Altameroy Blog

My parents were out of town last week, so I decided that I would throw a party to thank everyone for being so supportive of me. I am the captain of the varsity football team and they do so much for me. After school there is always somebody there to do my work, and take me home. Our party was very successful, but the place was trashed. I didn’t know if i’d ever get that place cleaned, but my friends knew just what to do. They called the California janitorial cleaning service to come and clean. They did an amazing job and my parents never knew it happened.

I am the ceo of a company on the south side of town. I am writing this blog to let people know where to go if you ever have a mess that you need cleaned up. I recently hired some landscapers to come in and do some work. They ended up tracking in dirt from outside all over the main entrance area of my office. I didn’t know what to do. I was so appalled that I fired them on the spot and called the California janitorial cleaning service to come in and clean it up. They did an amazing job and really got me out of a jam.

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I hear it all the time. Entrepreneurs are not convinced that they need a plan. And, I have to admit, when I started my first business back in 1999, I didn’t think I needed a plan either. I just figured I wanted a successful business and that was enough to move me forward. I started working with a business coach who gave me quite a few reasons to write a plan. I broke down and wrote the plan. And you wanna know what? It helped my business take leaps toward my goals.

See, before I had a plan, I was just out here floundering around. I couldn’t even really articulate what success meant to me. Once I had a plan in place, I knew exactly where I was headed, and I had a pretty good idea about how I was going to get there.

It doesn’t matter what kind of business you have - your own, or a direct sales business - you will benefit from having a plan. A business plan includes your long-term goals for your business, as well as a short-term plan to get you there. Still not convinced you need a plan? Here are three good reasons to have one.

1. It’s not so much the plan document itself that is important, but it’s the process of going through and creating a plan. When you create a plan for your business, you really get a chance to pull apart your idea and look at each facet of it. You have the opportunity to decide if this is something you are truly passionate about. And, you get to clearly define your business. When you have a Crystal Clear picture of what your business looks like (on paper, and off) you can articulate what you do to your customers. If you can’t tell people what you do and what your business is about, you’ll lose them.

2. Do you know for sure that you have a viable business idea? Creating a business plan will allow you to see how feasible your ideas are. If you do an in-depth plan that includes financial and market research data, you can see in cold hard numbers how your plan will work. You’ll know exactly how big your market is, and you’ll know exactly how much money you need. You will also be able to see if there are places that you need to make adjustments.

3. You business plan is your road map to success. Without having a clear picture of the end result you’re seeking, how will you know when you get there? Your business plan will allow you to set longer term goals, and it will give you a plan that you can follow to achieve them.

It’s possible to create and follow a very simple plan. In fact, your plan doesn’t have to be longer than one page. A good plan includes your vision, mission, your objectives (or goals), and the strategies you will use to reach your objectives.

If you are not seeking financial backing, you can create a simple plan simply by outlining the sections mentioned above. Once you’ve set up your plan, take action. It’s not enough to just write everything down. Follow your plan and update it often. Before you know it, you’ll have a Powerful Business!

Copyright 2006 Jennifer Givler

Jenn Givler is a Business Empowerment Coach who teaches entrepreneurs how to create a Powerful Business. Get her free e-book Be Empowered! http://www.jgivlercoaching.com/newsletter.htm

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Rotation

A smart organization will rotate its annual convention across the map. This strategy not only allows you to meet in all regions where your membership is based, but it also benefits membership growth and recruitment in addition to keeping the meeting fresh in terms of climate, attractions, time zones, and cost of attending.

Member Input

Ask your members both actively attending members as well as those who don’t attend often where they’d like the convention to be held. They may bring to your attention destinations that you haven’t considered. Be sure, however, to give more weight to sites recommended by actively attending members since their attendance is the foundation of your meeting’s success.

First Tier vs. Second Tier vs. Third Tier

While many organizations will always meet in first-tier destinations, many others should be looking more closely at second- and third-tier cities, where they can enjoy being the big fish in the pond and receiving added attention. There’s an abundance of great smaller destinations with first-rate convention facilities that might be a better fit for your organization. However, if your group has a history of maximizing attendance and revenues while convening in first-tier markets, you should probably stay where you can sustain or continue this growth.

