We Always Require Net 60 Days Payment

If you haven't met this yet, you will. The client who pays 60 days after receiving the invoice.

If you operate as I used to operate - do the work, send the invoice - you can wait up to 90 days to be paid while your client merrily makes use of the product or training at your expense.

Canadian banks used to take five WEEKS to clear a US cheque. Add five weeks to 90 days and you've got a banker.

I do not operate a bank

I do not lend money (except to friends).

But when a client hangs on to what is rightfully mine, they have turned me into a bank, against my wishes.

What's the answer?

Operate in several different manners:

(1) Insist on a 50% deposit up front. That 50% should cover all your expenses and a bit more. If you have to walk away from the second 50%, you've still come out ahead of the game. A bronze instead of a Gold, but a medal none the less.

(2) Raise your rates for those clients. Ask for their payment schedules BEFORE submitting the proposal. Prime lending rate seems to be about 4.5%, so let's say 5%. Raise your rates 5% and incorporate that into your proposal. Yes, I know it's only for ¼ of a year, not a whole year, but you have to factor in your time as a book-keeper doing these extra calculations etc.

(3) Tie your Lifetime-Technical-Support into the payment. For me the Lifetime-Technical-Support accompanies every service, product or training that comes from me, but it doesn't kick in until the final payment is made and the cheque has cleared. Now you're still perturbed about waiting 90 days, but you need not invest any more time until the $5,000 is safely in the vault. And let your client know that just as they have their business practices carved in stone, so too do you.

Cheryl Scoffield : "Get a bank draft if the client is US based. Depending on how I am billing, contract employee or consulting, I get paid in advance 2 weeks to 1 month until the contract end date. The Monday morning the bank draft fails to hit my account is the Monday I take the dog for a walk!

"Money paid through a bank draft can not be clawed back. Cheques can bounce or a stop payment can be issued after you deposit. That means, if it is a large cheque, your bank account will be FROZEN!! ... all cheques start bouncing! Like your mother said, play safe. Get paid in advance."

A Road-Block for Her Firm

I called Margo again today; she is, of course, too busy to schedule a 15-minute meeting, but not too busy to spend 20 minutes on the phone.

My initial referral, five years ago, told me "Getting around Margot could be a problem".

He was right

Today Margot managed to bring up an objection to every suggestion I made; she has a well-honed repertoire, and I understand she is but a legal secretary. I don't think I'm talking with the senior partner's VP here.

I'm sure that you have encountered Margo: "We don't have a need for your kind of training", but when I ask her, nicely, for her vision of what I deliver, she finally admits that she assumes I am identical to the contact of five years ago.

I can bet good money on being able to improve the productivity of any firm I enter.

How can I be so sure?

Firstly, I have years of experience reducing 60-minute jobs down to 60 seconds, and only last week, reducing a supposedly six-hour job down to 10 seconds.

Secondly, 90% of the firms are not automated; you only have to watch anyone clicking away madly - all user-intervention.

Thirdly, even for the 10% of firms which might be automated, I develop tools that automate the development process of - automation tools.

There is, perhaps, a 1 in 10,000 chances that I'll meet someone as advanced as I in automating tasks.

So the chance of meeting them in the 200 or so firms that I do contact is close to zero.

It's a sure bet

Margo is truly a road-block for her firm; I wonder if they know how many opportunities are being missed, opportunities from me, and from every other person who contacts the firm.

It is sad, truly sad

An Easy Way to Address Your Target Market

It doesn't matter whether you are engaged today in writing your email newsletter, building a web page, or sending an email.

While you develop the text, start off as if you were writing a personal letter.

My target market is the large financial, health science and aerospace firms.

My target audience is the President and/or CEO.

My address therefore is:

"Dear President"

or

"Dear CEO".

If your target market is managers in corporations "Dear Manager".

Then build your text.

Proof-read it, spell check it, and let it mature overnight.

In the morning, re-read it, make any changes, and just before it goes out the door delete the salutation; it will have served its purpose by then.

Stay focused!

What Do all These Emails Newsletters Have in Common?

They are cluttered, everyone of them.

Which newsletters am I talking about?

The last six newsletters you received.

From your suppliers, your hosting service, the email marketing guy, the insurance colleague.

• Small images.
• Sidebars with links.
• Incredible offers.
• Tables.
• Fancy formatting.
• Clickable logos featuring the sponsors, the LinkedIn, FaceBook and twitter links-where-you-can-find me.

Now dare to be different.

How about an email newsletter with just three articles, original text developed by you.

Two fonts - one for the heading (and there will be only three headings) and one for the body text..

A link at the top and at the bottom to your home page.

How refreshing.

And attractive just because it says "I know that you're busy, so I won't take up much of your time. Thanks for reading"

“I’ve Run Out of Time”

If I had one hundred dollars for every time I’ve heard that, I’d have lots of dollars.

Nine times out of ten, they’ve not run out of time, not really; they’ve run out of space.

THEY’VE RUN IN TOO FAR.

A consultant works on a small project for a year and then “runs out of time”? I don’t believe it. The consultant has finally conceded that the design requirements are way over his head, and the project, if it is to progress, needs serious help.

Seven Product Managers hand over their Excel workbooks three weeks before the big conference because “they just don’t have the time to finish them off”? I don’t believe it. They are now in seven separate ways, up to their necks in adjustments and modifications that don’t fit in with their original concept of six months ago. Imperial and Metric. Who knew?

So I get the project, big or small.

And I am delighted.

But I’m not fooled.

Any consultant with too much work only has to jack up the prices a little bit to shave off the work they can’t handle.

And product managers (VPs, every one of them) are in the strata of folks who manage their own calendars.

Check it out next time someone tells you “I’ve run out of time”; I bet it’s not about the 24 hours we each receive each morning.

Harvest The Reaction

Michel Neray made a good point when he was discussing the dialogue between me and my client.

I really wow! Some clients; “How’d you do THAT?” they exclaim, and I replay nonchalantly “Oh, that just comes naturally”, and start in discussing some other, really difficult stage of the job.

“That was COOL!”, is met by me examining the tips of my fingernails and “ … not if you’re used to doing it”.

Michel’s point, as I understand it, is that it’s the really cool, WOW! reactions that tell us how we are different.

Those client reactions alert us to what it is we are expert at (lousy grammar, I know).

Harvest those reactions; those reactions tell us WHY others should buy from us; those reactions tell us what will appeal to other clients, what sets us out from the rest of the “I can save you money” crowd.

How to Win a Free-Lunch Bet

There was a Seinfeld episode about this years ago …

If one of your objectives is to meet face-to-face with a prospect and you are struggling to get them to agree, find a way to make a harmless bet, preferably related to something in your business conversation, and engineer it so you can’t possibly win.

A recent bet with a merchant banker arose out of a conversation “You should chat with so-and-so”.

“OK”, I responded, “I’ll take him out to lunch”.

“You’ll never get him to agree to go to lunch with you!”.

“Wanna bet?”.

I can’t lose this one.

Either I get to take so-and-so to lunch (a winning situation for me), or I fail to persuade so-and-so to lunch with me (in which case I lose the bet and get to take my merchant banker to lunch – a winning situation for me).

Bet your business relationships on the impossible, and win!

The Green-Chair Technique for Handling Phone Calls

My home office has a long desk of plywood; on it are the keyboard, monitor, mouse and telephone.

The phone rings. I pick it up, push my chair away from the desk, and sit eight feet away in a green chair, fabric covered, thin wooden arms.

Why?

When someone phones me, it is a substitute for a face-to-face visit, and I like to give them my full attention; I can't give them my full attention when my eyes are staring at the screen, wondering what's new in Google News or what the weather is like in Paragonicia.

Here is a chance for me NOT to sit, shoulders-hunched over a keyboard, a chance to move my two feet eight feet, a chance to stretch, and to enjoy whatever the conversation might bring.

Sometimes too I can't immediately place the caller, so I am more relaxed as I try to figure out who and why the call.

There in the not-totally-comfortable green chair, I indulge in the to-and-fro, but then after a while, my back gets sore.

It's time to end the conversation and get back to work.

Well, not quite sore, but while the break from the computer was welcome, it still calls to me, and the call becomes more insistent as time passes, so there is a steadily-growing urge to bring the conversation to an end and get "back to work".

If you don't have a Green Chair, I suggest you pick one up at a second-hand store this weekend. It doesn't have to be fancy, and it ought not to be too comfortable, or too large.

