My business is created around fun and yet I didn't realize that I 
was still holding back.  I wasn't paying attention to those inner 
messages saying, "...really create this the way you want it," 
because I thought that's what I had done.

I finally GOT IT one day after I figured out how to market my 
business and have FUN at the same time.  Here is an example from 
one part of my business.  See if this rings true for you. 

After creating my first exciting marketing program new ideas 
began springing up.  I told a friend, I wanted to create 
additional "fun" programs but kept getting stuck.  She said, "You 
like brainstorming, its part of everything you do, create a 
single program around that."  So I did.  I thoroughly enjoy 
having brainstorming groups, and have received some great results 
and feedback, but after a while I felt like something was 
missing—something I was ignoring.  I discovered what I really 
wanted to do was take this monthly program and turn it into not 
just a quarterly program, but an EVENT!  Each event had to have 
an environment that really meant something to me.  It might have 
been something I enjoyed as a kid or now as an adult. 

What happens when you start paying attention to those wonderful 
times in your past or what you really enjoy today and integrate 
them into your business?   You create magnificent, FUN, inviting 
programs.  If you've been following your business path, doing 
what you love, how can it get any better?  By looking deeper 
inside and paying attention to those inner messages.

You begin like this.  Simply start writing down those experiences 
or environments that bring warmth, giggles or excitement to your 
heart from childhood to now. Think back to what you really 
enjoyed as a kid.  Maybe it was books, a love for animals, or 
those magnificent salt-water fish in your aquarium.  What puts 
that smile on your face when you think of something you have 
enjoyed from your past or in the present?  How exciting would it 
be to combine that special environment with a program you 
created? 

Here are a few examples.   

- Things I enjoyed as a kid:  boating, riding the train to my 
  grandparents

- Things I enjoy now:  hot tea in the afternoon, high tea, and 
  a cabin in the woods

- One of my programs is now integrating all of these things 
  with separate events. 

- One event will take to the rails on a train similar to the 
  one I rode to my grandparent's house when I was a child.  It 
  will also be in my favorite time of year.  I'm so excited I 
  can barely stay focused on my daily routine and my energy 
  feels like a giddy kid.  Another event will combine with an 
  afternoon tea. 

Here's a bonus. By offering what you enjoy -- it becomes your 
BRAND.  Do I want to be known as the Chief Executive Kid of 
business and marketing fun?  YOU BET!  How do you want to be 
known? 

Beth Woodward, CPCC, is the creator of the popular Marketing 
On The Playground Program, and the "My Way" Marketing Plan. Find 
out more about how to market "your way" and sign up for monthly 
Marketing Tidbits at http://www.marketingontheplayground.com