In to each life a little rain must fall…and in the case of an Entrepreneur that would be the dreaded administration work. When you got into business you had a dream….a dream that included energy filled days where [...]]]> Here is my latest column for the St Croix Courier…enjoy!

Admin Day- Dealing with the Dirty Dozen

In to each life a little rain must fall…and in the case of an Entrepreneur that would be the dreaded administration work. When you got into business you had a dream….a dream that included energy filled days where the business rolled along nicely and you were having fun doing what you love to do.

Then reality struck; when you sat in your office there was the carnage of unfinished paperwork, unanswered calls and a long list of things of to-dos. This was not what you got into business for. However, this is a part of the business that cannot be ignored because if you do, you will have angry customers or worse the CRA knocking on your door.

Here is a recap of the most common Administrative tasks and how to handle them efficiently.

The Admin Day- Dirty Dozen

1. Check all of your phones, copy down the number and message and return them…all of them. To save time on this task get the voicemail to e-mail service that most carries provide.
2. Make all phone calls that you have been putting off. Perhaps it is a call to the phone company regarding a question on your last bill.
3. Attack your paper with the FAT principal. File it, Act in it or Toss it. Keep a recycling and garbage bin near your desk so this becomes an ongoing habit
4. Review all outstanding bills and pay them. To make this easier keep them all in one file.
5. Collect all outstanding receivables, this is your cash flow. If you have a hard time with this hire or delegate this to someone who doesn’t.
6. Deal with all those magazines and articles on your desk that are waiting to be read. Have a file specifically for these and give yourself a deadline to do the reading, if it doesn’t happen in the time frame then let them go.
7. Website updates are a critical part of your online presence. It is not enough to have a website, you have to have fresh content for the Google spiders. No new relevant content…no indexing.
8. Follow up on all outstanding proposals. This shows that you are interested and yes…ORGANIZED.
9. Filling out forms can be a long tedious painful experience. Do these activities first on Admin Day and reward yourself with a fresh coffee or some other reward when you are finished.
10. Review the schedule for the coming week and pull files for the clients so you are ready to Rock and Roll come Monday morning.
11. If you are in business then you need to SELL…yes that four letter word. Make a list of prospects that you want to contact in the next week. By taking the time to do this one single activity you are committing to growing your business.
12. And last but not least…do ONE thing that will help you to grow your business.

There is hope and it comes in two parts.

You need to carve out a time to work on your business, yes that means turning off the phone and committing to the time. Initially it may take up to a full day to handle the administrative backlog, however as time goes on you will see a reduction in the amount of work week over week.

The second part requires you to grab a pile on the desk and yes….get-er-done,  have fun and Happy Admin Day!

To see more videos to inspire you in the office visit my youtube channel here.

With a pile of debt [...]]]> As our small province is dealing with the recent transition of government and our friends to the south are heading to the polls. It seems that the state of the economy is the same whether you are chatting at a coffee shop in rural new Brunswick or on Wall Street in the USA. 

With a pile of debt and an uncertain economy what does a business owner do? 

You go back to the business basics….

You go back to the thing that you did when you started…the thing that required your expertise…the thing that started it all.

Last week the KV Chamber of Commerce held its annual awards night and gala as part of the Small Business week festivities. While large corporations are downsizing and job security is a thing of the past in small business it is a different story. It was amazing to hear the stories, winners sharing their secrets of success.

All the nominated businesses have never forgotten about the basics of business and are shining example to others.

As a bit of inspiration to keep you going when you don’t feel you can…read these amazine stories of success;

The Girls Bra Shop opened two years ago. It is celebrating the opening of its first franchise in the next few weeks. It is in the top 5 companies in the country for sales in its industry and in addition to all the amazing business accomplishments they also donate $1 from each bra sale to charity…totaling over $3200 in the past two years. These gals have hired an amazing staff that allow the “Girls” the time and energy to working on growing the business so they can expand in multiple directions. It is a great story about business owners who are working on the business and have great people working in the business.

Mc Phee’s Bakery…we love their buns, and breads, and coffee. This is a place that locals visit daily for fresh homemade bread that tastes like just Grandma’s. Since the bakery changed hands 15 years ago they have added a separate store front and serve Java Moose coffee. They are looking to expand further with a lunch counter where you will be able to purchase sandwiches made with their awesome bread and rolls. They employ 11 people including several family members and will be adding more when the lunch counter opens…it really is a family affair.

