What Hash Marks Mean to the Entrepreneur

February 10, 2013 By

Those poor, neglected hash marks. Nobody pays much attention to them but games are won and lost because of them. They measure the distance a team has traveled up the field. They tell the tale of whether or not a team moves the ball forward or kicks it back to their opponents.

A few fun facts – Hash marks are only about one yard long – they’re used to mark each of the 5-yard lines which go from sideline to sideline. Hash marks are in line with the goal posts.

For the entrepreneur, the concept of hash marks can mean the difference between a winning business and one that flails around aimlessly. Without hash marks; measurable, attainable, quantifiable goals, you won’t know where you are on your business field. As in football, hash marks tell you exactly where you are and they reveal where you need to go. It’s important to note the point above; hash marks are in line with the goal posts.

Believe it or not, business success is not about how many dollars are coming in! It’s about what you’re discovering about your business, your clients, your service offerings, and, most of all, yourself. My first business created some debt because I had never traveled the entrepreneurial road before, but I considered it an educational expense because of what I learned. The combination of acquired experience and reading an abundance of business books provided me the knowledge I needed for developing and building Winning Proof, and any other businesses that come my way, for that matter.

The question is, how will you know you’ve reached success in your business? What measuring stick – hash marks – do you measure your success with? Here are a few to consider:

Your market -
1. Your clients choose to do business with you because they feel valued and heard.
2. You stay ahead of emerging trends and changes in your market.
3. You thoughtfully educate your clients about your service offerings.

Your services –
1. You discover that clients buy your product/service because it’s simply the best.
2. They are referring you to their own networks.
3. You leverage your services that create the greatest response.

Your clients –
1. You’re discovering what’s important to your clients.
2. You’re consistently solving your client’s most pressing issues.
3. You’re creating value-added bonuses that are meaningful to your clients.

Yourself –
1. You’re learning how your actual entrepreneurial experience compares to your expectations.
2. New talents and gifts are emerging as your continue your journey.
3. You’ve discovered what tasks you need to outsource and what fuels your spirit.

In the end, what you learn about yourself on a deeper level are the hash marks that will ultimately determine your success. You can have all the business success in the world, but without personal success; a deep satisfaction and an inner sense of fulfillment and peace inside, you ain’t got nothin’. Wherever you are on the business field, use the hash marks in your market, your services, your clients and yourself to position yourself for a win.

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Who Are You After The Game?

March 26, 2012 By

When the game is over, the locker room is empty and the fanfare has come to a halt, there’s a moment of deafening silence…the silence of one’s own heart facing life head-on. From the stadium walks not an athlete, but a man; a man who stands in his street clothes – just him, his personality, his character. When it’s all said and done, he has nothing else. Whatever he owns, whatever limelight is shining on him now, will eventually dim and all he will have left is himself.

The trappings of life; the gold, the glitz, the glitter, and the glamour can fade at a moment’s notice. Just ask one of the 78% of NFL players who find themselves traveling to the intersection of broke and busted within five years of retiring. Only those who are ingrained with a sense of personal accountability will drive to post-career satisfaction and personal victory.

But what about you, the entrepreneur? Without your business, without your enterprises, who are you? What identifies the core of your character?
Maybe it’s time to take an assessment of who you are today, at this moment. Every key person and each key circumstance in your life has helped shaped you into the person you’ve become. You may have chosen to allow bitterness and anger, or self-pity to take root due to life circumstances. Or, you may have chosen to allow life to empower you and strengthen your inner resolve.

Have you been stuck at the intersection of broke, busted, and disgusted? Have you cruised on the highway of gold, glitz, glitter, and the glamour of a successful career? Some of us have driven in both worlds.

I think most of us have in mind what emotional, spiritual, physical, financial, relational, and vocational destinations we see ourselves arriving at; where we’d like to be at a certain stage in our lives. Sometimes I think we focus entirely too much on the destination and forget to enjoy the everyday moments that teach us the lessons that will help us value and cherish those destinations. So, take some time to evaluate where you are right now and who you have become.

“Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves, to break our own records, to outstrip our yesterday by our today, to do our work with more force than ever before.”
Stewart B. Johnson

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Playing the Field

February 19, 2012 By

A star pro athlete commands the field. When he steps onto the field, he acts like he owns it. A swagger of confidence hovers around him and he ignores all outside stimuli that seeks to downgrade him.

When he plays the field, his opponents sense his presence and his teammates look to him for leadership and guidance. He has flair, authority, strength, balance and composure – at the same time.

As entrepreneurs and business people, we are automatically leaders of our own empire. We play the field of our businesses, even if we’re the only one on our team. Let’s study how the attributes of star athletes can put us on the fast track to personal and business success:

1. Flair – Having flair means possessing natural talent, showing instinctive discernment, and distinctive elegance or style. How does your personality and personal talent exhibit flair for your business? What sets you apart from your competitors? Think about it…write it down.

2. Authority – When you have authority, you command the power to determine, adjudicate, or settle issues. You delegate. You are the one others look to for leadership and accurate information. There is no room for second-guessing yourself – you MUST lead, guide, and make decisions. Who is looking to you for authority? Your clients? Your vendors? Your kids? Your friends? Your social media network? Continue to prepare and develop your authority muscle.

3. Strength – An athlete needs physical AND mental strength to excel; physical strength to command the field, mental strength to work through obstacles and opponents. As a business person, you need physical strength to keep your stamina strong so you can be productive. You also need mental strength to remained focused and overcome setbacks. How are you keeping yourself physically strong on a daily basis? In what ways are you keeping your mind and spirit healthy?

4. Balance – To keep balance in sports or in life in general, it really comes down to making daily, simple decisions.
-Get enough sleep
-Smile at yourself in the mirror when you wake up
-Build in fun to your daily life
-Learn to say NO
-Learn to say yes to the right things
-Nurture key relationships
-Keep a journal of your daily lessons
In what ways do you maintain life balance? Do you make a to-do list for the next day? Do you schedule in fun? Have you learned to say yes and no to the right things?

5. Composure – In sports, an essential key to success is the ability to maintain composure under pressure. An athlete executes his objectives in the face of intense pressure. A business person often operates under pressure, whether it’s financial, difficult clients, or balancing work and family. A few things to remember in the face of pressure: 1) give yourself a moment to collect yourself, 2) assess the specific situation objectively and don’t allow your personal reaction to cloud your judgment, 3) gather information to gain a deeper understanding of the issue, 4) seek the deeper root cause of the issue, 5) take focused action and lead by example. Do you keep your composure under pressure? Do you see the storms of life as obstacles or opportunities?

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” As you play the field as an athlete or an entrepreneur, remember these simple principles and you’ll always be headed toward victory.

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Game Plan Change – Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone

June 26, 2011 By

Sometimes when an NFL team has been watching game film, studying the strategies and tactics of their opponent, they feel confident they can conquer the field. However, once the game starts, the opponent, who has also been watching game film, could decide on a different strategy.

When this happens, it causes the team to step out of their comfort zone, both physically and in their current knowledge level. If they want to rule and reign on the field, they must re-adjust. This often happens at half-time if they’re getting their butts kicked.

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately since I’ve had my own major game plan change. I started Winning Proof in July of 2008 so I’m approaching my 3rd anniversary. Anyone who has started a business knows most don’t go from 0 to 100 mph in 6 months…or even two years. It takes time for a business to mature and develop and grow a niche. It’s often necessary to supplement with another job until your business is fully supporting you financially.

Well, in California, getting any type of job is easier said than done. After being downsized again, I could not secure a single job to supplement my business efforts in spite of continued effort. My unemployment and all its extensions had run out and it was indeed a scary time. I had many discouraging days and toward the end of 2011, I was living on financial fumes and prayers.

