Make a Referral continued…

Here’s a thought: we can be all gloom & doom about the economy OR we can change that & help the economy recover at the same time. “We must be the change we want to see in the world!”.  Let’s go for it!

A Little Lesson on Giving & Receiving

For those of us following priciples of LOA (Law of Attraction);  one of the secrets states that in order to be able to ‘receive’ from the Universe; you should get comfortable with ‘giving’ too. (check out Mr. Fire, Dr. Joe Vitale for more along this line.)

I read the following post today on a colleague’s blog (http://happinesschick.wordpress.com ) which illustrates the power of giving & receiving.  (it’s the 57 cents post).

What can 57 Cents Do?

A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it was “too crowded.”  “I can’t go to Sunday School,” she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by.  Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class. The child was so happy that they found room for her, and she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.
Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings. Her parents called for the kindhearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements.

As her poor little body was being moved, a worn and crumpled red purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump. Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled in childish handwriting, which read: “This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School.”  For two years she had saved for this offering of love.

When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion.  He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building.

But the story does not end there…

< What can 57 Cents Do?

A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had
been turned away because it was “too crowded.”  “I can’t go to Sunday School,” she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by.  Seeing her shabby, unkempt appearance, the pastor guessed the reason and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday school class. The child was so happy that they found room for her, and she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus.
Some two years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor tenement buildings. Her parents called for the kindhearted pastor who had befriended their daughter to handle the final arrangements.

As her poor little body was being moved, a worn and crumpled red purse was found which seemed to have been rummaged from some trash dump.
Inside was found 57 cents and a note, scribbled in childish handwriting, which read: “This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School.”  For two years she had saved for this offering of love.

When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note and the cracked, red pocketbook to the pulpit, he told the story of her unselfish love and devotion.  He challenged his deacons to get busy and raise enough money for the larger building.

But the story does not end there…

A newspaper learned of the story and published it. It was read by a wealthy realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands. When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered to sell it to the little church for 57 cents.

Church members made large donations. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl’s gift had increased to $250,000.00–a huge sum for that time (near the turn of the century). Her unselfish love had paid large dividends.

When you are! in the city of Philadelphia, look up Temple Baptist Church, with a seating capacity of 3,300. And be sure to visit Temple University, where thousands of students are educated.

Have a look, too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at a Sunday School building which houses hundreds of beautiful children, built so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside during Sunday School time. In one of the rooms of this building may be seen the picture of the sweet face of the little girl whose 57 cents, so sacrificially saved, made such remarkable history.   Alongside of it is a portrait of her kind pastor, Dr. Russel H. Conwell, author of the book,  “Acres of Diamonds” >

Thanks Kathy.

Make a Referral Week March 9-13 2009

   With all the stimulus packages being offered by government, I think it’s time small businesses did their share. Small business is the lifeblood and job-creating engine of the economy and merits a stimulus package of it’s own. Even though small businesses don’t whine & complain & demand billion dollar bailouts from the federal government; many small business owners are suffering during this recession. So let’s make our own bailout/stimulus package! A group of entrepreneurs in the US have declared March 9th – 13th 2009 Make a Referral Week!

 

   The goal for the week is to generate 1000 leads to 1000 deserving small businesses in an effort to stimulate the economy and to highlight the impact of a single action that could blossom into millions of dollars of new business. If you’d like to participate & I think we all should, why not drop by http://www.makeareferralweek.com & make a pledge or be a sponsor (or both). Why wait for the government to provide us with a stimulus package? Let’s spread the word & let’s participate. Let’s make this baby go viral & jumpstart our economy. Each of us is only one business, but together we can accomplish great things. What are you waiting for?

 

 

Need Bodywork & Massage Info?

If you’re a bodywork or massage professional and you need info about credentials, liability insurance, different recognized modalities etc, etc. Here’s a couple of resources for you.

http://www.abmp.com (Association of Bodyworkers and Massage Professionals) and http://www.aobta.org. ( American Organization for Bodywork Therapies of Asia).  In Canada the AMTWP is now http://www.nhpcanada.org 

If you live outside continential NA, check on line to find an association in your country. If there isn’t one, drop one of the above associations a line & they’ll try and help you. Failing that, drop me a line & I’ll see what I can do for you. Be well.

