Archives for 2020

How to Get Your Meetings Back on Track

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It’s likely that everyone has been part of a meeting where practically nothing gets resolved. If you make big decisions for a company, that shouldn’t be the norm.

It’s important to find ways to get your meetings back to how they’re supposed to be—productive and informative.

Here are just a few ways you can get back on track with your meetings.

Create an Agenda

It’s important that you write down a clear, solid agenda before your meeting. It’s far too easy to go in with a broad idea of what you want to accomplish and then end up getting off track or circling around the same ideas for far too long. The meeting will end and you’ll realize “Wait, what did we actually decide on?”

“It is no question that every productive meeting absolutely needs a solid agenda ahead of time. Everyone attending needs to know that the meeting has a purpose and, to keep it productive, the meeting needs to stick to that purpose—get rid of the chance for stray topics to get you off track.” – Cameron Herold

Start your meeting with a clear purpose that’s also been written down in the agenda for extra measures. You should also create a bulleted list of action items when you send the agenda to your team. They need to be clear on what is being accomplished by this meeting, too.

Invite People Who NEED to Attend

It’s easy to invite more people than you need to a meeting “just in case.” Don’t do that. Think about who you’re inviting and if they really need to be there. With people attending that aren’t vital, you’ll find it’s a lot easier to lose track of what needs to be done.

“Google caps attendees at 10 and Amazon has a “two pizza” rule (i.e., never have a meeting where you can’t feed the whole group with two pies). It all serves one purpose: only invite essential personnel, and you’ll find things stay on track.” – Forbes

By inviting people that aren’t essential, not only are you risking the meeting’s productivity but you’re also just wasting that employee’s time. Everyone attending the meeting should have a specific purpose if you want to get your meetings back on track.

Be a Leader with Purpose

Getting meetings on track and keeping them on track requires a strong leader. As a leader, you need to lead every meeting with purpose and confidence. Just being confident about what needs to get done does increase the chances of it actually getting done.

“Great meetings happen when you have great leaders. It’s not always easy to be the one ensuring things are moving along, but someone has to be accountable for running meetings that don’t suck.” – Forbes

As the leader, you set the tone for the meeting. It is ultimately up to your skills and leadership abilities as to if things are going to get done or not.

The leader is required to keep things on track, even when conversations are starting to stray. You want to be liked by your employees and coworkers and that sometimes means being tempted to join them in straying from the topic of the meeting. It’s up to you to be the one who steers the conversation back, even if that means being the bad guy.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in December 2009 and had been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness. 

The Importance of Regular Check-ins with Your Team

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Some managers rarely check in with their employees. If things are running smoothly and everyone is doing their job then they might think “What’s the point?”

Even the perfect team needs regular check-ins and here is why.

Avoiding Miscommunication

One miscommunication can make a mess of even the most smoothly running team. By checking in with your team you can avoid those miscommunications, or fix them before they truly mess something up. If you don’t check-in regularly, you might not notice a small miscommunication until an entire project has been done the wrong way!

“When the employees are checking on a regular basis, the[y] can compare notes and make sure that the employees understand exactly what they are supposed to be doing on the job. If the employees are not checking in, there can be some misunderstandings or misinterpretations about directions on the job.” – Thrive Global

Miscommunications are tiny things that can turn into messes. Taking the time to quickly check-in on your employees is a whole lot easier and less time consuming than trying to backtrack from a miscommunication that’s been left long enough to cause chaos.

Providing a Safe Space for Concerns

It’s a lot more comfortable for an employee to air their concerns when you’re seeking them, versus if they had to come build up the nerve to find you and tell you unprompted. During a check-in, you can sit down and ask them outright for feedback and concern. That’ll make them feel a lot more comfortable being honest—which also means you need to be willing to hear and act upon those concerns as well!

“Employees should feel like their one-on-one are a safe place to speak freely. Whether they want to know more about [the] direction of the business or their own personal performance, they should never be afraid to ask a question or share concerns.” – Entrepreneur

Without those regular check-ins, there are some employees that you might never hear from. If you can do something that will actively encourage your employees to be open and honest, then you should do it!

