Archive for the 'Productivity' Category

Dec 04 2011

Thumbs Up!

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Change,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Creative Thinking,Decision Making,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Innovation,Leadership,Lifestyle,Management,Motivation,Observations,People Management,Personal Growth,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Relationships,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Small Business

Thumbs up! Thumbs down!

                                         

 All thumbs! Thumb a ride! 

                                  

Thumb this!

 

                          

Did you ever notice how many things you use your thumbs for? Did you ever notice how much you use any part of your body for tasks that you never stop to pay attention to, until that part gets sick or injured or stressed beyond functioning? And you wonder how you could have ever overlooked how critical all of your parts are?

Isn’t it the same with your business? Don’t you have tasks and functions to deal with, approaches to take, routines, habits and checklists to observe every day?  And when something goes wrong, breaks down, or isn’t where you thought you left it… or not performing up to snuff, or communications get muddled, you become an EMT?

Okay, so you’re good in emergencies,

 but you really can’t make a living in

 business functioning as a firefighter.

                                                               

Being able to respond quickly and adapt quickly are genuine entrepreneurial strengths, but too often they become crutches and can readily lead the leaner into business failure and a nonproductive way of life. True leaders wear many hats and know when to trade off one for the other. Thumbs go up! Thumbs go down! Thumbs hitchhike!  

Cute, Hal, but what does that mean? It means that truly successful business owners and managers are those who exercise flexibility in the ways they move, the things they say, the leadership styles they exercise, the assignments and presentations they give and the WAYS they do these things.

Process is what matters most — HOW things get done, the steps involved, can often be more important than what is actually done. Isn’t that a lot like how you say what tou say is at least as important as what you say? Well, the key to process is flexibility… being ready, willing, and able to “turn on a dime,” as the old expression goes.

“Turn on a dime!”

                                

Thumbs are a good example of flexibility. They can turn from up to down in an instant. Think of your thumbs as the gateway to flexibility and spontaneity — flexible fulfillment. Have you ever seen a thumb direction opposite of a facial expression (or an internal feeling?)?  Thumb direction is the harbinger of thought process.

Remember the childhood exercise of putting all your knuckles together as you interlock your fingers and close your palms together so that your fingertips are hidden (reciting “here’s the church!”), then point your two forefinger tips together in the air (reciting “here’s the steeple!”) and then guess what’s next… remember? 

Throwing out your thumbs and wiggling your other six fingertips (reciting “open the doors, and look at all the people!”)? So, even since being a tyke, your thumbs have been the doors that open your vision to what’s going on inside. What happens when you look beyond the thumbs of your day-to-day business?

“The journey to discovery,”

said Proust, “consists not in

having new landscapes,

but in having new eyes.” 

 

When did you last “Thumb Through”some of those pages that describe where your business has been, where it is, and where it’s going? Close your eyes for a minute and think that through before skipping off to your emails, or back to Twitter or Facebook. And remember it’s the process of how you think about it all.

 

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Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

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Dec 01 2011

BUSINESS STARTUP

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Anger/Conflict,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Change,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Community Support,Contacts/Networking,Creative Thinking,Customer Service (CRM),Decision Making,Delegation,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Goals,INTERNET Marketing,Leadership,Life Plans,Lifestyle,Management,Marketing,Motivation,Objectives,Observations,Overcoming Objections,People Management,Personal Growth,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Public Relations,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Retailing,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Stress Management,Tactics,Time Management,Trust,Writing

Startup Fever

 

Channeling startup energy wisely is certainly a paradox. In fact, channeling startup energy wisely is an almost impossible task because the heat of the moment tends to override the rationality of the brain. Emotions, in other words, pack more punch than objectivity and a measured approach. Hmmm, remind you of dating days?

Isn’t this also the reason successful marketers always direct their sales messages to trigger emotional buying motives instead of rational ones? Benefits, not features. I mean, do you really care what’s under the hood if it gets you where you want to go, doesn’t break down, is snazzy, and you think it makes you look good driving it?

