Archives for January 2022

The Importance Of A Solid Business Foundation

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Every and any successful business needs a solid business foundation. Your company’s foundational elements are its guiding light in times of uncertainty. They are what you and your employees can turn to each day in order to make sure you are on the right track. They are what you can trust in when things get hard.

How do you build a solid business foundation? What’s most important in it?

To answer those questions, the most important thing for you to know is what your business foundation needs to include to be strong.

So, what are those?

A Core Purpose

A strong core purpose is integral to you, your business, and your employees. Without any sort of purpose, you and your team can easily become lost, bored or dissatisfied. That’s one of the worst things that can happen to your company.

“At some point in your career, there will come a morning when you’ll awake and ask yourself, “What am I really doing?” It’s at this point that earning money by making/selling whatever will no longer be motivation enough.” – Entrepreneur

Everything from day-to-day work, to the overall vision of the company, needs to tie back to your overall core purpose. A strong core purpose ensures you and your team are never left wondering why the work is important. It cuts out any room for doubt.

Core Values

Do you have solid core values for your company? Do your employees know your core company values? Are they easy to understand? Do you live your values every day?

Enforcing values in every aspect of the job is vital for your company. It’s not enough to just write them down somewhere and cross your fingers, hoping your team will ‘get’ it. You need to embody them in the way you act and all the work you do. You need to make sure your employees know them and believe in them. As a leader, you also need to set an example in respecting those values and sticking to them.

“Reinforcing core company values is about leading by example and rewarding good behavior… it’s also important to get serious about terminating those who violate your company’s code of conduct.” – COO Alliance

Core values direct your employees and your company, so it’s important to take them seriously. They play a large role in your company’s success.

A Core Vision

Strong leaders have a strong, clear vision for their company and its future. Great leaders know how to guide their team toward a unified perspective of the future.

A lack of a clear vision or any vision at all leads to confusion. “It can also result in employee dissatisfaction and turnover since there is a lack of purpose and overall connection.” – COO Alliance 

A core vision is what guides a company. It’s important to make sure your vision is tangible and easy to understand. That starts with you knowing it fully and in detail. Then, you need to figure out how to communicate it to your employees in a way they can easily digest and repeat to others if need be.

If employees are sure of where you are taking them, they are more likely to support you in your vision.

Passion

There are very few things in business and in life that matter more than passion. Passion is contagious. The stronger and clearer it is, the more contagious it is, too! When you’re passionate about your work, your team sees your enthusiasm, and are more likely to ‘see’ your vision and grow passionate for it themselves.

Passion ties everything together and can:

  • Make you more attractive to clients
  • Keep you motivated through difficult times
  • Ensure more long-term success
  • Increase employee retention
  • Provide your team with a higher sense of purpose

Before you can secure funding, hire employees, or even open for business at all, you need to be certain of your business’s core. A sense of purpose, strong values, and a clear, Vivid Vision®, will make sure you have something solid to build upon. Without those four things, it’s nearly impossible to grow a strong, successful business. The greatest businesses all start with a great foundation.

What do you do to build a strong foundation? Are there any companies that you think have the strongest foundation? Let us know in the comments below!

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 November 2019 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Employee Wellness Issues That Could Be Impacting Your Bottom Line

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Workplaces everywhere are placing more emphasis on employee wellness, and if not, they should be.

“No organization can expect to foster a positive culture without healthy employees. Employees need to feel their best – physically, mentally and emotionally – in order to contribute to a positive culture.” – Forbes

Employee wellness is essential to the success of any company! So, to make sure your employees are at their best, here are 4 neglected wellness categories that might be impacting your bottom line.

Not Getting Enough Sleep

Lack of sleep and poor sleep quality are the leading causes of employee burnout. Poor sleep habits can impact both your physical health and your emotional health pretty severely.

