What We Are: OWNERS
Hmmmm-to those of you that actually own a business you much be saying, "DUH!" right about now! What I'm finding is that this series of posts, entitled "What We Are", is more about entrepreneurial mindset that the actual act of owning an entrepreneurial enterprise. So, someone could very well be reading this and NOT be a business owner. YET, we are all "owners"!
Let me 'splain! Do you have an idea? If so, you OWN it. Have you invented something? You OWN it. Have you started a business? Then you're an owner. Have you bought a franchise? Owner. Have you made a relationship? You own that too. Have you ever made a decision? OWNER! Have you hit a home run? Great job-own it! Have you made a mistake? OWNER!
Oops, I slipped that last one in on you, didn't I?
Yup, as entrepreneurs, we OWN our ideas, businesses, relationships, decisions, triumphs and even our mistakes. It's part of being accountable. Part of being a leader. Part of becoming better. In short, by owning our decisions, including our mistakes, we continue to evolve, to become better, to gain more experience and to build on that experience for future success.
What does it take to truly OWN your decisions? First, there's a level of self-awareness that is required. This type of awareness isn't easy at first. Turning our eyes inward is not a favorite practice but it is a practice that you can perfect. Simply get in the habit of examining your decisions, asking:
- What was my role in the outcome, good or bad?
- What would others say?
- What did I learn from this experience?
- What can I change next time?
Second, I've found that adopting transparency and authenticity are critical to owning my decisions. If others see what and why I do things then it's easy for me to take responsibility. Let me warn you: this is hard. It's probably the most difficult part of leadership for me and for many others that I know. I've written before about my "code of armor". Transparency and authenticity are part of that code. It's both what makes me vulnerable and protects me at the same time. Ask yourself
- What's important?
- What are you willing to reveal?
- What needs to stay hidden at all costs?
- Who are you? Really.
Finally, have an accountability system in place. You'll find this an easy practice in a community. Surrounding yourself with people that will not only support you but also question you, expect things from you, and....return the favor is a well documented success practice. Need more convincing-read Community, the Structure of Belonging by Peter Block, Tribes by Seth Godin or Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky for starters!
Becoming an owner is a responsibility and a privilege. It doesn't matter whether it's a house, a business or an idea. As you develop your entrepreneurial approach think about your responsibilities as owner and ENJOY the privilege!
Are you ready to step up to ownership?
Say YES!
To your success,
Peg Stookey
Creating Competitive Advantage-Why a Book Study?
Hi!
If you've seen or heard me talking lately you've likely noticed something about a book study program that we're starting. I'm really passionate about this opportunity and thought I'd share a little more about why. Before I forget, it's not too late to order the book (at either Peg's Place or Legacy Connection). It's a quick read and the video book study is archived at Peg's Place!
So, why a community book study? This is actually something I've wanted to do for a long time. The benefits of learning together are well documented. Being guided through the book AND coming together, in person, to continue the learning is a very powerful combination. If you need more reason than that, a couple of blog posts ago I shared a post from Bill Glazer that talked about the 3 habits that all successful entrepreneurs have
- They READ
- They CONTINUE their EDUCATION by attending LIVE learning events
- They create and use S.M.A.R.T. goals
I also mentioned that I'm a life long learner and that the above 3 practices are things that I not only do but that we model and offer as opportunity for our members. Through our Peg's Place book study of Creating Competitive Advantage by Jaynie Smith we're taking the learning from this book to the next level. We're modeling the best practices of READING and attending LIVE learning events. Very simply, I would not be where I am or able to go where I'm headed without the learning that I've engaged in. I want to share that practice with our community. I've been answering many questions about this program as I've been networking and talking about it. You might have some of these same questions!
Q: Do you have to be a Legacy Connection member to participate?
A: NO! The Peg's Place video book study is open to all! The iConnection session is free to members and first time visitors. Others pay just $10 at the door to join us!
Q: Why Creating Competitive Advantage?
A: Larry Watson is in an ACCEL group that I facilitate. He's talked about the impact of this book MANY times. I finally bought it and understood his excitement. Jaynie Smith, the author, correctly states that most business owners DO NOT understand their competitive advantages and CANNOT communicate them. Doing so can change the course of your business. THAT'S WHY! What have you spent $15 (or less) on that you can say has changed the course of your business?
