Networking: An Example
November 14, 2009
The other morning in my BNI meeting I had the following experience:
I saw a visitor signing in whom I recognised. “Allan, how are you?” I greeted him as I approached. He barely had put the pen down from signing in before I asked, “you are a business analyst… is that right?”
He affirmed my memory.
“There is some one you should meet,” I lead him to another group member and ask him a question on the way. “Do you ever work with business owners that are interested in buying other businesses?”
“Oh yeah,” he replied.
While walking him over to the business broker I saw the groups office furniture guy. That reminded me that my Squidoo page, http://www.squidoo.com/business-coach-chuck, had a link on it to a furniture store. “Brian,” I asked him, “do you have a way I can use affiliate marketing on my sight to sell your furniture?” He had this dear in the headlights look about him. So, I turned to Chris, the web guy. “Chris, do you know how to get some one set up for affiliate marketing??”
“Yes,” he assured me.
“Could you talk to Brian about getting his business set up to do aaffiliate.”
“Sure.”
I left Chris and Brian behind, and moved along to Charles, our Business Broker and introduced he and the Allan, the business analyst. Once they were fully engaged, I took off to meet some one new.
Coach Chuck
Should We Follow Our Gut
March 7, 2009
Business Coach Chuck @ 973-670-7215
Whether we follow our gut or a well structured plan actually depends upon how well we have practiced successfully what we have a hunch about. If we have successfully gotten the result we want in something we have a hunch to do, then there is a good chance that following our “gut” is a good idea. What we are actually following here, however, is muscle memory. We are following a well structured plan that we have practiced so much it has become a hunch.
Even in cases where we have had great success, however, the caveat to following our hunch is to be observant of reality. One guy had a great investment strategy that had worked well for him. Then, he bought six stocks in a row that went against him. He became stubborn because of his previous success and did not recognize that the experience he was having with the six bad trades, was a foreshadowing of a changed market. Consequently, he lost a lot of money. So, no matter how good we have been, be open to reevaluating the facts in light of new information.
In summary, if you are in the zone, stay in the zone, but when results begin to vary, adjust quickly, let go of the hunch to move on to something new or different.
Family and Small Business: Effective Relationships
December 19, 2008
A happy family is 80% support and 20% accountability.
A successful business is 80% accountability and 20% support.
In other words, in a happy family, if a family member has a bad day, home is a place to retreat, renew, refresh and be loved regardless. In a successful business, if a member has a bad day, week, quarter or year – we want to know why and how is that going to be different next time. In a healthy family, a reasonable dose of accountability keeps us from enabling self-defeating behavior. In a successful business – there is enough support to let the individual know that they have a team behind them. It’s the proportion of one to the other that distinguishes the personal from the professional.
When these proportions get altered significantly, dysfunction erupts. If one feels like home is too demanding, then joy leaves one’s life while if the work place gets “too understanding” of failure then, well, failure results.
No wonder then that family businesses are often such treacherous places. Without clear distinctions between work and home, families and or their business can fall into disarray.
The same thing is often true of small businesses, where relationships within the business may begin more personal than business.
Working with families and small businesses to create healthier relationships for happier personal lives and more successful businesses is a very high priority with Coach Chuck.
Business Coach Chuck @ 973-670-7215
What Obama Did Right: Apply that to Your Business
November 5, 2008
Forget for a moment, your political POV, let’s look at Obama’s success and learn from it.
The questions I’d like to explore are:
- What did Obama do right?
- How does that contrast with what the Republicans did?
- Are there lessons to learn for growing a successful business?
Obama reached out to new voters.
McCain did not.
In your business, are you constantly expanding the reach, getting out of your comfort zone to meet and attract new people or are you trying to build your business with the same group of clients?
When Obama reached out to the new voters, he actually spoke directly to the new people and talked to them about how his policies could impact them. He talked about how taxing high income earners would help the middle class by “spreading the wealth” around and he gave specific examples of this by letting people calculate their tax bill on his web site.
