Ayodele IYAOMOLERE's Blog

What You Dont Know About Affiliate Marketing

2012-02-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

Affiliate programs are also known as associate programs, partner programs, reseller programs and sponsor programs.

In a general sense, these programs allow you to use any online advertising medium to share revenue with an affiliate merchant website, by receiving a portion of their income for delivering customers who result in sales, leads or traffic to the affiliate merchant website.

The popularity of affiliate marketing is very well realized now than earlier. This is prominent among the reasons for the high visibility of affiliate marketing programs among the ever growing number of affiliate marketers on a daily basis.

Latest web technology has enabled the affiliate marketers to get their statistics and income figures the moment they make an affiliate sale. It is now possible to use companies like PayPal for payment and receipt processing. This has highly curtailed the time that an affiliate marketer needs to wait for his payments to be collected from the merchants.

Today, both the merchants and the affiliates can see clearly that affiliate marketing can work for both of them. The merchant sees affiliate marketing today as the chance to advertise their products at a lower cost. The affiliates, on the other hand, sees affiliate marketing as an easy way of earning profits online by doing what they like most, and that is by creating websites.

Just as the reputation of affiliate marketing has gone up, similarly the attitude of people has enhanced with respect to affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing is no more regarded as an inferior method of marketing by the merchants or as a secondary source of income by an affiliate marketer. Both merchants and affiliates regard affiliate marketing as a main source of profits and revenues.

So the question now is what type of affiliate marketing will work best for you? Are all affiliate marketing programs the same? Are the benefits the same? Or are there affiliate marketing programs that work better than the others?

There are actually a large variety of affiliate marketing methods, and the types will depend on how they are going to be classified. The macro level classification of affiliate marketing programs falls under two main categories: pay-per-click (PPC) and pay-per-performance (PPP).

TYPES OF AFFILIATE MARKETING

1. PPC – Pay-Per-Click is a highly promoted and used affiliate marketing method by affiliates with websites or small websites. This is also the easiest way for them to start making money. Under this method of affiliate marketing, the affiliate is paid a commission by the merchant when a visitor visits the merchant's site through the affiliate's reference, that is, whenever a visitor clicks and goes to the merchant's site through the banner or text ads that the affiliate has put up.

A website owner would be given a simple code (html codes) to paste onto any webpage where the website owner wants a visitor to see the advertisements. The ads will be related to the webpage content. Pay per click is free to join but they have very strict policies especially against fraudulent clicks by owners of websites on which the advertisements are displayed.

2. Pay-Per-Performance (PPP) - PPP affiliate marketing is the most popular among merchant and is also the most lucrative type for the affiliates. In this type of affiliate program, the merchant only pays the affiliate whenever his referral translates into an action - that is whenever the visitor he has referred actually buys something from the merchant's site or when the visitor becomes a lead.

A further classification of Pay-per-performance affiliate marketing can be done into two types: pay-per-sales (PPS) and pay-per-lead (PPL). Both these are very popular:

a) Pay-Per-Sale (PPS) - In a pay-per-sale type of affiliate marketing, the affiliates get the commission from the merchants whenever the visitor he has referred to the merchant's site actually buys something from the merchant's site.

b) Pay-Per-Lead (PPL) - The pay-per-lead type of affiliate marketing is a slight variation of the PPS type and is often used by insurance and finance companies and other companies who rely on leads for their company to grow. In this type of affiliate marketing, the affiliate is paid whenever the visitor he referred to the merchant's site fills up an application form or any similar form related to the business of the company.

How to Start a Business With No Money the Fast Track Way

2012-01-26T04:09:00.000-08:00

Only just a few years ago if you had asked someone how to start a business with no money they would have told you to talk to the bank manager. That is fortunately not the case these days as you can easily get an enterprise off the ground and turning a profit in next to no time with no money. The Internet has made this possible as it has erased the need to have a physical premises from which to operate out of.

In fact you really don't need much at all to start an online business. You won't even need an office to work from and you won't need to worry about getting a logo designed for you or getting pens or photo-copier paper.

You can transfer all that stuff to the virtual world. So, learning how to start a business with no money means learning how the Internet works. And guess what? That is a minimal amount of information too, as the Web has come a long way even in the few short years that it has been in existence.

It used to be the case that the Internet was a technical place to get involved in. You had to know all the coding language and you had to know your way around the hardware and servers and all that stuff. That is not the case now as everything you could possibly need to run a business has been turned into push button interfaces.

It gets better as this stuff is all free. You don't have to pay a dime to get a commercial Internet presence. You can get a website for free and you can get all kinds of designs for free. You can get the tools you need to customize your site for nothing. You can even get a free e-commerce store front that will allow you to display your products and take all kinds of payments.

Contrast this with the thousands it takes to get an offline business off the ground and profitable. It takes something like an average of $12000 to get a new business started. Who has $12000 lying around? Not too many people I'll bet. So, if you don't have the money to get your business running you will have to go to the bank and ask for a loan. And that is a whole different ball game.

Getting a website up and running, getting some products displayed on it and the getting interested customers to come and look at what you have got. That is how to start a business with no money. There is no need to go through the stress and the strain of taking loans out and putting your house up as collateral. You don't need to risk your whole life savings to do this. Just pick from the many business models there are and get started. It is that simple.

The traditional route is not how to set up a business with no money. Even if you could get someone to just gift you the money remember that having an office or a shop requires a lot more weekly and monthly monetary input than just an Internet connection.

This is the fastest and most fun way to do it. The alternative is going massively into debt and risking the failure of everything you dream. Or you could simply do nothing at all and just dream of a better lifestyle. Best not to do that and get your hands on these free business plans that can be started for nothing today.

Courtesy: Tom Parmer

Dream And Grow Rich: How The Power Of Dreams Can Help You Be More Creative and Inventive

2012-01-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

Can the practice of creative dreaming help a person to dream up an idea that could make him or her financially wealthy? The simple answer is clearly -- yes. It has happened many times in history. I'll give a couple of quick examples right now:

A young, British musician is the member of a promising new band. His group has had considerable success recording and performing cover songs, and they have even penned a few very minor hits of their own. But that one big break-out song that would really blast them to the top of the charts had been elusive.

After a long day of trying to write a No. 1 hit, the young guitarist falls asleep exhausted in a hotel bedroom. He begins to dream. In his dream, he begins to hear the most amazing guitar riffs. He wakes up suddenly with the powerful notes of the electric "dream guitar" in his mind. He grabs the guitar next to his bed and starts playing what he heard in his dream. It's dynamite! It's Gold! He captures it on tape using a cheap recorder.

The young British musician was Keith Richards. His band was the Rolling Stones. The song that came to him in his dreams was "Satisfaction." The rest is history. That was more than four decades ago. Today, Satisfaction is still played thousands of times a day on the radio, and was named the No. 1 rock song of all time by a recent poll of music experts. It's also played by bar bands and garage bands all over the world. It made Richards and his mates a lot of money... well, okay, it made them incredibly rich. It also launched their career into the highest echelons of rock-n-roll royalty.

So can the information you receive in a dream make you incredibly rich? Like I said, the answer is clearly yes. Let me share one more example.

For years, a struggling, obscure inventor has been working on a machine that he knows will revolutionize the world. It will change the lives of millions of people. Furthermore, if he can perfect this machine, it will have ripple effects across a variety of other industries.

But he was having an agonizing problem. He was stuck. He had all aspects of the mechanics of the machine worked out, except for one extremely integral aspect of the machine. Our inventor thought about the problem night and day, but was thwarted.

The man's name was Elias Howe. It was the decade of the 1840s. Howe lived and worked in Massachusetts. His invention was the first truly modern and successful automatic sewing machine. The key problem that prevented him from perfecting his device was the configuration of the needle. Until then, everyone knows that needles have an "eye hole" at the top through which the thread is looped. But different more was needed for an automated machine.

One night, Howe was asleep and found himself having a terrible nightmare. He dreamed he had been captured by hostile natives, and was being boiled in a gigantic pot while surrounded by warriors armed with spears. Despite this obviously stressful dream, Howe noticed something strange about the spears his captors were holding. They had eye holes like needles -- but these eye holes were near the pointed tip of their spears. When he awoke, he might as well cried "Eureka!" He had his missing element!

To make his automatic sewing machine work, the needle needed to have an eye hole near the point, and not on the top of the needle! The final element of a workable sewing machine had been achieved! He was issued a patent in 1846.

But wait a minute. There's more to this story. Did Howe's "dream invention" make him rich? Well, the answer is not so simple. Even though he had a terrific invention, he had an extremely hard selling the idea to the market. He was unable to convince any investors to provide the funding he needed to start manufacturing and selling the machine.

Like many great inventions, the sewing machine was originally scoffed at. One person famously asked: "Who would ever have use for such a device?" (The same thing was said about the telephone!)

Howe also has competition from a man named Isaac Singer, who perfected a facsimile of Howe's machine. Singer was a much better marketer than Howe. The result was many legal battles between Howe and Singer lasting five years. Howe eventually prevailed, winning a cut of Singer's earnings, but the legal wrangling was long and arduous, costing Howe dearly.

Howe went to London and tried to sell his sewing machine over there, but to make a long story short, he eventually returned to the U.S. without a penny in his pocket. After more years of struggle, Howe eventually reaped the rewards of his inventive genius and died at age 48, a millionaire.

The two examples I have provided here are just two of many dozens of examples I could site. In my next article, I will describe how anyone, including you, can ramp up the power of your own dreaming mind making it more likely it will help you dream up the "next great thing."

Author: Ken Korczak

Strategic Internet Marketing Tips

2012-01-15T01:00:00.000-08:00

Most Internet businesses fail to succeed due to a lack of effective marketing. This article's purpose is to give you the best strategic Internet marketing tips. Get this right and your Internet business is on its way to success. Get it wrong and nothing will happen. This is article is by no means a comprehensive list, but I believe it gives some points that can help in successful online marketing.

First Things First

Get yourself a website that accurately represents your business, the three main elements required are

1. Gives the visitor detailed information about your business.

2. Explains clearly what product or service your company offers.

3. Offers re-assurance that your business is honest, ethical and legitimate.

Strategic Internet marketing tips should also include providing the visitor with all the information of the costs in both financial and time that needs investing.

Generating Free Traffic to Your Website

Massive amounts of free traffic is the dream of every Internet entrepreneur, and it can be done via paid marketing methods such as Pay per Click, search engine optimizer and services such as Google AdWords. These are by nature expensive and if you are just starting out then this is probably not for you. Writing article's and submitting them to websites such as EzineArticles is the best of all the strategic Internet marketing tips that I have found and researched on the Internet. In return for submitting quality and informative articles you get rewarded as article submission websites allow you to post back links to your website and as some of these are article directories are trusted and rank high in Google, a well written article can find its way to the first page on Google with high quality keywords. The result is large amounts of quality traffic to your website.

