Book Review: "48 Days to the Work You Love"

48 Days to the Work You Love was written by Dan Miller and it changed my life. I heard about the book from my husband, who is a huge follower of Dave Ramsey. The book was recommended on Ramsey's radio show.

If any of you have ever read The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, you learned that the purpose of life is to use the gifts that God gave you to serve others. I think that is a great message. However, when I finished reading it, I was no closer to my purpose than I was before. The reason? Because I didn't know what my gifts were. I am not musically inclined, or an artist, and I am a complete failure at sports. Therefore, I felt that I must be untalented and have nothing to offer.

In the book 48 Days to the Work You Love, Dan Miller takes the concept of The Purpose Driven Life about 4 steps further. There are questions and action items at the end of each chapter, along with a timeline for you to follow. At the beginning of the book, you are asked to commit to writing down the answers to these questions and following through on the action items. By writing down my answers, it helped me to see patterns in my life that I maybe would not have seen if I had just thought about the answers.

This book not only helped me discover my gifts, but my personality traits and activities that I enjoy doing. After I had uncovered these little gems that had eluded me most of my life, this book guided me to also determine how I might use my natural talents, personality traits, and things I enjoy doing to help other people. It then led me to recognize how I can make a living helping other people.

Now, discovering your work life goal is only part of this book. It also discusses the importance of having balance in all of the areas of your life and how your job fits into all of that. The areas of balance are financial, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual. Lastly, most of the second half of the book is an action plan on how to make your purpose a reality. It discusses tips on writing your resume and getting it to the right people, job interview skills, advice on starting your own business, and ways to learn to love where you are right now.

In summary, if you are feeling uncomfortable in your current work, realize that it may be what Miller calls "divine discontent," and that there may be a reason that you are unhappy. Maybe God wants you to be using your true gifts somewhere else. Maybe He wants you to be using them right where you are but in a different way. You owe it to yourself, to Him, and to the people you surround yourself with every day to find out.

Thomas Edison is HOT

Thomas Alva Edison

In fact, Thomas Edison is on fire when it comes to motivational quotes, especially for entrepreneurs. Here are my top ten favorites for life and business. 

10. "Be courageous. I have seen many depressions in business. Always America has emerged from these stronger and more prosperous. Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith! Go forward!" 

9.  "One might think that the money value of an invention constitutes its reward to the man who loves his work. But... I continue to find my greatest pleasure, and so my reward, in the work that precedes what the world calls success."

8.  "What you are will show in what you do."

7.  "Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure."

6.  "Just because something doesn't do what you planned it to do doesn't mean it's useless."

5.  "The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around."

4.  "I never did a day's work in my life. It was all fun."

3.  "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."

2.  "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."

1.  "Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up."

Thomas Edison not only invented the phonograph, motion picture camera, and a practical light bulb, he was a business owner who managed to sell his inventions and put them to practical use. Although I do not agree with everything Thomas Edison ever said, he believed in hard work and perseverance, which are two key qualities required for every successful entrepreneur.

Source: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/t/thomas_a_edison.html

WHY on EARTH...?

Anytime someone comes to visit me, especially during winter, I get asked, "Why on Earth would you live in Sioux Falls, South Dakota?" I tell them that I love it here, and I can't imagine living any where else. The usually respond with some comment about my mental status. Although where you live does not necessarily have to do with "Working Smarter," my point in the following is that if you are being more efficient in your job, you should be saving that time to have a personal life. Where you live will have a large bearing on what kind of life that will be.

Full disclosure, here - when my husband and I graduated from college, we shoved all of our stuff in a moving van and drove to Colorado Springs, CO. I can't say we "moved" there, since technically we didn't have a place to live when we arrived at the base of Pike's Peak. We didn't technically have jobs, either. I don't know what we were thinking, but we now refer to it as our "young and stupid" phase. 

It was only a week, before we found an apartment and shortly after found permanent employment. The weather was gorgeous there, year round, and the scenery was breath-taking. We stayed for three years. Eventually, however, we realized that even making more money than we ever had in our lives, we would never be able to afford a house in this city. 

