Why Business and Life Coaching?

When I started my first business, I didn’t realize it at the time but I had a coach and mentor that worked with me to create what I wanted – in my business and personal life. He asked me all sorts of questions that opened different avenues of thought for me.

Recently I have been reintroduced to the coaching practice, but on a more structured level. I started a weight release program with a coach in May of 2007. In 9 short months I was able to release about 40 lbs. We all know how to lose weight but the question is then – why don’t we?

I truly believe that having a coach; whether it be for personal growth or business – creates that witness that we choose to be accountable to. This person cannot be our husband or wife, close friend or relative because from my experience the accountability factor is not as important then.

At one point last year I had 3 different coaches for 3 different aspects of my life. One coach for my weight loss, a different one for my business and yet another one for my personal life! Of course they all overlapped as there is no clear line between business and personal life. I was also being trained by one of the most amazing coaches in North America, Barb Robison of LifeCamp Inc.

Now that I am a coach I get to experience a whole different realm to the coaching model. I get to be that witness for my clients, I get to ask the questions that open different avenues of thought, creating amazing new realizations and experiences for my clients in their work and personal lives.

One of my favorite things about being a coach is when I hear a client say after a long pause: “I never thought of this that way before, wow, that changes a lot of my thoughts!” That statement, when coming from a client typically spurs little changes in their perceptions that create a ripple effect into the lives of their spouses, kids, friends, family and work associates. And I get to be their witness and celebrate those successes with them!

I LOVE MY LIFE!

My Morning Pages

Every morning I give myself a gift. That gift is a half an hour of writing time. This time is mine. My kids and husband have learned that when mom is writing before 7am in her favorite chair, with the candles going - you give her: her space!

This is the time in my day that I treat as an amazing gift to me, from me. This writing habit has become a space for me to manifest anything that I desire in my life. It's one thing to tell the Universe what I want, but it is a whole nother' thing to put it on paper. It's like creating a witness for my desires.

Sometimes there is just garbled words that come out of my pen. Those are the days that I seek clarity on something. Usually by the third page I am writing about how awesome my life is and clarity is again mine.

Some mornings I end up with a full page of complaining! Once that is out I accept all of the negatives in my life and bless them so as to release that negative energy inside of me to create space for new awesome energy.

When I go back and read over my morning pages I am amazed at how my life plays out from those pages. Lots of times by writing down what I really want, I come to the conclusion that it's not what I really want and something new and even more important comes in for me! From this I create an awareness, and in turn create amazing experiences in my life.

A key factor to the success of my Morning Pages is confidentiality. I have communicated to my family that in order for me to write freely, I must know that only I will see these pages. So I feel confident leaving my binder beside my writing chair, knowing that only my eyes will see what is hidden in the pages. With that security - creativity soars.

HOW TO GET YOUR BANKER TO SAY YES!

Do you ever look at someone and wonder how in the heck they got the bank to say yes to their latest purchase? I know I used to. Now I know it’s all in the preparation for financing! It’s amazing what banks will do for you when you present your request to them properly. I have created an article that will uncover this mystery for all of us!

My secret is to give them more than what they are going to ask for when I get in there! I remember the first mortgage that I applied for. I was so scared to go see the Loans Officer! I walked into his office with nothing but my nerves and guess what? I walked out with a whole lot less that what I went in for.

It went something like this: I walked in, (without an appointment), and actually got in to see the loans officer. I explained to him that I wanted to get a mortgage for a house that I had made an offer on, he asked me if I had done an appraisal, brought any financial information about myself (other than I had and account in his bank since I was 13), and asked if I had brought the accepted offer to purchase with me. My response: “Uhhhh, nope.” Guess how quickly he gave me that loan?

Since then I have acquired over 2 million in loans in increments from $3000 to $500,000 at a time, for both business and personal. My secret you ask? Preparation and presentation right from the first phone call you make to the bank!

First I make the phone call to make the appointment with the Loans Officer that is best for his or her schedule. When I call I make sure that I understand that we are entering into a win/win agreement, no matter what the loan is for. The Loans Officer’s job is to sell loans, and I am planning on purchasing one of his/her products. Therefore we both gain something from this new relationship.

Next I make sure that I am there on time and fully prepared with everything that he/she is going to require to start the application process while I am there that day. You see bank managers are used to people coming in empty handed with the expectation that they will get a yes or no answer to their loan request that day. Long gone are the days that you could walk in, state what you want and know that because of your relationship with your banker, and your history with the bank that you are going to get what you want. These days there are Head Offices, and Administration Offices that do the deciding from the information that the Loans Officer or Bank Manager provides them. The bank gets all of that information from you. So give it to them before they ask for it!

