Event Planning Checklist Tips
February 23, 2012 | 
Author The key to successful event planning is being resourceful and avoiding uncertainties. The more you research your available resources, the simpler it is to overcome any obstacles to your objectives and pull off the perfect social function.
When putting together any social function, business party, special event, or mini festival, you can’t begin advertising or producing promotional material until you have chosen and contracted a fitting location. Likewise, it would be putting the cart before the horse, to sign up a speaker or book your entertainment before your event visions have been brought clearly into view.
Event Planning Tools
Preparing lists for the many planning stages is an excellent way to stay organized and accomplish your goals. A check list is an important tool for planning any event. Having one will increase your productivity and the chances of meeting your objectives. Some useful headings to use for your check list may be: Tasks, Notes, Due Dates, Activity/Items, Cost, Actual Cost, Questions, Completed, etc.
Whether your check list is on your website, laptop, PDA or or legal pad, it is important to constantly update and amend your list to comply with your changing needs.
Event Budgeting
It is important to scrutinize your actual costs as they emerge, and compare and prioritize them to reach your projected goals. Crucial to the process is having a budget. A budget is a written projection of your expected income and expenditures for a specific time frame. Such a tool is a dire necessity when overseeing financial projects, and a precise budget is your most valuable resource for making intelligent choices. Be sure to update your budget frequently.
Identify your profit sources so you can plan how and when the profit should be spent. Generally, there will only be a few sources of revenue: participants, sponsorship, reserves, and possibly your own private funds.
Event Venues
There is a large selection of event venues to choose from, so feel free to be creative! The hospitality industry thrives on meeting the specific needs of many different types of groups and individuals from all over the world.
When choosing a location, keep in mind that just because a site may seem quite impressive, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s out of your price range. Don’t be intimidated. That classy location could end up being the perfect one for your special event.
Event Design
If catering to the upper crust is your intention, you might want to consider hiring one of those companies with the reputation for “doing it right”. If this is not your objective, and you’re planning a social or festive event, be sure that your theme design transforms the mood of your participants upon entering your affair.
To give an example, clowns riding on unicycles and handing out balloons would certainly put smiles on the faces of the guests to your festival. If you’re planning an evening social affair, soft jazz and hors d’ourves might set the mood and encourage mingling and networking and so on.
Event Supplies
Remember that the quality of the supplies you choose for your event should befit the occasion and the caliber of the attending guests. At the same time, you have to stay within the constraints of your budget. This may require some shopping around. There are many items which can be rented for your occasion, such as tables and chairs, linens, audio visual equipment, portable toilets, etc.
Event Catering
Do not underestimate the importance of the culinary department. If catering is required for your event, give it your utmost attention because doing it correctly is so crucial to your success. For a black tie affair, fast foods would be out of the question, but for an outdoor picnic event or amphitheater show they would be quite appropriate.
Event Registration
If you use a third party vendor for registration services, be sure to check their references. Make sure that your contract provides that you own all of the collected data, that it is secure, and that nothing will be shared without your permission.
Protection of personal information is of primary concern when planning your event. Secure socket layer encryption for online information, and document shredders for actual paperwork, are key to the protection of privacy.
Many registration companies charge in the area of $4 per attendee, so sound judgement will certainly benefit your budget.
Event Lighting
The purpose of choosing appropriate lighting is to not only draw attention to show pieces and focal points, but to also provide a welcoming atmosphere at your event. There are many different types of lighting which can be employed to create the desired effects when lighting backgrounds and walkways, dining tables and buffets. Colored lights next to white spot lights can make clear distinctions, while holiday lighting, applied to landscaping and entrances, can create dramatic effects as well as insuring that the pathways are attractively lit.
If you plan meticulously, and pay close attention to details, your event is sure to be a success!
What Kind of Business Should I Start?
It’s not uncommon to reach your 30s, 40s or even 50s and still wonder, “What do I want to be when I grow up?” Few people are fortunate enough to be certain of their destinies early on and the rest of us are forced to do some soul searching.
The desire to own a business is becoming more common as workers grow more frustrated with the economy and working in corporate America. If you’re thinking about a business of your own but you’re not sure what to start, here are several exercise to spark some ideas.
Start by Making Lists of Your Interests, Talents, and Skills
Write down what you like and don’t like about your current job and jobs you’ve had in the past. Do you love writing business documents? Do you hate calculating numbers? By listing your likes and dislikes, you can see with more clarity where some of your interests lie and which tasks you want to avoid.
The trick is to brainstorm business ideas and find one that you will be passionate about, one that will meet your desired standard of living and your lifestyle criteria. Someone who doesn’t like being chained to a desk should not choose a business that requires her to be stuck in an office all day.
The good news is that as an entrepreneur, you get to make these decisions for yourself. Perhaps you are good with numbers and you’re thinking about becoming a mortgage broker, but you don’t want to be stuck in an office all day. If you are serving clients in your area, won’t you also be required to meet with them? Could you find a way to meet with them at their place of business or over lunch?
This list should also help you identify your weaknesses. If you hate to write, then you probably shouldn’t start a local newspaper (although if you have the right budget, you can hire writers and focus on other aspects of the business). If crunching numbers makes your brain hurt, then you won’t find joy in running a bookkeeping business. For that matter, you will probably dread keeping your own books and should build a bookkeeping service into your business budget.
Spend some time with this exercise and look for a theme in your lists. If you identify a business that interests you, but it doesn’t meet your lifestyle requirements, then expand on the idea and see if there is a different type of business in that field that would suit you better.
Imagine You Have Just Won the Lottery
So you’ve just won a lottery for $500,000. It’s not enough to retire on, but it’s enough to make some decisions about your future. Consider what you would do if you won a large chunk of money. Of course it’s fun to imagine paying off your debts and sharing your good fortune with the people you love, but what do you do with the rest of the money? What does your ideal work life look like? What kind of business would you start if you had endless resources?
Could Your Talent or Hobby Net You Some Profits?
Whether you are a musician, an artist, a writer, a crafter, an athlete, an entertainer or a chef, you may be able to find a business that takes advantage of these talents. Think outside the box. Use the internet to search for ideas. For example, if you are a sports fanatic, you could search for “sports business” or “sports industry” and see what kinds of topics are returned. Perhaps you could become a sports writer, sporting goods store owner, coach, trainer, statistician, or memorabilia sales.
Ask Your Family and Friends
By asking the people closest to you for input, you may gain some surprising insight. Perhaps your best friend will remind you of your culinary talents or your grandmother will admire your decorating skills. Maybe your brother will tell you that he always thought you would end up working with animals because you rescued all the neighborhood strays. If for nothing else, asking those closest to you will breed discussion about your future and may lead to the spark of inspiration you are seeking.
Start Looking at the Business World Through a New Set of Eyes
Every business you see started somewhere by someone. The dry cleaner you visit weekly, the grocery store where you shop, the quaint coffee shop on the corner and your favorite take-out restaurant all were born from somebody’s dream. Pay attention to every business you encounter. Is the owner present? If so, does he or she look happy? Tired? Frantic? What are the pros and cons of running each kind of business? A retail business is typically a 6 or 7 day per week effort. Restaurants require long hours, food spoilage management, health department inspections and a lot of staff. Service businesses are often started by an owner providing the service.
Talk to business owners that you encounter. Ask them about the pros and cons of what they do. Who better to advise you on your future than those who are actually living some version of it?
