Model Agency 411

Have you ever heard the sports saying, “You have to run your own race”?

I interpret it this way, and I believe it pertains even more to selling.

(1) You can’t focus on two things at once.

(2) You can only control your performance.

(3) The grass is greener on the other side, and from a distance our competitors look like giants, instead of the ants they probably are.

(4) Competitive advantages like a lower price are misleading and usually temporary.

(5) When they make you concentrate on them, they’ve won!

Our greatest fear, as salespeople and as businesspeople is that we are, fundamentally the same as our competitors, but this is patently false.

Even if you sell a commodity, such as steel or coal, or computer memory, there are dozens of things that distinguish you from your competition. These include your delivery and financing terms, your personality, your customer service attitudes, capabilities, and practices, your reputation, your experience with similar clients, your expertise, your availability, and even your good cheer and humor.

I could go on.

Although prospects like to tease us and to grind down our prices by shopping the competition, they still want to deal with us.

If we even come close on price, if they have sense they’ll grab the deal because they know we’re far and away the best choice available.

Keep that in mind, instead of worrying about your competition!

Dr. Gary S. Goodman, President of http://www.Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service, and the audio program, “The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable,” published by Nightingale-Conant. He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide. A Ph.D. from USC’s Annenberg School, a Loyola lawyer, and an MBA from the Peter F. Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations from Santa Monica to South Africa. He holds the rank of Shodan, 1st Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com

For information about coaching, consulting, training, books, videos and audios, please go to http://www.customersatisfaction.com

With the legal civilisation increasing around the globe, having possession of public liability insurance is developing into being ever more and more critical. If you don’t at present have liability insurance included into your building insurance, then now is the exact time to look at purchasing improved cover. Here is some info about why you need cover, and what to look out for.

What is public liability cover: Public Liability cover is an insurance policy that shields you from claims that other individuals may well make against you in the probability of an accident. If someone damages their property or wounds themselves in or around your property or business then the professional indemnity insurance will protect you for any charges that could arise. Cover can range from two hundred and fifty pounds up to one million pounds.

What are you covered against: Insurance will insure you for accidents or loss that other people might suffer in or around your residence or company site. You are covered from claims from trespassers, and injury that might occur to a person from falling objects or personnel carrying out maintenance. If an accident happens on your premises and someone claims against you, your insurance will help out to pay any damages.

What’s included A few contents or property insurance covers have in-built liability insurance. You would be advised to check with your insurance company whether this is the case, & what level of protection you get. Even if the insurance is built-in, you need to ensure that you are suitably protected for any type of accidents that may possibly arise. Get a public liability quote from Insured Risk, Visit the website.

Premiums: The premiums that you pay depend on the kind of coverage you buy. If you only insure your house, then the premiums are extremely likely to be lower than if you are protecting a business. Yet, payments are pretty cheap for the level of protection that you have to pay for, & it is as a result essential for anybody running an organisation.

Today’s world is full of unhappy people. We see these unhappy people every where we turn. They are driving on the roads with us, shopping at the local grocery store, dining in our favorite restaurant, teaching in our schools, and working beside us. We even find those unhappy people living in our own homes. Sometimes that unhappy person is ourselves.

However there is one important life lesson that I have learned the hard way — ultimately we control our own happiness. No one and no thing can make us happy and no one or no thing can make us unhappy. We choose how we react to people and their actions and we choose how we react to our wants and desires.

As the old song goes: “Happiness is wanting what you have.”

It is OK to want more than you currently own in terms of your personal or professional life. In fact it is good and healthy to have goals and dreams. However it is not healthy to base your happiness on the achievement of those goals.

That is a sure-fire path to unhappiness for a number of reasons. First because you are putting off happiness while you work toward your goal — many goals that are worth attaining will take a long time to reach. Do you want to be unhappy for all that time?

Second life is full of surprises and the best-laid plans sometimes change. If you are basing your happiness on the end goal then you might miss a great deal of happiness (not to mention opportunities for even more happiness) by not allowing yourself the flexibility to adjust your path or even change your mind.

Third you may well be placing your happiness beyond your reach. Sometimes, due to circumstances beyond our control, we do not attain our personal or professional goals. Sometimes we can do everything within our power and everything possible — and we still fail. Failure is a natural result of living a full life and it does not naturally lead to disaster. Sometimes failure simply leads to another opportunity or goal. However if you have tied your happiness to the success of a goal then failure can certainly mean disaster for you.