If a car turns the neighbor’s head every time you pull into the driveway, and jumpstarts your brain into dreaming of being a big-name, cross-country race car driver just as a result of you buckling up and adjusting the mirrors, you buy it. You may offer 101 other more rational, logical reasons, but that’s just a justification cover!

When an entrepreneur starts a business, she 0r he is typically filled with emotions that seem to run at cross-purposes. Money. Where will it come from? Where will I get the money I need? Will it be enough? Workspace. How much do I need now? Later? Where? What’s the deal? Insurance? Yikes! Equipment? Furnishings? Accountant? Lawyer? Advisory board? Employees? Benefit plans? Strategic plans? Business Plans? Hours of operation? Website? Pricing? What? Huh? Packaging? Promotions? PR? Advertising? Sales? Phone System? Reception? Presentations? Partners? Investors? Lenders? Logo?Suppliers? Branding?Memberships? Networks? Jeeze! Maintenance? Distribution? Referrers? Community? Titles? Whoa! Signage? Name? Mission statement? Elevator speech? Professional or industry relations? Goals? Target markets? And on and on . . .

                                         

According to the most recent SBA studies I could muster (the WH doesn’t want to publicize new small business data), 9 out of every 11 new businesses reportedly fail within the first 10 years, and it takes an average of 6 years just to break even financially. Pretty miserable odds for all that emotional and financial expenditure.

But —considering that your idea and your support systems are great, and the alternative is a secure go-nowhere job with the braindead government or some big corporate shabang position with nothing but ladders to climb before you sleep– entrepreneuring at least gives you adventure, challenge, opportunity, freedom, and fun.

So the answer IS: Channel all that explosive chain-reaction energy. (Try increased attention to deep breathing, yoga, exercise, power walks, eating and sleeping right.) Channel the energy into filling the gaps of business needs that you lack, so you can concentrate on what you like and do best, which will maximize your performance.

You’re lousy at writing or marketing or managing others? Hire someone with a proven track-record to step in and free you up. Sometimes just one or two people can fill all three of these for-example roles. See where and how to consolidate tasks and functions that you can pass along. (But remember responsibility cannot be delegated.)      

The point is that startup entrepreneurs need to jet down and focus their total energy on the “here-and-now” of what they’re doing: find the needs, determine the costs, fill the needs. Shop around for services. Be a detective. Line up at least 10 times the amount of money you think you’ll need. 10? Yup! Guaranteed! 

 

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Hal@Businessworks.US

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 30 2011

No one you can really talk to?

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Creative Thinking,Customer Service (CRM),Decision Making,Economy,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Gestalt Therapy,Good Health,Happiness,Life Plans,Lifestyle,Listening,Management,Mental Health,Motivation,Observations,Overcoming Objections,People Management,Personal Growth,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Retailing,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Stress Management,Tactics,Trust

When it gets lonesome at the top… 

Are you talking 

 

to your SELF?

 

                                                                                   

Those who talked to themselves were once considered out of step with reality, and those who out-loud answered their own questions were thought to be in urgent need of psychoanalysis… or a straitjacket.. perhaps even a lobotomy, like in the gruesome 1450s in England. But today? You’re in luck!

Judge-and-jury assessments like this obviously don’t include entrepreneurs. After all, you probably talk to yourself at least hourly, and carry a lifetime reputation for being crazy. I mean, how else could you still be good enough to be in business in this staggering leaderless economy?

When you decide to become an entrepreneur,

you necessarily choose to also become your

own (often lonesome) sounding board.  

                                                             

You should know, by the way, I’m not trying to put a damper on your rants and raves and ongoing mutterings. Those activities, in fact, can be stress-reducing in and of themselves, and serve the purpose of clearing your head — something like a wet retriever shaking off water while standing on your foot! (Had that experience, eh?)

What I am suggesting is that you add to your self-talk repertoire, a bunch of other self-oriented and self-focused actions — like trusting your SELF and appreciating your SELF and recognizing your SELF-uniqueness.

