The 1 Ton Phone

If we're growing, we're always going to be out of our comfort zone.
-John Maxwell




The fear of the phone is so very common amongst business owners. There is no shame in knowing that you KNOW you have to make calls to get business, yet you avoid the phone like it's got the plague. We all understand, we have all done it.



I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who was saying how they only had a couple of customers that month and didn't want to spend a lot of money on an advertising campaign. She then asked me what I would do. I said I'd get on the phone, start calling people, see what's going on. She said she hated doing that and was going to run the ad campaign... Oh well.



Referrals can be the life blood of your business, but how do you get one and from who?



The people who give you referrals are the ones who know and like you. Lots of business owners put their social lives on hold in order to advance their business. It is a huge mistake. How can you get to know new people and have those you know like you, if they never get to spend time with you? The solution is to call them. Don't call to talk shop, call to see what's going on in their lives, call to see if there is anything you can help them with. Do they have a fundraiser going on? Any special events for their kids? I'm telling you from both a parent and a business owner's point of view, buying a few chocolate bars or an $8 roll of wrapping paper goes a long, long way in developing relationships!



Want to call people but have no idea what to say? Try keeping a log. Just a few notes on what's going on with them. See if they are on Facebook or Twitter, it will give you a better idea of what to talk to them about. In the log try to keep track of kids, pets, spouses, any issues they may be having. If they mention in January that Jane is working on her final project for graduation in June, that gives you a great reason to call back in June!!



If you need to set appointments for presentations? This is BY FAR the hardest reason on why you need to call people. Calling someone out of the blue, or even someone you know well and putting yourself out there opens a huge door on our self-esteem. There's lots of outcomes and I think I've heard them all. From rude, to excited, to unwilling to can't wait, you never know what's going to happen on the other end of that phone. But it MUST, MUST, MUST be done. Try working out different approaches, some people wouldn't' listen for a second if they thought you were trying to sell them something, but if they thought they were listening as a favor to you or to see if they know someone, it can be a different story. Try and figure out what approach would work for them and if nothing else, just try, try, try again.



Using the phone to build your business is like any other tool or skill you need to be effective. I don't think any of us were born with a great ability to set appointments, get referrals or build relationships. We have to practice at it. Start small, try 5 phone calls a day. Just keep working at it. Like all other skills, it will grow with time, and soon you will be great at it!





Have a Blessed Day,



Brandy Deming



CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com
http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz

Does It Hurt Enough?

One day when traveling, I walk into an old General Store. You know the kind with wood flooring? There's a dog laying by the counter, groaning. Every few minutes he'd let out a little groan. When I put my items on the counter to pay for it I ask the man there what was wrong with the dog. He stated that the dog was laying on a nail. I asked why he didn't move. The man replied, "It doesn't hurt enough."

I heard this the other day on a Leadership Training CD. The man spoke of how many of us complain about different aspects of our lives, but never do anything about it. How it's because it doesn't hurt enough yet. It's shocking how true this is!

There are things about our lives that we all want to change. Everyone knows by now that I am a self-improvement junkie. It's amusing that there are a lot of people out there who think that only losers and those with low self esteem read self-improvement books. When, in reality, a lot of successful people have a huge library of self-improvement books. It's a matter of being the best you that you can be. Why wait until it hurts to do something about it?

Millions of people complain every day about how much they hate their job, their body, their living situations, etc. Day in and day out they do the same things and then scowl at the results. They never do anything to change it, because change is difficult. It's like voting. I hear tons of people that complain about our political situation, yet only 1/4 of us actually vote. One of the things I ask people when they are on a political rant is if they vote, 3/4 say 'No'. My response is 'If you're not going to participate in the system and try to do something to change it, don't complain.' Just like everything else in life, if you're not doing something to try to change what you dislike about your life, don't complain about it... you're the one making the choices.

Being that ideal vision you have of yourself takes hard work and lots of practice. You can't wake up one morning and decide you are going to run a marathon, 26.5 miles in a day is a LOT of running. You have to train, you have to practice, you have to come up with a fee for participating, you have to have the proper equipment. All this for one little marathon. Think about your personal goal. Break it down. Work on it a little every day. Practice the skills that you need to reach that goal.

