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It’s time….to move, to transition from a place of basic personal and professional development, to a position of true personal strength. It’s time to put YOU on the map!

I have a lot of fabulous info and tools to share with you— to get you in motion, to get you strong, to give you peace of mind, and to help you create a FULFILLING life, a THRIVING business, and SOLID relationships. This is fitness for the soul.

It’s time for ALL of us to finally just be ourselves and contribute meaningfully AND powerfully to the world through who we were meant to be and what we were meant to do. You don’t need a hook or a gimmick. You just need to be YOU, and be it full throttle! There is no other you, and THAT is where YOUR power lies!

It’s time to get EMPOWERED——to STOP the ridiculous game of trying to please everyone else, be something you are not, or do it someone else’s way.

You CAN have a great life, a great business, and great relationships, but it starts with getting real and getting to where you are comfortable flowing in YOUR personal power and YOUR area of influence—not someone else’s.

I am living my DREAM. My dream is to be a true encouragement and inspiration to others, to have control over the way I use my time and my resources, to fully enjoy the experience of life, to love my work and my contributions, to be blessed economically,  and in doing so to know I am a success.

I will help you find YOUR voice, YOUR passion, and YOUR creativity! YES, you have all of that within you RIGHT NOW. I write with YOU in mind. My entire goal is to empower you to embrace your life and live it fully and exceptionally, while touching the lives of others, being and feeling like a TRUE success, and having loads of fun.

I’ll help you grow your business, connect with others, be a giver, be a better person, grow personally and professionally, increase profits, understand the New Media and New Marketing Mindset, and enjoy your life with more authenticity, more time for what matters most, and more energy. I want you to live YOUR dream.

Please stop by often for words of empowerment and substantial tools you can use to continuously keep you on the track of being YOU, living your life and running your business the only way it will succeed—by YOU embracing YOU, and giving the real YOU to others!

I would love to hear from you. You can email me at Margo@DeGangiGroup.com .

 To YOUR Wild Success,

Margo

Margarett DeGange, M.Ed. , Empowerment Coach

Signup for my FREE business and personal development newsletters and get many great reports FREE just for signing up: www.DeGangiGroup.com

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Monday Message from Margo   

“The heart has eyes which the brain knows nothing of.” ~Charles H. Perkhurst

 “The obscure we see eventually. The completely obvious, it seems, takes longer.” ~ Edward R. Murrow

 “The question is not what you look at, but what you see.” ~Henry David Thoreau

About three times a week, I drive through and get myself an iced tea (weaning myself off of Starbucks coffee). I usually go to the same fast food chain drive-through, but not necessarily the same location. This particular chain, SONIC, experiences a tremendous amount of traffic in any given hour.

I have made it a point when asked “How can I help you?” to first say, “Hi, how are you doing today?” in a very sincere and friendly voice. What a HUGE difference this has made in the service I receive.

I have always been polite at a drive-though, but now I slow down and take those extra few seconds to really acknowledge the individual who is helping me by asking how they are doing. They can hear in my voice that I really want to know. The result has been super friendly replies, like “I’m doing great, and how is your day going?” and other similar sentiments. I can totally tell by the surprised and almost shocked responses I get that most of the people I speak with this way rarely get a friendly greeting that speaks directly to them personally.

The other day, instead of driving through, I sat outside and ordered my tea from the ordering booth on the patio, using the same friendly tone. A car-hop brought me my drink and I sat down. Soon after, three individuals came to the patio to order, and they were somewhat demanding and unfriendly—although not really outright rude, just all about themselves—totally oblivious to the human spirit working diligently on the other side of the speaker. It made me a little sad for the way we go about unaware and unconscious a lot of the time.

Since using my new greeting consistently, I have been called “sweetie”, “hun”, and “love” by some overly appreciative sales girls (is that what you call the ladies who work at the drive-though?).  I have to tell you, this simple gesture has really opened my eyes to how much we all just want to be “seen” (even though you can’t see someone at first in a drive through).

Being “Seen”

Being “seen” means being acknowledged and it also means experiencing a connection even if for a brief moment. Being seen means being appreciated and respected, even praised when it’s appropriate.

Seeing others means you come from the vantage point that all of our lives, all of our wallets, all of our jobs, and all of our time schedules matter and are valued just like we value our own.

Seeing others means dropping the manipulative tactics to get what we want, and letting go of the rudeness that tells someone we think they are less important than we are.