Q: Do you know the author?
A: No, I don't know the author but Larry Watson, our study facilitator, has participated in one of her trainings and has been strategizing with her to faciliate similar studies for her clients.
Q: I don't like to or have time to read, is there an audio?
A: On Amazon, it says that the audio is out of print. With a little more searching it might be possible to find one. I know that everyone learns differently but most learning requires some form of reading. Here's what I do that might help you too! MOST business development books have the most important information in the beginning and at the end. So, I read the beginning, skim the middle (if I think it's important I dive in deeper) and then be sure to read the last chapter for the summary/recap/conclusions. Having said that, Creating Competitive Advantage is a book that I read cover to cover-twice!
Q: Why the book study AND the in-person session?
A: I recently read Know Can Do by Ken Blanchard, etal. It's a great book for both learners and educators/trainers because it talks about how to turn what you learn into what you do. I'll save you some time and share the "secret": practice (if you're the learner) or offer (if you're the educator) spaced repetition of the learning. Spaced repetition practices could include
- skimming the book and highlighting points of interest (this is why I like to have the book rather than an audio of a book that I believe will be impactful)
- re-reading it and making notes of the important points
- Tell someone about what you learned-if you can "teach" it, even better!
- Discuss it with a group that has also read the book
- Practice what you've learned!
If you follow our book study (and this is the first of several we have planned!) you will be practicing spaced repetition:
- Read the book (highlighting optional)
- Take notes on the book (optional)
- View the video guides at the Peg's Place website
- Take more notes!
- Check out our newsletter success tips (many will be about the reading) (Not on our newsletter list?-sign up at the Legacy Connection website!)
- Attend the iConnection, in-person, session on August 18th!
Q: What will the iConnection session be about?
A: iConnection is always about Interactively Igniting Innovation. For this session we'll be brainstorming the question, " What did you get out of the book and what did others learn that you can use in your business?" NOTE: While I REALLY hope you'll read the book, you'll still get a lot from this session if you didn't read it!
Please let me know if you have questions or comments. Will you be joining our book study?
Say YES!
To YOUR success,
Peg Stookey
What’s an Auto-Responder, Anyway?
This post should really be called, What a Day It's Been!!! What started out as a good idea to help our new subscribers has turned into a circus!
But, I digress! What is an auto-responder, why use one and how do you do it correctly?
First, if you're reading this it's very likely that you receive our Legacy Connects weekly eblast/newsletter. A regular newsletter is a very important community tool for us. We use it to inform our readers of upcoming events (saving them from having to go to our website to find the details); I share "teaching moments" as does my right hand gal, Hilairy; we do some marketing, we highlight community members and speakers, and, in general, we keep our community informed.
I've had people join our community membership after receiving the newsletter for 4 years and never come to a meeting! That's a pretty powerful communication tool! In fact, I've recently read that electronic newsletters were surpassing blogs in effectiveness. As I'm writing a blog about newsletters I have to say that I think both are necessary and each has its place!
Anyway, I've also been learning about the importance of auto-responders. An auto-responder is a series of emails that you write, choose the frequency of and schedule the delivery. This can all be automated in a newsletter system such as iContact, which is what I use. In my case, I wanted to use an auto-responder to share more information about our weekly eBlast and Legacy Connection in general. I chose to send an initial, brief welcome to the new subscriber and then 5 informative emails after that.
This is where it gets tricky and also where I have another opportunity to share my hard won learning with you! When I initially set up the auto-responder last May, I guess I failed to complete the process. It turns out that I needed to "enable" it for it to work. Here's the "my bad": I didn't check on it! For some reason I assumed that it was being deployed and that I just hadn't received any feedback. I really should know better. People send me feedback ALL THE TIME! (This is a good thing though!)
