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Posts Tagged ‘Leadership’
Are you confidently contributing your ideas?
How often do you contribute an idea for something that could make work life better? Strong leaders make it their business to communicate ideas.
Occasionally a leader will tell me that they when they share ideas, their bosses don’t listen so eventually they quit making suggestions.
This is disheartening. Organizations must move forward with new ideas and new thinking. However, it always takes longer than we want for our ideas to be accepted.
Let’s consider the concept of an idea quotient. Your idea quotient is your score on how many ideas you contribute. A desirable idea quotient is different depending on what field you are in. I worked in a branding and marketing firm for years and we were awarded work based on our ideas, so ideas are rewarded and encouraged.
Some types of work, for example, selling financial services or providing health care, are bound by rules and by the nature of the organizations, it takes longer for ideas to become accepted and work their way through the system. If you doubt that, think about the health care debate that’s gone on for years. People put out new ideas and they get knocked down.
I haven’t created any mathematical models for this (maybe if I had a team of math students…) so this is my theory based on observation and personal experience.
You want your idea quotient high enough so people notice you as a creative and innovative person, but not so high that there are too many ideas to consider and those ideas become a distraction.
One of my strengths is generating ideas. Lots of ideas. It can be a distraction if left unchecked. I have to know when enough ideas are enough and we have what we need to go forward.
When your idea quotient is high, you want to be aware of how you share your ideas and when. In my next post, I will share with you ideas about how to communicate ideas effectively.
Kathy Garland specializes in translating business challenges into opportunities that result in business and personal growth. She speaks frequently on business growth and leadership topics. Join her conversations on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
On Valentine’s Day, we always turn our attention to our hearts and love. Your heart can guide you in ways you would never imagine. Listening to what is in your heart can help you make big leaps in your life and your business.
Trouble is, most people listen to what their heads tell them to do. We’ve learned that for success, it’s best to follow our head.
Yet, the quiet inner voice of our heart can guide us to make better decisions. In the long run, usually we are happier when we listen to and consider what our heart is calling us to do. However, we are so used to listening to our heads and the chatter it creates, that it covers up the powerful voice of our hearts.
Before you think of me as being soft and not logical, the heart actually has its own neurological network, in other words its own brain that creates two-way communication with the brain in your head.
The point is, by listening to your heart’s guidance, you will make stronger connections with people in your network because you’ll not only be a better listener and communicator, you will increase your authenticity and genuine being that connects with people.
You’ll make better decisions if you can listen to your heart’s guidance and then using your hard-wired brain in your head to supply the facts, the decisions, the structure for what’s next.
Here are a few ways I’ve discovered I can distinguish between my head and my heart’s guidance.
When you speak in your head-mode, you are:
- logical
- straightforward
- rational
- factual
- point of view
- judging
- analytical
- and can be fearful
When you are you are speaking from your heart, you are:
- certain
- confident
- warm
- happy
- compassionate
- passionate
- accepting
- able to see a picture of what can be
When you can speak to people with a heart-centered focus, you can hear them much better and they “get” you. Marketing becomes a time of passion and confidence for you.
Go ahead, open up this week and share your passions with someone new, focus on accepting not only yourself, but also those around you.
You’ll be glad you did.
Why should you have a business plan? Your business plan is a strategic blueprint for your business. Even if you are a consultant, a CPA or bookkeeper, an artist or any other type of person marketing yourself and your services, you will benefit from having a business plan.
A business plan is fundamentally a document that outlines how you want to make money and contribute to your clients. If you are looking for funding, you absolutely have to have one.
If you don’t plan on seeking funding, a simpler plan will work fine. It’s important for you to be able to write down exactly what it is you do so you will stay on track. Otherwise, those shiny bright objects will keep appearing and you’ll end up with a lot of distractions instead of focusing on what will bring your business success.
Business plans have a lot of flexibility depending on what you do and offer. The first year you write one it takes a lot more time. Every year after that, you can update and tweak the direction. You’ll also want to update your goals and revenue targets.
It’s most helpful if you start the business planning cycle about October to give you full advantage of time to think through what you want to do the next year. If you haven’t started one for 2011, that’s OK. Get started now and have a goal to complete the plan by the end of February so you can follow it this year.
In your plan, you’ll want to start with outlining
1. What you do
2. How you do what you do
3. Your vision
Your vision is a compelling goal that pulls you into the future. It may not ever be fully accomplished.
Your vision is what you want to affect because you are who you are and you do what you do. It is related to your passions and reflects your heart’s desire, even when it is business-related.
Examples of vision can be related to the change you want to see happen because you do what you do.
Vision can be as simple as one of my client’s whose vision is to make sure her family is in a good financial position when she retires.
Another client’s vision has a vision of changing the integrity of the industry she is in. Her standards are much higher than some others in her field.
