Why did you start a business?
Do you remember why you started a business?
There are days when it is hard to remember. My VA mentor Erin Blaskie just posted an interesting video on creating a way to a vision board for your computer desktop
This is an idea that caught my attention and made me want to give it a try. I’m adding it to my project list.
Having a reminder in front of your throughout the day will help you keep the reasons you are in business front and center. It also can be a grounding moment when you are feeling stressed out and ready to quit.
So what will be on your vision board?
What is the plan for your business?
Having a plan, we hear that all the time. We hear the importance of having a plan, goals for your business and how important it is for the growth and success of a business.
But…
How many of us actually have a plan? If you have a plan is it written down? Does it have action steps? Does it account for both the long and short term?
These are questions that I have been asking myself. As I have mentioned before, 2009 is a year of growth and changes, keeping up with these changes and creating a plan that is in alignment with my values is important to me.
There is a book I read years ago that has a title that always stays with me, “Growing a Buisiness Creating a Life”. As a small business owner who works out of my home, the two are intertwined and making sure that the two align feels somewhat tricky at times.
To help me create a plan and stay on track I am thinking a business coach is a resource that I want to take advantage of.
Join me for a preview call of the Fast Track to Lifestyle Business with Melanie Benson Strick. On May 5th & 7th.
Every entrepreneur needs support
From the top “gurus” in the biz to the new business owner, we all need support. We can’t do it alone.
Sometimes it is a best friend or spouse, sometimes it is a colleague or a team that you build finding someone you can talk to, bounce ideas off of and at times take the time to tell you that you are absolutely off your rocker.
As much as I value my family and their support there are times when I need to talk to someone who is a fellow small biz owner and at times a fellow VA who knows what you are going .
Talking to someone who gets it,
who will challenge you to be more then you think you can.
Finding the support you need these days can be as close as going to your computer. Facebook, Biznik and even Twitter are all excellent places to start building the community you need to bring your business vision to life.
Follow me on Twitter
Friend my on Facebook
Connect with me on Biznik
It is all about timing
You have to be ready, you have to be at a point where you know it is time to take action and be open to the advice and information around you.
To change your mindset from self-employed (creating your very own j-o-b) to that of a business owner, is not a step that can be forced on you, you have to be ready.
When you are ready, I would highly recommend that you listen to an incredible 4 teleclass series from Melanie Benson Strick. I was on the mailing list when this class was first advertised back in October 2008 but had not been able to find the time to listen. Recently I ran into these recordings again and started to listen to the recorded calls and realized that I was ready.
Ready to take action.
Ready to take my business to the next level.
Ready to get clarity and create a plan of growth.
Are you ready?
Coming Soon! Bookeeping Services
Do you love accounting? Keeping your books up-to-date, paying bills and processing payroll? Outsourcing just this one area can save you hours each week allowing you to get back to the work you enjoy and makes you money.
I am excited to be bringing on board a bookeeper to offer you the entrepreneur and small business owner even more support.
Meet Aimee Olson! With a degree in accounting and a specialty and preference for working with small businesses she brings with her a wealth of experience to help you get organized.
Stay tuned for more information….
Thought Provoking: Michael Port, Booked Beyond Solid
Earlier I had promised I would share some of what I gleaned from the calls through AuthorTeleseminars.com, so first I am starting with Michael Port, author of Booked Solid and Beyond Booked Solid . After hearing this call his books were moved onto my "must read" list.
Here are just a few things that caught my attention enough to write them down.
4 criteria necessary to go "beyond booked solid", choosing business building blocks that can be built upon again:
- Scalable: Grow exponentially if you want to.
- Leveragable: So you do not have to do all the work yourself.
- Profitable: The margins you are making are worth the time and labor put into it.
- Be the best in the world at serving my clients.
If you want to go beyond booked solid:
- Name what it is you want to do – Remember words matter and what we tell ourselves everyday makes a difference whether we know it or not!
- Reconfigure what you have and turn it into something else – I loved this one, this thought really struck me and made me take a look at what was working in my business and what wasn’t. How can I take what is not working and turn it into something that is?
- Don’t throw away what you have, do something different! Reconfigure it into something you want. – This sounds the same but actually it is slightly different. What about all those half finished product ideas, business plans that we all have in the back of our mind or in a file cabinet somewhere. Don’t throw it away, bring it out and take a look at it from a different perspective. Why didn’t I fnish this? What do I still like about it? What might still work? What needs to be reworked.
- Cross Appropriate: Take ideas/models/influences in different markets and bring it into your own market . – This was something I hadn’t really spent time working on before but it made me think of different programs and ideas that I have seen and heard about and thought it was so clever and fresh. I need to go back to that and see how I can make that work for me and my business.
I highly recommend signing up at AuthorTeleseminars.com and downloading this audio file and hear it for yourself. Make sure you stop back by and share some of what made you stop and think.
Recommended Resource: AuthorTeleseminars.com
During the past few weeks I have been listening to a series of teleseminars from Elizabeth Marshal over at AuthorTeleseminars.com. She has put together an incredible program that brings together some of the best business authors and moderates insightful, challenging and funny conversations with the author and a guest panel.
Well known names like, Seth Godin, Tim Ferris, Howard Behar, Michael Port… that is just to name a few. And best of all…. it’s free!
There are times I am listening at my desk and just shaking my head yes! I agree! Wow great idea, how can I implement that in my business?
Not only has this series created a MUCH bigger reading list than I already had, it has challenged me to think differently about my business and how I run it. It is like having a group coaching session from some of the biggest business experts…at no charge. Now that is hard to beat!
Soon I will share some of the tidbits I received and just had to write down to remember.
I highly recommend taking a look at AuthorTeleseminars.com for yourself. The MP3′s are downloadable so you can listen to them again… and some you will need to and want to! There is just too much to absorb at one time.
I hope you enjoy and find this as invaluable a resource as I have!
