Accountability Partners
It’s scary to make commitments. If you commit, you might fail. If you don’t commit, well, at least people aren’t going to call you a failure. At least not right now.
Later on, when they see that you don’t get the important things done, … that’s a different story.
I know: It’s scary to tell someone that you’re going to do something. They’ll come back in awhile and ask you how it went, and then you might just have to admit that you failed. But this is a critical part of getting your business to move forward.
Most of us don’t fail by not knowing what to do, but by not following up on it. This can be a key value in having a coach: He’ll come back at your next session, and ask you whether you followed through on your intentions. But realize that the coach doesn’t have a big stick to hit you with here – in fact, YOU’RE the one putting up the money. Instead, this is a powerful tool not because you’re accountable to the coach.
You become accountable to YOURSELF. The reason is because the coach makes this apparent to you – noticing the shortfalls and celebrating the successes – so that you get sensitized to giving yourself your own feedback. Over time, this becomes a skill you learn, to use your own thoughtful feedback even after the coach is gone.
This is an important life skill. A critical business skill.
Working with a coach is one way to learn this. Another is to become part of an accountability group or mastermind team, where you help each other to stay focused on their goals and follow through on intended actions. Easier still is to pair up with one other person, and arrange to have lunch once a week. Promise each other that you will ask these questions:
- How’s progress on those actions we talked about last time?
- What’s the next step that you want to take?
- When are you going to do that action?
This really is the essence of an accountability discussion, and it’s amazing how well it works. And it’s all because you don’t want to disappoint that person you’re going to meet next week.
And more importantly, you don’t want to disappoint YOURSELF.
Carl Dierschow
Small Fish Business Coaching Fort Collins
www.smallfish.us
Why Bother With That Business Expo?
I had a chance this week to participate in the northern Colorado business expo, my first time to create and staff my own booth. Twelve hours of standing up, talking endlessly, and staying cheerful – it was draining.
But incredibly valuable.
I’ve been discussing this with lots of different people for several weeks, of course. It’s interesting to see how some people are unaware of the event, dismiss its importance, or attend out of a sense of obligation. It appears that many aren’t thinking through this carefully.
Here’s why you should have a booth at an event like this:
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Because you’ll talk to prospects
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Because you’ll build your company’s reputation
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Because you’ll meet people in an environment where they want to hear what you have to say
That said, I saw a number of instances where a company’s reputation might have been worsened:
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Where a company didn’t show up at all
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Where the people staffing the booth gave a bad impression by being uninterested and uninformed
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Where the quality was poor and messaging weak and unclear
Why should you ATTEND your local business expo?
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Because you may be able to make connections with future partners or vendors
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Because there’s opportunities to learn new things
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Because you can connect with other attendees who might be a future customer
So how did this work out for me? It was well worth the time and effort. I met a whole bunch of new people, I grew my reputation as a credible company in the area, and had some great one-on-one discussions. The cost wasn’t terrible, all things considered, and I’ll be able to reuse many of the materials for future events.
When’s the next business expo in your area? Go check it out!
Carl Dierschow
Small Fish Business Coaching Fort Collins
www.smallfish.us
The Personal Touch
I was talking with another business owner yesterday about how we create connections with our customers and prospects. It turns out that we’ve both printed up a bunch of thank-you cards, and use them generously. They each have the company logo on the front, and blank inside. Any message is handwritten, personal, and from the heart. The envelopes are high quality and handwritten as well. It makes a great impression with the recipient. He’s seen these cards at his customer’s sites YEARS later, because they look great and are meaningful.
I was fascinated about how he’s taken this concept to a whole new level. He sends out invoices to customers when he ships his goods – amounts typically hundreds to many thousands of dollars. In order to make the connection with his customer, he handwrites a thank you on the invoice, highlighting the owed amount and date due. On large amounts, he’ll include a personalized letter which reinforces his gratitude for the business, and includes a handwritten signature.
Boy, that’s a lot of work, eh? Why all the fuss.
Well, his business is built entirely on word of mouth and referrals. After 40 years, in the midst of a recession, his business is stronger than ever because of the reputation he’s built up. The company is known for technical excellence, personal relationship, and wonderful quality. They’re one of the few top-notch companies in their particular niche in the entire USA. When relationship matters (and when does it NOT?), every interaction, every subtle cue is a critical part of the relationship you build with customers. When the owner of the company hand-writes you a note, and envelope, you notice. When the invoice includes a thank-you, you’re more likely to treat it as a positive experience. And pay the bill on time – because now you have more of a personal relationship with the owner.
You want to build lasting relationships with your customers, right? Even for a $5 sale? So what would be appropriate to reinforce to each customer that you’re A Real Person, worth caring about, rather than just a company that sells stuff?
Carl Dierschow
Small Fish Business Coaching Fort Collins
www.smallfish.us
10 Reasons to Attend A Business Expo
Small Fish has become very active in attending Business Expos in Australia and the US. I’m gearing up for Bixpo 2011, being held on September 15th in Loveland Colorado. I’ve attended several times, but this is the first time that I’ll have an exhibitor booth.
How could this improve YOUR business?
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You can meet potential customers. Even if you’re not exhibiting, this is a great chance to make connections with other businesspeople in the community. And of course, all those people are consumers with families!
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You can check out the competition. This is a safe environment to find out what other companies are doing. Everyone is there to ask and answer questions, so you won’t seem intrusive by asking your competitors about how things are going or what new offerings they have.
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You’ll get a sense for the state of your industry. It’s one thing to read reports in the paper, but it’s different to get out there and see what’s happening. Look for surprises, both good and bad. That’s where the best learning comes from.
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You can test your messaging. This is an opportunity to meet hundreds of people and try out your messages. Try LOTS of different messages, and see how people respond.
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You can learn some new things. Bixpo will have a number of valuable seminars where you can learn about all kinds of topics – from health improvement to online marketing to sales techniques.
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You can meet community leaders. They want to form connections with local businesses to find out what the concerns are, so take this chance to have your voice heard directly!
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Reward your employees. Many workers don’t have the chance to get out into this kind of unique environment, representing your company and finding out what’s happening in other companies. This is a special experience, and gives them a broader understanding of how you market your business. If it’s a local Expo, it doesn’t have to be expensive at all!
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Refresh your thinking. Many business owners I work with are so heads-down in the daily running of the business that they don’t have much opportunity to go out and think about the big picture. What better way than to talk to other business owners in an informal atmosphere, look at other kinds of companies, and spend time with community leaders?
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Hook up with the hot businesses in the area. The businesses which are in the paper, grabbing market share, and attracting employees are going to be receiving awards at Bixpo, and you can talk with them directly.
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Have some fun. There’s some great fun activities, especially Bixpo Rocks After Hours. Give yourself the gift of fun and relaxation while getting a lot of business value as well!
Oh, and the eleventh reason: If you’re in northern Colorado, come have a talk with me at booth #64! I’ll answer all your questions about Small Fish’s famous “Washing Machine” process, and we can talk about how business coaching will help your business breakthrough in 2012.
See you there!
Carl Dierschow
Small Fish Business Coaching Fort Collins
www.smallfish.us
