Tips

Are You Overwhelmed with Daily Business Tasks?

Posted on by estherspina

How to Stay Consistent in Business Without Burning Out



By, Esther Spina

Business Coach for Ambitious Businesswomen & Female Entrepreneurs

Inspired by Chapter 12 of my Amazon Best-Selling Book, 

The Ambitious Woman,

What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One,

“LIVE A CONSISTENT LIFE!”

For a limited time for Christmas,

get the book and audiobook CD for free (just pay $3.95 for shipping!)

“Be consistent. Little acts create great accomplishments.” — Uneeka Jay


If your list of Post-It notes is a mile long and you’re struggling to keep up, know that every successful businesswoman has once been in your shoes.

Maintaining and building a successful business can seem like a mountain of responsibility without the right plan in place.

I want to help you find the balance between growing your business and taking care of yourself so that you can maintain your goals for the long term.

In this week’s blog, I give you 5 tips for staying focused on the small steps it will take to get where you want to be as an ambitious woman or female entrepreneur.


1. Develop a Set Daily Routine You Can Stick To

Most successful entrepreneurs and female founders have a consistent daily schedule. For example, they may start with a morning routine including meditation to clear the mind, followed by a workout, then a healthy meal. They have this down to a science, and often, timed down to the minute.

Here are some examples of consistency in morning routines from top female CEOs and entrepreneurs.

While your routine might not be so regimented, I encourage you to think about how you structure your day and put a set plan in place that you can commit to doing regularly.

Of course, there will be times when you need to be flexible, but having a plan will prevent you from slipping into unproductive habits like mindless social media scrolling that distract you from the necessary tasks of the day.

Find the habits, hobbies, and schedule that works for YOU. Simply copying someone else’s morning routine may not work for your unique needs, and if you don’t enjoy it, you won’t stick to it. A brisk morning walk or light stretching to clear your head may work better for you than a drill sergeant-style workout class if you’re not a morning person and that’s OK!

Another strategy is to get the task you dread the most out of the way first thing in the morning. This way you won’t spend your valuable energy procrastinating and worrying about this task all day. Free yourself up to get to the other things on your to-do list with more vitality and energy. 


2. Mind Your Mindset for Business Success

It’s easy to get busy with your day-to-day tasks and forget to check in with how you are feeling and where your energy level is. Overworking becomes harmful when you have a lack of balance, which leads to full-on business burnout.

As a business coach for women, it’s not uncommon for me to meet female business owners and entrepreneurs who are working 60 hours a week and running themselves ragged for the sake of achieving their goals.

But, at what personal cost? 

If you’ve read my book, you know that I am an ambitious woman too, but if you wear yourself down to achieve your career goals, you won’t be able to enjoy the fruits of all your hard work.

Whatever helps you release excess tension, make sure you build time into every day to do it so that taking care of yourself first becomes a priority in your life. And when you do, I promise your business will benefit as a result.


3. Get Regular Support From Women Who Understand (Even If They Are Online Mentors)

Listening to your favorite female entrepreneur or businesswoman, on a podcast, YouTube, or TED Talk, keeps you on track and inspired, but do you do it regularly?

When you listen to your mentors, you realize that most successful businesswomen are not overnight sensations. They just stuck to the small daily habits that ensured their eventual success.

Those mundane tasks you don’t look forward to are the ones that will make all the difference. It’s all about consistency and daily needs repeated over time.

Join a Facebook or Meetup group for female business owners, and you’ll see that many women are facing the same struggles and occasional setbacks to motivation that you are. You will feel less alone and get valuable tips and resources from women who have overcome the same challenges along the way.


4. Delegate and Automate As Soon As Possible

Many of the tasks you are doing now you can either delegate or automate.

This frees your time to grow your business, instead of spending your time maintaining your business.

Look at ways you can outsource your smaller tasks to a VA or find systems that allow you to put them on autopilot. Preserve your energy for reaching your next business goal instead of expending it on simple chores that are not the best use of your valuable time.