Yeah, but that borders on being selfish, doesn’t it? And don’t we all know that selfish behavior is not a good thing for society, our planet, our personal long-term value? Absolutely. But I’m not speaking of self-aggrandizement. I am addressing the basic life and business success need — to be oriented toward one’s SELF.

Calling it selfish or not doesn’t matter. It’s what your purpose and intentions are all about that really count. When we can be oriented toward our selves in our thoughts and actions, we can be –among other things– more aware of the needs of others, and how we might best be able to help meet or fill those needs in addition to our own.

Selfishness in this respect also tips our internal scales in favor of a more improved, more productive and balanced state of mental and emotional health.

The more we appreciate and value our SELVES and our uniqueness’s, the more we tend to respect the uniqueness’s of others, and the more effective we can become at improving our pathways toward self-sufficiency, self-determination, and the all-important life quality that traditional schools fail to teach: self-esteem.

So the thin line to walk is being able to keep humility and let go of egotism while nurturing self-respect and fostering self-development through increased self-awareness. A high-wire act? If you choose to make it difficult on your self, it is… and it will be. But the choice is yours. And NOW is the time to act! Good luck!

 

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

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Nov 28 2011

CREATIVITY WAKE-UP CALL!

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Change,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Contacts/Networking,Creative Thinking,Decision Making,Economy,Entrepreneurship,Family Business,Gestalt Therapy,Life Plans,Lifestyle,Literary Pursuits,Motivation,Observations,Personal Growth,Poems/Essays,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Public Relations,Reality,Reputation,Retailing,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategies,Tactics,Time Management,Trust,Writing

Are you taking your music to the grave?!

                                                                           

 STOP HIDING

                                   

 YOUR ACORNS!

 

You are not a squirrel. Stop saving up your best-effort production, creation, plan or idea for “the right moment!” With a deader-than-doornail economy getting deader every day, there’s no time like the present to get that great creative genius product of yours out of the closet or back of the drawer, dust it off, and make it work!

To make it work, first means freeing it from the imaginary chains you’ve wrapped around it and the hiding place in your home, office, truck, notebook, recording, harddrive, or your mind. It will never achieve what you hoped for it if it’s locked away. Put it into your daily work schedule. Treat it as if it was a key client or customer project.

TRUST YOURSELF. Give yourself a chance. What’s the worst thing could happen? It gets rejected? You think maybe there’s only one person or audience for your special creation? The odds for fame and appreciation will be better after you’re dead? Regardless of your skills and calling, that’s not likely. And it’s a choice.  

Try to look at it this way: Posthumous success is failure to achieve what’s been rightfully earned in life during that lifetime. Most of us agree that of course the dead are to be honored in some fashion. Military courage and sacrifice certainly count the most. I’m not attempting to strip that love, respect, gratitude and reverence away.

The point is that posthumous recognition doesn’t accomplish anything. It fails to provide you the incentive and opportunity to do even greater work because it affords you a springboard for awakening other talents of yours and for inspiring others who will enjoy and benefit by and emulate your efforts.

Oh, and perhaps it’s blatantly obvious, but I believe it’s still worth mentioning just to raise consciousness: we only go around once in this life. We get only one “here and now” every passing minute. Do you truly want to take your music to your grave? It’s a choice to never make a choice.

An action step you take today can pay you back tomorrow. Action you never take hasn’t even a chance of being worthy of your talents and authenticity. And action you keep making excuses not to take is actually a step backwards. If you’re not a squirrel, stop hiding your treasures. If you have “yes, buts” — contact me. If you think you’re losing your mind, try this! And you still have doubts, here’s one of my favorite quotes to pin on your wall:

 

Remember time waits for no one.

Yesterday is history.

Tomorrow is mystery.

Today is a gift.

That’s why it’s called the present.”

