As a business owner, your job is never “done”. There is always more to do. I don’t like to work all the time. I like spending time with my family and friends. So it’s imperative that I get as much done in the hours I choose to work in as I can.

Here are my best “tricks for getting more done every day.

1. Time Blocks. Interruptions are productivity killers. When I know I have a deliverable that I need to get done, I set aside a block of time to work on it. I put it on my calendar and treat it like a client meeting. Then when I am in that time block I shut off all distractions. Email, phone, everything else can wait – I’m in a meeting! Putting these hard blocks on my time is essential to getting stuff done.
2. Focus Lists. Lists are handy for all kinds of things – there are lots of “productivity systems” that are based on lists. What I’m talking about here is a different kind of list. At the start of a day, or at the start of a time block, I’ll make a list of the 3 – 5 most important things that I need to do (that I have all the equipment and information available to complete). Creating a short focus list like that further helps me to banish distractions – when something comes to mind that isn’t part of one of those few tasks I can mark it down for later – but these tasks are getting done.
3. Breaks. When I’m focused and working hard time can sometimes fly by without me even noticing it. But my body notices! I’ll finally realize that my bladder’s bursting and when i try to get up my legs are so stiff I can hardly walk. This is not good, and surprisingly enough, it’s not productive either. When I plan focus time I make myself take a break every 90 – 120 min – stand up, walk around, notice if I’m hungry, thirsty, etc. Taking these breaks can keep your body from getting too depleted, and actually increases your focus and attention while you are working.

When I don’t employ these ideas and instead let my email, phone calls and team members distract my focus and attention, I find myself exhausted at 6PM and still staring at a ton of work to get done. Then you know what I do? I make a focus list, turn off my email and phone calls, and blast through my tasks. That’s right, many people who tell me how productive they are after hours could get that same work done during the workday if they were willing to create boundaries for themselves and their team members so that they can get it done.

How do you get it all done?

I’m a somewhat new dog owner – about a year. So, I still have a lot to learn when it comes to taking care of a dog.

For instance, when I took Thea (my Blue Tick Beagle) for her annual checkup a few weeks ago, I was astonished to learn that one milkbone to her is the equivalent of a candy bar to a human! On the conservative side, I was giving her about 10 in a day – not to mention all the table scraps that I, along with the five other people in my house, give her. Needless to say, now she needs to lose about 15 pounds!

Of course I felt ridiculous that I didn’t know about the milkbone thing. And while on Facebook later that day, I saw that our vet posted an article about how dog owners should limit their dog’s milkbone intake. I felt the paranoia setting in … He’s talking about me!

But then I thought about the rule for social media and blogging – whatever you keep saying to people over and over again, that’s what you need to write about! So assuming this is true, and my vet encounters many dog owners who have overindulge their dogs with milkbones, that’s what he did. Good job, Doc.

Here are some other quick tips that I give people about writing for blogs and social media:

• When you say something and the other person responds, “Really?” – there’s blog post.
• Keep your posts brief – people like quick information.
• Make one point – not multiple ones.
• Include photos or videos whenever possible.
• Incorporate dogs into your posts when you can. Just kidding … or am I?

I know so many people who have the potential to write interesting blogs – or Tweets or posts – but they don’t because they claim they say have nothing to write about! But if someone who went to school to become an animal doctor can figure it out, so can you!

Pre-iPad

Post-iPad

I got an iPad for Christmas, and despite the many pundits who told me that it wasn’t a business tool, I was determined to make it work.

I’m a small business consultant, so most of my “work” is done in my client’s offices. I spend 60% – 80% of my time each week away from my office. Pre-iPad, I had been carrying my laptop, along with 2 – 4 client files (bulky files I might add), with me to each appointment.

When I first got the iPad, I bought a bluetooth keyboard to see if I could use the iPad as a laptop replacement. It took me less than a week to realize that this was untenable. The iPad with the keyboard was almost as bulky as the laptop, and a lot less functional. The keyboard I chose was small, and it just didn’t work for me. Strike one.

So if I’m still carrying my laptop, the next largest piece of my travel pack was the paper, the notebook and client files. I figured if I could eliminate those items, I would be carrying less weight, even if I was carrying a laptop and an iPad.

The client files were the first to go. I signed up for a Dropbox account, and started religiously scanning any piece of paper that I couldn’t get in native digital form. This works great! I actually feel more prepared for meetings because I don’t have to pick or choose which client files to bring along; I’ve got access to 100% of my client files all the time. That’s a win.

