Yeast infections are a horrible fact of life, aren’t they? Just when things are going well, you're struck with a Yeast Infection. YUCK!  But, don't worry... yeast infections can be cast out from your body in less than 12 hours.  You’ve probably heard of lots of different treatments for yeast infections. I have to. But, I finally found a blog that led me to a resource that is the ultimate resource for treatment of yeast infections.

Do you have bad credit? Do you need a payday loan? Do you need a bad credit payday loan?

If you do need one of these loans, don't despair  - you're not alone.  Fear not, you can still get the money you need.  One resource that you need to check out is the payday loan page on the Money Sense Blog .  This page will give you access to the forms that will give you direct access to numerous bad credit payday lenders. Once approved the money is typically deposited right into your bank account.

The economy is down. Gas prices are up. We're all forced to make do with less as we approach summer vacation time.

Summer vacation, after all, is an American ritual.  It's the only time in our lives that we step back and say to ourselves "I worked all year to enjoy the summer."  Thus, don't let yourself miss this annual ritual that means so much to your health and mental well being.  The word "staycation" is starting to take hold. It means folks from around the country are planning on staying home for this years vacation because money is to tight.  Ask yourself, do you need money to avoid a "staycation"?

If you answered "yes" you have several options. First, you can work extra hours and try to bring home a bigger paycheck or secondly, you can borrow money for vacation.  If you do choose to borrow money or take out a summer vacation loan, don't worry your not alone.  Visit http://easy-money-loans.com for all your vacation money needs. Basically, you'll be borrowing money against your future paycheck. Typically, payday lenders will wire money directly into your bank accounts in just 24 hours.  These payday type vacation loans are perfect if you just need a few extra vacation bucks and want to resist the urge to break out the plastic and starting charging way outside of your budget.  Easy-Money-Loans will steer you in the right direction as to the differences between the different loan companies.

Thus, in just a few short moments you can be on your way to getting the few extra hundred dollars that you need in order to take that vacation (and to avoid a "staycation") - so don't worry and remember to borrow within your means.

I just wanted to share a great new article with you about great nights out and dinner date ideas in Boston.

The article comes courtesy of Northeastern Limousine, the premier provider of logan airport transportation.

I found this great blog post about Omaha Beach.  I think it is important that we remember more than the liberation, triumphalism, and chest pounding. This article explore the tragedy, the loss of life and the emotional pull of Omaha Beach.

I have great admiration for small business owners. I love their entrepreneurial spirit, pioneering attitude, perseverance and strength. I am lucky enough to work with them daily as their business coach.

Through my role as coach, I am honored to witness courage in so many ways. The courage to expand and grow, the courage to ask for money, the courage to go after the big account, the courage to hire and fire when needed.

If you have never been an entrepreneur or known one, these activities might not seem like a big deal. In the beginning stages, small business owners are grappling with what they feel they can do or not do. Their businesses are literally limited by their own self perception. For example: an owner who wants to double their revenue might have to learn how to let go and leverage themselves through others. So it makes sense that most entrepreneurs have to personally grow and develop themselves to move their businesses forward. Enter the business coach versus a consultant. A consultant is the expert and they advise.

So “What’s a business coach?” you ask? A business coach engages and facilitates focused dialogue. We challenge, inquire, provoke, cajole, inspire, offer support and collaborate with our clients on their business issues. Occasionally we give advice and consult a client when it is an area of expertise. Most of the time however, it is not about my wisdom. It is about the client’s wisdom. Coaches believe that the client has the answer.

Back to my point, in most cases the entrepreneur’s limiting beliefs are what is stopping the business from expanding. As limiting beliefs are identified the small business owner can see and be aware of new possibilities allowing for more awareness and choice. Finally this brings me to the title of the article. Are you “open for business”? 

When we are “closed for business”, we already know how the business is, how our industry is and how our customers are, leaving no possibility or room for something else. Where there is certainty there is no possibility. We become frustrated and stuck.

Being “open for business” is about being aware of what your biases, limitations and limiting beliefs (filters) are and not letting that mindset run your business. When we are “open for business” we find opportunities and solve problems easily.  ”Okay, how do I do that” you say?

First get clear about your own filters by talking to a coach, asking your staff, interviewing your spouse or working with a mentor and then write them all down.

The next step is to identify how these filters have you stuck or stopped in your business. How do your limiting beliefs impact your business and its employees?

Then, make sure that you stay “open for business” by being engaged in conversations about your business with someone who knows what your filters are and is willing to say something when they come up. This could be an employee, partner, spouse, friend, mentor or coach.

You will be amazed at the difference this one shift from closed to open can make for your profitability and your sense of well being.