— B. Olatunji     

                                                             

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 21 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…”Z”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Community Support,Contacts/Networking,Customer Service (CRM),Decision Making,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Feedback,Leadership,Lifestyle,Listening,Management,Motivation,Observations,People Management,Personal Growth,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Public Relations,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Retailing,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Strategies,Tactics,Teamwork,Trust

The final subject of this, the world’s first BIZ ALPHABET Series of blog posts! (Check out “A” – “Y”)

                                            

“Z”…ZEST

                              

ZEST (not the soap) refers to you and your business . . . ardor, élan, gusto, joie de vivre, lust, oomph, passion, pep, pizzazz, tang, vitality, energy, zing,  zoom, zip,  zap . . . either you’ve got it or you don’t.

If you’ve got it, you can make it better. Start here now. If you don’t have it, you can get it ignited here, now. Free. No strings attached. No gimmicks! Just you and your business, and me.

~~~~~~~ 

Sounds good, you say, but who cares? Uh, your customers, your employees, your suppliers, your investors, your lenders, your community . . . and your family. Does that work for an answer? This is not just another lecture on motivation. It’s about operating your business with a competitive edge.

Let’s get to it: When did you last ask a few customers why they do business with you instead of with __________ (fill in the name of a leading competitor)? Oh, you did a survey? Well, that’s great, but there’s nothin’ like the real thing, Baby, goes the old song, and there’s nothing like straight eyeball-to-eyeball answers.

Whatever you hear back, by the way, accept and be appreciative. Do not criticize. Do not “Yes, But.” Do not argue or dismiss. There’s a reason for everything. Take it in. Write it down. Smile and say thank you. Go off and think. Odds are pretty good that the answers you’ll get will have something to do with your attitude and approach.

In other words, HOW you deal with customers, employees, and others around you is what determines more than anything else why your customers are your customers. And it’s that reputation that attracts other customers. So, if these assumption about how you deal with others is even just half right, you already have a competitive edge.

It may simply need –like the holiday carving knife– a little sharpening. Start by asking yourself if you and/or someone else who works with you have been partly or largely responsible for positive customer feedback. Do you appropriately reward that behavior when it comes from others. Rewarding positives breeds more positives.

If you get feedback that attributes your business strength to other factors –price, quality, convenience, etc.–you need to giddy-yap over to your customer service counter/person/policy/strategy/whatever, to fix it or make it better.

Why? Because in this lousy economy, it is frankly not a good sign that anything other than your outstanding service should be the #1 factor quoted by customers. You cannot any longer compete on price or packaging or quality or convenience or sustainability. Anyone with the know-how and gumption can beat you on those points. 

But no one else can be you!

                                                                       

No one else can treat people exactly the same as you, and therein lies your single greatest and unique competitive edge — it’s the differential that you, exclusively, can offer. Have you ever by-passed others and gone out of your way to deal with a particular business because you relate better to the source? Of course you have.

We all seek individuals and entities we feel offer more integrity, more authenticity, a better reputation, provide more extras. So your customers are different? What’s keeping you from adjusting, over-hauling, boosting or perking up your business approaches and attitude NOW? Aren’t roadblocks, after all, a matter of choice?

Choose more of what works. Put a little spice in your spirit! And remember what you put out and how you come across — your spirit — is yours alone. No one else has or can use your strengths. 

                                                       

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Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 16 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…”W”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Choosing Behavior,Contacts/Networking,Decision Making,Goals,Innovation,Leadership,Life Plans,Lifestyle,Management,Motivation,Objectives,Objectives/Strategies/Tactics,Observations,Personal Growth,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Tactics,Writing

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

“W”…WISHING

 

WISHING may make it so in Peter Pan or The Wizard of Oz, but it’s a death knell in small business. Like hoping and dreaming, wishing accomplishes nothing. As entrepreneurs, the sooner we face reality and anchor ourselves in the present here-and-now moment for as many passing moments of every day as we possibly can, the sooner we will achieve success.

                             

~~~~~~~

No need to take my word for this sweeping rhetoric. It’s been proven endlessly over the ages by every successful, big-name entrepreneur who ever lived — from Thomas Edison, Henry Ford,  and Dale Carnegie, to Bill Gates, Steven Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, and Mary Kay Ashe.

