Small Biz Forward May '16 by Nancy Becher

VOL23 NO5

MAY / $7.00

Unlevel the playing field…in your favor.

Going the look-alike-sound-alike route doesn’t get you very far, very fast. Best to dig deeper and find those things your company can do that your competitor can’t — or, at least, not as well. Why compete on a level field when you can tilt things in your favor? We’ll show you how.

Graphic Design + Market Strategy . 616 334 4257 . wayne@seguecreative.com . www.seguecreative.com

Contents: 6

Who’s the Boss of Your Weightloss? Cindy Cohen

Why + Action = Success Cindy Taylor

If I Only Had a Brain. Nancy Becher

Success and Your Values. Adam Fleming

Digital Marketing is Not an End-All to Your Marketing Be-All. Wayne Sheldon

Are You a Wannapreneur? Nancy Becher

How To Build an Unstoppable Client-Getting Machine Jason Barr

Security and the Entrepreneur. Ed Becher

Being Connective: Strategies for Growth Gail M. Turluck

Tips for Business Success Expos, Community Events, Fundraisers. Karen Bachert

5 Remedies for Insomnia Nancy Becher

Looking at the Future With a Plan. Barb Nicastro

See Something… Say Something!

Ed Becher

What it Takes to be Successful. Nancy Becher

Executive Editor Nancy Becher Layout & Design Wayne Sheldon Advertising nancy@success4biz.biz Subscriptions: 701 N. Prairie Street Sturgis, Michigan 49091 (269) 651-3555 www.SmallBizForward.com info@success4biz.biz Twitter @smallbizjunkie Facebook www.facebook.com/ bsuconnector LinkedIn www.linkedin/in/nancybecher Small Biz Forward is published monthly by Celebrate Business Publishing, a division of Business Success Unlimited. ISN 2332-5887 No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted into any form by any means without written consent from the publisher. Unsolicited manuscripts and photographs will be returned only if accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. All letters sent to Small Biz Forward (SBF) will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication, copyright purposes and use are subject to SBF unrestricted right to edit and comment. © 2016 Celebrate Business Publishing | SBF 3

5 Remedies for Insomnia. It’s May already. Wow. That means we’re almost halfway through the year. But that doesn’t mean that our fates are written in stone for the rest of the year. There’s still TONS of time to get it right, get it better, find success. » Nancy Becher

Success means a lot of things to different people—we all have our own definition of what it means to us. But knowing that most of us started (or want to start) our own business to fulfill our ideas of success, then we need to focus on the things that make our ideas come true. But that’s not always so easy either. Have you ever laid in bed, tossed and turned, rolled while kicking off the covers, pulling them up to your chin and then started all over again? Sleep just won’t come? Your brain is talking to you and telling you things like you’re never going to make payroll. There is too much to do and not enough time to do it all. You’re not going to be successful because you don’t know what’s the right thing to do to answer the problem. If you’re like me your brain starts to run non-stop the minute the lights go out and the house quiets down. It seems to delight in making me squirm and think about all the scary stuff that only goes bang in the night. I worry about everything from missing a meeting in the morning, to getting enough people to come to come to an event I’m hosting 6 months from now. Have you ever had a night like this? There are a couple of things I do when this happens…I turn on the tv and try to drown out the nasty little bugger’s cries. when that doesn’t work, I get out a pen and paper and start to work on my goals and to dos, working on ways to eliminate the worry that I’m dealing with. There is nothing you can do to NEVER fear the unknown but there are ways that you can put them at bay. Here are 5 remedies that will help you sleep better at night.

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There is nothing you can do to NEVER fear the unknown but there are ways that you can put them at bay.

1. Create a plan (SMART goals, business plan, marketing plan, etc.) Put them down in writing and keep track of how you’re moving along that route. By being aware of where you’re headed and how you’re getting there, you can feel more on track or can analyze what you need to do different to put yourself back on the right road.

it all done, and the “not getting done” stuff are things you don’t like to do, aren’t skilled at, then perhaps its time to hire a Virtual Assistant. You may think that you don’t have the money for this, but if by them helping you you actually are able to do the things that DO make money, you’ll be better off in the long run.

2. Find a group or two that you become active with—by finding mentors and others that have similar business experiences you have people to bounce ideas off of, share questions and thoughts with, and know that you’re not alone out there. There is nothing new in this world—someone somewhere has had a similar circumstance that they can help you with in your own life.

5. Finally, the 5th remedy for insomnia is time management. When you have a better idea of how much time it takes to do something, how much time you take working on different things, and if you procrastinate, look at ways that you can get a better handle on the time. There are only 24 hours in a day…how you spend them is the best answer to getting more done.

3. What are the top 5 things that keep you awake at night? Write them down and then figure out why they worry you and find solutions that will make you less fearful. For instance, if your fear is that you won’t have enough clients at a meeting, what can you do to let more people know that the event is happening? Can you ask your clients and potential clients if the event is something that they would like to be a part of. Write a press release and send it to outlets near where the event is happening.

This month’s issue is all about ideas to help you make your business successful. The various authors are sharing their own successes and sometimes failures in order to get to that place where they feel that they have made it or are at least well on their way. If you take these situations and apply them to your business you’re on your way to better sleep and a stronger, more successful business. Sleep well!

4. If you’re worries about about strategies and actions, take a class so that you better understand what you’re dealing with. Find a program at the community college, or hire a coach. And if there just aren’t enough hours to get

Nancy Becher, CEO, Business Success Unlimited, Small Biz Forward Magazine, and Dream BIG Retreats, has been helping SMBs since she was 12 years old when she opened her first business, Things-N-Stuff, a craft retail store that she ran with her mom and sister. Her monthly magazine, Small Biz Forward, shares the writing of various entrepreneurs who have been there, done that, and are willing to share with others their successes and failures. You can find her on Facebook, LinkedIn and her various websites (www.success4biz.biz; www.smallbizforward.com; and www.dreamBIGretreat.com).

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Who’s the Boss of Your Weightloss?

Oops! You Made a Mistake and Assigned the Wrong Person to be the Boss of Your Weight Loss » Cindy Cohen

Across U.S. 70% of all business employ less than 20 employees. Nearly three-fourths of them do not have a single employee on their payroll. Entrepreneurs drive our economy and create the majority of our nation’s new jobs, products and services. The odds are you fall into this category, you are the boss. Your actions directly impact the quality of your life, your employee’s job security and your company’s bottom-line. As the boss you set priorities, make hard decisions, and either enjoy or suffer the consequences of these decisions, taking the whole company with you. Have you considered how these decisions impact your overall health, wellness and weight? Are you factoring healthy lifestyle choices during the work day such as healthy food, exercise breaks, and meditation? Or is your day filled with unhealthy habits like working through lunch, sitting at your desk all day and stress. All the decisions you make to be more health or less healthy not impacts your production, it impacts how your employees/clients see you and your company’s performance—and not in a good way.

