Dwania Peele, Author at Canadian Small Business Women

Aug 25 2019

Important Announcement

Dwania McLarty- Peele, founder and Executive Director of Canadian Small Business Woman took to social media to apologize after cancelling her scheduled annual Immigrant Women Small Business Expo in Toronto .

A couple of months prior to the scheduled event, Dwania was diagnosed with breast cancer after discovering lumps in her right breast. The tumors have since been removed and she is now undergoing various tests to assess what measures will be taken next. “This decision was made with a heavy heart,” said Dwania Peele. “I wouldn’t host an event if I couldn’t do it at my absolute best. Right now I have to focus on my health and well being.” Ms.Peele is in good spirits stating

“This is out of my control. I am alive, able bodied and I’m spending a great deal of time with my family and friends. I’m not going to say that cancer has changed my life for the better. However; this disease made me far more patient, and gave me yet another cause to fight for.”

Dwania has been in communication to those who have been a part of Canadian Small Business Women throughout the years. She sends her deepest apologies to all the supporters of Canadian Small Business Women for any inconvenience this might cause. She is heart-broken to have to cancel this Expo. She sends her gratitude to participating vendors, sponsors, speakers, special guests, staff, attendees, and those who’ve helped behind the scenes with putting this event together.

Candian Small Business Women will continue to operate as a hub for women to support, network, and grow together. Dwania Peele looks forward to a speedy recovery and being back on the conference floor for 2020.

In support of changing the future of Breast Cancer and Breast Cancer Research, Canadian Small Business Women invites you to support CIBC Run For The Cure. We invite you to run or walk with us on October 6th, 2019 in Toronto. With 1 in 8 Canadian women expected to be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, your support matters more than ever.

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Link: https://secure2.convio.net/cco/site/SPageServer?pagename=RFTC_NW_home

Race Location: Toronto
Team Name: October’s Finest Boobs
Fee: $40
Race Date: October 6th, 2019

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Aug 11 2019

9 Ways to Create a Beautiful Instagram Feed

Are you on Instagram for business? Part of your Instagram strategy is to determine the look and feel of your profile. You want to create a cohesive and consistent visual experience for your community that enhances your brand and what it has to offer. This can be challenging because it requires a keen eye and a little planning ahead on your part, but here are 9 tips to help you create the best possible Instagram feed for your brand.

Set your Instagram goals: Why are you even on Instagram? Do you want to create a community of engaged followers? Do you want to sell products? Do you want to educate your followers? The reasons you are on Instagram will drive you to create certain aesthetics on your feed.
Find inspiration from other brands and influencers: There are a number of brands who are killing it on Instagram. If others have found the magic formula, it’s ok to get inspired by them for your own account. If it isn’t brands, make sure you are connecting with and following some of your favourite influencers. Instagram influencers have such strong aesthetics that you can tell who they are immediately.
Get inspired by your surroundings: You don’t want to be something you’re not. For example, if you don’t have a dedicated office and you choose to work in coffee shops, co-working spaces, and at home, you should create an aesthetic that mirrors that. Look out the window, check out the people around you, and try to convey the general feel of your everyday brand through the photos you post on Instagram. It’s easier to work with what you know.
Define your look: Set guidelines for yourself related to the filters you use to edit your images, fonts used for overlays, your colour palette (also known as colour story), shooting perspective, etc. Like you put together your brand guidelines in the beginning to create consistency across channels, you create these guidelines (sometimes called presets) to create consistency on your Instagram feed.
Be flexible: While it’s good to have guidelines to follow, make sure you aren’t being TOO rigid. Remember, there is a beauty to a little spontaneity. Social media is about being social and you need to be driven by feel as much as you are driven by the details.
Plan ahead: Social media should feel spontaneous, but that doesn’t mean you have to sit down each day to think about what to post. You need to think about the bigger picture and create a content strategy that will drive your activity each day. If you plan at least a week ahead with your posts, you can focus on engaging directly with your followers more organically each day.
Create a library of images: This is about more than just planning ahead, it’s about working smarter, not harder. You should consider creating a library of images you can choose from. Most people do this to get images to use in marketing materials and on their website. But you have to think beyond those channels and apply the same process to your social media. If you put together a month’s worth of images in one photo shoot, you can easily plan out your colour story by coordinating outfit changes, backgrounds, lighting, etc.
Use Instagram stories for spontaneous moments: Instagram stories provide a unique opportunity to showcase the day-to-day life of your brand as well as live events and your product/service offerings. Be sure to create highlights of your best Instagram stories to keep that content living on your profile permanently.
Invest in photography: Consider hiring a professional photographer to help you get the look and feel you want for your Instagram feed. Taking photos for social media might seem easy – your cousin’s son’s friend does it all the time! But when it comes to carefully curating your brand’s social media, you want to take extra care to present a cohesive look that helps to connect people to your brand in a meaningful way.

Creating the perfect Instagram feed for your brand profile can be challenging, but if you approach it in the right way you can have a lot of fun with it.

Candace Huntly is Founding Partner at SongBird Marketing Communications, an award-winning agency working to take organizational and individual brands to the next level. With a passion for all things related to creativity and strategy, she specializes in business intelligence, marketing & branding, content strategy & development, media & influencer relations, and social media. Basically, if you need to put your brand, product, or cause in the public eye, she will find a way to do it, while making the approach unique to you.

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A version of this article was originally posted to the SongBird Marketing Communications blog.

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Aug 01 2019

PERSEVERANCE

What makes someone an effective entrepreneur? I found one piece of the puzzle in an unlikely place recently: a series of airports.

THE DEPARTURE, DAY ONE

My beloved niece was getting married in Philadelphia, and I was flying direct from Ottawa. Unfortunately, the day of the flight there was a huge thunderstorm, in Philadelphia, bordering on a hurricane, and when I arrived early for my flight on Thursday, I was told the plane was delayed because we wouldn’t be able to land in Philadelphia.

