The Jordan Result for Small Business Success

Time to Hire a Bookkeeper?

2006-04-25T19:19:00.000-07:00

Many a small business owner faced with hiring a bookkeeper for the first time faces a frightening hurdle. Hire the wrong bookkeeper and you could end up with more problems than you had before you hired. Whether you’re searching for an employee or looking to outsource the bookkeeping function getting the right fit is critical to your success and your sanity.

But, how do you know what to look for in a bookkeeper if you don’t really understand the whole accounting thing yourself?

Do you need someone with a degree?

How do you measure a candidate’s experience?

How do you know whether they know what they’re doing?

How can you ask informed questions if you secretly feel un-informed yourself?

It’s a sticky problem and one that many small business owners face. They don’t want to end up in trouble if they hire a bookkeeper who doesn’t know his stuff. They feel out of control because they only know what the bookkeeper tells them and who knows if it’s right?

The following tips will help take some of the mystery out of finding a bookkeeper who is both knowledgeable and a good fit for your business.

1. How important is a degree?

The short answer is—not very. A degree in accounting isn’t really necessary. It’s nice but experience matters more. That being said, a person with an associate’s degree in accounting at least has the gumption to achieve a big goal and has some level of exposure to proper accounting procedures. Some people come out of a degree program well prepared to step into an already set up, well functioning accounting situation (as long as there is someone to train them). Most new graduates are not equipped to step into a chaotic or newly created position—that level of comfort and knowledge only comes with experience.

2. What about certification?

A certified bookkeeper is a bookkeeper who has passed an examination and met certain criteria. It is a good indication of two things—the person is willing to invest in furthering his or her skills and they have mastered a full range of bookkeeping topics. Unfortunately, it is not as wide spread a certification as it needs to be. Many bookkeepers may not even be aware that becoming certified is an option. A non-certified bookkeeper could be asked questions about what he or she is doing for continuing education.

3. What kind of experience should you look for?

Optimally, an experienced bookkeeper will have worked in several different type of businesses—ideally at least one like yours. Hiring someone who has handled the entire range of bookkeeping tasks with minimal supervision is critical. If you’re not an “accounting person”, you aren’t going to be able to answer your bookkeepers accounting questions. If you have a CPA or CFO working with your business, a little less experience is okay if the bookkeeper can go to him or her with questions. (Note: if your CPA charges by the hour this could get costly—so again more experience can save you in the long run.)

4. What about character?

Character is critical on two fronts. If you’re the type of business owner who likes to cut corners, hide income, and conduct business on the shady side of the street, hiring a bookkeeper of good character will only create aggravation for the bookkeeper. In the same light, a bookkeeper of weak character may perform slipshod work or embezzle. How can you determine good character? Ask questions about how they’ve dealt with a tough situation like someone asking them to do something illegal or unethical. Also, ask for character references and ask similar questions. “Tell me about a situation where Beth had to handle a difficult client or co-worker.” Asking pointed questions lead to pointed answers.

5. What about personality?

Is this person someone you think you will feel comfortable working with? The business owner/bookkeeper relationship often ends up feeling a bit like a marriage. Your bookkeeper will know your financial details, your character flaws, and how you act when you’re stressed out. Make sure you have the potential to be a good team.

A skilled and experienced bookkeeper can do much to keep you out of trouble and keep your business running smoothly. Whether you hire in house or outsource, finding the right fit is the key to a successful relationship.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Baby, You Can Drive My Car

2006-04-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

There seems to be no end to the variety of niche business opportunities. Recently, I had an email from a car recycling association in Wisconsin asking permission to use one of my articles which had run in a newsletter sent out by a California car recycling association. And today, I was interviewed by a writer for an article in a magazine dedicated to limousine services. Two very different niches—one major thing in common—cars!

When you think about that one common item—an automobile—and then, start to think of all the different business possibilities it becomes rather mind boggling.

Here are some examples of car related businesses:

Limousine service
Auto recycling
Auto repair
Detailing
Painting
Collision repair
Parts
Specialized parts
Collectibles
Classic cars
Car sales
Used car sales
NASCAR
Windshield repair
Self serve car wash
Wearing apparel

The list could go on all day. In each of those areas (and many more), there are problems to be solved. Every problem to be solved is an opportunity waiting to be pounced on by some enterprising business owner.

A great way to build your business is to look at your own industry, your own customer base, and discover what other problems they struggle with. Define the problem, provide a solution, and your business grows. Digging deeper into the problems your current customers are experiencing provides rich mines of untapped opportunity.

"Vision is the art of seeing things invisible to others."
- Jonathan Swift

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Distracted? Just Hit Clear!

2006-04-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

I recently received the following from one of my newsletter subscribers who struggles, like most of us do, trying to balance all the different pieces of running a business:

“On any given day I have roughly 50 tasks in the queue to be completed. Some are planned due to long term projects. Others pop up due to events that occur on projects that are in execution. Managing the complexity becomes an overwhelming task.”

This is so typical for business owners. We are constantly hit from all sides as we try to juggle multiple projects, deal with emergencies, and cope with constant distractions (especially the self-created ones—I stand guilty as charged on this one!) We all seem to end up feeling like we have Business Owner’s Attention Deficit Disorder (B.O.A.D.D.)

Here’s a tactic I use all the time to help me deal with the distractions of every day business life. This is a tip from Dr. Maxwell Maltz discussed in a book called Psycho-Cybernetics. I discovered the tip when I read Dan Kennedy’s excellent book No B.S. Time Management for Entrepreneurs. (Note on Dan Kennedy—sometimes (often) Dan comes across as a rather cranky man who needs more fiber in his diet, but the guy really knows his stuff!).

Okay, so getting back to the helpful tactic (see how easy it is to get me off track?). The technique is called “clearing the calculator”. Dr. Maltz says people try to focus on too many problems at once and they lose their effectiveness. He compares this to using a calculator. In order to solve a new problem you must first press the clear button to get rid of the old problem. He recommends a mental exercise of “clearing the calculator” so you can clear away the old problem to focus on the new.

Since I’m not particularly good at mental exercises of this sort, I physically hit the clear button on my desk calculator to help me to focus (or re-focus or re-re-focus). Sometimes I have to hit that puppy a number of times before I settle back into working on a project after being distracted by other things. I do find it helpful (of course, I may need a new calculator if I keep banging on the bloomin’ thing like I have been lately).

Give this technique a try when you find yourself running about trying to fight all those fires that keep springing up.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Solving the Mystery of Business Success

2006-04-05T04:27:00.000-07:00

Several of my consulting clients are all working on one particular area of their businesses. It is the most important area a business owner can work on because it directly impacts whether your business succeeds or just struggles along. This critical piece of your business is often overlooked or brushed to the side as you go about your daily busy-ness. Yet, it is the very heart of your business—it’s the engine that drives it forward and makes everything else happen.

Would you like to know what it is? It’s so simple and so obvious that you’ll probably think it’s dumb at first. But, if you dig deeper and deeper into the way you answer this one simple question, you’ll see your business begin to change for the better.

Here it is…

Answer this simple question:

What is going on inside your customer’s head?

Initially, your answer might be, “Beats me. I have no idea.” Like everyone else, our first focus is on what’s going on in our own heads. But, to build a successful business you really have to understand what you’re selling and why your customer values what you’re selling. Your entire business flows from that one understanding.

Here are some examples…

Let’s say you sell beads to jewelry makers. On the surface you sell beads to jewelry makers. That’s certainly true. But dig deeper. Why is a jewelry maker in the market for beads? They’re looking for something to spark their creativity. They’re looking for something bold or subtle to make an artistic statement. They’re looking for something that is marketable so they can eat regularly. Understanding what is motivating the jewelry maker holds clues for you to develop a great marketing plan to reach more jewelry makers and sell more beads.

Now, let’s say you’re the jewelry maker. What is going on in the head of the jewelry maker’s customer? They’re looking for a special gift. They’re looking to draw attention to themselves by having a stunning necklace. They appreciate art and like to own things for the sake of beauty. Each is a different motivation and to attract each of those customers, you would use different language in your marketing message.

Now, let’s say you’re the company that sells wholesale beads to someone who retails beads to jewelry makers. How does the language change? The retail seller of beads is more likely to respond to marketing language that speaks to “fresh” designs, consistency of supply, no minimum order requirements, easy payment terms. It’s a completely different set of motivations.

The artist making the jewelry isn’t interested in the same things as the bead seller and the bead wholesaler. As such, each person in the equation responds to a different marketing message. How well you understand that key point and the way you match your marketing message to what your customer is interested in defines how well you succeed in the marketplace.

Spend some time thinking about what motivates your customer and compare that to how well your marketing message speaks to that motivation. The gap between the two represents your opportunity to improve your business.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Marketing for the Almighty

2006-03-28T05:04:00.000-08:00

One of my clients asked me about the work he knows I do with my church. He was interested in the types of marketing activities we use to spread the word about the church. Now, marketing and churches might only seem to go together when talking about the so-called mega-churches but in fact it’s a critical factor for the ongoing existence of every small church. Small businesses and small churches are very much alike.

First, let’s consider the similarities of small businesses and churches. Each operates on a tight budget for finances and other resources. People need to wear many hats and perform a variety of necessary work. If people don’t know about your business or your church chances are they won’t patronize it. If you aren’t visible in your community no one will know you exist. This is true whether your community is a store front (or church front) on Main Street or an online community representing a specialized niche. Then, there’s the survival factor. Many small businesses fail, and churches are susceptible to all the same challenges of cashflow, too few customers, inability to attract good employees (or volunteers), and changes in demographics and the marketplace.

The magic of marketing is that all those problems can be greatly improved by the application of good marketing principles. They work regardless of whether your organization is a for-profit or a not-for-profit concern.

Here are some of the marketing techniques we have applied at our church and some of the results we have been able to achieve:

1. Newsletter—Ours is written by a talented little church mouse named Perley. We use a simple form for people to fill out so people can sign up. Subscribers become close personal friends of Perley who gives them advance notice of our events and suppers.

2. Press releases—Our local newspaper has printed every single press release we have sent them—church suppers, work being done on the church, fundraising efforts, concerts, publicity for our church cookbook, photos. We know the paper and what they like and we give it to them.

3. Church Cookbook—Not only is this a great collection of recipes, it’s a marketing piece for our church as well. It tells our story and lets people get comfortable with who we are as a church. It’s also fun.

4. Church Suppers—Not only is this a fundraiser but it gives people a non-threatening introduction to our church—way less scary than walking in cold on a Sunday morning. So again, it’s marketing.

5. Friendly ambassadors—Small churches (and small businesses) grow because of relationships. Our church members all seem to be involved in other activities in the community, and while they don’t shove their religion down anyone’s throats, they serve as ambassadors through their service and caring.

These are just a few marketing techniques that we have in place. We’ve been doing this consistently for a little over two years. Here are some of the results:

1. When people asked about our church, they used say, “Is that church still open?” Now they say, “Oh, that’s the church that’s always in the paper.”

2. Our suppers are sold out in advance every time and we raised the price of admission so we make more each time.

3. We’ve raised enough funds (in an area that is definitely not affluent) to put in a septic system, indoor plumbing, and next month we’re putting a new roof on our historic church building. All things our small congregation could never have afforded to do on its own.

4. Our congregation has tripled. Weekly offerings actually exceed the day to day cost of running the church.

5. Our loyal workers feel appreciated and valued.

6. Our visibility in the community has allowed us to fulfill our mission of helping others.

We’ve done all this and more by simply applying good marketing techniques in a consistent way. Regardless what type of business you have marketing just plain works. Whether you’re trying to build your own business or help your local library or animal shelter raise funds, marketing is the most powerful asset you can have. Of course, having an “in” with the Almighty doesn’t hurt either!

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Grocery Store Satisfies a Big Hunger

2006-03-22T10:15:00.000-08:00

The big excitement in my area this month has been the grand opening of a Hannaford grocery story. For many larger towns and cities, a new grocery store is not that big a deal. It would barely cause a blip on the interest screen. But here, it’s big with a capital B.

Why such a big deal? At one point in time the town had as many as five grocery stores. That worked out to about one grocery store for every 500 year round residents. Retirement, acquisitions, and business shut downs left the town with only one grocery store. In typical small town small business fashion, the store was inadequate to meet the needs of the population. The store was small and cramped. The prices were high. The service was uninspired at best.

As the population increased, the need for a good grocery store increased as well. Residents routinely drove 20-40 minutes to other towns to shop at Hannaford or Shaw’s for better variety and lower prices. We would end up spending a half a day just to get the weekly grocery shopping done.

Rumors have flown around for years that Hannaford was coming to town. Finally, last year everything fell into place. A suitable site was found, permissions were granted, ground was broken. All winter long we’ve watched the progress as the store was constructed, signs went up, help was hired, and delivery trucks unloaded.

At long last, the much anticipated grand opening was held. Townspeople turned up in droves, filling the parking lot, crowding the aisles, and filling the registers. It was truly the talk of the town. I have never seen such a warm welcome for a new business as the one displayed for Hannaford. People are gushing about it. People were rushing over to the grocery store on the slightest whim—Oops! I need more paprika. Darn! Forgot to get an onion. Golly, I’ve got a hankering for….something.

Why has this grand opening been such a success? It is a simple business premise. Find a hungry market and give it what it wants. Our town has had an unsatisfied hunger for a good grocery store for years. Finally, that hunger has been fed.

Had the new store been a clothing store or a hardware store it would have been nice but it is doubtful the world would have beaten a path to the door. The hunger just isn’t there. Hannaford had an easy job of selling the town on a new grocery store because everyone wanted it to happen. They had an easy job of selling the citizens on coming to the store because everyone was already in the parking lot waiting anxiously for the store to open its doors. That’s the kind of selling job we all would like to have. And it’s the kind we get when we take the time to understand what our market is really looking for—in our case the market was looking for….a market—the kind with cabbages and crackers!

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

What My 5th Grade Teacher Taught Me

2006-03-15T05:37:00.000-08:00

When I was in the fifth grade I had a wonderful teacher named Mrs. Sanborn. She was one of the shining examples of what a teacher should be…encouraging, supportive, caring, and fun. And she was the best reader of stories I ever knew. She read us “A Wrinkle in Time” and used different voices for each of the characters so well that she kept a room full of ten year olds entranced and hanging on her every word.

Mrs. Sanborn told us a story once upon a time…Her son had been sick with some sort of infection. The doctor put him on an antibiotic. When the young boy began feeling better, Mrs. Sanborn stopped giving him the antibiotic. The infection returned. The doctor lectured Mrs. Sanborn and told her that her son needed to finish the full course of the antibiotic to completely kill all the infection. He said to her, “I don’t care if the boy is sick, well, or dead, he needs to take all the medication!”

Mrs. Sanborn turned this into a teaching lesson for the generations of students who entered her classroom. She would say, “Sick, well, or dead, you need to get your homework done.” “Sick, well, or dead, your project needs to be finished by Friday.” She even abbreviated when she wrote a due date on the board, “SWD”, and we all knew just what she meant.

What Mrs. Sanborn was really teaching us about was integrity. We didn’t know it at the time because like many teachers she sort of snuck that by us and lodged it in our subconscious. Teachers are tricky that way. She was teaching us that when you make a commitment to someone, you need to follow through “sick, well, or dead”.

Such is the case when you promise subscribers to your newsletter that they will receive a weekly Ezine of valuable tips and strategies to help them become more successful in their business endeavors. They entrust you with their email addresses in exchange for valuable information. It is a contract, pure and simple.