Our daughter was born in Colorado Springs and when she turned two years old, we started looking at pre-schools. The choices were not appealing, which made us look closely at the public elementary schools. What we discovered is that like in most big cities, many of the schools suffered from overcrowding, lack of funding, and overworked and under qualified teachers. Not to say that all the public schools fall in this category. However, if we were to choose to participate in open-enrollment into one of the nicer schools, we would have had to put our name on a very long waiting list and hope for the best. We would have also had to find transportation for our daughter to and from school, which would have been about a 40 minute commute. 

Spring at "The Falls"

There were so many other reasons that we were becoming disillusioned with big city life, but the final two straws happened within a week of each other. First, there was a robbery and shooting two blocks from our apartment building, and then our retired neighbor lady got beat up in the park across the street. That was it. We packed up our stuff and moved back to good ol' Sioux Falls (once again without jobs or a place to live - what were we thinking?!) Here's a top ten reason why I love Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

1. The people. People are genuinely nice in Sioux Falls. You can strike up a conversation with strangers just about any place and no one thinks it is odd. People are always willing to help each other out.
2. The size. At just over 150,000 people (about 230,000 in the metro area), Sioux Falls is just big enough to have plenty of things to do, retail stores, and restaurants; but small enough not to have traffic problems and high crime rates. I can get anywhere in Sioux Falls in 20 minutes, even if it is "all the way" on the other side of town, during "rush hour."
3. The schools. Our kids actually attend schools in Brandon, which is about 10 miles away, but I could move any where within 30 miles of Sioux Falls and not worry about which school district we were in.
4. The economy. The unemployment rate in Sioux Falls is only 3.8%, compared to 8.2% national average. (source: http://bls.gov/web/metro/laummtrk.htm) The average yearly income is about $26K, which doesn't seem that great, but the average house only costs about $130K. (source: http://www.simplyhired.com/a/local-jobs/city/l-Sioux+Falls,+SD)
5. Small businesses thrive. "Locally owned and operated" is one of the biggest selling points to consumers in Sioux Falls. The lack of red tape and tax breaks for start-ups is also a huge plus.

So, to conclude, I implore you to take a good look at not only what you are doing with all that extra time you have by being more efficient at your job, but where you are spending that time. Are you a big city, small town, or country person? Do you like to go dancing at the clubs, see a play at the theater, enjoy live music or museums? Are all of those things available where you live? Do you have friends where you live? Do you feel like you fit in there? Sure, we complain about the cold winters in Sioux Falls, but when I take into consideration all the other benefits, I just smile and wear more layers.

Are You Suggestive Selling?

Maybe you are not into the hard core sales pitch. Most people aren't. Lucky for you, neither are your customers. However, if you are not suggestive selling to your customers, you could be missing out on extra sales. Think of your favorite fast food joint asking you, "Do you want fries with your meal?" or "Would you like to make that sandwich into a meal for only a dollar more?" To be successful at suggestive selling, here are a few tips.

1. Customize your offers to the specific customer and their original purchase. The busy mom in her workout gear that buys a salad does not want fries with it. He or she may want a smoothie, though.
2. Don't be pushy. After they say "no" the first time, you could get the sale by saying, "Are you sure? It's only a dollar." However, for every sale you get, you have probably irritated 20 other customers. It's not worth it.
3. You may have more than one offer, but know your limit. Two would be acceptable. Three would be pushing it. More than that and you are just being a pest.
4. Read your customers' reactions. Do they seem open to your offers? Or are they sighing and rolling their eyes. If it is the later, quit while you're ahead. They've already made up their mind and you would be wasting your breath.
5. Make sure you explain the benefits of the product or service you are suggesting. Instead of saying, "Do you want fries with that?", say "You can add fries to your order for only 30 cents. They are guaranteed hot and fresh." Asking a yes or no question, makes it too easy for your customer to say "no."

Remember that suggestive selling is for every business, and it is easy. Don't think of it as selling, think of it as offering your customer something that you think they might need or want. It's a service, not a sales pitch.