Seeing is believing, too. When we “see” our employees, they begin to believe in us more, and we in them. When we “see” our vendors, we embrace them as part of our team, not as adversaries that are out to stick us. When we “see” our co-workers, we understand that they are building their professional lives just as we are, and we see that is important to them just as it is important to us. When we “see” our customers, we are able to be amazingly thankful that with all of the many wonderful choices they have, and with all of the options at their disposal, they are willing to see us and give us a try—either for the first time or once again. When we ourselves are customers, and we “see” sales people, tellers, wait staff, professional service providers, clerks, and attendants, we open not only our eyes, but our hearts and our opportunities as well.

It takes only an instant to become aware in any given situation. It takes just a second to re-adjust bad thinking, and clear the air of any bad attitude that would cause us to not see another. The moment you notice yourself heading down the wrong communications road, it’s time to look and SEE.

The wonderful thing about seeing others is that by doing so you begin to see yourself, and best of all you also begin to be seen, and once again we come full circle (something I love to do).

So this week, see and be seen. Open your mind, your heart, your voice, your consideration to others, and see how it makes all the difference in your business and in your life (and of course it will never hurt your profits either).

Have a Wildly Wide-Eyed Week,

Margo

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Monday Message from Margo   

“Too often we… enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.”  ~John F. Kennedy

“The trouble with most people is that they think with their hopes or fears or wishes rather than with their minds.”  ~Will Durant

“Begin challenging your own assumptions.  Your assumptions are your windows on the world.  Scrub them off every once in awhile, or the light won’t come in.”  ~Alan Alda

Once in a while I find myself deep in thought about life and business and such. It’s a good practice. Thinking purposefully can open the door to so many new ideas and possibilities. If you can think about thinking as a way of just reflecting, looking, observing, or even brainstorming in an objective manner, you can leave your usual thoughts and habits to discover greater success.

Here are some thoughts I looked at today. As you read them, don’t judge the words. Instead, simply be open. Maybe there is space here for you to explore something in a new way in your own life and business.

1. Create and develop amazingly USEFUL and BENEFICIAL products and services. Leave the so-so stuff for the armatures.

2. Don’t expect overnight success. Keep pluggin’ away at being exceptional in your business offerings, and give people time enough to catch on.

3. Be passionate about what you do (I cannot say this enough, have you noticed?). If you are not passionate with what you are doing, find something else you can be passionate about, since success takes time and you’ll need your passion to keep you going until you reach your financial goals.

4. Don’t follow the pack in your products and services, or in the way that you market them. See what everyone else is NOT doing and make it a point to do that.

5. Just because a product or has a great margin for profit, and just because YOU like it, doesn’t mean people will want to buy it.

6. Hire GREAT people and don’t be afraid of their talent. Treat them very well and let them help you win.

7. Don’t fight change. Open your arms to it. See it as the new way of life.  If you are coasting, you are not growing, so make it a choice to ENJOY change and the effort it takes to go with it—the way you enjoy any sport. Let change help you to see the needs and desires of your customers, prospects, employees, business associates, and yourself. Let change bring you terrific opportunities to learn, grow and profit.

8. Make certain today’s to-do-list focuses on the priorities that matter most TODAY, NOT yesterday.

9. Your customer’s and prospect’s attention is so divided that they can barely hear their spouses, kids, and significant others anymore! On top of that, droves of marketers are shouting for their attention on every corner of the street and Internet. When you say something to your prospects, make it great, not just good or O.K.  Say something that makes them want to give you a shout out, instead of something that makes them want to run from your shouting.

10. Don’t be fooled into thinking you have to create controversy (like they do on most talk radio, and on all of the news and interview shows on t.v.) The world is changing, and so is the way people want to talk. Forget controversy; instead, seek to always ADVANCE the CONVERSATION—with your employees, your prospects, your customers, your vendors, your business associates, and your joint venture partners. Drop the gimmicks and the need to impress. BE WHO YOU ARE and bring your incredible self to the conversation knowing that YOU are enough.  STIMULATE and ADVANCE conversations that make you a vital and valuable part of someone else’s world.

Have a Wildly Thoughtful Week,

Margo  

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Monday Message from Margo   

 “Romance is the glamour which turns the dust of everyday life into a golden haze.” ~ Amanda Cross 
  
Today’s message is one I shared with some of you in the recent past. I thought it was fitting to share again so that everyone could read it. I hope you enjoy the message.
 