Sometimes, in the course of human events (like excessive demands of running a business) you lose sight of some of those commitments and contracts. You forget to kiss your spouse goodbye. You neglect to call your mother. Your dog turns big brown eyes to you and sighs because you forgot to play with him today. Or, you neglect to write your Ezine because you’re swamped with work. But, the bottom line is this: you made a promise and sick, well, or dead you need to keep your word.

So, here is my renewed pledge to all of my valued subscribers:

Sick, well, or dead, you will see me in your inbox every Wednesday with tips and strategies to help you create a more successful business.

(Note: If you don’t see me in your inbox, it means your s-p-a-m filter kicked me out, but my ezines can always be found on my blog at www.TheJordanResult.com.)

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
www.TheJordanResult.com

I'm Not Responsible for This!

2006-03-15T05:31:00.000-08:00

I have been hard at work on a consulting job with a company that is larger than my usual client. They still meet the criteria for a small business but they are big enough to have more of a corporate feel in their offices.

One word I have heard over and over again in their offices is “responsibility”. As in “Don’t worry, you’re not responsible for that.” And, “I’ll take responsibility for that.” And, “These are your areas of responsibility.”

As the owner of a small business, the whole “Responsibility Thing” really cracks me up. Imagine only being “responsible” for bits and pieces of your business:

“I’m only responsible for marketing.”
“I’m only responsible for production.”
“I’m only responsible for accounting.”

Ah, how much easier life would be. I could sit back and say, “Someone should do something about…”

I wonder if when someone is asked to handle something outside of their usual “responsibility” core, how uncomfortable that must be. The thought of being “responsible” for everything could easily overwhelm many people. Corporations are good at providing a snug cocoon for employees keeping them comfortable and safe from having too much responsibility.

Of course, the flip side of the coin is that being self employed means we’re responsible for every aspect of the business regardless of our comfort level. We have to constantly learn new skills and continuously improve how we do what we do. It’s a “responsibility” none of us can take lightly. There is simply too much on the line. And that mantle of responsibility can rest pretty heavy on the shoulders much of the time.

But when all is said and done, at the end of the day, I would still rather be the captain of a row boat than only be “responsible” for one oar on a slave galley.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
www.TheJordanResult.com

Singing the 1099 Blues

2006-01-18T08:39:00.000-08:00

An important deadline is looming for small business owners who use subcontractors to work in their businesses. January 31st is the deadline for the filing of IRS form 1099-Misc for all unincorporated subcontractors who were paid $600 or more and all fees paid to lawyers during the past year.

This is often a time of scrambling for small business owners as they try to figure out a) who they need to do 1099’s for and b) what the Social Security Number or Employer ID number is for each contractor.

Often, a small business owner will hire a subcontractor to get the job done without thinking ahead to that day of reckoning in January where they need to provide the subcontractor and the IRS with pertinent information.

This lack of planning causes many business owners to begin singing the 1099 blues as they try to collect the necessary information before the deadline. In some industries, subcontractors suddenly disappear when they hear the phrase “1099”. They try to avoid getting a 1099 detailing their income, preferring to take the “fly by night” express.

So, how do you avoid singing those down and dirty, IRS cursing, disappearing subcontractor blues?

1. When you start to work with a subcontractor (or any new vendor for that matter), have them fill out a form W-9. Form W-9 captures all the information you need to make the decision as to whether you need to prepare a 1099, the subcontractor’s address, and the subcontractor’s Social Security Number or Employer ID Number. Get this information before you cut any checks to the subcontractor.

2. The IRS wants to know about any of your unincorporated subcontractors who you pay more than $600 to in the course of a year. The intent is to keep tabs on self employed subs who may be trying to hide income from the IRS. Failure to file these forms puts the business owner at risk for fines and penalties for failure to file or filing late. By being proactive in getting your subs information ahead of time, you avoid the risk of missing the deadline or not including subs who should be getting forms.

3. If you find yourself in a situation where you have no idea who is incorporated or not or who should get forms or not, send W-9’s to all your vendors and give them a deadline for returning the form to you. Don’t wait until the last minute to do this because you won’t get your forms back in time to meet the Jan. 31st filing deadline.

4. If you need help preparing the forms contact your CPA or a local accounting service to give you a hand. Remember though, their existing clients may already have dibs on their time so don’t wait until Jan. 31st to ask for help.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Taking the Stress Out of Financial Management

2006-01-09T12:11:00.000-08:00

A lack of understanding about the numbers side of your business can cause you tremendous headaches. For a case in point, let me introduce you to one of my new clients who I’ll call John. John is a contractor who has been in business for more than twenty years. He hired me to come in and clean up a mess caused by 1) his lack of knowledge about small business finances and 2) his reliance on marginally competent bookkeepers.

It’s a classic small business scenario. A business owner who doesn’t understand the financial side of his business hires a bookkeeper to handle “all that”. But, because he doesn’t understand the financial side of his business, he doesn’t know what to look for in a bookkeeper and he has no way of knowing whether the bookkeeper is doing a good job.

This is the perfect set up for all sorts of unpleasant consequences including inaccurate financial records and tax returns, missed or inaccurate filings of mandatory forms and payments, useless financial statements, lack of information about how the business is really doing, and a potential for fraud and embezzlement. Scary, huh?

So, what’s a business owner to do? Here are some tips to help you stay out of trouble.

1. Understand that the numbers side of your business is a critical factor in your quest for a successful and prosperous business. You can hire someone else to do the work but you still need a basic understanding in order to run your business.

2. Know the difference between hiring a bookkeeper and hiring a financial professional. A good bookkeeper will understand how to accurately enter information like payables and receivables, process a payroll, make collection calls, and reconcile a checking account. All those are important and necessary tasks. Notice I call them tasks. Bookkeepers are task oriented. A professional finance professional may also perform these tasks but their real value is in taking the information that has been entered and translating it into knowledge about your business and then communicating it to you in a way you will understand. Financial managers are analysis and knowledge oriented. Two different ways of looking at your financial information by two different professionals.

3. Sometimes you can find someone who can perform both sets of competencies but individuals like that are few. Generally, it is more cost effective to have a competent bookkeeper perform the task oriented pieces of the financial puzzle—entering vendor and customer invoices, receiving payments, processing payroll, etc. and then use a financial manager to help you understand what the numbers mean.

4. A financial manager can be someone like your CPA (certified public accountant--they’re not just for taxes anymore) or you can use a CFO (chief financial officer) who specializes in working with a number of different smaller businesses. Usually you can get the information you need by hiring someone to look over your financials once a month, do some analysis and report back to you on trends and operating efficiency, and give you solid advice on how to improve your business. Be sure to find someone who understands the ins and outs of managing cash flow since this is such a critical challenge for small business owners.

5. When you set up your accounting system, get professional help. Again call your CPA or CFO to help with this. How you set it up is directly related to how useful the information is. Part of the problem my client is dealing with is a very poorly set up QuickBooks company. The set up was done in such a way that all the useful features like bank reconciliation and job costing have been rendered un-useable. Getting it set up right in the first place costs a pittance compared to having someone come in and spend hours or days fixing it later.

6. Make sure you have internal controls to protect your business from theft and fraud. Some examples: never have the same person who signs checks also reconcile the bank statement, always scan through cancelled checks or your bank’s check copies for any checks that look out of the ordinary, protect your passwords, keep checks (including the ones from your credit card company) in a secure place, know the basics of navigating your accounting system so you can at least appear knowledgeable, have a trained professional looking over your books regularly to deter fraud and to pick up on any clues that fraud may be happening.

7. When you hire a finance person for your business whether it’s a bookkeeper, a CPA, or a CFO, find one with experience in a business like yours. If you are a contractor like my client, find professionals who have worked with other contracting businesses. If you are a lawyer, find one who has worked for a law office or other professional service office. Check references. Ask for a few customers/employers you can contact to find out more about how the person is to work with. Red flag—an unwillingness to provide any information demonstrating their ability to do the job.

My client John now has a plan to move beyond the days of chaos and stress. He will use a bookkeeper to enter his invoices, receive payments, and keep his job folders under control. He will use my CFO service on a monthly basis to help him learn about the numbers side of his business, to get the information he needs to run his business, and to provide oversight and professional input for his bookkeeper. My involvement brings the stability and consistency that his business has needed for years. With a big sigh of relief he is able to say, “Goodbye Chaos! Hello smoother sailing.”

For more tips, techniques, and services to help you develop “strength in numbers” in your small business visit www.TheJordanResult.com.

Celebrating a Small Business Milestone

2006-01-02T16:04:00.000-08:00

There are many milestones on the long road of business ownership…one of the most important milestones is the five year mark. Many businesses never make it to that milestone, somewhere along the way they fall by the wayside. Other businesses make it to the five year mark barely hanging on. Those who make it to the five year mark with a strong, healthy business and their own sanity, have something truly worth celebrating.

And so it is with great pleasure that I celebrate today for my own business, founded five years ago. My business is strong and growing. My cash flow is positive. And (arguably) I remain in full possession of my sanity…opinions may vary.

For those of you who know my story (see more about it at www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html), you may guess that this is a very meaningful day for me. You see, I haven’t always been a small business success story. In fact, I was once a small business failure statistic. But, through a great deal of intestinal fortitude, hard knocks education, and sheer, dogged determination, I have arrived at a point many business owners never experience. I’d like to tell you it has been a breeze and I never made any mistakes. I’d like to tell you that…but I can’t. Just like you, I’ve had my challenges, missed opportunities, and uphill climbs.

Here are some of the valuable lessons I learned along the way:

1. Life (and business) is like a compost heap. The more you heap on it, the richer it gets. Mistakes, successes, new skills…keep mixing them in and you end up with a powerful mixture that helps you and your business grow.

2. Focus relentlessly on the problem you solve for your customer. No one will hire you or buy from you just because they like having you around. Find ways to solve their problems and they’ll keep coming back for more.

3. Develop relationships by making other people look good. Saying something positive about another person or business is a great way to make friends. That web of friends, colleagues, and acquaintances is the core of your business. Enjoy it. Nurture it. Spread it around.

4. Attract friends. When you describe your business to others in your marketing activities, speak to the people you want to work with. Imagine the person you want to attract to your business is your best friend. Working with great people is a lot better than working with people who make you nuts. How you talk about your business is a key factor in attracting good customers.

5. Know thy numbers. The finance part of your business is critical to your success. Knowing what your breakeven number is, how to manage receivables, and the basics of taxes are all a part of building a successful business.

6. Plan your business based on where you want to be 5 years from now. Most business owners toss about all day in stormy seas, never charting a course for where they want to be. Consequently, they never make to smoother sailing.

7. Act like the success you want to be. If you want your business to the leader in your industry, act like the owner of a company that is the leader in your industry, dress the part, reflect that in the way you treat your customers and employees, make decisions for your business that reflect your goal.

8. Make being a business owner work for you. One of the main reasons we become self employed is to have more control over our lives. Then, we promptly fill our days up with every imaginable task only to find ourselves even more exhausted than when we worked for someone else. It doesn’t have to be that way!

9. Learn (or hire) the skills you need to succeed. None of us gets up the mountain alone. Running a business today is more complex than it ever has been in the history of humankind. To really succeed you’ll need a team of professionals to guide you along the way. Lack of professional expertise will cost you far more in the long run than spending a bit now.

I want to thank you for joining me on my journey and for allowing me along on yours. May the next five years be successful and prosperous for all of us!

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Need help writing your business success story? For the month of January get a one hour consult with me on how to move your business forward—regularly priced at $195, specially priced to celebrate my anniversary at $125. Just send me an email at Caroline@TheJordanResult.com and I’ll send you the special link to sign up!

Planning Tips for a Prosperous New Year

2005-12-27T09:01:00.000-08:00

If you’re like me, your mind is bursting with new plans and ideas for the upcoming year. New sales opportunities and customers. New projects. New goals. And I don’t know about you but the holidays were a little rough on my waistline so a new health regimen is in order as well. (I’ve never met a plate of fudge I didn’t like!)

So, how do you turn those great ideas into reality?

That’s precisely what I spent Tuesday working on. I find that if I don’t sit down and plan, all my ideas come to nothing. For me, it’s all about project management and setting deadlines. See if any of these tips will help you achieve your goals for the year:

1. Make a list of all the projects you need to complete.
2. Prioritize them by importance. (I give them an A,B,C rating.)
3. Taking the A list, determine the deadline by either when the project is due or when you want to have it completed.
4. Take out your palm pilot, calendar, or day planner.
5. Put each deadline on your calendar.
6. Work backwards from your deadline, assigning time slots for getting each step of the project done.
7. If you have to bump a step off your calendar when another commitment comes up…Reschedule. Don’t treat your own plans and projects like a red headed stepchild, constantly shifting them to the bottom of the priority list.
8. Then, go back and fit in your B list and finally your C list.

Here’s an example of how I use this in my own business. I’m scheduled to teach a class starting in mid-January. The priority level is high since I have already committed to teaching and people have signed up for the class. My deadline is January 17, by the night of the first class I need to have certain parts of the project completed. Working backwards from that date, I fill into my schedule all the parts of the project I need to complete—the syllabus and schedule of topics, prepare handouts for the first three classes, crack open the text book and take a peak inside, etc. If I have to rearrange my schedule to help a client, I reschedule whatever piece of the project I had to bump.

What I find is that if I don’t do it this way, I over-commit my time and January 16th would find me stressed out and working late into the night trying to prep for a class the next day. I don’t know about you but I don’t enjoy working that way!

This is a process that works well for creating a new information product, writing a book, getting your paperwork together for your tax return, getting ready for your “busy” season, starting a new exercise program, rolling out a new marketing effort, or the many “someday” projects that we all seem to have. It helps to give structure to your schedule to ensure you have time to get the important things done and you don’t wander off on tangents.

Good focus, time management, and project management skills go a long way towards turning your ideas into cashflow.

A Very Prosperous New Year to You!

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Seasonal Fluctuations Causing Cash Flow Woes?

2005-12-19T13:46:00.000-08:00

One of the big problems many business owners experience is seasonal fluctuations in sales. It is a leading cause of cash flow problems for small businesses. A period of feasting is often followed by a period of famine. Moving beyond that feast and famine cycle is possible by developing other products and services to overcome the famine times.

Here are some examples:

Retailers often had a huge increase in sales during December, followed by a very dead January. Now, the ubiquitous gift card has helped to lift January out of the doldrums by bringing people out to the stores after the Christmas season. Although the income from the gift cards is actually received in December, customers always end up spending more than the gift card is worth. The result is a bump in sales for a historically famine-like month.

I once owned a tree pruning and removal service. Our busy season was from March through November. We spent the summer cutting the trees and splitting the wood for firewood and we spent the winter selling the firewood.

Landscape companies spend the summers landscaping and the winters plowing.

In my business during December, the sales of my cash flow information product drop off but the accounting side of my business picks up with businesses needing QuickBooks cleanups and year end accounting tasks.

Your seasonal businesses don’t necessarily have to be related. One of my teachers in high school spent the school year teaching and the summers running an ice cream stand.

Developing products and services that complement your busy times and boost up your slow times goes a long way towards smoothing out your cash flow.

Of course, the other option for slow times is to work on those “someday” projects or even to take time off. The trick is to get your cash flow to the point where the slow times are something you can look forward to for a little rest and relaxation instead of times of panic. Getting there is a matter of planning and executing your plan.

