Lynear Thinking

Why I’d rather die on principle than on sale.

2017-02-26T08:49:00.000-06:00

So I have been immersed in the retail game for a year now, as the owner of ZÖE Shoes. People come in and say, this is your dream come true. I always smile, because, yes, I love parts of the business. I love that every person who comes to my shoppe has a story and a reason for being there. I love helping them find the perfect shoe or outfit for their life, and I love the shoes, and I love fashion. And I love that my shoppe evokes a dream reaction for my customers. Because my shoppe exists solely for their enjoyment and pleasure.

On February 1, Lynear Thinking acquired the brand “Zoe’s Boutique”, which at that time had been in operation for 29 years under two previous owners. In my first year of business (365 days) I rebranded from Zoe’s to ZÖE, which is the Greek word for life, renovated and updated the retail space in line with the new brand, and then moved the store due to long term leasing, parking and accessibility concerns from downtown to 1732 Badham Blvd. to a new shopping, living and business development. The new ZÖE is designed and intended to carry the brand and the legacy into the future.

ZÖE is the continuation of a legacy brand, now in its 30th year. So yes, it’s got dream aspects, but also it is a great responsibility, because it has a legacy to live up to and to build at the same time. And it is a financial risk, like any small business is to the business owner. But it’s not a a small financial risk.

I came into this business knowing a bit more than some, and a lot less than others. I have had a seat in the boardrooms in large corporations, non-profits and cooperatives for over 20 years, working with them to build their companies, realize their visions, tell their stories. So I did not walk into this venture cold not knowing how to build a business and engage its community in the process.

As for retail, I have worked at the strategy level, but I have never owned a retail business before. But I have studied independent retail and covered it almost exclusively as the owner and publisher of SKY Magazine, which is dedicated to boutique businesses. So I spent a lot of time in boutiques, so that I could understand how to help them grow their business.

I would see and hear things that I found to be disturbing, and yes, even disrespectful to the boutique business owners. And now as a boutique owner, I too have seen it happen in my own business.

I have seen and heard people asking to try on a product to see what size they should order online, with no intention of buying it. I have seen and heard people asking for the wholesale price, and in some cases, implying the boutique owner was taking too much profit for themselves. I have heard people recite an online price and ask for it. I have personally been asked for more of a discount, when an item is already 40% off - which is already at the point of free in my world.

In particular, I am talking about the impact that online shopping has had on independent boutique businesses, and the consumer’s apparent misunderstanding of the difference between an invisible economy (the online economy) and the local economy (the store in which they are standing at the time).

On line shopping has changed shopping. That’s just a reality. As a boutique owner, we need to find ways to be competitive in this market. But the virtual experience is not real, and never will be. When you are standing inside someone’s shoppe, you can pick up the product, feel it, smell it and try it on. It’s personal. To the Boutique owner, it’s personal too. But it’s also business.

Independent businesses compete with the world, as well as each other, for the sale. We each try to bring something special to the market place, but we are each measured, in the end, by the one outcome - profit. In the end, if we can’t be profitable, we cannot be in business.

And our businesses are competing with multi national companies with resources well beyond ours. We are responsible for every single aspect of the business, from buying, to accounting, to inventory control and management, to marketing, human resources, community relations and client service. We do it all, and every penny has a place in our businesses.

Seeing Red

The “S” word, as I like it (Sale) is something that is unique to the retail industry. You will never see a a sale sign on the window of another type of business. Never. You might see marketing and promotions but not the S word. I am opposed to the use of the S word as a principle of business.

Yesterday a business owner of an art gallery shared that they never put things on sale because it would devalue the work of the artist.

In retail, putting things on sale does devalue the product by definition, and its creators, and it devalues the business that exists to sell those products.

So it’s the same thing. Sales devalue the work. And that makes the work unsustainable. And when it becomes unsustainable, it will eventually cease to exist.

I don’t have sale signs on my windows. I can barely utter the word, but yes, I do have items that need to leave. And once my primary customers have purchased what they would like, the rest is there for others to be discovered.

In the world of business, whether its a shoe store or an accounting firm, it is important to replenish the client base - to attract new people to the business. It’s a numbers game, as my dad, the original sales man, would say. Some people become loyal customers and others drift on by.

The online world is the place where drifters shop, I think. And that’s a reality. Shopping does fulfill the basic human instinct to hunt, so the online shopping model does feed that need. I get that. I have a Pinterest board too, and yes, I do “review” websites and online stores, but quite honestly, I can count the number of things I have purchased over my lifetime on one hand.

That being said, the online game does have value. It’s just a different customer who is looking for a different experience, and quite likely a lower price, but not always. It’s also not a personal experience. Sometimes the online shopper is just looking for the chance to shop any time, day or night, to hunt for that elusive thing. But as a business owner, the relationship extends to the transaction of the purchase itself. There is no relationship invested. Just cash.

So almost one year past my first renovation of ZÖE, I am about to launch an online store, that will house my “sale” items, as well as new items, because there is a market and a customer waiting for it.

Have a lovely Sunday.

Lynn

The Rebirth of ZÖE: 365 Day Reflection

2017-01-31T11:46:00.000-06:00

365 days ago today I walked into the doors of Zoe's Boutique in the Old City Hall Mall in downtown Regina. I remember I was wearing a blue dress and black Michael Kors boots. I was handed the keys and that was that. I had a plan, but as we all know in business, a plan is only a plan until it can be proven.

The business plan was built on two core assumptions regarding the lease and revenue targets based on the previous owner's business

During the planning process, I hired an accountant with a specialization in retail. We looked at the numbers and could see a trend and a risk that these two assumptions may not hold to be true given external environmental factors and demographics. This was not a surprise to me. But I also knew that the business name, Zoe, held positive memories. The key was to turn the positive memories back into loyalty.

So the business plan became about the reinvention of this business as a shoe store, building on the memory of its then 29 year old name in the market place, and inspiring the imagination of those who had either never heard of it, or had forgotten about it.

Within two weeks, we began to implement the plan, beginning with a face lift of the original location in the Old City Hall Mall. We moved the contents of the store into the space next door (created a pop up) while we ripped out 20 year old carpet, scraped the glue off the 106 year old stone floors, freshened up the paint and created a new layout and racking design for the store.

At the same time, we hired Arcas Advertising to help with the rejuvination of the former logo, with a younger, more modern look that would reinspire our customers, and tell the story of this new life that was being rebirthed. We dropped the 's on the former name (Zoe's) and added an umlaut to the o. The new name, ZÖE, was chosen, which translates to the word, "Life."

We moved back into the space by the end of February (after a two week renovation of working days and nights) and launched the new brand at the same time.

There were limited orders for spring in the books, and the time for ordering would have been the previous fall, so we went to the market place to buy shoes. At the same time we were buying for the fall season.

The new look and the new brand started to attract attention. As people walked into the store, they would stop and say things like, "this is different," "this is a beautiful", "this reminds me of a shoppe that belongs in a bigger city", and "what happened here?"

The original footprint had a 250 square feet of actual retail space, because a large shoe storage room occupied the majority of the store. Our plan was to take it down and install an open shoe shelf system. When I went to talk to the landlord about it, she said that there would be no point, because we wouldn't be there long term. The Globe Theatre Society owns the building and have plans to renovate the building, so the lease was expected to end. Other tenants in the building moved as well, and it seemed that the empty spaces were going to stay that way. In addition, the downtown decisions regarding parking enforcement and traffic flow, and the fact that there were fewer and fewer neighboring retail businesses, meant that traffic flow to the store was desperate. So the targets as projected in the business plan could not be proven.

These two factors led to the search for a new location a year sooner than we thought would be necessary. We looked at several spaces downtown but the conditions were not optimum for our business. We needed street access, parking and to be part of a neighbourhood of businesses.

In August, we made the decision to move the store to the newest retail / business / living development, Canterbury Commons, on the southern fringe of downtown, just one block south of College Avenue and Broad Street - close to where the original Zoe's Boutique began 30 years ago.

During August, September, October, the space was designed and built to spec by Fiorante Homes and Commercial. In October, our own contractor Kirk Williamson came in to build the shoe library, stairways and furniture.

On October 30 we began to move and by November 3, we opened the new location at 1732 Badham. Early indications (November, December, January) indicate that the business plan is achievable.

On February 1, we are celebrating the rebirth / first birthday of our new ZÖE, and the grand opening of the new shop at 1732 Badham Blvd. 2017 is also the 30th year since the original Zoe's Boutique came into being.

The new ZÖE is a premium personalized shopping experience. The new space features stairway displays for shoes as designed in our previous location, a custom designed and built shoe library and racking systems and movable dressing room custom built from construction materials. The floor in our new space is concrete with a touch of sparkle, which is perfect for a store where most people look down at their feet, and the lighting - 54 track heads and eight runway lights in daylight bulbs that show off our products and create a positive environment for our customers and staff.

