Grow to Greatness: Small Business and Real Estate Business Advice from the Nation's Leading Business Coach, Cheri Alguire | Coaching and Consulting Advice for Small Business Owners, Entrepreneurs and Real Estate Professionals.
Like the budget, writing a production plan for success is a lot about numbers. Black and white. Hours, dollars, and widgets. There is a sensible layout to follow. You map out the big picture by breaking down your transactions to quarterly and monthly goals. You examine the buyer sales, listing sales, and number of new listings it takes to produce the income needed to support the budget. Easy, right?
Well, straightforward, maybe. Easy, no.
Production planning is as much about problem solving and perspective as it is about the numbers. Why? Because you know you will not always hit your numbers. (If you do, you probably were not challenging yourself enough during the visioning process.) And not hitting the numbers obviously means you have a problem. You may be overspending the budget and/or underproducing the income. Not hitting the numbers for an entire quarter might not just mean a problem, but a genuine crisis.
So it is important when production planning to focus not just on target numbers, but on the potential problems related to production so that you can plan proactively to stay in business with a smile. Lets look at some Givens.
#1You are in control of more than you think. If you chart the numbers for first quarter and fall short, what do you do? (First of all, you always review the numbers.) If first quarter is lean, be prepared for you and others to blame outside influences. Oh, the market. Oh, those fickle buyers. Oh, those unrealistic, so-and-so sellers. Oh, those banks. Slap yourself and your teammates awake! The market is what the market is. Buyers and Sellers are simply responding to it. YOU are the expert. YOU need to take control. Take control of their expectations. Take control of your own emotions. Adjust your numbers if necessary for the rest of the year, but take control of your sales. If you were successful before this market, there is absolutely no reason you can’t be successful now. You have the experience and the skills. If you are new to this market, you have no excuse to be anything but successful because you don’t know the difference! If you were three sales short in the first quarter, plan now what it takes to make up those three in quarter two.
#2 There are some things you cannot control. Let go! A teammate’s sudden divorce is going to affect your business. No doubt about it. Can you influence that event? No. (Even if you offer the unhappy couple an all-paid expenses weekend at the Poconos in a heart-shaped tub, their relationship will not change because of your generosity and desperate attempt at keeping your top buyer agent happy and productive.) Curse fate all you like, but know that the teammate will have court dates, down days, and need extra time off to be with the kids. Let go off the idea that life is unfair and provide as best you can for the loss in production through your own efforts or added staff. Know that these things happen. Deal.
#3 Not to overuse and abuse the often quoted, Attitude is Everything, but it is. The mindset you get up with every day determines the success of your production plan. Is the market everything you read about in the papers or hear about on the TODAY SHOW? Is the sky really falling? If you believe it, your numbers certainly will reflect that view, (and you will need to hope that your spouse doesn’t mind supporting you for some time to come.) On the other hand, if you wake up each day seeing opportunity and, yes, fun in the current real estate market, your numbers will bloom and grow with every positive step. It’s not a Pollyanna world, but neither is it Oscar the Grouches. Your perspective determines outcome.
Plan for the numbers. Plan for the problems. Plan for success.
With the constant bad news about the economy, everyone is talking budget these days as if it were a new and exciting phenomenon—just discovered!
How to save a buck
How to budget for a successful future
How to make your dollar stretch the farthest
The truth is that there is nothing new, trendy, or sexy about budgeting. A well-planned budget is simply the most practical aspect of your business plan—and one of the most important. It’s also not that much fun. But if you think about it, if you have completed the other parts of your business planning guide, you’ve done the hard part already. You’ve already analyzed where you spent your money last year and how well it returned your investment. You’ve articulated the vision for your business in the next year, five years, and ten. You’ve written down the action steps to achieve that goal. Now it’s just a matter of the numbers.
The easiest way to tackle this job is with a good software program like QuickBooks, but you can also manage the old-fashioned way, by hand on a chart, if that’s what it takes to get you started. The budget records your total income, gross and net. It includes the numbers for your current expenses, plus those you anticipate adding under your new vision. It breaks down the expenses and itemizes them so that nothing is overlooked, creating a potential drain on your cash flow down the line. And remember: cash flow is the goal.
When the numbers are complete, if you don’t like the result, you need to remember to reevaluate the plan. If your marketing exceeds your income, for example, then you must make a decision: slash the marketing budget or make more money. Either way, your budget needs to “show you the money.”
Approach #1: Gary Keller reminds us to “lead with revenue” when budgeting. He cautions only to spend the money that the business has generated and avoid the “Field of Dreams” mentality of expecting business to materialize if you spend enough money on marketing, desk staff, quality equipment, etc.
Approach #2: Write down the number of marketing dollars you will need for the next year to reach your goal then do the math. How many lists will you need to carry in order to create that cash flow? How many will you need to sell? How many buy sides? Those are your numbers to live by.
Truth be told, a combination of these approaches is probably the wisest course, but regardless, the budget is the budget and you stick to it. (That’s the unsexy part.) But don’t worry about that because this axiom can serve you well when some annoying vendor tries to convince you that you really must buy his refrigerator magnets by the gross with your logo embossed on them in order to be a success at the next home show. You now have your ready-made excuse: “oh, we set our marketing budget last October.”
The budget might not seem to be your best friend at times, but it should be your wisest adviser—the one you trust with your most important decisions. Accordingly, spend enough time with it to do it, and yourself, justice. Your business, and your profit/loss statement, will thank you.
It is almost time to begin creating your Business Plan for next year. One important part that is often overlooked is what I call the Development Plan. A Development Plan helps you to look at your overall business in different specific areas.
A great story is told by Jeffrey J. Fox in HOW TO BECOME A MARKETING SUPERSTAR. It is the story of Pablo Picasso, dining at an elite New York City restaurant and being approached by a socialite who presumes to ask him for a drawing.
Fox relates, “Picasso grabbed some paper, and with pen and pencil, promptly sketched the waiters passing parfaits. As the woman reached for the sketch, Pablo Picasso said, ‘Madame. That will be $10,000.’ Shocked, she replied, ‘But that only took you five minutes.’ ‘No, Madame,’ replied Senor Picasso, ‘it took me fifty years.’”
Fox tells the story as a parable for understanding—and charging--your worth. (And come to think of it, that part of the lesson applies here, too: a solid development plan will help you avoid the folly of cutting your commission fees.) But we recognize Picasso’s remark about the fifty years as a clear symbol of the value of a development plan. It takes time to plan, but the plan should have long-lasting consequences that shape the course of your business down the road and, ultimately, your desired profit. A development plan, in effect, defines your practice.
A development plan can be as simple as a list. But it is an essential list. On this list you need to itemize the changes needed in the next year to improve your business. On it you should include:
Marketing and Lead Systems
What kind do you need to bring in the number of leads?
Sales and Servicing Systems
Technology
What about Facebook?
What about Twitter?
What about Texting?
People and Staffing
Do you need an office manager?
Support Systems
Training
Policies
What are they? And are they written down?
Procedures
Ditto
Team Development
Retreats
Celebrations
Training
New Ideas
What is next?
This is the place where you name your dreaming: what is it that you want to create? To revise and perfect? To research? To implement? What kinds of systems and practices do you want to employ? What people and roles?
At the development stage, you may be looking at assistants, additional agents, coaches, mentors, equipment, programs, and education. (Budget concerns are for another day.) In development, we identify what it will take to produce your desired outcomes. Put them in place, and the path toward your business future is paved.
As a super small business owner, it is important to know your value. “Your value” is determined by what you have to offer the consumer. It is important to remember that consumer perception is consumer reality. Every business owner on the path of success must be able to answer the following question from a consumer’s point of view. (We all need to answer a version of this very basic question and answer it very, very well.) The question is: Why should a consumer work with you instead of another business or professional? Your answer should compel the consumer to select you, and keep the consumer from moving on to one of the next businesses.
Your value proposition is your personal thirty second ‘elevator speech’ answering the WHY question: Why should potential prospect pick you? This thirty second answer will prove to be helpful at a networking event, a social gathering, answering a prospecting call, responding to an email, or anytime you are in contact with your potential clients. Like all thirty second answers, your answer needs to be well thought out and planned.
Your value proposition planning begins with listing all of the products and services you provide to consumers. Your list may include: your products and what makes them the best, your market knowledge, negotiation strategies, process knowledge, one-stop-shopping and the list goes on and on. All of the products and services business owners provide can be viewed as the ‘features’ business owners provide to consumers. However, simply giving a potential buyer a list of features is over-whelming and full of jargon. This list has meaning to super small business owners, not to ‘Joe Consumer’.
From your initial list of products and services or features you provide, comes your list of benefits or your value proposition. Your value proposition will compel a potential client to pick you.
Here is the step-by-step process to building your value proposition:
Step #1 List all the products and services that you provide for consumers. Step #2 Determine which three products and services of yours are the best. Step #3 State how you provide the three services. Step #4 Clearly identify what benefit your client gets from each of the three services. Step #5 Write down the three benefits and practice verbalizing them until you are comfortable saying them.
Now that you have a value proposition, you may want to evaluate it. Will your value proposition be compelling enough for consumers to want to work with you? Is your value proposition giving the message you intended?
It is important to reevaluate and test your 30-second commercial or value proposition to make sure it continues to grow and evolve with your business.
What is your Value Proposition and why do you need one?
By Cheri Alguire
YOU know how special you are. YOU know that you outshine the competition. The question is: does your potential client?
Helping clients understand the value you provide to them is essential in prospecting and keeping business. Let’s face it: consumers have plenty of YOU to choose from, and national research shows that they see very little difference among you. It is therefore up to you to be able to articulate and to demonstrate what it is that makes you their best choice; what it is that makes you unique and valuable.
First, know what clients want and know that those wants may change. You must identify what consumers expect and need. NAR data from 2008 states that today’s buyers and sellers are selecting agents for a number of select reasons:
• They want a quick response. • They want expert advice and guidance. • They want a skilled negotiator. • They want accurate market knowledge. • They want a “track record.” (Reputation matters.) • They want someone they can trust.
If you are able to show clients that you have expertise and skill in all of these areas, you have begun to prove your value.
In addition, a good buyer’s interview will help you determine your clients’ individual wants and needs. Listening is a key component in this step. If you can then paraphrase back to the clients what they have described, they become convinced that you know and understand them, and what’s more: that you are willing to accept their “requirements” and work accordingly on their behalf. (Also, be prepared to be flexible because those “must haves” might suddenly shift to “would be nice to haves,” while entirely new criteria surface as primary.)
Second, remember: it’s not about you. It’s about them.
A useful motto here for the real estate professional is: “check your values at the door.” You may take their criteria and show the clients the best of the best in that price range, only to find out that they are solely comfortable with homes more modest or unassuming. You may be appalled to discover that their top choice is across from an apartment complex or major highway, but if you remain non-judgmental and validate their reasons, you have proven your value as a listener to their needs. On the other hand, if you try to argue them out of their first choice or convince them they are wrong, (because obviously you are the expert!) then you risk alienating the clients you are supposed to serve, if not lose them all together.
Finally, know and verbalize exactly why clients should work with you. And P.S. the answer isn’t “because I give good service.” You’d better give good service: that’s a bottom-line expectation of all consumers! What do you do above-and-beyond service?
Jeffrey J. Fox, in HOW TO BECOME A RAINMAKER, reminds us that we should always be able to answer the question, “Why should this customer do business with us?” Make it your mission to be able to answer that question for your business--the same way every time. And make the answer true.
Now in the current market and more than ever, you may be tempted to define your clients as any and every one who walks past you down the street. Everyone needs a place to live, right? Concerns over the economy and a desperate need for lead generation may persuade you to apply the salt-shaker method of marketing: sprinkle it all over and hope that something sticks! But this panic-mode thinking could be the biggest mistake you make all year, resulting in wasted time, money and resources.
In order to get the most of your marketing efforts, in this economy especially, you need to follow the rules of niche marketing. In-N-Out Burger fast food restaurants are a perfect example of niche marketing. Never meant to appeal to everyone, never meant to take over McDonalds’ or Burger King’s market share, this successful hamburger joint has a limited menu consisting of only three different sandwiches: the hamburger, cheeseburger, and the "Double-Double" (double meat/double cheese.) Though times have changed since the chain opened its first restaurant in 1948 in Baldwin Park, California, little has changed at In-N-Out. The menu - burgers, fries and drinks - is still the same basic menu customers have always enjoyed. Have they expanded their menu to have other kinds of sandwiches and entrees? No. Loyal burger eaters know that when they want a good quality burger, IN-N-OUT is the place to go. They do not spend marketing money advertising the latest Chicken Sandwich Spectacular because they don’t have one. They focus on what they do best. As a small business owner, what lessons can you learn from IN-N-OUT?
Now is exactly the time to refocus your time, money, and resources in a similar manner. When all three may be in short supply, it only makes sense to concentrate on your niche, the group of people most assured to bring you certain returns, the group of people you want to work with and concentrate on.
If you don’t know them already, choose who those people are.
Who best benefits from the specific services you offer—and deliver--better than anyone else?
Who already has benefited from your services and is now a “Raving Fan?”
Who do you know who “talks up” your services and serves as your Goodwill Ambassador?
