North San Diego Business@Large

A New Year, new goals, new opportunities! Now that you have things sorted out and put together, put last year behind you, scrap the old plans and get ready for a new start. New things require new strategies, new tactics and new plans. There’s an old saying – if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got. Einstein may have put it better when he defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over, while expecting different results.

Over the last 15 years as I have worked with business owners who had dreams and big ideas, many would set out ignoring the previous year’s sales and profitability results. Success in anything means you have overcome the obstacles, made adjustments to the plan and strategized a new focus.

I’m suggesting that you take time now to review, revise or better yet create a new plan of action. Outline some new tools and tactics for managing, marketing, financing and leading your business and how you are going to balance your time to handle it all.

Investing the time to reflect on which strategies worked and which didn’t last year, and then carefully mapping out your next actions based on this information, will pay dividends. Be realistic about your time, define the roles that you play along with action steps in order to plan your time reasonably. But remember to give yourself the boundless encouragement, kindly patience and unqualified support that you give to others. Much success in 2008, make it a GREAT Year!!!!

The Challenge: Stop! Take some time now and review the plans and action steps that truly answer the question, how can I achieve that goal?

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams.

Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce December 2007 Sundowner

Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce December 2007 Sundowner

11 Photos

These are the businesses I visited with at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce December Sundowner. Check them out, get to know them. Who knows what "net" can be "weaved" by reaching out to our fellow North County solopreneurs and small business owners.

It’s the end of the year and the business networking is slowing a bit. Now is the time to brush up on your networking skills. I found a great video at You Tube on "working a room."

Do you have some networking tools you’d like to share by commenting? How do you work a room?

Strategic planning is like a chess game. You need to be two or three moves ahead. As a solopreneur, how do you stay ahead, how do you keep up with all the hats you wear?

Many big CEOs have plenty of other CEOs with whom they can brainstorm their businesses. As a small business owner, we too have places we can find the support and help we need to grow our businesses too. Mind Masters Planning Summit is one such place.

The Mind Masters Planning Summit is an annual strategic planning event designed specifically for solopreneurs and small business owners.  It’s a day long event that will take you through your overall annual plan and break down the action steps needed to achieve your goals for the first quarter of 2008.

I had a chance to sit down with Barbara Eldridge, founder of Mind Masters, and ask her about strategic planning and how the planning summit works. Let me know what you think by posting a comment!

As a business owner, it’s easy to get caught up in the bustle of day-to-day business. In the drive to make sure you will reach your monthly financial goal, it can be tempting to spend a significant portion of your time fighting the myriad fires that crop up every day. Instead, take the time to step back and set "laser-sharp" priorities to focus on what’s really important – and keep yourself from spending time on what’s not.

When you have set goals for the business the priorities should be unmistakably clear and specific, you know what to focus on and, therefore, what should get your attention, resources, and follow-through. "The right priorities, combined with appropriate follow-through, keep the truly important things from being driven off the radar screen in the day-to-day hurly-burly of life at work where everything can seem urgent and important.", says Ram Charan, author of Know-How: The 8 Skills That Separate People Who Perform from Those Who Don’t.

Think of priorities as the pathways to your major goals. Which if you have truly chosen goals that are important to you, their achievement would have a significant effect on your business and your life. Haphazard planning of priorities is a result of following established habits in response to circumstances. Habits are actions taken without conscious decision. Your goals are too important to leave to chance.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you set priorities:

• A crystallized program of goals provides a sound basis for setting meaningful priorities.
• Get in touch with where you are spending your time; check to see if you are working in high priority, high payoff activities.
• Daily identify specific periods of time for activities that produce high payoff, everything else gets worked in around them.
• Set deadlines. They exercise a subtle effect on your attitude.
• If your priorities seem overwhelming, procrastination can set in, break each project or situation into smaller steps.
• Learn to delegate, and get agreement from everyone you need support from, as to what the priorities are.
• Take one half hour per week to plan and regroup, it can be the best priority activity you can give yourself.

The Challenge: Re-evaluate your priorities in relation to the goals you set for yourself, are you making the progress you want to make? Let us know if you need help.

For more than twenty-five years Barbara Eldridge has been contributing to other people’s business success. Her many years experience in the corporate world provided her with knowledge, insight and presence to help thousands of entrepreneurial men and women nurture their business ventures into thriving successes.

Barbara founded Mind Masters in 1991 as an organization for entrepreneurs to master the challenges they face in an ever-changing market place. Barbara has a vision of Mind Masters to provide a value based program so that business owners could harness the power of each members’ success, make wise business decisions and realize their dreams.

So, you’ve heard everyone, including me, telling you that you need to get ready for the New Year. But, what does that mean? Where do I start? What should change?

In marketing, which some might profess to be the most complicated aspect of business, it is a necessity to have a plan to stay on track, keep within budgets, increase effectiveness and efficiency, and build a steady stream of qualified leads to help reach the sales goals that always seen to fall out of reach every year. That’s a lot to worry about. Have no fear, your marketing guy is here to help. We, at Miser Advertising and Marketing, have developed a list of 5 Steps to help you create your best year ever, both in marketing and sales.

Here we go:

• Evaluate 2007 Marketing
  • Identify each aspect of marketing (Advertising, PR, Cold Calling, Etc)
  • What Worked, What didn’t
  • What could be done better this year

• Learn and Grow
  • With the evaluation completed you should know where to spend your marketing dollars for the 2008 year

• Narrow Target
  • I know, I know… you’ve heard this one before, but it is a necessity to get the most bang for your marketing dollar. Even if you take it from "40-65 year old males that live in San Diego" to "40-65 year old males that live in North County San Diego" you have taken that next step to increasing effectiveness and saving you money!