Forums and Online Communities

These are the last tips I am going to cover there are certainly numerous more strategic internet marketing tips available and a quick search of the Internet will find you more ideas and suggestions. Forums and online communities work as they to sell yourself to people who are interested in the same niche as you, building yourself a good reputation and generating interest in what you have to say and sell. With online communities a less serious attitude is usually the most effective way to get people to your website, but its the traffic and quality of traffic that counts.

I hope that I have given you a few ideas and insight on the strategic Internet marketing tips, the medium that you are using now, the Internet, is the university for success, all you have to do is use it well.

Courtesy: Stephen Degnin

The Entrepreneur in 2012

2012-01-13T16:22:00.000-08:00

There is a message out for this year -"If you are dealing with the Internet, beware it is changing" - and many top marketers are promoting the product of fear. If you do not buy their product now, you will miss the party, your business will falter and fail - there are too many pieces moving - you need to but their high priced service - you need to be following the big boys.

Much as I admire the skill of these marketers as marketers - you have to admit it's a little manipulative.

Is the Internet changing? -Of course.

Will Google change how it does 'search '? - Of course.

Are the big companies trying to control the Internet? - Of Course- the big companies are always trying to control the marketplace. But that is no reason to run and hide.

Here's what you should be asking.

In 2012 -will you be an entrepreneur or a proprietor as Jay Abrahams says? That is a person who has a business, a business like any other business - or a person who does something new with business -who offers a higher value result to the question asked by his or her customers.

Will you be just another person in business, struggling, or realize as Seth Godin has been saying that in this maelstrom of digital noise - you have to command attention, no sorry - earn attention. You have to offer enough value and energy and awareness and gratitude and sheer 'product' to your customers that you create a space for yourself in the world of commerce. You create in fact your own audience, your own customer base, followers who pay attention to what you do - not because you are shouting the loudest, but because you have in fact listened the hardest to what is being asked, and then answered with the best results. You have created your own marketplace that is loyal to you because you are loyal to it

Will you be just another marketer, as Frank Kern says in his 2012 Internet Address or someone who decides to be in and stay in the results business? No-one markets and makes money - entrepreneurs sell, because that's where there is money and a return on your business efforts. Of course we produce or offer a product that people buy. They buy because you offer answers to the questions they are asking. They, the end user, want a certain result or consequence - they want help. And when you give then that - precisely and perfectly - you are a successful entrepreneur.

Your market is asking a question - are you answering it - precisely? Are you answering it with a result - that is your product or service- that transforms the customer? Does your product mean more to them than the dollars they give you back in return?

In 2012 you will not be making money - no business person MAKES money. You will have to EARN money. Be aware -there is no shortage of money - it's just a question of whose hands it flows into. And when you are dealing with the public, the consumer at large it's the person that answers their questions the best, and repeatedly that the money goes to

In 2012 it's the entrepreneur that is passionate about the question their market is asking that will win. It's the change that you offer that is important not the product. Products may come and go but the entrepreneur that stays in the hunt always adjusting their instruments of change and value. Instruments of change for the better, in their chosen marketplace

In 2012 regardless of what Google does or 'search' does - the entrepreneur who has built their own marketplace that has their own customer base that is loyal - will win.

In 2012 the entrepreneur that believes in their 'list', their marketplace, believe what they offer is transformational, believe their product, without doubt, is something that can change lives - that entrepreneur wins it all.

"The true entrepreneur is willing, eager to perceive change as a huge opportunity, rather than a threat or deterrent. He/she must have built-in commitment, to constantly improve their performance - on many different "fronts." "While the proprietor cowers from change, fears change, grovels and steeps themselves deep in the status quo... the true entrepreneur is ALWAYS excited, committed, continuously searching for new innovation. Real entrepreneurs REACH for innovation. They work hard to discover, uncover, define, refine and initiate innovation. " Jay Abrahams

Courtesy: Martin Gover

PRINCIPLES FOR GREATNESS AND PRODUCTIVITY IN 2012!

2011-12-31T09:01:00.000-08:00

1. Understand your value: You should know that you have enormous potential which is still untapped and when exploited correctly, you can achieve great things in life. Locate your inner energy and let the giant in your out. Most of us are under performers as none of us work in accordance with what we are truly capable of. Never undermine yourself and your true potential.

2. Re-Define Your Thought Life: I consider Phil. 4:8 to be one of the most important verses in the Bible. What occupies you mind and what you think means more than anything else in your life. Your thought life will determine how much you earn, where you live, and what you become in life.

Your life today is as a result of your thinking yesterday. Your life tomorrow will be determined by what you think today.

Words have never been truer than those of Proverb; “As he thinks in his heart, so is he” {Prov. 23:7 NKJV}. We’ve all heard the comment about a man who lacks tact in his conversation: “He says what he thinks.” That comment could be made about each of us as well. Although we may not instantly blurt out our initial reactions, they will come out sooner or later if we continue to think about them. What enters our mind and occupies our thought process will somewhere, sometimes come out of our mouth.

3. Know What You Want To Achieve And Set Goals: You must know what you want to achieve in life or how great you want to be or in which area you want to be great. After you knew what you want in your life, you must then set a clear goal and develop an action plan on how you can achieve your goals. This is what most people never do. Many people knew what they want in their life, but they never really put in real effort to get what they want. So stop blowing the hot air, set a clear goal for yourself and create an action plan on how you can achieve greatness right now.

4. Take Action (Prov 10:4. 13:4, 21:5): The number one killer of all successes is the lack of action. It was Mahatma Ghandi who wrote: “A man is the sum of his actions, of what he has done, of what he can do. Nothing else.” People are lazy, and they tend to delay their action and that is why they cannot get what they want although they knew what they really want to achieve in their life. Don't procrastinate; make quick decisions based on the existing information. Just make the first step. Indecisiveness paralyses! Take action according to your plan and be consistent. You must take at least a few actions everyday in order to get yourself one step closer toward your goals every single day. Small steps will lead you to momentum which will carry you towards your goals! Action is composed of commitment, determination and persistence. If there is no result, then we cannot conclude that you took action.

5. Commitment: You must be willing to put in 100% commitment to achieve the results you desire. Successful people are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their dreams and their goals, and you must do the same. Once you are committed, you will put in real effort and take the necessary action to make achieve the things you always wanted in your life.

6. Believe In Yourself And Your Dream And Don’t Let Others Control You: Self confidence is often known to take over the greatest of talents on this planet. Confidence and believe in yourself alone can take you places. Not all of us are talented but the one's who are bold achieve the impossible and are termed as great. Believing in your dreams is the most fundamental step that every successful person practices. The moment you truly believe in it, you will tap into your maximum potential and make things happen. If you do not believe it, you will never bother to do it or make it happens, because for you, it is just not possible to be accomplished. Moreover, many people live their lives according to other people. You are the master of your own destiny. You should know what is right and what is wrong for you. Set yourself free and learn to live like a lion. Lions walk alone whereas sheep walk in herds. You don't want to be termed as sheep do you? Learn to be like a lion and do what your heart truly desires and don't let people or circumstances get in your way.

7. Forget The Process, See The Reward!!!

Most times in life and ministry, successful people {just about 3%} FOCUS on the reward but everyone else focuses on the PROCESS. That means that in getting to your promised land, you must resist the temptation of focusing on the process of the journey! The process is no fun. The process is full of delays, distress and sometimes, temporary defeat! The process is full of waiting, tears, sometimes ridicule, etc! So if you focus on that, you are sure to experience frustration and probably quit {97% chance that you quit}! But if you focus on the REWARD, you can get excited even in the face of pain because of your eye of faith, you can see, feel and taste victory. David killed Goliath because he focused on the reward and not the battle {1 Sam 17:26}. Jesus refused to give up because of the joy that was set before him. He focused on the REWARD! No matter how this year has been, keep seeing the reward ahead! See the testimony you will give! See those who will celebrate with you!

8. Value Your Time: Life is measured by Time; that is why it is called LIFETIME. You should remember one thing. You are a human being and you are only for a limited period of time on this planet. Learn to value and exploit your time in the right manner and to your advantage. Don't let any person of situation waste your time. Get on a plan and outline your goals and where you need to be in life.

9. Stay Positive: Always stay positive, and have faith that things would work out every time; but if they don’t work out, still believe they’ll always finally work out for good.

10. Learn from the past: Draw lessons from the past; make plans for the future but don't forget that you are living in the present. Never let past mistakes trammel your future prospects. Learn from them, but leave them in the past - where they belong - and go ahead.

11. Always try to expand your limits: Every month, every week, every day set a new personal record. Human potential is limitless.

12. Manage Information: Information is power; the kind of access you have to information has a direct link or impact on which you become in life. When you have access to information, places and systems it is sometime referred to as exposure. You can never aspire beyond your exposure. You actually gravitate towards becoming what you have always been exposed to. Having information is one thing; doing something with information is another thing. Sometimes we run the risk of letting others know the information we have to the extent that the recipients run and implement ahead of you.

13. Know Your God: God is interested in you being great; you must seek him and subsequently know him so that he would support you. (Psalm 121:1).

See you at the TOP!

Phases of Innovation

2011-12-21T00:03:00.000-08:00

When I ask business leaders to identify which part of the innovation process their organizations struggle with the most, I typically get one of three answers:

1. We have a lot of ideas but most of them get judged as impossible or too hard to implement based on changing the way things currently are

2. We have a hard time deciding which idea or opportunity to pursue

3. We come up with a lot of good ideas but can't seem to execute on them

Interestingly, these align exactly with the phases of innovation: discovery, evaluation, and execution.

In business, innovation is the act of applying knowledge to the creation of new processes, products, and services that have value for at least one of your stakeholder groups. Obviously, this requires more than just generating a slew of creative ideas. In order to produce true innovation, you have to actually do something different that has value. In other words, follow through on the good ideas. This requires a very different set of skills and resources than idea generation.

Achieving value creation from innovation requires a direct link between the proposed innovation and your strategy, plus a workforce that has the appropriate skills and abilities to discover, evaluate, and execute on the best ideas. It also requires a culture (or context) that supports innovation.

What does this look like?

Creating a powerful context to support innovation starts with constantly communicating the direct link between innovation and the organization's picture of winning. It also requires behaviors that don't come naturally to most organizations. These include building and encouraging diversity, using supportive language and behaviors, and encouraging risk-taking.