Obama Made Benefits Tangible
McCain Made Benefits Abstract
McCain did a lousy of explaining that while an individual’s tax rate may be less under Obama one reason that your tax rates may be lower is that you will have a much higher chance of being unemployed. Examples of this abound under both democrat and republican presidents. Then put a face on it. Explain that a government job is an expense that does not create wealth, but expends it. Put a face on it. Show what welfare did to people under Johnson and his “Great Society.” Put a face on it. They could have gone to the coal mines and asked people how they felt about Obama wanting to bankrupt the companies they work for. They could have gone to PA and asked they felt about their Democratic Congressman Murtha call them racist rednecks. When we talk about offshore drilling, interview employment specialist to talk about how many those workers would make and how many new jobs there would be and what that would do in the specific states for their economy. Interview people that would apply for those jobs.
So, when you have a competitor in your business who does things differently and in a way, that on the surface looks better, but creates long term harm, are you assertive in getting your message across?
When it comes to reaching out for new supporters, Republicans have a ready made base of parents of children in the inner city schools. The schools are horrible in many of these districts and the Democrats consistently stand in the way of Vouchers that would allow any kid to go to any school. But, republicans have not gone into the neighborhoods where the issues are there and speak out.
In your business, are there people that really need your services but to whom you have not taken the time to meet them on their terms?
Obama Saw Himself as a Winner
McCain Saw Himself as an Underdog
The next thing that Obama did really well is that he visualized success. Sometimes his vision bordered on arrogance, but the foundation that visualization (such as the presidential seal on his plane) gave him, far outweighed the perception of arrogance. This centeredness gave him the courage to say, “Yes, I want to spread the wealth!” And that confidence gave his supporters confidence. If McCain had half the confidence that Joe the Plumber had in the American Dream and capitalism, then his message of freedom would have resonated more. However, when he kept pounding away at the “greed on Wall Street,” instead of focusing on the Government regulation that created the problems generated by FNMA and Freddie Mac, that were completely Democrat creations, then by default, he gave away his power to Obama. McCain did not LIVE confidence in his own message.
As a business owner, do you have a product that you believe in? If you do, then visualize success with it – the success of your clients as well as your own success for making it available to them. If you don’t believe in it, then get the hell out of the way.
In summary, reach out to new clients, be specific about how you can benefit them and offer a product or service that you believe in to the core of your being. When you reach out to them, reach out to them on their terms. Reach out to them with something that they want. And finally, reach out to them in confidence.
Coach Chuck
A P.S. to this is in the following link: http://biznik.com/articles/how-email-marketing-just-changed-the-world?utm_source=article_reviews&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=article_review_49
about his internet marketing campaign.
Business Coach Chuck @ 973-670-7215
Attention Deficit Disorder Re-defined for the Business Owner
December 18, 2007
(Don’t worry this is a short article)
Move Over Attention Deficit Disorder -
Here comes the The Multi-stimuli Reactor/processor Business Owner!
(Okay, so sometimes it does get disordered, but we can deal with that – That’s why we have employees!)
As a Business Coach of Small and family businesses I’ve found a disproportionate percentage of clients that, were they in school today, would be labeled ADD. Maybe they were labeled that in school. Maybe you were too. If so, doesn’t it just piss you off that other people don’t think as fast as you do, and then they can’t keep up with you and then they come up with labels to call you because you don’t do things like them.
On the other side, it is also true that this kind of thinking often leaves many things undone, plans with loose ends and a frustration of incompleteness. As with most things, there is a multitude of ways to deal with this. Seldom, however, is the best way to try to stuff yourself into everybody else’s box. Let’s be real. That’s why you are in business for yourself in the first place … there is not a box big enough for you. When some one suggests thinking out of the box, you may very well reply, “What box?”
