Sara Hand

Several years ago at a conference discussing how to help others recover from bad things. The conversations were of hope, vision, and faith and risk and joy. And although these are all thoroughly entwined there are some very unique differences that can move you toward success or leave you languishing behind…and hope is where it starts.

Hope: the stuff that dreams are made of!

Hope knows that there is something beyond what I see today. That potential and possibility exist, and it takes that and projects it onto the screen of my future. This hope acts as a compass guiding and directing my thoughts and actions as I move faithfully forward to the reality of this hope.

 The picture I saw of it “hope” was that of a trellis or an arbor. First, with hope in place…I had a structure that my actions would fill out as I moved towards my future. And second, without it “hope…the potential for my life projected onto the screen of my future”…in place, although I could move forward, my growth would lie unstructured on the ground and unable to reach it’s full potential of growth.

 Langston Hughes in a most famous poem replaces the term “hope” with that of “dream”. In today’s world of economic uncertainty, rapidly changing technology and culture, most of which is represented in the media in negative terms above all else we must guard our hope!

There is a uniqueness that is all about you, that is characteristic of what makes you different…what makes you special, what makes you unlike any other human being. Just as you are unique as an individual so are you as a business. Yes, there may be businesses that provide a product or service that is similar to what you provide. However they are not you AND that IS important. Because it is in your difference, your uniqueness that something called a unique selling proposition comes forth. People buy a product or service …YOUR product or service because of what makes you different not because of how you are the same as something else.

You don’t buy a Ford because it is like a Porsche. If you want a Porsche, you buy one. However if the Ford were similar to the Porsche and you bought the Ford instead, it might be because of a different pricing.  People don’t buy because you are like everyone else, they buy because you are different.

If you don’t know what makes you specifically different and unique, and you would like to be more profitable and more effective in how you spend your time and money, commit some time to defining that position. It will pay off!

The sun rises and sets each day as time goes and the days get shorter. At first it is not so noticeable; but little by little, one change and then the next, as day goes into day, seasons change.  

Depending on your business, the change of seasons may mean different things. It might mean a time of rest, a time of harvest, a time overwhelming business, or maybe even a time of regrouping. Regardless of the seasons or cycles of your business; to ignore changes of one season to the next is to ignore the very nature of life.

As you see the birds flying in the v formation of migration, as the grass needs to be mowed less often, as the days become less humid and the traffic on our roads doubles (hopefully); are you positioned to move into this new season? If not, what will you do about it?

The business world we live in is not the same as it was several years ago. As owners and professionals attempt to make sense of a changed landscape, diversification has been a common tactic. For many this may make sense, for others in their attempt to meet every need they have become so diversified that they no longer have a clear message.

Seth Godin, popular author and blogger: 

“Pick the biggest market you can successfully dominate, the biggest slice where you can get through the Dip and be seen as the best in that world. If you can become number one in your niche, you’ll get more than your fair share of profits, glory, and long-term security.”    

The enemy of FOCUS is fear of loss.

 Often used in conjunction with the term abundance, is the common misnomer “Everyone is my prospect.”  Yet no matter how good you are and how much what you offer is used by the general  public, it is true that some people will like you and some people won’t.

Consider these:

Focus: Where do you provide the most value? What makes you unique? 

Market: All the prospects you could serve.
Market Segment: A segment is a portion, a particular group within your potential prospects that share similar characteristics.

Ideal Prospect: The best potential prospect for your purpose.
Value Proposition: A stance on how you provide value and what makes you unique, combined with the needs of the prospect that can most benefit from what you provide, AND can reward you profitably for providing this VALUE!

Success is in finding those who will like you.

It’s hot. It’s rainy. The kids are getting restless as the time to go back to school approaches and so are the parents. Business owners have been playing phone tag around summer vacations, and long weekends. In Florida, on August 23rd that will all change and everything will begin to get back to normal. At least that is what many people will tell themselves. Once we get back from vacation, once the kids get back in school, once Labor Day weekend is over…

Not everyone can ride a wave...

If your business only runs well during normal, you are looking at a brief 7-8 weeks before Halloween gets here and then Thanksgiving. After Thanksgiving everyone will be waiting to make decisions at the start of the New Year. In the beginning of the year it will take a couple weeks for everyone to get back in the swing of things after a long break. Then again, there will be a brief 7-8 weeks before Spring Break and Easter Holidays disrupt normal business.  Somewhere after Spring Break we have another 7 weeks or so before graduations, weddings and summer vacations kick in again.

21 weeks of normal sounds ridiculous! Yet we didn’t count tradeshows, CEU’s, national holidays or all the other things that business works around. We didn’t even consider the fact that many businesses don’t even get ready for those 21 weeks during their “off times”, but wait until everything is back to normal to get ready to do business as normal.

“So what do I do about this,” you wonder?

“I have enough challenges from recent economic turbulence to only have 105-120 normal working days.”

 Moving past normal takes an understanding of seasons. A season in business is much like surfing. If you wait until the wave is here to get ready to ride…You are too late! In between waves, when things are little slower is when you paddle out to be ready. Days when there are NO waves are days for servicing your board, or possibly cross-training to master other skills that might be beneficial to your success.

Consider moving past normal and getting ready to catch the wave!

Although it is still HOT, and it is still Rainy and not everyone is in their office everyday; consider being strangely different. Consider moving past normal and getting ready to catch the wave!

Check out growing your Business!