You could also have a vision related to the world or children. Your work can support movement toward your vision or it can be a personal vision that drives you because with part of the money you make, you could affect a cause that you are passionate about.
The point is that vision fuels your actions. It’s the overarching intention that keeps you centered and moving forward. You can take action every day toward something related to your vision.
Next week, I’ll share more about what you can do to have a stellar business plan that will support your growth.
Kathy Garland specializes in translating business challenges into opportunities that result in business and personal growth. She speaks frequently on business growth and leadership topics. Join her conversations on Facebook, Twitter, andLinkedIn.
One of the most important assets you have when you market yourself and your services is your reputation and your personal brand.
What do you do to stand out? Are you consistent? That’s an important hallmark in building your personal brand.
Let’s talk about the benefits of having a strong personal brand. When people know you for a specific result, outcome, way of being or their relationship with you, you are more memorable.
Being more memorable gives you an advantage over the many others who are in your same category.
Each person has something unique about who they are or their capabilities. Do you know what is unique about you?
The power in your personal brand is to understand what is different and unique about you that matters to your clients. If you are an expert on food or ancient Greece or social media, it only matters if your desired customers want that or if they have the same interests and passions.
This week, observe people you interact with on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. As you observe them, ask yourself these questions:
- What makes them memorable?
- Is it what they do?
- Is it how they do what they do?
- Is it their personality?
- Is it their client list?
If you find yourself realizing that some people are easily recalled in your memory, ask yourself why that is. What is it about this person that doesn’t stand out.
Be open-minded to what they do to be more memorable or what they don’t do. Find some benchmarks and role models and determine what you can do to be more memorable.
The people who are memorable to me for my business are ones who understand my business opportunities and offer ideas and solutions. They go out of their way to connect me to people and resources that could help.
I’d love for you to join my Market You Mondays community on Facebook and add your comments and ask questions.
Kathy Garland specializes in translating business challenges into opportunities that result in business and personal growth. She speaks frequently on business growth and leadership topics. Join her conversations on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
The reason I am sharing what I am sharing with you today is so you can learn some tips about marketing your services from my experiences.
If you are fortunate enough to have your parents still together (mine just celebrated their 65th anniversary,) then you may be familiar with the needs of adults as they age.This past week I interviewed individuals and franchise owners who provide companions and caregivers for seniors. My parents want to stay in their home and as they age, they need support with everyday living. I see the difficulty they have keeping up with the house, food, doctor appointments and daily life. My brothers and I want the best for them and to make sure they are comfortable and safe in their home.
If you have navigated the maze of senior services, you may have experienced what I did. After asking for referrals and making a number of calls, I scheduled interviews with two companies. Here’s what I experienced during screening calls and interviews and what you can learn from the successful strategies people used and the mistakes (in my opinion) that others made.
Most of the people started the conversation with me by asking about my parents and their needs (a success strategy.) They listened with care and answered according to my interests and my parents needs. During a phone interview, one gentleman began our conversation with a long litany of why his company is the best (a sure fire mistake.) He used terms like:
- bonded and insured
- the number of people he employed
- all sorts of facts and detail about his company
What I really wanted to know was what his company stood for. What he is passionate about and how he approaches working with seniors interested me. All those facts are important, but not the first things he said. He could have asked a couple of questions to start our conversation such as “Can you tell me a little about your parents’ needs?” or “What are you looking for in a caregiver?” Both great questions that would enable him to guide the conversation as to why I should consider his company.
His start to the conversation was quite robotic (and nervous.) I was actually speechless for a minute trying to decide whether to say thank you and hang up. Then I decided to give him a chance and ask him what was different about his company. His energy and focus completely changed and he shared why he wanted to help seniors stay in their home. I really got that he cared, however, by that time it was a little too late.
Other people I talked to connected personally with me right away and the needs for my parents. Ultimately my parents chose a woman who showed passion for her work with seniors, demonstrated that she understood their needs and was ready to start immediately. She built trust with them and they liked her, so she is starting this morning with my parents.
It’s a good reminder that success starts with listening to your potential customer and sharing passion and heart for what you do, not facts, grabs the attention of your market.
Kathy Garland specializes in translating business challenges into opportunities that result in business and personal growth. She speaks frequently on business growth and leadership topics. Join her conversations on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Join the Market You Mondays community on Facebook to learn more about marketing yourself as an expert.
What one thing, that if you do it or accomplish it, would make 2011 a breakaway year for you? That’s the question on my mind as we end 2010.
Having a focus and a driving vision of what you want is much more powerful than having the attitude that everything will be the same.
To be a more effective leader, step up with a vision for 2011, a BHAG, or Big Hairy Audacious Goal. Don’t be afraid you won’t accomplish a big goal. Go for it and you will learn and experience new things along the way.
How do you think about what you want to accomplish that would make your year a breakaway year? Here are my thoughts on that:
1. Write down dreams and goals you have that you haven’t accomplished yet.
2. Where do you see yourself in a few years? What do you need to do to move yourself in that direction?
3. What is it that you are passionate about? That makes it much easier to accomplish than forcing yourself to do something you think you should do.
