with Pamela Muldoon
This week the Bosses discuss The Natural Law of the Vacuum, which states that: “Nature loathes an empty space. So, nature will make sure that empty space is filled, if you don’t.” - Steven J. Anderson.
If we don’t fill our schedules, something else will fill it for us. You should plan for the time, clients, and money you haven’t yet landed. Don’t just dream, make plans. Sometimes we must make the hard choices of letting go of clients and activities that don’t bring you joy, to make space for more fulfilling and lucrative activities.
Takeaways
Quick Concepts from Today’s Episode:
The Universe has certain laws that can help you move yourself and your business in a new direction.
The more things in the universe that you can control, the better.
The Law of Vacuum states that the universe abhors an empty space, and will expand to fill this space.
This Law works on both physical space, and also how we use our time.
You only have so much time, be sure to fill it with clients that serve you.
Bless and release activities and clients that do not bring you joy.
To make space for new clients, you might have to let go of long-standing clients who no longer help your business grow.
Sometimes you have to go through bad clients to learn what a good client looks like.
If the words ‘I just don’t have time’ come out of your mouth a lot… ask yourself what’s truly important.
To grow your business, you may have to outsource your work and shift your resources.
You must fill your vacuum of time in a way to make sure you’re accomplishing your goals.
Sometimes you may lose a client, but this opens the door for clients that better serve your needs.
Referenced in this Episode
Direct links to things we brought up +
Pamela’s Website
Learn more about the natural laws of success from Steven J. Anderson
Hear more about the Law of Vacuum
Badass editing by Noah of Carl Bahner Audio
Recorded on ipDTL
Transcript
>> It’s time to take your business to the next level, the BOSS level! These are the premier business owner strategies and successes being utilized by the industry’s top talent today. Rock your business like a BOSS, a VO BOSS. Now let’s welcome your host Anne Ganguzza.
Anne: Hey everyone. Welcome to the VO BOSS podcast. I’m your host, Anne Ganguzza, with the amazing special guest cohost, Ms. Pamela Muldoon. Hey Pamela.
Pamela: Hey Anne. Hello.
Anne: How are you?
Pamela: I’m doing okay.
Anne: Yeah.
Pamela: You know, one day at a time just like everybody else.
Anne: It is, yeah, 2020.
Pamela: Yeah. [laughs] I think that says it all, Anne.
Anne: I have to say, so this past week has been, it’s been frustrating. So I had a client this past week who I’m on a contract basis with them. I’ve been doing some work for a while. Pamela, I think you know me, I’m a little bit of an A type.
Pamela: Just a little bit.
Anne: So if I’m – yeah. So if I, if I submit a job, right, you know, it’s the very best that I can do, and I’m pretty anal about that. So –
Pamela: Of course.
Anne: – if somebody comes back to me and says, no [laughs] like we need a pickup, or for whatever reason – if it’s my mistake, of course, it annoys me. If it comes back too many times, I like, I’m done, I’m done already, right? I like to just do something, be creative, be awesome with it, and then submit it. And sometimes, it’s to my detriment if I have a client that comes back too many times. And I don’t mind it if I feel like things are fairly compensated for my time.
Pamela: Sure, yeah.
Anne: I found out that in the fine print of this client, I was under an obligation to perform my retakes for free. And so I was kind of kicking myself. [laughs] I was like wow, that just does not do well for my time nor my business really, because I’m spending the time doing pickups for free, and when I certainly was – I should have, I should have looked at the contract. So now I’m pretty much very close to releasing this client, because –
Pamela: Bless and release them, girl.
Anne: I think I’m going to release. And I think that it speaks to, I’m sure that there will be another client that will fill the space. I think it speaks to this kind of law that I don’t know the name of it, Pam, but there’s a law that I think –
Pamela: It’s one of my favorites.
Anne: Yes, I always tell people, let those clients go that are going to nickel and dime you, because it will give you the time to either get another great client or something will come into its place that will be better for you.
Pamela: Yes, yes. You have to release to let in. Right?
Anne: Release to let in. Is there a name for that, Pamela?
Pamela: There is, Anne, and it’s one of my favorite universal laws. And it’s called the law of vacuum.
Anne: The law of vacuum. Wow, I’ve never heard it termed that way, but okay.
Pamela: Yeah.
Anne: Tell me more. Tell me more.
Pamela: Yeah. It’s, it’s a really – when you really understand there are certain universal laws that just when you understand them, you can use the power of this understanding to actually kind of move yourself from a personal development and also business development in a whole new direction. The law of vacuum is one of my favorites, and this is one of the many reasons why. Because sometimes the world around us feels like it’s controlling us, and so then we have to ask ourselves the question, how do we kind of take our control back?
