You may not realize it, but people don’t just work with you because of your splashy (or not) business brand.

Many, actually most, will actually hire you or buy your products because of how you show up in the world, meaning, what you stand for and who you are as a person. That’s called your personal brand and it’s where the big bucks are.

Do you know what yours is yet? How are you strategically using it online? This new 4-minute content video I put on my blog will show you how to craft yours authentically:

Enjoy! If you liked this video, share it with your network by clicking the links to the left.

And in the comments below this video, I’d love to hear from you regarding your insights on this week’s topic. Please post your comment below, OK?

Hiring assistants is a big part of leveraging your business to grow faster. You can’t be everywhere or do everything yourself. At some point, you will not have the bandwidth or physical ability to get it all done alone. Many small business owners struggle with how to hire an assistant and what that person’s responsibilities should be.

I have found hiring mistakes tend to happen when you compromise on what you need from your staff. There are times when you get frustrated because you can’t find the exact mix of skills and personality you desire. As a result, you decide the person in front of you is good enough. Sometimes that is true, but other times it turns out to be a disaster.

My first assistant helped with a variety of tasks. This worked okay for a while, but did lead to frustrating situations. Trouble cropped up when I tried to have one person take on several different roles. Often one area would go well, while other responsibilities weren’t handled with the same excellence. Usually the person wasn’t wired to do both aspects of the job. Segmenting the roles and responsibilities was more effective.

I discovered that it’s natural for people to excel at certain tasks, which is why it makes sense to let them shine where they do a good job. Then, I would pass on other activities to people who are good at those things. As my business grew, I started hiring different assistants to handle very specific assignments.

This kept me sane, to tell you the truth. Even though it meant I had to oversee more staff members, it actually made things a lot easier for me. I didn’t have to teach anyone the skills sets – I hired people who already had them.

I put together a document for myself called Virtual Team Components. The list included each virtual assistant (VA), the job function they performed and duties expected of them. Here’s an example of possible job functions:

Virtual Team Components
VA #1: Operations Manager
VA #2: Client Contact and Client Relations Manager
VA #3: Technology Manager
VA #4: Membership Site Coordinator
VA #5: Social Media Manager, etc.

I call this “going vertical” in terms of organizing your staff and the jobs they perform. Allowing your people to focus on what they do well will help keep you sane in the whirlwind that is your business.

Your Client Attraction Assignment

If you are ready to start hiring assistants, take time first to segment the roles and responsibilities. You can start small and add more help as needed. Isolating the tasks will help you find the right person for each role rather than force fitting the VA to several job functions.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

No matter what level of business you have achieved, chances are you will feel confused several times along the way. It happens throughout your business growth at nearly every substantial transition. I recently learned the theory behind why confusion sets in, which is what I’m going to share with you today.

First, let’s take the word confusion and imagine cutting into two pieces. You are actually confused when different concepts get fused together. This happens when your old paradigm is not fully integrated with your new paradigm. Your business model is “out of sorts” in a way and things are not aligned to work most effectively.

Your mind is made up of different parts. The Einstein brain is the right prefrontal cortex and the Frankenstein brain is the left prefrontal cortex. What happens when you are trying to multiply your business results? The lack of alignment triggers your Frankenstein brain, which includes your ego. That’s how the panic point or terror barrier gets activated.

This is where you start to doubt yourself. You might get tripped up as you realize you don’t have enough self-esteem, the knowledge or the resources you need. As a result, you can end up going in circles, feeling confused about what your next move should be. You might feel stymied, stuck and unsure of which way to go. So, you get stalled and stagnate until you can figure it out.

Another way to look at this problem is by thinking about your future self pulling you into the future while your past and ego are working to keep you where you are. You’re being pulled in two different directions. Or you might see this as an internal tug of war. This is why you end up going in circles, feeling confused and not sure how to find your way out or move forward.

When I look back at my own journey, this has happened every time I was about to get to the next big level. Not necessarily the small steps, but the really big jumps in growth and expansion. So, if this sounds terribly familiar, take heart. You may in fact be on the verge of a large growth spurt, bringing you to a totally new level never before achieved.

Keep in mind that everyone goes through this. People don’t move ahead without experiencing a little confusion. When the clarity finally shows up and the clouds clear, your self-esteem builds and you know what to do next. Congratulations for reaching this plateau and then moving on to reach new levels in your business life.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
If you are stuck and feeling confused, there are a few things to do to move past this phase. 1. Ask your accountability buddy (do you have one?) to see if he or she has any suggestions. 2. Speak to a mentor if you have one who might provide some insight for you. 3. Find a couple of books that can help you figure out a solution to your struggles. A little education can go a long way to clear up confusion.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

As a business owner, you have to make a lot of tough decisions. One of them is when to let someone go or hire someone new for your team. If you plan this well, you can create a system for employee transitions, having the person who is leaving actually train your new hire.

