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by Dave Ferguson

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8 Quick Reputation Building Tips – Part 2

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This is the second part of last week’s article where we talked about the old cliché, “Under-Promise and Over-Deliver”. It might be cliché, but it is still relevant to having a good reputation.

Here are four more points on how I coach clients on building a good reputation:

5.  Be creative and deliver more. Go in with the attitude that what the customer or client asked for is just the beginning of the relationship. This creates an opportunity for both of you to evolve – and who knows, you may even start helping each other grow your respective businesses.

6.  Keep your customers informed if you’ve learned something in the process that is totally unrelated to what they’ve hired you for. It’s good business and can actually be worth a lot to them…and you.

7.  Deliver something extra without asking them if they need it. There is no promise here, just delivery!

8.  Create your own style and deliver your product and/or services uniquely.

Today, there are many people desperately trying to grow their business through what I call desperate measures. They will put down the competitors, cut their price to the slimmest margins, and quite frankly, lie to prospective customers. If you stay clear of these mistakes and move forward with the techniques I’ve described today, you and your business will be much better in the long run. If you build a reputation with this foundation, you will be able to sustain the toughest of storms and competition.

Take, for example, the story of Daniel Ruettiger, better known as “Rudy”.  You may have seen the movie Rudy about his life (and if you haven’t, you should).  His story is about overcoming obstacles, making mistakes, and getting back up – time after time after time. Even when your reputation gets damaged because of mistakes made, you push on and overcome. Take the time to watch the video below, and the next time you think you can’t overcome the obstacle facing you, just remember Rudy.

It takes a megadose of tenacity and a team of coaches, mentors, and accountability partners, but you CAN do more than you realize.

 

I welcome your comments.  Please do me a favor and leave a comment below.  Thank you.


8 Quick Reputation Building Tips

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We have all heard the old cliché, “Under-Promise and Over-Deliver”. It’s easier said than done, isn’t it? Today, in these challenging economic times, many people tend to promise prospective customers more so they perceive the value as better than what a competitor can offer. Those same people also enjoy over-promising to make themselves feel more valued. Do they not think these actions will come back to haunt them? The overall point I’d like to make today is that we cannot build a reputation for ourselves or our company by what we say we can do. We build good reputations by delivering what our customers need.

Assuming you agree with me, and as our economy continues to transform to one where people are continuously being downsized, it is important for entrepreneurs to build and keep a good reputation.

Here’s how I coach clients on doing exactly that:

1.  First of all, don’t try to seduce your prospects by over-promising goods or services to them. When you do this, you open yourself up for failure. You actually should try to reduce their expectations and give yourself some freedom to adjust where necessary. When you under-promise, you have the opportunity to continuously impress your client. When you over-promise, you can potentially stress yourself out and look like a liar.

2.  Keep your word, but don’t make it your motivation to deliver. If you are one of those people that are always in the “promise mode”, slow down and consider some other options. Now, I’m all for giving and keeping my word, but I can’t guarantee results unless my client is fully engaged and actually capable of following through on what we’ve jointly developed.

3.  Don’t let “busyness” drive your work style. Many people try to show people how important they are by how busy they are. Manage your workload and use effective time management practices, but don’t be an expert in “busyness”.

4.  Deliver to your customers because you have the passion to do so. Don’t do it just because you said you would. If you don’t enjoy what you’re doing, find something to do that you can enjoy.

(There are four more tips…check in next week for the final portion of this article…)

Achieve More as a Leader

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Are you getting the results you had hoped to achieve? Are you hitting your goals? More importantly, is your team hitting its goals? Either you are moving forward along the right path or you have lost direction along the way. Even if you are hitting your goals, there is always another mountain to climb, right? I mean, you’re a successful leader, and you are looking to make other leaders successful, too, right? If you’re looking for more achievement on a consistent basis, I believe you can achieve just that with a few simple changes.

1. Set goals
Your mind is good at finding solutions. You can help yourself a lot by doing a good job of planning and prioritizing your objectives. The simplest way to do this is to write down your goals and include deadlines for each of them. Read them once a day, and discuss them with your team at least once a week.