3. When you know what you want to accomplish, share your big goal with your trusted confidants. This declaration fuels your energy and drive to make it happen.
A few years ago, a friend and client, Brittany Allen, really wanted to serve children in need, particularly sick children. Her dream was to be a caring clown. She was at my annual planning retreat and really got clear that her year was about stepping up to create her clown personae and get out in the public performing. Here is a photo of her making that declaration during our weekend:
Brittany had created her clown shoes as a way to get started. Now she has regular performances to entertain children in need and she is going on an international trip to entertain orphans. She is extremely happy and fulfilled. It all started with deciding what she wanted and then stepping up to take the actions. She was supported by the other people at the retreat who also believed in her vision.
Have a fantastic 2011 and step up by getting focused on the one thing that when you accomplish it, would create a very memorable and breakaway year.
Happy New Year!
Kathy Garland specializes in turning business challenges into opportunities that result in business and personal growth. She hosts a radio show, “The Leader in You” and speaks frequently on business growth and leadership topics. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
On Saturdays, all belt levels in my Haidong Gumdo program show up for practice. Last Saturday, I was the total new kid on the block with many experienced people in the class. I could choose to sit back and watch or do the best I could to keep up.Of course, I stayed and kept up for the most part, but then the group went beyond the exercises and forms I knew. As I stumbled to keep up, they were patient and supportive. At one point I asked if I was the slowest ever to learn a particular move. They said, “We didn’t learn this till we were orange belts (2 levels above me.)
You see, I was trying to keep up with people three, four and five levels ahead. The good news here is that by being with people who have higher skills and proficiency than me, I learn more and faster. Part of the class for all students is to lead one of the exercises, which involves knowing the name of the exercise (in Korean) and counting to 10 (in Korean) as well as knowing the particular moves of the exercise. I didn’t expect to be asked to lead an exercise, so did my best with help from the class. However, since then, I have really stepped up my effort to learn these things. I have now mastered counting to ten in Korean. It’s a small victory, but hey, I’m counting everything!
In addition, I’ve started spending more time outside of class learning the forms, the language and the exercises. I want to move up and really I want to be less obvious that I’m such a beginner! If I hadn’t gone to that class with so many people at higher belt levels, I wouldn’t be pushing myself as much.
When you want to grow and expand your skills, thinking and success, it’s a good idea to hang out with people who are further along on their path than you. It takes a little confidence and courage on your part and you will be so glad you did.
© copyright 2009, Kathy Garland, all rights reserved.
Kathy Garland is a transformational leader who improves the personal power of women leaders through branding, client acquisition and creating focus for the future. She is a radio show host for The Leader in You, a Diva Toolbox Radio Show and a featured columnist on Empowering Women for McKinney Woman.
Whether you are a professional speaker, make presentations to your local networking group, looking for a job or make professional presentations as part of your sales process, you will benefit from reading the best seller, “The Exceptional Presenter” by Timothy J. Koegel, http://www.presentationacademy.com/.
The author promises content to show the reader how to open up and own the room. His simple OPEN UP! formula is easy to implement and remember. If you love to speak, it will make your speaking better. If you hate to speak, it will de-mystify the process.
It’s the best book I’ve seen on speaking. I love the sketches he shows of effective and not so effective body language. A friend of mine was flipping through the book and laughed when she identified her own habits with the T-Rex posture. That is when speakers clinch their hands in front of their chest in a nervous gesture, resembling the T-Rex profile.
When I speak, I tend to use my arms and hands a lot. According to the book, it is effective to use arm and hand gestures while talking, although in strategic ways to match your talking points. I am practicing keeping my arms at my side (not easy I will tell you.) You can practice keeping your arms still while you are in line, during the national anthem at an event, in church while standing and at cocktail parties and networking events.
At $21.95, it’s a necessary book for your career toolbox. Find it on The Exceptional Presenter ($14.93 plus shipping.)
Kathy Garland International, www.kathygarland.com offering programs that awaken the soul of women leaders to enhance their wealth, balance and freedom.
Yes that’s correct. Thirteen women business owners joined me October 24 – 26 in Paradise, Texas for a phenomenal weekend of business strategy, planning and fun. Here are a few photos of the weekend.
Women of Worth – WOW! Fall 2008
Team exercises kept us energized
Quiet, peaceful rocking chairs and porches gave us space to think and plan.
Classroom time to focus on our vision
If you’d like to join a dynamic group of women business owners to take your business to the next level, my next retreat is scheduled for November 6 – 8, 2009 . As I roll out details I will post them on my retreat blog at www.kathygarland.blogspot.com. Or you can reach me through www.kathygarland.com, Kathy Garland International, a company whose programs lead women to enhance their wealth, balance and freedom.