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When you ask how you can best serve and then follow through on the answer you get, you are standing in your purpose. When the answer you get takes you too far out of your comfort zone to go for it, you are sitting in your purpose. 

When you sit in your purpose, you severely limit, if not paralyze, your potential to move toward fulfilling it. Imagine yourself in a room with only one door. If you want to leave that room to go somewhere else, you need to go through that door. Sitting in your purpose is like sitting in that room, looking at the door, knowing it’s there, knowing there’s somewhere else you should be going, but not taking steps to go there. You might approach that door from every angle—walk past it, cartwheel past it, walk on your hands past it— but if you are unwilling or afraid to actually open that door and walk through it, you are unable to leave that room. Leaving that place means opening that door and walking through it, and by the same token, fulfilling your purpose means getting up from where you’re sitting and standing in that purpose.

This is an excerpt from my new book, Sole to Soul: How To Identify Your Soul Purpose and Monetize It, which is available now!  To download a free chapter and order, please click here.

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When you own a small business, you may feel as if you need to be there at all times in order for things to run correctly. However, if you are at your business at all times, and then you will be sacrificing your personal life and your relationships with friends and family. It is not possible for you to be at your business during every open hour, so you have to make sure that your company can successfully run whether you are there or not.

There are several ways that you can make sure your business can continue in the best operation even when you are not onsite. Consider these areas when you are preparing your business for any absences: specific systems, employee roles and responsibilities, quality leadership, and a clear business direction.

1. Systems. In order for your business to run smoothly without your leadership onsite, you will need to make sure that systems are in place. This should include procedures for all of the day-to-day operations of the business. It should also include procedures for the out of the ordinary events that could arise.

2. Employee Roles and Responsibilities. There should be no doubt as to what each worker and employee is responsible for. This way, there will be no confusion while you are gone. As long as you take the time to make your employees clear on all of their responsibilities, then you will be able to rest easy knowing that everything will be done.

3. Quality Leadership. One of the best ways to make sure everything runs smoothly for your business while you are gone is to hire the kind of management and leadership that is sure to protect your company. When you choose people to be in leadership positions for your business, make sure they are responsible and effective.

4. A Clear Business Direction. Your employees will work better and more smoothly when your business has a vision or a direction. Your employees will know what they are working toward, and they will work more effectively. If they have no idea the mission or the vision of your business, then they will feel confused or conflicted.

Remember that you cannot always be at your business. If you want any sort of a personal life, you will have to be willing to leave your business in the hands of your employees. However, you will want to leave it in a way that it will operate smoothly and successfully. Make sure to consider the above four areas to prepare your company for your absences.

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Vendors, just like businesses, can feel the effects of a recession. Unfortunately, vendors try to offset slowing sales by raising prices. This can create a vicious circle since sellers will quickly search for other vendors or stop buying as much when the prices are raised. Eventually, the relationship between seller and vendor can quickly break down.

When you have a solid set of vendors who provide you with the products you most need, then you do not want to lose the relationship you have with them. You will need to take steps to nurture the professional relationship when a recession hits.

The first thing you will need to do is recognize that your vendor is having a hard time too. Often, small business owners become angry with their vendors, feeling that the companies raised prices out of greed during the worst time for the small business. Remember that your vendors are trying to stay afloat too. Keeping in mind that it is not about greed, it is about getting by. This will help you to be more patient with your vendors.

Next, draw upon the relationship you have. Many vendors will work with their customers when those customers have been in good standing with them. Do not be afraid to talk with your representative about alternative options or ways to obtain discounts. Give the vendor a chance, and you may be surprised with the results.

If all else fails, shop around for a new vendor. Save this as a last resort, though since all the vendors will be dealing with the effects of the recession. Try not to switch vendors, because building a company and vendor relationship is vital to the long-term health of the business. If you have to, look for vendors who have a good reputation.

Your professional relationship with a vendor can survive the recession. The key is to understand that the vendor is doing the best they can. In addition, remember that you can work with your vendor, and it does not hurt to inquire about the possibilities.

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When you connect with your inner source of inspiration, you will find the answer to how you can best serve your purpose. Your journey to realizing your purpose will have provided you with ways to connect with others. Your own life experiences can help you help others. 