Wealth, health and positive attitudes don't appear over night. It just doesn't. We have to step out of our comfort zone and reach for it. Sometimes we don't succeed the first time, but we must keep trying. Keep an open mind, don't listen to the nay-sayers. Don't sit there an let your life hurt you, get up and do something about it. We only have this one life, make it good.


Have a Blessed Day,

Brandy Deming

CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com
http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz

Perfection is Not Required

Artists who seek perfection in everything are those who cannot attain it in anything.

-Eugene Delacroix

A look into history you will find that our obsession with perfection is relatively new. Only in the last few centuries has the need for everything to be 'just right' really driven us. The only saying "cleanliness is next to Godliness" comes from centuries of not having running water, fire in the house and a complete void of disinfectants. And yet there were great successes.


Many times I have hesitated or even not completed a task because I thought that I wasn't doing it right or that the results weren't up to par. In sewing I have tossed entire projects because of faults that, looking back, I'm sure only I noticed. Hours of work and materials wasted, all for my need to make something look 'perfect'. Handiwork isn't the only area of our lives where our drive for perfection can distract us from progress.


I speak to a lot of people who are all or nothing. They refuse to make any forward progress because of a hundred different reasons why they can't do something. They are waiting until after the holidays to lose that weight. As soon as football seasons over they will put the time in to build that business. There is always a reason to delay, ways that the timing isn't perfect.


We discount trying. Just getting going and doing something is better then nothing at all. When trying to lose weight, small steps can lead to big results. I started by switching from regular coke to diet coke, then not ordering french fries with meals. Small bits that can be easily maintained and over time lead to a total overhaul of my lifestyle. The weight didn't fall off, but it stayed off. I'm not perfect, sometimes I have fried food, sometimes I have cake. I just consistently work on making good choices and in the end it pays off. It's not perfection, it's progress.


Same goes for a lot of our lives. No one does anything perfect the first time. In many philosophies there is no way to ever do anything perfectly. If there is anything you want to do, you should do it. Let nothing stand in your way. If you're doing it wrong, you'll learn. We learn more from doing something wrong then from doing it right the first time. Don't worry about perfection, keep your eye on success.




Have a Blessed Day,

Brandy Deming

CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com
http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz

Accepting Life. No returns, no refunds.

Each one of us is given a life. That life is like a block of wood waiting to be carved. Everything that happens, good and bad, takes a small shaving off. We don't know what we end up with, but must accept the shape that it takes.

-Me

When things go terribly, horribly wrong in our lives, we have a habit of asking "Why me?". Knowing that we didn't deserve something this bad to happen. We've done good, we volunteer, we help our neighbors, pay our taxes, so why do bad things happen to good people?

The shaping of character comes from not only the good things in life, but also the bad. But I only know of a hand full of people that will stop when everything is well and ask "Why me?". There's a lot more people out there who only find faith, hope and strength in times of need. Only when in a desperate hour to they call on friends and family. We tend to ignore life when it is good and curse it when it is bad. This all occurred to me about 3 weeks ago listening to the Travis Smiley (i think) show on NPR. I just caught a few moments of it, he had said "At the end of each and every day, we must ask ourselves 'What's the lessin and what's the blessin?'." The 'each day' struck me.

I realized that I had become really good at looking at the not-so-great moments of my life and picking the positive out, then moving on. Finding that diamond in a dung hill and letting the other crap go. But what about my good days? Was I seeking out positive reinforcement on those days? Was I reading my motivational books then? Not really. I was waiting until things started to go awry until I sought out an uplifting message.

This all reverted me back to Deep Practice. We must be thankful at the end of each day. Good and bad. We must practice on our good days to be thankful so that on our bad days it comes to us easier. We need to stop looking to the Heaven's asking "Why me?". We need to look to the Heaven's and say "Thank You." and then look within and say "Why not me?"

When the truly tragic happens, would you be willing to push all that sorrow onto someone else? Would you be willing to crush a complete stranger's life to make your's easier? I thought about these questions for a long, long time. And I say No. Even though I would love to have my friends, family and loved ones back. I would not give up the hurt and sorrow that filled me when they passed. It shaped me. Everything I have ever done has shaped me, and if I gave or pushed out any of the good or the bad things that had happened I wouldn't be me. And that would be a tragedy in and of itself.