“Don’t get enough sleep, and your productivity suffers. You’ll have less energy and react slower. You’ll feel less creative and focused, and have difficulty making decisions and solving problems.” – Matterapp.com

It’s no longer considered a badge of honor to be able to get by on only two hours of rest. Brag about that and pretty soon you’ll be eating your words when your work and your health suffer for it. We now know it’s more sleep, not less, that leads to success in business and in life!

Poor Mental Health

Employee mental health is, perhaps, the most overlooked wellness category in recent years, yet it’s one of the most important factors in employee wellness.

Since poor mental health can be difficult to detect, it can be hard for employers to get ahead of any issues. So what can you do?

For starters, hire HR professionals.

“While tackling mental health can be challenging, employers and HR professionals are in a powerful position to help change attitudes and offer a support system.”  – Forbes

Other ways employers can contribute to employee wellness when it comes to mental health are:

  • Encourage conversations about what good mental health looks like
  • Increase awareness and reduce the stigma in the workplace
  • Do regular mental health check-ins with employees
  • Provide training on proper mental health practices
  • Lead by example!

Employers that put the psychological and emotional health of their employees first create a positive space where work and overall wellness can thrive. In the end, those are the most successful companies, especially in the long term.

Poor Physical Health

Businesses lose millions of dollars every year due to the poor physical health of their employees. This is a very unfortunate fact, but it’s true.

“…poor health costs the U.S. economy $576 billion a year, according to new research. Of that amount, 39 percent, or $227 billion is from “lost productivity” from employee absenteeism due to illness or what researchers called “presenteeism,” when employees report to work but illness keeps them from performing at their best.” – Forbes

Poor posture, repetitive strain, seasonal flu, and other minor and major workplace ailments are just a few of the reasons why employees might not be as productive as you’d like. It’s important to place an emphasis on good physical health in order to encourage a strong, productive workforce. It’s also your job to set a good example of this! Pay attention to your own health, talk about it, and be a good influence on your employees!

Poor Interpersonal Relationships

There are very few things more stressful in any workplace than having poor interpersonal relationships. Many employers would rather fire a high-performing but toxic employee, rather than have them impact the productivity of the entire team because you’re exactly that–a team!

“As it turns out, avoiding toxic workers is still better for the organization in terms of net profitability, despite losing out on a highly productive employee. Avoiding a toxic employee… enhances performance to a much greater extent than replacing an average employee with a rock star.” – Talent Management & HR

Employees spend upwards of 7 to 8 hours a day, every day, with their colleagues, so it stands to reason that people who like their peers and are good at collaboration also have more overall job satisfaction. No one works well with toxic people. Employers should encourage team-building exercises and coworker support in order to foster better interpersonal relationships among their staff. The stronger the team, the stronger the company as a whole!

“In many ways, employee wellness is a foundation for a positive corporate culture. Leaders should ensure employees have the resources, tools and on-site healthcare opportunities they need to live their healthiest life – inside and outside of the office.”  – Forbes

A focus on wellness is important to keep your company growing and thriving. It ensures your team is happy, healthy, and consistent. When you put health first, everyone stands a better chance of showing up and putting their best foot forward!

How do you contribute to your employees’ wellness? Let us know in the comments below!

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 2019 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

Just Do It – Don’t Ask Permission…

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Leaders need to lead, not make decisions for their direct reports. Leaders are supposed to grow people, not do their work for them.

As a leader, it’s your job to steer them on the right path and teach them to take initiative on their own, but how do you do that?

Teach Them Not to Ask Permission

If employees feel the need to ask you permission before doing absolutely anything, especially those that are your direct reports, they’re never going to grow as employees. Your employees need to learn to trust themselves in the right circumstances.

“It’s important that your team believes in what they’re doing and believes that you trust them. Thinking you trust them is key to them taking responsibility.” – Cameron Herold

Learning to trust themselves and trust their leader’s opinion of them is how great work is done. They need to understand that you hired them for a reason – because they have the skills for the job.

So, how do you teach them to do that?

Tell Them to Ask These Questions

When one of your employees comes to you to ask a question, or get your opinion on something, teach them to ask these five questions before they email you, message you, or come to your office next time.