Hours later, the storm moved out of Philadelphia and we boarded the plane. But by the time we were on the tarmac, there was a thunderstorm in Ottawa. We were told not to worry, as the tires were rubber, but it was genuinely terrifying to be sitting in a metal capsule surrounded by lightning. Of course, the ground crew couldn’t work during those conditions, and they waited until the final drops of rain had stopped. Finally, we could be on our way! Except…by then a second wave of the enormous almost-hurricane had hit Philadelphia, so even though Ottawa was clear, we couldn’t fly out.

We were deplaned and told us to see if we could be rerouted. I went to join the very long line at the counter; it was by now the end of the day, and there was not a single flight left to be found leaving Ottawa, Montreal, or Toronto the next day, Friday. There was a rehearsal dinner on Friday and the wedding itself was on Saturday, and we really, really wanted to make it—but it wasn’t looking good.

To make matters worse, my son had taken an indirect flight on Thursday, stopping in Toronto. His flight couldn’t get to Philadelphia either, and he couldn’t get back to Ottawa on the airline he’d taken to Toronto, so he changed airlines, retrieved all his luggage, and finally flew back to Ottawa at 2 a.m., two hours after I did. We’d each spent twelve hours on fruitless “travel” and we were exhausted.

The airline agent told us that if we could get to Watertown, New York, we could get a flight to Philadelphia on Friday. So I started calling around to find transportation to Watertown. We couldn’t rent a car in Canada and leave it in the US (we were still flying back from Philadelphia), and we couldn’t get a bus. I couldn’t figure out how I’d get my car back if I took my own. Eventually a friend of a friend of a friend who was a taxi driver agreed to take us (for $300 Canadian, plus gas. Desperate times!).

THE DEPARTURE, DAY TWO

I texted my son to say I’d pick him up at 7:15 a.m. to catch an 11:00 a.m. flight in Watertown. On Friday, we got to Watertown in pouring rain but no lightning—we were finally on our way! We boarded the plane and started to taxi to the runway when the plane started making a loud clicking, clunking sound. The pilot tells us we have to go back to the airport due to a mechanical problem.

So we headed back to the airport, and I was first in line for rerouting. They told us the mechanic would be there soon and we should leave by 2 p.m., but there were no other flights to Philadelphia that day, and I wasn’t taking any chances! I told the airline to get us in a taxi to Syracuse, and to get us on a flight to Philadelphia from Syracuse. They agreed.

Just before we got the taxi, I looked at the documents the airline has just given me and I realize they didn’t give me a boarding pass. My son jumped out to get us boarding passes. We were about to leave again when I checked and realized they had put me on the wrong flight, so he went back to the airline and got me another boarding pass—for the right flight this time.

THE ARRIVAL!

Two hours later, we were finally at the Airbnb my sister had rented, and had just enough time to shower and get to the rehearsal dinner. The wedding on Saturday was beautiful, and we were both so glad to have made it. Those many hours of travel were worth it!

THE STUBBORNNESS

If it’s tiring to read about, it was absolutely ridiculous to live. I know that most people would’ve given up a long time before I did, and I have been trying to figure out what made me hang in there for so long. What character trait makes someone decide that nothing will stop them from their goal?

My son is a very persistent, self-made businessman doing very well for himself. He’s intelligent and hardworking. And even he was ready to give up entirely on the trip after the first-day debacle. So what’s the difference, what make someone so stubborn that they’ll only move forward?

Knowing when to let go is an important skill, knowing when you’ve learned a lesson and need to stop investing in a project because it’s time to move on. But there are also times when you need to stick with your idea and goal and make something happen no matter what. What’s the difference between the two? When do you stop being stubborn and realize that there’s another path, a better way, and when do you refuse to rest until you’ve reached your goal?

For me, I think it depends on the ultimate goal. In the case of this ridiculous travel adventure, my wonderful niece was having a once-in-a-lifetime occasion, and I wanted desperately to be there with her and the rest of my family.

IF THE GOAL IS BIG ENOUGH, PERSEVERANCE KICKS IN

So maybe if your goal is bigger, if what you aspire to is big, then you will make the sacrifices to get there. If your goal is to change your part of the world and to give opportunities to people or help people become better versions of themselves or help resolve conflict or make sure that art is an agent of transformation in your city or create a business that will make people’s lives easier—if you have that bigger goal—then you will stop at nothing to make it happen.

If the goal is smaller and doesn’t come from a fire in the belly, then it’s easier (and appropriate) to let go.

Right after I started out on the road to entrepreneurship, my husband got extremely sick. I looked at my husband in the ICU, my ten-hear-old son, and my mortgage, and thought hmm, maybe this isn’t the best time to go out on my own. When my old company found out about what had happened, they even offered me my old job back. But I couldn’t ignore the fire in my belly. I had a vision for how I wanted to affect the world, and I knew I had to see it through. With great support at home and with the business, especially from one wonderful sister, I moved forward with my plan. That was 23 years ago and I’ve never regretted it.

WHAT’S YOUR PHILADELPHIA?

Check in with your own belly. What fire burns there? What makes you want to do it no matter what? What makes you come alive when you think about it? Which goal would you persevere to obtain no matter what? Whatever your answer, start doing that.

As Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said, “If your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough.”

What’s the big dream you’d go to absurd lengths to achieve?

And what’s the longest it’s ever taken you to get to somewhere?

https://dominiquedennery.com/perseverance/perseverance/

Dominique Dennery has had her own HR consulting business for over twenty years. She is also an award-winning facilitator, coach, and sculptor.

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Jul 27 2019

Let the Fun Begin

“Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.” –Helen Keller

Let’s face it, when you work alone you have control over every little bitty piece of your information. Now that you’ve hired a virtual assistant (or other support), you have to let go of some of that information. I know it’s hard. It can be really, really, really hard. It’s understandable.

You need to build the trust first. Then it becomes easier. The best advice I can give in this area is to start with one or two small projects that you can give to someone else. Sounds easy, right?