It Keeps Projects Moving

Check-ins tell your employees that they’ve got your attention, which means they can’t be slacking off. It increases their self awareness. Not only that, but you get the insight into the way your employees work which will help you know which kind of projects are best for them.

Here are things from the COO Alliance blog that indicate what check-ins facilitate to encourage your employees to continue moving forward:

  • Let team members refocus lost attention
  • Encourage understanding through good communication
  • Give[s] everyone a voice and lets them know their input matters
  • Build trust and lets everyone feel seen and heard
  • Reminds us we are human and need connection in order to do good work

The reassurance that a manager is taking notice does wonders for an employees drive to get the job done and get it done well.

Remember, when you’re checking in, don’t do it aimlessly. Make sure you know what you want to talk about beforehand and have expectations of what you want to hear from your employees about their progress, concerns, and goals. Ask them questions and keep them talking. You want your employees to feel comfortable talking to you.

Most important of all, keep them regular. Setting specific times and days for check-ins will ensure that you get them done and, by having them scheduled, employees can prepare for them so that it doesn’t interrupt their workflow. Regular, structured check-ins can do wonders for your company.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Types of Meetings You Should be Having

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A strong company knows what meetings they need, to be the most productive. They know the most effective kinds of meetings to do just that and exactly when and how regularly to have them. Companies that know what they’re doing don’t have meetings that everyone hates just because they think they need to have meetings, they have meetings that work smoothly to achieve objectives.

Here are the types of meetings a strong company should be having.

Quarterly and Yearly Retreats

It is essential for teams—especially leadership teams—to have retreats away from the distractions of the workplace. These retreats, although seemingly unimportant, actually have the essential job of developing team skills and unity. Not only that, but you can learn a lot about a person’s abilities once they’re taken outside of the repetitive, day-to-day workplace life.

“To put it simply, you learn to know a person. You can better identify with them. You may even bond over the fact that you have the same interests as them. A hard skill can reveal a bunch of other soft skills, so it’s always useful to find out more about a person.” – Huffpost

Quarterly retreats provide the opportunity to restart. You are taken outside of the normal work life and can reassess projects from a distance. A yearly retreat is about developing skills, team building, and planning for the year to come.

Quarterly Board of Advisors Meetings

Your quarterly Board of Advisors meeting should always be prepared well in advance. This includes sending your Board any material they need to read beforehand. The majority of the meeting should be related to two core goals that your leadership team is focused on. These should be goals that are for the next year or so, not just the next quarter.

“This [the goal] could be a big strategic initiative for which you need the Board’s advice, their help in troubleshooting, or their challenging questions.” – Cameron Herold

The Board asks the tough questions that you need to hear. Although frustrating, these will strengthen your team and your business in the end.

Monthly Financial Meetings

You want the entire company to always be on the same page, but when it comes to finances that is an absolute must. That’s why you invite everyone to this meeting.

Slack lists three things that it’s absolutely vital for everyone at your financial meeting to be very clear on. Those are:

  • How much money you’re going to spend
  • What the money is being spent on
  • What kind of return you can expect on your investment

Financial meetings really emphasize the fact that everyone is on the same team, that the company’s profits and losses are theirs, too. That also means being very, very transparent.

Weekly Strategy Meetings

It’s important for a company to always make time for team strategy. It’s not the kind of meeting where decisions get made, but the kind of meeting where you brainstorm for the future.

“You don’t have to end a Weekly Strategy Meeting with a resolution or put specific plans into action. This meeting is meant to be a time for the team to sit together, prognosticate the future, and throw stuff on the walls to see what sticks.” – Cameron Herold

Without taking the time for strategizing, you and your team will instead grow reactionary. Brainstorming builds future strength.

Weekly Goal-Setting and Review Meetings

These are meetings that take place one-on-one between a leader and a person who directly reports to them. It’s important to take this time so that the leader and that person can set goals for the week and review the previous week. With that, they can improve and learn.

“In these One-on-One meetings, the leader’s role is to provide a balance on three things: direction, development, and support.” – Cameron Herold

By having a reliable, weekly meeting with a leader, employees feel a sense of security and stability. Knowing a leader is going to listen to you can be very empowering.

