In Sandra’s keynote speech, she talked about how she started her business propelled by her great vision and enthusiasm, out of a room in her house, with literally no money or experience, bills to pay and a young family to feed. She struggled with cash flow and generating new memberships for her organization. She told us about her 16-hour + work days and her juggling act between keeping a household, a business and her sanity. I thought to myself, goodness me, the fact that she’s here today, standing before us, healthy and strong, is nothing short of a miracle after what she’s been through!

“Life without hope is nearly impossible to endure, but with hope the impossible is surmountable.” – Caroline Myss

Then came the tipping point in her story, the pivotal moment when she was at the brink of bankruptcy and contemplating the return to a j-o-b. Not surprising. But I was surprised to hear about what happened next, which was a conversation she had with her mother that changed the course of her business and her life, forever.

Her mother said to her, “so if you quit today, what if today is the day just before the magic happens?”

Wow. That question is actually quite profound. Those few words were enough to re-ignite Sandra’s internal guiding light of hope. The very same light that had been burning so brightly inside of her when she first started her business, which was slowly being extinguished by the difficulties and challenges she was faced with as she tried to get the business going and growing.

With her internal light of hope as her guide, she forged ahead to purposefully build the company of her dreams, with the help of strategic, big picture thinkers and successful businesspeople. She created an environment in which she surrounded herself with trusted advisors, support teams, teachers and mentors to lift her up and help her climb. She credits the growth of her business to her willingness to learn and grow on a personal level.

She left us with many things to contemplate that day, but what resonates with me the most is this concept of hope and it’s direct impact on business success.

May you experience a spark of hope from this story I’ve shared with you, as you go forth in your business and make the magic happen.

I will leave with you these two nuggets of wisdom from Sandra Yancey, founder of eWomen Network:

1. Pay attention to your heart, and honour it
2. Get comfortable with the discomfort of being an entrepreneur

Do you have a story of hope? I am certain that you do. Please share it with our community so that you too, can help re-ignite the flame of hope in another person, which may just change their life and their business forever.

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Without trust, you don’t develop authentic relationships and business doesn’t prosper. This simple truth applies whether you are building relationships with your customers, stakeholders, investors, employees, suppliers, community partners or anybody that is affiliated with your organization or to whom you are associated.

What does trust really mean?

Trust is a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something. Trust, much like respect is something to be earned, through the display of actions and behaviours that are indicative of trustworthiness.

The reality is that people do business with people they trust.

Why? Because we want to feel that our best interests are being represented.

Employees want to work for companies they trust.

Why? Because we want to feel safe, secure and cared about in our job.

People want to partner with others they trust.

Why? Because we want to ensure our values and interests are aligned.

Consumers want to buy from companies they trust.

Why? Because we want to support the companies that best meet and fulfill our needs.

Trust is a little word that has big meaning and HUGE impact. It’s the one little word that if ignored, could be the pinprick that pops your balloon, metaphorically speaking. (note: this applies to your personal relationships too!)

Funny how trust works. Once you behave, speak or project yourself in a way that makes the other party question your trustworthiness, they are more likely to walk away without saying anything, never to return, engage or pursue, rather than actually confront you about it. Why? Because either you can be trusted, or you can’t. There is no in between. Once somebody has evaluated you as ‘untrustworthy’ you almost always can’t claw back from that. And if you’re not trustworthy, there are plenty of other people who are.

So, if you want to be outstanding at what you do, be a world-class professional, build a rock solid reputation, and create a successful business, it’s time to turn the mirror on yourself and evaluate how well you’re doing in the trust department.

Here are my Top 5 Tips for becoming trust-worthy in your business (and your life).

1. Follow through and follow up. Do what you say you’re going to do. Keep your word and for Pete’s sake don’t make excuses. Excuses are simply a way to avoid responsibility. When your words don’t match your actions people lose confidence in you, which is a surefire way to erode trust.

2. Boundaries. Be clear about personal and professional boundaries –  yours and other people’s – and don’t cross them. This requires a certain level of personal reflection on how you are putting yourself out into the world and whether what and how you do, say and act is appropriate in each situation.