Innovation needs to become an integral part of the way the entire company does business rather than something a few isolated individuals work on in some remote corner of the company. Management needs to encourage the open sharing of ideas and information, and support intra-departmental collaboration. It needs to lead the way by advocating and owning innovation, and employing flexible processes and procedures. Most of all, it needs to build an environment where people are allowed to take risks and sometimes fail -- which most organizations loathe to do.

The chances for successful innovation increase geometrically when you create a powerful context for innovation and then build a culture that supports it. However, by itself, a supportive culture will not necessarily guarantee innovation. If you're not getting any traction with your innovation efforts, it may be that your organization lacks the skills and competencies to complete one or more of the following phases.

Phase I - Discovery

Phase I has two basic objectives: developing core innovation competencies and generating new and creative ideas, which often includes gathering customer insights and translating them into workable ideas.

Everyone has the ability to think creatively, but most people need some training and coaching in order to bring out those latent abilities. Key activities during this phase include providing learning sessions, workshops, collaboration fairs, ideation boot camps, and other tools that teach people how to think differently.

Innovation enablers during this phase include:

Encouraging and rewarding idea generation
Awareness of the brain's processing and potential hurdles
Defining winning/excellence
Balancing big picture and details
Challenging assumptions
"What if?" thinking
Changing perspectives
Considering the right answer
Influencing others effectively

Key players during this phase: individual contributors and managers who encourage and support them.

Phase II - Evaluation

This phase separates the wheat from the chaff, as potential ideas and opportunities undergo a rigorous screening process. New ideas are discussed, tested, evaluated, and compared for their potential to add value to customers, generate new revenue streams, or accomplish a specific innovation goal. The primary objective is to identify the highest-value opportunities and determine the feasibility of turning them into reality.

Innovation enablers during this phase include:

Creating and supporting an idea evaluation framework
Taking risks
Balancing day-to-day versus longer term
Accepting ideas (remain open)
Looking for "and" versus "but" solutions
Encouraging some failure (within boundaries)
Thinking cross-functionally/organizationally

Key players during this phase: managers and leaders who have set clear strategic direction and guidance.

Phase III - Execution

This phase involves making sure that the high-value opportunities identified during the evaluation phase align with your organizational capabilities. Then senior management has to commit the time, money, and resources to make the innovation happen. This is followed by close tracking of the business performance of the new product or service, as well as measuring the process used to develop the innovation and looking for ways to improve it.

Innovation enablers during this phase include:

Continually communicating the need for innovation as a business focus/strategic mandate
Linking innovation to key strategies
Sponsoring innovation projects
Incorporating innovation reports into the business review processes
Funding innovation
Developing risk management strategies and approaches
Capturing and sharing innovation learnings
Learning from failures Key players during this phase: senior management/leaders.

The added benefits of innovation

When innovation becomes a way of life in your organization, you get a lot more than just new products and services.

The organizational mindset shifts to one of relentless improvement, with an increased awareness of opportunities and possibilities for products and efficiencies. There is more listening, less knee-jerk defending of old ideas, and a greater understanding of, and interest in, unmet customer needs.

As individuals begin to understand their roles in the innovation process, you get more clarity on what success looks like and how to achieve it. Standards of performance increase, along with an increased willingness and ability to hold each other accountable for meeting them.

Most important, as you begin to develop a sustainable innovation approach, the emphasis tends to shift from maintaining old successes to considering new opportunities and products - a key element in staying ahead of changing customer needs rather than always trying to catch up.

If you struggle to get new products to market, ask yourself, "Where are we getting stuck? What skills and competencies do we need to develop to move forward?" When you have all the pieces in place to successfully complete all stages, innovation becomes your way of working, not a project or initiative that goes away when the next business buzzword gains prominence!

Courtesy: Holly Green. ( http://www.thehumanfactor.biz)

The Power of A Positive Attitude and Ways to Develop It.

2011-12-08T02:19:00.000-08:00

Attitude is defined as a settled way of thinking or feeling, typically reflected in a person’s behavior. It therefore is a thought process which determines the mind of an individual. We often hear attitudes being identified to be either negative or positive.

Your attitude determines what you become in life. What you are today is the result of your past attitude and what you will become in the near future will be determined by the attitude you adopt today. This simply means that you are the architect of your own fortunes. If you are a person of positive thinking or attitude to life you will be able to make it through life with ease and success, while the opposite will happen if one is a person of negative attitude.

Although we are being influenced everyday and every time by happenings around us, our fortune is being determined only by ourselves and not by any other person. The major factors that influence our fortune either positively or negatively lie within each of us. This is why we have little or no excuse for our failures in life.

Each of us should know that with our attitude we could create a life of success and achievements for ourselves. The tendency is that because we are surrounded by all sorts of negative influences, we tend to think negatively. What we need is to turn these influences around in our mind and see things positively. In any bad situation there is always a seed of positive or success chances. What we need is to identify this seed and work on it to turn a negative situation to a positive one.

The fault with majority of the people is that we fail to identify the positive seed in our negative situations. If we are able to do this there would be a change of fortune to the positive side, for us.

Our mind is a flexible thing, and that’s why our thinking moves very fast. And that’s also why it has many ways of trapping us with negative thinking such as pains, anger and hatred. What we need is inner strength to push these negative thoughts away from our mind, so as to remain positive. Most people make mistakes by giving themselves a time limit when they are pursuing a goal, and when they don’t succeed within the time limit they quit. This is wrong. What we require is to focus our mind. With a deep mind of focus and positive mindset each day will bring us closer to our success.

A positive mental attitude is one of the most important assets you can posses. It helps you overcome challenges that you inevitably come up against in life and ensures you go onto achieve all your dreams and aspirations.

Negative attitude creates failure in various aspects of ones life, whereas positive attitude develops growth and progression. Positive attitude will motivate you, create general well-being and give you a sense of fulfillment and happiness. Negative attitude, on the contrary de-motivates and creates stress that lead to various ailments. It is therefore necessary to develop an attitude that is positive in outlook.

The following are some of the ways to develop a positive attitude:

1. Wake up daily with a feeling of achievement; a feeling of having conquered. Feel the thrill of seeing the morning light, the sound of the chirping birds and feel the freshness of the morning air.

2. Live with Passion. Infuse enough passion in everything you do. This will drive energy into you to make life worth living.

3. Treat every mistake as a lesson. Learning and upgrading yourself from something you feel is a mistake will change your outlook.

4. Consider every given moment as the ideal moment under the given circumstances. Take some action to better that moment if required. You have the power to choose in every moment.

5. Let the feeling of gratitude flow from your heart. Be happy for all that you have and imagine more happiness flow into you. This feeling of gratitude will generate self-confidence.

6. Believe in the fact that you are the master of your life. You are unique in this world, someone special, and you alone create your destiny.

7. Make the habit of smiling everyday when you wake up. Force yourself a smile for at least 5 minutes every morning. It may sound stupid, but you will notice the difference immediately thereafter. Find humor and have reasons to laugh daily.

Building Effective Teams

2011-11-28T02:07:00.001-08:00

What makes a team effective? What factors dictate its effectiveness? How do you ensure the effectiveness of teams? These are just a few of the questions that this article aims to address. My desire is to see more teams solid and united in their vision and mission. I want to see better team leaders and team players. I want to see more teams intermingling with other teams, accomplishing more for the glory of God.

Before I discuss the factors that make teams effective, it is good to look first at hindrances and oppositions that we are facing in today's times -- issues that destroy teams or make them ineffective.

Our enemy's tactic is always "to divide...and conquer". This means that he will seek to divide first, and when the team is divided, then he can attack and defeat them. He knows that there is power in a "team"... that two are better than one... that unity makes a team stronger. So, he attacks the unity of the team first. He sows seeds of envy, competition, and discord. He will form cliques within the team and eventually these cliques will be opposing other cliques until the whole team collapses.

There are several factors that break or divide a team. These are: spirit of envy and jealousy, differences of opinions, self-promotion or pride, lack of respect for leadership, and lack of motivation. There are other factors, but I want to focus on these most pressing ones.

All these factors have to be taken into consideration before a team is even built. If you are thinking of building your team, be sure that all these areas are covered before you even start recruiting members. If you lay the foundation right, chances are you will have a solid team, regardless of what your team goes through. Let us now go back to the abovementioned factors that break a team and let me dissect it further by showing you the root causes of each of these and what you should do to prevent it.

Spirit of Envy and Jealousy

These two spirits are so closely related but distinct from each other. Envy refers to wanting what someone has such as power, achievement, or certain characteristics which that person does not have. Jealousy, according to Wikipedia, is the fear of losing something that one possesses to another person. Additionally, envy normally involves two people while jealousy typically involves three people.

Both envy and jealousy stem from a person's insecurity and lack of self-esteem. Let me show you a perfect scenario here which is something very familiar to me because I have experienced it so many times...

Maria is the head of a team and Lana is one of her team members. Maria sees so much potential in Lana and so she spends a lot of time motivating her and even giving her tasks that will harness her skills. Lana, on the other hand, feels so motivated. The more Maria pushes her to be better, the more she looks up to Maria and the more she wants to be like her. Lana now starts comparing herself to Maria. She has always wanted to be someone like her but her insecurities and fears have always blocked her. Maria's constant prodding and encouragement actually highlights Lana's fears which actually triggers her envy.

In building a team, it is important to know your team members' fears and insecurities. Do this at the onset, during the recruitment and selection process. Find out what their dreams, goals, and visions are and how far they are in relation to these. Find out what they believe are their hindrances towards the achievement of their visions.

Though it is your primary role as a leader to motivate and encourage your people, don't overdo it. Don't let your people look up to you; let them look up to God.

Differences of Opinions

It is good to have differences of opinions for as long as it is not contradictory to the vision, mission, and core values of the group. It is for this reason why any team needs a vision-mission statement, as well as core values. This should serve as the bedrock of the team. Every team member should know about these.

With all these in place, and completely understood, any differences of opinions can be brought back to the main vision-mission of the team and what it believes in and stands for.

Self-Promotion or Pride

Pride is the sin that brought Lucifer's downfall. This sin is our flesh's second nature and should be bridled at all times. Every member of the team, including the leader herself, is in that team not for herself but for others in the team. Philippians 2:4 says that each of us should look not only to our own interests, but also of the interests of others.

At the onset of the team formation, the team leader should make this 'team concept' clear to everyone. It will also be good to give each one a specific leadership role. When you, as a leader, sense pride in any of your people, expose it right away and cut it off from there.