For access to a detailed outline of what your banker wants to see visit my website http://www.businessdoneright.ca/.

Small Business and your Personal Credit Rating

First off I just want to share with you what exactly the Credit Bureaus are and what their role is in Canada.

All three of the Canadian Credit Bureaus are privately owned companies that provide reports about you and your money habits. Every month they receive information from department stores, banks, and credit card companies on all the new accounts opened in their store/bank/card company. The bureaus put together the information they have to create a profile about you. The information in this profile outlines how much money you make, how much debt you have and your record of paying down that debt. Once your profile information is compiled the bureaus sell this information to your creditors! So much for the privacy act here!!

Each bureau compiles information on millions of people every month. There is a huge challenge to maintain a level of accuracy with this many people in the database. All you have to do is look in the phonebook and see how many people have the same names. You can imagine that information can be mixed up fairly easily, especially if you have a relatively common name!

When you are considering going into business for yourself you will want to be proactive about your credit rating. Make sure that all the information is correct including your birthday, social insurance number and your credit history.

You have a few options to achieve this. First the free way is to write a letter to each of the Bureaus asking them to mail you a copy of your credit file. In this letter you will want to include your full name, current address, previous address (if you have moved in the last five years), your birth date, and photocopies of both sides of at least two pieces of identification, one of which shows your signature. Examples of acceptable identification are your driver’s license, birth certificate, social insurance card, passport or a credit card. The addresses of each are:

Equifax Canada Inc.
Consumer Relations Department
Box 190, Jean Talon Station,
Montreal, Quebec,
H1SA 2Z2

Trans Union of Canada Inc.
Consumer Relations Centre,
Box 338, LCD 1,
Hamilton, Ontario
L8L 7W2

Northern Credit Bureaus
Consumer Relations Department
Box 336
Rideau Blvd
Rouyn Noranda (Qc)
J9Z 1P2

The next option you have is instant and easy however it costs money. The one I have found to be most user friendly is http://www.equifax.ca/. You can purchase your Credit Report for $15.50 Canadian from this website. Another option is to purchase what they call your Score Power which includes your Credit Report, Credit Score and your Score Analysis for $23.95. This is the one I usually purchase as it is much more in depth.

Once you receive your report make sure to go through it thoroughly. Check to see that it is actually yours and not someone with your same birthday or name, and that it has your credit information on it and it is current (within the last month). If it is in fact not correct there is a form on their website for you to fill out and make corrections. This process could take up to a month to complete.

Your FICO Score summarizes the information on your Equifax credit report. Typically if your score is over 680 you will have a wide range of loans and credit products available to you. Once you dip below that number you become more of a risk to potential lenders. Keeping in mind that each lender has their own policies and tolerance for risk when making lending decisions, so there is no concrete cut off number.

To learn more about starting your own business visit my website at www.businessdoneright.ca.

Networking/Marketing Yourself

What does “networking” really mean? According to dictionary.com it means “a supportive system of sharing information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest”. To me it means talking with people and finding out how I can help them, for when I help them they in turn help me without me even having to ask! Every place I go I am talking to people in every walk of life. I never know in measurable terms what impact I have on people’s lives, but I like to think that I leave a trail of positive energy in my wake. This energy has provided me and my businesses a lot of “things” such as cash in the form of no interest loans, good-will, free advertising, moral support, referrals and lifelong friendships with very interesting people!

I “network” with everyone I meet. Not just with people that have a “common interest” with me. For example one morning when I was running my Hotel I was working in my office and two gentlemen walked into the lobby to use the washroom. I popped my head out the door and saw a very shall we say “artsy/mountain” man. I asked him what he was up to that morning and found out that he was looking for a house to buy in the Claresholm area. As we talked I found out that he was paying $1100/month rent for a trailer in the Calgary area and wanted a place in a small town. I was able to help him out by selling him MY house as I had just bought another one that we were planning on renovating and eventually moving into. I was planning on listing it eventually but I didn’t have to because I had simply struck up a conversation with a guy that had to pee!

Another thing I like to do is promise small and deliver big! Everything is perception. If I told you that it was going to cost you about $400 for me to write your business plan and it actually end up costing $350 how would you feel compared to if I had initially told you it was going to cost $300. I know that I would feel a lot differently because of my “perception”.

Remember that no matter where you are or what you are doing you are always marketing yourself.

Goal Setting

"Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is."

Vince Lombardi

How do you know where you are going to end up if you don't know where you are going? By creating goals you can achieve much more in your life than if you just go along "hoping" for the best.