3. Respect. Be aware and respectful of other people. Each of us has the sovereign right to think, act and behave the way we choose. Keep the interactions clean – passive-aggressive tendencies, manipulative and abusive behaviour is not the way to ‘win friends and influence people’.

4. Don’t assume anything. All of us view the world from our own perspective and through our particular lens. Don’t assume that you are on the same page with someone until you know for a fact that you are. Assumptions lead to unfulfilled expectations, which in turn lead to disappointment and an erosion of trust.

5. Truth and authenticity. This should be a no-brainer, but unfortunately it’s not. Be truthful and authentic in your words, actions and behaviours. You are only fooling yourself if you are not doing this because people’s intuition will sense into your lack of authenticity before you even open your mouth. Don’t underestimate the fact that people generally have a very perceptive bullshit meter.

Tweet this: Business is built on relationships; relationships are built on trust, it’s as simple as that.

I would love to hear about some of the things you’ve experienced in your professional life that have eroded your level in trust with somebody. Based on your experience, do you have any stories to share about ‘what not to do’? Comments welcome!

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We wear many hats, don’t we. And entrepreneurship seems like a never-ending list of to-do’s, from administration to finances, from marketing to sales, and from networking to professional development – and everything in between.

Some of us are super organized, clear, focused, detail-oriented, and manage our time well, but let’s face it, some of us just aren’t.

For those of us who aren’t – this post is for you. For those of us who are, there’s something in it for you too.

I attend many networking events and there is a particular phrase that keeps coming up in conversations time and time again. Whenever I ask my business colleagues how they are doing in their business, the stock answer I get is “I’m so busy!”

Really? Wow. Great… I think?! Are you good busy or not so good busy?

Are you busy as in feeling like a hamster in a wheel or are you busy as in clients lining up out the door waiting to work with you? There is a BIG difference.

Are you busy working on activities that are moving you toward your goals or are you busy working on the latest great idea you’ve had which isn’t part of the grand master plan?

Are you busy developing the grand master plan or are you busy doing all sorts of things and hoping (and praying) one of those things will be the magic bullet that solves your problems?

Hmm… OK.

So exactly how do you move forward, when everything you do seems to be holding you hostage in the land of un-productive busy-ness?

There IS a formula!

And I’m going to share my formula with you here:

1. Shift in mindset – change your perspective of how you’ve always done things and recognize the limiting beliefs that aren’t serving you. Do you have unhelpful expectations about how you should be or where you should be? Dump the ‘shoulds’. Expectations always lead to disappointment. Take the time to honour where you are now and pace yourself.
2. Clarity of forward direction – understand where you are headed and what you have to do to get yourself there. Remember to set yourself some realistic targets in terms of timeline and practicality and create milestone markers along the way that will force you to stop, check in with your self and the plan to determine if anything needs tweaking before continuing.
3. Focus on right activities – chart a course of right actions to get you where you want to go and park other ideas that will just get in the way. Prioritize based on $$ or whatever outcome or outputs you are trying to achieve. Park all ideas that don’t fall within the realm of the plan, you can always revisit them later.
4. Accountability to the plan – take responsibility for your plan; it is your roadmap and guide, so stick to it. Create a plan for yourself that is achievable and get help and support along the way if you need it. You don’t need to do everything yourself, you are not superwoman. (Asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness)
5. Follow through – give yourself the time and space to work the plan, track the results, change what doesn’t work well and learn about what does (and why). Celebrate the milestones and successes along the way. Learn from the miss-steps and challenges that you are confronted with.

I’m curious to know what tools or techniques you use to get yourself un-stuck in your business. Please share your comments with our community of entrepreneurs; we want to know what’s worked for you and what hasn’t.

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Let’s take some time, right now, to recall why you are in your chosen business in the first place… whether you are a therapist, coach, consultant, or healer.

(pause for reflection)

I believe that we are all here on Earth for a purpose; we all have a mission to fulfill. Everything that happens to us is designed to teach us and help us discover what our purpose is.