2. Be organized
Yes, I’m going to talk about making lists and time-blocking. You need something to guide your day, right? I have found that I do much better by making and reviewing my lists at night. Before I go to bed each night, along with packing my clothes for the gym, and making sure my briefcase is packed, I make a list with all the things I want to accomplish the next day. I also keep a pad and pen on my nightstand, in case I get an idea during the night.

3. Maintain the Right Attitude
People who are happy and successful usually have a positive attitude. That’s what allows them to move forward with confidence. This is a state of mind, not an act. Minor issues or challenges don’t bother them because they have a belief system that things will work out well in the end. They also keep the big picture in mind, so minor challenges are just that…minor.

4. Peer-Up
It is no secret that you will often achieve about as much as the people with whom you spend the most time. If you want to be successful, spend time as frequently as you can with people who are more successful than you. Successful people look at many things differently than those who are less successful. Integrating some of these ideas into your own thinking will likely bring you more successes of your own. Secondly, you’ll be exposed to new opportunities. High-achieving people frequently have all kinds of projects going on. You never know when they might need a helping hand. You may also get to connect with their peer group, who are likely to be very successful as well.

5. Help Others
Offering your services and being helpful to others will attract like-minded people into your life. It shows that you are someone who cares and wants to be significant in the lives of others. Doors and opportunities will open for you, but your best reward is in knowing that you are capable of making a difference in the life of someone else.

6. Make time for fun
You should never find yourself so busy or so focused on your journey to success that you sacrifice those you love to it or for it! Make and schedule time to do the things you love to do, with those you love to be with.

These 6 simple ideas can bring you much success, if you choose to use them. You know, being successful is really no more challenging than being unsuccessful. Both require specific actions and attitudes applied consistently over a period of time.

Enjoy the ride!

 

Equip Your Leadership with Effective Organization Skills

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As a leader, it’s important to have a well-organized approach to your work and your personal life. Taking time to organize at work and at home will help ensure you have the energy and focus you need to lead effectively. Here are some action-items YOU can take to ensure you are effectively managing all the demands on your time.

• Your time: Let’s start with your calendar. Take some time to review everything that currently requires your time. Cancel all unnecessary appointments and prioritize the rest. Delegate the clutter (tasks you don’t need to complete personally). I recommend you use a time blocking system, whereby you block out time for certain activities and make no exceptions during those times. I work with clients through this process often and the results are great. A good rule to follow: If the tasks don’t point towards your personal or business vision, why complete them?

• Your physical space: To maximize daily productivity, it’s important that your workspace be organized. This includes your paper files, mail inbox, bookshelves, storage, and anything else in your physical workspace. Place the items you need to complete daily activities within reaching distance of your desk. Take some time to purge paper files you don’t need to keep for legal or documentation reasons. Sort through mail, magazines, and other documents. You might even benefit from re-arranging your office so things flow better. This is something I personally struggle with and recently worked to get under control.

• Your Computer: After your physical space is arranged, it’s time to clean up your electronic life. This means your e-mail, your computer desktop, electronic documents, and even your contact list. How you choose to store your electronic files is up to you, but it’s important that your electronic space is organized in a way that’s easy to use.

• Your Mobile Devices: Whether you’re a Blackberry fanatic or an iPhone lover, chances are, you have some type of portable communication device strapped to you at all times. So, take some time to organize all the files, contacts, and applications on your mobile device. Don’t bog down your portable device with a bunch of photos and large files you rarely use. Also, take the time to update your phone message, and clean out your voice mailbox.

• Your habits: We are all one big habit! Take an organizational approach to your habits, both good and bad ones. Whether or not you realize it, all your habits have a big impact on your work and your personal life. When coaching clients, one-on-one, we work on these a lot. Making you more effective is always the goal. If there are bad habits you’d like to break, examine them one at a time, and create a plan for how you’re going to tackle each one. If there are good habits you want to cement, take the same approach. Then, equip yourself with the tools and accountability partner (like a coach). Adopt the habits you need to have a more fulfilled, balanced life. Everything else, get rid of.

• Your personal life: Yes, we look at this, too! Set aside some time to examine your personal time. How effective are you? Find someone objective (like a coach) to help you with this. Make sure your schedule also allows ample time for family, friends, community involvement, and hobbies.