So how do you make your own happiness? You SOW it with this three-step plan:

1. See Your World
2. Open Yourself Up To The World
3. Will It To Happen

What does SOW your own happiness mean?

Often we close ourselves off from the world around us. We are busy dealing with the details and stresses of our life. We drive right by interesting opportunities on our way to work or school, the grocery store, and home. When was the last time you simply stopped to observe the people, the buildings, and the landscape of the world you live in? When was the last time you took a walk or a hike to experience first-hand the unique climate and landscape of your region?

Often simply placing ourselves within the larger landscape can help put our lives and problems back into perspective. Often simple observation and the act of opening our eyes, minds, and hearts to the opportunities that surround us can lead to untold happiness.

In the end, we hold the key to our own happiness. We have to ready ourselves for the potential and then we can make it happen.

Now go out and SOW your own happiness.

Deanna Mascle shares more inspirational articles at Best Inspiration Online and Advice For Life

We demand more from those who provide to us and because we are frequently in roles which deliver goods and services ourselves, we are on the receiving end too - of complaints, frustrations and generally poor behaviour.

Why is it that when we are on the receiving end, we miss the fact that we ourselves, when we hang up our service-provider-hat at the end of our shift, often end up as ‘customers behaving badly’ too?

Why do we take our own frustrations out on others, the way it has been taken out on us? Why do we sometimes become the Hyde from our normal Jekyll?

So, when someone goes the ‘extra mile’ to say ‘Thank you’, or appreciate the actions you have taken? What do you take from that and how do you react? You feel good, I guess. Indeed, very good.

So you have the opportunity to ‘pay forward’ when your leave your place of business and be on ‘the other side of the counter’. But do you have to wait until you have a good experience? Or might, just might you overcome bad experiences by reacting differently.

How does it feel when you give praise, say thank you, show gratitude? How much control have you over the warm glow it gives you inside when you do this?

The answer is that you have complete control over your behaviour to others, whatever the temptation to be harsh. And, the key here is that you can decide to be nasty or nice, whatever the provocation.

And you can move on and have a good day.

Copyright 2005 Martin Haworth is a Business and Management Coach. He works worldwide,
mainly by phone, with small business owners, managers and corporate leaders. He
has hundreds of hints, tips and ideas at his website,
http://www.coaching-businesses-to-success.com.
(Note to editors. Feel free to use this article, wherever you think it might be of value - it would be good if you could include a live link).

…helping you, to help your people, to help your business grow…

The original article contains an image of a sad clown. This can be found on my blog through my website.

The sad clown attracts us and evokes a feeling of sadness and compassion. Have you ever noticed that the sadness and compassion really feels like it is for you? Often we live our suppressed emotional experiences through some other external situation, mainly entertainment. Once we’re in a safe environment, it’s okay to let it out. Except, you’ve buried so many emotions, you’re not sure what is left unexpressed. It can derail you at any time, upsetting your equilibrium, setting the waterworks at the drop of a hat, and blazing the rage with a tiny spark.

Consider a new way of being in this world; a way that allows the expression and understanding of your emotions. Imagine being present for others who are enmeshed in difficult times, barely coping to keep their emotions in check. What healing can occur! What strength will be gained! What friendship and loyalty will be developed! What team support will be developed! What courage will be found!

• If we’re human, then what does it mean to be human?
• If we’re spirit, then what does it mean to be spirit?
• If we’re emotions, then what does it mean to be feelings?
• If we’re the mind, then what does it mean to be thoughts?
• If we’re soul, then what does it mean to be soulful?

I believe we are spiritual beings having a physical, human experience. Within in that context, we experience many things on many levels. Could it be that this is what it means to be a multi-dimensional being? I’m not interested in empirical evidence and succinct clarity; I’m interested in the experience of being and life. The complexity of existence and the human entity absolutely requires an element of faith and trust in an inner core that cannot be defined by science.

Lee Down is a Professional Coach, Trainer/Facilitator, Speaker, & Writer of One Man Can Human Capital Development that focuses on relationships, the key foundation to success in business and life. With more than 15 years professional experience and a thirst for truth and understanding, he focuses on the human spirit and human capacity.