All companies have meetings, but not all companies know which ones they need and why. Truly effective companies educate themselves about the productivity of meetings. They know how important it is to do them right.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

How To Get Your Clients To Trust You And Your Ideas

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You never want to have a client that does not trust you. A lack of trust completely ruins a project. Without trust, it’s not easy, and sometimes not even possible, to get a client on board with your ideas. All projects, big or small, need to have everyone on board.

Here are some of the most effective ways to get clients to trust you and your ideas.

Explain the “Why?”

Clients need to know why you’re doing something, not just that you’re doing it. It’s a simple thing, but a vital one. You may be super experienced and have been doing something for so long that it’s just second nature. You barely think about the why, but your client doesn’t have that same experience.

“You can’t expect someone to do something if you don’t tell them WHY they should do it.” – Yes and Yes

Explaining why strengthens your relationship with the client through trust. You’re showing that you care that they understand what exactly you’re doing, which makes them feel as if they can trust you not to undermine them. It also establishes your expertise. By explaining why something is done the way you’re doing it, the client knows that you understand what you’re doing inside and out.

Know Who You’re Talking To

When planning out something such as a proposal, of course, you need to script it so you’re clear and to the point, but you also need to give yourself the freedom to change that script depending on who you’re talking to.

“Shape your story for the audience. Strategize how you’ll sell your initiative to different groups of colleagues and higher-ups. “Think about the language you’ll use for each of your audiences,” says [Susan] Ashford.” – Harvard Business Review

By shaping what you have to say to the individual you are speaking to, your client will be a lot more likely to both understand what you have to say and trust what you have to say.

Be Passionate About It

Passion is the number one thing that will get people to listen. People want to work with someone who is genuinely passionate about what they’re doing, and it’s an easy quality to see.

“People will want to work with you if they can see your passion for the job. The types of people that you want on your team are those who know that passion drives success.” – Cameron Herold

Passion makes you persistent. A client can trust that a passionate person will get the job done. It’s a quality that drives success and pushes the client to be passionate about what you’re doing as well.

Acknowledge Criticism

There is often outside criticism for any idea in business. It can be tempting to ignore it, but no matter what you do to brush it aside, the client is still going to hear it. If you don’t acknowledge it, this plants a seed of doubt in the client that will inevitable fester.

“But conflict shakes people up and gets them to pay attention in a novel way. This gives you the opportunity to say why your idea really is valuable and explain it in a way that wins over hearts and minds – securing their commitment to implementing the solution.” – John Kotter on Forbes

By acknowledging the criticism, you get the chance to assure your client why it isn’t valid or, maybe you can learn something from it. Either way, acknowledging the criticism is the only way to stop it from negatively impacting your client’s trust.

Trust is one of the most vital things in any relationship, especially one’s with your clients. Trust gets the people you need fully on board. Without a client’s trust it’s nearly impossible for the project to be successful.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Ways to Boost Morale During Crunch Time

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It’s essential to keep your employees motivated especially during crunch time. The best way to do this is by boosting morale. This leads to increased productivity, efficiency, and a better quality of work. This is because positive morale leads employees to have the confidence to do their best.

Here are some of the most effective ways to boost morale during one of the most difficult times⁠—crunch time.

Employee Recognition

The power of even the smallest amount of recognition does a lot to boost morale. When times are stressful, a small reward or bit of praise does a lot to give an employee the push they need to continue.

“Two methods of recognition that will motivate your sales team are incentives (like gift cards) and acknowledgment or praise. When your team does well, talk about it. Give compliments and thank them. Make sure they know that you genuinely care that they did well. It’s a simple gesture with a lot of power.” – COO Alliance

Everyone likes to be recognized for their hard work. It’s very motivating and motivation is a very powerful tool during crunch time.

Employee Feedback

When an employee feels like their troubles and stresses are being heard it makes it a lot easier for them to push through when times are difficult. When they know that, yes, things are difficult, but there is someone out there who is listening to them and wants to make things better, it feels very encouraging.

“Getting employee feedback is a great way to boost employee morale. When you show employees that you’re listening, they will feel heard and are far more likely to be motivated. But it isn’t enough just to collect feedback, you need to act on it as well.” – Connecteam

Even if it’s not feedback you can implement, thank the employee for it. Recognize that you are truly listening and always appreciate suggestions to make things better.