Go to the Bookstore or Library
I personally believe that books give you the best opportunity to self-educate. You can learn about virtually any topic under the sun just by reading a book. Spend some time in the business section and read some of the books suggested in the appendix of this book. You never know where you will find inspiration. Many business books list examples from real entrepreneurs. Perhaps one of these examples will spark your interest or cause you to think about something you hadn’t considered before.
You’ve Done Everything Else and Still Don’t Know What to Do
Don’t give up! Keep at it. Carve some time out every day to focus on your life plan. Get up an hour early in the morning, take time out of your lunch hour or stay up an hour late, but whatever you do, devote some time to mapping out your future. If you are serious about moving forward, you will have to make the time.
Keep doing the exercises listed here. Spend time reading business message boards, websites and magazines. Jot down topics that interest you and learn more about them. The process may take some time, but the end result should be well worth it.
Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits, Challenges and Solutions
Workplace diversity refers to the variety of differences between people in an organization. That sounds simple, but diversity encompasses race, gender, ethnic group, age, personality, cognitive style, tenure, organizational function, education, background and more.
Diversity not only involves how people perceive themselves, but how they perceive others. Those perceptions affect their interactions. For a wide assortment of employees to function effectively as an organization, human resource professionals need to deal effectively with issues such as communication, adaptability and change. Diversity will increase significantly in the coming years. Successful organizations recognize the need for immediate action and are ready and willing to spend resources on managing diversity in the workplace now.
Benefits of Workplace Diversity
An organization’s success and competitiveness depends upon its ability to embrace diversity and realize the benefits. When organizations actively assess their handling of workplace diversity issues, develop and implement diversity plans, multiple benefits are reported such as:
Increased adaptability
Organizations employing a diverse workforce can supply a greater variety of solutions to problems in service, sourcing, and allocation of resources. Employees from diverse backgrounds bring individual talents and experiences in suggesting ideas that are flexible in adapting to fluctuating markets and customer demands.
Broader service range
A diverse collection of skills and experiences (e.g. languages, cultural understanding) allows a company to provide service to customers on a global basis.
Variety of viewpoints
A diverse workforce that feels comfortable communicating varying points of view provides a larger pool of ideas and experiences. The organization can draw from that pool to meet business strategy needs and the needs of customers more effectively.
More effective execution
Companies that encourage diversity in the workplace inspire all of their employees to perform to their highest ability. Company-wide strategies can then be executed; resulting in higher productivity, profit, and return on investment.
Challenges of Diversity in the Workplace
Taking full advantage of the benefits of diversity in the workplace is not without its challenges. Some of those challenges are:
Communication – Perceptual, cultural and language barriers need to be overcome for diversity programs to succeed. Ineffective communication of key objectives results in confusion, lack of teamwork, and low morale.
Resistance to change – There are always employees who will refuse to accept the fact that the social and cultural makeup of their workplace is changing. The “we’ve always done it this way” mentality silences new ideas and inhibits progress.
Implementation of diversity in the workplace policies – This can be the overriding challenge to all diversity advocates. Armed with the results of employee assessments and research data, they must build and implement a customized strategy to maximize the effects of diversity in the workplace for their particular organization.
Successful Management of Diversity in the Workplace – Diversity training alone is not sufficient for your organization’s diversity management plan. A strategy must be created and implemented to create a culture of diversity that permeates every department and function of the organization.
Recommended steps that have been proven successful in world-class organizations are:
Assessment of diversity in the workplace – Top companies make assessing and evaluating their diversity process an integral part of their management system. A customizable employee satisfaction survey can accomplish this assessment for your company efficiently and conveniently. It can help your management team determine which challenges and obstacles to diversity are present in your workplace and which policies need to be added or eliminated. Reassessment can then determine the success of you diversity in the workplace plan implementation.
Development of diversity in the workplace plan – Choosing a survey provider that provides comprehensive reporting is a key decision. That report will be the beginning structure of your diversity in the workplace plan. The plan must be comprehensive, attainable and measurable. An organization must decide what changes need to be made and a timeline for that change to be attained.
Implementation of diversity in the workplace plan – The personal commitment of executive and managerial teams is a must. Leaders and managers within organizations must incorporate diversity policies into every aspect of the organization’s function and purpose. Attitudes toward diversity originate at the top and filter downward. Management cooperation and participation is required to create a culture conducive to the success of your organization’s plan.
Recommended diversity in the workplace solutions include:
Ward off change resistance with inclusion. – Involve every employee possible in formulating and executing diversity initiatives in your workplace.
Foster an attitude of openness in your organization. – Encourage employees to express their ideas and opinions and attribute a sense of equal value to all.
Promote diversity in leadership positions. – This practice provides visibility and realizes the benefits of diversity in the workplace.
Utilize diversity training. – Use it as a tool to shape your diversity policy.
Launch a customizable employee satisfaction survey that provides comprehensive reporting. – Use the results to build and implement successful diversity in the workplace policies.
As the economy becomes increasingly global, our workforce becomes increasingly diverse. Organizational success and competitiveness will depend on the ability to manage diversity in the workplace effectively. Evaluate your organization’s diversity policies and plan for the future, starting today.
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How to Start an Assisted Living Business
If you are looking for an investment or a business with a guaranteed demand, look no further! The outlook for assisted living is booming. Tens of millions of baby boomers are approaching retirement age. Many of them will need medical or personal care. You could own the Real Estate or be the company that provides the service. Or combine them and get the best of both worlds.
Assisted Living for seniors combines the best of Real Estate Investments. You can operate a business needed in every city and have the security of owning Real Estate.
The increasing need for assisted living is driven by more than 55 million older Americans needing care over the next twelve years. Is that the type of demand you want for your new business?
Investing in Assisted Living is not just about real estate. When starting any new venture you need solid business data backed by extensive research, you need a solid operational manuals that help you avoid costly mistakes. We offer what you need.
Investing in Assisted Living also demands a decision about how involved you want to be in a business that requires some knowledge of both the Health Care and Hospitality Industries.
Whether you want to run an Assisted Living Business or buy one and hire a professional to operate, this kind of investment requires you to have a solid grasp of the industry.
But here’s the problem. People wanting to start their own Assisted Living Business have so many barriers to overcome. First, there are many rules and regulations when working in Senior Care. It can all be so confusing. Do you register with the state or with your local government? Do you have to become certified? Is your home inspected? And, if so, who does this? It all seems so complicated and overwhelming.
Besides the legal issues, you know that you must take good care of your residents. You just don’t plunk them down in front of the TV. This leads to so many more questions, such as: what should you feed your residents? What skills training are best for your facility? What do you do when you have an “incident” with a resident? How do you get referrals and how do you get paid? What are the legal issues? All this along with dealing with the “day-to-day” issues can seem overwhelming.
One more thing. There is just not much information available on how to start an Assisted Living home. What’s available is expensive and incomplete. Even the expensive books and start up packets don’t give you clear-cut procedures, they don’t give you good advice and they don’t tell you everything you must know.
Because of all of these barriers, so many people dreaming of helping others through owning an Assisted Living home just give up. They just don’t start because it all seems so hard and they can’t get any good information.
This doesn’t have to happen to you. You can start with confidence and without anything stopping you.
Start here. Knowledge is power! Even if you have a background in Assisted Living, unless you have a background in how to start an Assisted Living Home you will need to gather good information. The best place to start is to find a mentor. Find someone that has already been successful in the Assisted Living Business; see if you can duplicate their efforts.