Working with clients, he facilitates the breaking down of beliefs, barriers or obstacles that bring clients forward on their journey of discovery with spirit, energy, abundance, passion and purpose, integrating the mind and body experience. Working with business, he brings visionary leadership and relationship skills to the forefront that witnesses an empowered culture evolve and develop directly impacting the improvement to the bottom-line.

If, like me you are utterly hopeless with regards to the latest technology then you may be looking for a fool proof guide to all that is mobile broadband I found one at broadbandgenie.co.uk

The most basic way in which I can explain the concept is to say that it is a type of completely wireless internet without the need for a landline, wires, cables or anything else like that.

The wireless internet that you have will be a high speed internet connection normally by way of a USB dongle or other similar device and this can be used, primarily for laptops but can also be used with Mac and Pc’s as well.

Mobile broadband is available from many mobile phone network providers such as T-Mobile and Vodafone and the coverage that you will receive from the provider will be good enough to compare it to the broadband that you would get at home with a landline. By coverage, I mean the places in which you can use the internet wirelessly without any connection failures or similar events.

Mobile broadband allows more flexibility to those who regularly use the internet and wish to use it in places other than at work or home. In my opinion, this allows for more productive time keeping - leaving no need to spend more time in the office when you can complete work on the train on the way home from work!

Well not really, you have to know where you are and where you want to be in order to improve anything. So deciding that your time management skills are poor, and learning how to get better and where you want to be is time well spent. How ever in saying that if you’ve been searching for time management information for days now, and are still looking for a perfect solution there’s a chance you’re procrastinating. Just one trait of someone with poor time management.

So what can you do to start improving your time management right away?

Make lists and prioritize

Often it’s not that people aren’t effective with their time rather they just don’t spend the time they have doing the right things. We’re all guilty of this at one time or another, but some of us are habitual with it. The easiest way to determine if you do this is to make a list each morning, or the night before of the things you need/want to accomplish the following or that day. Once you have your list prioritize the items from greatest to least importance. Now spend a day and perform the tasks in the order you prioritized them. This does two things.

a.) It shows you what you need to accomplish in a day so you now have some urgency because you know there are other tasks to get done not just the one your currently working on.

b.) It ensures that the most important items are being taken care of first.

There are times when we can’t finish every item on our list but at least we took care of the most important issues first.

Learn to say no

You can’t do everything for everyone. Following our list exercise above it’s obvious that if you have a list of 20 things and only time for 10 of them in a day then it’s hard to accept additional activities from others. Of course there are trade offs that a more important task could come along and you exchange it for another task you were going to do that day. This gets into another discussion on life priorities such as friends, family, career, remember balance is also important. But you can’t do everything so if the boss wants you to work late that night, but your supposed to see your son’s hockey game you have to be able to say no somewhere.

Don’t book every moment of your day

Now while we’ve preached lists, daily organization, and learning to say no you do need to leave some room for flexibility. Booking up every moment of your day so that you’re on a minute-by-minute schedule can be a big problem if a mini crisis occurs in the day that wasn’t accounted for.

Use other tools

Using day planners, or PDA’s to keep track of appointments and to do lists will save time and promote organization on all levels. Also keeping good contact information whether it be in a contact database on your computer or in an address book will save time when you need to contact people.

Before opening me Be sure I am what you want Because until now You have only seen my cover Are you prepared to discover The allegories buried within? Few attempted to delve inside But most failed to understand The underlying personal inscriptions That illustrate who I am Are you prepared to submerge Deep into the depths of my soul? Uncover what makes me smile And offers me solace Learn my causes of darkness And why I revel in the iniquitous Open me Stroke my pages Caress my words And explore who I am Hear the nefarious laughter That surrounds me See the vicious phantasms That cuddle with me as I sleep Let the faint aroma Of tear stained ink Be your addiction As you turn each page Are you ready to encounter My obsidian rapaciousness Take a risk, take a chance Open me Fondle me Learn all of me Learn what makes My velvety subtle breasts The color of pale pink tea roses Ache impatiently Learn what enables The sweet intoxicating Warm, shuddering breaths To escape my lips Can you release yourself Slowly and provocatively Are you willing to pour Without reservation Your love and your body Entirely into me Open me fervently Patiently peruse my words Open my center of paradise Release my inhibitions Familiarize yourself with me Identify me Embrace me completely And appreciate every part Memorize every lyric And every verse Know me from top to bottom Inside and out Don’t hunt for selected phrases Or categorical euphemisms Don’t read between the lines Or insert fallacies Unfold my cover Decipher me slow Enter my world Let me flow through you And once you are done Read me again

www.originalpoetry.com

There was once a time (and there still is, to a certain degree) when I would say ‘Yes’ to every opportunity, request, suggestion, good idea, and even mediocre idea that came my way. And let me tell you, it was exhausting.

