The 5 Secrets of a Phenomenal Business – Part1

By Howard Partridge

“The secret is the system.” –Michael E. Gerber

In 2011, I had the pleasure of helping Tom Ziglar, son of American legend the late Zig Ziglar, create a powerful business assessment for Zig Ziglar’s last book “Born to Win” which Tom co-authored.

As we began to flesh out the parts that every phenomenally successful business needs to have, we settled on five specific areas of the business.

Secret #1:  A Phenomenal Marketing System

Marketing is everything you do to attract prospects to your business.  Notice that I said a phenomenal marketing system.  The marketing of most small business owners is poor.

Marketing is the key to business growth.  Without customers, you have nothing. You can do a wonderful job but if you don’t have enough customers, nothing else matters.

So, you want to have not just good marketing but phenomenal marketing.  What is phenomenal marketing?  Marketing that is remarkable – extraordinary; outstanding.  Phenomenal marketing creates experiences that engage, educate, and build a sense of belonging.

And you want to have a marketing system.  Once you determine what phenomenal marketing looks like in your business, you want to figure out how to duplicate it without you having to be involved in every detail.

Here’s an example:  Let’s say that you determine that mailing a newsletter to your database helps you bring in more business.  You write a procedure on how to compile the newsletter and get someone else to do the mechanics of it.

You might still write it but let someone else do the lay out, print it, mail it, get the database together, etc.  Then put the task on a calendar so it happens without your direct supervision.

Secret #2:  A Phenomenal Sales System

“Sales” is everything you do to turn a prospect into a paying customer.  Once you generate prospects through marketing, the sales system is what turns them from prospects to customers.  Remember, you want a phenomenal sales system.

This system includes answering the phone, using phone scripts, responding to an email opt-in, doing presentations, and so on.  Once the prospect has actually purchased something from you, they are now your customers.

Many times you may not need more prospects but you need to take better care of the leads you get.  Is your phone answered live?  Is your phone answered in the most professional way possible?  Do prospects and clients have a great experience when they call your company?  Are your closing ratios what they need to be?  Do you consistently make the add-on sale?

Do you have proven scripts for your people to follow so that you aren’t the only one who can close the “big deals”?  Do you have phenomenal on-site sales materials?  How effective is your response to internet leads?  Increasing your closing ratios and your job averages can have a big impact on your business.

Secret #3:  A Phenomenal Operations System

“Operations” is everything you do to service your customer, patient, or member. The level of service you provide determines whether they will ascend the “loyalty ladder” and go from customer to client.

What’s the difference between a customer and a client?  A customer buys something solely on the price, value, or special but doesn’t have any loyalty to you.  A client wants a consultant, an advisor, or a partner, so to speak, to “take care of that area of their lives.”

You wouldn’t choose a doctor based on price, would you?  Or how about finding the cheapest accountant or attorney?  If you do, you’ll get what you pay for. Clients are loyal; they want a relationship; they want information; and they refer others like them.

Do you have service systems in place so that your clients consistently get the most phenomenal service experience possible every time and without you having to be personally involved?

Next month, I’ll share the next two secrets and a powerful graphic to assess your own business systems.

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Howard Partridge, President of Phenomenal Products, Inc., is the author of 7 Secrets of a Phenomenal L.I.F.E. and 5 Secrets of a Phenomenal Business.  You can contact Howard by phone at 281-634-0404 or visit his website at www.HowardPartridge.com.

City of Houston Launches Open Data Policy

By Annise D. Parker, Mayor of the City of Houston

In our continued commitment to transparency and government accountability, the City of Houston has instituted an Open Data policy to allow for greater public access to City data.  Houston joins a growing number of local, state, and federal government agencies across the country that are putting in place formal Open Data policies.

Under the Open Data Administrative Procedure, an Enterprise Data Officer (EDO) and an Open Data Advisory Board will be appointed to work with City departments to catalog datasets, establish standards, and refresh guidelines for the City’s open data portal which hosts government information in open, machine-readable formats while also ensuring privacy, confidentiality, and security.  The EDO and Advisory Board are also responsible for working with the public to identify important, high-value datasets.

First and foremost, this is about increasing transparency.  It is also about citizen engagement and increasing the pace of innovation in our City.  We want to engage the talents of our strong science, technology, engineering, and math community to help us solve the challenges of the 21st century.

This portal will enable civic technologists, entrepreneurs, innovators, researchers, and others to use the data to generate new products and services as well as build businesses and develop community resources in partnership with government to better serve the public.  We want to know what the public wants to see that isn’t already available.

This is not a new concept to the City of Houston which already has interim and mapping centric portals with more than 220 publicly accessible datasets.  The City is also fortunate to have one of the largest civic technology communities in the country and benefits from a strong partnership with Open Houston, a local nonprofit, open data advocacy group that organizes hackathons and other events to develop useful solutions for the public.

