The best way to get follow up is to be specific. You need to be specific on what you need, and when you need it by. It sounds simple, but most people don’t go far enough when being specific. Think about this email example:

“Joe – we need to talk. When are you available to meet next week?”

A question like this requires the other person to do the following:

1. Locate or open their calendar
2. Evaluate all appointments and open spots for next week
3. Determine if there is a fit, and when
4. Determine how long you may need to meet
5. Open their email and draft a response that lists several options for meeting times
6. Communicate several times back and forth about selecting a good date/time to meet

How do you tell your boss that they are disorganized?

You ned to figure out why you are telling them this in the first place. There’s only one good reason to tell your boss that they are disorganized. This reason is: it is interfering with your ability to peform. This will help you align your motive (better performance) and your boss’s motive (more productivity i.e. money) out of your work.

In most cases, though, you might want to be a little more sensitive about what you say. YOU are disorganized, right or not, is still an acccusation and won’t be very productive. Phrase this issue as one that “we” need to solve. Try this:

Boss, I think I could be doing a better job if we were a little more organized.

This takes the edge off and makes it a business problem not a personal problem. Once “we” can work on the problem together, you have permission to make suggestions: put things on the computer, get outside help, communicate better etc.

Your best case here is to open a dialogue where you can both create a better working environment.

Sometimes, though, it may feel like you don’t have “permission” or “room to talk” to your boss about this kind of thing.

If permission

Flatland is a great "thinking book."

is the problem – ask for permission first. Few people will deny this request. Try saying: “I want to make an observation about something happening here but I want your permission, and your promise that you will not take this obeservation personallly.”

A long request for permission, perhaps, but by asking for permission to say sometthing that can be misinterpreted, you are asking for the boss to “pay attention to the message and not the messenger.” This simple trick can let you say nearly anthing you may need to say (provided that it is not a verbal personal assault.

Use this technique sparingly though. Like the story of the boy who cried wolf, it can be overdone if misused.

In the case of not having “room to talk” you are presuming that your own lack is getting in the way of making an observation. First, no one is perfect. Second, the guidance that “those without sin cast the first stone” doesn’t hold in this context. We are not stoning people – we aren’t saying anything judgemental or disparaging. You are trying to address a gap in your current performance versus what you are capable of – if the work were a bit more organized.

Good luck, and if this doesn’t solve the problem, shoot me an email and we can try some other non-verbal techniques.

The reason motivation seems hard to capture lies in the word itself. Motivation as a word doesn’t include instructions. In fact, as a word, it doesn’t even help to describe what motivation actually is. Look it up:  motivation

image courtesy zsbenko at sxc.hu

So, if the words don’t describe it, then what are all these “motivational speakers” doing? What is this business of motivation and motive all about? They can’t tell you. They answer the question with nonsense. “I help motivate people to achieve their goals.” How? Inevitably the answer is some kind of system or nonsense answer like “I inspire them” (whatever that means).

What’s actually happening – and the magic behind the scenes –  is pretty simple.

Human beings do “stuff” when there is TENSION in their lives.

Tension is the origin of action. Without it, you wouldn’t wake up, sleep, eat, move, sit, etc. Without tension, there is no potential. All happenings in the world are a result of the resolution of tension of some kind.

Comedians are experts at creating tension – and when it is resolved, you laugh. Writers create and resolve tension all the time. When you purchase something, you are resolving a tension between having and not having. People create their own tension when they set goals or define their future. Think about how we solve tensions between people.

Sit with that for a minute. Tension as a dynamic behind everything you do.

Consider then, creating tension in your life as a method for activating – you.

Create tensions between today and tomorrow. Create tension between who you are now, and who you want to be; or what you have now, and what you want to have later.

Are you struggling to get things done? Is there enough tension to make it happen? Can you rephrase the consequences to increase tension? Over the next series of articles we will be discussing several techniques and tools to increase tension and make achievement inevitable.

What would your day be like if people were forming a line outside your door to pay you for your product or service?

The sad truth is that many people will never see that reality – not because they aren’t able to, but because they have settled for a life that is “good enough.” They have given in to a life that pays the bills and lets them do other stuff. There is a better option.

Turn your passion into money.

Here’s the first three of steps you need to take in order to get started:

1. Discover your passion (if you haven’t already)
2. Look at the value you create for others when you are doing what it is that you love
3. Create a product or service based on the value you create.

This is remarkably simple – let’s try it out:

1. I love helping individuals turn their passion into money
2. I help them create the life of their dreams by doing what they love
3. The business design e-course can help people realize their dreams

Too “on the button?” Try this one:

1. I love helping kids with learning difficulties
2. I help the parents of kids with learning difficulties work with the school to get the best education for their kids which makes them better parents
3. I have a coaching program that will teach parents how to navigate the school system.

This simple three step process will help you get on the path to turn your passion into a product or service that you can use to make money. Even the most obscure passions can be worked in this way to create a product or service.

The challenge for far to many of us is, sadly, we don’t know how awesome we are. We bought into the wrong set of concepts.