Anne: That’s so, so important in this time especially, Pam, where I feel like we’re a little out of control especially with me, A type, wanting to always be in control. That’s a little unsettling. The more things I can put in my control, the better.
Pamela: Absolutely. And so what I love about the law of vacuum, which in a very basic description is basically that the universe abhors or loathes an empty space. Right? Just think about this in your house. Even perhaps your booth. It was once an empty space. Right?
Anne: That it was.
Pamela: Then you started to intentionally fill it with your microphone or you know, like I have got my monitor here, I got my interface. I’ve got – intentionally filling it. So then I would encourage anyone listening, take a look at your booth. What else is in there that’s not intentional? It continues to fill up. You can think about this in terms of space. The reaction of how you’re feeling about your client, the law of vacuum works not only in terms of an actual space but how we use our time and take on clients, for example. Because you only have so much bandwidth as a human. Correct?
Anne: Oh my goodness, time, yes. Time is precious.
Pamela: And so if you can only do so much with your clients, then how are you filling that time and how are you filling your arsenal of clients, your list of clients?
Anne: Right.
Pamela: Exactly. And is it congruent to who you are and your value system and your belief system? It’s – you know, one of my favorite people on the planet [laughs] is one of my life coach friends. Her name is Lori Wonder, and she really reminded me years ago, it’s not supposed to be hard. It’s a reminder –
Anne: Right?
[both laugh]
Anne: So simple, but yeah, it’s not supposed to be hard.
Pamela: It’s not supposed to be hard, Anne. And this client it sounds like was hard, right? And so you have a choice. You can continue and let, this client stays on your roster, right, your roster, and you have to, you only have so much time, so you have to fill it, that client is taking some of that. Or to your point, you can bless and release it.
Anne: That’s what I do, bless and release it.
Pamela: And refill it. Yes, yes, yes. [laughs]
Anne: Whenever I’m like I should not be, but yes, I should, I should. And that’s a great, great point, because I have always kind of felt – I never knew it was called the law of the vacuum, but interesting that you say it like that because now things start to fall into place for me, because I’ve always – even in the way I’ve designed my business, and I think we’ve gone over this, where we’re multiple passion-preneurs, right? So we want to fill our business and our day with things that bring us joy and things that, you know, help us to grow. And so like I have always said, I have those tendrils of my business, and I think that that’s an intentional fill of space. Even if I want to relate it to my shoes, Pam, okay, I’m going to relate it to my – I have cubbyholes. Right? I have cubbyholes that I bought I think at like IKEA or something, and there are only so many spaces. And the one space fills a pair of shoes, right? And I have like probably 70 cubbyholes? And so my husband makes fun of me.
Pamela: There is no judgment o shoes here, Anne.
Anne: He says you’ve way too many shoes. I say well, look, I can’t buy any more cubbyholes. I can only, right, I have to release a pair of shoes before I can buy a new pair. And that way it kind of controls my spending.
Pamela: So let’s say you hit show number 68 or 69, you know you have a big decision ahead of you.
Anne: I do, I do. I’ve got one cubbyhole left. So if I decide, if I see a pair of shoes that I love, that I have to release another pair of shoes that no longer serves the purpose, right, for me, and I think that we can really – see how, I love how I just equated my business to shoes.
Pamela: I’m pretty proud of you actually.
[both laugh]
Pamela: Because it totally is a relatable example, first of all, yes. I understand your dilemma. And secondly you’re absolutely right, there is a finite amount of time or space. You have to build more rooms in your house. Right? You have to keep doing more. That’s not necessarily the answer.
Anne: You’re right, and now you just reminded me. Like rooms in your home, right? If we – how many of us, I’m sure, we’re like all of a sudden over a few years, we’re like “oh my gosh, how did I accumulate all of this stuff?” When I moved, no more, it like, it was no more apparent that we had accumulated a bunch of stuff than when we had to move it. Then it was like “oh my goodness, how did we come up with all this stuff, and why are we keeping it?” Because it’s no longer serving a purpose. I think that’s an absolutely great way to look at your business as well, right?
Pamela: Yes.
Anne: What is it that’s taking up time, that’s no longer serving a purpose to bring joy or grow your business?
Pamela: Yeah. And the quality of client is very personal. I think that’s a very personal decision, right? It’s not for your eye to tell someone else who their quality of client is. Sometimes you have to go through some of these bad clients to know what a good client is.
Anne: This is true.
Pamela: So there is a learning that can take place, right? I think the learning here was, read the fine print.
