How to Work Smarter, Not Harder on Your Business

Is all your hard work paying off? Maybe not. According to Boston University's Questrom School of Business, managers can't tell the difference between employees working 80 hours a week - and those who just pretend to. They couldn't see if their overworked employees actually accomplished more than those just pretending to work hard.

But the research doesn't give us a free pass to just slash our work hours and expect to see success. Instead, we should be working smarter, not harder, on our businesses to see results.

So instead of logging upwards of 80 hours of work a week simply for the sake of hard work, turn those 80 hours into a smart and savvy business hustle to skyrocket your success. Here are six ways to get started.

1. Get Clear On Your Goals

Serious focus and clear goal setting is crucial to your business success. Start by writing down your goals to give your hard work a boost. According to a study by Dr. Gail Matthews at the Dominican University, more than 70% of those who wrote down their goals and sent weekly updates to a friend were successful in achieving those goals. Meanwhile, only 35% of those who kept the goals to themselves were actually successful.

2. Offer Incredible Value

Creating unbelievable value in your business isn't a new concept. But how you do it should extend past the services you bill for. I exceeded last year's goal to connect or help one person a day and expected nothing in return. When I meet to help others or get to know them better, I don't ask for the sale or a return favor during that conversation. By simply focusing on helping others and creating value, I automatically generate leads and acquire new customers to the tune of six figures.

You can offer incredible value in your own business by focusing on what you do best. Give away a valuable ebook on your expertise if you're amazing at breaking down complex theories and jargon into easy-to-understand language. Create a LinkedIn group or a premium membership site if you excel at being a cheerleader for your clients and holding them accountable through their own business-building process.

3. Make It Passive

Earning a healthy income is relatively easy if you're working hard and putting in long hours. But there are only so many hours in the day that you can actually work. Spend too many hours on your actual services, and you sacrifice the time needed to develop new products and services and scale your business.

Instead, make part of your business a completely passive pursuit. Start by selling an ebook or self-paced video course. You can also look into how to diversify your wealth-building portfolio to earn passive income. That income can then be reinvested into your business to continue growing it.

4. Automate Your Systems

Earning money isn't the only thing that can be a passive pursuit in your business. Borrow from that passive concept and start automating your systems. Start by pre-qualifying leads with a survey or follow-up form to learn more about their business. This can dramatically reduce time on the phone going through the same questions you ask every lead, only to find out they're not your ideal client.

Use a system like KissFlow to determine processes, build forms, design the workflow, and set permissions for your team. SalesForce can also help automate processes like your project management systems, quality control, and managing advertising campaigns. Focus on completely automating your most common processes to create more margin and free up your time to build your business.

5. Eliminate Decision Fatigue

There are only so many decisions you can make in a single day before suffering burnout and decision fatigue. Research has shown that judges are more likely to offer parole and favorable terms during the morning hours - as decision fatigue sets in during the afternoon, similar offenders are more likely to be denied parole.

Make the majority of your decisions in the morning when your mind is the most alert and rested. Stack your afternoon with less-intensive tasks like meeting for coffee with a business prospect, answering emails, or getting in a workout at the gym.

And remember to take time to decompress and reflect. I reboot my brain by traveling, writing, and skydiving. In a survey of the daily routines of hundreds of Fortune 500 Executives, VPs and CEOs consistently use their evenings to unwind with a short walk, reading, pursuing a hobby, and shutting down electronics to relax before bed. When it's time to make more decisions in your business, you'll feel energized and more focused.

6. Outsource Strategically

Common sense should tell us we can't do everything ourselves. But in reality, entrepreneurs get stuck in the startup or bootstrapping mentality and keep doing everything themselves. Get more done in your business by outsourcing menial tasks, and anything that isn't within your range of expertise.

Start by outsourcing your bookkeeping to a monthly service like Bench, or your payroll to the experts at Wagepoint. Meanwhile, a service like Zirtual can provide you with virtual assistants to help with everything from travel planning to online research.

And don't just stop at delegating professional tasks. Remember, you can also outsource things like cleaning your office or home, cooking meals, and errand running to free up more time in your personal life and create more of a time margin in your business.

Are you ready to give up some control to work smarter, not harder? It's easy to keep wearing 'working hard' like a badge of honor. But working smart, automating processes, and giving up control can help your business soar and dramatically impact your bottom line.

What's your favorite way to work smarter, not harder, on your business? 

Let me know in the comments below.

