20 Minutes is Your Friend

My article on the “Five Biggest Time Wasters” ( http://www.smartbusinessowners.com/the-5-biggest-time-wasters/  identified procrastination as one of the reasons we often welcome distractions and interruptions. These are two ways we convince ourselves that we’re not able to complete or tasks or projects.

Today’s article by Vicky White, a feng shui expert and coach who helps people eliminate the clutter in all areas of their lives: emotional, physical, relationships, etc.  Since her article addresses procrastination it’s a fitting continuation of my series on “Stop Wasting Time and Start Making Money”. 

Feature Article: 20 Minutes is Your Friend ©2009 Vicky White

Do you ever procrastinate?

Procrastination is the habit of not getting started, putting things off till the last minute. It results in missed opportunities. stress, and a head and life full of clutter.

Here are 7 tips for dealing with procrastination that will help you take charge of your life. As you read these, think of something you are procrastinating about right now and see how these tips relate – I know there IS something you’re procrastinating about.

1. First, ask yourself: Is this project or action in alignment with my vision or purpose? Is it something really important to you? If not, why are you even thinking about doing it?

2. Are you telling yourself you ‘have to’ do it? If so, that puts a heavy energy onto it and who wants to do something they’re being told they have to do? Either find a way for it to be something you choose to do, or don’t do it. Words have energy behind them, they shape your outcomes.

Remember, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. You are always free to choose. There may be consequences for not doing it, but you DO have a choice.

3. Let go of perfectionism. For anyone with a writing project that’s the biggest energy killer. Just start. Getting those words down on paper will get the energy flowing and when you come to edit you’ll have something to work with. Same applies to anything else.

4. Break projects down into tasks. A project is to do your taxes or declutter the garage. A task might be to collect your Credit Card receipts or declutter one box in the corner of your garage. See the difference?
A task is something you can do in 20-30 minutes. Make a list of tasks associated with a project you’ve been putting off. Then schedule them – perhaps 20 minutes a day.

Remember this: ‘20 minutes is your friend’. The hardest part is starting but anyone can do something for 20 minutes. Set a timer – likely once you start you’ll do more, but even if it’s just 20 minutes a day, that’s 140 minutes a week and over 9 hours in a month. That’s some serious momentum you will have created.

5. Schedule fun times: Schedule self care, meditation, time for you, time with your family – those things that give you the energy and resources to handle the more challenging things – so you don’t feel deprived. I recommend scheduling your ME time for first thing in the morning. Then schedule your 20-30 minute spots that will lead to completion of your project. Everything else will fit in.

6. Reward yourself: Spend 20 minutes – and then reward yourself. For me writing this article – the task right now is fleshing out the outline I wrote – then I get to take a break and phone a friend. And yes, I’ve already been going for more than 20 minutes. Funny that!

7. Staying motivated. Find an accountability buddy. The more people you tell, the more likely it is you’ll do it. It’s a bit like the Integrity Days I offer in my programs. Having told us what you’re going to do in the coming hour, you’re unlikely to call back and say you just sat around eating bon-bons!

Procrastination is caused by turning a project into something unpleasant. The way to reduce procrastination is reframe your experience. These tips will help you – if you use them.

Remember 20 minutes is your friend.  Now, what will you do today?

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About the Author:  Vicky White is an Inner Feng Shui Coach who works with women in transition who are ready to step into something way bigger and connect their soul’s purpose to living full, juicy, passionate and abundant lives.  , The Inner Feng Shui Coach. Get Vicky White’s FREE “5 Biggest Attraction Mistakes ” report and her FREE articles to boost your creativity and your bottom line, at: www.LifeDesignStrategies.com

Testimonial:  I participated in one of Vicky’s clutter busting programs and I acquired tools which are still helping me keep clutter reined in.  I have found time I didn’t know I had! She also helped me improve the flow in my home using feng shui. She is fantastic!  Merlyn Sanchez, SMART Business Owners

The 5 Biggest Time Wasters

As the saying goes: “Time is money”, so wasting time is wasting money. And very few of us can afford to do that, especially in today’s economy.