To my family who worked with me throughout the year to create the vision of the new ZÖE, and my customers and peers in the business community who supporting us this year, thank you.

In 365 we created a new life for ZÖE. On February 1, we celebrate the first of many birthdays, and the grand opening of our new space at 1732 Badham Blvd.

Why Blocking Competition is a Bad Business Strategy

2016-08-12T11:34:00.003-06:00

I own a magazine that is focused on promoting independent business and entrepreneurship, a shoe store bearing the name of 29 year old brand that is undergoing reinvention, and a consulting business that helps businesses plan and develop strategies to be successful. I am also a yoga teacher, so what I am about to say comes from my general world view that it's better to be collaborative.

I seek out the people who are making things happen. I am interested in who they are, their outlook on life and business, and what they focus on. Through each of these lenses, I have learned what it takes to be successful in the market place, more often than not.

Successful people focus on their own ball. They have a vision, and everything they do is about bringing that vision to life.
They live and work with good intention. Not bad. Good intentions lead to good things, while bad intentions do too.
Successful people stay competitively strong by understanding their customer and responding quickly and eloquently.
Successful people are not afraid, but they are not ill informed either. They take measured risks - which means they risk only what they can afford to lose.
Successful people engage with other successful people. They make friends and build a community of like minded people around them, because they know that word travels fast, and you need to know who you can trust and who you shouldn't.

All of this flies in the face of something that I am seeing in the market place. Blocking.

Yesterday, I was told that a health and wellness business had the right to exclude anyone else from teaching yoga in the area. To that I replied, "they can't own yoga. Yoga is older than life." And what if the yoga sucks in this place? So that means no one gets to teach or practice yoga because it will eventually die. This attempt to eliminate competition or potential product competition through real estate lease transactions is counter to free enterprise thinking.

Blocking other business will not assure your success. Here's why.

There is a good chance that you can't be all things to all people. As in the case of yoga, finding the right yoga teacher is a very personal endeavour, just as it is finding a pair of jeans or a buying a car or finding a hair stylist. If there is no other option, people will vote with their feet and likely never return to the area, or your business, if there isn't another option in the vicinity.
Blocking other businesses is not goal of business. Gaining new customers, serving them well and making it easier for them to buy your product or service is. And it takes traffic to bring customers. You want to be where others are going. Why are their multiple car lots clustered together? Because they know that when someone is shopping for a car, the chance of closing a sale is higher if the customer stays in the area.
Blocking is not differentiating. Blocking is a defensive move. Not an offensive one. Have a vision. A story of who you are. Understand your customer and who he or she is, how they want to be treated, and then develop the people, systems, environment and processes to wow them.
Blocking will alienate you from others. And that's a lonely and dangerous place to be in a free enterprise market. My personal feeling is that is will lead to failure. On some level. Definitely.

Eurythmics - Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves

2016-05-04T23:45:00.001-06:00

It depends.

2016-01-04T15:19:00.000-06:00

Having led both strategic planning and enterprise risk management for large companies, my perspective is this:it depends. Let's break it down.

1. Culture

Yes. ERM is a part of making the culture. But in my experience, for ERM to be effective, there must be a culture of honesty, proactive leadership, open communication, and planning. Without these pillars, ERM will be nothing short of painful. Here's why this matters. What if there is a governance risk that needs to be addressed, but the governing leaders see it as a threat? I rest my case.

ERM does contribute to culture, because the process stimulates discussion and analytics about the environment and its impact on the business. But like all planning - related processes, there is some guess work involved and ERM is not a fail safe method of subverting disaster. It is a way to seeing it coming.

ERM is strictly about possiblity and probably. There could be a storm tonight. The probabilty of it occuring is X. The impact is Y. If the probability is high and the evidence suggests the impact will be high also (e.g. the clouds are circling and the sky is green) then the response will be (hopefully) to batten down the hatches and stay in, etc. Regardless of the response, though ERM is about taking chances with your eyes wide open. The key is to have intelligence and facts to paint the picture.

2. Strategic Planning

Integrating the ERM in the discussion supported by an environmental scan can be a great way inform strategy. Understanding the environment and both the opportunities and threats (upside and downside risk) is how strategy is formed. ERM does not mean not taking chances. But part of the framework needs to be an organizational understanding of how much of a risk taker the organization is. That's the hard part. It comes down to gut feel sometimes. The way I see it, planning to be prepared can't be a bad thing. Part of the discipline of ERM is being able to manage risk effectively as it occurs. An organization will never be risk free. The only question is, do you feel lucky?

An Integrated ERM and Strategy Planning Process

Think of two roads: Road 1 is strategy. Road 2 is risk. On Road 1, we look at the possiblity of the future and plan the steps that need to be taken to achieve that future. On Road 2, we look at the possible events that could occur that might impact the strategy, both positively and negatively. One informs the other. Therefore, these two processes need to be integrated at the strategy level.

Here's a quick overview of how it fits together and what the process might look like.

1. Board sets the vision and strategic direction.

2. Management establishes goals, measures and targets.

3. Management prepares a fact-based environmental scan.

4. Two teams are esstablished to review the environmental scan. Areas such as political, technological, people, clients / users, society, economic and other factors are taken into consideration.

Team A. Risk Event Identification (downside)

The team explores the possible events that could negatively impact the acheivement of the goals. Each of the risk events that are identified are supported with facts as to what, when, why and how the event may affect the organzation. The ERM team conducts analysis of the risks with the risk owners. The report includes ratings for Impact, Probability and over all ratings via voting. The risks are heat mapped. A report is prepared and presented to the executive.

Team B. Opportunity Identification (upside)

Team B is thinking about the future as it could unfold, and the possible opportunities that could emerge that the organization can capitalize upon. Each of these opportunities are supported with facts as to what, when, why, and how the opportunity could affect the organization's goals positively. For example, an opportunity to address employee morale could result in an increase of y% for employee engagement.

5. The teams come together to consider both views to consider if all the possiblities have been considered, and if there is agreement. Both Risks and Opportunities are categorized and assigned.

Strategic level (the responsiblity of the executive / board) become part of the organization's strategic plan as initiatives.
Operational level (the responsiblity of the management / operational teams) are assigned to department leads as initiatives.

6. Action Planning

Opportunties (soon to be initiatives) are assigned for planning. The format is as follows:what will be done, when, by whom, resources impact (financial, people, systems, processes). Each plan is reviewed by management team, and specifically those who support the plan (initiative owners, mangers and contributing supporters) and signed off in agreement. Executive sponsors sign off. The document is rolled up (forming a draft plan)
Risk are assigned for action plans to be developed. The format is as follows: what will be done, when, by whom, resources impact (financial, people, systems, processes). Each plan is reviewed by the management team, and particularly those parties that support the plan (risk owners, maangers and contributing supporters) and signed off in agreement. Executive sponsors sign off. The document is rolled up (forming a draft risk registry.)

8. Resource requirements are submitted into the budget model and rolled up for impact. The executive / senior management reviews the budget and determines actions that are needed. Plans are adjusted accordingly.

9. The strategic plan is rolled up to include goals, measures, targets, initiatives, a risk registry and budget.

10. Communication and Accountablity: hold a launch meeting and roll out the plan to all stakeholders as appropriate. Design a communication strategy that meets the needs of the various audiences. This will help to determine method, format, content for each stakeholder.

11. Reporting and Feedback

Report against the plan to ensure progress. Check in with changes to the environment, both internal and external,,

Implementation Challenges

Sd is its vision and strategic direction, goals, measures, targts and initiatives

I believe that Strategy and ERM should be a combined / integrated effort to be led at the corporate level.

It should stand alone as a business unit with an objective purpose to facilitate and guide the discussion, document the accountablities and plans, and lead the reporting process. The key principle of ERM is that risk is owned where risk occurs. Therefore, it must be cascaded through the organization as appropriate, where it must be managed and reported upon.

Goal clarity is a must but goals are in a continuous state of refinement. That is why they must be visited and reviewed quarterly in the reporting process, and annually in the planning process. ERM and Planning once again are inextricably linked when you consider the power of cascading plans.

One must consider the culture and that is where the stumbling blocks often reside. A culture of fear, for example, will be highly risk adverse and frozen at times to have the discussions that need to be had. If the culture lacks honesty and courage, then it will be difficult to tackle the real risks that could bring an organization down, such as leadership risk and governance. Assessing culture is therefore a first step in the process, which includes establishing the governance and accountablity framework (which may includea revision to the Board Terms of Reference) policy, process, framework, terms of reference, and language. From there, the next step is to begin to apply the process - try it on and find the difficulties, and determine if the process needs to be adjusted, or the education levels increased for the decision makers. This is where CEO leadership comes to play. When the going gets tough, someone at the top needs to keep the process on task and hold the team accountable.

