I’ll go out on limb here and assume that you like music.
That’s good, because this article is about music and how important it can be to an entrepreneur’s workday success.
I’m always surprised and amazed by how much music affects my mood. Just a few minutes ago, as I sat down to write this piece, I was feeling tired and uninspired. I didn’t want to do any work. So I opened up iTunes, selected my favourite internet radio station (GoFM), and my fingers are now flying across the keyboard.
Although it’s late evening, my mood is magically better and my energy levels have risen.
My feet are tapping to the beat of a great song by the Rolling Stones.
My attitude is improved. I’m feeling good – much better than I did ten minutes ago before I turned on the tunes.
Music is such a wonderful drug. It can motivate, energize and inspire. It can entertain. It can give us an escape, if that’s what we want. It can instantly take us to a time and place that we like. It can make us think. It can calm us down, or lift us up. It can make us laugh or cry. It can warm our hearts.
All of those benefits should be welcomed by any entrepreneur. Hey, we’ve got a lot on our plates...we’re busy doing the work, getting the work and managing the work. We’re stressed out. I think we deserve a little of the magic that music so wonderfully supplies.
Not that music will make all of your troubles disappear. But it sure helps to put them into perspective.
Now, go, and listen to something that makes you feel good. And let that music play all day.
Roger Pierce is one of Canada’s top small business experts. He’s the founder of 12 businesses, co-author of the book Thriving Solo, and a writer for leading business publications such as Star Business Club, PROFIT online, YouInc and CBC’s Dragons’ Den website. Articles, blogs and videos produced by Pierce Content Marketing are used by national brands to win small business customers. LinkedIn
It seems to be an activity in danger of extinction: the face to face conversation.
For a small business owner, that’s a shame, because a good old-fashioned chat can work wonders for a growing company.
Our digital age presents more convenient communication options. Rather than meet face to face with someone, it’s far easier to dash off an email, post a tweet or share a status update. But, is it as effective as a little face time?
For these reasons, I think not.
Demonstrates commitment
Meetings are a hassle. It takes time to prepare for the meeting, get to the meeting, run it and return to your workplace. Yet there’s something magical about meeting face to face.
It says to the other person, “I’m committed to this relationship with you.” While you both could have opted for a phone call or online connection, you and your meeting partner both decided to invest your valuable time and energy. And that kind of mutual respect is the basis for a fruitful relationship.
Visual cues
Face to face meetings let you do more than just hear the other person’s words. You can extract meaning and emotion by absorbing not only what they are saying but how they are saying it. Technology doesn’t yet deliver such important insights.
Stronger results
Live meetings let participants to get more work done because everyone is “in the room.”
Given sufficient time, you can hash out the details for a new plan, solve a sticky problem or reach a decision that makes everyone happy. With everyone in the room, there’s more investment in the meeting (calculate the hourly wages of all attendees!) and therefore more incentive to “get it done” – whatever that may mean to the group.
I realize that face to face meetings aren’t always possible, as busy schedules and geography keep us apart. Where they are possible, however, arrange a live meeting – your business will be better for it.
Roger Pierce is one of Canada’s top small business experts. He’s the founder of 12 businesses, co-author of the book Thriving Solo, and a writer for leading business publications such as Star Business Club, PROFIT online, YouInc and CBC’s Dragons’ Den website. Articles, blogs and videos produced by Pierce Content Marketing are used by national brands to win small business customers. LinkedIn
A little free publicity can make a big impact on your new small business. When your story is printed in a newspaper, broadcast on television or published on a popular blog you’ll likely reach a much larger audience than you could afford to reach with paid advertisements. And, media coverage is more credible than ads because you didn’t pay for the exposure.
Follow these tips to get the media attention your business deserves:
Write a release
A media release will present your news opportunity to editors, reporters and assignment desks. Ideally less than a page long, the media release should present legitimate news about your business or relating to your business. For example, a florist could talk about the most popular flower arrangements ordered for Mother’s Day.
Catchy headline
With hundreds of media releases to digest in a day, you’ve a got a limited opportunity to catch the attention of a busy editor. It all comes down to the headline. Your headline should be memorable, clear, short and topical. Controversy sells, too, as with this headline: “Research Finally Proves Women Are Smarter Than Men.”
Be objective in tone
Write your media release like an article in the newspaper. In other words, like it already ran. Called an objective tone, it’s the style used by most professional reporters. Your release should not be written in the first person (with words such as “we” or “I” or “you”). You’ll likely secure the coverage you seek if an editor can take your story and run with it.
Finally, subscribe to the media outlets where you want coverage. Learn what they publish or broadcast, get familiar with the columnists and reporters, and soak up the kind of material they use. Apply that knowledge to improve your own media release to those organizations.
Roger Pierce is one of Canada’s top small business experts. He’s the founder of 12 businesses, co-author of the book Thriving Solo, and a writer for leading business publications such as Star Business Club, PROFIT online, YouInc and CBC’s Dragons’ Den website. Articles, blogs and videos produced by Pierce Content Marketing are used by national brands to win small business customers. LinkedIn
As a devoted entrepreneur, you will naturally spend your last few hours on earth working on your small business. You made a commitment. Get your last days organized with this proposed task list.
File your taxes early
Your new business year-end date coincides with the world ending on December 21, 2012. Your accountant will naturally want to complete your tax returns a bit earlier, so send in your numbers now to beat the rush.
Call your best customers
Without their business your business wouldn’t have made it to the End of Days. Perhaps show your respect by sending them a complimentary survival kit. (Apparently it won’t do them much good, but it’s the thought that counts.)
Reward your employees
Express your gratitude to your employees for everything they’ve done to make your time on earth so prosperous. Since gifts and money won’t soon matter, instead give your employees the last day on earth off.
Back up your files
The earth may be ending but no one said anything about the cloud. Back up your computer files there.
Go home early
Honour your earlier pledge to achieve work-life balance and get home early on the last day of the world. Your family will likely appreciate the fact that, finally, you put family time ahead of work.
Of course, you should be proud of your accomplishments and contributions as a small business owner. You’ve left the world a better place – albeit temporarily.
Roger Pierce is one of Canada’s top small business experts. He’s the founder of 12 businesses, co-author of the book Thriving Solo, and a writer for leading business publications such as Star Business Club, PROFIT online, YouInc and CBC’s Dragons’ Den website. Articles, blogs and videos produced by Pierce Content Marketing are used by national brands to win small business customers. LinkedIn
Competing solely on price could put you out of business in hurry.
When you and your fierce competitor lock horns to constantly undercut each other, profits quickly disappear as you both race to lower prices. You won’t have enough money to sustain the business as you spiral to the bottom.
Ironically, the customer loses too. By taking advantage of a price war the customer helps to drive competing businesses out of business. Now the customer can’t buy from either one.
Startups need to generate a healthy profit. Profit is not a dirty word. Your business needs that money to reinvest in more equipment, better processes, additional people, wider marketing and smarter advice. You need that money to pay yourself, too. It’s good to eat now and then.
When I see an entrepreneur competing solely on price, I see an entrepreneur who is out of ideas. Instead of lowering your price and hurting your profits, differentiate your products or services using any of these benefits:
Communicate compelling reasons to buy and you’ll find the right customers will pay what you ask.
Roger Pierce is one of Canada’s top small business experts. He’s the founder of 12 businesses, co-author of the book Thriving Solo, and a writer for leading business publications such as Star Business Club, PROFIT online, YouInc and CBC’s Dragons’ Den website. Articles, blogs and videos produced by Pierce Content Marketing are used by national brands to win small business customers. LinkedIn