Female billionaires know this secret — your time is the most valuable resource you have.

Putting systems like this in place allows you to stay fresh and concentrate on expanding the part of your business you love. Don’t look at it as an expense. Investing in your business is not an expense, it’s a necessity. 


Fun downtime with great friends!

5. Don’t Forget To Schedule Your Downtime and Time Off Too

As much as you need to make a routine to check your business needs off your to-do list, setting time aside to simply R-E-L-A-X is just as important. 

Give yourself one FULL day a week away from work and do whatever you want. Spend time with family and friends, lounge around watching TV, or on a day trip to forget about work. This is your day to do YOU.

More importantly, don’t feel guilty about your time off and stop telling yourself I “should” be working. Truthfully, you’re more productive when you return to your work relaxed, refreshed, and with a clearer mind to make important business decisions.

Take vacations when you can, even if they are staycations. This article, Why Business Owners Should Be Strategic About Time Off, mentions, Americans are taking less and less time off and as a result experiencing more burnout, fatigue, and depression than ever before.

Get more mindset tips and inspiring stories of women who never gave up and reached their dreams in my business book for women,

 The Ambitious Woman, What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One

CHRISTMAS SPECIAL 

Get the Hard-Copy Book and Audiobook CD for Free!

Just pay $3.95 for shipping!!!




Keep the book for yourself and give the audiobook to a friend for free!

In my book, I share the hard-won lessons I’ve learned as a business owner and entrepreneur who has reinvented herself many times over. This includes how I overcame the recession, failed business ventures, and the mental roadblocks that prevented me from living the life of fulfillment and personal satisfaction I now enjoy.

And, if I can do it, you can do it too!

Until next time, stay consistent and remember that it’s all the little things that add up to BIG success.

5 Tips to Find & Keep Motivation in Business

Posted on by estherspina

Real-Life Advice from a Business Leadership Coach and Fellow Ambitious Woman

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By, Esther Spina



Business Coach for Ambitious Women & Female Entrepreneurs


Inspired by Chapter 7 of my Amazon Best-Selling Book, 


The Ambitious Woman, What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One,


LIVE A MOTIVATED LIFE!



It’s something we all face as ambitious women eventually — how to find motivation and stay true to our reason for being in business in the first place.

As a fellow female entrepreneur who has had many different businesses come and go, I know how important it is to stay motivated, especially when times get tough.

In this blog, I share motivational stories from successful female entrepreneurs who have excelled no matter what personal challenges or difficulties they’ve faced, as well as some of my personal motivations.



1. Follow Your Enthusiasm and What Excites You to Succeed in Business

Oprah calls this “following your bliss” and I believe that when you stay true to what makes you feel happy and fulfilled it’s going to keep you motivated.

Excitement is a sign you’re following your true calling, which is a sure sign of future success.

So often you ignore what makes you feel exhilarated or hopeful. Instead you do what you think you’re “supposed” to do, or what “makes more sense,” even though you’re not enjoying it.

It’s important to think about why you are pursuing a certain goal and the real-life reason behind it.

Would reaching a certain financial goal reduce your stress? Is there a dream vacation that drives you? Or maybe you have a lifelong passion that you’d like to make a reality?

One of the things that motivated me was paying for my son’s college education. It drove me to branch out from commission-only work and pushed me to reach out to a bank that not only became one of my biggest accounts but it also paid for his tuition! 

When I aligned my business purpose with my personal goals I was able to achieve success on all fronts. I took some financial pressure off my family, helped my son to succeed, and helped my own business to grow. It was a triple win!

Your personal goals and your business goals should be aligned with what matters most to you. In my case, it was spending more time with my family, (the account was near my son’s college), and gaining more financial stability so I could have an income I could count on.


2. Pain Can Motivate You to Pursue Unexpected Avenues as a Businesswoman

On the other end of the spectrum, pain can also motivate us to grow and challenge us to level up as businesswomen and female entrepreneurs.

For example, if you’re not meeting your financial goals, it may be time to pivot slightly and look at how you can adapt your niche or modify your business in some way that would better serve you.