In terms of deciding the scope of ERM, I would suggest the question of how far, how fast, and what culture is required needs to be addressed. ERM can focus at the corporate level first, where I would suggest the culture and appetite for ERM would be established. In my experience, ERM is as much a commuication exercise as it is part of strategic direction and planning. It takes time to understand how to have the conversation, especially if they don't understand the words and the implications of those words. Goal clarity is a must also.

When we think of risk, we think of things going awry. Risk is a term that scares the beegeebees out of us. We are conditioned to believe risk is a bad thing. But risk is neither good, nor bad. Risk is just risk. Risk is inherent in absolutely everythiing we do, every step we take, every breath we make, every action we undertake, every reaction. Risk is part of life. It is essentially the unknown, or what is unknowable. Risk is real.

In the planning world where i spend the the majority of my mind, risk is there too. It is in the decison making, the process, the people, and the environment.

I recently attended a meeting of local strategic planners where the topic of risk was under discussion. The question was, should it be integrated into the planning process, and how.

The answer is yes. Strategic and operational planning are essentially change processes that explore where to go, how to get there, and what resources are needed. Since risk is real, there are real risks that need to be considered.

I like to think of risk as upside and downside.

Investing in the market, for example, can create positive returns (upside) or not (downside.)

Getting in your car and driving can result in getting to your destination (upside) or not (downside).

Going on a vacation can result in fun and relaxation (upside) or it can result in illness, bad weather, etc. (downside)

You get the idea. So risk identification needs to be proven. I would suggest that this work be completed by the risk owners and managers who have the most knowledge.

However, the not so easy part is proving and quantifying risk.

Getting back to what is risk, it is an event that can be described in tangible terms. The event must be described and fully is must be tangible and supported by facts. When there are no facts or evidence to support the is essential The discussion of risk identification and action planning should be integrated into the planning process, since the purpose of planning is to determine what level of risk the organization willt ake t It should be integrated into strategic planning. The "how" question requires a little more explanation. But I will explain what I believe works the best based on my experiences with organizations.

1. Practice Foresight.

Risk is essentially the unknown. So try to become visionary. Look for what could happen in the external envirionment and the internal environment and ask yourself, how could this effect us. Play the "what if" game. What if interest rates soared to 19%. What would happen. How would we react?

2. Get the facts.

Now get the facts on these possiblities. What are the indicators that something is coming down the pipe.

3. Bring the facts together with foresight.

Share the facts with the fore-seers and visionaries, then go deep on the discussion. Think about the upside and the down side. Think about the possiblities. What would happen if . . .

For probability, set a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being unlikely and 10 being likely.

4. Give it a number.

Risk Severity = Probability of Occurrance X Impact of Occurance.

5. Heat Map it.

Look at how many trends are in the "red" - or the not zone.

We believe

What is the probability it could happen? What is the impact if it did? Now do the math. Establish a scale of 1 to 10 (for example) from unlikely to likely. interest rate spike is

Executive leadership, and especia

The Entrepreneur and Relative Risk

2015-04-06T15:55:00.001-06:00

The spring issue of SKY Magazine features an interview with Nadia Williamson, Chair of the Regina District Chamber of Commerce and Yaya Wang, President of Saskatchewan Young Professionals and Entrepreneurs. They make the point that entrepreneurship is not easy - that it needs to be approached from a business planning perspective, with considering given to the financial risks that are inherent in business.

It’s true that business comes with risk, and at the beginning the risks are just as big as when a business is established because risk is relative to what’s at stake.

Starting a business requires capital. The Regina District Chamber of Commerce has a loan program for new businesses but it has to be used for tangible items, they told me. So if a person is opening a product based business for a new store, for example, the money can be used to buy the things associated with a store.

But what if your business is not a tangible items kind of business. What if you are in the service industry? In the service industry, the overhead and start up costs are in marketing, training ad ongoing development, employee benefits (even if you are the only employee), administrative support and accounting services.

Nadia and Yaya make the point that often times money is at stake in a business - your banker’s money, your investor’s money and quite likely your family’s money. While an entrepreneur is building a business, chances are any money earned is used to finance the business and pay for overhead such as lease / office space, telephone, marketing, salaries, benefits, legal bills, gas, car expenses, etc. There is the lost opportunity capital that has to be considered - by that I mean while the entrepreneur is building a business, and quite likely not supporting himself or herself - how much money could he or she have made in that time as an employee?

The question of age entered the discussion, and the conclusion was that age is not a factor in entrepreneurship, but the risks are different.

A few issues back, Barbara March-Burwell, Certified Financial Planner for RBC Dominion Security spoke of the changing work environment, and the fact that some people are not retiring, instead they are starting businesses, which delays retirement and infact might put their long term financial stability at risk.

In this issue, Yaya says that younger people today are more likely to want to pursue their own business rather than work for someone else - but the question is whose money is at risk, especially if that young entrepreneur has no financial track record yet? That’s when it comes back to family, and even affecting his or her parents’ retirement.

Entrepreneur’s give up their financial security to open these businesses. Many entrepreneurs have multiple jobs and interests in order to maintain cash flow. The short and long term issue of financial security is a big one. In this issue of SKY, Barbara March-Burwell has some interesting things to say about this in her column, and she offers a guide of for entrepreneurs, which I would recommend.

Today I had a discussion with a business owner who said that our city is not very entrepreneurial, citing too many restrictions on the part of the city’s administration. He said, if you want the city to grow, it’s not - we don’t want that kind of business in that kind of neighbourhood or area of the city - we want your business, how can we help.

I hope you enjoy the spring issue of SKY Magazine - and if you know an entrepreneur, I hope you will support their business. If you are a decision or policy maker, I hope you will support all of our businesses.

A One Woman Publishing Show: The Entrepreneur’s Experience

2015-01-12T18:56:00.001-06:00

Lynn Armstrong is an entrepreneur running a niche magazine about entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. She produces SKY Magazine under her company SKY Publishers Ltd.

A professional writer with 20 years of experience in the corporate realm as a corporate planner and strategist, Lynn ventured into the entrepreneurial world first with the creation of Lynear Thinking Strategy and Communications Ltd., a practice that helps private sector companies, cooperatives and non-profits with planning, strategy and communications.

"In 2012, I was looking for a way to tell the stories of entrepreneurs in a way that would help them achieve their business goals. I was researching various magazine models and SKY happen to literally fall from the sky. One of my clients called me one day and said he had seen SKY Magazine for sale on Kijiji. I called the number and the rest is history. I bought SKY Magazine in October 2012 and put out my first issue December 2012.”

"I am a one woman show. I am the publisher, editor, writer, advertising executive, book keeper, distribution manager, digital editor and online manager."

"Each quarter, I produce the magazine with the help of two other entrepreneurs, Greg Huszar, photographer, and Amber Moon, designer. I am very proud of what we have accomplished. My competitors, by comparison, have multiple sales staff, writers, at least one editor and a quite likely financial backers. Did I mention I am my own financial backer? The revenue from each issue is used to pay for the production, printing and distribution of the magazine."

"Being an entrepreneur is really about running a right sized business and knowing what you are willing to put at risk. An entrepreneur needs to know how to use his or her resources in the best way possible. When I bring business owners into SKY, I am working with them to ensure their budget is best utilized on the page."

Pondering Policy in the New World

2014-11-01T16:32:00.002-06:00

Regardless of the type of organization you are operating, all businesses need strategies, plans, practices, policies and governance. The only impact that size has is the budget and expertise at hand to develop these tools.

Today I am thinking about policy and the important role that it plays in business, especially in a world where texting and Facebook status is considered ‘communication.’ Here are some useful tips to consider incorporating into your business.

1. How do you show up in the world?

“How you do what you do defines who you are”, said one of mentors to me many years ago when I was working as a corporate planner for a large company. The answer to this question is expressed through your principles. In drafting principles, here are some thoughts to help guide the process.

What is your purpose?
What is your position on the treatment of people?
What is your position on pricing?
What is your communication style?
What is your position with regard to giving back and sponsorship?

2. How do you do things?

Policy is another word for “the way we do things”. In my work as a publisher and strategy and communications consultant, I often see cracks in the way business is done which can place the business at risk. Policy sets out what decisions will be made in various scenarios. These policies are supported by practices. Following the practices leads to consistency, offsets risk and improves the communication process. People know what to expect.

3. Write it down.

In the private enterprise world, who you are and how you do things needs to be documented so that those who need to know will know.

Policies are needed for human resources (if there are employees), communication (if you plan on talking to anyone ever including your employees, your community, your sponsors and affiliates and the media), pricing (if you plan on selling something to someone), privacy (if you are collecting personal information of any type) and social responsibility (if you are planning on giving money or services away).

When developing a policy think about the following:
1. Who is the audience for the policy?
2. Who are the users of the policy?
3. What risks are being addressed by the policy?
4. What is the purpose of the policy?
5. When will the policy be renewed?
6. Where will it be available.
7. How will it be upheld?
8. What are the consequences of the policy not being upheld?
9. What is the review / reporting process to ensure policies are upheld and effective.