Enjoy life, enjoy each other. Accept what you have been given, be thank full for the good and the bad. We should not presume to know what life lessons are in store for us, or how they will shape them. Just know that one step at a time, one breath at a time, we get through this life, together.

Have a Blessed Day,


Brandy Deming

CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com

http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz

Deep Practice

To be able under all circumstances to practice five things constitutes perfect virtue; these five things are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.

-Confucius (551BC - 479BC)

Out of every class or book we read, no matter how bad, we can find one or two gems of information and/or wisdom. No matter who we talk to there is always something new we can learn from them . One of my favorites for the week is the term 'Deep Practice'. Here in the West if we know the basics of how to do something, we know it. In the East, we don't know something until we know how to do it right. With Eastern Philosophy we would spend lots of time doing the same task over and over again, just to say we know how to do it. This is what Deep Practice refers to.


We too often think of things to practice as physical acts. We practice our music, sports and crafts. But how often do we practice ways of thinking or reacting? Positive thought and positive actions cannot just be something we idly strive towards or tentatively know. We must practice them day in and day out until it becomes part of us. Deep Practice.


You can set up goals for your new positive mindset. Try going an hour without saying or thinking anything negative about anyone else or yourself. Make it to and from a destination without insulting a fellow driver. Set aside time each day to re-affirm the positive things about yourself. You must set aside time to practice your positive lifestyle. The more you practice, the better you will be.


Same goes for your small business. We aren't born with the ability to talk or walk, we practice. So why do so many think that the second we sign up for a home business we become great entrepreneurs. We have to practice it. We must practice our pitch, we must review and learn about our products, we must learn how to approach people, how to set up our demo, etc, etc. Most people have a curve of 6m -12m. A curve being the amount of time it takes you to become proficient in your business. Expect poor results the first 6 months, better results after the first 12 and then you should hit your stride in your 2nd year. This is true about all businesses. Home based and brick and mortar. Expect to loose money your first 2 years. Anything better then that and you ROCK!


Listen to your mother, "Practice makes perfect". Use it for your whole life. Loosing weight, being a good friend, positive thinking and work. The more you work on improving yourself the better you will be.



Have a Blessed Day,


Brandy Deming
CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com

http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz

Give it away!

You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.
-Dale Carnegie


Ever needed that shoulder to cry on or just a good hug? Someone to give you an uplifting word? I have. Every body has. Sometimes we get it, sometimes we don't. There is a secret for it always to be there for you.... give it to someone.

In friendships, relationships and business, it is often easier to accomplish what you want done by helping someone else do what they need to do. Letting friends know they can call you at any time if they need to talk, giving that extra little bit to let them know that you appreciate them, all comes back to you eventually. When you need them, they will be there, as long as what you are doing for them is out of kindness, not because you have a big move coming up and you need help.

Go that extra mile in relationships too. Stop and pick some flowers (or buy them) for no reason at all. Surprise her (or him) with night out. Right them a poem. Plan a picnic in the park. And let them know how much you care.

In business, always try to improve your customer service and your service to the community. People love shopping someplace when they know it does someone else good. The lovely woman who owns the BBQ Pit in Mt. Vernon feeds hungry and homeless people once a week. Do you think I eat there? Every chance I get, the food is great and I know that by supporting this business I support our community. You can designate a certain percentage of sales to a charity, or open your place up for fundraisers, offer your services at a discount to non-profits. And let everyone know that you are doing this. You'll see people more often coming in to support you and your cause.

There is lots of good you can do in the world as a friend, spouse and business owner, do it. Do as much good as you possibly can. Get interested in other peoples causes and other peoples lives. By taking the focus off of your woes and your current issues, focus on someone else or a charity. You'll meet tons of new people that way and know that at the end of the day, you've made a difference in someones life.


Have a Blessed Day,

Brandy Deming

CelticBlessings4U@Gmail.com
http://www.womenswealthandwellness.com/celticblessings
http://www.twitter.com/brandysbiz