WordPress Website Essentials with Jesse Petersen

artists-marketing-business-academy-interview-with-expertsYou’ve heard me say it again and again, you need your own website. A Facebook or ReverbNation page isn’t enough. To succeed in the 21st Century, you must have a web presence all your own.

For most people there are 3 obstacles to creating their own website and in my experience, WordPress solves all three.

In this Interview with an Expert call, I’ll be talking with Jesse Petersen. We’ll look at how WordPress dissolves the biggest website obstacles. And answer the biggest questions you have about creating a WordPress Website that announces your business on the Internet and makes it fun, easy and attractive for your fans, clients and customers to play with you and buy from you.

In this Interview you’ll learn:

  • The three obstacles to a web presence and how WordPress solves them
  • How to get started with WordPress
  • The 5 most important WordPress Plugins

And so much more. Take it from this died-in-the-wool technophobe – WordPress makes the website manageable!  And Jesse makes it understandable!

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Jesse Petersen

Debra Russell, Artists Marketing and Business Academy, internet marketing, Website, WordPress, sales and marketing

Jesse has been using WordPress since “the good old 1.x days” of its development and has seen it grow from something that once took a moderate amount of techno-savvy to choose a theme into the wonderful software that it is now; with one-click updating and uploading. Over the years, he has broken his sites and his themes hundreds of times and learned a new trick every time.

In 2008, he left corporate America to become the Support Manager at iThemes, a theme development shop out of Oklahoma; working remotely from his home in sunny Florida. It was during this time that he encountered thousands of bad WordPress installation issues, server issues, theme issues, and more.  That found him quite the following of people eager to get quick, easy fixes to their WordPress problems and he always seemed to have an answer within minutes.

In February 2009, he went out on his own, forming Petersen Media Group, LLC to launch his own WordPress services company. He currently has over 100 small business and blogging clients from England to Hawaii to Tibet. His services, while very specialized in his area of greatest expertise, draw from many areas of his experience and allow him to be the complete package for those clients who want it all: logos, branding, social media training, and website design and development. This breadth of knowledge makes Jesse an excellent choice for drawing in the big picture for his clients and guiding them in the right direction, whatever their needs are or budget allows: they are certain to get a straight answer.

Goals and Success

We’re three weeks into the New Year. At the end of last year, I moved across country to New Jersey. Getting settled in has been slowed by massive snow storms (we got 35″ in one night!) and bitter cold. But I finally feel like I’m moving forward with my year.

How about you? Did you make resolutions? Set new goals? And how are you doing with them?

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been blogging about my end of year and beginning of New Year process. I usually do this process in the week between Christmas and New Year’s, but I am running a few weeks behind, due to the move. (…change is good… change is good… change is good – sigh)

In this article, I want to address one piece of the process that I’m going into in more depth in the blog – Goals. What are they? Why do you need them? And how do you go about setting ones that make a difference in the real world. Warning – this is a long one.

In my practice I come across a lot of artists with big dreams.  Whether it’s a Grammy Award Winning music career, winning an Oscar or getting a show at MOMA, we dream of a level of success, recognition and income for our creative efforts.  It’s human nature to dream of success, however you define it.

Where a lot of artists (and other people) go wrong in their pursuit of those dreams, they never make the transition from dream/fantasy to vision/goals.  If you think of your success with fantasy language:

Wouldn’t it be nice?  That could be awesome?  I’d love to have that!

Then you are still living in the world of dreams and fantasies.  And there’s nothing wrong with that as an exercise.  But if you intend to create the life of your dreams, you must translate those dreams into real world, measurable, specific and, most importantly, actionable goals.

I’m a big believer in the Law of Attraction – but Attraction without Action is just Attr

And it’s very hard to take action as long as you’re thinking in “Wouldn’t it be nice” terms.

What is a Goal?

In my Artists Marketing & Business Academy Toolbox TeleclassGoals that Get Results – I teach that goals must meet the following criteria:

  • A goal is a having/being not a doing.
  • A goal is a dream with a deadline – put a date on it!
  • A goal must be visionary and inspiring
  • A goal must be specific and measurable – how will you know when you’ve accomplished it?
  • A goal must be positively focused – leave the problem out of it!
  • A goal must be achievable within the time frame you’ve set.
  • A goal is a having/being not a doing.