Lift

If you anticipate an attendance of 10,000, it’s probably not in your best interest to select a meeting site whose airport can’t handle the large number of daily arrivals and departures that your group will need. Simply put, if people can’t get there, you’re in trouble. Make certain you obtain information on the total number of daily nonstop flights, seats, and feeder cities prior to finalizing a destination with questionable lift. In addition, be cautious of cities where one carrier dominates the lift; some of these cities can be very expensive to fly into.

Climate

Do your delegates expect warm weather? Is high humidity a problem? How about rain or snow? Don’t make the mistake of meeting in the wrong destination at the wrong time of year. Find out the average daily high and low temperatures for each of the cities you’re considering. Also obtain the average number of days with .01″ or more of rain in the month you’re thinking about. This information is available in 40-year averages and is collected by most airport authorities. If outdoor activities aren’t on the agenda, however, then weather becomes less of a deciding factor.

Competition

Too often, organizations wear rose-colored glasses and assume that their meeting is the only one of its kind that their members will be interested in attending. But that’s not always the case. If there are organizations in a field similar to yours, or you simply have a number of true competitors, take the time to check when and where their meetings are scheduled. Sometimes delegates and exhibitors have to draw the line as to how many meetings they can afford or take the time to attend in a given year. And if your convention conflicts by date or location with a competing convention, you’re running the unnecessary risk of losing your attendees and exhibitors to another event.

Keep Options Open

Your chances of orchestrating a successful site selection can usually be improved substantially by creating competition in the marketplace. Whenever possible, strive to find two to three facilities or destinations that you’re willing to contract with and that want your business. (Groups often make the mistake of deciding on one particular facility or destination and then trying to negotiate.) It’s also very important to show date and room block pattern flexibility wherever possible.

As you can see, selecting a meeting site isn’t as simple as throwing a dart at a map. But it can be quite an enjoyable and educational experience. By doing your homework, you will put yourself in the best situation to select the destination that will help give you record attendance, revenues, and reviews.

Jeff Sacks is Vice President, Midwest Region at Conferon Global Services, Inc. in St. Louis. Visit us at http://www.conferon.com for all your meeting planning needs.

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Why is a company culture so important?

I was reading a book call The World is Flat and the author was discussing the importance of a country’s culture in making changes in adapting to changes in the world’s economy. He was referring to a country’s culture as:

• How well the country adapted to change

• How open the country are to other nationalities

• Their willingness the country is to embracing change

• How each country valued education

• How easy each country was to do business with

• How well each country’s political systems responded to change

Being a small business coach I could not help notice how relevant creating a culture is to the success of a business.

Before we go further we must define what culture means. Culture can be defined as the way a company defines and captures what’s important to ensure a company’s success. After the culture is defined, storing that knowledge so it can be passed down to future generation (new employees) takes on a whole new meaning. We can begin to understand why defining and implementing a corporate culture is so important.

Some things to consider when defining the type of culture you want to create would include:

• How do you and how much do you empower your employees to make decisions?

• Do you delegate and what do you delegate?

• How open you are to accepting input for others (employees, clients, suppliers) and how do you act on that information?

• What types of employees do you want to hire (the best and the brightest or people who are expected to leave their heads at home?)

• What are the values you want to embrace and promote to your customers, employees and suppliers (fairness, honesty or just meet the numbers?)

• What kinds of behaviors do you want to measure and reinforce (behaviors that create long term relationships or just make the sale and move to the next opportunity?)

Many companies do not give much attention to their corporate culture. It just evolves through the people they hire. It is usually driven by the attitude and behaviors or the company president and is passed along unconsciously.

When you take the time to define and create your corporate culture you are telling others what kinds of people will flourish in your company; it tells tell the market the companies you want to business with, it defines the behaviors that will be accepted in your organization.