Anne: Yeah.
Pamela: [laughs] But I think it’s also a lesson in we actually have more control over what we want to accomplish if we really understand that powerful intention behind it, right?
Anne: Agreed.
Pamela: So you know we’re talking about a roster of clients, but this works as we have kind of alluded to in time, one of my favorite ways to bring law of vacuum into conversation is to look at your calendar. Again, a finite amount of space that needs to be filled. And even when you’re not filling it, it’s being filled. Does the next sense?
Anne: Yeah. Absolutely. I guess we can look at it in free time, too, right?
Pamela: Absolutely.
Anne: I try to binge watch sometimes. But my hours are so filled with other things, when I go to binge watch, I fall asleep. So my purpose kind of falls off there. But when I do have an intention to like really get through a show, then I’ll put everything aside and make that a priority, and then binge watch a show. But I think that it really comes down to like making that decision as to what is it that’s going to fill that time? And so Pam, what I think what it really means is that, even if it’s like our business time or our personal time, if we fill it with intention, with things that bring us joy, or things that bring us growth, I mean, that’s what I always strive for. And growth can mean being silent, right, or taking time, time to be silent and refresh your creativity.
Pamela: Yes, yes. And you know, many of us have probably read these different categories, right? You’ve got your business and then you’ve got your personal, financial, spiritual, you know, all of these different areas that you may want to consider prioritizing, right, or setting goals or objectives around. If you’re doing that, whether it’s being physically active or physically fit, you have to fill your vacuum of time to make sure that you’re fulfilling that, right? The same thing to your point with meditation or quietness, taking walks or just being. And I think especially this particular year, that has a whole new credence of importance. [laughs]
Anne: So true.
Pamela: Yeah. I’m not a big fan of the word control because there are always things that are always out of your control.
Anne: Exactly.
Pamela: But once you’re aware, and you can make some adjustments is when you hear the words “I just don’t have time” come out of your mouth a lot. My recommendation is to hear what you’re saying. You can’t change until you’re aware. Right? Be aware that you said that, and then ask yourself, how am I using my time? What am I actually doing with my time? You know how you keep putting something on your to-do list and it keeps getting pushed out day after day after day? At some point you’ve got to ask yourself, am I even supposed to do this task? Is this important, is this still important to me? Right? Just because you wanted to fulfill something three months ago or six months ago, perhaps today it’s no longer a priority for you.
Anne: That’s so interesting. And you know what, and I think I might be the queen of like having that to-do list and the thing that stays on there the longest. I actually just this week started to look at that, that item that kept taking me the longest to do. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to do it. It just, it had to like shift priority because I had these other things to do that were going to keep maintaining my business. And so the thing that got pushed to the bottom is something that I didn’t want to let go. It was something that I still wanted the control over it. However I’ve realized that if I wanted to be sane [laughs] because I am one person with a finite amount of time to dedicate to my business, I was going to have to outsource that particular task. I actually took the steps to do that. But can I tell you, Pam? It took me, I’m going to say, a good, since the beginning of the year, right, to actually make the decision to outsource it, to just bite the bullet, find a person that – I kept saying I don’t know anyone. I don’t have time to look for somebody to help me with this. I don’t know if that person, if it’s possible to have a person to take this over. And I honestly just, I was going insane because I just could not get the task done. I finally took the steps and started interviewing people, and I was able to hire a person to do these tasks that were causing me a lot of, a lot of stress actually.
Pamela: Yeah. I think the word anxiety is what has creeped into my mind a little bit. [laughs]
Anne: Absolutely.
Pamela: There are probably feelings and anxiety leads to guilt, you then start this sense of guilt that you’re not fulfilling a task that you wanted to fulfill. It’s a self, it’s this horrible self-guilt that a lot of us – I don’t know. Our little episodes are becoming little mini therapy sessions, just so you know, Anne.
Anne: Right?
