10 Ways to Recognize Your Employees

This Week with Sara Fitts continues ...Here are 10 ways you can recognize your hard-working employees. I strongly recommend employee recognition as a means of saying thank-you, rewarding hard work, and building morale that will last forever. I'd love to add to this list - so please let me know what you do to reward your employees.

1. Lunch or dinner with the boss and management team.
2. Give an afternoon off - or a day or two off.
3. Construct a bulletin board with pictures, notes, letters, etc. celebrating employees.
4. Design a unique trophy and present it formally - monthly or quarterly.
5. Tickets for plays, concerts, shows - and include spouses[or dates] or the whole family.
6. Designate a special parking place.
7. Tickets for a world-class seminar at a resort - all expenses paid.
8. Gift card - or gas card.
9. Cater a company-wide luncheon for every employee.
10. Magazine subscriptions [from a selected list], mp3 players, DVDs or CDs, coupons, books, or gym membership.

The point is to make the effort to have a recognition program in your organization. You can make it unique - or you can change it up to fit the particular occasion. My bet is that it will increase pride and ownership for every employee.

10 Reasons to Recognize Employees

This Week with Sara Fitts suggests 10 reasons to recognize your employees. With Thanksgiving fast approaching, this is always a good time to think about how you thank, reward, and recognize those employees who work so hard for you and your business.

There are many reasons for employee recognition, and these are only 10 of them. Use this as a starting point and add to this list as it applies to your specific business. [Please let me know what you add - I'd love to know!]

Recognize and reward employees who:

1. Learn something new. New skills are always worthy of praise and recognition.
2. Mediate conflicts within their team. Conflict resolution means more time on task and less time away from the project at hand.
3. Mentor new employees - even without being asked. Teamwork is taken to new levels immediately.
4. Seek new solutions to old problems. Focusing on solutions instead of problems creates new energy.
5. Help other employees. Pitching in when it counts helps the entire organization - and makes the point that "all for one and one for all" is still alive and well.
6. Willingly accept change. Sometimes difficult changes need to be made and are not so easily accepted. When someone willingly embraces change, make a point of acknowledging it.
7. Give extra customer service. Especially if extra time and extra effort are involved.
8. Volunteer for work that no one wants to do. Whether it's staying late, covering phones, making a delivery, or cleaning up someone else's mess - the person who volunteers to take this on needs to be recognized.
9. Maintain perfect attendance. This definitely needs to recognized.
10. Go the extra mile - no matter what. When employees go above and beyond the standard and the expected - recognize their efforts.

The benefit of this kind of recognition and reward is two-fold: the recognized employee is acknowledged and the rest of the staff is motivated by the fact that the boss is paying attention and is appreciative of the efforts.

I've always believed that everyone will do more than is expected when management acknowledges and appreciates their efforts and their work. Reward and recognition will raise morale quicker than pay raises.

Powerful Questions that Make a Huge Difference

Other questions that can be catalysts for major growth and change are:

Question to ask customers and clients: What is the value that you are receiving from our work together? [Press them for specifics and real examples.]

Question to ask employees/staff: What is the value that you receive from working here? [Press them for real examples - and not "paycheck".]

Questions to ask yourself: What is the value that I want my employees and staff to receive from working here? What is the value that I want my customers and clients to receive from our work together? What is the real reason I'm doing this? [What is the real reason for this business?]

After asking these powerful questions, listen to all the answers. After listening to the answers, what will you do with the information? The ball is now in your court to move forward toward making significant changes and improvements in your business. This process is extremely helpful. Try it and see what happens.

3 Important Questions for Business Owners & Managers to Answer

This Week with Sara Fitts highlights 3 questions every business owner and manager needs to answer. These 3 questions can lead to significant growth within your organization.

1. Do you have employees whose performance is less than what you want it to be?
2. Do you know specifically why they deliver less than you want?
3. Do you know specifically what to do to change that?

The first step is answering these questions. The second, and most important step, is addressing the issues that the answers to these questions give you. If you do nothing to address the issues or problems, then you will continue to have these issues and problems - regardless of who you hire.

Successful businesses must have structures and systems that are aligned to facilitate growth. If structures and systems are not in place, growth will not occur - and morale will be greatly affected. If the management team implements structures and systems that promote growth for the entire business (employees, staff, customers), then performance and productivity will be aligned for that same success.

