*This post contains affiliate links to tools that I adore and use regularly myself!

Who else drools over all the sales pages? Looking at course after course, debating which could be a good investment?

I’ve been in business for 4+ years and have made many investments – good and bad. Here’s a list of the best investments I’ve made, both with my time and with my money, that keep on giving, year after year. How about yours?

1. Photography and Personal Branding

I hated my headshot.

More importantly, it didn’t reflect my personality.

That, combined with my calligraphy-and-watercolour logo at the time, meant my business’s visual presence came across as very soft and gentle. This in turn meant the people I had coming to me with their business and marketing challenges were so not the right fit, personality-wise.

Fortunately, the lovely Maria-Ines Fuenmayor came to the rescue and helped me do my first photoshoot. She’s also taken all the photos you see in the post! We focused on having those photos reflect who I was and what I wanted to be seen as – approachable, strong, powerful, geeky, fun. We can map out your strategy for more growth, ease and money, and go out for a cocktail or a Harry Potter movie marathon afterwards.

Exercise: do your current visuals and copy reflect how you want your clients to see you?

2. Software & Automation

Saving me time, even if it meant paying, meant I had time to work on something that would make me more money. I don’t really understand (although I was in this position once, too) business owners who are making some money but insist on looking for free solutions.

If a tool will cost you $16 a month, yet save you hours, what’s not to love?

Dubsado, Acuity, Asana and Smarterqueue are my absolutely go-tos and are worth their weight in gold, from home much time and mental energy they’ve saved me over the years!

Exercise: are there any tasks you’ve been doing manually that can be easily shifted to an automated tool?

3. Attending Events

My time, energy and money going to events has been priceless. Every time I attend one, the needle doesn’t jump move forward. It jumps.

And it’s not just any event.

I make sure the events I attend are carefully aligned with my values. That what I’ll learn, and more importantly, who I’ll meet there, have a similar perspective on life and business as I do.

I’m picky about the events I attend, and I focus on the people who will be there.

Things like that it’s not about the hustle but about intention. Community and relationships first. People before profit.

4. Outsourcing My Weaknesses

This was a huge learning curve for me. All my life, I’ve been told (by parents, teaches, etc) how I’m disorganised, messy, and forgetful. A diagnosis of ADD when I was 22 made things make more sense, but still didn’t solve the problems.

I don’t want to tell you how many types of weekly and daily planners I’ve tried, only to give up by Tuesday lunchtime.

As my business grew, I thought to myself:

“Why am I trying to fix and improve something that’s been a life-long challenge for me? Instead, I could use that time to use my strengths even better – the big-picture strategy thinking, planning, connecting dots for clients, creative solutions.”

Hiring an Online Business Manager was a game-changer. Someone to take this minutea-type thinking off my hands so I could focus on what I was good at!

5. Masterminds

Joining small group programmes and intimate masterminds where the focus was on community and mutual support is one of the best investments I’ve done – and the people I met there have been the best results for me.

The tips and tricks we learnt from each other.
The new tools I heard about.
The feedback and validation on plans.
The confidence to keep going (anyone else freak out just before launching something new?!)

The friends I made, the accountability, the added focus. Every time I’m in a mastermind, I’ve taken leaps forward. And those keep on giving.

It’s why I chose to run masterminds myself, and the results from my clients have been pretty epic.

Like a 250% ROI in booked sales… ten days after we started.
Booking a year-long client at a dreamy price… paid in full.
International speaking opportunities.
Business pivots.
And the personal stuff – saying no more often, taking time for old hobbies, being able to NOT take your laptop on a holiday.

My mastermind, focused on mutual support, accountability, and implementation starts soon. Click here for more information: Unlock Your Magic. Doors close 1 May.

Love + magic,
Maggie