4. Communicate it.

How policies are communicated are dependent on their audience. A communication strategy will help to define who needs to see the policy, what might their reaction be, how are they expected to use it, and what the feedback (if any) process will be. All policies can and should be shared internally with staff. Policies can also be shared on the website and in company communications. You just need to remember that what you write is what you must do.

How I got here, and where I am going.

2014-07-28T00:08:00.002-06:00

Who do I think I am?

I began with this question three years ago when this journey began. And then the next question I asked was, what would I do if I could not fail?

My name is Lynn Armstrong. I am the owner of Lynear Thinking Strategy and Communications Ltd. and SKY Publishers Ltd., publisher of SKY Magazine and the soon to be launched book, ‘Pink Flamingo in a Brown Duck Pond.’ Until three years ago, I was a corporate planner working in large corporations, government, the credit union system and non-profit sectors. I have had a front row seat helping executives and boards climb the hill of vision.

The term “entrepreneur” is defined as “a person who organizes or operates a business or businesses taking on greater than normal financial risks to do so.” Synonyms are "business people, enterprisers, speculators, tycoons, magnate and mogul.”

I am an entrepreneur who works with entrepreneurs to help them get to where they are going through strategy and developing and delivering appropriate communications to reach their audience.

My clients include all types of entrepreneurs in all walks of business and life, including yoga, fitness, banking, coaching, human resources, digital media, fashion, retail, restaurants, automobiles, business and convention centres and artists.

As part of my own planning process, I like to take a step back and look at where I have been, what I have learned.

Vision and the Glass Barn

I graduated from the U of R School of Journalism in 1996. My inspiration was to become a business journalist like Jan Wong and so I ventured into the world of corporate strategy to learn from the best. My first job was at Farm Credit Canada in the communications department, and then onto policy and planning.

I was given great opportunities, like producing the Annual Report for three years, each of which won Awards of Communications Excellence (ACE) and then I went on to writing corporate plans, which won the Auditor General Award of Excellence in Annual Reporting for each year, save one.

During my time at FCC, I was fortunate to be there when the organization was at the cusp of a new direction. As a corporate planning analyst, I was invited to help create a strategy scenario for the executive’s consideration. I worked with the company’s best account managers and we developed a customer focused strategy based on the best of the best.

The beginning of Lynear Thinking

I was invited to present a vision at a leadership event at FCC. I created a vision of work, where each person is the CEO of his or her own life, where there is no “no”, just “how”, and where vision is sought from each person in the company, not just the executive. The presentation was titled 'Lynear Thinking’. I presented it to the executive team wearing black leather pants while Bon Jovi’s “It’s my life” blasted. They did not fire me, but then I never thought they would. From that moment on, I had my sights set on entrepreneurship with the creation of Lynear Thinking’s vision.

I refer to FCC as my ‘nirvana’ job because not only did I learn how to lead and facilitate corporate strategy in a supportive and encouraging environment, I learned how to have vision and express it. The skills I learned during that time continue to carry me through. My leaders and mentors of FCC continue to be my leaders and mentors today, 18 years later.

The Power of Many, as One.

I left FCC ready to take on a management role in the Credit Union system, where I learned about navigating autonomous systems of leadership in a cooperative model. Working with Credit Unions was extremely inspiring, because it was the first time I had come to understand the entrepreneur.

Credit unions are entrepreneurial and cooperative at their roots. They are founded in a common set of principles that have guided the system from small community based credit unions to large urban credit unions.

On my first day of work as the manager of planning at SaskCentral, I wrote the word “one” on my white board. I could see how this system of many operating as one could dominate the competitive market place if people could see what I saw. During my time in the credit union system, I designed and implemented a performance management system using a balanced scorecard framework, supported by a business line strategy model.

In 2005, the organization underwent a merger with Co-operative Trust, creating Concentra Financial. I became part of the joint venture Corporate Services, which would support the operational requirements of both SaskCentral and Concentra Financial as autonomous companies. As the manager of planning, I designed and implemented an integrated planning system that supported the autonomy of the Boards of both organizations, while integrating the operational entities in order to achieve the economies of scale objectives of the merger.

During that time, I developed a Corporate Services Client Service Agreement model that gave our clients a clear accounting of what would be delivered, when and how much it would cost. The Client Service Agreement also gave the employees of Corporate Services a clear direction to pursue. It was truly one of my proudest moments to see the managers coming to life in the process.

The Essence of Risk as Strategy

I traversed the corporate mountain to the top at my next job in a provincial crown corporation as the director of business planning and risk management. I was hired to design and implement an enterprise performance management and risk management system for the company. The model would need to integrate with the government model being employed.

During that time, I also stepped into a 16 month temporary executive position as VP of Corporate Services. My portfolio of business planning and risk management expanded to include communications, community relations, responsible gaming strategy development and various other policy initiatives. When I returned to my original position, having completed the task for which I was hired, I ventured onward and upward.

Some people stand and look at the sky. Others reach out and touch it.

Lynear Thinking Strategy and Communications Ltd. came to life on June 15, 2011, inspired by my original vision to create a company that would inspire and support entrepreneurship and help them to not just stand and look at the sky, but to reach out and touch it.

Words are as important as money.

My business plan evolved as plans do. In the corporate realm, strategy and communications go hand in hand because strategy must be shared with the right audience in the right way to reach employees, owners, community leaders, and customers alike. Communicating strategy is a fine balance of understanding who the audience is and articulating the story and messages for them. No matter the size and type of business, words are as important as the money, and so it pays to hire a professional communicator who understands both the messages and the medium to reach the audience.

And so I went in search of a magazine model that would be the strategy’s voice in the market place of my clients, and quite serendipitously, SKY Magazine found me.

SKY Magazine: The Place to Be Seen.

One of my clients had seen SKY for sale on Kijiji September 2012 and by October 2012, I was publishing my first magazine, the “White Issue”, featuring Nadia Williamson, owner of NWL Dress Shop in Regina, along with many other amazing businesses that I proudly support. On May 16, 2013, SKY Publishers Ltd. was created as the publishing company for SKY Magazine, as well as other publications. My seventh issue of SKY was just launched in July 2014, dedicated to cancer survivors past, present and future, and featuring the unstoppable Dionne Warner, eight time cancer survivor.

With each issue, the colour of the SKY word mark changes just as the colour of the sky is always changing. I want my clients to be seen. I work to create a beautifully presented, intelligent magazine that will inspire readers to turn the page, and learn about the great people and the business featured on the pages. I make the investment to deliver to 32,000 homes and businesses to get the maximum benefit for my client’s investment.

When I ventured into the publishing business, I wanted to create a system that would reach audiences far and wide, and so I invested in the development of a social media network, creating myskymag.com, an online magazine, uploading to ISSUU.com/myskymag, and creating a communication and sharing network through Facebook, twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, Google+ and blogging.

Strategic Direction: Be Strategic. Be Seen. Be Heard.

My entrepreneurial journey began with a vision of entrepreneurship that supports entrepreneurship. It began with a vision where each person is the CEO of his or her own life. That the word ‘no’ would not exist, but rather ‘how.’ That vision comes from within, not just from the promoted.

SKY and Lynear Thinking is a perfect fusion of my passions: helping people get to where they are going, and sharing their stories to inspire and engage people.

And so every day, when I look up, I see the sky, but I also see possibility, and together we will paint the sky with all the possibilities of tomorrow.

Fashion and Finance

2014-03-24T09:28:00.000-06:00

This weekend, I attended Vancouver Fashion Week to watch my daughter's debut as a Canadian Designer. It was a most amazing experience, and I am so happy that I was able to see her hard work being recognized by her peers.

For the remainder of the time, I spent easily 20 hours working with my accountant unfurling a mess that had been created over a period of time by other accountants.

I find this frustrating because I paid for services that were either not done or done badly. It turns out you have to be an accountant to hold the accountant accountable.

Accounting is a business and it requires specialized knowledge and expertise. Since I am not an accountant, I hired in good faith and on good recommendation. This is my third accounting company since starting my business in 2011, and I learned more about business in 20 hours than I did in the last 20 years, because quite honestly, the ball had been dropped, and I didn't know how badly because I didn't know what questions to ask, or how to hold them accountable to me.

This is a big problem for business of all sizes, but in a right sized business it can be the fine line between success and failure, between giving up or not.

The Worst Thing You Can Do

2014-03-18T16:04:00.003-06:00

The worst thing you can do is ignore me. I am your customer. I need your help. I trust you, otherwise I wouldn't be working with you.

You are the person who understands my business and me. You get it. So when I call or email, answer me please. When I walk into your shop, talk to me. Acknowledge me. It's that simple. I am your customer.

It doesn't have to be a big thing. I get that you are busy and have a hundred other priorities, because you have other customers - people who think you are as amazing as I do.

