Tag Archives: values

A Change in Business Starts with a Change of Heart – YOURS!

Posted in Practicing Self Mastery by

Published in the Business Newsday Thursday May 17th 2012

“You see what I have to deal with?” one business owner said to me recently, frustrated with an employee who was struggling with what he figured was a simple arithmetic problem. I empathised, shook my head and returned to the crux of our discussion.

Lately I find I am seeing more of what’s wrong than witnessing what’s going good in businesses. I’ve transformed from a “good” finder, that Zig Ziglar asks all of us to be and have become a “problem discoverer” kind of like the dog whisperer but not as sexy or charming!

Of course if I didn’t see challenges faced by businesses I’d be out of work…there’d be no need to consult with or seek my coaching guidance.

What I’m talking about though is not just identifying the need but constantly seeing the flaws and the faults as if playing some kind of game where the person who spots the most deficiencies wins.

Does this kind of approach work though? Just as bestselling author Mike Litman has said many times over in his audio presentation “Greatness Held Hostage” let me end this short paragraph with his phrase “who does it help and who does it serve?”

The answer to both questions is of course “no one.” Now that we’ve accurately identified all that’s wrong: what now – what next? Do we resign and say “you see what I have to put up with?” without figuring out how we can rectify the situation?

A friend of mine called recently to share with me a telephone conversation she had with one of these sky box companies. She was asking the customer service representative if by chance they were going to be opened on the Saturday before Mother’s Day (asking this only because she remembered them doing so in the past.) The customer service representative told her “no” and when she said that she knows for a fact that they had opened before in a similar case on a Saturday, the representative raised her voice and again said only one word “NO!” But this time with the voice of “how dare you question me, I’ve already said no!” My friend was in disbelief and then I asked what she thought was an important question: “how did someone with such a poor attitude get to be answering the phones on behalf of this company in the first place?”

This young lady may have been trained but how long ago? When last was she provided with any feedback on how she was doing on her job? Was she the right hire in the first place or was she just a square peg in a round hole feeling the pain on a daily basis of having to do a job she hates? Did she know what the company’s goals were, or understand the owner’s vision?

In order for any business to make changes you have to be prepared to look at things as they are but not worse than they are.  Quit engaging in constantly over-dramatizing your situation with stories of exasperation and frustration. This route will only ensure that you remain sans solution and doubtful that change is possible.

Check your heart. Not medically (although regular checkups are recommended) but check within to see how you truly feel about your business. Is your heart in it or have you lost all the fire and passion that got you started in the first place? If you find yourself just going through the motions, detached and uninvolved then STOP!

Take a mental health day. Away from the office of course! And nothing is going to happen. If things are already bad, they can get worse and they WILL if you keep doing business the way you are right now, disconnected and robotic. So take the time out for you and for the sake of saving your business.

Get back to basics. Decide what is important to you now. Don’t go down nostalgia lane, reminiscing about how good things were. The times have changed, your customers have changed, their problems have changed and you have changed. All these changes call for a completely different approach.

What does your business need to look and feel like NOW to solve your customer’s present day problems? Be very clear about your intentions. Now ask yourself “Do I truly believe that this is possible? That I am capable of seeing the changes through to the end where I am satisfied and my business is earning a profit again?” If you don’t fully believe it, keep selling yourself on your new ideas. If you are not sold then how are you going to lead the others in your business towards your new vision? They are going to hear your words but more importantly they are going to feel your conviction and if that is lukewarm there’ll be no buy in.

Get clear about you values and write out in long hand your new strategic direction. There’s something about putting pen to paper that makes a connection with your heart. This way not just your head will be involved but your heart will understand what you wish to accomplish as well.

Now you’re ready to get back in the game.

And please remember that if you continue fault and flaw finding, you will continue to make poor choices or worse – no choices and then you will not be the only one suffering. Your brand and your customers will be the victims of your poor choices as well so consider a change of heart. It may be exactly what you need right now to transform your business profitably.

The Greatest Asset in Your Business? – YOU!

Posted in Practicing Self Mastery by

In financial accounting, assets are economic resources. Anything tangible or intangible that is capable of being owned or controlled to produce value and that is held to have positive economic value is considered an asset.

