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The Perfect Leader

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About the perfect leader, there is no perfect leader. Perfect meaning without fault of defect as per Merriam and Webster. Leadership is not about perfection.  It’s about the entire experience including communication, results, relationships and more.  Even still, there are certain instances when your own actions get in your way. As such, its important to be aware of the barriers to your almost perfect leadership.  These are the things weighing down you and your success.

What are your growth barriers and how can we fix them? Before moving your business forward, take an audit of your leadership style and its effectiveness. Identify outdated business processes, things that no longer align, inconsistent efforts, work processes full of waste…. anything that defeats creativity and pauses productivity.

Barriers to Leadership Growth

The EGO

Being the leader in charge does not mean you are the only one with the capacity to lead. It is your job to enable your team to work to the best of their capabilities with confidence they will achieve results. Make your leadership transferable and repeatable. At best, let it be modeled by everyone in the company to help nurture a culture of accountability.  It is not about you but rather the effect you have on others.  Do they model your methods and/or leadership? Do they work hard at developing their own leadership style?

Change-phobic.

When an aversion to change shows up in leadership it can be a growth barrier.  This type of leader hates changes even if it means more sound results. However, an almost perfect leader requires constant change. Today’s businesses are caught up in a highly dynamic digital structure brought by technology and the Internet. Having an open mindset will allow a high degree of creativity and technological advance to sustain your business.

Fixed Methodology.

The idea of sameness is, indeed, effective as it upholds certain company standards and policies. However, it curtails innovation and flexibility. It allows no room for mistakes and often, puts a lot of creative thinkers in a tightly locked box. Innovation and creativity is the essence of great leadership. To be most effective, it’s essential to consistently discover ways to improve your business practices. The more your process evolves with the changing time, the more productive your results.

Risk Averse.

Many leaders delve into cost-cutting and risk management leading to opportunities lost. Instead of concentrating on the “risks” and “costs”, it is more important to shift concentration on how much ROI. Don’t get me wrong, you can’t spend without caution.  But your focus should be on what you will accomplish with said dollars you spend. This gives more leeway to stretch your team capabilities.

So, which habit do you continue to manifest today? Share your thoughts with me by writing to info@allisontodd.com. I’d love to hear from you.

How Social Is Your Business?

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It’s March, 2019, raise your hand if you are still saying you don’t have time for social media? How social is your business? Perhaps you don’t see the value in social media for your business.  And, if that’s the case, I would love to persuade you to reconsider. 

Without a social media strategy you are under-utilizing social media. How will you achieve your goals without identifying your target audience and knowing what they want? And posting to be posting will soon overwhelm you.   Plus, you are trailing behind your business competitors.  Even worse, leaving revenue behind.  

Social media gives you an all access pass to directly connect to prospects, customers, business partners and brand champions. Facebook has more than 1.8 billion monthly active users. But, it takes more than a Facebook post or an active Twitter account to call yourself an active social media marketer. You must get involved and connect with your target audience. Use your expertise and conversation skills to make each moment count. Doing so will boost your brand in the digital market.

Whatever your choice, it’s essential for businesses to begin using more social media. If you are selling products or services, you will find the largest blend of demographics on social media. Thus, being able to sell almost anything once you find your audience. To see the results you need, you’ll meed a bit of patience and perseverance. Build a community around your business. Then learn more about them.  It’s super important that you are taking advantage of the marketing tools available to you.  I love Hootsuite because I can schedule and go.  The Repost App is another favorite.  

Either way, if you are ready to get social with your business, I am here to help. My social media mastermind is designed to keep you in front of your audience and humanize your brand. Let’s tell your story and ensure your audience learns more about your brand value? Schedule your discovery call and let’s grow. 

Effective Business Conversation and Confidence Boosters

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One of the most important aspects of growth is communication. Learning effective business conversation and confidence boosters is more than good grammar. It’s how you carry yourself in a conversation and the way you conduct the conversation with clients, customers and peers. Effective communication has endless business value. So, here are a couple things you can do to improve your business conversation:

