The concept of time management remains an enigma for many and it’s understandable. On any given day, we start with 24 hours and within that time-frame process through personal and professional needs, tasks, projects, responsibilities, priorities, and everything else. There are days when we feel very accomplished and others when we feel completely defeated. It can be a continuous see-saw of productivity versus ineffectiveness.

Rather than monitor the minutes and attempt to control every single factor, I suggest a new approach where the focus is on the end result and one’s productivity levels. The goal is to examine life as a whole and consider time from a more broad perspective as it relates to how you live your life or your living style. The approach is called Timestyle, or time management for your living style.

Below is a snapshot of the Timestyle approach to time management, also known as the 5 P’s of productivity.

1. Keep your eye on the prize – In order to get to the bottom of your time management struggle, the first step is to identify why this is so important or what is the intended goal. Most commonly, people want to feel ‘better’ or ‘less stressed’ however that is only part of the prize. Keep pushing yourself to define ‘better’ and ask how being ‘less stressed’ will improve your life. For many clients, tears will roll down their cheeks when they hit on the prize – this is a good sign.

2. Manage your priorities – When asked, most people will say they have eight to ten priorities. The very definition of a priority is the primary or main concern at any given time. In my opinion, it’s almost impossible to have nine main concerns, at any one moment, and still do them well. The challenge is to narrow the priority list to three or four and focus on those. Narrowing the list allows for greater focus and intensity, thus improving your chances of success. If narrowing down the list is too scary, consider this phrase: for now. Simply work on those priorities, for now, and feel free to define ‘for now’ as needed.

3. Plan, plan, plan – If ever there was a secret weapon in the time management war, planning is it. Success levels increase with an element of planning in one’s life. Chances are, if you are habitually late, easily misplacing items and unable to complete projects, it may be because there is a failure or reluctance to plan. Planning saves effort, time, money, and rewards you with less stress and more time to do what you truly want to be doing. When planning, it’s important to do three things:

• Practice T4T. Plan for today and the next 4 days, or 4 tomorrows.
• Start small.  If planning is a foreign concept, focus intently for a short time, 5 to 10 minutes. A lot can be accomplished in a few minutes.
• Note the change. What is different with the advent of your new planning strategy? Are supermarket visits less frequent? Are you early to appointments? Less stressed? More productive and organized?

With practice, planning skills will develop quickly and become second nature. Eventually, planning one month, a year and even five years into the future will become the norm.

4. Identify partnerships – Admittedly, this is where clients push-back the most. The initial reaction is partnering costs extra money and is inconvenient. I’m here to challenge that notion.

Partnerships come in many forms and the goal is to get you focused on doing that which brings you pleasure and value. If running errands or grocery shopping are major headaches, then order groceries online and pay the nominal delivery fee. Find a dry cleaning service that picks up and drops off – again, the delivery fee is nominal and you’re able to do what you’d rather be doing

Be creative with your partners. Get family members involved – there’s no reason one person needs to do the bulk of the work. Even small children can learn to hang their coats and carry in their sippy cups from the car. Visit a recipe website and have weekly menus delivered to your inbox. Shopping lists are often included and you will know ahead of time precisely what’s needed for the week

Professionally, outsource the projects or work you struggle to complete or dislike. Create systems and streamline your workload with templates. Remember, partnerships come in many different forms.

5. Practice. As with any new habit or regimen, it takes practice for the routine to take hold. Dr. Maxwell Maltz wrote in his best-selling Psycho-Cybernetics, it takes 21 days for a new thought or activity to stick.

On second thought, perhaps the last ‘P’ ought to include patience and perseverance as well.

By: Stacey Vulakh

Mysticism is something we scarcely associate with business.  However, I believe that some part of us wants to be optimistic even if it takes ‘something’ to remind us of the magic that is inside us.

I was wearing a pin the other day that was of a gold pig flying over very tall buildings.  A client questioned me about it “Hey Angel, what’s that pin all about?” I replied It reminds me that if pigs can fly –so can I.  It’s a good luck charm that I use when I have to remind myself to find the power inside me to accomplish whatever I need to accomplish. A two time CEO of successful startups, she replied “I have one of those too.  I wear this multi-colored pearl necklace every time I have to do a pitch to a VC.”