To all who celebrate this blessed season, a very Merry Christmas.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

My Girl Scout Leader Was Right!

2005-12-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

One of the points I always stress in my business is
the importance of relationships. In fact, it’s very
difficult to build a business without building relationships
every step of the way. Having a good relationship with
your accountant, lawyer, other business owners,
customers, vendors and employees leads to many
new opportunities.

For example, your accountant not only provides you with
business advice but is also a potential source of referrals.
I often have accounting and consulting clients ask me,
“Do you know anyone who…” The same is true of your
lawyer, your doctor, your employees, and your friends
who also own businesses. We regularly ask people we
know for advice and recommendations for any number
of things.

The underlying factor in all our dealings with each other
is our relationships. When my clients run into a business
problem, they know they can pick up the phone and call
me. They’re not calling my company, The Jordan Result.
They’re calling me, Caroline Jordan, a real live human
being who they know and trust. The relationship is incredibly
valuable to me as a human being and as a business owner.

Business philosopher Jim Rohn talks about “6 things” being
the key to business success. He says that every business
has just six things they need to concentrate on to become
successful…of course, the trick is figuring out what those
6 things are for YOUR business. At the top of my “6 things”
list is relationships. Without my ever growing circle of
friends, colleagues, and contacts, I would not have the
level of success that I do. And boy have I met some really
great people over the years!

One of those great people is Denise O’Berry who consults
with small businesses and has a wide range of products
and services for small business owners. I met Denise
through her RYZE forum MYOB. I have posted articles
and answered posts from small business owners on her
forum. Some of you became subscribers to this newsletter
because you found me through Denise’s forum.

Denise started a Small Business Bootcamp with online
courses to help small business owners. I joined on as a
faculty member and offered a course on (of course!) small
business cash flow. We started contributing to each other’s
success.

Recently Denise was approached by a big publishing house
and asked if she would write a book on small business cash
flow. Of course she said yes! And then she emailed me and
asked if she could interview me for her book. Of course I
said yes! So, because of the relationship Denise and I have
built, Yours Truly will be appearing between the covers of a
book coming to a bookstore near you next fall. How much
do you think that will add to my success and to Denise’s?

When I first started my business, I was very much “all
business”. People were paying me to get results so I put my
nose to the grindstone and got the job done. But the point
where my business started to really succeed was when I
took my nose off the grindstone and took the time to talk to
my clients and get to know them. Now, I won’t take on a
client unless I think we can have fun working together. The
relationship is what makes what I do worth it.

My relationships have helped my business and greatly
enriched my life. Back when I was a Girl Scout, we had this
song we always sang, “Make new friends, but keep the old,
one is silver and the other’s gold.” I didn’t know it then, but
I was learning a valuable life lesson and a valuable business
lesson as well.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Crushing Cars for Fun & Profit

2005-12-07T08:15:00.000-08:00

I have been getting to know a new business over the past few days. I am working with a client whose business involves the crushing and recycling of automobiles. I call it “Crushing Old Cars for Fun and Profit.” The business is a great example of a solid business model. Here’s how it works…

The company’s employees go to junkyards where they crush junk cars and load them onto trailers. The trailers are then picked up by subcontracted truckers who ship the crushed cars to another company that buys the cars and in turn recycles them.

Here’s why this is such a great business model:

1. Good supply—cars turn into junk every day through accidents and old age. Junkyards need to move cars out to make room for more.

2. Difficulty of entry into the business—crushing cars involves expensive machinery and good capitalization so it isn’t a market that attracts a high level of competitors.

3. Transportation is readily available due to good supply of hungry truckers.

4. Hungry end market—the high cost of steel makes recycling attractive.

5. Here’s the best part from the point of view of This Old Accountant—The goods are shipped from the junkyard to the end recycler who cuts a check the same week for all the loads delivered. Only then do the junkyards and truckers get paid. No paying suppliers and then waiting for the customer to pay. Brilliant!

6. This is exactly the kind of business that banks love to loan money to. It provides jobs all along the way—from the junkyards to the employees who crush to the truckers to the recycler to the companies buying the recycled cars to the retail stores who sell the products made from recycled goods. And all along the way it brings economic value to every community involved.

Of course, there are some downsides to this business model:

1. Use of machines that can crush cars is viewed as dangerous to employees so workers comp rates are high. Plus, the potential danger of attack by junkyard dogs.

2. Machinery needs constant tending and repairing.

3. Need for a certain type of employee—mechanical, able to work with no supervision, good work ethic, able to work outside regardless of weather extremes.

4. Debt is a necessity for getting into the business.

If you are looking for ways to improve your own business model, here are some areas for you to investigate:

1. Competition. Who is your competition? How many competitors do you have? Which ones are strong, which are weak? How difficult is it for more competitors to enter your industry?

2. Suppliers. How difficult is it for you to get the goods you need to do what you do? For a maker of physical products this includes the raw materials needed. For a professional, your supplies include your time, education, and all those ideas rattling around in your brain.

3. Finances. How and when do you get paid for what you do? How does that affect your cash flow and your ability to stay in business?

4. Accentuate the Positive, Eliminate the Negative. What are the downsides of your business model? What can you do to work within the confines of those downsides and still make money? What can you do to minimize the affect of those downsides or even capitalize on them?

5. Add Value. What value do you bring to the market place? What is the elemental problem your product or service solves? How can you capitalize on that value? How can you express that value to your customers in such a way that your competitors retire from the field?

Investigating the pieces of your business model or dissecting what works in someone else’s business is a great way to begin improving your business. Once you pinpoint what works you can look for ways to capitalize on the strengths already in your business. When you pinpoint the weaknesses you can after them like a junkyard dog after a pant leg.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Three Magical Questions

2005-11-30T07:11:00.000-08:00

When I am working on a client’s business, one of the first things I look at is the value proposition. And as always, don’t get hung up on the term because I’m right here to put it into real world small business terms. The value proposition is simply this:

1. What is your customer’s problem?
2. How do you solve that problem?
3. What is the value to your customer?

How you answer those questions has a great impact on your business. Let’s use as an example an accounting firm trying to get more business from small business owners.

1. What is your customer’s problem?

A small business owner is often (usually) a technician. They are good at what they do but they are unsure of themselves when it comes to many aspects of running a business…Things like keeping records, complying with state and federal tax filings, understanding financial matters, and so forth. They would like nothing better then to turn the whole durned mess over to somebody else so they can do the work that makes them money.

2. How do you solve that problem?

Your accounting firm solves that problem by providing them with the knowledge that they need to run their business and the services they need to stay out of trouble. And along the way you help them get the education they need to feel more comfortable about the financial side of their business.

3. What is the value to your customer?

When you are looking at the value to your customer, don’t put it in your terms. Put it in their terms. As an accountant I might think that the value to my customer is that I am educating them and helping them become more finance-savvy. My customer sees it in a whole different way. My customer sees the value as he no longer has to worry about these annoyances and threats to his sanity because he has someone he can trust to take care of “all that stuff”. One of my colleagues pays her accountant $1600 a year to handle “all that stuff” and feels it is worth every penny because she knows it is taken care of. All she has to do is sign on the line right where he tells her to and write the check. That has tremendous value to her and to her business.

Once you understand how your customer views the value proposition your whole business model can flow from that one equation. Your marketing plan flows from this as well. Instead of saying to your potential customer “I’m going to teach you everything you need to know about finances”, your approach is “I’m going to keep you out of trouble and make your life easier.” Which approach do you think will resonate with you the stressed out small business owner? The first approach sounds like more work. The second approach sounds like the answer to a prayer.

These three magical little questions are the key to every successful business:

1. What is your customer’s problem?
2. How do you solve that problem?
3. What is the value to your customer (from the customer’s perspective)?

Answer them well in the marketplace and you will go far.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Hidden Flaws in Business Models Cause Business to Falter

2005-11-23T08:31:00.000-08:00

Our last two newsletter segments have been dealing with the decision one of my client’s made about closing down their business. If you are a new subscriber (Welcome!) and you missed either of the installments, you can find them at http://TheJordanResult.blogspot.com. I spoke last week about the importance of having a solid business model and executing it well. Today I want to talk about what the problems were in my client’s business model and why we were not able to overcome them.

My client’s were first time business owners. They are both professionals with years of experience in their own fields who both found themselves laid off by their respective companies. They knew each other through church and had been friends for some time. Working with agencies set in place to help them find new work, they were introduced to a program set up to help displaced workers start their own businesses. The program provided good advice, resources, and structure for new business owners.

The friends decided to explore opening a business as partners. They began exploring different businesses and were drawn to franchising because of the remarkably high percentage of success for franchise outfits. Their interest in franchises led them to investigate a local operation that was selling franchises. The franchiser was new to the franchising business and had sold only one franchise to an employee so the model was largely untested.

The franchiser led the partners to believe that all was rosy with the original business that spawned the franchising. This was not the case. The original business and the first franchise were actually operating at a deficit and were being propped up by continued investments of personal funds by the owners. The original owner was far more interested in selling franchises than in giving a realistic view of expected results. The business model had some flaws that made it difficult to do well in this business even though the service was a very valuable one to the target market.

Flaw #1—Slim margins.

As I mentioned before, every dollar in sales cost 65 cents in payroll and insurances. An additional 3-7% (depending on the price structure they chose in buying the franchise) went for royalties. Once you subtract out rent, utilities, office supplies, and so forth, there was little if any left over for advertising and marketing. And the owners were left without a paycheck most weeks.

Flaw #2—Built in cashflow issues.

Employees were paid every two weeks for work performed. Customers were billed every two weeks for services already rendered. So the cash leaves the bank account before it is received. Naturally the customers often took 30 days to pay so the cashflow for every transaction ran six weeks behind.

Flaw #3—Pricing inflexibility.

Franchisees could not lower or increase their pricing bases on the market they were serving. In the State of Maine, where this business is headquartered (and this is true of most areas of our country), there is a wide disparity of resources. The southern part of the state has higher income levels than the northern part of the state. The seacoast tends to have higher income levels than the western mountains. Depending on where your franchise is located you could find yourself priced out of the market.

Flaw #4—Name recognition.

When you think fast food, you think McDonald’s. When you think McDonald’s you picture the golden arches. You have an expectation of what you will get—the restaurant will look a certain way, the food will be universally awful. You know exactly what to expect. The same is true of every other successful franchise—Dunkin’ Donuts, Olive Garden, Hardee’s, H&R Block, etc. With the business my clients entered, there were no strongly defined franchises so the expectation had not yet been created. This means they had to explain what the business was all about. It wasn’t a case of being able to say, “I own an H&R Block franchise” and everyone knows what you are talking about. This makes it an uphill battle.

Flaw #5—No strong marketing program to build name recognition.

Part of the responsibility of the franchiser organization is to do the legwork to build name recognition. The franchiser did some local advertising through events and radio advertisements which were a good start. I have to say, though, that if I am going to consider buying a franchise I want to see some serious commitment to building name recognition before I sign on the dotted line. When you mention the name of the franchise, I want to be able to immediately know exactly what you are talking about. That kind of familiarity takes a very concerted, and sometimes expensive, effort on the part of the franchiser.

Flaw #6—Where are my Step by Step Business Building Techniques?

The glory of a franchise is that for any task or challenge I can simply flip open the operations manual and see step by step exactly what to do. With this franchise, the most important piece was missing…How do I build the business? What specific steps do I take to create buzz before the grand opening? What steps do I take to attract the attention of my target market? How do I get the business to a point where I can make a living?

In addressing these issues with the franchiser, it became increasingly apparent to my clients that their grand dream of making minimum wage for themselves was far off in the distant future hence their decision to sell.

Next week, I will continue discussing the all important topic of business models. A good business model well executed is a critical success factor for every small business.

On a personal note, a very Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate that holiday. I am looking forward with eager glee to a fine selection of pies baked by my mother and my aunt. May you enjoy the day.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

A Cold Hard Look at a Struggling Business

2005-11-16T08:03:00.000-08:00

When I wrote last week about a client’s decision to close down their business, I promised this week to talk about why they found it necessary to do so. I alluded to a problem at the core of every struggling small business.

When I spoke of my clients’ difficulties, I mentioned the constant struggle to make payroll and have enough leftover to pay the owners. You may think the problem I alluded to IS cash flow. But cash flow is only a masking problem. Actually, poor cash flow is more of a symptom of the actual problem. The problem is generally a business model that is not well thought out or well executed.

Before you get hung up on the phrase “business model”, let me tell you what it means in real world small business terms. Your business model is basically what you do and how you get paid to do it. For an example, let’s look at eBay. eBay makes its money by serving as a go between bringing buyers and sellers together. In exchange for providing the meeting ground and facilitating the sale, eBay receives fees. It isn’t a complicated business model at its core, the difficulty is in executing the model in a way that satisfies customers and makes a profit for eBay at the same time. If the customers are unhappy, the model fails. If eBay can’t operate at a profit, the model fails.

The second half of that equation is where my clients ran into problems. They provide a valuable service to a growing market but providing the service carries a high payroll and a high rate of liability and workers comp. insurances. For every dollar in sales, they pay out about 65 cents in payroll and insurance. That leaves 35 cents of every dollar for rent, utilities, telephone, marketing, advertising, etc. Trying to wring out enough money for the owners to get paid a living wage was usually impossible.

They were able to keep their heads firmly buried in the sand for only so long. We sat down one day and had a very in depth conversation about what the business could potentially produce for income for the owners in the short and long term. We weighed all the benefits, the costs, and the risks. The bottom line was that the business could not realistically support the owners in a way that would allow them to support their families in even a modest way.

Normally, this type of a hard look at a business reveals any number of opportunities for improving the business. In this case, it simply was not possible to make the changes necessary to make things work better for all involved. I will give you some insights next week into why it wasn’t possible…

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Struggling Against the Current?

2005-11-09T08:02:00.000-08:00

Imagine what it would be like to work for the perfect company.

What would that look like for you? Good pay? Flexible hours? Good benefits? A wise and business savvy boss? Profitability?

Do you work there?

Chances are, your own company is missing some of the features that you might consider to be ideal. But being a business owner can have other benefits that are not as quantifiable. Things like satisfaction, loving what you do, not dancing to someone else’s tune and charting your own course.

But the truth of the matter is this. If your business is to be sustainable, it has to sustain you financially in a way that makes you feel all the trials and tribulations of business ownership are worth the trip.

For one of my clients, that trip has gradually become less and less sustainable and sustaining. They grew tired of the constant battle, the struggle to create enough cash flow to make payroll every week, and the toll the lack of cash was taking on their own lives. They made the difficult decision to sell their business and go back to work for someone else.

Much of what they learned as small business owners will make them more valuable to the organizations they are joining. They are also leaving their communities better because of the business they built up, the employees they supported, and the clients they served. They worked extremely hard building a business that was valuable enough to sell to someone else. Because the business has value, the clients will continue to be served and the employees will continue to work. They have much to be proud of.

But in the end, the business did not work in one very important way. Their personal financial needs were not being met. For them, that was an insurmountable challenge.

Next week, I will give you some insight into the anatomy of the problem with their business…a problem that lies at the core of every struggling small business. Stay tuned…

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Rockefeller's 39 Drops of Solder

2005-11-03T07:12:00.000-08:00

I have been spending some time with a very exhaustive (and sometimes exhausting) biography of John D. Rockefeller. He is one of the most fascinating business icons of all time. Starting from zero, he built an incredible business empire in the oil industry, long before there were automobiles to really fuel the industry (Oh, how cute! A little pun!)