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Have you ever thought about what would happen to your business in the dawn of your poor health? Poor health brings reduced work days, low productivity, costly medications, doctor visits and treatments. Then there’s the undeliverables of your company, deadlines, and production costs. The economic consequences can impact your business bottom line by as much as 10–15% in out of pocket expenses and as high as 30% productivity reduction. Not many companies can afford to throw away money and even if you could, would you want to? This begs the question…who’s the boss of your health, wellness and weight loss? Do you boss yourself healthy like you boss your business to success? If not you might want to you know what they say time is money, the clock is ticking and you health is slipping away. Now is a great time to put yourself back in charge, be the great boss you can be and keep all the money you make instead of giving it to the healthcare system.

CONTINUED »

Jefferey Deng via Unsplash

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You can begin by employing “corrective action” measures on your performance by correcting mistakes that are getting in the way of you achieving your desired weight.

What Do You Eat For Breakfast?

You may be wondering why many experts say that the habit of eating breakfast can lead to a smaller waistline, only to find yours is getting larger. You may also notice yourself becoming hungrier at lunch even if you do eat something for breakfast. This is usually a case of eating carbohydrate rich foods instead of high-protein foods in the morning. Eating foods that contain high levels of carbohydrates will cause your insulin levels to soar. Consequently, by mid-morning you will find yourself craving something to satisfy your hunger, and too often this is a sugar-laden treat. So, for breakfast, don’t simply rely on bagels, cereals, breakfast bars or fruits for your source of energy and nourishment. Make sure to eat more protein and reduce the quantity of carb-rich food. This way, your body’s blood sugar response will remain more balanced and you will remain satisfied until lunchtime. To be able to obtain the best energy-giving breakfast, ensure you are eating approximately 20 grams of protein. You can obtain this from 3 eggs or 1 cup of oatmeal. Smoothies are very popular because you can drink in protein on the go, using soy milk and protein powder yields 20 grams of protein. The protein drink we recommend is Juice Plus+ Complete Protein (plant based)—www.YourJuicePlus.com.

Do You Drink Diet Sodas?

If you are someone who believes that drinking something labeled calorie-free can help you achieve your weight loss goals, you may be in for a surprise. Diet soda contains artificial sugar that can also stimulate the same metabolic and hormonal responses that occur when real sugar is being taken in. However, your body is only being prompted to release more insulin, unfortunately causing you to eat more and gain more weight instead of losing it. Grab a bottle or glass of water, flavor it with 3– 4 wedges of lemon and sweeten it with stevia or agave necter and voilà, lemonade!

Do You Eat Fruits and Vegetables?

Fruits and vegetables are real sources of nutrients that can help you achieve a healthy weight. However, these fruits and vegetables can also be your main source of pesticides, and these can serve as endocrine disruptors. Our endocrine system plays a crucial part in controlling our metabolism.

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So, when these pesticides from the produce you’re eating affect your body, the result is often increased appetite, slower metabolism and stimulated fat cells. These pesticide residues from the fruits and vegetables can also have adverse effects on your hormone levels, which may make it harder for you to lose weight. For this reason we suggest you eat organic as much as possible. Dr. Mitra Ray, biochemist and author of Do You Have the Guts to Be Beautiful speaks about environmental toxins and dieting www.LoseWeightAndDetoxDiet.com . Of course organic is expensive however this shouldn’t stop you from eating fresh produce! The USDA recommends eating 9 – 13 servings for adults (6 cups) every day to maintain a healthy weight. If you can’t eat this many continue eating fruits and vegetables every day as much as you can and supplement with whole food nutrition we recommend www.YourJuicePlus.com . These are examples of dieting pitfalls that may seem trivial but in reality they can greatly affect your weight loss regimen. Take the time to appreciate the effects of different foods on your body, your weight and your energy levels. Everyone is different, so do what is best for you like a good boss. You be the boss of your health, wellness and weight management you will be glad you are! More great news once you boss yourself back to health your employees will see you as their health champion and become more engaged in a healthy lifestyle. It’s a win-win. Cindy Cohen is a Registered Nurse, is an expert author and recognized national speaker on the topics of health promotion and corporate wellness. Cindy has 35+ years of experience in nursing with a focus on wellness and disease prevention. As the Founder of C2 Your Health LLC, Cindy Cohen RN, BS BA as a Wellness Consultant and Certified Health Coach has combined her two passions, health and business to build a successful results oriented nationally recognized award winning health and wellness firm. Cindy is certified in corporate wellness, awarded the position of faculty status for Wellness Councils of America (WELCOA) Well Workplace University and nominated for Top Health Promotion Professional in the nation. Cindy is also a national sought after speaker and published author.

If you are someone who believes that drinking something labeled caloriefree can help you achieve your weight loss goals, you may be in for a surprise.

SOAR HIGHER.

NANCY BECHER . STURGIS, MICHIGAN 49091 (269) 319-6041 . NANCY@SUCCESS4BIZ.BIZ . WWW.SUCCESS4BIZ.BIZ

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Book(s)of the month. You know you’re reading a good book when it is just as valuable years after it was first published. “Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose; A Round Table Comic Paperback” was published in 2012 and is the story of Tony Hsieh. Written in the form of a comic book, it is filled with Tony’s tales of life lessons. Starting with his building a worm farm and pizza business to Zappos which he sold to Amazon for over $1 billion dollars in stocks. This is definitely something you want to read, something that is an easy read but filled with great information. Another oldie but goodie is Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich”. According to Amazon.com, Think and Grow Rich is the most important financial book ever written. Napoleon Hill researched more than forty millionaires to find out what made them the men that they were. In this book he imparts that knowledge to you. Once you’ve read this book you will understand what gives certain people an edge over everyone else. By following the advice laid out clearly in this book you’ll be the one with an edge. It’s time to stop wondering what it’s like to be rich and start knowing. This book has changed countless lives and it can change yours! Unlike many of the other editions on the market today, this edition is complete and unabridged! (Now with ten new illustrations) And finally, our trip back to the past end with “The Art of the Start”, Amazon. com’s editorial says “Whether you’re an aspiring entrepreneur, small-business owner, intrapreneur, or not-for-profit leader, there’s no shortage of advice on topics such as innovating, recruiting, fund raising, and branding. In fact, there are so many books, articles, websites, blogs, webinars, and conferences that many startups get paralyzed, or they focus on the wrong priorities and go broke before they succeed. The Art of the Start 2.0 solves that problem by distilling Guy Kawasaki’s decades of experience as one of the most hardworking and irreverent strategists in the business world. Guy has totally overhauled this iconic, essential guide for anyone starting anything. It’s 64 percent longer than version 1.0 and features his latest insights and practical advice about social media, crowdfunding, cloud computing, and many other topics. Guy understands the seismic changes in business over the last decade: Onceinvulnerable market leaders are struggling. Many of the basics of getting established have become easier, cheaper, and more democratic. Business plans are no longer necessary. Social media has replaced PR and advertising as the key method of promotion. Crowdfunding is now a viable alternative to investors. The cloud makes basic infrastructure affordable for almost any new venture. The Art of the Start 2.0 will show you how to effectively deploy all these new tools. And it will help you master the fundamental challenges that have not changed: building a strong team, creating an awesome product or service, and facing down your competition. As Guy likes to say, “Entrepreneur is a state of mind, not a job title.” His book will help you make your crazy ideas stick, through an adventure that’s more art than science—the art of the start.” 10 SBF |

