Vivid Vision

Quick Guide: How to Sell Your Company for the Highest Price – Part 1

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If you want to increase the value of your privately held company, it’s not just about profits. While profitability is critical, there are other factors that can elevate your company’s valuation when it comes time to sell. Three years ago, I introduced a CEO to an awesome M&A firm. They helped package his company for sale and found a strategic buyer who paid $50 million more than he ever imagined selling for. Nail these tips now and your company will be positioned to sell for a higher price.

Well-Organized Accounting: Don’t put off getting your accounting in order. Be ready at all times so that you can respond quickly when information is requested. Buyers will see your company as well organized and will be more likely to pay a higher price when they don’t anticipate unforeseen surprises.

Awesome Employees : Tout your company’s talent as an asset! Employees with strong skills add value, particularly when it comes to the sales team, or other key roles that drive revenue, efficiency or innovation within the company. Loyalty is also a distinguishing characteristic to promote – buyers want to know that key employees will stay for the long term.

Office Culture that Feels Amazing: Enlist the help of a designer to “stage” your office so that the physical space looks great and feels like an incredible work place. Freshly painted walls, organized shelves and attractive wall art all add to your company’s image.

Strong Branding & Name Recognition: The stronger your company’s brand recognition, the better. Rollout a stellar PR strategy 12-18 months prior to the start of the sale process to help show that your company is in a growth mode. Refresh website content and other communication materials so that they’re relevant and in alignment with the message you are promoting to buyers.

Recurring & Diversified Revenue: All revenue is not equal. Buyers will – and do – pay a premium for booked reoccurring revenue. This means ongoing contracts with customers and a track record of predictable growth. Diversified revenue is also a must. Broaden your revenue base so that no more than 10-15% is based on one single customer.

The Company Runs Without YOU: Businesses that rely less on the owner go for a higher selling price. Take steps now to increase your company’s independence and ability to remain productive during an ownership transition.

Share an Inspiring Vivid Vision: When you have a clear vision, ideally a Vivid Vision document, it will excite and inspire the buyer about the company’s future and abundant potential. This also helps with demonstrating the alignment between you and your employees.

Trustworthy & Fantastic M&A Firm – M&A Firms are a dime a dozen. However, finding one that can create a multiple-bid buyer market for you is what drives up your company’s selling price. Over the past eight years, I’ve finally found a few that I introduce companies to all the time.

Email me if you’d like an introduction to help you sell your company – Cameron@CameronHerold.com.

A (Vivid) Vision of Your Company

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I’ve worked with a lot of young, ambitious entrepreneurs in my time as a business coach and mentor. They are a diverse group, from tech savvy Silicon Valley insiders to CEOs of major blue chip companies. They’ve wanted a lot of different things, from more press to a better corporate culture. But underneath it all, they’ve all really wanted the same thing: to make more money.

It’s a universal desire, and one that I can help them achieve. But to get there, they have to prepare for fast growth. And they’ll never get there without a detailed vision of their future.

This is why I am such a proponent of creating a Vivid Vision.  A Vivid Vision, is a detailed, three to four page document that lays out a clear, logical vision of what your company will look like in three years.

When completed, it’s meant to be woven into your company’s culture, guiding your employees decision making and giving all involved clear goals to strive for.

Usually, creating Vivid Visions is a very involved process that can take as long as six months to get right. There’s a lot of back and forth between my clients and me. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to spend with each of you as you put together your own, but I can offer these tips that will help you get started down the right path in creating the very best Vivid Vision possible.  I can also introduce you to the writers and designers all my clients are using to nail theirs.  email me at Cameron@CameronHerold.com for intros.

It’s important not to get caught up in the ‘how’ of things. Instead, dream big and worry about the ‘how’ later

You’ll need to be free of the day-to-day worries of running your business. You need freedom to visualize your future

Get out of your office and go somewhere inspiring where you can let your mind wander (I wrote the Vivid Vision for my business from the hammock in my backyard).