Source : http://on.inc.com/2dvPxYB

7 Simple Tips to Boost Your Personal Brand On LinkedIn

Your personal brand is your image. The right image can get you that job, attract people to your business, and win over connections that you would have never stood a chance with otherwise. Boosting your personal brand on LinkedIn should be a priority whether you are the manager of a large firm or launching your first startup.

Boosting your personal brand requires time and effort. You have to commit to using LinkedIn if you are going to make your mark on 400 million users. These simple tips will show you how to use LinkedIn.

Tip #1 – LinkedIn is Not X Social Network

It’s easy to treat all social media networks the same. And that’s because most of them are the same. What you post on Instagram may be transferred to Pinterest. What you post on Facebook can be shortened to go on Twitter. You don’t have to put much thought into what you post.

LinkedIn is different. The best thing you can do for your personal brand is to publish unique content on LinkedIn. It’s worthwhile to link it to your other social media networks, but this isn’t the same as simply copying your Facebook update for LinkedIn.

Tip #2 – Fill Out Your Profile

This is the simplest tip of them all, and yet people fail to do it time and time again. It’s a time-consuming process to completely fill out your LinkedIn profile, and yet if you put the effort in it can make such a difference.

Many people will view your profile before they consider formally connecting with you. Make your profile public and allow people to find out about you first. This will encourage people to find out about who you are as a brand.

Tip #3 – A Professional Tone

It’s good to innovate and to think outside the box. But that doesn’t mean you should go against what everyone else is doing. LinkedIn is different to every other social media network because it’s the one network that adopts a professional manner. Whenever you are filling out your profile or writing to someone, make sure you adopt at least a semi-formal tone.

Tip #4 – Can the Default Messages

LinkedIn has a default message for everything. Whether you’re connecting with someone or just asking to be invited to join a group, you will notice default text populating your window. It’s tempting to save time by sending this, but this is really a huge mistake.

Anyone who has used LinkedIn for a certain length of time is well aware of what the default text says. If you send it, you are sending the message that you don’t really care about that person. They are not worth a personalized message. You are not serious about forming a relationship with them.

Cancel these default messages and write something personal. It can be a rewritten version of the default message if you like, but the point is you have done something different. You have gone out of your way to respect that person.

Tip #5 – Participate in Group Chats

The easiest way to spread your reputation as an authority in your field is to participate in group chats. Give people the benefit of your wisdom by answering questions and posting opinions on current topics.

This is where LinkedIn can become time-consuming because it can take many hours out of your working week to get this done. But it’s what most people don’t do so that fact alone is going to make you stand out from the crowd. Choose only relevant group chats. For an added bonus, you should target the groups that your prospects are members of. To build authority is a great way to create connections.

Tip #6 – Take the Relationship Away from LinkedIn

Building your personal brand is one thing, but it doesn’t mean anything unless you can make that personal brand work for you. Whenever you connect with a lead on LinkedIn, offer a face-to-face meeting or the chance to exchange email addresses. Get the relationship away from LinkedIn so you can advance the relationship early.

This is a statement of intent and this statement could make all the difference with your ability to turn that lead into a customer or something more.

Tip #7 – Recommendations

Finally, wherever you can, have people recommend you for certain skills. Repay the favor and this will help you to craft a profile filled with skills that other members can vouch for. These are essentially brand testimonials.

  Source :http://bit.ly/23bc29w

A List Of The Worst Business Advice You Can Follow — Ever

There’s plenty of advice out there for how to start and run a business. But not all of it is good. In fact, there are some common sayings that are actually some of the worst business advice out there. The following includes some of the worst business advice you can follow.

The Worst Business Advice

Do What You Love

Although it may seem like a nice notion, this popular saying is widely considered one of the worst pieces of business advice out there. Just because you love doing something doesn’t mean that others will find it helpful or necessary. And if no one buys what you’re selling, then doing what you love won’t really get you anywhere.

If You Build It, They Will Come

Likewise, simply building an offering doesn’t mean that you’ll actually attract any customers. This saying implies that if you put in the work, there are customers out there who will support your business. But if you don’t do the research and find a market for your product or service, you very well could be in for a rude awakening.

The Customer is Always Right

This popular saying is meant to encourage business owners and employees to work hard to accommodate customers. And while customers and their opinions are generally important to the success of businesses, they’re not always right. If you’re constantly giving discounts or changing your offerings every time a customer makes a demand, you could be hurting your brand and your bottom line.

Never Turn Down a Paying Customer

Likewise, you shouldn’t assume that every customer you get will help your business. Especially if you have a consulting business or provide some other service where it can be necessary for you to work with someone over the long-term, it may very well be in your best interest to only take on a few very select clients.