It was like I had this automatic, knee-jerk reaction to accommodate any suggestion that came my way - as if it were my karmic duty. I call this auto-response being a ‘yes-dog’. Perhaps you know the feeling.

When you’re a yes-dog, your entire being is all about making other people happy; you knock yourself out doing it. No task is too small - you figure you’ve always got room in your psyche, your schedule or your soul to squeeze in one more thing that someone wants to fit in. God forbid you should say no … for then that someone would be unhappy. Which would be unthinkable.

Like a lot of creative people, I’m naturally empathetic - so I could literally feel other people’s pain… an experience I simply wanted to avoid as much as possible. For many years, I thought it was up to me to please the rest of the world. I literally thought it was my job to be a ‘yes-dog’.

These days, I’m taking a much more circumspect view. I’ve come to the realization that I simply can’t live my soul purpose AND make the rest of the world happy all the time.

And I realize that being a yes-dog doesn’t always make the rest of the world happy - even in my little corner. The more well known I get, and the wider my reach, the more I can see it. There is always someone, somewhere, who has a problem with what I’m doing. And therein lay the breakthrough.

I’m no longer uncomfortable with other people’s pain. I mean, it’s not like I relish it; but I don’t run to avoid it. I’ve come to realize we all have a path, and a learning process we’re going through. This means my entire job is nothing more than to be authentic, listen to my gut, and act accordingly. Not only will I not make everyone happy … I can’t!

If someone is upset by this, it’s no longer a big problem. Rather, it’s simply the way their path is rubbing up against my path; it’s part of life, growth, and karma. So I have nothing to fear.

My friend Joan Sotkin has a saying, ‘I don’t always have to be the one who’s uncomfortable here’. Amen! Since I’ve given up being a yes-dog, and let go of the need to be ‘the one who’s always uncomfortable’, great things have begun to stream my way. My reach, my income, my productivity and my impact in the world have gone up in quantum leaps.

Best of all, I’ve relaxed as I go about my business. ‘No’ is not scary - it’s empowering. And ironically enough, the world has not turned on me in anger and resentment … it’s actually stepped right up to my door and truly embraced what I’m doing.

Are you a yes-dog? Take my handy quiz below to assess where you are. And may I suggest a step away from that easy little word, to one that can be equally empowering: “No”.

The Are You a ‘Yes-Dog’? Questionnaire

1. Do you find it hard to say no to your children, even when they’re making unreasonable demands. a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

2. Do you long to be able to tell your boss exactly what you think … but you just can’t? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

3. Do you find it impossible to deny yourself ‘forbidden’ pleasures - i.e. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream when you’re dieting - even if you’ve made a decision not to indulge? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

4. Do your friends tell you that you’re a pushover, and advise you to stand firm? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

5. Do you get a queasy feeling in your gut when someone asks you to do something that’s just not a good fit for you … and then inevitably cave in despite your feelings? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

6. Are you uncomfortable asking for more money or more responsibility around your work? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

7. Are you always the person who volunteers even when you don’t want to? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

8. Are there things you long to do in life, but you simply can’t find the time or the courage to get to them? a) Always b) Occasionally c) Rarely d) Never

Rate your answers: For every a) give yourself 10 points. For every b) give yourself 7 points. For every c) give yourself 4 points. For every d) give yourself 1 point.

If your score is 60-80, you’re probably saying ‘Yes’ WAY more often than you want to. Consider getting some coaching on how to say no from a good friend, life coach or partner. If your score is 40-60, your ability to say ‘No’ willingly is spotty … try pausing and counting silently to five before you answer. If your score is 20-40, you’ve got most situations pretty well in hand. Try saying ‘No’ just a little more often and see what happens. If your score is 0-20, you’re doing great! Your ability to monitor when to say ‘Yes’ and when to say ‘No’ is truly inspiring. ©2005 Suzanne Falter-Barns LLC.