The concepts we believed are a sham. We believed that what we did and who we are are the same. We thought that what happens in your life determines the character of who you are. Many of us, maybe even you think that success is a measure of worth. Some of us use financial, social, or productivity measures to determine how we think, feel, and act. We believed that success and failure were states that people wore around their chest.

All of that is wrong. In reality, you are awesome.

The orchestrated masterpiece that is this world we live in does not have any useless parts. There is no one on this earth who doesn’t harmoniously play their part in the cosmic saga. Recognize that failure is impossible, because failure doesn’t exist. Success is impossible, because it too, does not exist. All that exists is the moment you are in, reading these words. Everything, literally, everything else is up for debate. History is interpretation. The future is interpretation.

You are amazing in the way that every fiber of your being emerges from a past experience that no one else understands. You are living a life that defies all understanding, and when you look at what you’ve become given the sheer weight of what you have lived through – it is improbable, if not impossible to believe.

Apart from being so amazing, so awesome, you also have the capacity for even greater levels of engagement. You can take away even the smallest of obstacles between you and the gift you bring to the world. You can, before the light of your brilliance, dissolve without effort anything that stands in your way between expressing your truth, and hiding in the shadows.

You MUST. The world depends on it. Literally. You could be the person who renews someone’s faith in people. You could be the person who challenges someone to rise above their own situation. The truth is – you will never know. You could be the cautionary tale for others – however it all turns out, is unimportant.

What is important is that right now. Right here, you recognize that you truly are awesome – and that no one, not even yourself, can take that from you.

The behaviors of someone who “gets it” are simple, and recurring throughout nearly every industry and profession. Simply, there are people that get it in every type of work out there. There are a few requirements to be someone who get’s it though. First, it is helpful to define “it.”

The “it” is the point or the purpose or the method of conducting business. It is the essence beneath the surface. The “it” is an understanding of the unwritten rules of the game.

The good news is that the unwritten rules are usually the same across all industries, professions, and roles.

1. Unwritten Rule: Businesses run by the numbers, but individual behavior does not - There are very few situations where a direct action yields a direct result. Such situations are simple, are often defined by law.The large majority of human behavior is too complex for simple cause and effect discussions. What this means is – behavior trends yield results – individual behaviors in isolation do not. For example: Cultivate relationships, yield the benefit. Expect sales from strangers and be disappointed.Don’t expect a single gesture to reverse a trend or change opinions.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they will often expect one small sacrifice to outweigh a pattern of abuse. They might also give up quickly when results aren’t immediate – expecting instant results from one single action.
2. Unwritten Rule: Givers Gain - It is the motto of Business Networking International (BNI) but before that it was built into our culture through religious and spiritual texts. The sages understood even thousands of years ago, that cultivating a giving nature yields positive results.The idea of givers gain, by extension eliminates win-lose scenarios and inspires us to search for win-win opportunities.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they are act as if they have to coerce behaviors from others. They have a wall between them an the world an there is a definite price in order to get through the wall.  They may not give socially of their time, or make themselves available emotionally either.
3. Unwritten Rule: Opportunity is Everywhere – This is, quite honestly, the inverse of the Givers Gain philosophy. Make yourself available to receive opportunities and you simply can not go wrong.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they talk constantly of regret. “I should have done this.” “I wish I did that.” The people who can’t see opportunity, often don’t want to see it because it is frightening.

4. Unwritten Rule: Fear is an illusion – Fear is one of the biggest issues that prevents us from experiencing a full and meaningful life. Fear is the gravity that anchors the status-quo.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they let fear prevent them from capitalizing on opportunity, and they often use circumstances or “victim speech” to explain their current state.

5. Unwritten Rule:Action drives results - One must take action and follow up in order to see results. The hidden secret behind Woody Allen’s famous quote “80% of success is just showing up” is the showing up part – and all the actions leading up to it.The other side is the follow up – almost worthy of calling out all it’s own: the value of following up is tremendous. It makes people feel sought after, and by the very nature of how infrequent it is, instantly sets you apart from the crowd.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they are full of idle promises and wishes. They talk about these things all the time, often changing them completely from one day to the next. They are intoxicated by their own thoughts and afraid to commit to the hard work of making them a reality.

6. Unwritten Rule:Attitude is a product of actions – not thoughts. You can’t simply think your way into a good attitude. You need to take actions to make it happen. For many it is getting some work started or completed, for others it may be giving or receiving positive feedback. A colleague of mine has a file of all the nice things ever said about her – a file she can read when her attitude is less than 150%.
   
   When you meet someone who doesn’t understand this, they make everyone pay for their negativity. Their attitude spreads like a virus among the people they talk to. People with a chronically negative attitude may have fewer close friends, or business contacts – after all, who want’s to be near the naysayer?

If you do find yourself lucky enough to meet someone who “get’s it” be sure to keep them in your network they are a relationship worth cultivating. Build a group or find one to bring together such people and never let them go.

Not sure if you “get it?” ask a friend to tell you where you are on each of the elements above. They might be able to tell you the things you already knew but didn’t want to discuss.

As always, look online for helpful resources to learn how to “get it.”