Why + Action = Success Have you taken the time to write down WHY you are in business? You will want to...and here is why… » Cindy Taylor

That is where the sweet spot of SUCCESS happens… success according to YOU!

I have some questions to get you started thinking…WHY do you get up in the morning? WHY do you reply to all your emails and update your Facebook status? WHY do you meet with new clients? The answer to these questions (and more) will help you determine if you are successful… the way YOU want to be successful.

I suggest you work backwards. For example, if you need 8 new clients, how many meetings do you need to schedule each day to make this happen? Where will you find potential clients? The actual action steps will, of course, be specific to your business but you get the idea…you need to take ACTION!

It is all about what you focus on in business. Does your WHY tug at your heart? If it doesn’t, you may run out of steam before you find true success.

So…what happens when you have a WHY that tugs on your heart and take ACTION to make it happen? That is where the sweet spot of SUCCESS happens…success according to YOU! Keep your eyes focussed on your WHY and your action steps and your success will be sweet!

Think about it this way…what if your WHY was to build a business (and life) that allowed you to take chunks of time and see the world with your family. Every time you think about seeing the Grand Canyon with your spouse and children, your heart skips! You know EXACTLY why you need to build your business in such a way as to have the money AND the time for such an adventure! Excellent…the first part of the equation is set! Now…what ACTION steps need to be put into place to make it a reality? What do you need to do on a daily, weekly and monthly basis to build the kind of business that will get you and your family to the Grand Canyon?

Cindy Taylor is a Business Coach with Grow REAL Companies with over 30 years experience in the Direct Sales industry. She loves digging deep with business owner to find out WHY they want to be successful in their businesses…and then working to set up a step by step plan to help her clients realize their goals. Connect with her via www.growREALcompanies.comor her CindyBiz Coaching Facebook page.

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Illustration by W.W. Denslow (d. 1915)

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If I Only Had a Brain. Scarecrow: I haven’t got a brain… only straw. Dorothy: How can you talk if you haven’t got a brain? Scarecrow: I don’t know…But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking…don’t they? Dorothy: Yes, I guess you’re right. » Nancy Becher

I love The Wizard of Oz. As a child I remember sitting in front of the tv with all my neighborhood friends, prepared to scare myself silly as the wicked witch goes flying by on her broom, laughing, “I’ll get you and your little dog too.” I have watched that movie well over 100 times and I’m always seeing something that I’ve not seen before. Did you know that in one scene the scarecrow has a gun? I’ve still not seen that. And all the trouble and problems that manifested themselves to the woman who played the wicked witch—she got burned badly when her broom got lit on fire. Buddy Epson was supposed to play the tin man, but had such an awful reaction to the metal that he had to give up the part. What does this have to do with business you ask? Well from the standpoint of MGM, this movie cost $2.8 million and only grossed (originally) $3 million. There were over 600 actors and 1000 costumes. And it wasn’t until the movie hit TV that it became the classic it is today. Until then, Oz was not seen as profitable and was considered a big waste of time and money.

Oz was not seen as profitable and was considered a big waste of time and money.

The Populist movement was taking control, as well as the agrarian revolt of the 1890s. All this is seen in the dark and dreary start of the movie, filmed in black and white. The tornado hitting the homestead was a sign of the uproar happening politically in the area. Recently, scholars have debated this meaning of the book: since Baum died many years ago, we may never know the true political meaning. Another business-related idea that has been hypothesized around Oz, is that of the yellow brick road. There was a great deal of controversy at the time regarding silver money as opposed to gold. It is reported that all the gold in the yellow brick road stood for the fact that silver would never replace gold as this country’s base currency. I look to Oz for smaller and more poignant business meanings—for me and for those in business today. Dorothy comments “If we walk far enough, we shall sometime come to someplace.” And the scarecrow, while still on his pole, crosses his arms and tells Dorothy that if you don’t know where you’re going, anyplace will get you there. This is so true for businesses. When you choose NOT to have a plan, you actually are creating a plan of failure. I love so many of the lines in the movie. “True courage is in facing danger when you are afraid…” For many of us, we never make our businesses a success because we are afraid. Whether that fear is of failure, or success, or being laughed it, or not living up to expectation (the list goes on), we are content to ride it out in safety. We would have stayed in Munchkin land, never venturing off to the Emerald City, or to fight the Wicked Witch. These are just a couple of lessons to be learned by The Wizard of Oz. Perhaps we should call it—The Wizard of Business? I challenge you to watch the movie again, with new eyes, and see how you can put the story to use in growing your own patch of farmland.

But there are other business lessons to be learned from The Wizard of Oz. At the time these books (yes, they were first written as stories to tell Frank Baum’s children while he was on the road as a traveling salesman) were written, there was a wind of change politically and businesswise. | SBF 13

Looking at the Future with a Plan.

