Authors Blog

Are there actually more people in the world who are afraid of speaking in front of others than in dying? Yes, 54% of adults are more afraid of public speaking than death! What are we afraid of? Messing up? Being rejected? Feeling foolish? Unsure if our audience will think we don't know what we are talking about? Have your normally dry palms become so sweaty you couldn't even hold onto a football? When you speak, does that upper lip suddenly get stuck to your front teeth? Do you feel like you just swallowed a large walnut? We will be exploring the mental and physical aspects of speaking in front of others in the next few blogs.

Growth of any type encompasses change.  Some changes are welcomed and others are resisted.

A client cancelled this week, a day before our start date, so I have too much free time and an empty work funnel. I am frustrated, because I did not plan for this delay of work. I, like many other business owners, was not ready for the unexpected. I kept hoping a past client or referral would call with a small project to fill the void. However, we are behind on our sales calls. Hope alone is not a good sales strategy.

Part II of “Nonverbal Communication” provided tips on how to identify you’re your positive and negative speaking behaviors. Now that you have identified them, you may like to have some tips on strengthening the positive speaking behaviors and eliminating the negative ones.

Social media marketing is the most talked about way for connecting one’s business to the World Wide Web.  It definitely elevates your business’s visibility beyond the local zip code.  What is social media marketing?   Social media marketing refers to the process of gaining traffic or attention through social networking sites.

Knowledge of various types of software is critical to successfully run a business.  This article compares various training options for improving software efficiency.

What is creativity? Is it a mysterious quality, like genius, that is present at the birth of each individual? Is it reserved only for the artist, such as a Rembrandt or a Mozart, and cannot flow into the essence of us, who are not blessed with an artistic flair?

Business growth takes many avenues so it is important to understand the options.  Organic growth is one strategy.

:  This week at Verde Martin, we worked with a small business owner who wanted to measure sales results in real time to enhance the sales process, with no budget.  We found the perfect no-cost tool: a Customer Relationship Management program or CRM.  He needed to be able to manage leads, calculate inventory, measure marketing, and drive sales, all with QuickBooks compatibility.  After researching different CRM systems online, we suggested Zoho.com, a free CRM system for as many as three users. 

Part I of “Nonverbal Communication” provided a definition of nonverbal communication and briefly discussed its importance in face-to-face and phone conversations. Part II gives you some tips on identifying both positive and negative nonverbal habits/behaviors you exhibit.

Let's talk about those silent, yet very loud, signals from your audience. These are indicators that tell you if they are present in mind or in body only. Whether the audience consists of one person listening to your sales presentation, or a room of 500 people from your industry, following these tips will help you present a more engaging session and help build your reputation as a confident, credible speaker.

Believe it or not there are some steps to make decision making more comfortable and a more concise process.  The steps, if followed can make the entire process, if not more pleasant at least easier to work through. The steps are,

1. Identify the Problem.

2. Brainstorm Solutions.

3. Investigate options and their consequences.

4. Decide and Act.

5. Evaluate the decision.

This blog is the fourth in a series on tips for business networking/schmoozing. The “Art of the Handwritten Note” was saved for last in hopes that everyone will remember it well – and utilize it.

 

And one more time:  Remember that effective networking skills are learned skills. No one is born with them. Make use of the tips and PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.

SmartArt

The Microsoft Office Suite (Office 2007 and later) comes with predesigned graphics and diagrams called SmartArt.  SmartArt can be used in place of bulleted lists to add an interesting visual element to documents and presentations. SmartArt graphics are organized in categories such as List, Process, Cycle and Hierarchy.  They are useful for displaying relationships between objects, presenting sequential steps in a process, showing organizational hierarchy, and displaying blocks of information.

Every grant seeker seems to search, review, and then enter a state of major confusion when it comes to finding legitimate Web sites for finding grant funding opportunities.

After 37 years of grant seeking, I’ll share my two favorite subscription-based find grants Web sites with our blog readers. Pricing will vary based on the level of subscription you purchase.

My two previous blogs on networking/schmoozing offered tips for improving networking skills, including places to network and how to start a conversation with total strangers.

This blog lists ways to self-destruct through networking. Knowing what not to do is just as important as knowing what to do.

And again:  Remember that effective networking skills are learned skills. No one is born with them. Make use of the tips and PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.

With the rise in mobile technology use, it is more critical than ever for businesses to make sure their products and services are available to clients in a mobile format. 

How you speak, look and act at social events can have consequences on your career. Holiday parties are one of the most important places where executives and managers are rubbing elbows and where you may be seen by individuals that you may not usually run into. Here are quick tips to keep you confident and making a positive impression:

Decisions, you make hundreds of them every day. Whether you think deeply about each one or they are just an automatic reaction to a life situation, they are a part of our lives—and businesses. Do you enjoy making decisions and solving problems or is it a fact of life that you try to avoid? How we feel about making decisions and solving problems will determine how easily we can make decisions that are positive for our businesses or decisions that lead to more challenges.

Surprise your friends and family with unique gifts.  How about some of these ideas?

Gifts of food, such as fruit baskets, deli trays, fresh or frozen meat specialties, always seem to be appreciated.  You could hide a gift certificate to your local grocery store in the basket or on the tray. 

Call on your neighborhood caterers for baked goods and sweets for holiday gatherings and gifts.  Perhaps a gift certificate for a pie a month would be fun to give. 

A gift certificate to a special someone for regular delivery of seasonal arrangements from the local florist might be just the answer.   It’d be a gift that continues all year!

Let’s do an experiment.  Grab the nearest mobile device (tablet, iPad, smart phone).  Open an internet browser and type in your company website.  How does your website look on the small screen? Is the content easy to read and is your website easy to navigate?