Here goes:
 
A handful of premium customers at-a-time (in any given day, week, month) is better than droves of average buyers. If you can’t get all of the customers you THINK you want, “honey, love the ones you’re with”.
 
If you owned a small, chic, and fabulous gourmet restaurant that offered exceptional cuisine and fine wines, where people were encouraged to linger, and if you had 30 tables to fill during an evening for dinner (and you set that table number based on your table turnaround time, your price points, and your projected profit margins), then as long as all 30 tables were filled throughout the night, you could in a sense rest easy as you focus all of your efforts on impressing and WOW-ing those 30 tables of customers.
 
What you probably would not do is run out into the street and call people in for dinner (though that might not be a bad idea on one of those wild hair nights—just for the novelty and fun of it, but that’s another message)! You wouldn’t need to, because as long as you had 30 tables full, you would already have all of the people you need to meet your sales goals for the night (as long as you attended to them and properly romanced them). More importantly, if you had more than 30 tables worth of people in a given night, you would have no place to comfortably seat everyone, people would be rushed and wouldn’t be able to savor their exceptional wine and all of the extra delicacies your wait staff suggested to them, and the service would undoubtedly take a dive as servers and hostesses scurried to deal with the overflow.
 
I think a lot of people try to market to the masses—to get more and more customers that they cannot AMAZINGLY serve. Don’t get caught up on numbers. If you want to have a great business selling premium products and services to people who really appreciate the value of those products and services, you must have a different focus.
 
When I was doing design full time (and coaching only on the side), if I would have had too few customers, I would not have made a substantial living, but yet if I had too many, I would not have had a wonderful career either, because I would have been way too stressed and too tired for myself, my friends, and my family, and I would have been a raging maniac (and still on occasion, I was)! I learned during my brilliant career in decorating and design that there was a special number of clients (NOT simply LEADS, but paying customers) each month (or each week if you break it down) that I should have in order to have maximum profitability for myself and exceptional products and services for my clients.
 
That meant I had enough customers to make a great income, but not so many that I cheated them out of my full attention, or left sales on the table, or spent my days discouraged and exhausted.
 
Some people would be surprised at how low that miracle number of customers actually was, and it was low because with fewer customers I had more time to sell the amazing add-ons (like that fine wine) to the discerning people who most wanted and valued them. They were pampered (and I was too), and my customers absolutely loved it.
 
So this week, stop stressing about all of the customers you DON’T have. Focus diligently on the ones you DO have. If you have NONE, call up a few former customers and ask them how they are doing, and how they are enjoying the services or products you provided to them in the past. Quit thinking you need more, more, more (you do need some, though)! Do what you have to do in order to reach YOUR miracle number of customers to put you at a good balance of very good profits and always welcome sanity, with enough free time to enjoy your life and success.
 
Spoil your clientele, no matter how few. Sell premium products and add-ons that people value, and if you can’t get all of the customers you THINK you want, “honey, love the ones you’re with”.
 
Have a Wild Week of Customer Romance,

Margo 

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Monday Message from Margo   

As long as your going to be thinking anyway, think big.  ~Donald Trump

You Can’t Just Transfer an Old Mindset to a New Medium

I saw a TV commercial the other day that was another piece of proof that there are still plenty of marketing decision-makers who just don’t “get” the “new” marketing (not so new anymore). The commercial—which showed one guy taking video of another guy so he could mischievously place it on YouTube—was another pathetic company attempt to prove to a new media audience that the company was “up on”, or savvy to, a new media world. In reality though, it showed that the company didn’t understand what’s really going on with marketing.

Just taking the same old “speak” about YOUR business and throwing in the fact that you have a Facebook account, a blog, or knowledge of YouTube doesn’t even begin to excite customers. It actually makes you look silly.

When I was in graduate school majoring in Adult Learning and Distance Ed, one of the things that was stressed (back when online education was just getting a real start) was that you cannot simply take classroom content and strategies and transfer them to the web. You had to know how to engage the learner with completely new tools and a totally new approach.

The same is absolutely true of the new media and new marketing. So many retailers and business pros think they can take a TV commercial and pop it up online (or at the very least, the elements of it). Not so. It just won’t work. The web is NOT TV. It’s a totally different animal.

Today’s It’s About Connecting, Relating, and Helping People to Decide

Today’s climate is not about getting a blog or a Facebook or Twitter account (and trust me, there are thousands more great social media sites we can become a part of) so you can transfer your old offline marketing model to the web to interrupt people and talk them into buying. Today is about relating, building relationships, educating, and delivering quality, helpful content and information WHEN people decide they need it. Showing people you know about or use social sites does not mean one bit that you are informing, engaging, interacting with, or building relationships with your prospects.

