In the past, owning a business was the epitome of the American dream. You worked for yourself, you made your own hours, you had control over your wealth, and eventually you got to sell the business (or pass it down to your offspring) and buy a little beach house in Boca Raton. The perfect way […]
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Whether you are a small business owner or medium business owner, there’s nothing wrong with asking for help. And it’s also never too late to learn from an executive business coach. Working with an experienced business coach is the secret weapon to help entrepreneurs, executives, and business owners increase their wealth potential AND quality of […]
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When it comes to marketing strategies for your small to medium-sized business, there are many ways to play the game. You can do paid advertisements, email marketing, influencer marketing or emotional marketing….just to name a few. But when it comes down to results, nothing beats expertise marketing. What is Expertise Marketing? The concept of expertise […]
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Looking to scale your business? Begin by setting up a solid foundation on which to build. But be careful on how you set up that foundation. The best businesses consist of not one….not two…but five core pillars for strategic depth. So in order to scale your business you need a rock-solid base in all the […]
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Every business owner has experienced cash flow problems at one time or another, and the gut reaction for most entrepreneurs is to immediately ramp up their sales efforts in an attempt to turn the tap back on and get cash flowing again. This instinct however is counter productive. In fact, in most cases ramping up […]
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As a business coach for over 25 years, I have noticed that our client base grows exponentially during the holiday season- and for good reason. More and more business owners seek out the help of business coaches during the winter months as they reflect and recap on the past years successes and failures. It is […]
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When it comes to productivity, there is nothing more destructive than an email inbox. If handled improperly you can waste an entire day putting out small fires and responding to emails that create little to no value for your business. Which is why I wanted to share my nine tips for regaining your time and […]
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Do you feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day? Are you working 70+ hours a week and feel like you are just treading water? You aren’t alone. After working with thousands of business owners over the past 25 years, time and time again we see a lack of time as a huge concern […]
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The idea of starting a new company is a provocative one. Whether this is your first business venture or you are a serial entrepreneur, the startup phase is exciting and full of promises and possibilities. But starting up is also riddled with uncertainty and doubt, which leads many entrepreneurs to wonder if their idea has […]
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As a business coach for over 25 years, I have worked with thousands of businesses teaching them how to scale and create owner-independent companies. While there are many components to a successful business like good business systems and a positive company culture, having a good solid customer base ranks at the top of the list. […]
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Over the past 25 years of business coaching, I have heard every excuse in the book on why a business might be stuck in a growth slump. Here are the top 6 excuses that I hear every single day from small to medium sized business owners. 1. “I can’t afford it….” As in, “I can’t […]
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How To Succeed In Business Without Sacrificing Your Family, Health or Life BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL COMPANY AND CAREER DOESN’T MEAN SACRIFICING YOUR FAMILY, HEALTH, OR LIFE. You check email the moment you lift your head off the pillow in the morning. You bring work with you on vacation, sneak glances at your smart phone during […]
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Being a great boss, takes a lot of time and effort. You want to coach your staff for development, help them recognize their successes and give them the tools and guidance to reach their company goals. But what happens when the best intentions turn out to be micromanaging? You may set out to help mentor […]
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When left to our own devices, time management is sort of like a buffet. You have dozens of different options in front of you. Should you spend the next hour working on payroll? Finding a new assistant? Working on that new marketing project? Scrolling through Facebook? Shopping for new shoes on Amazon? The options are […]
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I recently wrote an article on anxiety amongst entrepreneurs and it really struck a nerve with business leaders. So many of you are struggling with anxious feelings surrounding the fate of your companies, and at times it can seem overwhelming no matter how hard you try. Well meaning friends and colleagues may offer up advice […]
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In a recent article I addressed 3 reasons why you work more than you think you do. So today, I wanted to give you two more reasons why you haven’t been able to cut your hours. “All I do is work. Even when I’m with my family I’m still responding to emails and texts for […]
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I have heard it more times than I can count… “I’m overwhelmed and don’t know where to start. So much of my day is spent putting out fires and reacting to customer demands. The only way I can get my key projects done is to come into the office earlier and stay later, and work […]
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Being a business owner in today’s fast-paced digital world means that you are always in the public eye. While you might not have stockholders like Elon Musk or Amazon, your employees, vendors, and customers are paying close attention to what you do, and don’t do, when it comes to your habits and choices. So, when […]
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In today’s economy, you would be hard pressed to find a business owner who doesn’t experience some level of anxiety surrounding the fate of their business. But for many entrepreneurs, anxiety can be a real hurdle that makes growth and progress difficult. Take for example Joaquin (name changed to respect his privacy), a business owner […]
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Think that you have what it takes to be a good leader? Try teaching a 10 year old how to make macaroni and cheese from scratch. This one activity will give you insight into your own leadership skills (and weaknesses) and help you build a stronger, more profitable business. No One Is Born A Chef My son was eager […]