Turn off your computer. No matter how much willpower you have, the temptation of email or web surfing will be a distraction

Get out of your comfort zone, think out side the box—choose whatever cliché works for you. Just be creative, even outlandish. You’ll be amazed at what you can come up with. It’s a sure fire way to create a fun, dynamic vision you and your employees will love to strive for.

I’ve helped with hundreds of Vivid Visions in my career, and the ones that really stand out in my mind share a few common traits. They forgo all the mind-numbing corporate double speak and restrictive, creativity-killing metrics and get right to the heart of the exercise:

“What is really possible for my company?”

Check out these DVDs where I talk in more detail about certain aspects of the Vivid Vision process. You can also find a copy of my own Vivid Vision online at CameronHerold.com, To some, it is just a four page document. But to you, it very well may be the most important four pages you ever write.  email me at Cameron@CameronHerold.com for coaching around doing your own.

A Stark, Clear, Vivid Vision…

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6bHave you ever observed an athlete right before a competition? The next time you watch the Olympics take a look at the high jumpers.  You’ll see many of them standing very still just before they start running to the bar.  Then they’ll close their eyes and you’ll see their head bobbing up and down as they imagine running up to the bar—but they haven’t even moved.  Sometimes they even throw their head backwards a bit as they jump over the bar in their mind.  Then they open their eyes, stare at the bar intently, and begin to recreate in real time what they just visualized.  Downhill skiers do this too–they’ll use their gloved hand to pretend to ski the entire course (some imagine it quite realistically in their minds, and you’ll see them respond physically to imagined obstacles on the hill). Whatever the sport, these athletes are using visualization to achieve their desired results, and by imagining the obstacles they might face, they prepare themselves mentally and physically for the challenge.  In fact, they have such a vivid vision of themselves performing, that it becomes completely instinctual.

The visualization techniques used by athletes should also be applied to business. I’ve had enormous success with the process after learning about it from an Olympic coach and sports psychologist. This coach worked with high performance athletes to help them visualize their task prior to the event taking place.  He showed us a variety of examples of where athletes using a process of visualization would so strongly ingrain the success and actual performance of the event into their mind, that when they competed, they simply recreated the vision they’d burned into their memory bank.  They could, in fact, ‘see themselves’ competing, and as a result, their vision of success became a reality. This has been core to my mentoring and coaching CEOs.  All the CEOs I mentor have written Vivid Visions of their companies.  email me – Cameron@BackPocketCOO.com for samples of some of the best.

Are You Sure You’re Thinking Big Enough ???

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10bRead this poem – courtesy of a very close friend of mine…  Then ask yourself, if you’re thinking big enough for your business…

The Curious Cat was called Think Big and he thought so much that he needed a wig.

The wig was too small for the thoughts in his head.  His thoughts spilled out to the floor instead.

He needed to think bigger, to figure a way, to find a wig that was bigger each day.

It is hard to think bigger, without thinking at all, so Think Big began to Think Biggest of all.

His thoughts grew so big, they spilled out the door.  They covered the bedroom, the kitchen, and floor.

The wig was too small and his head was too big.  His head was nine times the size — of his biggest wig.

The Curious Cat was called Think Big and he thought so much that he needed a wig.

The wig was too small for the thoughts in his head.  His thoughts spilled out to the floor instead.

He needed to Think Bigger to figure a way to find a wig that was bigger each day.

Courtesy of my good friend Mark Rubin

Where, Not How

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12bOne of the best parts of creating a Vivid Vision is the chance it gives you to tear off the shackles of reality and logic and fantasize about your future. But often, successful entrepreneurs have a hard time tapping into their creative side. The pragmatic, logical thought patterns that made them successful don’t allow a lot of room for imagination.

So when I am coaching these ambitious leaders, I spend a lot of time getting them out of their shell and into a creative space. The goal of a Vivid Vision (formerly Painted Picture) is to imagine ‘where’ you will take your company, not ‘how’ you’ll get there. And to make this work, you need to dream big and worry about the ‘how’ later.

