What You Pay Attention To Grows

We have all taken a beating from the media this last year. All the negative news about the economy and the recession can be overwhelming. I even had one anxious client say, "It feels like the world is coming to an end."

Take a moment to think of something that happened in your past that seemed very bad at the time, but now in retrospect you see what a blessing it was.

I absolutely know that the challenges we are facing economically now will look like a blessing in retrospect. Businesses will get stronger and leaner. Families will come together. Governments will change. People will remember what faith is. Programs and non-profits will emerge as well as all the positive change we cannot yet see.

I invite all of you to step into hope and give up the worry and concern. How effective can you be when you are worried? How productive are you when you are anxious? How creative are you when you are upset?

Of course, I believe that positive thinking is important for many reasons. If only for your peace of mind, I invite you to stay focused on what is right, what is working and what is good in your business and in your life. What you pay attention to grows and thrives!

In addition to two degrees my mother was an accomplished english and drama teacher for many years. She was also a prolific reader, as a result her mastery of the english language was one of the first things you noticed when in conversation with her. The first signs of the disease was suprisingly not forgetfulness, rather she started taking euphamisms and slang in conversation literally. Analogies and metaphors were lost on her.


Here's a story...

Last spring I picked my mom up on Sunday, just like I do every Sunday, to give her a reprieve from the nursing home. It was so beautiful outside we decided that a patio lunch somewhere would be nice. We ended up at Central Market (its like a Whole Foods), where we also got the added bonus of live music.

Sometimes my mom forgets she is eating so that partcular day I had to spoon feed her the hot soup she had chosen. Over and over I bribed her with the possibility of desert to get her to finish. So, after she finished I said "mom you can have whatever you want from the bakery , what do you want?". "I want a lemon square" she announces. "Great , if they don't have lemon squares what else should I get you?" I say. " Just a lemon square" she says. "Well, mom if they don't have lemon squares do you want cake or a lemon cookie?" I patiently wait. "Just a lemon square" she says. We bantered back and forth like this for a few minutes when in exasperation she yells " Alicia, its okay if it's round!".


Ironically there was a round lemon tart at the bakery. She was very pleased.



Alicia Marie Fruin

Leadership Institute

WHAT: M3 Race Leadership Institute
Nurture and enhance the power of community to successfully grown your business and yourself.
WHEN: Thursday, September 24th thru Saturday, September 26th, 2009

WHERE: Office Depot headquarters in Boca Raton, Florida.

We at Count Me In believe that entrepreneurship equals leadership, and so do our partners at Office Depot. Leadership takes vision and discipline, creativity and tenacity, risk-taking, earth-shaking, courage, confidence and commitment. It also takes a strong community - this one. Our Leadership Institute will help you successfully grow your business and yourself.

Featured Workshop: Select, Hire & Retain Top Talent – Alicia Marie Fruin
Want To Create Your Dream Team? Now you can! In this workshop you will:
• Craft a strategic plan to build your team
• Learn how to profile roles and write accurate job descriptions
• Design targeted job ads that attract the right people
• Develop the skills to recognize and retain top talent
• Get great interviewing tips and a FREE CD of materials you can use in your business.

Here’s what you’ll experience:

• Two tracks of powerful workshops taught by experts in their fields
• Elevator Business Pitch Updates
• Vendor Matching by WBENC connecting your product or service with corporations, universities, hospitals or government agencies interested in doing business with you. (Separate registration required-- click here to register)
• Panels, speakers and some creative surprises
• Plus lots of time to share with and learn from each other, one of the hallmarks of the Count Me In community
• Shuttle service between hotel and Office Depot available
• Valet Parking at Office Depot

Click here to register!

Even CEO Eric Schmidt has a coach

Happiness is a Positive Cash Flow!

"Cash flow, not profits, is the lifeblood of your business. Project it, monitor it, and manage it well before serious trouble starts to brew."

In today's uncertain economy with ever rising interest rates, many small businesses with limited financial training are having problems staying alive, let alone prospering. In fact, 63% of new businesses don't survive six years -- and most work-at-home people fail within 6 months!

The primary reason is bad cash management. Too many self-employed people neglect their cash flow until it is too late to recover. So the big question is: How will you manage your cash flow effectively? If you are not sure, then you are on shaky ground.

Let's break down these tips one at a time.