Here are some tips that may help:

Passwords – If you can set up separate login account and passwords for your support person, then do it. If you can’t, use a password manager such as LastPass. This way you can easily share or revoke access.
Your Brand – Be ready to share your brand: your logos, your colour palates, your likes/dislikes. Make sure your new “partner” knows how you like to be represented.
Cloud Storage – Share documents via cloud storage rather than email back and forth. You’ll save yourself lots of emails and time and always have the most recent information at hand. If you’re concerned about access, copy your files into a shared folder on a cloud so that you keep the original files prior to sharing. This way should anything be changed that you don’t like, you have an original back up.
Communicate – Give your VA the time they deserve! Have regular calls where you can discuss the tasks and give them opportunity to ask for clarification.
Be patient – We all need to learn and we all need time to learn.

I have to say that the best support I have given are with the clients that give me their gift of time. You can’t hire someone and then decide you don’t have time for them. Throwing out a project at the last minute isn’t fair to them or you. You won’t get the best support or quality work. Be prepared to spend some good solid hours with your VA.

I stressed in the previous blogs the importance of being prepared well in advance and searching for the right skillset. In doing those two steps prior to hiring, you will be ahead of the game. You will create a mindset of working with someone and it will be a thousand times easier to start the relationship on the right track.

Let the fun begin … and next month we’ll talk about watching the fun grow!

Marianne D’Alessandro

TimeFlies-Admin Services

Marianne D’Alessandro is a virtual assistant and owner of TimeFlies-Admin Services. With over 30+ years as an executive assistant, Marianne works in partnership with her clients. She offers consulting for entrepreneurs looking to hire the right virtual assistant as well as productivity and time-saving workshops. Sign up for monthly Tips & App Features.

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Jul 18 2019

How should you set up your business? Part 3: What is “the Corporation”

In Part 1 and 2 of this series I discussed “the sole proprietorship” and “the partnership” in greater detail. I took a look at the strengths and weaknesses of each business structure, along with various things to consider when deciding which structure is best suited for your business.

In this third and final part of the series, I am going to explore “the corporation” in greater detail. I will discuss what a corporation is, and set out some of its pros and cons that you may want to consider when deciding whether a corporation is a suitable structure for your business.

What is a corporation?

A corporation is an entity that has a separate legal existence from its ‘owners’, the shareholders. A corporation can own property, carry on business and be liable for the obligations that it incurs. A corporation will have three distinct parties: directors, officers and shareholders who will all have different roles and responsibilities within the corporation.

What are the “pros” of a corporation?

A corporation is considered a separate legal entity, which means that a shareholder’s liability is limited through what is referred to as the ‘corporate veil’. If this is compared to a sole proprietorship or partnership, where the business and personal assets of a sole proprietor or partner can be seized to fulfill an obligation, this is an attractive quality of a corporation.
Potential tax perks i.e. the Small Business Deduction (please contact your accountant for further information).

What are the “cons” of a corporation?

Higher initial start- up costs, and more complex set-up procedures.
More cumbersome and expensive to maintain. For example, a corporation is required to file an annual corporate tax return.
The limited liability of shareholders and directors via the ‘corporate veil’ can be penetrated in certain circumstances.

Should you decide that a corporation is the right structure for your business, what are some other things you might want to consider?

Should you incorporate provincially, or federally?
What should be considered when appointing directors and officers to the corporation?

Disclaimer: A solicitor-client relationship is not established by viewing this article and will not be established until confirmed by the solicitor and client in writing. This article is not legal advice but legal information only, and cannot be relied upon for its completeness. If you have specific questions contact a lawyer in your jurisdiction.

Jennifer Wilowski is a lawyer licenced to practice law in the province of Ontario. She is a Partner and co-founder at Anton & Wilowski LLP, a general practice boutique law firm in Mississauga, Ontario. Her main areas of practice include Corporate Law, Real Estate Law, Wills & Estates Law, Civil Litigation and Cannabis Law.

Connect with Jennifer:

Website: https://www.antonwilowski.ca/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-wilowski-183817181/

Jul 13 2019

Hiring Is Like Dating. Do You Need To Up Your Game?

Many employers treat hiring like a blind date, hoping for “love at first sight.” They spend a little bit of time with a candidate. They ask some basic questions, then ask a few more questions as they come to mind. They think they have the job candidate all figured out, so they “propose” and attempt to seal the deal with a job offer. I know that a job offer is not quite the same as making a marriage proposal after one or two dates, so what could go wrong?

A lot can go wrong. A bad hire is almost always costly – it’s just a matter of how much it’s going to cost. A bad hire can have a far-reaching impact on morale, productivity and client relationships. Take a look at this article by Intuit QuickBooks on the costs of bad hiring.

When I work with employers as an HR Consultant, I like to ask them what they’d like their next employee to bring to the job and what things the right employee can learn on the job. I call this the “Bring vs. Learn Concept.”

When considering the fit between the position and a potential hire, it makes the most sense to look at what can be learned on the job and what an employee needs to bring to the job on day one. This one concept can help you focus on the right things when interviewing and comparing job applicants.

Many jobs require specific knowledge from day one — education and training and other types of credentials. Nobody, to use one of my favourite examples, wants their dentist to be learning how to fix teeth on the job. They need to have adequate training and competence before they start to work.

Soft skills are often hard to improve or develop. For example, emotional intelligence, interpersonal skills, tact, judgment are very hard to teach. Soft skills are the things that great job candidates should bring with them into the job because they are so much harder to develop. They are also hardest to determine from a typical interview. Just like during a date, both sides are putting on a bit of a show for the person across the table. How can you drill down, and find out who a person really is, when he or she is doing everything possible to make sure you can’t?

It’s important to hire well and cost-effectively. If you know someone who has learned the hard way or wants to avoid learning the hard way, consider a new approach to hiring. By using Industrial/Organizational Psychology principles and techniques, I have created some very effective screening tools that allow me to assess behaviour as it relates to work. I/O Psychology is also known as business psychology or work psychology. As an I/O psychologist, I have access to the best practices and processes that are also used in some of the world’s most successful companies and by I/O psychologists who share their applied research findings.

Do you need help navigating the world of human resources and work? Contact Dr. Helen today for a free and confidential initial consultation by phone, email, or via direct message on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. She can develop interview questions and/or simulations to determine which job applicants have the essentials to hit the ground running, and are capable of learning the rest after they start.

