I recently ran a webinar as part of my Biz Building Webinar series on – Time Management, which presented 21 strategies on how to gain 5 hours back in your week.

As women in business, I'm sure we can all relate to hectic schedules where we have to juggle a multitude of tasks. To get everything done we often resort to burning the candle at both ends. I know – I've been there myself.

If you're struggling to find enough time in your day or if you're feeling stressed and anxious, I encourage you to watch this short video. Take back control of your schedule – your business's growth depends on it.

So which strategies will you adopt?

I’m currently in week three of the 9-week Fast Video Results course, which I’m thoroughly enjoying! Check out my first video creation here – I’m quite impressed with how it turned out, if I do say so!

Anyway, this week we have to get in front of the camera and start filming ourselves, and to be honest, I’m a little hesitant to do so. The thought of having to watch myself while I’m editing the footage is something that I really don’t want to do.

Even with my radio show (that I’ve co-hosted for the last two years) I could count the number of times that I’ve listened to even a small part of a show on one hand, as I don’t really like listening to the sound of my own voice.

I know that I’m going to have to ‘deal’ with this pronto and confront whatever reasons that are holding me back, as I’m not going to progress as best I can in the video course if I’m hesitant to get in front of the camera.

Three words that I find very motivating are the words Nike using as their brand statement – ‘Just do it!’ Stop judging myself, stop aiming for perfection and just work towards completion. Just do it! Just do it! Just do it! That’s going to be my mantra as I move forward!

What about you? Is there something that you’ve been avoiding that you just need to go out and DO! Remember, completion NOT perfection. JUST DO IT!

[Twitter tip] “Stop comparing yourself to your competitors. Measure & look to expand YOUR personal best.”

Last week my above tweet generated quite a few responses from my community all of whom agreed that this statement was an important reminder to stop assessing their business’s success by using their competitors’ performance as a benchmark.

Comparing our businesses to our competitors is something that I’m sure we’ve all done at one time or another. Competitor comparison as part of your market research during your business planning phase is often suggested as it allows you to identify how you can differentiate yourself in the marketplace.

However, if you find that you’re constantly comparing yourself to your competitors by regularly visiting their website, their Facebook Business Page or blog, scanning their newsletters, reading their Twitter posts, and watching the conversation they’re having with their community etc with a frame of mind of competing and trying to ‘out-do’ them, you’ll find this will become soul destroying and can cripple your business’s growth.  

Don’t fall victim to the ‘competitor comparison trap’ – instead measure yourself against these 5 key components that relate to YOU to enable YOU to continually expand YOUR personal best.

Component 1: Your Knowledge

‘Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune.’

Jim Rohn’s statement is certainly appropriate.

Ongoing expansion of your knowledge and expertise is extremely important for all ambitious entrepreneurs.

Many industries continue to experience changes and advancement and to ensure your skills, knowledge and expertise are always at the forefront of these changes it’s important to continue your knowledge growth.

• Do you schedule professional development opportunities into your business calendar?
• Are you part of a mastermind group of like-minded business owners who can support you?
• Do you have a mentor with whom you meet regularly – someone who continues to challenge, stretch and encourage you to expand, grow and evolve?

Component 2: Your Self-Belief

It saddens me when I see amazing, talented women business owners who have so much to offer, block their business’s growth because of unhelpful habits and barriers, which is often because of a lack of belief in themselves and what they have to offer.

The words of one of my business mentors echo loudly for me when she says “Who you are is reflected in your business results, daily.”

So what do your business results reflect about you?  

• Do you recognise the strengths and talents you offer your clients and the value you bring, or do you constantly find yourself making excuses such as “Oh it’s nothing, anyone can do that”.
• Do you have amazing goals for your business; however things just keep getting in the way, preventing you from ever achieving what it is that you really want?
• Do you have bold money goals that you’re so committed to achieving, however that inner voice is constantly in the background raising an element of doubt that you’ll ever really achieve it?

Component 3: Your Reputation (Brand)

Your reputation and your brand are the lifeblood of your business and should therefore be managed with the utmost of care and precision.

Everything you do, write and say reflects on you and your brand. Do it inappropriately and unprofessionally – you may as well give out the contact details of your competitors right now as that’s where your prospects will end up. [Would you invest in someone who was acting in poor taste?]