What I Hate About Your Web Site - Part II

Okay, so one rant about bad web sites wasn't enough. It needed some additional attention. I have one gigantic pet peeve left, which I could have broken down into another list of five separate items, but they all pretty much come down to one thing. I absolutely HATE it when web sites don't work. The links are not there, the search function doesn't give you what you are looking for, the pages are not found, the contact information is incorrect, and the forms don't submit.

If you are going to have any of these items on your web site, you need to test them regularly and make sure they work. If you aren't going to maintain your web site to keep it fully functional, then you should take all of that extra stuff off of it. I would much rather browse through a nice simple web site that has basic information and valid contact information. If I need more, I'll e-mail you. Otherwise, it is just frustrating.

Please realize that I am not ranting just to get this off my chest. I'm hoping that if anyone reads this, they will make changes. I guarantee you that I am not the only one who feels this way. I'm sure you have felt this way about other sites. So, I invite you to take a good hard look at your web site from the view of a prospective customer. Would you hire you? Would you buy from you?

What I Hate About Your Web Site - Part I

It seems that every small business has bought into the idea that in order to succeed, they need to have a web site. I don't disagree with that thought. However, I will take it one step further and say that in order to be successful, you need to have a web site that is pleasing to the eye, easy to navigate, contains updated information, and is completely functional. Poorly designed web sites are one of my biggest pet peeves for the following reasons:

1. When I first click on a link that looks relevant to what I am researching, I have high expectations that I will be able to find everything I'm looking for in one place and not have to go any further. Naive, I know, but I keep hoping.
2. If that first click brings me to a page with obnoxious color combinations, I hit the back button faster than you can say "eye strain." Light colored text on a white background is impossible to read, but I am still surprised by how many sites still continue to do this. Black backgrounds are a big turn-off for me, regardless of text color. However, I understand that is a personal preference and not necessarily taboo.
3. I understand that ads pay the bills, but too many ads, especially ones that are not relevant to the business, are distracting potential customers from the main message. How will you promote your own business, when you are so busy promoting everyone else's?
4. Poor grammar and misspelled words also distract from the main message. Although I recognize that not everyone is as picky about these errors as I am, I believe it is preferable to be taken seriously as a professional by everyone who visits your web site.
5. Calendars and news stories that are not updated make me think that the company I am looking at may no longer be in business. I don't care that you made the local paper in 2008, and I don't care about a coupon that expired three months ago.

Believe it or not, there's more. Stay tuned for Part Two of What I Hate About Your Web Site.

Customer Service is a Lost Art

I had another experience today that reminded me of how much customer service has gone down the toilet in the last 20 years. I know that there are still businesses out there that believe if you respect your customers, they will return for more business and they will refer their friends. In fact, I think most businesses adopt this philosophy. However, when it comes to employees executing this principle, many fall short. Here are some of my minimal expectations and some extras that may help a customer's opinion of their experience with your company.