There is power in the 3 questions that began this post. Small business owners and managers can change the course of their businesses with the answers. A business coach can help articulate the gap between where you are and where you want to be.

More to come later....

The 20 Question Business Plan

The "20 Question Business Plan" is a simple way to craft a business plan as well as to rekindle your relationship with your business. This Week with Sara Fitts is using the "20 Question Business Plan" because last week 2 of my clients (who own small businesses) were both needing to re-engage in their businesses. For whatever reason these clients had let the day-to-day thrills of running a business fall by the wayside and get replaced with fear and frustration. You, too, can use these 20 questions to get yourself back on track if you are self-employed, own your own business, or are thinking of building your own business.

The 20 Question Business Plan

1. Describe your business in 25 words or less.
2. What is the purpose for building your business?
3. What trend is your business going to invent or remove?
4. Why will you be successful? Why have you been successful in the past?
5. What's the mission of your business in 10 words or less?
6. What's the pain or frustration that your business will help your customers reduce?
7. How do you know you'll meet your customers needs?
8. Where will your next 5 customers come from and how much will they pay?
9. Why should your customers use you instead of some other business that does almost the same thing?
10. How do you intend to get 1000 potential buyers interested in your product or service?
11. Who's going to handle customer service and what are your 5 performance benchmarks in this area?
12. How much will it take to fund your business this year?
13. What are the weaknesses or shortcomings that you plan to outsource or compnesate for?
14. What will tell you that your business is going well - and what will tell you that your business in not going well?
15. What is the biggest limitation to your business?
16. How vibrant is the industry in which you offer your product or service?
17. How will you handle the money and accounting?
18. How quickly will your business be profitable and by how much?
19. What is your profit margin (revenue less actual cost of the product/service)?
20. Who do you need to bring in to ensure your success?

Bonus Question: How much do you plan to sell your business for and in how many years?

These 20 questions provide a simple exercise that I believe all self-employed professionals, small business owners, and anyone who is thinking of building a business needs to answer candidly. And sometimes we all need to dust off the business plan we wrote when we first started our businesses - and renew our interest and lift our spirits. Sometimes we just need to get back to the roots of our desire to own and run a business.

If you have questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you. I hope that today's post will help you re-kindle the fire and love for your business.

4 Ways our Environment Controls Our Results

There are numerous ways that our environment controls our results. Today's post will discuss 4 ways.

1. When we surround ourselves with negative people (employees, colleagues, friends, etc.), we become less positive. We may actually become negative as a direct result of being around negative people.
2. When we surround ourselves with positive, upbeat people, we naturally become more positive and upbeat.
3. When we develop a "work when it's time to work and play when it's time to play" philosophy, we become more balanced and produce better results.
4. When we throw caution to the wind, we really jeopardize our results.

These 4 ways are quite simplistic in scope; however, designing productive environments is not rocket science or brain surgery. It is basically common sense with deliberate action. Without deliberate action, our environments may never be as conducive to productivity and solid results.

Our environment really does control our results - and we can exert enough control over the design and development of our environments in order to get the best results possible.

More to come.....

Our Environment Controls Our Results

This Week with Sara Fitts takes a look at results - and what causes some results to be better than others. While reading Reposition Yourself by Bishop T. D. Jakes, he writes "Environment has so much to do with results." As I reflected on that quote, what came to me is this: We can control our results by controlling our environment. While some things in our environment cannot be changed, we definitely have the power to change a lot of things within our environment - our business or personal environment.

In our business environment we can design a supportive environment. We can surround ourselves with positive, supportive people as well as structures for success that will help us focus on the most important elements of our businesses. Here is a basic list of items that successful environments have:

• the best business plan we can develop
• the best staff we can assemble
• the best product/services we can deliver
• the best target market we can define
• the best location in which to grow our business
• the best support structures to include software, hardware, technology, etc.
• the best communication system in order to solve any and all issues that distract from the work at hand - on any given day

Too many times we look at our results and wonder why we aren't doing better. And, too many times we never really consider the real reason for less than optimal results. I think the key lies in the environment. Whether our results are good or bad, the environment in which we work determines to a great extent our success - or failure.

