Entrepreneurial Superstars

What do you do when life gets in the way?

August 13, 2008 – 2:43 am

I am a business owner with a partnership. Recently, my partner got hit by a car while riding his bicycle. Luckily, he had his computer in his backpack and it took the brunt of the impact for his back. However, his face and the rest of his body took the road out. Poor guy! The recovery has been slow and painful.

What stunned me almost as much as the accident was how unprepared the company was for him not being around. I realized that we hadn’t done any kind of exit plan for either of us. In this case, an exit plan meant just not being around for a period of time. I also realized that we didn’t purchase short-term disability. We had long-term critical care insurance but nothing to cover the income while he is healing. If he had been out of the office for another couple of weeks, the company organizational chart would need re-doing.

As a Business Manager, I encourage my clients to plan for the ‘What-if’s’ of this world and then neglected to do so myself. So, lessons learned! Now, I encourage you to think worse-case scenario and ask yourself, ” What will happen to your company if…?”

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Three Unwritten Rules of Business You Don’t Want To Break!

August 8, 2008 – 2:09 am

1. Work with women, not against them.
Tip- understand the culture and get to know the key members in the “old girls network” in your community and work with them not against them.

2. Respect and acknowledge all of those you work with especially if there is not a clear financial exchange.

Tip- always have a letter of agreement outlining terms and conditions. If the relationship is less formal ie for volunteer work, have an email or some form of written exchange outlining expectations/job description and your availability in terms of total hours available for the project.

3. Understand and use the power of women networking. Women will “shout it from the rooftops” about people and products they like and may shout even louder about people and products that don’t work for them!

Tip- Never say never and remember that it is often possible and a great business strategy to turn a negative into a positive!

Suggested Resources:

“She Wins You Win” and “Play Like A Man, Win Like A Woman” both by Gail Evans

“Crucial Conversations: Tools For Talking When Stakes Are High” by K. Patterson, J. Grenney, R. McMillan and A. Switzler

“Attracting Perfect Customers: The Power of Strategic Synchronicity” by Stacey Hall and Jan Brogniez

Your business success is our top priority and we are here to serve as your expert resources!

Warmly,

Pamela and Zoey

“Your fire & ice business success catalysts”

www.entrepreneurialsuperstars.com

Coaching & Consulting Business To Success for Women Entrepreneurs

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Tips from the ‘Women in a Home Office’ tele-class, July 24, 2008

July 24, 2008 – 11:05 pm

5 Superstar Strategies for Sustainable Business Success TM

Suggested Resources:

Signature Strengths: www.authentichappiness.com scroll down and click on signature strengths.

Books:

“Attracting Perfect Customers: The Power of Strategic Synchronicity” by Stacey Hall & Jan Brogniez. Barrett_Koehler Publishers, Inc San Francisco.

“Now Discover Your Strengths” by Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton
“Business As Unusual” by Anita Roddick

“Make A Name For Yourself: 8 Steps Every Woman Needs to Create a Personal Brand Strategy For Success” by Robin Fisher Roffer

“Step Into The Spotlight: A Guide to Getting Noticed” by Tsufit
3 Daily Entrepreneurial Superstar Business Tips for Success

Clarify the one small action that will have the greatest positive impact on your business and be sure and do that one action everyday.
Set business hours. Take time off.
Be in touch with one new person or reconnect with someone everyday. It doesn’t matter if it is by phone, email or a face-to-face meeting. It is the fact that you are making the connection!

Here’s to your success!
Your “fire” & “ice” business success catalysts,

Pam and Zoey

Entrepreneurial Superstars Coaching & Consulting Business to Success

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Trends and your Business

July 24, 2008 – 3:52 am

What does a trend have to do with your business? According to Faith Popcorn, “Trends help us to navigate the world, understand what’s happening and why, and prepare us for what’s yet to come.”

Remember that trends are not fads. Faith tells us, “Trends endure, evolve and represent underlying forces, first causes, basic human needs, attitudes, and aspirations.” Trends also give us valuable information on who is buying, what products are successful and why. Trends help us to purchase the right inventory, cut costs at the appropriate time, and best of all, help us to stay ahead of the business pack.

Here are four great books that discuss trends:

“Megatrends 2010: The Rise of Conscious Capitalism” by Patricia Aburdene
“EVEolution: The Eight Truths of Marketing to Women” by Faith Popcorn
“Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything” by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams
“The 80% Minority, by Joanne Thomas Yaccato

Pamela Chatry,Personal Business Manager to Entrepreneurial Superstars’

http://www.pamelachatry.com/

http://www.entrepreneurialsuperstars.com/

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Women Entrepreneurs: Transform Your Business With A Strategic Alliance!

July 21, 2008 – 7:53 pm

Transform Your Business With A Strategic Alliance!

By Zoey Ryan, BSc., PCC
professional certified coach
life & business coach for women
“Coaching for your heart & soul and the heart & soul of your business”

Patricia Aburdene, in her book “Megatrends 2010: The Rise of Conscious Capitalism”, speaks about social transformation, she quotes from the book written with John Naisbitt entitled “Re-inventing the Corporation” and says that social transformation “occurs only when there is a confluence of changing values and economic necessity.”

This is, I believe, our current business reality, a confluence of changing values and economic necessity, leading to new ways of being in business and doing business.

My strategic alliance partner and I, in our work as business success coaches and strategists, believe that developing overlapping circles of strategic alliances is not just a powerful, fun and dynamic way of working together but is rapidly becoming a necessary model for solo-preneurs to stay in business.

Successful strategic alliances “focus less on defining the business plan and more on how you will work together” (source: Jonathon Hughes and Jeff Weiss, Harvard Business Review).

So, what needs to be in place to support a successful alliance?

Each entrepreneur needs to have a clear “sense of self” and their business and
it is vital to take the time up front for discussion of the following questions:

• What are we going to do together, ie what, when, how, why, who?
• What are our individual and shared roles and responsibilities?
• How are we going to work together? What organizational model will we use?
• What are our values?
• What are our implied agreements?
• What are our expressed agreements?
• Benefits:
o What’s it in for you?
o What’s in it for me?
o What’s in it for us?
• How do we handle conflict?
• How will we end the alliance?

What I believe the most important factors to a successful strategic alliance are: a shared vision and core values, an understanding of each others communication styles and strengths and weaknesses and a shared commitment to the relationship. It is about “who you are” as much as “what you do”, that creates a strong alliance.

We are moving way beyond “competition” as an organizational model in business. Strategic alliances utilize the following organizational models: cooperation, collaboration and co-creation. Utilizing these three models and forming strategic alliances can truly transform your business and your life!

If you would like help with this, or more information about making us your business success support partners, please contact me at the following coordinates:

namaste,

Zoey

Zoey Ryan, BSc., PCC
professional certified coach
life & business coach for women
“Coaching for your heart & soul and the heart & soul of your business”

www.positivelyoutrageouswomen.com

www.entrepreneurialsuperstars.com

604-323-3700

“Freedom is a bigger game than power. Power is about what you can control. Freedom is about what you can unleash” - Harriet Rubin

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