“Without the strength to endure the crisis, one will not see the opportunity within. It is within the process of endurance that opportunity reveals itself.”

Chin-Ning Chu

 

Crisis is often an entry point; an opportunity to get real, tell the truth about our selves and our business. Definition of Crisis -The moment in which we know without a doubt that if we don’t make changes with ourselves and in our business we will lose. Unfortunately, at this point we usually have already lost quite a bit, which is what makes it a crisis! 

 

Understandably no one hopes for a crisis. Certainly this applies to our business or organization. Most of us as leaders would probably say one of our primary responsibilities is to prevent a crisis from ever occurring.

However, I have found that powerful lessons for all of us can be found in the middle of a business crisis. It isn't uncommon for a leader to say, "Our staff has never pulled together more than when we were facing a crisis." Possibly it's the very real prospect of going out of business, facing a public relations catastrophe or even a natural disaster that causes people to unite.

And although this may not seem surprising, it does beg the question, "why?" Why do people set aside their usual disagreements and petty politics in the midst of a crisis?

I found one possible answer while contemplating teams and organizations that live in a perpetual state of daily crisis. Consider firefighters or soldiers in the midst of war.

 

At those moments, these are certainly some of the least political and divisive teams that you'll find. For them, disagreement about budgets and lines of responsibility are ludicrous, or even worse, deadly. And that's the point. When the stakes are clear and high, you know …life or death. Well-intentioned people can't help but focus on the prevailing task at hand. Which is exactly what happens to businesses in crisis: they get focused around a compelling, over-arching goal. They put aside their egos and differences for the common good of the team or business.

 

We innately know this about ourselves and people which is why I personally believe some businesses create an ongoing atmosphere of chaos or crisis. Consider that there is another way, another option for focusing on the important and the common good. A way to stop avoiding the issue(s) and address what is not being said.

 

It starts with clear purposeful reasons to be in business, to do the job and to get the result. As the leader, it is your job to make sure your people have these:

 

• A Vision
• A Business purpose
• Goals
• Key measures for success in their own roles
• Individual plans for growth and development 

 

“The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis'. One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger-but recognize the opportunity.”  John F. Kennedy

As a business coach on occasion I find it helpful to remind my clients to lighten up. I’ll say something like “It’s a game; this won’t matter on your death bed.” As business owners it can be tempting to lose ourselves in the issue of the day, week or month. We forget that it is not a life or death situation. Okay, we could be on the verge of losing our business or maybe a really big account but these are the moments that perspective may be our most powerful edge. Remembering that business is a game could give you the mental and emotional acuity needed to get you through the rough patches we all experience.

 

Let me say more about business being a game. Just like a game there are rules, lots of them, your rules, industry rules, cultural rules, government rules and more. In regards to keeping your perspective, your rules are the ones that matter the most. Here are some rules that I recommend;

 

1. Play the game of business to win “as if” your life is at stake and then toss your head, smile and laugh when it doesn’t work out.

2. Have fun whenever possible, smile a lot.

3. Keep your physical, spiritual, emotional and mental reserves full for the game by exercising, praying, reading positive books, nurturing your relationships and getting rest. Of all the rules, this is the most important. Would a world class athlete show up exhausted, spent and mentally unprepared?

 4. Learn basic business principles in the areas of finance, marketing, organizational development and operations. Then master the basics.  

 

In business we are essentially playing two games at once, the internal game (the real game) and the external game (the worldly game). The external game is your daily business practices and your business model. The internal game (invisible) is about being positive, having integrity, being focused; present and aware, expressing your vision and being mentally clear about what you want. As you can see, the rules I recommend are for both games.

 

The first three rules are for the internal game. Rule number 4 addresses the external game. If we play the external game and forget about the internal game we will be reactive, experience stress, get stuck, neglect our bodies and our loved ones and lose complete sight of the fact that it is a game after all. If we only play the internal game and forget about playing the external game we will neglect to master the basics of business and be very happy but unsuccessful in business. Unfortunately, I have noticed very few people have the latter problem.

 

So how do you start applying the principles above? I recommend that you sit down and write your rules for the game of business. You will want rules for the internal and the external game. Then create your ideal day, week, month and year on paper or in your calendar. You want to be able to see how a master would operate. This is your gap. Now what? Get a coach, mentor, teacher, guru, whatever is right for you. These concepts are simple not easy.

“Creativity can solve almost any problem. The creative act, the defeat of habit by originality overcomes everything.” George Lois

 

When running your own small business, we are often called to be creative and innovative.  Without this ability, I have discovered it is nearly impossible to be successful, let alone stay afloat.  This innovative and creative spirit is especially important to small business owners because they do not have the kind of budgets the big corporations can play with.  Small business owners are required to craft new and innovative ways to get the most “bang for their buck” whether that be refurbishing old unsuccessful projects into successful ones, cutting costs without cutting corners, and of course, thinking of new ways of marketing or boosting sales. 

