Simply Business Coaching

Keep Thinking Ahead

One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned from studying how to use the internet more efficiently as a marketing medium, is that it’s possible to make a little go quite a long way, by thinking ahead. 

While I’ll admit to not getting everything right yet, here are some of the strategies I’ve started using:

Writing Articles
When I wrote my first newsletter article to send out to around 50 email contacts back in 2003, I hadn’t heard of blogging or article marketing.  About the only thinking ahead I did was to include a link to my website or to a service or workshop I wanted to promote.

The direction my business is taking now means writing articles is becoming one of the core activities, fortunately it’s one I quite enjoy, but I know it isn’t for everyone.

I was working with a client last week who finds it very difficult to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard).  However, if you put this same client on the phone, she would have no trouble at all in coming up with exactly the kind of information her contacts are interested in reading about, except in audio format.  All she would need to do is record her talk and get it transcribed and she has two media options to offer.  (In my case I’ll do it the other way around and record from the written article to get an audio.)

Repurposing Material
My newsletter subscribers are very important to me and I always make sure they get brand new content in every issue and are first to hear of any special offers.  The article will be turned into blog posts at a later date and submitted to online article directories.  I know I can make even more mileage from them by using audio and video, and fully plan to do so in future.

Giving Talks and Workshops
I’m ashamed to admit it didn’t occur to me to make more use of these occasions, until recently.  Now everything is recorded so it can be reused as part of a product to either sell or give away in the future.

How do you think ahead with material you create? I’d love you to comment and let me know.  If you enjoyed this post, please share it with others.
 

Could I have Found a Planner that Works?

Regular readers of this blog will know I’m a great advocate of forward planning to achieve better productivity and great results.  One of the areas I personally struggle with is planning topics for blog posts and articles so as to have an even mix of categories.  Without planning, I tend to write too many articles on whatever topic is occupying my attention at the time - which means posts can be of more interest to me than to you, the reader!  Obviously that’s completely the wrong way round.

About a month ago, I came across a collection of downloadable planners by Charles Gilkey.  From past experience, most preprinted and often expensive planners I’ve used don’t seem to suit the way I like to work, but there was something about the simplicity of this collection, combined with the fact that Charles says about himself:  "I’m constantly learning new things, which means I’ve constantly got a lot of stuff to do. My complicated, layered life was just an extension of my quest to learn and experience a bunch of new things." which is very similar to the way I work.

The planners which I’m most pleased with, and which are really helping to organise my writing output are ‘The Blog Post Planner’ and ‘The Blog Post Calendar’.  I used them both for a complete month and am delighted that they’ve captured my often scattered ideas very neatly.  This month I’m trying out the ‘Monthly Action Planner’ to find out if it will fit in with the projects I need to work on this month (I’ll let you know how it goes).

It's Half-Time - how are you doing?

'We spend, I am very certain, the half of our time among people that we do not particularly like and on things that do not particularly amuse us, and consequently have no time for the people and things that do really matter to us."  Alec Waugh

Unbelievably half of 2010 has been - and gone.  Now is a good time to take stock and make any necessary adjustments to goals and plans for the rest of the year.  When I worked in the corporate world, the year was divided into periods 'A' and 'B' and each period covered 6 months.  It's something I've carried on doing.

First I review progress against targets set at the beginning of the year - both financial and performance.  This is the point where you find out just how much you did achieve!

It's important to do this exercise and then put the results firmly in the past.  Those six months have gone forever and nothing that happened, or didn't happen, can now be changed.  Looking forward to the next six months, and keeping the above quote in mind, be sure to include people and things that do matter to you!  Here's how I do it.

Make separate plans for  life and business

Personal Growth
Family get togethers
New skills to learn
Friends to meet up with
Books to read
Health & fitness targets

Hearth & Home
What major repairs need doing before winter?
Which rooms to decorate
Any kitchen appliances to replace
Maintenance/service calls to arrange

Business
Projects to start/complete
New products to launch
Schedule networking events to attend
Book conference & seminar places
Arrange meetings with strategic alliance partners
etc.

I think you get the idea!  This is by no means a comprehensive list, just a few things off the top of my head.