Let’s look at these one at a time.

A goal is a having/being not a doing

Let’s say for the purposes of this discussion that you dream of owning a red corvette.  If you state the goal: I want a red corvette, then your goal is to be wanting.  If you state the goal: I will have a red corvette, then your realization of your goal will always rest somewhere in the future.  I recommend in the setting of your goal, that you leave out the subject and verb altogether.  The goal becomes:

A red corvette

Simple, clear, powerful.

Let’s take another example, one that’s common for people – dropping a few pounds.  So you make a goal: To work out 3 times a week.  But that’s not a goal – there’s no having or being there – it’s a doing.  It’s a strategy for accomplishing something, not the accomplishment itself.  A goal isn’t about how you’re going to get there – it’s about defining where there is.

So, ask yourself, “If I work out 3 times a week for the next 3 months, what will I have or be?”  And that will get you to your goal.

A goal is a dream with a deadline – put a date on it!

Without a date of completion – you’re living in LA LA fantasy land.  Setting a date can be confronting, it requires you to make a commitment.  It requires you to take a leap of faith.  Because you may not KNOW how long a goal will take to achieve, right?

Look, take the leap of faith.  Set the date.  If, once you get into the middle of working on the goal you realize, this is a longer goal, then change the date.

I also recommend breaking longer goals (anything more than 6 months out) into smaller milepost goals, preferably in 3-4 month intervals.  This is not an action plan (remember goals are not the HOW, but the WHAT/WHERE).

Ask yourself, “Where do I need to be in 3 months in order to know I’m on track for this goal?”

A goal must be visionary and inspiring

Look, if you aren’t inspired by the goal, you won’t do the work.  It’s that simple.  And if the long term consequences of this short term goal will take you somewhere you don’t want to go, you also won’t do the work.

In other words – don’t pursue someone else’s idea of success, pursue your own vision of success.  And create goals that align with your vision.

And make the goals juicy, exciting, and visceral.  Ask yourself, “What will I see, hear, feel, taste and smell when this goal is realized?”

A goal must be specific and measurable – how will you know when you’ve accomplished it?

If you go into a restaurant looking for a steak dinner and order “Cow”, you may or may not get the meal you want.  But if you order prime rib, medium rare with spring potatoes and broccoli rabe sautéed in garlic, it is much more likely that you will receive the outcome you desire.

It’s not enough to say, “I want to make a lot of money.”  How much is a lot?  What a lot is to a refugee in the Sudan is a very different amount than what a lot is to Donald Trump.  What, specifically, do you want?

A goal must be positively focused – leave the problem out of it!

When you are writing your goal, you are writing your future.  You are creating what you will manifest.  If you make a goal about the solution to a problem, you are actively creating that problem in the future.  If you make a goal, “Completely clear of debt.”  Then you are still bringing debt into the future.  Trust me, that’s just the way this stuff works.

Ask yourself, “What will I have/be when this problem no longer exists?”

A goal must be achievable within the time frame you’ve set.

I don’t like the word, “realistic”.  It has too many connotations of limitedness and scarcity.  But you must believe that you can achieve the goal you’ve set within the time frame you’ve set it.  If you don’t believe you can, you won’t do what you need to do to achieve it.  Human beings don’t act against their own beliefs.

So, make a goal you believe you can achieve.  The more you do that, the more you’ll find yourself believing you can achieve.  And you will find that you can begin to set and believe in larger goals.

Start with where you are and build from here.

Setting Goals for 2011

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this eighth post in the series, I’m moving into the second step of my process –

Goal Setting for 2011

There are three steps to this process:

  1. Reviewing my Goals for 2010
  2. Setting 1 Year Goals for 2011
  3. Breaking those goals down into 3-4 month increments

Reviewing My Goals from 2010

When looking back at my goals from the previous year I want to do 3 things:

  1. Celebrate my successes – Woo Hoo!
  2. Look at what worked and didn’t work – particularly around the goals I didn’t accomplish
  3. Apply those lessons to the coming year

Looking at my goals from last year was very confronting as for the most part, I didn’t complete them.  Yes, I’m admitting it publicly.  I’m a coach – and I’m not perfect.