You may be surprised at how well your phone conversations go, after you get your Green Chair.

Knowledge and Experience

Knowledge can be picked up in a day, a half-hour, or sometimes in a flash of a few seconds at a seminar. "Wow! I didn't know that!".

Knowledge can be picked up from Books, the Web, in a Classroom or at Desk side .

Knowledge of a specific technique is what most employers look for, and some clients.

If you don't know VBA you're going to be hopelessly mired in the desktop automation job.

Experience takes a lifetime, but relax, you don't have to wait another day.

You already possess the experience of a lifetime - your lifetime.

No matter how old you are, today, you hold the sum of ALL your experience - the 2½ years in France, the 6 months in Singapore, the Data Warehousing course you took for $3,500.

You can BUY knowledge, but you can only GAIN experience by doing something.

And your experience is what separates you from every other entrepreneur, and that, we are told, is your selling point.

I can teach anyone the language of VBA in two days or less. Ditto the controls of a motor-car in two hours or less.

But true driving experience comes from many many hours on the road, regrettably some collisions, different weather conditions, getting around a strange city, at night, in fog, after a snowstorm.

The knowledgeable driver knows how to press the brake pedal.

The experienced driver knows how to drive so as not to need the brake pedal.

See the difference?

The knowledgeable VBA programmer can fix your messy code in your workbooks (and bill you for doing it).

The experienced VBA programmer knows when to call a halt, and rebuild the suite from scratch.

• What is your experience?
• Make a list.
• The list had better not contain the name of a book.
• Unless you co-authored it!

Educate to Make a Decision

My goal is to have The Prospect make a decision to buy.

The Prospect doesn't know whether to buy or not. Seems like a lot of money! Have I enough in the bank? How risky is this? Will it work? Does Chris have what it takes to get the job done? Who else has gone this route? What is the worst-case scenario?

If The prospect knew the answers to these questions, the decision would be obvious: either "buy" or "walk away".

But The Prospect doesn't know.

My task is to provide answers that will help The Prospect make a decision.

My task is to educate The prospect to make an informed decision.

In order to do that I must (on my web page) identify the questions The Prospect will ask, and provide answers to them. Either in a Q & A form, or else sugar-coated in small but true stories.

Unhinging the Gatekeepers

I suffered three rejections in the phone calls I made today. In the past these would have been crushing rejections, but today they are rich fodder for my digestion.

My goal is to arrange face-to-face meetings with people. I ask if we can meet for 15 minutes over coffee.

One spent 20 minutes with me on the phone explaining that she couldn't set aside 15 minutes to actually meet someone face to face.

Draw your own conclusions.

One came up with a few excuses for not meeting me before she got around to asking what I do.

Draw your own conclusions.

One told me flat out that they had their own in-house trainer. I OK'ed that, then asked her what sort of training I offered. I enjoyed the five seconds of silence while she tried to dream up an answer that complemented her previous statement.

Draw your own conclusions.

Bit of a let-down, because I know I can help firms - because the firms that ask me in say that they are greatly helped, and they ask me in because they have met me; so if only I can arrange a meeting, they'll ask me in, then I can help them.

Out of all of this I learned that many gatekeepers have set scripts in their heads - how to straight-arm the caller, and since now I can recognize some of the scripts, I can brace myself for them.

This afternoon we were both surprised by the 5-second silence

Next time, the gatekeeper will still be surprised, but I'll be prepared.

About that Bootleg Software ...

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=1817&tag=col1;post-1817

I truly have lost count of the number of times over the past 25 years that friends and colleagues have begged for help with their systems, only to find that they are out of luck - "screwed" is not too strong a word - because they have purchased a copy of an operating system or application software from a shady source.

It runs fine until something happens, and then it can't be re-installed.

Or the "original disks" are no longer available because "I bought the computer cheap from a friend who no longer needed it".

This blog post of mine serves notice on you all.

A QUARTER OF A CENTURY OF DISAPPOINTMENT IS ENOUGH

More than enough.

The blog posting at the head of this article is a must-read for all of you.

Read it before you call.

When you drop by, be prepared to sit and read a printed copy of it.

And remember this: I develop applications for a living.

I hate pirates and those who try to steal software without paying full price for it.

I'm with Microsoft on this one.

When Not to Present the $1,000 Invoice

I have been agonizing over next Thursday's appointment.

I saw it as a sales call; sit down, ask questions, get facts, then come back to the office and write a proposal and send it off.

If the prospect agrees to the proposal, they send a cheque and I start work; otherwise, nothing else need be done.

But now The Prospect wants me to start work the minute I arrive at 9:00 a.m.

The Prospect wants the job done and complete by close of business Thursday, or 2pm, or 11 am, it doesn't matter. And The Prospect has stated that they will pay me for a full day, even if it is only two hours.

It sounds like a dream job, but I worry that the task might be insoluble - something I usually determine after extracting some facts.

The solution?

Take the invoice with me, $1,000 plus tax, but don't even think of presenting it unless the job is complete.

That way I don't leave feeling that I've taken money from the client under false pretences, and as well, I have an option to walk away at any stage.

Of course, we all hope I'll be able to pull bunny out of hat, but if I don't, I don't have to make things worse for us all by taking money that I feel I've not earned.

What is My Marketing Goal?

Simply put, my reason for marketing is to increase my stream of prospects.

My prospects are those people who, I believe, offer a good chance for a sale within a specific period, and that period is dependent on my business.

My prospects have to be reminded of me from time to time - perhaps every two months - and that means time and effort on my part to telephone or email them on a regular basis.

A prospect is not someone who has expressed no interest, or has expressed a very low interest in my product or services.

There's no profit to be made investing three hours a year making follow-up calls when we both know that the two-man legal firm's chances of wanting training in Application Development in VBA is close to zero.

If I have a service (monthly financial data summaries) and a product (a really cool application) and some training courses, then I'll have three marketing streams, each of which should be delivering its own stream of prospects.

And each stream should have a measured quota, and a measured result.

Management Measures !

One Easy Way to Make a List

Always leave a vacant item!

At the bottom.

You start out without a list.

The vacant item at the bottom is, by definition, (a).

Alongside (a) you write your first idea, task, promise.

Then on the next line you write (b).

Got a second idea? Write it alongside the (b).

Keep going until you run out of ideas, probably round about (g).

On the next line, write (h).

Then wait.

Your brain will work to complete that vacant line.

Pop! I told you so!

Write it down.

On the next line, write (i).

Then wait.

Your brain will work to complete that vacant line.

Pop! I told you so!

Write it down.

Continue like this until it's time to go home.

On the way home, your brain will find yet another idea to complete that vacant line.

I promise

Beware of Wolf Questions in Sheepskin

The question asked at the end of the seminar seemed innocent enough: "Do I believe in the potential of Internet Marketing?".

But I paused long enough to ponder whether the question refers to my business, or to the-world-in-general.

If the latter, then for sure, Internet marketing is here, it works. Look at what you have spent in terms of time and money over the past year buying products and services over the internet, reading online newspapers, searching written papers for information and so on.

But the model that works for you (selling downloadable software) has to be different from her model (selling accessories by mail order) and the model that works for me (have brain, will train).

In once case it is eminently possible to set up a web site, have the money sent via PayPal to your credit card account, and spend the rest of your life at Eddy's bar on Grand Cayman knowing that the web hosting service will take the annual payment automatically.

In another case you'd need a shipping-and-handling staff to stay behind.

In my case, it's really all about standing in front of people.

So the question boils down to how much time and money you need to put into your web site and email marketing campaign to get the money your business deserves.

The Montreal Deli does very well solely by word-of-mouth and its regular customers.

I Don't Want to Know About You

I attended an afternoon networking event today, 90 attendees.

I managed to speak with seven of them.

Two of them (first time we met!) informed me about their divorce, and their recent bankruptcy.

One told me about the roof of his convertible being ripped open and his briefcase and laptop stolen.

I'm sorry, but I don't want to know that right now and I don't need to know that right now.

The First Meeting is Too Soon to Learn that You Just Got Divorced

In this blog I can acknowledge that I will feel your pain once we get to know one another, but at a business networking event, the first order of business is BUSINESS.

Tell me about your business dreams, your business problems, not your ex-husband.

Your business problem is not "My wife just took off and cleaned out our bank account".

