Why Strategy Matters in Your Business or Your Job Hunt

Answer These Questions, and Decide as you Move Forward

by Patty DeDominic, Coach to High Achievers in Finance, Business and Philanthropy.

 I just finished up a Master Mind call with the Maui team lead by David Finkel.  His firm is one of my favorite clients as  I love to watch David teach and am honored to be a colleague.    My role with the Maui team is to Coach entrepreneurs with growing companies.    We work on personal use of time, strategic priorities, human resource issues and other important business strategies and opportunities which inevitably arise in growing enterprises.   

It's really fun to work with business owners who seek to build scale-able companies.  Because I admire people who are willing to risk their money and their pride to become more successful, serve clients with passion and  build job creating enterprises it rarely seems like work.      As a coach to business owners and senior people, it's as if we are the Coach's Coach!

Today David did a deep dive on some key strategies in the building blocks of business.  Systems for success as I love to call them.       

  Overview of the 5 Strategic Marketing Decisions

1.      Choice of target market.

2.      Choice of product or service to focus on selling.

3.      Choice of business model.

4.      Choice of pricing.

5.      Choice of positioning and branding.

Job Hunter or CEO.... look at the similarities

Each of these decisions has an impact on your time, energy and how you will need to position yourself and your company.     Think about it, the above decisions are useful for job hunter too.      

It you haven't thought of yourself as an enterprise, consider doing so.    Consider who is your ideal target market (insert employer or industry?     If you are a job candidate, it is local or national business?  Large or small employer?    In a growing industry, filled with lots of demand for your continued growth or is it in a declining industry which will call on your resourcefulness and implementing tried and true strategies of the past?  

Choice of Pricing is important too for job hunters, are you the low price model or the guy with deep expertise and premium price?    Your communications and methods of connecting with potential employers will depend on your answers to the above.  

Branding is also important for job hunters and when you are clearer on items 1-4 above you will be able to get a better picture of the brand called YOU, Inc. 

Would you like to get a complimentary copy of our latest 176-page bestseller,       

Build a Business, Not a Job? 

 Just go to www.MauiMastermind.com/custom/freebook

to get your free copy today!

Good luck as you are preparing your business or your career for growth.   As always, you are free to take advantage of our expertise for a free 25 minute consultation at any time.   Feel free to click the link above for your free (no obligation) copy of the book or call me 805 453-7490  

Patty DeDominic      

Starting Your Own Business? SCORE.org May be of Assistance

Starting Your Own Business?

SCORE, Counselors to America's Small Business is set up to Help YOU!
Free and low cost seminars available across the USA. Free Counseling is available 24/7 at www.score.org

The Santa Barbara and Los Angeles Chapters have been especially active lately and LA
is offering one of their great "almost Free" services next week.

An all-day workshop that is an ideal starting point for the start-up entrepreneur and new business owner looking for answers. To be held at the LA Area Chamber of Commerce this thursday April 2, 2009.

Hear a panel of working professionals cover topics such as finance, accounting, insurance, marketing and legal. This workshop is an ideal starting point for anyone starting a new business.

In one six hour session you can obtain information you'll need to get your business off to a proper start. This could take you five appointments or more in different parts of town to accomplish. All this and more is covered in an informal setting where you are encouraged to get your questions answered. A must-attend for any aspiring entreprenuer.

Cost is only $40.00 and you can Save $5.00 by pre registering.

Limited Seating. Pre-register here to save your seat and $5.

Missed this one? Not a problem, visit SCORE.org for info and to find the chapter NEAR YOU.

Dr. Ellie Corigliano, One Woman's Story: Science, Self Discovery & You

Women, Science, Self Discovery & You

The pursuit of science is a lifetime endeavor toward the pursuit of knowledge.

It is a traveling affair engined by questions, by ideas, by imagination, by “What if’s” in the hopes to one day arrive at a destination where the unraveling of life’s great mysteries are revealed. Sometimes, however, that alone is not enough to stimulate the study of science and requires a more intimate introduction, and perhaps even more so for women.