Don’t Quit Your Day Job

This is some of the worst business advice out there because there’s no right path for every entrepreneur. If you’re just starting out, it may very well be in your best interest to keep your full-time job while building a business. But then again you might be better off quitting and putting all your time and effort into your new venture. When it comes to making this decision, each entrepreneur has to decide based on his or her own set of circumstances, and not listen to a single one-size-fits-all recommendation.

Stay Away From Established Markets

Some experts claim that in order to start a successful business, you need to find a brand new niche or a huge gap in the market. But that’s not always true. You can start a business in an established market as long as you have at least one small thing that customers will appreciate to set you apart.

If You Want Something Done Right, You Have to Do It Yourself

Too many business owners try to do everything themselves because they have a hard time trusting anyone else with their business. But the fact is there are experts and great potential employees out there who can help you do things better than you could all by yourself.

It’s All About Who You Know

Personal connections can certainly be helpful when it comes to running a successful business. But putting such a huge emphasis on them can discourage some people who aren’t well connected from starting businesses. You can always build connections as you go.

Stick to Your Plan

A business plan is a helpful tool. But it shouldn’t be the ultimate, unchanging guide for your business. Sometimes things change, and you should be able to adapt your plan to those changes.

Follow an Established Path to Success

Some experts think that there are just one or two ways to make it in the business world. But young, innovative entrepreneurs are forging their own paths every day. So don’t let anyone tell you that there’s one path you HAVE TO take in order to succeed.

Keep Your Business and Personal Life Separate

While there can be some merit to this piece of advice in certain situations, it’s no longer an absolute rule. Some small businesses actually thrive because the owner or the team shares their personality with customers. You don’t need to air all of your personal drama on social media. But being a little bit open and personable with your customers can be a good thing.

All Attention is Good Attention

Drawing attention to your business, especially during the early stages, can be difficult. So when you get any type of attention or press it might seem like a good thing. But if that attention isn’t in line with your brand and the image you want to portray, it could be doing more harm than good.

Hire the Most Experienced People

Experience can be a very good quality when looking to build your team. But it shouldn’t be the only quality you look for. Finding people who are enthusiastic, talented, creative and who share your vision for your business can be just as important — if not more so.

Offer the Lowest Prices

Plenty of new businesses fall into the trap of trying to differentiate themselves from the competition by offering the lowest prices. But that isn’t always sustainable depending upon your costs and your business model. And it could damage your reputation moving forward.

Work Hard and Success Will Come

Hard work is certainly important when it comes to running a successful business. But it is not the only thing that matters. Don’t think that just because you’re putting in long hours and trying your best that success will eventually come. Sometimes it’s more important to “work smart” than to work hard. Ultimately, the results you get are what matter.

Don’t Try New Things

If you’ve found one or two things that work in your business, it can seem like a safe bet to stick with what works. But doing that won’t allow your business to grow as quickly as you might like. Trying new things can be risky, but it can also be rewarding.

Never Say No

Saying no to new clients, partnerships or opportunities may seem like a bad business strategy. But if you say yes to everything, you could be spreading yourself too thin or taking your business in too many different directions. You need to be very intentional when making those decisions so you can be sure that they’re going to benefit your business in the long run.

You Have to Spend Money to Make Money

This can be true in some circumstances. But you shouldn’t fall into the trap of thinking that making big investments in new equipment, employees, training or other resources, will magically make your business better. You need to be smart about how you spend. And besides, many entrepreneurs have built highly successful businesses with very few or almost no resources at all.

Never Stop Working

You have to work hard to run a successful business. But you also need to find a balance, or else you’ll burn yourself out and find yourself too uninspired to run your business successful. The risk of burnout is one reason work-life balance is an absolute must.

Give Up

Not all businesses succeed. In fact, most don’t. But this is still some of the worst business advice you could ever receive. It’s never up to someone else whether you give up or not. If that’s a decision you need to make, it should be based on more than just outside opinions. Never let others decide when it is time for you to throw in the towel.

What are some of the worst pieces of business advice you have ever heard?

Source: http://bit.ly/1okfcbc

Be curious

More about me go to : www.patrick-osinski.com

10 Key Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media for Business

When it comes to interacting with consumers, there’s nothing more effective than social media. Keeping tabs on what’s happening on social networks, you’ll gain valuable insight into your target audience, forge meaningful relationships with your customers and create a community of brand followers. It’s clear that every professional out there needs to be present on social media. Here are 10 key do’s and don’ts to help you survive on social platforms and build a strong brand that resonates with a wide range of consumers.