At the City of Houston’s 1st Hackathon, held in May 2013, we announced the launch of the City’s Open Data Initiative.  The new Open Data policy, in combination with continued civic innovation events such as hackathons and monthly civic hack nights, enable the City to partner with the community in taking advantage of new technology platforms, respond to community data interests, and increase transparency and accountability in local government.

The City’s Open Data Initiative ensures that we continue to move towards Government 2.0.  Citizens expect their government to work for them but they are also often willing to propose ideas and solutions to help us tackle our diverse challenges.  I’m immensely proud of our innovative community for stepping up over the past few years to help civic innovation thrive here in Houston.  This is an important first step.

The City has implemented three projects through its civic innovation efforts – Budget Boot Camp, 311 Performance Dashboards, and City Fee Schedule.  In addition, the City of Houston’s IT staff has also benefited from the exposure to new technologies and different development techniques.

We're really excited to see the City's commitment to open data.  Just by publishing up-to-date data, the City instantly engages a community of people who will put it to good use.

Serving since January 2, 2010, Annise D. Parker has been elected as the Mayor of Houston three times.  She is Houston’s 61st Mayor and one of only two women to hold the City’s highest elected office.  In 2010, Time Magazine named Mayor Parker one the 100 most influential people in the world.  Mayor Annise Parker is a Steering Committee Member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and serves on President Barack Obama’s State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience.  She is also on the advisory board of Small Business Today Magazine.  For more information, go to www.houstontx.gov/mayor/.

Awakening your Entrepreneurial Spirit

By Dr. John Demartini 

There are two elements that are wise to factor into the entrepreneur adventure -you and the people who you want to serve.  The more you fulfill your own values, the more you will endure whatever it takes to succeed. The more you fulfill other peoples’ values, the higher the probability that you will succeed. 

So being an entrepreneur involves finding the niche in your life of doing something that you love to do that actually fills a need for other people.  Now, there are all kinds of niches.  If you really care about humanity, you need to be on the lookout for niches in the ecosystem of entrepreneurship.  Niches are places where you see a need that nobody seems to be addressing.  It can be a completely novel thing that has never been thought of before and completely innovative.  

An entrepreneur is an innovative individual or an inventive person, either inventive with technology or innovative with ideas or services.  They find a niche that nobody seems to have addressed or they grab a spread that somebody has addressed but that they feel they can do better and in a more efficient way.  

So entrepreneurship is an absolutely essential evolutionary component of the economy because it’s constantly creating a predator/prey system for any niche that’s not being addressed.  It’s constantly looking for more effective and efficient ways of filling needs. 

The entrepreneur is really a person who cares to fill the needs – and that could be something novel and new or a niche that somebody already has but it is slumbering, inefficient, or outdated.   The entrepreneur has the opportunity to come in and do it more efficiently and at a lesser price. 

Richard Branson is known for going out and finding dinosaur companies that overcharge people with a big brand name and charge too much because of the brand name.  He and entrepreneurs like him go in and offer to do the same thing for a third of the price.  Now that’s a niche. It’s not a new niche; it’s an established niche that the entrepreneur is grabbing a market-share in because they know they can beat the price and that they can be more effective and efficient.  

Entrepreneurs are dedicated to efficiency and are looking for innovative and inventive approaches to filling niches in the marketplace.  There’s no lack of money, once you find a niche of service.

Now the person who has the biggest vision and cares the most about humanity is going to be looking for the biggest niches; ones that provide services to the most amount of people with the biggest spreads. The real entrepreneur is constantly looking for that. 

One of the signs of an entrepreneur is that they are looking for opportunities. Now, if you don’t have a value on building a business, refining a business, or it’s not high on your value system, you won’t see opportunities and grab them.  

Every individual lives by a set of values, a set of priorities, things that are more important to least important.  Whatever is most important to them, they want to fulfill the most. 

If you go up to somebody and help that person fulfill what’s most important to them, what some call their “dominant buying moment”, you end up with the highest probability of selling.  If it’s low on their values and you try to sell it to them, it won’t mean enough to them.  You have to establish a need before you can offer a service.  If there’s no need and no void, then there’s no sale.  

So you need to find their highest value which is their highest void.  Whatever they perceive is missing most becomes their dominant, most important buying void.  If you find that, you have the highest probability of fulfilling it.  If you’re not clear about your values, you’re not clear about what people want in their values and you haven’t established those values.  Becoming an entrepreneur can be very daunting. 

You have to care about other individuals and yourself equally.  And the one individual is you and the many individuals are the customers out there.

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Dr. John Demartini is a human behavior specialist, educator, author, and the founder of the Demartini Institute.  Visit his website at www.DrDemartini.com.