Your business problem is "Cash flow".

Same impact, and it's going to be the same solution, but without the blood and gore stinking up the place.

Less Sales Pressure, Please!

I used to attend networking events in an effort to sell my products and services.

Today I attend to build relationships that may lead to sales.

The nice thing here is that the pressure-to-make-a-sale is now gone.

• Networking meetings are less stressful.
• My networking goal is lower and is attainable.

My goal is to make three good contacts during the evening.

Ahh!

Podcast: LessSalesPressurePlease.MP3

Let Us Spray NOT!

In the Good Old Days (TM) the promoted idea was to attend a networking event and spray as many business cards as you could. The shotgun approach.

Today we believe that a better approach is to engage in conversation for five or ten minutes, and then exchange cards only when it becomes apparent that there is some level of common interest.

(Cultures vary; In Singapore, cards must be exchanged BEFORE the handshake),

I attended an afternoon networking event today, 90 attendees.

I managed to speak with seven of them.

Of the seven five did not have a business card.

Don't spray business cards indiscriminately.

But Oh Boy! When they ask you for one, you better have one!

Not providing me with your phone number in hard-copy form sends me the message that you don't really want me to contact you anyway.

Coffee, Soup, Sandwich

As I walked up University Avenue from Queen to Dundas street I passed a sign propped up outside a store.

The sign bore bright red lettering on a bright yellow background. It carried these three words: "Coffee, Soup, Sandwich", and it being noon, I was tempted to drop in and get exactly that - a soup and a sandwich and a hot coffee. I kept walking, however, keen to do my banking first.

It struck me that the little store certainly sold more than that, pop, bottled water, chocolate bars, bags of potato crisps, ice cream perhaps ...

But the sign reduced the store's contents to an essential message "You can get something hot to eat here real quickly, and filling too, and more besides!".

But how elegant when reduced to three words.

I must work more on my elevator speech.

My goal is three words.

I'm surely as good as the manager of the sandwich shop.

Skype - an Expert's View

I know more now than I did when I wrote Skype - a Novice's View , and that makes me an expert.

I urge you to try Skype.

There is a quick, single download from Skype's web site , and that, amazingly to me, is about it.

Here's what I learned yesterday:

While I was waiting for a scheduled call from Rick, Michelle called me.

You know the situation: "Oh Hi Michelle. Look, can I call you back in half an hour or so? I'm expecting a call from Rick".

Sure, says Michelle, no problem.

Except for this über-geek I sometimes just don't get it!

So, five minutes later it dawns on me.

Michelle is on Skype!

I call her up on Skype and we chat, comfortable in the knowledge that when my land-line rings I'll have to drop Michelle and deal with Rick.

Skype is like having a second phone line for free!

Another Intriguing Possibility for Barter

From a colleague: I do have a macro question for you and wondered if you would look at it. I can't offer any long term contract from this. Maybe dinner out at The Montreal Deli ?

My Response

Sorry, I am on a successful weight-loss regime, and dinner out at the Deli would set me back a month or so. Got any alternative ideas for compensation?

The Top Line

I need money, cash, to pay the rent.

Dinner at The Montreal Deli won't pay the rent.

This colleague is employed at one of the five major Canadian banks. They have the money, and either they will pay my colleague to struggle with macros/VBA (an expensive exercise when you factor in salary, administrative and facility costs), or they will pay me.

They have the money. They don't occupy several floors of an office at Bay & King. They own several tall buildings at Bay & King.

There are two ways of me getting money; one is by direct payment. My colleague slips me $50 from his personal account, and then shines as a clever-lad in front of his manager. He could think of it as an investment in his future.

The other way is by being paid by someone else within the bank, through landing a contract to deliver training or business intelligence.

Forget about The Montreal Deli . My colleague can get his macro written if he can land me a 30-minute slot to make a presentation of my skills in front of some managers at the bank.

After which he can buy me a sandwich.

Be the Last One to Leave

Attending a ½ day seminar, or an evening networking event-with-a-speaker is a chance to make new contacts.

You never know who will make a good contact (excepting the guy wearing a track suit - probably not a good bet), but since you never know who will be the best contact, it follows that you should make serious contact (a 10-minute conversation) with as many people as possible.

Your last chance to make a contact, and hence your last chance to make a good contact, is to make contact with the second-last person in the room, you being the last.

Leaving any time before the last person means you've missed a chance to make a new contact.

And that contact might be the best contact of the night, the week, the month, the year.

My Networking Goal

If networking events and meetings are not about selling my services and products to attendees, and if they are about building relationships, then my primary goal ought to be establishing relationships between other people.

And in doing so I'll be establishing relationships with both of them.

Farshad runs a home improvements business. Pat sells a leveling tool. They might have something in common.

I've chatted with Pat. Pat has my business card.

I've chatted with Farshad. Farshad has my business card.

Now I take one and introduce him to the other.

Whether or not they strike up a relationship, they'll remember me as trying to add value to their presence here tonight.

And that should be the start of a good relationship.

Notebooks At Seminars

I feel that netbooks/notebooks/laptops should be banned at seminars.

It won't happen, I know.

Cell phones are turned down (except for the dolt; there's one in every crowd), but why should I, who have set aside five hours (2 to travel and 3 to listen) have my attention distracted by the person next to me, or at a table in line with the speaker, tapping away, hand waving, moving ...

And what an insult to the speaker, not to mention a distraction.

And what does it say about the tapper?

• The material is too boring - but I don't have the courage to get up and leave.
• What I do is more important than what I hear - I'm just here for show.
• I am incapable of learning anything new, so I should catch up on my emails.
• I can't hear a thing unless it is in well-formatted text.

Pick One

Not-net-working

At the start of meetings, we go around the room, everyone delivers a 30-second elevator speech.

I find more and more that I avoid the ones who finish off with "So if you need this service, come and see me".

It is a crude filter, but there again, I'm not at the networking meeting to find an accountant or a landscape gardener. That's what the Yellow Pages are for.

I am at the meeting to meet people who are in contact with my target market.

My target market is the big banks, insurance, financial, life sciences companies.

So I keep my ears pricked wide open for those who talk about helping their huge clients.

They will be able to help me, and I will be able to help them.

We will be able to operate with each other, that is, to co-operate.

Handyman Corner

One of the hallmarks of a successful entrepreneur is living by the adages "Never, never, never give up" or "The answer is always YES", or "I can do that!".

You will also have been told that you need a corkboard for your office.

But who wants to spend fifty dollars on a corkboard when funds are low?

Not me!

Think now: a corkboard is brown.

So are cardboard cartons.

A suitably sized carton from the local supermarket, flattened out and trimmed to present the largest face side will do just fine.

Trust me

Screw it to the office door with two small wood screws - that's all it will take, and you're in business.

Buy your own map pins; don't steal them from the local church's bulletin board.

The Business Edge

Business Edge is a decent little journal, comes out twice a month. I picked up a copy from a downtown office last week, liked what I saw, and decided to check their web site this morning.

Good. They have archives, so I can access back-issues.

I decide to search for a story in the current print edition, but crashed the system.

Being a techie I am always keen to let other techies know of problems before their management gets to hear about it. A quick phone call, and I discovered that the new web site went live today. I am, of course, the first caller and I bring bad tidings.

A quick email with an attachment, and they are on their own.

Sort of

I asked them to email me back when it was fixed, and I'd retest it for free.

It seems to me that no matter what your business is, no matter what your business is, no matter what your business is, if you have a web site, you'd be well-advised to be associated with a destructive-tester.

What is a Destructive-Tester?

You need a friendly colleague with a technical mind, the more experienced the better. Someone who has many memories of things that have tripped up other applications in the past.

When you make a significant change to your web site, you email the destructive tester with a simple message "Free lunch at The Montreal Deli if you can crash my site before 9 p.m. tonight".

If they don't find a problem, that doesn't mean that there's no problem, it just means that they haven't found a problem.

But if they do find a problem, you'll both be very happy.

I promise.

You Can't Predict the Future?

You can, you know.

I'm not a gambling man, but I'd bet good cash that the sun will rise tomorrow morning, perhaps behind a cloud bank, but day light will come.

I bet the tide will come in and go out at least once in the next 24 hours (unless you are on the shores of the Mediterranean!).

I'm even prepared to bet that I'll wake up tomorrow morning; even at my age that's a safe bet.

I bet I won't get a check in the mail tomorrow morning.