• Have you got a strong brand message that you are regularly portraying through all your communications whether it be in print, video or in person?
• Are you communicating your brand in a consistent and professional way that powerfully connects with prospects and clients?
• Are you constantly looking for ways that you can continue to bring your brand message out to a larger audience? And, are you regularly communicating your brand with your existing community through blogs, articles or video posts?

Component 4: Your Relationships

It’s a well-known fact. People recommend and do business with people they know, like, and trust – so how do you measure up on the likeability scale?

Building and nurturing your relationships with your database, your Twitter followers, your Facebook friends, your Linkedin connections etc should be an important part of your business-building endeavours and something you should continue to monitor on a daily basis.

• Are you taking regular action that results in people joining your tribe and community?
• Are you adopting an approach of regularly sharing valuable information with your community with no expectations in return?
• When interacting and connecting with your community – how are you showing up? Are you doing so in a way that is positive and inspiring to ensure you continue to strengthen your relationships?

Component 5: Your Marketing & Sales Skills

While it’s important to maintain your level of excellence in what you do and offer to your clients, another crucial area that you need to become skilled at is in your marketing and sales abilities.

Even if you offer the best products and/or services that can support your clients in achieving results that are beyond their wildest dreams, if no-one knows about you, or you struggle in promoting and selling your products and services, you’ll find it very difficult to generate a level of income that will sustain your business’s growth.

• Do you have a solid marketing plan in place that schedules solid marketing strategies and action taking on a daily basis? And, does your marketing plan include both offline (face-to-face) and online (social media) networking?
• Does your website copy and your conversation continue to market your offerings in a way that allows your prospects to understand the value they will receive when they invest in you?
• Do you feel comfortable when having sales conversations with your prospects?
• Have you got a solid process in place to help you respond to that dreaded question “So, what do you charge?” so that you don’t blow an amazing opportunity to show your prospect what they can achieve through working with you?

Tracking and monitoring these five components in your business will be far more authentic and empowering as you continue to grow your business, and will certainly be noticeable and far more appealing AND influential to your community of followers, your prospects and your existing clients.

Here’s to expanding YOUR personal best!

One of the branding programs I take clients through (the ‘Unearth Your Brilliance’ program) incorporates a section: Branding with Archetypes, which enables them to put their heart and soul into their brands by discovering their Primary and Influencing Archetypes.

It’s powerful information that not only provides amazing insight into your authentic and unique brand; it also identifies your natural gifts and talents as well as areas of weakness that can impact your business’s growth.

Anyway, my Primary Archetype is the Explorer (we love to support our clients in discovering their unique brilliance and originality) and my Influencing Archetype is the Ruler (which empowers leadership, prosperity and success in others).

As a Ruler Archetype I also love to create order and therefore value having systems and processes in place to keep me focused and on track.

I was reminded this week of how powerfully my Ruler Archetype shows up for me in my business, when I began to feel quite overwhelmed by the number of projects I was involved in. After stepping back and observing the situation from a distance, I was able to see that the reason I was feeling overwhelmed was because I had no system or structure in place to help me manage my hectic project schedule.

As soon as I recognised this, I created a Powerful Bold Goal for each of the projects I was working on. This is a tool I use which allows me to get totally clear on what I am working on, as well as the steps that will support me in achieving my goal.

[I’ll be speaking more about this powerful tool in upcoming newsletters and within my soon-to-be–launched Rubies: Biz Acceleration Coaching Club. For all of you who have a little of the Ruler Archetype in you and therefore need systems and processes to keep you focused and on track – you’ll love the Powerful Bold Goal tool.

Here’s to setting up systems and processes to keep you on track and focused!

You’ve spent countless hours creating your program/service offering; your promotional material has been circulated; your sales webpage promoting your new program is live (and looking extremely impressive); and you’ve spoken to a number of your connections who you know could benefit from participating in the program. However despite all the effort you’ve put into this entire process – no-one has made a purchase. Is this something you can relate to? If you’ve answered yes – you’re certainly not alone.

Sadly, even though you may have the best program in the world that can support your clients in achieving amazing results, there is no guarantee that you’ll have people flocking to your door with their credit card poised ready to invest in your services.