Business plans and operations manuals are crucial to the success of any new business but they are vital to your success as you start your new Assisted Living Home. When you are dealing with peoples very lives you must be very exact in how you operate. Take the time to get the best data you can.
If you don’t have practical experience in the field take the time to get to know the business. If you plan to work in the business you will need to have a few years of hands on experience or at least a working partner who does. Regardless if at all possible volunteer your services with local nursing homes or at other Assisted Living Homes, while you may not be able to help with all the residents needs you will get a good idea of what can be expected. This will also give you the opportunity to see what works and what you would do different.
The next step is finding out what you state and local requirements are. This is where a good Mentor can save you time and money.
Once you know the State and Local requirements, you need to decide the size and type of home you want. You will need to decide if you will build, or find an existing building. At this point your business plan should be nearly complete and you will be ready to find financing.
Sixty to ninety days before you open you will want to hire and train employees, and start your marketing efforts. Again finding a Mentor or a source of information that helps you in a systematic way will be worth its weight in gold.
When accepting new residents be careful. Many people fall into the trap of taking everyone that comes through the door. You must keep in mind that you are creating a community and the first few residents will set the tone for years to come.
The Assisted Living Business while being profitable is also a way to make a difference in your community and in the lives of those people and their families who are in the sunset of their lives.
How To Plan A Banquet – A Guide To Planning Perfect Banquets For Company Or Private Parties
First time planners are often stricken with complete fear! Even those that plan events over and over again still fear that something will go wrong and they will be the subject of ridicule. Hopefully we can allay the fears and quell the butterflies in your stomach by helping you through the entire project.
There are a lot of questions you need to ask. First timers probably don’t have the foggiest idea what questions to ask, so, the first thing we’d better do is outline these for you.
Perhaps the easiest way to do that is to fill out a form. (I love forms!)
If you were to phone me and ask me to help you make arrangements for a special event, the first thing I would do is reach for a blank form, and over the phone we would fill it out. When I had all the information, I would be better prepared to help you.
Before you continue reading, you may want to print the banquet planning worksheet(PDF) from my website. That way you can follow along with the worksheet as I describe the planning process. I’ve also included a pre filled sample planning worksheet that you might help.
Let’s begin with fact finding.
PURPOSE
The first question to ask is, “What is the purpose of the event?” This question should be really easy, but it’s perhaps the most important. The purpose of your event will determine your event’s agenda.
DATE
Break out your calendar to decide a date for your event. Look for possible conflicts. It might be tough to get people out to a Saturday night banquet if it’s a three-day holiday. It would be unwise to put on a church social if your local school, where most of your congregation had children attending, were having an open house or play that night.
Pencil in a date and then try to think of possible conflicts. I know of one organization that booked a very popular and relatively expensive Jewish comic into the club house of a predominantly Jewish retirement community. Attempts to sell tickets failed miserably, because they had not realized they had scheduled his appearance on a Jewish holiday – a very expensive oversight!
BUDGET
There are many, many determining factors in establishing a budget. First of all, how many are expected to attend? You might have a pretty good idea for a company party, but in some cases you might just have to make a “guess-timate” until you can get more information. Make the best possible estimate based on what facts you have, and proceed.
TICKET PRICE
Another factor to determine before we select a location is how much your attendees are willing to pay. Sure, we can work the other way: we can pick a location, hire a band, select the menu, etc., and then add up how much it all costs and thus determine how much everyone needs to pay, but doing so will probably leave you hurting in the end.
If you expect 1,000 people, and you determine $25.00 a person is acceptable, then your entire budget for food, printing, entertainment, etc., is $25,000. If you expect only 20 people and you know they won’t come if it’s over $5.00 a person, then you know you’re far more limited.
LOCATION
Determine the geographical area where the event is to take place. If you live in the area where the event will take place, you may already know of various hotels, country clubs, restaurants or catering halls that can accommodate your group. If you don’t live in the area, be sure to go look at the potential location before you book it. If the event is in a distant city and it’s not possible for you to travel there, and the event is a significant one, I suggest you hire a professional meeting planner.
I once attended a banquet in a quaint “50′s malt-shop-type restaurant. The party planner had not gone there to look at the room where the party was to be. She had just taken the word of a friend. True, it was a great restaurant, but their “room” had about 5 permanent booths on each wall. Guests were facing in all different directions. This made it almost impossible for the magician they had hired to perform. To further confuse the issue, it was not even a private room. Restaurant customers could not get to the restroom without disturbing the party, and the 50′s music continued to blare through the ceiling speakers throughout the evening because it was piped throughout the whole restaurant and could not be isolated from one room. A visit beforehand could have prevented this nightmare.
Many, if not most, facilities do not charge a fee for the use of the room but instead absorb the rental fee into the price of the meal. For instance, in our example of 200 people, a banquet facility would be delighted to supply a private room in order to sell 200 dinners.
Usually they will have several dinners to choose from – perhaps a chicken dinner, complete with beverage, salad and dessert, for $12.00 per person; or prime rib at $18.00 each; or sirloin steaks at $25.00 per person. In our example we are charging $30.00 per person. Let’s select the prime rib at $18.00.
Does that include tax and tip? Oh, Oh! Find out if it does, or you may get a surprise at the end of the night. Let’s say it does not. 15% tip and 8% (or whatever) tax makes the dinner a total of $22.14 per person. Our sample budget calls for 200 people at $30.00 each for a total of $6,000. If all 200 people attend, dinner will cost $4,428. That leaves $1,572 for all other costs.
By the way, the facility may ask you for a deposit and guarantee. If you guarantee 200 people, you will have to pay for 200 dinners even if only 175 show up. Generally, a facility is prepared to serve about 10% more people than you guarantee. So it makes sense to guarantee a lesser number than you expect. Even some of those who told you absolutely they would be there, maybe even gave you a deposit, don’t show for one reason or another.
Just to be on the safe side, in our example of 200 people, I would guarantee the restaurant 185. If you’re pre selling tickets, which I recommend, you can always adjust your estimate upwards with the restaurant a day or two ahead of time if needed. Ask the facility about their requirements in regard to a change in the guarantee.
AGENDA
The evening agenda is largely determined by the event’s purpose. A typical event might go like this:
6:00 – 7:00 – Social or cocktail hour
7:00 – 8:00 – Dinner
8:00 – 8:15 – Meeting/Awards/Business
8:15 – 9:00 – Entertainment/Speaker
9:00 – 9:10 – Raffle/Door Prizes
9:10 – 1:00 – Dancing
Having an hour to “gather” is always good. You and the facility both will want everyone present when you actually sit down to eat. It’s been my experience that almost everything starts late, so plan for it and don’t be disappointed when it happens.
Will you be having a cocktail hour? A “Hosted” bar means that drinks are free to the party-goers. If you choose to host the cocktail hour, be prepared to spend about $1200 for our sample group of 200 people. Most organization-sponsored events have a ‘No-Host’ bar, in which guests buy their own drinks. It’s appropriate to announce ‘Hosted’, or ‘No-Host’ in the invitation.
Some form of entertainment during the cocktail hour is certainly a plus. The facility may have music piped in through its sound system, which is certainly the most economical; however, for around $300 you could have live music. Most banquet facilities have a piano, sometimes on wheels, and will let you either rent the piano or use it for free. Fee for the piano rental should be around $50 to $100 and a piano player anywhere from $150 to $250.
