When you’re trying to get a person to agree with you on something (such as agreeing to hire you, buy your product, or take some other action), it’s always useful to consider the following question:

Is the person you’re talking to an “away from” or a “towards” person?

Are they primarily motivated to move AWAY FROM some pain, problem, or challenge that’s bugging them?

Or are they more interested in moving TOWARDS some goal, desired outcome, or ideal situation that they’re inspired to reach?

Think of these two groups of people as two different species. They respond completely differently to certain words. They have different reactions to certain language patterns.

Now imagine for a second you’re talking to an “away from” person who wants to get away from the frustration of carrying extra weight around her midsection.

Which of the following statements would you say to her?

Do you see the difference? Which statement is the prospect more likely to respond to? (I think in this case, it’s the first one.)

The difference is subtle, but it’s hugely critical. It can mean the difference between connecting with your prospect, or boring them. It can mean the difference between making your prospect feel like you understand them, or making them feel alienated.

Whether you’re writing sales copy to promote your product or service, or talking to a potential client over the phone, make sure you speak in their language if you want to get them to say yes.

Listen carefully for clues that reveal if they want to “get away” from something undesirable, or if they want to “go towards” something ideal.

If you have an email list, it helps to see what kinds of comments the majority of your readers tend to make. What do they respond to the most? You can use that information to modify your sales copy accordingly.

I just completed several website reviews for people in the alternative health industry. They wanted feedback on their website navigation, organization, and copywriting, so I scoured their sites and sent them my top suggestions for improvement.

Here are some of the replies I got…

If you want to receive my thoughts on how to improve YOUR website, here’s your chance…

For a limited time, you can get my Website Assessment for only $97.

• You’ll receive targeted feedback on how to improve your site’s language so it gets more clients and customers interested in your offerings.
• You’ll get suggestions on your banner/headline, navigation menu, content organization, and site layout
• You’ll love my feedback, or your money back – guaranteed. (Read full terms and conditions here.)

To get started, follow these easy steps:

1) Send your PayPal or Intuit payment of $97 to michelle@quickresultscopywriting.com

2) Email me the following information: Your website URL, a summary of what purpose your website serves (or should serve), and a 1-2 sentence description of what you do, and what the key benefit is you provide to your clients.

3) Within 7 days, I’ll send you my thoughts on how to make your website better.

Here’s to helping you serve more clients and customers,

Michelle

My colleague, JJ Virgin, is looking for guests on her TV show, “Freaky Eaters.” If you’d like a shot at being on the show, make sure you contact JJ by this Friday Apr 20th (instructions below).

Here’s a copy of the email she sent out today:

——————————————————-

Subj: Final Call for Freaky Eaters and Chance to Work With Me Personally

Cacao smoothie recipe if you want it. This was so amazing, I had to share. Courtesy of Beth Leone @zenwell

I modified her version a bit and have been drinking this every morning for the past couple weeks…

1/2 c blueberries
1/2 – 1 banana (depending how much sugar you want)
1 tsbp hemp seeds
1 tbsp + 2 tsp raw organic cacao powder
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
1 tsp maca powder (used by ancient Mayans and considered to be a superfood)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of sea salt
1 big handful organic baby spinach
1 3/4 c – 2 c water (depending on how thick you want it)

Blend on high speed in a blender. Yields a little more than one tall glass. Drink in the AM to nourish your body from the inside out.

If your taste buds are used to eating a lot of refined sugars, this smoothie may seem “not sweet enough” at first. Give it time… it’s an acquired taste, and the nutrients are well worth it. You can add more banana and/or add stevia to make it sweeter. I personally like it with less sweet taste.

I suck this thing down like it was nectar of the gods!

Beth included this recipe in her Zen Your Body, Zen Your Life program – where you shows you how to make space for exactly what you want in life. It’s a really cool program for anyone who is drained by clutter, tormented by the burden of owning too many belongings, and/or yearning for a better way to life. (If you purchase it, please let Beth know Michelle Lopez referred you!)

At Beth’s recommendation, I ordered Amazon Power Shake, which contains Maca as well as Chuchuhuasi, Kiwicha, Muira Puama, and Suma – all of which are herbs found in the Amazon and Andean Highlands. This shake is said to help build muscle and increase endurance. I’ll post a review of it after I try it! (I’ll be adding it to my shake recipe above, in lieu of the 1 tsp of maca.)

Are you still using a plain HTML website to showcase your integrative health practice?

Here are 4 reasons why you should switch to a WordPress site:

1. WordPress sites are VERY easy to update. You can make quick changes to text, headlines, navigation menu, and sidebar without having to rely on a web tech person.
2. A WordPress site has a built-in blog feature, which allows you to easily maintain a blog on your site.
3. WordPress sites allow for a high degree of customization so you’re not restricted to a certain look or a specific template. Just hire an experienced design person to help you get the unique look you want.
4. Blog sites with fresh, regularly updated content are favored by Google and show up higher in search engines compared to static HTML-based websites.