If you are anything like me, you’ve been through one or more major life transitions and have come out the other side knowing that living a life of meaning, and building a purpose-driven business, is vital to feeling happy and fulfilled.

Running your business based on who you are and what your purpose is will enable you to confidently own your worth and attract abundance.

At the core of your heart and soul lies your deep-seated beliefs, value systems, philosophies and perspectives that follow you throughout life and make up the lens through which you see, feel and behave.

As Robin Fisher Roffer (brand strategist and author of Make a Name for Yourself) says, “the real movers and shakers in this world live their lives with conviction; they never hide who they are.”

You have the same potential to be a ‘mover and shaker’, you just need to open yourself up to be your authentic self and embrace the opportunity to courageously stand out from the pack to be seen and heard – in order to be your best self, attract your ideal clients and increase your level of influence in your field.

One of the ways you can achieve this is by telling your personal story and weaving your message into your marketing and communications.

Why is this important?

Because your story gives meaning to what you do for a living and how you live your life. Your story makes you a ‘real’ person that your audience can relate to. Your story will open up your prospect’s heart and build an emotional connection; it fosters credibility and builds trust. All of these things are crucial because: people buy from people they like, respect and trust AND people support others who share the same values and philosophies as them.

Here are some guidelines for writing your own personal story:

• Use emotive language to draw in the listener/reader
• Paint a picture in the mind of the listener to leave an imprint in their memory
• Don’t make it all about you – always relate it back to your audience
• Talk about the circumstances or the trigger point that kicked off your journey
• Describe the struggle – how you were feeling and what you were thinking during your low point
• Highlight your turning point – your ‘a-ha’ moment that changed everything
• Talk about what you did after that moment – the healing that took place, the outcomes and changes that followed
• Describe the motivation that you feel to do the work you’re doing today
• How has what you’ve been through relate to the people you feel the need to help – what is your mission all about?

Tweet this: Run your business based on who you are and what your purpose is to attract abundance.

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Thinking – is the birth of feeling. We are constantly thinking and talking to ourselves. These internal conversations are called self-talk. Listen to what you’re saying to yourself in the privacy of your own mind. Positive, uplifting and optimistic self-talk will lead to feelings of happiness and healthy dose of self-worth. If the tone of your thoughts is self-recriminating, resistant, or pessimistic, you’ll inevitably feel down, unworthy, and not good enough. This is the trap.

We are warriors in the trenches of our own businesses; working hard to create a business we love, moving through the feast and famine cycle, waffling between the wild emotional swings of confidence and despair.

Taking the time to pause and reflect in your business is highly underrated. Building thinking time or time to reflect, into your schedule is one of the secrets to avoiding the mindset trap.

During one of these moments of intentional reflection, remember your experience, wisdom and past successes to help you regain confidence, which may have slipped out the back door. Acknowledge the limiting beliefs that are holding you back from taking the next step you’ve wanted to take in your business. It’s no fun being held hostage by fear of failure, expectation, disapproval, comparison, perfectionism, or any other artificial belief you might have about yourself or abilities.

Courage – you have it. Each of us has a still, small voice inside that speaks to us continuously. The trouble is that we seldom listen to that voice. Yet, if we let it, that inner wisdom that constantly speaks to us is our greatest guide. We act courageously multiple times per day, even though we may not realize it!

Fear – our greatest obstacle. By transforming your inner dragons and owning your own excellence, you become more able to honour yourself and your process and, as a result, move ever closer to healthy self-esteem and independence. Give yourself permission to know what a fantastic person you are. Be kind and encouraging – gently congratulate yourself on your successes and comfort yourself after you get knocked back.

Failure – is a mindset. It’s not tied to anything except our own expectations of where we think we should be versus the reality of where we are. It is one of the many false beliefs we have in this world. Approach each “failure” as an opportunity to reflect and learn. Remember everything in life happens for a reason. There is no good or bad; it just is.