We all have dreams and aspirations, and sometimes circumstances can stand in the way of our achieving those goals. For instance, a small business owner wants to finance their business but can't because they have bad credit. So how can they hurdle themselves over this significant financial wall?

My previous blog on networking – i.e., “schmoozing” – offered a number of tips for
improving networking skills, including how to start a conversation with a total stranger. Be sure to put as many of these tips as possible into practice. But those were only part of them.

Have you ever hired someone who just didn’t fit with your organization? They had all of the right experience, but they never seemed to be on board with what you consider important, and were always the outsider. I’ve been on both sides of this scenario. As I hiring manager I have hired the resume, but overlooked the personality and values of the individual. What a big mistake! I have also been the one hired into a role that did not line up with my own values in a company culture that had me conflicted on a regular basis.

Steve Jobs passed away yesterday.  He had a tremendous impact on the world around us. We can look back and say to ourselves where would we be without Steve's Jobs; his vision, his execution, and his leadership?

My previous blog defined networking – i.e., “schmoozing”— and listed many of its benefits. If you are one of those people who is not quite sure how to grow your network of business contacts (as well as friends), utilize as many of the suggestions below as possible.

How is your thought life when it comes to getting to the next level in your career? For those who feel stuck, the old adage still applies: "If we always do what we've always done, we'll always get what we've always had!" If the same limiting thoughts we've had all of our lives continue to play on and on, we cannot expect to produce anything differently from what we've experienced up until now. So, try to make little changes daily. In addition to the following suggestions, what works for you?

The networking discussed here has nothing to do with computers. Networking has to do with growing your group – i.e., “network” – of business associates, customers and friends. Using “schmooze” in connection with networking puts it squarely in the context of people and conversation, not computers. The word “schmooze” is derived from a Yiddish word that means to chat or converse. It’s a fun word that helps remind all of us that we should not take ourselves too seriously – especially when engaging in some friendly schmoozing.

Our appearance reveals a lot about our self-image.  To business prospects, a “pulled together,” polished appearance says that we are more responsible, organized and capable than those who are not.  If people see that we take pride in our appearance, they are more likely to assume that we ALSO take pride in “OUR” work and “THEIR” business as well.

Are you comfortable initiating conversations with people you have never met when you are at networking events?  How about preparing ahead of time?

First off, do a self-assessment, know what is interesting about yourself and share it!  YES, you have many interesting (business appropriate) things to share!

We all have contacts, good friends, even teachers who offer us guidance and advice (some solicited and some not) as we venture into and grow our small businesses.  Yet, there are times when it would be great if we had a Mentor or Professional Coach on stand-by to help us with difficult situations or challenging questions that we face—sometimes daily.

As you meet new clients and build new business relationships, be intent on presenting yourself in a positive manner, upbeat and confident about your work and life.

Thinking of the new introductions you prepared (see previous blog), assess the results of your interactions.  How?  After you leave the event, think about how comfortable you were and how others responded to you.  Depending on how successful your conversations went, modify your introduction and stories accordingly.  Could you ask more questions about them and their businesses to keep the ball rolling in a more engaging conversation?

As a follow-up to my previous blog about the importance of listening in the communication process, I want to provide you with some truths about listening. The following items provide some clarification about what listening is and is not, as well as what role listening plays in effective communication. Some you may have already thought about, others perhaps not.

How many benefits do you think a positive and confident “presence” can provide?  Here are three examples:  It can,

• increase your number of sales, thus growing your business
• expand your network because you appear more approachable, capable and believable
• generate more enthusiasm in others to partner with you in your business ventures

In life there are three types of people;

1. Those that make things happen (success)
2. Those that watch things happen (followers)
3. Those that have no idea what is happening! (wanderers)

Putting Your Business’s Fingerprint On Your Customer

Webster’s definition of a ‘fingerprint’ is “an impression used to identify a person”.  I would like to help Webster expand his definition for the business world to read, “an impression used to identify a person or a company” as well.

Individuals using Word 2007 or Word 2010 have access to a plethora of tools to quickly and easily create sleek, professional looking documents with just a few clicks.  One tool that’s been vastly improved from previous versions of Word is Styles.    Styles were available in earlier versions of Word, but thanks to major enhancements beginning in Word 2007 they are easier than ever to use.

Whether we meet others for the first time or the tenth, it is essential to project a confident, friendly demeanor that says, “I want to build (or continue to build) a mutually rewarding relationship with you.”   Remember, we only have one chance to make a good first impression.

For centuries people believed a man could not run a four minute mile. Doctors and scientists said the body could not achieve this feat because of man’s bone structure and design.  Everyone agreed the four minute mile was impossible to achieve – until, on May 6, 1954, Roger Bannister accomplished the feat in Oxford, England with the time of 3.59.4 sec. He believed.  That same year, 37 other people ran the mile in less than four minutes - they too believed.

Imagine for a moment that you're driving to work or driving home and everything is fine. Then all of a sudden traffic begins to slow down. There are so many cars in front of you. You don't know why but it is affecting your trip. So, you begin to step on the brakes slow down and go with the traffic because you do know what your destination has for you. Sometimes you might take a detour. Sometimes you might decide to change lanes to creep up on a few cars that might be in front of you. However, you very seldom, if ever, stop your journey turn around and go home go to bed rolling into a little cocoon giving up what your destination had for you.

How many opportunities do we lose out on because we don't perceive ourselves as good enough, competitive enough, educated enough, clothed nicely enough...you can fill in the blank. Do you send out the message to others that YOU are the one they want to do business with because YOU are the best?

According to leadership expert and entrepreneur Jeremie Kubicek, leadership is dead. As a consultant to leaders around the globe Kubicek has seen first-hand how self-preservation has built walls that prevent leaders from influencing followers in productive and positive ways. The key to reviving our ability to lead is by replacing self-preservation with influence.