Here are 5 pitfalls that many business owners and solo professionals fall into which can severely hamper their  productivity and cost them profits.  Do any of the following sound familiar?

1. Trying to do it all  The days of multi-tasking are long gone. Studies now document what many people have known for years: trying to do it all slows you down and increases mistakes. Just because you know how to do it doesn’t mean you should. If you start using the excuse “it’s easier (or faster, done better, etc.) if I do it myself”, then you know you’re in trouble!

2. Not having systems in place The reasons for having systems range from making it easier to delegate (see pitfall number 1), keeping your business running if you need to be away, to maximizing your return on your time investment. Look at the following areas and see if you have the systems in place to make your efforts more effective: marketing, customer service, bookkeeping/accounting, and order processing.

3. Being busy but not productive  When you’re busy doing a lot of things: making phone calls, checking email, and putting out fires you can fall into the trap of thinking you’re actually being productive. However, if you’re just engaging in “busy work” and working without a plan then you’re wasting time. Being productive means accomplishing something, using your available time to its best use.

4. Interruptions and distractions It doesn’t matter whether you work at home or in an office interruptions and distractions are a common problem. First, determine whether these annoyances are welcomed or initiated by you or not. Procrastination’s two best friends are interruptions and distractions! If you’re the problem, then you need to deal with why you’re avoiding certain tasks.

5. Technology  We’re being inundated with tools and technologies to improve our lives and instead they’re complicating them! Email has long been a big time waster, there are tools to help you manage it and whole chapters in books discussing it. Now we have “smart” phones so we can check email (can’t get away from the inbox), check the news, text, IM, surf the web, play games, the options are almost endless! Learn to manage these tools and eliminate the ones that are becoming time wasters.

Tomorrow’s post will offer some solutions and resources to help you eliminate (or at least tame) these time bandits.

 

 

[tags] time wasters, time management, productivity pitfalls, multi-tasking, process management, maximizing time, accomplishing more, getting things done/tags]

Looking for a virtual assistant for teleseminar project

I’m planning a teleseminar series to take place in about 6 to 8 weeks (still working on the timeline). I’m looking for a virtual assistant who has experience in arranging teleseminar conferences (virtual conferences) with the following qualifications:

• Experience ( as I mentioned above, you must have done this before)
• Good contacts in some of the following fields: public relations, financial planning for businesses/entrepreneurs (good topics include tax issues, budgeting, cash flow, etc.), public speaking, and branding.  You do not have to have contacts in ALL these areas but it will help if you know people that you can contact as speakers for the teleconference.
• Excellent organizational skills
• Pro-active and a self-starter
• Web design/wordpress experience (to set up the pages for the event)
• Audio editing and set up experience

 

This is just a basic outline of what I’m looking for.  The teleconference series will be free with an upgrade for transcripts and audios of the event.

If you, or someone you know, is qualified, please contact me at: Merlyn (at) smartbusinessowners.com.

Thank you!

Merlyn Sanchez

 

The Greatest Sales Strategy Ever

The Greatest Sales Strategy Ever by guest author, Jon Gordon

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As a student of people and ideas I have to admit that what two guys are doing in a Northeast Florida Starbucks is absolutely genius.

The other day as I tried to pay for my green tea at my local Starbucks the cashier said, “Don’t worry about it sir. Those guys over there are paying for it today.” She then handed me their business card from a stack by the register. Turns out the guys were wealth management / financial planners who once a week, at different times, will spend a few hours at this Starbucks and buy customers their coffee or tea. Most people, like me, will walk over and thank the gentlemen and walk away with their business card in our pocket.

I thought about how brilliant this was. For many the coffee shop experience has become a right of passage that helps them take on the day. It’s become an emotional experience that makes them feel good. It’s become a bond of love. These financial planners brilliantly connected something people love with a service they offer. Not surprisingly I found out that these men do receive a good number of calls from the Starbucks customers interested in planning for their financial future.

