MY V8 MOMENT

Do you sympathize when I tell you, that every once in a while I have a V8 moment? This is what I call it, when I did not do the obvious and it comes to bite me in the butt.

To give you an example, whenever I have a new connection and I arrange to meet with them, their contact details go directly into my Blackberry. Makes perfect sense, right? And every so often, I get busy or distracted and forget to update my phone with people that I am scheduled to meet.

Guess what happens when I urgently need to get hold of them to change our arrangements due to unforeseen circumstances? That’s right, I scramble! Now I am late and flustered and giving the wrong impression! It already puts me at a disadvantage which could have been so easily prevented if only I had done the right thing which would have taken no time at all.

This is when I have to hit my forehead as they do on the advert! How could I be so careless and not even check before I left the office?

It comes to show that having processes and systems in place and sticking to them religiously, will eliminate those horrible V8 situations! So why do we do it? Why do we set ourselves up for the self instigated sabotage?

It seems pretty silly that we know what works best, it has been proven, yet we are still not compeletely committed sticking to the process?

So I put it to you - lets reveal our V8 moments publically so that we may never default but stick to the things we know work so well! No more sabotage, no more excuses!

I want you to come forward with your V8 moment! Email me cmillard@mcgbusiness.com and I will provide you with the absolution to let go of past examples of bad behavior and promote the new and reformed YOU!

Jointly lets eliminate V8’s for a stress free better business future!

Happy Businessing!
Conny

PREPARE OR FAIL

In my career I have the opportunity to attend lots of events with a variety of speakers. It is always most surprising to observe, how few presenters are truly messmerizing and how even the most exciting topic gets boring, when it is badly prepared and never rehearsed.

Typically people pay good money to hear a specialist talk on a topic in order to educate themselves and deepen their knowledge on a subject matter. Courses, seminars, webinars and workshops, there are plenty of well paid speakers trying to deliver content, to expand the horizon of professionals. 

So how come that the quality of the delivery is so often very questionable and frustrating to the audience? I suppose this is a two folded answer:
1.) The presenter is highly qualified and technically minded but lacks the ability to speak at a normal level
or
2.) The presentation has been badly prepared, without a clearly defined path or objective and possibly never rehearsed. And yes, it shows!  It can be annoying to the audience and discredits the individual almost immediately.

In the first instance, you somehow can’t blame the speaker. However perhaps the question should be raised to the organizer for ensuring good quality content and delivery beforehand.

In the second instance I can think of a number of reasons why the presentation was not adequately prepared - lack of time, procrastination, maybe even due to lack of self confidence and/or lack of topic knowledge. Whatever the reason the speaker will allianate their audience and potentially damage their reputation.

The lesson to be learned here is simple. Get prepared! And this does not just apply to public speakers or lecturers but to all entrepreneurs as well.

Don’t leave it up to chance to deliver a strong message. Think well in advance about what you want to get across and than rehearse this with objective professionals to get it just right. Practice until it becomes embedded into your mind and feels like the powerful reality that you deliver. Now, enjoy how your audience will hang on your every word.

Suddenly your value can not be measured in dollars!

NOTHING BUT EXCUSES

Meeting so many business entrepreneurs all of the time, one commonality is becoming very apparent, perceived challenges or events are used as justified reasons why business cannot be done.

Some claim the bad economic times are to blame for slow or no business. Others declare that the Olympics have caused pretty much all business activities to stop. The next find that summer holidays are a tricky time to do business because everyone is away on vacation. A different group thinks that winter is too cold and dark for people to want to do business and autumn is a time when many seek sanity in warmer climates. And as for moms in business, lets not even get started on school holidays, children's sick days and ProD days.

Yes, lots of reasons why business development could be a challenge. So how about looking at creating a more sustainable business model whereby you will not be heavily affected by seasonal changes or perceived downturns. Impossible you say? Then it is time to find yourself a professional adviser who can show you how you can be sustainable in any market at any time of year.

So stop making excuses and start taking control of your business!

INSPIRED TO LEAD

In the past 24 hours, the much anticipated Olympics made itself felt in our town. We have celebrated the arrival of the torch on Thursday night with some great entertainment, Loggers show and stunning fireworks.

Lots was on offer and the family had the opportunity of free photos with the torch through an initiative by Coca Cola, short personal recordings which will be shown in the background all the way through the Games and of course not to forget the lighting of the cauldron!

The following day, we cheered on the torch bearers which were within arms length coming through our neighbourhood and all the school kids, parents, teachers and neighbours came out, to see the spectacle unfold. 