Enter – Game Plan Change

The short playbook version is – I needed a drastic game plan change if I was going to survive. I had visited North Carolina on a vacation a couple of years prior and had fallen in love with the state. Well, it was time to jump start my environment and life situation. In light of that fact, I sold all my furniture and had a garage sale to fund my move and I relocated cross country to North Carolina at the end of March. All I had left was 72 boxes full of my kitchen contents, clothes, and some household items which traveled via van lines. I drove my 1996 Honda Civic with 245,000+ miles across country to a new, unknown land. I had a temporary place to stay with an acquaintance. Shortly after my arrival, my car was in hospice because that long trek proved too much for the ol’ girl.

I’ve been here for a little over 2 ½ months now and some amazing things have happened in that short time. I have a p/t night job, a day job that I love, a 2010 Toyota Corolla, a place of my own, and I’ve had the privilege of meeting a handful of my local sports industry Linkedin connections. My business is alive and well and once again gaining momentum. I attribute all these changes to a boatload of my praying friends in California and a mega dose of motivation and resourcefulness.

The point of telling you my story is to prompt you to look at your current game plan and really analyze if it’s working for you. Don’t be afraid of giving yourself a half-time pep talk and deciding if a game plan change is in order. Step out of your comfort zone and take a chance.

Is it scary? Absolutely! Fear of the unknown is one of the strongest fears you’ll ever experience. I was in a new state, new town, not knowing where stores and hospitals were; not knowing the freeway system…not knowing a soul except for the person I shared the space with.

Is stepping out on faith into a brand new adventure worth it? The answer again is…absolutely! Is a game plan change always in order? Nope. Sometimes we are called to stay and tough it out but only wisdom and maturity can determine when to stay and when it’s time to move ahead.

If you’re considering a game plan change; pray, consult with trusted friends and clergy, and do your research. Blind faith will lead you down a slippery path and into brick walls – do your due diligence to make sure your plan is realistic and will provide better opportunities for you. A healthy dose of genuine faith will keep your eye fixed on the goal line.

So, if your opponents (financial distress, personal stalemate, lack of business opportunity, etc.) are whipping your butt, consider a game plan change. Not only will you gain valuable life-lesson yardage, you just might experience a victory!

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Onside Kick – 2nd Chances

January 14, 2011 By

Anyone who knows football is familiar with the onside kick. It’s an attempt by the kicking team to gain possession of the ball with a short kick that has a predictable bounce. The onside kick is a strategy the kicking team uses when it is behind in the game and it needs to get the ball back. It’s an all or nothing play. The ball must go 10 yards before it can be recovered by the kicking team and the receiving team can recover the ball before that. The kicking team gets two chances to make an onside kick.

An onside kick is usually a last-ditch effort to win the game. It’s a “desperate times call for desperate measures” type of play. The kicking team stacks their players on one side of the field and then kicks the ball to that side. Both sides use what they call their hands team, players who are especially adept at handling the ball.

Enough of the lesson. How does the onside kick strategy apply to you and me as business people? At times, do you find yourself behind in your game; your business and sales are lagging and you think everyone on the earth has lost your phone number? Maybe illness or family issues have followed you into the New Year and your motivation has waned. Perhaps the economy has caused a fumble to your monetary resources and you need an emergency play to get you those 10 yards.

You need to get the ball back…you need to score and soon. How can you move the ball those 10 crucial yards?

1. Stack your resources by making an inventory of your education, work history, skill set, knowledge, contacts, and industry experience. Write it down – all of it.

2. Explore your options by comparing what you have to offer with what you really enjoy doing. If you’re reading this, you’re most likely an adult business person with an expiration date stamped internally. Why waste time in a profession that doesn’t bring you fulfillment? Is that what you were created for? I think not.

3. Position yourself in your market as the go-to resource. This doesn’t mean you have to be the very best in your market; you simply have to position yourself as the go-to person. Bring your hands team value and articulate it favorably in the eyes of your target prospects.

Try an onside kick to get your game back!