Creating a specific company culture is just as important to the success of an organization as a sound business plan. In fact, the definition of how you want your corporate culture to perform should be a part of your business plan.

Of all the companies I studied, the most successful in the long term, were very clear in what their corporate culture would look like and they took action to see that is was implemented.

Ron Finklestein
Small Business Success Expert
Info@yourbusinesscoach.net

http://www.yourbusinesscoach.net

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Do you ever find yourself making a “BIG” presentation to a group of prospects? This is the kind of presentation that is just begging for some flashy PowerPoint presentation. Watch out or you could make one of two fatal sales mistake.

Mistake One: You don’t understand the agendas and needs of everyone present. This is because you may not have had contact with all the attendees prior to the presentation meeting. If prior to your presentation, you only talked to one or some of those present to gather your information, you won’t understand the full picture. You won’t know the agendas or motivations of all present.

To prevent this from happening, you will have to do a little homework. Your job is to find out who will be present and create a chance to connect with them prior to your presentation. You must recognize that each person may have their own needs and motivations that may be different from those of your contact. Your job is to uncover and address them.

If speaking or meeting with them isn’t possible ahead of time, try to get your contact or some other ally in the company to supply you with some much needed information. This includes their role, any key issues, what they value, and the risks and rewards your solution will offer them. Sometimes, just sending an email to them in advance asking a few key questions can help you gain better insight and understanding when meeting or speaking to them is not an option.

Mistake Two: Your presentation is one-sided.

Many salespeople, when given the opportunity to do a group presentation, will prepare an elaborate PowerPoint slide show or the like. The lights are dimmed in the conference room and the attendees are lulled into a non-interactive trance. That’s because the presentation is often centered on product features and benefits. It becomes one big sales pitch, something most people instinctively resist. While you may like to hear yourself talk, others are probably less enamored with your ability to pontificate.

Instead of a big fancy production, you’ll have more success with being low-tech and interactive. Find out what’s important to your prospects. Even if you know what’s important to them already, you should take time before your presentation to clarify where everyone is. Something may have changed since your last conversation, or you may get different responses in a group setting. Simply ask the question, “What would everyone like to walk away with as a result of our time together today?” You can go around the room and actually record everyone’s responses on a flip chart or a white board.

Whether you’re presenting to one or ten, you want to avoid “the telling and the selling.” To maximize interaction, try this four-step strategy:

1. Present some information. Focus on providing values and solutions.

2. Solicit opinions and feedback from others.

3. Value the feedback and opinions provided by carefully listening and giving positive responses.

4. Determine and/or reinforce recommendations, courses of action or agreement based on the feedback and discussion.

Of course, your words and your actions must be congruent. You must truly value the exchange of others and not simply solicit feedback in an effort to appease others on the surface only. Your true motives will shine through. If you sincerely want to provide the best solution to your prospects, you have to be open to everyone’s input without making any pre-determined choices.

Will Turner is the Founder and President of Dancing Elephants Achievement Group, a sales training and consulting company. Will has over 20 years of sales and sales management experience and is the author of over 150 sales-related articles and programs as well as the co-author of the book, Six Secrets of Sales Magnets. Will can be reached at Will@dancingelephants.net.

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There are literally millions of words written and spoken each week on enlightened leadership yet the fact remains that low morale, high stress and job dissatisfaction continue to be three of the most serious problems facing the workplace. We seem to be so effectively socialized into top down leadership that we find it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to change our autocratic ways. All this in spite of the many workshops and seminars on new leadership paradigms which are rooted in the empowerment of people.

Change is both slow and painful but it is happening. To facilitate this process of change requires both desire and commitment plus a sound understanding of what an enlightened leader looks like. It is necessary to visualize the type of leader we are striving to become.

AN ENLIGHTENED LEADER…

* values the ideas and opinions of others.
* listens attentively.
* affirms generously
* criticizes gently and privately.
* trusts the collective wisdom of the group.
* encourages others to achieve their enormous untapped potential.
* catches people doing things right.
* involves people in decisions which effect their destiny.
* keeps people informed.
* has a sense of humour.
* trusts the decisions of others.
* realizes that his/her opinion is just one among many.