What are some of the tools and techniques you employ in your business to avoid the mindset trap? Please share your comments.

Tweet this: Courage: you have it. Fear: our greatest obstacle. Failure: is a mindset.

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Knowing there is a difference between what you do and what you offer is one thing, and understanding that difference, is an entirely different thing. (Confusing or what!)

Let me explain.

Understanding what business are you actually in is essential to answering the question about what you offer versus what you do. (Hint: you are not in the business of selling your product or service.)

If somebody (a potential prospect) were to ask you what you do for a living, you might tell them you’re a coach, consultant, therapist, financial advisor, realtor or fill in the blank of what you do here _______.

That’s a vaguely interesting little piece of information you just provided, but not a compelling reason why they should buy from you and it’s a bit of a conversational non-starter.

This is what we know about people:

1. People buy from people, not companies
2. People are motivated to buy based on feelings
3. People buy from people they know, like and trust
4. People want to engage with you if they believe what you believe in
5. People are looking for solutions to their problems

Knowing what we know about people, how would your answer change if somebody were to ask you what you do for a living?

If you are a financial advisor, you are not in the financial planning business. You are in the people business, and furthermore, you offer those people (your particular niche market) peace of mind and a feeling of safety in knowing that you are protecting their lifestyle.

Once you clearly understand what business you are actually in, this will change everything! It will change how you talk about yourself to your potential client, and allow you to connect with your audience in a much more meaningful way.

When communicating about your business, always remember to position the value you provide your clients and the solution you provide to their problems.

If you understand this concept you are well on your way to becoming a sales and marketing superstar!

Tweet this: What you do and what you offer are two different things. Do you know the difference?

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I recommend cultivating 3 types of relationships.

Mentors.

The people you admire and who model similar values to yours. They are people you love to be around, who inspire you, give you confidence, spark your motivation, and challenge you to think differently. They can be people you know personally like your teacher, colleague, friend, or your neighbour. They can also be people you don’t necessary know but you admire from afar like an industry thought leader, political figure, author, or inspirational speaker. All great leaders and successful business people have many mentors in their circle  - who help and support them on their journey. I encourage you to do the same.

Partners.

Businesses and organizations that service the same type of client or target market as you do. Affiliating yourself with like-minded people who believe the same things you do and have similar service offerings (non-competitive) is essential to fast-tracking your business growth. There is enough work for everyone. Adopting an abundance mentality is the only way this type of relationship is going to be fruitful for both of you. Leveraging the community that each of you has not only allows you both to create a stronger collective offer but it provides added value to the client – it’s a win-win situation.

Referrers.

The main influencers of your target client. In other words, who are the people that are motivated to help your target audience find a solution to their problem? Align yourself with those people and nurture those relationships. If they understand your business value, believe you can solve the problem, like and trust you and have a referral mindset, they will turn out to be your greatest fan and vocal ambassador for your brand. (Your very own army of marketers!) You can show your appreciation by reciprocating referrals or providing a referral fee. Most people will be happy to recommend you if they like you, but if you don’t specifically ask for what you need, you won’t get it.

Action Steps:

• Make a list of all of the people you admire. How can you incorporate their influence in your life on a day-to-day basis?
• Cultivate your business partners. Make a list of businesses you believe to be a good compliment to yours and determine which of them services the same target audience. Start discussions and brainstorm ways of working together for mutual benefit.
• Create a referral strategy. Who might be good referral partners for you? Start with the people who are your greatest fans already. Reach out to them and ask them if they know who specifically would benefit from your offering.

Tweet this: Solo-preneurs are never solo. Cultivate relationships and create your power circle.

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Remember this. You are already an expert at what you do best, so it’s time to stand up and be the expert you are. It’s all about how you position yourself.

If you are struggling to grow your client base and get those big contracts you deserve, it’s time to take a hard look at how you are positioning yourself in the world.

I have a client who came to me with a resume four pages long chock full of multiple degrees, trainings and certifications, work experience some people in her field would be jealous of, and contracts with high profile organizations.  She is clearly an expert in her field, no question, hands down. When I asked her what her business practice was all about she talked to me about her credentials and rattled off some notable highlights from her resume. Hmmm, interesting – but what is it that she does exactly?