The Zen of Attraction

If you read my previous post, here’s an example of sharing things of value with others. A brief digression first though: If you have a blog, you should be keeping it updated regularily (yes I said that before). But updating say 3 times a week or so can be time consuming & you may run out of ideas to write about.

If you come across something duing the day that resonates with you, why not share with others through your blog. Share a poem, an interesting thought or even a blog post you found worthwhile, even if it’s not directly related to your area of expertise. When you create value for others, even if they’re outside your niche, you provide a gift, a thought provoking or stimulating or useful idea they may not have encountered themselves. Afterall most of us are far too busy to read every blog post out there, even if it were possible. So it’s inevitable we miss things, potentially useful things/ideas.  So share what you found, add your own insight, ideas etc. BUT don’t forget to include a LIVE LINK back to your source. It’s only respectful and that way you don’t get accused of copyright infringement, plagerism etc. This poem is part of an ebook called “the way of radical business.” You can pick up your own copy for FREE at http://www.tadhargrave.com . You do have to sign up for his newsletter, but I’m sure you will find it a  worth while read especially if you’re into things like guerilla marketing.

The Zen of Attraction by Thomas J. Leonard

1. Promise nothing. Just do what you most enjoy doing.

2. Sign nothing. Just do what doesn’t require a signature of any kind.

3. Offer nothing. Just share what you have with those who express an interest.

4. Expect nothing. Just enjoy what you already have; it’s plenty.

5. Need nothing. Just build up your reserves and your needs will disappear.

6. Create nothing. Just respond well to what comes to you.

7. Seduce no one. Just enjoy them.

8. Adrenalize nothing. Just add value and get excited about that.

9. Hype nothing. Just let quality sell by itself.

10. Fix nothing. Just heal yourself.

11. Plan nothing. Just take the path of least resistance.

12. Learn nothing. Just let your body absorb it all on your behalf.

13. Become no one. Just be more of yourself.

14. Change nothing. Just tell the truth and things will change by themselves.

Looking to Create a Web Presence Though Social Media?

Many businesses these days are venturing into the Wild West of social media, trying their hand at things like blogging and Twitter and creating profiles on social-networking sites. But along the way there’s room for improvement. Here’s a couple of things you should think about especially if you’re using social media to create/establish an online business presence.

 

Creating a social networking presence is an ideal way for folks to connect & network with other business professionals. However you should keep all your web presences as professional as you would your actual business persona. How you present yourself online has a direct effect on your reputation and your ability to connect with your customers, associates and potential customers. Be civil at all times. Despite what you make think personally, keep your comments civil. You will lose business & potential clients if you’re rude or flame even if it’s just in pm (private messaging).

 

Your online presence is often the first thing people see when they’re looking to connect with you. And as I’m sure you’ve often heard, first impressions are crucial. People judge you by how you look (your ‘online’ presence) long before they get to know you.

Whether you have a blog, post to various social networking sites, or have a Facebook page, be professional. Often their decision to work or not work with you will be based on how they ‘see’ you and may have absolutely nothing to do with whether or not you fit their ‘parameters’.

 

Keep your business presence separate from your social one, especially if you come across as two different people. The person who may come across as a ‘partier’ or worse on Facebook or YouTube is not the type of person your ideal client wants to do business with. (yes there may be exceptions, but you catch my drift here.)

 

Make an effort to keep your posts and comments not only updated regularly, but interesting too. Whatever product or service you offer, people expect you to be helpful and informative. So get into the habit of providing folks with insightful info or commentary, even if it may not be your area of expertise. In other words create value. You never know who’s reading your posts/comments. If you get into the habit of creating value, someone may just decide to do business with you or recommend you. However, while you can provide a discrete link back to your home site, don’t make with the sales pitch all the time. The one thing that turns me off faster then rudeness is someone who keeps trying to sell me something.