It is said we remember one third of what we read, half of what people tell us and 100 % of how feel. Whether we are watching a commercial, listening to a teacher, or talking to a sales person it is how we feel that impacts us the most. We can’t remember what we ate for lunch a week ago but we can remember where we were on 9-11. We remember how we feel and when it comes to investing our money, buying a product, purchasing insurance or real estate, or choosing a restaurant we will make our choices based on these feelings.

This leads us to the greatest sales strategy ever-but it doesn’t involve coffee. While the Starbucks idea is brilliant it isn’t the best way to build a business. There is a far more powerful strategy to create an emotional connection and foster an emotional memory. It’s so simple and it doesn’t even cost a dime. It’s to love and care about your customers. Caffeine is temporary but a positive emotional experience lasts forever.

Customers do business with people they like and trust and who care about them. When customers feel like they matter and feel cared for they love back with more loyalty, more business and more referrals.

So if you are in sales, and we all are, I encourage you to make loving and caring about your customers your top priority. You don’t have to buy them coffee to connect your product or service with something they love. You can be the connection. You can be the bridge that connects your customer with your product or service. After all, no matter what we are selling, people are always buying our energy and making decisions based on how our energy makes them feel. And while coffee is an energy source that makes people feel good it doesn’t compare to the power of our positive energy. Look out for your customers interests. Show them you care. Do your best for them. Share the love and you’ll be so successful you’ll be able to buy your own coffee shop and give away all the coffee you want.

How do you show your customers you care?

Stay Positive!
Jon

 

 

About the Author

Jon Gordon is a speaker, consultant and author of the international best sellerThe Energy Bus:

10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work and Team with Positive Energy and The No Complaining Rule: Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity at Work. Jon’s latest book, Training Camp: What the Best do Better than Everyone Else, released in mid May 2009.

The message in Jon’s books and speaking presentations is such that NFL coaches such as Jack Del Rio, Mike Smith, the PGA Tour and the FBI have called on Jon to inspire and benefit their teams. Jon and his books have been featured on CNN, NBC’s Today Show and in Forbes, Fast Company, O Magazine, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. Clients such as The Atlanta Falcons, Campbell Soup, Northwestern Mutual, Publix Super Markets and JP Morgan Chase also call on Jon to bring out the best in their leaders and teams. For more information, please visit:

 http://www.jongordon.com

Technorati Tags: Sales strategy, prospecting strategy, customer service, emotional connection with customers, client prospecting strategy

 

UPCOMING LINKEDIN WEBINARS

Are you LinkedIn? If so, are you using it to build your brand, improve your search engine rankings, and your credibility?

A strong LinkedIn profile builds your professional brand, establishes you as an expert, increases your credibility, and positions you higher in Google searches. This nuts and bolts program will help you to create a professional, eye catching profile that will put you ahead of your competition.

Join us for one of our upcoming webinars on “Perfecting Your LinkedIn Profile”:

Wednesday, June 24, 2009 – from 12-1 pm Eastern Time (GMT-5)

http://tinyurl.com/profdevelopjun24

Tuesday, July 7, 2009 – from 12- 1 pm Eastern Time (GMT-5)

http://tinyurl.com/profdevelopjul7

You’ll learn:

• Why your LinkedIn profile is so important and how to craft a compelling one
• How to customize your profile with symbols and special characters
• How to use keywords to improve your “findability”
• Why having recommendations is important and how to effectively request them
• Why joining groups can help improve your visibility and set you apart from other users

You’ll also receive:

• A profile template (in MS Word) that you can use as a guide
• The 28 page IA LinkedIn Profiles Guide by Mike O’Neil which contains all the “How To’s” to build your very own highly effective Search Engine Optimized (SEO) profile so that you can be found on Linked, Google and the Web in general (the guide sells for $29 on the IA website).
• PDF handouts of the powerpoint presentation

The cost? This webinar and all the materials are available for only $39!

SMART Business Owners has teamed up with Integrated Alliances as authorized trainers for their cutting edge social networking programs and we’ll be offering live and web programs on different social networking platforms such LinkedIn, FastPitch, Facebook, and much more!

Technorati Tags: LinkedIn, LinkedIn training, LinkedIn profile development, LinkedIn webinar, LinkedIn profiles guide, LinkedIn SEO profile

 

Is Twitter Making You Money or Wasting Your Time?

