Wise Woman Shining » Business Plans

Are You Creating Someone Else’s Business?

caseydawes — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 21:47:00 +0000

I’ve watched a few of my clients struggle trying to create the business that they think they should have…not the one they want. They may be thinking too small because they’ve been convinced their dreams aren’t realistic. Or they may think too big, and would be happier with a smaller business.

One of the duties of a business owner is to take time to think strategically. Often, however, they don’t find time to do it. There’s many reasons why, most of them centered on the perceived need to stay on top of everything all the time. Sheesh! Just thinking that way makes me tired. To be successful in business, you have to make time to think, plan and figure out what you really want.

The economic ups and downs over the last few years have made it clear that humans have control over some things in their lives, but not everything. I believe that part of my purpose here on earth is to figure out exactly what’s important to me–the size of my business, the people I want to help, the hours I want to spend. And yes, I get to own the consequences of my choices as well.

If you feel that you are running all the time and not very happy, it could be that you’re trying to fit your feet into someone else’s running shoes. Try these steps and see what happens.

Grab some time — a weekend is nice, a full day will do– and get away from everyone and everything that tugs at your life. Get out in nature if you can. Re-imagine your life, or simply vegetate.
At the end of the day, take a piece of paper and write down whatever falls out of your head in terms of your business or your life.
Compare your dream world to reality. What do you have to do to make them more in line? Pick one action to begin with.
Begin implementing your action the very next day.

I’d love to hear what happens!

Does Social Networking Belong in Your Business Plan?

caseydawes — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:05:01 +0000

Over the past month, I’ve noticed that many women entrepreneurs are writing about doing their business plans. Bravo! If you want a strong, successful business, having a living business plan is very important!

Living Business Plan

What’s a living business plan? It’s a plan that you actually, use, update, get coffee on, thumb through and scribble all over. It needs to change as the world changes.

As I wrote in an earlier post, 2010 is going to be the year of social media marketing. It’s a significant trend and one we have to pay attention to. When preparing your marketing section of your business plan for 2010, women business owners need to make sure that they are setting tactical objectives for their social media marketing efforts. There are three significant points that need to be made about social media marketing:

Social media marketing objectives should tie to your marketing plan and your overall business objectives
Social media marketing should fallow a plan, not be hit-or-miss
Social media objectives should be measurable and measured

More and more I’m hearing a discussion about measuring social media. That means that marketing experts have begun to pay serious attention to the space and that some serious tools for measurement will be coming out in the next year or so. These tools will not be for the faint-hearted–a quick look at a list of Twitter Tools from Mashable will give you an idea of the serious geekiness of these tools!

Business Plans and Money

Along with reviewing your business initiatives and past financials, the entrepreneur woman needs to plan business expenses for the following year. If you are seriously thinking of launching social media campaigns, you will probably need to get some help. Since the field is new, there are going to be many newly forged experts out there. This isn’t a bad thing, everyone is figuring it out as they go…just as they’ve been doing for the past 40 years of technological advances!

Budgeting money for the expense is important. Even though the economy is still shaky, it’s important to budget for marketing. A good social media plan isn’t free, neither are the measurements required to actually get the return on investment you want!

Comments about social media marketing in your business plan? Leave them below!

The Business Budget for Women Entrepreneurs

caseydawes — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:32:17 +0000

Starting off the new year means creating a foundation of reality and adding dollop of good intentions!

One of the pieces of the foundation is your business budget. Most women business owners hate making a budget! They automatically think in terms of restrictions…a budget is your money on a diet. And whatever we’ve learned in the last few years, most of us are aware that our money needs to be on a diet!

However, a budget also represents possibility and good intentions. We are saying to ourselves, “I’m going to be a good steward of my money this year.” You intend to do what it takes to have more come in, keep more of what you earn and, when you spend, spend with intention. Money is energy–power if you will.

So what’s in a good budget?