I asked her what her marketing and business growth challenges were. She said she’s unable to reach her audience, feels under-valued and unseen and wants to be recognized as an expert in her field internationally.

I can understand why she would be feeling frustrated that she’s not getting the recognition she deserves. She’s an expert, after all.

So, I asked her this question:

Are you growing a business, or looking for a job?

(pause for reflection)

After some digging, it turns out she offers highly targeted, very specialized wellness oriented programs to teachers working with people who have suffered from trauma. Whoa! Pretty powerful stuff!  I thought, why didn’t she position herself that way? That is how she should be talking about herself to prospective clients instead of pitching her resume.

This is simply a mindset shift.

Add to that some confidence in your abilities, the courage to talk about what you offer, and the knowledge about who is suffering from the problems your solution solves and away you go!

Tweet this: Mindset shift: Are you growing a business, or looking for a job?

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You may recall the advice I offered in my previous post specific to #3 …

“Develop a business process and set up procedures and systems in your business so that you can generate predictable, consistent and replicable results without having to reinvent the wheel every time. Implementing a system will help you become more efficient with your inputs of time and efforts, while exponentially increasing the outputs of sales.”

Now, I want to share with you my blueprint for implementing a system and repeatable process that you can apply specifically to your business.

Step 1. Take inventory of your tasks

Take complete inventory of everything you do for your prospects and clients.

Literally write out a list of tasks, activities and to do’s that are part of your client product buying and service engagement model. There are 3 parts to the model, and I have included examples corresponding to each part here:

Attraction – this includes activities that you partake in to generate leads and sales opportunities. It includes things like: online marketing tasks, lead nurturing activities, networking conversations, and partnership development activities.

Engagement – this includes everything that you do to create connections with your prospects, build rapport and relationships with your clients, and encourage trust and build credibility with your prospects. This could be things like having conversations, delivering presentations, managing expectations, holding meetings, providing support, etc.

Retention – this includes all the things you do to add value for your existing customers, how you foster community, what you do to build long-term relationships, how you collect feedback, etc.

Use this model and these suggestions as your guide. Once you start thinking about how you are specifically attracting, engaging and retaining customers in your business your list of tasks and activities will become apparent.

Step 2. Turn your tasks into a process

We don’t want to re-invent the wheel every time we do something, right? It’s really not in our best interest because we (i) waste valuable time (billable hours) and (ii) we are inefficient with our use of time (time better spent on revenue generating activities, not administration).

You already know there are certain tasks and activities you repeat all the time. So the key is to identify the ones that you do more than once and create a repeatable process you can follow each time. To illustrate, here is an example based on using a checklist as the chosen tool to create a process. There are others (ie) flow chart or mind map. Find a tool that works best for you.

I have a coaching client who has a particular list of tasks she executes every time she engages with a new client (this falls into the Engagement part of her model, refer to step 1). So, she created a ‘new client welcome’ process using a checklist with all of the activities included in her process. Every time she engages with a new client she refers to her checklist. To illustrate, here is a partial snapshot of her checklist:

New Client Welcome Process

1. Create new client file in database
2. Store signed contract in client file
3. Dispatch first invoice
4. Invite client to connect on LinkedIn
5. Add client to newsletter subscription database
6. Prepare and mail client welcome package
7. Write thank you letter to client referrer

You could literally create a checklist or flow chart for anything and everything. Once you get the hang of it and begin using this as a business tool, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it sooner. It will make things so much easier for you!

Step 3. Standardize, organize and automate

Organizing and scheduling your process to help you implement/execute your tasks is a key component of generating predictable, consistent and replicable results for your business. Here are some ways to help you do this.

• Standardize your documents and create templates.

Create a re-usable template or standardized structure for anything that you do more than once.