John D. is one of the most respected and the most hated business tycoons who ever walked the earth. Some of his business practices were incredibly ruthless as he stamped out his competitors by fair means and foul, all the while living his personal life as a very pious and generous man. A wolf by day and a sheep by night. He really is a fascinating character study.

Here is an example of the tremendous business acumen of John D. Rockefeller. John D. would visit his various plants to check out how things were operating. He carried with him a small red notebook in which he noted deficiencies or inefficiencies no matter how small. When a manager or worker saw the red notebook come out, they cringed. John D. would make a note of any shortcomings and would follow up to make sure they were taken care of.

One day he was visiting a plant that put kerosene in tin jugs for export. As he watched the process, he noticed that workers always put 40 drops of solder on each can to attach the top. He asked, “Have you ever tried 38 drops of solder?” When the manager replied that they always did 40, John D. said, “Try 38 and let me know what happens.”

When they experimented with 38 drops of solder, a small percentage of cans leaked. When they tried 39 drops of solder, the cans held tight. That small change saved the company $2500 the first year and hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of time. And that was just one of the many, many areas of his business that John D. worked to improve.

Take a lesson from the master, look at your business to see what changes you can make to plug leaky holes, overcome inefficiencies, cut costs, or increase sales. I can’t promise you’ll be as r i c h as Rockefeller but small improvements have a way of dropping to your bottom line in a big way.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Would You Take Investment Advice from Teddy Roosevelt?

2005-10-12T15:44:00.000-07:00

My husband and I are just back from a one day vacation. Actually it was a continuation of our honeymoon a year ago last July. We had planned to go many places on our honeymoon but quite frankly we’re not as young as we used to be and we were just too tired to do everything we planned.

So, today we headed off to Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough, New Hampshire. We were hoping to be there during peak foliage season however the foliage is running a bit behind this year due to all the glorious sunny warm weather we had in September.

Castle in the Clouds was built by a man named Thomas Plant who started out in the shoe manufacturing business and worked his way up until he owned the place. He invented some shoe making machines and when he finally sold his shoe factories he was a man of great weal th.

He decided to build a castle for his second wife Olive (having paid off his first wife with a check for a cool mill.) He went to a mountain top in New Hampshire and built an awesome mansion, truly a “castle in the clouds”, complete with a secret room where he could hide away from everyone and do some reading.

He installed a phone that could only call out, since he didn’t want to be disturbed by incoming calls. He hung out with Teddy Roosevelt who gave him some bad investment advice. He lost his whole fortune and died penniless. His friends had to take up a collection to bury him.

Of course, I have to look at the whole story from a business perspective. If only Mr. Plant’s investment advisor could have called him to tell him his investment in Russian bonds wasn’t looking good---seems there was this little revolution, the czar and czarina came to an unfortunate end, and the country went into a teensy little tail spin. If only he had talked to a professional before he took Teddy’s advice on recouping his losses---apparently while Teddy was charging up San Juan Hill he decided Cuban sugar would be a great investment, except for a teensy little crop failure.

Mr. Plant never recouped his losses because soon after he lost his fortune, the stock market crashed and the country entered into a little something called the Depression. Even though he was sitting on thousands of acres of land which today are worth a mint, he couldn’t pay his bills.

The moral of the story: get advice from professionals not your friends and don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Another moral for you is this---make the honeymoon last for years.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Tips to Help You Avoid Economic Disasters

2005-09-28T07:22:00.000-07:00

One of my subscribers has been corresponding
with me over the past week on the topic of last
week’s newsletter. In case it did not make it
through your filters, past newsletters are always
listed at http://TheJordanResult.blogspot.com
(see The Rats Are Circling).

My subscriber and I had a great conversation
about the financial state of the nation and what
we as small business owners can do to protect
ourselves from any economic backlash brought
on by expensive wars and natural disasters. I
thought the information might be useful to others
so here is some background on the financial
state of our nation and some tips to help you
avoid the negative impacts of that financial state.

I have two big concerns about the economic
status of the United States. The national deficit
and the national debt. In case you did not major
in accounting or economics, here is a quick
explanation. A deficit occurs when you spend
more than you take in. Debt occurs when you
borrow to pay your current obligations (on a
personal level that is like taking a cash advance
on one credit card to pay a second credit card) or
you borrow to invest (think college loans or a mortgage).

At this point in time, the government is operating at
a deficit—more being spent than is being taken in
through taxes and other income. When you hear
politicians talking about balancing the budget, this
is what they are talking about, spending the same
amount that is being taken in.

The national debt is the amount of money the
government owes due to borrowing. We, the
American people, as of today are in debt to the
tune of $7,939,506,438,929.39. This number has
increased by over 9 billion dollars since last week.
If that isn’t enough to scare the socks off you I don’t
know what is!

Think what would happen to you personally if you
ran your personal and business finances that way!
Yikes! Then multiply it by $7.9 trillion and you begin
to see the problem. Add in the costs of a very
expensive war and two very expensive hurricanes and
you may never sleep soundly again.

So, what can a small business owner and citizen of
our great nation do to protect themselves from the
financial chickens that will eventually come home to
roost?

1. Pay attention to current events and think about
how it will affect you and your business. Look beyond
the hype and the spin and analyze the facts.

2. Run your business fully aware of the economic
backdrop that exists around it. It is easy to forget that
we are a cog in the wheel of an immense national and
worldwide economic system. When you become aware
of that you can avoid pitfalls and find new opportunities.

3. Plug the leaks in your business. Drive costs down. Find
new sources of income. Run as efficiently as possible.

4. Analyze your business to determine what risks you
need to insure against. A college professor in my small
business program once told us, “The only thing you can’t
insure against is stupidity.” Do you need product liability
insurance? Errors and omissions? Extra insurance for your
home business? Talk to your insurance agent about what
you can do to protect your assets.

5. Manage credit in a business-like way. Get a credit line
before you need one. Keep your debt level as low as
possible. Use debt for investment not to cover current
expenses. Establish good credit relationships with your
suppliers.

6. Take a hard dose of reality. Step back from the
emotional attachments we all have to our businesses and
personal spending habits. Are your decisions rational or
emotional? Do you have a financial plan for your business
and personal finances?

7. Establish and maintain an emergency fund for your
business and your personal life. Always have at least a Plan
A and a Plan B. Are you planning to use a credit card for
emergencies? After Hurricane Katrina, some credit card
companies were refusing to honor the credit cards of people
from Katrina’s impact area. A large, very well known discount
department store refused to take credit cards from people
evacuating from Katrina. (These items were reported to me
by someone working in a shelter in Houston. Big companies
have risk management departments and I’m sure they were
working overtime after the storm to limit losses. Remember,
Katrina took personal property, businesses, and jobs, breaking
the economic backbone of an entire region. No jobs, no money
to pay credit card bills.)

8. Join a small business advocacy group like the National
Association for the Self Employed (www.nase.com) or the
National Federation of Independent Businesses (www.nfib.com).
If you feel you can’t afford to join, visit their websites for
newsletters and other no-cost information. Organizations like
these have their pulse on the small business economic climate.

9. Vote for candidates who are good for small business. Of
course, to do that you need to know what their backgrounds
are and what their voting records have been. You can find
information like that through the organizations listed above.

10. No one said it was easy. This isn’t our grandparents’
economy. It takes toughness, ever increasing skills, and
savvy street smarts to make it in a complex economic
structure like we operate in. It is definitely not a career
choice for wimps!

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

The Rats are Circling

2005-09-21T11:03:00.000-07:00

I worked for a company once upon a time that was having tremendous cash flow problems. The problem was obvious to anyone paying the least bit of attention to what was going on…Bill collectors calling, orders on hold, management unable to answer a direct question with a straight answer, and an overall ambience of fear and uncertainty. The smell of nervous sweat hit you as soon as you walked in the door.

As the accountant of note, I found several employees keeping a close eye on me. One of them told me, “If I see you going out the door, I’m right behind you.” They knew that as an accountant I had a different view of the company than they were privy to. The rats were waiting for the number cruncher to jump first. Then, it was every rat for himself.

Speaking of rats…I wanted to touch on some thoughts I have about the federal government (nice segue, huh?) Now, let me start by saying that in my own strictly personal opinion, I do not think the current occupant of the Oval Office is the best and brightest this country has to offer. As they say, that is my issue and I own it. No sense writing to tell me I am wrong, I won’t believe it. That aside, I will say that as a person with a financial background, I have some very deep concerns about the fiscal health of our great country.

We are fighting an extremely expensive war in Iraq (and I believe we are still fighting a war in Afghanistan, although we seldom hear of it), the country has just been hit with a disaster of Biblical proportions, and we are faced with the possibility of another. Just one of those items is enough to throw the finances of this country into a tail spin. Add to that the myriad programs, entitlements, infrastructure needs, and pork barrel promises and the question comes to mind…Where is the money going to come from to pay for all this?

The answer is, of course, the money will come from you and me in the form of higher taxes or program cuts. The alternate answer is that the money will come from our grandchildren or great grandchildren as we leave them saddled with so much debt that they will have to invent new cuss words to talk about us.

Now, as you know I am all about small business. We may well bear a large chunk of this burden through increased insurance premiums, tightening federal funds, rising costs, and higher taxes. We have already seen this at the gas pumps. This does not bode well for the economy.

I am not currently ready to start flapping my arms and shouting, “the sky is falling” but I am concerned. Deeply concerned. And the rats are circling…watching me. Waiting for my cue to abandon ship. But seriously, as small business owners we really need to keep an eye on what is happening in Washington and to start asking some hard questions.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Are You Working "On" and "In" Your Business? 5 Tips To Help You Do It All

2005-09-14T08:33:00.000-07:00

5 Tips for Working “In” and “On” Your Business…At the Same Time

By Caroline Jordan MBA

Congratulations! You just landed a big new contract. Now for the bad news. Who will run your company while you’re buried under the onslaught of work? Often a new project will derail a business owner’s efforts to build a successful business—marketing activities screech to a halt, bookkeeping tasks pile up, planning is thrown out the window, and your friends wonder whatever became of you. When the project ends and you rise slowly to the surface, you often experience a cash flow crunch because no one was taking care of business while you were working.

So, how do you avoid the lingering negative effects that can hold your business back while you get the job done?

1. Planning is everything. With a solid plan in place you stand a much better chance of things running smoothly. A plan allows you to anticipate what needs to happen and also to develop contingency plans for the inevitable times when “stuff happens.”

2. Your marketing plan. If you don’t already have a marketing plan in place before you get busy, chances are you will experience plenty of cash flow ups and downs. A good marketing plan will map out exactly what you need to do each week to generate future work. Once a system is in place, it’s a matter of doing the proscribed activities and tasks. You don’t need to think about it, you just need to do it (or get some help doing it).

3. Building a business vs. working for a living. Often professionals trade the security of a paycheck for the insecurity of small business ownership only to find themselves struggling to earn a living wage. They end up taking any work they can get and working tons of hours just to pay the bills. In the meantime, they have no time to build their businesses. Building a business and working for a living are two very different goals. Building a business requires regular time spent on planning how to grow, reputation or brand building, seeking out additional sources of income, and developing a business that operates when you’re not there or tied up with a project.

4. Sweating the small stuff. Often your day hinges on the little things—a computer glitch, a cancelled appointment, a car that won’t start, or a childcare emergency. Anticipating and preparing for life’s little emergencies makes a world of difference in your ability to keep your business on a smooth track. Sometimes it’s as simple as having your clothes ironed ahead of time or making sure you have food for lunches in the house.

5. Managing the boss. The key to success for every business is having a leader who has the right mix of optimism, realism, leadership, and expectations. You wouldn’t expect your employees to work non-stop for weeks at a time, so don’t do it to yourself. You wouldn’t want to work for someone who had unrealistic expectations about what you can get done in a day, so cut yourself a little slack. Be sure to schedule time off and stick to it. And dust off your sense of humor when it goes unused for too long.

Being a business owner means always looking beyond the tree in front of you to the forest beyond. Building a truly successful business means operating at a big picture level while still performing the day to day details. No one ever said the balancing act would be easy but with forethought and discipline it becomes much more doable.

Caroline Jordan helps small business owners build successful businesses without losing their minds. For more tips & strategies to help you build your business visit www.TheJordanResult.com.

Is Your Business Ready for Brat Camp?

2005-09-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Last week I promised something a little more light hearted this week in view of the severe emotional blows we have all been hit with since Katrina blew through. So, here's an excerpt from my most recent article.

Is it time to send your out-of-control small business to Brat Camp? Here are some tips to help you grab the reigns and take control again.

Remember when your business was an infant? It was cute and cuddly and lots of fun. But somewhere along the way the infant became an out-of-control adolescent and started ruining your life. Now, it doesn't want you to have any friends and won't let you do anything you want to do. Is there any hope or should you just ship your spoiled brat off to Brat Camp?

Tips for Taking Control of Your Bratty Business

1. Take a time out. You can’t think clearly if you’re in the midst of chaos and despair. Go for a walk, have an ice cream cone, take a day off. The business will still be there when you get back.

2. Breathe and Count to Ten. When fear and desperation start to well up, you tense up and start feeling like your life is unraveling before your very eyes. No one ever makes good business decisions from a point of fear. Go do something that makes you feel confident.

3. Take your business out to the wood shed. You remember the woodshed? That place where you got an attitude adjustment…That’s where your business needs to go. Remind it and yourself in no uncertain terms that YOU are the one calling the shots.

4. Set boundaries. Decide how many hours you can physically and emotionally work each week. Take the number of hours you can work and the tasks that must get done each week, decide which tasks have to be performed by you personally. Delegate the rest to an employee, a subcontractor, or a family member.

5. Remember what your real work is. When you’re raising kids your real work is to teach them how to take care of themselves without you. It’s the same thing with your business. Start to develop a plan to get your business to a point where it can operate even if you’re not there.

6. Dealing with a whiny business. When your business starts whining and wheedling and trying to get you to let loose the reins again, sit it down and firmly explain that you are in charge and you are following a plan that you will not deviate from.

7. Call in the cavalry. If your business still won’t behave, get expert help fast. Most business owners wait until too late to get help. Most business failures are preventable with early intervention.

For more tips on taking control of your business and becoming part of the “No Business Left Behind” club, visit www.TheJordanResult.com.

Please Consider This...

2005-08-31T10:34:00.000-07:00

As the news continues flashing picture after picture of the devastation by Hurricane Katrina, our neighbors in Mississippi and Louisiana are fighting for their lives. Stripped of most of the essentials of life, the survivors of this storm face huge hurdles just getting through the day. As the flood waters begin to recede and people are able to return to what used to be their homes, the devastation will truly begin to sink in.

Not only are their homes gone, but their businesses and workplaces are gone, too. They will face not only personal devastation but economic devastation as well. Large companies like Walmart will be able to rebuild, other companies will have insurance coverage for their losses that will allow them to rebuild in time. But for many small businesses, Katrina will be the final nail in the coffin.

Small businesses operate close to the edge without a safety net. Many small businesses have no insurance coverage for this type of loss and few have the reserves they should have to help them through even the smallest bumps in the road.

