Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Success Challenge

So here we are heading into the third week of the year. How many New years resolutions have you broken so far? This weeks tip is about shaping up your business. Trimming the fat, gaining more focus, being healthier, more profitability and enjoying more freedom. Sound good? When preparing for this segment I go to my trusty resources and this months issue of Success magazine’s theme is marketing. My favorite magazine on my favorite topic. I was drawn into the article called Start Small Win Big Challenge, wait did someone say challenge? This article written by Tory Johnson, Good Morning America’s workplace contributor and the owner of two businesses. Tory invites readers to quote  “take the small steps that will ultimately catapult your career to a new level of success.” Game on I say. One of Johnsons businesses is called Spark and Hustle, a company that provides consulting services to current and aspiring small businesses. Which by the way broke the million dollar revenue mark in under a year, in a recession. She challenges all small business owners and you are all small business owners remember, YOU incorporated. Success.com is launching her 12 week, 12 step program to help boost your business. She breaks it down into manageable, bite size pieces so its not overwhelming. I for one am signing up and I hope you do to. I will share my progress every week with you either in my whole segment or just a brief update. But I will be blogging about it for sure. Here are the first 4 steps to get started. Step number one is to commit to your why. Take some time and really think about your why. Why is it you do what you do? I know a big why of mine is transitioning to a career out from behind the nail table. Besides the challenges of contact dermatitis I want to share my journey, my struggles and triumphs with other professionals to help them grow their business and elevate their career. May passion lies in the education and training of business skills so overlooked in this industry. You will endure much more when you are clear about the goal, the why. Number two, Take responsibility, you are in control. If your business is not where you want it to be it’s the drivers fault. And who is driving your business? Your willingness to take ownership of exactly where you are, how you got there and what could you have done differently is liberating. Think outside your own business as if you were a consultant. The answers are right there, maybe you weren’t diligent in your execution. Or maybe it is time to address a weakness. Not good with numbers? Hire a coach or a good accountant to school you in what numbers you need to keep front and center in order to reach your goals. Read a book take a class, learn new ways of thinking to get different results. Three Know your numbers. When you are down, by how much and why. Are costs going up? Have you lost more clients than you are gaining? An honest look at numbers every week will alert you to changes before they become detrimental to your business. Creating solutions before they are big problems will position you for growth in 2012.  And last but not least. Own your destiny. What could you be if you refused to fail? Choose three things that if you could wave a magic wand and make happen in your business. Too long a list and you’re overwhelmed. Three things you can focus on and wrap your brain around. Make the items on your list specific, not vague like I want to make more money. How much more, by when? Next claim your expertise and define yourself with a nickname. You have to define what it is you want to be known for before you can put an effective plan into place.  So there it is, the challenge 2012. I know I am up for it, how about you? Follow my blog at NTR I will most likely be adding content besides the marketing segments. Success Challenge

3 comments:

  1. This is great info, but too many words to get to the point. People dont wanna read all of that and will just go to the next thing. Please receieve this with the love im sending it with. You have great info to dhare!

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  2. Thanks for the feedback. This info was already condensed from a three page article ;) I understand people are busy but those that choose to read this as educational as opposed to entertainment will get what they need as well. Skim and move on if need be or stay and learn.

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  3. Loved your post. I am at a point in my career that I would like to move away from my manicure table. I think that I will look into this challenge. Looking forward to your future blogs.

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