So if this is such common knowledge, why doesn’t every entrepreneur succeed? Part of the answer is in the title of this blog post. We are taught from childhood to wish upon a star, that if we find a container on the beach and rub it, a genie will appear and grant three wishes, and so on.

Why do I bring this to our attention now, as we reach the end of the alphabet? Because besides that tonight, we landed on “W,” we are also on the cusp of the greatest annual “wishfest” in American history.

The whole thing starts the day after Thanksgiving and typically continues until Christmas when the dried out and “wishable” Thanksgiving turkey wishbone is ready to be or has already been snapped, and is likely to be replaced by a fresh new Christmas turkey wishbone.

Besides every greeting card filled with best holiday wishes, the season itself brings with it even more wishing as we see lottery ticket sales zoom and letters to Santa abound with children’s wishlists. And then, there’s New Year’s resolutions and wishes… success, success, success!

We certainly have ample opportunities for legitimatized, formal, and official wishing, but… alas!… WE are entrepreneurs, and we know far better than any corporate counterparts or government flunkies that wishing is a colossal waste of time and energy… not praying, mind you, but wishes! We all need all the prayer we can muster.

But that doesn’t mean that we can’t have goals. In fact, if we are truly to succeed, goal-setting needs to be an essential and ongoing activity. And real goals –as opposed to fantasized missions– must adhere to four essential criteria, or they are not real goals, and not likely even achievable.

Ongoing? Yes, since –as you may have just discovered by clicking on the last word link above– one of the four essential goal-setting criteria is flexibility, the idea of ongoing goal-setting should be apparent. They need to be adjusted, re-adjusted, and upgraded to reflect the following truism:

Time and events cause changes in

  purpose, passion, and resources.

(Aspiring political candidates should also take note!)

                                                                                    

Do you write down your goals and write down your revised and upgraded goals and carry a copy of the latest version on your person every day? Do you go to sleep and wake up with them in your face every day? Do you keep them private except from others who:

  • You trust
  • You know have their own goals
  • You know will provide you with positive, reinforcing, encouragement on your pursuits

Stop wishing and start taking positive steps to make things happen. Begin in reality with written goals.

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Hal@Businessworks.US 

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

 Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 10 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…” S”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Decision Making,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Lifestyle,Motivation,Observations,People Management,Personal Growth,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Stress Management,Tactics

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

“S”…SALES STRESS 

 

Looking for the competitive edge? Want to make a difference? Small business owners and managers  can never have enough input on the “S” subjects, sales and stress. There are plenty of other key “S” subjects, like stick-to-it-ive-ness and startups, and social media and SEO … but there are also a ton of resources available on each of these subjects.

Well, I guess there are also plenty of info bites out there on the subjects of sales and stress, but it seems to me that these two S’s stand head and shoulders above the other topics for daily, immediate concern, and the need to have new info and input on an ongoing basis.

Besides, one creates the other.

                                         

Sales (the career, the quotas, the goals, and the act of selling) produce enough stress for one business owner or manager as would be needed to probably topple any six corporate muckity-mucks or any 200 government employees!

And “stress”? Actually stress –when it’s properly channeled– can be a great incentive and catalyst for sales. Stress, remember, is not always negative. We need a certain amount of stress just to sit up straight in a chair, or to be productive with our  computer keyboards (or with one another.

Dealing with negative, or over stress or distress, is typically handled by professional therapists with one (or a combination) of these tools at their command — guided imagery, deep breathing, exercise, meditation, Yoga, laughter, psychoanalysis, or role-playing, among others.

If you REALLY want to sell, get your target market to exceed the five senses (speaking of “S”). Here, for example, are mine:

Taste………. sushi

Touch…….. sex

Sight………. puppies, flowers

Sound…….. the ocean

Smell……… red wine splashed over barbequing beef

When a marketer can top –or even come close to– any of these triggers, I’m sold.

                                                

What are the triggers into YOUR five senses? How about those of your target market? How can you use words and illustrations to represent the five senses. What about “scratch ‘n’sniff” print ads, piles of ice or foam on a billboard photo, commercial background music or natural sound effects? A fast-paced “click-to” video?