Lack of Respect for Leadership

During the recruitment and selection phase, it is essential to do a background check in this area. Find out how the person's relationship was with her former leader(s) and if she left in peace. If there is a pattern of rebellion against the leader, then chances are she will do the same to you.

Make it clear from the beginning that if anyone in the team has some concerns about your leadership, then they should discuss it with you. Explain to them the order that God has set -- that you were placed as their leader for that season. Make them understand that you are the main steward of the vision of the team and that it is God and not you who put you there in leadership.

Lack of Motivation

People can get restless when they are de-motivated. And when restlessness sets in, so many other issues attach themselves to it such as gossip, complaining & murmuring, and discontent.

As a team leader, it is your role to always keep your team fresh. Break the monotony of things every now and then. Be ready with surprises.

Remember, you can't motivate people in the same way because each one has a different drive and passion. Find out what each one's passion is: what makes her tick... what makes her heart jump... what her interests are... and from here, give her a task and responsibility that is tailor-fit to who she is and her own uniqueness, the way God designed her.

As I've mentioned earlier, building effective teams start before the team is even there. From here it will be easier to maintain its effectiveness.

Courtesy: Lisa Maki

Stop Operating Your Company in a Vacuum

2011-11-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

Do you know the number one biggest mistake made by business leaders? It is trying to operate your business in a vacuum. It is true company leaders have the experience, knowledge and wisdom to lead their organizations successfully, but what most people are lacking is objectivity. It is impossible to know your employees, your clients/customers, your vendors and your industry inside out. In addition globalization and technology have conspired to make operating a business challenging to keep up with the fast pace.

Trust me when I say "what worked yesterday may or may not work today." If you mistakenly think "that is the way we have always done it" then your organization could be in jeopardy of not surviving. There is a vast amount of benefit that can be derived from historical events both inside and outside your company, yet hanging on to the method you used in implementing these strategies can be detrimental if you try and apply those today.

To succeed in this fast changing world of business, it is imperative that your company have a well-developed, yet flexible and well-crafted strategic plan to lead your organization forward in this fluctuating economy. If I had a dollar for ever time someone has said to me (about the recent recession), "whew glad that is over" I would be a wealthy woman! This wasn't our first recession and it won't be our last. And do remember like them or not, all recessions are course corrections and provide great opportunities for those who are prepared to weather the storm. Periodically review your company's vision, mission and core values against your growth projections. The ability for your company to execute will always be dependent on having a strong foundation for your organization.

Once you have your strategic plan created and are integrating it through out your organization it is a good time to review your current customer base, your past and your future customers. Look for trends, purchasing habits, preferences and purchasing cycles and use this information to develop an information gathering type of survey. Periodically asking your customers about your company, your products, your services and how you can improve is key to your company's long-term growth. We all realize that customer retention is important; but we have to make sure we are retaining and attracting the right customers for our products/services.

The biggest challenge facing leaders is the ever-changing workforce. Thanks to technology advances in communications these young professionals have an exceptionally high "need to know" and desire to be included in the company's operating practices and decisions. While this new level of involvement could be challenging for some "seasoned" business leaders to accept it is the way of the future. Embrace this new workforce, tap into their collective knowledge and use their ideas to drive innovation through out your organization.

Like it or not, we are no longer operating our companies in a bubble. The old days of operating locally or regionally are a thing of the past. Even in your company operates exclusively in these markets, you are affected and dependent upon what is happening half a world away. Creating a dynamic strategic growth plan for your organization's technology operations' is essential. Use your technology as an information gathering source and then craft your growth strategies appropriately.

Lastly and most important: pay attention to is your company's reputation. We live and work in a transparent world, where anyone can access anything they chose. As part of your strategic planning process, define what type of organization you are culturally and what type you want to become. Having a stellar reputation will help your company grow profitability (this is a low-cost solution, which can net big returns).

One of my favorite quotes "what got us here, won't get us where we are going" is truer today than ever before. As your organization grows, gather, plan, consult and then execute, but be prepared to adapt, change and learn.

Courtesy: Janet Boulter

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6695070

Why A Company Needs A Healthy Organizational Culture

2011-11-21T08:49:00.000-08:00

There is a strong need in any modern business for a healthy organizational culture. This is self evident, and should be installed as quickly and securely as possible to ensure that the business succeeds to its full potential. Without it, a company can often find itself confused and contradictory with its regular aims, and struggling for market share.

Strong lines of communication are vital in business. It is how many companies manage to succeed and keep themselves above the fray and their competition. As a result, stringent and unflappable organizational routes need to be put in place and not diverted from, to ensure that everything runs as smoothly as possible and tasks are not forgotten, overlooked or duplicated.

There is a strict hierarchy in any business. At the top of the pyramid come the directors: they are few in number, but hold significant decision making power. They are the captains of the ship, arranging the direction the company should travel in light of the prevailing winds of change which sweep industry. Underneath them come senior managers. There are more of these, and they have less power than the director level workers but still can shape the business as a whole.

Next comes middle managers. They oversee the rank and file workers and ensure that everything on the floor of a business is going smoothly. Ultimately, they can do little to affect the larger business as a whole, but without them there would not be any future for it. Then comes the ordinary workers. They are most numerous and are the most important cogs in the machine. Without them the company's growth (and everyday existence) would stall entirely.

Therefore having a way for each group of people to represent themselves fairly is important. Without it, middle managers can run amok over rank and file workers. Fostering a happy and benevolent working environment is key.

People must feel they have a voice within the structure. That is why it must be firm and unflappable. If there is leniency involved, or if lines are blurred, people can feel confused. In this event, there must also be clear lines of communication for people to take their grievances to higher management, if necessary. Without this comfort, people may feel less motivated. An online culture assessment is a great option for companies because it offers a secure way for employees to offer their comments in a safe environment. Employees are often more candidate and honest when a third party provider is handling the culture assessment.

For example, a regular worker who is given extra tasks at a middle management level may feel that he or she is being used. Similarly, those around them may feel jealous. Keeping a strong structure of organization is important. People must know where they rank in terms of the bigger picture, and must not be made to feel any more or less important than they actually are. Perceptions must match reality.

A healthy organizational culture bequeaths a happy company. It will allow people to ensure that they are well represented and feel loved and needed by the business. Without that - and with the happiness which would result from it - people may begin to work less efficiently and effectively, and the business as a whole may suffer inconceivable damage.

Courtesy: Dr. Doreen McGunagle

What Is Coaching and Mentoring?

2011-11-16T01:00:00.000-08:00

These two terminologies are inter-related. There is a thin line separating between these two methods. Most often, these two terms sound confusing. But the difference can be clearly defined if there is a thorough understanding and acceptance of the need of coaching and mentoring in our lives. They have common denominators, but in detail and implementation, they actually differ from one another.

Coaching is a short term special course, more personal and detailed, whereby the coach and the client deals on the assessment of the clients strengths and weaknesses as an individual and as a professional.

Coaching is looking deeply into the areas where there is a need for improvement in the skills of the client in order to achieve greater and more beneficial results to his personal and professional life.

Coaches target on more detailed areas for improvement and renders feedback to improve the craft of the client.

Coaching caters to clients who are mentally stable and who seeks a deeper analysis on specific issues. It has a time frame for completion. Coaching deals on personal issues which may affect his professional life. But the concentration is more on the field of professionalism and how to achieve best results in his professional life.

Mentoring is a detailed, planned process which is designed to help professionals as well. It is a venue where they can share their professional and personal experiences in order to grow and develop in the process. It is educating and instructing these professionals in order to be better in their fields.

Mentoring is more on an instructor-student process, whereby a more experience person shares his knowledge, skills, and ideas in order to provide information to a client or protégée. This method is usually used in companies to their junior executives whom they see traits and potentialities of becoming future company heads.

A mentor is a person who is well educated and more experienced in a certain field is usually hired by companies to train professionals for future higher positions. He is tasked to educate, tutor, guides the client/learner to perform specific objectives in order to achieve a goal.

Compared to coaching, mentoring is

In business organizations, this is also a new area, but this has been proven useful and effective and it actually helps workers and the organization achieve a lasting and more harmonious environment.

But unlike coaching which only guides, mentoring is instructional. It is an instructional strategy designed in order to develop the client/ learner into a competent skill which will be useful in his field and the organization as a whole.

Mentoring is a method of guiding and monitoring clients/learners to develop specific skills in order to increase the best results of a business organization. It is a course where clients/learners are taught on how to understand their specific roles in their organization.

Business organizations likewise need this tool, so that failures can be evaluated and problems can be resolved. This is also a course to improve networking skills.

Basically, mentoring is a long term instructional method in a business organization in order to monitor progress among workers.

It is a strategic business tool where the Mentor shares his knowledge and skills to the client, monitors the progress and renders the feedback of progress to the learners.

Courtesy: Placida Acheru

Three Conversations Change Agents Must Master

2011-11-14T05:40:00.001-08:00

Organizational change ultimately occurs one person at a time. Out of necessity to be efficient, we rely on change tools that reach multiple people at once, like meetings, training, and a host of communication methods. However, the most effective means of influencing individuals is in one-on-one conversations.

Of course, you can't have one-on-one conversations with everyone in the organization. How do you decide who to talk to? Consider this: the most important conversations are usually the ones you would rather avoid having. If you are having a repeated conversation with someone else inside your head, then it's time to make the effort to have the talk out loud. Engaging in difficult conversations is one of the crucial skills a change agent must have to be a successful influencer.

The following are three conversations that you must be willing to start and become skilled at navigating if you want to boost your personal influence:

1. Gaining support

To implement your change initiative throughout the organization, you need the support of leaders at all levels. Starting with their initial buy-in and then their ongoing commitment and action, leaders will help drive the change in their parts of the organization.

The conversation to gain support can be daunting when you expect to have to persuade someone to get on board. You need leaders to not only believe that the change itself is worth pursuing, but also to agree that their active support is necessary to achieve the change, which can be a tall order. Adding discomfort is the fact that, as a change agent, usually you have either indirect or no authority with the leaders whose support you need.

To gain support, be clear about what their support really means - don't settle for a nod of agreement if you need them to actually do something. Align the change with their best interests. Address any concerns and show how you will help them be successful. If necessary, share stories to demonstrate the value of leadership support to change efforts.

2. Understanding resistance

When people in the organization push back, procrastinate, lay low, and do other things that seem to slow down change, we tend to experience it as resistance.

As a change agent, it can seem like resistance is something that is done to you personally. You can physically feel the drag like you are swimming upstream. It is not easy to stay neutral in a conversation when it feels like someone is pushing against you, and it can be difficult to not become defensive about the change.