If you’d like to convert your plain HTML site into a WordPress site that’s dynamic, easy-to-update, and highly customizable, send me an email. With my design team, I can work with you on making the conversion process as easy as possible.

A quick announcement…

I’ve narrowed my niche down to alternative health professionals – including integrative physicians, nutritionists, holistic health coaches, and other health & wellness professionals. This means I’ll be doing copywriting and project management work exclusively for clients in this fascinating industry.

I’m naturally passionate about health & wellness, so this decision to specialize made a lot of sense. It goes along with the principle of leverage – making money AND focusing on a subject of high interest. I’ve already been working with a few clients in this industry, and it’s pretty cool collaborating with like-minded people who are also specializing in something I’m interested in.

(If you haven’t picked a specific niche or industry to work in, I’d highly recommend doing it!)

If you work in integrative health, I’d love to give you a free review of your website – just hit ‘reply’ this email, send me your URL and a summary of what purpose your website serves (or should serve), and I’ll send you my thoughts on how to make it better.

Oh – and if you know of any alternative health practitioners who might need a copywriter or project manager, I’d greatly appreciate it if you’d pass my contact details along to them. (They can find out more about my offerings here.)

Many thanks!
Michelle

I just celebrated my 31st birthday, which means unexpected cash, gifts, and another year of feeling younger than I really am.

It also means taking a moment to reassess my life and see if things are as I’d like them to be… or if they need to change.

Recently, I took the opportunity to clear out my new “office” (AKA my brother’s old bedroom), which has windows facing south and west. It’s the warmest room in the house, and it’s where I’ve chosen to do my work. Once upon a time, the room was a cluttered, disorganized, chaotic nightmare. Then I got my zenning process underway, and now it’s a clean, open space where I can think and solve problems.

Now’s the season for spring cleaning, and that means letting go of anything that doesn’t fit into my current life. I find myself paring down even my To Do lists, which were also badly cluttered once upon a time. I realized there are only 2 essential tasks that I need to do each day, outside of already-ingrained habits such as exercise and cleaning. These “critical inch” tasks are:

1. Work on my Roger Huerta Crush book.
2. Finish copywriting/VA projects and tasks for integrative health clients.

That’s it.

Everything else is non-essential.

One task fulfills my creative spirit and helps me work on myself; the other task brings in money while allowing me to focus on one of my biggest passions – integrative health.

I’m conditioning myself to let go of literally everything that doesn’t relate to either of my “critical inch” tasks. It’s sometimes difficult, but ultimately satisfying to let go of unsuitable items, thoughts, and even relationships in my life – and it makes space for what’s really important.

For example, I felt so much anguish trying to get rid of dozens of unread books from college (!!!). First of all, I graduated from college years ago, the classes are long gone, the syllabi no longer apply… so why am I holding onto so many unread college books? Because I fear “I might read them someday.” Nope! They’ll never get read. So off they go to Good Will.

Second of all, these unread books create a sense of guilt in me, which I don’t need. This guilt weighs on my mind and distracts me from the present moment.

Third of all, these books are taking up space that could be filled instead by new mixed martial arts (MMA) books, which are currently on my wish list.

I must constantly ask myself: Which would I rather have – a finished bestselling book that I wrote, or all this annoying clutter?

“Would I rather have dozens of new copywriting projects, or dozens of unread college books?”

The answer makes it easier to let go of what doesn’t belong.

Check out my new Twitter page @HealthMichelle, which caters to my target audience – integrative health professionals who need copywriting and virtual assistant (VA) support. If you have an interest in gluten-free food, holistic health, and nutrition, you might also find this new Twitter page of interest.

@HealthMichelle will be PG-13 rated, I promise! No swearing, no fighting with MMA guys, and no silly stuff. All the fun/crazy stuff will still be @MichelleLopezCO – where I sometimes behave in a rowdy manner and explore topics that push humanity to the edge.

In an effort to streamline things, I’m changing the focus of QuickResultsCopywriting.com. It will have more business related posts and less personal posts.

Anyone who wants to follow my thoughts on mixed martial arts (MMA), my Roger Huerta book, War Machine website, and all that other fun stuff, please go to my other site ~~> www.michellelopez.net.

Been monitoring the comments I get on various forums, YouTube, Twitter, etc., and notice a few people trying to give me business advice. One guy who identifies himself as “Lard Ass” told me that I should remove my “crazy” personal stories from my business website because “I guarantee you prospective clients are reading your site, landing on the Roger Huerta ‘book’ page and saying ‘Uh, hell no, that bitch’s crazy.’”

First off – I’m more than happy to entertain pretty much ANY viewpoint, whether it’s positive or negative, and regardless of the source. (That’s the value of having an open mind.) I am one who can find treasure in trash cans, and God in scumbags.

Secondly – I have zero interest in working with people who have a problem with me being interested in certain topics, or people who have a problem with me blending my professional life with my personal. After years of trying to keep both lives separate, I decided separation is a sickness and I’d rather go for a unified approach. The value of this is I’m getting CONSTANT feedback about my actions, which I can use to refine my approach to how I do things. This wouldn’t be possible if I was hiding a significant part of myself (the passionate/”crazy” side).