What I'll do is take this first draft and keep adding to it over the next few days, until I can't think of anything more.  Next, I'll do a reality check for each item and ask myself how feasible it is to get it done by the end of the year.  This will probably result in a few crossings out!

For the items that remain I can then start planning out the smaller individual action steps, write them down too, and get started on the first one!

Do you do a half-year review?  Please share what works for you in the comments below. And if you found this helpful, I'd appreciate a RT.

Business Clarity - Finally The Fog Lifts

As I finalised this week's schedule it was as though a fog was lifting and I could see more clearly. If you  sometimes struggle through foggy conditions in your business, I hope sharing this recent experience may help.

After a few months of tight deadlines (client work, financial returns - working IN the business), I'd pretty much abandoned the idea of planning ahead or scheduling marketing activities into my diary.  This meant that newsletters, blog posts and social networking all suffered due to lack of proper attention.  In turn, I felt the weight of disappointment at haphazard, substandard scribbles (I'm my own worst critic!).

I told myself I didn't have time to plan, I'd do it once I'd finished this project or met that deadline.  The trouble was, this foggy situation actually started back in March and while I'd met all the deadlines and given the impression to the outside world of being in total control (don't we always?), it was really difficult to see where I was headed in terms of planning ahead for the business.

Just because I can teach this stuff in workshops, doesn't mean I'm any less likely to get stuck than any of my students!  But what I have in my favour are an extensive toolkit to dip into, and experience of what works. 

So last weekend I spent a few very satisfying hours planning out the rest of this month in detail.  I used pen and paper for this (but you could use a whiteboard or your computer - whatever works best for you) and found even more ideas began to flow as the schedule took shape.  Unexpectedly I'd also found the right conditions for creativity, and moving out of the fog has helped me to see very clearly what I want to achieve over the next few months.

Have you been stuck in some kind of fog in your business?  Please share in the comments section.  If you found this post helpful, a Retweet or Like would be appreciated!

Did you make your 2010 plans small enough?

Well, it’s all over for another year!  I’m sure some people will struggle to get back into a ‘normal’ routine today, while others can’t wait to start working on their exciting plans.  Which group are you in?

The social networks have been a little quieter over the past couple of weeks, although I was amazed to receive a couple of promotional emails on Christmas Day!  Perhaps a case where automated messages aren’t the best option?

As well as creating exciting plans for 2010 - which I hope you have, even if you haven’t typed them up and put them into a beautiful folder yet – making those plans happen is going to need more than some new year resolution!

It’s time to take action now – not next week, not tomorrow, but right NOW!  If your plan seems overwhelming, perhaps it’s because you haven’t broken it down into small enough steps.   I made the same mistake just last week.  I set myself a lofty plan to revise parts of my website during the days between Christmas and New Year .....  then I realised it was going to take a little longer than a week to make all the changes I had in mind.
 
I believe it was Tony Robbins who said: “We overestimate what we can achieve in a week, and underestimate what we can achieve in a year.”  Definitely true in this case!

So I took my website plan and wrote down all the individual actions needed to make it happen.  The resulting list was much longer, but clearer and less overwhelming.  And I even managed to complete a few of the actions. The remainder will get done – one at a time.

This is an easy and effective way to set yourself up for success.  So, which of your plans for 2010 need breaking down into more manageable steps?

Making room for 2010

Yesterday I hosted my last weekly Blog Talk Radio show. I thought it was appropriate to review all the interviews and acknowledge my brilliant guests. Monday evenings won’t be quite the same next year!

But I’m determined to move my business forward next year, and to do it quickly. So I needed to find room in my schedule to fit in the new and exciting Teleseminars and webinar projects (just as a start!). Something had to go.

What do you need to give up in order to make room for 2010?

 

Are you planning yourself to a standstill?

Just as it can be a terrible waste of energy to pursue a new business idea with no clear plan or direction, the opposite can have equally devastating effects on your business.

Picture this: a notebook filled with ideas, spreadsheets forecasting every financial possibility, a professional-looking business plan running into many pages, copious To-Do lists.  So far so very tidy. 