When dealing with resistance, it is important to not push harder - it will only result in them pushing harder in return. Instead, realize that you are the one experiencing resistance, and they are having a normal human reaction to change. In your conversation, be curious about their experience of the change, and uncover the real reasons for their hesitation. That way, you can work with them, and not against them, to move forward.

3. Providing feedback

As people incorporate changes into their routines, you need to let them know what they are doing well and what needs improvement as they go. Feedback provides reinforcement of the change and also the opportunity for correction when necessary.

Positive feedback is usually not difficult, although it is often forgotten; negative feedback we tend to avoid giving, even when it is really needed. Not many people are comfortable sharing the news with someone that they are doing something wrong or performing ineffectively. And most people don't like hearing it, either. When you are not the recipient's boss, offering feedback can be especially difficult because it may seem like you don't have the right to give it.

When providing feedback, start with the facts, and not your interpretation of the facts. Explain the impact of the individual's behavior or performance. Listen to the reasons without allowing excuses. Show support throughout, and maintain an attitude that you are helping them be more successful and not accusing them of wrongdoing.

When you are implementing change, it is the time to neither drop subtle hints nor to rely on mass communication to address individual issues. If you are sitting around waiting for someone to get with the change program, chances are you should talk directly with that individual. Prepare in advance and then hold a deliberate conversation to help move your initiative forward. Although these experiences may never be entirely comfortable, with practice you can master the ability to influence individuals through conversations.

Courtesy: Heather Stagl

How To Increase The Market Share Of Your Business

2011-10-31T01:00:00.000-07:00

In business, profit goes to the company with a sizable chunk of the market. In most cases, this is usually the companies in the top 3 position; first, second and third. This position is not determined by a regulatory body, but by their market size - the number of customers these business serve on a consistent basis. Market share is a numbers game. You are only as profitable as the number of client/customers patronizing your business.

I have often said this, if your business is not a force to reckon with in the particular industry or niche you belong, you are as good as dead. When your industry or niche is being mentioned, which companies come up as reference points? Is your company among them? Is your company a threat to your industry or niche? If your answer to this question is NO, then there's much work to be done. Let's get down to business!

What is a market share?

In very simple terms, market share is the number of loyal customers your business or company has been able to retain over a long period of time.

The key word in this definition is LOYAL.

Without this word [loyal], you can't say you've got any market share. After all, a share of anything is that portion which you can confidently call your own by virtue of title. Meaning, you don't own a share of something without an evidence or proof of ownership. In the business world, your proof of market share ownership is the number of repeat [loyal] customers patronizing your business per time. When it comes to market share, first time customers are irrelevant.

The criteria is not how many people who bought from you, but rather how many people regularly buy from you. The focus is on retention and not attraction alone. It's about bringing them and keeping them. In other words, market share is about creating fans, followers, believers or addicts of your company, business, product or service. These are not just people who buy from you, these are people have bought into you. Meaning, they have been converted from mere customers to disciples of all that your business represent. Your proof of ownership is their continuous patronage [loyalty].

If you have ever seen a football fan of a particular club, say Chelsea, Arsenal or Manchester, you'll better understand this concept of market share. These fans don't just like football, their love for football has transcended from the general game of football to a particular kind of football -the games played by their favorite club. This level of interest is not accidental, it is not coerced, it's a choice. Market share is all about preference; choosing to give your money repeatedly to a particular company or business over a long period of time based on certain factors that appeal to you personally.

Market share is intentional, people choose you instead of others because there's something SIGNIFICANT [unique, unusual, extra-ordinary, different, special] about you. Market share is people identifying with your business, company, product, or services. It doesn't come by chance; it can only be intentionally created.

Creating Your Own Share of the Market

You are not going to have them lining up behind your business as followers, so don't bother waiting for them. Your best bet is to create followers by becoming a leader yourself. Here is how to achieve this;

1. Differentiate your business

The first step to creating your own share of the market by becoming a leader people want to follow is to differentiate your business. Differentiating your business means being able to clearly define the specific value creation processes of your business and deciding the particular area you want to specialize on.

For example, all automobile companies manufacture cars, but not all specialize in particular areas. Volvo for instance focuses on safety by ensuring their cares are made up of strong body parts capable of protecting the occupants in the event of accidents. The impact of limiting a Volvo car will not be as that of limiting a posh car.

A posh on the other hand, runs faster than a Volvo as the manufactures focuses on speed. Two car companies; both in the same automobile industry, but doing different businesses. One is in the business of manufacturing safe cars, so they invest more on body parts. The other is in the business of manufacturing fast cars, so they invest more on high velocity engines.

This simple distinction is how leadership is being created in the market. This is how loyalty is formed as different people prefer different things per time. As result, safety conscious people choose Volvo cars instead of posh cars and speed lovers, prefer posh instead of Volvo. At the same time, some customers prefer both and so they buy from both manufacturers.

It is very erroneous to think all companies in the same industry or niche do the same business. As I've always emphasized, no two businesses are the same even though they operate in the same industries, just as no two siblings are the same even though they are products of the same parent.

So, your first task in creating your own share of the market is to carve out your own share of the market. As I pointed out in the football analogy earlier, there is a general love for the game, but fans of a particular club don't just love football, they love a particular kind of football, the kind played by their club.

In essence that, all clubs play the general game of football but all clubs don't play the same way. In the same manner, all automobile manufacturers make cars, but they don't make cars the same way. The distinction lies in the value creation process. In other words, "how" you create value is what matters and not "what" the market generally perceive as value.

Therefore, creating your own share of your market begins by creating your own unique kind of value that is different from the general kind of value currently obtainable in the market. This simple distinction is what differentiating your business is all about. Its realizing that you all may be in the same industry or niche but don't do business the same way. You'll find this distinction by breaking down the value creation process and deciding on which area to specialize on base on your core competencies and available resources.

2. Know your target customers

Every leader attracts their own kind of followers. That you are a leader doesn't mean everyone is going to line up behind you, certainly not. So, it is your task as the leader to seek out your own kind of followers.

How is this done?

By narrowing your search. This is what the term target customers mean. You have to be able to clearly describe the profit of your ideal follower as a leader.

How does he/she think? Where does he/she go to? Where does he/she live? How does he/she behave? What challenges or problems does he/she face? What does he/she perceive as value? What are their dreams ambitions, goals, desires, or needs? How do you get across with them? All of these questions are not obvious; they are hidden sometimes unknown to the customers themselves.

This is where market research becomes crucial knowing your customers is about getting up close and personal with them. You have to be prepared put yourself in their shoes. You have to be prepared to be patient, attentive and compassionate. Their fear must become your fear, their problems, your problem, their needs, your needs you must become a servant in order to lead them. You must be will to put yourself second and put them first.

Knowing your customers is about understanding the human nature. You have to familiarize yourself work stuffs, like motivation [what moves people to act] psychology [why do people do like they do], perception [how people receive and spread information and other areas of human natures].

I know all these can be intimidating, but believe me when I say this, they are all common sense. The best way to go about them is to become like the target customers. Put yourself in their shoes, think like they do, go to the places they go, do the things they do, value what they value

To attract them you have to be one of them, period.

3. Promote your business

You cannot attract the right kind of followers you want for your business if they don't know about your existence.

After all is said and done, it is the business, company, product or service that is known to the target customers that will gain a large market share. This is a very vital element of the steps needed to increase your business market share. It's just common sense; people buy from those they know. So here is the question, how many people know about your business, company, product or service?

Like I said earlier, market share is a numbers game so it calls for a lot of marketing efforts from you. You have to constantly put your business, company, product or services in the public's eye. If you operate on a local level you have to think going to the state level, from the state to the national level, from national to global.

You have to keep increasing your reach. Get the story about your business, company, product and services out there where those you want as followers can find you.

What options are available to you for doing this?

1. Social Media: The internet is fast becoming the world's most populous domain. You cannot phantom the number of people and the number of hours spent online. So, if you are serious about promoting your business go online. You can read this article on Inbound Marketing by Marcus for more information on how to do this.

2. Branding: A brand is the difference between a business and a company. If all you are is a business then you are dead. People don't become fans, followers, believers or addicts of businesses, they identify with companies.

A company is a living entity. A business is an economic activity.

I won't talk more about this here, as I have written about this before you can read more about it on my business blog below this article. Here are the two articles that covers this;

Branding in 8 Simple Steps

The 4 Elements of Effective Branding

3. Advertise, Advertise, Advertise: This speaks for you it self get all forms of advertisement, online, offline, newspaper, radio.

Courtesy: Tito Philips, Jr

3 Simple Facebook Marketing Tips to Keep in Mind

2011-10-29T00:43:00.000-07:00

With over 750 million users globally on Facebook, Facebook marketing is a popular way to reach a wider target audience. Since Facebook marketing is totally different from any other type of marketing previously done on the Internet, it is important to learn how to use Facebook properly for business. Otherwise, it will cost you money, time and effort.

Tip #1: Keep it Social Before Selling

With the thought of millions of customers in short reach through Facebook, many businesses make the common mistake of pitching their product or service directly to the users.

The most crucial factor to remember is that people on Facebook are there primarily to socialize with other users. They are not primarily there to shop and purchase products. If you attempt to sell directly or hard sell to members of Facebook, you will not be successful.

However, if your business is serious about using Facebook as a tool to market your product or service, the first step is to create a Business/Fan page on Facebook and invite people to like the page. Use this page to create buzz around what your business has to offer. Your product or service should offer solutions to your target audience.

The next step is to post value driven content to the people on your page. You can post pictures, videos and other commentary that provides some kind of benefit to your target audience and fans. Urge your fans to take action by posting comments and queries pertaining to your post. The key here is to get them to engage with your page, and develop relationships with them. Since Facebook is an online platform where people go to socialize, ensure that it is an exciting experience for them to go to your page.

Tip #2: Increase Your LIKES or Fans

Why is it desirable for your business for people to click LIKE on your page? Every time you put fresh information on your page, each person who LIKED your page will see the post on their newsfeed.

Therefore, if two thousand people LIKED your Facebook page, there is a potential of up to two thousand people to see your post, and potentially create a viral effect.

Tip #3: Use Facebook Advertisements

You can spread the word of your page and increase the number of Likes to your page by using Facebook Advertisement (Ads). Facebook Ads are quite different from Google AdWords. With Facebook, it is easier to target a specific demographic audience. A crucial feature of a Facebook ad is the graphic or picture used in the advertisement. It is essential to select an image that will draw the attention of people, which encourages them to see your advertisement and click on it.

To achieve success with your ad, you should target your possible viewers, and you can use the services of a website like Quantcast.com to access the demographics of the types of people who may be interested in your particular product.