After you have determined the WHO, analyze the WHERE.
What do these groups you have identified have in common and where do they come from?
Are those who benefit most from your services within a certain age group? Geographic location? Job or organization?
Those who are your Raving Fans are clearly past clients and referrals, but where do you find them now?
The Goodwill Ambassadors are clearly your sphere, but where do you find them? The family tree? The immediate neighborhood? Church? Clubs?
Then of course, you must apply the HOW. How will you reach that target once you have identified it? If seniors are the most likely to respond to your services and inventory, you will probably not concentrate solely on internet strategies But similarly, if you have a Gen-X or Y population clamoring for your services, you need to be well established with the latest technologies, communication platforms including social media networking sites, and expertise. Know how to reach your clients and where to spend your time and money.
And remember your goals. If you are planning to double your business within the next five years, then the HOW must include the resources you will need to market to and service your niche.
Don’t succumb to the fear that if you don’t court every potential client, you won’t have any clients at all. Make your niche as carefully designed a part of your business plan as your budget. If you focus your time and resources and serving the burger-loving clients the best way you possibly can, you will attract more of the same. Leave the chicken-lovers to someone else.
This is the true key to Niche Marketing!
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Coach Cheri Alguire has helped thousands of super small business owners and real estate professionals find their niche. Find about her book Branding & Marketing Mastery or her business planning guides at http://www.CheriAlguire.com
“Why isn’t there a ‘Kids’ Day?” is the question I heard from my fifteen-year-old daughter this week.Doesn’t she know that her older brothers and all kids in the entire world that have ever asked this question before always get the same answer…”Every day is ‘Kids Day’!”
Happy Mother’s Day, to all Moms!I hope you all have plans to enjoy your day!
The other day, my daughter walked into my office and exclaimed with surprise, “Mom!You’re on Facebook!”She thought Facebook was only for kids.Not anymore.The fastest growing demographic on Facebook is those 35 years old and older.Facebook, is no long, just for kids.
How about you?Which Social Media sites are you on?Facebook? MySpace? Active Rain? Linked In? Others?
I first joined Facebook when my son’s girlfriend invited me to join.I didn’t do anything with it for years.Then, about six months ago my brother found me on it and asked me to be his friend.He did tell me that he thought it was pretty disgraceful that he made up 50 percent of my “friends” and that he was my brother so he didn’t even really count!I decided it was time that I checked out this Social Media craze starting with Facebook.
According to Wikipedia, “Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook with fellow computer science major students and his roommates Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes while he was a student at Harvard University.Website membership was initially limited to Harvard students, but was expanded to other colleges in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. It later expanded further to include any university student, then high school students, and, finally, to anyone aged 13 and over. The website currently has more than 200 million active users worldwide.”
Even Oprah is now on Facebook!
Founded in February 2004, Facebook is a social utility that helps people communicate more efficiently with their friends, family and coworkers. The company develops technologies that facilitate the sharing of information through the social graph, the digital mapping of people's real-world social connections. Anyone can sign up for Facebook and interact with the people they know in a trusted environment.
As of May 2009 there are:
·More than 200 million active users
More than 100 million users log on to Facebook at least once each day
More than two-thirds of Facebook users are outside of college
Average user has 120 friends on the site
More than 3.5 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day (worldwide)
More than 20 million users update their statuses at least once each day
More than 4 million users become fans of Pages each day
But, how about you?How do you use Facebook and why?Do you use it to keep connected with family, friends and clients?To locate old classmates?To network?What?Please comment and let me know how you are using Facebook or other Social Media.Or click on my Social Media Links on my website http://www.CheriAlguire.com and message me that way.
I look forward to connecting with you on Social Media and sharing more about how real people use it in their business and in their life.
Coach Cheri Alguire is a coach, speaker and trainer who has helped thousands of Real Estate Professionals and Super Small Business Owners keep up on the latest business trends and take their business to the next level of success. Find out more at www.CheriAlguire.com
No, I did not mean “Business” but if you tell me how your “Busyness” is, I bet I can tell how your Business is doing. We too often spend far too many hours attending the busy-work of the business, which leaves us a day late and a dollar short of our goals.
What is on your to-do list for today? Are these items that will get you closer to your goals, or are they just things that you HAVE to do. I can almost bet that if you are getting up every day and just plowing through a seemingly endless to-do list, that your Business may be “surviving,” but you are not “thriving.”
An important way to tell if you are doing busy work or not, are ask yourself the following questions:
1. Which goal will doing this activity get me one step closer to? 2. Can someone else do this for me?
Sometime things don’t really need to be done at all. And sometimes, things need to be done, but just not by you.
You will need to prioritize those items that have to get done by you. If the majority of your business over the next five years will come from leads generated from referrals and sphere, then the “have-tos” are clear: contact and service well that group of people. Invest your time and money in that quadrant of contacts. Stay away from the nagging “to-do” list that says you need to update the expired system that you drafted two years ago and have failed to implement yet.
Next, ask some hard, frank questions of yourself and your business.
• First, can you reach your goals alone? In order to achieve the numbers you’ve put forward, do you need to expand your human resources?
• Second, do you need a different business model than the one you are currently using? (Told you they were hard questions!)
If you are looking to increase your production by half-again as much in the next five years, perhaps you can obtain your goal within the status quo. But what if you are looking to double your business in five years? Or quadruple it? Is it reasonable to think that you can succeed under the same manner and with the same number of people that you have been previously?
You know the answer: undoubtedly not. As a matter of fact, this can often be the tipping point of decline and/or failure in a business, when you fail to realize that you, alone, cannot be chief cook and bottle washer and grow your business. A team or staff to support you may become essential when planning for your future goals The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Business Don’t Work and What To Do About It, by Michael Gerber, talks about this at length in his book.
It’s all about the numbers today in terms of goals and in terms of human resources. Plan accordingly.
That is why Part 9 of my 17 –Part Business Planning Workbook is on the numbers. You need to figure out what kind of Production you will need over the next 1-5 years in order to hit your personal goals. Your business is about supporting your life; it should not be your life.
If you are caught up in Busyness, your business has become you life, and is no longer just supporting it.
One question I get a lot doing my coaching and speaking is “How do you come up with the “numbers?” Maybe this will help:
WRITE THEM DOWN.
Next year’s goal: what is the magic number for closed production (in millions?) For your 2-year goal? For 3, and 4, and 5 years? What about gross and net closed commissions? Average Sales Price? Number of Transactions? Number of Listings? You must chart each out and write down the number.
For next year and the four to follow, what is the magic number for new listings, for example? Where will the business come from? What is the lead source? Referral. Sphere. Website. Farm. Expireds. What about buyer-generated sales? Where will that business come from? What are the lead sources? As you define these categories, you begin to identify your target market and where to spend your marketing dollars (and your time!)
Numbers tell you so much about your business. By focusing on your numbers and reaching your goals, you are able to plan your priorities, staff your Business accordingly and keep out of Busyness!
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Coach Cheri Alguire has helped hundreds of real estate professionals, super small business owners and Moms, keep out of Busyness and in a Business that is thriving. To find out more about Cheri Alguire’s Business Planning Guide visit http://www.smallbusinessplanningguide.com/ or http://www.cherialguire.com/
In ancient times, lessons were taught via stories told around the campfires at the end of the day. The wise elders would tell and retell fables that turned into modern stories such as "The Hare and the Tortoise" where the moral of "slow and steady wins the race" is taught to children (and adults) through animal characters.
When my kids were little, these kinds of stories were in books. Today, I hear of parents who use iPods with stories on them to "read" to their kids. (And I thought the audio cassette with Chicken Little was cool?!)
When you watch this video, you see a dog; I will call him Barley, stepping out into a busy multilane freeway in Chile. Why did the dog cross the road? It was rush hour and cars and trucks were zooming by at high speeds. Why in the world would this dog attempt to cross the road?
If you were able to see the video, you know that Barley is hit by a car. His still body lies lifeless on the dotted line separating two of the lanes as cars and trucks race by avoiding hitting him again. Why?
Why did Barley cross the road that day? Was he just being stupid? Did his mommy dog not teach him about the dangers of this world? Did he see too many movies of dangerous stunts and was Barley just trying to defy the odds and gain a moment of fame in the process?
Or, was Barley trying to get to his kids and was not going to let anything stop him, no matter the danger involved? We all know that as parents, we would do ANYTHING for our kids, especially if they were in some kind of trouble.
Or, was Barley giving up that day. Did the economic times leave Barley feeling like there was not hope, that life was just too hard and the world would be better off without him? Was he cold and tired and just giving up as he stepped onto that crowded busy freeway?
But wait; out of the corner of the screen, you see something moving. Out of nowhere you see another dog, who I will call Chip, running into the road as well. He is dogging cars, but he is moving with sheer determination to the spot where Barley is laying lifeless.
Chip wraps his paws around Barley. Do these dogs know each other? Why would Chip put his life in danger like this?
Chip then begins to drag the injured Barley slowly, inch by inch to the center island area of the road. It seems the traffic in that lane is surprisingly sparse for just a minute as Chips drags Barley, slowly across the pavement which could, at any moment, be filled with a speeding Semi truck. Any cars that do approach them, however, see something and although they are not sure what they are witnessing exactly, they notice them and steer around them.
Just as Chip has Barley to the concrete barrier in the center of this freeway, two construction workers see the dogs and come running to their aid, diverting traffic out of the far lane.
Barley lives. He gets the medical attention he needs and although still recovering and is not conscious yet, he will survive. But where is Chip? We don't know. Chip took off after seeing Barley to safety.
Why did Chip cross the road? Did he know Barley? Was he trying to save his friend? If that is the case, why didn't he stick around? If he did not know Barley, why would he put himself in danger? Why did the dog cross the road?
Like Chip, we see others who have gotten themselves into a tough situation. Maybe they were being stupid, yes. Maybe they did not heed warnings and found themselves in a rough patch, maybe even a life threatening situation. Sometimes it can be dangerous to help others. But sometimes, like Chip, we just see someone in trouble and know we need to do the right thing.
Now, I am not telling you to go out and get yourself killed. If we are not somewhat careful, we will never be any help to anyone. But are you willing to step out and help someone who really needs it, even if it is dangerous? How many times do we not help others because just because we are afraid it will make us look stupid? Do you think Chip was thinking about how stupid he looked?
Do you think Chip cared about how "busy" he was at the time? Do you think he even wondered if he really had the time to help this other dog? Probably not.
Sometimes we don't help others because we think there are others who are more qualified to help. What if Chip left Barley to others who were more qualified to move him out of the busy freeway? Do you think he would have made it that long?
The moral of this story: Sometimes, no matter how busy we think we are or how unqualified we think we are or how dangerous we think something might be, sometimes, we just need to do the right thing.
There is no shortage on advice on Goal Setting, and it’s one of the “basics” of business planning. But how do you set goals when sales are down and all you hear on the news is bad news. What is the alternative? Participate in the recession? Just sit back and let things happen to you? Good economy or bad, goal setting is pivotal. From professional athletes to motivational speakers to CEOs to Real Estate Agents to Super Small Business Owners to Stay-at-Home-Moms, Goal Setting is undeniably the key to success.
If you don’t know where you want to go, how can you create a plan? It is like jumping in the car with your family in it ready to go on vacation and you have no idea where the family is going. You don’t know if you are going across the county, across the state, or across the country. You can’t plan how long it is going to take, or the best way to get there, because you are not sure where you are going. You just get in the car and drive, hoping that something will come up that will give you direction, will give you hope. If your days seem like you are just hoping in the car and driving around without a plan, maybe it is time to do some goal setting.
• First, THINK LARGE. Don’t start with tomorrow, or even next year. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO BE IN FIVE YEARS? TEN YEARS? If you concentrate on how BAD things are, you will not be able to think big. Consider personal, financial, and business goals all on this wide open canvas of possibility. Don’t think in terms of How Will I? Think in terms of I WILL.
• Second, VERBALIZE your goals. WRITE them down in specific detail. POST them on your wall for a daily morning review.
• Next, VISUALIZE them. Create the picture of that success, or that vacation, or that volunteer activity. POST it.
• As a final step, ANALYZE your goals. Are they SMART? (Specific and Measurable?) Are they PURE? (Positive and Relevant?) Are they CLEAR? (Challenging and Appropriate.)
• And as a postscript, LEGITIMIZE them. REVISE and REWRITE them so that they fit both your dream and the “test” above. Confirm them with yourself and put them into action.
Remember that when Goal Setting, where you have been isn’t necessarily relevant. Now the course to set is where you want to be. It may be helpful to think of goals in terms of PERFORMANCE as much as in imagery. So when thinking of your goals, for example: an increase in the number of referrals you receive over the next five years, think not only of the physical number: say, 30%, but of the performance or action which needs to accompany that goal. Let’s take this example through the steps:
• I will increase our referral business by 30% in the next five years.
• I see a client appreciation picnic of 500 people catered by my favorite deli.
• Smart= I will measure the increase in the number of referrals year by year.
Pure=I will reward clients and my team members with a company picnic to show our appreciation.
Clear=I will rise to the challenge by increasing referrals incrementally each year from our current 20%.
