Get to the Po!nt

I get this in my email inbox every day, and every day it adds value to my morning and gives me something to take away and use, or at least a little bit of a new idea.

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6 Ways to get Happy Employees

One of the hardest things when running a small business is to keep employees motivated and pointed towards the common target. If a small business has unmotivated employees the results can be disastrous as the employees are generally the face of your company and can often have a long and lasting effect on your business through their work and behaviours. Often making sure employees falls to the bottom of the list of things to do... after all, in small business there is always too much to do for the owner.

Motivating employees is hard, no doubt about it, but other than being an inspirational public speaker there are ways to get the job done and get your employees happy and motivated; and motivation doesn't mean paying them more!! The most effective means of motivating employees always has and always will remain free.

1. Thank your employees for their hard work. A simple "Thank You" is often the most powerful thing a manager can do. It is also the one thing many managers don't do often enough.

2. Celebrate their successes with them, after all, they are your successes too!

3. Give them something small that will make life easier every day. It could be a proper coffee machine, free supplies of Red Bull, a nice chair to sit on. These things don't cost much but make work that much more enjoyable and comfortable. (And if it involves caffeine then your employees will also be more productive!!)

4. Empower your employees. Not all the time, but at least some of the time. Show you have trust in their abilities.

5. Shout lunch for everyone once in a while. You will be surprised how happy your staff will be after. An amazing side effect of this is that your staff will actually tell you about new ideas they have had which will make your business run more efficiently and make you more money.

6. Education. Help your employees learn, and give them some freedom to learn. It doesn't really matter what, but learning something new stimulates the brain, encourages creativity, and gives people a sense of accomplishment and success. If an employee learns how to be a better sales person, office assistant, janitor, or accountant isn't that better for your business too?

Please post your comments below on interesting ways that you've been motivated or motivated others.

Learn Lots... Learn Young

Have you even wondered how some people just seem to know more than you? Or always seem to have read "that" book, or know something on "that" topic? Are they a constant source of reference for you? Do you want to be "that" guy?

Well yesterday I found out just how these people get the edge. Scott Ginsberg is the worlds foremost expert on Approachability and is often known as "The Nametag Guy" as he wears a nametag 24/7 and for nearly 3000 days straight.

One of his articles, he has written hundreds, is titled 23 Ways to Learn A LOT at a Really Young Age and is a reference list of all those things we should do to help our learning, creativity, and knowledge retention. Read it!

Three of the stand out points that Scott makes are:

1. Read lots of books. Highlight, underline, take notes and annotate. When you’re done, recopy those notes onto a Word file. Then save them in a folder called “Book Notes.” Refer back to them regularly. And never loan those books to anybody. Start with one per week.

10. Make lots of lists. Best creativity tool EVER.

12. Hang with super smart, cool and creative people. Ask yourself, “How smart are the five people I spend the most time with?”

This is a "Stick on Wall" guide for me and has been stuck up along with the Don's Top Ten Rules of Success about my desk where i can see them every day. Download my easily printed version here.

A clear statement of intent

What do you think the above company does?

Simple really. Anything to do with sound, and they do it with a passion.

Every company can take something from Edifier's slogan "A Passion for Sound". There is a clear directive on what the company does and how it does it. Seeing this slogan makes a customer feel just that little bit more comfortable with the brand as they know Edifier has the same passion for sound that they have. Furthermore, someone with passion for their work is unlikely to produce shoddy product.

Lastly, I think the best thing about this slogan is that it doesn't limit the company to any particular area of the audio market. Currently Edifier deals in PC Speakers and Powered Audio, but it the future there is nothing to stop Edifier from branching out into other areas. Areas such as pro HiFi, audio accessories and connectivity. There is no limit really as long as it is to do with sound.

Disclaimer: Edifier is one of the brands i manage for the New Zealand market at Digitalblue.

Get on the fast track to real wealth

I have just finished reading Rich Dad's Guide to Investing: What the rich invest in that the poor and middle class do not. (RD's G2I) I give it 8/10

The first half of RD's G2I is focussed on qualifying the reader as someone who is really committed to being financially free. It does this by taking you through the key aspects of what it takes to leave behind the rat race and get yourself on the fast track to financial freedom. As is said within the covers of this book, DO NOT read unless you are willing, committed, and determined to be financially free.

The second half of the book is based around Rich Dad's 10 Investor Controls and the quest to become the Ultimate Investor.

Kiyosaki writes in his familiar style that mixes the hard facts and theory with his real life experiences. Short stories based around Kiyosaki's life and quest to become financially free and the ultimate investor are used throughout the book to illustrate the points being made and make the understanding of sometimes complex topics a little easier for the reader.

