Canvas Creek Team Building
Ever heard the phrase “creative strategic planning”? Surely you have, though it may have simply been thrown around in a business meeting. Or maybe you’ve seen it scattered across the internet, a vague catch phrase get-rich-quick schemes use to lure people in. Either way, this is one thing you definitely need to pay more attention to.
Strategic planning refers to defining a specific goal and then laying out a necessary strategy to reach that goal. Basically, strategic planning makes sure your short-term decisions work in favor of your long-term goals. To begin, a strategic planner needs to answerthese three questions:
1.) Where are we now?
2.) Where do we want to be?
3.) How can we move one step closer?
Sound simple enough? Almost. The first two questions should be answered with as much specifics as possible. Let’s say you own a business. Your goal is to raise profits by 10% by the end of next year. So you might say:
1.) Where are we now?
- Our current profit margin is ___.
2.) Where do we want to be?
- We want our profits to be raised by 10% by December 31, 2013. Therefore, we need our profit margin to be ___by December 31, 2013.
Now comes the creative part, which is question #3. There are a number of theories floating around that provide the best way to start the creative process, but we feel Wallas’s creative process makes for a great fit. There are four stages: preparation, incubation, illumination and verification.
Preparation is the stage of gathering all your possible information. After all, you won’t be able to give yourself options if you have no idea of what you’re working with, right? So look at all your sources, all the people you know and all the possible pathways to reach your goal.
Next is incubation. So take a break; set the problem aside for a bit to clear your head. A disorganized mind creates a disorganized reality.
Step 3: illumination. Identify potential solutions. This is when working as a team really comes in handy, as everyone will be looking at the problem through a different perspective. Have brainstorming sessions to present as many solutions as possible.
And finally: verification. Refine your ideas. There may be a number of ideas on how to increase profits by 10% within the given time frame, but each idea needs to be refined and clearly laid out before a decision is made.
It’s completely understandable if this still sounds a bit complicated, but that’s why we’re here! Schedule a meeting with Canvas Creektoday and we’ll show you how to get on track in your creative strategic planning process. We’ll even be with you every step of the way.
Don’t underestimate the importance of social networking in your business! What are some ways you use social networking?
Networking tends to be one of those terms that is often thrown around in various business conversations. “We need to network more” or “How are doing on networking?” are just a few phrases you may hear. However, when you actually get down to brass tacks, what exactly is networking? And how do you do it?
Well, here you go. Listed below are some of the best networking tips successful business men and women have to offer.
1.) Know the purpose of networking. The entire point of networking is to have various contacts in other areas that might be of use to you later. Perhaps you are a journalist; knowing someone at your local news station might be a huge benefit to you because they may be able to give you specific leads or sources to various stories.
2.) Do as much as you can on your own. Contacting someone for information that you could easily get yourself is just plain lazy. Do your own homework and research before seeking out others to help you.
3.) Be courteous. That means you shouldn’t be calling them while they’re in the middle of dinner or tracking them down on their lunch break if they haven’t returned your calls. And if they decline your request, for whatever reason, don’t push it. Everyone has their reasons for not being able to help someone out once in a while.
4.) Be professional. Whining, groveling or being overly aggressive isn’t going to get you anywhere. As a matter of fact, it could be very damaging to your relationship. No one wants to work with someone else that can’t keep it together. In addition, if you’re going to approach a third party contact make sure your original source has given you permission to use their name.
5.) Listen. If you need information from this person then you have to be ready to receive it. Having a pen and a notepad handy, or even a recording device will let them know that you aren’t taking their services lightly.
6.) Understand it’s a two-way street. Continuing with our journalist example, if your “source” from the news station has provided you with vital information, it’s only common courtesy to return the favor when the time is needed. Otherwise, you’re just taking advantage of people to get information. Do this enough times and no one will want to work with you.