Before you develop another program or service offering ensure you have the following five steps in place to support you in transforming your prospects into raving clients.

Step 1: Identify the level of demand for your program/service offering

Despite the fact that YOU know your program/service offering would be of great benefit to your clients, have you researched:

• whether your target market recognises they are facing issues and genuinely want to overcome their struggles
• the size of your prospective market, and
• whether your target market has a history of investing in the type of solutions you offer.

Before you even begin to develop your program it’s imperative to identify whether there is a large enough market and whether your prospect is willing to part with their hard-earned dollars to invest in you.

Further investigation may confirm that despite their desperate need for your support, an ingrained ‘culture’ will see them continue their struggle rather than choosing to invest in your program and overcome their issues.

Targeting a market that requires repeated convincing that they need your service will only lead to a decline in your energy, your sanity and your hip pocket, so it’s important to identify a market that has a high level of demand AND a willingness to invest in your services.

Step 2: Pinpoint your target market’s needs

If I were to ask you to describe your target market could you identify their demographics, their needs, what keeps them up at night and where they hang out, etc?

It’s imperative to have an intimate knowledge of your target market, including:

Answer the above questions to create a thorough profile of your ideal customer so that you can accurately pinpoint your target market’s needs. This information will support you in creating your marketing plan, your webpage sales/marketing copy as well as helping you locate the best place to connect with and get your message in front of them.

• The problems/issues they are experiencing
• The words and phrases they use to describe their issues
• The type of support/solutions they are typically looking for
• The pricing point they are willing to/can invest
• The language/triggers that will catch their attention and prompt them to want to learn more about your services

Step 3: Get clear on your brand

With the increasing number of competitors in the marketplace it’s important to have a clearly-defined brand that showcases your expertise and the benefits your clients can expect from working with you, in order to stand out from the crowd.

Do you know what your strengths are and what makes you unique? Do you continue to present this information in an influential and powerful way? It’s important to create a strong brand that is memorable and magnetic and enables you to be recognised as an expert and leader in your field to continue attracting your ideal client.

Remember an inconsistent brand message can cause prospects to become confused and a confused prospect will often say no. Don’t set yourself up to receive a ‘no’ to your offer because you are sending a weak and incoherent brand message.

Step 4: Grow Your List

Thriving businesses state that one of the most important elements that has enabled them to secure their wealth and success is building their list. In fact, one of my mentors often states ‘the money is in your list’.

Are you actively building your list? Do you have a process in place that prompts clients to hand over their email address and other contact details to you?
Consider offering prospects a free report or a video and/or audio series that provides valuable content. In order to access these resources your prospect is required to provide you with their email, thus adding their details to your list. [Step 5 explains how you can continue to leverage your list.]

Step 5: Build Your Relationships

Do you have a regular newsletter that enables you to remain in contact with your list of existing customers and prospects? Are you consistently taking the time to not only strengthen the relationship but also continue to portray your knowledge and expertise by providing informative practical tips?

Remember, people do business with people they know, like and trust and consistent communication with your list is a fantastic way to build a solid relationship. It often takes several communications before a prospect is ready to make a purchasing decision so sending a regular newsletter that provides useful information is a great way to strengthen your relationships while continuing to showcase your knowledge and expertise.

Are you adopting all five steps in your business to support you in transforming your prospects into clients – especially Step 1 and 2 before you even begin developing your new programs/service offerings? If you’ve answered yes, congratulations! If not, which step will you start to work on within your business today?

Here are a few articles with some great hints and tips that I tweeted this past week. I’m sure you’ll find some of these useful as you continue to grow your business.

• 21 great ways to get email addresses: http://bit.ly/b5P4nH –> Which is your favorite?
• 51 ways to become a better entrepreneur: http://bit.ly/68ONdg
• 35 Online Tools that make your Freelance Career Easier http://bit.ly/6s9WgH
• 12 Pervasive myths about starting a small business http://bit.ly/68ONdg
• 15 tools for bloggers http://bit.ly/aAbF8n –> Some great resources here
• Why to-do lists are important for an #entrepreneur http://bit.ly/c0Uwq6
• 5 things you must know about creating iPhone apps http://bit.ly/9K3F7y
• Top 10 sources of entrepreneurial nourishment http://bit.ly/cx635r
• 50 things successful people have in common http://bit.ly/czpeOP –> Recognise any of these things?
• The only job you’ll ever have http://bit.ly/9KaEsO –> Pertinent read for an #entrepreneur
• Downsides to working from home http://bit.ly/cgy4bn –> Interesting for aspiring #entrepreneurs. Is this the right choice for you?

