Launching Your Dream

This week has been exciting, with the release of "Launching Your Dream". Both the book and the kit are available at: www.compassroseconsulting.com/launchingyourdream.htm.

I received the shipment of books and kits last Friday, just in time for an expo for women on Saturday. I quickly got the image of the book enlarged and matted on foam board. The artwork drew people into the booth and started conversations.

I also had the opportunity to do a "Launching Your Dream" workshop with about 20 women. It was fun and successful. Fun, to be presenting the book for the first time, to a group of women, and fun to learn about their dreams and visions.

Talking with people about the book is enlightening, as I quickly begin to learn about their dream, their vision. And it is always refreshing to know that I'm not the only dreamer, but that there are many among us, and many that want to realize their dreams.

Realizing dreams is what both the book and kit are all about. The kit is rich in what it offers, with a workbook, 3 audio CD's that guide you through the process and offer 2 guided visualizations, and a visual CD, for use when you need to create new ideas. There are also reflection cards to use with the stones and oddly shaped glass marbles that also are included in the kit.

Being a new author, it was exciting to sign books, see my name listed as Donna Price, author, and feel the positive response of the group.

All some of the positive effects of realizing dreams and living them.
I have also started a new newsletter specifically focused on "Launching Your Dream" and it can be found at: http://www.launchingyourdreams.com/

Join me in dream making and launch your dream.

I love the artwork on the both the kit and the book and had to include it again!!

Launching Your Dreams -- Just Released!!

I am very excited to announce the release of my first book and kit called "Launching Your Dreams: A multi-sensory experience for bringing your dreams into your life". The book outlines a multi-sensory process for realizing your dreams, whether it's like one of mine, to bike across the country or open your own business. The book describes the process I used for realizing my dream, one after another. The kit provides you with all of the tools. The kit is comprehensive. It includes 3 audio CD's and a visual CD, a workbook, reflection cards, and river stones, and sparkling glass. The CD's take you step by step through the process.

As a dreamer, I love creating dreams in my life. I'll share with you, briefly my process. First, I vision the dream. What it looks like, feels like, sounds like... All the details. Early on, I talk about it, with everyone. It helps bring it into my reality. It keeps me on my path. Helps to make me more accountable, because I'm talking about it.

Next, I strategies in all areas, related to the dream. How will I accomplish each area? Usually, my dreams are big. As you see, right now, I am working on my own business. I owned my first business 20+ years ago, as a Chimney Sweep. I still have all of my gear. But, I wasn't committed, I didn't work it, and it didn't succeed. I've learned a lot since then. And commitment is the biggest lesson. You have to commit to the dream, to the goal. Without commitment I drift, and get distracted.

Learn more about the book and the kit at: http://www.compassroseconsulting.com/launchingyourdream.htm

Dreaming is a wonderful -- but it's even better when you live them.

Powerful Strategies Build Results

Are you working in your power?

Creating a powerful work place that is focused and intent on success is one of the biggest challenges business owners face. What is a powerful workplace?Powerful workplaces are focused, strategic, and intentional. Owners and staff are action oriented in ways that move the business. They do not waste time on activities that are not focused on the success of the company.

Well, how do you do that? First, is to create an intentional strategic plan that is focused on your company's success in all areas. It is important to include the entire team in the planning session. Take time to hear what is working well, and celebrate it. Then spend time, hearing what isn't working so well. It is important to be open to this step. This isn't a time to dwell on what's not right, just get the information out there.There is vital information in both what works well and what doesn't work well. That vital information is the wisdom of those closer to the day-to-day workings of the company. Is it possible that the greatest solutions could come from unexpected places, most definitely. Staff on the front lines see both the problems and have ideas about the solutions.

After you have gathered this vital information look at what gets in the way of the team's success or the company's success. Often we have created our own road blocks. Sometimes they are in terms of systems (that we created), often they are rules (that, we also created), and sometimes it is in how we think individually or as a team. This is a hard step, because it takes deep thinking and honest reflection. Teams can be scared of doing this work, but it is very important to moving the company forward, taking the company to the next level.

Once you have identified how the team is in their own way of success you can create a new attitude or approach to success. We recommend doing this in a postive statement that points to an exciting future.

Now, you are ready to develop the strategies for moving there. Write your strategies in the form of measurable goals. Things you can really count, so that you can track your success. A goal such as "improving the company" is to vague. Instead write, "increase revenue by 25%". That is measurable. Limit your strategic goals to ten. This enables you and your team to stay very focused. If the team comes up with 100 goals, then find the top ten.

After goals are established you begin working with intention. Each day staff and leaders should be working to achieve the strategic plan. If your operations involve tasks that aren't focused on these strategies evaluate whether outsourcing these tasks would improve your results with the increased time to focus on implementation. Or are there other ways you can improve the focus of the team?

Maintain implementation. After a strategy session, everyone is often excited and enthusiastic,but quickly the day-to-day operations interupt your focus. Schedule at least monthly strategy review meetings. Don't bring other agenda items to the meeting. These meetings are solely for reporting on the strategies and scoring them. Each person that has taken responsibilityfor a strategic objective comes to the meeting prepared to report on the results that have occurred. This reporting is in terms of numbers. The strategy was achieved at ___%, giving you a clear picture of where you are. This group accountability is powerful. It creates a culture of performance, a focus on success and achievement.