Katrina’s wake leaves behind death, devastation and despair. I ask you to help bring the light of hope back to our neighbors by making a donation to the American Red Cross (www.redcross.org) or the Salvation Army (www.salvationarmyusa.org). Even the smallest donation can provide fresh drinking water or a meal for a family.

To my clients and newsletter subscribers in Louisiana and Mississippi: When services are restored, I hope you will find this heartfelt message and know that my thoughts and prayers are with you. Please be in touch.

Until next time, when we have more cheerful news…
Caroline Jordan

The Parable of the Marketing Garden

2005-08-17T10:34:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has known me for any length of time knows that I love a good parable. It’s a great way to explain sometimes complex topics in terms that everyone can relate to. So here is my Parable of the Marketing Garden…

A farmer was working away in his fields, harvesting his crops and raking in the cash. Life was good. Living was easy. Suddenly, a storm blew through his acreage changing the landscape of his farm forever. His cash crop was destroyed and he had no other crops to harvest.

In desperation, he threw some seeds into the dirt and stood by hoping against hope that a crop would once again grow. As he anxiously awaited signs of growth times grew dark at the farmhouse. The roof needed fixing and the youngsters needed new shoes. Still the farmer waited, hoping against hope.

As he was passing his neighbor’s house one day, he noticed that her garden was in beautiful bloom and she seemed to have an endless supply of fresh vegetables to harvest. The farmer stopped by and asked her what her secret was.

She replied, “During the growing season I plant some seeds each week so I always have something ripening every week during the harvest. That way I always know I have more vegetables coming. And I plant different kinds in case one crop should fail. That way I know I’ll always have something to eat.”

Many small business owners make the mistake of thinking because they’re busy, they don’t need to market. So, they often find themselves at a loss when suddenly the work dries up. Marketing is the number one way for a small business to ensure a constant stream of customers.

Often, I see professionals working their hearts out to create success for others without creating success for themselves. They often find themselves suddenly out of work and struggling with cash flow problems. They become like the farmer who suddenly realizes that he needs a crop fast. And business is like farming—things happen in their own time, not when you need them to happen. Developing a constant stream of business takes work and it doesn’t happen overnight.

Try viewing marketing as planting a garden. Decide what you want to achieve (a great harvest of steady business). Prepare the soil (develop your marketing materials, tap into your network). And systematically plant your seeds (this week I will send out 25 sales letters to my target market or I will seek out one speaking engagement per month). Don’t stop when you get enough business. Keep systematically tending your marketing garden.

Some of the seeds you plant will not grow. Some will grow better than others. So, it’s important to plant a variety and to track how each performs. Once you establish a good garden bed, the gardening becomes much easier with each year. It’s the difference between spending a little time on garden maintenance and trying to reclaim Sleeping Beauty’s garden from the thorny hedges that grow as a result of years of neglect.

The moral of the story? Marketing means you make more, you make it more regularly, and you make it more easily. That’s a harvest you can really sink your teeth into!

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
www.TheJordanResult.com

P.S. If you need help with your Marketing Garden, stop by my brand spanking new website at www.TheJordanResult.com and check out my new results driven consulting package called “Help! My Business Dried Up. Now What Do I Do?” For the first time ever, I’m offering consulting with *GUARANTEED* RESULTS*!

A Day in the Life of a Self Employed Professional

2005-08-10T08:39:00.000-07:00

A Day in the Life of a Self Employed Professional

It’s Monday morning and Connie the Consultant sits in her executive office chair overseeing her business empire. Her desk is strewn with half finished projects, several weeks worth of to do lists (none of them completed), scribbled post it notes, and a permission slip for her daughter’s field trip to the Planetarium that should have been turned in last week. Somewhere, buried deep in the rubble is Connie’s business plan. The last time she saw it was during the Clinton Administration.

The phone rings. She checks her caller ID and groans. It’ Dee Dee Demanding calling again, wanting to make one more change in the project that should have been wrapped up a month ago. Connie scribbles Dee Dee’s current list of demands on yet another post it note. She hopes this will be the end of the changes so she can finally get paid for the project. She sure won’t be making a profit on THIS project.

Connie picks up the Joann Marden file to find the notes from their last meeting. She looks through the entire folder twice—no notes. She starts to dig through the stacks on her desk muttering, “I had it in my hand, where did I put it, I just saw it, where can it be?”

The phone rings again. This time it’s a telemarketer wanting to sell Connie a vacation trip. Connie laughs and says, “No sense calling me, I’m self employed. I don’t get vacations.”

She thinks back for a minute to when she became self employed. She actually believed she’d be able to take time off whenever she wanted to. What a joke! Every time she thinks she can get time off, something comes up with one of her clients. Or the check she was expecting to receive didn’t come in. Or, she didn’t dare spend money because she didn’t have any new projects lined up.

Her email dings and she stops to check the new message—a notice that her online credit card statement is ready. She clicks through and signs in. She sits back stunned, “I spent HOW MUCH?! Shaking her head she goes back to work looking for the notes from the meeting with Joann Marden. Instead she finds the estimated tax payment that she should have sent in a month ago. She groans and checks the clock. It’s nearly lunch time and she’s accomplished nothing so far.

Another email comes in. It’s a newsletter from a small business expert telling her she needs to work “on” her business, not just “in” her business. “Yeah”, she says, “I’ve got all kinds of time to learn about working “on” my business. Right after I find the Marden notes, make the umpteenth change on Dee Dee’s project, and get these proposals done that have been sitting on my desk for three weeks.”

She hits the delete key and goes to lunch…

Caroline Jordan, MBA helps self employed professionals find the cure for “business as usual”. Visit http://www.thejordanresult.com/ for strategies and resources to help you Get Knowledge. Get Focus. And Get Results.

Proper Care and Feeding of the Business Owner

2005-08-03T04:10:00.000-07:00

That sizzling sound you’re hearing may be a symptom of a major hidden cause of businesses closing their doors. It’s called burnout. And you may be its next victim. Often the last thing a business owner considers is his or her health and sanity. The burnout that results from overwork and stress can deliver a death blow to the very enterprise you’ve been giving your all to create. Setting a course for your business that includes the proper care and feeding of the business owner is a critical success factor in every business.

Burnout occurs after prolonged periods of stress and physical and/or mental fatigue. It leaves business owners feeling hopeless, powerless, cynical, and resentful. It creates an atmosphere of failure, stagnation and reduced productivity. Burnout carries throughout your business showing up in your relationships with your clients and employees and ultimately impacts your bottom line and the growth pattern of your business.

Typically, burnout occurs in situations where you feel:

overworked
like no one understands what you’re going through
confused about priorities and direction
resentful about tasks that you don’t feel rewarded for performing
concerned about financial survival and security
you have more on your plate than you feel you can handle.

In short, self employment and burnout go together like salt and pepper, peanut butter and jelly, and Donald Trump and real estate. The result is often a very unhappy, unfulfilled business owner who finally decides to throw in the towel and get a nice simple 40 hour a week job.
Recognizing that burnout is a serious threat to the survival of your business is a critical step in preventing or bouncing back from burnout.

Burnout steals your passion, the very passion that caused you to start your business. Without that passion, your ability and willingness to do whatever it takes to make your business a success quickly diminishes. You find yourself resenting your customers instead of wanting to help them. You dislike your employees because of their constant demands. You snap at your spouse when asked how your day went. And you constantly feel pressured and unable to relax.

Understand that you have two roles in your business. You need to play both the role of employer and the role of employee. If you worked for an employer who expected you to work non-stop, never allowing time off, paying you far less than you’re worth with no benefits, you’d soon have your resume updated and be out the door. And yet, that is the daily reality for many small business owners.

Remember, you are your employer. Are you creating a work environment of tyranny and maltreatment? Treat your help like you would want to be treated—incorporate benefits like flex time, comp time, and regular time off. Review a list of job duties to see if it’s a fair and logical distribution of work. You need to take care of the talent just as you would if you had actual employees. Your business depends on your health and sanity.

Preventing burnout is a critical piece of your business plan. How will you keep yourself fresh and engaged with your business? What do you need to do to keep yourself from becoming overwhelmed? What tasks are overwhelming you? Develop a plan to outsource those tasks or find easier ways to do them. What adjustments do you need to make in your business so you can take regular time off?

Often business owners insist they can’t take time off and can’t afford to hire help. Regardless of where your business is today, as the owner of the business you have the power to chart the course of your business. If you feel you can’t step away as things stand right now, begin to plan a direction for your business that will allow you to do so in the future.

Caroline Jordan, MBA is adept at helping self employed professionals create successful businesses without losing their minds. She provides advice, training, coaching, and services to help her clients Get Knowledge…Get Focus…and Get Results. If you are a self employed professional who is really serious about wanting to end the stress, frustration, and confusion you feel trying to run your business, visit http://www.thejordanresult.com/ for more tips, articles, and services designed just for you.

Yeah, It IS Lonely At the Top

2005-07-27T14:45:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when you run a business you feel as lonely as the Maytag repairman. Loneliness and isolation are very common problems for business owners. You sit at your desk wondering if you are steering your business in the right direction. When faced with a decision, you worry that you may be making a mistake or missing an opportunity. You get frustrated because you have no one to talk to about all the problems and decisions you have to make everyday. When you have a confidential matter you can’t discuss with employees, family members, or friends you suffer in silence because you don’t have an advisor to turn to. And unless your spouse is an MBA, he or she probably doesn’t have the answers you need either.

Finding people you can trust to help you with your business is tough. You need someone knowledgeable. You want someone you feel comfortable with. Someone you can really take into your confidence.

Often business owners turn to their bankers or accountants for business advice. But, do you really want to tell your banker that you need guidance running your company? Does your accountant encourage you to sit down and chat about your business over a cup of coffee? Absolutely not. First of all, you don’t want to look like a dope in front of other professionals. You want to be seen as the competent professional that you are.

In my early days of running my business, I felt very lonely and isolated. Who could I talk to about my business? Not my customers certainly. They were looking to me for business advice. Not my family. They weren’t really sure what I do, and I deal with a lot of technical stuff that they’ve never even heard of. So, I spent an awful lot of time struggling. Struggling to learn. Struggling to make the right decisions. Struggling to choose directions for my business. And all the while, feeling like I needed someone to advise me but I just didn’t know WHO!

But over the years, I have found the resources I need to help me move my business forward. I know who I can trust. I know who has the answers to my questions. Now it’s a matter of picking up the phone or sending an email to the right professional. And almost magically my questions are answered and my business moves forward. Sometimes just getting a second opinion or a new perspective clears the fog and the confusion.

The moral of the story is that no one (even business consultants with MBA’s) has all the information and knowledge needed to build a successful business. We all do better when we can “get by with a little help from our friends.”

And here’s an invitation for you: If you’re a self employed professional struggling with decisions and challenges in your business, I invite you to pour yourself a cup of coffee, pull up a chair, and spend an hour talking with me about your business. Just the two of us, brain to brain, business owner to business owner, professional to professional.

Here are some business decisions and challenges you may be struggling with:

*You’re at a plateau and you just can’t get your business to the next level.
*You’re considering taking your business in a new direction but you’re not sure if it’s the right thing to do or how to get started.
*You’re struggling to find clients and you can’t figure out why.
*You want to escape the Billable Hours Trap that limits your income.
*You’re feeling burnt out and overwhelmed.
*Your life and business feel chaotic and out of whack.
*You need a sanity check.
*All of the above.

This tax-deductible, business-transforming, stress-relieving, clarity-producing, completely-confidential conversation is available to you for only $195. Click here to order now.

http://www.1shoppingcart.com/app/javanof.asp?MerchantID=52219&ProductID=2030035

Then send me an email at TheJordanResult@adelphia.net giving me some times you’ll be available in the next week or so and give me a brief synopsis of the topics you’d like to discuss. I’ll get back to you by email to set up a time. That’s all there is to it. Discover how one conversation can move your business light years ahead

What others are saying:

“I’d pay $4000 just so I could talk to you!”
Dave S., Self Employed Consultant

“You’re a life saver!”
Jim S., Owner, Professional Practice

“You never make me feel dumb when I ask questions.”
Karen C., Accountant

“You just saved me from making a huge mistake.”
Tom P., Self Employed Professional

“She’s doesn’t come cheap and she’s worth every penny.”
Jeff B., Business Owner

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

Article Writing Made Simple

2005-07-20T10:37:00.000-07:00

A great way for self employed professionals to enhance their reputations is to write articles. But for many, the thought of writing an article calls to mind your school days of struggling to write a composition, trapped indoors while your friends played baseball without you.

Article writing doesn’t have to be difficult and the rewards are great. Since I started writing articles, my website traffic increased, signups for my newsletters increased, the media has sought me out, and I’ve become what Stephen Van Yoder calls “slightly famous”.

Here is the formula I use to write articles:

First of all, I do not see myself as a writer. You will not find me starving in a garret, suffering for my art. I see myself as a communicator. I have important and useful information to impart that can help people build successful businesses. When you look at it that way, it really takes a lot of pressure off you.

Secondly, your articles do not have to be Pulitzer Prize quality. They need to communicate information in a way your customer can relate to. If your customer is put off by high-falutin’ language, don’t use it. Speak in language that resonates with your customer. Remember, your intent is to communicate, not to win prizes or bludgeon others with your knowledge of polysyllabic words.

Next, start out by writing out a sentence or two (no more) that explains what you want to accomplish with your article. Your purpose is two fold: you want to establish your expertise in the eyes of your potential customers and you want those customers to do something. Here is an example for an article I am writing about how self employed professionals can enhance their reputations:

“I will write an article to give self employed professionals ideas on how to enhance their reputations which will result in more traffic to my website.”

That statement causes me to focus on achieving a specific result—more traffic…by providing specific information—reputation enhancing ideas. It really is the most important part of writing an article. Without that focus I am likely to head off on a tangent.

From there, develop a main thought and support it with three or four points. Add a brief story, a website to visit for more information, or a quote from an expert (that expert can be you) and you’ve got your article.

Sometimes when I get writer’s—I mean communicator’s block. I grab my microphone and “talk” my article. This also ensures that my articles have a conversational tone instead of a boring professor monologue.

Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

You've Got Personality, Use It!

2005-07-13T07:13:00.000-07:00

For the self employed professional, nothing is more important than the image you project to your clients and potential clients. Napoleon Hill put it best when he said, “People buy your personality and ideas long before they buy your products and services.”

Your image may be projected by the clothes you wear, the car you drive, and your posture. But, your image is also projected by the marketing contact points you make. What does your website say about you? What do your brochures or office sign say about you? Are you communicating the image you want to communicate?

I worked with one self employed professional whose target market was other small business owners. Yet his website had a very corporate feel about it. It wasn’t designed to attract the kinds of customers he was interested in attracting. The language he used on the website was formal and stripped of all “person-ality”. But in talking to him, I really “got” how much he loved working with small business owners and helping them become more successful.

Statistics overwhelmingly support that when people are shopping for a professional they buy the person first, the company second, the product or service third, and the price last. Your personality is a major competitive advantage. It’s what sets you apart from all the other people who do the same work you do.

Think about you favorite professionals. Why do you like working with them? My dentist is always jovial, laughing and telling stories during my visits. His personality carries throughout his practice and makes going to the dentist actually enjoyable. If he stripped away the personality, he would be just another dentist.

Let’s say you’re a real estate agent who loves golf and you communicate that to potential customers. You’ll find that you attract customers who also enjoy golf. It establishes a point of connection between the two of you. Your potential client starts out feeling like they know something about you. You’re not a stranger. You’re a fellow golfer. That builds rapport and trust.