Fast Collection

In your business, you should collect money as fast as you can. To do so, try these four things:

• Try to speed up customer orders by having them e-mail their orders to you straight from your website.
• Send out your invoices the same day goods are shipped, not a week or two later.
• Indicate on your invoice when payment is due, and specify the penalty interest for late payment. Enforce late fees.

Deposit Money Fast!

This seems only obvious, but it's extremely important.

Always deposit checks the same day they are received. Don’t hold checks until the next day because you lose one day's float. Key point: you can lose three days of float by not depositing Friday's checks until Monday.

• Compare pricing for merchant credit card services; run credit cards as soon as payment due.
• Obtain availability of 0 to 2 days on deposited checks. Don't let your bank give you the customer availability of 1 to 5 days. Be persistent. Ask the bank for its "availability schedule" and scan it to be sure you're receiving fast availability of two days or less.
• Each bank has its own availability schedule. This is used to assign check availability to consumers, business (commercial accounts), and large corporate accounts. Availability is the number of days until you can use the money deposited by check as cash. For example, a $1,000 check deposited today and assigned a one-day availability can be withdrawn as cash tomorrow.
• Don't deposit checks in a bank's Automated Teller Machine or use the Night Depository since you have no evidence that you actually deposited the checks you said you did. Remember, you only receive a receipt that shows the time and dollar amount on the deposit at the ATM, and you get no receipt at the Night Depositor.
• Ask your bank about its deadline for receiving availability on deposited checks. Some banks may require a deposit of an encoded check by 2 p.m., even though the bank is open to 5 p.m. Make sure you make this deadline, otherwise you lose one day's float.
• Before using a bank's ATM for check deposits, find out the bank's availability deadline. Some banks have a 12 noon cut-off time which means that any checks deposited later are considered to be deposited the next day! In that case, you lose an entire day's float, even though you did your bit to get the checks cashed.

Have a Super Tight Accounts Receivable Policy

Many people think it is no big deal to neglect accounts receivable until bills are collectible. This is bad cash flow policy. Here are seven excellent tips for handling accounts receivable:

• Check the financial health of a new customer before offering them credit. One way of doing this is by using a rating service, such as Dun & Bradstreet (1-800-234-3867).
• Ask a new customer for five business references and don't neglect to call them.
• Don't offer too generous discounts, such as 3% for payment in 10 days. A better rate is 1.5% cash discount. It costs you less.
• Charge a "late fee" of 2% per month to customers who pay late and charge back customers who take discounts after the discount periods.
• Follow up on late payers with phone calls and letters. These may seem a bit extreme, but the first letter should go out the very day the amount is one day late! After 30 days late, start this sequence:
o send out a letter from your attorney
o turn over the account to a collection agency
o use a collection attorney
• Don't send out new merchandise if bills remain unpaid. Remember that bad debts hurt your bottom line! Be vigilant and try to get at least periodic payments from slow payers.
• Instruct your bank to automatically deposit "returned checks." Ask your bank if they offer Return Item box service. If they do, then use it to redeposit your check and charge back the bank return item free to your customer.

These seven steps are tough and unrelenting, but they may make the difference between a positive cash flow month and a sluggish month for your business.

Disburse Your Money Slowly

Just the opposite of collecting at the earliest possible moment, you should never pay a day sooner than you have to, unless you get a discount for doing so. A lot of people believe in staying ahead of bills and paying them as early as possible, but that's just poor cash management. You want to keep your money in your hands as long as you can. Here are five suggestions to slow down your disbursements:

• Pay your invoices on the last day they're due, not before.
• Try to mail your payment on Thursday or Friday to pick up a few extra days mail float over the weekend.
• Use business credit cards for travel, lodging, meals, and small expenses for yourself and your employees. With credit cards you typically don't have to make payment until 25 days after receiving the statement. Use this float by investing the money. In total, you can typically keep your money invested for 45 days from date of purchase.
• Don't issue advances to employees. Have them use their personal credit cards or business cards, if you provide them
• Now, many small businesses neglect to reconcile their monthly bank statements or assume that the bank never makes a mistake. Banks do make mistakes, and you must stay on top of your disbursement to control your cash flow. If you are one of those people who simply can't stand to balance you check book, you can use a bank's standard account reconcilement services for a low monthly price -- $50 to $100 base charge and 5 to 7 cents a check.

No Extra Money in Your Bank Account

Many businesses make the mistake of keeping too much money in their bank accounts to pay for bank services. This money could be used more effectively elsewhere -- such as to pay off a loan or to invest at a more competitive rate. Many businesses have no idea how much money to leave in the bank or what alternatives they have to compensate the bank. Take some time to find out what your minimum balance needs to be.