As a young girl I was exposed to the practice of medicine. My mother and father ran a medical clinic, where my father was the primary physician and my mother; well she did everything else from drawing blood samples to scheduling appointments. My father loved science and medicine and was fascinated with the workings of the human body. He would introduce my siblings and I to medical equipment such as the microscope, the stethoscope, a blood pressure cuff and essentially allowed us to play “Doctor”. Of these technologies, I found the most intriguing to be the microscope. Under the magnifying lens of a microscope, the smallest components of life appeared to be larger than life. It was as though the most unimaginable, magical aspects of life came alive! I was soon enamored with the chemistry of life and found that science became my favorite subject in school.

Meanwhile, a love for the arts had been developing along side my educational pursuits in the form of dance and music. I soon found myself dancing with the Los Angeles Joffrey Ballet. Though I was just a teenager at the time I realized that both of these pursuits enhanced my view of the world and from then on have believed that all things are possible.

In college I had the privilege of having four amazing professors, three men and one woman, that took the time to flatter my questions with discussion and encouraged me to read material beyond the scope of the course textbook. Their direction introduced me to the notion of scientific research. I had been a pre-med student focusing my degree in biochemistry, but in my senior year I decided to pursue a graduate degree in lieu of medical school.

My fascination with medicine, however, continued along side my research and soon I found myself more interested in the application of nutritional biochemistry for disease prevention and disease therapy. My graduate school campus did not house a medical school, and made my interest of nutrition and science challenging. My colleges, my professors, even my friends, were uncertain of my new direction. I realized at that point how valuable it is to have mentors that encourage you, support you and enable you to chase your imagination, your interests.

In the last year of my doctoral studies in biochemistry I began to attend nutritional conferences, take online courses from top Universities (that housed a medical program) and found a place of inspiration. I recently completed my Ph.D. in 2008 and continue to pursue nutritional biochemistry from both a research aspect and an applied aspect. Though challenges are always present, one of life’s greatest gifts is the ability to direct yourself and surround yourself with others who believe in your assertions. As a mother of a teenager, I witness the powerful influence ones environment has on the motivation and commitment to continue and push through the challenges of ones interest.

Women have historically been key contributors to many scientific discoveries, and today many of us turn away from scientific careers, but we are needed in science for our creativity, our relational thinking, our ability to multi-task and our contribution to excellence. I want to encourage women to continue their pursuit of science, their pursuit of family, and their pursuit of happiness by standing up and initiating the restructuring of your environment to enable you and to work with you for your success. All things are possible in the right environment!

Dr. Corigliano will be one of the speakers at the 2009 International Women's Festival, for more information please visit http://www.womensfestivals.org/

Dr. Adele Scheele on Staying the Course

Goal Accomplishment:

HOW NOT to get derailed.

Most of us know how to set goals, what seems to separate the Top Achievers from those who accomplish less is Sticking to the Big Goals and Staying the Course to the Winners Circle.

We asked Dr. Adele for some tips on Staying on Track with New Year's resolutions and success tracking in general.

Here are some key pointers to keep you motivated and on track.

1. Be aware that you are valuable and worth it.

2. Ask others who have achieved their dreams and ask what they did in dark times.

3. See how others got back up and who helped them.

4. Don't listen to nay-sayers or family or friends who may be against your succeeding (yes, some will be; figure out why)

5. Read/listen to biographies of achievers in your field and outline their steps.

Adele Scheele, PhD, Career Coach, Business Strategist and Advisor to students, educators and high achieving professionals. One of Patty DeDominic's personal friends and mentors for over 20 years.

Work Life Coach Shares Tips for Success

TOP TIPS
10 Tips for Career SuccessBy Alvah Parker
1. Find ways to learn continuously.
2. Find ways to improve whatever you do. Be willing to incorporate the new ideas that you learn in #1.
3. Do your work completely and with pride.
4. Be true to your own values.
5. Clear up those irritations (energy drains) so that you can devote your energy to your work.
6. Practice self-care so that you feel good about yourself.
7. Keep work in perspective so that you have time for other parts of your life (family, friends, hobbies, volunteer work).
8. Listen carefully to everyone. Managers need to walk around and talk to employees and customers.
9. Network within your company and outside.
10. Delegate tasks when appropriate and empower those doing the work to do it their own way.

Alvah Parker is publisher of Road to Success and Parker's Points, e-newsletters providing strategies to advance your business and career goals. Alvah is a Work/life coach, who can be reached at asparker@asparker.com