Big Ideas

"Business opportunities are like buses, there's always another one coming."  --- Richard Branson

June 7th was National Doughnut Day.  I hope you didn't miss it.  Places like Dunkin' Donuts, Krispy Kreme, Tim Hortons and more were giving away a free doughnut to celebrate.  The Salvation Army established this sweet holiday in 1938 to raise funds during the Great Depression and honor the “lassies,” as they called the female volunteers, who supported the soldiers on the front lines during World War I, serving them delicious meals, and of course, doughnuts.  Approximately 250 “lassies” provided assistance to American soldiers in France in 1917.

How does something as simple as a doughnut generate millions of dollars for Dunkin Donuts and Krispy Kreme?  Sometimes, it is the simple ideas, along with great marketing and outstanding customer service that produces wonderful companies.  The key is to generate great ideas within your business to capitalize on.  Here are three tips (reminders) for producing some profitable ideas:

1.) Set aside "thinking time" once a week.  Actually, once a week is only a start.  The really wise business leaders carve out time daily for thinking.  This is the time to clear your mind of everything that needs to be done and simply sit and think.  It takes practice.  You may not come up with ideas during the first or even second and third session, but over time, your mind gets the hang of it and ideas begin flowing.  Be sure to write them down as they come.

2.) Start an "idea journal" to record all of your outstanding ideas, as well as your not-so-outstanding ones.  Journal every idea even if you think it is nonsense at first.  This journal is for your eyes only.  If you don't record all your ideas, you'll get in the habit of discounting most of them.  This is not good because many you may think at the time are not good, may turn out to be the big hitters.

3.) Get team members involved in idea generating.  Tap into the wealth of knowledge, creativity, imagination, and talent of your employees to bring forth new ideas for your business.  They may have seen that in addition to the wonderfully produced widgets, the business can also offer thingamajobs to go along with them.  Be sure to allow some think time for your team as well and encourage them to brainstorm ideas during company meetings, picnics, retreats, and outings.

Ideas come from many directions and many points.  Good ideas may just change your business altogether or provide an additional stream of income for the company. 

Escape to New Zealand

With the hustle and bustle of running a business, it pays to recharge the batteries and refresh the body.  As Abraham Lincoln once said, "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I would spend five sharpening my axe."  The same holds true for our minds and bodies: we all need some down time to get the energy back in our brain cells and fire in our bellies.  One great escape is to New Zealand's Queenstown Apartments where the view is breathtaking, the living luxurious, and the accommodations worldclass.

Most of us, if we were to take our blood pressure with a blood pressure monitor during our working day, would see that a vacation is indeed in order.  Taking a trip to an exotic place like New Zealand may be just what the doctor ordered.  Relaxation, rest, and rejuvenation can all be found in a fantastic get-away that takes your mind away from business for just a little while.  Then, when you get your nose back to the grindstone, you can be more productive and even bring on more people to help grow your business.  You could then use the services of Beyond recruitment services to build a creative and exciting business team.  All of this from just a little relaxation!

Failing Forward

"A great leader's courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position."  --- John C. Maxwell

In his book, Failing Forward, John Maxwell addresses the response of leaders toward failings.  Maxwell says that, in life, the question is not if you will have problems, but how you handle those problems.  He says that with problems, we should stop failing backwards and learn to fail forward.

The book offers great insight and wisdom as only Maxwell can deliver, but here are three key takeaways you can use beginning today:

1.) Failures are only as bad as you perceive them to be.  Take stock of what caused the failure, how serious is the damage, and how much time and money will it take to recover.  Suppose you realized you hired a person that doesn't seem to fit the position, yes, you've lost some money in hiring, training, etc., but would keeping this person on the payroll cost you more?  Would sending him or her down the road send a wealth of messages to your team, your vendors and your customers that you only want the best fit for your company?  Putting failures in an objective light may minimize what you perceive to be a monster.

2.) Remove the "you" from the failure.  Don't allow failures outside to get inside you and don't take them personally.  Too often business leaders see failures as an extension of themselves and therefore see themselves as the failure.  Decisions that were made that led to the failure were bad, wrong, incorrect, or whatever, but you are not the failure.  Separating you from the failure helps you to see the failure as something external and much easier to correct.  If you internalize the failure, it stays with you and is difficult to shake and move on.  If you see it as external, you begin to brainstorm solutions and learn from the mistake.