In my book, I mention how Nancy Brinker developed the Susan G. Koman for the Cure foundation after losing her sister to breast cancer. In doing so, she transmuted the pain of her loss into something beneficial, by creating a resource for change and providing support to breast cancer survivors everywhere.

Discomfort allows you to ask yourself — Where do I feel unhappy in my life? Where is there room for growth? What do I want to see change?

All of those places where you feel dissatisfied are great starting points for new opportunities if you look at them constructively, just like Nancy Brinker did.


3. Set Short and Long-Term Goals, But Be Flexible

As ambitious businesswomen, we all know the importance of setting both short-term and long-term goals, but we also have to give ourselves permission to adjust them as needed. As we evolve, our dreams and goals will change too.

Writing your goals down has been proven in studies to exponentially increase your level of success.

A Harvard Business Study found that only 3% of the people they researched wrote their goals down, but, shockingly, that 3% made 10x more than the other 97% of their MBA classmates combined!

If you need help setting goals and sticking to them, check out the SMART method of goal setting. S.M.A.R.T. is an acronym that stands for “Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Bound.” So, if you are in the 97% that isn’t writing your goals down, use this goal-setting method to get started in moving towards business success.


Remember, goals are just guidelines and they will shift as your priorities do. As you continue to grow, you may find that your previous goals are not really in alignment with your current vision and that is 100% OK. It’s natural for our dreams to transform along with us.

So, don’t feel bad if your goals start to feel outdated and you choose to go in a different direction in your life.


4. Find Your “Why” and Use Your Passion to Guide You

When you’ve been in business for a while, as a female entrepreneur or career woman, it’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day tasks of running your business and to forget why you started your business in the first place.

I am talking about the BIG PICTURE of why you do what you do.

Not sure what that is? One way to find out what truly matters to you is to journal about it.

Take a moment of your day and brainstorm what is truly important to you in your life — Quality time with your family? Financial security? Location independence? Freedom to make your own choices? A flexible schedule? All of this helps you refine what your goals are so that they will be in alignment with what most matters to you.

When you focus on your deepest values, rather than a dollar amount, you’ll always have more motivation to do what it takes to succeed.


5. Look to Other Successful Businesswomen and Female Leaders for Inspiration

In my book, I mention how J.K. Rowling inspires me, but did you know she was a struggling single mother who wrote the Harry Potter series on napkins while receiving welfare to get by? Talk about a Cinderella story!

J.K. Rowling’s dedication to her passion project led her to become the first author to make the Forbes billionaire list. She eventually dropped off the list due, in part, to donating $160 million to charity. This woman inspires me because she continues to focus on her values, despite her success. 

Another woman I mention in my book is Tererai Trent, who overcame extreme cultural and political challenges to achieve her dreams against all odds. She is proof that there are no limits to what you can accomplish when you are determined and motivated. You’ll have to get the book to hear the rest of her amazing story!

To learn more about the inspiring businesswomen and female entrepreneurs mentioned in this blog, grab a discounted copy of my book on my website below!

The Ambitious Woman,

What it Takes and Why You Want to Be One


For a limited time when you order my book, you get 

the Ambitious Woman Audiobook absolutely FREE!

Or order the inspiration-filled Ambitious Woman Audiobook separately for $6.99 here:


Get inspiration during your daily commute and get motivated to reach your personal and business goals anytime!

5 Empowering Mindset Tips for Successful Female Entrepreneurs & Businesswomen

Posted on by estherspina

Guidance from a Business and Leadership Coach for the ambitious woman who is ready to take charge of her career and scale her business towards greatness.

Inspired by Chapter 3 of my Amazon Best-Selling book,

The Ambitious Woman: What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One,

LIVE AN ACTION LIFE!

By, Esther Spina, Business Coach for Ambitious Women Entrepreneurs

1. Write Your Goals Down to Focus Your Mind on Business Success

According to this article, you are 42% more likely to achieve your goals if you write them down. This will help you pare down what you want to achieve so you can prioritize. 