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Shifting

November 26, 2010 By

One of the things I love most about football is that it’s a game of wit. Basically, it comes down to each team trying to outsmart the other. That’s what shifting at the line is all about. As soon as the quarterback yells, “set” the offensive line cannot move. However, other players on offense can shift, meaning they’re allowed to release from their set position, move to another place on the field, and then get set again. Defensive players can shift all they want before the ball is snapped.

A smart quarterback is master at reading the opposing teams’ defense and calling changes at the LOS (line of scrimmage). Payton Manning is, in my opinion, the smartest quarterback of all time. There are many other powerful quarterbacks, but Manning is the smartest, followed by Tom Brady. They may not be my favorite QB’s, but I respect their ability to intelligently lead their teams.

How does this relate to you as a business person? Plenty. As you act as the quarterback of your company, you need to “read” current business trends as well as respond and make quick decisions based on those trends. You’ll need to be prepared to “shift” as you see changes in your competition and the economic climate. What is the best way to be a smart company quarterback?

1. Educate yourself. The best way to anticipate trends is to be a proactive trend hunter. Do some online research to discover the latest trends. Most successful businesses are born through spotting trends and meeting a need that those trends reveal. Trend spotters are the ones who make friends with the future and create innovative solutions to perceived needs.

2. Identify and Analyze the REAL competition. As a smart company QB you will in essence, “study game tape” to know your competition inside and out. By evaluating your competition, you’ll gain intellectual access to their weaknesses and vulnerabilities, and thus you’ll be ready to fulfill the unmet needs of the client. You’ll also gain knowledge and power in the process on how to most effectively serve your clients.

3. Position yourself for success. When players shift, they have to come to a stop before the play begins. Use the knowledge gained from the previous two steps to stop and position yourself as the most desirable, most logical choice. It’s natural for clients to shop for the best deal and solution so encourage your clients to compare in the areas where you have a favorable edge. You can prosper and gain a significant advantage even with higher prices if you set yourself apart by providing something the competition does not. When you’ve identified what your competition is not providing, and make that your mission, clients will naturally be drawn to you.

When you’re in the set position at your company’s LOS and you “read” that the defense (competition) has shifted, you have options. Try the steps above; educate, identify, and position. Know and identify the trends and position yourself to capitalize on inevitable shifting. You will become a smart company quarterback who knows how to lead your team to victory.

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The Pre-Game Show

September 11, 2010 By

The pre-game show equips you with information about your favorite team, favorite player and the football league in general. The pre-game show prepares you for watching the game; stats, up-close-and-personal player profiles, and a team history lesson. The pre-game show analyzes the team match-ups and informs you about the utter importance of the specific game you’re about to watch.

The pre-game show analysts include journalists, former athletes, and ex-coaches who chant their opinions about player-to-player match-ups and who they believe will win with friendly banter and stifled adrenaline. Ultimately, they give you, the fan, a checklist of things to watch for during the game, including key injuries and superstars.

How does all this relate to being a self-employed entrepreneur? For you, your pre-game show is all about preparation – preparation to run your business with clarity and efficiency. Let’s move through some pre-game show steps so you can enjoy your “business game” to the fullest.

1. Team match-ups – Just as coaches study game film so they can identify weaknesses and strengths in the opposing team, I study my competition regularly so I know who I’m up against in the business world. What are they offering that I’m not? How well do they service their clients? What is their USP (Unique Selling Proposition) and how do they leverage it to score more clients? Be diligent to study your team match-ups – my guess is that you’ll discover what uniquely sets you apart from the competition and, as a result, you’ll add more plays to your success playbook.

2. Stats Are Learned – Tex Noel, Executive Director of Intercollegiate Football Researchers Association, (www.secsportsfan.com/college-football-association.html) and author of four books on college football’s statistical histories, knows firsthand that stats are learned and that you really can love the little buggers. Tex recently told me that he was not a whiz at math throughout school but has a natural aptitude for historical sports stats.

Do you have to love stats to have a successful business? Not really, but taking a few moments every week to analyze your web stats for page views will be time well spent. Analyze your blog posts and social media sites to see how many likes, comments, and tweets you’re getting. It may seem like a waste of time but just a few minutes will yield a better understanding of how to adjust your website content and cater to your prospective clients’ preferences.