1. Do know your target audience

Without knowing to whom you’re addressing your messages, you cannot enjoy the full benefit of social media. Your social media accounts should be tailored to match the expectations and preferences of your target audience, not reflect your personal interests. Consumers don’t really care about you as a person – they’re far more interested in what you can do to help them in solving a problem.

That’s why you should know who you’re talking to before you start posting stories and sharing your expertise online. This is where 80/20 rule comes in handy. Make sure that 80% of your content is relevant to your target audience and 20% of it is specifically about your offer. This is a formula that works perfectly for self-employed professionals.

2. Don’t forget to set privacy settings

Just like you use them on your personal files, you should do so with your business accounts as well. Be careful when posting – just because you can delete a post doesn’t mean that the internet will forget. You have no idea about who might have seen it before you decided to delete it – and they might have saved this information. Always think twice before posting something or sharing content. Make sure to have full privacy settings in place and protect your passwords. Never give your passwords to other people and make sure they’re hard to crack. If your social accounts fall into the wrong hands, they can cause you a lot of trouble.

3. Do set the standard for good behavior

Even if social media and similar online activity seems more private, it’s hardly so. Every single thing you write and share will leave a permanent mark on the web. That’s why you should always set a standard for behavior online, showing your audience that you treat your online presence seriously and are in full control of your reputation on social media. Good online behavior will never lose you customers – your reputation as a solid company with great social media following will only help to boost your visibility on the web.

4. Don’t rely on automation too much

Automation is great for scheduling and organizing your social media activity, but never rely exclusively on such tools for posting. If you do, you’ll quickly lose that valuable personal touch with clients which makes your brand stand out. Show that you’re human and strive to make engagement experience for your target audience more personal.

5. Do pay attention to timing

Post only when you’re sure many people are listening. It’s pointless to be active in social media at times when there’s hardly anyone out there to engage and respond. That’s why you should always keep tabs on analytics and find out when your followers are most active on specific social media platforms. Use this information to your advantage when scheduling your posts – engaging consumers in these time frames will help you to make the most from your social media activity.

6. Don’t forget to respond or delete negative comments

Responding to comments, even if they’re negative, is a must. If you fail to respond in time or at all, count on your audience to notice that and change their perspective on our brand. Without active engagement, you’ll send a message that you don’t really care enough about your customers. You should be using comments as opportunities for interacting with your audience.

Show your audience how you deal with both positive and negative situations. That’s why you should never, ever delete negative comments. The person who posted them in the first place is still out there and seeing your lack of acknowledgment and outright denial will just enrage them. Stay calm and try to solve the issue – this is how you avoid a damaging PR disaster.

7. Do strive for originality

Be original and try different forms of content. Only by shaking things up once in a while you’ll keep your audience on their toes and wanting more. Be creative and show your personality. This is how you can gain loyal following – it’s what makes you stand out from others. Make sure your social channels are engaging and leave consumers with a positive impression.

8. Don’t be confident to the point of arrogance

Sometimes you might want to share your expertise and start to sound a bit too arrogant. If you want to make the most from your online presence, never use that tone. Don’t try to come off as a know-it-all – this isn’t an attitude that makes people like you. Respect the value your audience brings in to your conversation and keep an open mind – it’s not like you’ve got an answer to every single question. You can learn a lot through your interactions – always acknowledge valuable contributions from the community.

9. Do understand which social media networks work best for you

Before you create an account for your business on every single social network you know, pause for a minute and reflect on the social media landscape for a while. You’re using social media to meet your customers halfway, so what’s the point of being active on a platform none of your relevant audiences use? That’s right – when analyzing your target audience, you should also strive to learn about their favorite online hangouts.

Just because everyone has a profile on Facebook doesn’t mean that you need one as well. Remember than in order to bring you benefits, you’ll need to invest time in each social network – choose only those which are most relevant to your sector and audience. If you’d like to drive more traffic to your website and improve customer engagement, you need to choose networks that really fit your type of business.

10. Don’t share too much information too often

Don’t be hyperactive on social media – otherwise you risk coming off as someone who has no idea about when they’re doing. Take extra care about the content you share and make sure it’s 100% relevant and engaging. Sharing too much information can seriously damage your business operation. Just imagine what could happen if you share hints or pictures of your brand new product too early – you simply lose the momentum and effectively kill the entire product launch campaign. Post consciously and responsibly.