Get an Account Analysis Statement

How do you know how much money (bankers refer to this as "balances") to leave in your checking account to pay for bank's services? That's a question that more business owners should be asking themselves.

• First, get a price list which shows how much your bank charges for services like account maintenance, checks deposited, checks paid, stop payments and wire transfers.
• Ask the bank to send you a monthly "Account Analysis Statement." The analysis statement contains the average balance levels for the month -- both the ledger and the available balance -- as well as a listing of services used, their transaction volumes and cost. This statement should be obtained in addition to the regular monthly bank statement.
• Look at the account analysis to see whether you are overcompensating the bank. Then pull out any excess funds and invest them in a high-yielding money market mutual fund, for example.

A word of advice: Smaller banks may not know what you are talking about when you ask for an account analysis. Larger banks often offer such a statement, but you have to ask for it. And don't let them charge you for this kind of statement since it is only an invoice.

Inventory is Not Cash

Every item you have sitting on your shelf should eventually be transformed into cash in your bank account, and the sooner the better. As long as it's inventory, it's basically dead weight. If it is not moving, you're not having cash flow.

Here are six recommendations to minimize the cost of your inventory:

• Attempt to forecast as accurately as you can the day, week and month what you expect to sell. There is software for this.
• If you are dealing in more than one item, determine which item accounts for 80% of your sales. Then minimize ordering other items that are selling poorly or infrequently.
• Determine how fast you can get inventory, once you order it. Try to order as late as you can. Some firms can use "just-in-time" inventory which enables them to receive their order the day they need it.
• Determine your economic order quantity and don't order too much inventory just to save a few pennies.
• Shop around and make sure you are getting competitive prices.
• Develop a policy for determining obsolete inventory, and how you can get rid of it. The best way to get rid of dead inventory is to sell it whatever you can get for it, even if that's only 10 percent of what you paid for it. At least it will generate cash flow.

Don't Forget Continuity Sales

Once of the most exceptional ways of controlling and improving cash flow well into the future is by employing something called continuity of sales or services.
Continuity sales are simply a contract to purchase products or services on an installment basis for a fixed period of time.

The best example of a continuity sale is a magazine subscription. 12, 24, or 36 issues delivered each month for X amount of dollars. The bigger the subscription, they better deal you get. The publisher gets more money up front, and the customer gets a better deal in the long run. Continuity can apply to anything.

Let's say you own a dry cleaning business. How about an annual deal to clean 5 shirts or blouses per week for set amount of money? Get people to pay your for the entire week up front for a lot of fast cash flow. You'll trade a discount for getting business, but you'll ensure a steady cash flow for months to come. Continuity works with just about any kind of product or service you are offering, from dry cleaning to our personal consulting service.

You can structure payments for continuity sales on almost any basis, but it's best by far to go for complete payment up front. After all, the discount is based on a customer's commitment, and they'll be a lot more committed with their money on the line.

Healthy Solutions Program - Get Healthy From The Inside Out!

Healthy Solutions is a path to a powerful relationship with your body, food and exercise. Coaching is an opportunity that few have experienced and yet so many acknowledge the wisdom of it!

Everything we want to accomplish with our health first needs to happen internally. Do you sense the truth here, but prefer not look at it? This program is for people who are finally ready to look. If you have tried everything, if you are convinced there is not a quick fix, sign up for this program. This program is for courageous people. This program is for people who do not quit.

I have been teaching health principals for several years and know one thing for a fact:
“Your habits, thoughts, language, memories and your personality have everything to do with your health! All of which have the capacity and tendency to change and grow. You have the power to start choosing rather than being at the effect of this natural tendency to change and grow!”

In the Healthy Solutions TM Group Coaching Program, you will:

 Create your own meal and exercise program
 Establish specific measurable goals and a plan to achieve them
 Study, investigate and learn about nutrition and health
 Handle un-addressed health concerns
 Uncover un-investigated stories that are persisting your health issues
 Discover what is true and what is not in regards to your health
 Identify situations that are likely to get in the way of your plan and create strategies
 Learn to be sourced by the future rather than the past
 Tap into resources
 Forgiveness ; “heavy thoughts make you heavy” “un-easy thoughts create dis-ease”
 Improve Body image
 Having and being enough
 Keeping your word as well as giving it!
 Being Consistent
 Judging and assessing
 Being athletic
 Vision and action
 Play!
 Personal power versus manipulation
 Fear or love motivation
 Faith
 Gratitude

This program takes 25-assignments/ weeks to complete. The cost is $180 per month (4 sessions) for six to eight months. A physical prior to starting this program is a requirement. Permission from a doctor to participate must be received by 1st session of program.

