by theEmother | Feb 18, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Consultant EXIT Options, entrepreneurial mothers, MEinc, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
HOW FREELANCERS ARE REDEFINING SUCCESS TO BE ABOUT VALUE, NOT WEALTH
Time is a new currency and successful freelancers manage, save, and spend it wisely.
Freelancers often work independently, but being “on your own” doesn’t mean “going it alone.” Freelancing successfully means building a network to line up new gigs, passing assignments to others when things are busy, and getting referrals from friends when they’re not.
To read more of this Fast Company article, click here.
Sounds easy doesn’t it?
For those who have been in the consulting game for many years (and still are to some extent), like your’s truly, knowing all this logically and DOing the activity required can be poles apart.
So I ask you, how well are you spending your time?
Is it working for you?
Are you generating enough money to live on?
If not, why not?
What are you going to do about it?
Rest assured, there are options available to you, if you are open to what’s on offer.
If now is the time to start exploring what these are, please contact me on info@theentrepreneurialmother.com
by theEmother | Feb 11, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Consultant EXIT Options, entrepreneurial mothers, Finish Unfinished Business, MEinc, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
you can’t WIN unless you first begin, so START now…
Continuing on from last weeks post…
Organising your thoughts first and then your business…
Right Thinking leads to Right Actions
First we THINK about what we want to do.
Having thought it, we must DO it. To that end…
1. Create a story about your business
Your story should be an idealised version, a vision of what the preeminent in your field should be and why. Your story must become the very heart of your business. It must become the spirit that mobilises it, as well as everyone who works for it, buys from it, sells to it and lend to it.
2. Organise your business so that it breathes Life into your Story
Unless your business can faithfully replicate your story-in-action it all becomes fiction.
- identify the key functions of your business
- identify the essential processes that link those functions
- identify the results you have determined your business will produce
- clearly state in writing how each phase will work
- take it step-by-step
3. Engage your people in the process
“What do I want?” becomes the first question; not, “What do they want?”
Be clear with yourself. And if it’s only you, then so be it!
It’s important to know:
a) exactly what you want?
b) how you intend to proceed?
c) whats important to you and what isn’t?
d) what you want the business to be, how you want it to act, and where you want it to go?
The story is paramount, because it is your Vision.
You must Love your Story for it to become a reality.
Tell stories that come to Life in the form of the business.
by theEmother | Feb 5, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, Consultant EXIT Options, EXIT execution, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
Starting a business is a BIG deal. Building it to become more than your hobby is even bigger again. In fact, building your business into an asset may result in it being possibly the largest asset you’ll ever own, or second maybe to your home.
If trying to sell it is what you eventually want to do, getting strategic about WHAT it is you’ve got and how it is someone else could do it is key. The Online Strategy question features more and more as part of this discussion.
What is the “story” of your Business?
Each business has its evolutionary history, as well as its current story, which is all-important. More buyers now are also asking about the online history and requesting the statistics to back it up. If you’ve gone down the path of being online, be sure to track all the important information about this channel, as it will be requested. If you have not got online (yet), there needs to be an apparent “why” to satisfy the question.
What does your Business sell?
List everything; not just the features, but the benefits to your consumers as well.
- Why do they buy from you?
- Did your Business always conduct business the way it currently does?
- If not, what has changed? Why the current choice?
- What other options are open in your market that you haven’t done yet?
These questions definitely require an online and offline response.
How can you prove how well your Business Model has been working?
Profit – that’s what a buyer wants to know about.
This scorecard is very important to a prospective buyer because that’s what they will base a lot of their “valuation” decisions on. The records, both offline and online, provide evidence that your Business is the worthy asset you claim it is.
Starting with the end in mind TODAY, regardless of how old your business is, means you can start to, slowly but surely, assemble, lock in and gather the answers to each one of these questions, to be able to convey to a potential buyer WHAT it is they are buying…
by theEmother | Feb 4, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, Consultant EXIT Options, EXIT execution, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, how to sell a business, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, start with the end in mind, the business model
Most contractors would rather live with the frustrations they already have rather than risk enduring new frustrations. Rather than open up to the possibilities Life offers, they prefer to shut their life down to respectable limits. (Gerber)
If you don’t have a clear picture of when you want out, your business is the master of your destiny, not the reverse. In order to do so you have to focus on the point in the future when you will take leave of your business. Once done, reconsider your goals in that context, being very specific.
You’ve got to think of Time with a capital T.
The Big Question, with a capital Q is: How do I wish to spend the rest of my Time?
Your Time, your Life, is the most valuable asset you have.
Until you see Time for what it really is – your Life span – you will always ask the wrong question.
You cannot manage Time; you never could. You can only Live it! (Gerber)
First off is the Strategic Work, which is all about:
- why?
- what?
- who?
- when?
- where?
- what business am I really in?
- why am I in that business?
- who specifically is my business determined to serve?
- when will I sell this business?
- where will this business be doing business when I sell it?
Strategic Work is the work you do to design your business, to design your life.
Tactical Work is the work you do to implement the design created by Strategic Work. (Gerber)
Organise your thoughts first and then your business…
Right Thinking leads to Right Actions
THINK about what you want to do. Having thought it, you must then DO it…
by theEmother | Feb 3, 2014 | business book club, business ideas & thinking, Consultant EXIT Options, entrepreneurial mothers, MEinc, single parent l single mother, so you think you're in business
for ChangeThis.com
“No one is looking out for your career anymore. You must find meaning, locate opportunities, sell yourself, and plan for failure, calamity, and unexpected disasters. You must develop a set of skills that makes you able to earn an income in as many ways as possible.”)
The new world of work requires a new lens and skill set to ensure career success. You must create your own body of work as you operate in different organizational systems and structures.”
By Pamela Slim for ChangeThis.com
by theEmother | Jan 31, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, BUY a Business, Buy a Mother of a Business, Consultant EXIT Options, EXIT execution, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, growth by acquisition, how to sell a business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, Sellability Score, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, TEMpting, the business model
How Saleable is Your Business in 2014?
How Saleable do you want Your Business 2014?
What are you waiting for? GET YOUR SCORE…
Spent much of this week working on one particular sale and exploring the sale option with a number of Business Owners keen to chat. Who knows where it may lead…
Also had a great Session One with a Woman Business Owner looking to start a family. We’ve commenced plotting and scheming that transition too. This is of course one close to my heart!
GOT A WEBSITE FOR SALE?
If yes, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au
And you…what does 2014 bring?
If any of the following tickle your fancy, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au, letting me know which one it is…
FOR SALE…
BS30 Online Venue Business
Completed Sellability Score
2 new inquiries have come through and waiting to hear back from them
BS43 Tourism
Deposit locked and loaded. Settlement planned for February.
When it’s a good thing, it pays to act quickly.
BS49 Home Help…
This is an interesting one. Mainly because it is playing in a growth industry but the players looking at it are playing small. The revisit of the presentation certainly worked, had a great meeting this morning with a most eligible buyer which continues!
BS53 Balloons! and all that goes with them…
Such corporate appeal, so untapped. Potential buyers have stalled a little now. It’s waiting for the savvy operator that can see past the retail component. Needs to be thought more of as a warehouse!
BS57 Online Business
Signed good to go. A true online business at that ie all is in place, it’s making money and it dropships! In the process of developing the IM now. Stay tuned.
OR
Are you interested in?
- photographic studio x 2
- skin care range and premise
- a particular event
- event management
If yes, let me know what these are what came in this week…
Exploring the Sale Option?
GET YOUR SCORE…
Onwards and Upwards!
