More To Life Than Shoes

As a professional or a businessperson, how do you stand out from the competition and explain to people why they should pick you above your competitors? I hear this question all the time from accountants, management consultants, HR experts, lawyers and coaches, and it applies equally to many other small business owners.

My clients often bemoan the fact that a competitor has a much higher profile than they do, often with much less experience. What are they doing wrong? Usually, they're missing the fact that their competitor has simply found a way to convey their uniqueness to their clients and create a compelling argument for why any client should sign up with them.

How can you get people to pick you?
Here are some questions you can ask yourself to get going:

What’s going on with my current clients?
It can pay to sell yourself as a specialist. For example, if you are a therapist with a large percentage of clients who have depression, perhaps it makes sense to use that as your uniquene selling point (U.S.P) -  that you specialise in working with depression.

If most of your clients are coming to you for a specific reason, even if you could be doing a wider variety of work, perhaps you should be sticking to what you already do well. Someone is sending you a message somewhere!

What do I have that is different from everyone else?
This is a difficult one and you may have to dig deep. But what do clients say about working with you? Do you have qualifications over and above your professional competitors? Celebrity clients? These don’t even have to be the Grazia and OK type of celebrities, even household business names come under celebrity status when it comes to PR. Name drop with impunity! What do you do for your clients beyond the call of duty? Really think about what it is you offer them.

 And if you can’t think of anything...then start doing something. Today.

Work a little differently, give them added extras. Just make a difference.

Is it time to Get Over Myself?
Shyness is acceptable in your first job. But that was then. Most clients would rather work with someone who is confident, unflustered and doesn't go to pieces at the thought of being in the spotlight, So, If you have any qualms about putting yourself forward, get over them.

 You can promote yourself in a way that doesn’t involve putting down others, resorting to bragging or lying or hot air. Be proud about what you have achieved, show people the professionalism you put into your work and the delight you get out of it.

Share success on social media platforms, at networking events, support your clients publicly and even create your own community of loyal clients and customers. You can do this virtually on places like Facebook or in real life by organising events (one of my successful marketing activities has been to organise occasional PR and networking evenings – for free).

How can I turn my competitors into compatriots?
Create a special interest or mastermind group where you can interact with other figures in your industry. Hunt out professional bodies and events when you will find them. Befriend them, create special projects and start working with rather than against them.

Find more PR ideas and advice from Paula at www.doyourownpr.com

Do you have a novel in you?
Last November, I almost wrote a novel. Having discovered a long time ago that I never achieve anything without some kind of deadline, I decided that my only chance of ever getting a novel beyond the first three pages was to sign up to NaNoWriMo, also known as National Novel Writing Month. The idea is that, starting on 1^st November, you have exactly 30 days to write a novel of at least 50,000 words (about 175 pages). NaNoWriMo has become a world-wide craze in the last few years – from 21 participants in 1999, last year saw 200, 000 sign up, and a whopping 30,000 complete their word count by the deadline.

Well, I wrote in my lunch hour at work, and sometimes when it wasn’t strictly my lunch hour at work. I wrote in bed, on the loo and on the bus and occasionally even at my desk. I didn’t get to the end of my story, and what I produced could by no stretch of the imagination be called a finished novel, but I did my 50,000 words.

Now, obviously, NaNoWriMo is about quantity, not necessarily quality. Writing 50,000 words in a month means churning out 1,667 words a day. That’s the length of an average short story, every day for 30 days. It’s a bit like thinking aloud with a keyboard. You have to just keep typing, whatever’s coming out. There’s no time for planning, editing, or going back and hitting delete when you decide you don’t like what you’ve written. You have to turn off your inner editor and keep going, no matter what.

Telling your inner editor where to go
Maybe you’ve always dreamed of writing a novel. Maybe you’ve even started one a couple of times but not really got anywhere with it. When would-be writers fail to get work finished, the culprit is usually that pesky inner-editor with her red pen, telling us that what we’ve written isn’t up to scratch, that our idea isn’t good enough, that we should go back and start again rather than carrying on.