• In terms of Performance/Action: I will hand write a thank you after each business transaction. I will observe birthdays and anniversaries through my email databank. I will strive for a 5 on every evaluation that is returned to me through my attention to detail and positive service plan.
• Make the goals FUN and MOTIVATING. If a new car or piece of jewelry or house motivates you, put that in your goal. Put little goals in along the way as well. Buy yourself that new designer purse when you hit a certain number of sales. Reward yourself along the way to hitting your BIG Goals.
Suddenly the goal is not just a dream, but a in specific direction toward your definition of success. Goal Setting should put a smile on your face! It’s the future you see in your dreams—achieved through your efforts and passion.
Many people attack the problem areas in their business with the mantra, “When things get tough, I just work harder.”
This is a philosophy that looks admirable on the surface, but actually can adversely affect our goals. Surprisingly, the answer isn’t necessarily work “smarter,” either. The true answer to problem areas in business might be at the very core of our selves and our lifestyles.
When business planning, we strive to define goals, to establish and maintain the systems that support those goals, and to manage our time and resources accordingly. What we often do not do, that can result in serious problems, if not outright disaster, is plan for our selves. And we’re not just talking about the last time you had a vacation (without the cell phone.) We are focusing here on all the aspects of your life that allows you to recharge your body and mind in order to sustain your personal and business success.
Imagine a balance wheel that is drawn around your being. It would include health: diet, sleep, exercise, and relaxation (a.k.a. stress management.) Like any visual of this nature, if your self-assessment of these elements is lop-sided, you have identified the problem area(s) that limit your success.
Dr. Paul Pearsall, in his book TOXIC SUCCESS: HOW TO STOP STRIVING AND START LIVING, has labeled this tendency toward constant motion/drive in work while ignoring the self as “toxic success,” and reminds us of the 19th century folk hero, John Henry, who infamously tried to manually out-produce a steam-powered drill with a hammer and pick, but died after “winning” the race. He warns us that a single-minded focus can delude us into thinking we can control any and everything while we ignore our internal energy fuel gauge.
Focusing singularly on the business while wolfing down fast food—or not eating at all—obsessing on the market while losing sleep . . . our habits become self-defeating. This critical area is also what Stephen Covey refers to as “sharpening the saw,” in his book THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE, and he urges us to pay attention to it in our every day lives. Remember, too, that personal attitudes have a huge influence on how we approach our problems. Believing that problems are permanent and insurmountable pretty well predicts that very outcome. However, by focusing on the health of our being, we can also take control of those attitudes that eat away at our ability to problem-solve.
You probably already know the drill: time manage for your self the way your time manage for your daily appointments and office duties. Exercise and sleep should be blocked off on your calendar. Relaxation breaks should be allotted for in definite terms, be it yoga, vacation, reading time, or the social hour. Remember that your business can’t run without you, so taking care of you should be a primary focus in every day planning and in long-term vision. You need to do it!
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Coach Cheri Alguire has helped hundreds of Entrepreneurs and Real Estate Professionals create a Business and Life Plan that really works for all areas of your life. To find out more about her Business Planning guides for Small Business Owners and Real Estate Agents at http://CheriAlguire.com
It is the end of the first quarter and time to check the score.
Just as planning your goals for the coming year should always begin with a look back at the year in review, so planning your business for the rest of this year should take a look back at the first quarter. Business planning isn’t just a numbers game, but also an accounting and analysis of the year’s overall progress.
Begin by asking the hard questions: • What happened in your business this past year? Past quarter? • Did you meet your goals? If not, why not? • How did you accomplish your successful goals? • Where did your business come from?
From there, analyze the specific sources of success or failure. • Were your lead systems facilitating your goals? • Did the number of listings support the number of closed transactions?
And yes, now analyze the numbers: closed sales, closed commissions, expenses, how many listings taken, how many listings sold, how many active? Quantify where the business came from in comparison to your goals: how many sales from sphere? Referrals? Websites? Print media? Signs? Other lead-generating systems?
Also take a look at the team. Who do you have working with you and what are their roles? Did they support last year’s business? Did they reach their goals? Were their goals congruous with your business plan? And let’s not forget that important last count: the one where you evaluate yourself, including how many hours you worked per week and how much vacation time you took during the course of the year or quarter.
Think of this business in review task as a report to imaginary shareholders in the business. They would need a reminder of last year’s goals, a comparison to the actual numbers, an analysis of the year’s operations and relative success, and an evaluation, ultimately, of your business strategy. The success of the past year forms the basis of your business plan for the next. You are able to determine if you need to completely overhaul your “to-do” list or merely fine-tune it. You are able to focus on the past year’s strengths in order to maximize their results for the future. You are also able to isolate weaknesses or “misses” and problem-solve them to a positive resolution.
The business “flashback” in review cannot be ignored if you hope to continue to grow your business into tomorrow. The necessary steps to planning for that future can only happen once you’ve seen what came before. That is when you learn not just from your mistakes, but from your successes. It’s then you can set the new goal and create the plan. It’s then you can focus your time and resources. It’s then you can make accountability a part of the process. It’s then you can move forward with the confidence that you have planned for an incredible year ahead.
Let’s face it. The time to ask yourself, “Is my business running smoothly?” is NOT after you have just had a flat tire and are bumping down the road. The time to ask that question and analyze its answer is during the business planning process AND throughout the year.
A business is a complex machine with many moving parts. Well-maintained, it works smoothly and takes you where you want to go. But if just one part is neglected over time or overlooked, an eventual breakdown is certain.
To begin the process, take a look at your systems and how they connect to the big picture. Where, exactly, do they exist in the framework of your business and how efficiently are they running? Jennifer James, in THINKING IN THE FUTURE TENSE, reminds us that “systems thinking” can bridge the gap between reality and perception, and is probably the best way to problem solve (189.) Systems thinking “helps us understand that all parts of a business or a process are connected, and that when one part is challenged, all the others are as well” (189.) Typically, we may look at problems in isolation, but that may not solve the underlying systemic issues.
Let’s take an example of lagging sales. Sales agents are not making production goals; therefore, the cash flow or profit bottom line is not being met for the business. You could dismiss the problem as “it’s the market,” and continue to slump in sales. You could blame your team and look for new help. But if you look at all the systems that feed productivity: lead generation and marketing, listing systems, follow-up, people and support systems, you may be able to discover various cogs in the wheel that are preventing progress. Does listing inventory need to increase in order to produce leads? Are follow-up systems being utilized? Do team members need more mentoring or training? Could the answer to lagging sales be a team retreat that re-motivates and energizes the team members?
Systems thinking allows for and demands creative problem solving. Take Steve Jobs of Apple computers. Infamously “fired” at one time from his own company, Jobs loved the business too much to stay away from it. After creating PIXAR (among other projects) while on hiatus from Apple, he returned to regenerate not only the product (Macs) but the industry itself. While launching and perfecting iMovie (a consumer-friendly video-editing application) for the Mac, he realized that software wasn’t enough. In order to function properly, he concluded, it had to work in conjunction with several other components. He became committed to the goal that Mac would offer something unique by developing whole business systems for the personal computer. And of course from there, he made history: launching a little digital music business with iPod. (See pages 257-258 INSIDE STEVE’S BRAIN by Lenader Kahney.) Systems thinking was the key.
Systems thinking is not so much thinking “outside the box” as it is the wide-angle view. So pan the vista of your own business. What systems are in place? Are any missing? Of those that are operating, are they running as efficiently as they could be? Put the individual pieces together to create a smooth and successful whole. Problem solve with imagination and collaboration to fix issues that slow you down. Be cognizant throughout the year. Create and maintain a smooth-running machine.
March 17th is St. Patrick's Day!The one day of the year I have a corn beef sandwich and Guinness (and I don't even like beer!) Some traditions are hard to break. And I am only a tiny percent Irish.
My Step-Grandfather's name was O'Brien and the parties he and my Grandmother used to have took a month of planning. Like my Grandmother, I love to entertain! Some traditions are hard to break.
The economy has changed. We are not in the Industrial Economy anymore. Some still believe we are in the Information Economy. Others say we have moved to the Inspiration Economy. Yet, many of you still run your business and do sales and marketing like nothing has changed in our economy. Some traditions are hard to break.
If you would like to take the Super Small Business QwikScore and see if YOU are ready for THIS Economy, send me an email. I have given this quiz to all of my clients and the results are enlightening. I will also schedule a 20 minute coaching call to debrief you results if you are interested.
Some traditions ARE hard to break!
Super Small Business Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Small Business Professionals, Entrepreneurs and Real Estate Professionals helping them make money in any economy.Find out more at www.SuperSmallBusinessCoaching.com or www.CheriAlguire.com
I don’t know about you, but after a crazy day of working in my business, there is one question that used to send me into overload. “Mom, what’s for dinner?”
By the time I was asked that question, my brain was usually fried from a day of work and after having to make decisions all day, this was one decision I was not prepared to make.
The sad truth about not having thought through that question much earlier in my day meant that I ended up piling the family into the car and hitting fast food. This is not how I like to take care of my family’s food needs. Not only is it not the healthiest choice, but it can really wreak havoc on the budget if it happens too often.
I have found a little planning goes along way. I created this Busy Mom’s Menu Guide form that I fill out on Sunday for the entire week. I look at the family schedule and make sure I am not planning meals that have extensive prep on days I am not going to be home until late or huge meals that require a lot of clean up on nights the kids have activities I have to take them immediately after dinner.
This menu also helps me figure out if I am missing any ingredients for a meal and creates a shopping list for me if I need to pick up certain things for a specific meal later in the week.
The prep column helps keep me organized with what I may need to pull out of the freezer or put in the slow cooker before I get started with my busy day.
I have found that taking 15 minutes on Sunday evenings to plan my menus for the week and posting this form on the refrigerator has helped get rid of a lot of stress at dinner time and allowed me to make the healthy meals for my family that I want to make.
I have included a copy of my Busy Mom’s Menu Guide for you to print off and use. If you can’t access it in this format you are using, go to http://www.coachcheri.com/pages/contact-us.htm and request it and I will email a copy to you.
I have noticed a trend with my clients over the past couple weeks. Many of them are working really hard to hit goals and get so many things done. They are working towards several results at all cost, even when it comes to their own health and well being.
STOP IT!!!!
You can’t keep putting in extra time with your business and your family and your volunteerism and everyone else by taking time away from yourself. It is going to hurt your clients and your family and yourself in the long run.
When we fly and the crew is going through the emergency procedures before takeoff, they always tell us that if the oxygen masks are released, to put your own mask on FIRST before helping small children you may be traveling with. Why is this? Because if you don’t, you won’t be much help to anyone else. You have to take care of your immediate needs so you can be the one helping people and not the one needing help!
When you're a business owner and a parent, and participant in the many other things you are involved in, it seems like people are pulling you in different directions each day. At work, you face constant demands from your clients, and you expect that. However, the demands don't stop once you're at home.
Contrary to what some might think, carving out some "me time" isn't selfish. If you don't take some time to clear your head, you'll be more frazzled and less able to help both your clients and your family. Take time for yourself! As a coach, my clients know I ask them every session about “Self-Care!”
Some Ideas for Self-Care
You need to find “ME” time or “Self-Care” everyday. You also need to plan bigger self-care items on a weekly or monthly or even yearly basis.
So what should you do daily? The most important thing is to do something that you enjoy, but also something that will allow you to clear your mind and relax. To ease into the relaxation frame of mind, try taking a long bubble bath with candles and soft music. Let your mind drift, and don't worry about planning next week's schedule. Other relaxing things to try could be taking a walk, reading a book, or trying meditation. The main thing is to do whatever helps you recharge.
It is also important to do “bigger things” for yourself on a weekly or monthly or even yearly basis such as getting a massage or facial, having a manicure or pedicure, going out to lunch with a friend who is positive and will help you recharge. I have a friend like that who is “sunshine” and recharges me every time I meet with her. Which of your friends do that for you? Make the time to spend with them. It will be worth it. By taking an hour out of your day every two weeks to go to lunch with someone who builds you up, you will find that you are even more productive once you are back to that to-do list.
And don’t forget those big yearly events such as a spa weekend with girlfriends, or annual night with the girls going to a play or special performance. It is important to have these special things to look forward to that you do just for you.
Anything that is really important to you should be on your schedule and not just on your to-do list. So put this self-care on your schedule daily, weekly, monthly and yearly.
Take Advantage of That Relaxed Feeling
It can be hard to keep your mind off your schedule while trying to relax, but you can take advantage of your peaceful relaxation time to do some stress-free planning. After your bath or walk, before you rejoin your office or family, sit down and tackle your to-do list for the rest of the day or week. With your mind clear, you'll be able to be more organized. Make sure when you plan your schedule, you include as much “me-time” as you can. I feel that an hour a day is a minimum. Your family and your clients will love the more cheerful, relaxed you!
My coach told me once, a few years ago, “How can you keep giving and giving, filling up other people’s cup, if you never stop and refill yours? You won’t have much left to give. If you would stop and refill, think of how much more you would be able to give and how much easier it would be.” That really hit me hard. Now, I make sure that not only am I the first thing on my to-do list, but that that time is scheduled – and is sacrosanct - every day!
How about you? What are you going to do to begin putting YOU first on your list?