If you have experienced limiting beliefs—self-doubt, a sense of not being good enough—or if you have experienced the effects of trying to fit in and trying to conform or always trying to earn love or respect by trying to please others, you already have the tools you need to help others recognize their own value and feel the power of self-love and self-acceptance. If you are living your purpose, you will always be able to serve, and even difficult circumstances can help you serve better.

This is an excerpt from my new book, Sole to Soul: How To Identify Your Soul Purpose and Monetize It, which is available now!  To download a free chapter and order, please click here.

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You have invested so much of your time, your money, and your life into your small business. You are most likely quite proud of your company and you most likely feel about your business as if it is an integral part of your life. Since you business provides you with a means to provide in turn for you family, it is in fact, integral.

Have you taken the time to prepare for crisis? Too often, people prefer to avoid thinking about negative possibilities and instead focus on the good things. However, as a small business owner, you do not have this luxury. You have to think about the negatives so that you can prepare your company for whatever may come your way.

Below, you will find five tips for managing crises. When you go ahead and learn ways to manage a crisis, you life will be much easier when a crisis comes along.

1. Have you ever heard the saying that the first step to anything is preparation? This holds true for crisis management as well. You will need to go ahead and prepare your business for crisis. This includes having crisis procedures already in place. These procedures should cover any type of crisis that you can think of so that you will not have to worry about deciding what to do when a crisis comes along.

2. Educate your employees on crisis management and procedures. Your employees should be ready and prepared so that they will know their place and their responsibilities when crisis happens. For example, in the event of a fire, each employee should know an exit procedure and how to handle removing customers from the scene as well as to who to call and where to go.

3. One way to take away the stress of phone calls during crisis is to make use of an answering service. This service is helpful during normal times since customers can call in after hours, but it can be vital during times of crisis. If you business has to be closed, you could lose customers if they cannot reach anyone. An answering service could solve this problem.

4. Make sure that your business is properly insured. Pay special attention to adding on policies that would cover non-standard issues, like sewage backup and earthquake. Some insurance policies do not cover flooding, so make sure to check your information carefully.

5. Know that a crisis will happen. Do not live your life in fear of a crisis, but understand that something will most likely happen at some time in your business' life. Being aware will help you keep from being caught totally off-guard when the bad things happen.

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Walt Disney was an inspired businessman. His vision was to build a magical place where adults and children could have fun together. His unique creative gifts became gifts to the universe.

“Disneyland is a work of love. We didn’t go into Disneyland just with the idea of making money.” – Walt Disney

In 1886 the curiosity of John Pemberton led to the creation of the now globally recognized drink, Coca-Cola®. As the business grew and the brand developed, an inspired purpose evolved.

This is an excerpt from my new book, Sole to Soul: How To Identify Your Soul Purpose and Monetize It, which is available now!  To download a free chapter and order, please click here.

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Part of being a business owner is hiring quality managers and being a good manager yourself. However, many people do not truly understand the qualities of a good manager. In order to hire the best, you have to know what is the best. You also need to know what to look for.

Do you know what it takes to be a manager? Here, you will find information on the characteristics or traits that make up a good manager. You may want to evaluate yourself and your current managers by this information. That way, you can make any necessary changes to ensure that you and your managers exhibit quality and professionalism.

1. High standards. A manager should have a very strong idea with what is right and wrong in the business world. In order to be a good manager, a person must be able to look at any situation and then make decisions based on what is right.

These standards should have to do with business practices as well as the work of the employees who work below the manager. High standards should be very important in the management world.

2. Strong Work Ethics. Anyone with a weak work ethic may look at a management status as a chance to not work hard or goof off. This could be detrimental to your business, and it certainly will not project the right image to your customers and business peers.

Make sure to choose managers who have continually exhibited a strong work ethic no matter where they were working. These people will continue that ethic in their new jobs.

3. Professionalism. A manager has many responsibilities. They will need to be able to handle whatever may come their way in a calm and professional manner. This could include conflicts between employees, customer dissatisfaction, dealings with difficult vendors, and more. Professionalism is very important in managers. If you see any of your managers exhibit unprofessional behavior, make sure to address it immediately so that the behavior does not continue.