I was determined to lose the notebook. My pre-iPad workflow was to take notes during client meetings, then move the action items to Evernote for action when I get back to the office. So I went looking for a note taking app that integrates with Evernote. (Typing on a laptop or iPad just isn’t culturally acceptable in my client meetings at this point.) I tried a number of note- taking apps and they were all a little clunky until I found Noteshelf. What makes Noteshelf work for me is the Zoom Window that stays on the bottom of the screen, so I don’t have to worry about my hand touching the screen while I write. I know a lot of other apps have “wrist guard” features, but the zoom window really works for me. Plus NoteShelf exports PDFs directly to my Evernote account.

So now I’m traveling with my iPad, laptop, and… wait, that’s it. Light as a feather. I actually bought a new (smaller) briefcase because I was carrying so much less. It’s a dream.

Now that I’m working with the iPad all the time, I found a couple of other apps that I have come to depend on. Agendas is a calendar replacement that ROCKS. It’s a great interface, but the two killer features are that you can text or email people to tell them you are late or confirm an appointment with 2 CLICKS! (Also, available for the iPhone.)

Another great find is Due. In some ways this is just a replacement for the Apple reminders app that I wasn’t really using. But it also sports a spiffy interface that I’m digging. It makes it super quick and easy to set a reminder (Bring your gym bag to work) for a particular time (7AM). I also use it to remind me that my meter is going to expire, to set a timer to keep me focused when I’m writing a blog post, or working on a client project. It’s become one of my top apps. (Also available for iPhone.)

Other fun apps I love include the Kindle app, Osmos and Uni Sudoku (the best Sudoku app out there).

Have you found the iPad to be a useful business tool? How are you using it?

We’re taking a look at technological, social, industrial and economic factors and how they will affect businesses in 2012 and beyond. We want to see what strategies small-business owners will choose in order to adapt to these external and internal factors impacting their business.

To do this, we’ve put together a quick 5 minute survey that we’d love if you and your colleagues would fill out. We’ll give you first dibs on the data as soon as it comes out!

http://www.aphotoeditor.com/2011/12/29/how-photographers-actually-spend-their-time/

You may not be a photographer, but I bet that when you started your business, you imagined your life would be like the chart on the left. But now it has gotten to look more and more like the one on the right. In fact, many of you are looking wistfully at the chart on the right and thinking, “When was the last time I spent 12% of my day doing the thing that I love doing, the thing got me into this business in the first place?”

Seth Godin had a different reaction. He pointed out that you have a choice. Many of us are “do-it-yourselfers” who do our own bookkeeping, advertising, social media, etc., and as a result, become the chart on the right.  But, we could trade money for time and get back toward the chart on the left (and, handing these tasks off to experts can only improve our companies anyway).

Jim Collins carries three stopwatches in his pocket. He tracks how he spends his time each day and compares it to his ideal day (50% creative, 30% teaching, 20% everything else). He has made a decision in advance about what is most important for him to focus on, and he has designed a mechanism to align his actions with his decision. He spends every day until noon cut off from all distractions — no phone, no Internet — so that he can focus on his creative work.

This is what strategic planning is.

Strategic planning is when you take the time to have a point of view about what is going on in the world. Then you prioritize, given that point of view, what you need to accomplish to achieve success. Then you create a plan to make it happen. And when you measure your progress regularly, you’ll see it happen.

Strategic planning is deciding that your genius, your gift to the world, isn’t going to be fully realized at 12% of your time each day. So, you need to unload some of the crap that you’ve taken on to let that genius really shine. And since your creative genius is so valuable, you’re going to raise your prices so you can pay for the help you need.

Strategic planning is optimizing the one or two outcomes that matter most, and letting the hundreds of other outcomes land where they will.

There’s an old cliche that “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” But in the hyper-connected world of change that we live in, I think that needs to be revised. Failing to plan, is failing to focus — and without focus you will be tossed about by the winds accomplishing nothing.

Salespeople are famous for cold calling and charging hard after a sale. But these days, that’s becoming more and more difficult, and producing fewer and fewer results. I’m not saying there isn’t a need for someone who goes the last mile and sits face-to-face (or ear-to-ear, in the case of phone sales) with prospects and helps them feel comfortable with their decisions because that couldn’t be further from the truth. Someone needs to help prospects find the tools and services they need to solve their problems.

But the barriers to just reaching out and finding those “ripe” prospects have grown.