As values drive your life purpose, vision drives your goal setting and your day-to-day actions.
I took this photo on a hike last month in Gold Canyon, AZ. It was a rainy day that had a brief burst of clear skies that enabled this hike and great photo. I have titled it “Vision.” It is my desktop background picture right now. If you can’t see the photo in this article, please check on www.RealEstateMoms.com
You know the old saying: “In order to know where you are going, you have to remember where you have been.” In naming your vision and setting goals for this year, truer words were never spoken. You need to first analyze where your business has been this past year before you can actually envision where you will be next. Vision is the big picture, the WHAT you will do (as opposed to the WHY.) In framing that picture, first decide what you want to leave out. For example, what is it that happened in your business last year that you never want to see happen again? Then you can follow up with the next question: What is it that worked well, and that you are proud of, that you want to be certain to repeat? Vision begins here.
My desktop picture reminds me every day about this vision I had for that hike and the vision and perspective I found hiking that day. My vision for that hike determined my steps and the path I took. My vision for my business does the same.
Some people believe that visionaries are gifted with natural talent or good luck and that we mere mortals cannot hope to dream in such vast landscapes. However, as Richard Koch reminds us in the 80/20 INDIVIDUAL, many times a visionary result is simply a rearrangement of something which already exists. Take, for example, that recurring annoyance or conflict from your business last year and put someone else in charge of it. Or, conversely, take a small idea which made a big difference in value for your customers, and assign a team to develop and improve upon the idea for this year: to make it bigger, monumental, even! All of this is vision.
Ask yourself the hard questions:
What did you accomplish this year?
What was the most challenging part of your year?
What goals did you set that you did not achieve?
What were the reasons?
What did you actively do to drive your business last year?
What factors do you feel drove the business without you: in other words, where do you feel you were out of control?
Then play the flipside:
What were your successes?
How did you celebrate them?
What do you want to duplicate and what are the steps that are necessary?
What is it that you value most that you want to see reflected in your business practices?
Again, only after analyzing where you have been can you paint the canvas in vivid color of where you will be next year. Like a jigsaw puzzle, the pieces come together to form the whole once you have identified them.
And remember, vision implies seeing: you must picture it in your mind before you make it your reality!
Sounds like a loaded question, doesn’t it? What is it that you truly value in life?
• Family? • Job? • Security? • Freedom? • Usually all of the above, and then some.
But the crux of the question on values is: which do you value most and to what measure? At the core of your personality and your being are your values. They dictate what is most important, both in life and in business. They motivate you and direct you in your goals. It is essential, therefore, for you to examine and weigh those things you value most in life, for they help sculpt your purpose. You literally need to make a physical list which clarifies what you find most worthwhile and rewarding in life. You may even want to take this a step further and write your values in the form of a mission statement: a guiding declaration of your values and principles.
Another important reason to focus on values is to analyze its relationship to your lifestyle and business practices. Once you have identified your values and articulated them, hold those values up to your daily life and work. Are they parallel? For example, if you value physical fitness and health but haven’t been to the gym in six weeks, one of the things you regard most in life has been cast aside, and you are certain to be unhappy in the long run. To quote Ron Willingham in INTEGRITY SELLING, in order to be successful, “your purpose must be congruent with, driven by, and sustained by your values.” If one is out of balance with the other, you can’t achieve all you hope for or deserve.
Also remember that identifying and articulating your values isn’t enough. You must act upon those values in your daily life in order to fulfill your purpose. To say that you value honesty is both admirable and prudent. However if you do not conduct your business in an honest manner, do not make full disclosure, say, or turn the other way when in the face of an ethical dilemma, your behavior belies what you say you value. Ultimately you disengage from relationships because of trust issues, lose business, and disappoint yourself.
Values are at the center of your being and have the power to shape your behaviors: toward others, toward success, toward happiness. Stephen Covey reminds us in THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE that “the ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of a proactive person.” Proactive people act from an internal compass. They achieve because they keep those values in mind when they make choices and decisions.
Identify, articulate, and act upon your values. They will help you form your goals and accomplish your purpose.
Purpose is an understanding of what your life is all about. Purpose provides the foundation of our values, vision and goals. Purpose gives meaning to everything we do in our personal and professional lives. In essence, purpose is the why.
Yet not all of us recognize our purpose or can articulate it. As in any life journey, it is difficult to arrive at a specific destination if we do not have an end in sight. The journey also must be joyful and heartfelt. It is purpose that makes life worthwhile and rewarding.
So to concentrate on your purpose or direction, begin to think “On Purpose.” Ask yourself the reason(s) why you do the things you do, and answer honestly.
Once you review the answers, determine if you like what you see. Are you living your life “On Purpose?” Are you fulfilling the intention of your values and ideals?
One key to discovering your personal purpose is in understanding the way you make a difference for others. Once revealed, understanding the way(s) you make a difference is the knowledge you need for building successful relationships. Your personal and professional success is built through creating value for others -- one relationship at a time. The importance of creating value for others as the theme of your purpose cannot be overemphasized. A self-centered or ego-driven purpose is doomed and will have a limited audience of admirers while an “other”-focused purpose creates synergy and provides shared meaning with others.
Discovering your purpose will give you insight into the value that you create for others. As you focus on how you can serve or create value for others, you build a platform for success. From this platform, your success and personal motivation grows and flourishes. We can see examples of this in all walks of life: from parenting to teaching, to coaching and mentoring, and beyond. The “pay it forward” rule multiplies the number of meaningful relationships we develop and nurture and thereby expands the richness of our personal, community and business lives.
Your purpose will also become your motivation to change, to take on new challenges and to improve all aspects of your life. Your purpose will become the catalyst for reinventing your self, your personal life and your business. Purpose becomes the passion, commitment and the desire to reach new peaks. The renewal of your purpose will only require an investment of your time. In the end, your purpose will provide you with a satisfying understanding of “this is why I do what I do everyday.”
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Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire helps her coaching clients design their business and life plan so that they are truly living life ON PURPOSE. If you would like to create your business plan around your purpose so you too can live on purpose, check out her 17-part Business Planning Guide at www.SmallBusinessPlanningguide.com
I just found out last week that sometimes the best place to go to work on your business is a thousand feet up. I was in Mesa, Arizona for a Business Planning retreat, staying at a nice resort in a two-bedroom condo with my laptop connected with Go To My PC so it was almost like I was sitting in my office back in Orange County, California. I spend most of the fourth quarter helping my coaching clients create their Business Plan for the new year, that I have found January is the best time for me to really look at my own business.
Even with the great accommodations at the resort, I still felt like I need to “get away” even more as I was doing some of my serious goal planning. You see, I set HUGE Goals for myself, and the only way for me to do that, is to get away from the day to day distractions. Being at the resort was still a little too connected to my email, my virtual assistant and my Blackberry. So, in order to get in the right frame of mind, I decided to go for a hike on Sunday.
Now granted, I took my Blackberry with me, (they’re addictive, if you haven’t heard) and even had coverage half way up the mountain on my 5 mile hike. It did allow me to take some great photos from the top. I tried to email them, that is how I realized I didn’t have service up there. But what I did find up there was something I really needed! Perspective.
When you are standing at the top of a mountain and look down, the houses and roads disappear. All you see are valleys and hills and rocks and cactus. Lots and lots and lots of beautiful cactus. In fact, more cactus than this Minnesota native has ever seen before. Who knew that desert vegetation could be so green and flowering and beautiful? It is amazing what a little rain does to the desert. It is also funny the pictures I had in my head about what the desert was before spending this much time hiking in it.
I did the first hike to get a little exercise, but I soon found out that I was getting more clarity and more things worked through on my hike, than at any other time that week. So I went on three more hikes that week. The beauty and adventure of the Arizona desert was addicting, but so was the amazing clarity and perspective I got concerning my business and my life goals while on those hikes.
When the normal distractions disappear and you truly get away from it all, it is amazing the clarity you can get. Now you might not be able to get away to the mountains of Arizona, although, I would highly recommend it, but where can you go to get way from everything? Away from the Blackberry, the email, the phone, the kids, everything?! I encourage you to find that place. Maybe it is a hike or walk near your house, maybe it is a bubble bath, and maybe it is beach in a warm part of the world. Wherever you find perspective, go there often!
------------------------------ Coach Cheri Alguire helps her clients take their business and their lives to a new level of success every day. Check out her resources at www.CheriAlguire.com
Learning a new skill, whether it be running, blogging, cooking, or anything requires far more than taking classes and reading books. After you have finished reading the books, and taking the classes, there is one thing left to do – do it! You can’t play in the game, if you are not in the game.
Books, trainers, teachers and coaches can help a lot. They inform, they help you understand the process, and they give you guidance when you need it, but that is not enough. If you don’t get out there and “do” it, you will not learn everything you need to learn. You need to put your knowledge to practical use.
What all this really means, though, is you have to practice. Lace up your sneakers and run, pick up those needles and knit, sit down and type your next blog posting. We’ve all heard the oft-said phrase, “Practice Makes Perfect,” and while very little in life is actually perfect, the phrase does hold great value and an undeniable truth. Anything in life that we want to get better at, we must practice at. And the first step is to just do it, try it, again and again.
Whether it is practicing running, playing a piano, delivering a speech, or any other skill, we all need continued practice in order to become successful in that skill. Each type of skill demands different muscles in your body to stand up and pay attention. Some, like running, are more about the physical body strengthening and changing with continued work. Others, like playing chess, are more about the brain stretching and learning the ins and outs with each game played.
What about you? What have you been studying, learning about, and gaining information on that you need to stop and just get out there and do? What is your game that you are playing in this thing we call business? Or in this thing we call life? Let me know what that might be for you. Isn’t it time you just got in the game. Isn’t it just time to DO IT!
------------------------- Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has helped hundreds of Small Business Owners, Real Estate Professionals, Moms, recently divorced individuals, people wanting to run a half marathon and people who just want to play and new and bigger game in life to set and achieve goals they never before thought they could. Find out more at www.CoachCheri.com or at www.13Lessons.com
How can I work “ON” my business without loosing income?
The answers to these questions are found in Your People System.A simple People System has four basic components:
Team Members,
Expected Outcomes,
Training, and
Management.
Your People System allows you to:
Double your income without working twice the time;
Go on vacations without a loss of clients or income;
Delegate tasks when they do not directly produce income to team members;
Offer your clients the highest level of service while fulfilling your fiduciary duties to them.
To maximize the potential of your People System, you must have specific and expected outcomes for each team member, and you must manage the expected outcomes.To increase “People Potential,” you must provide training experiences for your team.You must also constantly be on the lookout for new talent and, most importantly, be quick to identify aptitude in your current team members.Build upon and develop these newly identified aptitudes.The more you invest in Your Team, the higher volume Your Team will produce.Investing in Your People System will maximize the efficiency of your lead pipeline, and the end result will be a higher conversion rate and higher profitability.This is truly a win-win for everyone involved.
From a self-centered viewpoint, many agents believe they are “special,” and the public will only want to work with them.Don’t buy into this myth---Sell Your Team from the beginning.A specialized team can deliver a more consistent and a higher level of service than any single agent.Enjoy the benefits of delegating and managing.
How do I know which of my marketing strategies work?
Which marketing strategies are cost effective?
How can I capture the contact information for new leads?
How do I develop a lead pipeline?
How can my team be more productive?
The answers to these questions are found in Your Technology System. A Technology System should give you predictable ways of identifying prospects without requiring you or your team members to spend hours of time searching for names or contact information. Your Technology System should:
Assist you in managing your marketing.
Incubate long term leads.
Identify “hot” leads needing immediate service.
Communicate with your clientele.
And save you and your team countless hours of valuable time.
To maximize the potential of your Technology System, you must be sure the system is both compelling and capturing. Compelling technologies attract consumers (leads,) hold the attention of consumers, and show you the evidence that consumers return via the given technology. An example of this technology is a dynamic personal website. Capturing technologies give you a means of contacting and tracking consumers, for example, an effective 1-800 number and/or text messaging. Working at full potential, a Technology System will assist you in identifying cost-effective marketing strategies, give your team contact information on leads, and save everyone valuable time. The result will be a productive use of time and more sales!
--------------------------------- Coach Cheri's Updated Small Business Planning Guide is available now. If you would like more information on developing a Technology System for your business or any other information on making next year your best year yet by creating a business and life plan for yourself that really will help you get to where you want to go, please check out my seventeen part eCourse or find out more about my Small Business Resources at http://www.CheriAlguire.com
One area I address in my Business Planning Guide is your Business Support System, but many people do not understand exactly what makes up a Support System. A well developed Support System is a recipe for SUCCESS. The four components of a simple ‘Support System’ are: Financial, Family, Sphere and Coaching. The financial component is made up of business savings and tax planning. The family comprises of your core relationships and activities that define your belief system. The sphere component offers referrals at little to no cost to your business. And coaching gives you a set of neutral eyes probing, and an active voice challenging, your current practices and direction. The overall function of your Support System is to give you and your business: security, energy, enjoyment and vision. The result will be SUCCESS.
The financial component of your Support System is best directed by an accountant. Have your accountant establish quarterly tax payments based upon the expected gross income to the business. Set up a proactive savings program to prepare for three months of business expenses: there may be an unforeseen illness; you may lose team members, or there may be a shift in the market that you were not expecting. The result of focusing on your financial component will be a reduction of financial pressure.