You may end up with a number of different templates for your activities, which is fine. The majority of information on the template doesn’t change, and you edit to include minor customization relating to a particular client or situation as required. The types of things you can standardize include; proposals, contracts, invoices, letters, newsletters, promotional material, presentations, voice call scripts, etc.

• Develop an organizational strategy for your information.

Organize and store information in a logical manner so you can search and locate what you need quickly and easily.

What kind of clusters of information makes sense? What patterns do you notice? Organize your data based on how you typically use it. This could be alphabetically, by client name, by date, by function, by activity, etc.

This can be done really simply using Excel or with a database program like Maximizer. Other ideas…you can create a hierarchical structure for organizing data on your desktop computer using folders; you can use an old-fashioned filing cabinet, or store email within specific mailboxes. Another example is using an online or desktop calendar for scheduling tasks and reminders. There are many different ways to do this digitally, virtually or traditionally.

• Automate your process to generate actions based on specific triggers or rules.

Determine which tasks on your list can be automated and which cannot. Automate all the ones you can.

Some activities and tasks lend themselves quite well to automation. If you use a database or CRM, you can set up rules and triggers to automatically generate actions. (ie) When a prospect becomes a client, an invoice is automatically dispatched. Another example of automation is to sort email using different mailing list rules, so that when you receive an email from x client, it is automatically redirected to x client’s mailbox.

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The billable hour legacy is a salary-based equation. Within this flawed system, the amount that a professional is paid does not have a direct correlation to the quality or value of the services they provide.

As Jim Rohn, Author and Motivational Speaker says, “You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.”

Thanks Jim, but what exactly does that mean?!

In a service-based business, value seems to be an elusive, intangible concept for most people. I have had numerous conversations with clients in professional services who struggle to answer this tough question, “What value do you provide your clients?”

The reason why I ask this question is because it is paramount to your success at selling yourself as a service, and getting paid what you’re worth. If you don’t know what your value is and you don’t own that value, then you will continue to struggle in your business.

If you are a coach or consultant for example, these services inherently have no value – unless you make it relevant to people’s needs.

According to Paul Roetzer, author and founder of PR 20/20, the value-based pricing model takes multiple variables into account:

1. Estimated hours – how many hours will it take to complete the project?
2. Hourly revenue target – how much revenue do you need to generate per hour of client work to achieve profit goals?
3. Costs – are there any costs associated with the production and delivery that will be built into the price?
4. Perceived value – what is fair market value? What are clients willing to pay for the service?
5. Builder vs driver – is the service designed to set the foundation for future success (builder) or to produce short-term results (driver)? This directly affects the perceived value and what clients are willing to pay.
6. Loss leader – is the service designed to entice first-time clients with attractive pricing? Is it proven to create cross-sell and up-sell opportunities?

I’ll add these 3 additional variables into the mix, specifically for those of us selling ourselves as our service:

7. People – are you delivering a unique offering? How do you differentiate yourself from the competition?
8. Relevance – is your offering relevant to your ideal client’s specific needs? Are you positioning your offer as a solution to your client’s problem?
9. Connection – what is your relationship with your customer? What is your level of customer engagement and customer service?

Generally, people don’t purchase based on price (some exceptions apply ie. commodities). Most people engage your services based on value or rather their perception of value. When relating this back to your business, here are some factors that have a higher perception of value:

• Specialty – do you offer a highly specialized service that isn’t readily available?
• Premium time – do you offer personal, customized, one-on-one client face-time?
• Endorsements – have you been endorsed by an industry thought-leader? Have glowing client testimonials? Success-based case studies?
• Conviction – do you have the personal presence, conviction, and clarity about the benefits of your offering?
• Celebrity status – are you a published author? Award-winner? Media darling?
• Influence – what’s your level of influence and leadership in your specialty? Do people listen to you and respect what you say? Are you a proven expert in your field?

So, I challenge you to own your value, charge your worth and position yourself for the sale. Once you step into your power and ask for what you want, you will get what you deserve and it will feel so liberating! How would making this mindset shift change your life and your business?

Tweet this: To get paid what you’re worth and leverage your time, stop trading your time for money.

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