kathy ennis + your brand is you

One Calendar / One Life

2012-01-30T14:16:30Z

Anyone who knows me knows I like to keep things simple and straightforward. So to ensure you have the time (and energy) to achieve your 2012 Action Plan what is more simple and straightforward than organising your calendar? And if you do it now – before the year gets into full-swing – when those all-important calls on your time start rolling in during 2012 you will be ready.

1. One calendar / One life

It’s tempting to want to separate work from life, but having everything in one place really is essential.

2. Size really does matter

The calendar should be at least a month to view – but preferably an annual wall calendar so that one look can tell you if you are over stretching yourself if you agree to do this or that.

3. What’s what

Identify each activity and block it off in the calendar. Don’t forget to include the dates of exhibitions and conferences (even if at this point you don’t know if you are attending or not – you don’t want to have double booked yourself if the opportunity to attend does come up), industry specific dates, ‘celebration’ dates (World Book Day, Global Entrepreneur Week etc), bank holidays, the day before/ the day after a holiday (for last minute prep/getting your head back in the right space) etc. etc.

4. Be colourful

Create a colour code for every type of activity and use these colours consistently. Again, this is a great ‘at a glance’ way of gauging what you are actually doing.

Dilbert does personal branding!

2011-11-23T17:41:41Z

It had to happen!

My favourite cartoon strip about the ‘joys’ of the world of work has finally ‘done’ personal branding.

Way to go Dilbert

You are more then the tip of the iceberg

2011-11-23T17:37:50Z

When I start working with a new client, before we get going on planning the direction of their career or the growth of their business, I ask two very simple questions “Who are you?” and “What do you believe?”

Did I say simple? Well, yes, on the surface the questions are very simple. But that’s the problem with the surface – It’s only the tip of the iceberg.

Cynics may say that taking time to develop a set of personal Core Values is a self-indulgent waste of time; they aren’t a core skill looked for by potential employers or a saleable asset in a business. Yet, multi-national corporations such as Nestle and Zara are actively promoting their ‘shared values‘ and ‘mission statement‘. Why? Because they realise that an openly expressed set of core values contribute to an organisation that is:

Accountable – ready to answer for the consequences of actions
Credible – trustworthy expert
Focused – clear and concise
Differentiated – totally different from anything similar
Authentic – faithful to a set of internal rather than external ideals

And accountable, credible, focussed, differentiated and authentic businesses develop a loyal client base and a healthy reputation – which is why I ask my clients the “Who” and the “What” questions – because by having a “life code” (a set of Core Values) you will find action, direction and decision making so much easier.

It wasn’t raining when Noah built the Ark ….

2011-10-23T18:13:05Z

It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark ...

Quotes, clichés, sayings – we love them. They pepper presentations and are re-Tweeted massively in Twitter streams. The reason we like them is that someone has summed-up, succinctly, a point or an issue that resonates with us.

A quick ‘Google’ of the terms “quotes” “planning” will bring you an absolute mass of quotes both ancient and modern; from the classic proverb “he who fails to plan, plans to fail” to John Lennon’s “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”

One of my favourites is “it pays to plan ahead; it wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.”

But what type of plan or what level of plan do you need? It all depends on what you want to achieve.

There are three types of plan (all three share characteristics but they do have different purposes):

The Strategic Plan

Strategic planning is about determining the direction in which you want to take yourself. It is a long-term plan. With my clients we work on a 5-year cycle.

The Business Plan

The purpose of a business plan is to provide the detailed route map that will take you to your desired outcome. For this plan will need to collect and analyse a wide range of information about yourself, your business or your work sector – both about how it operates and about how conditions are developing currently and by spotting future trends.

The Action Plan

Knowing your ultimate goal (strategic plan) develops your vision; knowing your sector (business plan) develops your mission – both underpin your action plan. The problem I have discovered is that many people get so hung up on the business plan they don’t recognise the need for a strategic plan and think the business plan is actually an action plan.

One of the ways I get round this with clients is with the production of a Vision Board – it’s amazing how much clarity emerges from this exercise and how powerful a planning tool it is. And for those who think it’s just about sticking pretty pictures randomly on a sheet of paper – well, you haven’t been on my Your Vision Into Reality workshop!

Oh, and because I love freebies – check out the free to download The Down & Dirty A4 Plan on Steve Clarke’s website. It’s really helpful.

I have a cunning plan …

2011-10-17T18:24:23Z

If I had £1 for every hour of my life I have spent planning I would be a very rich person indeed!

Because, over the years, I have spent a lot of time planning; lists, mind maps, wall charts – all beautifully colour-coded and laminated. Some plans made it as far as the wall, while many languished in a drawer until things were not going exactly as I thought they would and I realised….. I needed a new plan, and to make it work this time I would use blue for financial activities instead of green. Yes, that was the problem – I had used the wrong colour.

What I discovered, after those years of trial and error, is that we all need a plan – but it needs to be simple, straightforward and visible (a drawer or a folder is no place for an action plan).

A common thread I have identified when my clients come to me – whether they are start-ups, established businesses or career-minded professionals – is a feeling of lack of control or being overwhelmed. One even described it as feeling unable to breathe. So we always start with ‘The Plan’.

I’m not talking business plan here; I’m talking about a plan to provide you with the detail for the next 12 months of activity so it has to be something that you use and refer to daily. That’s where The Easy-Peasy Action Plan comes in. Simple, straightforward, not complicated – and you can download it free from my website.