A Corporate Retreat

Obviously, it would be a terrible idea to go on a corporate retreat during crunch time, but having corporate retreats as part of your team-building exercises will help improve employee and employer relations. This will benefit you when crunch time does come around.

“The quality of relationships between the employer and employees, and among the employees themselves have a lot of impact on employee morale and how well they deliver. […] Company Retreats are one of the most essential tools used to cement relations among workers and between the employees and the employer.” – COO Alliance

Teamwork helps a company thrive, especially when things are getting intense around crunch time. With improved employee relations between each other and their employer, it helps with stronger, more effective communication especially through harder workdays.

Encourage Real Lunch Breaks

During crunch time a lunch break is sometimes the last thing people think about. It can seem so unimportant when there are piles of work to do and time is ticking by. No matter how much there is to do, it is essential for morale that both employees and employers make time for a lunch break.

“Research suggests that only one in five people take lunch breaks and that white-collar workers are least likely to step away from their desks for a break. Management professor Kimberly Elsbach told NPR that “staying inside, in the same location, is really detrimental to creative thinking.” – Inc.

During crunch time, it can be useful to bring lunch to your employees. When they’re busy, it can seem like a waste of time to go out and get something, but if lunch is brought to them it’s a lot harder to say no. All it takes is a breakroom, a table, and a sandwich platter.

There is always going to be a lot of work to do, but you can’t ignore employee morale for it. Boosting morale is the thing that’s going to get you and your employees through crunch time and get those piles of work done well.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Meetings Suck – How to Make Meetings More Productive

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There is a good chance you’ve walked out of a meeting—or many—thinking “This was a waste of time.” Lots of negative opinions regarding meetings tend to be about them being boring, uninspired, or simply just required events in the company but not at all useful.

I’m here to tell you that meetings don’t have to be that way.

Done right, meetings can drive your company forward; you just have to know how to make them productive.

Prepare an Agenda

It is no question that every productive meeting absolutely needs a solid agenda ahead of time. Everyone attending needs to know that the meeting has a purpose and, to keep it productive, the meeting needs to stick to that purpose—get rid of the chance for stray topics to get you off track.

“Purpose is integral to you, your business, and your employees. Without purpose, you and your team can easily become lost, bored, or dissatisfied.” – Cameron Herold

With an agenda, everyone can come prepared. If the entire team is very clear on what they’ll be discussing then no one comes in with nothing to contribute.

Time is Everything

Punctuality is not just a virtue, it’s about respect. When everyone is respectful of each other’s time meetings run a lot better. If someone decides to be late, the frustration the other people feel about that can impact the quality of their contribution to the meeting.

“Because time is money, and money is, therefore, someone’s time, you don’t want to waste their time or their money by being late. And you definitely don’t want to waste either of yours.” – Cameron Herold interviewed by Forbes

Meetings take the time you give to them, so limit that time. Maybe cut it in half if the usual meetings tend to feel slow, and you can increase productivity immensely.

Be Exclusive

If someone isn’t vital to the meeting then simply don’t let them attend.

“Everyone needs to be heard during a meeting. If you don’t need to hear from someone in the meeting, and that person silently sits in his or her chair, then that person didn’t need to be there.” – Cameron Herold

To foster strong communication everyone should have something to say. They should feel as if it’s important that they are there.

Know Your Workweek

It’s important to know your workweek inside and out—when your busiest times are, when your lulls are, etc—which also means you need to know your meeting schedule inside and out.

“Block your calendar to maximize your most productive time of day and save meetings for the lulls.” – Medium

It’s also just as useful to decide on specific days of the week to have meetings so that everyone knows which days they will get to work uninterrupted and which days they’ll have to work around a meeting. It’s very useful to have a routine around meetings so that people can get into a productive rhythm around them.

Experiment with a Change in Location

Sometimes plain conference rooms can contribute to the boring and uninspired stigma of meetings. If you’re meeting with a smaller group of people consider bringing that meeting somewhere else. A change in location can often trigger a new sense of productivity.

“When a small group is gathering, I like to take the meeting out of the conference room. Sometimes we will take a walk or find a place outside to sit. To me, a conference room — even a cool-looking one — puts people in “classroom” mode.” – Entrepreneur

When things grow dull, a change in location can be the exact thing needed to spark ideas.