In this “new” era, we need to be available to assist people in THEIR decision-making processes. Some business-people actually love this idea, because it is totally in line with being a helpful professional. Some business pros have been living this way all along, and now the web provides a wonderful outlet for their exceptional business philosophy. Those who haven’t been this way have got to start doing so NOW.

Online, people are seeking information at the very least, and NO NO NO, telling them that you are having a sale is NOT the information they are coming to the web to see. EVERYONE is having a sale. However, not everyone is becoming a part of the prospects’ lives.

People are also seeking meaningful connection, and companies that get that will get more customers. It all begins when we seek to relate.

We don’t relate when we are slamming folks with “No Money Down”, “15% Off”, “Blowout Sale”, or even worse, “Respond by Midnight”. We relate by showing we understand some basic things, like:

What might be going on in the mind of the customer?
What need or desire might they be addressing?
What text might they be putting into a search on the Internet?
What are the many reasons they might be buying, and
How might they be seeking a better way of life?

We also relate when we communicate that we are O.K. with the fact that buying may very well be a bit of a process, and that we are not there to rush people, but to help, educate and inform them, not just about OUR types of products and services, but about the climate, opinions, uses, thoughts, and research surrounding them.

People Seek REAL People

Today, buyers want to do business with REAL people who they can relate to. Today’s buyers are super turned off to overly-polished companies and stiff, robotic, mainstream businesses that look like they somehow managed to survive Madison Avenue.

I could go on for hours. But instead, let me sum it all up by giving you a good number of bullet points for you to follow that will help you create a great interactive web-based marketing approach that your customers and prospects will appreciate and better relate to—one that makes you approachable, user-friendly, a relationship builder, and even a leader. It’s time for you to have a web presence that makes sense.

Basic Guidelines for Marketing Online

• The old rules of marketing wont work on the web. Forget about putting your TV type ad on the internet (on your website, blog, or social sites) expecting it to gain leads or sales. People on the web are looking for info, not ads.

• Instead of advertising, RELATE. Messages should be full of great content and useful information and not one way communication where you are TELLING people what YOU want them to know just so the will buy.

• Don’t try too hard to gain people’s attention. Once someone comes to your site, you already have their attention. The question becomes, what will you do with it? The answer, ENGAGE THEM with GREAT CONTENT

• Don’t think people trust your advertising that touts your fabulous products and your fabulous prices. Trust must be earned. People to day have tremendous opportunities and a heck of a lot of choices

• Don’t be afraid to share. Tell folks all about your people, your philosophy of connecting, your manufacturing process, where the wood is grown that you use in your furniture, how you are helping to save the earth, how you helped a customer out of a big dilemma, how your mom show’s up at the office every Friday with eggplant parmesan for everyone, how much you love what you do, and how your products are so much more than just products.

• You are not in the driver’s seat (sorry, Charlie)! The person searching the web is. Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because you put an “ad” on the web, people will stop what they are doing to take a look at it. Instead, you need to have what people want and need precisely when THEY think they need it.

• People search the web when they need info. Your site should provide helpful content, not ads telling about low, low, financing or 15% off.

• Today, it’s about connection and building relationships of trust. Show your visitors that you want a relationship with them FIRST and foremost (yes, doing businesses like a girl)!

• Don’t try to sell the minute your visitors see your site. They are not there to buy YET. They first want information.

• PLEASE, don’t try to copy the advertising your competitors are doing. First of all, you have your own voice, so speak it. THAT’S what sets you apart. People want to do business with YOU because of your unique personality or position, not with a robot. Secondly, your competitors are likely doing it all wrong, EVEN if they have a blog, a website or use Twitter or YouTube.

• People don’t wait for you to “advertise” to them. They go online as an experience, looking for what they want to discover, learn about, and POSSIBLY buy.

• Provide useful reports, white papers, short videos, and even simple but informative e-books on your site for free. Don’t try so hard to be cute, clever, entertaining. If your content is awesome, that’s enough.

• Get to know the key words and key phrases your potential buyers are using to search information on the web (not necessarily the keywords and key phrases that industry experts use). Then, create content that will lead these “researchers” to your site.

• Don’t try to target the masses. Seek unique niche markets that value who you are and what you can do for them. They will be impressed that you cared so much.