I bet that I'll receive a phone call from someone I've never spoken to before.

I bet I'll get a new client sometime in the next 6 months.

All of these are predictions about the future, and they are all pretty sure bets.

There are some things I can't predict - my exact bank balance next June 28th (Unless today is the 27th).

I can't predict the name of the next stranger who phones me, nor the name of the person I'll sit next to at the next ½ day seminar.

I can predict that person will previously be unknown to me.

Don't be afraid to make predictions. There will be revolutionary new technology announced next week, next month, next year.

Get used to making predictions/bets on sure things.

And don't be afraid to gamble - a little.

If You Don't Breathe ...

• If you don't breathe, you die.
• If you don't eat, you die.
• If you don't drink water, you die.
• If you don't laugh, you may as well be dead.

You don't have to be breathing in every second of your life; sometimes you breathe out, sometimes you hold your breath.

You don't have to eat every second of your life. Three or four times a day is good. I've no objection to fasting or dieting, within reason.

You don't, in fact you can't drink water non-stop, but you need enough water to digest what you eat, and some extra for what you perspire when you respire (Nice One, Chris!)

You better not spend the day laughing, either, if you are serious about making enough money to eat and drink, and breathe safely in your home.

But I think if you can't find something to laugh at, at least once per day, then at the very least, you haven't found yourself.

And if you can't find yourself, how do you think other people will find you?

So You Want to Be a {Your Career Here}?

Some thoughts on a career in Project Management:

Assuming one is trained in Project Management, to the extent of having passed a training course, what then?

Set aside 15 minutes each day to search "Monster Jobs" and "Workopolis" for current positions in your chosen geographic region.

The Job Market is Churning Today Like Never Before

Organizations downsize, people move, so there will be many applications for each Project Management job.

The successful candidate will have much work experience to put on the resume; a recent trainee will have lots of work experience, but no work experience in Project Management.

The best candidate for the job is probably a 30-40 year old who can demonstrate hands-on experience managing projects.

Put yourself in the shoes of the person (or the computer) screening job applications.

There will be dozens of applications for each position.

Some applications will come from 30-40 year-olds who can demonstrate hands-on experience managing projects.

Some applications will come from 55 year-olds who have graduated from a Project Management course.

Who would you hire?

No, forget that question; try this one instead:

Who would you call in for an interview?

Once you separate yourself from yourself ("Well, I'd interview ME! because I feel that I am the best candidate"; "I deserve the job/I want to change my career" etc.) it's tough to justify spending an hour, or even just a half-hour of a manager's time on what is essentially a student level applicant for a management position.

I consider myself to be quite accomplished in project management.

Over the past 20 years for a wide variety of clients (in terms of sizes, industries, geographic area and range, revenue and so on) I have walked in the door, and conducted everything from the initial chat with the CEO down to floor-interview with "the workers", researched software, in most cases developed it (a project to be managed in its own right), designed and implemented training, provided technical support.

My work is based on 40 years experience in sound principles of quantifying, recording, analyzing, keeping track of issues; the lot.

And yet I know that I'll not land a position in Project Management because I've never been hired as a "Project Manager". There are many individuals in organizations who would testify to my project management skills, but not one of them can say "Chris was Project Manager from 1997 to 2003" or similar.

And that is what an employer is looking for. Something called "solid track-record"

So the sad truth is that for many of us, it has become near-impossible to switch careers mid-stream, because employers are looking to hire someone who has NOT changed horses in mid-stream.

I do not say that you can't land that job.

I do say that the chances are slim.

What Does this Mean?

It means that you should continue to hope.

You should continue to apply for jobs in Project Management, but since your chances of employment are greater somewhere else, you should not assign 100% of your time to searching for a Project Management job.

If your chances are only 10% compared (by age, work experience) to other applicants, then you would be throwing away 90% of your resources.

Instead, recognize the percentages and assign 10% of your time to a very select group of jobs where you think you have a greater-than-normal chance of succeeding, and invest the other 90% of your resources looking at alternative sources of income or revenue.

No matter how much I long to be a titled Project Manager for the Shell Oil company, I'm going to be in receipt of cash flow faster if I spend 90% of my time applying for positions as Training Consultant.

And next week's rent and groceries will come from "VBA Programmer".

To put this in terms of dollars, if you have been laid off, downsized, let go, or have accumulated a nest egg in your current position, however many dollars you thought you needed to get that plum career position, however many months you had figured would be enough to move on, multiply that figure by ten.

Then Think, Very Carefully

1/10 1 2 3 4 5 of 100

"I'm afraid I'll miss some of the job announcements" ("sales opportunities", "contacts" etc.)

Don't be afraid.

Be reconciled.

There are about one hundred people in this room. I have established contact with 5 of them, as in, "indulged in conversation".

That's 5%.

I wish I could get 10%, but then I'd probably have trouble maintaining contact with them for a few weeks.

Somewhere out there is your ideal job/contact/client, but you won't know until you stop looking.

The bad news is that you can look every day until the day you die, and still not know.

The good news is that you can go with what you've got (5 contacts) and make the best of them until it's time to go harvest a few more contacts.

It's a bit like fishing: catch 5 fish from the sea, and it's more than you and your family can eat today; tomorrow catch another five.

If you caught a months supply today, 95% of them would be putrid before you could eat them.

The analogy stinks, I know, but you get the idea.

Best Use of Your Time at Tax Time

For most of us, this is the time of year when we sigh heavily and drag that sorry mass of paper on to the desk and look forward to tomorrow.

Receipts, Invoices, Cheque stubs, Movie Tickets (what are THEY doing in here?!!).

I Love Looking At Invoices

I group them, monthly columns, clients in rows, to make a little table in a spreadsheet, totals everywhere, and the grand total for the 12 months.

Not as grand as last year.

Hmm.

This year I'm doing myself a favor, and printing out that summary, retiring to the couch with a large mug of cappuccino, and writing twenty words on each client.

The twenty words: How did I get this business this year?

• Referral from a colleague?
• Referral from another client?
• Advertisement on CraigsList?
• Direct mailing?
• Staying-in-touch by email?

For each client, no matter how small the job.

What follows seems obvious.

1. "Thank You" card to the referees
2. A determination to put more effort into whatever it was that drove the business my way over the past 12 months.

This isn't a lifetime commitment.

It's more about feeling good, thanking others, and taking a well-earned mid-morning break from taxes.

In Praise of Paper

As the number (and quality!) of scheduled networking events and meetings rise, and as the number (and quality) of individual face-to-face meetings rise, I am faced with the possibility of missing an appointment, or of getting downtown without an address or phone number.

The Solution is Simple

For each confirmation of a scheduled event, I print out a single sheet of paper with the confirmation - title, name, address, phone number, date and time, and the scheduled program, names of speakers - the lot!

For each confirmation of a scheduled face-to-face meeting, I print out a single sheet of paper with the confirmation - title, name, address, phone number, date and time, and the contents of the email (which had better be some sort of agenda!) - the lot!

These sheets are pinned to a cork-board with the earliest meeting on the top.

One of my morning tasks is to take the day's sheets from the top of the corkboard pile and place them in my letter-size wallet.

On my way downtown I have a sheet of paper, a token, for each meeting, and on it I can record my notes unobtrusively.

Of course, an empty corkboard sends me a useful message!

So, Just How Shy Are You?

(1) Twice a day, traveling to and from work by public transit, or walking to the corner store, ask a total stranger for directions (i). It won't matter if next week you accidentally ask the same person. Chances are they will recognize you and ask what you are up to. Tell them; they really do want to know!

I have used this successfully in cities where I have an hour or so to kill.

In Pittsburgh one spring morning, just like today, I wandered around downtown asking for directions to the main railway station. I had a delightful time, met a dozen or so nice Pittsburgians, some of whom insisted that they walk me to the station. Of course, from there I asked a different stranger for directions back to the restaurant.

(2) Twice a day, walking along the sidewalk, say "Good Morning!" to a stranger coming towards you in the opposite direction. (ii)

(3) In the Food Court, or as you are greeted into the diner/restaurant, you will be asked by the waitress or cashier "How are you today". Just for once, don't respond "Good, Thanks". Instead say "Hungry and Thirsty", but smile and look them squarely in the eye as you say it. (iii)

(4) In the supermarket, or when paying for the gasoline you have just pumped, or at the ticket wicket, greet the cashier with "Hello". No more, no less. At the end of the transaction, say "Thank You". (iv)

So now you think I'm going to tell you that these four exercises will cure you of your shyness.