Even with all of today’s instantaneous communication capabilities and daily information overload existence, nothing has ever even come close to duplicating the sales appeal of the five senses. To capture just one of these, triggers others. If I get you to imagine tasting a food product, you might very well also smell it.

Every purchase is the result of igniting an emotional buying motive. So, while burning down a small cardboard house may sell homeowner insurance, it’s also over the top. The challenge is to stay within the boundaries of good sense and reasonability when you reach out to ignite fuses to the five senses.

What is your business doing right now that takes advantage of your product or service ability to appease or enhance one or more of the five senses? How can you build on that? In other words, is “Mmmm-mmm, good!” enough… or should you also show steam rising from the soupbowl? Smiling faces of cherub children? 

                                                                           

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Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 08 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…”Q”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Anger/Conflict,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Change,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Contacts/Networking,Customer Service (CRM),Empathy,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Leadership,Life Plans,Lifestyle,Management,Motivation,Observations,Overcoming Objections,People Management,Personal Growth,Politics/Gov't,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Stress Management,Tactics

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “Q”…QUICK

 

Quicksand? No. Quick draw? No. Quick start? Almost. This is about how I’ve seen successful business owners and managers apply four of my father’s favorite words for motivating me and my brother:

“QUICK LIKE A BUNNY”

                                                                       

No matter what you may be thinking about bunnies, you have to admit they are quick as they go about their business. No nonsense about “all things come to he who waits” — or about the one time a tortoise beat one of ’em in some race. “Slow and steady” was it? Hmmm, surely that was before txt msgs!

Every one of us deals with someone who’s slow on the road, in line, at the counter, on the phone, responding to an email, walking on the sidewalk or in or out of an elevator or building. Most of us act more courteously than we feel because we –most of us, I believe– tend to give the other (slow) person the benefit of doubt, right?

Well, we might mutter . . . maybe he’s lost; maybe she has a vision problem; maybe they just got married; maybe it’s his first job; maybe she’s got a big problem to deal with at home; maybe he’s writing a book. Hey, most of us can be patient when we run into delays. Not all of us and not all delays, but speaking generally.

Leading the parade of exceptions of course  is the kid in the 4-wheeled boombox, baseball hat on backwards, who’s doing 50mph in a 50mph zone but is somewhere between ten and eleven inches from your trunk, who we consider tapping the brakes at or launching some windshield washer fluid, y’think?

But, no, not a good idea. Next thing is we’d get abused for practicing road rage (or shot at in some cities, which I’ll leave to your imagination to list). “What’s your hurry?” I’ve heard. “All of life is just one big interruption anyway!” I’ve heard. But then, uh oh, there’s that little ghost voice of my father’s in the back of my head nudging me forward:

 “QUICK LIKE A BUNNY!”

                                                              

And guess what?He was right (well, mostly). Whenever something needed doing, whatever the task, personal or business, it was get-out-of-the-way time. Maybe he invented the “Life in the fastlane” term? So where is all this leading? To developing and practicing an action attitude . . . unless you’re 92 and playing checkers on a barrel.

Today’s business world is all about pleasing –delighting– the customer because customers are the only entities that make your business truly recession-proof (especially now as we enter The Great Obama Depression). Being highly responsive to customers (both internal and external) means acting now and analyzing later.

Instead of “I’ll look into that for you and call you back tomorrow,” look into it now and ask if the other person can wait while you get an immediate answer. Too many excuses and delays send customers and prospects up the walls — followed by rapidly considering other options, including your competitors. 

Customer loyalty motto for 2011 and (at least) 2012 is “What have you done for me lately?” If your answer to this starts with , “Why, just last week . . .” you’re talking about ancient history. It is never too quick to take a step on behalf of those who support your business, from employees and suppliers, to customers and prospects.

If you go too quick and make a mistake, there’s time to recover and correct it. If you go too slow, by the time you straighten out a screw-up, the customer will be headed off into the sunset. Go for it. Today. Now. Right now. It’s your choice to help others choose you and your business. LEADERSHIP = RESPONSIVENESS

                                                     
 

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Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!