We can design the best environment for our success - and then we can create it. While a great deal of work must go into this process, it really is a simple process at its basic level. Here are some questions that can get us thinking about the kind of environment we really want to create in order to get the best results possible:

• What is the vision for this business?
• What is the purpose of this business?
• What are the 3 most important factors that we must have in order to get good results?
• What are the 3 key attributes of each employee that must be present in the environment?
• What are the 3 key attributes of each client or customer?
• What must we never have in our environment?
• How will we change when the need arises?
• How will we measure our results - and our overall success?

We can change our results by changing our environments - because our environment controls our results.

If you want to explore how you can improve your results, please contact Sara Fitts and schedule a one-on-one strategy session. She gets results for her clients. For more information please visit http://www.SLFConsulting.com or call 703.791.4741 today.

Time for a Reality Check?

Now that summer is "officially" over and it's time to get back to work, is it time for a reality check for your business? This Week with Sara Fitts poses this question quite candidly to all owners of small businesses and self-employed professionals.

Here is a simple assessment to see if you and your business are where you think you and your business really are. Answer these questions - and get a reality check - to help you kick off your business for a new fall season.

1. How are you different from every competitor?
2. How much are you out in front of your industry?
3. How much are you out in front of your target market?
4. How much did you increase your business in the past 3 - 4 months? Or, did you lose business over the past 3 - 4 months?
5. What are your immediate goals for the next 30 days? 90 days? 1 year?

If you will candidly answer these questions, you will give your business a reality check that will kick off a new season of growth.

Health, Wellness & Fitness in the Workplace

Regardless of the size of the business, the health, wellness and fitness of employees has to be on the minds of the ownership. This Week with Sara Fitts takes a look at what it means to employees, owners, and customers/clients for health, wellness and fitness to be a top priority for all business owners.

When employees are out due to illness - whether it's a day or two or extended over several weeks, business is affected greatly. The costs are great - especially for small businesses and their owners. Health insurance costs are continuously increasing to the point of putting small business owners in a much tougher spot than ever before experienced. Some businesses have had to recently pass more of the health insurance costs to their employees. Other businesses have opted to go to a "bare-bones" approach and pay less and less of the direct health insurance costs. Health insurance premiums for the self-employed are also rapidly increasing - often without warning.

The critical key to combat rising health-care costs for small business owners and self-employed professionals lies in the health, wellness and fitness of each employee. I think the only way to really get a handle on health care and the significant costliness of it is to make health, wellness and fitness a top priority for all employees - regardless of position in the business.

There are simple programs that will work to improve the health, wellness and fitness of the employee as well as improve the business as a whole. The benefits of such a program can include:

• reduction in sick leave costs and absenteeism
• increasing morale and reducing stress
• reduction in workman's comp claims
• higher energy and higher production levels
• more efficient employees
• lower health insurance costs
• bigger bottom line

There are several simple steps that all small business owners can easily implement. Some of them are listed here:

• offer employees memberships to gyms and fitness centers as a benefit
• have a fitness center on the premises
• provide time for fitness
• provide health and wellness fairs
• provide routine health screenings
• offer Pilates or yoga classes after work
• create a walking club for lunchtime exercise

There are many ways to improve health, wellness and fitness in the workplace - and the first way is to make it a priority. More to come on this topic ...

10 Ways to Double Your Effectiveness and Productivity within a Week

This Week with Sara Fitts shares 10 ways to double your effectiveness and productivity within a week. If you employ these 10 suggestions, you will likely quadruple your results. If you employ even 1 or 2 of these suggestions, your efficiency and productivity will double. Try them and see what happens. These suggestions are based on more than 5 years and the successful and sustainable implementation by 500 people in various industries and careers. They are simple; however, they are powerful tools for success.

1. Make the commitment to being more productive by refusing to put this off another day.
2. Respond to problems immediately - and stop using band-aids. [Solved problems are problems that have been eliminated and therefore no longer exist.]
3. Create and develop a culture of "Do it today" by refusing to put off any task that needs to be done.
4. Have your own personal resource list of people, organizations, websites, etc. that can be used for accessing information and assistance.
5. Ask for exactly what you want or need - and by when you want or need it. Accept nothing less.
6. Cut in half your normal appointment block time. If you use 30 minute blocks of time, make them 15 minutes. If you use hour-long blocks, cut it down to 30 minutes.
7. Get the information you need immediately. Don't wait until later.
8. Expect twice as much from others - and you'll get it. Expect effectiveness and efficiency from yourself - and you'll get it, too.
9. Stop saying "yes" when "no" is the correct answer. Protect yourself by saying "no" when you need to.
10. Set up and utilize systems - software, hardware, voicemail, calendars - even sticky notes if they work for you - to your full advantage.