I encourage my clients to think about crazy stuff. If it’s too outlandish to bring up in a meeting, then it should most likely be considered for your Vivid Vision.

To tap into my creative side, I use a technique called ‘mind mapping.’ I write down whatever thoughts pop into my head. Each notion inspires another thought, sometimes connected, often completely random.

After a while, I am left with a sheet of paper covered in haphazard, seemingly unconnected notes. But when I dig a little deeper, patterns begin to emerge. They are ideas or directions I might not have been actively thinking of, but my creative subconscious certainly was.

I wasn’t always this right brained. When I was COO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, I excused myself from the process of creating Vivid Vision. Not because I was lazy, but because I knew I’d get in the way by constantly asking “how.” How were going to get mentioned on Oprah? How were our offices going to be studied by Harvard?

At the time, I thought they were legitimate questions. Why waste our time on these outlandish ideas if we had no plan on how to achieve them?

It was only later, after I saw the power of Vivid Visions in action that I understood why we didn’t need to ask “how”. The “how” just happens organically.

These lofty goals and ‘crazy’ visions weren’t necessarily supposed to be achieved. Rather, they were meant to act as carrots, leading us down a positive path. Sure, that path might not end with our logo on Oprah’s show, but the steps we take in even trying to get there undoubtedly lead us to a better place. That’s the magic of the Vivid Vision.

So get out of your own way and imagine a future without limits. Who knows, you just might get there.

Get Into Your (Dis)comfort Zone

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14bChances are you’ve built a nice office for yourself. It’s a comfortable space filled with everything you need to get your job done, whether it’s your laptop or pictures of your family when you need a bit of motivation.

It’s the perfect spot to sit down and start mapping out the future of your company and your personal life.

And that’s why I absolutely forbid my clients from working on their Painted Pictures in there.

I tell them to get out of the office and go someplace inspirational. I’ve had clients work by the ocean, in the forest—heck, I wrote my Vivid Vision (formerly Painted Picture) from the hammock in my backyard.

Sure, these places ooze inspiration, but they also lack a lot of the distractions that can be fatal to the Vivid Vision process. Your office is brimming with distractions—emails, phone calls, people popping their heads in the door.

To visualizing your future properly, you need to focus. These interruptions can shatter your flow and drag the process out indefinitely.

Trying to conduct these visualization exercises in places like your office or a boardroom surrounds you with the minutia of the office environment. The hum of a copier, the murmur of phone conversations, even the white noise of the air exchange—these sounds can lock your brain into rigid, business-first thought patterns that will stifle the creativity it takes to really imagine a bright, exciting future.

A lot of my clients are decidedly left-brained. They’ve been successful their whole lives using rational, pragmatic thinking; just the kind of thinking that can sap all the energy and usefulness out of this exercise.

The idea is to dream about ‘where’ you can go without concerning yourself with ‘how’ you’ll get there. It’s easy to get caught up in asking ‘how’ when you are surrounded by sales charts and spreadsheets. Freeing yourself from the office frees your mind from the boundaries of business metrics. You’re able to fantasize without letting reality rain on your parade.

I also discourage you from using your computer when cobbling your Vivid Vision together. First of all, a blank word processor page is far from inspiring. Secondly, the distraction of email, the Internet, Minesweeper or other cyber-diversions is counterproductive.

Instead, use a sketchpad and a good, quality pen. There is something truly inspiring about putting pen to paper. It really is a lost art. And once you get over the hand cramps, you’ll find the tactile feel of the pen irresistible, and the blank sheet will be more like a blank canvas that you’ll quickly fill up with ideas and visions for your future. Then, once you’ve sketched a rough Vivid Vision, you can use your computer to put it all together.

Most of us complain that we spend too much time in the office anyway. So here is the perfect excuse to get out of it. Enjoy the sunshine, breath in the fresh air and visualize your perfect future.

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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.