Don’t be shy about letting people know who you are and what you stand for. If you’re an eye doctor who travels to Guatemala once a year to provide eye care for children, post a picture on your website or in your office. Send a press release to the local paper about your trip. Not only does it encourage others to support worthy causes, it establishes you as a caring person and a dedicated professional.

Give clients and potential clients multiple opportunities to get to know you by carrying your image and personality throughout your business.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

P.S Stay tuned over the next couple weeks as I introduce new products and services to help you enhance your reputation, increase your revenue, improve your cash flow, and attract customers you enjoy.

Free Cash Flow Management Resources

2005-07-06T07:24:00.000-07:00

Focus is a vital element of small business success
and helping my clients “get focus” has always been
a key focus of my consulting practice.

Each week I send out The Jordan Result, an ezine of
practical tips and creative solutions for small business
owners, particularly self employed professionals. This
week I have added a new resource for my clients who
want more focus on cash flow issues.

Introducing…

Cash Flow Quick Tips, a new ezine focusing on
the critical issue of cash flow management.

According to a study done by the National Federation
of Independent Businesses, 66% of small businesses
experience cash flow problems either constantly or
occasionally. Another study shows that 82% of small
businesses that fail have owners who don’t understand
cash flow management.

Cash Flow Quick Tips is designed to combat that
problem. I guess you could call me a Cash Flow
Crusader. I want every business owner to discover
the secrets of successful Cash Flow Mastery. It is my
personal and business goal to help 50,000 small business
owners learn the skills they need to master the art
and science of cash flow management.

To achieve that goal, I have added several free resources
to your Cash Flow Arsenal:

Cash Flow Quick Tips:
Get it here:
TheJordanResult-115101@autocontactor.com

Cash Flow Mini Course—discover the 4 reasons
businesses have cash flow problems:
Get it here:
TheJordanResult-91058@autocontactor.com

Cash Master Checklist—helps you find the leaky
spots in your Cash Flow Boat:
Get it here:
TheJordanResult-110571@autocontactor.com

Come join me in my crusade to help small
business owners “Get Cash Flow Knowledge.
Get Cash Flow Focus. And Get Cash Flow
Results.

To your success!
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

P.S. To subscribe to The Jordan Result for Small Business Success click here:
TheJordanResult-65236@autocontactor.com

Pursuing the Common Good

2005-06-29T11:59:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about the concept of a dual
bottom line. Usually a dual bottom line refers to a business
that concerns itself not just with profits but also with
providing jobs for a community.

My business has always been a dual bottom line business
because I am committed to donating both time and a
percentage of my profits to causes I care about.
Some businesses take that a step beyond and create
businesses whose sole (and soul) purpose is creating profits
to fund charities and good works.

Paul Newman and his partner A.E. Hotchner created
Newman's Own to do just that. Peddling spaghetti sauce
has allowed the duo to donate many millions of dollars
to causes they care about. They also created Hole
in the Wall camps all over the world to provide a summer
camp experience for kids with serious illnesses. You can
read their zany business story in a book Hotchner wrote,
entitled "Shameless Exploitation in Pursuit of the Common
Good."

I see small business owners in my community getting
involved in all sorts of good causes like helping out at
the local library, volunteering at the animal shelter,
serving on boards of trustees, donating items for
fundraisers, or making handmade blankets for kids in
crisis.

The spirit of philanthropy has always been
alive and well in the small business community. As
small business owners we well know what it is like
to struggle to get by. We also know how great it feels
to bring a smile to a neighbor's face or bring a new
job in our community.

So, hats off to all those small business owners who
pursue both profits and philanthropy and who keep the
spirit of giving flourishing in all our communities.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Tell Me a Story

2005-06-22T06:32:00.000-07:00

Everyone loves a good story. Whether it’s the story of your vacation to an exotic place, the story of how you met your spouse, or the story of your small business, people get drawn in and feel involved. Storytelling is as old as civilization itself.

I participated in a seminar a couple of weeks ago and met Rob Nicoll the owner of a Meadery. “A Meatery?” I asked. No, a Meadery where Rob makes mead, honey wine, and cordials. The name of his newly developing business is Fiddler’s Reach and it’s located on the coast of Maine.

One thing I’ve found in talking to people all over the country is that the very mention of the word “Maine” evokes an immediate positive response and adding “coast of” in front of it increases that positive response. It calls to mind rugged granite, crashing waves, soaring seabirds, sturdy lighthouses, wild sea roses, and a feeling of peace and ease.

As I talked with Rob about his business, he spoke of tying his business story into the mystique of the coast of Maine. The name of his company, Fiddler’s Reach, comes from the name of a sharp turn in the river that ships have to navigate to finish their sea journey.

In days of old, once a ship came safely through Fiddler’s Reach, the journey was nearly done, the work slowed down, and the sailors had time to relax and anticipate the joy of homecoming after long months at sea. And that is when the fiddler would reach for his fiddle and the sailors would dance, sing, and laugh.

What an appropriate story for a business specializing in an old fashioned beverage designed for enjoyment during times of relaxation. Envision how Rob can use all those images in his marketing—package design, sales letters, advertising, letterhead, etc. Ships and waves and fiddles and joyous homecomings on the coast of Maine. It ties into the longing we all have for a little rest and relaxation. It transports us to another time when life seemed simpler and less hectic. A magical time when the plaintive sound of a fiddle expressed our homesickness and a joyful tune spoke of coming home to a well loved place. I’ll take a case of that!

Engaging your customers through story telling makes them feel as though they are a part of something greater than themselves. It lessens the loneliness of an uncaring world and provides a momentary escape from reality. What stories can you tell about your business that make people say, “I’ll take some of that!”

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Is There a Plumber in the House?

2005-06-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about you but I get really frustrated when I have to deal with anyone in the plumbing, heating, or electrical field. For the most part, the service is horrible, the contractors are unreliable, and the lack of professionalism is rampant.

Case in point, we’ve been working on adding a new bathroom at our house. We had a plumber all lined up to do the work. When we were ready for him, we gave him a call only to be told he didn’t have time to do the work. If he had told us that a month before we might have had a chance to line someone else up to do the work. So instead of a bathroom, we had a real nice porch. Fortunately, we were able to find someone else to help us out and the construction project is moving along.

Imagine my delight when I saw this press release:
www.clickpress.com/releases/Detailed/2007005cp.shtml

Hub Plumbing and Mechanical in Boston has initiated a program called “Red Carpet Service”. Get this…the technician shows up at your house or business and literally rolls out the red carpet to protect your floors. They wear boot covers, have badges for security, and they actually arrive ON TIME dressed in clean red uniforms.

When you call their offices for an emergency, their phone is answered by a customer service representative who actually works for the company—not an answering service that just takes a message. The customer service rep can dispatch a technician immediately in case of an emergency.

The company also offers consistent pricing for everyone—no extra charges because you live in a fancy house.

I don’t know who the genius was who wrote this press release but it is masterful. It does exactly what you want a press release to do:

It is newsworthy—the customer service bar is set very low in the trades so a trade company that actually provides good service is, sadly enough, newsworthy.
It shows why this company is different from its competitors.
It tells exactly what problems the company solves—they assist “both residential and commercial customers with code violations, sewer/drain clogs, garbage disposals, water heaters…”
They even specify where they work—Dorchester and Wellesley.

Print this press release and save it. Use it as a model for all your future press releases. It really is brilliant.

And speaking of press releases, as a result of one of mine, I’ll be appearing on the Beth & Monica Small Business Resource radio show on Saturday, June 18th. The show is on KHFX from 12-2 p.m. Arizona time. I’m on the 12-1 segment which is 3-4 p.m. EST . The show is web cast live at www.KHFX.com is you’d like to listen in. I’ll be talking about Beating the Small Business Cash Flow Blues.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result
www.TheJordanResult.com

In the Villa of the Sick Cat

2005-06-08T08:27:00.000-07:00

If you’re a pet owner, you know the stress of having a sick pet and you know that having a great veterinarian is a wonderful thing. My cat, Zoe, came down with a nasty infection that had me racing off to the vet’s office last week with an unhappy, howling kitty in tow. (She’s doing much better now.)

This was my first visit to this vet’s office, having just moved here last year. When I arrived, the building was under construction. Lots of hammering, sawing, and loud noises—not exactly the controlled, calm atmosphere preferred by a sick pet. But fortunately, Zoe lives in the House of Perpetual Construction Projects, so she did okay.

But, what really struck me was the construction project itself. The waiting room has been transformed into an Italian Villa with high ceilings, a graceful figure-eight-shaped pool in the center of the room, a decorative fountain, and “faux” plants. It is gorgeous and would make a great setting for a romantic Italian meal complete with fine wine and a strolling violinist.

My first reaction on walking in was “This is beautiful, I wonder how high my vet bill will be.” As Zoe and I sat waiting (and waiting and waiting and waiting), I watched all the other customers coming through the door. Each one looked around at the beautiful setting and said “I wonder how much this is going to cost me.”

The newly designed waiting rooms and exam rooms were not designed for the customers—dogs and cats. They weren’t designed for the humans bringing in their pets for medical care. It’s a total ego design. Impressive. Elegant. Grand.

And instead of all the customers (animal and human) being wowed by the design, they reacted negatively. You see, sick cats and dogs want quiet, dark spaces and they want their visit to the vet’s office to be over quickly. Instead, the new design with its concrete floor (fashionably treated to look like a sun kissed rock patio) and its soaring ceilings means that every time the phone rings the noise reverberates throughout the waiting area. The poor scheduling means that a sick pet has to stay in that waiting room for what must seem an eternity. And of course, the humans immediately understand that the money to pay for this project has to come from somewhere…namely their wallets.

Fortunately, our new vet turned out to be competent and caring and Zoe is recovering nicely. But, the business lesson remains. Focus on what your customers care about and you’ll never go wrong.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

The Story of Kennebec Ice

2005-06-01T07:21:00.000-07:00

Today, I want to tell you the story of Kennebec Ice.
It is a story full of valuable business lessons even
though it happened long ago.

Once upon a time, before the invention of modern
refrigeration, folks kept their food cold by using
large blocks of ice. That ice was readily available
to residents of my state, Maine.

(For my friends in other countries, Maine is the
northeastern-most state, bordered by New
Hampshire, Canada, and the Atlantic Ocean. We have
very cold winter’s and the ice freezes deep into lakes
and rivers.)

Now, residents of Maine didn’t think too much
about ice other than for their own use. Ice was just
a part of life, no big deal. During the economic
depression that followed the Civil War, ship’s captains
in Maine had a hard time finding enough cargo to
fill their ships. To compensate for the lack of cargo
the ship’s crew substituted large blocks of Maine ice
to act as ballast. The ice was covered with sawdust to
help slow the melting process. This need for ballast
created a new market for ice.

When the ships arrived in tropics and sub-tropics, it
was discovered that the ice being used as ballast was
a valuable product to the residents of those regions.
They were willing to pay for that ice. Cutting and shipping
ice to other parts of the world became an industry for Maine.
This new market saw ice being shipped to China, India, Cuba,
and many other places.

Now, somewhere along the way, through some
clever promotion, the ice harvested from the
Kennebec River in Maine became known as “the
best ice”. Consumers thought it was higher in
purity and health benefits.

There are many rivers and lakes in Maine, all of them
produce ice. There really wasn’t much difference at the
time, all the lakes and rivers were clean enough to drink from,
but the perception was that Kennebec Ice was the
best. People were willing to pay more to get it.

Because Kennebec Ice was the best, ice companies
all over the world started referring to their ice as
“Kennebec Ice” even though their ice might come
from Kansas or New York. Kennebec Ice was the
gold standard for ice.

And then along came modern refrigeration. The
ice industry died out and Maine residents who are
always resourceful moved on to other industries to
support their families.

So, here are our modern day business lessons
from the story of Kennebec Ice.

1. One product can have many markets and
uses, even a product as simple as frozen
water.

2. The things we take for granted may be
valuable to others.

3. Becoming the gold standard increases
business and allows you to charge a
higher price.

4. It’s important to protect your brand to keep
it from being cheapened and compromised
by others.

5. Watch for trends that tell you it’s time to
get out of the ice business and develop new
products or services.

Of course, the ice business is still alive and well in
the modern world, driven by a new industry--tourism
and recreation. So, next time you fill your cooler,
think of the humble ice cube and the proud part it
played in creating business history.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

IMHO, Sincerity trumps Hype, everyday

2005-05-25T08:44:00.000-07:00

Every once in awhile I have to dust off my soap box and take a stand. And here it is…I’m really sick unto death of all the hype on the internet. You’ve run into this, I’m sure. Much of it is fueled by the “make m*oney on the internet” crowd. The motivation is all about selling a ton of stuff regardless of whether it’s useful to the customer so you can buy a flashy car, build a huge mansion, and run with the bulls. The sales materials are all about “you too can make lots of dough and live the life style I’m living, all you have to do is give me your cash”.

Puh-leeeze!

Anyone who has ever run a business in the real world knows that building a lasting business involves more than some carnival barker whipping up the crowd at a side show. Sure, hype sells. There’s little doubt of that. There will always be those who are so desperate for a solution to their problem that they’ll fall for any pitch. But, I take a different approach with my own business.

I guess you could say I’m “square” or “old fashioned” or “a do-gooder”. I value things like honesty, integrity, sincerity, service, and compassion. I have no interest in selling people stuff that won’t help them--just to make a buck.

I guess all those internet gurus will look down on me and think I’m a fool. Oh well. I guess I can live with that. I’ve been quietly and sincerely making a living now for years. I don’t live in a mansion or jet off to exotic locations. I don’t feel the need. I live a simple life in a place I love and fill my life with work that is meaningful and causes I believe in. And I succeed by helping others succeed. It’s a great life. I wouldn’t trade it for any other.

Building a business that allows you to “do well” while “doing good” is one of the sweetest life paths any of us can walk. I feel blessed to have the wisdom to know that and the courage to act it out. And now, Goody Two Shoes needs to tie her laces and get back to work.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Face Failure and Avoid It

2005-05-18T08:51:00.000-07:00

I spoke to a group of life coaches yesterday on the topic of “Why Most Small Business Owners Don’t Prosper…And How You Can Reverse That Trend”. The basis of that talk was a study published by Jessie Hagen of U.S. Bank. The study gives great insight into the reasons that failure rates for small businesses are so high (as high as 80% according to some studies).

It’s a great opportunity to use the mistakes of others to help avoid our own mistakes. I’ve written an article detailing the reasons businesses fail and you can read that article here:

www.TheJordanResult.com/failure.html

Hope you find the information useful and that it contributes to your success.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

P.S. 82% of businesses that fail have owners with poor cash flow management skills. Overcome that skill gap by going to www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html

Stitching Up a Niche

2005-05-04T08:55:00.000-07:00

I am a great admirer of businesses that serve and market to one or a small number of niches. It’s such a great business model and one of the fastest ways to grow a business. I know one marketer who develops websites exclusively for life coaches, another business that develops marketing programs for the spa and pool industry, and another business that specializes in providing tax services for clergy. And they’re all busy!

When they develop their marketing materials, services, and products, they are able to speak to a very specific segment of the population. Niching allows them to “go deep” into the needs and problems of one particular profession or demographic. For example, clergy have very specific tax situations with their pay, housing allowances, and Social Security taxes. A tax preparer specializing in this market can market to a very specific segment of the population (members of the clergy) with a specific set of challenges (specialized tax rules applying only to clergy). I have also seen a similar service for truck drivers who also have specialized tax rules.