(C) 2007 Sara L. Fitts. All Rights Reserved.

Where are You Going?

This Week with Sara Fitts is taking a look at how we get from one point to another - in life and in business. This particular post is the result of this powerful quote:

"If we do not change direction, we are liable to end up where we are headed."

If we simply look at our lives and our businesses or careers, are we where we want to be? Are we where we think we should be? Did we plan on reaching the place we are currently? Where are we really going? What do we really want? How can we change directions now? Is it too late to change directions? Lots of questions flood our minds. And the answer is found in the power of the quote!

Try this exercise. Sit down and really reflect on your life and your business or career. Take the time to focus on where you are now, where you were before, and where you ultimately want to be. Then get paper and pen (or pencil if you want an eraser), and do the following:

1. Write the quote on your paper.
2. Re-write the quote substituting "I" for "we" .
3. Answer this question: If I do not change direction, where will I be next month? What will be the same? What will be better? What will be worse?
4. Answer this question: If I do change direction, where will I go?
5. Answer this question: What do I want to change about my life (my business, my career)?

Use this exercise as a starting point for deciding where you are going in your life as well as in your business or career. For some businesses, this is the "New Year" (July 1 - June 30); for others, July marks the halfway point in the year. Either way, now is a perfect time to decide where you are going and what it will mean when you get there. This is a powerful advantage in personal growth as well as business development and professional growth.

More to come....

10 More Ways to Manage Your Time

Here are 10 more ways to manage your time.

1. Automate or systematize your life and your business as much as you can.
2. Check email 3 times a day - or at certain specific times that you've sheduled.
3. Back up your files - every week at a minimum.
4. Get the most out of the software you use - and look for new software to help personally as well as professionally.
5. Slow down and take time to think.
6. Take 10 minutes at the start of your day and 10 minutes at the end of your day to review your calendar, schedule, appointments, meetings, etc.
7. Respond to emails as soon as you read them. Get to the point quickly in your response.
8. Close your door.
9. Return calls at certain times during the day. Utilize voicemail as an empowerment tool to get things done. Return all calls within 24 hours to avoid adding more to your list for tomorrow.
10. Take an hour everyday just for yourself. Use it to read, workout, watch TV, listen to music - anything to relax and do something just for you. [The people around you will notice and appreciate it, too!]

Sara L. Fitts is a time management expert and can help you become more productive and efficient in your life and in your business. Contact her directly for more information. 703.791.4741 or visit www.SLFConsulting.com for more information.

10 Ways to Manage Your Time

This Week with Sara Fitts offers ways to manage your time. Here are 10 ways that you can implement today. After trying them for a week or so, you will definitely see their benefits.

1. Write things down.
2. Prioritize your tasks and projects. Do first things first.
3. Plan your week.
4. Say "no" when you need to say no.
5. Don't do other people's work.
6. Keep one calendar and put everything on it - personal, work, and family activities.
7. Don't be a perfectionist. Get it done. Revisions can last a lifetime if you let them.
8. Don't attempt the impossible. Candidly assess what is possible for you.
9. Don't chase waterfalls. We all have seen how this eats up time and energy.
10. Delete, shred, and throw away.

More time management tips will be available later this week. Check back to find them.

12 Performance Review Questions

This Week with Sara Fitts focuses on questions to ask when reviewing the performance of your employees. Small businesses vary in their approach to performance reviews - and after working with a number of small business owners, we have come up with 12 questions that help guide the performance review process.

1. What are the contributions of this employee to the organization?
2. What actions of this employee have moved the organization forward?
3. How has this employee improved the overall organization?
4. How has this employee hindered the organization?
5. What 3 words come to mind when this employee's name is mentioned?
6. What needs to be addressed for improvement?
7. How can this employee improve, specifically?
8. What does the organization need more of from this employee?
9. What does this organization need less of from this employee?
10. What skill or training needs to be developed or acquired in the next 30 - 90 days?
11. Where do you see this employee within this organization in the next 5 years?
12. What are the goals of the organization and how has this employee contributed toward their achievement? OR What are the specific results attributed to this employee?