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You will never forget your first love, i.e., the startup phase. Everything was new and exciting, and you swore you’d passionately give your best to your business. But as time went by, you likely found yourself feeling burned out by the long hours and recurring staff or customer fires you dealt with on a daily basis. So much drama, and […]
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How long it takes you to respond to an email has a direct correlation with the health of your business. Keep reading to find out how you measure up. In my business coaching company Maui Mastermind, we send out millions of emails each year to our current and prospective clients. Understandably, there is always a […]
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Tired of working longer hours with no increase in revenue? Try these 5 simple things that you can do today to increase your bottom line. I recently shared with you my top 5 Ways to Increase Your Profits, and the response was very positive. So much in fact, that I would like to share you […]
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Every sales person thinks the sale is made in the final move of their sales visit, but their wrong. Top sales pros all know that it’s the way you frame your sales appointment up front that makes or breaks your ability to close. I first learned this from one of my early sales mentors who […]
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Intimidated by negotiations? Focus on these five simple negotiation skills first and get much better. Think of all the times in your business week you negotiate: with new hires and existing employees; with sales prospects and long-term clients; with vendors and suppliers. If you’re a business owner or leader, you need to know how to […]
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Tired of doing your assistant’s job for them? You should take a moment to think about the four kinds of personal assistants and which one is right for you. (Hint: You need to avoid two of them!) Are you hiring personal assistants who save you time or who cost you time? Recently, I invited thirty-five […]
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Here are three simple yet incredibly effective secrets to flip the table on your direct reports and get them to manage themselves! The whole point of hiring staff is that they’re supposed to be free up your time. But what happens when you end up spending the same amount of time or more managing the […]
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Intimidated by negotiations? Focus on these five simple negotiation skills first and get much better. Think of all the times in your business week you negotiate: with new hires and existing employees; with sales prospects and long-term clients; with vendors and suppliers. If you’re a business owner or leader, you need to know how to negotiate. […]
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It’s called ‘deliberate practice’ and it’s a proven way for your staff to master a new skill in a fraction of the time In this article, I’m going to share the most effective learning process you can use in your coaching career that will help improve your key team members’ performance. Not only is this […]
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Which of these time thieves is stealing 21.8 hours a week of your working day? In early 2017, my business coaching firm launched a comprehensive study on time management. We interviewed and surveyed small business owners and their key executives in order to learn how they spend their time and, particularly, where their time gets […]
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I’ve been coaching business owners for more than twenty years, helping business owners grow their companies and at the same time, reducing their companies’ reliance on them. When it comes to scaling their businesses, one of the biggest challenges that I see business leaders struggle with is delegation techniques. When you’re delegating, it’s often hard […]
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Mastermind groups can help you grow both your business and yourself. But when a group settles into a routine, it can sometimes lose its effectiveness. That’s why I want to share five ways that you can breathe new life into your mastermind group. Napoleon Hill introduced the idea of the mastermind group back in 1937 […]
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Think about how much money you spend on marketing. Then think about your current conversion rate. Maybe you’re converting 3 percent of leads? Or 12 percent? Now imagine that you could use a simple technique increase your conversion rate by 10 to 25 percent. Wouldn’t you want to do that? Of course you would. The […]
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You already spend thousands with suppliers and vendors every month. Why not learn how to get the best pricing with these negotiation secrets?These three ridiculously easy questions will save you 5 to 15 percent or more on every purchase or contract.
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As we enter into the final half of the year, headlines are going to popping up about how online giants like Amazon.com and others expect to increase online sales by billions of dollars. Here are five powerful tips we share with our business coaching clients to increase website conversion that they consistently use that allow them to maximize their sales conversion rates. Follow these best practices and see your sales quickly increase.
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Most of our professional service coaching clients come to us with an operating profit margins of 25-40 percent. This means that out of every dollar of revenue, 25-40 cents drops to their bottom line as pre-tax profits. I want to share with you a simple strategy that one law firm I work with used to […]
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With Uber and Google’s workplace diversity issues sparking headlines across the country this year, I wanted to share three things that will make a difference. To be clear, none of these things are quick fixes. All three of these ideas are designed to help create a company culture that is diverse and empowered. This can […]
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The response was so strong from the article I posted last week of 15 email marketing insider tips that I wanted to share nine more with you in this article. Considering that my company Maui Mastermind sends out millions of targeted emails every month to our subscriber elist for our business coaching services, we’ve learned […]
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Make your emails valuable. This can be a key insight, a touching story, a special offer, or anything else that is relevant to your business and your audience. What do you talk with your prospects and customers about when you’re with them in person? What do they care about? How do you touch their lives? This is the core of your email messaging.
