Communication Tips :: Overcoming Writer's Block for Blogs

We have important (at least we think so) things to say, but sometimes run into a wall for ideas of where to start.

I have created a “cheat sheet” that helps me generate ideas. Since each of my posts has a specific purpose, I have organized these categories to help get me unstuck.
Quick Note – There are a couple of filters I like to apply:

• Relevant to recipient, with hope of engaging
• Not “salesy” (sometimes hard to do)
• Specifically meet a goal

With that, I’d like to add posts specifically meant to:

1. Engage. Many of the posts will naturally create engagement. Sometimes I want to create optimal opportunity for engagement, so I will post information like: Having a Contest; Posting an open ended question; “Fill in the blank” type of question; Something fun, such as a Puzzle or Riddle.
2. Recognize Others. This is something specifically designed to acknowledge others: Tribute to mentor, vendor, client, etc.; Their Company – recognize their accomplishments/successes or their partnerships/alliances or their giving back/philanthropy; etc.
3. Recognize Ourselves. This is meant to acknowledge ourselves: Tribute to employee; Photos and Videosof our work, and our work environment; etc; our accomplishments – successes, partnerships/alliances, or philanthropy; Our Company – our purpose, core values, philosophy, culture, legendary stories; etc.
4. Educating the Industry. This is meant to push forward our thought leadership by posting: White papers; Case Studies; Compliance Info; Reports/Statistics; Re-posting of other’s content
5. Educate Consumers. This is meant to boost our social responsibility by posting: Solutions for common problems; Resources available; and Reports/Statistics;
6. Inform Industry. This is meant to further our goal of being the “go-to” resource for our industry by: Posting about Current Events of Industry such asConferences and seminars; Webinars; Trends; Recognition; etc.
7. Inform Community. Meant to further our goal of being a good source for our community by: Posting: Local News and Events.
8. Inspire. Meant to help people dream bigger by posting: Inspirational or thought provoking quotes; acknowledging legendary stories of service,etc.

I hope this helps you redefine your normal.

ENTREPRENEUR BLOG TAKES TOP HONORS

Entrepreneur Café-the blog of Resicom CEO John Fairclough received the 2010 Top Blog Award.

Sponsored by OnlineMBA.com and AwardingTheWeb.com, a panel of judges reviews nominees that have been submitted or sourced by the panel’s research team.  In the case of Entrepreneur Café, the award comes as a pleasant surprise as the nominating team found Entrepreneur Cafe during independent web searches.

Topics on the blog range from staff accountability to risk management and structural clarity. Fairclough uses the format to experience share personal stories of obstacles and best practices.   Often asked to present on business strategy, Fairclough began Entrepreneur Café as a means to communicate lessons learned while building Resicom, a national facility maintenance company.

At 24, John launched the first Resicom office from the basement of his future in-laws.  By age 30 Resicom had earned over $1 million in revenue and has since passed the $10 million benchmark.  Fast forward to today, Resicom has leap-frogged in size and revenue, now occupying a 15,000 square foot facility in the southwest Chicago suburbs.  The strategic vision to surpass the $35 million in revenues benchmark should be realized in under 2 years before John turns 40.

John is passionate about providing guidance, mentoring and other resources to assist first-level entrepreneurs in catapulting their business to the next level.  Helping entrepreneurs become better business leaders has been personally rewarding.  

Executing a Comprehensive Onboarding Plan

On-boarding programs assist new hires with acclimating to the organization’s culture and position employees on the right path for personal and career success.  Once a company has opted for a formal on-boarding program, a detailed plan must be drafted to ensure the program’s seamless execution and overall effectiveness.  

After essential components have been decided upon (discussed in On-boarding- Necessary Program or Waste of Time), HR or other team development coordinators need to map out a strategy to ensure that nothing is overlooked and slips through the cracks.    “Project Perspectives” is a resourceful tool to outline ideas and organize tasks.

Each day should be broken down on the Project Perspectives outline.  Granular details would include:

1. General overview for each day
2. Itemized sections by subject heading
3. Materials needed for distribution
4. Lead instructor for each section
5. Start/stop time for sessions

So that all associates involved can plan their days accordingly, a master calendar broken down by participating associates leading sessions should be included.  

A similar agenda highlighting day overview and session titles/times should be provided to each new hire to increase comfort levels as to what the program entails.  Delegation to support staff who are not involved in teaching sessions can involve printing distribution materials and booklets, and also organizing practical logistics of the program such as meals and snacks.  

