Sometimes growing your business just happens. It happens through unsolicited referrals; it happens because of serendipitous good press; it happens because you are offering something that no one else is. But most often, sustainable growth is a result of being intentional. Here are some tips for being intentional in growing your business. Really, it’s all about F.O.C.U.S.

F – Find. This is about research. You need to know who your target audience is, where they are and what their challenges are. Armed with this information, you are a lot more likely to find the type of client you seek.

O – Overcome. Being intentional about growing your business requires that you rise above the daily activities and distractions of your job. You must discern between that which is “urgent” and that which is truly important. You must spend your time where you will have the greatest impact and return.

C – Concentrate. As a leader, you are pulled in countless directions. This requires that you make the most of every minute you have. Shut off the phone and close down your email for periods throughout the day so you can really concentrate on what you need to get accomplished.

U – Use All Available Resources. Once you have identified who your target clients are, take the time to research them. Start on-line, but not just on their web site. Check social media, press mentions, publications, etc. Talk with people at the company about their experiences and challenges there. Learn their internal lingo so that when you are ready to talk with them, you already sound like a member of the team.

S – Schedule Time. Most of us are good at keeping doctors appointments and other time scheduled on our calendar. In this schedule-driven culture, it’s important to remember to schedule time for you – for your work (block out 2-3 hours on your calendar to get that proposal done), for exercise (hit the gym or walk the dog at least 3 times per week; it will lower your stress level and make you more productive) and for time with friends and family (happy, balanced people are more creative and are better problem-solvers). Then guard that time on your calendar as you would any other important appointment.

An approach with FOCUS will allow you to be more effective and intentional in growing your business.

-Clifford A. Bailey
CEO of TechSoft Systems, Effectiveness Expert, Professional Speaker

First, some back story…
About 15 years ago, while still in my 30s, I decided that I was going to get braces on my teeth. I speak a lot in front of people, and I didn’t want my teeth to be a distraction from my message. Upon my first trip to the orthodontist’s office, I took a seat in the waiting room and pulled out a proposal that I had been working on for a client. I glanced up at one point and noticed that the waiting room was really filling up… with teenagers. I suddenly became very aware of my age, which was about 20 years older than the average age of the other patients waiting with me. My age made me a minority, which was noticeable not only to me but to the others in the waiting room. The awkwardness of the moment made me question whether I really wanted to go through with my decision.

Fast forward to this spring…
Just a week ago I entered the office of a cardiologist. As I made my way to a seat, I had to step around walkers and over canes. I was the youngest in the waiting room by about 20 years. I took a seat, feeling every silent but questioning eye in the waiting room on me. I felt very uncomfortable… until an elderly gentlemen finally spoke. “You don’t look like you belong here, son.” His statement so embodied what we were all thinking that everyone in the waiting room smiled; some even laughed out loud. I responded with a light but respectful, “I don’t feel like I belong here either.”

Sometimes being in the minority is less about labels and more about where we are on our journey at that moment. Recognizing that we are all minorities – in our life circumstances and our place in the journey – removes obstacles. For some that may look like asking a teenager for tips on applying wax to orthodontic wires. For others it could be exchanging stress test stories with an octogenarian..

We are never too old to make the most of the time we have and the opportunities we have been given. And we are never too young to face obstacles and help others overcome them. In this we are all the empowered majority.

Clifford A. Bailey, speaker and CEO

1. Assemble a Master Mind Group of people you respect and trust.  Meet with them periodically for counsel, trouble-shooting and mentoring. Ask them to hold you accountable to your plan, and give them permission to get in your face when it’s necessary.
2. Learn to distinguish between what is “urgent” and what is truly important, so you can use your time strategically and tactically.  Prioritize your to-do list based on where you can have the greatest impact.
3. Study and, when possible, sit down and talk with those who have succeeded and with those who failed at what you are seeking to do. You can learn equally from both.  But also realize that your path and story will be unique.
4. Take time to learn a prospective customer’s business before you try to sell to them.  Learn their language, needs and challenges.  You can’t offer a solution until you really understand the problem and the environment. (Early in the life of my business, when a customer asked, “What problem do I have that you’re trying to solve?” I realized we had to approach sales differently.)
5. Find complementary people and organizations ­– inside and outside your industry – to partner with, and commit to helping grow your respective businesses.  Like no man, no business succeeds entirely on its own.  You will be stronger together than apart.

