The last tip of this series was delayed a bit. There just aren't enough hours in the day, right?! Well, in all honesty, I knew that I would be writing this entry late in the night. My day was pretty planned out, all-in-all. Mommy duties put a few hiccups in my schedule but most everything fell within schedule.
So why did the blog get left for the last hours of the night? Because I write more thoughtfully and clearly when I am relaxed and I knew that if I had all the MAJOR tasks done, I would feel relaxed. And therefore more capable of writing a worthy entry...one worth posting! I was aiming for 10 pm, but it's closer to 11 pm now. That's okay. I've learned that when it comes to managing time, there are often days when you have to roll with the punches and just go with the flow. Being an entrepreneur demands flexibility. And so I am. But being flexible isn't just relegated to entrepreneurs. It is a mindset and spirit to be adopted by everyone trying to make a difference in this world, whether a non-profit, a small business, or an individual. I like to call this the Entrepreneurial Era. We live in a time where we all need to think and act much like entrepreneurs. Consider this an invitation to start taking the entrepreneurial approach in life, business, and the pursuit of happiness. So what does that look like exactly?...
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Development of time management skills is essential when you are running your own business. Over the years, I've read nearly every book written on time management. You could say I'm sort of obsessed with the topic. I do actually enjoy reading about the various ways you can carve out time to do the things you need to do. Almost every book I've read has had some relevance to it. When I became a mom, boy!...did that time management knowledge come in handy! I will confess though, there were days where nothing I learned or knew helped. I just had to give in to my day and let it take me where it needed to go. But overall the biggest thing I learned is to make use of every minute of my day. As many moms out there can relate...I'm not JUST running a business, I am a mom, first and foremost. And then I have a house I need to keep clean and orderly as best as I can. Finally, there are other responsibilities like taking the baby in for her shots, getting the groceries, etc... Completing ALL of my tasks for the day requires lots of pre-planning. So, here are the top 4 time management tips from the tip jar. But the BIG tip from the jar today is... Engagement can seem hard, especially when it comes to social media. How do you engage and build relationships with large numbers of people you will never REALLY know? Well, let me say that the hard part is not the engagement. A few tips from me and you can become great at engaging your fans and followers. The hard part is finding time and motivation to do so.
My goal with this tip from the tip jar is to help you shrink your social media marketing tasks down to a few minutes each day. You might even save time and do it all over a few days. Whatever you choose to do, I intend on helping you make it a little easier. You do, however, have to do some work upfront that may require an hour or so... I'm often asked, "Rubina, what is the one thing I can do to get clients." Or "What is the one thing I can do to get people to donate to our organization." My answer is always, "There's no ONE thing." Many people don't want to hear this, but it's true.
We are all regularly and constantly consuming massive amounts of information from a variety of sources. Rarely do we run out and buy something or get compelled to give right when we consume that information. It's when we are ready to buy something or ready to give to a cause or organization. One or two brands or messages will actually stand out. We can recall these specific brands or images more easily. Why? Because we saw the brand and/or message enough times through various channels and they stuck with us. This is called accomplishing top of mind status. If you did just one thing it would be very hard to achieve this status. Therefore, a variety of methods are recommended, even if you are a small business or organization... Today's tip from the tip jar might not seem like much to some, but small tips are part of a greater whole. I run into people all the time as I'm teaching workshops and networking and find that they do not have websites! Yes...it's true. Now, in their defense, many of them have either held successful careers and never needed one because they relied so heavily on word of mouth, or some just couldn't even fathom developing a website because it seemed too cumbersome for them.
There are several reasons why having a website is a good idea... Today's tip from the jar is about messaging. In marketing and communications work, you'll hear over and over again, "You must have messaging that speaks to your target market." This is spot on.
I'm going to add another element to this. There is an integral and extremely important someone that plays into this equation. And that person cannot be put aside when your message is created. That somebody is you! Your message is your story. You gotta tell it if you want people to connect with you and your product or service. More and more, people are making decisions based on how much they like, connect, and trust that someone. Whether they are buying a pair of earrings or buying a house, customers make their purchasing decisions based on how much they resonate with the individual they are purchasing from. SO, that brings me to... When I was first starting my business, getting tips on how to effectively run and market my business were so valuable to me. I would take every piece of advice and collect them like tips in a tip jar. These pieces of information were as good as getting paid, because they helped me to land some of my first paying clients!
So, I want to share my tip jar with you. Today I gave a presentation to a circle of moms who are looking to re-evaluate their skills and see how they can earn money while staying at home with their babies. Some of them were already in the midst of creating business plans or even launching their businesses.... I have the book The Creative Habit, by Twyla Tharp, very near me in my office at all times. It has offered me inspiration on several occasions. Mostly, it has provided me with specific actions to take to transform my way of thinking and being, allowing me to step away from doing things the way I always do them, therefore opening up my mind to try something new. These actions have helped me get through proposals to potential clients, problem-solving marketing issues for current clients, and even coming up with ideas for growing my own business. Because I have found this book to be an invaluable resource over the years, I am compelled to share with you one of my favorite passages from this book. So, I ask you to "Give Yourself a Little Challenge"...
Google is an online phone book. I use it to find phone numbers and websites for businesses every single day. I type in the name of the business and the city they are in and it magically appears. However, it’s surprising how many businesses I can’t find in the Google search results. It's a shame because guess what happens when I can’t find them? I go find someone else. So, what are your potential customers are doing if they can't find you? Finding someone else.
So, I have a challenge for you. By the end of today, you have to set up your Google Business Profile page, the service provided by Google that allows you to have a local Google listing so that people like me (and your potential customers) can easily find and contact you. Here are your easy step by step instructions... Creativity is such a buzz word. Everyone is talking about getting creative. But...putting all trends aside...creativity is a part of our human nature. So to be human is to create.
We create every day. Just take mornings for example. We create our outfit for the day, our breakfast, and the plans for how to most effectively manage our schedule. These are things we do anew every morning. They are habitual. Therein lies the secret. Habit. Such a valuable creation! It's so wonderful that creativity is innate and that we already have this valuable skill. So creating the habit just means acknowledging that and then taking action. So, today I write about getting in touch with that most human part of us, tapping into it as an incredibly intelligent resource, and creating huge results in our work... |
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