And this is what makes NaNoWriMo a great excersise. Forcing yourself to block that critical voice so you can reach an arbitrary word count might seem counter-intuitive, and might mean you churn out some dodgy stuff, but it will also unlock bits of your brain you didn’t know were there. Because, in among the rambling and waffle, you'll get the occasional good idea that might never have sneaked past that inner-editor. It’s exhausting, irritating and often frustrating, but it can also be exhilarating, exciting and magical. 

When I read back my NaNoWriMo effort a couple of months ago, a lot of it made me wince, but a lot of it also made me think, hold on, that’s not half bad. What I got out of it was potential – lots of rubbish, but a few ideas that I reckon I might be able to turn into an actual novel, with some work.

But when NaNoWriMo finished, I was back to the problem of working without a deadline. With no word count to meet, I’ve been noodling around with planning and structures and generally procrastinating for a few months now. My inner editor is having a field day. But last month I discovered a new way of imposing my own personal deadline. 750words.com is a website that encourages you in the practice of ‘morning pages’, a technique suggested by Julia Cameron in The Artist's Way: A Course in Discovering and Recovering Your Creative Self. It’s simple – start your day by writing 3 pages, or 750 words, on anything that comes into your head. It can be your dreams, a diary, a rant, your random thoughts – whatever it is, it’s like an idea-dump. Whether you’re writing a novel, a blog or a personal journal, forcing yourself to write when your brain is still fresh will clear your thought process for the day. The website sends you friendly reminder emails, counts your words, and gives you pretty graphs and tables about what you're writing to give you some insight into how your brain is working.

750 words a day is a picnic compared to NaNoWriMo, but even so, when I checked my monthly word count recently I discovered I was well on the way to 12,000 words this month. It was a good feeling. With a 6-month old baby to look after, I sometimes feel like I’m not going to have any time to myself until he leaves home at 18. But I can manage 750 words, and my morning pages are proving to me that it is possible to get a novel finished, one tiny step at a time.

These top tips are taken from 'More To Life Than Shoes: How to Kick-start Your Career and Change Your Life' by Nadia Finer and Emily Nash.

Ella Heeks became MD of organic veg box company Abel and Cole in her twenties, but the company didn’t even know they needed her until she came along and told them so. She shares her top tips for creating your perfect job and making sure you get it. 

1. Build Your Hit List
‘Do your research. Identify the kind of company you want to work for, then make a list of who’s out there and target them. This is about so much more than scanning the jobs pages over a cuppa – it’s targeted, specific research. You should end up with a hit list of dream employers. Now you can go to them instead of waiting for them to come to you.’

 2. Work Your Assets
Before you rush in, work out what skills you’ll need to be useful to them, and then make sure you can put them on your CV. Make yourself irresistible – think about what would catch an employer’s eye, making it impossible for them to turn you down. If you don’t have these things, get on it – take a course, land an internship or find some work experience. Don’t blow your chances by rushing in ... only fools do that. This is the rest of your life we’re talking about here.’

3. Create Your Job
‘Don’t wait for a job to be advertised. Your ideal role might not even exist yet, so you may need to make it up. There’s nothing wrong with saying, ‘I’d love to work for you but realize you might not have any jobs. Could I talk to you anyway?’’

 4. Big Yourself Up
Build your confidence before you make the call. Think about all the reasons why these people would be really lucky to have you there. Good salesmanship is about listening to the person you’re talking to, finding out what they need and then explaining how you could meet that need.’

5. Give Yourself Away
'Suggest a trial period to show what you can do. You could even offer to demonstrate your abilities for free for a while, if you can afford to. Don’t be sniffy about working for free – it could get you a foot in the door to your perfect job, which will pay off later.’

Get more top tips on everything from protecting your invention to getting organised in 'More To Life Than Shoes: How to Kick-start Your Career and Change Your Life.

Tara Sophia Mohr advocates going on your own personal retreat to reconnect with yourself and re-evaluate your life.

