The Internet is Times Square – (Squared)

Earlier this month I was in Manhattan for a special networking event at the global headquarters of my primary business. The location of the event was near the financial district (Soho) but I was staying up in the Times Square area.

On Saturday morning it was beautiful day so I wondered down to catch the subway near Times Square.

 

 

 I always love New York for all the things to do – but at the top of the list is always people watching and checking out the sights!

Times Square is such an amazing place – it does inspire awe and wonder! How could so much attention grabbing and noise be fit in such a small place!  It made me think what would I do if my company were here and had to compete and be noticed amongst all the attractions, hype and interesting places!  Then it hit me like a load of bricks – the internet is really Times Square “squared” (maybe to the 100th power!).  Each day your company – what you do must stand out from the crowd – you must get attention and attract your customers to you – to your business – to your website! 

In this day and age you must not only get your customer or prospect’s attention You Must Earn It! (And Keep it!)

 

 

 

 

What is the number one way to get and keep your customer/prospect’s attention! By getting your customer engaged with what you are doing – to do that you must create value through the whole engagement!

So the next time you try to get your prospect’s attention – ask yourself – Are you creating enough value to deserve their attention?

Video Explaining The Opportunity Continuum

A couple weeks back I posted about what I called The Opportunity Continuum.  I have had a number of questions and conversation with friends and business associates about the post.  I recorded a video with further details to fill in some of the gaps.  The previous article is Here!

 

Please feel free to add some comments or connect with me at www.fastgrowthhomebusiness.com

Who Is This Areté Guy

Who Is This Areté Guy?

I am an analyst, project manager and coach at heart!

I have had the benefit of a long life and spent many years of that getting to know myself in formal programs (like the Gallup managers and leadership programs) and informal activities (reading, self reflecting, quiet time, etc).

It’s pretty easy to share with you my profile:

1) I love reviewing and understanding facts and data, researching, asking questions, analyzing, peeling the onion, connecting the dots and drawing conclusions from the analysis! I have been called a facts and data guru my entire career (three decades) across several segments of one industry. (Logistics) I completely understand critical paths, timing, commitments, quality measurement, customer service and executing a plan. My clients and employees have always come to appreciate my love of facts and data and my ability to help YOU make sense out of “information overload”.

2) I love asking questions and really listening to others. I am rarely “the life of the party” but people usually remember me and recall our “conversations”. I am adept at asking questions to get people to talk about themselves and making them interesting! And I really love the listening and learning!

I have always enjoyed, taking things apart and putting them back together. Even as a kid my folks were amazed at how I loved to diligently take things apart and methodically put them back together (usually without unused pieces left over). To this day I can disassemble complex machinery and gadgets, fix them and put them back together! I have even been known to read the instructions first or ask for directions too (Did I say I detest re-inventing the wheel and wasting time – I won’t waste yours!). This developed into a 20 year corporate career that really took off in project management and leading teams. My career advanced quickly to the C-level!

I am passionate about analyzing systems, processes, understanding how they work, improving them and tweaking them for maximum performance (Gallup Maximizer theme at work) and training/coaching people on how to best use systems and processes for their maximum performance!

3) Some people would look at those two things and say wow – what a geek! I however have a couple of balancing themes. I have always had a desire and need to help others! (Gallup Developer Theme) My path to that is usually based on 1 & 2 above. Asking questions, helping others “see the forest from the trees”, helping them “see the big picture” I have an innate ability to build pictures and a vision from the details up to the big picture or from the big picture back down to the smallest tactical detail. I love helping people understand how things work! I am a strategist (Gallup Strategic Theme) I love planning and following a plan, I love breaking apart processes, showing others how the systems and processes work and then coaching them on how to leverage the systems and processes for their own maximum performance. I get hyped up being in the trenches with others (not in the boardroom), rolling up my sleeves, doing the work along side others and demonstrating how to do it!

So what does all this mean to you? Whats the benefit to you!

I invite you to visit my website and read more about this Arete Guy and take a few moments to learn about my business.

Getting Things Done!

From time to time I write summaries about books I have read or that I am currently reading. It is our goal to publish here comments and summaries about books and articles that have application to our business as well as how to apply things in it!

Today’s post is about one of my all-time favorite business books. As a leader in my previous corporate executive roles it was on my required reading list for my entire management staff.

This post is about the book Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done <<<< Buy it here Direct from Amazon.

Written by Ram Charan , executive coach and noted expert on business strategy and Larry Bossidy , Chairman of Honeywell International, and prior to this role he is widely credited with guiding Allied Signal to one of the world’s most admired companies and producing 31 consecutive quarters of EPS growth in excess of 13%!

