It’s Time to Start Putting It All Together & I Need Your Help

Today is a sort of test drive of material I'm preparing for the launch of the product I've been writing about for most of July. This isn't really a blog post as much as a web page that will introduce the product/service.

I'd be happy to have you put yourself in the place of a small business owner or an entrepreneur and let me know your reaction. MUCH appreciated.

As small business owners and entrepreneurs we’re consumed with social media connections, short and long- term plans, time-lines, organizational systems, tracking mechanisms and more.

And we certainly have some great customers, but wouldn't we love to have more?!?!?

What could still be missing from the toolbag that would help with ATTRACTING and RETAINING more clients?

Have you thought about the relationships you’re developing – or NOT developing – with current and potential clients?

What if you could WORK MORE POSITIVELY with clients and potential clients to…

• Close more sales?
• Save time so you can focus on the income producing activities?
• Increase your bottom-line?
• Develop valuable relationships?
• Create long-lasting relationships?
• Talk with clients in a way that appeals to them and gets results?

What if YOU could…

• Get a grasp on your own tendencies and priorities?
• Understand why you act the way you do?
• Sleep better at night knowing you’re working with clients in ways that will strengthen the relationship?
• Strengthen your bond with co-workers for better business outcomes?

What if you could develop a SUPPORT TEAM for your business that…

• Would work together to grow the business?
• Could better manage the inevitable conflict?
• Value each others’ differences and develop mutual respect?
• Work energetically toward common goals that you all share?

Relationships make all the difference in our business – you can accomplish all of the above with:

A Self-Study Program in Building Strong Business Relationships

This is a four part program that will IMPROVE YOUR SUCCESS and understanding of:

Your uniqueness and how to leverage it for positive outcomes

How others respond to you and why you get the reactions you do

How you can best approach others for long-lasting partnerships

How to strengthen your own skills and abilities in dealing with others

The Four Components to Getting to Know Yourself…and Others™

1. DiSC® Classic 2.0 Online Profile
2. Self-Study Guide that supplements the profile, includes lesson, worksheets, planning docs and more
3. One-on-one coaching with Christine Mann – one free 30 minute consult to clarify your understandings, ask questions, plan for next steps
4. Online personal development system – ProStar Coach – that you’ll be able to access like a personal gym for 24/7 workouts in developing Personal Strengths and People Skills

Though we’ve spent nearly a month in the lessons of DiSC® styles, this program will take you much deeper, give you a chance to appreciate subtleties of behavior and make plans for handling some of your more difficult business relationships.

Learn more here and read a portion of the Self-Study Guide.

AND…hear what DISC® users say about this profiles’ effect on their growth – personally AND professionally.

Question for you:

What is your reaction to Getting to Know Yourself…and Others™? 
   I'm looking for info on:
   Content
   The multi-faceted approach to learning
   Price ($197.00)
   And any other comments you care to offer!

THANK YOU

Tomorrow: How ProStar Coach complements DiSC® and takes your learning to a new level

Are We Wired to Live the Golden Rule? Let's ask Dr. Denny Coates - it's his title and article

The Ultimate Blog Challenge for July is underway and with the holidays almost over, I'm finally ready to get down to business.

My focus this month will be on human behavior styles; I'll be extracting information from my program:

Getting to KnowYourself…and Others™ - A Self-Study Program in Building Stronger Relationships.

Early in the program I reference the Golden Rule - something many of us grew up with - and we'll see how we can even go beyond it to build stronger relationships in our professional lives.

To get our minds working in this direction, enjoy this fascinating article by Dr. Dennis Coates about science and "feeling or doing good" and the Golden Rule.

Don't be put off by the "neurons" in the title - it's good reading and Denny knows his stuff.

MirrorNeurons - Wired for the Golden Rule

 

Tomorrow we'll look at the Platinum Rule®, our natural behavioral tendencies and what effects they produce (perhaps as apposed to the effects we want to create).

Golden rule image:

callprobest.com

Strong Relationships and Must-Have Technology - Can They Work Together?