I personally love using ‘to do’ lists. They keep me focused and on-track while giving me a real sense of accomplishment when I’m able to cross off a completed task.

What about you? Which article did you find most helpful! Feel free to share your comments – I’d love to hear from you!

To your biz success!

When I first hung out my shingle and began my service-based business I was so excited. Going out of my own, having no-one to answer to other than myself, and being able to support my clients the way I wanted was far more appealing to me than working from 9 to 5 for someone else. However that excitement was short-lived and soon turned to dread when the phone rang and I was greeted with “Hi, I’d like to enquire about your services. So, how much do you charge?”

Back in the early days I responded by explaining my fees to the caller, which I realise now was not the best approach. The reason for this is that as soon as the caller hears the cost they’ll immediately make up their minds (based on their possibly misinformed understanding of the services you provide) about whether they want to work with you.

It’s important to realise that people often make a purchase decision based on emotion – so by answering their question right at the beginning of the conversation you miss the opportunity to build that ‘emotional’ connection, nor can you build credibility, value and desire to work with you.

If this is something you dread too and like me (those many years ago) you respond by stating your prices, you may be missing out on numerous business opportunities.

Here are three simple yet powerful steps that will support you in not only responding to that dreaded question but will also help you to build trust and rapport with your prospect – both vital elements in any sales process.

Step 1: Defer the Question:

Firstly, you need to let the client feel as if you’re not avoiding their question so that they believe their request is important to you, which of course it is. Do this by responding with:

“I’ll be happy to answer your question (name). To ensure that I’m able to recommend the best solution to support you – is it ok if I ask you a few questions?”

This response is vital and will allow you to put their request on hold while you continue to find out important information about the problem/situation with which they are faced. You’ll also have the opportunity to position yourself and your services as a must-have solution to their problems.

Step 2: Research, Reflect and Build Rapport

Next, it’s important to find out about the problems they are experiencing and that prompted them to make contact with you.

Ask the following question, stop talking and continue to listen closely to their story particularly in relation to the words they use to describe their situation and the frustration they are feeling.

“So what is it that prompted you to call me today? What’s going on for you at the moment?”

After the client shares their story and continues to speak it’s important to reflect the information by repeating their words and their emotions back to them throughout the conversation. Doing this also helps to build rapport and trust as you continue to confirm a genuine interest in what they are saying.

For instance: “… I can certainly understand your frustration at spending over $4,000 on your advertisement and only receiving a handful of responses… I agree – it would have been terribly disappointing.”

Step 3: Switch Gear & Show Them the Results

Now is the time to ease the client out of their frustration and begin to create the ideal situation they desire, while building anticipation and the belief that this is achievable for them too, which of course it is!

Create an environment that allows them to feel that they are not alone and demonstrate how you’ve been able to help other people overcome similar problems.

“Well, you’ve come to the right place (name), and you’re certainly not the only person who has had to face this issue. Many of the clients I work with have experienced the exact same things you’re currently facing and have felt the exact same frustration you are currently feeling.”

“In fact one of the clients prior to working with me spent thousands of dollars on advertising and unfortunately didn’t receive anywhere near the response she had hoped for. She’s in my [name] program and in the last few months is generating some amazing results. In the past month alone she’s increased her database by 40%, she’s doubled the number of enquiries she’s receiving, and she’s been able to increase the number of people investing in her programs, all while cutting her advertising costs by 50%. She’s thrilled with the results. From what you’ve told me about your background I’m confident that you’ll be able to generate similar results…  What would it mean to you if you increased your database by 40%, doubled your enquiries and reduced your advertising costs by 50% (name)?”

Then stop talking and listen as your client visualises the impact this type of result would have on their business…

You’ll obviously have to tweak specific details in steps two and three to suit the clients you work with and the services you offer, however using these three simple yet powerful steps will enable you to create an opportunity to build rapport and credibility with your prospect and allow further opportunity for ongoing conversation about your services and how you can support them.