During your first few sessions, you will develop a plan to aspire to, just drop the perfectionist attitude now! We will put in place actions that are systematic and repetitive. Exercise is a natural outcome and result of being healthy. You will do exercise purely for health reasons, not for a great looking body. We will work on being healthy together; you will create your exercise program.

This is really where your program begins, you see most of us know exactly why we have the results we have. So, why don’t we do something about it? The resignation runs so deep; we just cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel.

In this program, you will get to the root of what stops you. You will confront your entire relationship to food, your body and your overall well-being. You will see that your entire identity is going to have to transform for your body and health to change.

This is where one coaching call per week as well as one call with your program buddy for 25 weeks come in. As you might have guessed, this is going to take something beyond money and time. This will take perseverance. It is much easier to ignore our health rather than pay attention to it.

If as a group, we do not complete each week’s assignment, we may not advance to the following week.

If you choose to do this program, expect to be challenged in every way. You will love and hate your coach. You will win and fail! You will experience every imaginable emotion. You might miss the calls and/or avoid your buddy. You will forget why you are doing this and your group will remind you. Your coach and group will be your commitment when you have forgotten yours. Sometimes you will feel like quitting. Your coach and your group will demand that you keep your word and that you see yourself as the healthy, successful person that you already are!

May Coaching Tip

Powerful Questioning is at the core of effective coaching. With one caveat—understand that asking a question that is appropriate to the emotional state, learning style, timing and situation is as important as the actual question. This takes effective listening, skill and practice.

Elements of a great question:
· They are clear and direct.
· They are non-judgmental.
· They are transparent—no motive.
· They are real and have the best interest of the employee in mind.
· They are inquisitive and keep the employee thinking and in curiosity.
· They are based in the present and keep the employee in the ‘here and now’ versus the ‘why’.

Why ask questions instead of give directions?
· Your answers are old answers and they work for you, not the person you are coaching.
· If you ask questions, people will self-discover and take responsibility for their results. People really do like their own ideas better!

Why All This Talk of Coaching Employees Rather Than Managing?

For years, there have been managers. Why now the change to a coach? The two main reasons are:

* Global Competition
* Technology

Issues cannot continue to be passed up the ladder, sometimes taking days for a decision. Decisions need to be made quickly because the consumer today is more demanding.

Thanks to technology information is now easily available to us, and there is lots of it. With all the information available today, the manager can no longer be expected to have all the answers. On the other hand, in a coaching role, you are not expected to have all the answers. In a coaching role, you ask the questions and rely on your staff, who become the experts, to provide the information.

The result of global competition and the increased information is that managers now must become coaches.

A job description of a manager…
"controls, directs and supervises the day to day operations."

A job description of a coach would be…
"to lead, motivate, create a vision, and teach staff the skills needed to empower them to help make us a successful and profitable company."

A real difference in the two descriptions!

You cannot manage men into battle.

You manage things; you lead people."

--Grace Murray Hopper

What happens if managers and companies do not change? They will not survive. They will not attract the talent they need as employees no longer will conform to complying with the orders issued by managers. Today's employees are more educated and need to see the whole picture and more importantly feel as if they have an impact on the whole.

Top seven reasons smart business owners have an organizational chart

As a small business coach, I have most certainly heard every conceivable argument against having an organizational chart, from “we are a team here” to “organizational charts are all about power and control” and everything in between. What about why you should have one? As a small business, it is a good idea to have a future organizational chart as well as current one. Yes, even if you only have a few employees. Here is why:

1. Creating an organizational chart usually leads to better role descriptions and ease of accountability. An organizational chart diminishes ambiguity around who is accountable for what.
2. You will have a hiring strategy versus waiting till you have to have someone.
3. When people know what they are accountable for and to whom, they are empowered to be responsible for their part.
4. When people can see what future roles will be available they can see a future in the business and will less likely feel like they are in a dead end job.
5. Employees will have a gap between their current skill set and the one needed to fill future roles.
6. Clear job roles and lines of accountability increase the chance of appropriate communication to someone who can make a difference with issues.
7. You can strategically design an organization that allows you some freedom and even better, your employees can see your vision.