 

While most of the small business owners I work with do embody this innovative spirit, they often forget to foster this spirit throughout their company. To run efficiently and productively as possible, they need their entire team to be on the same creative page.

 

In Adrian Brown’s “Creativity & Innovation” he highlights five characteristics that he has observed in creative organizations.  All of which I believe are important not just for large corporations, but especially for small business.  They are: 

 

1. “Information is free flowing:  Creativity is partially about making new connections. For example: applying a familiar technology to a completely new application.”
2. “New ideas are welcomed: It is easy for individuals and companies to become stuck in its ways.  Habitual behaviors, a rigid adherence to “best practices and groupthink can all act as barriers to new ideas
3. “Good ideas are nurtured:  New ideas are delicate and can easily be killed off with an executive shrug or simply a lack of care and attention”….
4. “Risk taking is accepted”:  “Experimentation and innovation involve some failures along the way.  Risk taking doesn’t mean being reckless, rather it means understanding the risk/reward relationship and taking calculated risks where the potential rewards are valuable.”
5. “Innovators are rewarded: Creativity is hard to measure and can often be ignored by compensation and reward systems.”  However, often it is enough to publicly recognize creativity with a simple thank you for a job well done, believe it or not, this sends a powerful message through your organization. 

It helps to remember “you are not alone.” Remember, it is important to not only tap into your own creativity; but also your staff or team’; you may be surprised at the ideas they may have to boost your business!

 

If you are looking for more ways to develop your personal creativity, or that of your team, I recommend that you enroll in an online course that is part of Profit Consulting Co.’s “Creativity & Innovation” program.  This convenient and easy to use program expands on Brown’s major themes and provides interactive exercises, additional readings, and offers learners hands-on exercises to spur personal creativity.

 

This is just one of the many programs of study we have recently added to our website! (www.profitconsultingco.com). We also feature courses in Business Communications, Leadership, Finance, and Management.  These courses are affordably priced, 100% web based and in a self-study format allowing you to improve your creative, business, or management skills at your own convenience.

As small business owners we move fast, change course and shift gears daily. Operating a small business demands that we have the ability to be flexible and change as needed. What about our employees?  How flexible do they need to be? How informed? How engaged in the success of the business? How do we know they are aligned with us and the business vision?

 

Sometimes we overlook informing, including, asking or collaborating with our employees. We are often satisfied with cooperation from our employees, unaware of what is possible if we instead were in collaboration with our employees.

 

“A leader is someone who steps back from the entire system and tries to build a more collaborative, more innovative system that will work over the long term.”

   Robert Reich

 

Here are some great ways to start collaborating with your staff:

 

• Know the vision for the business, share the vision often.
• Include them often in the planning for the business referencing the vision
• Work on not just in the business with them.
• Tie in daily tasks or monthly projects with the overall business vision.
• Create and measure goals against the vision with your staff.
• Report in on goals with your staff and/or have them report in on their goals. 
• Start asking great questions of staff instead of telling staff what to do.
• Start asking your staff for solutions that you are really trying to solve, take their advice sometimes. Let them know you did. 
• Let them set the agenda and run the meeting.
• Create and post a visual organization chart that shows future roles (do not include names).
• Have very clear roles and responsibilities for each staff member.
• Change your language to “we”. Speak about business in terms of we, not I or my. For example instead of saying  “I need this on my desk by tonight” say “ We need this one and have a deadline of 5pm today can you get it done?” 
• Do evaluations of job performance in a timely way.
• Have raises, bonuses and incentives based on company performance as well as the individual. 
• Become a great manager. Read books and go to seminars as well as get feedback from your employees on how you could do better.

 

What are the potential costs of no collaboration? 

 

• If the employee is not in tune with the business goals they will have difficulty prioritizing and focusing on what is important.
• If the employee does not know what is going on, they will make up stories, causing unnecessary miscommunication and hard feelings.
• If they only have half the information they may feel insecure thinking that the company is failing or their job is in jeopardy.
• When we don’t allow and ask for their opinions and suggestions, we miss the perspective our staff may be able to contribute. We also inadvertently send the message that what they think doesn’t matter. Poor performance is directly linked to employees feeling powerless to affect change in the business or in their current role.
• Employees will not stay in step with the vision for the business, they will be “I” focused instead of “we” focused .They will not be able to see where their job role fits into the business vision.

We will likely lose touch with what is important to our employees, will not know how to incentivize and morale will deteriorate.