by Taru Fisher on November 27, 2009
My second installment of Michael Gerber’s BizTechDay presentation is very personal for me. There are several things he said that hit me like a bolt out of the blue and propelled me into action.
He said “you’re tired because you’re doing the wrong thing, the wrong way”, and “burnout means you are working with energy you no longer have”. I had been feeling exhausted and burned out for over a year when I came down with some illness that laid me up for over a month. I couldn’t do much of anything; even thinking was too much effort. So, I relaxed into what was, and discovered what I really wanted to do next. I realized I had been doing what I “should”, rather than what I’m passionate about. I had a lot of rational reasons for this, but while I was recovering I understood what all my explanations were — excuses for not living the kind of life I really want. That illness was a blessing!
Another thing Michael said was truly hard for me to hear, but I absolutely knew it was true for me: “It’s not because you don’t have the time; it’s because you don’t have the will”. I felt like someone had thrown a bucket of cold water over my head and woke me up. This was an incredibly valuable insight.
He made some other valuable points:
- There is no reason for a small business to fail.
- To realize your dream, the first thing to systematize is your client fulfillment system.
- Sometimes one must shut off income in order to make space to create.
- It’s about clarity. Be articulate and communicate the extraordinary gift you are bringing to the world.
- No one is going to do it for you — it happens when you do it.
- Discover what you are capable of replicating, and what you cannot.
- Dream big, think small, act smaller.
He said he created his system on the fly, promoted it first, and then created it as he went along. This information was extremely useful for me as I tend to want everything perfect before I start, a mind set which frequently keeps me in analysis paralysis.
So, the price of admission to BizTechDay was a bargain. I was inspired by Michael Gerber to jump start my Powerful Aging Coaching Group, “Change the Way You Age”. And, just as inspiring is the impact he is making at age 73–still going strong, providing great value and inspiring others. I really admire this!
Tagged as:
BizTechDay,
Entrepreneurs,
Michael Gerber,
Powerful Aging
by Taru Fisher on November 5, 2009
Of everything I attended at BizTechDay, Michael Gerber’s presentations stood out as the best of the best. Why? Because everything else was about using technology as an entrepreneur, and Michael’s was about the entrepreneur, the person behind the technology. All the technology in the world will not help an entrepreneur who lacks the appropriate mindset, or who lacks the insights required to succeed.
Michael gave us all this and more. And the most inspiring thing to me is that Michael is 73 years old and still going strong and contributing his gifts to the world. That inspires me because my vision and mission is to change the meme around aging, change the way people think and feel about aging, and inspire elders to share their wisdom.
Some of the first words out of his mouth were shocking, “If you don’t want to grow your business, pack it up now”. So, in easily digestible nuggets, here are some of the main points Michael made:
- Ask yourself three questions: What is the significant thing my company is here to do? Is it scalable? Is it transformational?
- Work on the model of your scalable, transformational business. Become a Master of Business Design (MBD).
- Create a perfect system that works so you don’t have to.
- This exquisite operating system includes every single component of your business.
- It makes no difference what product or a service you offer. This exquisite system is the key to success.
- Companies are started by Technicians who suffer entrepreneurial seizures; don’t just create a job, pretending to be a business.
- Replicate a company that is transformational.
- The very first system to create is client fulfillment.
Next Michael talked about the Dream and Creativity:
- What is your dream? What is the great result you want to produce?
- It’s about your destiny and you’ve got to know what it is — the one thing you want to transform.
- Be creative right now in your own personal economy.
- The Dreamer has a Dream, the Thinker has the Vision.
- The Dreamer, Thinker, Storyteller, and the Leader must be present to create and sustain a successful business.
- We must transcend to transform! This is the spiritual work of an entrepreneur.
He said one must absolutely have a blank sheet of paper and a beginners mind, because you can’t fix a broken business, you have to create a new one. Think about this for your own business. I did this about mine, and it propelled me into right action.
I’ll have more juicy tidbits in the next post. Watch for it!
Tagged as:
Aging,
BizTechDay,
Entrepreneurs,
Michael Gerber
by Taru Fisher on October 26, 2009
Here’s my second installment of what I learned at BizTechDay 2009. It’s about viral video.
I have really been admiring Elizabeth Potts Weinstein’s use of video. She’s consistent and produces really effective videos that are FUN to watch, and have great content. So, i had to attend the following session on Viral Video.
