Make It Real                      May 2008
News and Views from Clarity to Business, LLC

Catapulting Visionary Entrepreneurs and Companies to Success
In This Issue
Walk Your Values
Happiness is a Happy Client
Time Matters
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Greetings!
 
Spring Greetings. I hope both your business and personal life are undergoing the rebirth that spring brings every year. 
 
This month's newsletter focuses on another way to walk your talk in your business. You'll find a tip for asking your best client how you're doing with them. I am also spotlighting a break-through book about time, and sending you a great source for all things handmade (like the amazing puppet you see below, and the puppets I use in workshops).
 
Read and enjoy.

Christy Strauch
602-561-8499

orangepuppetThe Puppet Speaks: Walk the Talk of Your Values
 
There are many ways to walk your talk. One way is to make sure that how you run your business is congruent with your values. The example below illustrates one way to measure how much your behavior is in line with the values most important to you.

One of my clients is a contractor who focuses on remodels, a tough business in some cities due to uncertainty in the housing market. In this climate it's even more important for my client to continue cultivating and nurturing relationships with architects and other people who can refer business to him. It's also crucial that he steps up his "walking the talk"--he does what he says he'll do, and his words and actions match.
 

To make sure this client is walking his talk, the client, the Puppet, and I looked at his primary value, communication. Then we looked at his whole business to see if he was actually communicating.

The good news: he is communicating. His clients know exactly where their projects stand, his subcontractors know their next steps, and his suppliers know when to deliver material. 

The bad news is that every word goes through him. The client is on his cell phone pretty much all the time, including 7 a.m. on Sunday morning, reassuring a worried client or talking to a subcontractor about the following day's work. You can see he holds the value of communication very highly, even occasionally to the detriment of his family life. The Puppet had plenty to say about this, as you can imagine.

We've been working on ways he can communicate to everyone consistently and frequently that doesn't involve him touching his cell. The solution is simple: he prepares a weekly report on every job, which he sends to the client, the subcontractors and suppliers.  And yet, like many simple solutions, it has been challenging to implement.  My client has to take the time to write the reports (which means he might have to refuse some of the phone calls initially). He also has to show everyone (including himself) that these reports are better than him being available by phone 24x7.

Ponder these questions. And be brave about your responses. The Puppet's rooting for you.

1.  What is one of the primary values that you use to run your business?

2. Are your actions congruent with that primary value (do you walk your talk)?

3. Does your primary value drive behavior in your business in a way that isn't good for you?

4. Is there different way to honor that value?

Answering these questions for yourself will help you evaluate how true you are to your most important value.

TIP OF THE MONTH   
 

Happiness is a happy client

Take your best client to lunch in the next thirty days and ask him/her these three questions:
  1. What are we doing right?
  2. What could we be doing better?
  3. Is there anything you want us to provide that we're not providing now?

I will give a free 30 minute coaching session to the first person who emails me with the story of what happened when you asked your client these questions.

keenanCLIENT SPOLTLIGHT
 

One of my clients, Leslie Keenan, has written a book called It's About Time. It is the definitive book for people who have read every time management book, attended seminars on the subject, and still can't get their schedules under control. You can buy the book on Amazon (search for Keenan). I have given away at least 12 copies to clients and friends and they have all raved about it.

Do you pack too many things into the day, run late, underestimate how much time things actually take (even things you do over and over and should Know Better By Now) or work hard, but on the wrong stuff? Is it tough to get yourself to go to bed at a reasonable hour, even though you know you'll feel lousy in the morning? Buy and read It's About Time.

RESOURCES & HAPPENINGS
 

bluepuppetMany people have asked me where to buy puppets.  I have two sources, both at Etsy.  Etsy is an amazing website for all things handmade, from clothing, jewelry, art, and photography to every other handmade item you can think of.

I've purchased puppets from two artists: The Hookery and Lauren Ostis   Both create amazing puppets that kids love, and that adults secretly love but are too embarrassed to admit. Take a look at their work and succumb to the urge to buy something whimsical and funny.

Complementary Coaching Consultation  
 

If you are a business owner, and want to become more successful and accountable to your goals, or you need help generating more revenue, or you simply feel stalled; please contact me at (602) 561-8499 or [email protected] for a complementary consultation. Find out if coaching is right for you. I help business owners prosper doing the work they love.