• Don’t make the focus of your communication about selling your products. Make the focus meaningful interactions with others. The products will then sell themselves. This means, don’t focus on how great YOU are, focus on being a great resource for your desired customers.

• And finally, as I always tell you, BE YOURSELF and have fun doing it!

Have a Wild Week of New Marketing with a New Marketing Brain,

Margo

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One day my husband sent me the link to the Dave Matthews Band song, “You and Me”. He said, “This is us, honey”.

This song is so beautiful and inspiring; I could not keep it to myself.  I have included the words here as well as a link to the live version of the song so you can listen.

Listen, close your eyes, and imagine the possibilities for your life.

Margo

You and Me  Dave Matthews Band

Wanna pack your bags, Something small
Take what you need and we disappear
Without a trace we’ll be gone, gone
The moon and the stars can follow the car
and then when we get to the ocean
We gonna take a boat to the end of the world
All the way to the end of the world

Oh, and when the kids are old enough
We’re gonna teach them to fly

You and me together, could do anything, Baby
You and me together yes, yes

You and me together, we could do anything, Baby
You and me together yes, yes

You and I, we’re not tied to the ground
Not falling but rising like rolling around
Eyes closed above the rooftops
Eyes closed, we’re gonna spin through the stars
Our arms wide as the sky
We gonna ride the blue all the way to the end of the world
To the end of the world

Oh, and when the kids are old enough
We’re gonna teach them to fly

You and me together, could do anything, Baby
You and me together yes, yes

You and me together, we could do anything, Baby
You and me together yes, yes

We can always look back at what we did
Always the memory of you and me baby
But right now it’s you and me forever girl
And you know we could do better than anything that we did
You know that you and me, we could do anything

You and me together, we could do anything, Baby
You and me together yeah, yeah
Two of us together, we could do anything, baby
You and me together yeah, yeah
Two of us together yeah, yeah
Two of us together, we could do anything, baby

Something small

Till we reach the end of the world

Here is the link to their LIVE performance of You and Me:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6t78OW-yhM&feature=related

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Here are a few simple tips for a better website:

►Definitely have a way to allow people to sign up for your newsletter

►Give away something GOOD and VERY USEFUL  to people who sign up

►Keep your title tag short and to the “Key Word Point” 

►Keep your description tag to less than 65 characters including spaces and punctuation, and use your best key words in that description

►Make sure your key word tags for each page are actually words used on that page

►Don’t overuse key words

►Make sure your key words are words your potential clients use and not just buzz words in your industry

►Add provocative or newsworthy info to your site or blog often, as rich, useful, and meaningful content is what people love

►Promote the most important products and services on your website

►Make navigation on each page super easy and clean

►BE YOURSELF-don’t try to copy others.  Have YOUR voice since that is what the world needs to hear

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Monday Message from Margo   

“It’s easy to make a buck. It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.”  ~ Tom Brokaw

This week I’m going to share with you a very personal letter I received from my sister a few years ago on the night of her college graduation. The letter was written by a woman (Kathy) in her forties who found her own voice and her own definition of success, and who turned her life around after many long years of opposition, obstacles, and enormous struggles.

I share this letter at the risk of seeming like I am tooting my own horn, but that is not my intention. I want to share it because every one of you has a letter much like this stashed away somewhere in your office, workroom, or home. Even if it is not in the form of a written letter, there is no doubt someone you know— who loves or admires you and who has greatly benefited because of you—who is walking around with a letter like this to you, clearly written on their heart.

Life is not always easy. Sometimes it is totally wonderful and extraordinary, and at other times we are boldly and fiercely challenged. As business owners and professionals, we have good “seasons” and not so good “seasons”, great days and difficult days where discouragement wants to fall on us like a heavy woolen blanket if we were to let it. I know, because I have had many challenges myself, but so what! That is NOT what defines us.

YOU (and I) have the power to infuse life and exceptional energy into the lives of others! WOW! Every day that you are alive, every day that you have the occasion to be in the presence of another human being, you have the opportunity to shine your light and leave your mark. It’s a great business strategy, too, and the profit you reap from living this large will extend far beyond just dollars.

Here’s the letter (used with permission from Kathy):

Dear Margarett,

I just wanted to write this letter to thank you for all you have done for me these past couple of years. You have been an awesome sister and support for me. I know that tonight is my graduation but if it were not for you I believe I would not have come this far. You would never let me give up, and when I felt I could not go any further in my education you supported me and encouraged me like no one else. You believed in me the many times I did not believe in myself.

