One of the things that my clients have to working is learning to say “no” and to really focus on what will bring them the best return on investment for their time and dollars, both of which are extremely limited for most professionals. C.J. Hayden has just published an excellent article on this topic that I highly recommend. You can find it at http://www.getclientsnow.com/just-say-no.htm.
Posts Tagged ‘Coaching’
Just Say “No”
Tuesday, May 4th, 2010WAIT – Why Am I Talking?
Thursday, March 4th, 2010I recently did a half-day communications workshop for the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) Greater Detroit Chapter. When I asked the question, what value did you get out of today – WAIT was high on the list.
WAIT stands for “Why Am I Talking?” It’s a reminder to, basically, shut up and listen. Really listen.
We all have a tendency to be thinking of what we’re going to say next when the other person is talking, instead of trying to understand their point of view and their concerns. It’s easy to understand how this can get you into trouble.
The really bad part is not only do we do that to other people, we do it to ourselves. We don’t shut up long enough to really hear what’s going on inside our minds. We’re thinking instead of all the things we have to do, all the things that could go wrong, what’s for dinner, what’s going on this weekend, etc. etc..
What we really all need to do is take some time on a regular basis and WAIT. Shut up and listen to what’s really important with ourselves. We need to really understand where we’re coming from and our own point of view. We owe as much courtesy to ourselves as we owe to others. And in order to be able to really listen to others, we need to be able to listen to ourselves.
Practice this for a week or two, and you will be really surprised at what you may find out. Dreams that you had all but forgotten. Things that you thought were important really aren’t, and visa versa. You may have been drowning out your hopes and desires for a long time.
So, this week – WAIT and let me know what you hear.
Easy One Page Business Plan
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010Here’s a quick and easy one page business plan format that you can use to set or update your company direction, focus and goals for 2010. This is a great plan for small companies who don’t typically have time or money to do detailed planning. It also works well for individual career planning.
Mission:
What is your purpose? Why are you in business? Why do you do what you do? 2 – 3 Sentences
Vision:
How does your purpose translate into concrete terms? Paint a picture. 2 – 3 Sentences.
Objectives:
What by when? What do you need to do this year to move your vision forward?
Strategies:
What overall approaches will you take to reach your objectives this year?
Plans:
The actual steps that you will take to reach your objectives. Note that these may often be project that require plans in and of themselves.
Go ahead, schedule an hour and see what you come up with. Keep refining your business plan until it meets your needs. Then prepare to update it quarterly. Business plans are useless unless they are looked at and measured.
Post what you come up with, and see what others have done. If you get stuck, call me. I am offering a free coaching session to everyone for January.
Next week we’ll talk about how to measure performance against your plans.
Are You Ready for 2010?
Monday, January 4th, 2010Have you reviewed and completed 2009 yet? Or have you just let the year end without checking in on how you’ve done? Here are some great questions to ask yourself about 2009:
1. What did you accomplish in 2009?
2. What did you learn in 2009?
3. What is finished?
4. What is left to be done?
5. What will you take with you into 2010?
Once you complete this review, you will be in great shape to start 2010. You can think about what you want to do and create some solid goals and plans for achieving them.
Next week, we’ll talk about business planning for 2010. Once you review 2009, be thinking about where you want to be at the end of 2010.
Happy New Year!!
Art vs. Science
Friday, October 16th, 2009I had a conversation with a referral partner this morning who made a statement that I really enjoyed: ”Billing is an art. You really have to know your clients.” And it’s very true. It’ s not so much the billing itself, but how each client will react differently to the same things. Take the same system, but adjust it to each client and their needs.
One size never fits all when it comes to people – whether they are current clients, perspective clients or you. The same marketing plan or business plan that works for someone else in your industry won’t work the same for you.
The science portion is the base business or marketing plan and the art is adjusting it so that it fits for you, your clients, your prospective clients and your situation – which can change at any time as well.
The same business or marketing plan that worked for you two years ago may not fit now. The economy has changed. You’ve changed. Your clients have changed and so have your prospects. It’s always a good idea to review what you’re doing and adjust it to the current conditions on a regular basis. And you have some great places to look right above – you, your clients, prospective clients, the economy, etc. That’s the art of it. It’s not just your business and marketing plans either. This applies to your whole life.
And that’s what makes it fun. It’s both art AND science.
How Much Networking is Enough?
Tuesday, October 6th, 2009How much networking is enough to sustain or grow your business at the rate you desire? This isn’t an easy question to answer because it depends on many things.
If you really wanted to, you could go to networking events all the time, day and night. There are more networking events than there are hours in the day. But is all that networking really that effective? The answer is no. If you have no clear plan, goals or intentions, then any networking will be ineffective. It will also not do you any good if you go to all these events and then don’t follow up in a timely fashion with the people that you meet.
So how do you choose networking events to attend? Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- How good am I at social interaction and relationship building? This actually matters far less than most people think, but it does matter. If you hate going to networking events, for example, it won’t be effective for you.
- Who are my target clients? (This is a huge topic in and of itself and key to any business.)