1. When I walk into an empty store or small restaurant during off hours, my minimal expectation is that the employees will acknowledge my presence. I expect that they will stop their conversation with each other or their boyfriend on the phone, look me in the eye and say "hi." Good customer service would require that they would actually smile at me and ask if they can help me.
2. If I call a business with a problem, I do not expect that the person on the other line will have all the answers. However, I do expect that he/she will know who does and can transfer me directly to that person. If that is too much to ask, rather than transferring me all over the place (more than once is too much) or putting me on hold for long periods of time (most customers start to get irritated after about 2 minutes), then the person I am speaking with should do the leg work of tracking down the answer for me and calling me back. If he/she does not have the answer within one hour, he/she should call back to let me know that they have a whole team of people that are still working on it. I don't understand people who don't return phone calls. Do they not want my business?
3. I don't want to hear employees tell me how busy they are or how busy the company is. Especially if your company works with other businesses. I don't care if they are completely swamped. I'm busy, too, and now I'm even further behind schedule because they haven't fixed my problem. They should have given me a more realistic ETA when I called, in the first place. If their technician is running behind, unexpectedly, someone should make a courtesy call to let me know the ETA will need to be adjusted, rather than waiting until I have to call them. By that point, I'm already aggravated. 
4. I realize that outsourcing to other countries is cheaper than hiring American workers, but can companies at least make sure that their employees speak English well enough that I can understand them?! Anytime I call in to a company that has a customer service rep that I can't understand, whether it is because they have a thick accent, they talk too fast, or they mumble, my immediate observation is that the company does not care about whether their customers can understand the representatives that are providing their services.
5. If I have an issue with the product or service that I purchased, I expect that returns and refunds will be accepted, within a reasonable amount of time. However, I do understand that some people take advantage of loose policies, so although I would like it to be easy, if they want a receipt, a reason, and to see my ID, that is acceptable to me. However, I feel that it is too much to ask to be blamed, overly questioned, or not be able to make a reasonable exchange for some obscure reason.
6. If I want to buy something and it is marked with a certain price on the shelf, I expect to receive it for that price, especially if I have done my due diligence in making sure that the items was in the correct spot and the model number on the box matches the one on the sign.  I am not happy to be told by the cashier that there is a significant difference in the price that it rung up and they will not be able to honor it. I am even further annoyed when the sales person treats me like an idiot by telling me some BS story about how it is the manufacturers fault. I am then beyond peeved when the sales person takes the product and the sign to the backroom to destroy the evidence, so now I can't even argue with the manager. (Note: I argued with him anyway and caused a big scene in front of a major electronics store on Black Friday. He didn't even offer to split the difference with me, even though they were wrong! Can you tell I'm still bugged about it and plotting my revenge?)
7. As a customer, I do not want to hear employees telling me how much they dislike their job or the company that they work for. I don't want to overhear them talking to other employees about being disgruntled, why their other co-workers are lazy, or how drunk they got last night. I like to start conversations with cashiers and wait staff, but their is a line between being friendly and TMI (too much information) that should not be crossed in front of customers. Take it to the break room.

I'd love to hear from everyone else about bad customer service experiences and how you would have handled it differently. In case you are wondering, the incident that prompted me to write this is relevant to #3, but all of these have happened to me on at least one occasion. In my experience, I would estimate that 60% of businesses rarely give good customer service, 30% sometimes do, and only 10% are consistent about providing good service to their customers. Do you agree or disagree?

E-Mail Tips - Draining the Swamp

"Your mailbox has exceeded it's limit." This is the message that I would get twice a week, that set my teeth on edge. I would have to stop everything I was doing to spend an hour creating enough space so that I can communicate with the person sitting next to me. After years of wishing there was something I could do about it, I finally stopped making excuses and took responsibility for my own part in the creation of the Email Swamp. Here are some things that I put into practice that really work.

1. Don't check your messages every two minutes. You'll never get anything else done and if it's urgent, they should have called. Set aside a half an hour every two hours to answer e-mail. By that time, you should be able to just delete a good portion of them, because everyone else has already responded and you don't need to read all 14 e-mails.
2. Turn off all automatic notifications. Better yet, shut down your e-mail program, in between the times you are scheduled to check and answer e-mail. This will help you to not get distracted and stick to point #1.
3. Save the attachments, delete the e-mail.
4. When checking your e-mails, determine which ones you may need to reference later and move them into a folder. Once a month, go through your folders and delete anything that is more than three months old. If someone asks you about it after that, I'm sure they will understand if you told them you deleted it.
5. If the message is something that you need to follow up on, USE YOUR FLAGS! That's what they're there for. Feel free to create your own system that works for you, but as an example, mine works like this: Red-Follow Up ASAP, Green-Need to Create and/or Research (might take a while, but I need to get working on it), Blue-Need to follow up later, at a specific date, Yellow-Information needed for specific projects, Purple-waiting on someone else. I also add reminders to my follow up flags and keep my e-mail sorted that way, rather than by date. (The new, un-flagged e-mails will sort by date after the flagged ones.) By the way, if your e-mail program does not have any kind of flagging system for follow-up, it's time to upgrade.

Just like any other addiction, this is a process. It's not easy to realize that the world continues turning, even if you don't know everything that happens the instant it happens. However, try to think about the time that you will gain back by being more organized and efficient with your e-mails. Maybe you could read a book.