 

There’s a couple of very good, very informative blog posts over at the Wall Street Journal along with their assorted comments. I recommend reading them. They’ll fill you in on some basic dos and don’ts along with providing a general reference of different social media sites you may not be familiar with.

 

http://blogs.wsj.com/independentstreet/2008/08/21/social-networking-common-mistakes-small-businesses-make/

Original post is by Kelly Spors & the second same one

is http://blogs.wsj.com/independentstreet/2008/09/12/social-networking-sites-spring-up-for-business-owners/ also by Kelly. 

 

By the way, I recommend experimenting with social media. While I haven’t seen an increase in business yet, (it’s only been a couple of months since I started making a concentrated effort) I’ve been expanding my networks and my connections. I think the long term prognosis will be beneficial both for myself as a human being & as a entrepreneur/business owner.

How Do You Treat Your Business?

Let me ask you a question: why are you ‘in business’?

Do your answers include things like: “I want to give others the benefits of my massage skills” (then why don’t you work for someone else?) or “I want to make money with my massage” (do you devote as much time to your business as you do to your massage?)

 

When you give someone a massage, you give them the best massage possible every time (at least I hope you do). Because if you don’t, they’ll go somewhere else next time they need a massage (or if it was particularly painful or unpleasant, they may never have another massage.) Sounds shocking I know, but I get complaints from folks that they didn’t enjoy their massage. I went to school to learn how to give a massage (you don’t ‘do’ a massage, you ‘give’ a massage) One of the very first things the instructor told us was that a massage should never be painful. (Unless of course it’s for therapeutic reasons). But there are practitioners who just give someone a massage without checking on how the person’s doing. And sometimes when the person complains, the practitioner doesn’t lighten up, (ease off on the pressure) they just carry on. You can’t ‘fix’ someone in just one massage. You work on their knots, stress etc gradually over time. Many therapists don’t ‘get’ this. (This is one of my pet rants: practitioners/therapists who just do- <no ‘giving’ about it> their massage by the book. Without allowing it to evolve and adjust over time & according to the individual’s needs & comfort level.)

 

Do you give the business part of your business the same attention that you give your clients? Do you treat it with the same TLC as you treat your clients? (At least I hope you’re treating your clients with TLC) 

 

Do you treat your business with the same care and respect you treat another living being, or do you treat it like a ‘thing’? An inanimate object that has no life, no soul, no ‘beingness’, just kicking it around, swearing at it, complaining when it doesn’t provide you with the revenue you feel it should? Hmmmm? What would happen if you treated a loved one like that? Or perhaps one of your clients?

 

Someone, probably you ‘created’ your business. You gave it form & being from your thoughts. In essence, you gave it life. So now you have a business. Are you taking care of it? Do you nurture it allowing it you provide you with its benefits: new/continuing clients; revenue; allowing you to share with others the benefits of massage though your skills? Generating additional clients generating additional revenue etc, etc. Well???

 

Here’s some thoughts for you. First of all, remember your business is not you. It’s got its own separate identity. It’s as unique as you are, its owner. Your business also has a feeling to it. But even more than that, it has a being-ness to it, its own entity if you like. Your business has a heart, and it has it’s own impulses and needs, separate from you. Like a garden, or a child, a business needs support, needs nourishment, needs love, and needs some hard work, but it does the growing on its own. And as its ‘owner’ you should be taking care of it, nurturing it, helping it to grow & prosper. Because if you don’t, it will stagnate and die (or ‘fail’).

 Here’s my tip for you: start looking at /thinking about your business as a ‘being’. See where you could/should be nurturing and encouraging it. Then  take it from there. The ideas expressed in this post were influenced by Mark Silver over at http://www.heartofbusiness.com . If you sincerely believe in what you and your business has to offer, you should drop by and check Mark out. 

What’s Your #1 Stategy For Sucess

Having trouble getting your business off the ground or taking it to the next level? Here’s something to work with. According to Jack Canfield of Chicken Sup for the Soul fame: The #1 Success Principle is: Take 100% responsibility for your life! Stop blaming, complaining and justifying why you haven’t created the results you want in your life.  It is YOU who creates the quality of the life you lead and the results you produce.