Wrong. Utterly Wrong.

I am one of the shyest people you will ever meet, but by practicing these and other mini-dramas I come across as confident, just long enough to start a conversation.

If you've ever met me at a networking meeting, you'll know that what I say is true.

Thanks to Li Yin for the Inspiration of this Post.

(i) You know that I know that you know how to get to work and how to get home. The other person DOESN'T know! All you need to do is ask a complete stranger "Excuse me, is this the way to the northbound trains?", or "Does this train stop near Queen Street".

(ii) It doesn't matter whether they respond. And you just keep walking. You're not trying to pick up a date. You are walking, and saying "Good Morning", no more, no less.

(iii) Once you get used to the warmth that comes from this exchange, you can go for the Black belt: "Hungry, Thirsty, Tired, Cold, Broke, Underpaid and Overworked".

(iv) It is of vital importance that you look the cashier squarely in the eye while you issue these greetings. The cashier is a human, not a machine.

How to Win At Networking

From The Toronto Star , "Why winning is a mental construct":

Peterson thinks that, when parents tell their kids "It's not who wins by how you play the game," they actually mean, "If you play the game properly, people will invite you to play a lot of different games."

I read the whole article.

The two hours we spend at a networking meeting is not about making a sale - not in the dollars-for-service sense, at any rate.

The only sale we hope to make is selling ourselves.

I reckon that if I establish three solid (meaningful, with well-defined future value) contacts at a two-hour event I've done well.

Jay discovered he lost his job during the break in the event; Jay is a valuable contact because (a) he knows people in his industry but now feels less constrained about sharing them with me and (b) Jay is hungry for work, either permanent of part-time, and I can help him there. In short, we are now in a position to help each other, which is a good foundation for a relationship.

Phillip hands me a card with his private details on it, not his corporate (Scotiabank) details. There is a hidden message there; Philip is thinking of jumping ship. See "Jay" above".

Conan and I chatted before the meeting AND I took his coat by mistake at the end; if that's not the start of a relationship (wearing some other guy's coat!) I don't know what is.

The game of networking is NOT to spray as many business cards as possible, It is to meet your goal of good new contacts.

How many is reasonable? I believe that a ten-minute conversation is required to start to get to know someone. If you have 20 minutes before the speaker, 20 minutes during the break, and 20 minutes after the speaker, 3 contacts is really your maximum.

If on your return to the home office you hold 3 cards, each one representing a solid chance at chatting by phone or meeting for coffee within the next month, then you've won the game.

Now let's play again ....

There Are No Corporate Decisions

Again, someone lamenting Bad corporate decisions that, in this case, cause harm to the environment. (Sometimes it is causing Harm To Babies, sometimes Harm To Animals, sometimes Harm To Me).

There are no corporate decisions.

Corporations (and governments) can not make decisions.

Only individuals can make decisions.

Individuals can sway the minds of other individuals within the corporation, and if those other individuals are the governing body of the corporation, then they can change the course of the corporation.

But when a worker tosses good furniture into a 10-metre dumpster, that worker has made a decision – to obey the boss because the worker needs to keep their job. And the boss made a decision – that the office desk should be tossed.

Attacking corporations is futile

Changing the way individuals think shows great promise.

Networking - Sit with Those Who Sit Alone - part 2

In Sit with Those Who Sit Alone I suggested that there is value in chatting with someone who appears to have no-one else to chat with.

There's risk involved (" What Will I Risk Today? "), and that is good.

I really do walk up and start a conversation.

I have nothing to lose but my abject loneliness and shyness.

And I have everything to gain.

Out of my experience a few weeks ago there has developed a relationship with someone close to (but not yet at!) age, employed as "tech support for a lawyer software".

Keen on Networking

Waddyaknow? Someone to meet with at meetings, a friendly face, and although I wasn't looking for this when I walked up to chat, I have stumbled on someone who might be able to help me.

I develop applications that process documents (see for example www.Indxr.ca ), and am always grateful when a friendly colleague might be in a position to beta-test my latest little gem.

That is, by walking up to a stranger I have set up for myself many current and potential benefits for my business, and made a friend, too.

The alternative, remember, was to sit in silence nursing my cold coffee, staring into space, envious of others.

What Will I Risk Today?

I've heard it said that unless I am putting myself at risk, I'm not reaching far enough.

"Aim for the stars; even if you miss, you'll land on the moon".

It doesn't have to be a multi-million dollar risk, this daily risk.

But I must stretch myself.

It can be as little as leaving a voice-mail for someone I've been trying to reach by phone for two weeks. Or four months.

Leaving a voice-mail is risky: What if they don't call me back (fear of rejection).

If they don't call me back, they don't want to stay in touch with me; strike them off my list; there'll be no business there anyway.

The alternative is that two weeks drags on into four months, and by then they truly will have forgotten about me and be a dead contact anyway.

Networking Events As Diners

It's no secret that my favorite watering-hole is The Montreal Deli . The food is good quality, the service friendly and familiar, the prices low, and it is frequented by repeat-business-locals, always a good sign.

I know of, and eat at, other places around the GTA and in Western New York State. I've eaten at some bad ones, and I return to eat at the good ones.

Just like you

You go, time and time again to YOUR good diners or cafes, and you check out new ones from time to time. You'll maybe go to a place twice, and if its standard fails you twice, you won't return, but if the food is over halfway-decent, the price is right, and the staff friendly, courteous and discreet, you go back.

And that is how you determine which of the hundreds of networking events you'll frequent, just like diners.

You go to all the networking events in your price range, once a month, or once a fortnight, or once a week.

There are no good events, no bad events, but there are events that will suit you, and that will not suit your purposes.

Me?

Some groups are too technical even for me.

Some groups are socially more entertaining than a night at the movies.

Some are thronged with the kinds of people I need to meet to help me to grow.

And just like diners - if you attend an event and it doesn't seem good enough, try it a second time. Maybe you happened along on the one bad night they had all year.

Based on a Non-Fact is Based on a Lie

When I challenge a statement and receive the reply "Oh, I don't know", I figure that the statement was not based on fact, since the issuer cannot bring forth a fact to justify the statement.

A non-fact is a supposition, a fabrication, a fantasy, not provably true, and hence probably not true.

In other words, a lie.

A statement based on a non-fact is a statement based on a lie.

And a decision based on (a statement based on) a lie, is always going to be a bad decision.

If only because there's nowhere to fall back.

("Management Measures")

When Money Becomes an Obstacle

It shouldn't I know; it should be welcome, and it is.

I decided to add another organization to my list of speaking opportunities; telephoned etc. On September 9th at their request I emailed off a précis of half a dozen topics. On November 5th we managed to meet by arrangement. On January 25th I delivered the talk.

So far, what many of you will see as a "typical lag" when dealing with certain types of organization.

Here's the catch: At the Nov 5th meeting they said they would pay me to deliver; up until that time I was prepared to do it "pro bono", for the glory of having my name in lights, and to gain another name to hang on my "speakers" page.

I collected the P.O. from my mailbox on my way out the door Friday 5th Feb, too late to phone their office and ask why the P.O. appears to be for $200 instead of the $100 they had announced. That conversation will take place Monday morning.

Payment terms are 30 days, which means I might get a cheque for $100 by 10th March.

I'll do the calculation for you: 182 days a.k.a. half a year.

Presumably any future talks can be arranged without the initial 2 months preliminary discussions, so that it will be a 4-month order/payment cycle.

So why do I care? I was prepared to do it for free anyway, right? Right!

But a good maxim is BUSINESS IS THE EXCHANGE OF TWO PIECES OF PAPER, ONE OF WHICH MUST BE A CHEQUE.

And waiting four months to get paid means I have become a bank, which I do not want to be.

Without the payment I'd be happy to volunteer every fortnight; with the payment scheme it has become business, and a very poor business at that.

For six months labor I've got my name in lights just once (the talk was very well received), so it seems to me that without a regular speaking schedule, I'm not getting the exposure I had hoped for, and I'm certainly not getting paid enough to force my way forwards.

So. Right? Double Your Impact.

It was agony

For close on 60 minutes, the speaker prefaced every other statement with "So, ...", and terminated at least 95% of the statements with "Right?".