Whether the meeting is big or small, there is always room for more productivity. Meetings are unavoidable so when they happen it’s important to make them matter.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

The Effects of a Toxic Work Culture – What’s Holding Your Team Back

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A toxic work culture affects every aspect of your company—you, your employees, the work, the product, everything. Toxicity in the workplace spreads at disastrous speeds so you want to be able to catch it before it even starts. That means being able to identify the effects and their causes early on.

Here are some of the worst effects of a toxic work culture and how they’re holding your team back.

The Line Between Managers and Employees

A toxic work culture creates a kind of line between managers and employees. It puts each into their own bubble with very little interaction which is deadly to effective communication in the workplace.

“When they [managers and employees] do interact, it’s a one-way communication in which the manager tells the underling what to do. There’s no other give-and-take conversation or collaboration between management and everybody else.” – Forbes

This lack of give-and-take makes real communication between leaders and their teams hard to come by. Without proper communication, it won’t be long until your team falls apart.

A Lack of Transparency

A lack of transparency is another effect of a toxic work culture. If people are never open about how they’re feeling—especially when they’re unhappy—they tend to feel they need to fake being chirpy all the time. This quickly leads to burnout and disdain for the job.

“Be Authentic – It drives me nuts when people put on a game face, or a professional voice, etc. I’ve always found that when people are REALLY themselves, they resonate with everyone around them. My energy vibrates when I’m being me. I become a magnet, and I know it.” – Cameron Herold

Being open about your feelings creates an environment suited for people to lift each other up and spread happiness—essentially creating a thriving workplace.

There is No Community

A toxic work culture can ruin any sense of community between your team—whereas comradery is an essential component of a productive team.  It’s how things get done effectively and it keeps people feeling like they belong and matter in their job.

“The final sign of a toxic workplace is that there is no community. The few people who laugh and joke with one another get suspicious sideways looks from people who are too afraid to let their hair down. Outspoken employees and non-traditional thinkers don’t last long. They get disgusted and leave or they are invited to leave when their style clashes with the status quo.” – Forbes

A lack of community makes way for a cut-throat work environment which is very harmful to productivity over time. When there is a sense of community in the workplace it benefits everyone.

No One Goes the Extra Mile

Everyone begins to do the bare minimum to get the job done when they’re in a toxic work culture. People don’t feel engaged or needed so they don’t want to do more than what’s required.

“There’s a big difference in output among employees going the extra mile versus those just doing the minimum to get by, or in other words, “covering their asses.” This gap is felt at every level, from customer service to partnerships with key suppliers, and all the way up to senior organizational leaders.” – Inc

If no one is willing to go the extra mile then that puts your company at a standstill. To be successful you need a team that’s willing to push for more.

A toxic work culture can be detrimental to your company’s success, so it’s beneficial to you and your company to cultivate a healthy work culture.

The Harvard Business Review has a list of the characteristics of a healthy and positive workplace so that you know what to strive for:

  • Caring for, being interested in, and maintaining responsibility for colleagues as friends.
  • Providing support for one another, including offering kindness and compassion when others are struggling.
  • Avoiding blame and forgive mistakes.
  • Inspiring one another at work.
  • Emphasizing the meaningfulness of the work.
  • Treating one another with respect, gratitude, trust, and integrity.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Lesser-Known Traits of a Good Leader

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We all know the common traits of a good leader⁠—honesty, confidence, good communication skills, to name a few⁠—but what about the ones we don’t hear about as often?

Some of the lesser-known traits of a good leader are the most vital. Here are some of the most important ones to look out for.

Show an Entrepreneurial Mindset as a Kid

A lot of kids don’t know what they want to be when they grow up, but most leaders will show signs of an entrepreneurial mindset from a young age.

“Whether it is starting a lemonade stand in the neighborhood, or selling chocolate bars door to door, entrepreneurs usually show interest in making money at an early age.” – Cameron Herold

Something as seemingly simple as opening up a lemonade stand takes natural leadership to get it going well.

Display True Empathy 

Empathy is one of the most important traits of a good leader. When you’re able to understand other people’s feelings you are better equipped to deal with problems throughout the workplace.

“Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. This is incredibly important in any workplace environment and helps you to manage conflict and relationships. However, it’s become even more important as businesses compete to better understand the needs of their customers.” – Inc

Empathy is a trait that provides a leader with the ability to know what their employees want and need. A good leader uses this to help the company function smoothly.

Are Risk-Takers, Not Risk-Seekers

A good leader will take calculated risks, but they won’t seek them out when they don’t have to.

“Entrepreneurs have long been associated with being big risk-takers — throwing caution to the wind in pursuit of wealth, or rolling the dice against the odds. The truth is that most entrepreneurs are more comfortable with risk than most people, but that doesn’t make them risk-seekers. They’re optimists and realists who are willing to face risk and mitigate it. It’s what they do.” – Entrepreneur

Risk comes with the territory of being a good leader. Knowing that sometimes risks don’t work out, but not letting that stop them or their team, is what good leaders recognize. They remain optimistic in the face of risk, which sets an example and builds confidence in the people around them.

Have a Vision for the Future

A good leader knows, in detail, where they’re going from the beginning, such as with a Vivid Vision. They must be confident with this vision and share it with the team so that everyone is on the same page.

“Exceptional leaders have the ability to look into their company’s future and make clear, concrete goals that will benefit their organization. They are confident and optimistic, inspiring enthusiasm in those around them.” – Forbes

A good leader has a plan but is also ready to face challenges that come up along the way. They know that things are always changing and things that worked out in the past might not work this time, but that doesn’t stop them.

Being a good leader takes many traits, some common and some you might not even have considered. The lesser-known ones might be traits you have without realizing it, or they might be something you have to work on. Either way, they’re all vital traits to make a good leader.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

How to Live More Authentically

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Authenticity is a vital quality in many brands, leaders, companies, and employees. It helps build strong relationships and trust—whether it’s between you and your team or your brand and your customers.

In today’s world, authenticity is what many customers look for in a brand so it’s important that you bring it into your business—and it begins with you. What some people do not realize is that authenticity isn’t something that you can fake—it seems like common sense but you’d be surprised.

Here is how to start living a more authentic life.

Observe Yourself Objectively

It’s important to take the time to notice how you react in different situations. Authenticity is about being aware of the difference between your emotions and your actions.

“Learn to observe yourself like a fly on the wall. Watch yourself as you live in the present moment, observing how your “Adaptive Self” behaves, what it believes, how it reacts under pressure, and how it responds to challenges.” – Psychology Today

As a leader, it’s important to be careful about disclosing everything you think and feel especially if it’s unproven. Consciously observing your emotional response to pressure will help you learn whether acting on those emotions is about being productive and authentic or about being right just for the sake of it.

Make Transparency a Habit

Authenticity requires you to be open to yourself and the people around you. It can be easy to brush aside your feelings on a bad day under the idea that you need to ‘be professional’ but being open about those feelings will actually benefit everyone.

“Being open and honest is always in everyone’s best interest. Openness creates a sense of loyalty and makes your business stand out as one that employees want to work at. They feel like they can turn to you for support and you, in turn, can rely on them for guidance – it’s a win-win!” – Cameron Herold

By consistently making a point of being open and honest it will eventually develop into a habit. It’s already a mentality that’s ingrained in many people, that in order to be professional you need to remove any emotions that could get in the way. When in fact, by removing those emotions you remove your most authentic self.

Do Things Your Own Way

People who are truly living authentically won’t try to fit into a mold. They’ll go about a job the way they feel they can do it best, not the way everyone else is doing it. Authentic people aren’t afraid to break the status quo.

“Authentic leaders go much deeper than their life story, what they have been through, or the issues they have. They embrace their true self and their ethical values along with their weaknesses and use their strengths to their advantage without worrying about what others think.” – Inc.

People living authentically know their values and act based on those, not based on other people’s opinions no matter how common they may be. Make sure you understand what you value most in yourself, your life, and your work.

Focus on Self-Reflection

Self-reflection is the most important way to understand who you are—which is what authenticity is all about. You need to be able to look inside yourself, not just at the people, behaviors, and values around you.