Projected gross income–what you think your business will earn.
Cost of goods (if you sell products) or cost of subcontractors (if you sell services)
Subtract cost of goods/subcontractors from gross income and you get Net Income Before Expenses
Projected expenses such as: travel expense, auto, marketing expense, location expenses (rent, etc.), employee expenses, professional services such as bookkeepers and accountants, etc.
Subtract expenses from Net Income Before Expenses and you have Net Income After Expenses.
Estimate of your taxes
Estimate of any other types of income such as rents paid to you, royalties from books, music, etc.
Subtract taxes and add other income from your Net Income After Expenses and you get to Net Income.

Net Income is what you get to:

Take Home
Re-invest in your business
Save
Give away
Use to create a better world

Any questions on budgets? Why do you do them? Or not do them as the case may be?

Women Entrepreneurs, What’s Your Dream?

caseydawes — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:28:55 +0000

It still moves me to tears. I watched Susan Boyle’s original audition on YouTube again this morning, inspired by the show last night about her. She is an inspiration to everyone, I believe, because she is clear, authentic and oh, so very human. When asked about what she wanted, she said, “I’m trying to be a professional singer.” She even knew what her vision looked like–Britain’s “first lady of musical theater,” Elaine Paige.

So what’s this got to do with you, woman business owner? Simply this. You need a vision, a dream.

We spend so much of our lives doing for others and making sure people have what they need–kids, parents, significant others, friends, etc. Our minds are naturally drawn towards detail. We can probably rattle off our “to do” list far faster than describe our dream.

Yet this is exactly what women entrepreneurs must do. You need to dream your dream. If you need inspiration…watch Susan Boyle. What would your life be like if your dream came true? Whether you use a vision board, mind-mapping, journaling or some other technique, take some time over the year change to think about your vision for your life, yourself and your company? Be as clear and authentic as possible. You don’t need to ask anyone for permission. You just need to dream your dream and take full advantage of the opportunity.

Just ask Susan Boyle.

Thank you, Susan, for your inspiration.Women

Pruning and Weeding Your Small Business

caseydawes — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:27:13 +0000

There’s a sign in my garden that says, “If you give a weed an inch, it will take a yard.”

I need one of those signs for my business, too. How often do I get caught up in a new, bright shiny object? I drop everything else to pursue, and then don’t pay attention to something I need to do. Inevitably a check bounces somewhere! Or I don’t get a client I could have gotten if I was paying more attention. Or I start taking on new projects that don’t really fit my business model.

I have a business plan, just like I recommend to my clients. I tend to adjust it every year as my business has been changing as I learn more about what women business owners need the most and in reaction to the changing economy. But the core of the business is the same: providing business support to women business owners so that they have a better rate of success. The business plan provides structure to my business. Just like my garden plan provides structure to my plants.

And, I do have to pay attention to pruning and weeding. My roses are vibrant this year because I pruned them way down over the winter. The weeds are winning at the moment, but I make sure they don’t totally take over.

The same is true of my business in big and little ways. I’m putting things in motion right now to end my email newsletter and focus on this blog, Facebook, Twitter and Linked-In as my communication mediums. It will save me some expense money as I no longer need to pay for an email provider. It will also give me more time. I find it easier to blog than write an article for the newsletter.

What do you need to prune and weed out from your business to free up time, money and energy for your core business?

Focus on Business During the Recession

caseydawes — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 23:02:25 +0000

One of the things that I admire about the way that President Obama does things is the way that he thinks. Now, put aside your partisan hat for a moment and think about this and how it applies to your business…please.

Small Business Goals

One of the things that is very difficult for new business owners to do is imagine how their business will look when it’s “cooked.” I’m not sure if this is because they are afraid they will be stuck with a vision, or that it might be the wrong one, but I know that many of my clients struggle with this concept. It’s similar to asking them to define a niche. We get so afraid that we will miss something that we are like children who won’t go to bed because there’s too much going on and they want to be part of it all.