I know this because I wrote "Right?" on a scrap of paper and passed it to the manager sitting to my right, and five minutes later he passed back the sheet marked thus:

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

Turned out we weren't the only two distracted by the repetitive "Right?" at the end of each sentence, twenty times per slide.

Make you wonder what all 100 of us might have gotten out of the presentation had the trailing word be removed, Right?

Actually, it gave me an idea for a service I could offer, right?

Take one of those small digital recorders to each seminar; record 5 minutes of the speaker, then make it available for download to the speaker, or make it available through a speaking coach, to the speaker, right?

Any speaker who hears themselves saying "Right?" every five seconds must appreciate that they need help, right?

Why Reacting to the Market Might Be Good

An article in the Telegraph "Why cowboy Clint Eastwood always won his shoot-outs" runs counter to some of the marketing advice I have read.

(But it does corroborate my reasoning in Clear Thinking ), so I'm happy.

If I understand the Telegraph article correctly, it tells me that I should wait until the other guy (The Prospect) telegraphs (sorry!) his intention by consciously drawing his gun; my built-in reaction to that act will be much faster.

It this true when I am face-to-face with a prospect?

Absolutely!

When the prospect ambushes me with a problem, often enough I respond automatically with "Yes", or "I can do that!", when I have not really had time to analyze the request in any detail, and when terms like "TSX-V", "Working Capital" and "Market Cap" are being bandied about. Huh?

My reaction often enough comes as a surprise to the prospect who, rocking back on his heels, needs time to recover, and during that (literally) split-second, my mind has come up with a couple of good points that help me to start a conversation. After that, the hook is in.

Can this be truly how it works?

I guess so

Prospects don't usually ask us about a specific problem unless they have already established a position where they suspect that we might be able to do business.

If I stop a suit on the street and say "I can help you", I'll be dismissed as a panhandler, but by the time I've said "Hello" at a networking event and exchanged pleasantries, the suit will have formed an opinion of me.

React!

Most times it's the best tactic.

How Many Sales Did You Make Today?

Seriously.

I bet you answered "None". (If you read this at 7 a.m., I bet you made no sales yesterday)

Most of us don't make a sale each day, unless we run a flower shop or a sandwich shop.

So perhaps you think you are a lousy salesman because you didn't make sale this week?

Think again

Every time you change the way someone thinks, you've made a sale.

When you pass on a good idea and the other person nods and says "Gee, I never thought of it like that", you've made a sale.

• Every time you say "Let's grab a coffee", and they do, you've made a sale.
• Every time you say "Thanks!" and receive a smile in return, you've made a sale.
• Every time you stand in front of a group and speak, you've made a sale.
• Every time someone reads one of my blog articles, I've made a sale.

When Networking is Bad for Me

So off I was to a large networking event - about 300 people packed into Estonia House for International Networking Day. I felt uncomfortable there, and left during the lunch break.

Some of the speakers were very good, although they got 20 minutes max; I can't fault the organizers for moving things along.

I made a couple of potentially good contacts, but not for any immediate earth-shattering project.

On the way home it dawned on me that some networking events, such as AIC , seem very fruitful, while some seem barren.

I think that the barren events are those that attract, in the main, people whose business is with one-man firms.

How to cope with a fellow who runs an office-cleaning service in the northern end of Etobicoke? He may have the contract to clean a few local branches of The Royal Bank, but chances are strong that he doesn't have the ear of the president, and yes, perhaps I could hop the stones to the president, but somehow I doubt it.

I come across as somewhat arrogant and pompous I know, but I suspect that there may be a rocky road between me and the president if I go via the candy-basket lady or the bottled-water guy.

I come away from some of the non-targeted networking events that while I might make a profitable contact, chances are slim compared to those at an AIC , CTN or STC meeting.

Avoiding the "Ouch!" of emails

I know you've done it too:

• Clicking Send and forgetting to attach that file.
• Clicking Send and forgetting first to save the attached file.
• Clicking Send and forgetting to check that the attached file is the one you mean to send?
• Clicking Send and forgetting to spell-check the attached file.

Here's the solution:

Don't click Send.

Simple, isn't it?

So obvious; if you don't Send, you can't Send an incomplete email.

If, like me, you have set your regular mail checker to check for mail once every 2 hours(*) then it will be a simple additive addictive step to issue, or Send, your outgoing mail at that time.

Here's how:

From now on, each time you click Send, say to yourself "Ouch!", and resolve to use Save (or Close) next time.

By the end of today, you'll be saving instead of sending.

And no one will know the difference.

Let's be honest: How many of your emails are truly time-critical(*)?

I thought so.

Let's continue being honest: How many times a month do you say "Ouch!" just after you've sent an email to someone you'd like to impress?

I thought so.

(*) When I am working in "immediate mode" to resolve a client problem, I set my intervals to be 5 minutes, or just leave my mail programs running and check mail as soon as the client says on the phone "It's on its way".

Social Not-working

Some of us have not grasped the bare essentials.

Here is a public web page for a professional who is actively seeking work, and an experienced guy at that, too.

Could be me.

But isn't!

Legacy COBOL systems - that's at least 25 years experience. Probably spent most of that time in a suit, dealing with suits.

And yet doesn't have the time to upload a sober shirt-and-tie head shot to the profile page.

Instead we get a facsimile of a 17-year old ear-plugged zombie welded-to-cell-phone phreak.

(shakes head). I don't know; I really don't know.

"Paint it Blue" is a Good Thing

Consultants love to gather in small groups and swap war-stories about clients, and the most popular one is the one about the client - we all have the same client apparently - who swears that they will be happy "if only you could paint it blue, and put a wheel on the left-hand side".

It doesn't matter what it is, but unless it is painted blue and has that wheel added, it will be a total failure.

Which is why good consultants write good acceptance tests and make sure that while they can volunteer to paint it blue, and put a wheel on the left-hand side, they can't be forced to paint it blue, and put a wheel on the left-hand side - a change to the specifications - without the client recognizing the extra cost involved.

But think again - by asking that it be painted blue, and a wheel be put on the left-hand side, the client is agreeing that the job is almost complete. This is the consultant's cue to ask "And will this mean that the project is complete?", and get sign-off on the job.

By asking that it be painted blue, and a wheel be put on the left-hand side, the client is stating that they remain comfortable with the project, and it is indeed shaping up to be the solution they perceived three months ago.

In short, the client is still engaged in the project.

The alternative is too horrible to contemplate, let alone to write about ...

YouTube Hits

There is much that I do not understand. I'm getting used to it.

About 4 months ago (" Aiming for viral ") I made a short Camtasia video of Indxr, uploaded it to YouTube, and set the video in one of my Google Searches.

A few people on the blogs looked at it, I watched it a dozen times (marveling at my own ingenuity!), and there it sat.

For two-and-a-half months, each morning as part of my Daily Dose, I have observed it sitting there with "57 hits".

Today it shows "110 hits"; double the volume in 24 hours.

Who is watching it?

More importantly, what triggered this burst of activity?

Am I about to retire a rich man?

Who knows!

Sales Pitch

At the close of the seminar, I was addressed with the comment "That was a thinly disguised sales pitch", and I agreed.

I agreed - not to keep the peace, but because I firmly believe that every spoken or written dialogue is a series of sales pitches.

Think about it

When you relate something - anything - to someone - anyone - you do so because you want them to believe it.

• "They just called our number; come on, let's go!".
• "I'm not eating there; they have lousy service".
• "Hi! My name is Chris, can we talk?".

Practically every sentence that leaves your mouth is a sales pitch.

Practically every paragraph I write is a sales pitch. This one certainly is.

If you spoke to anyone today, even if it's just to tell the cat "You have plenty of dry food", you've made a sales pitch.

If the cat believes you, you've made a sale.

Don't be afraid

You're really very good at sales.

Skype - a Novice's View

I make no apologies for this sounding like an infomercial, those 30-minute things they screen on TV on Sunday afternoons, or Monday mornings. I forget which; it's been so long ...

It IS information. I make no money by pushing Skype.

Skype burst into my consciousness about 4 years ago; a speaker at a networking meeting gave a talk on Skype. I seem to recall it involved a box which the other party (in South Australia) needed to have.

Soon the sales world jumped on Skype, and I began getting garbled telemarketing calls, garbled because THEY were using Skype/internet, and transmission from them to me was patchy. I had a landline, so from me to them sounded just fine.