Today, I have discovered a new medium aimed at one of my favorite niches—quilters. I have a confession to make…When I’m not helping my customers grow their businesses, I can usually be found stitching away on my sewing machine. (Hi, my name is Caroline and I’m a quilt-a-holic.)

The new medium is an online Quilters News Network. A 24/7 internet based television network of quilting shows, tips, and, of course, advertisements for all the things quilters love. I heard about it from another quilter and as soon as I discovered it, my productivity dropped like a rock off the top of the Empire State Building. Did I mention it’s all quilting all day, right on my computer screen? What’s a quilter to do?

The quilting community is a great example of a profitable niche. Whenever I go to my quilting group or participate in a quilting event, I pick up a new tip, learn about a new tool or pattern, or meet a new quilter. And we talk. A lot. “Have you been to the new quilt store?” “Have you seen this new tool?” “Have you tried this pattern?” Word spreads like a wild fire through the quilting community when we find something new that we like.

The quilting niche is made up of 22 million happy quilters. It’s subdivided into any number of smaller niches—traditional appliqué, machine quilting, hand quilting, trapunto, redwork, etc. It is a hungry market—we can’t get enough fabric, tools, and patterns.

What hungry markets can you tap into to build your business to the next level? Serving a niche is the difference between trying to find a needle in a haystack or walking into a room full of quilters and offering them a good deal on sewing machine needles. Which one will give the greatest return on your investment?

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Everyday Lessons in Advertising

2005-04-27T08:57:00.000-07:00

When commercials come on the television do you get up
and head for the kitchen to get a snack? Do you tune out
the radio when commercials start? Do you skip over
advertisements in newspapers and magazines?

If you do, you’re missing a golden opportunity for increasing
your business.

When you pay attention to ads, you can very quickly pick
out ads that are effective. How do you know?

Do you understand from the ad “what’s in it for you”?
Does the ad make you want to find out more?
Does the ad touch your emotions?

When you start to notice ads, and more importantly notice
the effective ones, you can use those ads as a basis for your
next ad campaign. When I see an ad in a newspaper or a
magazine that I think really does a good job, I tear it out
and put it into what marketers call a “swipe file.” Now,
that’s not to say that you take someone else’s ad and paste
your name over theirs, and use it as though it’s your own.
Study it and try to define what it is that makes it a good ad.
Then find a way to introduce similar aspects into your own
advertising.

Here are a couple of examples from my local market…

A CPA firm ran an ad that said, “Your Profit is Our
Business.”

Okay, I understood where they were going with this. But,
it made me feel uncomfortable—my profit isn’t anybody’s
business but my own. Maybe that’s just me and others took
it in the spirit in which it was meant, but for me it didn’t work.

A jeweler’s ads say over and over “We really want to be
your jeweler.”

This is brilliant. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that
Stan Pollack really wants to be my jeweler. Actually, it’s not
me he wants as a customer—if he had me for a customer he’d
starve. What Stan wants is to develop life long relationships
with people who make multiple jewelry purchases. He does
a great job of articulating that and repeating it over and over.

Now, if the CPA firm had said to me “Small Business Owners,
Do You Want to Keep More of What You Make?” they
would have been speaking my language.

Stop and check out the ads, watch a few commercials,
tune into a late night infomercial and study the techniques
they’re using to attract their market. Which tactics could you
apply in your own business? What message do your
customers want to hear from you?

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

“I really want to be your cash flow consultant.”
www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html

I'm Keeping My Promises

2005-04-20T08:59:00.000-07:00

How often do you see businesses making promises to
customers? It’s a great way to build relationships and
add value to what you do. Whether you’re promising
service after the sale of a car or complimentary
consulting time either before a sale or after, promises
can be the mortar that holds the bricks of your business
together.

But, what really happens after the sale is made? Do
you keep your promises? Have you ever had an
experience where you tried to use a extended warranty
on a car and been made to feel that since it’s warranty
work, it’s a low priority? What happens to the promise
then? Or, you spend a bunch of money on a seminar
where you’re promised a critique or consultation as
part of the package, but when you try to collect you’re
made to feel as though you’re presuming on the
presenter’s time.

I gave this a great deal of thought as I was developing
my Cash Flow Master success system. I wanted to
include some one-on-one consulting time because I
know how useful it is to get another viewpoint on your
business. But, I didn’t want to over-promise the amount
of time I could spend and end up with disappointed
customers (or an overworked, stressed out consultant).

In the end, I decided to include the consulting time as a
bonus to the product, something I could offer until it
became too overwhelming. At that point I can offer a
different bonus in place of my time. So far, that seems
to have worked. My customers are getting what they
need without it being an overwhelming burden for me.
But, I am always mindful of the experiences I have had
with other companies who promise and either don’t
deliver or give a low priority to keeping their promises.

What promises are you making to your customers? Do
you have a good system to follow through on keeping
those promises? Promises add value to your customers
experience and their willingness to buy. Promises kept
create repeat customers and good referrals. Promises
broken or deferred leave customers feeling betrayed
and irritable.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Please Don't Choke the CPA

2005-04-13T09:01:00.000-07:00

Here’s a fun story about how once upon a time I lost my
temper and almost strangled a CPA…

I went to work for a company that had serious accounting
issues. The books were a mess. They had attempted to set
up QuickBooks but since the manual books were such a
mess, QuickBooks was a mess too.

Sound the trumpets; here comes Caroline riding in to save
the day!

What a raging mess they’d created. The cash balance in the
check book was $20,000 different from the cash balance in
QuickBooks. The bookkeeper was double paying bills. She
never pulled customer’s invoices when they were paid, so no
one knew who owed money and who had paid. (Ever make a
collection call to a customer who already paid their bill? It ain’t
pretty!) The checking account reconciliation showed the
following notation (and I’m not making this up):

“Close enough”.

Oh, it was ugly. Ugly. Ugly. Ugly.

It took six weeks to straighten out the worst of it. Six weeks
of accounting fees. Six weeks of new gray hairs for me. But,
the job got done.

Now for the part where I almost choked a CPA…

When the majority of the problems were cleaned up, a
CPA firm came in to do the regular yearly audit. One of the
accountants (who shall remain nameless) was a man of great
technical accounting knowledge but had the people skills of
a hammer.

I made a change to the accounting system to reflect an
adjustment but I neglected to print off a new report showing
that change for “Mr. Hammer”. When I remembered to print
the new report for him, he started giving me a lecture. “I don’t
think you understand what we need from you,” he said.

After spending six weeks cleaning up a huge mess, I felt that
he should be working with me to make sure everything was as
it should be. So, I responded, “I don’t think you understand
what we need from you.”

At which point he shoved his chair back, banging it into an
assistant who was with him. He accused me of keeping a
double set of books and any number of other unpalatable
misdeeds. This is, of course, the point where my hands were
suddenly circling his neck. Fortunately or unfortunately,
someone else broke up the fight. He was at least twice my
size but I was mad enough, I think I could have taken him down.

Naturally, my story has a point. Your accountant works for
you. Not the other way around. Many business owners are
uncomfortable talking to their accountants. They don’t want to
appear dumb when they ask questions. They don’t want to
bother the accountant with their questions because he or she is
so busy. They feel that their accountant is unapproachable. And
yet, accountants have a wealth of knowledge that small business
owners need to become successful. An accountant worth his or
her salt will be available and approachable, a partner for your
business. If your accountant isn’t able or willing to answer your
questions, it’s time to find a new one.

Disclaimer: I do NOT recommend or advocate choking the
current one.

And if you’re uncomfortable and feeling inadequate talking
to your accountant about your finances, here’s a great resource
that teaches you what the numbers mean and how to use them
to build your business:

www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Keep Those Cards & Letters Coming

2005-04-06T09:02:00.000-07:00

I have a neat resource for you this week. I often write about
the importance of establishing relationships with customers
and about making customers feel valued. The other day I
received a greeting card in the mail from Gail Hess, one of
the subscribers to The Jordan Result.

When I got the envelope in the mail, I thought, “Hey, someone
sent me a card!” Of course, I opened it right up. (The other mail
I got that day went directly into the trash without a second thought.)

In the card, Gail says, “I thought you would be interested in this
new Customer Relationship Marketing concept called “Send Out
Cards”…Now that everyone is online, a first class “snail mail”
card stands out. You can send out just one card or set up your
own marketing campaigns. With just a few clicks of your computer
mouse, your card is on its way!”

Let’s look at what just happened here. Gail knows me from my
newsletter. She saw a connection between what I was talking
about—customer service, and what she offers, a customer
relationship building tool. She sent me an example of that tool,
her greeting card. And I opened it. How beautiful is that? But, it
didn’t stop there. She directed me to her website and off I went.

That’s the power of making connections. Gail didn’t blindly send
me mail. And she didn’t try to “sell” me. She recognized that this
was a service I would find interesting and useful. And her format,
the greeting card, stood out in a pile of junk mail.

I can see so many applications for this—real estate agents can send
a full color picture of a house they want to sell, life coaches can
send an inspirational card, veterinarians can send condolence cards
to customers whose pets have died, insurance agents, pediatricians,
and many others can send birthday cards to their clients. Non-profits
can send thank you cards to their volunteers.

I thought it was a really cool resource so I followed up with Gail to
get more information. Here’s what she had to say:

“Send Out Cards is a print on demand greeting card company
that allows you to mail REAL full color, personalized greeting
cards from the internet, for less than a dollar each (including
first class postage.) You log onto the website, choose a card
(from a selection of over 2500 cards), enter your personal message,
enter the recipient and click send! The company prints the card,
stuffs it into the envelope, puts a first class stamp on it, and mails it.”

“Some great features of this system:
· You have the ability to upload your customer contact
list in minutes (from Outlook, Excel, etc).
· You can set up “campaigns” to send cards at specific times
to specific customers. There is also a system reminder for
Birthdays, Anniversaries, and other special dates.
· You can personalize each card (or a campaign of cards) with
a digital photo. Realtors and car dealer are sending pictures
of the new house or car to the customer. Other business owners
uploaded a coupon into the card, such as “bring this card in for
$$ off” or “use this code on. (your website) for $$ off. ” There
are endless possibilities for this feature.”

“Three Benefits:
Expanding your customer relationship marketing by using
“old fashioned snail mail” to contact and thank internet or brick
and mortar customers.
Saving time – by uploading your database and sending cards to
every client in minutes! Use the Campaign manager to set up
specific card campaigns for specific customer groups.
Maintain a special relationship with personalized greeting cards
containing your own message, signature and even a digital picture.”

If you’d like more information on this resource go to www.makeloyalcustomers.com/3617 and request to send out a free greeting card. Then Gail will set up your free demo account to be able to send a card.

When you send an unexpected greeting card to someone you make
them feel very special. Maya Angelou, one of the great voices of
contemporary literature, expressed it best when she said: “People
will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people
will never forget how you made them feel.”

Until next time…Keep those cards and letters (and emails) coming!
I love to hear what you’re up to!
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

My new Cash Flow Mastery course begins shipping next week.
If you want to finally conquer the Cash Flow Beast and crawl
out of the Cash Flow Swamp, help is just a click away:
www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html

Cash Flow and Other Madness

2005-03-27T09:08:00.000-08:00

Answers for All Your Cash Flow Questions

Well, I’ve finally done it. I’ve been hard at work developing
a Cash Flow Mastery Success System that answers every
question you ever had about small business cash flow. It’s in
final production and starts shipping April 11th. It includes
Mastering Cash Flow: A How To Guide for Solving Small
Business Cash Flow Problems, an enhanced tutorial workbook
with exercises to help you pinpoint the specific cash flow
problems you face in your own business, real world solutions
and strategies, CD’s I recorded full of real world examples of
what works and doesn’t work, all packaged up so you can
complete them at your own pace and on your own schedule.

Find out more: www.TheJordanResult.com/mastering.html .

But, that’s not all I’ve been up to…I also have some new
teleclasses on Cash Flow. The courses are offered through:

http://www.my1stbusiness.com/finance.php
http://www.smallbiz-bootcamp.com/cashflowpuzzle.html

Each class costs only $20 so they’re definitely affordable.
Both sites have a wide array of classes for small business
owners to help them: Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.

The Method to My Madness

Now, here’s the small business tip of the week…Did you
notice what I’m up to? All the great resources I listed above
are examples of how a small business owner can do work
once and get paid multiple times for it. It’s all a part of my
business model which you’re seeing develop before your
very eyes. Exciting, huh? Find ways to do the same in your
business and see how awesome it feels to have residual
income sources. It’s good stuff!

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

A Tale of Two Customer Experiences

2005-03-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

If you ever want to see me lose my cool, just give me
some really bad customer service. That usually does it.
If you want to make me sing your praises give me good
customer service and you’ll have an advocate for life.

Here are two customer service stories (abbreviated because
I know you have other things to do today and reliving one
of the stories would get me all wound up again :-).

Story #1 An office supply company who I usually have only
good experiences with…

I was in charge of ordering new tables and chairs for my
church. I placed the order only to find out that they had a
cable guy delivery schedule. Someone needed to be at the
church between the hours of 9 and 5.

On the day they wanted to deliver, a huge snowstorm was
predicted and it was doubtful that anyone would be able to
make it to the church. The company was not able to schedule
the delivery any other day or time, even though I called and
asked. I actually had to cancel the order and reorder the
next day to get a better delivery date.

When I called to voice my concerns about the 9 to 5 delivery
time frame, I was given a “company policy” explanation. So I
called the corporate headquarters and had a frank discussion
about the importance of good customer service. Naturally, they
agreed that my concerns were valid, it was a problem, but they
still didn’t do anything about it.

Story #2 A computer company who I always have good
experiences with…

The most important tool in my business, besides my brain, is
my computer. Without it I’m dead in the water. My computer
has developed some progressively worsening issues. Namely,
the poor thing is overloaded with all the stuff I’ve got in it. As
such, it is slower than molasses in January. It is costing me
severely in productivity as I wait, and wait, and wait, and wait
for it to catch up with me.

So, the time has come to bring a new member into the family.
Without hesitation I headed to the Dell website to do my
shopping. Why Dell? My last two computers were from Dell.
I got a good product at a good price and excellent customer
service. (As a consultant, I’m also fascinated by the company
and its business model.) I did my shopping and product
comparing and placed my order on March 22. I was given an
estimated ship date of March 28.

This morning I received an email notification that my computer
shipped the same day I ordered it. WOW!! They gave me a
reasonable time frame for delivery and then got the job done
immediately. All the while they provided me with excellent
communication. How’s that for service? Dude, I’m getting a Dell!

Delight your customers. It is the best way to get more business
from them and from their friends and colleagues. I have said it
before and I’ll say it again. Your customer is your most valuable
asset and a dedicated, loyal customer has value far beyond the
first sale.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

6 of 1, Half Dozen of the Other

2005-03-16T09:31:00.000-08:00

Motivational author and speaker Jim Rohn says
that for a business to succeed it takes about a
half dozen things. Of all the millions of things
you do, it’s really that half dozen that count.

Of course, the trick is figuring out which half
dozen things to do to help your business succeed.
A while back, I sat down and did some thinking
about the half dozen things I need to do consistently
to take my business to the next level.