If you are wanting to get on the path to financial freedom and want some inspiration as well as tips get this book.

If you are on the path to financial freedom and already own your business then get this book too as it has many great ideas to help you get further ahead and ensure you success now and long into the future.

Auckland Small Business Expo

Today I went to the Auckland Small Business expo with my close friend and soon to be business parter Pauline. Man was it fantastic. I went last year, but i skipped the seminars. This year I went and I must say i was impressed with the free information on offer and the speed and fluency with which it was presented. All of the presenters obviously knew what they were talking about and were passionate in their field.

Today Pauline and I went to the following seminars:

Making networking big for small business Chris Matthews, Principal Lecturer, The Open Polytechnic

Learn the Secrets of Creating a Highly Persuasive Website David Kelly, CEO, Zeald

BIG Ideas for Small Businesses Dave Wild, Managing Director, Smith and Wild

What's Your Ultimate Vision: Importance of Strategy in SME™s Carl Michael Bates, Director, Sirdar Limited

Over the next weekend i will try and update you all with an outline of what each person spoke about in their allotted 20mins.

If you haven't been to the expo in NZ, or one similar elsewhere in the world then i highly recommend doing so. The information you gain and new ideas you will take into your business will far far far outweigh the cost of your time.

11 Ways to Wow Customers

Just got this one in my google reader... Focus on WOW for Customers by Becky Carol @ Customers Rock

I don't think i've seen anything recently that comes close to getting to the root of customer service and relationship building that these 11 Ways to WOW do.

Check out this happy drinker on the right. I reckon he has received the benefit of pretty much 11 of the Way to WOW rules. I think his experience went like this: He went into the bar, feels at home, is greeted by the barman and offered a drink he wants, gets a nice cold beer that he likes, drank in comfort in surrounding where he chats with his friends or the barman, and when he finally leaves the bar he is thanked for coming and asked to come back sometime soon. I don't know what bar this is in, but every great bar manager must know these tecniques to create a successful bar with an inviting environment.

These are the 11 Ways to WOW Customers that a company called Wells Fargo uses as their basis for customer interaction:

“Welcoming”

• you make me feel at home.
• you care about me.
• you make me feel special.

“Delivering value”

• you give me the right advice.
• you provide me value.
• you keep your promises.

“Following up and building relationships”

• you help me when I really need it.
• you know me.
• when you make a mistake you make things even better.
• you thank me.
• you reach out to me.

I recommend any company that is seriod about providing quality product or services to their customers to take these 11 rules on board and implement it throughout their organisation.

Sales Benefit:
These 11 rules, or steps, will allow your sales force to focus on building long lasting relationship with customers that provide return in the long term, not just the short term. A customer who experiences the output of these 11 rules will not only be a customer for life (as long as the rules are contunued of course) but will also become a brand evangelist for you.

The Don's Ten Rules of Success

I recently got sent an email from The Trump University with a news item titled "My Top Ten Rules of Success" by Donald J. Trump. My first reaction was... this is a must read for me! I recommend reading this list, printing it off and putting it on your wall for you to see every day.

These are the Don's Top Ten Rules of Success:

1. Never give up! Do not settle for remaining in your comfort zone. Remaining complacent is a good way to get nowhere.

2. Be passionate! If you love what you're doing, it will never seem like work.

3. Be focused!Ask yourself: What should I be thinking about right now? Shut out interference. In this age of multitasking, this is a valuable technique to acquire.

4. Keep your momentum! Listen, apply and move forward. Do not procrastinate.

5. See yourself as victorious! That will focus you in the right direction.

6. Be tenacious! Being stubborn can work wonders.

7. Be lucky! The old saying, "The harder I work, the luckier I get" is absolutely right on.

8. Believe in yourself! If you don't, no one else will either. Think of yourself as a one-man or one-woman army.

9. Ask yourself: What am I pretending not to see? There may be some great opportunities right around you, even if things aren't looking so great. Great adversity can turn into great victory.

10. Look at the solution, not the problem. And never give up! Never never never give up. This thought deserves to be said (and remembered and applied) many times. It's that important.

Powerful stuff i think!! Now get too it, i know i am.

Mr T in my favourite TV Ad right now

Check out the video below and try and tell me this isn't a hilarious ad. Been out for ages but every time i see it i still laugh :)

From a marketing point of view this ad is great as it effectively draws the viewers attention to the product being sold - a Snickers bar; and gives the viewer something to remember the ad by - it's very funny. I must confess i haven't bought a snickers recently, i haven't bought many chocolate bars at all, but the next time I do it's now more likely to be a Snickers.