Those questions are:

  1. Is what you want to do right for the customer?
  2. Is it right for the company?
  3. Is it ethical?
  4. Is it something for which you’re willing to be accountable?
  5. Is it consistent with the company’s core values?

Teach your employees that if the answer is yes to all five of these questions, then they should do it. They don’t need to ask permission first.

Then Teach Them to Think Critically About It

Of course, asking permission is sometimes necessary depending on the size of the task and if they answered no to one or more of these questions. Don’t teach them to be afraid of asking permission, just teach them to know when not to do it.

A good way to do this goes along with asking questions–teach them to stop and think before they do something, be it doing the ask or asking permission. The critical thinking skills needed for this are something every employee should have.

So, tell your employees not to ask permission when they don’t need to. Teach them to think critically about their work and decide for themselves whether something is a good idea or not. In the end, teach them to be brave, have trust, and just do it!

What questions do you think employees should ask themselves before making a decision on their own? Let us know in the comments below!

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 June 2017 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

THIS is Time Management… Try It, Dare You!!!

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Good time management means focusing your efforts to get more important things done in less time. It’s as simple as that.

Problem is, it’s not quite so simple to put into practice.

There are an infinite number of demands for your time and attention. Problems and tasks can come out of nowhere and can’t always be planned for – and many are just thrown at you by your co-workers on top of your already busy schedule. That’s why you need to know how to use your time effectively, or these circumstances could end in disaster.

So how do you do that?

Where Good Time Management Begins

Time management is a habit that begins most importantly with goal setting.

Without setting goals, you are merely putting together lists of “stuff” you need to do without any idea or plan of action on how and when you’re actually going to do them.

Instead, those things on your list should be goals and those goals should be SMART.

But what does it mean for your goals to be SMART?

SMART stands for:

  • S – Shared
  • M – Measurable
  • A – Attainable
  • R – Relevant
  • T – Time-based

Using SMART Goals for Time Management

Before the start of each week, month, or quarter, write down all of the goals you want to achieve during that period of time. Thirty minutes of pure focus will allow you to really plan what goals you want to hit and how you’re going to hit them. The trick is to always think in advance but still be rooted and focused on the now.

“Break the habit of allowing people to have all their goals due on the last day of the quarter. You could even be doing this, too. There shouldn’t be one set day for goals to be done. Instead, create goals that matter throughout the month/quarter/year. You want to have something to accomplish all the time and to drive you forward. That means setting both large goals and smaller ones you can finish to achieve the big ones.” – Cameron Herold

Creating Goals That are Planned Out for Time Management

Think of your goals and time like a jar with rocks, sand, and water. If you took a large jar and filled it with large rocks all the way to the top, would it be full? No, there’d be a lot of empty space between rocks.

Could you then take a punch of pebbles and pour them into the jar to fill those spaces? Would it be full then? No, there’d still be small spaces between the pebbles.

Could you then add a bunch of sand to fill those spaces? Then would it be full? Not entirely. It would only be full once you added the water to the jar, filling all the spaces between the sand, pebbled, and rocks.

But what does this mean for goals and time management?

This is the type of planning you need to do:

  • Put the rocks — your important items (your A’s) into your schedule far in advance.
  • Then add the sand — your B tasks.
  • Finally, add the water — all your C tasks and extra stuff that comes along that you need to get done. This way, you start with your priority items (your rocks) and make sure they are done before adding in the rest.

Planning allows you to work on the high-priority items before they get urgent and cause you too much stress. If you tried to put all the water, sand, pebbles, and rocks into the jar in reverse order, it wouldn’t work. The same goes for managing your time.

Time management is difficult, but it all starts with knowing how to set goals and knowing how to set them correctly. If you set SMART goals and plan out your tasks, you’ll surely get a handle on it!

What helps you manage your time effectively? Let us know in the comments below!

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 February 2012 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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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.

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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)

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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.

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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.