These questions are not a "check-off" nor a ranking of 1 - 5 rating system. These questions are generally meant for small businesses with 5 - 250 emplyees. They are meant to provoke thought and generate candid opinions of employee performance. Too often small businesses do not take the time to assess their employees on their contributions to the overall success of the business. Whether pay increases result from candid assessment or increases are given for longevity - if you're the owner, I think you need to know how your business is impacted by your employees. In my opinion, the only way to do this is with candid performance reviews.

More to come . . .

Sara L. Fitts is a business coach and consultant who works with small business owners, self-employed professionals, and entrepreneurs to help them grow and develop their businesses and balance their lives. Please contact her directly for more information on her Simple Little Formula for business success. Her direct line is 703.791.4741. Visit us online @ www.SLFConsulting.com .

Performance Reviews: Is There a Point?

Performance reviews can be difficult, stressful, informative, motivational, and sometimes even ridiculous. We've all probably had good ones, inaccuarate ones, nice ones, or ones that never address our true roles within the organization. This Week with Sara Fitts takes on the performance review and offers perspectives for both sides of the table - for the giver as well as for the receiver of them.

In my limited research, the use of performance reviews in small businesses is extremely varied. Some businesses never use them for a variety of reasons - and other businesses use them every quarter for all staff members. Whether given annually or at other increments of time, there really can be benefit of the performance review - benefit to the business as well as to the employee.

Some performance reviews are given to justify pay raises while others are given to justify firings and lay-offs. Sometimes performance reveiws are used to justify the business itself and to look at the results over a period of time. Sometimes investors want to see how well their investment is really working - and performance reviews can be used as justification for change.

Throughout the week I will post several perspectives on performance reviews - and how we can use them better to create more successful businesses. As for now, here are my questions to you:

1. Do you use performance reviews in your small business? What is the cycle or calendar for them?
2. What is your point for using them?
3. Do you use a standard format - or do you use one that is exclusively yours?
4. What do your employees think of their performance reviews?
5. Do you base pay raises on them? Do you use them to terminate employees?

More to come later . . . .

Bigger and Better Results in Relatively Simple Ways

This Week with Sara Fitts focuses today's post on how to get bigger and better business results in relatively simple ways. This is definitely a short list, but I think it can have powerful results when implemented well.

• Hire and fire the right people.
• Improve cash flow by configuring commission scales that reflect compensation for payments received in the business. An example of this would be offering 105% of the commission for payments that are received in 5 days, 100% of the commission for payments that are received in 10 days, 85% of the commission for payments received in 30 days, 60% of the commission for payments received in 60 days, etc.
• Invest 1% - 2% of your revenue into your business.
• Hire a business coach.
• Implement your marketing plan.
• Track your results - and review your results. Set goals based on previous results in order to get better results.
• Stay motivated and focused.

The Butterfly Effect - for Your Business

This Week with Sara Fitts looks at how the butterfly effect can affect your business. Without going into the physics and scientfic explanation of what the butterfly effect is, I'm going to use its principles as they apply to your business. In a nutshell, the butterfly effect is this: a very small thing can have have huge effects on the universe. Here's how the butterfly effect can be change agent in your business.

Most of the time a very small thing can create huge results in your business - regardless of what business you're in. Take an inventory and look at each piece and part of your business. Then ask yourself these questions:

• How can I impact my business by 1%? How can I impact my business by 5% or more?
• What would happen if I worked 1 hour more or 1 hour less? [Sometimes by taking off an hour, you are recharged and renewed so much that the impact actually brings in business.]
• What would it mean if I had more time?
• What would it mean if I had better cash flow?
• What would it mean if had more breathing room?

I work with business owners, self-employed professionals, and entrepreneurs to help them create huge results in small ways. It really is a butterfly effect for business when you think about it. I got the idea of comparing my Simple Little Formula to the butterfly effect from The Rev. Stuart Schadt, rector of Trinity Episcopal Church, during his sermon last Sunday. Little things can have huge impact - in our lives and in our businesses.

There are numerous ways that each of us can get bigger and better results in relatively simple ways. Stay tuned for more.