Talk to me in sentences and use words that make sense to me. I get that you are brilliant at what you do, and that's one of the reasons I love working with you. But bring me into your world by using words that make sense in my world. I am not an accountant, a techie, an engineer, an investor, a banker or an astronaut. So if you talk to me as if I am, I have no idea what you are talking about. And I am your customer, so that's a problem. We have a problem.

Talk to me in voice or in person so that you have my undivided attention. Emails can be great as a follow up, or just to say hello, but if you have technical information to share, please call me. When I am working on a deadline and I get a technical email out of the blue asking me to do something, I feel like I've just been torpedoed. Seriously, my concentration has just been obliterated, and now I am reading your email with disdain, and by association thinking of you with disdain. Sorry, but you and your communication style are a package deal.

I love you, but I have needs too. In the entrepreneurial world, I rely on the expertise of others to help me to be successful. The thing is, I need what I need when I need it. I am your customer, and I am loyal to you, but loyalty is a two-way street. You might after a time realize that I am not around. That's because I had to move on.

So if you are too busy, just send me a note or a smile and let me know that you see me and hear me. That's really all I need. I am your customer.

How I made $800 in a year.

2014-03-10T09:35:00.000-06:00

Helping people get somewhere inspires me. I love to write. I love to see a plan come together. In 2011, I incorporated the vision that I carried with me since 1996. Lynear Thinking Strategy and Communications Ltd. was created and I officially entered the world of the entrepreneur. My mission -to connect people with purpose and help them get somewhere.

Working with purpose for purpose has been my focus since the early part of my career. I decided to fill my life exclusively with what I love to do. My mantra is to do good things so that good things happen. I believe in the importance of integrity, good business practices and quality.

Behind great businesses are great people who live and work with passion. Now, three years later, I am in the business of helping people grow though strategy, communications, publishing and consulting services. In my first year of business I made $800.00, falling just $90,200 short of my goal.

There were two reasons for this.

1. I worked for free because I didn't know how to ask for payment.
2. My goal of $100,000 for my first year of business was nothing short of ridiculous.

The Entrepreneur's Reality

I am going to just come out and say it. Private enterprise is not romantic. It is about working harder than you've ever worked in your life for the least amount of money you have ever made. At least for a while. This misconception is actually harmful because it hides the truth and therefore the solutions.

Private enterprise is about money - trying to make money and not lose too much at once. If it's not, it's called philanthropy. In private business, you get to decide how. Easier said than done. Some people start with what they love and turn it into a business; others start from what they are good at and try and turn it into a business; others do something completely foreign and find experts. Who is to say? I think it depends on a lot of factors.

Beyond the product or service, you must become the marketer, the operations manager, the book keeper, the accountant, the service person, the sales person and even the janitor. If and when we hire employees to generate growth (why else?), there is a cost. People like pay cheques, benefits, vacations and the occasional day off. All of that costs money.

In business, we have the freedom to make mistakes and make decisions. Yes, there is freedom to stay in bed. Yes there is freedom to take a bath in the middle of the day, or go to a yoga class, or maybe even take a trip. And that freedom lasts as long as the revenues are rolling in, or your investments are exhausted.

Private enterprise is about taking risk and managing risk. Risks are dangers. They are not fears, but they are real. Like Will Smith 's character said in "After Earth", roughly paraphrased', 'fear is not real, but danger is very real.' The same can be said in business. How you react to fear is a choice. But danger is very real. To be in business, it's all about balancing time and money and finding a way to optimize both.

Lessons learned

1. Business plans must be lived first, then written.

When I created Lynear Thinking, my intention was to offer my expertise in strategic planning, governance and communications to the private sector.

I did what we do when we start a business. I researched the needs of the market to determine how I could serve the market. I discovered that the number one reason for small business failure, according to Industry Canada, is lack of strategy and planning, and failure to access the expertise to support the business. I could see that. Entrepreneurs tend to be in business because they like to call their own shots and we are not very good at asking for, or wanting to pay for the expertise we need.

So I created a business plan that was focused on creating a shared services group of companies who would work together to offer an array of products and services to other businesses. We would offer strategy, communications, marketing, human resources, financial and legal services. The concept was based on a corporate shared services model that I had worked with in my previous life.

There were problems with that corporate services model, such as our internal clients did not want to pay for our services. In fact they pushed back on every single penny and hour. It became very difficult to be successful when the only measurable was how much did you spend and why did you spend so much.

It turns out the same problem exists in the private sector entrepreneurial shared services model. First, how would it be capitalized, second, how would it make money, third, how would it share the profit, and fourth, would the market want it.

To date, this shared services model has been tucked away in the PowerPoint world of best intentions for now.

2. Working for free is not cool.

No. Don't do it. Doing work for free does not serve anyone because it's not gratifying to do something for nothing, nor is it gratifying to receive something of no value. In my first year of business, I did a lot of work for free. I have a file cabinet full of elaborately written proposals that I submitted to win contracts. Each one of them were fastidiously created as I had in my corporate life. From a time alone perspective, each one was worth at least $500.00 - $1,500.00. Despite my attention to detail I did not get the contracts. I was successful, however, in giving them a clearly laid out plan that they could follow themselves, or give to another consultant.

OK, I am an over achiever. I was reminded of something one of my duck bosses used to say to me. "Did give it all away upfront. Make them come back and ask for more." Clever. I realized that if I wasn't going to get the gig, there was no point in giving it all away. If I could pique their curiosity, maybe they would come back to me and eventually hire me.

3. Reach out to people you trust.

There is a saying in the world of work. It;s not what you know but who you know that counts. That’s true. In my consulting practice, I was hell bent on leaving my home to work, with the hopes of finding a new home elsewhere. I other words, I was looking to fly outta here and find a new place to live and work. One of my mentors had moved to another province, and she was working with a major consulting firm that does all the things that I had envisioned in mine, with the exception of strategy and communications. Eventually, I was recommended for a consulting position which I was successful in attaining.

4. Be remarkable, in a good way.

It's easy to be good, but can you be good enough for people to remark about it. Being remarkable means delivering consistently on the promise. I means putting the client first and caring about their business or their story like it’s my own. Being remarkable means taking care of business. Being remarkable means taking a stand when it matters and never compromising integrity. Remarkable people are those who know that trust is earned every single day with each and every single interaction. Remarkable people act from their heart and not their wallet. Remarkable people do the right thing. As an entrepreneur, my clients are the most important people in my life.

5. Do good things that feel good doing.

It feels good to make a difference in someone’s life. In my corporate life, promoting and facilitating corporate social responsibility was an area of special interest for me. When I became an entrepreneur, I pledged that I would dedicate a portion of my resources to helping the community. I am a Board member of a charitable organization. I also dedicate a portion of each issue of SKY Magazine charitable organizations. I also sponsor my clients who are raising funds for charitable purposes.

The Creativity Conundrum

2013-12-07T13:14:00.000-06:00

Years ago I read "The Stones of Venice" in an English class, which celebrates the beauty of hand chiseled architecture during the Gothic era. Ruskin was making the point that turn-of-the-century industrialization and mechanization was missing the soul of the artist. He was saying it lacked the humility of its maker. I wrote a paper entitled "The Noble and the Ignoble in Gothic Architecture" wherein my thesis was that the turn of the century industrialization and mechanization was killing the soul of creativity that can only be attained through the hands of an imperfect human being.

Fast forward 2013. We have automated well beyond the imagination of Ruskin. We create things literally at the touch of a button. Within seconds we can share absolutely anything with absolutely anyone. We can say anything we want, unaware of the impact or the consequences of our actions.

I use all the tools of our time, but I am old school when it comes to creativity. To me there is one simple truth: creativity without social responsibility and the ability to execute is useless.

I publish SKY magazine. I create a place for people in business to be seen and to tell their story so that our readers can become their customers. I promise to get people into 30,000 mailboxes, and I do that, on time, every time.

Creating SKY is a process that combines business strategy, photography, storytelling, design, production, printing, packaging and mailing. It takes a team of business people who are creative, committed to excellence and who deliver every single time, on time.

When something breaks in the chain, the chain is broken. It's that simple. I always say in my world there is "good enough". There is "good" or "not good enough."

Genius is defined by making the complex simple so that the reader can immediately engage. That's what "good" means to me.

Managing Your Message in the Media

2013-10-23T00:08:00.003-06:00

When I was in journalism school at the University of Regina, I learned a few things about how to be a reporter. I say a few things, because that is exactly what I mean. I learned how to write for news paper, radio, magazine, and television. I learned how to build a story. I learned how to interview people and ask questions, and I learned a little bit about ethics and the law.

I have had the occasion to experience the other side of the interview over the past two weeks. Once as a reader of a poorly written story, and another time as an interviewee in what I hope will not be a poorly executed, imbalanced reputational mess.

Inexperience is the main issue when something goes awry. Professional media usually understands and appreciates how to engage with the community so that they live to write another day. Reporting is a craft. However the distinction between good and not so good is not always an issue of age or experience. Some people, even in their early careers, are natural born story tellers who understand the human experience and who have a natural understanding of the art of listening and story telling.