One of my half dozen is establishing and nurturing
relationships. Relationships are crucial for every
small business. Not only do those relationships
lead to new business opportunities (and believe
me, it’s a wonderful thing to have so many
opportunities that you can chose who you work
with and what kind of work you do), but relation-
ships are a fantastic way to limit the isolation
of small business ownership.

Isolation takes two forms. One is the isolation we
all feel from time to time being self employed. That’s
the “it’s lonely at the top” feeling we all get. Reaching
out to others relieves some of that loneliness and gives
us other points of view on how we’re running our
businesses.

The other isolation is cutting ourselves off from our
customers. When you have a strong relationship with
your customers, you know what their problems and
challenges are. You can use that information to fine
tune your products and services or create new ones
to help them solve their problems.

Case in point. I’m working on a new service for
solo professionals. Some time ago, I took a really
fantastic Marketing for More seminar with Marcia
Yudkin http://www.marketingformore.com/seminars.htm

At the seminar I met a couple of executive
coaches. We struck up a friendship and have stayed
in touch. Last week, I asked them about the kinds of
services they most needed at each stage of their growing
businesses.

Their input is priceless. The value will drive my business
forward for years. And it meant so much to me that
they took the time to answer my questions and that they
spent so much time thinking about things for me.

Now, we didn’t approach each other with a “what
can this person do for me?” attitude. We met, enjoyed
each others viewpoints and personalities, kept in
touch, and helped each other out. It’s that simple.

What are your “half dozen things”? What do you
need to focus on to move your business forward?
Once you figure out the half dozen, focus on them
relentlessly and watch your business grow.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

I could have prevented WorldCom's demise!

2005-03-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

I was reading last week about poor Bernard
Ebbers, beleaguered CEO of the now bankrupt
WorldCom. Bernie took the witness stand in
his own defense. He offered the following as
his explanation of his role in creating the
largest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

Bernie reports that his “marks weren’t too
good” in school. He said he’d never had an
accounting class and didn’t know anything
about finance and accounting.

Oh, Bernie. Bernie, Bernie, Bernie. If only
you had taken my “Strength in Numbers”
class or read my cash flow book. We could
have avoided all this mess. Or, if only your
defense team could have come up with
a better defense than, “I’m just plain dumb.”

But, poor old Bernie’s demise brings home
a very important point. When you own a
business, regardless of the size or complexity,
you have to understand accounting and cash
flow. It’s not an optional business skill.

Jessie Hagen of U.S. Bank did a study of
failed businesses and here are a couple of
sad statistics:

82% of businesses that failed had owners
who had poor cash flow management skills
or a poor understanding of cash flow.

70% of businesses that failed had owners
who didn’t recognize (or ignored) what they
didn’t do well and didn’t seek expert help.

The good news is poor Bernie won’t have
to eat lunch all by himself. He’ll have lots of
friends with him who didn’t understand
accounting.

The even better news is small business
owners have a shining example of the
importance of learning the numbers side
of their businesses.

And here’s a great way to get that knowledge.
I will be teaching a series of cash flow and
accounting teleclasses for a great small
business resource site. The classes start
March 30. These classes are for members
of www.my1stbusiness.com only. I encourage
you to check out their website. It is chock
full of excellent resources for every aspect
of running your small business.

And if anyone sees Bernie Ebbers on the street,
let him know about the classes. His future
depends on it.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Small Business Marketing Resources

2005-03-02T09:32:00.000-08:00

Small Business Resources

People often ask me for resources to help them
with marketing their businesses. For many small
business owners, marketing is a big mystery. They
know they need to market but they don’t think they
have time. And even if they did have time, they
wouldn’t know where to start.

I have two marketing experts, David Frey and Marcia
Yudkin from whom I have learned a tremendous amount.
In fact, their books and information products are fast
at hand on my desk and I refer to them often. They are
part of the reason my business has survived and thrived.
Let me introduce you.

David Frey has dominated a niche that many of us
wouldn't ever think of. He is THE marketing guy for
the spa and pool industry. He writes for the trade
journals, speaks at the conventions, and is very much
in demand.

He has three products for small businesses
that I think are great. The Small Business Marketing
Bible for all small businesses. Very in depth and an
excellent resource. The Coaches and Consultant’s
Marketing Bootcamp for anyone in a knowledge
based business. I have used this to build my business
and have had great results from his program. And his
latest product, Instant Referral Systems, where he
details more referral techniques than you can even
imagine existed.

He also has some great no cost resources at his websites.
Stop by my website to find out how to reach him.
www.TheJordanResult.com/Resources.html

My other favorite marketing expert is Marcia Yudkin.
She has written a ton of books, special reports, and
articles on two topics: writing and marketing. She
really shines on subjects where writing and marketing
intersect like web copy, sales letters, press
releases, etc. I took a Marketing for More seminar
with Marcia last year that totally redefined my business.
this woman is one sharp cookie and she really knows
her stuff.

She also publishes a great weekly Ezine called the
Marketing Minute. I highly recommend that you
subscribe. I have listed her contact information
at www.TheJordanResult.com/resources.html .

Let me know what resources you have used to
succeed. My goal is to make my website a one
stop total resource for small business success.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Hidden Treasure

2005-02-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

I started working with another new client last week.
He has been in business for about a year and a
half. Yes, he has managed to make plenty of
mistakes, like we all do. But, he has done some-
thing so very right that I thought I’d share it
with you.

This business owner has kept accurate records
of all his customers, complete with name,
address, phone, even directions to their houses
(he makes house calls).

I don’t think I’ve actually worked with a client
before who kept such good customer records.
Generally, they have information like “Joe” and
a phone number that only has six numbers.
But, this is such a critical success point.

The service I am providing for this customer is a
combination support package of accounting, marketing,
and operations. He wants to grow his business but
knows he needs more knowledge than just knowledge
of his particular field. That’s where I come in.

With his customer list we have a tremendous resource.
We can market to that list for repeat business. We can
market for referrals. We can market for sales of
additional products and services. We can get testi-
monials which we’ll use to attract new customers. It’s
a veritable gold mine that we can mine from over and
over. Without the list we would be starting from
scratch, re-inventing the wheel, etc.

Of course, as we talked about last week, you never
want to abuse your customer’s information or act in
a distrustful manner. That’s a great way to lose your
customer and create “un-referrals”—“Don’t do
business with him, he’s a jerk.”

So, whether you’re conducting business online, offline,
or both, your customer list is a tremendously valuable
asset. Guard it like a dragon guards its treasure.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.

I've Been Deceived!

2005-02-16T09:36:00.000-08:00

_______________________
The Deception Perception
_______________________

Without a doubt, people would rather do
business with someone they know, like, and
trust. Credibility is critical. This is especially
true conducting business on the internet where
people never actually meet face to face. Building
a sense of trust with your customers takes time.
And, it’s one of your most valuable assets.

I recently had the opportunity to hear a well known
internet marketer speak. It was a great presentation,
chock full of all sorts of useful tips. I was very
impressed with all he had to say so I went to his
website and signed up for his newsletter.

He sent me an email (by autoresponder, of course)
saying he had set up a special call for his newest
subscribers to give us more great tips. All we had
to do was dial in at a certain time for a teleseminar.
He sent me a followup email reminding me and saying
again how much he appreciated having me on his list.
He looked forward to having me on the call.
_____________________
So Far, So Good.
_____________________

Last night, I dialed in at the scheduled time. The
gentleman came on and said he’d be with us in just
a few moments, he was gathering up his notes. Then,
he came back on, told us because of the number of people
on the call, he had us all muted and there wouldn’t be time
for any questions. He went on to deliver some great
information followed by a sales pitch.

____________________
The Problem.
____________________

It was a recording. He wasn’t really there. Now, if I
had known it would be a recording, it wouldn’t have
bothered me a bit because the information was good. But,
being led to believe it was live, being given a bit of
a smoke and mirror show, changed my perception of
the man and his products. If this teleseminar was smoke
and mirrors, are his products smoke and mirrors too? Is it
all just a slick manipulation to sell products that don’t work?
I certainly don’t want to spend money on a product that
teaches me how to be slick and deceptive.
_________________________
The Moral of the Story
_________________________

Seemingly harmless deceptions create a lack of trust
for customers who are quick to look elsewhere for more
trustworthy solutions.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

The Care and Feeding of Your Small Business

2005-02-09T09:37:00.000-08:00

While I was writing last week’s installment of The Jordan Result, an everyday drama was playing out in a hospital room in the next town. My niece was working on presenting me with a new great nephew. Tyler James came into the world Thursday afternoon, mother and child are both doing well. Naturally, I am able to discern at this early stage that the child is adorably cute, remarkably bright, and very advanced for his age. Takes after his Great Aunt, I’m sure.

Now, watch how I turn this blessed, private family event into a small business parable—hopefully the child didn’t inherit my one track mind.

Young Tyler received the pre-birth gifts of two pairs of baby shoes. Then, he was born with big puppy feet. Already he has outgrown at least one pair of his new shoes. By the end of the week, I suspect the other pair will be much too snug as well. Two things are sure with babies and small businesses, Growth Happens and Change is Inevitable. Your infant soon becomes a toddler who soon becomes an adolescent. Each stage of growth brings different challenges and opportunities.

The key is to anticipate the growth before it happens and prepare for the challenges before they develop. Tyler, like your business, will grow. His needs will change and his parents will need to change with him. Many of the challenges to be faced are not anticipate-able. But many are.

When you start your business, your main concern is survival. Often small businesses don’t make it through the first year and by year four many more have succumbed to the pressures and harsh realities of the small business climate. It is classic Darwinism--survival of the fittest at its most basic level. Businesses that are well capitalized, well run, serving flourishing markets, and executing a solid business plan have the best chance of survival.

And then there is the rest of us. Struggling along, trying to figure things out as we go. Anticipating the changes makes the trip much easier, and makes for successful businesses. My own business has taken just such a trip over the years. And yes, I have many “if only’s”. If only I had done this then, how much farther along my business would be. If only I hadn’t handled that situation like that, how much better my business would have run. Sometimes the “if only’s” outweigh the successes.

Consider the stage your business is at. Is it a newborn needing protection and nurturing? Is it struggling to stand on its own feet? Is it rocked by rapid fire changes and needing a firm foundation? What can you do to help your business through whatever stage it is in? What can you do to prepare your business for its next phase of life?

Your business and my nephew will go through predictable growth stages. Business owners and parents each start out with the wonder and excitement of new birth, struggle through the early work-intensive years, seek balance during the intermediate years, get tossed about by the turbulence of adolescence, and someday, through the grace of God, are able to stand back and say, “My work has paid me handsomely.”

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

The Wedding Mafia

2005-02-02T09:40:00.000-08:00

I’ve got some powerful stuff for you this week. And I’ll let you peek inside my business for a second.

I was at a client’s office and he shared a story with me from his networking group, a chapter of BNI (www.bni.com). Ivan Misner, the creator of BNI talks about what he calls “contact spheres”.

Here’s how it works: A group of related business owners work together to get referrals for each other. Here are some of Misner’s examples of contact spheres:

Business services: printers, graphic artists, specialty advertising agents and marketing consultants.
Real estate services: residential and commercial agents, escrow companies, title companies and mortgage brokers.
Contractors: painters, carpenters, plumbers, landscapers, electricians and interior designers.
Healthcare: chiropractors, physical therapists, acupuncturists and nutritionists.
Weddings: the caterer, the florist, the photographer and the travel agent.

The story my client told me was about the last group which has been dubbed “The Wedding Mafia”. When one gets new wedding business, the whole group gets new wedding business. It makes it very difficult for anyone else to get referrals. It’s a tremendous business builder. I have a client in real estate who does this very well also. It’s one of the most powerful business building tools ever.

So, my client and I were joking around about me developing a “Small Business Mafia”—a small business consultant, an insurance agent, a financial planner, a printing company, an office supply company, a tax preparer, etc. The more we joked about it, the more powerful an idea I realized it was. And since I do business both locally and nationally, I could form numerous branches of my Small Business Mafia and then (insert evil laughter) I could CONQUER THE WORLD!!!

Whooooaaaaa! Hold on. The key to success of any referral group like this is finding good people. The business owners you work with have to be people you feel completely comfortable in referring your valued clients to. Otherwise, your name and reputation will get dragged into the ditch. Once you’ve found people you love to refer, be sure they’re very familiar with your business and the types of clients you’re looking for. Give the group as much or as little structure as needed to ensure that referrals are flowing both ways. Then, go out and conquer as much of the world as you want.

Until next time,

Caroline Jordan

Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.

The Jordan Result

Is It Recess Yet?!?!

2005-01-26T09:43:00.000-08:00

I have a confession to make. My name is Caroline and I’m a workaholic. I try to pretend I don’t have a problem. I try to cover it up. But, in the end I’m faced with the cold hard truth that I am a person who works too much. I even tried to take work with me on my honeymoon! (I got busted!)

Not only do I work too much, when I’m not working I’m thinking about working--How can I use this new idea to help my business and my client’s businesses? How can I make this task simpler, less time consuming? How will that news story I just read impact small businesses? My mind is constantly clicking away.

Oh, I know I’m not alone. There are many other self employed people in my little support group. In fact, another definition of workaholic might be “Self Employed”. When you’re self employed it’s hard to take a break. It’s not like you can punch the time clock and head home for the day. Your business is always with you. Especially if your office is in your home.

I am very aware of the toll self employment can take on a person's life. But, I also know that like Stephen Covey says, you have to sharpen the saw. Trying to work when you’re overtired takes twice the effort for half the result.

So I like to think of it in terms of grammar school. You work really hard and then the bell rings and you get to go outside for RECESS!! Take a walk or a run, play with your kids or your friends or your pets, change your perspective by hanging upside down on the jungle gym. When you go back to work your mind and body are refreshed, you’re less stressed, and you’re better able to focus and be productive.

The brain only has the capacity to focus for 90 minutes at a stretch. Then, it needs to reboot. The most important thing to remember is… RIIIIINNNGGGG! Oops! Sorry, I have to go play in the snow now, it’s RECESS time!

(Seriously, take a break. If you stop for ten minutes, the world will still keep turning. And you'll be more productive and focused. Enjoy.)

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result

Learn Something New Everyday

2005-01-19T09:45:00.000-08:00

Your grandfather probably told you to
“learn something new everyday”. Your
grandfather was giving you advice that works
for your small business as well as your own
education.

One of my clients reminded me, this week, of the
importance of learning something new everyday.
He has a piece of his business that is very time
consuming and cumbersome. He’s been working
to find technology that will help to alleviate the
problem. He thinks he’s found a solution that will
save him two days of work per week. Not two
hours—TWO DAYS!! For a small business owner,
that’s a huge chunk of “found” time.

I was reading a biography this week in which the
subject talks of going to “finishing school”. For
anyone who hasn’t run into the term before,
finishing schools were designed for young women
of the Victorian era to “finish” their education. They
learned skills to make them more marriageable, able
to discuss world events in the drawing room, how to
to communicate well with people from all walks of life,
to learn more advanced foreign language skills, polish
their musical talents, etc. Finishing school usually
lasted for one year and then, Voila! your education
was finished!

For small business owners, there is no such thing as
“finishing school”. Our education process never ends.
The best business owners I know are always learning
something new. Always looking for ways to make
their businesses run better. Always striving to become
better, smarter business owners.

So take your grandfather’s advice, learn something
new today that will move your business forward.

Until next time,
Caroline Jordan
Get Knowledge. Get Focus. Get Results.
The Jordan Result