• Revisit Marketing Plan
  • With all this new information, you need to WRITE IT DOWN! Too many people forget to etch their new money-making ideas into stone. Don’t make that mistake. You now know what types of efforts will be in your marketing mix, a narrowed target, and a new found excitement for marketing so take advantage of it and put it into a plan.
  • Create an Execution and Accountability Plan. Who in your organization will be doing what, when, and why.
  • Create a step-by-step timetable to go along with the execution and accountability plan and follow it.

• Take a Deep Breath and Focus
  • Marketing only works if you work at it. Take a deep breath and take everything one step at a time with your end goal in place. Take a little time to focus on it every day.

Make 2008 your best year ever. With these ideas you will be one step farther than you competition. Let me know if you have any questions or comments about this information.

Paul Miser is the President of Miser Advertising and Marketing, a marketing strategy and branding company in San Diego County. Miser Advertising is a full-service marketing agency that acts as a complete marketing department for small businesses in the San Diego area and the World. You can reach Paul Miser by emailing him at pmiser@miserad.com.

Sheryl Roush’s rise in professional speaking, and now as a published author is inspiring. Her early years were hard, filled with tragedy. Yet, she overcame those obstacles and now, with unbridled enthusiasm for life, she uplifts and motivates the best in others.

Sheryl owned several businesses, since age 16, before becoming a full-time inspirational, motivational keynote speaker. Her current business, Sparkle Presentations, an international seminar and training company, offering inspirational programs that rekindle the spirit, raise the bar, and create excitement.

A few years ago, Sheryl came up with an idea to reach out to the women’s community and ask for contributions which she complied into Heart of a Woman, her first book in the Heart Book Series.  It was followed by Heart of a Mother, recounting stories, poems and thoughts about motherhood.

Her current book, Heart of the Holidays, has just been released. To celebrate the release, and give readers a taste of the stories, poems and memories, Sheryl held a book signing event at two Borders this past week. Here’s a slideshow of her events.

One of the remarkable things about Sheryl is the ease with which she creates information products. She’s the author of over 40 resources, including audiotapes, CDs, video, CD-Rom, and DVDs. It’s been amazing over the years to watch as she pours her heart into her products. She’s a shining example of how a professional speaker should run a business.

Her other books include Sparkle-Tudes (scripture plus quotations by and for women), and Heart of a Woman (stories and poems celebrating our inner strength, wisdom and faith). Sheryl is also a contributor to The Princess Principle: Women Helping Women Discovering their Royal Spirit.

She’s coached many in public speaking, training, marketing, business and is the creator of the Olympic Training Center Speakers Bureau, the AIDS/Foundation-San Diego Speakers Bureau, and the Director of Training, US/Olympic Training Center, Chula Vista, CA, volunteer position coaching 30 Olympians and volunteers in public speaking. She’s coached international officers and candidates, and World Champions of Public Speaking for Toastmasters International. Her clients include celebrities from Babylon 5, Stargate SG-1 and the Star Trek series.

Twice honored for her service to women in the community, Sheryl was crowned “Ms. Heart of San Diego” and is this year’s “Queen of Hope.” She’s a remarkable woman, someone I’m proud to all a friend. Now you know her too!

This is a great book to keep by your desk. Lorna Riley offers timely advice on how to create a referral business, and isn’t that the best way to secure new clients and work?

Lorna will share with you how one person sold one billion dollars of product in one year with one idea, how a regional office became #1 in the country, and how she, herself, increased her sales by 600%. This bottom-line reference tool shows how to speed up your earnings through powerful, practical strategies you can immediately put to use. You’ll learn how to:

• achieve more "yeses" in less time.
• motivate others to refer business your way.
• the appropriate way to ask for referrals.
• create a steady stream of customers.
• sell the big accounts.
• get professionally noticed.
• work less and earn more.
• leverage your time.
• have prospects ask for you by name.
• create a steady and predictable income flow.
• work less and earn more.

It’s filled with great ideas for building your business through referrals. I ready mine with a highlighter for the tips that resonate with me. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Not Generating Income From Your Website?
Become an Information Product Money Machine

• How to plan your products
• How to produce them
• How to market them

Friday, December 14, 2007 3:00pm PT

How would my business benefit from informational products?

• Create passive income stream
• Expand your brand
• Enjoy benefits of being an author

What are you waiting for? Come and join us from the comfort of your home office!

Debra Simpson of Magic In Words, expert speaker, publisher and podcaster and Andrea Glass of WritersWay, expert copywriter, ghostwriter and copyeditor will present this hour long webinar to help you plan your first information product to sell off your website.

This free powerful workshop is held in a virtual conference room. All you need to participate is an internet connection and speakers.

Friday, December 14, 2007 3:00pm PT

Click Here To Register for this Powerful Webinar!

The Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce will hold it’s December Sundowner at Grand Pacific Palisades Resort & Hotel from 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 12.

The resort, 5805 Armada Drive, Carlsbad, offers a luxurious setting and superior service. Grand Pacific is a three-story complex situated on 12 acres with breathtaking views of the ocean and the Carlsbad Flower Fields.

The resort has 90 hotel rooms, 161 fully-equipped vacation villas, an on site restaurant and 10,000 square feet of meeting space, which includes conference rooms and a ballroom. Amenities include an Olympic‑size pool, a family pool, a water play park, three whirlpool spas, a fitness center and a game room.

Located just off Palomar Airport Road, the resort is conveniently situated near the Carlsbad Premium Outlets, LEGOLAND California, restaurants and beaches. For more information on the resort and its guaranteed “Best Rate” program, visit www.grandpacificpalisades.com.

The Sundowner is the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce’s monthly networking event during which members and prospective members mingle, dine and converse in a comfortable environment.

I hope to see you there!