In some situations, when you don’t need a full hour, especially when it’s urgent information-by-the-minute via the Magnifi app is a very practical option.

Have you ever wished you could get inside the head of a hiring manager? You can. Dr. Helen Ofosu is a Career Coach/Counsellor with a difference. She has worked for organizations to create hiring and screening tools. She’s created countless pre-screening tests, interviews, simulations, and role plays for organizations of all kinds.

Dr. Helen’s training in Industrial and Organizational (I/O) Psychology means she is a genuine expert in evaluating work-related behaviours. She uses those skills to help hiring managers tell the difference between people who say the right things during interviews and people who actually deliver on the job. In other words, Dr. Helen understands first-hand how job candidates are assessed.

More than career coaching, it’s career psychology®.

I/O Advisory Services – Building Resilient Careers and Organizations.

Jul 11 2019

8 Ways to Get More Instagram Followers

There is no short cut to getting more Instagram followers. While there are companies out there that say they can guarantee to get you your first 1,000 followers – or 10,000 or whatever the number is – chances are they are buying followers. While you might think it’s ok to boost your numbers in the beginning because it adds credibility, you need to give your target audience more credit. They will know your followers are fake. And what is the point in building a marketing strategy if you aren’t going to engage with real customers? You can have a million followers, but little to no engagement.

So how do you grow your Instagram following to connect with even a fraction of the over 500 million daily active Instagram users? And what should your goals be when it comes to getting Instagram followers?

Here are 8 tips to help you get more Instagram followers the right way.

USE HASHTAGS – IN THE RIGHT WAYS

Hashtags are an incredible tool to help you find and connect with your target audience – not to spam them with a long list of the same hashtags on each post. There are a few ways you can use hashtags to grow your Instagram following.

Use popular hashtags to join in on existing dialogue. Your target audience likely already engages with specific hashtags from competitors and other general Instagram accounts. They also use the search function to seek out new content. Using hashtags that they are already using makes it easier to find your content.
Create a dedicated hashtag for your brand so your audience can follow and track your content. Make sure you don’t just use it on Instagram because no one will know it’s there! Promote it across all of your marketing channels – digital and otherwise.

MAKE SURE PEOPLE RECOGNIZE YOU

Instagram allows you to play around with the visual identity of your brand. This goes beyond your logo and branding. You also need to think about how your Instagram profile looks. To create a recognizable visual identity on Instagram, you should consider your overall themes, colours, and fonts. Your profile should be carefully curated when it comes to both style and content. And don’t forget that you can and should also brand everything you create.

SET UP YOUR PROFILE PROPERLY

A well-set up social media profile can make the difference between success and failure. Two features worth mentioning are your Instagram bio and making sure you write a great one that will allow you to be found. The other thing you should consider is changing up your profile URL – give people a reason to go to your IG profile page – and your website. One way you can do this is to post blogs regularly and include a post with a call to action that send people to read your blog.

FOCUS ON CONTENT

Your Instagram content doesn’t have to be overly produced, but it does need to be quality content. This means producing visuals that aren’t pixelated, are on brand and branded, provide value, etc. Even more, to get more Instagram followers your content needs to appeal to your target audience – which means you need to figure out what they like. If they like your content, they will follow you to see more.

BE SOCIAL

Social media should be social. If you are looking to get more Instagram followers like and comment on other brand and user content and follow other people. Instagram users are more likely to follow you if you follow them – it’s been proven. Try to follow people that would be part of your target audience. You can do this by looking at the types of accounts they follow and checking out the engagement on other content.

GET TO KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

Post and engage when your audience is on Instagram. You can figure this out if you have a business profile by looking at your Instagram analytics. If you don’t have a business profile, it will take some trial and error, but you can also consider when your competitors post their content and how engaged their followers are. If that doesn’t work, then you can use good old trial and error, but make sure you track when and what you are posting.

If you already have followers on Instagram, don’t be afraid to ask them what they want to see from you.

Lastly, consider creating a strategy to reach your target audience that is hyper local by using geotagging on your posts. Your content will be more visible to those that are local to you.

COLLABORATE WITH INFLUENCERS

A great way to expand your reach on Instagram if you don’t yet have a lot of followers (of if you do have a good number of followers and you just want more) is to engage Influencers as part of your strategy. This allows you to amplify your reach through their community of followers.

INCLUDE CALLS TO ACTION

Calls to action are one of the most important things to include in any of your marketing tactics. If you want more followers, ask people to follow you! Ask them to visit your profile. Tell them what you want from them so it creates a path of least resistance.

It can sometimes feel like you are screaming into a giant content vacuum on social media. And when you spend the time to create great visuals on Instagram you want them to be found by an engaged audience who will become customers. Getting more Instagram followers isn’t necessarily easy – it takes hard work and dedication – but it is doable.

Connect with Candace

Sign up for our free 20-minute consultation and we’ll help you figure things out.

A version of this article was originally posted to the SongBird Marketing Communications blog.

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Jul 04 2019

A Guide to Creating a Burnout-Proof Lifestyle for Entrepreneurs

We are all super human! We leverage technology, people, resources and time to design, create and amass wealth. We conquer our goals and live our dreams. But do we really? If we are truly super human why are we burning out? Over the last decade, burnout among employees and yes, entrepreneurs too, have been on the rise. In the Forbes article ‘How Can We Stop Entrepreneurs From Burning Out?’, Maiko Schaffrath highlights that 72% of entrepreneurs report mental health concerns and founders are 30% more likely to experience depression than another member of the public. Are you still aiming to be super human? It is becoming increasingly more important for entrepreneurs to create a lifestyle that allows them to create impact in all areas of their lives…without burnout.

Alison’s Story

Alison pre-dates over-working to early 2008. She was at the tipping point of her career at the height of the recession. She was working as a retail manager and her team was cut by 30%. At that time, she felt so blessed to have a job, that she started making up for her absent team. She did her job, plus that of a visual merchandiser, human resources, inventory control and cashier. She was committed to having her store continue to perform out of fear of losing her job. Before she knew it, 55-hour work weeks became the norm. As her career grew the more she worked, choosing her career over her personal life, going to the gym and even close relationships.