Out With the Old, in With the New

4 Ways to Refresh Your Marketing Strategy in the New Year

By Aimee Woodall

Can you believe another year has almost passed?  Just like your wardrobe or messy garage, there are some things that should not follow you into 2015 and some that should stick around.  The same is true with your business marketing strategy.

Out with the old and in with the new, I say!  Here are four things you can do to tidy up your marketing in 2015:

The old:  Delegating your social media to your intern.

The new:  Crafting a strategic social media plan.

Instead of leaving your social media success up to chance, invest the time and resources into crafting a strategic social media plan.  This will take the form of two different strategies:  an operational plan and an editorial plan.  An operational plan lays out the mechanics behind a social strategy—when, where, and how content is shared and an editorial plan gives direction to the content being posted.

Don’t only think about what you are posting or how you are posting the content; think about where your brand is living online.  Does your insurance company need Pinterest?  Maybe not.  Stick to the social networking sites that make sense for your audience and don’t take on more than you can handle.

Being strategic about social media will alleviate headaches, like missed networking opportunities, and will help create a cohesive brand.

The old:  Overusing the press release.

The new:  Targeting the media contacts that make sense—with personality!

Reporters are very busy people with deadlines throughout the day.  Chances are, when they receive your fourth press release for the month, little attention will be paid.  This is not to say that the traditional press release isn’t important, but it should be saved for monumental announcements that require a traditional approach.

Instead of bogging down your work day with writing multiple press releases, identify the media contacts you want to reach and draft a quick email with the top three to five points you want to convey.  Ask them if they would like more information and let them know you want to be a resource.  You will be more likely to get a response, even if it is a polite “No thanks.”  And “Voila,” you’ve started creating a relationship that will last.

The old:  Give back occasionally.

The new:  Make giving a part of your brand.

There are multiple benefits of placing social responsibility and giving at the forefront of your business.  For example, if your business receives regular requests for donations and you aren’t tracking this, you’re missing out on a valuable marketing opportunity.  Chances are, you’re also missing out on an opportunity to make a greater impact with the same level of effort and commitment. 

Using what is already working, create a giving framework that maximizes your charitable contributions and the impact it has on the community.  By thinking strategically, tracking your giving, branding a program, and making your customers aware of this commitment, you will be on your way to creating countless opportunities for public relations and brand awareness.

When we think of New Year’s resolutions, getting fit or being more organized are our go-to pledges but forgetting about marketing is a mistake.  It will take a little effort but letting go of some old habits and adopting some new tactics will put you on the fast track to making 2015 a successful business year.

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Aimee Woodall is the owner of the Black Sheep Agency, a Houston-based creative agency specializing in non-traditional public relations, social media, and experiential marketing. Contact Amy by phone at 832-971-7725, by email at aimee@theblacksheepagency.com, or visit the website at www.theblacksheepagency.com.

December Publisher’s Column

Time to Revisit What is Really Important in Your Life

As 2014 comes to a close and we reconsider our priorities and goals for our businesses and personal lives for the coming New Year, it may be time to revisit what is really important to us.

You began your business with the idea of offering something that is unique and beneficial to mankind.It was YOUR business and you built it from scratch for a reason.  Maybe it is time to remember what that reason was.  Is your plan working?  Are you getting closer to those goals and dreams or (seemingly) further away from them?  Are you working for your business or is it working for you!

For most of us in small business, we seem to work for the business and not the other way around.If you are like Barbara and me, it’s time for you to take some time off this month and ask yourself what is really, really important.  Then, have the wisdom and courage to build your life and business around that answer.

Start with your business plan.If it has been over a year (or more) since you reviewed that business plan…it’s time!  Will it move you forward this year?  If not, change it up accordingly.Research what your competitors are up to via their websites, social media, etc.Spend some time with some of your best clients over coffee, lunch, or dinner and ask how you could improve your business to help theirs.Put your goals and dreams on paper where you can be reminded everyday of what is most important to you and then don’t give up.  No one has ever shared with us in the magazine that success came easy to them and that they immediately achieved their goals and dreams.  Remember – “If there was a victory, there had to be a battle!” Just go for it!

This month’s cover honoree, Tony Noun, has worked extremely hard for what he has built for himself and his family.  Even though he has had setbacks that for some would have been devastating, Tony’s passion for helping others, determination to succeed, and indomitable spirit has helped him to rise like a phoenix from the ashes and become such a great success once again!   You will enjoy his story.

Before leaving this page, we also want to share with you our deepest thanks and appreciation of your support of our publication, talk show, and events this past year.  We truly look forward to serving you in the coming New Year!

May you have the happiest and most wonderful holiday and may your New Year be blessed!  Good fortune and great success to you all!!!