There have been some local businesses working at getting the word out about our beaches and the current affect of oil on the Florida Coastline. Check out www.crystalclearflorida.com. for the latest updates. If you can get your prospects, customers, friends to send this to their networks, we can counter the hysteria about oil covering our beaches and hopefully mitigate damage.

In the last couple years there has been some controversy about whether Florida should have drilling for oil off of our shores. The debate about the impacts on our economy and some of the challenges this could present have been quite heated. For those who have been for drilling, considering the impact from the Louisiana mishap on our Florida economy might be helpful. Even before any tar balls hit the white sands of Pensacola cancelations were affecting an economy already struggling to recover.

Note, if we do not want this right off our coast we will have to let people know. Even with the current disaster and the public outcry about responsibility, the Federal government has just issued a permit for more drilling off the Louisianna coastline. Go Figure!

“Not me,” you say. I work in customer service; I would never be in sales. Or me either, I’m a preschool teacher, or an auto mechanic or bank teller or a nurse or a doctor or anything…but don’t tell me it is sales!

When you are a kid and someone asks you what you want to be, few people answer, “When I grow up I want to be a salesman.” It just doesn’t seem to be on the top of the list along side ballerina, football player, and founder of Facebook.

 So I know this isn’t going to be pleasant. I know you don’t want to hear this.

However, everyone is in sales.

Yes, whether you like it or not, you too are in sales; and the sooner you recognize it, the more productive you will be. Because when it comes down to it, a sale is about influence.

If you have children who don’t throw their food on the floor at dinner time, you have made a sale. If your friends ever visit a restaurant you recommend, you made a sale. Making a sale, or having someone buy into a belief that you have shared with them happens all the time. Although this type of sale usually happens without an exchange of money, it is still a sale.

Now, who doesn’t want to be a person of influence when they grow up?

Another blog post…another white paper…another 30 second commercial… How I can I keep up? How can I stay on the cutting edge and meet all the deadlines I have?

With today’s emphasis on generating relevant content in a fairly scheduled manner, how does anyone continue to turn out quality? The truth is, very few people hit home runs every time.

However here are a few tips.

Keep a list of potential titles or topics.  It doesn’t mean that you have to write on that title, but it does mean that you will never have to face a completely blank page. I try to keep about 50 suggestions on my list. I heard Mark Victor Hanson of Chicken Soup Fame suggest for going for over 100 potential starters for his list.

Go with the flow. Some days (or nights) you are going to be inspired. You will have so many ideas and things will just seem to flow. That’s a great time to knock out a couple drafts, or at least start a couple drafts. Keep writing until the muse leaves and then put them in a file for a rainy day, or a vacation…

Have a few interesting friends? Ask Kim “A.K.A. diligently working” from WQMag if she is glad she doesn’t have to write all of the great content you will find on WQ. Consider approaching a friend to contribute periodically to your blog/column/whatever…for a different voice.

Repost: Found some great content that you love? You won’t be recognized as a great writer, but you will be recognized as someone with a discerning eye for value. Just make sure that you make sure all the relevant recognition is given to the source.

Repurpose: Use an idea more than once. So you have a subject that just really speaks to you, and although you have written before on this, it still seems to be right in your face. Who says you can’t continue to write on it? Look at it from different angles and explore different aspects of the topic. You might not be the only one with more than a cursory interest.

Repurpose: Continue to use that idea. Whether we are talking about clothing or fragrances, most people understand the concept of layering. Try layering your content. Use the same idea, but put it out there in a variety of formats: blog, whitepaper, audio download…

Change it up. If you usually write at your desk, try sitting outside. If you usually write at your computer, try longhand or mind mapping.

These are a few tips I use to continue to avoid that place called “stuck”, and if all else fails, happy hour or ice cream work wonders as a distraction.

The Secret to Success (Part Two)

With all the changes in business, people are looking at how to be more profitable.

Start by taking an inventory of what you currently have. Comb through files, closets and storage and make a list of all your assets and liabilities.

What products, services and information do you have?

What products, services and information do you have access to?

What is costing you money to keep?

 Will it produce more that it costs? And when?

After you answer those questions

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

What do you have in your hand?

As companies are challenged by current economic conditions and the need to change, sometimes the busyness of business can be overwhelming. Trying to make it happen, we run from one thing to the next: network meetings, company functions, civic responsibilities, family events and what about this social media thing?

But there is something interesting that is happening…a shift in society. A swinging of the pendulum that is changing the way we look at behavior and how we do business. In the last number of years there has been something of an anything goes policy. The simplicity of posting content to the rising number of internet outlets such as MySpace, YouTube and various blogging platforms, meant not a lot was secret anymore. Of course, complaints of “What is our world coming to?” were rampant.

How we did business was also influenced by the online tools and a new dependency on the immediate. Connecting first through email and websites, we developed this stuff called sales copy…long winded, superlative laden and reminiscent of inexpensively produced local hardware and mattress store television commercials. We spent so much of our time connected that we even developed ways to stay connected when not connected…can you say wireless?

Yet could this advent of technology, combined with various economic and generational issues be a driving force in a return to accountability? As companies create policies regarding behavior standards and social media, will employees behave more circumspectly? As more adults move into “virtual” spaces of employment, will the latch key kid be a thing of the past? As electronic marketing messages bombard prospective consumers, will old-fashioned in person meetings make a come back?

Could we be getting back to basics?