Now fast forward to 2019, she was so used to working 55+ hours a week, one day at her desk she recounts feeling a little “off”. She felt really dizzy, but kept pushing, when all the signs said stop. The truth was she didn’t know how to stop even if she wanted to. Shortly after, she woke up on the floor, with only the memory of getting a glass of water. She was rushed to the emergency room, with dangerously low hemoglobin levels. Her female physician shared with her that her experience was not uncommon. In fact it was a common trait that she recognized among women. That life changing experience led Alison to truly understand that sacrificing her health was just not worth it. Since then she started making conscious lifestyle changes to put herself first. She now has a hard stop at the end of the day, doesn’t work weekends unless it is necessary (only a few things fall in that category), and don’t check email after 6pm. The new Alison now says, “I make time for me; I still love my job and it is very important to me, but not as much as my health.”

As an entrepreneur myself, I am no stranger to burnout. I am a wife, mother and business owner. Those are three full time jobs that despite the best attempt at balance, it all fell apart. I was working 16+ hour days with very little sleep, a racing mind and very little time for family, friends and non-business related activities. Selfcare? What was that? For several months I had gone without even a quiet hot chocolate moment. Some days I felt like I was crushing it. Other days, it was crushing me. Then it did! I was burnt out. One Friday afternoon my body put up an unstoppable and undeniable sign of protest and I was wiped out for three days. I thought I was superwoman, with all my workflows and technological efficiencies. I had a system for everything…except preventing burnout.

Why do so many entrepreneurs, especially female entrepreneurs burn out? I believe it is a combination of not being in tune with our bodies and our inability to create a lifestyle with an effective work-life blend. When you are able to listen to your body and understand when it reaches thresholds, you can start creating a lifestyle that incorporates your body’s needs as well as those of your business.

Here are 3 of my most recommended tips to entrepreneurs to create a burnout-free lifestyle:

Create Blend vs Balance

Photo: www.pexel.com

All your life you have probably heard about work-life balance. The truth is you cannot truly separate the two to create separate entities to achieve balance. They are all blended together. As such, creating a blend is much more realistic, achievable and effective. Instead of trying to work 8 hours on your business and spend 8 hours with your family, look for opportunities to create a blend that helps you achieve all your goals. For example, if you are completing client follow ups, you may opt to do that while your child is taking a nap so you can be available for story or movie time when they wake up. Or perhaps you will create a work calendar and schedule that you share with you partner with a mix of morning and evening availability to meet your client’s needs, but also make time for a couples breakfast once each week.

Creating a blended lifestyle starts with identifying what matters most and creating ways to infuse them into your schedule in a practical and effective way. What step can you take today to start creating your work-life blend?

Signs to Delegate vs Danger

Photo: www.pexel.com

As an entrepreneur it can be hard to delegate. And that may be true for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you are not able to make the time to train someone, lack of resources or perhaps no one will quite do it the way you need it done. While no one will care for your business the way you do, as your business grows and demands increase, without delegation, you get closer and closer to the danger zone. Delegation does not mean abandonment. Delegation can start with small steps or tasks. For example, you could consider delegating your social media posts and automations, delegating the building of workflows and software processes that you are not an expert in or opting to partner with aligned affiliates to increase lead generation versus marathon networking.

When you are able to delegate you are truly shifting from a business manager to a business owner. You are allowing yourself to take a step back, breathe, focus on the big picture and hold your delegates accountable. What tasks can you delegate today to avoid approaching the danger-zone of burnout?

Focus on Health vs Wealth

Photo: www.pexel.com

Don’t be like the famous artistes whose music and memorabilia became million dollar items after they die. While your heirs may benefit, nothing will replace your presence. Buddha’s great words reminds us “To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.” As entrepreneurs creating a lifestyle that allows us to focus, be present and include self-care is critical to business continuity and to service our clients. We are reminded by Reba McEntire that “All the money in the world can’t buy you back good health.” Unlike our wealth that we can potentially recover, our health once gone will never return to where it was. In fact, the healthier we are the more vibrant, productive, efficient and yes, wealthier we can become.

To create wealth, you need your health. What changes can you make today to increase your focus on your health?

The entrepreneur lifestyle is often glorified with pictures of people on a beach, working from luxurious offices and enjoying a vibrant and blissful social life. No glimmer or hint of burnout anywhere. The truth of entrepreneurship doesn’t have to be far from that, depending on the ideal lifestyle you envision and create for yourself. You can start by designing a lifestyle that creates blend versus balance, prioritizes delegation before reaching your danger zone and focuses on maintaining your health to create wealth.

Aldeen Simmonds-Thorpe featuring Alison Hemmings

Chief HR Transformation Officer and Coach at Aldeen Simmonds-Thorpe Consulting

Aldeen Simmonds-Thorpe is a HR Transformation Strategist, Speaker and Coach helping professionals and businesses to navigate and solve complex business and people problems enabling them to adapt, compete and thrive. She is a trusted Advisor and Coach to entrepreneurs and business owners helping them build sustainable businesses through community.

Alison Hemmings – Hemmings Consulting

Alison Hemmings is a heart-centered Career Coach, former Headhunter and founder of the ‘Happy Work Project’ helping professionals find and land their ideal jobs while creating a work-life blend that creates true happiness.

LinkedIn (Alison Hemmings): https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisonhemmings/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aldeen-simmonds-thorpe/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/aldeen_sim

Website: https://www.aldeenst.com/

Jul 01 2019

Why Boredom Could Be Good For You!

If someone had told me when I was eight years old that one day I’d make myself bored on purpose, I’d have laughed at them. I could never understand why my mother always said that being bored is good for you.

When I came of age, though, I saw how easily I could fill my life with activities and never take time to see if I was happy with my direction or needed a change, whether I was even living my life for myself. The more activities, the fuller my schedule, the less bored I was—which often meant less space for reflection.

Busy-ness is seductive, particularly for those of us who are entrepreneurs at heart. Being on the go, always networking, keeping up with social media, always doing one more project to promote your services, developing one more idea for your clients, completing one more task…these seductions are all wonderful distractions from our lives.