Happy Holidays!

Steve Levine

President/Executive Publisher

Small Business Today Magazine

Faster Government-Guaranteed Loans for Small Businesses

By Bruce Hurta

For small businesses that are in the market for an SBA 7(a) government-guaranteed loan, processing the loan request and funding the loan proceeds has become a much quicker process.  The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) continues to focus on ways for participating lenders to deliver small business loans with more ease, efficiency, and speed.  In fact, the SBA loan underwriting process has evolved to its present state whereby it is more efficient than many banks’ conventional small business loan underwriting processes.  By uniformly evaluating loan requests through the use of SBA forms and procedures, participating SBA lenders, such as banks and credit unions, are able to quickly and efficiently serve their small business loan requests on a consistent basis for each lender.  Indeed, the federal government fiscal year that ended September 30, 2014 promises to be another vibrant year for SBA loan production throughout the United States.

Of great importance, for the efficiency of this program, is the PLP (Preferred Lender Program) for SBA 7(a) lenders.  With a minimum amount of time, satisfactory experience, and demonstrated proficiency with the SBA government-guaranteed loan program, an SBA lender may now earn the PLP designation so that they are given the authority by the U.S. Small Business Administration to approve SBA 7(a) loans on behalf of the SBA.  This program has created a group of highly experienced and proficient SBA lenders who no longer must wait for a second set of SBA processing and approval before funding the loan.  As long as the lender remains in good standing with the SBA and its PLP requirements, they can continue to process, close, and fund SBA loans using only their own authority.  One can draw the conclusion that working with a PLP lender assures the borrower maximum expertise in working with the SBA loan program and the quickest processing time available.

Why is the SBA PLP program important to small business owners?

Probably the most important reason is that small businesses are finding fewer and fewer community banks who specialize in small business lending.  As the banks are bought and consolidated into larger organizations, the business lending platform evolves into serving middle market and public companies.  The SBA government-guaranteed loan program has become the new loan of choice for many small business owners who could not find their usual community bank accommodation.  Additionally, SBA loans have lower down payments, longer repayment terms, and easier qualifying criteria than conventional bank loans. The partial government guaranty on the loan allows the lender to accommodate more risk in their small business credit decisions.

In Houston, the SBA District Office accommodates 32 counties in and around Houston.  The Houston office, like every other District SBA Office, maintains a list of SBA Preferred Lenders in that district along with the number and dollar volume of loans they have funded.  This list is a good resource for small businesses trying to identify the most active and qualified SBA lenders in their area.

SBA loans can be used for any legitimate business expenditure including but not limited to: 

·        small business real estate purchases

·        small business real estate new construction

·        consolidating existing business debts

·        business expansion, new equipment, or furnishings

·        business acquisitions

·        partner buyouts

·        working capital 

SBA 7(a) government-guaranteed loans are available up to $5 million per borrower.

You can learn more about SBA lending and small business finance on Bruce’s blog at brucehurta.wordpress.com.  For more information about SBA real estate loans for small businesses, contact Bruce Hurta, Business Lending Manager at Members Choice Credit Union at 281-384-2595 or by email at bhurta@mccu.com.

Your Sales Leads Ignore You!

4 Reasons Why Your Email Marketing is Useless

By Craig Klein, SalesNexus.com CEO

When your team spends hours to craft well-designed email marketing campaigns, you want the message to motivate sales leads to purchase.  It’s really sad to recognize that much of your email efforts are a total waste of time because the sales lead simply ignores what you have to say.

How can you build the coveted business relationship you desire if you are being ignored???

Here are the four most common reasons why you are being shut out that can be remedied or at least reduced:

1. Spam Filters

The business of monitoring email for spam is a growing industry.  According to eSecurity Planet, almost 100 billion spam emails are being sent each day.  In fact, we recognize the problem of spam filters so much that we dedicated an entire post to giving you tools for avoiding their damage to your email automation.

2. No Reason

Any time you talk about such things as your long track record of success, awards you have received, or the fabulous features of your product, you are really easy to ignore.

Buyers have a hard time seeing those factors as a reason to pay attention to your message.  Your sales leads are probably focused on their own problems.  They have absolutely no reason to pay attention to any of that blustery content.

Instead, know your ideal customer well enough to make your email about their issues and triggering events.  Offer them additional content – just a click away – that will help them solve the issues that keep them up at night.  Make them engage with you.  Measure the results.  See sales leads convert to sales closings.

2. Too Complex

Marketers used to say that it took three seconds for a buyer to decide whether to pay attention to your message.  Today, it is more like a millisecond.  With the plethora of content consumed in an average day, today’s consumers have become highly-skilled scanners.