The buyer of today wants to tell the sales people when they are ready for information and they want to dictate how that information gets delivered to them. The  buyer is more in control of the transaction. As a result the sales person can’t go solo any more. They need some help from the marketers to generate and cultivate the leads that open doors.

While marketing has taken on some of the lead generation role, that hasn’t made the sales role any easier. The same buyer who wants all their information up front before they engage with a sales person now has more choices, more information and less time to make a decision. So the sales role has also evolved to me more consultative, helping the buyer to make the best decision for them.

How do you see the role of sales changing in your business?

I don’t think of myself as a salesperson – but I must be.

My calendar isn’t filled with one networking event after the next. I don’t go on sales calls wearing fancy suits. And yet, I’ve got business flowing in to my writing and editing business on a fairly regular basis. How does that happen?

Since we’ve been focusing on sales this month at EnMast, I’ve started reflecting on sales as it relates to my business. There’s part of me that thinks, “This topic doesn’t relate to my business.” But it really does. In fact, it relates to every business that wants to stay in business!

For years, I’ve credited my Feng Shui fountain for my steady flow of business. If you aren’t familiar with Feng Shui, here’s a quick explanation of the significance of a fountain: It represents “flow” – a flow in productivity and the subsequent flow of money. Ever since I’ve had a fountain, I’ve had business coming in. No lie.

But I’ve decided that I’m not going to give my fountain all of the credit. I think I, like many business owners, have developed a knack for sales without even realizing it. For instance:

• If a client asks me to write copy for a new website, I do the ol’ “Do you want fries with that?” and ask if, while I’m at it, I could also write a brochure or come up with a tagline for them. A simple “Why don’t I?’ is the perfect way for me to pick up some more business.
• I have a good referral network – I refer people to businesses I trust, and they do the same for me.
• I try to do my best work every time. Doing this keeps work coming in from my existing clients, and then my existing clients tell people about me – and so on and so on.

I’ve been in business for 14 years, and I started with nothing. What got me here? Sales. What’s going to keep me going? Sales.

And my trusty Feng Shui fountain, of course.

We surveyed over 130 business owners in the fall of 2011 to find trends in their actions and behaviors in correlation to their business. In our report, Movers & Head Shakers: A Study on Business Owners of Growing & Struggling Companies, we found that the biggest obstacle and fear business owners have is sales.

Responses included lead generation, selling, new business, more clients, maintaining growth, nurturing leads, but they all ultimately boiled down to sales.

Business owners often are the only person managing sales in their small business. It’s a tough job, and with marketing techniques and venues changing constantly, it’s hard to keep that sales pipeline full.

Here are 3 common mistakes we see business owners making in their sales techniques and tips to avoid them:

1. The “show up and throw up”

Before the client gets a chance to talk, you whip out your 30-page Powerpoint and start chugging out information about what you do and how great you are at it before the potential client even gets a chance to talk. This leaves your prospect feeling bombarded and unheard, and on top of it, you don’t even know if you’re what they’re looking for.

Instead, get the client to talk about their problem. The more you get them to talk, the more information you can gather to identify their problem. Then, present how your services can help fix those problems.

2. Jumping the gun

Let’s say you get the prospect talking a little about the issues they’re having. Showing your expertise, you immediately point out what’s wrong and what the problem is and how to fix it. Great! …except not.

You jumped to the answer and pointed out all the things that are wrong with what they’ve been doing in no time at all. To the prospect, it doesn’t feel good. They’ve tried everything to solve it and exhausted their efforts, and reached out for outside help, and you just took a shallow look at their problem.

Instead, get them talking more, ask them things like how it all started, what’s been happening and what they’ve tried to do about it. Really understand the issue and know where they’re coming from. When they see that you really understand the issue, they’ll assume you know how to fix the problem (and they will more than likely buy).

3. Failing to close the deal

You meet with a client and it goes great. You can tell they really think you’re the solution and want to buy. Being professional, you say you’ll put a proposal together and send it to them later that week, and part ways.

Well first, great job! But you missed something – you didn’t close the deal! Yes, it’s great to put a proposal together, but if they’re asking about the cost and what working with you would look like, they’re ready to buy now. That is when the water is boiling – they’re worked up and emotionally involved and ready to go. Don’t wait until the water has boiled away by waiting until you get the proposal together. Work on getting a commitment right then, or schedule up a first meeting.

It’s always harder to get them to close the deal later on, so make them the offer then!

Looking for more information on improving your sales process? Check out Brad’s video talking more in depth about the most common sales mistakes service providers make.