The blue eyed amulet is a very common souvenir that one finds in Turkey.  It however is not unusual to find this in front of stores, buildings and hanging from cars.  Yesterday, visiting with my web designer, I noticed that she too had one of this blue eyed amulets hanging right next to her desk from where she created all her work.  She proudly displayed it as her own ‘good luck’ charm.

As a coach, I often have my clients find a picture or an item that reminds them of something they wish to be reminded about.  It can be a rock that they carry in their pockets that remind them to be firm and assertive, or a fake $1,000.000 bill that reminds them of their financial goals.   There is actually a coaching term for this; it’s called a ‘Structure’.

A structure is something outward that reminds us of what we need to be reminded of -inward.  Now, you might consider this as unscientific.  But in fact, a study was developed by Dr. Gerald Zaltman in 1990 at the Harvard Business School.  As Zaltman described it “A lot goes on in our minds that we’re not aware of. Most of what influences what we say and do occurs below the level of awareness. That’s why we need new techniques: to get at hidden knowledge-to get at what people don’t know they know.”

The technique that evolved from this is sometimes referred to as “Metaphor Elicitation”.  Metaphor Elicitation is used in many businesses like marketing and advertising.  It uses a technique of leveraging pictures to define things that might be difficult for us to explain or verbalize. So if you were testing your logo.  You might show your logo to different people and ask this question:

What thoughts might you have about my business when you see my logo?

You may get responses like:
- I would think that your business might deal with getting people together or that collaboration is a result of the work you do.

- This logo reminds me of a parable about 5 engineers who were sitting at the table that had to figure out a very complicated problem.  Perhaps your business is about working with these engineers.

As you can see – the one logo or visual elicits several different perceptions and stories.

So, if you need to keep being reminded of the story that you wish to tell yourself; either I know I can do it because you see this pig is able to accomplish an impossible feat; or the blue eye wards off all evil clients and brings only the good ones; or the strand of pearls helps me to bring forth those pearls of wisdom I need when I am being drilled by a VC. -then find that item or picture that you need to elicit positive energy or thoughts.

Sir Richard Branson, Founder and President of the Virgin Group shares what he calls is his good luck charm. “Well, my office is my good luck charm. I work from a hammock on a lovely island, and my hammock is where most of my good ideas come from. I really believe in working from home rather than working in the office, so if I have a good luck charm, I’d call it my hammock”. Virgin Group created more than 300 branded companies worldwide ranging from mobile telephony to transportation, travel, financial services, media, music and fitness.

Last Saturday, I got a chance to hear Actress/Humanitarian Whoopi Goldberg at the San Jose Civic Auditorium.  In an interview she was asked on how she made it out from the public housing project in Manhattan compared to the other children that were there with her.  Was it talent? To paraphrase, she replied “No, not talent.  There are many talented people out there.  I believe it was luck!”

What’s your good luck charm?  Or do you believe that luck is part of your formula for success?

By: Angel Rampy

Be honest…do you have business cards piling up on your desk? Are there lots of them? Those cards are not very helpful in pile on your desk, so let’s get your cards organized and more useful!

The first step is to sort through the business cards to get rid of the ones you don’t need. When sorting, ask yourself these questions:

* Do you remember who the person is?

* Do you use their services?

* Would you refer out their services?

* Do you want to form a business relationship with this person or company?

If you answered “no” to these questions, put the business card in the recycling bin. Don’t bother hanging on to cards you won’t use.

The next step is to organize your business cards in a way that makes it easy to find what you are looking for, when you need it. Here is what I recommend:

• Electronic Organizing – Use a card scanner or input the information manually into your contact database. Categorize them under the services they provide either in folders or by using keywords. That way if you forget their name, you can still search by category or keywords.

• Card Organizing – Create a binder. Insert the business cards into business card pages.  Organize them by categories.  Again, you won’t have to remember the company name, just the service.

Happy Organizing!

By: Melissa Stacey

We’ve heard it time and time again: in order to be successful in business, it’s important to take risks.  This is one aspect of business that took me especially long to embrace.