Third – after putting up the Roger Huerta book info on my site, that’s when BETTER prospective clients started contacting me – people I actually have an interest in working with. Some of these people have already converted into paid clients. I assume these individuals are drawn to my fierceness, honesty, openness, and transparency… regardless of any outlandish thoughts and stories I’m putting out there. They can also see that I have a talent for writing.

Bottom line… I don’t care if certain people have a problem with me. They have an easy solution: don’t work with me; and don’t pay attention to me. It’s a win-win for both parties, because I have no interest in working with someone who isn’t interested in working with me. It’s better that people know upfront what I’m all about, because I’d rather not waste any more time with someone who doesn’t like the real me. Life’s too short, yanno?

I think in 2012 we’re gonna start seeing more “professional masks” breaking down. It’s exhausting and discouraging to have to hide your real self… to have to live separate lives all the time, and pretend you’re something you’re not when you’re around certain people. We’re gonna start seeing people integrate their real selves with their professional selves… and boy, that’ll be interesting.

I’ve already seen a lot of that going on in entrepreneurial circles, and I look forward to seeing more. I think the more “real you” you put into your marketing efforts, the more people will be drawn to you. Love you or hate you… it doesn’t matter. It’s all about being authentic.

Wow… 2 weeks and not a single blog post? Oops.

Part of that is due to me working busily on my Roger Huerta book, and part of it is me trying to figure out what the heck to do with this website and which direction I want to take my business in. I’m leaning towards specializing in copywriting and Virtual Assistant (VA) services for alternative health practitioners – since that’s a field I love and am familiar with… meanwhile, I’m brainstorming way to to weave my passion for MMA into my money-making activities.

For the morbidly curious, here’s a quick video update on miscellany in my life, including a few thoughts on Nick Diaz (MMA fighter) who is fighting Carlos Condit this Saturday night:

There’s no such thing as coincidence. Things happen for a reason. People show up in your life because you’re supposed to learn something from them. Events happen because some part of you needs them to happen.

We repeatedly attract the same circumstances, the same kinds of relationships, the same characters and problems into our lives until we learn whatever we’re supposed to learn from them. Then, and only then can we move on.

For example: One thing I have repeatedly attracted into my life is bad boys who appear to need saving. I tend to become fascinated by guys who are on a path to self-destruction, blindly misbehaving and mistaking it as “fun” because they’re too afraid to peer into their deepest selves to see what’s there. They’re too distracted and seduced by external noise to pay attention to what’s crying out for love and healing inside themselves.

Why do I attract these types into my life? Because they are a reflection of me.

I am the one who needs saving. I am the one who’s on a path to self-destruction. I’m the one who needs to dig deeper into my own soul, see what’s there, and come to terms with it.

Roger Huerta didn’t come into my life because I was supposed to marry, befriend, or save him. He showed up because I had many life lessons to learn from him. Whether he likes it or not, his presence on this earth contributed to my growth as a human being… forcing me to come to terms with the best and worst in myself. My experience with delving deeper into Roger’s story, and meeting him in person twice (in July and November 2011) gave me real-life story material that has ignited a certain fire, setting something into motion: me writing, finishing, and publishing my first book.

My presence on this earth may contribute to Roger’s growth as a human being, too – if the power of prayer has anything to do with it. I pray for him and his new wife (the latter… a little reluctantly at first). I send them wisdom to make the right decisions and inner peace. No, I am not religious. And no, the prayers aren’t laced with hidden agendas (they used to be though! – and it backfired on me!).

I have a brother who is worse off than I am, and he may wind up dead soon if he does not develop an intense desire to turn his life around. I’ve been praying for him, sending him self-esteem, self-love, self-discipline. I’ve been begging the universe to ignite a spark in my brother’s heart, to get him to wake up and see that he can change… and that he’s a valuable presence on this earth, despite his past mistakes and his current flaws.

There’s a somewhat irritating poem I found on a coaster at Roger’s friend’s house in Pharr, TX. It comforts me, yet it doesn’t:

God’s 3 answers to your prayers:

1)         Yes.

2)         Not yet.

3)         I have something better in mind.

I’m just waiting for a “coincidence” to show up in my brother’s life to set good things in motion for him. How can I accelerate the appearance of that coincidence? Do I have any magical power, as a mere human being, to do that? I think so. I can do it by adopting the qualities that I want my brother to have. I can do it by being “the best self” I can possibly be. I can profoundly influence my brother’s life by completely mastering myself and learning how to control my urges and impulses.

That’s the only way I can really help my brother – not by bailing him out of shitty situations, lending him money, or trying to lecture him.

A note on prayer: We can send positive gifts to people via prayer, or we can send them curses through worrying and negative thoughts (pretty much “voo doo”). Some people, it seems, are more tuned in to receiving curses rather than blessings. I don’t know how it works, but it does. Furthermore, whatever you send out always gets returned to you… in some form or fashion. So send out the right prayers.

I’m sending my family, friends, and a few key people in my life wisdom, inner peace, and self-mastery. I know they need more of these things. And I need them too.