But trying to be everything to everyone isn’t sustainable. Big companies that are now sloughing divisions are realizing that again. This happens every time that there is a resession.

Next time Mr. Obama speaks, listen to the words behind the words. If you listen carefully, you will hear that he has a vision of how the country should be. Now, you may or may not agree with him. That’s not important. What is important that you understand that he has an idea in mind and everything he does is directed towards achieving that vision.

Is the same true with your business?

Flip-flopping in Business

I spoke with a client today who’s been going back and forth with her partner for several months about how her business should look. As a result, they’ve been rather “stuck” for these months. The recession isn’t helping them, as they have had to reduce expenses and put more energy into selling because of the shifting economic sand.

I see a lot of people do this. They go in one direction and become impatient waiting for results. Then they change direction and quickly become impatient with those lack of results. A third direction is tried and then a fourth and finally they are back to where they started.

Dr. Wayne Dyer talks about developing patience for the long term. Just like you don’t dig up a tomato seed the day after you planted it to see if it’s germinated, you need to give business strategies time to succeed. It’s important not to become stuck in a particular strategy that isn’t working. But you need to give something time to grow and work. This is particularly true with relationship development that is so important to consistent sales and long term business growth.

Your Small Business Plan

Take time to create a vision for how you want your business to look when it is thriving. Measure everything you do against that vision. Does it support it or denegrate it?

Develop strategies to make that vision a reality….then give them long enough to yield a tomato!

How this Recession Can Lead to a Better Business

caseydawes — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 15:49:41 +0000

Many of you know that I am an avid quilter, so when Mark Lipinski’s new issue of Quilter’s Home came out, I quickly snapped up a copy. I enjoy Mark’s light-hearted, a little-in-your-face style and always learn something new. What more could you want from a magazine? (This one had a little scandal, too, as the woman in Borders told me as I bought my magazine; it’s why it was in a plastic bag!)

One of the articles was “How this recession can lead to your creative boom!” I thought it was great and this blog is a bit of a take-off on that article with apologies to Mark.

Old Products, Anyone?

Now is a great time to dig up your old, outdated products. The world has changed. The R word is everywhere…right next to people talking about Twitter, Facebook and the resurrected Linked-In. Do your e-books, articles and info-products have this up-to-date information? Dig up your old stuff, re-write, give it a face-lift and a new cover and re-sell it! In the writing world we call this “re-purposing.” In fact, I felt very often that I was writing the same article over and over again when I was in the database world. I just changed the names as the technology changed, but the underlying information stayed pretty much the same. In fact, I recently dug out that article and re-wrote it for small business owners — same information, new names!

Shop Your Closet

Time to really do a spring clean. Find all the pens you’ve got scattered around and it’s like going to the office supplies store! Ditto your kid’s leftover paper from grade school and all those paper clips. What do you have that you can use right now? And, you can even feel virtuous — you’re recycling!

Shop Your Friends’ Closets

Get everyone together with all the office supplies you don’t need. Trade them around and have some fun doing it. Make it a time to trade ideas, resources like your favorite bookkeeper and, heck, even recipes with low-cost ingredients!

Re-tool your talents

What’s your core skill? What do you do well? If you are a life coach, you are probably fairly good at making sense out of difficult situations. You might even have a talent at facilitating. If business is slow, think about what else you could do to bring money into the business. Try www.guru.com and www.elance.com .

Think small

Years ago there was a Wall Street guru who believed in small buy and sell movements, rather than buy and hold. Now, most of us don’t believe anything that comes from Wall Street these days, but there is some merit here, so bear with me. Are there small projects that you can do repetitively? Open-ended projects are pretty scary to many people right now. So are retainers. Try offering the same work for an hourly rate or for a pre-determined time. Even if you know that the person could save money with a retainer, you may convert the sale with an hourly rate more easily.

Embrace the difficult

Have you been meaning to write a book? Create a difficult info-product? Tackle an all-day workshop or try a webinar? Now’s the time to do it! Stretch yourself. With work slow, you probably have the time. There’s an added bonus. By focusing on what’s possible, you will lift your spirits. Happy people always do better business wise than people who are caught up in the dark haze of gloom.