At a certain point in your business life, you get over the first round of middle-of-the-night heebie-jeebies regarding the wisdom of starting your own business, whether you are any good at running a business, and whether you will be able to keep the wolf from your door. » Barb Nicastro

At that point, the temptation is to keep on doing what got you that far. Please resist that urge. Instead, think ahead to how to make your business more of what you want it to be. How do you envision the next 5 years of your life? Are you happy with the quality and quantity of the time your business takes out of your life? If not, then consider bringing on additional staff or adding a partner or investor. Each of these steps requires you to envision how this next phase might look. While there are numerous permutations to each option, each may require you to a) become a better manager; b) give up some of day-today control of operations; c) share the financial benefits of your business; d) give up the comfort of your having your business life conform totally to your needs; or e) some or all of the above! Each option will also require you to seek competent legal and financial advisors to prepare the 14 SBF |

necessary financial, legal, contractual or other documents you will require. For example, with employees, come decisions about benefits, HR matters and perhaps creating a company handbook. With a new partner, come issues such as key-man provisions, buy/sell agreements and shareholder/ partnership control and decisionmaking. With a financial “angel”, you may have to forego certain choices in order to insure that you are complying with any agreements you have reached. Another strategic consideration is your age and your personal situation. Are you starting to look ahead to retirement or do you have a good 30-40 years until that happens? Do you envision having a change of marital status or starting a family in the short-to-mid-term future? Are there financial obligations such as student loans, caring for elderly family members or medical needs that may continue or begin? Take a few hours

Having a Plan B, or even a Plan C or D is not a sign of weakness.

to let your mind think over these possible tracks you may follow in your life, explore how you would handle them and what you might need in terms of help or adjustment to your life to make the situation as stressfree as possible. Would the purchase of long term health care insurance be appropriate? Do you and a family member need to do estate planning or financial restructuring to prevent waste or diminution of assets? Have you protected yourself from creditors sufficiently? Might the underlying cost of one or more options put your business in financial peril? Finally, think about how you can improve your talents or expertise— either quantitatively or qualitatively. Have you wanted to get an advanced degree in something? Try online courses or seminars. Do you want to expand your business to provide additional services or products? Get involved in organizations or events that relate to that area of expansion. Read up on how the successes in your new areas got to where they are. Find yourself a mentor and be willing to give up a little independence in order to learn something new. Having a Plan B, or even a Plan C or D is not a sign of weakness. It’s the way to sleep through the night!

By Business Success Unlimited

A Retreat for Business Owners

Learn, Plan, Grow

A weekend filled with experts to empower and equip you to move your business forward. Learn with in-depth experiential training and action items for immediate use in your business. Visit DreamBigRetreat.com or call Nancy at (269) 319-6041.

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Success and Your Values. Last week a client who is a perfectionist (which is not a dirty word) told me he’s very success driven. With a perfectionist that almost goes without saying. However, it did get me thinking.

What are your core values? Many people can’t say. Some think they can, but they’ve just skimmed the topic once or twice without putting in the hard work of articulation to really get down to their bottom line.

» Adam Fleming

When I was on an installation crew that primarily did customer service, I ended up getting screamed at and cussed by a Manhattan real estate mogul who was a fairly frequent customer. The owner of our company called him and said “We aren’t selling to you anymore. We don’t treat our people that way.”

Here’s the thing most people don’t understand about success. Success in and of itself is not a value.

What is success, really? Is it being on deadline? Is it making lots of money? Is it having time to spend with your family, taking them on a fancy vacation? Is it producing the highest quality or serving your customer better? Here’s the thing most people don’t understand about success. Success in and of itself is not a value. Sure, you can value being successful, but look a layer deeper and you’ll see it: Success is a result of values well lived. What doesn’t work for most people, certainly not for very long, is a pursuit of success driven by a value you don’t truly hold. Does that mean you always get what you want? Or is it just that “if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need?” It gets philosophical pretty quickly. People have wrestled with this for three or four thousand years at least.

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When shopping for a gift for my wealthy grandparents we used to say “what do you get someone who already has everything they need?” The Preacher/King said “There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good…nothing is better than that man should be happy in his activities…” Lao Tzu remarked “As for holding to fullness, far better were it to stop in time!…Fill your house with gold and jade, and it can no longer be guarded. Here is the Way (Tao) of Heaven: When you have done your work, retire!” I should note I think this meaning of the word “retire” is that of taking your rest in the evening. It’s frightfully imbalanced to think that we’ll rest once we’ve quit our job for a life of leisure. I think we function best in rhythms of work and rest, rather than one long workaholic push followed by a total letdown. That letdown often kills people, the obvious and ironic tragedy being that they never enjoyed life during those working years.

Living your values well means you might fire a customer on principle. You may make less money for a time, but you’ll be a success. Even a hero! Adam G. Fleming, CPCC, is an international life coach and coach trainer and is credentialed with CCNI. He’s the author of two books. Most recently he published The Art of Motivational Listening: Creative Ideas for Effective Leaders, (2015) with Entrust Source Publishing. It’s available on Amazon, at Entrust Source, and you can purchase an autographed copy through Adam’s blog at www.adamgfleming.com/ bookstore.

Portrait of Tao Yuanming by Chen Hongshou

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Digital Marketing is Not an End-All to Your Marketing Be-All. Despite the headstrong push for digital/social/ content marketing (this latest, greatest, pervasive magic potion for success), nothing within its realm will work unless you have the fundamentals in place first. » Wayne Sheldon

Sure, these days you can receive direct feedback on your digital marketing efforts and expenditures. You can see who looked at your ad and divine where they are in the buying cycle. You can see how long they stayed on your website and tag along with them when they leave. You can even send them a gentle reminder, or email an added incentive at a later date—automatically. It’s the new golden age! Right?

It’s easy to get wrapped up in the hysteria. I mean, you can’t click anywhere without another article espousing the benefits of this new social bit or that shiny new digital bauble. Everyday I stumble across another “5 ways-” or “7 steps-” to a better digital strategy, but only if you seek out and purchase said bit or bauble. So you can be forgiven for thinking digital marketing, in all its pervasive glory, is the end-all to your marketing be-all.

Well, yes and no.

Now, I’m not suggesting that following the latest digital trend is absolutely the wrong way to spend your marketing dollars. It may, in fact, be exactly what your business needs. My point is this: The most significant aspect of this most recent and persistent push for digital-this and content-that is its practitioners are desperately trying to find a foothold in an industry that simply refuses to remain still. I’ve struggled with this myself. See, marketers want to differentiate themselves (which I totally get) and be the boundless, peerless specialists your business needs—an impossible feat, by the way, but that’s another article.

In the old days you identified your audience, sent out a well-crafted message, promoted it via direct mail, mass advertising, or other traditional channels and hoped your timing was right. Then, of course, began the process of selling to the resulting warm leads generated by your campaign. Odd thing is, that process still applies, even in this new digital (marketing) age. Think about it. You still have to identify your target. And even if you know who you’re talking to, what good is any online/mobile initiative without a meaningful, well-directed message—or the visual to carry it? How does that message get seen if not through brand-compliant, cross-channel promotion? Do you have a brand? What channels? Is your timing right? How will you respond if you get some traction? Familiar refrains all. 18 SBF |

Any digital, content, or social pursuit should be considered within the context of an overarching market strategy.