The Community Impact award went to Tim Dewar co-owner of Dairy Queen in Rothesay. The tens of thousands of dollars raised for local charities is inspiring to anyone who says they don’t have time to give back…they have made time and it shows. Their sign in front of the restaurant is a constant source of information on local charity events…a charity billboard really.                

While sitting there last evening and hearing all the inspiring stories of local business owners it made me think of all the things that it takes to make a business successful. Here is a short list of what all these companies are doing.     

• Great businesses have a story…figure yours out and share it. If you are unsure of how to do this check out Mags Schultz and his KettleKorn for a great story.
• Hire the best, people who can do things better than you and then let them do it.
• Give …give your time, your expertise and yes…perhaps some money. Karma really does work and by sharing you inspire others to do the same.
• Treat your customers well and thank them for their business.

In the end, all business operations can be reduced to three words: people, product and profits. Unless you’ve got a good team, you can’t do much with the other two. Lee Iacocca

Make work, less work!

Keep everything that you need to do your specific job at your fingertips.  

And only what you need…eliminate the useless clutter.

One of the things that you can do to keep you in the flow and on your game is the daily rituals. Daily Rituals like the morning java jolt and enjoying the daily paper can be the catalyst to get your day off to the [...]]]> Working from Home can pose its own set of issues…

One of the things that you can do to keep you in the flow and on your game is the daily rituals.
Daily Rituals like the morning java jolt and enjoying the daily paper can be the catalyst to get your day off to the perfect start.
The daily paper is one of the most important daily rituals for me, as a small business owner it is a source of information on what is happening in my community.

Reading the Daily paper lets me know

Who is in the paper that day? What is going on?  I then ask myself “How can I help or connect with that person to help them in their business?”

Reading the local paper is an awesome way to connect with local, national and international business owners that are just like you. It gives you an opportunity to send a congratulatory e-mail about an important event, or perhaps it could be an opportunity to collaberate.

People buy from people they like and people they trust…so get out there are make some connections

What are the daily rituals that you do to GROW and SUSTAIN your small business?

Staying focused can sometimes be challenging when you are a solopreneur. Working alone in a home office can be lonely at the best of times however when you add some gloomy weather it can be paralyzing.

Time to pull out your [...]]]> What do you do when the spring rain puts a damper on your motivation?

Staying focused can sometimes be challenging when you are a solopreneur. Working alone in a home office can be lonely at the best of times however when you add some gloomy weather it can be paralyzing.

Time to pull out your TOP 5 and you tackle one thing at a time.

Check out my VLOG today for some great motivational TIPS!

Feeling a bit frustrated….trapped in the office on a lovely Friday….perhaps it’s time to get out of the office…..and head to Walmart to purchase some Nerf guns…..want to play?

I learned it from Cameron Herold who read it somewhere….and used the concept for himself with some…OK lots of success…check out his bio…and, at that very small conference that he happened to be [...]]]> Over 5 years ago I learned one of the most valuable KICKASS Business Tips ever… No really I am not kidding.

I learned it from Cameron Herold who read it somewhere….and used the concept for himself with some…OK lots of success…check out his bio…and, at that very small conference that he happened to be at 5 years ago…actually he was not supposed to be there at all, he was the stand in speaker…he shared a very simple yet profound concept that not only changed my life but all the people I share it with.  Just in case I never said it personally…Thanks Cameron for that nugget.

That nugget is The Top 6 things I must do Tomorrow . It is a story about Ivy Lee and Charles Schwab.

Around 100 years ago, Charles Schwab, president of Bethlehem Steel, wanted to increase his own efficiency, and of the management team at the steel company. Ivy Lee, a well-known efficiency expert of the time, approached Mr. Schwab, and made a proposition Charles Schwab could not refuse:

Ivy Lee: “I can increase your people’s efficiency – and your sales – if you will allow me to spend 15 minutes with each of your executives.” ….read the rest of the story

Over the years I have modified Ivy’s method and have come up with my own version, it goes like this.

• At the end of the work week take 15 minutes and think about your annual goals.
• Take a simple recipe card and write down 5 things you want to accomplish that feed into your annual goals.
• Any paper or files that are related to the 5 goals needs to be gathered together.
• Take those 5 things and put the most important on the top and organize the rest in descending importance.
• E-mail a copy of this list to yourself and mark it important.

What you have now is your game plan for the next week. Wow…you can actually relax this weekend knowing that you have a game plan. It is out of your head and on paper…what a stress reliever.