3. Checklist (foresight of what to watch for) I have found the most profound thing to watch for is my own personal growth through self-employment. Paul Hawken says, “Being in business is not about making money. It’s a way to become who you are.”

Since you still have to live on this earth, money ranks right up there with oxygen in importance but it doesn’t have to define who you really are. Football players do not learn the game in theory only – they learn from being on the field; running and hitting and blocking and falling…and getting back up.

You don’t learn about business from reading your business plan or from burying your head in books. While I have gained a ton of knowledge from reading business and personal development books, my real lessons have been “on the field” by running to the right contacts, hitting my mark with quality service, blocking naysayers and negative influences, and falling down in discouragement…and getting back up.

So, let your pre-game show begin. Equip yourself by knowing your match-ups, getting a handle on your stats, and actually playing the game. After all, you’re the star of the show!

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The Scoreboard

July 18, 2010 By

We all depend on the scoreboard at a sports stadium to give us a quick, exact rundown of what’s going on down on the field. The scoreboard, of course, shows the score. The scoreboard displays the team names. The scoreboard measures time remaining and team statistics. The scoreboard, for some sports, often has the starting roster displayed on the outer edges. An official or neutral person will operate the scoreboard, using a control panel. Since I have a condition called, “football on the brain” I must use football analogies to prove my point…once again.

“So what?” you might be asking. Well, I started pondering recently how much we really depend on this electro-mechanical tool and how it makes our hearts either pound like a sledge hammer trying to ring the bell at the County Fair, or sink like the Titanic.

If you had a scoreboard for your business, what would it look like? What would the score be if you were the home team and your competitors were the visitors? Is your heart pounding or sinking?

What would your stats look like? First and ten for social media efforts? Third and long for marketing results? Two touchdowns for two new clients? Uh oh, a difficult client blitz causes you to be sacked and lose yardage. Ineffective networking causes a fumble.

You do need to be mindful of your business scoreboard and what it’s displaying. Take time often to evaluate what’s working and what’s not. What efforts are you expending with little or no results? Maybe it’s time to outsource or do away with a particular activity. Make a list of activities that are high-leverage, high-yield and focus on those.

Take a look at your social media activities – are they expanding or are they stagnant? Choose the most productive of your social media platforms (for me it’s Linkedin) and devote 30 minutes a day to invite others to connect, answer questions, and send notes to a few connections at a time – and don’t always be in “sell” mode. Just reach out and say hello and ask if there’s anything you can do to help them.

Call more plays for focused high-leverage, high-yield activities and watch your score increase. Watch your stats go from good to great. Watch how you “control the clock” and your productivity will dramatically increase.

Take charge of your scoreboard and win the business game!

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The Game Clock

July 6, 2010 By

A pro football stadium game clock is really the ruler of the entire game. The clock is in charge. The clock decides when the game starts and when the game is over. The clock decides when a play ends and when it starts.

The game clock stops with a change of ball possession, an incomplete pass, a penalty, when a player goes out of bounds, an injury, when a player’s equipment becomes detached or damaged, a team scores a touchdown, field goal, or safety, or when a team calls a time-out. There are even special rules that apply during the final two minutes of a game and for overtime.

Like I said, the clock rules on the field and the sidelines. This is the way football is organized and it works.

As an independent business person, your game clock determines when your day starts and ends, when a time-out is needed, when your most productive hours are, and when you meet with clients. How can you organize your day so you reap the maximum benefits from your game clock?

1. Decide a general work schedule that allots time for business development, personal needs, family, and client time. Allow about 25% for daily personal needs time. Include a Plan B – a network of friends or business associates in case you have an emergency that calls you away from your business.

2. Prioritize your daily schedule by identifying high-leverage activities which will produce more clients and, as a result, more revenue. Tackling the most dreaded items on your to-do list and deadline-oriented items first will help tremendously. As Nike puts it, Just Do It. Prioritize your schedule according to your personal body clock.

