 I moved from working in my business to working on my business!
Jim White, Founder Savor Dallas http://www.savordallas.com |
 I found a community of business leaders who make being in business a lot more fun and less lonely.
Jeannine Sandstrom, CEO CoachWorks International, Inc. http://www.coachworks.com |
 I now have a place to be open about my business success and future challenges.
Debbie Mrazek, CEO The Sales Company Author The Field Guide to Sales http://www.the-sales-company.com |
Posts Tagged ‘Dallas’
True You Marketing Interview with Glenn Baldwin, Virtual CFO
Join Tina Ferguson and Dallas-based Virtual CFO, Glenn Baldwin for this lively one-hour conversation about the five most common mistakes smart, savvy business women make on the financial side of their business. Glenn goes into detail about the things women business leaders can do to work smart, not hard. He also talks about the importance of being true to who you are in your business. Listen Now
I’m excited about introducing this new blog channel to you. When I speak to clients and present at organizations, my message is one of “You can be successful and be yourself.” Life is truly too short to waste time acting like something you aren’t and building a business you can’t love every day.
The one remark I get over and over again is… well, that may work for you, but it won’t work for me because…
- I can’t talk like that to my clients
- My industry won’t allow it
- I have to be professional
- I have to be what people expect me to be
- It just won’t work
The truth is that you are being ‘you’ to some degree all the time. You may think you are fooling people, but you aren’t. And, if you are an expert and people love working with you, I’d venture to say it is because you are you.
These interviews will share insights about how people from various industries are being who they are, enjoying success, and reaping the rewards of being authentic.
My first interview is with Glenn Baldwin, VCFO (virtual chief financial officer) extraordinaire, and founder of ForesterBaldwin a Dallas-based VCFO company. Look for his audio download next week on our blog at www.trueyoumarketing.com.
Oh, and keep your eyes open for a Marketing Mojo article that shares ideas on how you can use a similar interview format for a marketing soldier for your company!
Back in the late 90s, I worked as a marketing director in a large accounting firm in Dallas. Our ‘big thing’ was doing things differently than other firms. I’ll never forget the day that the bookie (that’s the partner that everyone regards as the scholar in the firm) and I planned out this entire marketing idea around creating a video game for the firm. Our marketing genius surrounded creating a viral video game similar to the game, Frogger. In our version, we would have a taxpayer that had a goal to get across a swarm of cars to deliver his tax return to the post office. There would be all kinds of excuses printed on the cars just for laughs and such. In a little under 10 minutes, our creative gizmos churned out a good video that probably would have attracted scads of publicity.
We never did it. J
But that doesn’t mean you couldn’t.
Check out Blockdot.com for inspiration!
For Immediate Release
News Release
Contact: Candace Fitzpatrick
Phone: 214-535-1313 or 972-612-0413
Is Your Company Smarter Than a Sixth Grade Class?
Underperforming Colorado School Unites and Excels After Discovering Talents
(Plano, Texas December 28, 2007) – Last year Nathan Smith, the principal of Del Norte Middle School, knew there had to be an answer. The question was, “What do you do when more than 50 percent of incoming students are underperformers in basic math?” The district ranked 161st the previous year – just seventeen slots from dead last in the state, which landed the southern Colorado school on academic watch. To correct the district issues, the school board hired a new superintendent.
The bigger concern for Smith was how to help his new students plug into learning. His new boss, Michael Salvato, a turn-around artist for under-performing school districts, challenged Smith to see if plugging into student’s innate talents would lead to student academic achievement.
Through Salvato, Smith was introduced to a woman from Texas who was doing talent-based work with company employees, helping them increase productivity and improve interpersonal relations. Seeing the similarities between his school and the corporate world, he asked what he could do to bring this same tool to his students.
“Our teachers are top notch. They were already noticing patterns within the student body,” Smith says. “We just didn’t have the language and tools to identify and work with the dynamic we were experiencing.”
The first week of school, every 6th grade student was assessed and each one received a list of his or her top three innate talents. The question posed to Candace Fitzpatrick, president of Plano-based CoreClarity, was, “What’s next?”
Fitzpatrick quickly created a color-coded mapping system that allowed teachers and students to relate to each other based on their core talents. Two district employees were sent to Dallas for training in group facilitation methods developed by the Institute of Cultural Affairs. They went back to Colorado and held a focused conversation during which the students agreed their mission was to make sure that no child was ever left behind in the 6th grade at Del Norte Middle School. Then, through a consensus building workshop, they created their own seven point plan to make sure they accomplished their mission.
What came next was nothing short of miraculous.
During the first reporting period, more than 88 percent of the 6th graders were on the A/B honor roll. The others had no less than C averages. Throughout the school year, 75 percent were consistently earning As and Bs, the others were in and out of the A/B honor roll, but never with anything less than a C average. They brilliantly executed their plan.
The shift in the environment at the school could literally be felt not only at school but at home as many parents called to report changes they were seeing in their children.