Courtesy: Kris De Leon

Outside, Inside the Box

2011-10-10T01:00:00.000-07:00

Wondering what outside, inside the box is all about? I know you've heard the term "think outside the box", but what does that really mean, and even if you really know the definition do you know how to think outside the box? I created this term to show you there are other ways to think. Am I saying the same thing, as "think outside the box"? Here's the concept, I am outside the box that I am presently in, looking at myself inside and creating ways to get me out of the box. Creating new paths to remove my self from being inside. Want to ponder that for a bit?

You see we're always in a box, perhaps a larger box than before because we have expanded our thinking and ways of getting things done, it's called growing. So every time we want to create something new we must step out of the box. It's almost like contemplating, "how the universe began". Now that will make you crazy. I can tell you from experience it's not easy. Even those of us who have practiced this for years get stuck often enough, and have to step back, step out, and think about what we're trying to achieve. We have to remove ourselves from ourselves by visualizing everything anew.

The goal of thinking outside the box is to actually do that, which means to think differently from what you know and believe. To not use all of the same excuses you always use as to why something cannot be done. You must approach this thinking by throwing away all of your preconceived notions about how you will achieve your goal. Your goal is to create something from nothing, paint your greatest vision on a blank canvas, empty your mind and re-imagine your world. Do you think Fulton, Bell, DaVinci, or others could have created what they did by using the same ideas and tools of others?

Whatever the goal, whether it is to gain more customers, build revenue, figure out how to increase profits, construct a new building or design the city of tomorrow. The magic word is "Create", to bring into existence, to produce or bring about by a course of action or behavior, to produce through imaginative skill something new, and different.

So you're probably wondering how you go about "thinking outside the box"? As I mentioned, you do this by removing yourself from any and all preconceived notions or ideas about how it has been done before. If you were to re-invent the wheel, so to speak, and you needed to transport an object from point A to point B you would not use the same method of how a wheel operates because you need to invent something better, or completely new. Let me try and paint another picture for you. If you mediate this may help. In meditation the goal is to let all thoughts flow through you, by not expanding on the thought that just entered your mind. It's sort of like getting amnesia or having short term memory loss. You want new thoughts and new ideas that can propel you to invent a better wheel, or another completely new method for transportation in this case.

Typically, you or a group of you, will think they are "thinking out of the box", but you will do the same things you have been doing except do more of it. In other words if you are advertising in a magazine, or on a billboard, or on radio or TV, or through social media, or Google ad words, you will just do more of that in an effort to gain more exposure and more customers. While that strategy can work for you are you really doing anything different? You must create something new and different.

In football, they are constantly re-thinking plays. The goal of course is to get the ball into the end zone and score points, but they have dozens, maybe hundreds of strategies to accomplish this, don't they. And they keep inventing new ones all the time. It's the same for you. Easy to think out of the box? No, but if you want unique solutions and to do things and go places no one has ever gone before (Star Trek, couldn't resist) then you need to change your way of doing things.

So what is the 'Key' to "Thinking Out of The Box"? A combination of amnesia, creativity, guts, chance and entrepreneurship. I am reminded of all the job ads I see where they are seeking someone with qualifications having done the same thing as what that company is doing. They believe that the candidate will be able to hit the ground running using the same methods and contacts to achieve a goal sooner. While this may be true for the short term, isn't the goal to differentiate yourself from everyone else. Isn't the goal to actually create something new or use a new method? Many times, I have helped companies just because I didn't know anything about their industry. I'm a new perspective, a new way of thinking and a new chance at having bigger successes. I could go on with stories about why it's so important to "think out of the box", but instead I'll leave you with this... "Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is, yes, "a form of insanity".

Now go and put on a new hat today and create your greatest dream, or hire someone already outside the box to help you get ahead. I can tell you that paying a little more for a consultant can be a lot better, and a lot less expensive in the long term, than paying a little less for an employee, who in the long term may cost a lot more.

I've been improving my life and the lives of others for decades and I invite you learn more about how to improve your life and achieve success with your relationships and increase your financial worth.

At my website http://www.TheCoffeeHouseCoach.com I have free information that will help you immediately. I also have a book called Quantum Shift Into Greatness, which is available in PaperBack or as an eBook.

Finally, if you want coaching I am personally available to you.

So check out my site and I wish you much success in everything you do.

Courtesy: Arthur Tassinello

Catching Monkeys in Business

2011-10-08T14:30:00.000-07:00

As a business coach, when I recognize that my clients are at an impasse, sometimes I ask them this question:

"How do you catch a monkey?"

Usually, they are perplexed by the question. The last person I asked shot back with:

"What the heck, does that have to do with anything?"

But I pressed on:

"Stick with me, because I am going somewhere."

Here's the deal. In certain parts of Africa when they want to catch a monkey, they cut a hole in a coconut, empty it out, and put a few grains of rice inside. Then they tie the coconut to a tree...and wait. After a while, a monkey comes along and spots the coconut. He looks around checking for hunters or prying eyes. When it's safe, he picks up the coconut, looks at it, shakes it, and hears something rattling inside. As a notoriously curious animal, not unlike human beings, he reaches in-the hole is just big enough for him to squeeze his hand into-he feels the few grains of rice, and tries to grab them. Got 'em! He clenches the rice in his fist and tries to pull out his hand... and then a strange thing happens. He can't get his fist out. It's stuck! All he has to do is let go of the rice and he is free...but no way will that monkey let go.

"So...what...?"

Well, if the trapper returns soon enough, he has caught a monkey. If the trapper is busy gathering monkeys from the many other traps he has set in the jungle and he doesn't get back to this monkey in about a week, when he does get there, he collects a dead monkey with a coconut stuck on his hand because, as we know, the monkey will never let go. NEVER! Even if it means death.

"Nice story. How does this relate to business?"

We see owners of companies, sales managers, and supervisors that simply get stuck and will not change the way they do business regardless of how negatively it affects their bottom line, profitability, or the quality of their life. Even if the inevitability of actually having to go out of business confronts them, they simply will not let go (of the coconut) of bad procedures or ineffective ways of doing business. Not convinced? Let us consider how marketing has changed over the years. Here's one example: Yellow Pages out...websites in. How many companies either have no website or have one that looks like a high school kid designed it? Often I hear, "we don't need a website, we never had one before and we are doing just fine."

Even if that is true, which it probably isn't, you need to know that your competition has thought otherwise. So what? Well what that means while you are still hanging on to your old ways of doing business, they are grabbing chunks of your market share... and really appreciate your stubbornness. And, as far as having a high school kid, or a relative create a website for you-not a smart plan. If I want to build a business to support me and my family for years to come together with lots of other people who I would hope to employ, I would NOT have my website be designed by an amateur. Isn't a website really an extension of your business like your storefront is? Might it not make a lot more sense to have a professional do it?

So if you are "monkeying around" with your business that's great. Just be careful, because if you are holding on to archaic procedures or a business modality that just doesn't work as well as it used to work, you may find that you and your company might become one of those growing statistics and you might be doing your part to add a few more names to the unemployment rolls. You could get stuck permanently.

Courtesy: http://outskirtspress.com/webpage.php?ISBN=9781432761196

http://www.excelleronconsulting.com

10 Stunning Secrets For Sure-Fire Success With Any Business Opportunity

2011-10-01T02:43:00.000-07:00

Do you have your own business opportunity that you want to succeed at but you are currently going through a slump? Here are 10 secrets to help to get your business moving in the right direction towards profitability.

1.) DESIRE AND DETERMINATION: Nothing of great value ever happens until you have a burning desire to succeed that is so strong nothing can deter you. To master anything of great value you must possess a strong desire to obtain it. You will never reach or achieve your goals until you are determined to achieve them. You would encounter many road blocks and it would be upon you to either give up or keep going. Determination is all about going for your goals no matter how difficult the circumstances or the situation is.

2.) DIRECTION: Every business aims to achieve long term financial goals. It's always about having a vision, creating a step by step plan and implementing it successfully. A business without a proper vision and plan is like a car without headlights traveling across the highway at high speeds. You never know when it might crash and the same applies to business. When you are running a business without a specified plan it's bound to fall. You can never get somewhere unless and until you know where you need to get. Direction as to where you need to get in the form of goals is extremely important for any business. Your thoughts always precede your actions therefore everything you do in life is planned in your mind before you get practical. Our mind creates the idea and our body works to achieve it.

Goal Setting: Write down clear and measurable goals and targets for your business. Make sure the goals are clear and very specific. A goal that is not so strong is "I want more clients". A better example is "I want to have 15 clients per day, within 2 months of implementing my tactics". Can you see how the second goal is much more effective as it is more detailed and has a time frame to complete the goal?

Organized planning: as the old saying goes, 'Those who fail to plan, plan to fail'. Time management skills can maximize your business productivity a hundred fold. Once you have your goals in place you need to set up a plan. What steps are you going to take to get to your goal? You need to write all this down and put it in a place where you will read it over and over.

3.) STOP TALKING! START DOING!: Start working on your plan and make a change! Break the situation and start making things happen.

4.) FAITH: Most people never take action because they lack faith in themselves. When adversity arises they fold due to a lack of faith and weak desire. Belief in YOURSELF and having a rock-solid plan gives you tremendous energy.

5.) SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE: General knowledge is basically worthless. Knowing how to find the right specialized knowledge you need to accomplish your business opportunity goals is worth its weight in gold.

6.) IMAGINATION: you may have heard how a Korean or Vietnam POW plays a perfect game of golf in his mind each day while being held prisoner. When he comes home from the war he plays that perfect game. Another POW builds his dream house in his mind brick by brick and when he comes home he brings it to reality. Using your imagination for success is strong and very important when used right. The warrior or athlete sees himself 'winning' before he goes out to compete or do battle.

7.) DECISION: Making an important decision and then sticking with it is something that successful people do. Failures cannot make up their mind or they all of the sudden change their mind. This is the same as procrastination.

8.) PERSISTENCE: The late great Thomas Edison said that success is 99% perspiration and only 1% inspiration. Persistence pays off in any business opportunity. It is like sweat equity. If you persist long enough you can succeed.

9.) POWER OF THE MASTER MIND: it is said that when two or more minds come together for a common purpose (like a business opportunity) it creates a larger, more powerful 'third mind'. The most successful people in the world align themselves at least once a week with other successful people of like thoughts and goals.

10.) BE CREATIVE (Use the Brain). Everyone has one but most people don't use it like they should. Common sense is not all that common. Learn to ask your brain important questions for solving problems in your business. You will get answers. Open your eyes to ideas.