What is your big picture plan? Start there and then break it down into smaller steps you will need to achieve the long-term goal.

We tend to be perfectionists as businesswomen. This process will help you stay focused on what you need to do in the short term, without losing sight of the end goal. Lower anxiety by getting all of those ideas out of your head and onto paper where you can see them clearly.

Once you do this you will be better able to make day-to-day decisions by making a schedule you can stick to. And this doesn’t have to be a boring process. Make it fun with a cute planner that keeps you motivated like one of these.

This will help you narrow your focus so you can level up and stay on track for your goals. It also grounds them in reality and allows you to see them as possible, not just abstract thoughts in your head.

2. There is No Such Thing As Failure – Only Lessons Learned and Times to Pivot

Some of what you may consider your biggest failures are just springboards to a better future. If you take the trying times as lessons and an opportunity to pivot your business instead of ruminating on what “went wrong,” it may open new doors of opportunity for you to an even better career than you could have imagined before.

I give an example of this in my book, The Ambitious Woman, from my personal experience as a businesswoman. When the recession hit in the ‘90s my once-booming construction business completely tanked.

I went from running one of the top 5 tile companies in San Diego and a successful upscale baby business, to completely bottoming out and having to start over.

I took my success for granted and it was a devastating time that shook my faith to its core. It felt like I had lost it all and I never expected I would have to start over from scratch after having two thriving businesses. I started selling solar pools to get by, which I had no experience with at all. 

Little did I know that this early experience would prepare me to be a top earner in a B to B sales career, as well as in a direct sales company. 

Everything happens for a reason, even if you can’t see that at the time. The trick is not to get stuck in feeling like you’ve failed or like it’s never going to get better when the unexpected happens. As a business coach for women, I know that every stage of our careers, even the scary ones, allows us to course-correct and get one step closer to a brighter future. 

3. Release the Pressure of Perfectionism and Take Charge with Positive Thinking

As a business coach for women, I know we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. It’s important to stay in the present and not to overthink everything too much. Most female entrepreneurs or businesswomen I work with beat themselves up if they don’t get things right the first time.

But, as the example above shows, you can’t always control everything that affects your business success. The 90’s recession was not something I could have avoided even if I tried, and the pandemic has made us all aware that some pitfalls are just not avoidable.

The only thing you can control is how you choose to react and adapt to unexpected challenges.

So how do you stay successful in business no matter what happens?

By maintaining a positive mindset and staying flexible. You will always land on your feet when you release the pressure to get everything perfect the first go-round. Stay open to bending with the times, practice flexibility, and you will always prevail in the end.

Success isn’t always a straight line to the top. We learn the most from our mistakes, failures, and disappointments. Sometimes we have unexpected twists and turns on our path, that is to be expected. You just have to be open to adapting and refining as you go.

Our ability to adapt and change with the times often comes down to one simple thing —

Are you doing what you love?

Journal your wildest daydreams and take some time to visualize every day what you would feel like if you were living your dream life. Visualization is a very powerful tool to manifest business success. Many successful women entrepreneurs and female CEOs cite this as a tool they have used to dominate their industries.

Studies show that visualization has been proven to lead to success in business. According to this study, 76% of business owners who used a vision board eventually realized the dreams they put on their boards. How amazing is that?

This shows us that when we focus positively on the future and picture ourselves winning, we position ourselves to achieve all the business and life goals we dream of.

4. Make Short To-Do Lists to Limit Overwhelm

I recommend writing 2-3 things max on your to-do list. This is less overwhelming than a lengthy checklist, which can just stress you out more when you look at the seemingly endless list of tasks you need to accomplish.

This way when you finish each thing and check it off, you will have a sense of accomplishment. Then you can create another short to-do list until everything is completed.

It’s easy to panic when we focus on too many things at the same time. Breaking it down into smaller steps helps a lot to keep that feeling of being swamped to a minimum. Otherwise, you run the risk of being discouraged when it seems you aren’t getting to where you want to be fast enough.