  1. Don’t just listen, pay attention. When in a conversation, be attentive to what’s being said and respond accordingly. Be an authentic, sincere and emphatic listener. To confirm what you have heard, use confirming sentences like “what I hear you saying”.
  2. Practice a collaborative mindset. Unless it’s a presentation, try not to be the only one talking or providing context. Of course, no one is perfect.  There will be times that you get lost in the moment.  That’s when the conversation monologues begin. Pause and ask for feedback—and don’t waste words by beating around the bush. Simplify what you’re saying and, most importantly, don’t monopolize the conversation.
  3. Streamline communication with digital tools. Some people rely only on their emails and smartphones to communicate. Others make good use of social media messenger services to serve the purpose. There is also Skype and other video messaging services that allow you to digitally converse. Though personal conversation is the key using the appropriate communication tools enhance connectivity.
  4. When there’s a need to talk about sensitive issues, do it asap. When making decision, resolving conflicts, addressing complaints and other negative aspect of business – the sooner you talk about it, the better. Prolonging the conversation is a recipe for disaster. And, prevent communication breakdown by sharing all the information.
  5. Be attentive to the other person’s quirkiness. In business, you will meet an assortment of personalities. And even without personality differences, everyone shares differently. Be attentive to the details and try to do a little research before the conversation. These efforts will allow you to better grasp the situation. As a result, you will have a more enjoyable conversation.
  6. Inject humor to your discussion. Laughter is the best medicine. Many communication experts are known for their suave ways of injecting humor to every conversation. They make others laugh and, in the process, create a personable ease to the conversation.
  7. Go the extra mile. Small talk is essential when building excellent conversational skills. However, ditch the weather facts and be more intentional with your talks. Work on discovering interesting topics to discuss. Listen to podcasts or stream information applicable to your conversations. As a result, increasing your business intelligence opens new perspectives for you and your business.

In short, your winning attitude is an important aspect in learning effective business conversation. Be open-minded and flexible. The results are worth the investment in learning. So, are you are ready to grow your conversational skills and learn the secret to great conversational skills? Schedule your discovery call, today.

The Confidence Culture

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The Confidence Culture was designed for professionals who are ready to grow.  Imagine what happens when you convert fear to fuel and grow, confidently.  Together, we eliminate the pause and motivate you with a take-action momentum.  This is our formula for success.  In our community we celebrate and support one another.  There are many valuable connections made with the accountability we all need.  This is an open forum to share led by Allison Todd, Confidence Coach.  Share your expertise, gain valuable tools and discover the power of confidence.  We commit to: 

  • Share ideas, questions and support.
  • Learn, share and grow beyond our limits.
  • Eliminate barriers to our growth for the benefit of our life. 
  • Often discover greatness in self and others. 
  • Show up with all that we are
  • Believe in service. leadership and community. 

Finally, you are invited to join the Confidence Culture. This community is for high achieving professionals ready to take action in their life and business.  I think we’ll all agree that everyone needs a good circle.  Many will tell you the Confidence Culture is an experience like none other.  I look forward to learning as we share and grow. Cheers to Confidence. Perseverance. Resilience. 

Starting a Business with Zero Experience

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Don’t let the fear that comes from no experience stop you from starting your business.  The art of becoming an official entrepreneur is both exhilarating and demanding.  There are many emotions that emerge while building your business.  But, don’t be discouraged, there are many solutions!  In fact that are some challenges you may be able to avoid.  Below there are three challenges that occur as a result of little to zero business experience: 

Unstable Cash Flow
People often start their business with ideals of cash flow but no real plan that guarantees return on your investment.  It’s important that you have an accessible cash flow with the ability to cover expenses.   Equally important is that you are tracking your business cash.  Business doesn’t run without cash flow but you would be surprised how many entrepreneurs do not know how to manage their cash.  Remember managing your business budget allows you to have a financial overview of what your business needs.  Without the ability to do so, your business is limited with more promise of loss than growth.  Don’t put the open sign up and open the business doors if you don’t know what it will cost you. 

Time Management 

Have you ever started your day knowing what you want to get done and gotten distracted by emails, addressing challenges or dealing with the non-stop ringing of the phone? You are not alone.  Many entrepreneurs struggle to manage their time with too much to do and not enough time in the day.    However, to increase business success, you must be able to effectively manage your time.  It is vital to manage time wisely.  Start managing your time, by managing your day.  Spend time scheduling your day, BEFORE, you plug in to the digital world.  Then, hop on the computer and schedule your day.  Finally, follow your schedule and manage your time.  Once you have developed the habits of effective time management, you will find you can deal with almost anything.

Lack of Knowledge

The greatest challenge begins with a lack of knowledge.  Failure to understand your market, your audience and current trends can lead to numerous challenges.  One of the major facets of business success is knowledge, research and more knowledge.  In order to effectively manage and GROW your business you must KNOW your business.    Without acquiring good business knowledge, you won’t acquire good business profit.  You must be willing to do your business research before you can be of service to your customers.  Being unfamiliar with your market niche can create unwelcomed business chaos.  In order to equip yourself ongoing knowledge, you are equipped to manage business operations, business inventory and business teams, your business could face many difficult situations.