When I think back to my days as a young reporter and student, we were eager to tell stories that were full of controversy. In fact, quite often, we would create controversy were none existed, not because we were making things up, but because we ourselves were overly dramatic. We were working in a bubble where supposedly we could not affect others in the process of learning. Everything seemed to be turned up on high volume, whether it needed to be or not.

Looking back now, I can see that what I learned in journalism school about the art of story telling and more importantly, story listening, I could fit in a thimble. The rest I learned working in the world as a writer, reporter, communications professional, business strategist and publisher.

There are some nuggets of knowledge passed on to me from my teachers that I carry with me still to this day. The thing that I remember the most is that good journalism gives a balanced view of a story that provokes thinking and dialogue. Bad journalism is is the subject of dialogue.

Jim McKenzie taught me about ethics, and how important it is for the journalist or story teller to know his or her own line before crossing it. He would send us off in pursuit of a story, knowing full well we were overly dramatic and inexperienced about life. One semester I had taken a magazine writing class with Jim. The subject of the magazine was the sex trade. We were each assigned a part of the trade. My part was child prostitution. I remember the first night my partner and I went out to research the story.

I did not see what I thought I would see. I saw children in low income neighbourhoods. As a mother, I quickly found my line. Who were we to impose our judgments? We did not know these people or their lives. We did not understand the impact that we could have by simply asking a question or giving someone a title by virtue of the environment, which we could only see through our own middle class view of the world. I knew that if that were my child, I would probably punch someone out for approaching or passing judgement.

I went back to my professor and told him that I would not do the assignment. Instead I chose to research the issue of sexual exploitation of children on the streets via public records. Jim has since passed on, but I think of him and his words often in my work.

After graduating from journalism school, I worked as a reporter for a time, mostly focusing on feature writing and community stories. I learned that it is indeed a privilege and responsibility to treat a person's story with as much care as you would your own.

I later went to work on the "dark side" as we used to call it in journalism school: public relations and communications. I used to think of it more as "dimly lit" but as my experience grew, I began to see clearly the importance of responsible media management from the business perspective.

My job was to help the organizations manage their message in and through the media. I learned the art of writing news releases, dealing with media inquiries, and writing media Q & As that would anticipate the craziest questions a journalist could ask and craft an answer. I would write key messages, preparing my executive for the possibility of a media call.

When the journalist called, a dance would ensue. He or she would ask the question, and the interviewee would give an answer that was in line with the key messages already determined. This dance continues until something breaks in the process. As the reporter asks the same question in a myriad of different ways trying to prompt the quote he or she is looking for, the interviewee continues to stay on message.

There is a method to this madness. Business of all sizes need to protect their reputation. News reporters like to write and tell enticing stories. So the key is to find the balance in between these often opposing objectives.

Large organizations have departments of people who can help them manage the media. Small business owners do not. And so, I offer my experience should the media call. Here are some things to be aware of.

1. Understand the purpose of the interview.

2. Understand the journalist's intention behind the interview. You can ask for questions ahead of time.

3. Have key messages that summarize what you want to say.

4. Say those things, and only those things.

5. Comment only on what you know to be true and your own experience.

6. Do not comment on the business or behaviours of others. Defer the question and suggest the reporter contact the appropriate person for that information.

7. Ask for approval of the content before it goes to print.

8. Beware of the last question and the casual conversation that can follow an "interview".After you think the interview is over, you will relax a bit. That's when the reporter uses the "fork dropper" question, as my journalism professor used to call it. This is the question that disarms you and causes you to react and say something reactional or off-the-cuff, thus feeding their agenda and not yours.

9. Own your story. Tell your story. Do not get coerced into telling someone's story in a "he said - she said" interview structure. Stick to the facts. No opinions. Be objective. Speak in complete sentences. Do not use cliches. Do not be funny. Do not say something that can be taken out of context and used to sensationalize the story.

10. Take the high road at all times. Never, ever wallow.

@Kolo Project #My Truth

2013-06-19T23:16:00.003-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, I received a tweet from the Kolo Project inviting me to a meeting at the Cathedral Village Freehouse.

I was to meet several other people from my community who have a passion for being an entrepreneur and creating an environment in which we can be successful. We decided to do something about this, together.

The Kolo Project is about creating an entrepreneurial ecosystem. It is created, led and driven by entrepreneurs. Our goal is to break down the barriers that inhibit entrepeneurial growth in our province, and in our cities. We met again in my office to develop a game plan.

We decided that the first step was to tell the truth about entrepreneurialism, and to invite entrepreneurs from our community to come and share their perspective, their truth, on what works, what doesn't, and what it means to be an entrepreneur.

Let me start with my truth.

June 15 was the 2nd anniversary of my emancipation. That was the day I signed off on my last corporate job. (It just so happens it was my worst ever corporate job, which in many ways fueled my new beginning into the private sector.)

I am going to just come out and say it. Private enterprise is not romantic. It is about working harder than you've ever worked in your life for the least amount of money you have ever made. At least for a while. This misconception is actually harmful because it hides the truth and therefore the solutions.

Private enterprise is about money - trying to make money and not lose too much at once. If it's not, it's called philanthropy. In private business, you get to decide how. Easier said than done. Some people start with what they love and turn it into a business; others start from what they are good at and try and turn it into a business; others do something completely foreign and find experts. Who is to say? I think it depends on a lot of factors.

Beyond the product or service, you must become the marketer, the operations manager, the book keeper, the accountant, the service person, the sales person and even the janitor. If and when we hire employees to generate growth (why else?), there is a cost. People like pay cheques, benefits, vacations and the occasional day off. All of that costs money.

In business, we have the freedom to make mistakes and make decisions. Yes, there is freedom to stay in bed. Yes there is freedom to take a bath in the middle of the day, or go to a yoga class, or maybe even take a trip. And that freedom lasts as long as the revenues are rolling in, or your investments are exhausted.

Private enterprise is about taking risk and managing risk. Risks are dangers. They are not fears, but they are real. Like Will Smith 's character said in "After Earth", roughly paraphrased', 'fear is not real, but danger is very real.' The same can be said in business. How you react to fear is a choice. But danger is very real. To be in business, it's all about balancing time and money and finding a way to optimize both.

This is Private Enterprise

2013-04-18T20:34:00.001-06:00

This is Earth

"Crash landed.
Two confirmed survivors.
Son, this not training
This is a class one quarantined planet.
The threats we will be facing are real.
Everything on this planet has evolved
to kill humans.
Every single decision we make
will be life or death.
But if we are going to survive this
you must realize that fear is not real.
It is a product of thoughts you create.
Do not misundersand me.
Danger is very real.
But fear is a choice.
Do you know where we are.
No sir.
This is earth."

No. This is private enterprise.

Ginger Jar Lamp Economy.

2013-02-25T23:43:00.002-06:00

I remember 30 years ago a pair of ginger jar lamps that I bought when I could barely afford food. I was making $1,400 / month, bringing home $1,000 and paying $800 in rent in downtown Calgary. I paid $60.00 for the lamps from the Bay. It took me 5 months to save for the lamps at $12.00 per month. I still have those lamps. I have tried to retire them, I could not bear to do it. They are simply too valuable to me.

When I first entered the world of entrepreneurship two years ago, a question was asked in a discussion group on Linked In: Should we give products and services for free. If so, why? If not, why not.

My answer was emphatically "NO" for these reasons:

1. Something of no value is not valuable, too anyone. If something is of no value, what value is it to perpetuate? If one is going to give it away for free, one may as well decist immediately in the practice of their "business" for that will be the eventual outcome sooner than later.

2. I also believed, and still do, that to give time and money away is to rob the other person of receiving the true value of what they have received.

3. My third reason is very pragmatic: I can't pay my bills with air, since that is not yet a valid currency. Nobody's business or life can exist that way, which takes me to point number 4.

4. Expecting something for free is well . . . disrespectful. Sorry. I said it. That's what it is when something is taken or even given for which there is no remuneration. Someone recently made the point that when you get something for free, you have to be aware that someone else is paying for it somehow.

5. I do not have the heart of a trader. Yes, I love a good sale. Who doesn't. But I do not barter well on price. In Mexico, I will be the only person paying $25.00 for a handmade cotton purse for which someone else will would pay $5.00. I actually feel guilty about taking a product or service for "free" from someone, because I know how it feels to save $60.00 over five months.

I recently had a conversation with a fellow entrepreneur on this topic who summed it up eloquently. "In the beginning, I traded, but then I found people don't come through on the trade because they have nothing to gain from it."

Trading is a business model in itself that some people manage very well. I think to be a "trader", one has to be passionately mercenarial in the trade relationship.

That's just not me. I am a consumer. I like to participate in the buying economy. I love my car, my clothes, and my house. I like to help other businesses be successful by paying for their products and services. If I don't get paid, I can't do that. That's just makes sense in business and Ginger Jars Lamps.