Twitter has exploded in the last year so it’s inevitable that business owners and independent professionals are wondering if it’s a worthwhile marketing strategy.  It certainly can be if it’s done correctly.

First of all, you need to understand what Twitter can do for you.  It isn’t a panacea but rather a tool in an already well defined marketing strategy.

Twitter can:

1.  Assist in brand building  You have the opportunity to offer valuable information and assistance delivered in the spirit of your brand.  Customizing your Twitter “landing page” offers you another opportunity for continuing your brand theme.

2.  Provide a venue for relationship building  Building familiarity is key to gaining your prospect’s trust.  Tweeting regularly (and relevantly) allows your potential clients begin to feel as if they know you and the way you do business.

3.  Be a valuable tool for gathering information  This is very useful and far reaching aspect of Twitter.  You can learn about potential clients, partner, and competitors.  You can conduct market research and gauge interest in services and products.

4.  Help you promote yourself  Tweeting about your latest projects, seminars, and special offers will assist you in being seen as the authority in your niche.  It can also help you drive an audience to your newsletters, blogs, and free or paid programs/products.

The key to successfully integrating Twitter into your marketing efforts is to keep your followers listening.  And the easiest way to do that is to make the majority of your tweets about them NOT you. Unless you’re a very well known person that people are just clamoring to know, your tweets need to be informative, useful, and relevant to your audience.

 

About the Author
Merlyn Sanchez, Business Coach and Marketing Consultant, teaches small business owners, consultants, and other solo professionals how to attract more clients, make more sales and have more time to enjoy their lives. For a free report outlining the “”8 SMART Strategies that Successful Business Owners Use to Attract More Clients™ and more tips on how to create a successful business, visit http://www.smartbusinessowners.com.

Technorati Tags: Twitter, social media, social media marketing, using Twitter for business, Twitter tips, marketing with Twitter

 

Top 10 Video Submission Sites

If you are using videos as one of your marketing strategies, here is a list of 10 video submission sites which can help your videos go viral:

1) Google Video
2)Yahoo Video
3 You Tube
4)Photobucket
5)My Space
6)Vimeo
7)VSocial
Blip.tv
9)Daily Motion

Of course, there are other ways to get the word out:  include a link in your email signature, write about it on your blog, tweet about (and get others to tweet it for you as well),  and mention it in your e-newsletter. 

Don’t Hype Your Way Into Your Client’s Inbox

We’re all familiar with the scourge of SPAM:  the unsolicited emails exhorting us to improve our love lives, buy cheap prescriptions, or make millions on the internet.  The exaggerations and overblown language are expected.

But the hype that I’m referring to comes from the very email lists to which we’ve subscribed.  Here are a few  examples of the subject lines which have made their way into my inbox:

“Blogs Suck” (this is an all-purpose one, I’ve seen specific marketers use this one in google ads as well, for example, Mr. X Sucks!)  Then you click through and find that this is way to get you to read a review (a favorable one) for the product.

“I must be crazy (or out of my mind, or any other term to describe insanity) to do this!”  This offer is so outrageous that not only is the marketer crazy, you’d be crazier not to buy their product.

“Read Your Email NOW, Merlyn!” Apparently this approach is designed to intrigue you enough by the sheer nerve of the command that you’ll open this email.

“I might get fired – please open ASAP” This email is invariably sent by the assistant or team of the person to whose list you’re subscribed.  This employee (or employees) is about to offer you the deal of a lifetime and you’d better get on board before their boss gets back and fires them!

These tactics are nothing new but I’m finding them more and more prevalent.  I don’t know if this is due to  the economy or because it’s harder to reach subscribers through all the “chatter”, perhaps it’s a combination of factors. 

However, most people are savvy to these tricks of the trade.  They’re put off by the hype and come-on’s that used to be solely the tactics of internet marketers.  Business professionals expect to be treated as, well, professionals!  If you’ve done your homework, then you know what your ideal clients need and want.  It’s usually specific solutions to their most pressing challenges.  They want to receive this information from a business or service professional who is authentic and looking for a longterm, mutually beneficial relationship.