To garner the attention of sales leads, you must be very intentional about making it simple for them.  Structure the content to make it scannable.  Mix in graphics, videos, tables, and bulleted lists.  Tell a story to make it personal.  Minimize statistics and features in your content.

3. You Don’t Ask For the Sale

While your email marketing is focused totally on the needs of the customer and not your company, you still need to ask.  The term used in direct marketing and copywriting is “call-to-action”. 

The most effective way to deepen a relationship with a sales lead is to offer valuable content that they can click to receive.  You want to make it very clear how to get the information without spending time to search for it.

Even if your email is about selling the clickable content, you still want to give the sales lead an easy way to simply purchase.  Make sure that your message includes a separate call-to-action in the email message itself.  Of course, a second call-to-action needs to be subtlety included in the content piece too.

With a powerful online CRM (Contact Relationship Manager) you can track which email messages are getting response.  Once you identify the ones that trigger action, you can adjust your campaigns to fit the proven method.  That is the beauty of having your email marketing and your CRM fully integrated and responsive to your recipients.

Craig Klein is the founder/CEO of SalesNexus.com which is a leading provider of CRM, email marketing, and lead generation solutions for business-2-business sales teams.

 5 Key Ways to Increase Your Small Business Chances of Winning Government Contracts

By Helen Callier, President of Bradlink, LLC

After achieving success to a certain degree in the local and state government markets, it is a natural progression for many small businesses to then select the Federal Market as a growth opportunity.  The Federal Market is the largest purchaser spending over $500 billion annually of goods and services where only one to two percent of all small businesses in the United States do business with. 

As your small business starts swimming in the Federal Market while continuing to grow on the local and state levels, know that there are key strategies required for success in winning contracts.  To assist in landing work in the Federal Market and continuing to grow on in the local and state government markets, below are five ways to increase your small business’s chances of landing a contract:

1. Get a Mentor

Using a mentor is a proven method and game changer in helping many small businesses achieve success.  Mentors can assist your small business in learning how to mitigate certain risks and obstacles ahead of time.  This alone not only save costs but eliminates surprises and headaches as well.  For the best experience, select a mentor that has been successful, especially in an area where your small business needs assistance and has similar business ethics.

2. Get Certified  

Although certification is not required to do business or secure contracts with certain government agencies, certification is a strong strategy to increase your chances and position your small business to land government contracts.   For example, on the Federal level, my technical services company received its Small Business Administration 8(a) Certification.  The SBA’s 8(a) program provides mentoring, counseling, and access to sole-source or set aside contracts.  Some other Federal Market Certifications include the Services Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOSB), small businesses located in Historically Underutilized Businesses Zones (HUBZones), and Women Owned Small Businesses (WOSB).  Go to www.sba.gov for additional information.

3. Focus 

The most successful small businesses in the government marketplace and especially in the Federal Market target two to three agencies that buy their particular products or services.  To better position your small business in achieving success, research several government agencies that could use your product or services and, once confirmed, begin your early game marketing efforts.

4. Market Your Small Business 

Industry data shows that 3% of the marketplace is always buying.  If you as the leader of your small business have decided to save costs by limiting your marketing budget then you run the risk of stunting the growth of your business.

Many government agencies on the local, state, and federal level hold matchmaking events with agency small business managers and contracting officers.  Participating in these events provides opportunities to introduce your small business’s offerings.  Also, it gains the edge on those small businesses that have chosen not to attend such as event or do not understand the importance of positioning one’s firm through marketing activities.  Go to www.osdbu.gov for upcoming Federal Matchmaking Events.

5. Identify Contracting Opportunities

 

Be proactive versus waiting passively for someone to call or email you regarding a contract opportunity.  After selecting the few agencies that use your products or services, the next step is to sign up on their website to receive notifications about upcoming contracting opportunities and, most importantly, to review agencies’ fiscal year budgets and allocations for projects.  Also, for Federal contracts, visit www.fbo.gov which lists all contracts out for bid and highlights information about future contracts via Sources Sought notifications.

In closing, small businesses are the cornerstone of the United States economy creating approximately 65% of our nation’s jobs.  When small businesses are successful in winning government contracts, the United States of America, your state, and community benefit.   Stay tuned for my follow-up article next month about teaming to grow your small business through government contracts.

Helen Callier is President of Bradlink, LLC, a technical services firm.  She is a radio show host, public speaker, and the best-selling author of “Your Money is in the Follow-up”.  For more information, call her at 281-312-9981 or visit her website at www.yourmoneyisinthefollowup.com.

PUBLISHER COLUMN

NOVEMBER 2014

“To those whom much is given, much is expected.”

November Greetings everyone!

One of the criteria that the Small Business Today Magazine’s Publisher’s Advisory Board must consider in the nomination and subsequent vote for a potential cover honoree is that the nominee must demonstrate their generosity. Our cover honorees must demonstrate their generosity in how they give back to the community, their industry, and their fellow man.