Becoming aware of these key do’s and don’ts of social media for business will help you to unleash the full potential of your brand and build a vibrant community of loyal followers who are genuinely interested in what you’ve got to say.

                Source : http://bit.ly/1JZv0KE

7 Skills Your Social Media Manager Should Have

The past ten years have brought us incredible developments in the field of social media – developments which have irrevocably changed the DNA of digital marketing; provided content marketers with a limitless landscape in which to showcase their efforts; and created a new profession of individuals who pretty much live and breathe social.

The beauty of social is that you don’t need to be a big name brand with an astronomical marketing budget in order to harness its power – even a modest-sized business can reap the benefits of connecting with and engaging consumers. In fact, it can even be argued that the smaller-sized business lends itself even better to social media as it tends to operate via informal, open communication – just the sort of style that works exceptionally well in the social sphere.

Brands have had to sit up and take notice of the fact that properly handling the social side of their business is becoming more important than ever. The role of social media management is no longer simply seen as an add-on duty i.e. the aptly named Joe Bloggs penning the odd, whimsical post to publish to Facebook as and when he thinks of it before hurrying back to his ‘real’ job.

However, hiring the right social media manager can be something of a minefield. In the dynamic and constantly evolving landscape of social media, it can be hard to figure out what the key skills are that you should be looking out for. So, to help you make the right call, we’ve compiled a little list…

1. Passion for social media

Bit of a no-brainer you might think, but just having a top-notch personal Facebook page doesn’t necessarily put your candidate above the rest. A great social media manager will be able to not only demonstrate expertise across a range of social channels but also show an understanding of what type of content best suits each platform and a passion for interacting within these online communities.

2. Customer service skills

An ability to communicate with customers and prospects from all demographics as well the organisational skills to provide timely and appropriate responses to queries or issues are essential attributes in order to gain and secure customer loyalty.

3. SEO expertise

SEO, content and social media all go hand-in-hand. Forbes once described a social media manager as “the gatekeeper and promoter” of content. This content needs to be properly optimised to grow your audience, drive traffic to your website and hopefully attract a fair few sales as a result.

4. Drive to learn

This is a landscape that is ever-evolving and consequently, your social media manager needs to be evolving along with it. To stay on top of the game in this fast-paced world, the ideal candidate needs to be reading as much as possible about social media and technological advancements and be able to discuss trends, tools and potential opportunities for the future.

5. Persistence

It takes patience, dedication and drive to achieve social media success. Growing an audience, building trust and establishing your brand as an authority in your industry takes time and the best social media managers maintain realistic expectations along with their big dreams – they are not afraid to experiment, make mistakes and come back stronger than before.

6. A top-notch toolkit

There is a vast array of useful social media tools at your disposable – do you really have the time to learn about them all as well as run your business? A social media manager should be able to show you their favourite features for tasks such as: monitoring mentions on social media activity; keeping track of and interpreting analytics; collaborating with a team on social projects; and scheduling activity.

7. An eye for words and pictures

As the majority of communications will be in writing, it goes without saying that a social media manager should have clear, concise and on-brand writing skills. However, in the digital world, particularly as the age of video dawns, a picture can be worth a thousand words – the right candidate will have an eye for great images and video when they see it and know when it is worth sharing.

Source : http://bit.ly/1JOZbnF

Ten entrepreneurs share the advice that made them successful

REGARDLESS OF HOW we define it, success can feel like a fleeting and often elusive target. It takes confidence, passion and drive to accomplish your goals and to recognise success when you’ve achieved it.

Here’s how ten influential executives and entrepreneurs describe the key to their success.

Bill Gates

Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.

Bill GatesSource: PA

Steve Jobs

You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

Barbara Corcoran

People want to do business with someone they like. If people like you, they’re going to want to do business with you.

Marissa Mayer

I always did something I was a little not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this’, and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.

Marissa MeyerSource: PA

Jeff Bezos

If you’re competitor-focused, you have to wait until there is a competitor doing something. Being consumer-focused allows you to be more pioneering.

Jack Dorsey

Make every detail perfect and limit the number of details to perfect.

Angela Ahrendts

Remember, the universal language is not texted, emailed or spoken. It is felt.

Richard BransonSource: PA

Richard Branson

My mother always taught me never to look back in regret but to move on to the next thing. The amount of time people waste dwelling on failures, rather than putting that energy into another project, always amazes me.

Warren Buffet

It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently

Mark Zuckerberg 

The biggest risk is not taking any risk … In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks.

Source : http://bit.ly/1R7sdkX