Sound good? So, where do you start? Begin with the end in mind or at least a few years down the road.

Close your eyes and imagine that it's _____ (fill in the year). You and your team have built a great business. This business allows you to take time away and provides you with a fabulous income. You are no longer the bottleneck of the business; day-to-day activities are done without you. You only hold a few key roles accountable.

Now, ask yourself what revenue are you on track for?

What roles will be full time in 20_ _ (three years from now)?
What roles will you have let go of by then?
What roles will have to be split up?
Who are your key reports?
What roles would be better off outsourced?
How will you measure the success of each role?
What is each role accountable for?

Using a blank sheet of paper (or go to Microsoft Word) and the title cheat sheet at end of these instructions, start with your projected revenue in 3 years. Based on that level of production, utilizing what you know about operating costs and salaries currently, what roles are needed and wanted? Draw them on the paper or add boxes in the word document. You are obviously guessing a bit and that is okay. This can be tweaked as you think things through and grow your business.

Avoid the following:
· Names of people (just put the role down).
· Having more than three key reports.
· Having one person in charge of everyone.
· Overstating the job title, the job title should be appropriate to the job level and scope of work.
· Adding more people than the business can afford.

Now that you have a three-year chart …back into two years and then create the two-year chart and the one-year chart.

This is not a one-time exercise, it should be revisited at a minimum annually to tweak and revise as you grow your business.

See sample org charts and job titles provided. For more on organizational strategy visit our podcast to listen to our strategic planning course.

Alicia Marie Fruin
Business Owner, Coach, Trainer

www.profitconsultingco.podbean.com

Language - Getting the full picture

There is an old saying that a picture paints 1,000 words. When clients, colleagues, partners or staff paint you a picture, it pays to listen very carefully as they are presenting you the opportunity to understand, predict and influence their behavior. The picture they paint will often come in the form of a metaphor.

Metaphors are stimulated by the imagination and reflect a lot about the person’s thoughts, beliefs and feelings in just a few words. The exciting thing about recognizing and responding to metaphors is that you can understand and then motivate change with similarly few words. You first listen for the metaphor and you respond to what is being said using this same metaphor.

Let’s look at an example of how this may be applied. You are talking to someone who is facing a challenge when they say to you, "It's a tough situation, I feel like I have been dealt a pretty ordinary hand." You recognize the metaphor and respond by saying, "Good card players can win, even with an ordinary hand."

In a few words you have made a huge difference for this person. You have opened up the canvas to use another metaphor, and they will most likely see a range of possibilities where before they saw none.

Thoughts, feelings and beliefs are powerful in terms of their effect on our behavior. Language is the exciting medium through which you get to influence these thoughts, feelings and beliefs, and therefore the resulting behavior.

Another great seminar we highly recommend!

New Year's Resolution 2009: Find the Work You Love

Are you simply going through the motions of getting up and going to work every day?
What if you discovered... a way to make work feel less like work and more like fun?

What if you found a way... to take who you are and what you love to do, and turn that into your profession?

What if, instead of dreading Monday... you were excited to start your week?

Now is the perfect time to transform your career and start looking forward to Mondays!

Find the Work You Love Workshop

Who Should Attend?
Anyone who has been contemplating a career change, but doesn't know how or where to get started.

What to Expect:
A day of learning and discovery in a fun, casual, and supportive atmosphere.

LEARN HOW TO:
Get clear on what you want
Address and remove common obstacles that hold people back
Create an action plan that gets you moving in the right direction
Get support through the career-changing process
What Else Do I Get?
A free 30 minute pre-workshop assessment with Ken. This is Ken's opportunity to get to know you and your professional goals prior to being introduced into the group setting.

To Register:
This workshop is unlike any other career-oriented event you've ever attended... seats will fill up fast. Reserve your space!

If you have additional questions or would like more information, please call Ken at
(512) 373-8891 or email
Ken@DigYourWork.com

Count Me In Leadership Institute

Count Me In believes that entrepreneurship equals leadership. In these precarious times, as financial and corporate institutions are shaken to their core, it’s small businesses that are leading the way toward national economic recovery.
So what does it take to be an entrepreneurial leader? In business and in life it takes part vision and discipline, part intellect and intuition, part creativity and tenacity, part risk-taker and earth-shaker, and lots of courage, confidence and commitment. It takes you living and playing at your very best.
Because we believe in the power of women entrepreneurs, we’ve created the Count Me In Leadership Institute to help you nurture and enhance that power to successfully grow your business and yourself. We’ve selected topics that are critical to helping you maximize your resources and expand your knowledge base. And we’ve created an environment that is perfect for peer-to peer networking with other women entrepreneurs just like you.