We at SMALL BUSINESS TODAY MAGAZINE have found that there is a direct link between one’s generosity and one’s success.  Whether that generosity is part of their business plan or is something that is done with little or no fanfare, they are blessed when they bless others.

I often think of the quote “For whom much is given, much is expected.”

In Rita Santamaria’s column this month, she shares, “For whom much is given, much is expected.  This Biblical statement means different things to different people.  JFK used it in his speeches as a guide to the American people for wealth sharing.  A leader of a company who has great people working for them shows their thankfulness of the associates and team members by being a generous boss and leader.  Generosity is a must for a happy work environment. Generosity does not mean only monetary generosity but also encompasses time, positive comments, help, training, and focused attention.”

The idea of “For whom much is given, much is expected” is that we are all held responsible for what we have.  If we are blessed with talents, wealth, creativity, knowledge, time, and the like, it is expected that we use them responsibly so that we glorify the Lord and benefit others. 

November is typically the month that we always seem to start thinking about our blessings and how bountiful our lives are.  It is only normal during this month that we think more about others.

Barbara, John, and I believe in blessing others and not expecting anything in return.

Regardless, we have been blessed in return and here are a few reasons why:

·        To have met and been able to share the stories of over 30 of Houston’s most successful entrepreneurs that serve as inspiration for our global readership.

·        To have been able have met so many people who want to be part of our mission to empower aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners.

·        To have had the opportunity at this year’s “Business Professionals of America” Conference to be major sponsors of their state conference and competition and to witness (as judges) the creativity and passion for entrepreneurship that many of today’s high school students have.

• To have been honored with many nominations for this year’s “Houston Minority Enterprise Development Week Media Recognition” for our support of minority owned businesses whether they are part of our business or just in our world.

This month’s cover honoree, Kathleen Maartens of Exhibit Network, is a prime example of someone with a caring heart and a successful business.  As busy as she is, she takes time out to teach ESL every Tuesday evening.  She and her husband Lenny treat their employees like family so much that they allow them to bring their babies to work.  They also have a multipurpose room that comes complete with a full bathroom and is furnished with bunk beds, big screen television, computer, videos, and toys.  Not only is it used as a hurricane evacuation room but it’s also a working overtime room and a sick kids’ room.  This way, the parents don’t have to worry when their children become ill and can still give them attention without having to miss work.

Please remember as you “give” this holiday season to those less fortunate than you that the hungry, the homeless, and the destitute are hungry, homeless, and destitute all year round and not just during the “Season of Giving.”

Have a wonderful and blessed holiday!

sbtmagazine.net

Speaking the Unspeakable – Part 1            

By Kim Sawyer

What is the one particular method of handling difficult conversations that managers throughout the business world have employed more than any other?  They avoid them.  People avoid difficult conversations because most of us, from an early age, have experienced any kind of confrontation as unpleasant.  They have typically involved angry emotions, hurt feelings, defensiveness, or tenseness and often resulted in a state of affairs worse than before the conversation started.

At other times, some people, in order to get past their resistance to these conversations, approach them with excessive forcefulness.  Then the confrontation comes across as an attack, a conflict which is the very fear that got us in this place to start with.

Words get spoken but, when it happens this way, the receiver gets defensive and defensive people are not listening.  If they are listening, they are not hearing (important distinction). If they are hearing, they are only hearing certain bits and filtering out other bits through their defensiveness.  Emotions are overruling their ability to take in and process the information in a useful way and certainly short-circuiting any willingness to act on the information.

This is not rocket science, but it's also not something most people think about when they do this (if they do).  The typical thought process goes something like this:  "I am going to have this conversation and I am going to say what I have to say as clearly as I can (or in whatever way has become my natural default in these situations). There; I'm done."  But did the message get across?  What difference did it make?  Are things going to be any different now because of the conversation, except, of course, for the newly disturbed relationships and often additional costly consequences when misunderstanding leads to misbehavior?

There is a powerful dictum that is pivotal to what we are up to here:  "The meaning of a communication is its meaning to the receiver."  Stop a moment; reread this proposition and consider it.

The fact is, it doesn't matter what it is I intend to say because I am not communicating to myself.  Communication is about information passing correctly from one person to another person; so whatever I may want to think, the understanding that person walks away with is what that communication has been.  And what's more, whose responsibility is it to make sure that occurs correctly?

Yes, mine!  The burden is wholly upon the initiator of the communication to see to it that the person with whom they have an objective for speaking gets the full and accurate content of their intended message.