Problem is, too many modern marketers, in an increasingly commoditized industry, are under paralyzing pressure to chase, adopt and sell the next big thing. In their haste they don’t take the required time to evaluate what new digital tool, technique, or platform will actually work or, for that matter, fail—or be bought by a competitor and retired. Instead, they act first and ask for forgiveness later. This is typically encouraged in our entrepreneur-for-hire society, but the risk in experimenting is that to do so, one needs lab animals. Uh, that’d be you. But please don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not dismissing digital marketing. In fact, I use it, embrace it, and freely recommend it to my own SMB clients. But only if it meets a specific needs-parameter. And only if they have their message strategy nailed down first. Any digital, content, or social pursuit should be considered within the context of an overarching market strategy. Sure, some of these digital methods are brilliant—and very much on target. Still, none of it will get you anywhere without first considering the fundamentals of marketing.

Ask yourself: • Is your visual presence (logo, website, print brochure, etc.) consistent and on-mark? • Is your narrative relevant and helpful across channels and per industry? • Is your strategy solid and does it have enterprise-wide buy-in? • If you received a call today from a prospect who really related to your latest blog, tweet, or video, could you provide them with additional materials tomorrow? • Are those materials current and on-point with your brand strategy? • Are they industry-specific? • If you landed a meeting with a prospect tomorrow, could you pull together your pitch deck today? For that specific prospect? In an hour? You get the idea. I refer to this as marketing infrastructure and every company needs it (many don’t have it). This includes “base” materials—many less-than-fashionable—that every business, big or small, needs to have on-hand simply to maintain a degree of preparedness and, let’s face it, legitimacy. These items should be consistent and are often printed, or easily printable, and might include things like service offerings, product sheets, pricing structures, management/team bios, case studies, pocket folders, and presentations. Ideally, they will be easily customizable (very important for one’s sanity), inexpensive to reproduce, well organized, engaging, and easily accessible. Above all, they should be message-rich and relevant to your specific target group(s). Without them you really can’t hope to be fully responsive to your digital-content-generated leads. Okay, so what is the point of all this? Easy: It’s best to think of digital marketing as just one more tool among many for extending your reach. Just don’t forget the fundamentals. Traditional tactics and materials, in combination with your digital presence (web, social, content), will provide a bold and vital foundation to any “new media” push, and increase your chances of converting all those brand new shiny prospects. You know your market best. I’ll help you engage with it better. A seasoned strategic resource and award-winning graphic designer, I have 20+ proven years guiding, aligning, supplementing, and executing critical marketing/ branding initiatives—for businesses large and small. For a no-cost consultation, please contact me at (616) 334-4257 or email me at wayne@seguecreative.com. My website is www.seguecreative.com.

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Wannapreneur: [wah-nah-pruh-nur, -noo r] (noun) 1. A person who talks about organizing and managing enterprises, esp. businesses, usually with considerable initiative and risk, but never actually does it. Example: She was a wannapreneur who liked to hang around with entrepreneurs but would never take the plunge. » Nancy Becher

Are You a Wannapreneur? Another term for this is hobbyist: Someone who is satisfied by an activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation. The IRS defines business for purposes of tax deductions as one that has made a profit for three of the past five years. There’s a lot more to it, of course. It is the IRS afterall. But for this article that definition will suffice. I do a lot of networking, and talking with people who consider themselves business owners. While chatting I often hear them say that they are not satisfied with how well their companies are doing (either money-wise or customer numbers). Everyone—me included—is looking for more of something. In fact I am amazed at times when I hear someone say they have as much business as they want and don’t want to grow. That’s great! Good for them. But, if you’re like me, There’s always more people to support and help. So, if you want to grow your business, my question to you is: What are you willing to do about it? For those that really don’t want to grow I ask, is it because you just really want a hobby? Or are you totally satisfied with the money you have coming in? You have the lifestyle you want? All the 20 SBF |

money you need (and want)? Or is there something else out there that is holding you back? For those that want to grow their businesses, my question to you is: Are you doing everything that you possibly can to move yourself forward? Do you know who your target market is? Are you putting in time each and every week towards marketing, towards production, towards figuring out your goals and your vision? I get really frustrated with people that call me telling me they want to be successful, but they don’t have a clue of what that means to them. they are not willing to do the work that they know—deep down—they have to do to put in to get success out. At this point is where we have to start the process. What really is their goal? What do they want to create? Do they think it’s exciting to say “Hey, I’m an entrepreneur. I own my own business”, yet they’re afraid to truly step out into the unknown. “What if I fail? What if I succeed? Will I be laughed at? Will no

one take me seriously?” These are all things that go on in peoples’ minds when they are starting businesses. These are the wannapreneurs. What does it take to turn that sort of whiny, I wish but everyone/thing seems to be against me, type of mentality around into the spot where you can say my business is doubling, or tripling in income each month. I have so many clients and so much work that I have to find help to get it all done? First and foremost, you have to face that fear head on and say, I think I can, I think I can. Dang I did it.

So, if you want to grow your business, my question to you is: What are you willing to do about it?

There’s a lot of work involved in getting to the level where you want to be if you want to be a successful entrepreneur. Start with the first step and decide: Am I an entrepreneur or a wannapreneur? That will tell you where to head next.

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How To Build an Unstoppable Client-Getting Machine. The secret to getting a flow of new clients you can turn up, down, on, and off whenever you choose. » Jason Barr

Do you come up short on getting enough new leads to grow your business? You’re not alone. According to this year’s Linked Selling “State of Small Business Growth Report,” 84% of small businesses say their lead generation strategies are insufficient to meet their income goal for the next year. It’s no surprise to me that most of them also say they don’t have a good system in place for communicating with prospects and helping them move down the path toward becoming a client. If you don’t have a system that allows you to predict and control your lead generation and client conversion, it’s going to be very difficult to have the kind of revenue you need to sustain your business. I have a simple, 3-step process I use for myself and my clients that works extremely well. There aren’t too many moving parts, so it should be easy to adapt for your needs.

The 3 Parts of The Unstoppable Client-Getting Machine

The Machine has 3 main parts, the “3 Cs” of client acquisition: 1) Connect, 2) Capture, 3) Convert “Connect” is where you identify the right target audience, position yourself to demonstrate how your offerings lead to the result they’re looking for, and then introduce yourself to them in a way that attracts your ideal prospects. “Capture” is where you get them to say “Yes, I want to know more.” They do so by giving you their contact information and permission to follow up with them.

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Finally, “Convert” is where you take them through the buying journey in a way that inspires the people who will be your best clients to invest in themselves by accepting your offer. My clients and I use one-on-one consultations as our primary method of converting new clients, which works well for a service-based business. If you have a different business model, your goal might be to get them to sign up through a webinar, long form sales letter, or to physically come to your location and buy a product. That’s ok, it’s the process that matters here.