The family component of your Support System provides you with the core of why you work. Who you are and what you stand for are truly defined when you are away from the job. You must allocate time; schedule and protect your time away from work. Being in touch with and actually being involved with your core beliefs will renew your personal energy and passion, and as a result, you will perform at a higher level when you are working.
The sphere component of your Support System adds joy to your business. There is nothing more rewarding than providing service to a past client or a past client’s referral. No convincing, no selling your team, no overcoming objections---just being yourself and having fun doing what you do best. And the process? It is simple: just ask. “Who is next to buy or sell?” Simple and inexpensive.
The coaching component of your Support System offers a necessary challenge to your business. “It won’t work here,” or “not in this market,” or “I can’t do that,” or “it’s not my style . . .” on-and-on go the excuses. For all agents, the coaching process is simple but challenging: just listen and then act. Throughout the coaching process, you will be challenged to work “ON” your business: Listen to challenge. Set goals and establish timelines. Define actionable steps to complete. Measure the results. Dare to push your limits.
How is your support system? If you want to set yourself and your business up for success, it is very important to look at each of these areas, analyze where you can make improvements, and create a plan to do those things.
No matter how talented or how much natural ability an individual real estate agent possesses, his/her natural talents can and will only take him/her so far. No matter how gifted an individual may be, everyone will eventually hit a ceiling or, for most of us, a plateau of production. There is no “if” in this statement but rather “when” it will happen.
So the real issue is: how will you climb beyond the plateau or break through your ceiling of production? For the seasoned Realtor, the answer lies within the rigor of his/her ‘lead systems.’ For the successful team of Realtors, the answer lies within the volume of leads that the ‘lead systems’ generate. The single most critical element for consistent cash-flow in a real estate business is its pipeline of leads.
It is critical that the individual agent or the team leader designate specific blocks of time to work on his/her lead development systems. THIS TIME IS TIME SPENT “ON” YOUR BUSINESS. Lead Systems are the life-blood of your business. The lead systems produce sales; sales provide the revenue for prospecting/marketing; and prospecting/marketing generates new inventory and further future leads.
To completely understand the vital role lead systems play in a real estate business, it is important to utilize traditional and electronic marketing as ways of prospecting. Traditionally, there are many hands-on, time intensive, marketing/prospecting strategies, for example: handwritten notes or cards, warm calling and door knocking. With the arrival and development of electronic marketing and prospecting, however, agents have the ability to manage leads and, to a degree, predict the volume of leads in a less time intensive manner. Regardless of the strategy you employ, the result is the same: more marketing and prospecting means more inventory, and the result is a greater number of leads.
It is vital never to permit your lead system to stop or stall out. If your lead system falters, your entire business becomes vulnerable to changes in the larger market. Remember: your pipeline determines future sales---three, six and twelve months out.
This model of business planning and goal setting for Small Business Owners breaks the process down to four parts and seventeen steps.
PART 1: The Big WHY It is important to first look at who you really are and what your core values are. These things will drive you and carry thorough to your business.
Step 1 - What is your purpose? Uncover your purpose, what provides the foundation of our values, vision and goals.
Step 2 - What are your values? Know your core values which dictate what is important in both life and business: how business should be conducted, your view of humanity, and your role in society.
PART 2: Vision – Goal Setting This is where you take a hard look at where you are at and figure out where it is you are going in your business and in your life.
Step 3 – The Year in Review Recognize what it is you have done this year, celebrate the accomplishments and also look at what may have stopped you short of reaching a goal.
Step 4 – Is your life in balance? The Wheel of Life, sometimes called the Balance Wheel, will help you visualize your current situation, providing a snapshot of how you see your life today.
Step 5 – Is your business running smoothly? Using the Balance Wheel concept on your business can help to determine what areas are causing your business to not run as smooth as it could be.
Step 6 – Looking at problem areas By focusing on areas that have been your weak points this year, you can determine what steps things may need to be in your plan for this year to avoid similar situations.
Step 7 – Business Review Take a look at the results of the last 12 months. Did you reach your goals and achieve what you wanted?
Step 9 – Production Goals Work the numbers. Create specific number goals for the next one to five years.
PART 3: Creating an Action Plan to Achieve Your Goals All Real Estate Professionals know they need a Business Plan. By following these steps you will create a plan that will help you hit your business goals.
Step 10 – Define Your Niche and Value Proposition Become a specialist and build perceived value. Know your true value and learn to articulate your value proposition to your clients.
Step 11 – Lead Generation/Marketing Plan Recognize what specific changes to your current plans are necessary to make in order to reach your goals.
Step 12 – Define Your Team Organizational Structure Understand the organizational structure of your team.
Step 13 – Development Plan Capture all of those things you have wanted to research, create, do, perfect, delegate and implement in your business.
Step 14 – Budgeting Review your expenses for the current year and include any new marketing and development changes.
Step 15 – Production Plan Create and monitor goals on a monthly basis in order to hit your production goals for the upcoming year.
Step 16 – Time and Delegation It is important to make sure you have time management and delegating strategies in place to work this plan you are creating.
PART 4: Achieving Your Goals: How do I get there from here? By breaking your large goals into smaller steps you will always know what you need to do next in order to keep working toward hitting your business and personal goals.
Step 17 - Creating a Master Project List Change your goals into “projects” to actively work on over the next twelve months, and from this create a “Master Project List.”
Coach Cheri's Updated 2009 Small Business Planning Guide: Available Now
Orange County, CA – Business owners struggling with marketing and branding have a new reference tool for their efforts in a Guide book that discusses an internal approach to messaging. Local marketing and publicity specialist, Cheri Alguire, collaborated with eight other coaches to publish “A Guide to Getting it: Branding and Marketing Mastery,” available for $14.95 at her website.
“Everything is marketing,” Cheri Alguire stated. “Entrepreneurs can build their brand faster as a result of the ideas, stories and tools from business coaches who’ve been there.” Cheri Alguire addresses Niche Marketing in her chapter, Mass Appeal Equals No Appeal: Discovering Your Niche Market.
“Building a business can be broken down to this one critical question: How am I going to attract clients to my business,” she said. Cheri has a business planning process she puts all of her clients through every year that takes an in depth look at how to choose and effectively market to your niche at www.CheriAlguire.com
The theme of branding and marketing repeats throughout the book. Each expert maintains that in a world of marketing noise or hype, authenticity differentiates the businessperson’s signature message from clones and wannabes. A forward note from editor, Marilyn Schwader promises: “Apply the lessons here and you will build your business in an authentic, inspired way.” Branding and Marketing Mastery is the tenth in a series of Guide books edited by life and business coaches and published by Schwader. For more information, see www.clarityofvision.com/guide.
Chapters and authors included in this book:
Creating a Visionary and Focused Marketing Strategy by Marilyn Schwader
Mass Appeal Equals No Appeal: Discovering Your Niche Market by Cheri Alguire
Attracting Baby Boomer Women to Your Business by Jane Lee Williams
Branding: The Soul of Your Business by Judy Winslow
Authentic Branding by Dawn Andrews
The Evolution of Loyalty: Five Steps to Branding by Mary Ellen Merrigan
The 7 Marketing Archetypes and How to Deal With Them by Dr. Miriam Reiss
Networking: The Insider’s Guide to Finding and Leveraging Your Best Opportunities by Kim Lysik Di Santi
Quantum Marketing by Jille Bartolome
About Cheri Alguire: Cheri is a business and life coach who partners with Small Business Owners, Entrepreneurs, and Real Estate Professionals, including Realtors, Managers, Loan Officers, Buyer's Agents and Real Estate Moms to provide products and services to take their business and life to a new level of success. “When I coach, I help people set and achieve goals far above what they imagined they could accomplish while, at the same time, living a life of balance and fulfillment,” Cheri says. “My focus is on helping them take their career and their life to the next level.” To date she’s achieved this for hundreds and hundreds of clients across the country—clients who place high value on her guidance and many who now have more clients, more income, and more balance in their business and their lives.
--- Coach Cheri's Updated 2009 Real Estate Planning Guide: Available Now! The time is right and the time is NOW to create a business and life plan for yourself that really will help you get to where you want to go next year. Take a look at Coach Cheri's seventeen part eCourse at www.RealEstateBusinessPlanningGuide.com
When I first decided to become a coach, the only experience I had with the coaching industry is something I had heard almost on accident. I was doing some spring-cleaning and I came across a box of audio CDs someone in my household had ordered from a life coach a couple years ago, but no one had ever listened to. I put them on while I was doing my spring cleaning and the words that entered my ears through the sound waves coming from my portable CD player, this was before iPods, changed my life forever.
I started journaling again. I started really thinking about my life’s purpose. I started writing in my journal about everything I was destined to do and be and feel and live. During one of my journaling sessions, I figured out that it was my calling to be a coach. I did not know exactly what that was in the professional sense, but I did know that “coaching” was something I had been doing in my life for a long time and I was determined to explore the profession further.
I began some research on the computer and for weeks I researched the coaching industry, coaching schools, and other coach’s websites and ordered coaching books in droves. I found out there was life coaching and business coaching. The concept of business coaching really excited me. Because of my background in business as an entrepreneur and my background in Real Estate, I naturally thought of becoming a business coach for Realtors. I had been in the industry since college. I had been a successful Realtor and was currently an office manager for a top team in the area. I felt I knew the common ups and downs of the business as well as the kind of person in this industry. Coaching was a rather new concept at the time, yet one that seemed to be embraced already by this profession. People saw the benefits and there were already people coaching and creating businesses coaching Real Estate Agents. What could be better?
That’s when I started to experience doubt. “But, there are already people doing this, how am I supposed to break in and compete?” One of my first thoughts after having narrowed down my niche was to expand it to not only include Real Estate Professionals, but to also include small business owners and entrepreneurs. After all, I had owned a couple small businesses over the years as well. I knew that audience and could talk to the challenges they experienced as well.
As I began to expand my focus, I soon realized I no longer appealed to anyone because now my focus was too broad and my coaching practice was too general. When I was in the Real Estate industry I had learned that mass appeal equals no appeal. You can’t be everything to everyone. I began thinking about why I was looking for a niche anyway. Specialization gives people a reason to choose you. Specialization builds perceived value.
Sometimes it is hard to understand this when you are thinking about yourself and your profession so when I am working with my clients helping them figure out their niche I ask them to think about other professions such as the medical or legal fields. If you look in the yellow pages or on the Internet for an attorney in your area, you are going to look for one that specializes in the area you are looking for such as tax law or family law. When you are looking for a doctor you are going to look for a Cardiologist or a Dermatologist or someone who specializes in the field you need help in. Not only do these specialties attract you to them in the first place, you are willing to pay more for a Heart Surgeon than you are for a General Practitioner.
Besides being able to charge more, being a specialist is also easier. You know your clients and you can create systems so you can be more effective. My clients that specialize in certain neighborhoods in their real estate business have an easier time when someone calls them to sell their property if they specialize in that area. They know the prices of the houses in the neighborhood, they know the builders and floor plans of the houses in the area, they know the schools and infrastructure close by, they know other owners and people looking to buy in the area. They know who to market the house to. They know the profile of an ideal buyer for the house before even stepping into the house to meet the sellers.
As a coach who specializes with Real Estate Professionals, I have my coaching systems streamlined to that industry. My intake forms and session update forms talk their language. I have a business planning process I have created and offer to every one of my clients that walks them through the process not in a general business sense, but very industry specific to Realtors and Real Estate Managers. My plans have evolved and improved over the years with input from clients who are all very similar to each other and therefore all of my client’s benefit. Coaches who specialize are able to streamline their procedures. Group coaches who always coach groups for 90 day periods have set procedures that they are able to perfect over time. Coaches who coach around certain areas such as divorce are able to have a tool box of resources and materials that will benefit all of their clients.
Being a specialist sometimes starts with self-proclamation. However, if you are going to call yourself a specialist, you are going to do the needed research to accurately display that title. For my real estate clients this means researching neighborhoods or types of property. For coaches it may mean reading information, attending Teleclasses, keeping up with trade publications or conferences. Virtual Assistants who want to specialize with coaches attend the same conferences coaches do; they read the same magazines coaches do. They keep up on what is happening in the coaching industry.
If a Realtor calls herself a lakeshore specialist, but does not know anything about the laws and conditions that effect lakeshore property sales, her marketing efforts will fall flat as those who respond to her advertising discover she does not possess the required skills needed to sell lakeshore property and accurately call herself a “Lakeshore Specialist.” If on the other hand, you provide potential clients with information on the lakes in the area and links on your website to provide them with valuable information, long before they become clients, you will earn their trust and you will soon be able to charge higher fees as a specialist instead of a generalist.
How about you, what is your niche? Taking the time to really discover what it is could prove to be a very valuable to your business.
How many times in your business have you heard, "You need to choose a niche"? While nearly everyone talks about the benefits of a niche and that they need to find theirs;
How do you really choose a niche?
How do you know the right one?
Will you really like it?
Will it prove profitable?