Secrets of Success - Gratitude

2011-09-29T01:00:00.000-07:00

Are you aware that one of the traits of the worlds most successful people from Henry Ford to Donald Trump is gratitude?. It may seem a little bizarre at first that this may even be considered, while you might be thinking "Well, of course he's grateful. So would I be, if I was that successful!" But that same attitude could well be sabotaging your own attempts to move forward. Thinking gratitude when you are at the bottom of the hill, will help you in your journey to the top of the hill.

The pat responses that people rattle off when asked the question "What are you grateful for?" tend to edge towards the materialistic more times than not, such as, "I'm grateful I got for my new flat-screen TV." or "I'm grateful for my new car". But dig a little deeper and there are a host of other things to be grateful for.

It can come down to something as basic and rudimentary as being grateful for it being a sunny day, instead of windy and cold. Or on the days when it is windy and cold, for being in a nice warm house. Or just - "I'm grateful for my health."

We can take so many things for granted that being grateful for the small, run-of-the-mill stuff, reflects on so many other elements in your life from your outlook, to your sense of well-being and feelings of optimism or pessimism.

If you have been struggling to get a business off the ground but nothing seems to be working, you may not be feeling it right now, or likewise if you have just had a big argument with a friend, loved one or family member you may not be feeling all that grateful for them either, but if you feel you might not have a lot to be grateful for, a change in perspective, to see things from a different viewpoint. Can be a very powerful and beneficial thing. Instead of concentrating on all the things you don't have and would like to have, try focussing on all the things that you do have.

All it takes is a visit down to your local, soup kitchen, homeless shelter or hospital, to put into correct focus, the amount that you really do have, when compared with those less fortunate than you. If you have a roof over your head, if you have food to eat, if you money to spend, you are already way ahead of the game in comparison to many, many other people.

This change in perspective will clear your vision and allow you to see the possibilities and the opportunities that you have right now. If you are constantly unhappy with where you are, you will be blinded to see that you have far more, and have achieved far more, than many other people.

If you hang a dark cloud on everything, you will always be achieving below your capability. Sir Winston Churchill said "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; An optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." Happiness is not found by acquiring more and more. It is found in valuing what you have.

Just because gratitude is good doesn't mean it's always easy. Practicing gratitude can be at odds with some deeply ingrained tendencies. But here are some sobering thoughts on the benefits of doing so. Gratitude blocks negative emotions, magnifies positive emotions. Grateful people have a higher sense of self-worth leading to greater confidence, and studies show that grateful people, as in those that regularly practice a mindset of gratefulness, are more stress resistant.

Mother Theresa of Calcutta, expressed a very different way of thinking about gratitude. She talked about how grateful she was to the people she was helping in the slums of Calcutta. She was grateful to the poor and the sick and the dying because they enabled her to grow and deepen her spirituality. Whether you are a spiritual person or not, this is something we can all practice. Gratitude for what we can give as opposed to what we can receive.

Courtesy: Declan Ryan

A Simple Key to Your Success

2011-09-26T01:50:00.000-07:00

Recently I sat down with a very successful business person, at my request, to talk about how to become even more successful in business. While I am acquainted with and admire many successful business people in my area, I really wanted to discuss the dynamics of being successful from this one successful person who started from scratch. Not an individual who worked themselves up the ladder of good organizations.

As we talked and enjoyed our lunch, I asked what was his one true key to success, if there is only one? His reply was short, simple, and made great sense. His reply - "Under promise and over produce"! Whether that promise involves putting in long hours, learning a new skill, gaining knowledge about client needs, or various other concepts/ideas. Make your customer #1 so he doesn't go anywhere else for that type of business. Of course, he expanded upon this concept with dealings he had starting out and continuing to this day.

Makes sense doesn't it: under promise - over produce! We have met many through our dealings who over promised and under produced when we needed or wanted their product or service. Think back on those experiences and remember how it made us feel. Not like we were their number one priority did it? What would we have done different? How would we have made the situation right? How could we under promise and over produce?

How do we under promise and over produce? Here are just a few examples, but don't stop there:

Do not create a deadline for your efforts that you know is unreasonable and unattainable.
Know your strengths and weaknesses. Improve upon both!
Don't be afraid to ask for assistance from others around you.
Learn a skill or gain knowledge that can enhance your services to your clients.
Set attainable goals for you, your client and the transaction.
Deliver on your promise way before it is due!
When stating a new segment of your business, start small, learn how to do it correctly every time, then expand that segment.
Give outstanding service.

These are some tough times we are going through. Standing out from the rest is what will make us successful. Become the expert in your field. Whether that is in sales, marketing, being an entrepreneur, or running your business. No matter how large or small, performing the tasks to improve the bottom line will involve many if not all of the suggestions above. With these reminders you want to become the individual people run to for your services; not the person they run from.

Courtesy: Dennis McAuley

Moving From Hesitation to Determination

2011-09-24T01:00:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you start to hesitate when you have to make a decision. Then you often ask yourself: "Should I do this or that? Should I get this one or that one? Whether to choose this or that way?"

You often waste a lot of time and energy on making simple and elementary decisions. Most people are so hesitant that they make a complex dilemma out of simple choices, for example: which of the two blouses to buy, whether to order chicken or fish, should they call or not call to somebody or which table to choose when they go to a restaurant.

Even though such decisions seems to be insignificant, they may turn into a serious problem to those people. Hesitation becomes a part of their individual character and always brings stress in their daily life.

Those people can not relax themselves because they are permanently tortured by their responsibility for an "important" choice they have to make. They also feel afraid of making the wrong decision. The fear of making a mistake or missing something and the fear of failure are hidden behind the hesitation. The lack of determination is related to the permanent feeling of insecurity and lack of self-confidence.

Proactive people decide to have a walk, do it and then go back home. On the contrary the hesitant man still ponders upon that decision and wonders which clothe to put on. Furthermore, when the hesitant person makes a decision he is not certain whether it was the right one.

Even then, the hesitant person continues to torture and questions himself, for example: "What if I did a mistake? May be I had to choose a different decision... why I did not make the contrary decision... I am such a fool"... etc... again and again...

I may have already mentioned to you about the story of the horseman, which I do love very much:

That is a story of a man who is passing by a very dangerous forest riding his horse. He hears a voice telling him that he has to find a wooden stick and spur on his horse as soon as he reaches the middle of the forest before it got dark. Otherwise he would die. He gets off his horse and starts looking for a stick. He has difficulty choosing the most suitable stick - one stick is too short, or too long, or too curved. It took him long hours to find the right stick and by that time it got dark and... he died...

He only had to find a wooden stick, no matter what!

I also remember about the story of the donkey which could not decide which haystack to choose. It took it such a long time to wonder that it starved to death in the end.

In the same way, it may take you a very long time to ponder upon the right choice or the best decision. In the end, you see that life goes by you, you miss thousands of opportunities and keep on standing still.

It is only necessary to choose something, to decide which way to go and move forward.

You often have to make fast decision that can not be postponed. You feel so afraid not to make something wrong and have to react immediately. There is no time to waste on considering and pondering on the decision. As if that blocks your mind and you may give up on making any final decision.

You should realize that the only wrong thing to do is not to make any decision or choice at all.

How to learn to make fast decisions?

You have to realize that there are no right and wrong decisions. There are just different decisions. You only have to make your choice and go forward. It is much worse when you do not decide anything and the fear of failure makes you give up on making a decision.

You should remember that it is much better to try and make a mistake, than not to try anything at all. You can learn a lot of lessons from your "mistake", than if you stay at a "secure" stand still position. When you try to achieve something, that strengthens your faith in your own potential. Thus you know that whatever happens it will be okay in the end. And that is a great success.

You should know that the decision you make in the first five minutes is the right one. Every additional consideration, analysis etc. will lead you to hesitation and torture and will lead you to the wrong direction.

You should try to feel for a moment which alternative you would like more and take action immediately. You should have trust into your inner feeling and intuition. Do not think about your decision that much.

Eventually, nobody knows what may happen in future and what circumstances will appear. There will be pros and cons and advantages and disadvantages of every decision that you make.

You should remember that you would lose more only if you hesitate and do not make any decision.

Do not waste your time on wondering and standing at the cross road, just choose one of the directions and go forward.

Some time ago, I read a very interesting story of a businessmen who was famous for making fast decisions. There were a lot of people who went to him asking him for advice. They were impressed by his ability to determine what is the right decision instantly. He did that with such a self-confidence and authority that it was undoubtedly that he knew the right decision. His ability to make fast decision made him famous and brought incredible success to his company.

When people asked him what was his secret, he answered to them:

"- That is very simple - it is called Beans. I have a few beans in my pocket. I always grab a few of them when I have to answer in a positive or a negative way. If I take out a couple of beans my answer is "yes", and if I take an odd number of beans I say "no"."

May be that seems to be irrational to you but it is very smart in fact. Circumstances are very often similar to that situation - you just have to choose something and go forward because every further consideration and hesitation would make things worse and more complex.

You must make a decision and move forward. There is no need to suffer from hesitation and doubt. Just take action and go ahead because you must make more and more decisions as you go further.

John Kehoe suggests a very nice method for making fast decisions in his book "Mind power":

"Relax your body, breathe in deeply or just move your shoulders a little bit. Try to feel calm and relaxed. Calm down the flow of your thoughts. After that, say confidently to yourself between ten and twenty times the following:

"I always make the right decision."

Feel the strength of those words. Speak with self-confidence. You must immediately make your decision as soon you repeat this phrase for last time.

In this way you will avoid logical reasoning thus that will let your intuition show you the right decision. The first thing that comes to your mind will be your own answer."

I do it in my own way using the following method:

I start counting slowly to 10. I repeat to my mind that when I finish to 10, the decision will come to my mind. When I say - "ten", I listen to my inner voice and the first thought that appears to my mind is my decision. I have never been mislead by this technique.

I remember a moment of a great hesitation when I did not know which one of two things to choose. I started to practice my technique and as soon as I got to 10, a completely different solution appeared to my mind. That was a real surprise to me because it was not predicted in my plans. In fact that was a very suitable and effective alternative.

After you have already made a decision you should not waste time wondering whether it was the right or not. Do not turn back and do not ask yourself questions - "Did I do the right thing? May be I had to choose the other alternative...." etc...

Do not get yourself crazy. The decision was made. Just move forward.

Courtesy: Rositza Vakavchieva

Finding Focus: Self-Discipline Vs Passion

2011-09-22T07:46:00.001-07:00

Few skills are as important as the ability to focus. Like a magnifying glass to the sun, focus is the mechanism by which it becomes possible to concentrate the diffuse sunshine of thought into a sharp pointed laser-beam. When your laser is on target, you're able to burn your way to success far more efficiently and effectively than you otherwise could.