First Quarter Assessment of Your Business

Today is the last day in the first quarter of 2007 - can you believe it? Whether you are a small business owner, entrepreneur, or a self-employed professional, the business you own needs a candid assessment of the first 90 days of this year. (Some of you may not use the calendar year as your business year, so July 1 - June 30 may actually be the calendar you use. If this is the case with your business, you are ending your 3rd quarter today - and still need to candidly assess your business.)

Here are the questions that I think are extremely useful in assessing your business at the end of each quarter:

1. How much money came in? List the total receipts for the quarter.
2. How much did the business cost you this quarter? List all costs assoiciated with the business for the quarter.
3. What was the profit or loss for the quarter? Basically, the difference in the receipts and the costs give you the profit or the loss.
4. What were your targets or goals for the quarter - and how successful were you at meeting or exceeding them?
5. What were the challenges? What were the results of the challenges?
6. What are the targets or goals for the next 90 days? Use a format for writing SMART goals: specific, measureable, attainable, realistic, with a definite timeframe or time line.
7. What do you need to do or have more of next quarter?
8. What do you need to do or have less of next quarter?
9. How will you market your business next quarter based on the marketing results of this quarter?
10. What is still outstanding or hasn't been handled - debts, receipts, etc. - and what is your plan for addressing all that still needs to come in?
11. What have you learned this quarter about your business, your colleagues, clients or customers?
12. What have you learned about yourself?

These 12 questions provide a very simplistic way to find out how you're doing in your business. The candid answers to these 12 questions can mean the difference between major growth and failure.

The Benefit of the Doubt

I heard something yesterday that has had a profound effect on me. Yesterday Rev. Vinnie Lainson's sermon was powerful - the takeaway from it is basically this: give everyone we encounter the benefit of the doubt. We can change the world just by giving others the benefit of the doubt. Yesterday's effect for me was mostly personal; however, this morning I awakened with the realization that the business world for me and my clients can be forever changed by this exercise as well.

For example, when someone cuts us off in traffic, instead of making gestures and using harsh language that only seems to raise our own blood pressure, perhaps we should give this driver the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he's just lost his job and is on his way home if he can find it or perhaps she has just left the hospital after hearing bad news. Other examples might include the grocery store express line with someone holding us up with double the number of "allowed" items, or the bank drive-thru lane when the person in front of me actually abandoned their car (true story!) and traffic was tied up for half an hour, or a colleague who has gotten on our last nerve for what seems like no good reason at all. There are many examples and we've all experienced them. But I want to look at this from the business perspective.

This Week with Sara Fitts will probe the ways that small business can be changed and improved simply by the power of giving others the benefit of the doubt.

• What if we abandoned all assumptions and gave our customers, clients, and colleagues the benefit of the doubt?
• What if we didn't second-guess the complaints, the requests and demands, or the need for a change in the appointment or meeting time?
• What if we didn't question the need for additional time for that report? What if the report really did get "lost" in cyberspace?
• What if we simply said "I'm sorry your child is sick and I hope he feels better tomorrow" instead of asking why a nanny is not a part of your household staff?
• What if we redefined the culture within our organizations to allow for giving every single person connected with the ogranization the freedom to experience receiving the benefit of the doubt? [This is really where it hit it for me.]

The benefits would be phenomenal, I think. And the benefits would be too numerous to ever count. But, for purposes of example, here are some of the benefits that come to mind initially:

1. Our production would immediately and exponentially increase - due to the simple fact that we have refused to get mad and bent out of shape yelling and saying things that are negative and detrimental to our work.
2. We would be happier and have happier colleagues, customers, and clients.
3. The culture of the organization would be much more positive.
4. The culture of the organization would not tolerate negativity nearly so much.
5. There would be much more creative energy for everyone associated with the business.

For me, the bottom line is this: When you develop a culture of giving others the benefit of the doubt, there is really no need to have back-stabbing, lying, cut-throat elements that distract from the business and the people involved in the business. Everyone is willing to give more because they are getting more.

It takes time to create this type of environment in any business or organization, and it is possible to have a successful and productive company based on this model. I'll write more about this in the next post.

A Simple Little Formula for Success

This Week with Sara Fitts is showcasing a Simple Little Formula for Success. The formula is not magic, yet the results of it can be magical. It isn't complicated, yet it can be complex. It is simple, and the results are powerful.