Tangible assets are physical, material and financial resources, such as:

  • plant
  • machinery
  • office equipment

and Intangible assets are valuable resources that don’t always have a physical presence – such as:

  • brand
  • skills and know-how
  • trade secrets
  • employee, customer and supplier relationships and goodwill

Many times we don’t see ourselves as assets because of all the wrong things we focus on that we’re doing. So while on some logical level, we understand that what we know and bring to the table is an important asset – we see ourselves more as a liability as we continue to make mistake upon mistake, bad decisions and incorrect judgments!

Shawn Driscoll, business coach and consultant says: “I believe your business should be perfectly suited to who you are and what you want. It should reflect your originality, your unique point of view and your exceptional talents. I’m a strong advocate for creating a business that feels like home to you and those you are meant to serve, because anything else isn’t worth your time and talents.”

Are you beginning to see why some of the things you’re engaged in to get more business might not be working? Why your advertising might not be bringing in the results you wish for? Why your sales people might be struggling? Why your business might be underperforming?

Simply put: Your business may be completely out of alignment with who you are and how you should deliver your goods and services. Copying others only begins to make sense when you feel completely comfortable in your own skin and perhaps are ready to experiment and take some risks, knowing what’s best FOR YOU. But if something doesn’t FEEL right (and this should ALWAYS be a deciding factor) then you should not go ahead and do it.

The biggest stressor in business seems to be either working against time or running out of time. And so while this self discovery thing might seem like a good idea – we have money to make – we can’t WASTE anymore time. The questions to ask yourself here is: “Am I doing the right things?” (being effective) OR “Am I doing things right?” (being efficient).

One of the best ways to get to know yourself better is journaling. And just in case you’re thinking that this activity is not for those who want to compete in the big league here’s a quote from Sir Richard Branson ““As anyone in my office knows when I’ve misplaced it, my most essential possession is a standard sized school notebook, which can be bought at any stationery shop on any high street across the country. I carry those everywhere…”

So first things first – get a notebook (don’t even CALL it a journal hahaha) just get one! I have two. One for making notes after my focused quiet time in the morning and a small pocket one that I keep with me all day long. In the small one I note all ideas that pop into my head as I proceed through the day. Someone might say something to me while I’m paying my T&TEC bill that makes for a great article and I will lose out on the gem if I don’t write it down immediately.

Henrik Edberg of The Positivity Blog likens journaling to thinking on paper. What do you think about during a normal day? Or a week? Write it all down. By doing so you can find recurring patterns of thought such as fears or maybe that you spend a lot of time regretting what happened in the past. Or you may find that you are actually a more positive person than you may think. This is a really interesting exercise because it can help you spot both positive things and negative things about yourself and just how accurate your current image of yourself is. You’ll probably run into some surprises.

The next thing you should begin to look at immediately is your business model. Is your business a more intimate based business – needing more one on one interactions or small group sharing? Are you meant to innovate – creating cutting edge process or technology? Depending on who you are and what feels like “home” to you – your business model is going to be completely different. In the first instance you may want to focus on consulting or coaching and mini retreats and roundtable discussions. As an innovator you may want to focus on building your business through product launches, events and trade shows, and working closely with user groups.

We know that one size doesn’t fit all but please don’t lie and tell me that sometimes you’ve chosen a strategy because it seems to be working for someone else. We all have. But the reason that it didn’t work for us was not that the other person had more money, or knew more people – it probably was because it was not a good fit for our business.

Spend a little time daily, discovering the best ways to use your talents and skills, without compromising yourself or your values. See through the clutter of business building options and get to the heart of what approaches will work for you and why. Stop spinning your wheels and wasting time and money on business tactics that don’t work for you and instead step into your leadership edge and create the kind of business and life you desire and deserve!

Who is she and what is she to you?

Posted in Developing the Possibilities Mindset, Practicing Self Mastery by

I was thinking about this in the context of the person I am today and whether or not I was being REAL – being ME? Or was it that I was an assortment of habits, perceptions and things that over the years I learned to accept as my truth when in fact I just borrowed it from the rule book of  “How to fit in and be accepted”? Of course I never bothered to read the fine print that came right after the title “and never be noticed or genuinely happy!”