Is this helpful? Pop me a note here on my blog. I’d love to hear from you!

Do you ever have days (or weeks) where things are just so chaotic you don’t know whether you are Arthur or Martha? Well, I’ve been having quite a few of those days – in fact a little more frequently in the last few weeks than what I would like.

I’ve recently had one of my assistants leave due to the distance she was travelling to the office after she had moved to another suburb. Instead of replacing her, I’ve taken on a lot of her tasks myself – because I’ve just been too busy to recruit a new staff member. It’s no wonder that I’ve found myself struggling to cope.

After a few weeks of ‘organised chaos’ I’m now doing something about it as I realise that it was only a matter of time before things start to slip through the cracks – something I definitely don’t want to see happen.

I’ve started to list various tasks that I’d like to outsource; am in the process of reviewing and updating relevant instructions/processes; while also creating an overview of the person (qualities, characteristics and skills) so that he/she can take over those tasks and allow me to free up my time to work on business/program development and other creative business building tasks, which I love!

What about you? Are you avoiding something that you know is not serving you or your business? Perhaps you need to look at hiring another team member to free up your time to work on business building activities? Perhaps you’ve put off addressing an issue that you know is costing you and your business dearly? Or perhaps you’ve been tolerating an ineffective process or under-performing staff member?

If you were to add up the emotional, physical and monetary costs of what that ‘thing’ you are tolerating is really costing you, you may be surprised at how high that cost really is when added up over a week, a month, or even a year.

So, my coache’s request for you this week is to stop tolerating that issue, stare it directly in the face and address it. Doing so will ensure that you can invest your energy and attention into activities that will drive your business forward, rather than keeping you stuck worried and annoyed about that ‘thing’ you were tolerating. I know you can do it! Pop across to my blog and let me know what you’ll be working on! Me? I’ll be sending out requests for new people to join my team!

Have a great fortnight!

Each week I love scouring the internet for informative articles. One of the things I like to do, is to share these articles with my Tweeples and Facebook friends to help them continue to build their business, their credibility and of course their income.

One of the comments I received from one of my dear Facebook friends @Maxine Groves was that she wished that all my Tweets were stored in one place so that she could go back and read them.

What a fantastic idea Maxine!! Here they are – especially for you and for other ambitious women entrepreneurs who love reading practical hints and tips to help them grow their business.

This was my Twitter list for last week – Enjoy!! I’ve highlighted my personal comments by bolding the text.

• Looking to market your business online? http://bit.ly/diJkXv Small Biz Marketing Podcast @CareerRadio
• 16 Top ‘Bang for your buck’ Services for small businesses http://bit.ly/93mjYU –>Which ones are you using?
• Social Media Money Tree Podcast: How to find your dream job and market your business using social media http://bit.ly/diud20
• Six rules for starting a business http://bit.ly/aWZyxC –> Valuable tips here and well worth the read.
• 15 Do it Yourself PR ideas http://bit.ly/bmlP8i I’m doing almost all of them (with others in the pipeline).
• 101 Useful Resources for Entrepreneurs http://bit.ly/cEOwiD –> Amazing list. Well worth checking out.
• Closing techniques http://bit.ly/dvtuRx I like the ‘Bonus’ close. Which is your favorite?
• 7 sites every marketer should keep an eye on http://bit.ly/bMDpYx
• Ongoing professional development is vital. Here are 85 free online business courses http://bit.ly/aQzVKW
• 15 quick pitch tips for kickass presentations http://bit.ly/9laehZ

What do you think? Were any of these helpful? Which article was your favorite – I think each shares golden nuggets we can all implement in our businesses.

Recently, I had the pleasure of being interviewed on Career Moxie Radio about Personal Branding – a topic I am very passionate about.

You can listen to the recording here. During the interview I speak about:

>> What Personal Branding is.
>> Why Personal Branding is so important, whether you are an ambitious Entrepreneur or Executive.
>> How being clear on your Personal Brand can make you more marketable and desirable by a potential client and/or employer.
>> …and much more!

Let me know what you think!

By the way – do you have a powerful and authentic brand that gets you headhunted and hired?