“Self-reflection puts you in a state of personal harmony, causing you to experience less anxiety. You aren’t worried about another person’s position because you’re confident enough to focus on your own. You have nothing to hide, which allows you a freedom to be yourself that followers do not experience.” – Business Insider

It’s nearly impossible to be authentic without truly understanding and being comfortable with yourself  All you’ll be worrying about is the opinions of people around you, which will make you unfairly devalue your own.

Living authentically is important for everyone to work on, especially leaders. People are drawn towards authenticity because authentic people are the foundations of a successful company that everyone wants to work at. So practice authenticity every day—it’s just as important to you as an individual as it is to your business.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

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Meetings Suck: Turning One Of The Most Loathed Elements Of Business Into One Of The Most Valuable

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We all know that meetings suck, right?

You hear it all the time. It’s the one thing that almost everyone in business can agree on.

Except it’s not actually true… 

Meetings don’t suck.

We just suck at running meetings.   

When done right, meetings not only work, they make people and companies better.

In Meetings Suck, world renowned business expert and growth guru Cameron Herold teaches you how to use focused, time effective meetings to help you and your company soar.

This book shows you immediately actionable, step-by-step systems that ensure that you and everyone in your organization improves your meetings, right away.

In the process, you’ll turn meetings that suck into meetings that work. 

In life, we always hear about people who’ve made huge decisions from their gut – without data.Today, I want you to make a decision, not only from your gut, but also from some data.  A decision that is only $12 per employee but will be priceless for your business.

Right now, your gut is telling you something is wrong with your company’s meetings.  You KNOW everyone complains about meetings.

People HATE going to them, they HATE running them, and they really have NO idea which meetings are truly necessary but they hold meetings simply because they think that is what they SHOULD do.

Even some of the smartest CEOs in the world complain about meetings – Elon Musk publicly told employees at Tesla & SpaceX to walk out of meetings if they weren’t being run properly.

I sent Elon a message saying that wasn’t going to fix anything – the key is to fix the root of the problem – NOT continue to ignore why meetings suck.

A Meeting is – Any phone call, video call or occasion where 2 or more people meet to discuss or work-through office topics.

Most employees on average spend 1-2 hours per day in meetings.

And likely, none of those employees – front-line staff or leaders – have had any training on how to attend meetings or participate in them, LET ALONE How to RUN THEM.

Consider this…

If the Average employee spends just 1 Hour per day in meetings – that’s 1/8th of their time.

If the Average employee earns $50,000 per year.

And they’re spending 1/8th of their time in meetings, that means you’re paying $6,250 dollars per year for just ONE employee to attend meetings.

The reality is, employees spend 1/8th of their time – and 1/8th of your company’s payroll – doing something they have literally NO idea how to do.

The Reality is…

95% of employees are booking & leading meetings – and they have NEVER been trained on how to run them.

95% of employees have had NO training on how to show up and participate in the meetings they attend daily.

And 95% of employees and companies have no idea what meetings are even necessary to hold.

Meetings CAN be hugely effective – IF you know how to run them

Meetings don’t SUCK, we just SUCK at running meetings. 

Investing $15 per employee – to help ensure the $50,000 a year you spend on them is an obvious and easy choice.

This could be the most impactful $15 you’ll ever spend and will save the company’s money, time and resources instantly.

Buying a copy of Meetings Suck for 100% of your employees and having them read it this month will have a huge impact on your company’s success.

book-5

Free PR: How To Get Chased By The Press Without Hiring A PR Firm

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Public relations has always been an essential part of doing business which is probably why you’re shelling out big money to an outside PR firm. But the truth is that you don’t need them. You already have all the necessary tools in-house to do as good a job as the so-called experts. 

Cameron Herold and Adrian Salamunovic have taught thousands of company execs how to exploit free media coverage and ditch these expensive, often ineffective outsiders. 

Cameron & Adrian have also built in-house PR teams, spent decades learning how to generate Free PR and how to leverage public relations to complement their sales and marketing strategy. 