More entrepreneur tips (published article).
What tips would you like to give yourself at age 21?

-Clifford A. Bailey, CEO of TechSoft Systems, Inc.

My response? “Putting it in a blog does not demonstrate mastery of these skills. Quite the contrary: It ensures more accountability for me.” Sometimes my own advice is the hardest for me to take, especially when it comes to work-life balance.

That said, I don’t write about anything that I am not actively trying to live. It’s all rooted in truth, which is the team I aim to be on in any game. We all miss the mark from time to time; that’s part of being human. The insights found in wise words help re-ground us when we’ve fallen. Ironically sometimes those words are our own.

I don’t aim to be perfect; there’s only One who can claim that. I aim to be as good as I can be… on most days. Some days I’m simply not up to the challenge, so I am all the more grateful that my Creator gives me a fresh start the next day.

Even on the occasion that I have so completely mastered a principle that it becomes a habit, that’s often only one application of that principle; I still have more aspects of life to apply it to. When I have grown to instinctively apply that principle to benefit myself and others, I have begun to move from lesson learning to lesson learned.

What if, instead, we committed to one thing that could make us more effective? What if we asked, “What one thing can I do this year that will make me more effective than last year?”

An example of this could be committing to arriving 15 minutes early for every meeting. In doing this, you will be less anxious, more prepared, more respectful and more attentive. As a result, you will be more effective with your time surrounding and during the meeting. You would likely be safer, too, because you would be less prone to take risks on the road (including texting, “Running late”) if you have time to spare.

Apply the Early Arrival principal to other aspects of your personal and professional life… by delivering early on projects, proposals and other correspondence. Doing so will defeat any procrastination tendencies and increase the quality and insight of your projects.

More Effectiveness Habits to come… If you would like to share some of your own Effectiveness Habits, please post them in comments below or email me at Clifford@cliffordabailey.com.

Clifford Bailey, effectiveness expert, CEO and professional speaker

It’s true, isn’t it? Too often we wait to voice our kindest thoughts about someone until they are no longer around to hear them. Why is that?  (Now, in some cases, the select kind words spoken at funerals may not accurately portray the deceased; but that is usually evidenced by the few people in attendance at the service.) At my cousin’s service, we most definitely exceeded the limits permitted by the fire marshal.  There was standing room only in the church and a line outside to get in. The room was a buzz of stories of her acts of love and kindness.

As I sat and listened to person after person recount what a blessing my cousin had been to them, I wondered if she herself had truly known her own impact. It was a time of joy for all of us as we genuinely celebrated her life and legacy. Still, I could not help but feel the irony of the situation. We were honoring her good deeds and gracious heart as we bid our Good-byes. I wish now that more of us had done that as we greeted her with our Hellos.

So today, I issue this challenge… not just to tell people that you love them but to tell them why you love them. Tell them the difference they have made in your life, how you yourself are better from having known them. Why wait until someone has passed to honor them? Give them their flowers while they are still living so they can enjoy them. Doing so will bring you both joy to share.

Clifford A. Bailey
speaker, CEO

Kim Hunter shared with me some sage advice that her college advisor had shared with her many years before, advice that she has passed on to many students in her program. I thought it worthy of passing along, too. Here is what she said:

“I remember my college advisor, Joseph Sass, as one of the most important people in my life (outside of family). He strongly recommended that for my first full-time position I accept the offer from the largest corporation possible. He told me to learn as much as I could about the company and its systems, take advantage of every professional development and training opportunity, and meet as many people as possible. His advice was to work there for at least three years and then decide what I wanted to do next. He said it was much easier to start at a large company and move to a small company or non-profit than it was to move the other way. His opinion was that smaller companies and non-profits were always eager to hire folks that worked in a large corporate environment because they would have more knowledge to share.”