Video Entrepreneur: How to Turn Visitors to Customers Using Viral Videos
The presenters were Mike Koenigs of Traffic Geyser, and Justin Kan, Founder of Justin.tv .
Unfortunately, Mike talked so darn fast, my notes are not as complete as I’d like, and there were no handouts. So, I’ll do the best I can with what I’ve got. You can visit his web site for more information and his free Viral Video Secrets . It’s a bit “salesy” for my taste, but he has good information.
Mike’s points were:
- There are 1 Billion videos watched on YouTube in the US every day. (Staggering, isn’t it!)
- Just do it! Don’t wait for it to be perfect. There are low cost/low tech ways to create short videos.
- Make a short video (3 minutes or less) that has a beginning, a middle and an end.
- Send it everywhere; there are video directories like there are blog directories
Be sure you let viewers know:
- who you are
- something about you
- how to find you
- how to hear from you
Justin Kan was a bit easier to follow so here goes:
- Justin.tv hosts live videos; your very own TV show!
- Answer the top ten questions your clients are asking about your business (FAQ)
- Also and the top ten questions they should be asking (SAQ)
- Schedule your show at a regular day and time and be consistent — show up!
- Do lifestyle pieces (these get viewed the most), and testimonials from clients
- you can outsource voice overs — he recommends Voice123
I got really excited about this. I have a strong hunch that video is the way to go. I like it because it personalizes an already impersonal web experience. I’m all about building relationships and have come to love in-person networking because I can meet people face-to-face and get a feel for the other person. I think video will allow prospective clients, interested people, and friends to actually get a real experience of who I am. Yes, they’ll see my age lines, and I’m no Sophia Loren, but I’m a real person and that will show through.
Elizabeth has offered to let her followers know her process for doing her videos, and I’m eagerly awaiting it. Consider following her on Twitter, @elizabethPW, she’s a hoot! Oh yeah, I’m also on Twitter, @tarufisher, and I’m pretty interesting, too!
Tagged as:
BizTechDay,
Entrepreneurs,
Viral Video
by Taru Fisher on October 25, 2009
I recently attended the two day event, BizTechDay, which brought together hundreds of entrepreneurs, techies, social media networking gurus and the media. I was looking forward to learning more about how to use social media networking to really connect with other like-minded people and to promote our business. I learned a lot!
Facebook Fan Pages
I got a lot of extremely valuable information about Facebook Fan Pages from Hazel Grace Dircksen of SocialBees. Here are some of the suggestions given:
- Be sure you start your Fan page with the intention to consistently post daily
- To help you remember to post, set it as your home page in your browser
- Post a maximum of three (3) times a day
- Don’t “over-share” — i.e. overly personal comments
- Post about business needs and information
- Make all posts relevant to your brand/purpose/mission
- Make content very exciting – Don’t try to directly sell
- Offer your fans exclusive benefits and perks
- Simple contests are very good for engaging your fans, but avoid video contests — they’re too complicated
- Create custom tabs for ads
- Above all, have fun!
SocialBees services include building Fan pages for clients. They know all the Facebook apps that can be used on a Fan page, and how to make the page both visually attractive and effective. I’m going to have them do this! I have an Alive! Whole Life Fitness Studio Fan page, but it is not nearly as effective as it could be, and I wasn’t ever quite sure how to make it better.
I was very impressed with Hazel; she’s articulate, extremely knowledgeable and gracious; a winning combination.
Brand Building on Google Local Business
Before I attended #BTD, I had forgotten I previously used Google Local Business — now I intend to really use it . It has some great features, namely:
- Your business will get found on Google and Google Maps
- You’re able to control the information on your listing and keep it up to date
- You can add your logo, photos, videos, coupons
- Add a thorough business description; select all appropriate business categories
- Add freeform information like a complete description of your services
- A version of Google Analytics specific to Google Local Business is available from your business’ Dashboard
In subsequent posts, I’ll share what I learned about viral video and virtual work teams. My last post on #BTD will be about Michael Gerber’s presentations. They were the best and contained the most valuable information of the entire event. He got a standing ovation and he deserved it.
I hope you find value in these posts, and I encourage you to post comments and questions. I will answer each and every one.
Tagged as:
BizTechDay,
Entrepreneurs,
Google Local Business,
Michael Gerber,
SocialBees