Do a “clean sweep”

Clean your office. Your home. Your mind. Sell books on Amazon that you no longer read. Get an e-bay account. Or have an old-fashioned tag sale. Then treat you and your loved ones to a nice dinner at your favorite restaurant. Now, doesn’t that feel good?

Become a super-shopper

Learn to negotiate for services. Call your credit card companies and ask to have your rates reduced. Asked them what you need to do to get them lowered — you may be surprised at the answer. House value gone down? Check with your county assessor to get your taxes lowered. Question everything you buy. Be careful that you don’t buy cheap just to get the lowest price. It’s often better to pay a little more for quality and something that will last a little longer. Use the Internet and social networking groups you are in to check out other’s experiences with the latest class or marketing scheme you are considering.

(Consider the Wise Woman Circle, where you can get business coaching from a master coach for under $20 a month — now that’s a bargain!)

Get some perspective

No, Virginia, the recession won’t last forever. If you do the things you need to do now to make your business the best it can be, you will come roaring out when the time comes!

Business Planning

caseydawes — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 18:15:33 +0000

It’s Sunday. I’m working…something I said I would avoid. However, here I am. And yet, it’s o.k. Sometimes, in some economies, you need to work a little harder. At harvest time, the winegrowers, like other farmers, work until the harvest is in. It might rain or the sugar in the grapes might get too high. They work day and night, regardless of the day of week, to get it done.

And so it is with a small business. Women entrepreneurs, like others, must sometimes put aside the other million things that they have to do on their plate, and concentrate on work. But weekend work can have a different flavor.

My favorite use of this time is to plan and get ready for the week. It reminds me of getting ready for school when I was (much) younger. Making sure clothes were cleaned and pressed, shoes were shined. Spending extra time on my hair and finishing up homework. There are small comforts in routines, especially routines that prepare you for the week ahead.

So I make sure that my calendars are up to date, clothes are clean and that I have laid out my work for the week. I look at long term plans and make sure that the tasks on my to-do list include steps towards these major business goals.

Casey Dawes at Mendocino Art & Wine Festival

And, I never work too long on my computer. I make sure I have time to quilt and putter around the house. Perhaps I’ll deadhead the roses, or take a walk in Capitola with my husband. Something that honors the life around me, not only the intention of business.

This is the most important thing that women entrepreneurs bring to business. Men are very good at compartmentalizing. We are not. We understand, at the deepest, most intuitive level, that all things are connected. There is a rhythm to what we do, a rhythm that follows the pull of the moon and the spinning of the earth.

Connect your business to your life. So, even if you are working today like I am, re-connect your life and

business to the world around you. Get your hands in the earth, back some bread or smell the sweetness of a small child.

You and your business will prosper because of it.

Are You a Woman Entrepreneur Who Would Like More Money in 2009?

caseydawes — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:23:47 +0000

The recession word can bring up a great deal of fear for small business owners. As a small business coach, I am seeing some concern with my clients and colleagues. But I have to tell you, I’m also seeing a lot of energy.

Business Plans

A lot of the energy is coming from women entrepreneurs sitting down and planning. As women, we tend to do many things intuitively. This works well most of the time and in most economies. But when the perfect storm of the last year’s economic woes occurs, it’s tough to touch base with intuition. Everything seems off kilter.

You know when you are upset about something it’s much easier to clean house? Anger gets a lot of things done as a way to burn it off. That’s some of what can happen in your business life. Sitting down and making a marketing plan, getting your budget under control and actually developing a business plan with goals and strategies can go a long way to making you feel better.

Boost Business Income

Just to help you along, I’m offering a free class to help you make more money this year. Learn more about the Boost Business Income Preview class. It really is free. And, even if you can’t attend live, I’ll make the recording available to you.

It’s a win-win!