So, please don’t hype your way into your client’s inbox! SMART Business Owners know the way to attract attention with integrity and professionalism. 

 

Technorati Tags:  email hype, marketing with integrity, selling with integrity

 

 

New Year’s Resolutions – Why don’t they work?

Ahhh, a New Year full of promise and excitement! The perfect time to decide to change all those nasty habits and take life by the horns. You’ve made resolutions before, but this time it’s going to be different. You’re going to get caught up on all your emails, return all your phone calls promptly, exercise daily, stop smoking, and lose 20 pounds.

So, three weeks into the New Year, how’s it going?

Despite my sarcastic tone in the previous paragraphs, I believe we can make profound and lasting changes. However, we often fall into the following traps which sabotage our efforts:

1. We set goals that aren’t our own This is the “should” trap: I should clean out the garage, I should lose weight, I should spend more time with my in-laws. Change is difficult enough so unless you’re doing it for yourself; because you really, truly want to change, then your odds of success are slim. Besides, why would you want to waste your time doing things you don’t really want to do?

2. Being unprepared for the discomfort of change Change is uncomfortable, even painful at times. Especially when you have to confront some very unpleasant truths about yourself or the people you surround yourself with. Be prepared for the emotional toll and if you need support, whether professional or not, get it!

3. We’re not tapping into our pain It’s the same concept we use in our marketing program: you have to find your client’s pain and offer a solution which helps them visualize and even experience what their “problem-free” future will be like. In this case, YOU are the client. What will your life look like, feel like, be like, if you can overcome this obstacle? Write it out, make an audio recording, draw it or make a collage but get creative so you can see yourself the way you want to be.

4. Underestimating the time involved I’ve read several studies that state that changing a habit takes between 21 and 30 days. Some habit may take longer depending on whether there’s a physical addiction or just due to the number of years you’ve been behaving this way. Take it one step at a time and remember that a relapse doesn’t mean you give up! Just keep going and you CAN make it.

Don’t be discouraged by the frustrations and pitfalls along the way to your goals. It can be done and there are certainly inspiring stories about people who’ve overcome great odds to achieve their dreams.

We’ll continue this conversation with some common resolutions and offer tips and resources to assist you. Tomorrow’s post will deal with overcoming paper overwhelm!

Upcoming LinkedIn Profile Development Webinars

Are you LinkedIn? If so, are you using it to build your brand, improve your search engine rankings, and your credibility?

A strong LinkedIn profile builds your professional brand, establishes you as an expert, increases your credibility, and positions you higher in Google searches. This nuts and bolts program will help you to create a professional, eye catching profile that will put you ahead of your competition.

Join us for one of our upcoming webinars on “Perfecting Your LinkedIn Profile”:

Tuesday, January 20, 2008 – from 12-1 pm Eastern Time ( we will answer all questions, even if we go over our allotted time)

http://tinyurl.com/profdevelopjan20

Tuesday, February 3, 2009 – from 12- 1 pm Eastern Time ( we will answer all questions, even if we go over our allotted time)

http://tinyurl.com/profdevelopfeb3

You’ll learn:

• Why your LinkedIn profile is so important and how to craft a compelling one
• How to customize your profile with symbols and special characters
• How to use keywords to improve your “findability”
• Why having recommendations is important and how to effectively request them
• Why joining groups can help improve your visibility and set you apart from other users

You’ll also receive:

• A profile template (in MS Word) that you can use as a guide
• The 28 page IA LinkedIn Profiles Guide by Mike O’Neil which contains all the “How To’s” to build your very own highly effective Search Engine Optimized (SEO) profile so that you can be found on Linked, Google and the Web in general (the guide sells for $29 on the IA website).
• PDF handouts of the powerpoint presentation

The cost? This webinar and all the materials are available for only $39!

We’ve teamed up with Integrated Alliances as authorized trainers for their cutting edge social networking programs and we’ll be offering live and web programs on different social networking platforms such LinkedIn, FastPitch, Facebook, and much more!