If this is the case, then building on your strength of being a (let’s ditch the A.D.D. label shall we?) Multi-stimuli Reactor/processor Business Owner, usually requires:
- an acceptance of one’s self, and
- a recognition that we need to hire someone who tilts toward the organizational end,
- but that person also needs the people skills to interpret your vision, and delegate while you are off making tracks in still new directions. [This obviously requires tremendously careful selection in hiring for that particular position as well as absolute mutual respect for differences. This person may have a label or two of his/her own!]
Ok. That’s it. I’m done. Bye … I see you’re off already. Gimme me a call, I can help.
Coach Chuck
Business Coach Chuck @ 973-670-7215
Business, Golf and Bagger Vance
December 5, 2007
What do God, Golf and Bagger Vance have in common. First of all, Everything. But now, let me break it down a little bit. In Both Golf and Business, people on the outside don’t get it. They don’t get that in each of these endeavors we are constantly called upon to reach deep inside ourselves - usually when no body is looking, like when the ball is in the rough or the woods or on the other side of the fairway – and asks, “whach-ya-gonna-do-now, huh?” and then we can do the right thing or the wrong thing. The thing about golf, and the thing about business, is that when we do the right thing – regardless of outcome – the result is joy. It just feels so good to do it Right – oh yeah!! Joy, joy, joy is the spirit of God. God could give a rat’s a…, err uh, God could care less about Business or Golf. But God – and just for the record, I don’t care who or what your God is – God cares ALOT about reaching deep, doing the right thing and feeling it, feeling that joy. Am I ready for Sunday morning TV or what! at Coach Chuck’s Church of the 1st Tee … I’ll see you at the clubhouse.
There is no book that captures the spirit of golf like The Legend of Bagger Vance. Golf is a game of mind, it is a game of our integrity, of our past, of what everyone thinks of us. And ultimately, is a game that asks, “can we just let go of everything, everything that is, or ever was, and hit the damn ball the way it needs to be hit?” And its not about thinking it. Its just about doing it. The caveat is you go through all the other stuff first, until you find yourself alone with the ball. Its you, yourself and doing the right thing – with nobody looking. What are you going to do? Bagger Vance: the book, the real deal, about the game of golf.
Coach Chuck973-670-7215
Getting Hardnosed about the Soft Side of Business
November 27, 2007
When involved in a business transition, the business owner typically focuses on:
· What’s the bottom line?
· Cut to the chase – what are the numbers?
Unless the transition that we are talking about is the sale of the business, for which the owner is going to get cash, the bottom line is only one snapshot in a dynamic moment in time. “The Bottom Line,” that which we tend to be hardnosed about, is the result of everything that is done and market conditions and all kinds of “The Soft Side” of business.
Business transitions are as simple as moving from one business season to the next and as complex as purchasing a business to merge with an ongoing business. A Business transition may be creating sales oriented staff from a group that is currently task oriented. A transition may be selling the business wherein the owner is going to get paid over time or buying a business where you are going to pay over time. A transition is any change in business. When there is a change there is a transition. The one thing we can rely upon is change. Therefore, transition is part of business. The more that transition is built into the business, the faster reaction time the business can have.
So, what does a transition business coach do? We get very clear about what the business owner wants to transition into. We get very clear about what the reality of the situation is presently. We get a handle on what is going to be required to make that transition. What is going to need to be different? Then we coach toward an assessment of the current staff, clients, market, vendors or who or whatever is relevant to that change. Included in this coaching process are the vision, mission and intention of the owner and key players.
The result will be a strengths and needs assessment along with a strategy and coaching toward implementation for the soft side of business transition. Additionally, the foundation will be in place for the recognition of ongoing transition so that change, in the future will be an ongoing intentional part of business rather than being treated as a problem.
Cutting to the chase, the point of all of this is, of course, a better bottom line!!
Coach Chuck973-670-7215
What is a Business Coach: and What do they do?
November 17, 2007
What is a business coach? What is the process and what could you expect were you to hire a business coach? Frankly, that is a question that you are going to need to ask the individual coach. There are many different backgrounds and educations for coaches. Some have coaching accreditation. As for myself, my educational background is in psychology and counseling. This combined with my extensive business experience informs and has helped me to create an effective and individualized coaching strategy.