For me, in the beginning it seemed to boil down to one critical question: How was I going to attract clients? I understood finding my target audience from the marketing I had done in my previous businesses. After hearing the speakers, taking the classes, and reading the books about the importance of choosing a niche, I began to understand that to really have effective advertising, my business and marketing plans must start with a clear idea of what my niche market would be.
I am a business and life coach for Small Business Owners. Okay, there are still a million Small Business Owners in the United States, but to be honest, when I first began coaching I thought that niche was too narrow. I knew there were other Small Business Coaches out there. All I could focus on was the overwhelming feeling that came to me in trying to figure out how was I suppose to compete with the other coaches with that same niche. So, I decided I wasn't going to limit myself. I decided I was also going to work with Real Estate Agents. They were kind of like Small Business Owners since they both had small business and I had been in the Real Estate Industry in the past. I knew there were a lot of Realtors out there.
I also told myself I didn't want to get "bored" working with just Small Business Owners. Now, several years later, after working with hundreds of Small Business Owners and real estate agents, brokers and managers, I have found a couple groups of ideal clients that excite me: Small Business Owner Moms and Real Estate Moms looking to balance their business and their life, busy Small Business Owners looking to efficiently manage their time and brokers or agents looking to build an effective team.
Sometimes you chose your niche and it works out from the beginning. Other times, your niches evolve as you and your business change and grow.
While training for my half-marathon, I needed some knowledge of running fundamentals.In deciding to become a student of the game of running, I immediately headed to the nearest bookstore.Let me tell you, there are a LOT of books on running and I looked through every single one.In fact, I spent so much time at the bookstore browsing through running books; I got more than one weird look from the sales clerk!
Once I read these books, and the other three that I’d purchased, I also spent some time on the Internet.I took a lot of notes and, along with my trainer, eventually developed a training program I could stick to.Beyond that, the information I learned gave me the ability to see the finish line clearly.Before this, both the half-marathon and the actual running of it were nothing more than a fuzzy goal in my mind.
When you take the time to educate yourself, these fuzzy goals become clearer, make more sense, and you can finally begin to truly visualize yourself meeting them.
What I want you to do – RIGHT NOW – is make a list regarding your goals.I want you to answer these questions:
What is the category my goals fall in?
What information do I currently have on this category?
What else do I need to know?
Where can I go for this information?Think about the Internet, bookstores, libraries, coaches and/or trainers, and possible mentors that already have this information.
What do I hope to learn?
How will this make a difference in my meeting my goals?
As you answer these questions and seek the knowledge, you will gain power.Your goal will become more defined and you will be even more anxious to get started!Education is a strong motivator for success.Educate yourself first and success will follow!
Knowledge is power!Learning has never been easier.You can research practically anything on the Internet.Books have been written on virtually every subject known to man.Don’t worry if you don’t know how to do something – the information is out there to teach you.
Cheri Alguire is a real estate, business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire can partner with you to take your real estate business to the next level, please visit http://www.CoachCheri.com
I can honestly say that – WHATEVER YOUR GOAL – learning the game, becoming a student of the game, will help you get you the results you want.Why?Because you will take the time to inform yourself of the path ahead, and by doing so, you will increase your chances of success by a very large margin.
Regardless of the event, the industry, or the focus of your goal – it is critical to learn about the game, the rules of the game, and the best way to meet the objective of the game.The only way to do this is to become a student of the game.
What does all this mean?Honestly, it’s a lot simpler than it sounds!Delving in a little deeper, let’s use an example of publishing a book along with an example of running.Say your goal is to publish a book you have written.You will want to follow these steps:
1.Learn About the Game:Determine the category your goal falls in.In the example of publishing, is your book fiction or non-fiction?In the example of running, are you interested mainly in getting fit or, do you need to know more about endurance for, say, a half-marathon?
Once you know the category your goal falls in, you will know where to begin gleaning information to educate yourself.If you have written a non-fiction book on Chinese Wedding Traditions, for example, learning about publishers that focus on fiction isn’t going to help you much.Taking that a bit further, you will need to focus on the type of non-fiction book you are wanting to market.
Likewise, if you are mostly interested in endurance training, learning the ins and outs of strengthening your body for a half-marathon are most important on your list.While you could certainly receive worthwhile information by looking at fitness as a whole, you needed to focus more in order to truly “get it.”
Know your goal.Know the goal’s industry.Know the category.
2.Learn the Rules of the Game.Okay, so you know the category your goal falls into.Now, it’s time to learn the rules for that category.Again, using publishing as an example, you want to find the best publisher for your book on Chinese Wedding Traditions.Where do you start?What about the example of learning how to gain endurance for running a half-marathon?Where would you start?
Regardless of the industry, regardless of the category, there are people who have gone before you.Many of those people have written books, articles, created Web sites, and train or teach others how to be successful.These are the resources you want to tap!I recommend starting on the Internet because it’s a free resource that can give you a ton of information very quickly.
After you’ve spent some time researching on the net, you may find books, audio-books, DVDs, or even organizations devoted to what you’re trying to learn about.It’s completely up to you how you choose to educate yourself at this point.You can join some of these organizations, hire a trainer or a coach, purchase a book or five, or any combination of the resources available to you that you want.
Educate yourself.Study the rules.Learn the rules.
3.Learn the best way to meet the Objective of the Game.You’ve spent some time educating yourself on the ins and outs of the industry and the category of your goal.You have a lot more information about this than you previously did – CONGRATULATIONS!Now, take this information and you apply it to your personal goal.
Back to our example of publishing a non-fiction book on Chinese Wedding Traditions, the research conducted should give a clear idea of the correct publishers that would be interested in this type of book.Along with this, the knowledge of how to approach these publishers should also have been learned.Now, you know the proper way to begin meeting your objective.
In the goal of running a half-marathon, you should learn about running in particular.How you need to train and what to do each step of the way, such as the best way to increase your endurance, stretching exercises for before and after you run, and additional tips that will help you plan your attack.All of this knowledge will allow you to better plan so you will be ready to run a half-marathon when the time comes.
Research the rules.Understand the rules.Plan your attack.
4.Becoming a Student of the Game.By following the above three steps, you can become a student of any game!This is the best way to achieve the goal in front of you, regardless of what your goal is.
You absolutely need to acclimate yourself as much as possible.This will allow you to SUCCEED, which is the point of making a goal, isn’t it?
When you take the time to educate yourself and plan accordingly, even the seemingly most difficult objectives become easier to manage.
üLearn About YOUR Game.
üLearn the Rules of YOUR Game.
üMeet YOUR objective.
People all over the world are learning new things every day.Education is an important facet in life, in all professions, and in almost every single thing we do.
When you were a child, you had to learn to tie your shoes.When you were a teenager, you had to learn how to drive.When you entered college and/or the workforce, you had to learn the rules of your surroundings.Our entire lives are made up of “learning the game” and of being a “student of the game.”Meeting your goals are no different!
Running is like business.You can do it by yourself.You can do it with a group.You can do it anywhere.Other than a good pair of running shoes or possible a telephone, you don’t need any special equipment.With these facts in mind, I figured learning to run or running a business wouldn’t be that difficult.After all, running is one of the most popular forms of fitness and there are so many small businesses out there.It couldn’t be that difficult with so many people involved in the sport, right?
Wrong!When I decided to get out there and just do it, I found it far more difficult than I’d anticipated.Who knew running (the sport or running a business) would be so hard?I realized, quickly, that I’d not only underestimated the sport itself, but my own ability to acclimate by just doing it.
You may find yourself in a similar situation, depending on what your overall goals are.It’s not fun feeling like we’re in over our head and goals are ripe for this.What do you do if this happens to you?Basically, you have three choices:
Give up.Wow, this is so much harder than I thought!I was completely deluding myself into believing this is something I could do.No way can I accomplish this goal at this time in my life, so I’m going to set it aside and focus on something I feel more comfortable with.
Blindly forge ahead.Okay, so this is harder than I thought, but that’s alright.This is my goal and I’m determined to reach it, so I’ll just forge ahead.Eventually, everything will sink in and I’ll be more comfortable and everything will be fine.
Learn the game.Maybe you’re feeling a little discouraged, but you’re not ready to give up.You’re also not ready to forge ahead without more information.So you decide to learn the game, inform yourself, and then plan your strategy.
What are you learning to “run?”You might not be learning to run long distance, but you might be learning to run your business in slower economic times.Or you may be learning to run your Real Estate Business in a Real Estate market that is so very different than when you first learned it.
What are you going to do?Give up?Blindly forge ahead?Or learn the game?The choice is yours to make.
Cheri Alguire is a real estate, business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire can partner with you to take your real estate business to the next level, please visit www.ProRealEstateCoach.com
You have heard the arguments for having accountability in achieving your goals and you’ve decided to bring one or two or a dozen people into the process of achieving your goal. How do you start? What can you do to make sure the accountability functions as you want it to, as it’s supposed to?
Who to pick and how many do you need for your accountability circle? For some, this is an easy question – they have a best friend, a sibling, another family member, a professional coach or even a colleague that they immediately gravitate to. Who you choose, and how many, is a very personal choice, but there are a few things to think about when selecting the members (or member, because you may only need one person!) of your accountability circle:
1. If it’s a personal goal that has nothing to do with your business or professional life, consider choosing a person who is in your personal life over one from your business/professional life.
2. Likewise, if your goal is a business goal – you may have a stronger feeling of accountability if you choose those from your professional life who will have a better understanding of your goal and the reasons why you’re pursuing it.
3. Select an individual (or individuals) that honestly want the best for you. Choosing someone you’re in constant competition with may have one set of benefits (you may work harder to win over them), but you really need at least ONE person that is completely on your side.
4. Consider finding those that have the same goal you do. Whether it’s a professional goal or a personal one, when you have others alongside you reaching for the same goals, it can become a mutually rewarding support system. This could be members of a Master Mind Group or a Group Coaching Program.
5. Hire a coach! Coaches are uniquely trained to help hold you accountable to your goals.
Once you have picked the members of your accountability circle and they have agreed to participate in keeping you accountability, it will be time to decide how often you will check in with them and how exactly you will do that. You could meet in person, over the phone, via email or even through some other form of social networking.
How about you? Who do you have in your accountability circle? Maybe it is time to find someone who will really hold you accountable and who really wants the best for you!
Coaches lack established credentialing organizations, so the best way to find one is to get referrals. Glatzer recommends looking for coaches who have experience working with companies like yours, interviewing candidates and checking references.
Rob Basso knows the benefits of working with a personal business coach--and today his sales employees do, too. Basso, owner of Hicksville, New York-based Advantage Payroll Services, has hired trainers to work with his 25 employees. But in 2005, dissatisfaction with the $3.5 million company's sales approach and results led the entrepreneur to hire an outsider to coach his five-person sales team.
"We asked our sales coach to help us develop a different way to sell our products and services," says Basso, 34. Basso hoped a coach would go beyond the trainer's job of giving employees needed skills and see that new skills were put to use. After 18 months, he's calling the experiment a success. "[The number of clients was] up roughly 23 percent from 2005 to 2006," Basso says. "Is that all attributable to the sales coach? No, but it was a major help."
Coaches can help employees keep the big picture in mind and stay on track toward goals as well as master new techniques. Entrepreneurs should consider calling in a coach to work with employees when they face any of several situations, including dealing with a problematic employee, preparing for a significant change in the business or feeling a need for self-assessment of employees or the organization, says Karen Glatzer, a business coach who has worked with growing companies. A coach may not be appropriate if you already know what you need and want someone to carry the news to employees, she adds. "You don't need a coach to act as your mouthpiece," she says.
Unlike trainers, who may come in, put on a seminar and leave, a coach is typically hired for an engagement of up to several months. Each month, the coach meets a couple of times or more for an hour or two with each employee and is available for consultations as needed. One-on-one work distinguishes coaches from trainers. Coaches are also more like mentors in that they encourage and monitor improvements.
Expect an engagement with a coach to cost a few thousand dollars or more. Taking employees away from their work to spend time with a coach will also cost in lost productivity. You may be able to improve results by seeking a close fit between the coach, the organization and the people. Basso says his choice essentially came down to which coach he felt most comfortable with personally. "They all said they could do similar things," he says. "We needed someone who could mesh with me."
Confidentiality is a sensitive issue with coaches and one that entrepreneurs should explore before hiring one, Glatzer says. Because coaches work one-on-one, they may become privy to personal, medical or financial information that is relevant to performance but which employees don't want others to know. In those cases, Glatzer urges employees to bring up job performance matters with a superior themselves.
Basso says seeing results from coaching took much longer than the four or five months he'd originally envisioned. Sales referrals also slowed at first as the team lost momentum while shifting its focus. But he's glad he stuck with it. "Even if we'd taken a backward step," he says, "based on the results I've seen so far, I'd do it again."
We have all heard the word "Accountability" used around goal setting, but why? Is it really that big of a deal? Can't we just do it on our own?
Think back to all the goals you've ever made - from the simple ones to the large ones. Which goals were achieved and which weren't? Make a list of at least ten goals you can think of, writing "MET" or "NOT MET" next to each one. This visual exercise may help you understand at least one of the reasons why the NOT MET goals were - well, not met.