Why? I was born and raised in the US, however my first full-time job was in Japan.  So my earliest work experiences were those that followed the famous proverb “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down”.  At the time there was not a lot of innovation, creativity, or outside-the-box thinking as a young employee, but the desire to fit in was apparent in everything from workplace etiquette to clothing styles.

Upon returning to the states, I soon observed peers advocating for themselves.  Making an effort to stand out. Taking risks. For me this kind of behavior took some practice: taking risks and knowing it’s OK to do so.

Good news is that two FANTASTIC leaders within WIC, Francine Gordon and Kathy Klotz-Guest, are leading a workshop THIS Friday, May 20, that will allow participants to stretch, discover, learn, and gain confidence around risk taking. This is not your normal sit-and-be-lectured-to format; Francine and Kathy have some exciting exercises and surprises planned for all.

In the end, I expect we’ll ALL walk away having exercised our risk-taking muscle, and knowing that the potential upside of risk taking FAR outweigh the downside of failure.

By: Lisa Strand

Research from The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute, as outlined in “Women Business Owners to Lead the Nation in Job Creation ” by Rieva Lesonsky, shows that by 2018, women entrepreneurs will be responsible for creating between 5 million and 5.5 million new jobs nationwide,” more than half the new jobs expected.

According to the article, Guardian’s research shows that when women become their own bosses, they’re more likely than male managers or entrepreneurs to:

• Diligently engage in strategic and tactical facets of their business
• Proactively focus on customers
• Incorporate community and environment into their business plans
• Be receptive to input and guidance from internal and external advisers
• Create opportunities for others

When I read the list above, my first reaction was, “Duh, we’ve known that at WIC for years!” In fact, these very characteristics are what set WIC apart from so many other networking organizations. It’s these very characteristics that underscore WIC’s collaborative organizational structure and drive our members and affiliates to readily share their advice, experience, and insights with others in the WIC Community who solicit help with a particular business problem. (NOTE: Ms. Lesonsky was also not surprised by these findings.)

I particularly liked the quote from John Krubski, futurist and research advisor to The Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute:

“This women-led management approach will have a profound impact on the employees and customers connected to these businesses. Women small-business owners will ultimately create more opportunities for employees to grow in their jobs and inspire others to start their own small business–all while providing customers with superior service.”

So to all of my fellow WIC colleagues and associates, I say, “You go girls!”

Read the full “Women Business Owners to Lead the Nation in Job Creation” article 

By: Avery Horzewski

I just finished reading a wonderful article on The Huffington Post by Morra Aarons-Mele, called “The Women We Know.” It’s a good read, so make sure to visit the site. Morra convenes an online group for the American Cancer Society, so she uses her experiences in, and mini stories from, that realm to illustrate her point: that there’s a new women’s movement about, one grounded in personal support and social change and that’s largely happening online in micro communities and large gatherings.

The article sparked a number of thoughts (a sign of a good post!), but the first one that came to me is “I know. I experience the power of women almost daily through my involvement in Women in Consulting (WIC).”

Now, I know some of you’ll think, “Of course she’d write that. She sits on the board. She’s the president-elect. She’s supposed to say how wonderful WIC is.” You’re right. It is part of my job to promote WIC. But — and this is a big but — WIC is an all-volunteer organization, save for our administrative support and a small stipend for PR. I don’t get paid for the work I do for WIC. It’s all pro bono — same for all of WIC’s board of directors, program chairs, and coordinators. If I didn’t believe everything I wrote or said about WIC, I wouldn’t be here. If I didn’t receive all the benefits that I tout, I wouldn’t donate so much of my time to help keep WIC going. So, yes, I drink the Kool-Aid, but only because I know first had that it’s mighty tasty.

It’s Not About Perfection. It’s About Connection.

Is WIC perfect? Heck no. Is it for everyone? Nope. No organization is — that’s what keeps life interesting. “Variety is the spice of life” didn’t become a cliché for nothing. What WIC is though is a community…a place to connect, to learn, to get support, to be motivated.