When I made a “C” in a class, instead of saying “Is that the best you could do”, you said, ”Woo-hoo, that is awesome”.  You have been so proud of me and it has shown in everything you have done to help me. In times when I needed you the most, no matter how busy you were, you always made time to help. When I thought I could not teach myself how to study, you stepped in and taught me yourself, and it paid off so much. I just wanted you to know how much of an impact you had on me.

I can truly say that I would not be walking across this stage without your love, guidance, and support. So tonight, as I walk across this stage I want you to give yourself a pat on the back because I am here because of you. I love you.

Kathy

When I first read this letter, Kathy’s very kind words brought tears to my eyes. Of course I knew that she was the one who did all of the work and made all of the effort to earn that degree, but I so appreciated her letting me know that my light and mark mattered to her. For me, this letter came full circle because so many caring individuals showed up on my life’s path throughout the years, making incredible deposits into my life and towards my future success.

Today, I try to always make a meaningful connection with others, no matter where they are coming from or where they are going (within reason, of course). The connection may last for seconds, minutes, or hours. It doesn’t matter. I know that my little light—be it shining on a customer, colleague, or friend— could be the twinkle they need to keep on going, and my unique mark—be it written on a business associate, vendor, or family member— could be a part of the cumulative text that eventually leads to the story of their amazing success!

Have a Wildly Lit and Marked Up Week,

Margo

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Monday Message from Margo  

“A wise woman puts a grain of sugar into everything she says to a man, and takes a grain of salt with everything he says to her.” ~Helen Rowland

My Version: “A wise business person puts a grain of sugar into everything he says to a customer, and takes a grain of salt with everything the customer says to him.” 

We have become non-thinkers. Even the massive amounts of caffeine we drink may not be waking us up.

I went to Barnes & Noble Café the other day for a cup of coffee. I went out of my way to go there instead of to my usual coffee house because my daughter wanted to look at a book.

I ordered my coffee (almost 4 bucks) with 1 Splenda.

“We’re out of Splenda” the clerk let me know quite boldly. I said, “Do you think you might have just one packet stashed away somewhere?” “No” I was told straight up.

“O.K., I’ll look through my purse”, I said, but with all of my vigorous purse-digging, I didn’t find a single packet, so I did the only logical thing (to me), I cancelled my coffee order. The clerk proceeded to let me know, “We ran out a couple of days ago—we forgot to order it. Everyone’s been asking for Splenda. Everyone wants Splenda, but we’re out, and we can’t serve it until we re-order, and the new shipment doesn’t come until next week.”

“Duh”, I thought, but instead I just said, “Someone COULD go to the grocery store and buy a box”.  The response was a numbing and hard-to-hear, “I’ll talk to my manager about that”. I left the café without the joy of sipping that coffee, and they watched me leave with my cash still in my pocket instead of in their register. The clerk couldn’t care less. And who knows, that could have been the loss of quite a few sales in the course of a few hours—or over the course of a week.

I wandered around the book store, and as I did, I kept thinking about that sweet little coffee mess. I thought about it in terms of running a business and in terms of customer connection. I also thought, “I could totally use some new material”, plus I HAD to have some fun (there’s just not much to do in my town), so I went into the bookstore and asked if the café’ manager was in. Lucky for me he was. I had the good fortune to chat with him about the “incident”, about blogging, and about business in general, and his in particular.

This guy (and I swear his name was Joe—but not “Java” Joe, just Joe) was fairly nice, but also completely clueless and on auto-pilot. He just did not get it, so I had a little fun with him. I challenged him that a coffee shop ALWAYS requires the sweeteners that customers are used to, and that a trip to the store could have solved his customers’ woes. He looked uncomfortable as we spoke, and he had all kinds of excuses and real important “corporate talk” about “procedure” and “sources” and the “protocol” of having to get EVERYTHING from their “special” supplier. I challenged, “So you have NEVER run out of milk at the café’ and had to go to the grocery store to get some?” Then, he tongue-stumbled around for a while before he half-way admitted that he had. “So what’s the difference if it’s Splenda or milk?” I insisted.