Let me share an example. One of my students followed this series of steps for bringing on a new social media manager.

1. Put training in the contract. In the employment contract, a new team member is made aware that part of the responsibility will be to train a replacement should you part ways. This sends a clear message that people will explain duties and responsibilities of the position before departing the company.

2. Create a checklist. Have your current team member develop a checklist for all training that will be covered. This will work like a table of contents and can go at the beginning of all documentation for the position. For social media, you would include how often to post on each platform, details if you use a scheduler, credentials and passwords, etc.

3. Write an operations manual. Have the employee write the operations manual for the position, explaining all duties and responsibilities. This must be specific, going over all the actual tasks they complete as part of that job. Now you’ll have a handbook so someone new can look up how to do a particular task. Documenting the duties is extremely helpful for creating a smooth transition between employees and having a reference guide once the transition has been completed.

4. Set up a calendar for upcoming projects. Have your new team member work with your outgoing employee to create a calendar of the projects that are coming up. This ensures everything is planned and organized so your new employee knows what needs to be accomplished without any gaps. For example, with social media, you can plan Facebook posts that cover promotional messaging, content sharing and posting of photos for a few months into the future.

5. Schedule web sessions. If your team is not on site, using software like GoToMeeting allows employees to share screens for training purposes. This is excellent hands-on training so the new hire can see exactly how things are done. Many people learn best by actually going through the steps.

Here are a number of safeguards to keep in mind:
• On occasion, when there is a problem with an employee, make sure there isn’t going to be a lot of animosity while training the new hire. If you pick up on this, you may need to rethink your training process.
• Watch over how the training is going. Ask your new hire if there are any unanswered questions.
• Make sure your operations manual document is locked, so that once it’s finished, no one can change it or sabotage the process.
• Be sure to review the manual to ensure everything is in there and nothing gets left out or overlooked.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
Do you have training or operations manuals for all the positions in your company? If not, make that one of the goals for your next 90-day plan. This is a big project for your employees, so be sure you give them enough time to complete it and do a thorough job.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.

When I talk to students who need to start leveraging or expanding their businesses, I often refer to where they are as being “in the soup.” It feels like you are swimming in a mess of things that need attention, and keeping your head above water (or the “soup”) is hard. This is a challenging time for most small business owners.

In addition to working with clients, you have all the back office work, and many owners say they are working practically 24/7. No one wants that! I’ve had students talk about losing friendships, not getting the exercise they need and not taking any time off. Or, they feel stressed out with no end in sight. This is when you know something has to change.

The shift begins as you get clear about your new direction. Maybe you want a system that automates a particular process or need to hire staff to create a team. Your business might require more structure for running certain programs. Sometimes business owners need to duplicate what they do so they can step aside to let the team handle day-to-day tasks and work on the bigger picture.

A team will help you stop working so hard “in your business” so you can start to work “on your business.” That’s where the business expansion really starts to show up. When you’re ready to leverage your business and create systems, your business requires two very important elements:

1. Planning
2. Patience

Plan your moves step by step
One way to ensure you start on the path to leveraging your business is to creat a 90-day action plan. After you decide on your goals, map out the steps to get the changes underway. That’s the beauty of planning. Once you define your direction, you can clearly see what needs to be done next.

Seeing what needs to get done is one thing… making it happen is another, and it can still feel overwhelming. Breaking your plan down into manageable pieces helps you feel these smaller steps are very doable. Take time to map out the steps so you can attack them one at a time. Your 90-day plan organizes the work, provides a time frame and gives you a date for completion.

Patience is more than a virtue
Executing your plan will take time. Creating systems and adding structure – these types of business changes don’t happen overnight. This is why patience is essential for you to carry out your vision for expansion. You cannot hurry the transition if you want it done well.

Your Client Attraction Assignment
My students in the Leverage Track of The Client Attraction Business School often have a buddy for support and accountability. When you share your 90-day plan with your buddy, you are making it real and putting it out there into the world. Find a friend who will help you stay on track (and you will do the same for him or her) so you both complete your 90-day plans.

This is just one of the many best practices we dive deep into with the students of The Client Attraction Business School, the premier training school for growth-minded entrepreneurs looking to quickly attract more clients and make more money. If you’re interested in finding out more, visit www.ClientAttractionBusinessSchool.com for more details. To speak to an enrollment coach, click here.