So join us from December 8th at 5:00 p.m. to December 10th at 1:00 p.m. at the Westin Resort & Spa in Hollywood FL, and discover the leader you were born to be.

Workshops
· Select, Hire and Retain Top Talent – Alicia Marie Fruin
· How to Position Your Business for Sale and Profit – Bill Dueease & Mary Beth Shewan
· Let’s Get Friendly … With Your Financials – Ellen Rohr & Libby Ladu
· Social Media: Viral, Buzz, Blogs and more – Jeff Newelt
· The Power of Why – Simon Sinek
· Give Me 5: Access for Women to Federal Contracts – Barbara Kasoff
· Email and Online Marketing – Lisa Sparks
· Plus Business Update presentations, an Expert Panel, and an evening of Creative Expressions.

Registration:
$349 for Leadership Institute, including all workshops, group sessions, materials and 5 meals.
$399 for Leadership Institute and the Make Mine a Million $ Business competition on 12/11/08.
Companion Discount - $100 off after the first full registration for partners or employees from the same business.

For details, registration, workshop descriptions and instructor profiles go to
www.makemineamillion.org/events

Find the Work You Love!

This is a great workshop and we highly recommend it if you are considering a career change:

Find the Work You Love!

Join us for a full day of career-focused creativity and motivation that will give you:

• Clarity
• A Plan of Action
• A Support System

It's time to transform your career and start looking forward to Mondays!

Find the Work You Love

DATE:
Saturday, November 15th, 2008

TIME:
9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

LOCATION:
One Highland Center
314 E. Highland Mall Blvd., Suite 403
Austin, TX 78752

COST:
*$149.00(*Register early and save!)

**Lunch and beverages will be provided

Who Should Attend?

Anyone interested in defining a career that suits them completely.

This workshop is ideal for people who are ready to take the next step in their professional life, but don't yet have the necessary tools or a plan that will propel them forward with purpose.

What to Expect:

A day of learning and discovery in a fun, casual, and supportive atmosphere.

Be prepared to laugh, share, and gain insight into your ideal work environment. You'll learn how to focus your attention on what you really want and build upon the strengths and talents you already possess that will set you up for long term success.

You'll walk away with a greater sense of clarity and an action plan designed to guide you through amazing career changes, one step at a time.

What Else Do I Get?

In addition to your day of discovery, you'll get a free 30 minute pre-workshop assessment with Ken.

This is Ken's opportunity to get to know you and your professional goals prior to being introduced into the group setting.

To Register:

This workshop is unlike any other career-oriented event you've ever attended... seats will fill up fast.*

Call us to reserve your space!
(512) 373-8891 or email
Ken@DigYourWork.com


*Registration closes November 7th


SAVE $50
It pays to register early!

Reserve your seat by Friday, October 24, 2008 for the upcoming Find the Work You Love workshop and you save $50.00 off the price of admission!

Am I an Entrepreneur?

Businesses fail, and often. If you think you want to run your own business, but are not sure you can be a successful Entrepreneur, I am glad you are thinking about it… keep reading. How does an Entrepreneur think, act, and respond? Is your personality a fit for being a successful Entrepreneur? Do you have what it takes?

Until recently, Entrepreneurs were not well thought of. As recent as the 80’s we looked on them as un-educated business men involved in shady dealings. There was a general lack of knowledge and information about what makes them successful.

Big business was the place to be, now that’s all changed. Our generation and the ones after us expect so much more from our career / work than our parents did. We want money, satisfaction, self expression and flexible hours such as a 4 day work week and tele-commuting. We have more small businesses than ever before in our U.S. history. In addition, smaller businesses are now attracting great employees and competing with the corporate world by offering those employees exactly what they want.

Today we have books, courses and business coaches in abundance. Some universities now offer courses and degrees in entrepreneurship. Business professionals have vast resources and as a whole we have learned a lot about what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur. I realize there is probably no such thing as the perfect entrepreneurial profile, I have noticed that there are many characteristics that seem to show up repeatedly in my work as a business coach. So from my work with hundreds of entrepreneurs as a coach and trainer, this is my summary.