I have a masters in clinical psychology/counseling where I was educated in both the theory and the practice of assessing human behavior as well as how to aide people to achieve desired results. My experience in mental health is very broad and is combined with 19 years business experience in the financial markets. The specific experience in mental health that informs my methods more than any others is experience is working with families. The family is the basic social unit. The dynamics that occur in families form the basic components of in the rest of our social life, especially in our work life. Additionally, small businesses are often family owned. Even if they are not family owned, the personal lives of the owners and the work life of these owners are inescapably entwined.
My coaching method would begin with an understanding of where you see yourself right now. This sounds simple enough and sometimes it is. Most of the time, however, it is not. Were it simple you would not be seeking a business coach. Your business life does not stand in isolation from the rest of your life, so when we are assessing the starting point, we get a thorough understanding of the rich context of your current situation.
Next, we’d like to look at where you would like to end up. This is broken down into a few areas. First of all, we look at how you think things should be right now, but aren’t. This is not long term at all. In fact, you might be gasping for air right now and before any planning can be done, we need to address the current situation. Dealing with current situation may or may not be a significant issue. It almost always takes longer than the business owner originally anticipates. But, laying the foundation is key to moving forward.
From this foundation, a vision for the business has the where-with-all to emerge. And, emerge it must. A vision is more than just figuring out what the business should do. We dig deep. Business is hard. Things happen. Economy happens. Employees happen. All kinds of things happen. Imagine coming home from the beach on a summer Sunday evening. The traffic is insane. Imagine it comes to a stop. There has been a disaster. No one is going anywhere. What do you want to do then? Most people at that point just want to get home. I’ve never heard of any one in a situation like this simply saying, “Ah screw it! Traffic is really bad. I’m not going home. That would be too hard?” Can you imagine?
We attempt to tap into and encourage your organic and natural vision. In order to get through the traffic jams of business life, your vision must be as certain to you as your home is.
And then, we look at the obstacles between now and your vision. And then we devise strategies to succeed.
In actual practice, this is certainly not a straight line. Each of the areas described above influences each of the other areas. You are never completely in one stage or the other.
Something we are doing concurrently to the above process is graphically depicting your business pipeline. How do customers find out about you? How do you (Your business) and your client connect? How is the client treated? What services or products do you provide the client? How, exactly, is that done? How do you get paid? What happens to the money?
If you are providing a product, the same process is done with the product.
We come to understand the ratio requirements of each part of the pipeline to the other parts of the pipeline. How do you generate revenues while at the same time meet new prospective clients? This pipeline is a living, dynamic organism. If you get twice the number of clients, it is not jus a matter of multiplying the rest of the pipeline by two. Different methods of providing service need to be developed for differing volume numbers. We don’t just manage the pipeline. We inspire the pipeline. That is a matter of assessment and transformation all the time.
So, if you were to ask this coach, Coach Chuck, “what is a business coach and what might I expect form the business coaching process?” You would get an answer similar to what I outlined above.
Coach Chuck
973-670-7215
Partnerships and Strategic Partnerships
November 1, 2007
What are the things that you consider when deciding whether or not to go into a partnership? A partnership should be among people that bring complementary strengths together that when combined are greater than the sum of the parts. In other words, the two people, if working together with common goals, will achieve more than they could alone.
The key here is complementary strengths. Take two attorneys that practice different kinds of law who are always finding that they often refer the other attorney’s kind of law out to some one else. This might be the basis of the two attorneys getting together to discuss a partnership. Could the two together gather resources that would allow each more success in their chosen fields? If yes, then the process then is to discover whether or not the partnership is a good fit.
A partnership, like a marriage, is a very comprehensive relationship. Issues of trust, compatibility, shared vision, compatible work ethic and working styles are just as important as whether or not business complement exists.