Other cocktail hour entertainment could include a chamber group, a jazz or “society” trio, harpist, or a strolling accordionist. A strolling “close-up” magician, performing from group to group or table to table, is always fun. Other forms of entertainment for the cocktail hour could include celebrity look-alikes, mechanical or conventional mimes, a balloon animal sculptor, caricaturist, graphologist, palm reader, tarot card reader, stilt walker, or just about anything else you can think of! Again, your budget is your gauge.
DINNER
This is pretty easy. When the Maitre’d says dinner is ready, have your party sit down!
The vast majority of banquets have certain people assigned to sit at the head table while everyone else may sit where they wish. If you choose to have a head table, you should make small place markers for those assigned to sit at the head table, and don’t forget to discuss table arrangements with the facility.
OPENING
Someone, perhaps you, should step to the microphone and announce that dinner is ready and ask everyone to take a seat. When this has been accomplished your President, or whoever is presiding, should welcome everyone.
It is appropriate at most banquets to have someone lead the flag salute, followed by a blessing on the food. People should not be called upon for these jobs extemporaneously, but should be asked in advance and their names and responsibilities should be listed on the printed program if there is one. Following the flag salute and prayer, your Master of Ceremonies (or who ever is conducting) should introduce the people sitting at the head table, introducing himself last.
THE PROGRAM
If business of any sort needs to be conducted, begin when dessert is finished, or at least served. Make sure that the facility knows that you do not want any bussing (clearing of tables) or coffee served after the program starts, as it can become an irritating distraction and take away from the enjoyment of the program.
ENTERTAINMENT
Following opening remarks, and/or other business, you could either introduce the main speaker, or present some form of entertainment.
This could be the highlight of the evening! There are many outstanding after-dinner performers and speakers. If you really want to have a successful event, hire a professional. At this writing $500 to $1,000 can buy you some pretty top-notch entertainment.
How about a comedian-magician who uses a member or two of your group and does some hilarious bits of business and audience participation magic tricks – 30 or 40 minutes of non-stop laughs!
Or picture this…the dessert has just been served and in walks “Lt. Columbo,” complete with overcoat and cigar…”Oh, excuse me,” he says, “I was looking for somebody else.” All eyes are riveted on this familiar figure as he turns and starts to walk out. “Oh, one more thing, is this the Walker party?’ Then for the next 30 minutes or so he does a comedy routine in the style and delivery of Peter Falk as Lt. Columbo, using names of people in your group.
That will rock your people out of their seats with laughter. These are just a couple of suggestions. Everybody loves to laugh, and a good professional entertainer can make you a hero.
How do you find that kind of entertainment? Again, watch out for the well-meaning friend. Sometimes hiring a friend of a friend who tells jokes or plays the banjo can put a wet blanket on the evening if they don’t live up to your expectations.
Probably the best way to secure talent is to work with a professional talent agent that specializes in special events. Ordinarily there is no fee for his services. He can make recommendations and suggestions based on what your needs are, and work within your budget limitations.
Some entertainers may have special requirements, like a stage, spotlight, two mics or something else, and these items need to be arranged with the facility. There may be a rental fee involved.
RAFFLE/DOOR PRIZES
Giving away door prizes or raffle prizes should not be held until after the entertainment or main speaker. Perhaps it’s an inducement for your guests to stay until the end.
If you’re selling raffle tickets, again you need to make out a budget. How many tickets do you expect to sell and for how much money? Do you want to make a profit? Let’s say you expect to sell 100 tickets to those 200 people expected to come, and we sell them at the banquet for $2.00 each. That’ll give you $200 to buy prizes with. You can put this in your general budget or assign someone to take care of the whole raffle, including purchasing the prizes and selling the tickets.
DANCING
Following the raffle, the formal portion of the program is really over. Your people can now go home. If you’ve elected to have a deejay or band, they may stay for dancing.
The facility might charge to set up a dance floor. Sometimes this is a portable dance floor they build right on top of the carpet. A band will cost anywhere from $150 per band member to $450 per band member for four hours. A small trio of keyboard, drum and guitar could be anywhere from $750 to $1,500.
An $1,800 to $3,500 five-piece band, including a vocalist, is average. If you hire a band, you may be able to use one or more of those same musicians to provide cocktail hour and/or dinner music for a small additional fee. You normally need to make a deposit at the time you hire the band. Anything over four hours’ playing time is considered overtime, and you should talk with the band or agent about the cost of overtime when you make the initial arrangements. Bands also need to take a 10-15 minute break each hour. Ask if the band will supply recorded music during their breaks.
MOBILE DEEJAY
Sometimes you might prefer a DeeJay playing recorded music instead of hiring a band. This gives you the advantage of hearing the original recording artist instead of a dance band’s rendition.
Another advantage is that most mobile DeeJay units will set up before dinner and offer to play dinner music at no additional cost, and of course, a DeeJay does not take a break during the evening, so you have non stop music for your event.
Cost-wise, there is not a lot of difference between a 3-piece band and a DeeJay. Some DeeJays offer a full light-show that few bands do, and even with an additional charge, this could be a real plus. I think it’s just a matter of taste. Some people insist on a live band and others are just as adamant about a DeeJay.
PHOTOGRAPHER OR VIDEOGRAPHER
Video taping an event, except for historical purposes, is unnecessary. Seldom will the video tape or DVD be watched more than once after the event. Yes, maybe a Bar or Bat Mitzvah will watch his or her recording years later when they grow older, and maybe even a bride and groom would watch a well-edited and condensed recording. A company or organization’s banquet, however, will be seldom if ever watched.
I would recommend that you hire, budget permitting, a professional photographer rather than leaving it up to one of your guests or a friend of a friend who only takes photos twice a year. You can have the photographer deliver prints or a CD of digital photographs in which case you could print just the photos you want.
PROMOTION
Probably the most traumatic thing that could occur is that you planned the entire event and then no one came. If it’s a company party and the food, entertainment, drinks and dancing are all free, I don’t think you will have a problem, as long as you let everybody know when and where and that it’s FREE!
But if that’s not the situation, you may need to promote the event. Once you have all the facts (WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, WHY, WHO, and HOW MUCH), you can create a flyer – a piece of paper with all the facts on it, designed to motivate people to attend.
If you’re an artist, great! You can create the flyer yourself. If not, maybe someone in your group is and they can help you. Otherwise, you need to “rough it out” the way you’d want it and take it to a graphic artist to do the “camera-ready copy” for you, then off to a printer to print however many you’re going to need. How many you need will depend on how you’re going to distribute them.
The layout, printing, envelopes and postage all need to go into your budget. There are, of course, additional ways you can promote the event – word of mouth, bulletin boards, phone committee, club or company newsletter, posters. If your event will be open to people outside your organization, you might try using the publicity channels of other related groups, companies, schools, etc., as well as your own. Have a “brainstorming session” with your committee, if you have one, to think of all the ways you can get the word out.
And remember that if you want people to come to your activity, you can’t just tell them. You have to tell them and tell them and tell them! Use all the resources at your disposal, and don’t hesitate to repeat yourself. The more times you tell them, the more will come!
TICKET SALES
There are as many ways to handle this as there are ways to promote the event. If you have to lay out funds ahead of time (which is usually the case), it is good to get as much money as you can up front. Pre selling your tickets will help you do that. Of course, your publicity must state your requirements and deadlines. This also will help you get a handle on how many are going to attend. Remember though, that there will still be some last minute cancellations and additions, so stay flexible.