5. Take Breaks to Save Your Sanity and Stay In It for the Long Haul as an Empowered Business Woman

Where is your happy place? You know that place where you just feel “awwww, I can relax now,” where you take a deep sigh of relief the second you get there. Take a moment to think of where that is for you. I love to go to the beach when I need to recharge and relax to get my mind off things. 

Is there somewhere you are thinking of right now that heals your soul when you need a time out?


The next time you are starting to feel frazzled, put your work down and go to your special place to clear your head and get re-inspired. Nature has an amazing way of helping us to declutter our thoughts and gain a fresh perspective. Yoga or meditation can also help with this.

As ambitious businesswomen, we often work too hard and don’t give ourselves enough grace. We don’t acknowledge how far we’ve come enough and tend to over-focus on our “mistakes.” Perfectionism is something all overachieving businesswomen deal with when we are striving to reach the top, but we don’t want it to rule our lives and destroy our mental health.

When it all gets to be just too much, go to your happy place (even if it’s just in your mind) to recharge instead of giving up.

As a business leadership and mindset coach, I know how important it is to stay focused on action and to take responsibility for any challenges that come our way.

Grab a copy of my book to learn more about inspiring female entrepreneurs like Mary C. Crowley, founder of the multimillion-dollar home decorating company, Home Interiors & Gifts. You may be surprised to hear who her sons are and how she created such a successful national company despite many personal struggles.

Get empowered to take charge as an ambitious woman!

You can get your copy of

The Ambitious Woman, What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One,

1st edition, at a discounted rate for a limited time here:

I hope it inspires you to take action and take charge for the ultimate success in your career!

The Greatest Gift To Give & Get As An Ambitious Businesswoman

Posted on by estherspina

5 Tips for Encouraging Others (and Yourself!)

Inspired by Chapter 2 of my Amazon best-selling book for businesswomen, 

The Ambitious Woman: What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One

LIVE AN ENCOURAGING LIFE!

By, Esther Spina, Business Coach for Ambitious Women Entrepreneurs

“I’ve learned people will forget what you said, they will forget what you did, but they will never forget the way you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

Did you know that Maya Angelou served in 2 presidential campaigns, won 3 Grammy awards, AND the Presidential Medal of Arts, without ever graduating high school?

Though she is now known as one of the most successful black businesswomen and female entrepreneurs of all time, having achieved much acclaim for her work as a poet, filmmaker, and author, there was a time when Maya Angelou struggled with racial discrimination and was barely getting by.

Believe it or not, Maya Angelou started as a waitress and cable car conductor before she soared to icon status through her steadfast determination.

Even seven years after her passing, Maya Angelou quotes continue to inspire successful businesswomen to rise above any adversity on their path to greatness. She is a constant source of encouragement to me and finding motivation through legacies like hers is something every businesswoman needs to get through the trying times.

In this week’s blog, I dive into the theme from Chapter 2 of my book for female entrepreneurs, The Ambitious Woman, What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One and go into how, by encouraging others, we continue to receive inspiration ourselves. Read below for a few tips on living an encouraging life. 

Tip #1: Take a Moment to Acknowledge The Supportive People In Your Life

Life is busy and it’s easy to forget that we are surrounded by amazing friends and family who support us and help us make important decisions as businesswomen. Being a female CEO or entrepreneur is not an easy road, but by surrounding ourselves with people who believe in us and nurture our dreams, including other successful businesswomen, we soar to higher heights than we can realize alone.

Who supports and encourages you when you need it the most?

I’m sure as you’re reading this you have one or two people coming to mind already. Think of those people, maybe other businesswomen or caring family members/partners who are there for you when you need it the most.

Now ask yourself this — when was the last time you reached out to the most encouraging people around you and thanked them for being a positive influence in your life?

In business and life we get the same kind of energy we put out, and gratitude is important in your journey as a female entrepreneur or businesswoman. It’s important to keep acknowledging those positive connections in your life.