On-boarding is often a company-wide endeavor for small to medium business, and relies upon an entire HR/Education department for larger organizations.  On the surface, a comprehensive on-boarding program may appear to be an overwhelming responsibility and consume much of associates’ valuable time.  However, the benefits to providing a comprehensive program and facilitating a smooth transition will pay dividends in the company’s overall stability.

Experience Sharing

All to often people share their two cents when not asked. People tend not to follow advice they receive without solicitation. A more effective method of helping one another is through experience sharing.

It is arrogant to assume that you have the answer to someone's complex problems after briefly hearing about the story. There are so many nuances to a situation that one could not possibly understand in a short briefing.

Through experiencing sharing, one is able to help see a route taken and use it to help them develop their own solution to their problem that addresses all of the nuances. This type of thought process is found in the major entrepreneur and president organizations, such as Entrepreneurs Organization.

I have learned many things and created many solutions to my challenges through experience shares of people within my professional circle. I encourage all entrepreneurs to join an organization such as EO and establish a trusting inner circle that will openly share experiences and help sharpen your skills.

Risk Management

All businesses are indirectly in the insurance business. I am not referring to the traditional types of insurance, rather I am referring to the management of risk. The people we hire, the technology we put in place, the operational procedures we produce are all a form of insurance we invest in to protect and strengthen our businesses. There is the flip side, what is the cost of not having them? What is the risk?

An example: A business is a store that only has one person that works in the store. The store owner feels like he cannot afford the $15,000 annually to hire a part time person. To fully understand his predicament, I have him do a little bit of workplace reconnaissance.

1. Confirm that the business is operating in a risky manner.
2. Estimate the potential loss if the employee was to get sick, injured in an accident, or quit?
   
3. The owner estimated this exposure at $8,500.
   
4. The owner took that risk and deducted it from the costs associated with hiring the part time person and he realize the actual increase of costs is $6,500, not the initial $15,000 that the owner assumed.

Armed with the actual costs the business owner was better able to make his decision. He was now informed and could properly manage his risk.

As business owners and managers, we need to manage this risk. The owner determined that the $6,500 additional investment was affordable so he hired the person. In addition, he understood the investment needs to yield a return. He set forth additional tasks for the two person team to complete to help get more value out of the investment.

This approach will help you make decisions that are based on risk adjusted numbers. This outlook has helped me lower my risk and strengthen my company. I hope it can do the same for yours.

Directional Clarity - The Child Test

As business owners and managers, we are often put to the test. We face all sorts of situations that there is not a handbook on dealing with. We need to be able to count on ourselves. Here is the test I give myself before taking action.

I imagine my child is watching me and learning from me and I ask myself "Do I want her act in the way that I am about to act?" This relates to everything. If I am disciplining someone, training them, everything. Do I want my child to learn and mimic my actions. Think about it, this approach makes you break down justifications and leads you to make a deliberate choice of doing the right thing or the wrong thing.

This "Child Test" has helped me work through countless situations. I hope it helps you do the same.

Quick Tip on Delegating Tasks

What does a home run look like? Very easy to understand and describe. When delegating tasks, ask yourself the home run question. For this person you are delegating to hit a home run with the given tasks, they must...

It turns the tasks into small bites of work, each with a picture of what success looks like.

If you can do this consistently, you will find tasks being completed better, faster, therefore, you should be more profitable.

Entrepreneurs and Economic Cycles

Good entrepreneurs tend to be a misunderstood group. They push when others pull. They take chances when others are cautious. They expand while others contract. All the while, their group of friends and family are left scratching their heads trying to figure out if the entrepreneur is crazy or a genius.

This current downturn in the economic cycle is necessary and healthy. It gives great companies the opportunity to be compared more closely to their competitors, allowing them to capture market share. Companies that shed good employees to save money end up losing all of the money invested in the person and as well as the goodwill with the remaining employees.

It is times like these when entrepreneurs have the opportunity to prove their commitment and faith they have in their team and business by working towards strengthening themselves. Upgrade talent where possible. Spend more to improve the infrastructure and sales teams. Protect the investments made in development of great members of the team.

Resicom believes one of its biggest assets is its people. This is the best opportunity for growth that we have ever experienced. Many of our competitors are closing or weakening themselves through layoffs, while our potential clients are re-examining existing relationships, looking for better solutions. We want to be positioned to service them.