I refer to this method I have developed as a form of "Leadership Communication". When I talk about leadership, I mean a way of interacting with people that attracts them to follow my lead.  It's not about making people do anything; it's about behaving in a way that people want to emulate or join me in.  In this communication tool, each step is about handling the next piece of the conversation so that it is likely to encourage you to respond in a positive way in the same spirit as the way I just communicated to you.

So I want to offer you an approach that will allow these conversations to happen collaboratively.  Next month, in Part 2, I am going to show you a method that I call “Clearing”.  It is a simple, powerful process I call “5 Step Communication”.  If you approach your difficult conversations using the method, the chances are good that the conversation will go as well as possible; oftentimes, surprisingly well.

Based in Houston, Texas, Kim Sawyer is a highly respected veteran, executive coach who serves clients internationally.  Kim can be reached by email at kim.sawyer@theWealthSource.com or by phone at 832-298-0143.  To find out more about Kim’s firm, theWeathSource, visit their website at www.theWealthSource.com.

How to Build Your Own Dream Team (753 words)

by Three-time Olympian Ruben Gonzalez

     When I decided to take up the luge and train for the Olympics I was 21 years old. Back then I thought I could make it to the Olympics all by myself. I still had a lot of growing up to do...

     In "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People," Steven Covey talks about three stages people go through - dependence, independence, and interdependence. At 21, I was still in the independent stage and needed to move on to becoming interdependent.

     Along the way I realized that I needed some help. In order to accomplish great things I was going to have to develop some leadership and people skills to build a team. Then I would have to work through the team to make my Olympic dream come true. I was going to have to turn singles luge into a team sport.

     It’s no different in any big project or endeavor. Lone Rangers never accomplish as much as people who work through teams.

     I like to keep things simple. I believe it takes only two things to be a good leader. It takes passion and integrity.

     If you are passionate about your mission, you will attract the people who are like minded; people who would like to be a part of your mission. I was passionate. I told everyone I talked to about my Olympic dream. Everyone! And I was excited about it. I was not wishy-washy. Other people had no doubt that I believed in and was committed to the dream.

     By doing that, whenever I talked to someone who was interested in the Olympics, I became their link to the Olympic Games. And many times they were willing to help me out. Believe me; I needed a lot of help.

     I needed financial help. It’s very expensive to be flying all over the world to train and compete. You’re also out of work for months at a time. Everyone thinks I have corporate sponsors. People ask me, "Ruben, who are your sponsors? Coke? Pepsi? Nike?" My sponsors were Visa and MasterCard baby! I put it all on the card. And after maxing out my credit cards, my family lent me tens of thousands of dollars. It's part of the price you pay to succeed.

     I needed medical help. Doctors, Chiropractors, and massage therapists that kept me healthy and patched me up after bad crashes.

     Finally, I needed spiritual help. I needed people who would keep my spirits up when I was struggling. Especially in the beginning. People who would keep me from quitting. The first year I was crashing four out of five times. It got to the point where even after crashing, it was going to be easier to get back on the sled than to come home and tell everyone I had quit. I couldn’t quit. I didn’t want to let the team down.

     My passion about the Olympic dream attracted people to me. I believe everyone has the capacity to be passionate about something. Unfortunately, most people keep their passion all bottled in. They don’t want to show their passion out of fear of what others might think. I didn’t care what others thought. I actually wanted to know who did not believe in me so I could stop associating with them.

     I made it a point to only spend time with my supporters. Doing so made me unstoppable.

     The first part of leadership is passion for the cause. The second part is integrity.

     Would you follow someone you don’t trust? Of course not! So if you want to be the leader and have others follow you, you need to be absolutely trustworthy. Your word is Gold. You keep your word. You start being very careful about what you promise. You must deliver on every promise. Every time you don’t, your credibility and your reputation will suffer.

     If you have passion for the cause and you are a person of integrity, you’ll be ahead of 95% of the people out there. People will be attracted to you, and you will be able to accomplish great things.

Ruben Gonzalez is an award-winning keynote speaker and the author of the critically acclaimed book, “The Courage to Succeed.”  His experiences as a three-time Olympian and as the owner of two businesses give him a unique perspective on how to conquer the corporate struggles of today. For his free 10-Part Success eCourse, visit www.StartWinningMore.com  or contact him at 832-689-8282.

City of Houston’s Hire Houston First Program

By Annise Parker, Mayor of the City of Houston 

The city of Houston spends billions of dollars to maintain and improve the city’s infrastructure and provide vital public services.  Ensuring that local companies (the life blood of our economy) have the opportunity to compete for city contracts has been a priority of my administration.

In the fall of 2011, my administration implemented Hire Houston First, a local preference program that provides contracting opportunities for homegrown businesses.  There is a domino impact on the local economy that far exceeds the direct benefits experienced by the companies that are winning city contracts.  It keeps your tax dollars working locally to generate jobs and pay for the purchase of goods and services.