3.) Get up, get over it, get going.  Often we wallow in the failure and over time actually find comfort in the wallowing.  This is a non-productive outlook and hurts you and your business.  When faced with failure, and we all will be, embrace it for what it teaches, learn how not to do it again, then get going.  Put it behind you and keep on trucking.  Failure is a terrible name for a pet so don't keep it around feeding it and taking it for long walks.

Loans in New Zealand

There has been a lot of talk lately about the loan regulations in New Zealand and how changes are hampering the way borrowers fare during the borrowing process. Nothing could be further from the truth, especially when using a reliable home loan service like Viventium Home Loans. Viventium allows the borrower to take advantage of a unique mortgage software program that calculates the setup as well as the repayment plan for the loan.  This service has saved literally hundreds of clients well over millions of dollars in interest.  This is money that the borrower can spend on other important life projects such as investments, family care, vacations, and home additions and remodeling.   Even better news about Viventium's service is that if you cannot make it into their office, a representative will come to your location to review your needs and match your requests to the best possible loan situation.  The folks at Viventium want to be sure that if you already have a mortgage, that it is the best you can get for your particular financial plan.

Additionally, once your new loan is secured and you begin to see the incredible savings, you will have more money freed up for enjoying the things you always wanted to like hiking, traveling, building a playground for the kids, or simply staying home and hiring a video service like Swoon Video Production in Auckland to make a permanent record of your family outings.  These are just some examples of the opportunities you can now enjoy with the thousands of dollars you can save on your home loans.

There are many ways to save money these days without skimping on fun and clipping coupons.  One such way is to reduce the amount you pay for energy for your home.  A good way is to go to Yourselect Power Company Comparison where you can compare rates and choose the one that is best for your situation.  Saving money in today's economy is simply smart living.  Instead of throwing money away, you could be pocketing it for your future or for that long-awaited family trip that couldn't be funded previously.  Why not enjoy the savings that you and your family so deserve?

Sitting is Killing You

Waterfront Estates

In case you haven't noticed, real estate is back.  That is good news for those trying to sell their properties after waiting for a few years after the huge dip back in 2008.  With home values increasing, this upswing in the real estate market provides the needed relief sellers have been looking for.  Buyers too are in a good position because owners of prime real estate have been looking for an opportunity to put their properties on the market, but have been looking for just the right time.  For buyers, there is now more and better choices available.

For those buyers looking for waterfront properties and luxury condominiums in the Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale Beach, Boca Raton, and South Beach Miami neighborhoods, there is good news.  Susan Rindley has vast experience and has joined ONE Sotheby’s International Realty to connect potential buyers to this exclusive market.  Susan's reputation for working with honesty, integrity, and dedication has elevated her to the top in this field.  In addition to her real estate knowledge and experience, Susan also has over 10 years experience as a mortgage broker.  With this winning combination, there is no reason not to contact Susan to show you some of the most unique waterfront properties available.  You can view waterfront estates and other properties available by going to www.susanrindley.com.

Stay Healthy

Businesses are tough to run.  Business leaders have challenges coming out of every corner practically every day.  This is why business leaders need to be in tip-top shape with a body and mind able to handle the rigors of a life in the lion's den.  Dealing with vendors, managing costs, organizing tasks, leading employees, and reeling in customers all takes tons of energy and a machine (our bodies), that can handle the stress that is above normal levels comparatively.  Our employees can go home at the end of the day, customers can shop us out and government officials can put more restrictions on an already taxed business.  The stress levels of these people is minimal compared to business leaders.  That is why a leader's body and mind should be in the best condition possible.  When time constraints prevent us from exercising, there are still some things we can do to create a healthier body for the battles we face.

First, if you smoke, quit.  I know it sounds simple, but it is so important to do all that you can to stop.  Smoking not only takes years off your life, it weakens your immune system which weakens your ability to handle stress.  Eating right, taking vitamin supplements, and getting eight to ten hours of sleep is the bare minimum that you should be doing as well.  When it comes to beating smoking, you have to be tough, but fortunately there is help.  Begin today taking these simple, basic steps toward building a healthy foundation better equipped to deal with everything thrown your way when trying to succeed at your business.