In 2009, Pennsylvania passed the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act, which requires contractors who perform home improvements to register with Pennsylvania’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. A “contractor” is defined as including not only general contractors, carpenters, electricians, roofers and plumbers, but it may also include swimming pool installers, driveway companies, painters, fence company, door and window companies, and certain landscapers. All contractors are required to have liability insurance

A contractor who registers with the Bureau of Consumer Protection is assigned a registration number, which can be checked online http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/hicsearch/; the registration number must be listed in all of the contractor’s advertisements and contracts.

The Act requires that contracts for home improvements include certain notices and meet certain requirements, including a three business day right of rescission. Contracts that do not meet the requirements of the Act are neither valid nor enforceable against the homeowner. In addition, if they contain provisions, the contract is voidable. (However,even if a homeowner voids a contract, the contractor may still be able to recover the reasonable value of work actually performed).

Aside from the requirements for contracts, the Act also mandates that a contractor carry liability insurance in the amount of at least $50,000, and imposes limits on the deposits that a contractor may require. It also establishes criminal penalties for home improvement fraud, and provides that certain types of actions violate of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.

You can create situations where you choose how and when to be connected.  It ensures that information reaches you quickly and provides effective communications among employees, partners and clients.  You can now publish one number and have all calls routed to you.

IP TELEPHONE SYSTEMS

Today’s IP phone systems give businesses enhanced capabilities such as:

1. Find Me Follow Me – Route your incoming calls to multiple external phone numbers, including cell phones, and then have the calls go to your office voicemail.  You have peace of mind that no calls will be missed and all voicemails will end up in one mailbox.
2. Remote Extensions via Broadband and Internet Connections – People working from any remote location (e.g. home) can instantly connect their phone using ordinary broadband connections.  Simply plug in and go.  The company benefits with remote workers by reducing the need for expensive office space.
3. Voice Mail Notification Alert – You can receive a text message on your cell phone when a voice mail is left on your office phone.  Employees who are often traveling or in meetings can be aware of who is leaving messages.
4. Integrated Messaging – Have voicemails sent directly to your email and hear the message as a WAV file.  You can sort and manage voicemails as you do emails.

CARRIER SOLUTIONS

Businesses are bombarded with proposals from various phone and internet providers.  Rarely is there an apples to apples comparison.  A phone and internet bill may now have a variety of options to include equipment rentals, hosted environments, and other services.  In planning for the future the business owner must consider the impact of applications (e.g. voice, video, Internet, CRM, etc.) and whether existing bandwidth is acceptable.  Businesses may be able to reduce their carrier costs and enhance their capabilities with today’s technology.

Here are four key questions to ask yourself when considering hiring your first employee. They aren’t the only four things to worry about, but they will get you 80% of the way there.

Are you ready to learn how to manage people?

There’s quite a bit of work in managing people. Not everyone is up to the task. Fortunately, managing people is a skill that can be acquired – but it is one that is WILDLY different than what you have been used to as a business owner.  If you are not ready to learn how to manage – then it is not the right time to hire.

Most people are not ready to learn. They think that their professional skills in their specialty magically transfer to people management skills. It is a bad assumption. This is how people get hurt, and businesses fail.

Are you hiring for tomorrow?

One of the biggest things you need to know when you hire is: are doing it for the long term? You may think you are hiring to help you solve the next big project, but if you are putting someone on the payroll, you must be prepared to make a long term investment in them. The reason for this is simple: Turnover.

Turnover costs money and creates drag. I can’t tell you how many owners I have met who refuse to consider hiring because they are so burnt out on the process that they simply can’t stomach the idea any more. These are folks who weren’t ready to learn how to manage, and didn’t consider employees as a long term investment.

Can you afford it?

The next consideration is salary. Here’s the thing. If you don’t have enough cash on hand to cover at least a years worth of salary – you aren’t ready for a full fledged employee. It’s unfair to you and to them to start a relationship where payment is going to be an issue. If you don’t have the cash to cover a years worth of paychecks – don’t do it.

Apart from salary, do you have the time to train them, manage them, and coach them? In the beginning, a manager should be spending at least 5-6 hours per week with an employee to make sure that the job is getting done well and error correct along the way.  Some jobs will require closer supervision – such as highly skilled jobs. Other jobs may require less.

Have you defined their job?

If you don’t tell them what to do, how to do it, and most importantly what a “good job” looks like – you will cause more harm than good. Many a hopeful owner has told an employee to do one thing and gotten results that were quite the opposite. Clarity of job, process, and performance expectations will save many headaches and heartaches in the long run.

Did you provide a handbook and a process manual to describe how things work in your company? Take the time to have one drafted, or buy a “canned” one and have it reviewed by an attorney. A smart owner plans for contingencies and protects themselves in the event of a bad hiring decision. (Don’t make bad hiring decisions.)

Keep these things in mind when considering if you should hire your first employee. There are other things to think about, like proper insurance coverages, and tax liabilities, but on the whole if you solve the first four considerations here, you should be well on your way to being a successful business owner – rather than a solo entrepreneur. You will be out of the way of your own growth – and well on your way to creating a company that can stand the test of time.