The talent-identification tool, which is owned by Gallup, Inc., is called the StrengthsExplorer. CoreClarity works with the results of this tool to map and provide a system and language so simple that students easily incorporate it into their daily lives. The color-coding also highlights for teachers how individual children best learn so they can modify their lesson plans to create a positive learning experience for all.
Parent/Teacher meetings have changed tone from focusing on the student’s academic struggles (perceived weaknesses) to highlighting their innate gifts. Communication has improved at home, too.
Denise Benavides, 6th grade math teacher, says, “It has changed the way we view ourselves, our abilities and each other. Each child, as well as each teacher, has a map of his or her talents. Now, we relate to each other in a fundamentally different way. It’s been truly amazing.”
One of the resource children, after receiving his results, exclaimed, “It’s not blank! I have talents!” In this way, each child can focus on what is best about himself or herself, yet still learn to work with others who are better suited to other activities.
Another child who opened his locker and found himself overcome by the contents falling to the floor cried out, “I need an organizer! Where’s an organizer?” Two students who excel at organizing things immediately rushed to assist him.
“Our school has moved from a place that needed to be fixed to a place where individuals are celebrated and honored,” says Smith. “Bullying is down by 75 percent in this class. In all my years in education, I’ve never seen anything like this. These students will never forget this experience.”
For a baseline, the class was assessed using a national test in September 2006, then again in December and May. They not only excelled as a student body, progressing two or more years in science and language arts, and a full three years in reading and math; but in September 2007, the results confirmed that as a class, they retained 100 percent of what they learned last year.
Fitzpatrick’s corporate clients have experienced similar, dramatic and accelerated changes after utilizing the company’s proprietary program. From leadership groups to nonprofit organizations to Fortune 500 companies, CoreClarity has helped individuals unite under one mission, increase individual and team performance, and work together more harmoniously.
Clients who have experienced the program have called CoreClarity an “Excelerant” – because they accelerate the removal of years of accumulated personal debris and move individuals and teams quickly to excellence. This clearing allows the true essence and excellence of individuals, teams and organizations to shine through in both adult and student programs.
For information about Del Norte Middle School contact Mr. Smith at nsmith@del-norte.k12.co.us. For more information about CoreClarity visit www.coreclarity.net. CoreClarity is not affiliated with Gallup, Inc.
Every year clients ask me what they should give their very best clients. Every year there’s a struggle between something old and something new, something edible and something material, something memorable and something forgettable.
Which is what got me thinking… Just why is it so hard to gift our clients?
WARNING: I have very strong opinions about what works, what doesn’t and why. Keep reading only if you really want my truth as I see it!
To me, a gift says a lot about the giver. In all relationships – personal and otherwise – the gift selection says a lot about YOU! I believe this may be what causes so much of the fuss around this time of year.
What to do? Well, let’s look at the DOs!
DO give gifts that match the RECIPIENT. Give the gift that speaks to THEM. Match loves and passions to something that says, “Hey, I know who you are and I like it!”
DO give gifts that are memorable. Why waste money on something utterly forgettable? For years I gave away food for gifts. People would say to me, aren’t you afraid they aren’t going to remember you gave them something? I would think… But I’m not thinking about ME, I’m thinking about them and what they might like! I can tell you that if you have every wondered about giving food items for a gift, the key is to get something SUPER MEMORABLE! One year I gave 6 lb. apple pies. Since most of my clients are outside of Texas, the comments came flowing in! Notes like… “They sure do make everything bigger in Texas!” and “I will never forget the look on my wife’s face when she saw that pie!” Now THOSE are memories, folks!
DO give the gift and then detach from any expectation! No one wants to get a gift with strings attached (read this like: Did you get my gift, huh? Huh? What did you think?)
Do give gifts that reflect the value you have for the relationship. Many people believe a million dollar client might require a million dollar gift. While it doesn’t have to be dollars to dollars, you certainly wouldn’t want to send a $15 wood car with chocolates to a client that you are billing $500,000 a year with! Often, high-wealth clients care more about the sentiment than they do the actual gift.
Do give gifts that show how much you know the client. If a client, for example, lost a mother or father during the year, you might make a donation to a charity in that person’s name. The card might say… We are thinking about you this holiday season and have made a contribution to XYZ organization in your father’s name. Sincerity goes a long way and people can feel the intent behind a gift.
DO make it personal. Anytime it is possible, match the gift to the person. It may take a little more time, but it’s often worth the extra effort! If you have a client who is from New York, why not gift a Junior’s New York Cheese Cake?, for example.
Now that we’ve discussed DOs, let’s discuss DON’Ts.
DON’T make the gift about YOU. I believe giving gifts with your name printed on the side is tacky. It’s like gifting advertising. Ewwww. ‘Nuf said?
DON’T be cheesy and DON’T be cheap. It’s better to not give a gift at all or give a simple card than it is to give a cheap gift that speaks volumes (in a very bad way) about you!
DON’T give a gift for the wrong reason. If the only reason you are giving someone a gift is because it’s on the to do list or because someone else is or because someone gave you one, then don’t give one at all. People know the difference and if you think they don’t, then you are missing the boat! People can tell when care was put into the gift selection and when it isn’t!