How to Be An Optimist Amid Life’s Challenges?

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Without a doubt, to be an optimist amid life’s challenges is personal success. I mean, life can throw you some curve balls.  Thus, leaving us more the tedious thing that caused the challenge rather than what we were supposed to learn from the challenge.  It can be difficult to find your optimism when life is seemingly trying to bring you down.  

Let’s face it, bad things happens.  And sometimes bad things happen to good people.  There’s a reason why my dad always says, “hope for the best but prepare for the worse”.  There is, however, a way to work around these situations.  Here’s a couple happy hacks that may work: 

  • Trust that there’s a rainbow at the end of every storm.  Like the seasons, changes happen and trust that things, at some point, will work out just fine.  But most importantly, trust yourself. 
  • Learn to let go of the things that hold you back.  There is no way you to grow unless you remove the barriers to your growth. An optimistic mindset will enable you to strategize differently and prepare you to pivot when needed.  Same goal, different path.   
  • Get in touch with your spirituality. Meditate. Pray. Practice a peace regimen.  Determine how to relax your thoughts and put your mind at ease.  And, harness all the positive energy surrounding you.
  • Patience is a virtue and waiting should never be thought of as a punishment.  Everyone is waiting for something, consciously or subconsciously. It could be a partner or a child, a new job, or a break in business. Use this waiting time to prepare instead of worry.
  • Channel optimism even when you’re not.  When you say you’re okay, you tend to believe it —even when things don’t seem okay.  What you think often, becomes who you are. It’s all a matter of mindset.
  • Gratitude!  Count your blessings instead of your problems. Do not weigh yourself down with problems, instead seek solutions. Think of your achievements and the things that bring you joy. 
  • Be fully present.  Leave the past where its intended to be. Live fully in the moment. Be accountable for your actions, understand mistakes happen and try harder next time.  
  • Make the most of the moment even if it doesn’t work the way it should be. Maybe a sudden downpour ruined the luau you’ve planned for months. Go on and have an indoor luau or be prepared to be wet anyway. Optimism considers the good in every situation.
  • When you know you’re bound to fail, have faith. Even the most impossible of situations can still work to your advantage. A failed job may open a new startup business opportunity for you. The goal remains the same although the path may have changed. 
  •  Be you. The best gauge of optimism is how your shine radiates to others. Try to touch other people’s hearts with your sincerity and share your sense of hope.  .

Regardless of challenges, the idea is to get back up and try again. Things out of your control, can’t be controlled.  But with an optimistic mindset, you can be prepared to weather most storms.  

Is Fear Getting In Your Way

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If fear is getting in your way, perhaps you need a confidence booster. Eliminate some of your fear with confidence boosters and busters. From a suave talking sales agent to a high-spirited customer service representative, confidence is a vital for everyone. Unfortunately, fear is lurking in everyone’s life as well.  It shows up in so many ways. The good news is there is you can demolish the barriers to your growth. Fear, being one of them.  What growth barriers are in your way?

There is a simple process to boost your confidence. And it all begins with you believing in yourself. Then, you can begin to create a mindset that supports your beliefs.  Next, create habits that reanimate confidence in your life, daily. While everyone their own unique talents, they mean nothing without practice. The same goes for confidence. It is a learned skill that should have a regular routine in your life.   Hence, the importance of confidence.

Reverse the fear factors in your life and let confidence work to your advantage. In doing so, you will not only conquer limitations, you will develop the confidence to conquer.  These confidence busters are as tangible as it gets. Address matters immediately and when done correctly, you can keep confidence levels boosted and enjoy long term results.

Clients As Friends: Is It Possible?

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Clients as friends is possible, isn’t it?  If this photo is any indication, I would say yes. Can you truly build real and lasting friendship with a client? I had some pretty amazing clients.  After discovery calls, coffee meetings and hours on hours together, it’s inevitable.  I can’t be the only one that misses my clients when business is complete.  When the chemistry is right, it’s right.  Perhaps, it is my good fortune to befriend some of my clients and even prospects.  Either way I am grateful.  Some of these friendships have last decades. 

Is it possible for you to have clients as friends?  I would love to hear more about your relationship journey. Either comment below or contact me.