Oh and did I mention that they are the goals for the WHOLE week…not for a single day. So by the end of the week if you accomplish only the first 2 items you have tackled 2 very important tasks that add to your bottom line.

Now I have to ask…”Is that the most awesome KICKASS Business Tip Ever?”

As a side note here is my Top 5 for this week.

-Mail Organizing Connection Home Organizing Videos to Costco Head Office Buyer.
-Add Clutter to Clarity Lunch and Learn page to website and promote to 10 local companies, get testimonial from past clients for the page.
-Send E-Mail out to Professional Organizer Biz 101 participants regarding the schedule, payments and what we are doing each week.
-Add 6 Blog posts this week
-Finish reading “Made to Stick” and do a book review live on Ustream .

Please note that all these goals feed into my annual goals. This is not everything I will do this week as urgent things come up and to be honest you need to address some urgent stuff when it happens. If I accomplish one of these items every week for the next year I will have completed 52 strategic steps towards my goals. I would say that is better than nothing!

“Organizing is not about how it looks but about how it functions and feels”

Yesterday I had the pleasure of presenting my “Clutter to Clarity” workshop at a Lunch & Learn to 7  amazing women. They love what they do, they love the company they work for and they admire their leader….to be [...]]]> Organizing Philosophy…

“Organizing is not about how it looks but about how it functions and feels”

Yesterday I had the pleasure of presenting my “Clutter to Clarity” workshop at a Lunch & Learn to 7  amazing women. They love what they do, they love the company they work for and they admire their leader….to be honest so do I , she is quite amazing. That being said we got on the topic of look vs feel in regards to organizing.

As someone who is always talking, thinking, researching organizing I sometimes forget that there are 2 sides to this argument.

As the gals pointed out yesterday there are days that the “Boss” goes through the place like a tornado(not reallya tornado, but this is a great visual) because it looks awful and there are other days when it really doesn’t matter. Someone else also said that it feels so good when they can find what they need when they need it…..hmmmmm.

So it is looks or function and feel…or is it both?

I know that at certain times of the month(if you get my drift) I am crazy when I have clutter on my kitchen countertops and other times I could not care less.

What are your thoughts…looks or feel…or both? Please share…what do you think?

This gathering of the [...]]]> I challenge you right now to take 15 minutes to gather up all the bits of paper currently cluttering your desk, floor, chair…etc, and put it aside…together…in a folder…to work on at a time that is more convenient. By convenient I mean when you can take some uninterrupted time to Git-R-Done!

This gathering of the papers does not include client files or projects…they are THE most important things that you are working on right now…the things that you determined in your annual planning add to the bottom line.

I mean the notes, bills, receipts, invoices, and non-urgent mail…now, are you getting my drift!  Take it all right now and stuff it in a folder. Go do it…what are you waiting for.

Welcome back…feels good to have that control!

By doing this one simple task you will save yourself some VALUABLE  TIME in the long run, you would be less DISTRACTED by all the unimportant things that are messing up your workspace…the crappy stuff that you really don’t like to do, that really doesn’t get done often enough.

If you did it today it would make you more effective and productive in your Home Office. You would feel in control of all that paper that is laying around. Gosh darn it you would be using basic Time Management and Productivity principles.

If you did take the time to do this today you would have just created the “5 Minute File”.

I always like to try these new ideas out first before sharing, so at the start of the month I created my own “5 Minute File”. A very plain white folder with a label that reads “5 Minute File”. I gathered all the loose papers that did not relate to important client stuff and filed it away….and totally forget about it…that is not the intention of this file. My first mistake was to file it away in my side desk drawer.

So the tweaking began…I am an out of sight out of mind kinda gal….Yes I am “Visual” I need to see what I have on the go. So the file has now moved from the desk drawer to the table behind my desk with all my current files.

Gathering and creating the folder was just the first part. Getting to the task at hand is another issue. I have scheduled a time slot in my week to tackle the “5 Minute File”, it will be on a day that I am focusing on non client related stuff and I am giving myself a reward for completing this CRAPPY task…because to be honest I would rather do anything else than do this paperwork stuff…so believe me you are not alone. What I do know is that not doing it is not an option. So by batching all these quick 5 Minute Tasks into one session I am using my VALUABLE time more effectively and I am Gittin-R- Done.

I hope this “5 Minute File” works for you as well as it has been working for me.