The Postal Service is Going Out of Business

Don't panic. I imagine that the USPS will be around for a very long time. However, if they were not run by the government but were, say, a privately held company, they would have been slashing their prices and liquidating their inventory last century. Don't believe me? Imagine for a moment that the Postal Service was a franchise that is basically selling one product - postage. Then ask yourself the following questions.

1. If you no longer needed as much of this product as you did 12 years ago, would you pay more for it? The price of a regular first class stamp has increased 40% since 1999, but their sales have decreased by almost the same percentage.
2. Would you do business with a company that lost over $8 billion two years in a row? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Postal_Service)
3. If you went to a store to buy something, how long would you wait in line before you went somewhere else? What if you saw the employees were moving slowly or standing around?
4. If you were treated rudely by a store employee, would you go back? Would you even go to a store that already had a bad reputation for rude employees, knowing that neither the manager or the owner planned to ever do anything about it, which means you have no one to complain to for receiving poor customer service?
• Please note: I realize that not all employees at every single post office are rude or slow. However, in all of my experiences at all of the post offices I've ever been to in my life, I can honestly say that only once has an employee smiled at me, and that was when I was getting my passport. You'd think they worked on commission. On a side note, can someone please explain to me what passports have to do with postage?
5. Would you purchase this product on-line if it took longer than going to the store to pick it up?

Don't get me wrong. I use the US Postal Service on a regular basis (what choice do I have?) I also understand that there are reasons for the declining sales that are out of their control, but that isn't different than what every other business goes through. Furthermore, I understand that there are a lot of federal regulations (i.e. personnel benefits) that they have to adhere to that they could change if they were a privately held company.  I'm just playing a "what-if" scenario in my head that says, "What if the USPS continued doing things exactly like they are now, but were just a regular company?" My guess is that our kids would be saying, "What's a stamp?"

Just a reminder that the price of a First Class stamp will go up one cent to 45 cents on January 22, 2012.  Postcards will be 32 cents, a 3 cent increase.

Jennifer Simons is the owner of Girl Monday, a virtual assistant and consulting business in Sioux Falls, SD.

Must Have Paper

In this digital world where everyone is trying to "Go Green" and be "paperless," I would argue that there are some things that should always be printed. Maybe I'm old fashioned, because there are digital forms of some of these items, but they just don't feel the same as the paper version.

1. Business Cards. I understand networking on-line is what all the hip business executives are doing, but face to face marketing still has its place. You could probably e-mail someone your digital card from your cell phone, but it seems very disconnected.
2. Thank You Cards. Again, I understand that you can call someone and thank them or even e-mail them. However, if you have ever received a thank you card in the mail from someone, you know that somehow it means much more. Maybe because it feels like they went through the extra trouble of handwriting you a personal note.
3. Other Greeting Cards. Along the same lines as the thank you cards, they just seem to make the recipient feel more special. Although e-cards can be personalized, whenever I've received one, I feel as though the sender threw it together at the last minute. Sending a card in the mail takes planning. You have to think about what you are going to say, because you can't backspace. You also may have to think about it several days ahead of time to make sure the card arrives on time, like for birthdays.
4. Stamps. Well, if you are going to mail cards, you are going to need stamps. I still have not quite figured out buying postage on line. Maybe because it seems like a lot of work, when you can just slap a stamp on it and go. Let's face it, if you are taking the extra time to write out cards, this is a way you could make up that time.
5. Paper Plates. I just think digital plates that you eat off of are wrong. Seriously, though, I realize you can use real dishes and silverware to save some trees. Although, then you'll be wasting water to wash the dishes, so in my mind, it is a toss-up. However, I really do think there will always be a time and place for the disposable version. I don't really need fine china for my toast.

Jennifer Simons is the owner of Girl Monday, a virtual assistant and consulting business in Sioux Falls, SD.

A Plan for Collecting on Receivables

If outstanding receivables are keeping your small business from making a profit, start 2012 with a plan to collect the money that is due to you, without alienating your customers. Here are some tips on how to accomplish that delicate balance.