• Your priorities: Once you have taken the time to organize all the above areas, consider how your priorities align with how you spend your time, at work and at home. Ask yourself the difficult questions. Realize that your life is made up of a limited amount of time. Each activity you invest time into requires a certain opportunity cost. What are the low priority items costing you?

In today’s world, the lines between work and home are getting increasingly blurry. I’m happy to tell you that YOU can regain control of your time by taking these steps. Going through this process will not only give you peace of mind in uncertain times, it also will equip you with the clarity and focus your work and your team deserve. Take a good, hard look at your priorities, and reorganize your time as needed to create and experience the best possible life. What are you waiting for? Get started today and have a great week!

 

Get in the “Effectiveness” Groove

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effectivness

As a leader, it’s important to have a well-organized and disciplined approach to your work and your personal life. Taking time to organize and prioritize at work and at home will help ensure you have the energy and focus you need to lead effectively. Here are some action-items I use with my clients to assist them in improving their overall effectiveness:

• Your time: Let’s start with your calendar. Whether it’s electronic or paper, take some time to review everything that currently requires your time. I recommend you use a time blocking system, whereby you block out time for certain required activities and make no exceptions during those times. Delegate the clutter (tasks you don’t need to complete personally). I work with clients through this process often and the results are great. A good rule to follow: If the tasks don’t point towards you personal or business vision, delegate or dump them!

• Your physical space: To maximize daily productivity, it’s important that your workspace be organized. This includes your paper files, mail inbox, bookshelves, storage, and anything else in your physical workspace. Place the items you need to complete daily activities within reaching distance of your desk. Take some time to purge paper files you don’t need to keep for legal or documentation reasons. Sort through mail, magazines, and other documents. You might even benefit from re-arranging your office so things flow better. This is something I personally struggle with and recently worked to get under control. Get rid of the clutter!

 

• Your Computer: After your physical space is arranged, it’s time to clean up your electronic life. This means your e-mail, your computer desktop, electronic documents, and even your contact list. How you choose to store your electronic files is up to you, but it’s important that your electronic space is organized in a way that’s easy to use.

 

• Your Mobile Devices: Whether you’re a Blackberry fanatic, Droid addict, or an iPhone lover, chances are, you have some type of portable communication device strapped to you at all times. So, take some time to organize all the files, contacts, and applications on your mobile device. Don’t bog down your portable device with a bunch of photos and large files you rarely use. Also, take the time to update your phone message, and clean out your voice mailbox. Don’t let these devices get you off your time-blocking schedule.

 

• Your habits: We are all one big habit! Take an organizational approach to your habits, both good and bad ones. Whether or not you realize it, all your habits have a big impact on your work and your personal life. When coaching clients, one-on-one, we work on these a lot. Making you more effective is always the goal. If there are bad habits you’d like to break, examine them one at a time, and create a plan for how you’re going to tackle each one. If there are good habits you want to cement, take the same approach. Then, equip yourself with the tools and accountability partner (like a coach). Adopt the habits you need to have a more fulfilled, balanced life. Everything else, get rid of.

 

• Your personal life: Yes, we look at these too! Set aside some time to examine your personal time. How effective are you? Find someone objective (like a coach) to help you with this. Make sure your schedule also allows ample time for family, friends, community involvement, and hobbies.

 

• Your priorities: Once you have taken the time to organize all the above areas, consider how your priorities align with how you spend your time, at work and at home. Ask yourself the difficult questions. Realize that your life is made up of a limited amount of time. Each activity you invest time into requires a certain opportunity cost. What are the low priority items costing you?

 

In today’s world, the lines between work and home are getting increasingly blurry. I’m happy to tell you that YOU can regain control of your time by taking these steps that have proven to increase overall effectiveness. Going through this process will not only give you peace of mind in uncertain times, it also will equip you with the clarity and focus your work and your team deserve. Take a good, hard look at your priorities, and reorganize your time as needed to create and experience the best possible life. Call me if I can help. Have a great week!

 

Dave Ferguson
Dave@AskCoachDave.com

http://askcoachdave.com

 

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