Assuago. That's the way it is.

2013-02-25T20:58:00.004-06:00

He found us clumped together like maple bugs in the fall, fresh off the ship and ready for an adventure.

We took a cruise from Miami to Cozumel, Mexico, Ocho, Rios, Jamaica and the Grand Caymen Islands. At each port, tourists can explore, shop or experience things on their bucket list, like swimming with dolphin and stingrays. Cruise ships offer excursions that can range from $40/person and up. Excursions are fun and they are designed to show us what we already expected to see in the brochures and the media. In other words, excursions are designed to show us a world view that we want to see, versus what might be.

We were the unplanned tourists fresh off on a cruise ship at the port of Ocho Rios, Jamaica. We adventurers and deal shoppers set out that day to experience some of Jamaica and return by 4:00 PM. We were told that the best drivers would be those with a red license plate. Johnson found us and sold us on a day tour for $20.00 / person.

Johnson relies on tourists but not just any tourist. He is what I like to call a mouse among elephants.

Johnson's target market is the tourist looking for a deal and maybe a truer to life experience.

As an entrepreneur competing with the big cruise lines, he tells me his strategy is to price his services "not too low, not too high". "It's better to get some of the business than none of the business". He also likes to offer a different experience - one that attempts to show more than one side to the reality of life in Jamaica.

He offered to take us on a tour to do whatever we wanted. Shopping , water falls and jerk chicken and a tour of the city were the top 4. We agreed to a price of $20 US/per person or $160 for 4 hours less gas and vehicle wear and tear.
We asked to go the Dunn River Falls, but he said he would take us to another fall that is not owned by the government because that way the people benefit from the tourist not the government.

We went to the Shaw plantation paying a modest fee of $10US. The estate so named after a Scotsman who settled in Jamaica in the 1835 and donated it back to the Jamaican people in 1933.

The garden includes a bamboo enclosed natural water treatment plant, water falls and a botanical garden full of the herbs, flowers and trees that cure what ails you.

On this property stands a recording studio that was commonly used by Bob Marley and Mick Jagger. On the hill just beyond our sight stands a house owned by Mick Jagger who is barred from entering Jamaica due to his "bad habits".

There is also a museum created by the Shaw family that documents bringing over 683,000 slaves, over 31,000 of whom died before they could be "unloaded". The museum includes a man trap which resembles a bear trap that was used to catch slaves who were trying to escape. Slaves were used work the plantation and maintain the house and gardens until Jamaica's abolition of slavery in 19$$, 27 years before the end of the American Civil War.

Our guide Nikki, 30 years old, tells us she has applied to leave Jamaica twice to the United States. They told her both times it's not her turn yet.
Why do you want to leave this paradise we asked. "All that glitters is not gold" she said.

At the end of the tour she told us she works for free and asked if we would consider a tip.

Johnson took us on a tour through the city of Ocho Rios to show us a glimpse of life in Jamaica.

We saw kids at play during a break at school is their uniforms. We saw homes of the well-to-do and then we saw where the rest of the people lived and worked.
An old lady selling her wares on side of the road hoping we would stop. We didn't. A man breaks into back flips down the hill as we rounded another corner. We gave him some money through the bus window and he carried on performing for the next bus.

We saw homes where the poor lives by our standards. I felt sad and grateful.
From there it was downtown to shop where the locals aggressively ask for the sale. Johnson warns us to stay within his sight at all times and not to buy anything we don't want. As we entered the stores the clerks turned on the Bob Marley tunes. We begin to feel relaxed as we sing along, lulled back into our westernized first world dogma induced coma.

We stopped at his favorite restaurant for Jerk Chicken and boarded our bus back to the ship.

He is married 21 years. His children, 10 and 14 years of age attend school.
I asked him if he is a tour guide and driver year round. Yes, he says, this is all there is to do. Is it enough I asked. No because the cruise ships often go to the other side of the island near Montego Bay.

Tourism creates opportunity and jobs on the upside. On the downside we are rarely shown the desperate reality unless we take a chance and risk a big plate on poverty, jerk chicken and a wish for freedom.

As a tourist they want us to see the reality we believe exists from the media. Johnson showed us there is more to see than what we are shown. Assuago. "That's the way it is". Then he asked for a tip.

An Expensive Walk

2013-01-30T23:16:00.003-06:00

Spring is on the horizon. The season of second chances and new growth. Spring is when we make plans for everything from home renovations and fitness to getting new jobs and starting or growing a business.

It's hard to know where you are going if you can't envision it. It's even harder if you are lacking intention. The truth is any road will take you there, as long as you have no idea of where you are going.

Setting intention takes discipline, clarity and focus. It requires a commitment to a single desire. A single outcome. A single impact. Intention is something that comes out of a heartfelt desire to move in a new and brave direction.

I set an intention a long time ago to live and work with purpose. To me that means doing the things that help others, that create a legacy, and that inspire others to find their purpose. In 2011 I started a company - Lynear Thinking - in order to bring reality to the intention.

Since then I have been taking steps such as building a community and connecting with those with common values and goals, making friends in good places, being healthy mentally, physically and spiritually and doing work that I am passionate about with and for people who are doing good things.

In 2012 I bought SKY magazine. As the publisher I choose to use this magazine to further my intention by promoting people who are living and working on purpose, creating a legacy, and inspiring others.

My clients are part of this journey towards intention because they inspire the way ahead.

Intentions can take a long time to realize, in fact intentions are sometimes years in creation. Without a plan and checking back, you will never know if up you are getting to where you want to go or just out for an expensive walk.

A Small Business Proposal to Share Overhead

2013-01-30T07:50:00.003-06:00

It happens all the time. It happens to me. Small business is challenged with the business of business. The taxes, the accounting, the time to do that things that do not bring us revenue. The other day I met someone who told me he was going to wind down his design business because he is exhausted from trying to do the work that just doesn't make money.

This is once again the classic tale of mice versus elephants. Elephants (big business) have the in house resources to take care of the non-revenue generating work. When I worked in that world, we called it "overhead". I was overhead. I was the person responsible for their strategic planning. My job was to lead the organization through the strategic planning process. I took great exception to be referred to as "overhead".

Now I look at this from a different perspective. As an entrepreneur, it is important to have the "overhead" under control. Unfortunately, it is difficult to do that because everything takes time.

I have a solution. I suggest that small businesses can come together to share services, thereby being able to share the cost of this overhead as well as learn from each other in the process.

If you are interested in joining me in creating a small business collaborative, please contact me at 306.581.0715.

Finding what I am looking for.

2012-11-03T02:48:00.002-06:00

I remember very clearly the day my boss asked me to be creative outside of my job. I remember thinking, "wow, you really don't get it, do you". I knew that day that I still hadn't found what I was looking for.

For 20 years, my teachers were executives of corporations in complex structures and politics of various types, including small p politics between departments, and capital-p politics in government.

I traversed the corporate jungle, learning how to manage relationships, make friends, and influence people. I even took the course.

I became very good at understanding the body language of my CEOs as they managed these large structures. I knew what they needed to say, and what they needed to hear, and I gave them the words that would appease them, inform them and please them.

I believed it was important work, and it was, relatively speaking. At one time, I believed the pinnacle of my career would be an executive position in a large corporation. I reached that place, but the view wasn't what I thought it would be.

In 2011, I made the decision to leave that world in search of a new world where creativity, entrepreneurial thinking and innovation would be the norm, not the exception. Where the business is the reason, and not the door to some political agenda. Where goals are tangible and measurable on a daily basis.

I ventured into the world of private enterprise. I started a business - Lynear Thinking - to offer my 20 years of strategy and communication skills to private business owners, operators and entrepreneurs. My goal was to help them get somewhere - to help them find what they were looking for. So I ventured into this world that admittedly I knew very little about.

I learned that although I could manage the corporate world with ease, I knew nothing about the world of the entrepreneur, even though I was on the journey toward becoming an entrepreneur.

There are distinct differences between the corporate world and the business world.

In the corporate world, dollars and cents are really just indicators of success. In the entrepreneur's world, dollars and cents are deal breakers.
In the corporate world, the consequences of poor customer satisfaction are not directly and immediately linked to the bottom line. In the entrepreneur's world, customer satisfaction is the bottom line because it is the difference between making the sale or not.
In the corporate world, employee satisfaction and development are again distant indicators of a company's success or failure. In the private sector world, employee satisfaction and development have an immediate effect on the customer's buying decision.

There were some challenges along the way, both financial and non-financial. Here is what I learned and practice.

1. Invest wisely. Starting a business takes financial investment. The challenge is to maintain overhead at a manageable rate while investing where the money is needed.

2. Connect with people. Loneliness is a factor that I had to overcome. Entrepreneurs tend to the chief cook and bottle washer, so we spend a lot of time alone. That's not good. I had to find a community of people like me. That was harder than it seemed. In my search for community, I have found people like me - people who left the corporate world in search of one that is more satisfying and personally meaningful. We can share our expertise and help each other.