You can’t sit around waiting for the Universe to hand you what you want on a silver platter. Then whine & moan when you don’t get what you want.  You need to take set yourself a few simple goals & then TAKE ACTION! Don’t wait for the time to be ‘just right’. It’ll never be ‘right’.  Something will always come along to get under paw.

You should be taking action every day to grow your business, work on improving yourself & your relationships with others. Don’t have a website, get a page up there. Let folks know what you do, what problem of theirs you can help solve & how folks can get in touch with you. But you need to get it gear & do something. Otherwise you might just as well get a JOB!

If you’re really financially challenged, set up a web site blog, a blogsite (they’re free) with either WordPress or Blogger. Actually, using WordPress as your blogsite isn’t just for the financially challenged. Having a WordPress blogsite allows you to update your site as often as you desire. It has a host of other features that I haven’t figured out yet. If you’re looking for a great resource site on how to setup your blogsite check out Sandra de Freitas: ‘Does this Blogsite Make My Wallet Look Fat’ over at http://www.wordpressblogsites.com

Some Thoughts on Social Media

Unless you’ve been living in a cave lately, you’ve heard all about Web 2.0 & Social Media. Still not sure if it’s for you? Mark McGuiness over at Lateral Action has a great post ‘The Top 10 Social Networks For Creative People’ that really clarifies Social Media & the benefits of implementing it in your life. Most of us aren’t solitary creatures by nature & the more we connect with others the greater the benefit to ourselves. As Mark puts it:

“Social media technologies are providing us with opportunities to exchange ideas, stimulate and teach each other that are at least as exciting as those available to the great minds of the Renaissance.”

Here’s the link so you can go read the rest of it including comments: http://lateralaction.com/articles/social-networks-for-creatives/

It’s January – Ready to do some business building?

Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? How’s it going so far? Recession got you daunted? Here’s aquote for you and some ideas to get you moving forward.

Is this you? ” Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” Lou Holtz

If you’re in business for yorself, there’s a couple of things you really need to have. If you haven’t got them, let’s get started now.

If you’re in business, doesn’t matter if you’re selling widgits or on site massage, YOU NEED A WEBSITE! You need to create an online presence. Folks don’t go hunting through the yellow pages any more to find you. They Google you. If you don’t have a web presence, you won’t get found, your competitors will.

There’s 3 ways to get online. The most costly is to have a site built for you. The more affordable way is to do it yourself & the 3 way is free, say a blog either here at WordPress or Blogger. Now there are other free ways to get online say Facebook, but it’s more professional to start with either a website and/or a blog. It doesn’t have to be a big complicted site with lots of flash etc. It can be a very basic one page affair that tells folks what you have to offer & how to contact you. I’ll get into all the ins & outs of building a website in another post.

By the way, once you create an online presence for your business you become an online or internat marketer. I know online/internet marketing has gotten some bad press. There are folks out there who will sell you a bunch of vitually useless stuff  if you let them. So if you’re new to all this internet stuff, go hide your credit card in another room. I’ll wait… Back?

Basically there’s 2 types of businesses, those that sell tangile goods like widgets & those that sell intangible ones like massage or coaching. In either case most of the strategies I’ll share with you are equally effective for both. There’s some really cool FREE stuff online that will help you build your business. So you don’t have to spend any money (well just a little like registering your domain name & gettiing a webhost & stuff like that. But in general you don’t need to spend big bucks.

There’s a ton of blogs, according to Technorati.com there’s something like 15.5 million active blogs with something like 1.3 – 1.5 million posts made every day.  You couldn’t possibly read all of them I’m going to share a couple I’ve found really useful. Go check out the guys over at StomperBlog.com  StomperNet teaches online businesses how to get more traffic, and how to convert more traffic into paying customers. It’s valuable information, & much of it is free, including the instructional videos, BUT you do need to register. It does help if you know a little about what happens online, but most of what they have to offer is brain dead simple.