How To Build Your Machine

Now I’ll give you a 30,000-foot flyover view of the process of building a Machine. Our hypothetical client is Joanna, a coach who helps VP-level executive women advance to C-level positions. She does most of her coaching via Skype, so geography is not important. I’ll use the Facebook Ads audience targeting tools to demonstrate. I recommend that all my clients use Facebook Ads because it’s the best audience targeting tool on the planet. Nothing else comes close. Plus it’s very easy to track conversions and return on investment, so everything is as hassle-free as possible once you have an offer that’s working. If you pay $3.00 per lead, get 10% of them to schedule a consultation, and (because you’ve done such a good job of attracting the right people for consultations) 40% of consultations result in a new client, that works out to a cost per new client rate of $75. So as long as a client is worth more than $75, you can dump as much money as you want into this system and always make a profit! When you can break things down like that you know exactly what to spend to get the client load you want. You don’t have to worry about your marketing; it just works. And when you have it set up you can run it on autopilot and turn it up, down, on, or off whenever you want. Here’s the audience Facebook gives us for women who have job titles with VP or Vice President in them.

That’s a potential audience of 61,000 people right out of the box whom Joanna knows can benefit from her work. And this is just one of many powerful ways to find an audience with Facebook Ads! CONTINUED »

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Now that we’ve targeted Joanna’s audience, we need to capture leads.

Connect with members of your target audience, capture them as leads, and convert them into clients.

The simplest way to do this is to create a PDF report or ebook, video training, or some other valuable content that solves some specific problem we know her target audience has.

Once you’ve built your machine, you’ll be able to completely predict and control the flow of new leads and clients into your business. Then you can scale your campaign as much as you need to make your dream business a reality.

For Joanna, VP-level women who want to advance might be interested in a report on “The 7 Mistakes You Don’t Know You’re Making That Are Keeping You out of The C-Suite.” Create an ad for the target audience that takes them to a page where they can opt in to download the report. The ad Connects; the opt-in page Captures. Then for step 3, we would create an email sequence, known as an autoresponder, that is sent to everyone who downloads the report. Email has been the online channel with the highest return on investment for as long as online marketing has existed, and it doesn’t look like that will change anytime soon, so if you’re not using it you’re missing out. The autoresponder should be somewhere between 5-12 emails that introduce the reader to Joanna and her practice, provide more valuable content through a blog post, video, or the emails themselves, and address common questions and objections through case studies or another format. At a certain point in the autoresponder, usually starting about the 5th email, Joanna invites the lead to book a consultation with a link to her scheduling service. She should have a consultation formula that helps them get clear on their vision and challenges, and that motivates them to hire her to help.

Now It’s Time for You To Build Your Machine

The basic process is simple enough you can start using it right now to build an unstoppable client-getting machine to bring new clients into your business.

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Jason Barr is the founder of On:Focus Media and Digital Marketing for Coaches. He regularly hosts a free online training on How To Build an Unstoppable Client-Getting Machine where he covers each of these steps in greater depth. Click here for more details and to register for the next session.

By Business Success Unlimited

Another in the Dream Big series!

Learn, Plan, Grow

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Oh success…sweet, sweet success, how did I get here? Yes, I am being sarcastic; a little at least; but yes I do feel I have been successful. As a training provider, if I have one student, that class I held is a success. Would I prefer to have more, many more, of course I would, who of us would not like to have more clients, more students in my case. But what are the keys to success in our chosen professions. » Ed Becher

Security and the Entrepreneur. For many of us it depends on how we define success as it relates to what we do, if we sell Avon, success would be a huge sale, for me it’s putting students into seats. One of the big things is how we accomplish this, for me it’s through a lot of social media and a lot more word of mouth. Here I have found that for me personally to be successfully I must master the art of social media. This has always been a hard thing for me to do with working a full time job and trying to maintain a decent family life. For many small business owners and entrepreneurs, we find the time we need when others are asleep, or in between cooking dinner and doing laundry. But we do find the time to post something, to get the word out about upcoming classes, events, sales or vendor events. We even find more time then we think there is available in the day to get that one last email sent or talk with that potential client or in my case student. There are some people who judge their success by how much income they bring in each quarter. While the amount of money we make is important, does this really make you successful? Now since this is the ‘Security and Entrepreneur’ article how does being successful and security come together? I really hate to say it but as we become more successful in our businesses we need to increase our personal situational awareness and consider an increased security posture. As our popularity increases, more and more people will want to contact us, both for professional and personal reasons. Some of these contacts can even be for reasons we might not consider legitimate. Here I am talking about those with other then legal thoughts. Stalkers, scammers, criminals one and all will attempt to make contact with you as your success increases. 26 SBF |

There are some people who judge their success by how much income they bring in each quarter.

In an earlier article we discussed social media safety, as our success increases we need to re-evaluate how we handle these social media sites and what information is disseminated. We need to review, past, current and even consider future information that we post to Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social media outlets. Additionally, we need to keep an eye on the printed media to ensure that what they are putting out will not damage our reputation and ruin all this success we have worked so hard for. Some people may see your success as not permitting them to that same success, even if they are not in the same industry. One other thing you all know I stress is your situational awareness, as your success increases, and we all know it will, you need to keep those situational awareness skills even more attuned to your environment. Remember there may be people out

It needs to become a team effort to maintain our safety and security and those of our clients, employees and loved ones.

there we resent your success, so we need to see who is following us as we attend meetings, networking events and even out doing the grocery shopping. This means that not only you keeping aware of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going on in your environment but also employees and family members. It needs to become a team effort to maintain our safety and security and those of our clients, employees and loved ones. We need to teach these folks those situational awareness skills that you have learned, along with what is appropriate to post on social media. Many of our employees and family members may see your success as a great accomplishment and want to boast about it to fellow friends and contacts, but we need to be aware of what information they are posting. Sorry to say but this means we may have to monitor what they are saying about us and more importantly, how what they have posted can be interpreted.

So how do you spell success? As I said for me it is students in class but more importantly it is for my colleagues in small business and for the entrepreneurs I have met, made contacts to be safe on a day to day basis. In closing, as always, stay safe and stay aware! Ed Becher, (Ret.) US Marine and Former Chief Instructor, US Dept. of State, Uniformed Branch, Diplomatic Security Service is the owner of Center for Protection, Security and Personal Safety (The Bodyguard Academy) which is a provider of training and resources to keep you, your staff and clients safe. He can be contacted at ed@thebodyguardacademy.com or by phone at (269) 651-3355.