These are the key elements of my Simple Little Formula for Success:

• Define who you are, your vision, and your mission
• Articulate your skill sets
• Determine how to use your skills in order to get the best results
• Manage your time and manage your goals
• Track your progress with complete candor
• Celebrate your success throughout your journey

The formula is simple, but the process is complex. Steps cannot be omitted. Dedication and commitment are required.

Look at Your Business with New Eyes

Over the last week I've had a real epiphany of sorts - and it has implications for me personally as well as professionally. Its effect has been so profound that I actually took the week off to let it totally sink in. I never take an unscheduled week off - so it really is a profound experience for me and I want to share it with you.

This epiphany began with a simple quote that I found when I was doing research for my weekday ezine (JumpStart!). Here's the quote from Marcel Proust:

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.

The meaning behind this powerful quote for business owners, entrepreneurs, and self-employed professionals is extremely important. The following list represents a short list of implications.

• Instead of looking for new and different targets for offering your products and services, consider looking at your products and services through different eyes to get a different perspective of how these products and services can be used - differently than they are currently being marketed.
• Instead of looking for new employees, consider the current (or former) employees and look at them with new eyes in order to strengthen your business with their support and skill sets.
• Instead of throwing out the old ideas for marketing, look at those old ideas with fresh eyes and make simple changes in order to make them work this time.
• Instead of looking for the new and different, simply use fresh eyes to see what is really in your business plan - and make it work better.
• Look at your business plan and review it with different eyes. What do you think of it now? What changes need to be made? What is your mission? What is your vision?
• Refuse to be locked in to your business structures and look at everything about your business with new eyes. New eyes can make all the difference in your bottom line for 2007.

This quote may not be so profound to you right now; however, I cahllenge you as a business owner, entrepreneur, or self-employed professional to use this simple quote as a tool to look at your business (the organization itself) with a freshness and a newness that can create exponential growth for you over the next months.

What does your business look like through new eyes?

5 Solutions for my Clients

There are many solutions that I provide my clients; however, I'll highlight 5 of the "best" solutions that people pay me for.

• Lower stress levels - because I am a sounding board that is 100% confidential.
• Ability to get more done - because I provide time management and goal-setting strategies and techniques.
• Ideas that work to increase cash flow, income, revenue, and profit - because I provide a way to think outside the box.
• More balance between work, family, and personal time - because I teach a prioritizing strategy that is simple and works quickly.
• A simple little formula that helps grow a business and balance a life - because business owners, self-employed professionals, and entrepreneurs are too busy and have very little time.

Contact me to find out more about how I can provide the solution you need in your business and life. I love what I do - and I want to help. Sara

thecoach@SLFConsulting.com

International Coaching Week 2007

International Coaching Week is this week - February 4 - 10. The purpose of this week is to celebrate the power of coaching as well as to educate the general population on the many benefits of coaching - both personally and professionally. This Week with Sara Fitts will take this opportunity to spread the word on the power of coaching.

Today I will highlight 10 reasons that business owners, self-employed professionals, and entrepreneurs seek coaching. I will make myself available at various times this week to talk with you about your specific goals and dreams for your business (or your work and life). Feel free to contact me and I'll schedule an appointment with you.

Here are 10 reasons that business owners, self-employed professionals, and entrepreneurs hire business coaches:

• To have an interested person who has no dog in the fight to listen and candidly respond to business and personal issues - and have 100% confidentiality.
• To have help in setting goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, and realistic with timelines for each step.
• To have help in creating a marketing plan for 1 year or 5 years.
• To have a professional ask the questions that often aren't asked.
• To have added accountability when there are no other employees or board members.
• Help in thinking outside the box.
• Fresh perspectives.
• Help in hiring the right staff - and training them.
• Ideas for doubling or tripling your income/revenue/profit.
• To see the bigger picture, play in the bigger game, and reach the finish line faster - with more money, time, and fun.

To experience what I'm talking about, please schedule a complimentary session to find out if you qualify to be a client of mine. If you qualify, get ready for phenomenal results! I hope I talk with you soon! Sara

Sara L. Fitts

Business Coach 202.374.8158 or 703.791.4741 or email thecoach@SLFConsulting.com

Put Your Ideas to Work for You

This Week with Sara Fitts is dedicating this week's focus to putting ideas into motion. I read a powerful quote from John C. Maxwell in Thinking for a Change. It has powerful implications for all of us - especially self-employed professionals and small business owners.

Ideas have a short shelf life. You must act on them before the expiration date.