Now you may say, “Morra’s post was about movements. WIC isn’t a movement.” And you’re right. WIC isn’t a movement or even necessarily about social change (although the organization and many or our members do get involved). However, Morra’s post is about community and women and their power to bring about change. And WIC is all about that.

WIC is first and foremost an online community. It started as a small group of women meeting in person to support each other. And we still have regular monthly meetings (six total to accommodate the Bay Area geography), as well as special events and workshops. But WIC’s true value comes from the knowledge bank that is the WIC online Community, the partnerships we make with other organizations and businesses, and the relationships that one can build simply by getting involved. 

Make a note of that last point, as it’s one of WIC’s best kept benefit secrets and also the reason that movements grow. It’s only natural that the WIC people that I’m closest to are the ones that I’ve worked with in my various roles. I started small (helping with a silent auction, managing one of WIC’s newsletters) and slowly moved into larger roles. I’ve been on the board for almost four years now, serving in two different capacities.

The people that I turn to first for business advice are the people with whom I’ve collaborated with at WIC. The people I refer first are the people I work with, as I’m familiar with their work ethic and deliverables. And, as I’ve mentioned in the past, at least 75% of my business can be directly tied to having volunteered at WIC. And it’s not like I see all of my coworkers all the time. Heck, one of them I didn’t meet face-to-face until we’d worked together for two years! Our communications were all through the Internet or the phone for quite a while. Not only do we refer each other for projects, but we’ve developed a friendship that will last beyond our work on WIC.

It’s Not About Competition. It’s About Collaboration.

The current women’s movement works because the women work together for a common cause. It’s simultaneously about each woman and all women. Everyone is important, but no one is more important than anyone else.  This philosophy is the life blood of WIC and taps into the true power of women. Sure there are exceptions, but overall women tend to be about collaborating with others not working against them.

I and so many other WIC members that I know are more than happy to help a fellow consultant brainstorm ideas on how to improve and promote their business. Our archives are full of members and affiliates openly sharing consulting best practices. And I know that I recommend other writers for projects and other writers recommend me. It feels good to help. And I firmly believe what goes around comes around — and I’d rather see the good karma coming and going vs. bad.   

It’s Not About Going Alone. It’s About Going Together.

In her post, Morra wrote, “This week, in the midst of frenzied online organizing to promote gender equality in health care, I had a family crisis. And when I had to bow out of the action, Jodi Jacobson wrote, ‘Don’t apologize for anything…that’s what a movement is for….”

Consulting can be a solitary business. Social media communities make it less so. But even before the advent of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn…I didn’t feel alone, because I was part of WIC — a pre-social-media community. The people I’ve come to know at WIC are my colleagues. And that group continues to grow as I continue to meet more people from the WIC Community. I’m continually amazed at the organization’s ability to attract sharp, savvy individuals who are so open and willing to share.

I don’t promote WIC and tout its benefits because I’m going to be president. Rather, I accepted the president role because I believe so strongly in WIC and want to help ensure its continued success.

By: Avery Horzewski

I tend to stay away from self-promoting on blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc. It’s just not my thing — probably because I really dislike hard sells. And as a board member of Women in Consulting (WIC), responsible for its marketing & PR no less, writing a piece on “why I love WIC” is considered self-promotion. However, in this instance, I just can’t help myself; and WIC’s latest monthly meeting is the reason.

In this one meeting, I was reminded of the many reasons why WIC is so important to me as a consultant, both personally and professionally.