For information on how to find the time, energy, money to live your purpose in life, check out Suzanne’s free ezine, The Joy Letter. Sign up at http://www.howmuchjoy.com/joyletter.html and receive our valuable report, 35 Guaranteed Time Savers. And get a daily blast of joyful tips from the Blast o’ Joy blog at http://selfhelpsalon.typepad.com/blast_o_joy/

Giving Subscribers the Welcome Treatment

By Jeff Neil
Editor`s Column
http://www.editorscolumn.com

I know that you have friends. You know, friends in the real world that you actually visit in their homes. Do any of them have one of those cute “welcome” signs hanging by the door?

Have you even noticed? Chances are there is a welcome sign. But you really never see it. We all have friends that have `em. But they are so common that we just don`t notice.

What about those big colorful “welcome” mats? Bet you see them when you arrive. They`re big and cheerful. Right there so you can wipe your feet. Sure, they`re really there to keep the floor clean. But don`t those mats give you that warm and fuzzy feeling?

If you publish an ezine it`s really just an extension of your home. Your online home. And when you get a new subscriber you send a welcome letter to your new “friend”.

Do you send them a small sign or do you roll out the mat?

First impressions are important. Even more so online. The average person subscribes to far more ezines than they can really read….So impress them fast with your welcome.

Greet your new reader with some thought and enthusiasm.

Welcome to XYZ ezine, here`s your freebie, buy this and you`ll get rich…..ain`t going to cut it. Take the time to tell you new friend why you`re so special. What`s in it for them.

And then prove it.

Include a sample issue with your welcome email. Let them see what they`re in for, and who you really are. Dazzle them with your brilliance and they`ll actually be looking for your issue.

But set it up to your advantage.

Did you bribe them with a freebie? Then make your reader work for it. They`ll get it. They will be looking for it. So why not have them do some reading to find it?

If you offer a freebie before you get a chance to show them your offer, you`ve just wasted your time. Your offer is your ezine, your work of art. Don`t let `em get away without checking it out.

Going back to the real world, invite your friends over for pizza and beer. Suggest watching the football game in front of your big screen TV.

( Sorry ladies it`s the only idea I could come up with…..)

You betcha! They`ll be right over. Now put the beer, the pizza, and the big screen TV outside in the yard.

Do you think they`ll come inside to visit you, or stay outside and watch the game? My vote is for the game.

It`s no different online. If you offered a free gift to subscribe, they want the free gift. What your ezine is about is secondary. So place your “gift” inside your sample issue. Or below it. Make them read it and help them like it.

What about making some money with your welcome?

Some of the experts will tell you to go for the sale in your welcome letter. Do you really want to do that? People may want to buy. But they don`t like to be sold.

Back to the real world again, my uncle is a car salesman. And like 99% of everyone else, I need to have wheels. Now my uncle is really a great guy. Took me fishing and hunting when I was a boy, let me hang out with the mechanics in the garage…. And I enjoy going to visit him.

But if he tried to sell me some used car every time I went to his house there`s no way I`d go to see him.

Same thing online. So be sneaky. Sell without selling. In your ezine you probably have ads in every issue. Who says those ads can`t be for *your* products?

Yes, some people subscribe to your ezine just to get your bribe if you offer one. But some people are looking for good information.

Do you provide it? If you do chances are you`ll be getting subscribers for your free information. They are looking for answers. So give them the directions. A targeted ad pointing to a product that directly relates to your ezine theme.

You`ll be sending targeted traffic to a related product, making some bucks, and not making your reader feel like they`ve been sold.

Agreed, we`re only talking about a welcome letter here. But through your ezine you are building relationships, and friendships. At least you should be. So start out on the right foot. Set the stage with an impressive welcome letter and keep your new reader waiting for more.

© 2001-2002, Jeff Neil, All Rights Reserved.

You may publish this article in your ezine and/or web site as long as this resource box is left intact.

======================================================== Article written by Jeff Neil, your Sunday Morning Columnist. Editor`s Column is for the Ezine Editor. Helping you get more subscribers, more readers, and more profit. Visit at: http://www.editorscolumn.com Subscribe at: mailto:EditorsColumn@infogeneratorpro.com

Article written by Jeff Neil, your Sunday Morning Columnist. Editor`s Column is for the Ezine Editor. Helping you get more subscribers, more readers, and more profit. Visit at: http://www.editorscolumn.com Subscribe at: mailto:EditorsColumn@infogeneratorpro.com