I used to think my life was these activities. Certainly I’ve grown through all the things that keep me busy; I’ve loved travelling, working on exciting new projects, and engaging with creative endeavours. But the trouble is that whenever I’m very busy, my activities start driving my life rather than augmenting it. And once I lose control of the steering wheel, it’s easy for other people (customers, family members, partners) to start driving my agenda with their own demands and activities—I no longer have a way north.

The solution hasn’t been, for me, to quit everything. I love the things that fill my calendar too much to leave them behind entirely. But I have started actually courting boredom. I work to regularly keep my schedule open for a few evenings in a row—no meetings, no dinner dates, no art openings, no nothing. I don’t turn on the smart TV; I leave my laptop and phone closed. I don’t even pick up a book. And then I wait. I listen. I watch: What happens? What comes to mind when I allow my thoughts the space to wander?

The most amazing things pop up; I recently found myself having a conversation with me as I will be a decade from now. I asked my 2030 self whether she’s happy, and what I need to do to ensure her life is how she wants it. (Career coaches need to have these conversations with ourselves so we can help our clients do the same!)

Other thoughts visit me too—things like, “Hey, wasn’t I supposed to start writing a book? What was the chapter I left and never came back to?” And also, “I have these ideas I keep working over for going international, and it might be good for me to write them out.” I wonder about people I used to know, reflect on articles I have read, remember I must reach out to a friend who looked unwell last time I saw her.

When my daily life is rushed, I just never get around to thinking these thoughts. It’s only in moments of boredom, of inactivity, of silence, that these things drift into my consciousness again.

Whether we act right away on our quiet reflections or choose not to, we can start taking control over our schedules and our lives. We can say no to activities, choosing only the ones that bring us joy. Once we’re comfortable with the idea of being bored occasionally, we can be more at peace, and don’t have to keep busy in order to avoid our own company.

Do you also cultivate occasional boredom, and benefit from the insights and reflection it brings? Has that quietness brought up any big thoughts for your business lately? Or do you chafe just at the thought of being bored? I would love to hear about your own relationship with boredom—whether you make time for it, what it offers you, and how it affects your life.

A version of this blog was originally published on www.dominiquedennery.com

Dominique Dennery has had her own HR consulting business for over twenty years. She is also an award-winning facilitator, coach, and sculptor.

Connect with Dominique

http://dominiquedennery.com/

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Jun 27 2019

Spice Up the Search

Tell me what you want, what you really really want! In the infamous words of the Spice Girls – what do you really want? You want to save time, you need some help, you need to outsource, you need a virtual assistant. Let’s drill a little deeper.

Knowing what you want is a key component to hiring the right person. Throughout your planning process, you have defined the tasks that you want or need help with. It’s time to think about the skills and attributes that person needs to have.

Make a list of the soft skills that you would like. We certainly all want to work with someone who is trustworthy, professional, caring, detail oriented. But what other qualities do you want? Ask yourself:

Do they need to make decisions on my behalf?
Do I want them to be self-starters?
Are they idea generators?
Can they handle conflict?
Do you need creativity?

It is said that we need to hire for our weaknesses. Are there areas that you would like someone to help you strengthen? Personalities and strengths are all different so you need to decide what the right fit for you is.

Make a list of the hard skills that are required. Most likely, they are technical but there are other skills as well.

What software programs are you using?
Do you need in-depth tech support (server or connectivity)?
Do you need a sales expert – cold calling?
Do they need to be experienced in project management or event planning?
Should they be fluent in another language?

These lists will help you narrow down the right candidates. A job description or posting is a great idea. You can take the answers from the two areas above, add in the tasks that you’ve defined, and easily create the description or posting. Then when you start searching, you have something concrete to find the best person for the job!

Hiring the right person starts the partnership off on the right foot, saves you time and money, and leads to a successful start.

Okay, let me hear you … What is it that you want … what you really really want?

Marianne D’Alessandro

TimeFlies-Admin Services

www.timeflies-adminservices.ca

www.facebook.com/TimeFliesAdminServices/

www.instagram.com/timeflies_adminservices/

Jun 24 2019

WHY video! Or rather why you need a WHY video.

The WHY is the purpose, cause or belief that drives every one of us.

You created your business because of a passion, or maybe it’s your background from years of employment. Whatever the reason, your business was created because it is about you.

That is why is so important that your create YOUR WHY video.

There are two reasons why a WHY video is effective. The first is the emotional side of who you are which, I will explain in this blog. The second reason is the scientific side of how it helps you rank better on google. That you can find in my next blog.

We all know that people make decisions based on emotion. You buy a dress because it makes you feel and look amazing. You buy a vehicle because you like the way it handles or you know it will impress people. Whatever your reasons, most of your decisions to buy something whether it’s a service or a product you purchase it because there is an emotional attachment to it.

So a Why video helps your potential client or customer make better decisions about you and what you have to offer. Put yourself for a moment, in their shoes. If you were looking for someone that offered what you offer, what would you want them to have? Do they have a similar personality? Do they have anything in common with you? IE: love cats, dogs, horses or what about their demographics do they align with yours?

Now step back and think about why you are doing this business. If you say for the money then you got this already figured out. No, honestly why do you do what you do?

Ask yourself the following questions:

Why did you start your business?
Is your business based on your passion?
What do you love doing on a day off?
What inspires you?
Does your business solve someone’s problem?
What is your WHY? This is probably the hardest question to answer so dig deep.

You can get as personal as you want there is no right or wrong. But when you answer think like a customer or client.

Now think about each of these questions and jot down some ideas or notes that answer them. This is the framework for your why video.

Once you have an outline you are ready to think about the story board for this video. Will it include photos of you as child, a cute cat picture, and your adventures in Europe etc. Only you can decide on what you want to put into this video. Will it be a caricature or just words and music?

Just remember, the reason to create this why video is because your business provides someone with the answer to their problem.

Just like this blog, I am writing it because you have a problem and I am helping you solve that problem.

Why videos make you an expert in your field. They are raw, passionate and the unscripted. They reveal who you are and why you do what you do.

A lot of times, people will look at a business and wonder how one gets into that line of work. For example why do videography instead of photography or the other way around.