* isn’t threatened when people disagree with them.
* rejects the ” my way or the highway” paradigm.
* cares about the total well being of those with whom she/he works.
* believes that the most valuable inventory of any business is people.
* seeks out and acts upon the advice of others.
* gives credit rather than takes credit.

These are a few of the characteristics of an enlightened leader which, if present in the workplace, result in decreased stress, improved morale and increased productivity.

It is in the best interest of any business to care about the well being of its employees.

Mike Moore is an international speaker/writer on Humor in the Workplace,Humor and Stress Management and Maximizing Staff Potential.

Mike Moore speaks throughout Canada and the United States on the physical and social benefits of humor. ” Humor makes great things happen.” MM

http://www.motivationalplus.com

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As innovation changes from a hard to a softer kind of process, so the language must change to reflect this. Below are a list of terms that we commonly use in our project teams or businesses together with a new vocabulary that we should all be coming to terms with.

Sales Pitch As project become more transformational than transactional we need to be talking about creating a purpose not simply pitching an idea.

Visualisation Many of us visualise the outcome but it needs to be vocalised also. We all respond to different stimuli so the desired outcome needs to represented in as many ways as possible to engage the whole project team.

Designer/worker/engineer When you are building something new and exciting then call your team something exciting. They are all creators in their own specialist field.

Demand Demands very seldom work as intended. Create a dream and encourage others to buy in and follow it with you.

Content We all worry about the content of specifications and requirements documents. Consider the consequences of every action you take. Does it enhance the clients experience, does it add comfort, safety or fun?

Scheme/Plan Instead of cumbersome plan, create a story and storyboard to engage the team and encourage their contributions.

Project Your project needs to be run along business lines so run it like a business with your client as the major shareholder.

Team In line with the previous point, your management team are in fact a board.

Titles Avoid these like the plague. If you must group people, do it according to the tasks that they are carrying out.

Jargon Abolish this, talking is all important to share knowledge and break down barriers. If you use technical terms, ensure they are understood by everyone.

Communicate Treat communications as if you were campaigning, make sure that everyone is convinced and understands the complex ideas that you are trying to get across.

Accomplish Do not dwell on accomplishing things. You have a dream to follow but remember if you are innovating then there will be some failures to learn from. Not accomplishing is not a disaster, you are undertaking an adventure.

Question These are damaging in large numbers. Encourage people to ask for advice or direction, not just question everything.

Doing Doing should be replaced by learning. This way you have both action and the acquisition of knowledge.

Programme Do not think linearly. You will be embarking on a journey and the path may twist and turn on the way.

Research If you are innovating you will be entering into uncharted territory on some occasions. Research cannot help you. Intuition must become part of your vocabulary.

Guideline Replace this with guidance, talking and a little intuition. No rigid procedures here!

Visitor A visitor could be a guest, but do not take this too far.

Messages If you take the time to create message then you want them to be remembered so focus on creating memories, a subtle but helpful distinction.

Present We often present our ideas and plans to people but in a collaborative environment we should be colluding or conspiring with all of our stakeholders.

History If you are keeping records, make it interesting, richer and full of knowledge. The record of your journey through your innovation project is Your Story.

Derek Cheshire is an expert, speaker, consultant and facilitator in the areas of Business Creativity, Innovation and Idea Generation. He is creator of the Innovation Toolkit, and co creator of workshops such as Creating The Difference, Creativity as a Business Tool, Sticky Strategy and The Idea Factory. You can receive regular ideas and updates on Business Creativity and Innovation by visiting http://www.creative4business.co.uk and filling out the simple sign up form.

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If you’re like most people, you probably started with wonderful ideas of fulfilling your dreams, to be successful and to take charge of your own destiny.

I hope you have achieved those or are well on your way.

You wouldn’t think of starting your business without a business plan and you shouldn’t even consider marketing your product or services without a marketing plan. A solid business plan and marketing plan are your roadmaps to help you to know where your going, how to get there and to achieve your goals, whatever they may be.

