Lessons from the Beach

by Matthew Best

We took a short family vacation to the beach this past week. I love the beach. Even in the relaxation and the hustle of vacations, there are lessons to be pay attention to.

First lesson - taking time away. I am convinced that entrepreneurs and business owners and decision makers spend way too much time working. Believe me, I've been there. I understand - there's lots to be done and it's your business, so you invest a great deal of time with your investment. The problem, and yes it's a problem,
comes when we don't step away for a little bit of time to take a look at the reality of our own businesses. We need time away to gain some clarity and to stop the habits that stop of from making changes. Even taking one day away every so often can be
a refreshing experience. You'll be ready to face the challenges. And don't tell me you are too busy, too important, or too anything else. Even the President of the United States takes a vacation every once in awhile.

Second lesson - Remember what's important. We have four kids aged 2 1/2 months to 6 years old. In the regular day-to-day of life you end of disciplining, telling your kids "no" "stop" and who knows what else. When you take this mindset to the beach you learn to relax a little. We relax because we remember that when the kids
do something we don't necessarily like, it's not because they are bad so often, it's because they are figuring out their own way, testing the limits around them, etc.

We parents get upset because the kids don't do it "our way." The lesson I pulled away was to remember what's important - which isn't much really. Do I really need to directing what my kids are doing every moment and how they are doing it? No. What if they do it a different way? So what. So my message for this lesson is that when you are upset or frustrated with a situation, ask yourself - why am I frustrated? What's important?

Third lesson - be creative. I like to think of myself as a pretty creative person already. But I also learned there is plenty more creativity that I could be tapping into. My daughter and I came up with a game to play on the beach with the incoming ocean waves. There were very few rules, it didn't require us to spend money on
any materials and more importantly, it was a blast.

Take a look at your situation. How can you use your creativity to move you forward? Can you do it without spending any money? Remember, you can make the rules for your own success.

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What's Your Niche?

by Matthew Best

So, what's your niche? It's quite an intimidating question isn't it? I find that
very few people can truly identify what their niche is completely. Most entrepreneurs struggle with the idea of defining a niche - they are creative people and see any limitation, even if it's self-imposed, as a violation of their freedom. Can you see how this might be a conflict?

One of the biggest challenges that people have in defining their niche is that they
don't know how to. I can't tell you how many articles I've read on the importance
of having a niche, but so few things are out there on how to go about defining a
niche. Today is your lucky day though because I'm going to share with you the big secret.

First, identify the skill set that you are an expert in. Is it finance, marketing,
coaching, internet-related activities, etc. Second, identify an industry that you want to work in. That's it. That's all there is to it. So let's say you are a financial planner. Instead of trying to convince everyone in the world to work with you, you decide that you are going to work with real estate agents. You apply your skill set to a specific industry.

Chances are that you will be much more successful than blanketing everyone. Your message will be focused and you can focus on specific challenges that real estate agents are dealing with. So what's your niche?

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Working On Your Business

by Matthew Best

You've heard the question before - Are you working in or on your business? The
idea being that we do a lot of the technical parts of our business and we don't
invest enough time working on the business strategy and focus.

This past week, I took time away from the technical activities of my business and
I worked on my business. What an experience. Taking time away from the daily habits of your business can yield big results. First off, there is clarity. Several things became very clear to me by taking time away like this. I realized how much of a technician I am with my business – something I didn't like learning, but something that will cause me to make some serious changes with how I run my business.

When we are in the thick of doing your business it's almost like running your business
with blinders on your eyes. You lose sight of what's going on around you. Here's the biggest challenge that any entrepreneur and small business owner has with taking time away to work on their business - time. When do you have time to do this? You don't. There is always something else to do. So what's the answer - you make time. It doesn't have to be tomorrow. Look at your calendar – schedule some time - a day, a half day, even one hour if that's all you can give.

Schedule time sometime within the next month to work on your business - the strategy, your goals, your message, your marketing plan. Look, I understand that time and money are tight. It wasn't easy to put everything else on hold to work on the business - but it was vitally important. Does your business exist to serve you, or are you a slave to your business? If you are a slave to your business, it's time to take a serious look at what's going on and make some changes. You'll be glad you did.

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Are You Confusing The Tool with The Real Deal?

by Matthew Best

I had a great conversation this week about confusing the tools in our lives with
the real deal - the goal we are looking to accomplish. What I mean is that so
often we forget that a tool is just a tool, not the thing that is actually important.
Yet how often do we attach so much importance and significance to the tool that
we lose sight of this? All of a sudden the tool overshadows the goal. We lose
sight of what is important and start to drift, even while we are focused on the
tool.

A phone is a tool, yet how often do we forget that the phone is just a tool for
our convenience? Let me ask, do you work for your phone or does the phone work
for you? When do you have to answer it? When it tells you that a call or message
is coming in, or when it's convenient to your schedule?

A tool is an instrument that can be used to make your life easier, assist you in
accomplishing a goal, or make your work more efficient or effective. What are the tools in your life and your business? Are these tools making your life and business better? Or are they demanding more of your attention, time and energy? Are you confusing these tools with what really matters? Are you placing too much emphasis on the tools and not enough on the goal? Are your tools working for you, or are you working for them - answering their every beck and call? Remember your foundation - the why of what you are doing. The tools merely assist you with the how - remember this as you go through your day today.

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Are You In Control?

by Matthew Best


For the past week I've been focusing on the idea of control. So often we ask questions
that relate to control - "Who's in control here?" or "What's the process?" or "What
results should I expect?" Often, control and predictability go hand-in-hand. We get caught up in the idea of being in control. Think of times when you are not
in control and remember how insecure you felt. And so, we usually conclude that a certain level of control is either good or bad. I want to challenge your thinking on this for a moment. What if control was just a part of the process, or the process itself?

Let me explain. The next time you are at a restaurant, look at a table. Think of the table in relation to control. The table has certain weight limitation - how much can go on top of it before it will break. Doesn't that weight limit control what will go on the table? How about the size of the table? It controls how many tables and in what formation will fit in the restaurant. The table affects and controls what kinds of limits there are on the chairs that will work well with the table from a height and style standpoint. The location of the table controls the flow of traffic through the restaurant as well. You can go on and on.

So much about this table deals with control - yet, is it really about control being good
or bad? Now come back to your business. Are you in control? What is in control? And what does that mean really? What effects does that have on the business - internal and
external communication, time management, management of others, sales, customer loyalty, etc.?

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