My why would explain that I choose videos (moving pictures) over still pictures because I love action shots? I love the look of something moving? Photos have their place, but sometimes a video can say more than a photo. For example a wedding videos brings people to life. They show raw emotions and can be more powerful than a photo, especially if the person has passed. The video captures their voice and movements, helping the viewer hold onto that memory.

So what’ holding you back? Are you ready to make your why video?

RaDeana Montgomery is A MULTI-DIVERSE COMMUNICATOR with a specialty in: TELEVISION PRODUCTION, SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT, PUBLIC RELATIONS and WRITING

Montgomery, is the Creative Director of RAM Media Video and Social Media Management. She is a creative, highly organized business professional, who has acquired over 20 years’ experience in Journalism, Broadcast and Video Production, Public Relations as well as 10 years’ experience in Social Media Management.

You can find her on social on Facebook @rammediavideo.ca Instagram @ram_media_video Youtube www.youtube.com/ RAMMediaProductions1

Website www.rammediavideo.ca

Jun 18 2019

How should you set up your business? Part 2: What is “the Partnership”

In Part 1 of this series, I briefly discussed the three ways that a business can be structured (sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation). I then took a closer look at the sole proprietorship in greater detail and set out some of its strengths and weaknesses.

In this second part of this series, I am going to further explore “the partnership”. I will discuss what constitutes a partnership, as well as set out some of the pros and cons of a partnership that you may want to consider when deciding whether a partnership is the right structure for your business.

A partnership is constituted when two or more individuals carry on business together with a view to profit. There are three types of partnerships currently recognized in Ontario, those being:

General Partnerships (GP);
Limited Partnerships (LP); and
Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP).

What is the difference between these three types of partnerships?

In a general partnership, each partner’s liability for the obligations of the partnership is unlimited, whereas in a limited partnership that liability may be limited to the amount that the partner has contributed to the business. A limited liability partnership is a cross between a general partnership and a limited partnership; each partner is only liable for their own negligence.

What are the “pros” of a partnership?

Initial start-up costs are low.
Fairly simple way to set up your business with few legal formalities.
You can share in the responsibility of running the partnership business while maintaining limited liability in limited partnerships and limited liability partnerships.
The business’ capital losses can be used to offset the business’ capital gains (please contact your accountant for further information).

What are the “cons” of a partnership?

Your business is not its own legal entity. Thus, the business and personal assets of a partner may be seized to satisfy a liability of the partnership. For example, if you own real property i.e. a house, and your business has incurred debt, your house can be seized to fulfill that business debt obligation.
There is a risk of conflict amongst the partners regarding the management of the business itself.

Should you decide that a partnership is the right structure for your business, what are some other things you might want to consider?

What terms should you include is your Partnership Agreement?
How should you structure the partnership itself?

Stay tuned for the third and final part of this series where I will explore “the corporation” in further detail.

Connect with Jennifer:

Website: https://www.antonwilowski.ca/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-wilowski-183817181/

Jun 13 2019

The Queen Bee Syndrome – Not Sweet Like Honey …

Over the past few years, there’s been a lot of attention paid to the topic of bad behaviour in the modern workplace. Often, it’s taken the form of sexual harassment of women by men … but according to a recent study, it’s often garden-variety harassment of women by other women. In fact, according to this recent article, two-thirds of women have been bullied by another woman at work. Some of this may be related to the “Queen Bee Syndrome” which is well known among teenage girls, or the movie Mean Girls. Maybe this is a downside of gender equity, women are at least as guilty of bad workplace behaviour as their male counterparts are.

Unfortunately, I’ve seen evidence of female bullies in businesses, government, and non-profit organizations. It is agonizing to live through as the victim – or hear about after the fact. Whatever the context, workplace bullying exists when someone with more privilege and power harasses someone with less privilege and power.

Bad behaviour spreads

This type of bad behaviour is terrible in its own right. What’s even worse is that by accepting this type of incivility and workplace bullying/harassment in an organization it encourages it to spread.

I understand that there are many factors that encourage people to keep quiet or look away in the presence of bullying or harassment. For example, this protects the reputations of the victims who do not want to be labelled as trouble-makers. In other situations, it’s easier for a business owner, leader, or HR person to let the victim give up and leave the organization than it is to reign in the bully/harasser. In other cases, the silence and indifference are mostly about the complicity of the witness(es) who could and should have been better allies. Their silence in the face of harassment and the abuse of power isn’t something to be proud of.

The updated Ontario anti-harassment legislation does offer some guidance and relief to the people who are brave and motivated enough to try to make the workplace safer and fairer

All that glitters is not gold …

Ironically, I have seen situations where a female bully has talked the talk but didn’t walk the walk. For example, a female bully may say things or take positions that make them seem like supporters of gender equality or feminism. For instance, they said the ‘right’ things during the Jian Ghomeshi trial, they attend annual International Women’s Day events, or confess that they have experienced problems associated with the #MeToo movement. It’s extremely disappointing to see those women who outwardly speak of being allies who are fighting to end violence against women perpetrating emotional violence against another woman. It’s also more complicated to hold these women to account because of the mismatch between their words and their actions.

So, in the interest of gender equality, it’s time formen and women to consider doing more to create safe, respectful and inclusive organizations and organizational cultures. Men aren’t the only ones who should be expected to be good organizational citizens. Women should hold other women to that same standard instead of turning away and pretending not to see what’s happening or declining to respond even when they are advised in writing.

Need help dealing with a delicate or high-stakes career or HR issue? I invite you to contact me privately. I offer a free 15 to 20-minute initial consultation by phone. Or, if you prefer, you can contact me by email, or via direct message on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. If something urgent comes up, I’m also available by a voice or video on Magnifi, an expertise-on-demand app.

More than career coaching, it’s career psychology®.

I/O Advisory Services – Building Resilient Careers and Organizations.

Jun 11 2019

10 Marketing tactics that aren’t worth the money…

A great marketing strategy is one of the most important investments you will make for your business. You won’t have customers or a growing loyal community unless people know who you are. Without customers, you won’t have a business at all. We have all heard the saying “you have to spend money to make money,” and this is true when it comes to your marketing strategy. But what should you spend your marketing budget on?