TABLE ASSIGNMENTS
As mentioned earlier, most organizations assign only the head table, and the rest of the attendees are left to sit where they wish. Some groups insist on drawing pictures of the tables on a sheet of paper, numbering them, and then assigning people to specific tables.
I think it’s far more work than necessary, but if you must, then have at it.
Some banquets, especially those honoring individuals or groups, offer entire tables “for sale.” 10 people per table at $30 each means that for $300 someone could reserve a whole table. Make sure you put a “reserved” sign on that table, showing the name of the host.
THE PRINTED PROGRAM
When all the facts are in, if the budget will permit, a nice printed program could be put at each place setting or handed out as people arrive. It should contain the agenda for the evening and credits given to all those who contributed to the event.
Many organizations have been successful in selling ads in the program to defray the cost of printing or even to raise some extra money. I’ve put $250 income under the income column of our example. Don’t you think you could convince 10 people to give you their business card and pay $25 to be advertised on the back page of the program? Of course, this idea could be a little tacky if the event is to celebrate little Bobbie’s 10th birthday. Use your best judgment.
DECORATIONS
This could be a big item or not – strictly up to you. If you picked a beautiful location, and it’s not a special seasonal event like a Christmas or Halloween party, why not just enjoy the facility’s decor? If you feel you need decorations and you have a sufficient budget, call a party decorator who uses balloons. They go a long way towards dressing up a room without spending a lot of money.
Centerpieces on each table look nice. You can ask someone to donate these or have someone clever make something for each table. Many facilities make such a nice table layout that a centerpiece is not necessary. Don’t spend money unnecessarily, but do remember that the nicer the ambience, the better the memories or the event will be in the minds of those who attend, which means that they will want to come to your next event, too!
One note of caution. If you’re having entertainment, be careful that large
centerpieces, particularly balloons, don’t block the view of the performing area or even the people sitting on the opposite side of the table who want to see and talk to each other.
YOU DID IT!
Yes, you will fret and worry until the whole thing is over, but every party planner does. Just relax, do your best and enjoy! (Here’s a secret: If you enjoy what you’re doing, the people you are doing it for will enjoy it, too!)
Posted in Plan Business Articles | Tags: Banquet, Banquets, Company, Parties, Perfect, Planning, Private | No Comments »
Start Your Own Photography Business from Home
Anyone with the right camera equipment, and the necessary skills can set up a home business, marketing photography. You need only to convert a room of your house into an office, and then you can work immediately.
With modern technology in the form of SLR digital cameras, you do not even need the room for a dark room. You need only to have a personal computer and a photo-editing program. The standard is Adobe Photoshop.
It is not necessary to clutter yourself with equipment you do not need. You can hire equipment on and when you need it basis. You have the freedom to work part time for a while until you can devote yourself full time to photography. All you need to be is a serious photographer. There are two types of photographers that makes their living from photography, the serious photographer and the very serious photographer. You can always bookmark this link and then you can quickly access just about all you’ll ever need from here.
Whilst the technical skills needed to make a successful photographer have never been easier, other aspects have changed the business. The market for photographs of virtually every type has widened, the world seems to have an insatiable appetite for photographs. However the price has fallen as the marketing net has broadened. Photographers are needed in many more fields. For instance many people use car web sites, they simply did not exist ten years ago, and they sell their products as a result of photography. Cameras used by scuba diver’s are now an excellent quality, and whilst they are initially expensive, they have forged a new market. People celebrate special occasions more with photography, than they did years ago. The travel and advertising markets have a greater need for landscape, travel and nature shots.
It is now easier than ever to turn your dream into reality and create a worthwhile business out of an engrossing hobby. However in today’s modern world there is more to it than simply pointing a camera, and shooting a picture. You need to be aware of marketing techniques, and here marketing simply means transferring ownership of a product, in this case an image from a buyer to seller. You also need to be aware of any local gaps in the market in your local area. You should also try to be on top of your competitor’s prices, to undercut an existing photographer is one choice, but to neglect to value your skills and not charge enough to cover your overheads is another matter entirely. Remember this, its an important point.
Use your skills to the best advantage of the business and define what you want from it. Writing a business plan helps to keep you focused on the areas you specifically want to exploit. A business plan helps you to define your goals and strategies, it will be changed and updated, but it will help you, to keep things in perspective. You can then refer back to it when things become confusing or complicated. Everyone’s business plan will be different, as every objective will be different, but there are certain common factors that make up a good business plan which will help your business grow. It allows you to develop a professional attitude to your business, which not only helps you to increase your earnings, but also help you to finance your business.
For the photographer it should include, your business name, or your own, with full details of the proposed location of the business, a copy of your logo, as well as details of your copyright notices. What is the form of your proposed business (sole ownership, partnership, Limited Liability Company or Corporation). This should be followed by a table of contents, which focuses on a logical order. There are resources that will give you further details on such as profitable-photography.com
Included after this should be the type of business you intend to pursue, in a fair amount of detail, and it should contain the services you intend to offer. This section should include any future gaols or avenues you would like to explore, stating your clear objectives. This is so you can check at a later date whether your objectives are on course, or if you have got sidetracked.
If you envisage at any time you may need financial help, then you should include your personal business history.
You should also state a clear and concise marketing plan that should demonstrate how your business will differentiate from the businesses of your competitors. You should be able to establish whom your customers will be, as well as where your market will be, as in wholesale or retail or a combination of both. You should also be able to determine how long this type of market will be available to yourself.
The next section should clearly define your opposition, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. This should include the ways you may be able to exploit any gaps in the market in the specific area where you live. A section should follow this on how you intend to market and promote your individual services.
A financial segment should be included as to how you intend to manage the day-to-day bills of the business. How you intend to price your services, and what factors influence this pricing structure, which includes a section on your competitor’s financial structures. This means a fair amount of detective work as well as homework. Get your friends to ask from quotes from the local competition. Or try an even more direct approach, tell your competitor’s that you intend to start a new business, and that you do not want to undercut them, as this reduces the cake for everyone. They may well offer to help you construct a pricing structure that ensures everyone’s livelihood. It is in their interests to help. Not everyone will be cooperative, but it may mean you can get a truer picture of the market factors that govern your area.
Make a list of all the equipment you will need in your first year, as well as how and where you intend to purchase. Note any difficulties that may arise in obtaining your supplies. Note whether the prices of your supplies have a seasonal fluctuation, that may help you influence you when to buy. You should make a note of any local licenses that will be necessary, as well as any zoning restrictions, that may restrict the growth of your business. Your neighbours may not be thrilled at a procession of customer’s to your door, check whether they can restrict your services. Make a study of all your business insurance requirements.
The final segment should be devoted to how you intend to finance the growth of your business, as well as isolating what your financial needs will be. This should include a projection on your future earnings, as well as an accurate assessment of your outgoings’. This should be assessed on a monthly basis for the first year, and on an annual basis for the following three years. An important aspect of the financial statement is an assessment of the break-even point of your business, in other words the minimum you will have to take to pay your expenses.
The purpose of this documentation is to allow you to enunciate what the core elements of your business will be, in doing this it should help you to be able to quickly evaluate the success of your business objectives. If you are not clear on your objectives then you cannot possibly make a plan to bring about the success of those objectives.
Four Key Attributes of a Sales Manager
Considering the multiplying effect of sales managers on an organization’s performance, I am amazed at how little attention the capabilities required for this position gets.