My guess is your MET goals were accomplished with the help of at least one other person. A friend, spouse, parent, or colleague who was in on your goal, perhaps because it was a goal they shared with you, or perhaps only because they were interested in you and how you were handling it. Regardless, every time you bring another person into a goal, you have a better chance at realizing that goal.
Without accountability, most people are likely to forget why it was so important to them, quit progressing toward it, or simply decide it's not worth the hassle. However, with accountability - meaning you know exactly what you want, when you want it, and there is at least ONE other person who has the same knowledge - guess what, you will more than likely continue toward the finish line.
While humans are really good at admitting defeat to themselves, they are far less able to admit defeat to another person. It's actually (in most cases) easier for them to keep working toward their goal just so they DON'T have to admit they "gave up" to another person.
Accountability works for the following reasons:
Shared Intention - When you share your intention with others, it becomes more real to you, which raises the stakes.
Responsibility - By confiding in another person, you're claiming responsibility to the goal you want to pursue. This creates a more focused outlook as you pursue your goal.
Ownership - Own your goals by bringing another person or persons into the loop. When you take control by placing ownership on your goal - success is far easier reached.
Commitment - Simply by communicating your plan with others forces you, like little else does, to commit. You know they'll be asking about your progress, checking in to see how things are going, and they'll be very interested in the entire process. You almost have no choice but to commit at this stage!
So who can help you keep accountable to your goals so you can move them from the UNMET to the MET category? Do you need an accountability partner? Do you really own your goals by bringing another person into the loop? Who is that person going to be? Just make sure it is someone who will really stretch you, and won't hold you back to their level. It can be a friend, colleague or professional coach. Whoever it is, make sure they will REALLY hold you accountability to setting and moving those goals to the "MET" category!
Accountability is a critical element in the goal setting and goal achieving process. Many people brush it off under the belief that it doesn’t really make that much of a difference. This belief is not only incorrect, but the lack of accountability is completely detrimental to the overall success of achieving a goal.
Accountability is serious! In the world of small business, more and more information is necessary to keep things running smoothly. This increased amount of information is a form of accountability, as is communication, and while company will have different levels of accountability, I guarantee you that none exist without it.
In our families and personal lives, accountability is just as essential as in the real estate world. What we want, how we go about getting it, and the overall success can be related back to – yep, you got it, accountability. Think about how successful your kids would be in completing their chores if there were no accountability.
I remember speaking with a friend shortly after agreeing to run a half-marathon. This friend of mine is an avid runner, so she was immediately interested in the event and, wonders of wonders, even wanted to do it with me. If, by any stretch of the imagination, I wasn’t fully committed before this moment, agreeing to run this marathon with my friend Jennifer sealed the deal.
With Jennifer holding me accountable, I had no choice but to follow through – after all, I couldn’t rely on anyone “forgetting” about my commitment now! My friend didn’t live near me, which meant we couldn’t physically train together, but every time we spoke – she asked about MY training. Between you and me, I hadn’t even started to train at this point, but I certainly didn’t want to fess up to that! So, I’d lie through my teeth and say, “Great!” every time she asked.
Well, let’s be honest here – I could lie all I wanted to, but the proof would be right there in front of my friend’s eyes on the day of the marathon. By her continually bringing it up and reminding me, I was forced to keep it in mind. This propelled me to (eventually) get moving so I’d be able to answer her honestly!
As I said before, accountability is one of the essential elements in your succeeding at any goal you set. So, who are you accountable to?
You hold people accountable all the time, your buyers, your sellers, your kids, your husband. But who holds you accountable to doing what you need to do every day to be successful in business (following upon leads, creating the marketing plan) and in life (taking “ME” time, balancing time off?) Maybe it is time you found someone to help hold you accountable.
Maybe it is time to enlist an accountability partner or hire a coach. Maybe it is time to really do what it takes to get to the next level. --- Small Business Coach Cheri Alguire partners with Working Moms, Small Business Owner Moms, and Real Estate Moms to hold them accountable to creating and following the plan that will take their businesses and their lives to the next level. Find out more at www.CoachCheri.com and www.RealEstateMoms.com
Whether it's January, or any other time of the year, you must set SMART Goals. When you use the SMART goals process, you're that much closer to achieving the results you want.
While part of me had thought my past client might forget about the commitment I'd made to her regarding the half-marathon, I still took the time to focus on my goal.This turned out to be a good thing, because she didn't forget!In the summer of 2005, Valerie contacted me again and asked if I was ready to sign up and begin my training. My half-thought promise turned into a full-fledged commitment!
I knew if I was truly going to follow through, I needed to finalize the setting of my goal.This was a little scary, as it was far above anything I had ever imagined myself doing.The marathon was 13.1 miles. Even for people who do run, that's not a short hike. For me, the non-runner, those miles seemed excruciatingly long.
While I did workout, and tried to keep myself in shape, I was not an athlete by any stretch of the imagination. I was a business owner and a mother to three teenagers. However, I was also a coach. I knew how to stretch my clients to help them move out of their comfort zones in order to reach the successes they dreamed of.
In the way life is, I was about to become my own client. I was about to use all the skills I taught others to ready myself for the biggest "race" of my life.
What is the first thing I did?
I carefully set my goal and I made sure it passed my goal tests.This process started with the SMART Goals I mentioned earlier.
So, what is a SMARTGoal? It's a method used by companies and individuals worldwide, though the process itself differs slightly from organization to organization. I am going to share with you my version of creating and setting SMARTGoals.To begin, answer the following questions:
What do you want? Be specific.
Is the goal stated in positive terms?
What are the logical and chronological steps you'll need to take in order to achieve this goal?
Is the goal within your control?
What stops you from having this goal right this instant?
What kind of person (behavior, attitude, etc.) do you need to be to attain this goal?
How will you handle potential obstacles?
Is the outcome harmful to anyone?
Once you have these questions answered, you must ascertain that you have a SMART Goal. Use the following to define your goal and to see if it is indeed a SMART Goal.
Is it a SMART Goal? See for yourself:
Specific - When you are specific about your goals, you have a far greater chance of seeing success. Vague goals are much more difficult to accomplish.To set a specific goal, you must take into consideration the six "W's."
WHO - Who is involved in the goal?
WHAT - What results do you want?
WHERE - Where is this goal in your life? Is it a career goal? Where in your career does it fall? For example, if your goal is to increase awareness of your business, it falls within the marketing aspect of your career.
WHEN - What is your time frame for this goal? When do you want to see the results?
WHICH - Which steps are needed to achieve the results you want? Are there obstacles? Name them.
WHY - What are your reasons for accomplishing this goal? Be specific.
Measurable - It is essential to develop the exact method you'll use for measuring your progress toward the realization of your goal. Progress that is measured allows you to stay on track, gives you concrete target dates to reach, and puts you in control of the process. Agreed - When you agree to accomplish a goal, you must be accountable to someone else. You will focus harder and achieve more when there are other people in the loop. Pick a business colleague, a family member, or a friend and let them in on your goal, and each step you'll need to take to achieve it. Realistic - With every goal you decide to achieve, be sure it is a realistic goal.This does not mean it can't be a high one! Reach for the sky, but be sure you have the ability, methods, and resources available to make it happen. Timely - Determine if it's an appropriate time in your life to work on each of your goals, as well as the length of time you will need to achieve them. Be honest with yourself and develop a time frame that will lead you to success.
Are your goals for 2008 SMART goals? If not, it may be time to rework them.
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Cheri Alguire is a business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire and Next Level Services, Inc, can partner with you to take your real estate business to the next level, please visit www.CoachCheri.com
There is a lot of talk about setting goals in January. What is a goal, really? This is what the dictionary says:
Goal(Noun) The result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim; end
Every January, when you set resolutions, you truly intend to follow up on them. It's likely that among your goals, you have both personal and professional targets you're aiming to accomplish throughout the year.
As a Business and Life Coach, this is also the time that many of my clients work hard to finish their Business Plans and set up their other business goals for the next twelve months. You probably do the same, and these goals may include things such as:
Increasing sales.
Enhanced employee relations.
Better time management.
Advance a new marketing plan.
Sometimes, you set goals that you think will be really easy, when in reality, they're not. Maybe you only have ten pounds to lose, and you figure that will be simple. Or perhaps you simply want to be home thirty minutes earlier each night – that should be a breeze, right? These goals don't seem hard, but it can be that lack of "bigness" that makes us underestimate the process. This can be the difference in whether we actually achieve the results we want or not.
So what are your goals? If you need help figuring that out, my Business and Life Planning guide might be helpful to you. Are your goals too easy? Or do they seem too hard? What is one goal you have for yourself in 2008? Let me know!
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Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has helped hundreds of small business owners, Real Estate Agents and moms set goals far above anything they have every dreamed possible and help them to create a plan to achieve those goals. If you are looking to really set and achieve goals this year to take your business and your life to the next level, check out Cheri's Business and Life Planning Guides.
If you're like most people, every January 1st, you begin the year with a new set of resolutions. Whether that goal is to lose weight, earn more money, stop smoking, exercise frequently, or even something as deceptively simple as calling your mother more often, the decision you made to make a change is essential. You can't succeed unless you start.
Half-Marathon – Setting My Goal I will never ask you to take something on that I myself wouldn't do, or haven't already accomplished. In 2004, a past coaching client of mine, Valerie, asked me to join Team Emily (www.Team-Emily.com) to run a half or a full marathon for charity. Me – the person who, at that point, thought running had to more to do with dashing to the grocery store on my way home from a meeting – was being asked to run a half-marathon. It's okay to laugh!
I could only run (okay, jog) for maybe twenty minutes on the treadmill before working out. My son Blake, a high school senior at the time and All-State Cross Country Runner, was the runner in my family. I knew if I was going to agree, I would have to work hard. After all, I had never run for more than a mile at a time, and even that took me a good half-hour to finish. This would be 13.1 MILES!
Nervous about the commitment, I still decided to go ahead with it, thinking that it would help me get in shape. I have to admit a small part of me thought that my past client Valerie would forget I'd even agreed, because the half-marathon itself wasn't for another year. But, a little voice inside my head fueled my excitement. The excitement grew to the point where I imagined myself telling my colleagues, family, and friends that "I ran a half-marathon!" Wouldn't that be cool?!
So set that goal, and tell as many people as you can. That is your first step!
What about you? What resolutions did you set on January first? What goals did you set for yourself? For your business? For your family? For your life? Think about those goals? If they were worth setting, aren’t they worth telling someone about? Tell someone, anyone about your new goals. It will help it be more real. You can even share it with me. I would love to hold you accountable to your goal! Just send me your comments. I will post your goals here to inspire others and maybe even remind you of your own goal from time to time!
If I can run 13.1 miles, you can set and accomplish that goal of yours! Make it a GREAT year!
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Cheri Alguire is a business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit http://www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire and Next Level Services, Inc, please visit http://www.nextlevelservices.net
New Year's Day is the day that many of us make those New Year's Resolutions. I bet you set one or two this year. What are resolutions? I like to think of them as goals being put into reality. Unfortunately, some resolutions only last for hours; some will last for days; some last for weeks.
But what is the trick to really making those goals reality?
I remember in 2004 when a coaching client of mine asked me to join Team Emily and run either a half or a full marathon for charity. This was not something I'd ever considered doing - I wasn't a runner, by any stretch of the imagination. But, the charity was one I couldn't turn my back on so, I agreed to run this half-marathon thinking it was about supporting my client, thinking it was about a scholarship winner that would have their lives touched and changed by this college opportunity. All good enough reasons - more than enough for me to set my goal to run the half-marathon, and more than enough to focus on crossing that finish line.
But, what I didn't know then was what the journey would teach me - the lessons I would learn in those 13.1 miles.
Running a half-marathon was once a goal of mine that is now a reality. So was living in Southern California, getting married to my soul mate and writing a book. I am excited to share with you that I actually have two books that will be coming out in the few months.
A Guide to Getting It: Marketing and Branding will hit store shelves soon. To pre-order an autographed copy visit http://www.cherialguire.com/product/a-guide-to-getting-it-branding-and-marketing-mastery.htm
And, secondly, look for 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles. In this book, I share 13 lessons with you - lessons that will help you set your goals, face any obstacles on your path, and, ultimately - achieve your goals. The journey isn't always easy, but these 13 lessons will last a lifetime. To find out more information about this book and to sign up for information on when this book will be released visit http://www.13lessons.com
Happy New Year, and go turn those dreams, those goals, those resolutions, into reality!
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Cheri Alguire is a business and life coach who partners with you to help you take your business and your life to the next level of success. For more information on Cheri Alguire's book 13 Lessons Learned in 13.1 Miles, visit http://www.13lessons.com For more information on Cheri Alguire and Next Level Services, Inc, pleas visit http://www.nextlevelservices.net
The only way to start and maintain a successful business is to do so with a clear purpose. It’s impossible to create a long-lasting and successful business unless you have a far-reaching telescope. Something has to keep driving you to do what you do, or else your business will fall under due to empty goals. Purpose provides the foundation of our values, vision and goals. Purpose gives meaning to everything we do in our personal and professional lives, yet not all of us recognize our purpose or can articulate it.