Maybe they didn't know how bad they sounded, until I told them that I wouldn't do business with anyone who was too cheap to make a proper phone call.

Then two days ago a colleague 50 miles north from me (and hence long-distance charges) urged me to try it.

I'm Glad I Did

And I in turn urge you to try it.

There is a quick, single download from Skype's web site, and that, amazingly to me, is about it.

You get to key in your real name and your GMail address, a nickname or "handle", and you're in business.

Your correspondent knows how to find you and will initiate the first call; or you can search Skype's directory (I found a slew of relatives from my first marriage!) and start the call.

There is a share-screen function which I've used once, allowing me to watch what Michelle is doing on her computer, but rendering me impotent to stop her clicking where she shouldn't, unless I scream loudly enough and soon enough!

What It's Good for

IMHO it's good for long-distance chatty calls between friends and close colleagues.

I'd still not use it for business calls, except with peers. The client in NJ who writes cheques (to me) for thousands of dollars deserves my land line quality.

And any friend or colleague who tells me that transmission is iffy will get an immediate response from me that we switch to landlines.

Networking - Sit with Those Who Sit Alone

Attending a ½ day seminar, or an evening networking event-with-a-speaker is a chance to make new contacts.

When everyone seems to be engaged in chatting to everyone else (there are diagrams that show open and closed groups), look for the person sitting alone.

Chances are strong that they are shyer than you - that's why they are sitting alone and you are actively considering approaching them.

(Remember: to a three-year old child, a five-year old is an expert).

If no one is alone, then gravitate to the door and greet the next person that walks in.

You'll catch them off guard, and if nothing else they'll assume you are a "greeter" and they'll start to chat with you.

Caught Short - Again!

It's happened again. My schedule of visits is screwed up.

Monday was a public holiday in this province - not nationwide - so it didn't show up in my diary/planner. I had a busy week of visits last week, and so reckoned on using Monday morning to set up visits for Tuesday through Friday, with most offices closed, I could do no calls on Monday.

Tuesday morning everyone will be busy catching up on voice-mails and emails, and it is a short week, so chances of getting a meeting are lowered.

The time to set up meetings for this week was last week, or even the week before.

Setting up meetings on the Monday of the week is doomed.

I have to make a longer lead time.

I can use Tuesday through Friday to set up meetings for the next week, or the week after that.

How to Measure the Value of a Seminar

This item comes courtesy of a half-day seminar I attended this morning. To give you an idea of the full impact, I'll be prefacing all 13 items (!) based on today's notes with "VNT3" which is short for "Volume, notes, times, three", which is itself the topic of this item!

I'll explain.

You've been to a ½-day seminar. Registration 8:30 to 9:00; grab a coffee, a pastry, then try to shake hands with someone. Chat for ten minutes, swap cards, then sit down. Break at 10:30, more coffee, chat, swap, sit. At the end if you're lucky, chat, swap, got home.

Maybe you make notes. I do:



Relax, you don't need to read them, just to see that I have filled a page in my own curious shorthand and even more curious handwriting style.

So what?

The notes on the left are based, largely, on what was said during the presentation; notes on the right are ideas that popped into my head while the speaker carried on.

Both sides, left and right, are triggered by events that took place during those 3 hours in the ballroom. Add in one hour's travel each way, and we're looking at a five-hour investment of my time (" Management Measures ").

My notes, both columns, probably represent about 15 hours worth of stuff for me to wade through - not that I'll do it all -

"make a UW.DLL" is probably ten hours work, and I should just add it to a WhatFAQ list for an application.

"1/10 1 2 3 4 5 of 100" is a topic for a future blog item as are "can't predict the future?" and "be the last one to leave" and quite a few other notes.

"Rick: house sales" suggests that I put forward a demo Excel workbook showing Rick how we can predict the selling price of a house based on established prices of other houses.

And so on.

My point: You can measure the value of a seminar by comparing the cost (5 hours) to the number of hours of inspiration you derive from it, and that inspiration won't necessarily be related directly to the delivered material.

The "1 2 3 4 5"? I was counting up the number of Good Contacts I'd made at the seminar. Coffees and/or lunch down the road.

Marketing 101, 102, 103 and 104

From Michel Neray's " Essential message "

"No one will ever buy from you if they have never heard of you"

"That’s why the most successful among us are constantly marketing — writing articles, giving speeches, attending networking events, sending newsletters… being ‘out there’.".

Here's your homework exercise, each week for the next three months:

Once a week, no exceptions, do one of the following:

• Write an article
• Give a speech
• Attend a networking event
• Send a newsletter

Don't tell me you can't do that, because if you truly think that you can't do one of those things each week, then clearly you're not serious about marketing.

Write an article

This is perhaps the easiest thing to do. Start a blog (go to www.blogspot.com It’s free) and pick the best thing that happened to you this week, then write 200 words about it. Post it. You can come back and edit it later, for ever.

Give a speech

This is perhaps the easiest thing to do, but is perhaps the longest-lead-time. Before you can give a speech, you need to get invited to give a speech at a networking event, and that can't happen until you are known at networking events, so obviously ...

Attend a networking event

This is the easiest to implement, since all you have to do is show up, pay your $10 (sometimes), and start chatting with people (you aren't there to sell your product or service, you're there to get known to your peers).

Don't know where to go? No excuses. Check out AIC then email me to be invited as my guest. Honest!

Send a newsletter

This is the easiest thing to do once you've started Blogging. Your monthly email newsletter can be as simple as the best three or four items from your monthly blog, since you're Blogging on a daily basis by now. Of course, you will NEVER send unsolicited mail. Get caught once and you're on the blacklist forever (and no way of knowing it, or correcting it by email!). Ask if you can email two issues. And don't be offended by rejection. Some people just aren't into reading emailed newsletters.

It's What Friends Are for ...

Late yesterday, the phone rings. My colleague sounds awful, but who is going to tell her? Voice all husky and scratchy, and the words sluggish. I know she's not drunk. She is stretched to breaking-point with a problem, and it is the new laptop, the operating system, the mail program, the getting-it-started, the whole thing.

And now of course she is behind in her business - the business of phoning contacts, setting up meetings, emailing details.

"Stressed" doesn't describe it. I can FEEL it over the phone lines.

This morning it dawned on me, the nature of the real problem.

She started as a solo entrepreneur six months ago, after leaving an established position in a large airline company.

Six months ...

... It seems is too short a time to learn a basic truth for all solo workers - as soon as you hit an obstacle - phone someone.

Don't leave it for 10 days.

Doesn't matter who you call - they don't even have to have a clue about the problem, let alone the possible solution - just call someone and let them know that today, things are tough.

What?

You think that I don't have days like that?

I call my canoeing buddy Fred, and HE doesn't have a clue about VBA. Or I call Jim, and he has even less of a clue. Or David. Or Julia. Or Cheryl.

Not a long call; just long enough to make contact with another solo who, like me, has bad days.

Hanging on to it for 10 days doesn't do you any good, and FWIW it soaks up lots of my time when you DO call after 10 days of accumulated worry.

It's a tough lesson to learn when we are alone.

There is no IT department to resolve computer problems, no manager to suggest new avenues of approach, no co-worker who might have experienced a similar situation.

Reach out and network with a buddy.

SEO on the Cheap

A call last night from a colleague, looking at a job to help boost rankings on a web site. Maybe bring in a Copywriter? Maybe DIY? What do I think?

I think that no one truly knows what makes search engines tick. I know that 37 people will come up with 37 different ideas.

I suspect that Google ignores keyword tags

I believe that Google runs for the benefit of searchers, and that Google doesn't have it in for me, the web page writer; is neither for me not against me. Just couldn't care less.

Only if my pages are perceived as having use to the readers will I rank high.

Therefore "Real Estate Toronto" isn't likely to do much for me; nor is "Excel Training Toronto".

My best bet is to ask Google what keywords are being used, and to build web pages that employ the serach terms people use.

You will notice in the previous paragraph a slip of my fingers while typing. I make that mistake five times a day - I'm not kidding. Some people can't spell milenium. Anyone who searches for a bokkeeper needs help, and that help could come from you - if you include "bokkeeper" in your web page.

So, What to Do?

"Management Measures", and if you aren't measuring, then you aren't managing.

Establish a dollar figure budget with the client: $250 for you up front, up to $300 if a copywriter is brought in. (If your client doesn't have the cash to play the game, walk away from the game, politely).