4. Understanding. A manager is in a precarious situation. In a way, they live in both worlds, working between the owner and the workers. A manager needs to be able to understand both of these worlds. While they should be able to see the ultimate goals and visions that the owner has for the business, they also need to be able to see things from the perspective of the employees.

As you can see, there are a certain set of traits that any quality manager will exhibit. If you see that one of your managers is not exhibiting a trait, make sure to work with them so that they can improve.

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Changes can be difficult for a small business to weather. This could include changes within the economy, changes to customer bases, or even changes of locale. Whatever the types of change you may be facing, you could benefit by getting the help of a business advisor or consultant.

What is a business advisor? These people are professionals who are highly experienced with all the aspects of running a small company. They will be able to serve as consultants and help you through changing your business.

They will be able to evaluate the areas of your business that need work and then give you advice on how to correct the problems. This will mean that your small business can make it through the change and come out the better for it.

How can I use a business advisor? Obviously, change is a tumultuous time for any small business. You may not have ever experienced such a time, and you may not have the knowledge or tools to put together a proper plan of action. If you do not handle the change properly, your business could suffer or even go under.

A business advisor will have the knowledge to give you information and advice on how to handle the various aspects of the change. A business advisor has been trained and has had the experience to prepare your company for any type of things that could happen.

Why do I need to prepare for things? Change is change, right? This is a bad way to look at change. Unfortunately, many, many unexpected things can happen when your business goes through change. Some of these unexpected things can be detrimental. These types of things cannot be handled on the fly.

You cannot get through these instances without having some type of plan of action. You cannot create the plan of action without the help of a professional. Choosing a small business advisor or coach to help you make procedures and plans of action will make your business ready for anything unexpected.

Won't I be spending too much money to hire an advisor? You will have to spend money in order to find a quality small business advisor. However, you have to weigh your options. If you do not spend the money on a consultant and your business ends up closing because you were not properly prepared for change, then you will have lost everything. Often, the cost spent is far outweighed by the consequences.

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Have you ever been around someone who makes you feel like you can accomplish anything? Have you been around someone whose presence drains your inspiration? If you have ever been in either of these circumstances, you know the impact that the company you keep can have on your ability to fulfill your soul purpose. No inspiration, no soul purpose. Your inspiration does not depend on others, but there is no faster way to snuff it out than by including uninspired and negative people in your circle of daily experience.

This is an excerpt from my new book, Sole to Soul: How To Identify Your Soul Purpose and Monetize It, which is available now!  To download a free chapter and order, please click here.

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When a recession begins to hit the economy of your area, then you most likely will immediately begin looking for ways to save money. When your customer base begins to slow, you will need to cut costs so that you can continue keeping a good amount of revenue. One of your first instincts may be to cut money in your marketing department. However, you must think twice before you do this.

Consider the marketing for a business like a cycle. You market and you catch attention. Then, people visit your business and you gain revenue. You then use that revenue to pay for even better marketing. While this cycle works well during a good economy, it can very quickly break down when you cut out one of the steps.

Consider this: if you cut marketing out of your budget, then you will not gain the attention of potential customers. Your revenue will suffer, and you could quickly realize that you are actually losing money. Eventually, your business will fail.

Marketing becomes even more important in times of recession. You may find that your business loses some of its loyal customers when consumers begin to tighten their own spending. Finding new customers will become even more difficult since everyone will be avoiding spending as much. You will have to work harder to bring in customers.

When you find that you need to cut expenses from your company, look everywhere else possible before you cut anything from marketing. In fact, any extra funding you can put toward promotion will help you even more.

Two things happen when you do not market your company. No one will know who you are. If no one sees your company name, they will not even be given the chance to become your customer. You are taking away the opportunity to find new business before the chance even arises. The second thing is that you will lose possible customers since many people feel concerned about doing business with a company that they feel may not be professional.

One thing that makes people have faith in a company is advertisement. When a potential customer looks in the phone book for a company, they do not feel as comfortable leaning toward a business that only includes a phone number. Instead, they will be drawn toward the companies that advertise. A company that puts time and money into marketing presents a much more professional image.

When you are looking for ways to save money, remember that marketing is vital. Without proper promotion of your company, there is a very strong chance that your business will fail.

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