I picked up several great ideas at the Dream Big Retreat and put them into action. As a result, our 4th Quarter was 83% above our 3rd Quarter. DAVID KEENAN

OWNER, AFFORDABLE HEARING STORE

Visit DreamBigRetreat.com or call Nancy at (269) 319-6041 for information.

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Being Connective: Strategies for Growth (Client Segmentation). The entrepreneur that is established and desiring stronger revenue growth would be well advised to dedicate 4-8 hours a week to business planning. One activity that can provide surprising results is segmenting their existing customer and prospective customer groups. » Gail M. Turluck

Updating these groups on a consistent schedule will ensure that the appropriate marketing messages are being delivered to the correct market and the correct education is being provided to lead lesser customers into becoming stronger customers. The first round of segmenting is commonly the A-B-C grouping. In your contact management system, set up a field for ABC segmenting. Go through your list of customers and identify those who you count on for consistent orders that always bring you good profit—Group A. Next identify those customers whose activity level have them at the profit level, but barely, or whom you know or expect to be placing orders in the coming quarter that will move them to this level or higher—Group B. Lastly, are those customers for whom your work or service does not result in profit—Group C. The Group A customers are those customers with whom you will want to focus the majority of your effort upon. Provide them with extra perks, be it an annual calendar, an exclusive client appreciation event, special delivery options, an anniversary lunch or something that makes the client feel special. In doing so, you develop a better personal relationship, and find more ways to help each other’s businesses with reaching their goals. Focus on this groups 28 SBF |

needs and how they match with what you offer. Match them carefully and you are likely to discover that with your Group A focus, even while serving a smaller number of customers regularly, that your sales will rise.

meet their need efficiently. This likely will benefit them as well, as it can cause them to increase their efficiency and see business growth. To keep the relationship warm, an anniversary or holiday card annually is a good idea.

The Group B customers have potential to move up to Group A and your assistance may be the spark that gets them there. A good weekly or monthly e-newsletter with an article about an example of how another business achieved by applying your product or skill, or introducing a new product and describing its benefits can make the difference for those Group B customers that make the buy, grow as a result, and become star customers. An annual picnic or open house is a fine reward for their business and gives them the opportunity to ask some general information questions in a more relaxed atmosphere, learn from other customers how they are applying what you offer, and possibly come across that a-ha moment that spurs desired growth.

Segmenting prospective customers can be a little more challenging. It is tempting to label Fortune 500 prospects as Group A prospects, but if what you offer is something they rarely have use for, they may belong in Group C. Often, it will be the insecure new business owner who has heard about your business, thinks he or she has a need for what you offer, and after meeting youâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and being wowed by your attention to what he or she has to sayâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;is the one who will come forward with an order and move them into the Customer segment. When you meet new business contacts strive to discover a minimum potential for your business strengths and assign an A, B or C potential at that time. Always enter the prospective contact into your contact management system immediately, identify their segment, and make sure they receive the appropriate e-newsletter communication. Also, jot a brief handwritten note to state how you enjoyed meeting them and look forward to helping them with their business needs.

The Group C customers should not be ignored, yet they can often clamor for the majority of your time and this must be minimized. A monthly or quarterly newsletter with a survey or other information gathering tool can provide you with their potential upcoming needs without you or a staff member having to dedicate long hours of discovery phone calls. Keep in mind that a few of these Group C customers will become Group B and even Group A customers. When they initiate a contact, be direct and

The Group C customers should not be ignored, yet they can often clamor for the majority of your time and this must be minimized.

It is recommended that the segmentation be reviewed at least quarterly; annually is not frequent enough. The Segmentation Review is an item that must be marked in your business calendar and is an appointment that you set in red ink and it cannot be changed nor moved. As you utilize and apply segmentation it will benefit you to learn more about the process and how to refine it into sub-segmenting as well. The most important thing, however, is for the small business owner to get started, implement the process, discover its benefits, and use that weekly planning time in later weeks to learn how to improve the process. Client segmentation is an ongoing process that can result in stronger customer relationships and improved connectivity in reaching business goals. Get started today. Gail M. Turluck is the President of Connective Marketing of Richland, Michigan. Connective Marketing offers communications services including writing, e-newsletters, newsletters, web site content writing and updating service, editing, proofreading; Send Out Cards; the Body by Vi Project 10; and more on a contract or consulting basis. She may be contacted at gail@connectivemarketingllc.com or by visiting www.connectivemarketingllc. com.

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Tips for Business Success Expos, Community Events, Fundraisers. When considering participation in various events, businesses benefit by thoughtful planning. Here are a few things to consider: » Karen Bachert

4. Promote your own participation in the event.

Even when it is not your event, Event Organizers appreciate you inviting others to “come see you” at their event. Your personal invitation will bring people and their friends to your booth. Invite on Facebook, when attending networking events, with an email campaign and even with your own Press Release. Sometimes you can purchase tickets in advance for very low prices or even get tickets for free to distribute to your clients and potential clients.

5. Put your best foot forward.

Make your booth or presence stand out. How your booth looks and how you present yourself is key.

1. Pick the best spot for your company.

Consider sponsorship, booth space, or perhaps simply attending. There are specific benefits tied to each opportunity. Ask questions of the Event Organizer and don’t hesitate to suggest participation beyond what might be offered. For some expos, stage presentations of interesting topics will give you added visibility and probably also get your name and the name of your business in the program, on their website, and perhaps even in their press coverage. Ask about table sponsorship for fundraisers too and invite some people you would like to connect with to sit at your table.

2. Take advantage of Pre-Event Happenings.

For example, the Organizers of the Michiana Shop & Greet hosts pre-planning meetings for sponsors/vendors and also invites everyone to a pre-event party with their radio station sponsor, WSMK Radio at a Four Flags Area Chamber of Commerce After Hours. By getting involved early you can meet other vendors and sponsors and expand your own benefits. Making new connections is a big opportunity in participation in any business or community event.

3. Consider donating your services or products for charity events or door prizes at an expo.

Ask to present them yourself for added benefit and question how your company will be acknowledged for your donation. 30 SBF |

Make your booth or presence stand out. How your booth looks and how you present yourself is key. Personal style and grooming is important. A smile and a warm handshake make a good impression. Man your booth with the right people. For example, at last year’s Michiana Shop & Greet, Premier Women of Michiana held a membership drive at their booth offering a special discount on annual membership with great results.