Can you recall any “A” players that you have encountered in this position? What kind of person he or she was, what behaviors they exhibited, and how they inspired their staff? Or do you only remember the revenue they did – or did not -generate?
When you dig in, there is a laundry list of competencies, personal characteristics, and critical success factors that are common to the “A” players. Here is a handful that I find are “must haves” for impacting performance.
#1: Ability to befriend change (and resistance). The only constant in high tech is change. New products are introduced, markets shift, revenue goals are adjusted, and territories reassigned while buyers become more sophisticated. Sales organizations must adapt, re-evaluating and adjusting processes, tools, people, and selling behaviors in order to realign with change and be effective. One of the most challenging areas of change is the resistance to change that comes from sales people. Sales managers must be able to embrace and articulate changes in the vision of your company to their team – all while generating excitement, enthusiasm, and commitment to the vision. When a sales manager is able to skillfully gain the support of their team to make the organizational vision a reality, they will be successful.
#2: Master objection and problem resolution. A sales manager needs to be a master of systemic problem solving. This involves providing creative thinking at various opportunity levels while – at the same time – creating a platform so that his or her sales team can capture and share what is repeatable from deal to deal.
Successful managers adopt a natural “coach-like approach” in their communication style as they actively listen and ask thoughtful questions to help facilitate the discussion around objection resolution and problem solving. This often involves being the voice of realism, asking questions to test the viability of an idea, such as “How is that going to work? What plans do you have in place to make that happen?”
The ability to foster a common language to facilitate collaborative team communication to solve objections and problems that come up throughout the sales cycle is key to moving deals through your pipeline.
#3: Know what the numbers really mean. While leading people through change and solving problems, sales managers need to keep their eye on bottom line results that are driven by their team’s performance. This capability is much like a professional football coach who breaks down and analyzes games. A manager must be able to analyze the sales pipeline at both an individual sales person’s level and at an aggregate level to determine whether the numbers for this quarter, the next, and the year will be achieved. A manager needs to be able to effectively assess the risk in opportunities that are moved from the pipeline to the forecast. They need to know what the numbers really mean and be able to objectively assess when sales people are struggling and what kind of help they need.
#4: Mentor to success. After identifying the areas where sales people struggle, sales managers need to quickly guide each individual sales person with specific, constructive feedback on how performance can be improved. This provides clarification and enables individuals to compare themselves to an objective benchmark that focuses on behaviors versus subjective opinion which focuses on the person. This enables sales people to identify their own skill deficiencies and take ownership for their own development. Sales managers must also provide skill development opportunities and encourage sales people to attend relevant training and workshops. The sales managers that provide support and encouragement during learning process are the ones that are rewarded with improved performance down the road.
Posted in Plan Business Articles | Tags: Attributes, Manager, Mobile, Phones, Touchscreen | No Comments »
How to Start a House Cleaning Business on a Tight Budget
“If you use Emotion and Love to drive your sales and your business, you will create Loyalty Beyond Reason. And I promise you, you will build relationships and enjoy a business that exceeds beyond your wildest expectations”
First of all, before you decide to start your cleaning business, make sure this kind of work is right for you. You will need to be in good physical condition. Cleaning is very hard strenuous work. You will need to have good customer relation skills. You will need to have basic office skills and some accounting skills.
If you are planning on leaving your full time position to start a cleaning business, make sure you have at least six months of savings. Or keep your full time job and start out part time.
Research all the aspects of the cleaning service business. From customer service to advertising, taxes, employees, insurance and bonding, what to charge and how to clean a home professionally. Cleaning your own home and cleaning professionally is totally different. Learning how to clean professionally takes a lot of time. When a client pays for your services they expect to come home and find their home spotless.
Getting those first clients takes time, persistence and patience. You will not get a hundred clients overnight.
Obtaining Those First Clients The hardest part of starting your own cleaning service is obtaining those first clients. Most clients want to know how long you have been in business and want references. The best thing to do is let clients know that, yes, you are new to the business but that you have thoroughly researched all aspects of the cleaning business and assure them that you know what you are doing and that you are quit capable of cleaning their home to their specifications. Be confident. I can’t stress this enough. Clients love to see confidence. It relieves their worries and lets them know that their home is in good hands.
References: To get a few good references when starting out, ask some friends or family members if you can clean their home for free or at a discounted rate. The sound of working for free may not be appealing but it will be worth it to get some good testimonials.
When cleaning those first homes, go for quality, not how fast you can clean the home. Cleaning efficiently takes a long time, but you will get to the point where you can do a thorough cleaning in a short time. After cleaning make sure you go back and double check all rooms to make sure you didn’t miss anything. Impress those first clients and word of mouth will spread soon.
Advertising Your company image is everything. Before you start advertising, decide what image you want to portray on your advertising material. Your image is very important. Be consistent with all your advertising. If you have a logo be sure to use it on all your advertising materials. I think it is best to have a website developed before you start advertising. When advertising, stick with the same logo and colors.
Advertise in Local Paper: Start by running a text ad in your local newspaper. Try to come up with an eye catching ad. Do not sell your services on low rates, sell your services on your quality of work and what you can do for the client that other companies don’t. There is a lot of competition in the cleaning service. You have to stand out from the rest.
Magnetic Signs or Lettering for your Vehicle: Having your business name and contact information on your vehicle is a great way to advertise. We use the vinyl lettering. The lettering looks much more professional than the magnetic signs.
Flyers: You can print nice flyers on your home computer, but I would suggest investing in some professional flyers. Hang flyers at Hair Dressers, Laundromats, Restaurants, Bakeries, Grocery Stores, etc. Put flyers on car windows at local groceries stores and businesses. You can even go door to door in neighborhoods you would like to work in. You cannot put them in mailboxes. but you can put them in the front door.
Door Hangers: Door hangers are a great way to get new clients. Pick the neighborhood you would like to work in and hang the door hangers on the doors. When people get flyers or ads in their mailbox they usually throw them away with the junk mail. But if there is a door hanger on the door they will take the time to look at it.
Business Cards: Start passing out your business cards to friends and family members. You can also ask your local businesses if you can leave some cards on their counters.
Referral Program: A great way to obtain new clients is through a referral program. Offer existing clients a discount when they refer a friend. You can give your existing clients a discount when the friend uses your services three times.
Website: These days people live very busy lives so they use the convenience of the internet to shop for the services they need. A lot of working women will shop for services while at work. Everyone that has a business should have a website. It shows clients that you are serious about your business and allows them research your business in their own time.
Cleaning Products: By using all natrual products, you can offer your clients a healthy cleaning experience and protect ourselves against harsh chemicals. Clients love the natural cleaning products with essential oils. They come home to a healthy clean home filled with the wonderful scents of aromatherapy essential oils.
Tip: Always carry hand sanitizer and wash your hands often while cleaning homes. Wear gloves when cleaning bathrooms. You will be exposed to a lot of different germs in clients homes.
Remember most customers prefer that you bring your own cleaning supplies. That way they do not have to worry about going to the store for cleaning supplies before you clean. Some customers have special cleaners for certain appliances or floors in their houses. These customers usually will have these cleaners on hand for you to use. We almost always use the customers vacuum cleaner. That way you do not have to carry a heavy vacuum from house to house.
What to Charge I mentioned earlier that you should sell your services on your quality of work and not your low rates. If your rates are too low, clients will think that your work is sub-standard and that you are not experienced. Also you want to attract the clients that can afford your services. I made the mistake of pricing my work too low when I first started out. Cleaning is hard work, charge what you are worth. As the old saying goes “You get what you pay for.”
