Tag Archives: Employment

5 Ways to Set a New Company Up for Success

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Success - P'tit Bazar 2007 (02)

Success – P’tit Bazar 2007 (02) (Photo credit: alter1fo)

It was only last August one year ago that I left my big corporate job to become an entrepreneur. I really could’ve used this advice back then and actually did implement some of these suggestions to success. If you’re a small business owner who wants to grow, see if any of the below can help you:

1. Set low expectations.  By starting with a conservative approach, a modest success will be noticed and you will be perceived as even smarter than you are.

2. Start local. By developing and testing your idea or product in a local environment, your most powerful network — that is, people you know — will be engaged, and you can do any polishing you need to do before spending big bucks on an untried process in a larger market.

3. Grab low-hanging fruit. Pretty much every product or service has at least one super-strong potential buying group. Focus your efforts on that group with everything you’ve got.

4. Start with a single, likely client. Research their customer base and determine which customers would be the most interested and why.

5. Partner with another successful firm. Suppose a complementary and not competing company has the visibility and attention you want for your company. It may be a wash for you in terms of revenue, but you’ve gotten your product in front of real customers.

via 5 Ways to Set a New Company Up for Success.

Collaboration, conservative optimism and using your networks is what it’s really all about when a business is starting up. Telling your loved ones about what you’re doing (here’s my warm letter from last year) and setting up wonderful ways of working with others who serve the same audience as you (see my Coach’s Buffet that I’m doing at the Toronto Women’s Expo free of charge!) are surefire ways to soar to success.

Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!

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8 Mistakes to Avoid When Starting a Business From Home

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Home Business

Home Business (Photo credit: MarkjwuMaurader)

At my coach’s workshop for growing our small businesses, I was shocked to hear that some home based entrepreneurs are watching The Young and The Restless. That’s when I had to really acknowledge myself for not even having enough time to eat lunch or to pee during the day from being so busy working both in and on my business. Here are some other tips to keep growing your small biz even if you’re home based.

Spending Too Much Time at Home: Loneliness is the number one complaint from people who work at home. Plan lunch dates, attend networking groups or work from coffee shops to build a social element into your day.

Keeping a 24-7 Work Schedule: When Leon Oks co-founded iCanvasART, an online seller of custom canvases, he and several employees spent day and night working from his dining room. It’s a recipe for burnout. But this year, he moved his Niles, Ill.-based company to an office space because the growing business was becoming difficult to manage at home.

Allowing Interruptions: Set aside blocks of quiet time throughout the day when you don’t allow phone calls or email alerts. You also need to be careful about getting pulled too often into distracting chores like laundry or childcare.

Depending Too Much on Loved Ones: Loved ones may get weary of talking about your business. What’s more, they may not provide the best advice because they don’t always understand your business. Try to connect with others in your field to develop an informal network of advisors.

Failing to Create a Separate Work Area: Even if you don’t live in a huge home, set aside a space reserved almost entirely for work. . If you must work in a common area of the house like the dining room or kitchen, put away personal objects to set a professional tone for the day.

Letting Employees Abuse Your Home: You risk damage to your home if you don’t establish rules for how employees should behave there. Set up rules you’re comfortable with.

Getting too Busy to Stay Organized: As work piles up, it’s easy to let organization slide. File papers away before they pile up and stores only business-related items there.

Starting the Day Without a Plan: Give time to both short-term actions and long-term goals so you run your business in a more balanced manner. Create a schedule and stick to it.  Also, make sure you leave unscheduled time in the day to deal with important but unexpected issues that crop up.

These tips are really excellent ways of staying on top of things when you’re home and alone and wanting to make thousands of dollars from your dining room. When you’re focused and organized, your business is focused and organized and your success can only grow. Oh and don’t forget to get a coach like me who is going to whip your butt into shape, whether you’re at home or not.
Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!
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Entrepreneurs peeing their pants

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If you feel the need for a Depends adult diaper as an entrepreneur trying to get new clients while doing things out of your comfort zone, you know exactly what I’m talking about. In this excerpt from an upcoming book Creating a Blueprint for Inner Change, I am contributing a chapter called The Anxious Small Business: A blueprint to lose your fear. Here, you will find the chronicles of entrepreneurs who might find themselves peeing their pants with anxiety and fear.