Whenever I begin coaching someone that is the first part of business that I always walk my clients through. If they don’t have a definite purpose, they can’t build their business on a solid foundation. It all starts by asking yourself questions that may be difficult to answer. When we’re young, we know what our passion is and we don’t care about the obstacles that might occur. We have high hopes and big dreams. In a way, finding our purpose is like back-tracking into our youth and really looking at what we want for ourselves and our future irregardless of everything around us.
Then, I move from personal goals to business goals and have my client really dig deep into consideration of where he/she is professionally and where he/she would like to go. Sometimes we get stuck in professions we never wanted to be in. There are times when it seems like it’s too late to change professions and there are too many responsibilities, but when it comes to personal and life fulfillment, changing professions is the key to most people’s happiness if they feel like they are in a rut.
Find what you want and go after it. Having a purpose is one of the most important things in starting a business and maintaining a business. Don’t overlook this in your action plans for next year. It’s never too late to start business planning, so get your year off to a GREAT start with a GREAT purpose!
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.GrowtoGreatness.com
This model of business planning and goal setting for Small Business Owners breaks the process down to five sections and fourteen steps.
SECTION A: The Big WHY It is important to first look at who you really are and what your core values are. These things will drive you and carry thorough to your business.
Step 1 - What is your purpose? Uncover your purpose, what provides the foundation of our values, vision and goals.
Step 2 - What are your values? Know your core values which dictate what is important in both life and business: how business should be conducted, your view of humanity, and your role in society.
SECTION B: Vision - Goal Setting This is where you take a hard look at where you are at and figure out where it is you are going in your business and in your life.
Step 3 - The Year in Review Recognize what it is you have done this year, celebrate the accomplishments and also look at what may have stopped you short of reaching a goal.
Step 4 - Is your life in balance? The Wheel of Life, sometimes called the Balance Wheel, will help you visualize your current situation, providing a snapshot of how you see your life today.
Step 5 - Business Review Take a look at the results of the last 12 months. Did you reach your goals and achieve what you wanted?
Step 7 - Production Goals Work the numbers. Create specific number goals for the next one to five years.
SECTION C: Creating an Action Plan to Achieve Your Goals All Small Business Owners know they need a Business Plan. By following these steps you will create a plan that will help you hit your business goals.
Step 8 - Define Your Niche and Value Proposition Become a specialist and build perceived value. Know your true value and learn to articulate your value proposition to your clients.
Step 9 - Lead Generation/Marketing Plan Recognize what specific changes to your current plans are necessary to make in order to reach your goals.
Step 10 - Define Your Team Organizational Structure Understand the organizational structure of your team.
Step 11 - Development Plan Capture all of those things you have wanted to research, create, do, perfect, delegate and implement in your business.
Step 12 - Budgeting Review your expenses for the current year and include any new marketing and development changes.
Step 13 - Production Plan Create and monitor goals on a monthly basis in order to hit your production goals for the upcoming year.
SECTION D: Achieving Your Goals: How do I get there from here?
By breaking your large goals into smaller steps you will always know what you need to do next in order to keep working toward hitting your business and personal goals.
Step 14 - Creating a Master Project List Change your goals into "projects" to actively work on over the next twelve months, and from this create a "Master Project List."
Sincerely,
Cheri Alguire Next Level Services, Inc.
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.GrowtoGreatness.com or contact Coach Cheri at www.CoachCheri.com
Let’s face it, we all dread the end of the year. Not only does it mean that we have holidays quickly approaching, but we also have to do our yearly business reviews and prepare our business plans for the next year. Many of us try to avoid reviewing our business’s progress for the past year by trying to begin business planning and goal setting immediately. What you will find by doing this is that your business plans and goals will either a) be unrealistic or b) be too small. If you spend the time and commit to really analyzing and reviewing your year’s business goals, budget, and growth, then you can make realistic goals and actually see those goals achieved throughout next year.
Still seem overwhelming? I’ll walk you through the process of reviewing, step-by-step.
Why? Why are you in the business that you’re in? Have you forgotten why you started your business? Re-evaluate what your purpose is and remember the roots of your business. You might need to do this to refresh your business outlook.
Goals Take a look at your goals from last year and really analyze them. How close did you come to reaching your goals? Did you surpass them? Did you come short? Then, make new goals for yourself and for your business. Using your analysis of what happened last year with your goals, make clear and smart goals that are well thought-out and realistic enough for you to reach them.
Action Plan You can’t just create goals and leave them as is. You have to take action toward those goals through a variety of different steps. Start by defining your niche, then create a lead generation plan that will bring clients to your company. Figure out what you need in your company and plan to make it a reality. From the amount of employees and types of team members to your computers and software, chart out everything you need to achieve your goals next year. Analyze your budget. We all hate it, but we have to. It is extremely important to analyze your company’s spending last year and figure out what you can do this year to grow your business and increase your profits.
Project List Make a Master Project List. I live for these and have them in every part of my life, from planning my business to planning my week to planning dinner. Cut your action plans down into fractions and make it easier to take steps toward your goals.
If you want more information on creating a business plan that will work for you this year, contact us today.
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.GrowtoGreatness.com
Coaching is at an all time high demand lately. With so many flourishing Small Businesses, entrepreneurs know that it takes more than just a good idea and some business loans to make a lasting impression in the business world. Coaches can help you grow your Small Business by being the new perspective you might be looking for. They can help you with your business plan, lead generation, and much more if you find the right one with the right experience.
In finding a GREAT coach to grow your Small Business, here are some questions that I recommend considering before signing anything:
Experience It’s impossible to be an overarching coach. In the same way that with your business, you have to find a niche and some sort of specialty to brand yourself and make your company as attractive as possible to consumers, coaches can’t possibly have the ability to coach people in all sorts of businesses, professions and backgrounds. How can a coach who has experience in spirituality and healthy living properly coach you with your business plan and business growth? He/she can’t. If you want a coach to grow your Small Business, find a coach who has experience being an entrepreneur, or who specializes in coaching Small Businesses.
Certification Coaches seem to be all over the place, and most of them don’t have any certification. Surprised? A lot of times, since there are nearly no colleges that offer degrees in coaching, people will just take on the title “Life Coach” because they want to give people advice. Find a coach who has been certified by a coaching federation or school because certifications do exist for coaches. They need to know the tools to make you reach your goals, and if they have no training, education, or materials to grow your business, you’ll find yourself at point A again after spending hundreds or thousands of dollars
Comfort Just because a coach worked for a friend or business associate doesn’t mean the same coach will work for you. If a coach that you’re interested in isn’t offering a free sample session, be wary of what they might be trying to get you contracted for. Your relationship with your coach is just as important as your relationship with an assistant. It has to be comfortable and open for either of you to get anything out if it. Make sure that you sample your coach before signing on with him/her.
Present Is your coach lost in yesterday? As a Small Business owner, you have to be educated and up-to-date with technology, current trends, and everything changing in the business world today. If your coach isn’t current, then you might find your Small Business going down the drain. In order to grow your business, marketing, advertising and branding are of the utmost importance. These are all contingent upon what’s attractive to consumers today and are always changing. Make sure your coach is keeping up with the Joneses so you don’t get lost in old business.
Multiplicity Using multiple methods of coaching is also important for your Small Business coach. Your coach can’t just coach you on your business goals, just as he/she can’t just coach you on your budget. You have to have a well-rounded coach who touches on every aspect of your business and everything that might affect it.
If you’re looking for a coach today or for the future, www.NextLevelServices.net can help you find the right coach for you.
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.GrowtoGreatness.com
Goal setting is easy for some of us, and for about 90% of the population out there, it’s the most difficult thing to do. In order to make sure that your life is in balance with your Small Business, you need to make sure that your life goals are in line with your business goals. Having conflicting goals here will guarantee a rocky road for the next few years. How do you avoid this? Set goals that put your life and business in balance, and make sure that everything you do in both of these areas leads you closer toward these goals.
Even I have had trouble with goal setting. When a past coaching client of mine asked me to join Team Emily, www.Team-Emily.com, and run a half or full marathon for charity, I wanted to do it but doubted that I ever could. At that point in my life, running was something I did to the grocery store, to the dry cleaners and to the bank. I could only run (okay, lightly jog) for 20 minutes on the treadmill at the beginning of my work out, but for the most part I left running to my son Blake, the High School Senior and All State Cross Country Runner. I had never run for more than a mile at a time and that took me a good half hour to finish that.
I agreed to do it, half thinking she would forget in a year that I had even committed. It would be fun, I thought, and help me get into shape. I even started to get a little excited thinking, wow, wouldn’t it be cool to say “I ran a half-marathon!”
The first thing you have to do is set a goal to do something. No matter how crazy it may seem, no matter how far off in the future or even if you are not sure how you are going to do it, the first thing to do is to decide.
We don’t always know where life or business is going to take us; that’s why we try our hardest to create goals so that we can control where our life goes. One of the most rewarding things is setting a goal and achieving it. Do you remember when you were a child and you set a goal for yourself like running a mile, getting straight A’s, hiking to the top of that mountain? Do you remember how good it felt when you actually achieved it? Well, imagine living your life that way: constantly setting goals and constantly achieving these goals.
This is only possible if you consistently set fearless goals for yourself and your Small Business. By constantly setting goals for yourself, and constantly taking action with proper business planning and management tools to achieve them, you will get one step closer to your life and business goals every day.
For added support in achieving your goals, check out Go Put Your Strengths to Work: 6 Powerful Steps to Achieve Outstanding Performance by Marcus Buckingham: How can you actually apply your strengths for maximum success in your Small Business? Research data show that most people do not come close to making full use of their assets at work -- in fact, only 17 percent of the workforce believe they use all of their strengths on the job. Go Put Your Strengths to Work aims to change that through a six-step, six-week experience that will reveal the hidden dimensions of your strengths. Buckingham shows you how to seize control of your assets and rewrite your job description.
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.GrowtoGreatness.com
My clients often wonder why I close every phone conversation and email with the phrase, “Make it a GREAT day.” Why not, “have a great day” or “have a good day?” That all reflects on the way I coach and the power I believe that everyone has over his or her own lives:
By saying, “have a great day,” you’re not really taking the day into action. You’re just sitting by and seeing what happens, or doesn’t happen during the day.
By saying, “have a good day,” you’re settling for “good.” Who wants just a “good” day? I definitely don’t. I don’t want my clients to settle for “good” either.
You can make your day, your family, your business, and much more “GREAT” if you work at it and follow the proper methods that lead to having a “GREAT” life.
So, what is the method to having “GREATNESS,” anyway? It’s very simple. Grow:
G - grow your talents and techniques with constant education. If you are constantly expanding your mind, there is no possible way that your business or life can become static. Many times we see businesses that once thrived close down with the dawn of new technology and market fluctuations. Don’t let your business fall into that category. All you need is to refresh your business strategies constantly in order to stay ahead of the game. I’ll help you stay on top by sending you tips and tricks on how to use technology to your advantage and how to make waves in your marketplace, not sink from them.
R - reaffirm your team members around you and thank them for supporting you. I can’t stress enough the importance of support in business. Whether you find support from a coach, a manager, an assistant, a friend, or a partner, thank them for it and understand that you need them just as much as they might need you. In many ways, I have seen businesses come and go because of one stubborn team member or leader who thinks that he or she can survive independently without any support. Rely on and trust the people around you so that you can concentrate on the big issues like growing your business and making more money!
O - open yourself to new opportunities, situations and outcomes. Face fear fearlessly. Let new changes and different situations affect your business for the better. If you stay ahead by being open to new partnerships and new methods of growing your business, your business is sure to stay afloat in the midst of change. By taking your business to new levels of bravery, you’ll reach goals you never imagined could happen.
W - will yourself to having the kind of life that you desire everyday. See yourself in the place that you want to be in 5 years, 10 years, 20 years, and 30 years. Make it happen. You have every power it takes to make your life the kind that you desire.
Real Estate, Business and Life Coach Cheri Alguire has partnered with hundreds of Real Estate Professionals and Small Business Owners to help them become more successful in business and in life. Coach Cheri specializes in Group Coaching for Small Business Owners, Working Mothers, Real Estate Agents and Managers. Learn more at www.NextLevelServices.net and www.RealEstateBusinessResources.com
As a super small business owner, it is important to know your value. “Your value” is determined by what you have to offer the consumer. It is important to remember that consumer perception is consumer reality. Every business owner on the path of success must be able to answer the following question from a consumer’s point of view. (We all need to answer a version of this very basic question and answer it very, very well.) The question is: Why should a consumer work with you instead of another business or professional? Your answer should compel the consumer to select you, and keep the consumer from moving on to one of the next businesses.
Let’s face it. The time to ask yourself, “Is my business running smoothly?” is NOT after you have just had a flat tire and are bumping down the road. The time to ask that question and analyze its answer is during the business planning process AND throughout the year.
ales and marketing like nothing has changed in our economy. Some traditions are hard to break.
As values drive your life purpose, 
For me, in the beginning it seemed to boil down to one critical question: How was I going to attract clients? I understood finding my target audience from the marketing I had done in my previous businesses. After hearing the speakers, taking the classes, and reading the books about the importance of choosing a niche, I began to understand that to really have effective advertising, my business and marketing plans must start with a clear idea of what my niche market would be. 
Grow to Greatness - Grow to Greatness in Real Estate