I've just returned from Jen Louden’s week-long writing retreat in Taos, New Mexico. It was the first time I’ve taken a retreat that long for myself. I’ve gone on weekend workshops before, but nothing like this.
 
I went because I wanted to break through some 'stuckness' around a writing project. But also, I went because when I looked at the schedule – full of writing, yoga, dance, something inside me squealed: “that sounds like so much fun!” From that moment on I was calling it “summer camp for grownups” because it felt that delightful to me.
 
It was delightful, and fun, but more than that it was incredibly powerful. I think there's a real reason that every spiritual path has a retreat element to it, whether it’s keeping the Sabbath, a geographic pilgrimage or an intensive meditation period. All spiritual traditions recognize that, while daily spiritual practice is extremely important, spiritual and personal development is uniquely enhanced, moved forward, during intensive periods on retreat.
 
For me, retreat is about leaving the day-to-day, leaving the noise of the world. Its benefits come as much from what we do at the retreat as they come from what we see about our usual lives when we return with our retreat perspective. On my return, I see how overcrowded my life is, and how much I could benefit from simplifying it. I see how much I miss living in a beautiful natural environment. I see how living in a community makes me such a happier camper and—paradoxically—makes me more comfortable with taking time alone.
 
Retreat is also about, in Jen Louden’s words, “the container.” Creating a simple, empty space and allowing things to happen. I saw so clearly on this retreat that we don’t have to do much for the soul to emerge. Thoreau said, “the soul grows by subtraction, not by addition.”
 
On our retreat, the container looked like this: living in a place with limited internet and phone reception. Simple spaces, in a beautiful natural environment. Time devoted every day to connecting to the body, open time for writing, time for sharing in small groups and in the big group. There was lots of time and space to be present to oneself.
 
I want to encourage you to try some kind of retreat. A retreat is not a holiday. It's directed more inwardly,  the noise of the world is purposely turned down. There is structure. It is a container, consciously created.
 
You can go on an organised retreat like I did, with a group and a teacher, or you can create your own. Jen, who led my retreat, wrote a book on this, called The Woman's Retreat Book: A Guide to Restoring, Rediscovering, and Reawakening Your True Self--In a Moment, an Hour, a Day, or a Weekend, which gives you ways to retreat for a week, a day, or even in a moment. It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money, or even involve a lot of time away from family and work to retreat. But please, in some way, give yourself the huge gift of retreat.
 
Love,
 
Tara
 
Tara Sophia Mohr is a writer and coach.  She writes the blog Wise Living. You can sign up for her free Goals Guide, "Turning Your Goals Upside Down and Inside Out (To Get What You Really Want) ” by clicking here. 

I was honoured to be asked by Paullette Schwartz to speak on Social Media at her Business Acceleration Day conference, and had a fantastic time meeting delegates, listening to the other speakers and, of course, getting up and making (not too much of) a wally of myself. Such is the adrenalin rush of speaking to a group that I tend not to remember much of what I have said once I have finished, but one particular question I was asked did stick with me.

A couple of the delegates were asking about ways to reduce time spent on social media, and asked about how to automate everything. I happen to believe that automation is the devil when it comes to Social Media, and strongly recommended that they automate as little as possible.

Don’t be fooled by the smile. That’s just how he gets you.

“But why?” they said. “Why can’t I put the same message on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn?”

Don’t get me wrong – repackaging the same content is absolutely fine. If you’ve written a blog, you’d be a fool not to promote it in your email newsletters, or link to it on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. But you wouldn’t do this:

Each medium has a different audience, different functions, a different purpose and a different culture – and needs to be treated and respected as such.

To put it another way, if I was looking for some man action, I might get all dolled up in a sexy dress, pretty make-up and wouldn’t-you-love-to-run-your-fingers-through-it hair. Then, looking my very Photoshopped best (courtesy of the lovely Victoria B Photo!), I might head out to a fun, chilled bar where I might get chatting to this guy:

Magic would happen.

But, you know what? I quite like going to football matches too, and I understand that they tend to be well-populated with men. There’s every chance I could meet Mr Right at a football match, right? And if the above approach works in a nice bar, it stands to reason that it would work at the football, too, right?