[both laugh]
Pamela: And not necessarily just for the audience, wink, wink, but because [laughs] I really do believe that when the teacher is talking, she also needs to hear the lesson. [laughs]
Anne: Absolutely, right? And interestingly enough what was causing me stress, because I wanted control of it, right, as soon as I released it and released the control, I then regained my sense of calm about it and power which is really, really interesting. I know that it’s so hard. It’s hard for a lot of people to let go. And especially in voiceover because we have to wear all of those hats. And so it becomes this thing where, well, who can I hire, right, that knows the industry, that can help me do the things I need to do in this industry, that I’m not competing against, number one, right? I know that that’s a worry for a lot of people. They’re like well, can I hire somebody in the industry and not have it affect my own business? Right, to help me out, to help me market, to help me promote, whatever it is? And I think that’s a big, it’s a big fear factor, right, because they’re unaware. Or if they hire someone that is not from the industry, then oh my goodness, they might have to train them. And that would take time that they didn’t have. I know all of that has gone through my own head, when I’ve tried to determine, you know, people to hire. I’ll just say this again, probably now I have eight people that all do specific tasks for me, not full-time of course. But they all are very specialized in their tasks. And it really allows me to continue and to grow my business. And only then can I grow my business, because we’re just one person. We do have only a certain amount of time. If you have things that you want to do and you want to grow, I believe, at least to my – I want to grow more, right, I want to grow bigger, I want to do more things – you have to shift those empty spaces, right, or those – shift the spaces. Release and then allow something else to come back in. That would be growth.
Pamela: Yes, and I think you can make a really important point here that releasing doesn’t always mean letting it go and never doing something with it, right?
Anne: Right.
Pamela: It can mean releasing it to someone else who has got the experience or is more, who in their vacuum needs to be filled with a quality client, right? [laughs]
Anne: Right, absolutely.
Pamela: So you pay it forward in a sense. And I think too, I don’t want to miss this part of what you shared, and you intentionally did the tasks to put that in place. So you filled your time with that task, but the filling of your time was to teach or train or get somebody else, you know, up to speed to do that. And that again is still very much more of an intentional process as opposed to letting time kind of take control of your calendar. The last area I just want to touch on with this, because we’ve talked a little bit about this when we did our email marketing series, but we sometimes think that he or she who ends, leaves this world with the biggest database wind. That’s not necessarily the case, right, that –
Anne: Good point.
Pamela: – when people unsubscribe to you, or release themselves, that’s okay, because now you’ve opened up the opportunity for someone of more quality to your business and perhaps your life to come in. That’s very much relevant in terms of building your database which of course leads to your clients. And as you know, Anne, there is a lot of these email service providers that have limits. Right?
Anne: Yeah.
Pamela: You can only have 5000, or 1000, or 10,000, or whatever, right, before they start charging more money.
Anne: And that’s – thank you for the reminder because I’m at my limit [laughs] with my email service provider right now. And they’re like, “come on, we need you to upgrade.”
Pamela: Yeah, and maybe it’s not a matter of upgrade. Maybe it’s a matter of what our – is this database fully serving me? Your database is a vacuum, right, and now you can look at, when you look at it that way, it’s not just about “I want to have 20,000 people on my list.” I tell my clients all day long, I would rather have 1000 qualified people on my list versus 10,000 who just want to, are never going to serve in a way.
Anne: Right, right.
Pamela: Yeah. It doesn’t mean they still can’t be your audience, right. You’re being very intentional about that process.
Anne: That’s a great point. I’m going to say the more focused and the more targeted your list is, the better. Like I agree with you, I would rather have 1000 members of my list that are focused buyers maybe or potential buyers than 10,000 that just subscribed for, you know, whatever and don’t read any of the emails that go out. I completely agree with you there in terms of releasing your list. So one of the best ways that you can help to do that for yourselves is to actually, as we went through our series of content marketing and talking about email service providers is giving your clients or whoever you’re emailing the opportunity to release themselves from your, right, from your email, if it no longer serves them. And that just allows more space for somebody that does, that will be a buyer.
Pamela: Absolutely.
Anne: Good points.
Pamela: I love it.
Anne: All right, well good stuff, Pamela.
Pamela: It’s always fun to chitchat with you, Anne. We never always know where we’re going to go, but I always like where we land. [laughs]
Anne: That’s right, and I feel like I’ve released some of that old energy [laughs] that I was talking to you about in the very beginning, and I feel so much better about my business, I feel so much better about being able to release that, and I think you BOSSes will too. So take a look at your time, and what’s filling your time, and are you intentionally structuring that time so that it can offer you growth in any area of your life, in personal, in business, creative growth, whatever it is that brings you joy. Big shout-out to our sponsor, ipDTL that allows us to grow and release [laughs] and grow again –
Pamela: [laughs]
Anne: – into that vacuum. [laughs]
Pamela: Yes.
Anne: You can find out more at ipdtl.com. You guys have a great week, and we’ll see you next week.
Pamela: Bye now.
Anne: Bye.
>> Join us next week for another edition of VO BOSS with your host, Anne Ganguzza, and take your business to the next level. Sign up for our mailing list at voboss.com and receive exclusive content, industry revolutionizing tips and strategies, and new ways to rock your business like a BOSS. Redistribution with permission. Coast-to-coast connectivity via ipDTL.