Work with the client and write the web page; do the best you, as readers (not writers) think you can. Upload the web page and monitor it with Google Search.

When it appears (you know that Google has indexed it!), take the page and Google Search results to a Copywriter and ask them if, given the (measured) facts they think they can help you.

Negotiate a base fee for work, say $200 for a new page, and sweeten the pot with an additional $20 for every rung higher than YOU have reached. Everyone should be happy with a fee/commission on results system. (Dollar amounts may vary; don't stick to my $200/$20).

Since neither of you know what really works, it is a gamble.

But since you have put measurements in place, it's a Controlled Gamble.

You are not in danger of pouring money down the tube. You will stick within your budget.

Mailing Forms

I mean those on web pages where, to contact the web site owner, you first click on a "Contact" button, and then have to navigate a series of text boxes providing your name, email address and telephone number as well as typing in the text.

It's not typing in the text that bothers me - that's the creative act - it's the account details.

If the "contact" button would just send me straight into my mail client (Mozilla Thunderbird since you ask), my personal details are right there in my signature, at the foot of every email I send. My street address too!

Computers are good at doing boring and repetitive things; making me do something that my computer already does automatically goes counter to my calling.

On top of that, I just resent an extra hurdle/barrier between my question and your answer.

Not to mention the perceived attitude of "We'll answer your questions if you are prepared to do some leg work up front".

There are at least twenty other web-based services or products just like yours.

Or mine.

Surprise Value

From "Unweaving The Rainbow" (Richard Dawkins ):

"Information, in the technical sense, is surprise value, measured as the inverse of expected probability.".

To build an image of me as a person-worth-listening-to I must focus on providing listeners (and readers) with something-they-didn't-know.

• Every email should have Real News Value.
• Every presentation should be chock-a-block with novelty.

I suppose that my style of delivery - I move about a lot, and come up with entertaining analogies - helps differentiate me from your average clutch-the-podium speaker.

I hope that my daily blogs do something to make a change in the way you approach business.

If they don't, then you are probably not reading this anyway ....

In Praise of Unsafe Research

From "Nature's Numbers" (by Ian Stewart):

... goal-oriented research can only deliver so much. You have to be able to see the goal in order to aim at it. But anything you can see, your competitors can see too. The pursuance of safe research will impoverish us all.

In marketing I think this is called a "niche" - find an area undeveloped by others, and exploit it.

I look back on various applications I've written, and without a doubt, the most exciting ones have arisen from an original thought to "play" with computing technology.

I can make money when someone approaches me with a problem.

But I make the most money when I can respond with "I have a unique and cost-effective solution to that problem", and reach to take some of my inventory, stockpiled through R&D, off the shelf.

How about you?

No wait! There's more!

There is nothing wrong with goal-oriented research as a way of achieving specific feasible goals. But the dreamers and mavericks must be allowed some free rein too.

I'm proud to sign myself "Maverick", of Toronto.

It's "No" for Sure, Unless You Ask

My friend and colleague Cathy Nesbitt of Cathy's Crawly Composters won the coveted Green Business Award from the Greater Innisfil Chamber Of Commerce.

Again.

To her the honor, glory and kudos.

To me the pleasure of watching her walk to the podium and accept.

Also a jolly good meal in good company at the dinner.

Cathy is a media phenomenon, and I watched her in action, after the awards, with a host of a TV breakfast show.

Within minutes she had parlayed a chance encounter into another series of appearances on TV.

If you don't know Cathy, it all looks so smooth, subtle, natural.

But I know Cathy as a self-assured, downright and forward individual, and she has been that way since our first contact (by telephone) eight or more years ago.(*)

I love gleaning bits of stuff from her fertile brain.

The title of this post is yet-another quote, tossed so glibly, but demonstrated oh so well by her ability to boost her business year after year.

"It's "No" for Sure, Unless You Ask ".

So true.

Ask.

The worst they can do is turn you down.

P.S. Visit Cathy's web site and ask her about the award!

(*) I had sent an email to eight worm suppliers, and Cathy was the only one to respond, and she responded within 60 minutes with a telephone call.

Entrepreneurs, Engineers, Scientists and Mathematicians

From "Nature's Numbers" (by Ian Stewart):

The entrepreneur's instinct is to exploit the natural world. The engineer's is to change it. The scientist's is to try to understand it - to work out what's really going on. The mathematician's instinct is to structure that process of understanding by seeking generalities that cut across obvious sub-divisions.

What/which am I?

Today I consider myself an entrepreneur, but for years my slogan has been "Changing the Way People Think". My university subjects were mainly mathematics and my degree is a Bachelor of Science.

I use the scientific method in my daily business and personal life.

Who doesn't use mathematics? (Although I use perhaps more than most people, a heritage of Mr. Brian Feld, who changed my life).

I know that I change the way people think - you're reading this, aren't you!

What are you?

Time Out!

As a consultant you manage projects.

You manage the project that is built around your promise to deliver a service to your client.

You are happily responsible for scheduling time and resources to achieve the stated goal in the stated time.

You know who to work extra hard to achieve the goal to keep your client happy.

How Come You Don't Take the Weekend Off?

Could it be that you are incapable of managing two days of your own life?

• How would your clients perceive your inability to manage your own life?
• How would they feel about your ability to manage their business's life?

Emergencies - why they don't exist

I am asked from time to time why I don't carry a cell-phone.

The answer is simple: My clients don't have emergencies.

I don't plan for them to have emergencies; I plan for them NOT to have emergencies.

I plan for them to be confident in coping with minor hiccups, and I respond to phone calls and emails as soon as I return to my office.

Of course, not having call-display helps; when the phone rings, I pick up the phone, so most would-be-emergencies are nipped in the bud.

Take a good look at your clients.

Have you made them strong and self-sufficient, or are you one of those parents who is reluctant to let "Little Johnny" leave home until he is over 40 years old?

Good parentage builds children who are economically viable by age 20.

Good service providers build clients who are self-supporting in all manner of day-to-day events.

Marketing to the Children

For once, not a diatribe against TV or McDonalds.

I spoke today with someone setting up a hand-holding service for seniors. Literally, sit with you in the doctor's office, tenaciously ask for clarification, comprehension of medication and, as needed, literally hold your hand as a genuine comfort in times of stress.

(I could use that service once a week!)

Early efforts to establish a market by contacting health-care centers have failed ("Oh, we already provide that" - but they don't really).

It seemed to me that such a personal service can grow only by word of mouth.

That means establishing contact with ???

Not with the seniors; they perhaps feel quite capable, or perhaps don't like to shed their independence. In some cases perhaps they are just too senile to make a decision.

I figured that it was the 60-year old children of the senior who would make the decision. But how to get the word out to them?

That brought us to churches, getting one's name mentioned by the local minister.

And that brought us to establishing a program of 60-minute seminars, hosted by a church geographically central to a group of churches; each church inviting members to attend.

Twenty minutes at the podium, 40 minutes taking questions.

Of course, one needs a professional business card, a brochure, a web page and a serious email address , but then, that will be pre-established.

Estimates vary but:

	area	pop	pop/sq km
Tor	630	2,480,000	3,937
GTA	7,125	7,000,000	982

If we take the area of Toronto as 630 square kilometers, and imagine a set of squares 2 kilometers on a side, a church in the center of each square would have a catchment area of about 1.5 Km radius.

There must be 630/4= about 150 loci in Toronto.

150 seminars to present, each seminar with a catchment of 4*4,000=16,000 people, of whom perhaps ten percent are in the market for hand-holding services.

And so we are Off To The Races ....

What's The Point?

Sure, it's a great solution to a marketing problem, but more than that:

It's a great example of what happens when one entrepreneur chats with another entrepreneur.

Two heads are better than one.

Who Owns Your Calendar?

I heard this today: "The people I want to contact are those who own their calendar".

I had to think about it for a few seconds.

It is true.

It is true of Presidents, CEOs, CFOs and CIOs.

It is true of many "VPs of ...".

It is sometimes, but rarely, true of mid-level managers.

It is never true of end-users.

The people I want to contact are sometimes known as "decision-makers", sometimes "cheque-signers", but they always are entrusted with management of their own time.

That means that they are empowered to spend 15 minutes with me, if they decide it is worthwhile.

Or to let me know they choose not to spend time with me.

Who Else?

It is true of all solo entrepreneurs