Business research shows that companies that outperformed their competition excelled at four primary business practices, Execution, Strategy, Culture and Structure. This book is the definitive bible on excelling at the key business practice of Execution. It is not only the biggest issue facing business and business owners today but unlike other management disciplines it really has not been explained satisfactorily. Stop and think a moment. Strategy – so much information on strategy exists it is no longer a challenge. Google both Business strategy and business execution and you will see there are ten times as many results for strategy. Similar results for Leadership development, Innovation, Culture – endless information.

Mentioned over and over throughout the book – the difference between a company and its competitor is the ability to execute. If your competitors are executing better than you are, they are beating you in the here and now and if that’s happening you won’t even get the time to see if an elaborate strategy plays out.

Execution – Getting Things Done is the biggest unaddressed issue in the business world today. It’s absence is the biggest single obstacle to success and the cause of most disappointments mistakenly attributed to other causes. Here is the fundamental problem: people think of executing as the details and tactics of a business and leaders delegate this while they focus on the “bigger issues” rather than getting deeply engaged in the process of execution as a discipline, building systems and embedding it in the strategy, the goals and the culture!

Although I may refer to Execution as Getting Things Done it is more than that it is a set of behaviors, processes and techniques that you must master to gain a competitive advantage! A system of getting things done through, questioning, analysis, documentation and follow through. With the tragic and tumultuous events unfolding right now in our economy – the coming depression – yes you read it here that dreaded D word – many companies will have to tear up their operating plans, prepare new ones and fill gaps in revenue and make major cost adjustments. The winners that emerge from this will be the companies that
adjusted quickly, built clear plans and then followed through and completed those plans!

Whats is this all about and how in the world does it apply to a home based business you may be asking. I would propose to you it is not the what of what you do that drives your success such as your strategy on lead generation and customer service, but more precisely how you execute and most importantly that you get things done and completed.

Ask yourself:

Do you just jump in and start working on whatever is in front of you day-to-day, maybe reading your goals daily to build the power of attraction and feel that is what it is about or do you follow a clearly documented daily process? Do you document what you do, how you did it and then track and work your way through the steps? It sounds simple – eh – maybe even a bit boring given the attention out there to “lifestyle” in our industry.

Do you have numerous unfinished projects on your desk because you are working on what you determined today is urgent. Be real, be authentic, this business involves detailed work, attention to detail and you have to do it OR find the right people who can do it for you and get the work done. Don’t accept the excuse of I’m too busy to work on that.

Let’s look briefly at the Building blocks of execution as outlined by Charan and Bossidy:

• Building Block One: The leader’s seven essential behaviors
• Building Block Two: Creating the framework for cultural change
• Building Block Three: Have the right people in the right place

In this day and age of network marketing and home-based businesses those building blocks at first glance may seem to not apply. Your challenge is to read the book and look for ways to apply the foundation building blocks to your home based business.

• How to develop leadership behavior for your team
• How to build a culture for your team and
• Getting the right people in the right place

Spend a few minutes and focus on the book ending conclusion LETTER TO A NEW LEADER.

Outstanding points and questions:

1. You will be pulled in every direction as people want you to… spend time here, try this, participate in that… BUT running your processes must be at the top of your priority list.
2. Are your resources allocated in proportion to opportunities or does every opportunity get some resources and none get enough? is your plan straightforward, concise and easily understood. You have a budget, but do you have the action plan the budget should represent?
3. Make sure you and your team understand your customers! Understanding your customers is the base of business success. ( More about this in a coming blog…. )
4. Look for ways to implement initiatives in your business to improve productivity – we all have only 24 hours in a day.
5. Maintain your intellectual honesty so that you are always realistic. See things as they are not just the way you want them to be. Build bridges and plans to get there!

To Find Out Why Home Business Professionals Are Suddenly Using A NEW, Cutting Edge Concept To Create More Wealth Than Ever Visit Our Website

New Year – New Place – Transformation

(This post will stick to the top to welcome folks for the month of January ~ Make sure you scroll down for recent posts!)

First Off I want to welcome my readers following me here from my old blog location!  Ya know – Sometimes you just need a change of scenery. There is a lot to be said just in the previous two sentences we could chat the whole blog about….

Think about that a million dollar business and it just took a click and a few minutes and here we are at a new location. No wonder the moving and storage industry is getting crushed!

And don’t ever think that in a new place the … “grass is greener…”

This is a new place for our fast growth blog and this is a new year - We will start by sharing with you our focus word for the year – Transformation.  Wicktionary defines transformation as “the act of changing the nature, condition or function of…”

That’s what our blog will be about this year – stories, experiences, ideas, encouragement and even now and then a rant.  All designed to give assistance in transforming home based businesses into million dollar global enterprises. Whether you are in a home business now… maybe struggling and want some training and mentoring…  OR – you are considering bringing your professional experience to this industry and are looking to connect with like minded professionals for sharing ideas. 

Welcome!