Successful Entrepreneurs are, have or do

Available- In small businesses, where there is no depth of management, the owner must be present to win. They can’t afford a support staff to cover all business roles, and therefore need to either work long hours; have very talented people or both.

Self-Motivated-Entrepreneurs do not function well in structured organizations and do not like someone having authority over them. Rules, bureaucracy and politics frustrate them. This is often what leads them to start their own business. They enjoy creating business strategies and thrive on the process of achieving their goals. Once they obtain a goal, they quickly move to a greater goal. They constantly look to the future vision of the business. They have a compelling drive to do their own thing in their own way. They value freedom over money.

Well- Being- Successful Entrepreneurs are physically sound and in good health. They can work for extended periods of time as needed. They understand the relationship between a healthy body and a sharp mind.

Practical-Pragmatic- Entrepreneurs can accept what is and what is not and deal with issues accordingly. They may or may not be idealistic, but they are rarely unrealistic. They want to know the facts and condition of a given situation at all times. They may be too trusting (because they are often idealist) and may not be sufficiently skeptical in their business dealings with other people.

Embrace Ambiguity - Entrepreneurs identify problems and begin working on their solution faster than other people. Uncertainty does not bother them because their Healthy Ego feels challenged and likes to solve problems. They are the natural “go to” person in the group or business.

Intelligence - Successful Entrepreneurs think fast on their feet. They can comprehend complex problems and circumstances that may require planning, strategy, or working on multiple business ideas at once. They have vision and are aware of important factors to consider. They are open minded and will consider different perspectives. They seem flexible and are not afraid to change direction when failing.

Healthy Ego- Entrepreneurs are confident when they feel in control of what they're doing and often like to work alone. They tackle problems head on and quickly with confidence. They are persistent in problem solving and are not afraid of smart risks. They do well with adversity, because they thrive on their own level of confidence. Someone saying or thinking they can’t pull it off doesn’t bother them at all.

Urgency- Entrepreneurs have a sense of urgency. They have drive and high energy levels, they are achievement-oriented, and they are tireless in the pursuit of their goals. Idleness makes them impatient, on edge, and anxious. They thrive on activity and are not likely to be found at the nail salon or golf course. When they are in the entrepreneurial mode, they are more likely to be found getting things done instead of all the other “to-do’s”.

Emotional Stability- Successful Entrepreneurs can handle stress and are even having fun! They are challenged rather than discouraged by setbacks or failures. Entrepreneurs are surprisingly uncomfortable when things are going well. This is when they will probably find a new project on which to focus their creative energy.

Ability to let go-Entrepreneurs are not always the best “people” people. They are often impatient and drive themselves and everyone around them. They also resist delegating key decisions or responsibilities. My favorite coaching question for the Entrepreneur is “who can help you with this?” It shakes them up every time. It is not uncommon for the Entrepreneur to do the books, drive business development and buy the office supplies.

As the business grows and becomes an organization, Entrepreneurs go through a classic crisis (this is usually when they call us). They have become the bottle neck; their want for control has made it hard for them to hand over authority in the way that a growing business demands. Their strong direct approach makes them more likely to seek information directly from the source, bypassing the structured chains of authority and responsibility. Their interpersonal skills, which were adequate during the start-up phase, will cause them problems as they try to adjust and free themselves from the day to day operations. Cash flow, retention and low morale are symptoms of this issue.

Do you recognize yourself? Did you locate your likely strengths as an Entrepreneur? Did you identify potential barriers to your success? Awareness matters here. Focus on your strengths, be aware of your weaknesses and go for it!

Author Alicia Fruin--Owner of Profit Consulting Co., Alicia has become a leader in the field of coaching, consulting and training for small business. She has designed more than 80 custom training programs for hundreds of business owners in a variety of industries across the country. In addition, Alicia has coached managers, presidents and sales professionals on how to build a business truly worth having! http://www.profitconsultingco.com/

Does your staff cooperate or collaborate with you?

As small business owners we move fast, change course and shift gears daily. Operating a small business demands that we have the ability to be flexible and change as needed. What about our employees? How flexible do they need to be? How informed? How engaged in the success of the business? How do we know they are aligned with us and the business vision?

Sometimes we overlook informing, including, asking or collaborating with our employees. We are often satisfied with cooperation from our employees, unaware of what is possible if we instead were in collaboration with our employees.