1. Start with a step by step plan that includes timelines and consequences. Make sure all the details are laid out in the contract between you and your client. Expectations should be clear to avoid having to collect.
2. I suggest giving your customers 30 days to pay their invoice. This is more than fair, and regardless of the size of your customer (individual, small or large business), 30 days should work into everyone's payment schedule. Keeping the terms the same for all clients will make it easier for you to track past due amounts.
3. Make sure you include a late fee for payments that are received after 30 days. Remind the customer of the late fee by adding a comment on their invoice. This will be an incentive for the client to pay on time and can be used as a bargaining element if you have to try collecting later.
4. If you still have not received payment after 60 days, you will need to call the customer, weekly if necessary. This is not always easy, but follow these simple rules to keep focused on your goal.
• Make a script. You don't have to read it, like telemarketers do, but if you have a written script of what you need to say and practice before you call, you will be able to control the conversation better than if you "wing it."
• Make sure you are talking to the right person. Don't say anything about past due invoices to anyone, besides the person who takes care of accounts payable. The last thing you want is for your customer to get angry because you led an entry-level employee to believe that the company can't pay their bills.
• Document everything! If you have to call your client back, after the initial call, you'll be able to reference what was previously agreed to. Even better, within 24 hours of your phone call, follow up with an e-mail, outlining what was agreed to.
•  Consider having someone else make the calls for you. As the business owner, you and your business are considered the same entity by a client. If your customer is mad, frustrated, annoyed with you, it will reflect on any future business or referrals. Delegate to an employee or a Virtual Assistant to play "bad cop," while you get to play "good cop," and keep your first-class business name.
5. At 90 days, it is time to get serious. I recommend sending a certified letter to your client, letting them know that if the bill is not paid within 10 days of receiving the letter, your next step will be sending the bill to a collection agency or sending to arbitration. Make sure the letter is well written, so it doesn't come off as a threat, but as a courtesy. Sometimes, bills get paid to the "squeaky wheel." Letting your customer know that you are not going to give up and you are prepared to take further action will hopefully be all it takes to get paid the full amount you are due.
6. Make sure you follow up. At 100 days, you need to seek outside help. Be aware that at this point, you will most likely not get back the full amount that is due to you. You will also lose your customer and any referrals that you could have received from them, if you haven't already. Honestly, at this point, you have probably already decided not to do business with this customer again, anyway.

This is obviously just an outline for you to follow. A different timeline may work better for you, just make sure that you lay it all out in your contract and stick to it. The longer you let outstanding receivables go without being paid, the harder it will be to collect the money you are owed.

Business Resolutions for 2012

If you are only making New Year's resolutions for your personal life, you are missing out. Writing down clear goals for your business this year will help you stay on track. Just like your personal goals, you should create objectives that are definitive and measurable. Don't forget to implement a reporting system and timelines, so you can stay on track and make adjustments, as needed.

Here are some goals that I plan to reach in 2012. Maybe they will spark some ideas for you.

1. Step up my blogging efforts. I started blogging this last year and my posts have been sporadic, at best. This year I am starting by joining the Ultimate Blog Challenge, which requires me to post 31 times in 31 days. My goal after the challenge is to post once a week (every other week here and every other week on my personal blog - Embracing My Dorkiness) and to gain at least 30 subscribers on each.
2. Take advantage of all Social Media has to offer. I vow to update my Facebook business page at least every other day. I will establish myself on LinkedIn and gain 15 contacts every quarter of 2012. I will learn how to Twitter properly, and I will learn Google+ inside and out by the end of March. I will update my goals for Twitter and Google+ by April 1st. I will take advantage of HootSuite to help me maintain my goals.
3. Read three books on Search Engine Optimization by the end of June. Update my SEO goal by July 1st.
4. Overhaul my website by the end of the year. Create a clear and detailed plan of action by the end of September.

It feels good to have it all in writing and to share with others that will keep me accountable. I will also make a commitment to post updates on my goals at the end of each quarter to obligate me to my objectives.

Wishing you all a happy, productive, efficient, and profitable 2012!