Very often people will form a partnership based upon the personal issues of trust, compatibility, shared vision, work ethic and style without examining the actual business compliment elements. Other times, people will form a partnership based upon business partnership without examining the more personal issues. Either of these methods have a poor prognosis of success.
Strategic Partnerships however can be entered on a very limited basis. For instance, the two attorneys above may decide that if they share office space and staff and agree to refer each other, without partnerships beyond that, may, in some circumstances, find greater success than trying to bring together a shared vision and so forth. A Financial Planner and Personal fitness trainer may decide to run a workshop together addressing the needs of retirees, without any obligation to each other beyond the workshop.
When contemplating a partnership, consider the question: what makes us a partnership that is greater than what we would be on our own? Further, ask if these accomplishments are greater than what could be accomplished through strategic agreements or partnerships, rather than a full-blown partnership. If the answer to these point to partnership, then carefully consider your commitment of each partner to each of the other partners success and how that would change in good times and bad – to put another way, through sickness and health.
Coach Chuck
973-670-7215
As a summary, partnerships are for those joining complementary strengths between compatible people with a shared vision. This is truly a rare relationship. Strategic partnerships are like dates. One can engage in strategic partnerships with a greater attitude of experimentations.
Networking: After the Intro
August 6, 2007
This article is about the first meeting after the networking event. In other words, you were at a convention, BNI meeting or whatever, met some one with whom you thought there could be mutual benefit. In order to learn how to get up this part you might want to read my article about how to meet people. For now, however, we assume you have met some one and are now meeting with them for the first time.
For the most part, I would suggest something very casual – such as breakfast or coffee in a premium coffee shop. The idea here is to be at ease. That is not a cash register in front of you: don’t make them feel like one. Remember, they were at the same networking event that you were. They were looking for something. Make this about them.
- “Why were you at ________?” Or “What are you looking for?”
Be completely transparent. There is nothing to hide here. You are both business people in search of something.
Now, this is a tough one:
- Listen.
Listen completely.
Be completely okay with not understanding what, exactly they are talking about.
- “When you say ________, what, exactly does that mean?”
No one likes a know it all and most people like to talk about what they do know. When you have really understood them and what they are looking for, stop and reflect. Is there any way you can be helpful? Perhaps there is another networking source you have met to whom you may refer them. If there is, make the referral or suggestion. If this seems to connect with the person, spend just a few minutes on how to make the connection.
Once the other person feels totally listened to and helped or at least been the recipient of your authentic concern, connect something they have talked about, in some way with what you do. Remember, most people completely lose interest when it is not about them. Let’s say the person is an interior designer and you are a financial planner. They say mentioned having spent summers as a youth with an aunt who owned an antique store. You might say something like, “I was impressed by how you were so influenced by your aunt. I was influenced with how poorly my parents planned their future! I think that’s how I got into this field.”
- Then give a very short version of your background as it pertains to what you do.
- An even shorter version of what you do.
If they express curiosity or ask questions, answer with examples that are relevant to them. For instance, with the interior designer, talking to them about what some VP of ABC corporation did is irrelevant, but if you can tell them a success story about a shop owner or some other independent businessperson with whom they can identify, then that will be helpful to them.
At this point, you have some choices – what you want is to either qualify them as potential clients or get a referral. What I do is combine those two into one and ask:
- “Do you know anyone that might benefit from that?”
Maybe it is because I’m generally diligent up to this point, but for me, about 1/3 of those people say something like, “I might want to use your services.” They become prospective clients.
What to do from here is subject for another article, but for me, about ½ of those people actually become clients.
Coach Chuck
973-670-7215
Take the Next Step to Your Picture of Success
Go To – www.businesscoachchuck.com. – for details of Coach Chuck’s business coaching services.
Networking – Meeting People With a Purpose
August 5, 2007
How do you meet people and what do you do at an event where business people are gathered? The following is something that is very natural and works for me. It might work for you too.
