Jul 28 2008
MONEY WOMAN – THE DISCIPLINE OF ENTREPRENEURS
The JF Guest Author Spot
Joan Paul
She is a champion swimmer in a retro bathing suit surrounded by U.S. dollar bills and she is called ‘MONEY WOMAN.’ I bought the poster because the imagery made me laugh. As an entrepreneur in a start up business I thought it would be a good reminder that hard work, practice, persistence and finesse would bring success. It also speaks to me of old fashioned values and beliefs in a new age of marketing techniques and technology. She looks proud, confident and sincere. And she is clearly achieving her dreams.
If ‘money woman’ was competing to win today, she might find it more complex than it was in her time. Entrepreneurs have access to amazing tools to help grow their businesses. There are so many entry points for selling your services now that it can be overwhelming. Have you ever walked out of a shoe store, or a high tech shop because it became so dizzying with choices? You may laugh, but as a business coach, I meet all kinds of entrepreneurs and leaders in corporations who are ‘stuck’ because they don’t know where to begin or how to focus. Too much information, too many tools, too many clients or potential clients, too many bosses, too many people relying on them. Where is the relief? I say it’s in the discipline of applying the basics. Put the blinders on and keep your vision clear. Don’t be distracted by every opportunity that comes your way or all the bright shiny ideas that aren’t critical to your immediate success. When you’ve reached critical milestones, you can look more to the future and longer term goals.
Whether a leader in a large corporation or an independent entrepreneur you can’t sell your ideas, your products, your services if you aren’t focused on a vision that clients and potential customers can relate to and clearly understand. When I see clients visibly relieved and moving past the obstacles that get them stuck in a rut it is usually because:
A. They begin to set goals and milestones that are achievable, taking a building block approach. They keep the long term in mind and focus on short term goals that add up to long term success. Sue, a Sales Manager struggling with the issues of territory assignments, reorganization of her team, increasing profitability and revenue growth got stopped in her tracks because it seemed so big and so daunting. Once Sue was able to prioritize and establish a few related goals, she became incredibly relieved, recognizing that achievement of one goal meant she could move onto the next. Not everything had to be done at once.
B. They have a strategy for achieving goals that are straight-lined and cut out the clutter. For example, you are an entrepreneur with a new service to introduce to the market. There may be 10 effective ways for you to market your new service. Why not choose just one to begin with and do it well before moving onto the next? You can always write an article or attend a conference. Marketing methods don’t disappear just because you are focused on one method at any particular point in time.
C. They DECIDE to set aside the time to work ON their business rather than IN it. AND they stick to their decisions and resist the temptation to put out fires, answer phone calls, and whatever else distracts them from fulfilling their personal commitment to working on their business. I can’t tell you the number of times clients tell me they’ve scheduled their marketing or mentoring time into their calendars because they know how important it is to their business growth, apparently a number one priority. Yet they consistently put the scheduled time aside without a blink of an eye when something that seems pressing enters their line of vision. Would you reschedule an important client if two of your colleagues wanted to chat about a problem? No, you would reschedule your colleagues and not the client. The same should be true for your precious marketing or mentoring time that you so religiously keep putting into your calendar only to delete it. It’s like going to the gym – if you keep finding a reason not to do it, you won’t get fit and the same applies to your business.
D. They employ innovation to their businesses without trepidation – they take risks and free themselves from the usual marketing constraints. For example, I advise women lawyers who are bored with the traditional marketing tactics to take their clients to the spa for a day or have an ‘iron chef’ night for adventuresome clients. If work/life balance is an issue, build marketing into your family activities. Ask clients with children to join you on an outing. Don’t be afraid to break traditions. People are looking for connections and it takes discipline to find the time to build relationships.
My good friend and colleague, George told me he couldn’t be disciplined about anything if his life depended on it. He even hated the notion of discipline and preferred to believe things would just unfold as they should. When George heard the word ‘discipline’ he smelled constraint. George asked for help because his business wasn’t going anywhere and he had no idea why. Once George began to understand the word ‘discipline’ really meant ‘freedom’ he was sold and unstoppable. I put “MONEY WOMAN’ on his office wall for a while and today, after wrestling with putting together simple, practical goals, George’s business has grown 20% in less than one year. I rest my case.
As principal of J. Paul Training Inc., Joan provides Executive Coaching and Corporate Training to professional service firms and corporations in a variety of industries. With over 25 years business experience working with small to Fortune 500 companies in both Canada and the U.S., Joan brings to her work a signature presence in getting results. She is a Sales Strategist, Certified Executive Coach, member of the International Coach Federation and Canadian Professional Sales Association.
Visit Joan’s website: www.jpaultraining.com
Today’s News:
The standard of this week’s nominated articles is extremely high, and I urge you to take a peek - just click on the banner above.
And over on my Sales Managers Mentor Blog, I reveal how I designed my A + S + P + K formula for success.
Finally, here is a great blog post for you:”Is Your Sales Process Adapted To The Internet Era” from Christian Maura.
Tomorrow: Effective communication is one of the secrets of success - you can read my thoughts about it tomorrow