Here are a few pointers on creating goals for you and your business.

• Be realistic. When creating your goal make it something that you are going to have to work to achieve but don't make it so big that you won't even try! For example a realistic goal may be to increase your sales by 10% in the first half of the year.
• While working towards your goal enjoy the ride! Enjoy the challenges that you overcome on your journey because every one of them will make the next goal easier to achieve!
• Have visual reminders around you. If your goal is to lose weight then put a picture of what you want to look like up somewhere you will see it throughout the day. I usually put mine up in the bathroom because I am in there a few times during the day and usually don't have a whole lot on my mind while I'm in there! Seriously! Not only that but other people use my bathroom and always ask me what the pictures are about. I get to talk about my goals to other people who may have an insight into how I could achieve that goal faster or maybe know of someone that may have already surpassed that goal and would be willing to mentor me on how to do it. What better advice is there than free advice?
• Do something every day towards achieving your goal. Even if it is something small, it is still a positive step in the right direction. Any action is better than no action. I like to think about how I will feel when I have achieved the goal. I go as far as to actually feel the feeling right down to my toes. It feels great to enjoy the feeling of acomplishment every day, and it not only refocuses me on my goal but it makes it REAL to me. I get to celebrate in my mind (which is alot of fun) so I know exactly what I am going to do when I reach my goal.
• CELEBRATE! Always anchor your success with a celebration. When you set your goal make sure to plan what your reward will be. Make sure your reward is in proportion to your goal. I wouldn't suggest a night out at a movie for achieving the One Million in Sales mark in your business, that would be more of a weekend in Vegas kind of celebration. But hey, that's just me!

"If you don't know where you are going,you'll end up someplace else."

Yogi Berra

Customer Service

Some reasons to provide awesome customer service to your customers are:

• It doesn't cost you anything, so it's a great way to grow your business for free!


• Increase customer and employee satisfaction. If you treat people well they will treat you well in return.


• Increase customer loyalty, and therefore referrals.


• Just listening to your customers may reduce your costs, do it right the first time.


• Increase competitiveness, market share and profits.


• Word of mouth advertising.


• Meeting expectations so customers will want to come back to YOU.

The Art of Satisfying Customers and Clients can be broken into two categories:

SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

If you have the know how and equipment to do your job you will immediately be able to draw respect from you customer and they will feel comfortable and confident about your abilities and your business.

If you know how to use the tools available in your business you will be able to fulfill customers requests in a more timely manner and have a much more efficient business with less wait times. For example, if you use a computer make sure you know the program you are working with or customers may have to stand on the other side of the counter watching your frustration, in turn becoming frustrated themselves for you wasting their time. This does not create loyalty.

Knowing your business allows you to answer questions based on full knowledge, creating trust between your customer and you. When you hire someone make sure they are able to do this as well because your staff is a direct reflection of you.

CONSIDERATION OF CUSTOMER NEEDS:

When a customer comes to you he/she is looking for a solution to a problem they have. For example if you have a store that sells camping supplies, I come in looking for a sleeping bag. The reason I am looking for a sleeping bag is so I can be warm while I am camping in my tent. If you look at whatever it is that you offer in your business as a solution for your customer you will create much more of a relationship than if you just see your business as selling "stuff".

Always treat customers time as very valuable. Realize that everyone is busy in their lives, no matter what they do or who they are. If you cannot help someone right away, make sure to acknowledge their presence with at least eye contact or a smile.

Listen, listen and then listen some more. When you ask a customer what they are looking for make sure you listen to what they say and ask questions to make sure that you understand what problem you are going to solve for them. Back to the sleeping bag example, when you ask me if you can help me when I walk into your store and I say "I'm just looking for a sleeping bag", your response would NOT be: "They are down isle 3". You would ask me questions like "Where do you plan on using it? What time of year are you typically going to be using it? Is it for you or someone else? Will you be packing it for hikes or just unloading it from your vehicle?" With these questions you will be able to understand what problems I need solved, so you don't sell me a sleeping bag that is only good to -5 degrees when I need one for the mountains where temperatures can dip to -15 degrees during the night. Solve my problem.

Give your customer your full attention. If you give a customer the impression that they are interrupting something more important, it devalues their importance. If they feel important in your business they will be back. We all want to feel important, like we matter. Another way to accomplish this is to use their names. Ask them what their name is, remember it, and use it.

Say Thank-You. Always remember to thank each of your customers for their business. It not only lets them know that you value their business but it validates their time and effort for coming to you, and not your competition.

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it."

Lou Holtz