–Kim Hunter
Director, Instructional Technology
College of Mount St Joseph

I was fortunate enough to have unwittingly followed this advice, starting my career at Procter & Gamble and gaining the big-company experience before starting TechSoft Systems. That experience has been invaluable over the course of my career – not just for the processes and principles I learned and have applied to my own business, but also because I have a greater understanding of how my customers’ businesses operate. I understand their processes and their challenges, which allows me to communicate and work with them more effectively.

After the conversation with Ms. Hunter, I did a quick mental evaluation of my own staff over the last decade. Those who have been most successful in their roles are indeed the ones who came in with corporate experience. This revelation will most definitely influence my hiring decisions in the future as the team at TechSoft Systems continues to grow.

Thanks, Mr. Sass, for your sage advice to all of us.

-Clifford A. Bailey, CEO of TechSoft Systems

But before we learn to live (again) with the guilt from having skipped consecutive days at the gym, consider this: What is a resolution, at its heart? We treat them as empty promises even as we make them. We know that there is no accountability, no enforcement; our resolutions are ours alone, right? So if we fail to keep them, what is the harm?

Break down the word, folks. “I resolve to…” Resolve. Resolve is defined as to decide, to bring to an end, to settle; to conclude; to reach a decision. These are not empty words to be exchanged over a glass of champagne on the last night of the year. These are words of finality and purpose, of vision and wisdom and opportunity.

So this year, consider well your resolutions. Think carefully of what you can do to make the coming year better for yourself and for those around you. Then stand tall and firm with resolve. And when you fail (and you will fail; we all do), do not discount the effort altogether; get back on the horse and ride it once more. You are the maker of your destiny, and your destiny is what you make of it.

If you missed out on making your resolution, fear not: the window has not closed. A person can resolve to make a change any day at any moment. Maybe this one is yours.

Get in S.H.A.P.E.™
Clifford A. Bailey

1. Give and seek forgiveness. If regret from a broken relationship with an old friend or family member is plaguing you this season, make the first move. It’s not about who was right or wrong; it’s about rising above that and simply saying, “I regret the way I handled that. I’m sorry. Can we put it behind us?” Things may never be the way they were, but forgiveness is a powerful healer; and leaving that burden in 2011 means you can walk taller in 2012.
2. Breathe in bliss. The holidays are an ideal time to reflect on the year behind us and set goals for the year ahead. That’s all fine and necessary. But in between the past and the future, take some precious time to experience the present; appreciate life itself. Inhale bliss, and exhale all that fights against it. Breathe deeply, purposefully, deliberately. Look for the beauty around you, study it and be grateful for it.
3. Enhance the lives of others. If you are looking for purpose in your life, seek first to lift up another person. I have been cheered by recent stories of “Layaway Santas,” these everyday people who are paying off the layaway accounts of total strangers as random acts of kindness. One of these gestures is worth far more than the account balance:  from the smiling shopkeeper who keeps the secret … to the hard-working Mom who can now afford to buy a little something for herself … to the one who found the true meaning of Christmas by giving with no strings attached. Acts like these bring elusive holiday joy and cheer to self and others. Give to a stranger who has no way of returning the favor, and you will experience bliss.
4. Take the focus off of yourself.  There is always someone having a harder time than you are, so there is always someone you can help. Call a friend who lost a loved one this year, even if you don’t know what to say (the words will come). Take some homemade soup to an elderly person in your life, and ask her to share a story with you while you visit. Have a friend who works the night shift? String some holiday lights outside his or her home and leave a small gift at the door with a handwritten note. Letting people know you care about them is the best way to create bliss for them… and for yourself.

(What have you done to beat the blahs with bliss?  Share your stories with me, and I may include you in a future blog post.)

May you have a blissful holiday season!  Be safe out there!

Clifford A. Bailey
speaker, CEO and lover of life