Too many times we have good ideas and don't take the time to act on them. Either we are waiting for the perfect opportunity to implement them, or we are trying to perfect the idea itself. I challenge you to stop waiting for the perfect moment and just jump into action with your good ideas. Be bold. And realize that waiting for perfection is another view of procrastination.

What ideas have you been putting off? What marketing tactic have you been waiting to use? Have you been waiting to hire staff? What is really holding you back from implementing your good ideas?

Too many times our competitors beat us to the punch - and our own ideas may have been better from the beginning! (Have you ever experienced that?) You will never know the outcome of your efforts if you don't put your ideas into action. I challenge you to make 2007 your best business year yet - by putting your good ideas into action before their expiration date - or before your competitor beats you to the punch.

Put your ideas to work for you - and start today!

Can You See the Forest for the Trees?

This Week with Sara Fitts focuses this week on "big picture" thinking. Too often the only thing holding back self-employed professionals and small business owners is lack of seeing the big picture. Sometimes we are so focused on what has to be done today and tomorrow that we fail to even condsider the next 5 years. And other businesses aren't successful due to only focusing on the years down the line and not paying any attention to the next 30 days.

The strategy that has been most helpful to me and to my clients is seeing the forest for the trees - but making sure there is balance in the view. See the big picture.

Take a helicopter view of your business - as it fits into your industry on a global level. Make sure you see the trees as well as the overall lay of the land. Get different perspectives from different views. Don't be afraid to see what is really there. Adjust your business plan as needed after looking at your business with an extremely focused eye. Look at the big picture and see what's there. Break it down for the next 30 days, 90 days, 6 months, 1 year, 3 years, 5 years, etc. See the forest and the trees - and you will find success.

Change Your Thinking to Change Your Results

This Week with Sara Fitts focuses on the power of thinking - and how you can change your results simply by changing your thinking. I believe that we will always get the same results we've always gotten if we continue to do the things we've always done. The same applies to our way of thinking, too. In order to get better results, we need to change our thinking.

John C. Maxwell makes the case for different ways of thinking in his book, Thinking for a Change: 11 Ways Highly Successful People Approach Life and Work. I find his book to be an excellent source of energy - especially at this particular time of year when New Year's Resolutions and new goals and action plans are the subject of many conversations, memos, and meetings. For example, Maxwell gives us these thoughts about thinking:

• Everything begins with a thought.
• What we think determines who we are. Who we are determines what we do.
• Our thoughts determine our destiny. Our destiny determines our legacy.
• People who go to the top think differently than others.
• We can change the way we think.

As you complete your plans and goals for the new year - or as you simply plan the new quarter or even just a month at a time - this book can provide an excellent structure in an easy-to-read format that will challenge you to think differently in order to make the changes you want and need to make.

Get in Gear for the New Year - Today

This Week with Sara Fitts is dedicated to helping you get in gear for 2007. There are many ways to approach a new year and I'll focus on what I think are some of the best ways to approach business and personal goals for the new year. My hope is that these ideas will be helpful to you - a new and different perspective at the very least.

Today is an excellent opportunity to have a clean slate for yourself and your business. Regardless of what type of work you do, whether you are self-employed or work in a small business, or own a business and have several employees - today is a day that is open to you and your ideas for new success in 2007.

Here are some questions to consider as you plan your success for 2007:

• What do you want to accomplish in 2007?
• What do you want to do differently in 2007 from previous years?
• What do you want less of in 2007?
• What will you refuse to let hold you back in 2007?
• How will you approach 2007?
• What is really possible for you and your business this year?

Additionally, here are some thoughts to consider as you approach the new year:

• Today is a new beginning. Make the most of the talent you have. Make the most of the opportunities you have. Make the most of the experiences you bring to the table.
• Sometimes you have to do less in order to have more. For example, perhaps you have to jump into action as opposed to talking a project or concept to death. I believe in planning, but sometimes success is put on hold because there is way too much planning and talking and not nearly enough action. Less talking and more action can mean a huge increase in revenue and profits.
• Perfection is not worth waiting for. I believe you just have to jump into action and make the best of your efforts and ideas. Too often people wait for just the perfect product or service, or the perfect time for launching a new venture - but ultimately, the time is now. Don't wait. Make it happen - and start today.

Happy New Year! I hope 2007 is fabulous for all of us!