For tactics that are directly tied to sales, it is easier to figure out what your return on investment is, but there are tactics that bring you other benefits that aren’t tied directly to sales such as thought leadership, some forms of content marketing, social media community building, and others that lead to brand awareness and act as tools to help you achieve higher revenues when you use them correctly.

Marketing tactics to avoid

Regardless of what your marketing budget is, you want to make sure you spend your marketing dollars on the right tactics that will move your business in the right direction. There are so many things you could invest in, but here are ten marketing tactics that aren’t worth your money.

A flashy, expensive website: A fancy website might seem like a good idea, but you should never sacrifice function for design. The most important thing on your website is that people can navigate through it properly and that you are providing enough valuable content and a way for them to get in touch with you.
High volume content output: Quality is better than quantity. Blogging once per week with high value content is better than publishing a blog per day with boring content.
Buying social media followers: Buying social media followers is never a good strategy. You would be spending money on something that would likely never turn into revenues. It is better to grow your audience organically, connecting with people who are potential customers and are highly engaged with your content.
Social media ads… without a content strategy: As a marketing tactic, social media ads have become a necessity for certain platforms (we see you Facebook). However, there is no point in spending money on social media ads without making sure that when you send people to your page you have some great content on there for them to read. A content strategy will ensure that your social media ad spend will get you the results you want.
Being on every social media platform: People think they need to be on as many platforms as possible so they can be found, but it doesn’t make sense to be on five social media platforms if you aren’t going to be active on all of them. It’s better to have a smaller digital footprint and be on one social media platform and do it really well than it is to be on many without success. Stick to whatever you can handle otherwise you won’t enjoy it and you just won’t do it.
Having multiple accounts on one social media platform: For large corporations with multiple product lines and a marketing team, having multiple accounts on each social media platform could make sense. If you’re a small business, those multiple accounts cost you time and money. Chances are you won’t be able to maintain multiple accounts while providing any value for your audience. Consolidate into one account and create a solid content strategy that will help you get your message across.
Print ads: Depending on your industry and target audience, print can be great. However, if you have a limited budget, print ads are the last thing you should be spending money on. They are expensive and it is harder for you to track their effectiveness. If you have a large marketing budget and you can allot a portion to print ads, then it is great – but make sure you have a way to track it.
Untargeted paid digital ads: Ads are easy to get wrong without a strategy. If you are paying to reach people, take the time to target the right Otherwise you will waste your time and money. And if you don’t know who your target audience is, it’s time to step away from the paid ads and create your buyer personas to build a target audience that makes sense.
Untargeted Direct Mailouts: It can be hard to make a case for direct mail these days in a digital world. While it might make sense in some industries depending on your target audience (maybe they’re just not that into social media!), most people just recycle those carefully designed materials when they show up in their mailbox or at the door. If you do choose to do a direct mail out, make sure you are targeting properly geographically and tactically. Only do it if it makes sense for your audience.
Generic press releases: Press releases are a great way to keep track of official stakeholder announcements for corporate communications or general announcements. However, if you are looking to put together a media relations strategy, you should rely more on individualized pitches that are more story based so you can tailor your pitch to each media contact. Sending out a blanket press release won’t get you the coverage you are looking for.

Marketing doesn’t have to be expensive, but you should invest in a strategy that will allow you to grow your business successfully.

Connect with Candace

Sign up for our free 20-minute consultation and we’ll help you figure things out.

A version of this article was originally posted to the SongBird Marketing Communications blog.

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Jun 06 2019

8 Reasons why YOU should use video to promote your business

On any given day, the average person spends 40 minutes on YouTube watching videos. If that number doesn’t faze you then what about; on a daily average over 500 million hours of video is watched on YouTube.

With so many possibilities to share video across social media, there is a good chance your videos will end up being viewed as part of the 6 hours a day people watch videos on either Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and video streaming programs.

Here are eight reasons why you should be using video to promote your business.

Video reaches millions of people within a short period of time. The cost to produce a video is very cost effective, in fact one video will probably pay for itself with just one customer. Another consideration is that video tracks reach or impressions, so you can measure the effectiveness of your video. When you consider the cost of a print ad; it is a one-time cost that doesn’t have the same share ability or the ability to determine reach. So from a cost perspective video is cheaper, and will give you a better ROI. But. most importantly customers love videos
The use of sound and images elicit feelings and gives the viewer a better understanding, by allowing them to experience several emotions including laughter, sadness, and joy. Video can be educational, funny and sometimes even emotional. Watching a video requires less work than reading, but, most importantly videos retain people’s attention.
Visitors spend 88% more time on a website that features a video. And from those statistics, 85% are more likely to make a purchase. A targeted audience; one that visits your website will remember what they saw and heard.
Videos are cost effective. Whether you do them yourself or hire a production company, they are affordable when you consider their longevity, and reach. One video can be shared an infinite amount of times on the internet and may even experience virility.
Audio visual helps a business win the trust of your audience because they know it takes time and effort to produce these videos. A video about you or your business helps to build creditability.
Videos are a powerful medium, research shows that people who use the internet frequently watch videos. Think about how many videos you consumed a video today!
Search engines tend to give videos a higher priority than pictures, text and audio files, this gives you a higher ranking to get your company noticed. When you consider that Google is the number one search engine followed by YouTube, you would be hard pressed to not have at least a couple of videos come up on the first page of a search. So consider that your customers are searching for you, having a video helps consumers make better decisions.
Finally, videos last for years and will get more exposure because of the fact that they can be shared on all social media platforms. The longer they stay online, the more exposure over time.

Now that you have the eight reasons why you should use video to promote your business, what is holding you back?

RaDeana Montgomery is A MULTI-DIVERSE COMMUNICATOR with a specialty in: TELEVISION PRODUCTION, SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT, PUBLIC RELATIONS and WRITING

You can find her on social on Facebook @rammediavideo.ca Instagram @ram_media_video Youtube www.youtube.com/ RAMMediaProductions1

Website www.rammediavideo.ca

All that glitters is not gold …

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