DON’T just pick something. See the memorable part above – choose something that reflects what you and your client share together. Many of my clients are adventurers, so I love to gift them with adventurous food, crazy toys, interesting and off-the-beaten path books. What do you represent for your clients and how can you share that message in your gift. That way, you are thinking of them and gifting a piece of yourself too!
DON’T be a bah humbug. Oh, you know the types. Bah! Holidays! No one says you have to wear a necklace made of mistletoe, yet there’s something to getting into the holiday spirit. Is this an opportunity to take a client to lunch. Cut out early and hit the links? Whatever the urge – explore it!
DON’T stress and overextend. Do what you can and do what is best for you in the long run. Our world is full of consumers with more ‘stuff’ than they know what to do with (another reason why food works well). If cards are it for you, then choose another holiday to play up client delight – Valentine’s Day, St. Patty’s Day, Spring, Spring Break. Let your creativity take you away!
If you have specific questions about holiday gifting, feel free to email me! I would love to share your question and my response via this ezine or in our new blog!
What’s New
10 Crazy Gift Ideas
I just love the holidays, don’t you? I love to see crazy gift ideas that I can share with everyone. I’m telling you… if you have a person on your list that is hard to buy for, this is the list for you!
Number 10 – Crazy Illustrated Dancing Bobble Heads – There are lots of site out there that allow you to take a photo, cut your recipient’s head off and attach to an illustrated body that dances to the beat. Some of my favs are www.jibjab.com and www.boogieheads.com. OfficeMax has a clever little viral version that you can do too at http://www.elfyourself.com/!
Number 9 – Singing, Dancing Toys – Okay, now this is really crazy, but I have to say it is a huge phenomenon. If you aren’t privy to the singing, dancing toy phenomenon then, trust me, there is one! It started many years ago with the Boogie Bass. Remember the ‘mounted’ bass on a wood backboard that would sing to you? As crazy as that little gadget seems, it and others like it have sold millions and millions worldwide!
Number 8 – Any Food Item That is Outrageous – Hmmm, how about a 8 lb. cheesecake, a 6 lb. award-winning apple pie that takes two hours to bake/reheat (that comes prebaked), or a dozen $3.25 cupcakes? Mix in a little geographic flavor, some exclusivity (you can only get those pies from Neiman’s and a couple of other retailers) and you’ve got a winner!
Number 7 – Stupid Gifts – I bet you didn’t know there are sites dedicated to selling ‘stupid’ gifts. Well, if you are on the search for gag gifts, the completely inane, or the downright wacky, look no further than Stupid.com. Stupidiotic.com sells Be Unseen glasses for those A-listers who would rather be unseen – there’s a little craziness for every generation out there. Or entertain your inner child or someone else’s with gifts from the Perpetual Kid. And, if that’s not enough, I just heard about a little boy from Wimberley, Texas who has taken Fart Gifts to a whole new level! This is a budding entrepreneur!
Number 6 – Electronic Gadgets and Goodies, Oh my! For the electronic gizmo-lovin’ guy or gal in your life, look no further than Engadget.com for crazy electronic holiday gifts. There are holiday gifts for him and holiday gift ideas for her. Don’t forget Apple, Newegg.com, Amazon.com, and Sharper Image.
Number 5 – Anything Extreme from the Neiman Marcus Catalog – Oh, you know you know all about this year’s crazy gifts that cost an even crazier amount of money! This year, the Dallas retailer boasts the news-getting really crazy gifts, and if you go to the site you can click through the Top 100 in your PJs! Anyone for a $615 bath set?
Number 4 – Adventure Gifts – What about giving an adventure that creates memories? Horseback lessons cost about $40 an hour, I’ve heard a couple of people report that you can get a flying lesson for as little as $10 for the first one. Incentive travel packages can be found for as little as $250 for three days and two nights. Use your imagination and go where the adventure is! And if you really want to give your client an experience that is out of this world, check out Zero G.
Number 3 – A Taste of the Best – The home of one of the world’s most expensive chocolates – Noka Chocolate – is right around the corner from where we live. At $854 a pound, it isn’t the most expensive chocolate, but it might be fun to see what $20 bucks will get you. Other items that you can gift for a fraction of the full cost – rent a luxury car for the day, a small portion of fine caviar, a smaller portion of a fine wine. For high wealth clients and those aspiring to high net worth, consider a subscription to The Robb Report, the Global Luxury Resource. Let your creative juices run wild.
Number 2 – Unique and One-of-a-Kind – How can you place a value on unique gifts? You can’t! As Mastercard would say… *Priceless!* Name a star or planet after the recipient, or create a blog (free!) for the writer in your life, secure a web domain for the budding entrepreneur you know.
Number 1 – DNA Artwork – For the really hard-to-buy-for person, here’s the intersection where biology meets art. It’s called DNA11. This really cool site allows you to take a swab of the recipient’s mouth and turn DNA into artwork. Talk about a gift that is personal AND memorable!