This can be as simple as sending that encouraging person who’s always willing to help you figure out your next steps a quick text to thank them for always being there for you. Or you could take the extra time to send a handwritten “thank you” letter in the mail on your favorite stationery and feel the love as they appreciate your touching tribute to their encouragement. Little acknowledgments like this show those you care about how important their support has been.

I challenge you to reach out to one person this week who’s been influential in your life, or your career as a female entrepreneur/businesswoman and let them know how much it means to you.

Tip #2: Keep Encouraging Quotes From Successful Business Women Throughout Your Home As Reminders to Stay Strong

Take a look at this list of encouraging quotes from successful female entrepreneurs, and copy a few of your favorites down. Put these inspiring quotes for the business woman in unexpected places around your home, like the bathroom mirror, on your computer monitor, or by your coffeemaker, so you stay motivated to keep positive momentum moving forward towards your goals. I like to put them in places where I’ll see them first thing in the morning so I start my day off on the right foot.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the day-to-day grind that we start to doubt we will ever get to where we want to be. The daily, conscious practice of re-inspiring yourself, by reading inspiring quotes from successful business women and female founders who achieved against all odds, will remind you, “I can do this!” 

Tip #3: Show Gratitude for What You Have Overcome and Share Your Lessons With Others

As leaders and female entrepreneurs, people often turn to us when they are down. When we encourage others we uplift ourselves, by acknowledging the lessons we have learned through our own mistakes and struggles. When we take the time to share what we have learned with others, we encourage them to look past their current situation and see the bigger picture. This is also a gift we also give ourselves, because it reminds us of the women we have become and allows us to empower other women through our hard-won knowledge.


Lending someone inspiration reminds us to be grateful for all we’ve been through. The next time another woman is struggling with where she is in her career or life, take a moment to give her some words of support or pass on some advice you were given along the way for how to become a successful businesswoman. I promise it will come back to you tenfold. Pay it forward now and you will always see the return in your investment of kindness later.

Tip #4: Be There For Others When They Need You Most (Even When It’s Not Convenient For You)

How often are you telling the people you love “I’m too busy,” “I don’t have time,” or forgetting to ask what they may be going through when you feel overwhelmed with your responsibilities?

The greatest gift we can give someone is simply our presence and attention when it is needed the most. Often this just means taking the time to be truly present and listen instead of rushing off to the next item on your to-do list. Encouragement can be as simple as picking up the phone instead of thinking, “I’ll call them back when I’m done with this next project.” We have to make time for those people that always make time for us and be there to support them when they need us to.

Tip #5: Get Encouragement & Advice From Successful Businesswomen In My Book, The Ambitious Woman

My goal in writing this book was to give female businesswomen, like you, the motivation, inspiration, and guidance you need to succeed in your career and live a fulfilling life.

I have gathered inspiring stories from other successful businesswomen, as well as my personal stories of overcoming obstacles in my career, from climbing out of the devastating recession that ended my once successful construction business, to becoming one of the top-earning women in my direct sales company. I hope you’ll pick up a copy of this affordable, inspiring collection of women who triumphed over challenges and rocketed to success to inspire you. Encourage yourself and pick one up today!

Speaking of encouragement, the following review on Amazon drove me to keep going forward with my passion to serve women:

“Esther Spina is one of the most dedicated entrepreneurs I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting and working with. She does what it takes to achieve her goals. She is willing to do what most people don’t: 1) take action, consistently, and, 2) ask for and implement feedback to improve and progress. Esther is such an incredible representative for women as she isn’t thrown off course because of difficult times or challenges. She just keeps on going… seeing challenges as part of the achievement of her success.  I think what I love most about Esther is that she has a heart of gold and REALLY wants others to be successful. I love this book as it really makes you feel like you can do it too. Esther is on a crusade to help as many women as she can and she does it with style, grace, determination and perseverance. This book is a must read for Ambitious Women and those striving to be!”

This totally encouraged me! 

Find someone to encourage today and change their life and YOURS.

You can get your copy of

The Ambitious Woman, What It Takes and Why You Want to Be One,

1st edition at a discounted rate here: