thing you need to help you go from Idea to Finished Creation.
Introducing Project Prowess: Finish the Projects Your People Need While Enjoying the Creative Process
When you’re trying to develop an idea that’s important to you, there’s a lot at stake!
Especially when your idea has the potential to transform the lives of your people while also growing your business. And at the same time, you’re trying to avoid having your biz feel like just another job.
What if it flops? What if they hate it? What if they love it and I get so busy I don’t have time to eat?
Finishing your projects while enjoying the work you put into them comes down to three things:
Connecting with yourself – so you can create what you really want to create
Connecting with your business - so you can learn what it needs from you to grow
Connecting with your project – so that you and your project are working together
All three are necessary and they’re all intertwined.
By the end of this program, you will:
- You will be able to determine what’s best for you and your biz right now, without getting overwhelmed by the countless possibilities
- You will know how to create a project plan that supports you (without getting buried in the details or burning yourself out)
- You will know how to deal with the fear, anxiety and overwhelm that are a normal part of the creation process
- Depending on the size of your project, at the end of four weeks, you will have a finished product (or service) to offer your people, or you will be well into the concrete work of your project
- No matter what part of the creation process you’re in, you will move forward more quickly and more consistently
Here’s how this program will save you time and make you money:
- You will have a simple framework to take your project from Idea to Finished Creation, without spinning your wheels or going in circles
- You will have something you can sell, sooner. Because you can’t sell something that isn’t finished. (Okay, yes, technically you can, but you always have to finish it eventually.)
Best of all, here’s how you willl feel after learning this new way to projectize:
- Confident that you’re choosing the best projects for you
- Powerful and able to work on your projects in ways that are energizing rather than draining
- Calm and able to respond to any hiccups that happen along the way
When Project Prowess started, I was going around in circles, and couldn’t decide whether to create a workshop or develop a coaching offer.
By the end of the program, I was able to make a clear choice to focus on the workshop, and created an outline for the content as well as a sales page.
The techniques we learned kept me from feeling stuck and helped me know what to do next. An added bonus is that I’ve already started to formulate what kind of coaching I want to offer, when I’m ready to take that step.
I totally recommend this course! Victoria brought clarity and helped me to stay focused on the important aspects of my project. There is so much good information in the worksheets and on the calls, and the workbook is amazing. When I needed support between calls, Victoria was there answering questions on the private group page.
Thanks, Victoria! You’ve helped me so much! I’m looking forward to working with you again in the future!
– Jane Vedell
orangemathtutor.com
The next session of Project Prowess will begin June 2012
Sign up below to be notified by email when registration opens. (Note: Signing up means you’ll be on my advance notification/discount list. You’ll get first dibs on the stuff I offer and any freebies I create, and you can always unsubscribe if you want.)
Here’s some more about what we’ll cover
Week 1
- The key ingredients needed for a project to flow
- The four tests you can apply to assess whether your idea is worth pursuing right now
- How to know what you truly want to create
- A simple way to connect with your business so you can learn what it needs from you
Week 2
- What you must know about your idea before you start creating your project plan
- What your project plan is really for (Hint: it’s not for dictating your life)
- How to chunk a big idea down into manageable bites
Week 3
- How to make time to work on your project, even when you’re busy
- How to keep your project from turning into drudgery
- The secret to maintaining a sane schedule without taking years to finish your project
Week 4
- How to quiet your inner critics so you can get back to work
- What your procrastination and resistance is really about, and how to make progress anyway
- The impact mindset has on your project (and how to start shifting it)
Project Prowess helped to demystify essential project management skills.
It also helped me realize that dealing with the emotional stuff around a project is a totally different skill than dealing with the actual project stuff. Now my sense is that projects are not nearly as complicated as we make them, and that they can be managed with some simple techniques, and that’s reassuring going forward.
I loved how personal this program felt. I wasn’t able to actually listen to any of the calls live, but Victoria totally answered everything I said on the private course page, and usually followed up with some extra smarts in the next call. It was also great listening to everyone else’s questions.
– Beth Wodzinski
shivamonster.com
Here’s what’s included
Four 90-minute teleclasses
We’ll spend the first hour or so on the course content (theory, examples, and how-to’s), and the remaining time will be focused on your questions and helping you move forward with your projects in concrete, hands-on ways.
Sessions will happen on Thursdays at 5pm Pacific time
Dates: Mar 8, Mar 15, Mar 22, Mar 29
MP3 recordings of each session
Since we’ll be doing some guided exercises during the sessions, I don’t want you to worry about taking notes the whole time. The recordings mean you’ll be able to review the material as often as you’d like.
Additionally, if you have a scheduling conflict and need to miss a session, you’ll be able to submit your questions ahead of time, and then catch up by listening to everything we discussed.
PDF Workbook with supporting worksheets
Each week, you’ll get worksheets and cheatsheets that will help guide you through the different stages of your project. And you’ll be able to use them for all your future projects, too.
Some examples of the worksheets you’ll get (names subject to change!):
- Which idea is best for you and your biz right now?
- Using the Qualities to evaluate ideas and make your work more enjoyable
- Gathering intel about what your people want from you
- Creating a Project Vision Sheet
- What’s my capacity?
- Chunking down the work
- Spreadsheet templates for creating your plan
Access to the private Facebook group page
Between our sessions, the group page will be our gathering place. You’ll be able to ask questions, request feedback and receive support – both from me AND from the other awesome people in the program.
If you’ve never experienced working through a project with a group of like-minded people, you’ll be amazed at how much easier it is to make progress when you’re not working in isolation.
I didn’t really know what to expect from Project Prowess or if it could help me get my project chosen, started and done.
Victoria has a unique way of looking at project “stalledness” and through some interesting exercises it was clear I was going down the right path with the class I wanted to design and teach.