By operating with focus and intention on strategy you can build your business success week by week, month by month and produce the results you want and need. Clarity of goals, focus, and implementation each contribute to the success of the team and the organization.

Marketing, Marketing....

When I started my business, I was new to business, and like many other business owners was pretty clueless about marketing. As a non-profit manager and administrator our marketing needs were limited. Now, after 3 years in business, I have learned and implemented so many marketing approaches. At first, I thought marketing was not very much fun, but now, I am starting to have a lot of fun with it.

You have to first get past the fear of the "No". I found that this took a while. In the scheme of the world and even of my own life, someone saying "No" to me is just not that big of a deal. Yet, I feared it. At this point in my business, I no longer fear it, and actually want to set up systems so that people are saying it faster. Faster? Why faster? Well, if they are going to say "No", I need to hear it and move on. I don't want to spend a lot of time and energy with them to get to "No". I have changed my approach in meeting or talking with people so that we get there faster. I have spent hours with people doing an initial consultation, for FREE, and then gotten to the "No". At the same time, as they are telling me how great the consultation was. It motivated me to want to get there faster. I am using a process to let people know upfront what my fees are and policies are, prior to consult, and letting them know that it is time limited and we get to a decision point at the half hour mark. They're responsibility is to come to the meeting ready to make the decision.

Are you afraid of "No", in your marketing and sales? How can you create a system that gets you there faster so that you can move on? You don't want to spend valuable time trying to sell to someone that is ultimately going to say "No", and you certainly don't want to do that with folks that are walking in the door, knowing they aren't buying.

Give up the fear of thhe "no" and then create your powerful system or process for managing your resources (time) in reagrds to it.

Happy Marketing!!

Do newsletters help your marketing??

Newsletters act as part of your “keep in touch” marketing strategy. They provide a vehicle for keeping in touch with your current customers or clients and providing them with additional value. The newsletter also is a good vehicle for keeping in touch with prospective customers and clients. Through the use of the newsletter you are continuing to build your relationship with the prospect. They become more and more familiar with you and your services and most importantly the value that you offer. A newsletter can also act as an incentive to build your database, especially if it is a free newsletter. On your website you can offer your “free” newsletter in exchange for the person’s name and email address. This gives you information about who is interested in your service, but not buying right now. It gives you the opportunity to develop a relationship for future work together.

Newsletters come in a variety of formats and each has advantages and disadvantages. Traditionally, companies used printed, snail mail newsletters. The big advantage of print media and snail mail is that it gets to the target. It doesn’t get caught up in spam filters and email blocks. It provides a hard copy of your information and people tend to keep well produced newsletters longer. Your newsletter could have a great coupon or article that the person wants to act on and they put it in the pile on their desk and eventually they find it, pull it out and follow-up with you. The disadvantages of a print newsletter are the costs for development, printing and mailing. It can be labor intensive for the small operation that is doing the mailing themselves. Personally addressing hundreds of newsletters is time-consuming. If you are not good with software programs, you might need assistance putting the newsletter together in a presentable format, adding to your expense, and then there are the ever rising costs of postage. You will also need to print the newsletter, professionally. Bulk mail is less expensive but comes with many rules and regulations and does not get forwarded if the address is wrong.

Email newsletters or e-zines are much less costly but have other disadvantages. The good things about the e-zine—are that they are inexpensive. You can email thousands of people for little cost. You can use an e-zine service to help with formatting your e-zine and managing your database. There are e-zine service companies that will write and produce your e-zine in it’s entirety, but this of course is more costly. Services such as Constant Contact or Aweber or 1shoppingcart, each provide you with the tools to create forms for your website that visitors can fill out and then receive your e-zine. If you create a website with a lot of traffic this is a great way to build your database and potential customer base. These companies also provide you with some great information about who has read your newsletter, how many people clicked on links in your newsletter, how many were blocked and undelivered etc. This becomes valuable information to you in your marketing and knowing who you are hitting and who you are missing. Some of the disadvantages of an e-zine are that many do get blocked by spam filters; email programs and never reaches their target. They also get easily deleted and aren’t saved in piles on the desk. It doesn’t stay in front of people.

There are many resources out there for developing an e-zine or newsletter. You can subscribe to article lists and receive a wealth of useful information that you can include in your e-zine or print newsletter. You don’t have to write each article. I have many articles of value to my readers written by other experts. You can also share your articles with these same services and increase your exposure. This continues to build your reputation, and it also improves your website ratings as you have more and more links to your site from other sites (but, that’s a whole different article).

Whether you choose the email version of a newsletter or the print version or both, you need to provide value to your clients and potential clients. Both are a vehicle for you to build your relationship and do new business or additional business. If there is no value then people will “opt-out” and won’t be interested in receiving your information. Provide valuable information, it builds your reputation as a resource and an expert. Your reputation builds your business.

Newsletters can help you build your business, if they are done well.

Welcome

Welcome to Magnetic North!

My name is Donna Price and I am owner of Compass Rose Consulting, LLC. I look forward to you reading my blog.

Stay tuned for lots of information!