Some companies charge by the hour, some charge by the room, some charge a flat rate per home and some charge by the square foot. I think it is better to charge by the home, not by the hour. If a client knows they have to pay one set fee, they don’t care if you take 2 hours or 5 hours. Also your clients will know what they are paying up front and won’t have to worry about added expenses.
No two houses are the same. And there is no set charge for all homes. You have to clean for awhile yourself to get some experience and to work out a system to clean efficiently. Only you know what you want and need to make. Decide what you need to make hourly to cover all expenses and still make a good profit.
A word of advise: Make sure when you start your company that you charge what you would charge if you had employees. Some people make the mistake of under charging when they start out just to get customers and then later on when they grow and need to hire help they aren’t making enough money on their houses to pay help. Don’t under price your work. Cleaning homes is very hard physical work and you didn’t get into this business to work for nothing.
New Construction Cleaning If you decide to do this type of work you will need more equipment. You will need ladders, window cleaning kits with long extensions, a shop vac, etc. These types of jobs are usually 2 to 3 person jobs. New construction cleaning requires a lot more cleaning. You may have to remove stickers and labels from windows and bathroom showers, sinks and toilets. Some require that you clean the vents to remove dust from construction work. There will be ceiling fans to clean, scrubbing floors, and cleaning woodwork to remove dust. New construction cleaning rates depend on the area you live in.
Insurance and Bonding. You need to be an honest person and somewhat personable. People will need to trust you to be in their homes. Most clients are concerned about having someone new in their house, with good reason. You should be bonded and fully insured. Liability insurance rates depend on your insurance carrier and where you are located. Each person you hire will increase your liability insurance. It’s well worth the cost. You can pay quarterly or yearly. You can purchase your bond through your local insurance company. You will need to renew the bond every year. *Note: if you hire employees and cover them under your insurance, they must be an employee on payroll and not a sub-contractor. If you employ them as a sub-contractor your insurance will not cover them. If they are a sub-contractor they are required to carry their own insurance. You
Hiring Help If you start out cleaning the homes by yourself, you will eventually get to the point where you need to expand your business. Start out with one part time employee. Train her and let her take your place one day a week. Then have her take your place 2 days a week and so on. This will give you the free time that you need to market your business and obtain more clients. After you get more clients you will be able to hire more part time help. Eventually you will be able to stop doing the cleaning yourself and just run the business end, which is the only way you will be able to grow your business. When training new employees, always, either train them yourself or have a lead person train them. Make sure there is a lead person on each and every cleaning job. Employees have a tendency to slack off when they are on their own.
Growing Your Business You will eventually get to the point where you have enough employees and lead people and you will be able to stop working in your business and start running your business. You will find that after awhile it will get to be too much trying to clean everyday and at the same time giving estimates, answering calls, scheduling, doing book work, obtaining new clients, etc.
Remember one of the most important qualifications for a cleaning service is TRUST. A client has to know they can trust you alone in their home. After you acquire a few cleaning positions ask the clients if you can use them for a reference. Most of the time they are more than willing to let you use them for a reference. This is how you build your business and acquire new clients is through referrals. Be dependable. Most clients will want to be set up on an every week or every other week schedule on the same day of the week. Try to always keep this same schedule unless the client asks you to switch to another day. If you have to cancel a cleaning date, make sure you try to reschedule at the earliest possible date to make up the cleaning.
Create a Personal Strategic Plan
Success is not an accident. It begins with a well-conceived plan. You can and will achieve more in the next year than you have in the past ten with a disciplined Personal Strategic Plan.
Personal strategic planning is a disciplined thought process, which produces fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide who you are, where you are going, what you do, and how, when and why you do it. All of this is done with a focus on the future.
The purpose of personal strategic planning is to help you:
· Provide direction, meaning, and purpose for your life.
· Make decisions that positively affect your future.
· Focus your energies on what’s most important.
· Achieve the greatest results in the shortest period of time.
· Significantly increase your level of performance.
· Enjoy more time, money, balance and freedom.
· Eliminate uncertainty, anxiety, doubt and fear.
· Leverage your skills more effectively.
· Enhance your quality of life, and overall peace of mind.
· Be more, do more and ultimately to have more from life.
Personal strategic planning is based on the premise that life will not go according to plan, if you do not have a plan.
A successful plan must include the following:
1. Personal Philosophy: Every person has a personal philosophy, consisting of some rules adopted from one’s parents, culture, religion, acquaintance and so on.
Generally speaking, these rules, as a body are not well thought out and contain a wealth of inconsistencies and contradictions.
2. Legacy Statement: Your legacy serves as your life’s defining statement. It serves a two-fold purpose. First it provides an overarching framework for all mission statements and goals to follow.
Second it answer the question, “What do I want to be remembered for?”
3. Mission Statement: A mission statement is a declaration of who you are, why you exist, and what you intend to accomplish.
In business, the organizational mission answers the big question: “What is our business?” In personal planning, the question is “What is my life’s business?” In both cases, the answer must define the reason for being.
4. Core Values: Our values act as our compass, guiding us through life’s terrain.
One certain way of knowing that you are living in accordance with your values is by defining guidelines and measurements for value centered living.
5. Code of Ethics: Words quietly influence our attitudes and opinions.
Codes of conduct, personal creeds, and pledges all reflect an effort to make sense of things, to organize behavior, and to better understand ourselves.
6. Lifetime Objectives: Your objectives should be written within the framework of your Legacy & Mission Statements.
The key to any Personal Strategic Plan is to visualize your desired outcomes in advance. Be sure to write and rewrite your Lifetime Objectives as affirmations of the future you are working to realize.
7. Goals: The key in writing your goals is to make them measurable, specific, and time-bound.
Goals need to be written for each of the ten critical areas of life to include: Personal, Health, Recreation, Family, Friends, Community, Career, Financial, Household and Spiritual.
8. Personal Board of Directors: A personal board will accelerate your progress by providing both wisdom and support for the attainment of a specific purpose.
9. Maintenance & Performance Check-Ups: On a monthly basis, you should pause to evaluate your performance. What progress have you made? Where have your been challenged? What do you need to do differently or more of?
It is also important to step back and consider whether any of your goals are unachievable.
10. Personal Reason Why: You won’t become successful until and unless you identify, support and empower your reasons why. Your why’s provide fuel for achievement, and are the reasons behind all action and inaction.
The hallmark of all high achievers is a burning why. They know what they want, how and when they will achieve it, but most importantly they know WHY they want to become successful at achieving their goals.
In Summary
You can significantly increase the odds of success in any endeavor, if you know who you are, what you want, where you are going, how you will get there, and what you will do once you arrive.
The best way to predict your future is to create it. Therefore, a well-defined personal strategic plan, properly executed, is your meal ticket to success.
In order to best prepare yourself for success, I urge you to visit My Personal Strategic Planning program. This exciting program is like having an insurance policy on success. It will focus your thinking and challenge you to reach for new heights in every area of your life.
Nonverbal Communication in Business
There are five key elements that can make or break your attempt at successful nonverbal communication in business:
Eye contact
Gestures
Movement
Posture, and
Written communication
Let’s examine each nonverbal element in turn to see how we can maximise your potential to communicate effectively…
Eye contact
Good eye contact helps your audience develop trust in you, thereby helping you and your message appear credible. Poor eye contact does exactly the opposite.