6. Set specific goals, plan your follow up and assess your results.

Number of sales, number of leads, overall brand exposure opportunities, and specific connections made, are all important results to measure. Consider planning a follow up event of your own and invite folks to your gathering personally when they visit your booth. For additional information on the Michiana Shop & Greet and/or these tips, please contact Karen Bachert, Owner of Your Business Needs Fans and Event Organizer for the Michiana Shop & Greet. Karen@YourBusinessNeedsFans. com or 574.344.8895

It’s important that you, as a small business owner, don’t feel isolated. We work better in the company of others. When we share ideas and goals, dreams and values, our businesses prosper. NANCY BECHER

BUSINESS SUCCESS UNLIMITED & FOUNDER OF DREAM BIG RETREAT

Visit DreamBigRetreat.com or call Nancy at (269) 319-6041 for information.

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There has been a lot going on both here in the United States and internationally with violent criminal activity. Paris; Brussels; San Antonio, Texas; Chicago; this is just a short list of where violence has happened or continues to happen on a daily basis. » Ed Becher

See Something… Say Something! As small business owners and entrepreneurs many of us spend a great deal of time traveling on both business and pleasure. With us doing all this traveling, we have the opportunity to see many things, both good and possibly bad. This is where our situational awareness that we have discussed many times come in to play. We have been hearing the phrase, “See Something…Say Something” a lot over the last couple of weeks and it needs to be a phrase we keep in mind daily. One of our key senses is sight with a second one being our hearing. With these two we are able to notice things occurring that are both good and could be bad. We could possibly see the elderly gentleman fall, or hear his wife call for help. To this type of an event we would most likely either see if we could help or call 911 and report it. But when it becomes necessary for us to be more reactive, say to someone holding a weapon we

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are more likely to run, which is good, but one thing we need to do is “Say Something”. There is something to remember though, not everyone carrying a firearm is a criminal. Between Sept. 2014 and Oct. 2015 some 120, 000 concealed pistol licenses were issued to Michigan residents. So now you can see why I say not everyone with a firearm is considering criminal activity. If you add to the fact that Michigan is an “open carry state” which means a person legally permitted to possess a firearm my carry one visibly without the need for a CPL this number increases. While not all locations permit the carrying of a firearm, either concealed or openly, this fact will never stop the criminal element from doing their own thing. As small business owners and entrepreneurs we visit many places in a work and pleasure capacity more often than a lot of other people do. Keeping this in mind we are more likely to observe or hear something that could prevent a criminal act. Each of us has that magic ‘love hot line’ better know as a smart phone

Our ability to maintain this awareness has kept many of us safe at one time or another.

with us 24/7 and these devices have changed the way we both communicate a and record events. Just look on Facebook or other social media site will show how often people will record on their phones and then put post to these sites incidents of violence, whether they be fights, shootings, motor vehicle accidents but not bother with contacting law enforcement or emergency services. We need to change this by placing more importance on the human life aspect then the social media craze. I will agree that sometimes these videos do assist catching those responsible for their bad actions, but we need to consider what is more important. I can never emphasize the need for situational awareness now more than ever. As I have stated in many articles, our ability to maintain this awareness has kept many of us safe at one time or another, whether it be at home or in the mall. We have all seen that wet spot on the mall floor and

avoided it, but did we report it, or while at home found our wife or daughter forgot to turn off the curling iron… we have always said something there have we not. “See something…Say something” does not just have to be about criminal activity, it can be about these safety issues as well. Think about that small child left in a locked car, are we not going to take action? Yes, we are, because we know what the potential outcome could be on a hot summer day. The same concept applies to anything we see that makes those hairs on the back of our necks stand straight up, when this happens we need to take some form of action. This action could be calling 911 or it may even have to entail getting out of the situation as fast as we possibly can. So remember…SEE SOMETHING…SAY SOMETHING; the life you save may be your own. Stay safe, stay aware!

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YOUR SAFETY. OUR CALLING. With the summer coming, what will your travel plans be? Will they be safe

plans? Let us provide you, your family, or your employees with the guidance for safe travel—domestic or international.

Located in historic Sturgis, Michigan, the Center for Protection, Security

and Personal Safety can help you in many ways and not just by providing your staff with the training they need. We are available to provide short-

or long-term protective services, security audits, and surveillance detection services. Additionally, we offer: • Personal Safety Seminars • Travel Safety

• Personal Protection Specialist 7-Day Program • Low Profile Executive Protection

• One-On-One Executive Protection

Contact ed@thebodyguardacademy.com or (269) 421-1735 34 SBF | www.TheBodyGuardAcademy.com

What it Takes to be Successful. I love to read and usually have several things going at once: magazines for both personal and business, either a romance novel or an adventure/mystery and generally two or three business books—all at the same time. » Nancy Becher

My latest book is Dave Ramsey’s EntreLeadership. I’m just getting started but already I am thoroughly enjoying it. He talks about some of the necessities of running the office: not the marketing, not the billing and invoicing, but the reasons WHY we do what we do and how we can better do them to make our lives that much better. I didn’t know that he had been a multi-millionaire business in his 20s, only to lose everything and have to start all over again. GASP—he’s just like us all. Not everything was always perfect for him. He had to learn to acknowledge failures and start over again. Who of us can’t nod in agreement there? I know I sure have and hopefully, I’ve learned and am not trying to do the same thing all over again. As you start to read this book, you will hear about dreams. I was just in a debate on Facebook the other day about dreams. The person who put up the first post was saying that dreams are worthless. You have to ACT to get somewhere. Then a whole bunch of us jumped in and started to clamor. Wait a minute. You have to have a dream first before you can act on anything. Right? What do you think? Ramsey agrees. And says that “dreaming is the lifeblood of businesses…” However, I think this next part is what we all agreed on. In order to do something more than just sit with our heads in the clouds dreaming, you MUST take action. Again, I loved Ramsey’s take on this. For him dreaming came first, and those dreams then (with passion and belief) turned into vision—where the person develops

the dream out and sees how it is going to take shape. After envisioning it, then, he goes on to say that goals (written down, specific and measurable with a time limit) need to be created and completed. It is really important to do this exercise periodically even if you’ve been in business for awhile. I just came across this statistic that says 56% of small businesses fail due to a lack of such back office work. You need to know WHY you’re in business, who you work with, what you offer (this is a value, not product/service question), and have a plan for putting it all together.

In order to do something more than just sit with our heads in the clouds dreaming, you MUST take action.

Another statistic states that most successful businesses have groups they belong to, boards that they share with, educational programs they go to and more—as it is very important to get outside thoughts and views on what is happening. So, here’s hoping that after reading this you will start to work on your back office: you’ll find someone to support you and guide you, and you’ll take that dream and turn it into the vision and goal that you want. You will then be SUCCESSFUL!

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Get in while the getting is good! Advertising in Small Biz Forward is inexpensive, effective, and ideally targeted to other small business owners just like you.

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