Again, I was just making a point and having a good time (at his expense I should be ashamed to say). Of course, we both knew that he could have just bought some Splenda. He was just being careless or lazy or just not thinking. I even went so far as to say, “You know, if it really is true that everything has to come from corporate (except the milk that you occasionally buy locally), then you could have called corporate and asked them to overnight you a small box of Slenda just to get by until the order arrives next week.” His hilarious and yet not-so-shocking reply was, “We can’t, the cost of that would be exorbitant!” Oh, and the cost of loss sales isn’t?

AUTO-PILOT! NO THINKING involved here, just non-thinking, just the system (that doesn’t work), just the way WE do it, just RIDICULOUS!

That café’ manager didn’t care enough about what the customers want to stop at the store and pick up some sweetener (or corporate didn’t care enough about the customers to let him). Hey, it’s a coffee shop for gosh sakes. They sell mostly coffee. People either use sugar, Splenda, Equal, or Sweet & Low in their coffee drinks, and most are loyal to just one of those. If you sell coffee, you MUST have those basics on hand at all times.

It may sound harsh, but to me this was an example of really lousy (and likely super inexpensive—yet quite costly) management. The manager failed to see that the Splenda supply was going low, then he failed to re-order (by the way, that stuff has a LOOOOONG shelf life, so re-ordering a little early wouldn’t have done any harm), then (o.k., we all make mistakes) when he failed to see that he failed to reorder, he failed to go to the grocery store and get some. He also failed to recognize that he is the steward of someone else’s money and profits, and he allowed the company to lose sales, all because he is likely on non-thinking auto pilot. But he is not the only one. Someone hired this guy (and if you insist it’s not his fault, then know that someone hired the guy or gal who supposedly won’t let him go to the store for Splenda).

WHY bother being in the coffee business if the customer’s experience will be flat or anything less than everything they expect? In that case, you’re just advertising (and paying to do it) that you’re not all that great—that you don’t care all that much about what your customers expect for their money.

I honestly did not care one bit when the clerk told me the shipment was coming next week (or when the manager told me his stories and fed me his excuses). All I cared about at that moment at the coffee shop was MY coffee, and that’s how we all are, at least some of the time. Your customers don’t really care about you all that much. They care about what THEY want and feel they need WHEN they feel they need it.

However, YOU MUST care about them, even when all they usually care about is themselves (sorry, but that’s how it works—don’t worry, it builds character).

Maybe you don’t sell coffee. Maybe your cup is full of furniture, design services, wellness, or personal development. Do you offer a selection of “condiments” the customers should naturally expect? Are you consistent with them? Do you think it would be o.k. to “run out” or be without any of them at any time?

It may be o.k. for you, but being without a little packet of what the customers feel they want and need is a big business mistake.

This coffee story is a small example of how we often do things day-to-day in our businesses. We get lazy in our jobs and luke-warm in our routines. It becomes about us, and not about the customers, and certainly not about profits (so DON’T kid yourself).  We quit engaging, we quit solving, we quit listening, we quit brainstorming, and we quit caring.

So, WHAT is YOUR Splenda? What are you out of that you can easily replace? What do your customers count on that you are just too “routine-ized” or lazy (gosh forbid) to get for them. What simple thing could keep you from losing sales? What could certainly make your business a lot sweeter for others?

Do yourself and your customers a favor. Get yourself and your business off AUTO-PILOT. Wake up your employees, too, and tomorrow, when you reach for that morning coffee, remember that a little packet of “pluggin-in” can lead to stimulated sales.

Have a Wildly Sweet Week,

Margo

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Monday Message from Margo   

“Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right things.”  ~Peter F. Drucker

We have all heard of the 80/20 rule (also known as the Pareto Principle) at one time or another, but we tend to ignore its real power in our work and personal lives.

The concept of the 80/20 rule was first written about by the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, way back in 1895, hence the name Pareto Principle. This savvy economist noticed that in his society, there was a clear distinction of types of people in regard to money, prestige, power, and influence. He saw that there was a “top” 20% which he coined the “vital few”, and a “bottom” 80% which he termed the “trivial many”.

This economic finding caused Pareto to look further into his premise of an 80/20 rule, and he discovered that almost all activity was in line with this principle, too, which basically states that 20% of effort and activity will produce 80% of the results from that effort or activity. This is a phenomenal finding, and one that can help us to be more successful in our day and not waste time, money, or effort in our lives and in our businesses.

Based on the 80/20 rule, 80% of what you wear comes from only 20% of your wardrobe and 80% of what you eat when you go out for meals comes from a measly 20% of the restaurants you frequent!  80% of the free time you use visiting with the people you know well is spent with just 20% of those people.