Project Prowess helped me determine which project I should be working on and helped me get it ready for launch. If you are a highly creative person seeking guidance to deal with all your ideas, Project Prowess can help. I especially liked the community and feedback in the Facebook group.
– Yolanda Facio
redhotmomentum.com
Project Prowess helped me bring my next project to life. From the get-go, Victoria had a bag-full of special techniques to help us crystallize what we wanted for the people our project would be for. This was so much more helpful than telling us to write a vision and mission statement (although, of course, that was exactly what we were doing).
Then we laid out a map of how things would unfold… first this happens, then that happens, then that… Of course it never actually turns out that way, but no matter: thinking it through and chunking it down into wee pieces made it so much easier to make progress.
I have to say that my favorite part was the online course page she put in place, which we could access any time of day or night to ask for encouragement, problem-solving ideas, or validation from Victoria and the other participants in the course.
P.S. Victoria is a wonderful teacher! One of the things I love about the way Victoria leads her classes is that she is so open about her own experience, be it good or not-so-good… What she teaches is practical and accessible. Because she’s been exactly where you are (including disappointments and frustrations), and she’s not afraid to share her experience, you will not feel alone with whatever you are going through. She most definitely has your back.
– Heidi Fischbach
www.AardvarkEssentials.com
My No-Brainer Guarantee
If at the end of the first session, you don’t have more clarity, focus and actionable steps to move forward with your project, just tell me and I’ll refund 100% of your payment. Easy peasy, and absolutely no hard feelings whatsoever.
Simply let me know before the second class. I don’t want you to pay for something that’s not what you need right now.
And in case you’re wondering why you should listen to me
I’m Victoria. Hi!
I spent over 10 years in database programming, where my job involved completing project after project.
After launching my own business in 2009, I learned pretty quickly that spreadsheets and tasklists and deadlines are only useful if they help you feel supported enough to create.
So I’m sharing the tools I teach my one-on-one clients – the ones I use on every one of my own projects – so that you can create more wonderfulness that will help more of your right people and grow your biz.
I know creating anything – ebooks, courses, your own web copy – is not easy, but with these tools, you’ll be able to finish those projects without having to force yourself to keep going.
Have questions? Are they one of the following?
How does this work?
Once you click the button, you’ll get taken to the shopping cart page where you can click the Paypal button to check out. From there, you can either sign in to your Paypal account or pay by credit card without logging into Paypal. After you’ve paid, you’ll receive an email from me.
You’ll get the link to the course download page, the private Facebook group page, as well as the call-in details closer to the first session. If you signed up for the Premium version, you’ll receive Lab Session details when the Class call-in details go out.
What if I can’t make all the calls?
The core program (Option 1) will totally work for you as long as you are able to make time to listen to the recordings, because you can submit any questions you have on the group course page. I’ll answer those questions on the following call, or we can discuss it right there on the page.
Did you read Beth’s testimonial above? She said: “I wasn’t able to actually listen to any of the calls live, but Victoria totally answered everything I said on the private course page, and usually followed up with some extra smarts in the next call. It was also great listening to everyone else’s questions.”
If the Lab Sessions work better for your schedule, sign up for Option 2…then listen to the class recordings and attend the Lab Sessions live.
Do I have to know what project I want to work on?
Nope! As long as you have a couple of ideas, our very first session will be about how to choose the idea that’s best for you and your business right now.
Do I have to have a business already?
Not exactly, however you should have some decent clarity about how you want to help people. Your project could be something that will help you set the business up, like creating the website, or creating something helpful for your future email list subscribers.
What if I’m not sure this program is right for me?
If you’ve read this far, and the description of the program resonates with you, it’s probably a good fit.
But if you’re still not sure, please email me at victoria at victoriabrouhard dot com with your questions. I’m happy to discuss it with you, and I only want you to sign up if it’s something that will help you.
And of course, if you sign up, attend the first call and realize it’s not a good fit, I’ll happily refund your payment.
If you’ve gotten all your questions answered and are ready to start experimenting, click one of the buttons below to sign up!
More nice stuff people have said about my work
Victoria’s advice and guidance gave me the confidence to act on a photo book project I had been contemplating and agonizing over for more than a year. She helped me define specific tasks and set achievable and measurable goals, which made all the difference in helping me get unstuck.
When you hire Victoria, you are choosing someone who is smart, sensitive to your needs, and supportive in every way. As a result of our work together, I completed my photo book project and submitted it for publishing just a few days after the original deadline I set for myself.
I’ll definitely be doing more projects by adapting the road map she created for me.
My deepest, sincerest thanks to you, Victoria!
– Claire Tom
You, m’dear, are a born teacher!!One of the teacher things that you do so well is combining theory and specifics. And giving concrete examples. Love, love, loved that you shared your own experiences with using the class material. Seeing how you used the tools in real life will make it so much easier for us to use them on our own.
Smiling and waving over here & very excited about the way that you help people!!!!!
So grateful to be part of this,
Karen
– Karen Caterson
squarepegpeople.typepad.com
(Shared following the Thing-Finding class held in June 2011)
The minute we got on the phone together, Victoria calmed me down. She had a way of clearing away the junk so I didn’t keep getting worked up into a panic. I came away from our sessions with a clear path to what I wanted to create. Instead of avoidance and procrastination, I had an action plan.
When I contacted Victoria for help finishing my ebook, I wasn’t sure how she’d be able to help. Every time I looked at the files on my computer, I would get incredibly anxious, as though my business would totally collapse if I didn’t have a product ready for sale on my site YESTERDAY.
Victoria was like a friend who wouldn’t let me backslide. I knew in our next sessions she would want to know what I had accomplished. That accountability was huge for me. Two weeks after our third session together, I released my ebook.
– David Billings
www.sparkyfirepants.com