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Nov 06 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…”O”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Advertising,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Calendar,Change,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Corporate Management,Creative Thinking,Decision Making,Delegation,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Feedback,Innovation,Leadership,Lifestyle,Management,Marketing,Motivation,Objectives/Strategies/Tactics,Observations,People Management,Personal Growth,Productivity,Professional Practices,Public Relations,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Retailing,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Stress Management,Teamwork,Time Management,Writing

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “O”…ORGANIZATION 

 

It was going to be “O” for “Operations” but a few years back the world’s surgeons decided that “Procedures” would be a gentler, less-threatening sounding  word to use in describing what happens when they take a scalpel to your body.  And as businesses became more specialized, “Operations” began to dissolve from usage in the business community too.  So with all that phasing out activity, I came back to one of the most important multi-purpose “O” words for life and small business success: ORGANIZATION.

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There are 30 million of us (small business owners and entrepreneurs) kicking around out there, somewhere between Hawaii, Florida, Maine, and Alaska (Whew! A lot of kicking!), and —artistic, creative types not withstanding– those among us with the strongest sense of organization will generally prevail in the success arena.

“Organization” is both the dynamics of the people you’re involved with — what’s the business “chemistry”?– AND how effective are your planning and doing (action) skills? “Team chemistry” wins in sports (Just re-live World Series Game 6 a few days ago), but it also –like people and task organizing skills– wins in business.

There are of course, entire books, courses, and training programs devoted to OD (Organizational Development), so don’t expect a 700-word crash course here, but you can expect to have your cage rattled. After all, who else is going to risk being in your face and telling you to get your act together better than you have been? Right. Read on.

Now, most of what I do is write, design, create, sell, email, meet, and talk on the phone, so I’m not exactly the world’s most organized guy, but –thanks to Kathy– most all of the organizational chores associated with running a business are taken care of by her capable hands and organized brain. She actually excels at it. (Thank heaven!)

So one important rule of thumb is that if organization skills escape you, or you don’t want to justify the time it takes to sort out, prioritize, plan, and execute tasks, find someone you can trust and rely on (almost always, by the way, a spouse, because no one else really shares your values) to do the scheduling, paperwork, computer tasks, etc.

And since you probably have two thumbs, another important rule is to give up one hour every Monday to meet with your organization person or team to review progress and problems, and get the ducks in a row. (Monday, because issues can be dealt with during the week; issues raised on Thursday or Friday never get done). 

I read somewhere that a famous sales guru I’ve always admired, made a dumb statement. He said It’s not time you need to manage; it’s your attitude. I understand the intent, but in reality, all entrepreneurs, by definition, have a positive attitude. Managing time is the challenge because we have only a limited amount of it available.

Not to belabor the point, but there are just so many seconds in a minute, so many minutes in an hour, so many hours in a day, so many days in a week, so many weeks in a month, so many months in a year . . . and just so many years in a lifetime, assuming you’re not from outer space just because you might act it! (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) 

There are at least 3 zillion magic formulas for managing your emails. If you limit phone call message returns from 11:30am until noon, and from 4:30pm until 5pm, you will be more productive. People do not want to talk too much when they’re thinking about lunch or heading home.

When you make to-do lists, date them and chunk them up into small parts of big tasks. Prioritize item urgency. Cross the done deeds off with a highlighter so you can look back to see what was accomplished. If you really must use other than pen and pad because you are laptop or handheld-addicted, it’s not great, but better than nothing.

In short, experiment, but do whatever works best for you. Whatever you do– don’t ignore or avoid focusing on the getting-ready-to-act parts of your business before you charge headlong into them. Not being organized is a common entrepreneurial ailment that can crush a venture before it ever gets off the ground. Ready? Set? Go!