Nobody likes to think about what would happen if those accomplishments were suddenly pulled out from under you, yet unfortunately it does happen.

As of this writing, we have seen this directly with the recent rash of hurricanes that have devastated the Caribbean, Cuba, Florida and our Gulf Coast. Thousands of lives have been temporarily or permanently disrupted.

Do you have a plan if this should happen to you? Can your home business survive in the event of an emergency? If not, then it’s time to start thinking about adding a business continuity plan to your list of things to do.

What is a business continuity plan? Very simply, a business continuity plan is a complete set of well-planned and documented procedures that will help your business get back on track in the event of an emergency.

If your business is managed from your home, both your residence and your livelihood are at risk due to unexpected loss.

Natural disasters are not the only risk factors. As devastating as it is to think someone else was in your home, robberies can happen anywhere.

Something as basic as a hard drive crash can cripple your home business indefinitely. I recently spoke with two people in the last month that with this very distrupting experience.

When you think of how much time, money & effort you have invested in your home businesses, it only makes sense to make sure it is protected and can survive an emergency.

A solid business plan, a strategic marketing and a complete continuity plan are essential elements to your long-term success and peace of mind.

About The Author

© 2004 Patty Gale - All rights reserved

Cornerstones Consulting, LLC

Patty Gale is a business continuity and disaster recovery specialist serving the home & small business community. She is co-author of the “Home Office Recovery Plan” and manages her company, Cornerstones Consulting, LLC from her home office near Milwaukee, WI.

Visit her site to receive your complimentary info-pak containing sample chapters from the book.

http://www.HomeOfficeRecoveryPlan.com

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The concept of Mercury Retrograde is very well known even among non-Astrologers.

It is an excellent example of the use of Astrology as a planning tool. By working with the ebb and flow of planetary energies your life can flow more smoothly and efficiently.

WHAT IS MERCURY RETROGRADE?

When Mercury turns retrograde, it is time to look backward. This period is an excellent time for any activity that entails review, reexamination, and revision.

Astronomically, it refers to a period when Mercury appears to be traveling backwards in the sky - when viewed from Earth.

This is an optical illusion. It is produced by the differences in the distance and speed of its orbit relative to that of the Earth. Like a moving car on a highway in the lane next to yours that appears to be traveling backward, the Mercury is not really moving backwards. It just looks that way.

Mercury begins its retrograde motion by appearing to slow down its forward motion. It will appear to come to a dead stop, or station, then move backward. It picks up speed for a time. Then, again, it slows, then station and move forward.

This period lasts approximately three weeks.

Mercury rules, among other things, our mental functions, communications, and transportation. When Mercury turns retrograde, it functions less well in our day-to-day lives. That is because its energy goes inward.

Ideally, you would take a mental break. But most of us do not have this luxury.

And so, as Mercury forces you to restructure your thinking and reveals flaws in your planning, you are likely to feel frustration.

This is often experienced as personal misunderstandings and communications snafus. Missed appointments, telecommunications and computer glitches, missing mail, transportation delays, blocks in negotiations are other common examples.

These things do happen when Mercury is direct. But they happen much more frequently when Mercury is retrograde.

That is the reason for that common piece of Astrological advice to be conscientious about such things as backing up your computer, double-checking schedules and appointments, and allowing more time in your travel.

It is also well advised to refrain from making major commitments and signing important contracts during this period. Careless thinking, misinformation, haste and poor communication impede the ability to make wise decisions.

Often people feel pressured to make an immediate decision. It is best to wait if possible.

It is likely that you will change your mind after Mercury changes direction as new information comes to light or a different perspective is revealed.

HOW TO USE THE ENERGY OF MERCURY RETROGRADE

There are many positive uses for Mercury Retrograde energy. This is an excellent time for introspection - looking towards the past. Your focus may change and alternative ideas may come to light.

Mercury Retrograde is an optimum time to focus on people, issues and projects that are already established or from the past.

It is an excellent time to initiate contact and meet with people who have not been in your life for a while. In fact, it is not uncommon to be contacted by long lost friends and family at this time.

