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Business Strategy

Sad News and Wasting Time

by admin on September 28, 2010

I received a sad email today.  A friend of mine has a mother who is sick.  In fact, the initial prognosis was 4-6 weeks.  I hope that this scenario changes.  Can you imagine many things worse than receiving the news that you have 4 weeks to live?  Perhaps there are worse things . . . but I can’t think of any of them now.

As much as this has burdened my heart for her family, it has also made me realize a couple of things: 1. Life’s short.  Enjoy it.  2. This was my year to be committed to several things.  My blog is one of them . . . and I haven’t even taken the time to blog since early August. 

If you are like me (and I am sure that you are), you get busy.  You forget the things that are important.  You neglect your commitments.  And then you hope the new year gets here fast enough so that you can recommit.  I didn’t want to be this type of person this year.

Don’t get me wrong.  I have sold a business and accomplished a couple of my other goals this year.  However, it seems that my grade on my commitments for the year might be a “low B.”  I don’t accept that kind of work.  You shouldn’t either.

This is a great week to re-commit. We are only about 51.5 hours away from the final quarter of the year.  This is the time to redevote yourself to your task. 

How many friends have you reconnected with this year?

How much debt have you paid down this year?

When is the last time you talked to your cousin?

Have you called your mother today?

Sent a postcard to your grandmother?

Let’s get to work and finish 2010 strong.  This is the year that many of us have decided is our turnaround year.  If you haven’t met your spiritual, business or personal goals, there is no better time than now.

Collin Harbour

collinharbour.com


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How Do You Spend Your Time?

by admin on April 6, 2010

I have been somewhat disorganized lately.  Our insurance business has been a little slow, which I think is causing this disorganization.  When I (and others) have too much time on my hands, it is easy to find ways to waste the extra time rather than make it productive.  I have spent the last couple of days re-organizing how I will spend my time.  I read on chrisbrogan.com today, where he is re-drawing how he will spend his time.  It feels nice to be on the page with someone who has put some thought into this process.  To me, it is important to spend a little time thinking about the most productive ways to spend your time.  Due to the speed with which business and work flows can change, it is important to evaluate your time at least once per quarter, if not more often.

Email:

How much time are you spending on email?  I spend a lot of time on email, yet much of that time can be shifted to non-peak business hours.  That is to say, that every email does not need an immediate response.  In fact, many emails don’t need a response within the same business day.  I have decided to make an immediate judgement on emails as they come in and determine whether they need immediate response, or whether I can work them from home at night.  This began today, and I already have a few to respond to this evening.  I think I’ll be okay.

Reading:

It is important to spend some time each day to determine what is going on in your world (local news, profession-specific news, world news).  I sometimes imagine everyone sitting around reading their local newspaper or Wall Street Journal.  Needless to say, times have changed and the consumption of news/information has felt that change.  The problem arises in that the information is so readily available and so vast, that if you don’t watch out, you can spend too much time each day “staying informed”.  If you don’t believe me, log the amount of time you spend each day on the Internet reading news (including sports, entertainment, fashion) and you will probably be amazed at just how much time you are spending. 

Even though the information is readily available, I have decided to carve out a few minutes in the morning, a few in the afternoon, and some wrap up time at night before I go to bed.  I don’t think I will miss anything major.  I do get Washington Post email updates, afterall, so I’m sure I will be informed of any news that would be immediate for me to know.

Business Contacts:

How much time do you spend each day reaching out to potential business partners?  If you spend too much time on non-essential reading and emails, then you are losing valuable contact time.   I like to pick up the phone and contact people.  When I don’t have the time to pick up the phone, I go to Linked In or Biznik and look how my connections are connected to everyone else.  I found a couple of old contacts today and reunited with them.  It was nice to connect.

Take some time and log what you are doing each day.  Is it productive?  Is it wasteful?  Maybe you are better than the rest of us, but if you go through this process at the very least you will confirm your productivity.

CWH

collinharbour.com


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Social Media for Insurance Agencies

March 6, 2010

Over the last few months I have spent a considerable amount of time “enhancing the web presence” of one of my businesses in Texas. Much of this time has been spent on the intricacies of getting our website, www.spinstx.com, to move up in the rankings of the search engines. I have done this by registering with various local search sites, industry specific sites, blogging, updating content, and the list goes on and on. Through this process, I delved more deeply into the “Social Media/Networking” arena and have learned a few things in the process.

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Being at the Right Place at the Right Time

February 23, 2010

I know people who always seem to have good things happen to them.  They always seem to be in the right place at the right time.  I was watching an old re-run of Seinfeld last night and saw a perfect example of this (watch the first minute and a half for the illustration and the whole thing if [...]

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Social Media as a Small Business Strategy

February 18, 2010

Social Media is a big deal. If you don’t believe it, you are living in a dream world. Millions of people flock to social media sites each day. As a small business owner, you need to develop a small business strategy that fits your business, your time and your needs. As a definition of small business, I will focus on companies with 10 or fewer employees here, though I know that small business encompasses a much broader range.

Social Media/Networking is growing exponentially at this time. You’ve heard of Facebook and Twitter and you’ve probably heard of LinkedIn. But have you heard of Plaxo, Ning, Fast Pitch, Merchant Circle or Biznik? I have, and I have spent a vast amount of time in each of these networks. Social Media is a way for you to participate in the conversation related to your interests and industry. It is a way for you to network with others and advertise your business. I have read many places where “social media is free.” Let me dispel that notion immediately. This is not the case as some social media sites require a premium for some of their services. Even so, the dollar cost of social media is essentially nothing for the basic services.

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I’d Rather Die Tomorrow Than Today

January 30, 2010

Would you rather your business die tomorrow than today? My friend, David Armstrong at Pioneer Strategy Group in Dallas, and I were having a conversation one day about our business. We were swapping “business is tough” stories and he commented on a deal they had just landed and he ended the conversation with, I’d rather die tomorrow than today.

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