As a business coach I obviously encourage clients to spend time planning, so they know what needs doing and when.  The problem arises when they don’t seem to progress beyond the planning stage.

The reasons for this vary according to the individual concerned, but can include lack of experience, lack of knowledge or resources, lack of confidence (in ability), fear of failure, fear of success, even fear of the unknown.

The answer is, unsurprisingly, to take action and break the stalemate.  Any action in this case, is better than none so this situation doesn’t continue too long.  Because the plan may cover a large and ambitious goal, it can be hard to switch to the detailed view and identify what to do first, but that is exactly what’s needed.

In business, as in life, taking the first steps into the unknown can be scary.  Fortunately this is usually more than compensated for by the feelings of exhilaration and achievement at having taken action!

And by taking small steps every day, the plans will start to be transformed into reality.  Without those steps, they will become sad and dusty artefacts of what might have been.

What steps are you taking today?

When Planning goes out of the Window!

I’ve always prided myself on being a very organised individual.  I like to plan ahead because I hate last minute rushes.  And with so many planning and time management tools at my disposal, there really is no excuse for me to fall back on, or to explain the situation I find myself in.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been working on some quite involved projects (both mine and for clients), and have quite simply lost track of time.  Today is Thursday but it feels like Tuesday!  I’ve fallen behind with my writing timetable and seem to have been playing catch-up all this week.

Don’t get me wrong – it’s lovely to be busy.  But the first twinges of overwhelm are telling me something isn’t right.

Perhaps it’s because I haven’t reached optimal working speed after the leisurely pace of the summer break?  Maybe I got a bit lazy in the planning department?

There really is no point in further analysing how I arrived at this stage.  What matters now is getting back on track and meeting those looming deadlines.... one step at a time.

Are you on target?

Unbelievably we’re already half way through 2009!   I’ve always found this to be a good time to check and reflect on the progress made so far towards both my business targets.  And as it’s my birthday early in July, I also like to review how I’m doing with my personal goals since the previous year!

What I do is set aside some quiet time (usually over a weekend) to do a bit of self-coaching. I turn off the phones and select a CD to accompany my thoughts. 

Here’s a sample from the questions I’ll be reflecting on:

• Is this still a valid goal?
• How will I feel at the end of the year if I don’t reach this?
• What actions do I need to take to get back on track?
• What outside help or extra resources do I need?
• What would Richard Branson do?
• What one thing will I do today to start getting back on track?

If you’re reviewing your progress so far and gearing up for the next 6 months, I hope you’ll find these questions useful.  And if you need any help, just give me a call!

Have you done your planning yet?

Most of the business owners I’ve spoken to so far this year have made their plans for success and growth in 2009.  They know that they need to stay focused on what they want to achieve, and not be swayed by all the negative messages about the economy. 

It isn’t being irresponsible to want to grow your business despite what’s happening in the High Street.  Planning helps keep you on track, working steadily toward your goals.

What will halt your growth and could even damage your business is playing the ‘wait and see’ game.  It’s become obvious that the economic situation isn’t going to be resolved any time soon.  It’s even possible that things will never return to quite how they were before.

I was chatting with my dad at the weekend about the differences in buying habits between our respective generations.  For example:

• My generation grew up with readily available credit, and adopted a buy now, pay later attitude. 
• My dad’s generation saved up until they had enough to buy what they wanted. 
• My generation is lured by the latest, shiniest, fastest gizmo as it becomes available. 
• My dad’s generation looked after what they had and expected it to last a long time.
• My generation has amassed an incredible £1455bn of personal debt (as at 1 December 2008, source Moneybasics UK)
• My dad’s generation feared debt and were wary of taking out any loans.

As always, there are lessons to be learned from previous generations, even if circumstances aren’t quite the same.

Planning ahead for your business (as well as in your personal life) means you can identify when you’re likely to need to buy – whether it’s printing, equipment, seminar tickets – and, dare I say it, save up beforehand!

(If you missed my free planning call (inspired by Sherman Hu) and the Planning Template I gave away just before the New Year, you can still hear it here  http://blogtalkradio.com/louisebj click on Show FLR #1)

What planning or financial lessons have you learned from previous generations?  Please feel free to share them by leaving a comment below.