                                                                                               

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Hal@Businessworks.US  302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

 Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

Nov 02 2011

BIZ ALPHABET SERIES…”M”

Published by under "Here & Now" Focus,Attitude,Best Practices,BRANDING,Business Growth,Business Life,Choosing Behavior,Communication,Contacts/Networking,Corporate Management,Decision Making,Delegation,Economy,Entrepreneurship,Experience,Family Business,Feedback,Good Health,Leadership,Lifestyle,Listening,Management,Meetings,Motivation,Observations,People Management,Personal Growth,Politics/Gov't,Problems=Opportunities,Productivity,Professional Practices,Reality,Relationships,Reputation,Sales,Sales Process,Self-Confidence,Self-Esteem,Small Business,Strategic Planning,Stress Management,Tactics,Teamwork,Trust

Welcome to the world’s first SMALL BIZ Alphabet Series of blog posts!

 “M”…MANAGEMENT

 

 FREEDOM

 

M B W U

is the new management methodology

for 2016 and beyond, but it needs

to be cranked up now!

                                                                              
“Huh?” say all you corporate muckity-muck types who came here for a shot of entrepreneurial adrenaline . . . you who pride yourselves on being keyed into the latest approaches to management and business leadership . . . Yes, it’s MBWU, and by now you’ve probably guessed the first two because you’re a shrewd student of business.
                                  
You think maybe I mean MBWA – Management By Walking Around? No, I would have said that.
 
MBWA is arguably the most sensible and productive form of management leadership theory in existence — at least until now.  But times have changed, and we are now nearly waist-deep in this economic quagmire with no end in sight and very few ways to lift one foot from the muck to put in front of the other.
 
Managing by walking around is no longer as realistic with many businesses that have found global growth a viable solution to the choking American dollar. For many, digital visits (video conferencing, webinars, etc.) have stepped out of the shadows, but most small businesses still rely on personal physical visits from the boss.

                                    

Okay, so what’s MBWU?

                                        

Aha! Thought you’d never ask. MBWU stands for “Management By Waking Up”!  The approach has multiple meanings, which may include walking around, but with a different emphasis. The MBWA problem-solving, problem-prevention and rah-rah visits give rise now to taking action. MBWU is a “call to action” methodology.
 
Since some action always beats no action, and since the opposite approach: ISQ (Investment in the Status Quo) means sufficient capital must be available to be able to invest in the first place, small business owners are left high and dry. Either there’s no money to invest, or there is, but you don’t trust the options.
 
Certainly, there is no incentive or reason to trust government promises enough to proceed with creating the new jobs many of America’s 30 million small business owners are capable of creating, even though they represent the only viable and historically-proven solution to the unemployment puzzle and to turning the economy around.

 

 So, VOILA! It’s time to wake up! MBWU means:

A) Getting up every morning and taking a good, hard look in the mirror, rubbing your forehead vigorously for 3-5 seconds, and admonishing your self to “Wake Up!”

B) Getting going! Take your wake-up call to work, and share it generously with genuine positive praise and sincere encouragement. Turn on your charm and authenticity.

C) Starting every action and response to others’ actions with a deep breath and a self-commitment to stay focused on where things ARE, and how to make them better along the way to where things need to go.

D) Knowing in your heart of hearts that true wake-up calls require open-mindedness.

 
The more open-minded and receptive you can be (and the better listener you can be) and the greater your sense of urgency, the more that opportunities will surface that usher in new avenues and prospects for new business from existing and old customers, as well as new business from new customers.
 
You are likely to uncover entirely new revenue streams that would not ordinarily surface in businesses where owners and managers remain inactive, and distance themselves from reasonable risk-taking..
 
All MBWU progress is of course enhanced by being able to experience a decent night’s sleep from the git go. It’s hard to wake-up and make better use of resources, better decisions about priorities and people, when, for example, you’ve been out late partying the night before or are in a high-stress environment at home, or haven’t exercised or eaten properly.
 
So the 1/3 of your MBWU life rests squarely on the 1/3 of your life that you spend sleeping, which rests squarely on how you manage and treat and believe in your SELF. Are you ready? Got a plan? Are you set? Go!

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Hal@Businessworks.US

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

 Make today a GREAT day for someone!

No responses yet

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