Toni Raiten D’Antonio, author of the Velveteen Principles says “there is a difference between superficial beauty and the inner beauty we all possess as unique human beings. One is a product of the object culture, which reduces us to the things we own and the milestones we accomplish. The other is the result of a life well lived, where our struggles and challenges make us more lovable and truly ourselves. Inner beauty, the kind you can feel and others can see, is what happens when you stop chasing false ideals and become the REAL person you are meant to be.”

As a child I struggled a lot with wanting to be liked. But trying to fit in cost me a lot. I neglected my own intelligence and uniqueness and opted to be the very entertaining class clown. Many times I chose activities because they were what others wanted to do and I went along although most times I was unhappy.

I am getting better at getting to know this person that is me. I no longer get involved in activities that I find are a waste of my time. Now I can do it without making excuses or apologies.

I am still learning and growing – it is a process.

What about you – do you know the woman or man looking back at you in the mirror?

Judgments are destructive but we can always choose new beliefs and values based on who we are for REAL. We need to have self-empathy – be aware of our own idiosyncrasies, values, priorities, needs and feelings.

A person with self-empathy doesn’t struggle to think what everyone else is thinking or feel what everyone eles is feeling but values her responses and considers them when making choices and decisions.

Tune into your heart and mind as you go through this day. Get to know the REAL you!

Illustration from http://www.elev8.com featured in an article “Are you on a journey of self-discovery” by Judi Mason

Are you tired of starting from Zero every month?

Posted in Practicing Self Mastery by

Why does building business momentum seem so elusive? Do you feel at times as if you are wading through a vat of molasses or as in young people speak – “yuh sticking?” Many business owners could well attest to peaks and troughs in their business but I am describing not even feast or famine but rather a decent meal followed by a long period of famine!

Deep down we all know or at the very least, suspect that there are systems and ways to make  our business truly support us but exactly what is required to get to this level and once there, to maintain it? Are you required to be a genius in your particular sector or maybe proficient in another skill like say – writing – in order to make this happen?

Momentum seems to build when there is strategy, structure and passion. For those business owners who have either volunteered the information or that I have interviewed informally, passion seems significantly absent! There is a lot of focus on getting the strategies and structures in place but this is more of a rigid, disciplined, this-is-a-hell-of-a-lot-of-work – approach devoid of any joy.

Think back to when you first started up. You were excited about developing your business to meet some need of a fairly large client base that would benefit by using your product or service exclusively! I mean – COME ON – you were flat out excited and you felt in your heart of hearts that this was it! You believed in your idea, and you pictured endless people buying from you, while you whistled a happy tune all the way to the bank.

Then reality struck. This was not as much fun as you thought it would be. In fact running a business was turning out to be downright stressful, requiring your ability to cope with anxiety, deal with fear and lug doubt around like a constant companion, wondering whether it was really possible to continue your initial venture.

I believe at this point you had to face up to who you really were. You needed to accept that you had weaknesses and to admit that you needed to ask for help. Some of us have, but I want to talk to those of you, who haven’t yet and are walking around in pain, sticking with “this stinking business” just to save face. Why are you still on the fence? Aren’t you tired of starting from zero EVERY month?

What if you really identified your own uniqueness and that of your business in a way that banished doubt and fear, and attracted just the right people you liked working with to it? What if your customers bought from you way beyond a second purchase and continued to do so – over and over again? What if you were able to offer just the right combination of products and services to your clients?

Too many businesses out there are looking and sounding the same. I call them “ME TOO” companies. If your business does not have a personality then it has no soul. Think about how you connect with those companies that you do business with and like? It’s more than just the product or service isn’t it? Those companies have defined why they are unique and they have a very powerful attraction component that cannot be duplicated. Stop looking at what others are doing.

What are your values and beliefs? All these words have been so bandied about by big-business without substance or essence that when you read them you glaze over and steups. That however does not make them unimportant or that you should disregard the significance of focusing on how you make customers feel. Do they understand your world? Do you take the time to nurture and to communicate your “worldview”?

If you’re tired of the “lil bit of food” followed by days of being hungry then take a second look at your business. Go back to why you started this business in the first place. Think about how you can help your customers walk through your business without obstacles or unnecessary delays. Go back to your principles; revisit your processes and your own theories. And then finally help them apply what you do so that they can live in the part of the world that you’ve created for their full benefit and reward!