- Walk up, confidently, but in an unthreatening manner and say, “Hi, I’m _____,” and then be quiet.
- They will almost always say their name; sometimes they will say their name and whom they are with. Let them say as much as they want to say.
- Make an authentic, positive comment about the event. If the speaker was terrible say – “it feels great to get up and walk around.” If the speaker was great say, “That speaker really made a good point about such and such.” Whatever: make it positive. Life is good in your world. That’s why other people are going to want to be in your world!
- Pretty early on, ask, “So what do you do?” Again, let them tell you as much as they want to tell you. Spend your time listening.
- Decide if you think the relationship might be one that you might want to develop. If not, say, “great to meet you, “ and move on. If yes: ask one or two questions that invite brief clarity on the issue that you think might be of mutual benefit. If, upon asking those one or two brief questions you still think that there might be a mutual benefit follow that up with something like
- “That’s interesting, my focus is _________ and it seems like you and I might have something worth following up on in more detail, what do you think?
- If they say yes, ask for their card, and ask if you could give them a call this ____ or ____.
- Regardless of the answer, thank them and move on.
Coach Chuck
973-670-7215
Learn more from the coach that defines business success by the happiness of the owner!
Take the Next Step to Your Picture of Success
Go To – www.businesscoachchuck.com. – for details of Coach Chuck’s business coaching services.
Coaching is about keeping your eye on the prize. Counseling and Therapy is about untangling the mess. They are very important. Each are has inherent strength and inherent weakness. If you tell a coach that you just found out you have to go in for heart surgery they are likely to begin developing a plan to keep progress toward the goal in motion, or at least on the tracks while this procedure and the ensuing recovery takes place. A therapist may explore the feelings that arise because you are going in for heart surgery at the same age that your father died from a heart attack.
The strength in the coaching approach is that regardless of your heart condition, assuming the experience does not change your goals, you are going to want that process to be as far along as possible so that you can just get back on for the ride when you recover. The strength of the counseling approach is that our feelings produce results in the real world. The power of our belief is probably one of the most important distinguishing characteristics that separate us from other life forms. We are able to believe that which is not in our present experience and act on it. By acting on that believed reality we make it true. So, it is very important sometimes to come to terms with what it is we believe and why we believe it and decide if that is something we want to believe. As with anything else, the line between coaching and counseling is not set in stone. But, in general terms, what was just described falls into the area of counseling.
The weakness of the coaching model is that one can be so focused on a future goal that one neglects health, relationships and other aspects of the moment. When we achieve our dreams and ambitions, they are empty without those with whom we love. Counseling and Therapy, on the other hand can get so enmeshed in the past and with feelings that it becomes a tangle with no outcome. We can get lost in there.
It’s easy to see how these two areas can work together. While most excellent counselors and therapists have a little bit of the coach in them it is not their primary job. Coaching is not therapy. When coaches and counselors can work together, the therapist can help untangle the obstacles that prevent us from being the best we can be while the coach helps you devise a road map, vision a goal and achieve it.
From a practical application, this approach can end up being very economical. This is because issues that come out in counseling are often worked through quicker. Coaching is often done over the phone. The phone call might be a fifteen-minute call. When its all working together, it can be faster, better and more effective. That is the goal. And achieving that goal makes us feel good!
Cw Markham
Coach Chuck: chuck@businesscoachchuck.com
973-670-7215
Take the Next Step to Your Picture of Success
Go To – www.businesscoachchuck.com. – for details of Coach Chuck’s business coaching services and fees.
Take a Test Drive – Call now for your FREE 30-minute exploratory consultation – Call 973-670-7215 and set up an appointment. There is never any pressure.
Or e-mail me – chuck@businesscoachchuck.com. Please provide three dates and times that would be a good time to call you. I will return the e-mail with a confirmed appointment time.
©2007 Charles W. Markham MA. You may not copy, reproduce, post or forward this document in any format. For permission or joint venture opportunities contact Chuck Markham at chuck@businesscoachchuck.com.