Whew – there, I said it.  But that’s part of the point of this blog.  It’s not about – look at me, see what a guru I am – don’t you want to be like me?  It’s more about – here’s my process.  I’m human just like you.  And I’m a work in progress.  And that means – if I can do it, so can you!  And hopefully, there are things I can contributed to your process to make you more successful.

So, in looking back at last year and looking specifically at what worked and didn’t work, I’ve seen some things that I want to share with you.

Set Goals With Specific Deadlines

In writing my goals last year, I just wrote the goals – I didn’t give each goal a specific deadline.  I was writing what I wanted to accomplish at some point during the year.  What didn’t work was being specific about when I would be accomplishing it.  Lacking a specific time frame, I didn’t know when I was supposed to start working on them and they just kept getting pushed by more urgent things.

So, this year, I will not only write specific Deadlines for the accomplishment of each goal, but also set a start date for each project.

Keep Goals in the Forefront of Your Awareness

I wrote those goals and then set them aside.  I didn’t post them anywhere and I didn’t refer to them.  Yes, I knew they were my goals for the year.  But they weren’t in the forefront of my awareness – and so it was really easy to postpone beginning those projects.

In addition, because I’m not currently working with a coach and no longer have a business partner – there were no other voices holding me accountable to those commitments.

So, this year, I’ll do a few things differently:

  • Send my goals to my accountability partner, and ask for her support in achieving them.
  • Post my goals on my bulletin board and read them every morning

Build a Structure for Accomplishing Your Goals

Last year, I moved my business out of my home.  And I somehow never re-established my time management structure with my new circumstances.  It all fell by the wayside and I found myself running my day by the seat of my pants.  That has never worked for me in the past – and there were many ways it didn’t work for me last year.  And I knew it wasn’t working for me.  I intended to spend the summer really setting up those structures.  But then my Dad got sick and everything changed.

Now that I’ve moved across country and I will be having even more demands on my time, I know that re-establishing my foundation is absolutely vital both to my business success, but also to my own happiness and satisfaction in my life.

So, here’s my plan:

  1. Write my goals with start and end dates and share those with my accountability partner
  2. Break the larger goals down into sub-goals with start and end dates
  3. Create PRD’s for 2011 first quarter for each area of my life and make sure my goals are built into those PRD’s
  4. Create a Time Map for my current situation and implement that map immediately
  5. Re-institute my daily bookends (morning and evening rituals)

Planning for the New Year – Part Seven

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this seventh post, I’m completing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year.  I love these final questions, because it’s all about creating a successful context or mindset for the coming year.

Envisioning 2011: Move Forward

Whenever I get stressed in 2011, the phrase I’ll repeat to myself is  …

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part Six

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this sixth post, I’m continuing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.

Envisioning 2011: Move Forward

The three feelings I’m going to focus on feeling consistently each day in 2011 are …

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part Five

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this fifth post, I’m continuing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.

Envisioning 2011: Move Forward

If I had more confidence in myself, the first thing I’d go out and do in 2011 is …

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part Four

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this fourth post, I’m continuing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.

Envisioning 2011: Move Forward

By the end of 2011, I will have made my work life more focused on…

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part Three

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this third post, I’m continuing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.

Remembering 2010 – Start Where You Are (cont.)

I could have made an even greater difference in the world in 2010 if I…

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part Two

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals. I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011. I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

In this second post, I’m continuing the first section of my process which comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket. This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.

Remembering 2010 – Start Where You Are (cont.)

The one thing that held me back from moving faster in 2010 was…

Read more

Planning for the New Year – Part One

Every year, I take some personal time to assess, adjust, write new goals for the New Year and make a plan for achieving those goals.  I’d like to share part of this process with you – and encourage you to use it for yourself to create a powerful, prosperous and joyful 2011.  I hope you will find this peek into my process helpful.

The first section of my process comes from Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket.  This series of questions helps me to look at the year past as well as clarify what I want for the coming year. I’ll be answering them over the next several blog posts.  So let’s get started:

Remembering 2010 – Start Where You Are

My most memorable moment(s) of 2010 was when…

The biggest one that comes to mind was winning the Day 5 Game at Billionaire Bootcamp at the Gold Coast in November.
Read more