Grasshopper is a virtual phone system geared towards entrepreneurs and small businesses. They created a phone system that allows you to connect your entire team’s phone lines to that number with extensions – whether or not they all work at the same office, or telecommute.

They’re all about providing great resources and information to help out small businesses. In doing so, they asked us to talk about budgeting and it’s importance for small business. Check our they’re blog and find out what 5 Key reasons you need a budget for your small business.

I started my career as an engineer and grew into a general manager before going out on my own. So I didn’t have a track record of sales success behind me before starting Anchor Advisors. But knowing that sales would be a key to my success, I invested in a sales training program and worked with a mentor to build my sales process. The process we created was a highly scripted sales conversation with a memorized opening, a series of discovery questions, a set “transition” question, followed by a close. My coach told me if I did the process right, when I asked the prospect the transition question, the prospect would respond with, “How can we work together?” I was skeptical it would work, but I was willing to try.

Once training was finished, the coach had set up 10 appointments for me through a telemarketing campaign and I worked through my own network to create some appointments as well. At that time, my goal was to gain 6-8 clients, so I figured with their 10 appointments and 10 of my own, I would only have to close 30% – 40% of them to achieve my goal.

My first appointment was a telemarketing-set appointment, and I had never met this person before. I sat down in her office and started my spiel. The discussion went very well and when I got to the transition question, she replied, “Brad, how can we work together to solve these problems?” I couldn’t believe my ears! I was so amazed, I think I sat there for 30 seconds before stammering out, “Well, I have a contract right here…” I closed her on the spot and had my first client. I was so excited that it really worked! I came in, asked her about her business, helped her to see what the issues she had were costing her and she bought on the spot. I even walked out with a check in hand!

So I went to my next appointment. This was someone I had known for a while, and I had even sent him consulting proposals (which he never signed) before I had been to the sales training. I sat down in his office, went through my spiel, asked the transitional question, (this time I was ready) but he didn’t ask me “How can we work together?” It was disappointing, but undaunted I pressed on and asked him if he’d like to hear how we can work together. He listened and also signed my contract and gave me a check! Wow! I was two-for-two. Pretty soon, I was going to be a gazillionaire.

With that success behind me, I was anxious to get out there and set more appointments so I could get more clients. I mean, I was batting 1.000; I was obviously a sales prodigy!

You can probably guess what happened next. Over the next 4 months, I went 0-for-27. I went on 2-3 appointments per week and closed nothing. It didn’t matter if they were appointments I had set or if they were telemarketing appointments, I couldn’t close a thing. I felt like a total failure. Finally, I went back to my coach and confessed that I wasn’t cut out for sales. He told me to go on five more appointments and after each one, immediately write down what happened. So I (reluctantly) did that. By doing this, I realized two things:

•    My early success had made me overconfident and as a result I went away from the scripted sales process (that worked) and instead started improvising. When that didn’t work, I got desperate and started stabbing around in the dark and trying anything.
•     I wasn’t consistently asking for the order.

The first item was easy to fix; I just needed to get the old script out and run it! But the second item nagged me. I found myself writing down “didn’t ask for the order” over and over until I went into an appointment with the mindset that whatever happens, I’m not going to write down “didn’t ask for the order” after this one. Even if they drag me out by my heels, I’ll be shouting, “Would you like to hear how we can work together to solve these problems?” It was not long before my drought was over.

So what can you learn from my experience? A few things:

•     There are no “natural” salespeople. Anyone can sell if you are willing to listen to prospects, respect them and look for opportunities for mutual benefit.
•     You need to have a sales process, and one that has a track record of success. When you find yourself striking out, you need to go back and see where you have moved away from that process.
•     Keep at it. Sales, like any other skill, requires practice.
•     There will be people so ready for what you are selling that they will close themselves. But more often then not you need to be explicit and ask for the order.

And perhaps the greatest lesson of them all is that if this engineer-turned-general-manager can learn to sell, so can you.

They asked us to explain why a small business would want to get involved in Google+. What could motivate a busy and overwhelmed business owner to want to invest in another social network? Hop on over to the ICIC blog to find out HOW GOOGLE+ CAN HELP YOUR SMALL BUSINESS.

We’re trying to find out what the biggest pain point is for small business owners when it comes to hiring. We’ll publish the results form the poll and let you know the best ways to improve in those areas to better your hiring process!

Have other areas in the hiring process causing you pain? Let us know in the comments below!