3. Discover the power of outsourcing tasks that aren’t the best use of your time. I recently needed some data entry for 770 names, addresses, and phone numbers into an Excel spreadsheet. I went on Guru.com and requested a quote. For $25.00, a precious gal in Uruguay entered all the contact information accurately within a few days. Outsource anything that isn’t a high-leverage activity and for tasks that you just plain don’t like to do.

4. Take time daily to reduce stress and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Implement the 50/10 rule and work for 50 minutes and step away from your desk for ten minutes. I’ve found that weight training and/or walking first thing in the morning increases my energy level throughout the day. You’ll not only burn calories, you’ll sleep better.

Eat a healthy snack or meal every three hours to maintain healthy blood sugar levels and a steady stream of energy. Don’t forget to walk away from your desk and stretch often – hip flexors get very tight and your shoulder/back muscles become rounded if you continually sit in a chair for several hours a day. On rainy days, do a few sets of jumping jacks, or use a jump rope. Do some squats or stationary lunges and a few push-ups to get your blood pumping. Resistance bands are great for indoor resistance/strength training workouts. www.medstac.com has a full body workout printed right on the band – great for traveling too!

5. Establish your own holidays. Take time to relax your body and mind. Turn off your computer and other electronic devices – don’t worry, you won’t die. Take the day off here and there and go on a day trip. If you need creativity for your work, this will do wonders to re-charge your creative battery and install fresh, new ideas in your relaxed brain. Celebrate business anniversaries and milestones with a nice dinner or other treat.

6. Make your game clock work for you. Stay organized. Reserve a little time at the end of each day to organize your desk, put away papers, and make a prioritized to-do list for the next day.

Implementing these simple steps will help you feel more in control of your business and not like it’s controlling you. Michael Gerber discusses this in his wonderfully practical book, “The E-Myth Revisited.” Taking the time to put organizational systems in place will give you the freedom to enjoy your business and not feel like you’ve created another j-o-b for yourself.

Now, start the game clock…there’s a doozy of a game to get underway!

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Tackle the Ball

May 17, 2010 By

Tackles are big men who like to hit other big men. A tackle dares people to move him out of the way. They don’t. Tackles stand their ground, occupy blockers, and captures any ballcarrier that comes within grabbing distance.

As a business person, whether you are part of a corporation or a soloprenuer, there are always people and things to tackle. Maybe we can take a lesson from pro football on how to handle roadblocks in our way.

Which of the following is in your way right now that you need to tackle in your business?

Do you have a difficult client that requires more of your attention than you have time to give?

Is your company’s bank account running toward the sideline?

Are you having trouble maintaining a work/life balance?

Are you confronted with naysayers who slam your every effort?

1. A tackle stands his ground. Don’t allow pushy clients to hog your time or demand constant discounts. You can be tactful but firm and simply state to your clients, “It’s my company policy to…or to not….”

2. A tackle occupies his blockers. Do you have blockers in the form of well-meaning or not so well meaning family members or friends? Occupy the negative space they provide with a positive word or encouraging email back to them. Consistently do this and the blockers will either change or find another target to block.

3. A tackle captures any ballcarrier that comes within grabbing distance. Do you need to capture new clients? Go after them with a professional vengeance. Do you need high quality vendors? Grab them from referrals – they will thank you. If small thinkers come within grabbing distance to you, capture them with your positivity and tenacity.

4. A tackle slams his opponent to the ground once he catches him. If your bank account is running toward the sideline, slam it by gaining some quick financial wins – make a killer offer to your present clients. Slam your melancholy days by writing down all the progress you’ve made thus far with your business. List all the things you’ve learned and how you’ve grown as a business person.

Roadblocks are an inevitable part of business. How you tackle those roadblocks will pave the way to a more powerful you. Observing how tackles handle their opponents teaches you how to stand, occupy, capture, and slam them – de-power (my own word) them so you can move on to the next play in your business.

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