So....today, I realized my mistake and "enabled" the long forgotten auto-responder. YIKES, OOPS, MY BAD, I'M SORRY, and I'M SOOOOOOOOOOOOO VERY SORRY is how I've started numerous emails since! You see, the system thought it would make up for lost time and send all 6 emails at once. To make matters worse, I had scheduled a weekly email to go out as well so these poor subscribers received 6-7 emails from me today! Now, I know that people hang on my every word but really, 6 eblast type emails is WAY too many!
Here's an interesting thing though. It wasn't all bad!
- I've had the chance to communicate with people that I wouldn't otherwise have talked to today.
- I've have people step up and offer to help try to figure out the problem.
- I've been given the opportunity to look more closely at stats.
- I was able to fix a couple subscription problems that might have gone unnoticed.
- I learned how helpful iContact's customer service reps are.
- And yes, I've had a few complaints.
All in all, I learned a great deal and hopefully, so have my readers! I do feel bad that I lost some subscribers. It's likely, though, that if they didn't have the patience and understanding with my problem that they weren't all that interested anyway. This brings up another opportunity for learning: whenever technology is involved I try to have a policy of patience and flexibility. Yes, I made a mistake and yes, it would have been much better if iContact hadn't sent all the emails at once. Stuff happens though. Have you ever left a voicemail or an email and it wasn't returned to find out that something went wrong with the message? Stuff happens! Email communications are misinterpreted ALL the time. Stuff happens! Cars break down and the cell phone was left at home. Stuff happens! Cell phones die, the email address was entered wrong, the phone number is incorrect, and.......sometimes we make human errors too.
Here's my point---part of being in a community and in relationship with people is the need for flexibility and, as I recently wrote in another blog, curiosity. I SO appreciate Vickie, who ASKED me if there was a problem today. Heck, yeah! But guess what? A blog post was born and that's never a bad thing!
Do you have any stories of tech gone bad or flexible, curious people that have made your day? If so, will you share them with us?
Say YES!
To your success,
Peg Stookey
What We Are: Curious!
I've really enjoyed writing this series of "What We Are" posts but, more significantly, I've enjoyed the "thinking" that it's caused me to do! I have a heightened sense of awareness around what entrepreneurs are, do, can be, etc. Are you getting there too?
Recently, I was in an email discussion with my friend, Elaine. Elaine and her husband Eric own Hansen Resource Development and are very involved with an organization I belong to, A Small Group (ASG). Elaine replied to something I said with a very profound statement: Replace certainty with curiosity. Thank you, Elaine, for giving me these words to write about today!! Thank you, Peter Block, for helping ASG members to value "curiosity" over "knowing".
Replace Certainty with Curiosity
I've written numerous posts on the topic of what an entrepreneur is but NONE of them get at the core like this one sentence does: Replace certainty with curiosity. Take a minute to close your eyes and absorb what this means to YOU.
Breathe
Breathe
Breathe
Breathe
Breathe
OK-open you eyes with renewed sight!
What did you come up with? To be honest, I'm having trouble putting my thoughts into words-it's that big! AND, it's not just about entrepreneurism. Can you imagine what the world would be like if we ALL replaced certainty with curiosity about
- our relationships
- our neighbors
- race
- social status
- religion
- education
- money
- family
- politics
- foreign lands and their people
What is it that you "know" that really isn't true? Or that you're not sure is really true? We grow up with the values and beliefs of our family because that's what we're taught. It's all we really know. We go to school and believe what we're taught because we're not encouraged to do otherwise. WHAT IF THERE WEREN'T CURIOUS PEOPLE OUT THERE? Would we still believe the world was flat, that fire was evil and that getting to the moon was an impossibility? I could go on and on but I really need to get to how this affects as an entrepreneurs!
As an entrepreneur, what does it mean to replace certainty with curiosity?
- We ask questions-lots of them!
- We see possibilities where others see roadblocks
- We seek-always!
- We are "itchy", never quite satisfied or content
- We are life-long learners
- We identify needs
- We look for solutions
- We want more....
More knowledge, more relationship, more information, more money, more success, more efficiency, more caring, more concern, more, more, more. We are driven by what we personally don't have enough of or, more often, by what we don't see the world as having enough of.