There are two primary channels through which to gather focus:

i) Self-discipline

ii) Passion

Self-discipline is a skill. As with any skill, it can be improved through training and practice. With sufficient coaching or training, it's possible to become far more self-disciplined, and, as a result, focused. At the same time there's an upper-limit to the amount of self-discipline you can develop. This upper-limit is set by your natural ability to be self-disciplined. Those with a natural propensity for self-discipline are generally able to put their heads down and plow through whatever it is that needs to get done, regardless of whether they like it or not. Since focusing on your talent is inherently satisfying, for the naturally self-disciplined the accomplishment that flows from the effort becomes its own reward.

With the less disciplined, the circumstances of the job are much more important for their ability to focus. The less disciplined will derive little to no satisfaction from applying themselves to what "has" to get done. Rather, to find their focus the less disciplined must turn to what they "want" or "need" to get done. This requires that they tap into their passions. Unlike self-discipline, passion is neither a talent nor a skill - it's an emotion. Like any emotion, it can't be harnessed by force, logic or reason. As Blaise Pascal said, "the heart has its reasons which reason knows not of."

So the key for the less disciplined is to find what speaks to their hearts, and there are two key ways to do this. First, you can make sure that you employ your own natural talents on the job. Just as the naturally self-disciplined can derive satisfaction from work that allows them to draw on their gift, so too can the undisciplined find joy in work that allows them to focus on their gifts, whatever those may be. The key here is to make sure that there is a fit between the talent and the requirements of the job.

The second way to tap into your passion is by appealing to your values. The root of the word "motivation" is "motive", and people are most motivated by the things that matter to them most. If you're not naturally self-disciplined, and you're in the unenviable position of having a job that does not employ your natural talents, the only ways for you to gain focus are either through a lot of hard coaching or training, or by aligning your work with your values. Otherwise, you will forever be unmotivated, unfocussed, and ultimately ineffective at what you do.

The ideal, of course, is to align your work both with your natural talents and your values. When you're able to do that, then it doesn't really matter whether you derive your focus from self-discipline or passion. The end result will be the same: laser-beam focus and a high level of effectiveness in all you do.

Courtesy: Adam Kay

Is There Really A Secret To Financial Freedom?

2011-09-09T12:38:00.000-07:00

Even with many types of investments today that provide a lot of options for an individual to pursue and take advantage of its money making potential, you still wonder how are you suppose to know what the best deals are. But with the power of the Internet and some basic research, anyone can become knowledgeable about the different financial opportunities available.

If you are looking for additional resources for your financial freedom or if you just need some extra money to pay for your daily expenses, it is important to take a look at the different investment strategies so as to identify the best one for you. Identifying the strengths and weaknesses will help you decide what type of investment you qualify for.

But after everything, the challenge now is how to have lasting financial success and why is it so difficult to achieve. Setting up business goals is fairly easy but achieving them is a different feat. So learning the magic formula for long term success is quite so easy. According to Forbes.com, there are five secrets to financial success, and these are:

1. Invest the time necessary to develop your values: What you really want and why?

2. Compare your reality to your values: Do adjustments need to be made?

3. Make small changes first. You can only eat the proverbial elephant one bite at a time.

4. Think balance: self deprivation is no way to ease into change.

5. Celebrate and savour your progress.

Depending on how you define the meaning of success, a lasting financial success varies from person to person. Setting and achieving long term goals I believe is the road to financial success. When you have set your goals in realistic terms, you'll see credible results. Such as if you have set your goals in terms of financial achievement, you need to put that plan in action.

Indeed, you can and will achieve financial freedom. If you have the right attitude and take advantage of the financial opportunities coming your way, success is within your reach. What's important is that you learn how to be in control by staying within your budget and live according to your financial capability.

If you feel you have to search the web further about the secrets of having financial freedom I recommend you do so, there's more to the above guidelines. But I believe there is not really an absolute secret to success, the only requirement needed is for you to focus on the process.

Courtesy: Dan Thorley

6 Keys to Motivating Your Team

2011-09-08T01:00:00.000-07:00

I have seen many speakers, read many articles and heard many ideas on how best to motivate team members. There are so many opinions and ideas with different steps and methodologies that it is easy to lose focus on what is important, the team member!

Unfortunately, there is no "one way fits all" approach to motivating team members. But there are the six key factors you need to take into account if you want your efforts to have an impact.

1. Make It Personal

A cookie cutter approach to rewarding or motivating your team will not work. Every one of your team members has different dreams, goals and reasons for coming to work. For some a handwritten note from the CEO will mean the world, for others only cash will do. Get to know your team. Find out what makes them tick. What hobbies do they have? What does their family need? What can you get for them that they would love but can't get themselves?

Money is not always the answer. In fact, it is frequently not the best motivator. A lot gets taken in tax, it just becomes money in their bank account and nothing special. There also comes a time when people have enough money. Find out what hits their hot buttons and then hit it!! (Repeatedly if you can and if they deserve it!)

2. Do It In The Right Location

Some people love the spotlight. Nothing would make them feel better than to be up on stage in front of the entire company receiving rapturous applause for a job well done. For other people, this would be their idea of hell. They just need a little bit of acknowledgment from one or two of "the right" people and that is all they need. Again, you need to know the personality of your team member to acknowledge them in the right location.

3. Make It Worthwhile

If the effort to motivate is not worthwhile, you will find you have in fact DE-motivated them. When I started in the IT industry, I had worked hundreds of hours overtime on a particular long-term project and then got a bonus that worked out being 2 cents an hour. The bonuses were the joke of the office. If they had given us an extra 3 days of annual leave it would have cost them the same and we would have been thrilled. One of my coaching clients said, "I can't bear the thought of getting another movie ticket for doing a good job. It is such a waste."

Sometimes the "token gesture", while well-meaning and with good intent, does more harm than good. Make sure that what you are doing is worthwhile for the team member and not just going through the motions.

4. Link It To Behaviour

Ultimately you are motivating your team to get them to repeat certain behaviours. So if you are having a conversation with them and the CEO about what a great job they have done, the sales results they have generated or the completion of a project, make sure they associate the conversation or reward with the behaviour. It is very much like Pavlov's Dogs. You want the behaviour related to the reward so that they repeat the behaviour.

5. Make It With Pride

For many people, receiving an acknowledgment is about the emotion of the situation and not any physical reward. Many managers have handed out rewards, bonuses and even pay rises like Santa throwing lollies to crowds of children. "Here's one for you and one for you and one for you....."

Make it special. Make it really count for your team. They need to feel loved and appreciated and have pride in their accomplishment.

6. Do It

Motivate your team however you can. Don't worry if you get it wrong. For many people the fact that you are trying something is enough. But do something. Do not believe for a moment that the salary or wage is enough. You need to do something extra to keep them fired up and with a sense of loyalty and belonging.

Typically, saying "Thank You" and acknowledging their efforts and results will make a huge difference. So even if you are restricted financially and can't do anything special for the team you can at least acknowledge their work and what it means to you and the company's overall results.

The reality is that you cannot motivate anyone on your team. Motivation is up to them. It is something that only the individual can do. All you can do is create the circumstances in which they are most likely to remain positive and driven to get the results you are after. Get to know your team. Find out what they like and what energises them, as individuals and as a team. Something as simple as a team BBQ could do wonders. Whatever you chose, stop thinking about it and do it.

Courtesy: Warwick Merry

Connect With Confidence: Sales Communication Training

2011-09-05T01:00:00.000-07:00

Are you preparing an important sales pitch? Are you searching for the best data, current statistics and impressive quotes? Find out how the 5 most important secrets to make a great impression.

Whether you are connecting with clients or prospects, your success depends on how you communicate. More and more sales professionals know that communication is the key ingredient of success. In fact, sales communication training is growing by leaps and bounds. The reason why? Sales norms, sales standards, and sales practices have changed.

Gone are the days of the plaid suit. Gone are the days of the talk-as-fast-as-you-can and never listen. Gone. Good-bye.

If your organization wants to escape outdated modes of selling, act fast. It's time to boost confidence with communication training. Here are 5 tips to get the ball rolling in the right direction.

1. Ask More Than Answer

There's no simpler way to start communicating... and stop pitching. Ask more questions. Ask about facts, figures, experiences and feelings. Ask about history and culture. Ask about trends and patterns.

Ask your clients and prospects to show you what's important in their world.

See...i t's not all about your product and services. In fact, it's much more about getting into their worldview.

2. Get Curious

As tempting as it is to jump in and solve every problem, don't. Get curious. This means, continue Tip 1. Ask more questions. Ask why. Ask how. Ask why again.

Focus on extracting their real experiences, problems and frustrations. The more you get curious, the more you'll see the real picture. And it won't be a partial, tip of the iceberg view. It will be a deep, powerful and insightful understanding of their needs-and the ideal solutions.

3. Shift Focus

Keep going. This is where the rubber meets the road. Shift your focus from "I" to "You."

In classic terms, this is also where the shift happens between features and benefits. But so many people struggle with this and continue to mush them together, that this is an easier way to get to the core.

If you are talking about things that matter to you, your organization or your product and services, you are speaking in "I" terms. More often than not, you're focusing on features.

If you are speaking to things that matter most to your customer, you are addressing "You" terms. This is the secret side door to speak to benefits.

Seriously. Thousands of expert sales professionals continue to mix this up. Take the shortcut through the side door. Shift things that have a "You" focus.

4. Listen

The lost and ancient art. There's a lot to learn about listening. It is not just waiting until the other person finishes. It is not forming smart responses while the other person talks. It is not jumping in at rapid-fire speed to look intelligent.

Listening is more than that. Practice the art of listening. Truly listen. Listen to what your client is saying...and not saying. Listen to the emotions underscoring different phrases. Listen to what he or she is saying with their body language.

If you want to improve your sales communication skills, focus on listening. Working with an executive coach is the quickest way to build these skills. You'll get personal attention, skills practice, and situational exercises to get better at listening.

5. Add Value

Communication is more than filling space. It's about adding value. As you get more insights into your clients and prospective clients, think long and hard about adding value.

Look outside the bounds of printed materials, case studies and whitepapers. Think about what your client would truly value. Keep asking this question and you'll jump start creative answers-that will give you a competitive edge.

Oh. One more thing.

While your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife is not on your sales team... you can use each of these tips at home. Who knew that sales communication training could lead to happier relationships?

Courtesy: Milly Sonneman