Anxiety #3: Fear of marketing or selling yourself

Does the word marketing make you feel dirty? Are you like my client “Ann” who was so bothered by the concept of selling her services that she refused to ask anyone for a referral or a testimonial? If you have clients only because they call you and not the other way around or if you have a picture of Larry the used car salesman from Three’s Company floating in your mind as you speak to people about what you do, you probably hate selling and marketing.

Blueprint to lose your fear

Change your mind-set to serving not selling. You were put on this earth for a very specific way to help others who are instinctively drawn to you. But they don’t know how to find you. Marketing is just a way of getting in front of those people who need your help and telling them that you understand and can help with their pain. When your own inner critic is keeping you from reaching out into the world and finding these people who need you, you’re actually being a little selfish. Have a good plan: Selling and marketing is often thought to be unpleasant because most small businesses don’t have a good plan. They don’t have a specific niche and a well thought out way to get in front of that niche. Imagine if you knew exactly who needed you and knew the exact thing to say to get them to follow you home and beg to work with you. Do you think you’d hate selling and marketing as much then? Get help from someone who’s done it well: Famed speaker Anthony Robbins was an overweight and unemployed young man who was the product of a broken home when he started reading books about men who were successful throughout history. He knew the value of learning from people who’d done success well and learned from them. You too can find a coach, a mentor or even a friend who is maybe a few steps ahead of you in the business development curve and who’s got it all figured out. Ask for their help pronto!

Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!

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Land your dream job

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Brand yourself like a small business

When you find yourself swimming in a sea of candidates competing for the same job as you, now you know exactly what it feels like to be a small business that’s trying to grow.

Why brand?

Used by ancient Egyptians 3000 years ago in farms to distinguish one cow from another, branding in business is used to carve out a space in the mind of its target consumer. In the job market, it’s used to set apart one candidate from the other.

What’s a brand character?

Every successful product or business has a clear and distinct brand character. A brand character is a set of human traits associated with a brand. For example, Nike’s brand character is the true athlete who will go to any lengths. Starbucks’ character is the seasoned and sophisticated coffee aficionado. McDonalds’ is the kid friendly thrifty pal.

Often brands take on the character of its founder such as Richard Branson’sVirgin-the debunker of the establishment or OWN network, the spiritual woman’s advocate or the Trump brand that stands for affluent, over the top excess. In all cases, a brand’s character is communicated in every aspect of its interactions with the world—in its products as well as the colours, words and images they use in their ads and websites.

How to use a brand character to find a job?

You are your own brand and your job is to establish your brand character in such a way that your dream employer will remember you in the multitude of interviews that has become a haze for them.

The first step is to determine what your top 3 human characteristics are: i.e. what do people notice immediately when they meet you and what do your friends and family consistently say that you’re like?

For example, my client George, a graphic artist with 20 years of experience was looking for work. We identified his top 3 characteristics as: 1. Environmentally conscious 2. Artistic 3. Passionate. We then incorporated those specifics into the wording of his cover letter, his resume and the way he was presenting himself on social media (ie. Posting articles and links to events about his interests).

He landed a job beyond even his expectations—he became an ambassador to a giant recycled paper manufacturer. His dream employer was drawn to him and noticed him because of his clearly established brand character.

You too can attract your dream job through clarifying and communicating your brand character. After all, don’t you want to be as memorable as Nike to your dream employer?

 

Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!

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5 Emails You Should Never Send

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I’m (fortunately) not old enough to have started my working life before the invention of the internet. In those times, I don’t know if people spoke to each other more before email but I’ve lived every facet of every interesting interaction on email during my 20 years of professional life. Here is a great article about some bad stuff to avoid doing on email:

1. The Rant

It’s always a bad idea to write an email when you’re angry or upset.

2. The Scandal Sheet

Heres the rule: Never send an email that contains anything that you wouldn’t want everyone to know that you said.

3. Marketing Spam

Only send marketing emails when there has been a specific “opt in.” An “opt out” isn’t good enough.

4. Bad News

It’s cowardly to use email to avoid dealing with other people’s emotions.

5. The Time Waster

Don’t stuff your colleagues’ mailboxes with content unless you’re absolutely certain it’s relevant.

via 5 Emails You Should Never Send.

So take a look at your outbox and look at what you should never have sent and maybe you can use that extra time to get more work done!

Need more chicken soup for your biz? Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook or connect with me on LinkedIn –and let’s talk!

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