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One advantage of working with hundreds of business coaching clients is that we get to see which “levers” in a business are the easiest to quickly impact profitability. Here are my three favorite “profit levers” for you to adjust to increase your company’s operating profit margin. One: Raise Your Prices I know you may be […]
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Here is the hidden sales process step that most sales people miss, many times costing them the sale when their buyer gets cold feet. You’ve likely had this experience. You just closed the deal. You and your team are sharing hi-fives around the office. You’re mentally counting your profit on the deal and the thrill […]
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Here’s a simple method to regain control of your cash flow (and why your P&L “profit” is often a misleading indicator of your cash position). I was giving a keynote address to a group of medical practice business owners when one of the people in the room came up to me after and shared about […]
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Here is a simple game plan to create a marketing funnel that works. I was talking with a business coaching client who runs a $10 million a year professional service firm. He shared with me that it had taken him several monthly to build out his core marketing funnel for a new service he started […]
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Here are 4 simple ways to quickly increase your sales revenue perfect for any professional services firm. “David,” my client asked, “How do we increase of volume? We’ve been struggling ever since we lost that one big account.” This is such a common situation for a professional services firm to deal with – a painful […]
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Here’s a clear list of 10 proven time-tactics guaranteed to double your productivity… Do you find yourself complaining about your consistent lack of time? Here are 10 proven time-tactics guaranteed to double your productivity. In fact, you put even five of these time tactics to work and you’ll find yourself breaking through to a new […]
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Think for a moment about how much money you spend on digital and print ads. If you’re like many of our business coaching clients your ad spend may total up to 10 percent of revenue. Yet what if you’re wasting a massive portion of that money? Here is a simple principle that is guaranteed to […]
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Struggling to get your sales team to consistently do the key sales behaviors you need them to do? Here is one sales metric you must measure and track over time… I was talking with Tony about his benefits consulting company when he shared his biggest struggle. (Disclosure: Tony was a former business coaching client for […]
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Here is that tool – I call it the Sweet Spot Analysis™ Tool. We developed this tool to help our business coaching clients have a simple way to determine the very best ideas that they could implement each quarter to grow their businesses in the face of too much to do and not enough time in which to get it all done.
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Think of how much you spend to attract a new customer. You have lead generation costs… sales costs… higher fulfillment costs as generally a new customer needs a higher level of support than an experienced, established customer of yours.
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I have a confession to make: I am a chocolate addict. If chocolate is in my house then at 9 or 10pm I’m going to break down and binge on it. So how do I keep myself from doing that? Not from willpower, but rather by keeping chocolate out of my house. In other words, by controlling my environment so that it supports the behaviors I want to live by.
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I just returned from a large business conference my company, Maui Mastermind, hosted in Florida. One of the most important themes we that came up in several of the question and answer periods was how could an entrepreneur, or any business executive for that matter, break the connection between hours worked and value created. As […]
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Alan’s firm was growing, but growth was constrained because he needed new talent. His last two rounds of job postings on indeed.com brought a lot of inquiries, but none of them of the caliber he wanted. He made a simple mistake of thinking all he needed to do was think like an “employer” and just […]
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Tired to trying to get your team to engage? Try these 15 non financial ways to engage your team. The statistics are depressing: • A January 2016 Gallup daily tracking survey showed that only 32% of workers are engaged. • Only 49% of employees would recommend their current employer to a friend! (Glassdoor Data Labs, […]
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Johnathon, one of our business coaching clients, ran a successful professional services firm with just under $4 million a year in revenue. In his niche the firm had a strong reputation. When I questioned him about his pricing strategy he shared that he billed hourly for his professional staff. A deeper dive found that his […]
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When you give lots of keynotes or public talks to business owner and entrepreneurial groups like I do you get hit with the same questions over and over. One of the most common questions I get is, “How do I increase my profitability?” It’s a great question. Here in one list are 30 simple strategies […]
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Over the past twenty years I’ve sold multiple companies and helped my business coaching clients sell many more. Here are the six most costly mistakes that I’ve seen entrepreneurs (including myself!) make when selling a company. Mistake #1: Celebrating the sale before it has closed. You need to make sure you run your business well […]
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Based on the popularity of my earlier article, 10 Tips to Leverage Your Personal Assistant to Get More Done in Less Time, here is a list of 27 things you can ask your assistant to do. 1. Organize your travel (including learning your travel preferences). This includes making all your travel arrangements, organizing all your […]
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Have you ever felt like you were talking with a strong prospect for your product or service but somehow the sales process stalled? Here are the ten most powerful “action activators” to help you push through to close the sale. 1. Set an Up-Front Agreement. This powerful sales technique is used at the start of […]
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Over the past twenty years I’ve coached thousands of companies in dozens of industries. One of the most common reasons someone reaches out to my company, Maui Mastermind, to help them scale their business is a painful cash flow challenge. Here is the diagnostic process we’ve refined over the years to help pinpoint the precise […]
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