When the make-up on the left is the most appropriate for the occasion, it’s time for a rethink

I’ve also heard stories of certain people who have met their significant others at the supermarket. Perhaps I should start dressing up a bit more to do the grocery shopping too?

The same message isn’t going to have the same effect when used identically across different media, with different people in different mindsets – so please, please, please automate as little as possible. Try to understand the different media you’re using and tailor your communication content and style to work best for the medium you’re using.

We’re always being asked for our tip top networking techniques. The trouble is, the idea of business networking gives me the heebie jeebies; all that business card swapping, pointless chitchat and over the shoulder glances to see if there’s someone more interesting in the room. Cringe.

I’ve been to loads of women’s networks and clubs for women. Scoped out many women’s networking events. Worked the room. Talked myself up and generally networked my ass off. On occasion it’s been more exhausting than a full day with a toddler who’s eaten too many ice-creams. Plus, it can feel rather superficial. You come away feeling more judged than a contestant on Britain’s Next Top Model.

When time is so precious, why spend your time juggling awkward moments, canapés, handshakes and glasses of dry white? What is the point of filling your already overfilled diary with business networking events?

Ultimately, networking is just meeting people and talking to them, building relationships and creating opportunities. We do it all the time, with friends, family and work colleagues, and most of us girls are actually pretty good at it! And yet somehow the words “business networking" or “networking event” give us the fear – us included.

Here are my top reasons why networking is a brilliant thing:

 

• You meet new people. Some of whom will come in handy.
• If you talk about your business and big plans, you might even meet potential new clients
• If you’re on the scene people will think about you when they need someone like you
• It’s a great way of sharing ideas and collaborating
• You’ll be more likely to spot exciting new opportunities
• It gets you out the house – not to be underestimated if you work home alone
• It can be fun (really!)

My fear of networking (especially business networking!) was one of the reasons we founded our More To Life Than Shoes women’s network. We wanted to create a club for women dedicated to helping women turn aspiration into action, with members all committed to helping support and encourage each other. And it works.

So, as the founder of a new kind of women’s network, I’d like to share some top tips for getting the most out of networking that will hopefully make it more fun. Hurrah to that.

Experiment. Go to loads of events until you find something that suits you. There are all kinds of networking organizations out there, all doing slightly different things. Find events where you like the vibe. And don’t bother with the ones that scare the pants off you or where people are unfriendly. Obviously, if you’re a woman and you’d like to turn aspiration into action come and join us!  And then, once you’ve found your kinda place, go regularly. It’s easier to build relationships and make friends when people know you.

Chill Out. There’s nothing worse than being sold to from the get go. It’s boring. People will walk off! Instead, take a different approach. Listen to what people have to say and try to think of ways you might be able to help them out.

People love swapping business cards – it’s a big part of business networking in particular so make sure yours are really cool. We love www.moo.com. And bring them with you. Always.

Hunt down key influencers – Time is short, so don’t waste it hiding in the corner chatting to people who don’t know anyone either. Best to get chatting to the people who know everyone! They’ll help connect you with others and recommend you to a wider group of people.

Notches on the bedpost – Meeting people is about making friends, not gathering up loads of new acquaintances and a big bunch of business cards.

Prepare some cool introductions – Instead of the usual what’s your name what do you do thing. You want people to remember you after all.

If you meet someone you get along with, make contact immediately after the event and make an effort stay in touch. You might become friends and they will certainly think of you if an interesting opportunity arises.

Networking is a state of mind – think beyond “networking events” and “business networking” and chat to people when you’re out and about, at the school gates, on the bus or in the gym.

Listen when people are talking – there’s nothing worse that someone who’s biding their time until someone else comes along and clearly not listening to a word you’re saying

Don’t get drunk! A couple of drinks help with dutch courage, but more than that and you’ll probably end up talking crap or spilling your drink on someone!

 
And that's it. Simple. Have a great time networking like a nutter and let us know how you got on.