“A leader is someone who steps back from the entire system and tries to build a more collaborative, more innovative system that will work over the long term.”--Robert Reich

Here are some great ways to start collaborating with your staff:

Know the vision for the business, share the vision often.
Include them often in the planning for the business referencing the vision.
Work on not just in the business with them.
Tie in daily tasks or monthly projects with the overall business vision.
Create and measure goals against the vision with your staff.
Report in on goals with your staff and/or have them report in on their goals.
Start asking great questions of staff instead of telling staff what to do.
Start asking your staff for solutions that you are really trying to solve, take their advice sometimes. Let them know you did.
Let them set the agenda and run the meeting.
Create and post a visual organization chart that shows future roles (do not include names).
Have very clear roles and responsibilities for each staff member.
Change your language to “we." Speak about business in terms of we, not “I” or “my.” For example instead of saying, “I need this on my desk by tonight” say, “We need this one and have a deadline of 5pm today can you get it done?”
Do evaluations of job performance in a timely way.
Have raises, bonuses and incentives based on company performance as well as the individual.
Become a great manager. Read books and go to seminars as well as get feedback from your employees on how you could do better.

What are the potential costs of no collaboration?

If the employee is not in tune with the business goals they will have difficulty prioritizing and focusing on what is important.
If the employee does not know what is going on, they will make up stories, causing unnecessary miscommunication and hard feelings.
If they only have half the information they may feel insecure thinking that the company is failing or their job is in jeopardy.
When we don’t allow and ask for their opinions and suggestions, we miss the perspective our staff may be able to contribute. We also inadvertently send the message that what they think doesn’t matter. Poor performance is directly linked to employees feeling powerless to affect change in the business or in their current role.
Employees will not stay in step with the vision for the business, they will be “I” focused instead of “we” focused .They will not be able to see where their job role fits into the business vision.
We will likely lose touch with what is important to our employees, will not know how to incentivize and morale will deteriorate.

Being Creative and Encouraging Innovation in your Business

“Creativity can solve almost any problem. The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality overcomes everything.” George Lois

When running your own small business, we are often called to be creative and innovative. Without this ability, I have discovered it is nearly impossible to be successful, let alone stay afloat. This innovative and creative spirit is especially important to small business owners because they do not have the kind of budgets the big corporations can play with. Small business owners are required to craft new and innovative ways to get the most “bang for their buck” whether that be refurbishing old unsuccessful projects into successful ones, cutting costs without cutting corners, and of course, thinking of new ways of marketing or boosting sales.

While most of the small business owners I work with do embody this innovative spirit, they often forget to foster this spirit throughout their company. To run efficiently and productively as possible, they need their entire team to be on the same creative page.

In Adrian Brown’s “Creativity & Innovation” he highlights five characteristics that he has observed in creative organizations. All of which I believe are important not just for large corporations, but especially for small business. They are:

“Information is free flowing: Creativity is partially about making new connections. For example: applying a familiar technology to a completely new application.”
“New ideas are welcomed: It is easy for individuals and companies to become stuck in its ways. Habitual behaviors, a rigid adherence to “best practices and groupthink can all act as barriers to new ideas
“Good ideas are nurtured: New ideas are delicate and can easily be killed off with an executive shrug or simply a lack of care and attention”….
“Risk taking is accepted”: “Experimentation and innovation involve some failures along the way. Risk taking doesn’t mean being reckless, rather it means understanding the risk/reward relationship and taking calculated risks where the potential rewards are valuable.”
“Innovators are rewarded: Creativity is hard to measure and can often be ignored by compensation and reward systems.” However, often it is enough to publicly recognize creativity with a simple thank you for a job well done, believe it or not, this sends a powerful message through your organization.
It helps to remember “you are not alone.” Remember, it is important to not only tap into your own creativity; but also your staff or team’; you may be surprised at the ideas they may have to boost your business!

If you are looking for more ways to develop your personal creativity, or that of your team, I recommend that you enroll in an online course that is part of Profit Consulting Co.’s “Creativity & Innovation” program. This convenient and easy to use program expands on Brown’s major themes and provides interactive exercises, additional readings, and offers learners hands-on exercises to spur personal creativity.

This is just one of the many programs of study we have recently added to our website! (http://www.profitconsultingco.com/). We also feature courses in Business Communications, Leadership, Finance, and Management. These courses are affordably priced, 100% web based and in a self-study format allowing you to improve your creative, business, or management skills at your own convenience.