3. Feed your soul. I dedicated myself to the belief that if I was doing good things, good things would happen. So I got involved and offered my services - gratis - to community organizations doing good things. I believe that giving is good for the soul. It helps me to stay grounded with a solid sense of purpose. There are many upsides to helping non-profits besides money. The contacts and the relationships are excellent. The work of the non-profit tends to be higher profile and shows others what you can do.

4. Be relentless. Relentlessness is also an important quality because it gets me through the days when I feel most lost. People are more likely to help those who help themselves. So on the days when I felt like it was futile and that I should just get another corporate job, I reminded myself of why I was on this path, and what I would give up by giving up.

6. Learn the business. I learned about pricing and proposals, when to fold and when to fight for it. Things started to take hold and people started to notice me. When that happened, the work started coming.

7. Create stars whereever you go. I treat my customers like they are gold, because they are to me. I give them the best of me to help them to be successful and the stars they are.

In October 2012, I purchased SKY Magazine, a five year old publication that is all about celebrating entrepreneurial vision and living well in Saskatchewan. SKY is about discovering the talented business people and the products and services they offer so that we can live well. Through SKY, I am able to help connect my clients to their customers.

Every day I find what I am looking for in the stories of the entrepreneurs who love what they do and take pride in how they do it. Living close to the entrepreneurial ledge, I see time and time again those who are successful show integrity, take care of business and treat their customers and employees with the utmost respect. Those that don't, don't.

This is the world that I set out to discover. I have found the entrepreneurs, and you can read about them on the pages of SKY Magazine.

Canada’s Top Female Entrepreneurs: W100 | Chatelaine.com

2012-10-08T17:00:00.001-06:00

Canada’s Top Female Entrepreneurs: W100 | Chatelaine.com

Note to self. Contact every single one of these people and find out what makes them successful.

A Strategy to Run with the Elephants

2012-10-07T15:40:00.001-06:00

I have a theory about elephants and mice that drives my business strategy. You may have read about it here, but in case you haven't it goes something like this.

Elephants represent big business that have complex requirements as a result of their governance structure, shareholder needs, regulatory requirements and expansive bottom lines. Elephants tend to move slowly as corporate business does, but they have a huge impact on the environment with every step they take.

Mice on the other hand represents the small to mid sized businesses.I like to refer to them as emerging and decidedly nimble enterprises, since their resources are more limited than their elephantine counterparts. Being small and nimble has its advantages when it comes to making decisions and taking advantage of opportunity in the marketplace. The issue that they face is one of capacity, often related to people and money.

So what's a mouse to do, I asked, upon noting this observation. How can I help?
After a year and a half of working in the private sector both as an entrepreneur and a consultant to private businesses, I have refined my own business plan and launched it in my new self-created website at www.lynearthinking.com.

According to research, business is business and the number one cause for failure is inability to access the resources need to run small and mid sized businesses. Strategic planning, communications and marketing are the top 3, followed by accounting and financial management, human resources, and legal services.

Back to the question at hand: How can I help? The cost of services is often prohibitive because of one word: overhead. Many service providers simply have enormous costs that must be captured in the work they deliver. These kinds of organizations can serve the elephant market well, but they do not serve the small and mid sized market well.

I decided to be a "decidedly nimble" company having rolled with the elephants for many years. I have a penchant for emerging businesses and the entrepreneurs who live by their vision.

My strategy is one of economies of scale and providing professional strategy and communication services at "MICE" sized rates. I can also access other professionals who provide high quality products and services that this business sector needs to run with the elephants and not get trampled.

Please visit website and contact me if you are planning to get somewhere.

We gotta get out of this current state.

2012-10-01T16:34:00.000-06:00

I have been thinking about skies quite a bit lately. Some may think I am day dreaming, others may wonder what I see up there in the wild blue yonder. It's not just thin air up there. In fact, the sky in my world is a very busy place.

Maybe I have had always a fixation with the sky because I was born in Saskatchewan in the land under the sun in the city that rhymes with fun.

I spent the majority of my happiest and most free times on our farm just near Westbend, Saskatchewan.

I am claustrophobic, which I believe is nature's way to telling me that I was not meant for a cage.

Nature would be correct. I am not a fan of cages or any form thereof. That includes the word no. I prefer how. I like change and I don't usually wait around for it. I am impatient and someone would say intolerant of ambiguity. I like clarity. I like precision. And I like the feeling of the open air on my skin.

Admittedly I am feeling a little claustrophobic these days. I have this urge to take to the sky in search of new air, new possibility and new experiences. My eyes are fixed outward on the horizon because I feel the walls closing in on me as I write.

Yes, changes are in the air and I don't expect to spend much time on dry land, as it were. My first e-book titled, "How to be a Pink Flamingo in a Brown Duck Pond" is now written and moving into the publishing stages. There is much branding, marketing and social media planning to do. As I become a publisher there will be new things to learn and new lines of business to explore, including the launch of a new project about living in one's true colors, whether one is a pink flamingo or a brown duck. Also on my list are to incite a small business revolution and become famous.

Yes siree. I am in search of new air. A set of wings would be nice. I should check online.

P.S. If you are planning to get somewhere, you might want to give me a call. Maybe we can book seat sale and fly outa the current state together.

Measures: Good or Evil

2012-08-22T16:45:00.001-06:00

Back in my days as a corporate planner, our department used to joke about whether we would use our powers for good or evil that day. We used to assign good and evil days. On Week 1, Monday, Wednesday and Friday were good, and Tuesday and Thursday were evil. Then we would switch the rotation the next week.

We would joke about it and then go off to meet our clients to help them unravel the mysteries of their respective universe, because that was our job. We held in our hands, and by the power vested in us, the responsiblity of helping to make things better in the world of work.

One of the mysteries of the universe leaders face is that of measures. Usually questions like how many, which ones, how to use them and how to measure them come into play.

But there are other questions about leadership integrity that are not so easy, or popular, to ask. Is the leadership measuring to reveal issues and opportunities, or measuring to hide them? Are the leaders up to the challenge of finding the truth in the issues, or hiding the truth?

On the question of leadership integrity, 99.9% of the time, the answers to the questions of are: yes, no, yes, no.

I have always been an advocate that measures in balanced scorecards hold the key to universal harmony in the business when the measure expresses the intent to improve a given situation.

If this were expressed in a linear process, it would look like this:

Describe your Big Hairy Audacious Goal
Set Objectives
Research to find out what the current state looks like and the issues
Establish strategy to resolve the issue with desired and specific measurable outcomes.
Communicate it and make sure everyone understands, is on side, and ready to roll.
Implement.
Measure against the strategy.
Report
Begin again . . .

Properly chosen measures inform the decision makers about important trends that could be occurring so that decision makers can determine the course of action. Measures are used to gauge the performance of a given strategy and strategies are employed to create a desired outcome.

For example, if the objective is to increase employee morale, and actions are taken, the measures should tell the story of whether the strategy and its application are working or not.

In this scenario, if employee satisfaction measured before the strategy was 52% and 49% after the strategy, one might surmise the following:

That not enough time as lapsed for the strategies to take hold.
That the strategies are counter productive to the objective.
That perhaps the issues are misunderstood and a new strategy is needed.

In my experience, if the executive is truly concerned about the actual issues behind the results, and the measure is used for "good" then the outcome (49%) would not be a surprise because they would know whether the strategy is having any impact at all prior to measurement. They would be adjusting the strategy progressively to create a sustainable and positive impact.

To continue the analogy of "good versus evil", sometimes measures are used for the latter. That is to say, sometimes measures are set for appearances, but with no intention of making a difference.

Employers who are in this camp may change the measure as opposed to the strategy and possibly justify their decision by saying that the measure was not the correct measure, or the measurement tool was all wrong, or that the receivers of the strategy were out of line in some way.

A shell game ensues at this point making the truth hard to discern. If the measurement tool were based on the strategy, then the measure is of the strategy itself, and the creators of the strategy are by design guilty or to be celebrated for their strategy, except when external reasons are affixed to its failure, in which case, neither the measure, nor the strategy, nor their creators are responsible for its failure.

The problem with this line of reasoning is this: every strategy assumes the environment can shift, so it is expected that the strategy adjusts to these challenges. Failure to adjust is a failure to lead.

Sometimes strategy measures reveal uncomfortable findings, such as lack of trust in leadership and lack of communication regarding direction. These are clearly top leadership issues. Findings of this nature create an opportunity to prove leadership integrity.

Enter the good and evil conundrum and the role of governance accountability. Given that human beings can make mistakes from time to time, it begs the question, where does the final word come from on the measures of the company?

According to good governance practice, the governing body accountability (Board, Shareholder, etc.) has a responsiblity to ask questions about the actions of the leadership team and its strategies, and to make the changes in leadership when strategies continue to deliver ineffective results. This is called Performance Management.