We’ve had such a great reception to our new website and focus on Getting to Know Yourself…and Others™ – thank you all so much! The Self-Study Program on Building Stronger Relationships is generating a lot of conversation!

I have to tell you an interesting thing that happened: in my family, when one of us does something new we usually share it with everyone just as way of staying connected – like so many families, we’re spread across the country and don’t sit over Sunday dinner bringing each other up to date – I’m sure that’s the same for many of you. So I sent the recent announcements about my business updates to family and friends.

My mother’s insight  - trust Mom! - was profound and succinct: “You’re emphasizing relationships yet you’re using technology to do it”. She actually stopped me cold because it’s technology that is chilling a lot of relationships – personally and professionally.

I thought back to leadership classes of times past, when clients had the budget and invited professionals in to conduct leadership training and education; then the development and state of relationships was always a huge block of learning. Time was spent on lessons and practice in:

• Get to know your team members

• Learn their motivators

• Develop goals together

• Have regular and frequent one-on-ones to coach, discuss, discover

• Encourage, solicit their ideas

• Understand what kinds of recognition matter to the individual

• And so much more….

All of those interactions propelled team leader and team member to become better acquainted, to build a stronger relationship that made it more likely for both to succeed, to deal with problems calmly and promptly, to innovate, to appreciate other talents…maybe even ENJOY coming to work!

Now, in organizations that rely heavily on e-learning, many of those extended lessons and skill practice opportunities are severely minimized. There’s a mountain of work and it has to be completed FAST, FAST, FASTER. Relationships? Who’s got time?

Remember the comment in this blog from the other day: “I absolutely agree on the personal relationships, but I feel very old school when I try to maintain them. In my little world, the biggest killer is technology…losing the personal relationships that have worked so well for me over the years…I could get people to cooperate because they knew...me.”

There’s concern in many corners about relationships and our ability to connect with other people. In an interview with Brian Williams of NBC last night (June 5, 2012), President Clinton was asked about social media and commented that teens today average 80 text messages per day. He believes they “will have trouble being PRESENT where they are” in the future. What will relationships look like?

Today I can only conclude this:

Relationships: they add such richness to our lives as people as well as a multitude of positives and negatives.

Technology: it adds such richness to our lives as people as well as a multitude of positives and negatives.

I guess we better find a way to make them compatible – we need them both!

So, it turns out that I’m advocating building stronger relationships through technology.

I look at the design of my four part program – it DOES include a live, one-on-one consult – I just can’t seem to leave it all up to online learning – I’ve got to have a connection and KNOW something good has happened for my learner!

Question for you: Do you NEED the live connections?

Do relationships matter any more?!?!

In my last posting, I talked about some of the changes that were coming to my business and it’s now published, so please check out the announcement in our newsletter here: http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs049/1100385597389/archive/1110153903795.html

Our renewed emphasis in relationships in personal and business lives is overdue, I think. We’ll still work with people in leadership development, but I feel it’s so important that the personal (…and I don’t mean private business – you know that I mean person to person…) be given more attention than just accomplishing daily to-do’s.

I’ve already had one response to the newsletter and this reader commented: “I absolutely agree on the personal relationships, but I feel very old school when I try to maintain them.  In my little world, the biggest killer is technology - it is used to track business, rate business, track complaints, track results.  We are being moved away from dealing with our customers (the schools).  We still audit their data and tell them when something is not right, but they are supposed to direct questions to our functional specialists 'team.'  That boils down to losing the personal relationships that have worked so well for me over the years.  I could get people (schools) to cooperate because they knew...me.  They knew I would help, if I could.  I have argued that we need to maintain those relationships in staff meetings, but I am the dinosaur.”

That is so frightening, isn’t it?

Check out our new home page and the Getting to Know Yourself…and Others™ - A Self-Study Program inBuilding Stronger Relationships, which is a four part learning experience  that will lead you to:

·  Discover your own preferred behaviors

·  Learn to recognize other peoples’ predominant behavior style

·  Adapt your behaviors to strengthen your relationships

·  Focus on specific People Skills and Personal Strengths that you want to develop

Relationships – personal and professional - do make a difference in life!