So what IS ‘good’ eye contact?
People rely on visual clues to help them decide on whether to attend to a message or not. If they find that someone isn’t ‘looking’ at them when they are being spoken to, they feel uneasy.
So it is a wise business communicator that makes a point of attempting to engage every member of the audience by looking at them.
Now, this is of course easy if the audience is just a handful of people, but in an auditorium it can be a much harder task. So balance your time between these three areas:
slowly scanning the entire audience,
focusing on particular areas of your audience (perhaps looking at the wall between two heads if you are still intimidated by public speaking), and
looking at individual members of the audience for about five seconds per person.
Looking at individual members of a large group can be ‘tricky’ to get right at first.
Equally, it can be a fine balancing act if your audience comprises of just one or two members — spend too much time looking them in the eyes and they will feel intimidated, stared at, ‘hunted down’.
So here’s a useful tip: break your eye-to-eye contact down to four or five second chunks.
That is, look at the other person in blocks that last four to five seconds, then look away. That way they won’t feel intimidated.
Practice this timing yourself, away from others. Just look at a spot on the wall, count to five, then look away. With practice you will be able to develop a ‘feel’ for how long you have been looking into your audience member’s eyes and intuitively know when to look away and focus on another person or object.
When focusing on individual members in a large meeting or auditorium, try and geographically spread your attention throughout the room. That is, don’t just focus your personal gaze (as distinct from when you are scanning the room or looking at sections of the room) on selected individuals from just one part of the room. Unless you are specifically looking to interact with a particular person at that moment of your presentation, select your individual eye-contact audience members from the whole room.
Gestures
Most of us, when talking with our friends, use our hands and face to help us describe an event or object – powerful nonverbal aids.
We wave our arms about, turn our hands this way and that, roll our eyes, raise our eyebrows, and smile or frown.
Yet many of us also, when presenting to others in a more formal setting, ‘clam up’.
Our audience of friends is no different from our business audience — they all rely on our face and hands (and sometimes legs, feet and other parts of us!) to ‘see’ the bigger, fuller picture.
It is totally understandable that our nervousness can cause us to ‘freeze up’, but is is in our and our communication’s best interests if we manage that nervousness, manage our fear of public speaking, and use our body to help emphasise our point.
I found that by joining a local Toastmasters International club I was rapidly able to learn how to ‘free up my body’ when presenting to others.
Movement
Ever watch great presenters in action — men and women who are alone on the stage yet make us laugh, cry and be swept along by their words and enthusiasm?
Watch them carefully and you’ll note that they don’t stand rigidly in one spot. No, they bounce and run and stroll and glide all around the stage.
Why do they do that?
Because they know that we human beings, men in particular, are drawn to movement.
As part of man’s genetic heritage we are programmed to pay attention to movement. We instantly notice it, whether we want to or not, assessing the movement for any hint of a threat to us.
This, of course, helps explain why many men are drawn to the TV and seem transfixed by it. It also helps explain why men in particular are almost ‘glued’ to the TV when there is any sport on. All that movement!
But to get back to the stage and you on it… ensure that any movement you make is meaningful and not just nervous fidgetting, like rocking back and forth on your heels or moving two steps forward and back, or side to side.
This is ‘nervous movement’ and your nervousness will transmit itself to your audience, significantly diluting the potency of your communication and message.
So move about the stage when you can — not just to keep the men in the audience happy, but to help emphasise your message!
Posture
There are two kinds of ‘posture’ and it is the wise communicator that manages and utilizes both.
Posture 1
The first type of ‘posture’ is the one we think of intuitively-the straight back versues the slumped shoulders; the feet-apart confident stance verses the feet together, hand-wringing of the nervous; the head up and smiling versus the head down and frowing.
And every one of the positions we place the various elements of our body in tells a story—a powerful, nonverbal story.
For example, stand upright, shoulders straight, head up and eyes facing the front. Wear a big smile. Notice how you ‘feel’ emotionally.
Now-slump your shoulders, look at the floor and slightly shuffle your feet. Again, take a not of your emotional state.
Notice the difference?
Your audience surely will, and react to you and your message accordingly.
A strong, upright, positive body posture not only helps you breath easier (good for helping to calm nerves!) but also transmits a message of authority, confidence, trust and power.
If you find yourself challenged to maintain such a posture, practice in front of a mirror, or better yet join a speaking club like Toastmasters International [http://www.toastmastersa.org/champion/index.html].
Posture 2
The second type of ‘posture’ comes from your internal mental and emotional states.
You can have great body posture but without internal mental and emotional posture your words will sound hollow to your audience.
For example, the used car salesman at ‘Dodgy Brothers Motors’ might have great body posture and greet you with a firm handshake, a steady gaze and a friendly smile. But if in his heart he is seeing you as just another sucker then sooner or later his internal conflict between what he says and what he really thinks will cause him to ‘trip up’.
His body will start betraying his real, underlying intentions and you’ll start to feel uncomfortable around him, even if you can’t figure out why.
But, if that same used car salesman had a genuine desire to help you find the right car for you, and he puts your needs before his own, then his words and actions will remain congruent (in harmony) with his underlying intentions and you will trust him, even though you might not be able to identify why.
I have seen some supposed ‘self help’ gurus who don’t actually practice what they preach. Consequently their words ring hollow to me and their books, cds, dvds and training materials remain unpurchased.
I have met salesmen and women who don’t actually make the money they claim to make in their ‘fabulous business opportunity’, and while their words are practiced and polished, and their body posture is ‘perfect’, their words ooze like honeyed poison frm their lips and I remain unconvinced.
This second type of ‘posture’ is fundamentally tied to truth and honesty. It is about ‘walking the talk’ and being who you say you are.
It’s about not trying to sell something you don’t believe in or use yourself. It’s about not trying to pass yourself off as an expert when all you’ve ever done is read a book on the subject.
It’s all about making sure that your words and your intentions are underpinned by truth and honesty. Because all of us, no matter how polished a presenter we might be, are at the mercy of our body and its ability to ‘tell the truth’ in spite of what our lips might utter. Nonverbal clues rule!
Written communication
I could spend a lifetime writing about the art of written communication.
There is an art (and also a science) that can be learnt with diligence and practice. To write too formally; to write too informally; to write too briefly; to write too lengthily…
My first suggestion would be to avail yourself of one of the following three books, each of which is absolutely brilliant at giving you the skills and insights into effective business writing:
The Business Style Handbook: An A-to-Z Guide for Writing on the Job with Tips from Communications Experts at the Fortune 500 by Helen Cunningham and Brenda Greene
The Elements of Business Writing: A Guide to Writing Clear, Concise Letters, Memos, Reports, Proposals, and Other Business Documents by Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly
Effective Business Writing: Strategies, Suggestions and Examples by Maryann V. Piotrowski
From persuasive memos to complaint letters, sales letters to executive summaries — these exceedingly useful guides help you to write clearly and in an appropriate format, style and tone. Each book has numerous examples that show how to overcome writer’s block, organize messages for maximum impact, achieve an easy-to-read style, find an efficient writing system and much more.
In conclusion…
There are five key elements that can make or break your attempt at successful nonverbal business communication:
Eye contact
Gestures
Movement
Posture, and
Written communication
Nonverbal communication in a business setting requires not only recognition of these elements, but confidence in meeting their challenges.
Good luck and remember to communicate with passion!