There are currently more than 1,300 Hire Houston First designated companies. This is your opportunity to get answers to some of your questions about the program. 

What does Hire Houston First mean? 

In order to qualify, companies must meet at least one of two requirements:

1.      The company must be headquartered within Houston’s corporate city limits or within one of the 10 local counties of Harris, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Liberty, Montgomery, Waller, Austin, and San Jacinto.

2.      The company must have 20 percent or more of its workforce and a substantial part of its operations within the city limits or one of the 10 counties.

How is Hire Houston First implemented in the city of Houston’s procurement process?

Generally, Hire Houston First allows the award of contracts under $100,000 to a local firm if the local firm’s price is within five percent of the lowest bid from a non-Hire Houston First designated company.  For contracts exceeding $100,000, there can be no more than a three percent difference between the non-Hire Houston First designated company’s bid and the next highest offer from a Hire Houston First vendor.

Has the program been successful?

Last month, the city of Houston’s Office of Business Opportunity released the “Hire Houston First Progress Report” which details the program’s success during the reporting period of October 2011 through December 2013.

It was assumed that the designation would be necessary to give local companies a fair opportunity during the procurement process but we have found that Houston companies are competitive without using their Hire Houston First designation.  Highlights from the report include:

·        More than $1 billion dollars of the city of Houston’s business has been awarded to Hire Houston First firms

·        More than 1,300 companies have been designated as Hire Houston First, of which 424 have won city contracts

·        Hire Houston First companies support approximately 20,000 jobs in the Houston region

·        More than 50 Hire Houston First firms had never before secured a contract before their Hire Houston First designation

·        These companies collectively employ nearly 20,000 employees right here in Houston

To view the full report, visit www.houstontx.gov/obo and click on the “OBO Reports” tab.

Should I apply?

Even if you are not currently doing business with the city of Houston or have no plans to do so, you can apply and become a Hire Houston First designated company.  Visit www.houstontx.gov/obo and click on “Hire Houston First”.  The application is free and can be completed online.  If you have any questions, please contact the Office of Business Opportunity at 832-393-0600.

Serving since January 2, 2010, Annise D. Parker has been elected as the Mayor of Houston three times.  She is Houston’s 61st Mayor and one of only two women to hold the City’s highest elected office.  In 2010, Time Magazine named Mayor Parker one the 100 most influential people in the world.  Mayor Annise Parker is a Steering Committee Member of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group and serves on President Barack Obama’s State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience.  She is also on the advisory board of Small Business Today Magazine.  For more information, go to www.houstontx.gov/mayor/.

Have You Checked Your “BP” Lately?

October Greetings Everyone!

Have you checked your “BP” lately?

No, I am not talking about checking your blood pressure (but good for you); I am referencing checking your Business Plan.

If you have not visited your business plan in the last year, it might be time to do so.

Business Plans are not just for the initial financing of your business.  More importantly, they are to chart your course for the days, weeks, and months to follow.  I have often heard that, “The only thing permanent is change” which is extremely applicable when it comes to your clients’ wants, needs, and preferences.  Are you keeping up with those changes?  If not, they may be searching for a company who is already “on top” of their needs.  Remember that your clients are your competitor’s prospects and vice versa.

Here are some suggestions of things you might start with:

•        Talk to your customers and get an update on how their business and their consumers have changed.

•        Talk to your staff (if any) and ask for their feedback and suggestions on the business (you may be surprised with what they know and think).

•        Visit your competitor’s websites and social media to discover how they have changed in meeting their consumer’s needs.

Remember “why” you created your business and understand that everything is subject to change without any notice.  Keep your focus on your dreams, be ready to make changes that need to be changed, and never give up.

Our cover honoree for our October 2014 issue, Emile “Chuck” Toups of the EFFORT Companies is a true visionary and dreamer whose business plans are always in motion, much like the race cars he has that are always winning.  Barbara and I were introduced to Emile and his companies by Sonia Clayton of Virtual Intelligence Providers.  Not only is Sonia on our Publisher’s Advisory Board, she is also a past cover honoree.  We have spent many hours getting to know Emile and listen to his dreams about his future plans, all of which incorporate what he values most - his GOD and his family, first and foremost.

It really was fun getting a chance to shoot the cover on the race track at MSR Houston with Emile’s two Porsche Race Cars of EFFORT RACING. 

I know you will enjoy Emile’s story and understand his message, “We Come to Win!”

If you are planning to attend the “Houston Small Business Expo” at the NRG Center on October 11^th, please drop by our booth at the show.  For more information, visit www.HoustonSmallBusinessExpo.com.  We will see you there!

Good Reading, Good Sales, and Great Success to You!

Respectfully,

Steve Levine

President & Executive Publisher

www.sbtmagazine.net