Social commerce expert Paul Chaney is a social media marketing consultant, writer, and author. He put together a list of his 5 favorite social networking tools, which can help you manage and optimize your online marketing:
1) SproutSocial - This social media dashboard allows you to…
With the ever expanding world of the internet, it can be quite easy to see how business relationships may fall to the wayside. After all, instead of calling customer care, people are directed to an online question and answer forum. Instead of turning in job applications directly to human resources, people are asked to submit theirs online. Even ordering business supplies over the phone is a thing of the past; sure, you can probably do it, but not without hearing about how convenient their new online ordering system is from the person on the other end of the line. Do they know a website has the potential to put them out of a job?
Nonetheless, with so many essential business moves being made over the internet, one might think we were living in a world where human to human interaction was not the preferable option. However, relationships in business are more important than ever. And no matter how much work is done online, there are a few things you need to know:
1.) Nothing can replace excellent customer service. Ever get to a website and find that you can’t find a phone number? Anywhere? It’s frustrating to have to sit at a computer and try to decipher what someone else has already deemed the appropriate response to your problem. Maybe that solution isn’t working, maybe that’s not your problem, and maybe you just have no idea what the words in front of you mean.
Having a relationship with your clients means being there for them in a time of need, and refusing to have a help number on your website is not being there (neither is requiring them to go through 46 steps to reach a human being on the other end, contrary to the opinion of Verizon, but who’s counting).
2.) Do what you say you are going to do. When a customer has contacted you with an issue, it is up to you to resolve it. Relying on them to remind you of the problem or giving them a list of things they should try and then call you back is lazy. Sure you can teach a man to fish, but in the business world it’s appreciated if you give that same man a fish or two while he is still learning. Don’t leave your customers out on a limb; once they’ve contacted you take the problem off their hands.
Oh yeah, and fix it.
3.) Facilitate connections. I work with a local photographer here in town, and one day I asked her how much money she spends on advertising for her business. Her answer: $0.00. All of her clients are from colleague recommendations, word of mouth, and social media. Folks all these client sources are facilitated through favorable relationships. If no other photographers in town respect her, if her clients aren’t happy with her work or she ignores the growing trend of social media, her business dies. It’s as simple as that.
www.canvascreekteambuilding.com
What are some ways you utilize your business relationships?
If you’ve ever found yourself in a situation to ask your roommate to move out, you know just how awkward it can be. Even in a good situation where both of you are on great terms and there’s a happy occasion for the change (say you and your significant other want to move in together, for example), it can still be a tough subject to bring up. So before you do, here are a few things you need to know first:
1.) Know what you can legally ask of them. If you and your roommate have signed a lease and that lease isn’t up for another three months, you and your hubby might just have to wait until then to call the place your own. Until that lease is up, your roommate has just as much right to be there as you do.
Having said that, there is often nothing wrong with just asking. Who knows, maybe your roomie has a friend that needs a place and this could be the perfect time for her to start apartment hunting with someone else. Communicate!
2.) Be open about the situation. If there is a problem, and that’s why you feel your roommate needs to go, they deserve to have a chance to solve the problem first. They may be completely clueless to the issues you’re dealing with, so make sure you’re open with them from the beginning. Don’t ask them to move out and say it’s due to “allergies”, just ask them to stop burning incense all the freakin’ time and the problem could be solved right then and there.
3.) Do it at the right time. This is not a discussion that should be put off, of course, but it’s also not a discussion that can happen at any time. Make sure both of you don’t have to be somewhere right away and limit the distractions. And try to be sensitive to what is going on in their lives. Asking them to move out as soon as they get back from their grandma’s funeral isn’t a very good idea.
4.) Give them a realistic time to move out. Unless they’ve been absolutely unbearable (and by unbearable we mean they lit all your clothes on fire last night, or something of a similar significance), you need to give them a reasonable time to move out. They not only need to find another place, but possibly another roommate, as well as figure out how and when they are going to move all of their stuff. And don’t forget they probably have school and or a job or kids and other commitments they’re juggling too. A month is typically a respectable time period.
5.) Be compassionate. If they come to you saying they’ve found a place but they won’t be able to move in until five days after the 30 day period you’ve given them, let them stay for the extra five days. Finding a place to live can be a real pain in the neck and in the end five days is really nothing to get upset about.
www.canvascreekteambuilding.com
Do you have any tips for a situation like this?