In Free PR, you’ll learn how the media world operates while you gain invaluable insider knowledge and actionable advice on how to: 

  • Build your own in-house PR team
  • Provide effective interviews
  • Score great media coverage for free with just a few easy steps 

Landing public relations coverage for yourself and your company is a powerful tool to help elevate your personal brand. PR is easier to generate than marketing, PR is easier to leverage than marketing and PR is more cost effective than marketing. In other words, Public Relations is more critical than ever in growing your brand and your business. 

You’ve got more passion, commitment, a larger stake, and a deeper understanding of your business than any outside PR firm could ever have. So stop wasting money and take the reins yourself.  Learn the secrets to landing TONS of Free PR for your company.

What they’re saying:

“I think PR is the core for promoting any business. Public relations acquires customers! That’s what’s cool about this book.”

– Kevin O’Leary,  Shark on ABC’s Shark Tank

“The ultimate guidebook for those looking to get press, grow their brand, and get in front of the masses. Free PR is the roadmap you’ve been looking for.”

– Peter Shankman, Founder, Help a Reporter Out (HARO)

“Adrian and Cameron will show you the secrets of getting massive exposure for your business. This book is packed with actionable insights from two guys that actually know how to to do it.”

– Dan Martell,  Serial Entrepreneur & Investor (Intercom.io, Unbounce)

“I told Cameron to write the book on generating free PR. I’m excited to see that he’s finally sharing his secrets with the world. This is a must read for any entrepreneurial company and marketing team.”

– Verne Harnish, Founder of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) and author of Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)

book-3-1

Vivid Vision: A Remarkable Tool For Aligning Your Business Around a Shared Vision of the Future

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Many corporations have slick, flashy mission statements that ultimately do little to motivate employees and less to impress customers, investors, and partners. 

But there is a way to share your excitement for the future of your company in a clear, compelling, and powerful way and entrepreneur and business growth expert Cameron Herold can show you how. 

Vivid Vision is a revolutionary tool that will help owners, CEOs, and senior managers create inspirational, detailed, and actionable three-year mission statements for their companies. In this easy-to-follow guide, Herold walks organization leaders through the simple steps to creating their own Vivid Vision, from brainstorming to sharing the ideas to using the document to drive progress in the years to come. 

By focusing on mapping out how you see your company looking and feeling in every category of business, without getting bogged down by data and numbers or how it will happen, Vivid Vision creates a holistic road map to success that will get all of your teammates passionate about the big picture. 

Your company is your dream, one that you want to share with your staff, clients, and stakeholders. Vivid Vision is the tool you need to make that dream a reality.

miracle-morning

The Miracle Morning for
Entrepreneurs: Elevate Your SELF to
Elevate Your BUSINESS

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READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.

READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

Hal Elrod’sThe Miracle Morning has helped redefine the mornings and the lives of millions of readers since 2012. Since then, careers have been launched, goals have been met, and dreams have been realized, all through the power of the Miracle Morning’s six Life S.A.V.E.R.S.

THESE SIX DAILY PRACTICES WILL FUEL YOUR EFFORTS TO CREATE AND SUSTAIN POSITIVE CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE.

Now The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs brings you these principles in a whole new light—alongside the Entrepreneurial Elevation Principles and the Entrepreneur’s Elevation Skills. These are essential skills that you need to create a successful business and personal life. Cameron Herold— Bestselling Author and a widely-respected expert on entrepreneurial mindset—brings his wisdom and insight to you using Hal Elrod’s powerful Miracle Morning framework.

DEVELOP A VISION FOR YOUR BUSINESS, AND BECOME THE INFLUENTIAL AND INSPIRING LEADER YOU WERE ALWAYS MEANT TO BE.

The principles and skills you’ll find in this book will help you to channel your passion and achieve balance in a remarkable new way. – Learn why mornings matter more than you think – Learn how to master your own self-leadership and accelerate your personal development – Learn how to manage your energy—physical, mental, and emotional – Learn how to implement Hal Elrod’s invaluable Life S.A.V.E.R.S. in your daily routine – And much more… You’re already an entrepreneur. Now discover how to take your success to the next level by first taking yourself to the next level. The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs is your roadmap to masterfully building an empire with a powerful vision, utilizing your areas of personal genius, with the right team at your side.

Start giving your business and your life the very best opportunities for success, right now.

double-double

Double Double: How To Double Your Revenue And Profit In 3 Years Or Less​

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A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.