• Collaborative environment and rich information sharing: collaboration is the chief quality that truly sets WIC apart from other organizations. I’ve not met one person who isn’t willing to share best practices, insights, resources, and more. All you have to do is ask, and you’ll have an amazing number of members responding immediately.
• Amazing connections and friendships, and an unbelievable support system: I never cease to be amazed at the brain power and talent that make up WIC. As a WIC member, you have access to some of the best minds in the Bay Area. WIC’s collaborative-not-competitive environment also fosters close relationships, resulting in some wonderful friendships. The business life of a consultant can often be solitary; but with WIC, it doesn’t feel that way at all. No matter the business challenge, I know I can call any number of my WIC friends/colleagues for advice. They not only listen willingly, they offer spot-on advice. They also happily celebrate my successes.
• Numerous learning opportunities: whether it’s a table discussion at a WIC meeting, a guest speaker, an email exchange on the WIC Community List, an article or blog post by a WIC member, or some other WIC communication exchange, I learn something.
• Business opportunities: I can attribute at least 75% of my business over the past two years to my involvement with WIC, and another 15% to following the best practices advocated in meetings. One of the reasons I get so much out of WIC is because I’m involved. I’ve been a member since 2002 and started volunteering in 2004. Participating in the organization has been an amazing business booster. My WIC colleagues provide me with invaluable advice, and they also are a great source of business — either hiring me on their engagements or referring me to clients. Even at Thursday’s meeting, two different people whom I hadn’t met previously recognized my name because someone had referred them to me for a project.
• Inspiration: I always leave a meeting feeling jazzed and excited; and it’s because of the energy that fills the room. People care. They listen. They share. You hear their latest triumphs and business plans and you leave energized to do more. And this happens even when the economy isn’t doing well. It did this past meeting.
• Great meeting topics: no matter the topic, I typically walk away with at least one usable tip or strategy. For example, April’s meeting on “Attract new Clients and Increase Revenue Now!” I learned some tips for positioning the initial evaluations I do for clients, whether or not I choose to charge for the evaluation — a topic that was much debated at the meeting. Even if a topic is way off base from your philosophy or interests, chances are you can still find something of value. I always do. It’s just a matter of perspective.
• Delicious food: the mushroom ravioli at Quadrus is beyond yummy, as was the other food. So often food at networking events is at best tolerable. Not so here.

These are just a few of the reasons I love WIC, and the ones that presented themselves at last Thursday’s meeting. If you’re a consultant or small business owner, you really should check WIC out, read about exclusive member discounts, attend a meeting, or even sign up as an affiliate on the WIC Community Email List – where you’ll see information sharing on steroids among some of the best consulting minds in the Bay Area (and beyond, for that matter).

By: Avery Horzewski

Welcome back to work, everyone…hoping that everyone took some good family time off over the holidays since it sure seemed like our clients did!

The great thing about taking a little break is that it gives perspective–and I come back optimistic and eager about the new year…I saw trends over the holiday that are quite promising…I was asked to submit 3 different proposals, which doesn’t normally happen…I have 3 projects booked for this month, which doesn’t normally happen.  With those kinds of things happening, it’s easy to forget about all that doom and gloom ‘R’ word talk…

But I’m not going to get TOO comfy even with such good signs–this is a year to go back to basics and to really get clear on my target customers and how I can help them…especially in times like these.

Some thoughts that I’m having and have already begun to implement:

- Update my website (it’s been awhile…and it’s looking dated, especially re: resources I have links to as well as my products/services sheet which doesn’t represent my most favorite new service I’m providing!).  Check out the topic of the S. Bay WIC Luncheon on March 9: 10 Tricks for Updating Your Website.

- Keep my eye out for news/trends that would be helpful for my customers to know about–and tell them (I did this over the weekend and got a big thank you from my customer for keeping them in mind–talk about immediate gratification!).  Check out www.marketresearch.com for inexpensive research reports or www.findarticles.com to find current news items for an industry, your client’s competitors, etc.

- Do some prospecting–I have been reliant upon the steady stream of referrals that I’ve gotten over the past 10 years to feed my business, but in times like these, doing some intentional, deliberate prospecting makes a lot of sense–it will expand my pool of prospects beyond my personal network which increases the odds of finding someone who needs my services incrementally.

- Partner up with others–I’m a broken record on this one (see my first blog entry!), but working closely with some of my trusted colleagues to brainstorm, share successes, keep one another focused on what we all need to be doing, looking for opportunities to refer one another, and looking for ways to help one another overcome barriers are all the benefits of partnering with other consultants.  There is never a BAD time for collaboration, but a tough economy is a GREAT time for collaboration.

Let’s hear from you about what you are planning to do differently this year–either to overcome the impact of the shaky economy or to get you to your next goals for your business…we have so much to learn from one another!

Jen

By: Jen Berkley Jackson