The craziest thing was, that we met one of the torch bearers in person as she was waiting to be handed the flame. She was a young girl from Pemberton who had won a competition and there she stood quite alone, nervous and excited, ready to write history, wondering why she should be one of the chosen ones. She confessed that she didn’t feel ready for such an important and monumental task.

And that’s when it struck me that many of the women that I meet in business have the same feeling. Professional moms who after a successful career and some time out to become a mom, they find it hard to recognize their own worth when trying to re-enter the work force. Female entrepreneurs wondering if they are taking the right step into running their own businesses, because they don’t feel quite ready or not well enough prepared.

The truth is simple for the torch bearer as for my fellow women in business. Take leadership without questioning your worthiness. We have all been created equal and it is the ones who, in spite of their fears are prepared to leap forward and make things happen. There is no failure in trying and be assured in the know that you are as ready today as you will ever be. 

Be inspired as I am, love life and have faith in yourself!

Until next time,

Conny

DO OR DIE - BETTER REPLY!

One of my pet hates in business is, when people don’t get back to you. You send nice emails following some great conversations and then.......nothing!
You have meetings with people at their request, you follow up and then.......yes, you guessed right, nothing!

You are ready to place a large order or want to make an inquiry on behalf of a client, or have a small question following a purchase you have made and then.........nothing!

I come across this time and time again and so do lots of my clients and friends.

So initially one can’t help but thinking, that it must be a personal thing. Maybe a business cultural thing, I must have missed during my immigration! Because where I come from, businesses will always (!) respond to you, it is not just good manners but plain decent business ethics.

What gets me the most is, that everyone talks about business slowing down, or not enough opportunities or not sure how to continue to grow. Well guess what, if you ever bothered looking into your Inbox and dealt with all the people within, you would be surprised about the value that is locked up right there!

So here is some food for thought for people who have come across this strange phenomenon that has taken hold of business on the West Coast, if this irritates you as much as it does me, lets make a pact! Lets set a new standard of good communication!

Because you never know; the person who is trying to communicate with you, could hold the key to something great, exciting and valuable and if not right away, then certainly in the future.

A HEAD OF THE GAME

I have just completed my certification as a Donald Trump Associate and I must say it was intense! It has been a steep learning curve and I have met a number of incredible people on the way.

The interesting thing was, that in an audience of about 80 people, one of our tasks was to stand up and briefly introduce ourselves. Everyone had about 30 seconds to state who they are, what they do and what their goals are. How do you think that went? One would imagine that 80 professional and educated people have got this simple task right down to a ‘T’. Likely that they would need to do this on a regular basis in their chosen fields.

Interestingly the majority had to write their introduction down and read it straight from a piece of paper. Others tried it without and failed to deliver a powerful or even coherent message.  This really surprised me. However I could see that lots of my clients are challenged with the same apprehension, struggling to clearly state the introduction about their businesses and benefits.

If this rings true with you, consider how important the first impression is and how you can set yourself apart from the rest of the competition with a carefully orchestrated and practiced introduction.  Take the time and understand who you are targeting, what your unique benefits are and why you are the perfect and only choice to new prospects.

This sounds an easy task however most people find it incredibly difficult. So if you are one of those people, take control now and if necessary get professional to prepare a strong and powerful message.

The first impression is everything!

Kicking it to you!

Wow, first week of the New Year already behind us and I am sure you, have been busy getting back into the swing of things. The time to put New Years resolutions into action, making things better, working smarter, living healthier, being more present, spending more quality time with loved ones, achieving, creating and enjoying. Phew!

Why do we think, we have to be able to do it all, and all at once? Who has been given us the impression that we must have the first million in the next 12 months? Life coaches and counsellors have never been more busy trying to patch people up, when they are not coping well, with all the pressure that they are either putting themselves under or feel from outside sources.

Being the best at everything, well that is just plain impossible! Being the best mom, wife, cook, hostess, business entrepreneur with the highest standards of a healthy, loving, intellectual lifestyle with a twist of perfection.

I ask you, how is this all going to be achieved without a huge pre-programmed f*** up?

So here is the cure for my clients this year:  We are carefully looking at the Must Have’s first. Setting priorities in the beginning and writing them down together, is the first step. How much time will you be spending on yourself, your family and your business?

Divide it up and then set realistic financial goals and business milestones. Make them timely and together review at regular intervals. With those identified, we then break down objectives on how to get there, how much of that we can do together and what external resources and relationships we need to put in place.

With accountability thrown in, support & objective advice, my clients will have a professional advisor to keep them on track as well as sane!

Make your business manageable and therefore enjoyable in 2010!
Kindest,
Conny