Now let’s apply the principle to your business. You could bet that approximately 80% of all of your sales comes from just 20% of your customers, and about 80% of all of the profits in you business come from only about 20% of the products and services you offer. A whopping 80% of what your customers complain about likely comes from 20% of your offerings.

You can further assume that roughly 20% of the activities you spend your time on will result in 80% of the meaningful results you desire. So out of every ten things you set out to do, two of those activities will pack a powerful punch in terms of getting you moving ahead in a substantial way, and they will benefit you more than the other eight put together! Best of all, those two activities may take the same amount of time, or even less time, than any of the other eight taken individually.

Obviously then, you need to take a long hard look at your to do list each and every day, and try to decipher, from past experience, from the experiences of others, from past results, from your GUT, and from your good common sense, which one or two activities you should focus on or do first and foremost each day, and let the other tasks take a back seat (you can also delegate these). Spend your first efforts daily on the “vital few” activities, and AVOID doing the “trivial many” activities if your “vital few” are not yet done. Spending time on the “vital few” or the most results-oriented tasks is KEY to your definite success.

The vital activities that deserve your focus can be finding ways of improving products that are not working, or eliminating them altogether. Or your vital activities may be calling customers who you value most. Vital activities could be finding the team members who are producing, connecting, and innovating, and spending time with them, or finding ways to use their skills to help others in the organization or to help the organization itself. Your vital activities may involve organizing strategic creativity sessions with the intent of developing one new product. Your vital activities may be to finish developing a meaningful product or service that you halted because you got sidetracked.

As a business person, business manager, or manager of self, FOCUS on what matters most. Avoid the constant trivial interruptions that take your focus away, and especially avoid the overly-needy people who sap your energy and time. Learn to delegate tasks, and learn to assign sales associates or employees to a mentor who can help them, or simply remove the bottom 20% of tasks that are not necessary, and the bottom 20% people who are stagnant, lazy, disruptive, unwilling, or who will not think for themselves once they have been taught the ropes.

The Pareto Principle is a useful tool we can all use to manage our businesses and our lives. If you have a choice concerning which activities to invest your time in (and you do), which people to visit and associate with, which customers to follow up on and stay in contact with, which products and services to sell, and which projects to develop further, choose the 20% that will bring the most desirable, the most peaceful, and the moist profitable results.

Now do the math for your own personal life and business, and get ready to see AMAZING things begin to happen for you and those around you.

Have a Wildly 80/20 Week,

Margo

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Monday Message from Margo   

“Men for the sake of getting a living forget to live.”  ~Margaret Fuller

I am on vacation, and have been for a few days, and will be for several more. I am putting my phone away, turning off my pc, and focusing on myself, my family, and nature.

I feel no sense of guilt for this whatsoever.

I will return re-charged, re-energized, and hopefully much more delightful.

So far I am having a ball, zip-lining, drinking yummy stuff, visiting the beautiful mountains of Santa Fe’ and having a blast with the people I love. When I return to Texas, I won’t return to work. Instead I will meet my brother for seafood!

I love my work, and it is not work to me—it is just another part of the living I love, but there are things I cannot do when I am working.

So business can wait as I enjoy my time off to focus on other things. When I return to work on July 12th, I’ll be 100 percent there.

Have a Wildly Wonderful Week,

Till then…

Margo

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Ever wonder what the red, white, and blue on the American Flag stand for? Here’s a little color history about the American flag.
 
When Betsy Ross made the first flag, the colors held no particular significance. Then, on July 4th 1776 the Continental Congress authorized a committee to create a seal for the United States of America. The Great Seal was adopted in 1782, and its colors were significant. Those color meanings were soon transferred to the flag.

The colors of vertical stripes are red and white.
 
The RED represents heartiness and valor or courage (and some sources say it stands for strength and bravery, and the blood of all of the loyal patriots up until today who fought and died for our freedom). 
 
The WHITE represents purity, innocence (and some sources say liberty, peace, and honesty). 
 
The BLUE box that holds the stars represents the CHIEF, and the color BLUE stands for vigilance, perseverance, and justice (and some sources say loyalty, truth, and determination).
 
The 13 STRIPES represent the original thirteen colonies of the United States and the rays of light from the sun).
 
The STARS symbolize the heavens and the divine, which men should strive for, and the 50 STARS represent each of the fifty states of our country.

Have a Wonderful and Safe Fourth of July Holiday,

Margo 

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