Gotta Love Organization

If you run a business, or if you work in any office setting, you know how important it is to be organized! Organizational skills help a business and an employee run smoothly. If you see that you or any of your employees lack organizational skills, find someone who can mentor you, train you, or teach you how to become and remain organized. Watch the video below to learn how you can receive some organization tips from a pro.

Get Creative

Is your business in need of more business?  Get creative by thinking up innovative ways to advertise.  Hire creative personnel to help you think of advertising slogans and logos that will catch peoples' eyes and make them want to give you their business.

Market online, by mail, on placemats, on banners at sporting events and anywhere else you can think of and afford.

Advertising might not always be cheap, but it can be very effective.

So start thinking and start creating ways for your business to prosper and grow!

What's Blocking Your Progress?

Have you noticed lately that you and/or your business is at a stand still.  As if nothing is happening, and you have become stale?

Consider some of these things that can hinder the progress of a person or a business:

1.  Complacency.  When we become complacent, we often give up trying new things or growing.

2.  Undesirable personnel.  Employees can cause a business to become stagnant, if they are treating customers badly, stealing from you, and if they've given up or don't care, etc.

3.  Does your business need a fresh perspective?  Perhaps you need a new advertising slogan or campaign, or maybe you need to advertise to a fresh group of potential clients and customers.  Try advertising or social sharing your business in places you have never shared before.

4.  Product inventory might be wrong or out of date.  Perhaps you need new products or services to entice new customers.  Explore what your current customers want, and try to think of new ideas to reach even more people.  

5.  Remind people of your goals, values and commitment to excellence.  Keep personnel motivated and encouraged, and remind the public why you're doing what you're doing, and how you are committed to giving them the best possible product and service.

*Ask employees for fresh ideas and ways that they think your business can grow and profit.  Ask them also, what you can do to keep them motivated and happy.  Most employees want what's best for the company they work for, and they often have creative ideas.  Do things within reason to keep them happy and content, and that should encourage them to always do their best for you.

The Dreaded Interview Process

I'm not an expert at interviews.  In fact I hate them.  I don't like talking about myself or answering what I consider silly questions that don't even pertain to my ability to perform a job.

If I were an employer who had to interview people, I like to think I would keep things simple.  Can you perform the tasks required?  Do you have experience or education in the field?  Are you dependable and trustworthy?  And so on...

I'm probably not going to ask why you want to work for me.  Most people want to work, because they need money.  Let's be honest, here.  There may be the rare individual who wants to work because they love a certain field or want to keep busy, but many of us are simply trying to pay our bills and support our families.

If I were asking interview questions, I would try not to make the perspective employees uncomfortable or put them on the spot.  Perhaps some people enjoy doing that to see how someone performs under pressure, but from my own experience, I am a great worker, very dependable, and I do my job to the best of my ability every day.  I'm not good at interviews.  I'm not good at thinking of the right things that perspective employers want to hear, but I will work my tail off to make you look good, and you can sure as heck depend on me to get the job done and show up on time.

So if you are an employer, you don't have to interview people according to what experts say.  Ask them what you truly want to know.  Try to keep them comfortable, and remember that interviews are stressful, and people might not always be at their best during them.

Are Your Customer Service Reps Personable?

Have you ever entered a store, or walked up to a counter or pulled up to a drive-through window and had people not speak, look sad or angry or be completely rude to you?

I'm sure the majority of us have experienced this poor customer service, and yet these people seem to maintain their positions with these companies.  I don't get it.  Perhaps the owners and managers are unaware of their behavior, or do they just not care?

If you own a business, and you have people working under you who are the first contacts your clients or potential clients will see, then you need to be involved and make sure they are representing you in the best possible way.

Before hiring, check references.  Make sure you train your people adequately, and make sure they understand that complaints from customers and co-workers will be dealt with accordingly.

You can't risk losing business, simply because your employees are fed up, having a bad day, or simply don't care how they treat people.

Be involved in your business in every area, and make sure things are running smoothly and employees are doing their jobs properly.   Don't expect others to do this for you.  Successful businesses have owners who are involved!

How Do You Measure Success?

Success means different things to different people.  How do you measure success?  Do you consider yourself successful if you make a lot of money? What about if you have a happy family?  And is integrity important to you?

What makes a business successful?

I believe success equals honesty, integrity, making and keeping customers happy and quality products, as well as quality customer service. I think all of these equal success.  

Yes we need sales, and we need people to purchase our products or services, or our business will more than likely fail, but if we have those without honesty and integrity, I believe we fail anyway.  If we have great sales and make money without good customer service or caring about our clients, then I believe we fail, as well.

How do you measure success?

The Biggest Thing that Will Bring Success

What brings success to you personally and to your business?

• Hard Work
• Dedication
• Good Employees
• Top-Quality Products
• A Good Business Sense

But in my opinion, the biggest part of success is INTEGRITY!  If you don't have integrity in your personal life and in your business, you are bound to fail one way or another.

Not everyone with integrity has success, but many successful people have integrity.  At least the ones that last in their business.

If the public finds out you are dishonest, cheating, or putting out products that are of bad quality, they will most likely find someplace else to take their business.