- What networking events do they go to? Or where do they hang out? It may be that the best networking for you isn’t a networking event at all.
- Who are good referral sources for my target clients? (Many professions receive most of their clients by referral rather than direct contact.)
- What networking events do they go to or where do they hang out?
- How many networking events can I realistically attend per week and still get the actual work and follow-up from the event done. If you don’t know how long on average it takes you to follow up after an event, try 2 hours for every networking event and track it from there. It’s likely to be much higher than 2 hours.
The next question is a big one -
How few networking events can I go to and still maintain or grow my business? The fewer events you can attend and still achieve your goals, the more you can focus on actually earning the money – whether it is you yourself doing client development or a team of salespeople.
So how much networking do you do?
Commitments – An exercise
Wednesday, April 8th, 2009Here’s a good exercise to help you focus on aligning your life with your goals and aspirations.
- List your top 5 commitments in life. An example would be 1 – self-care, 2 – spouse, 3 – work, 4 – family, 5 – friends.
- Now track where you spend your time for a full week?
- Does your time reflect your commitments? If someone else looked at how you spend your time, what would they say you were committed to?
For most of us it won’t. For example when I look at actual time spent over the last week, it would look like I was committed to eating lots of carbohydrates, or being exhausted and fussy.
Now here’s the big step – 4. What actions will you take on in the next week to align your life with your commitments?
Respond here and let us know.
I won’t be eating bread for the next week. Pretty cool that it’s Passover anyway.
Stuck
Monday, March 2nd, 2009Do you feel unappreciated or unrecognized for the job you do? Do you have more responsibility without the title and compensation to go with it? Do you feel like there’s no communication at your company? Feel like you’re at a dead-end? And things are not going to get any better at the company you’re at, but you’re afraid of ending up in exactly the same situation if you change jobs? Are you really frustrated, stressed out and angry? And no one can help you?
If you feel this way, you’re probably right. No one can help you. You built the box you’re in, and only you can get yourself out of it. The only way out is to realize that the box isn’t really there. You created it the minute you started looking for something to blame and being right was more important than anything else.
The great news is that there is a way out – and there is help. The minute you accept responsibility for creating your experience, the box will disappear. You will see that you have options and choices about what you do and lots of people to available to support you in whatever you choose. Your options may be developing the skills you need to thrive in the new environment, evaluating the situation against your values and priorities and choosing something different, just being happy and unstressed by the situation - and so on. The options are endless once you choose to be responsible for your experience. You have reclaimed your power and are now unstuck.
Choose to be responsible!
Fear
Thursday, February 12th, 2009Where does fear show up for you?
It showed up in full force for me last Saturday night. My husband and I attended a mixer for a new young adult group starting at our temple. Besides being overjoyed that I still qualified as a young adult for a few more months, I was terrified. I didn’t expect to know more than one or two people there. As we walked in, I immediately went back to being the 7 year old kid on her first day at a new school (again) who didn’t know anyone and felt like a real outsider. It didn’t matter that I’m a long way from being 7, a successful business owner, professional coach and public speaker. Reality had nothing to do with this situation. The story was all in my head and a very familiar one at that.
We all have those stories that happen in our childhood and make such an impression on us that we re-create them throughout our lives. It’s normal. The stories and the events that trigger them are different for everyone, but in one respect they are all the same. They are all fears that we have not moved past yet. We will continue to re-create them until we do.
The key is in recognizing the story and choosing how you will respond. You have the power to make that choice. You can respond the same way you always do that started when you were 7, and probably isn’t doing you any good now – or you can do something different. You can notice it, embrace it and have compassion for the 7-year old that is still feeling the pain. You can look at the facts of the situation and separate them from the story in your head. Then you can create actions that will do you good, instead of holding you back. If you can master this, fear will never be able to stop you again.
The Power of Responsibility
Tuesday, February 3rd, 2009I talked with 2 women on the same day last week. They were in very similar situations. Both owned their own businesses in very similar fields. Both were in their 50’s. Both women enjoyed what they did. But there the similarity ended.
One woman had, despite suffering an extremely debilitating injury, an air of joy and peace about her that was almost palpable. She loved what she did and it showed. It was a joy to talk and be with her. And it was clear that this was the experience for her staff as well. She had loyal employees who acted as her hands when she couldn’t do something. They had been with her a while. They clearly enjoyed working in her business. Business was good, even in this economy.
The second woman was clearly resentful, unhappy and unpleasant to be around. She spent most of the time complaining and the word I heard most often was “should.” “I shouldn’t have to tell her that.” She didn’t feel comfortable delegating to anyone and consequently was overloaded. Her business, despite having a good base, was not anywhere near thriving. She also wasn’t doing the things she needed to do to grow the business. Staff turnover was one of her biggest issues.
The main difference between the two: Responsibility! The first woman clearly took responsibility for her choices and saw the possibilities. She did not let circumstances stop her. She just adjusted how she worked. The second saw herself as a victim of her business and her staff instead of empowering herself. She let her circumstances control her decisions and consequently couldn’t get ahead. She let herself become a victim to her fear.
Which one would you rather be? The choice is yours.