This is the time is to take on any activities that entail review or revision of old or already established projects.

Cleaning out reviewing and reorganizing records is an excellent example. Another is gathering your financial information together from the past year in preparation for filing your tax return.

WHEN DOES MERCURY GO RETROGRADE?

Mercury makes his retrograde dance approximately three times a year for a period of three weeks. You may feel its effects up to a week or so before it makes its retrograde station.

Here are the periods when Mercury goes retrograde for 2005 and 2006:

2005
March 19 to April 12
July 23 to August 16
November 14 to December 4

2006
March 2 to March 25
July 4 to July 29
October 28 to November 18

Use this information to optimize your planning and efficiency.

Ellen Zucker has been self-employed for over 10 years. She owns the site http://www.selfemployment101.com

Selfemployment101.com - It’s about making a living and creating a life! … Observations, information and resources for those of us who are self employed or just thinking about it.

E-zine subscribers can get Ellen’s articles delivered to their email inbox.

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How we use questions to get more commitment, learning and better results.

Two weeks ago, Sue McKinney, Peg Carlson and I spent four days training a group of internal Continuous Improvement consultants. They noticed two things about us and our approach:

-We ask a lot of genuinely curious questions
-We actively seek disagreement and difference

Many of them noticed the opposite patterns in themselves! As they practiced their newfound skills, we all noticed that they would often advocate for something and then ask questions like “Are you ok with that?”, “Am I right?” or “Do you agree?” We also noticed they were silently hoping that they’d get quick agreement so they could move on.

We talked with them about their questions. We decided that their questions were likely to solicit agreement or similar views. They also made it harder for others to openly disagree.

We suggested a different way of thinking: if they genuinely wanted solutions that people were internally committed to and they wanted them quickly, they would be better off saying what they were thinking, then actively seeking disagreement.

Time and again, we’ve learned that if people disagree or see things differently, we save time by discovering their views as quickly as possible. We suggest you ask questions that actively seek disagreement or that encourage people to respond with whatever they’re naturally thinking. Here are some examples of each:

“Seeking Disagreement” questions:
“I’d like to use [x] as a vendor. Do you have any concerns about [x]?”
“I’d like to… Does anyone see any problems with what I’m suggesting?”
“I think you have concerns about this project. Am I off base?”
“I think we’d save time by building an agenda. Are you seeing that differently?”
“I think this market will be profitable because…. What flaws, if any, do you see in my logic?”

“Natural Thinking” questions:
“I think production in unit A has slowed. What do you think?”
“I’m concerned that we don’t have enough support from Jim and his team. What’s your reaction to that?”
“Sounds like you think [x] is the best way to go. What is it that’s important to you about [x]?”
“It sounds like we’ve missed our deadline. Have I done anything to contribute to this problem?”

We’ve found that getting these questions out your mouth in a believable way requires you to be genuinely interested in surfacing differences and disagreement. If you aren’t, they will probably come across as canned, perfunctory, or even manipulative.

What are your reactions to all of this? Please come to the Mutual Learning Action Group and share them with us and your peers.

© 2005 Matt Beane

Matt Beane is an associate with Roger Schwarz & Associates and co-authored a chapter of the recently published “Skilled Facilitator Fieldbook: Tips, Tools, and Tested Methods for Consultants, Facilitators, Managers, Trainers, and Coaches,” available on Amazon.com and via other quality booksellers.

This article was originally published in Fundamental Change, Roger Schwarz & Associates’ free, monthly ezine. You can subscribe at: http://www.schwarzassociates.com/fundamental_change.html

In exchange for subscribing, you’ll receive a link to a free .pdf copy of “Holding Risky Conversations,” a chapter from our recently-published fieldbook.

We write Fundamental Change to help you create workplaces and communities that are simultaneously highly effective and that improve the quality of life.

Every month we:

* Address issues important to you as practitioners and leaders * Share client examples and case studies * Offer tips and tools for challenging situations * Offer resources to help you become more effective.

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