Most businesses are started by people that have VERY little small business, entrepreneurial experience of any kind. They have been trained through education and experience to be good employees. They have "employee mindset" down to the core. Transitioning to "entrepreneurial mindset" is the most important factor for their sustainable success as a business owner. Becoming CURIOUS is the first step in that transition. Maintaining curiosity is the continuing challenge of us all.
Our human nature is to feel good about "knowing". We feel safe and comforted when we're certain of things. As an entrepreneur, we're called to give up some of this comfort in order to seek more. We're called to be curious. Are you ready to become more curious?
Say YES!
To your success,
Peg
Validating Bill Glazer’s Wisdom!
Hi!
You've probably have realized that I read a lot. I read books (self and biz development AND good novels), magazines, blogs, newsletters, newsfeeds-about anything except the newspaper. (I probably shouldn't admit that but I hate reading the paper. It's so negative and too general. I have to read through too much to find what's of interest to me!). Anyway, I received a particularly interesting e-newsletter from Kennedy-Glazer today and thought I'd share it with you.
At the bottom of this reprint I have a few more thoughts....
ENJOY!
The Three Common Habits of Successful Entrepreneurs
By Bill Glazer
As you might imagine, with tens of thousands of GKIC Members and actually working first hand with nearly 200 people in Peak Performers, VIP-Mastermind, Info-MASTERMIND and my personal clients, I see a lot and learn a lot about Entrepreneurs. I was thinking the other day about the traits that the most successful ones have in common and I've identified the three most common ones.
HABIT #1: They READ a lot ... especially books. In fact, when I first discovered 'Planet Dan' way back in 1995 the first thing that I did when I figured out that this Direct Response stuff really works is to become a veracious reader. I first began with the classics like John Caples, Robert Collier, David Ogilvy, Gary Halbert and of course everything Dan Kennedy wrote.
Back then I got into a habit of reading a book a week and I've kept up with two a month even though my schedule has become much busier.
For example, as I write this I have a stack of books on my desk:
- Conquer The Chaos (Mask & Martineau)
- The Mirror Test (Hayzlett)
- No B.S. Wealth Attraction for the New Economy (Dan Kennedy)
As you can see, I keep the topics somewhat diverse and many of the books are ones that Members send me. They're not all about marketing and advertising. But I don't want you to miss the point I'm making here. This is not a habit that is specific to me. It's a habit that I have identified as common to the Most Successful Entrepreneurs I work with.
HABIT #2: They continue to work on their EDUCATION in live settings. After all, how did we originally learn? We went to school and sat in a classroom. It's always amazing to me how many people stop working on their education after they get out of school. It should not surprise you that those Members who attend our live events are much more successful than those who do not. I'm not saying this because I'm trying to promote our events. This is true of every event I have ever attended.
It's because people who continue to go to school, whether it's school at a live event, webinar, or teleseminar, work on their continuing education. And of course the live event is the best continuing education because you not only can learn from the presenter, but also from all of the other smart people in the room. Once again, I hope you don't take this a self serving, but I know of millions and millions and millions of dollars that have been made by the networking that goes on at live events.
HABIT #3: They create SMART GOALS for themselves and write them down for everyone to see. What are smart goals? This is a term that I learned from my own Management Mentor, Vince Zirpoli.
S-M-A-R-T is an acronym for:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable
- Relevant
- Time Bound
There is no question that by creating smart goals and writing them down for others to see, you have a much better chance of achieving them. I'm always amazed at how few people actually do this every year and then update them throughout the year.
On the other hand, the successful Entrepreneur almost always does this. It's important to point out that just writing them down seldom leads to getting them accomplished. Accountability is what gets them accomplished. That's why you need others to see your smart goals.
I learned this first when I was operating my own Menswear stores. I actually posted our yearly goals and promotions for everyone in the company to see. It wasn't as much for them as it was for me. Because they saw them, I knew as the leader I had to set a good example and get them done.
Okay, now that you've seen what I have identified as "The Three Common Habits of Successful Entrepreneurs," I have two questions for you. You probably guessed the first one, which is: How many of these habits are you currently accomplishing?
But the second question will require just a little bit of thought and I'm going to leave you with it: If you're currently not accomplishing all (or any) of these three habits, what do you think would happen to you and your business if you did? (Think about it!)
(back to Peg......)
What IF you did
- read more?
- go to more live setting learning events?
- create SMART goals?
It struck me that within the next 2 weeks through Legacy Connection and Peg's Place you'll be able to do all 3!
- TOMORROW: July 15th, 2010-attend a LIVE iConnection session (our next LIVE event will be August 5th)
- NEXT TUESDAY: July 20th-join us for the beginning of a guided book study around Creating Competitive Advantage by Jaynie Smith on Peg's Place (order your book NOW!)
- Join an ACCEL group to create, work and be accountable for your goals!
- Contact me for info on any of these programs!
Are you committed to your future success?
Say YES!
Peg
What We Are: INNOVATIVE!
First, let me ask the question that you might be wondering about. Why the focus on innovation? We utilize the Legacy Entrepreneurial Cycle of a Healthy, Sustainable Business to help our owners build long-lasting businesses. It's comprised of 4 phases of the developing business: Discovery, Beginning, Growth and Innovation. Again, why the focus on innovation?
Simply: INNOVATION is the engine that powers the growth machine.
Without innovation, a business, any business, will die. Innovation is the shot in the arm that most businesses need right now. We feature it as one of the 4 phases because without Innovation a business is simply not sustainable.
I believe that by definition, entrepreneurs are innovative. We are opportunity seekers. We see the world as a place of discovery and possibility, not obstacle and roadblock. For some, this comes easy. They have the "entrepreneurial gene". Others though are plagued by past education and training as good employees. In fact, most of us have the "employee mindset illness" to some degree. And why not? Our school system is designed to "produce" good employees. As our recent (and really wonderful) speaker, Jay Kayne suggested, "We are taught to follow the leader, to stay in a straight line, to color within the lines". Students that challenge, say "no" or stray out of the line are not rewarded and may be punished.
How many have been raised in a truly entrepreneurial family? Not many. Most people starting businesses today have come from good, hardworking families and have, in fact, been good, hardworking employees for most of their lives.
How then, do you become innovative? PRACTICE, PRACTICE,PRACTICE! Hang out with innovators. In a recent post on Youthanizing your business I suggested that surrounding yourself with young minds can spur innovation. Try saying YES! Ask these important questions-daily:
- What if?
- How can I?
- Is it possible?
- I wonder if?
- What would happen if?
- Could it happen?
- Why not?
We talk a lot about accountability partnerships. How about joining with someone else to motivate each other and to brainstorm together? Come to an iConnection session to help you Ignite Innovation! Do you keep a journal? Some of your best ideas will come when you can't act on them. Dedicate a portion of your journal (or a file on your computer) to idea generation. Honor your creativity and ideas by writing them down. This practice will not only help you to archive your treat thoughts, it'll allow you to stay on track and maintain your focus.
What about that other common affliction, entrepreneurial ADD? Once you get into the mindset and the habit of being creative it can be difficult to turn off. It's like you've created this monster that needs to be tamed. Ideas and opportunities will suddenly be popping up all over the place. IT'S IMPORTANT TO MAINTAIN FOCUS. That's another reason for the journal. By documenting your thoughts you can put them aside without fear of losing them or of being taken off track.
I have to admit, this is an area in which I've had a LOT of practice! I get ideas by the bucket load, love to begin things and then get bored, disinterested or it gets to be too hard so I shelve it. I'm working really hard on prioritizing and "vetting" my ideas but it's not easy. People ask me all the time, "Where do you get your ideas from?". That's easy! I've placed myself squarely in the center of a community with unlimited needs. All I have to do is pay attention, ask my customers important questions like, "What do you need?" and then.....LISTEN!! If I can fill the need by creating something new or revamping something already in existence, I do. Sometimes I hand it off to someone better suited to fill the need. Sometimes I help them to create new opportunity-man, that feels good when it happens!
As a Community, we foster and encourage innovation. As individuals we strive to be more innovative. My hope is that as a culture, we become more innovative as well! Are you ready to step out of your comfort zone to seek new opportunity, create new relationships, try new ways of running your business?
Say YES!
To your success,
Peg