New Business Development – Page 68

Buy Children’s Books About Your Industry

I write adult romance novels
yet I often buy
children’s books for research.

Why?

Because children’s books
have illustrations,
they usually name parts
(parts of a space shuttle, a computer, etc)
and they assume
the reader knows nothing
about the topic.
They explain terminology
and how things work
in easy-to-understand language.

Children’s books also convey
what the average person
should know
about a topic.

That average person
could be my reader.

And they could be
your prospect/customer.

If there are children’s books
on your industry
(and I suspect there ARE),
read them.

Local Contacts

I’m Canadian
and the biggest target market
for my Romance Novel Business
is US readers.

I try to always have
a contact,
either a reader or another writer,
in each State.

They tell me
if my listings are messed up,
if products aren’t being
delivered properly,
if there are rulings happening
that might impact my business.

I am less likely
to see all that,
to hear about it
here in Canada.

Often, for example,
online booksellers
will change what out of state
or out of country
buyers see.

Without these contacts,
I’m operating
without full information.

If you operate
internationally,
try to make contacts
in each region
who will inform you
of changes
to your products/services
and
to the industry.

We need locals,
boots on the ground.

Last Minute Contributors

We all know people
like this,
like Seth Godin
describes

People who show “up toward the end,
when most of the work
has been done
and it’s almost time to ship…”

They make “a suggestion
that would require changing
a great deal
of what’s been done.
It might even be
a good suggestion
on its face,
but it’s hard to tell…”

F*ck those people.
Seriously.
F*ck them.

The timing is deliberate.
It doesn’t matter
what their excuse for their delay
is.
They delayed giving their input
for a reason.

They don’t truly want us
to take their suggestions.

That’s too much responsibility
and too much work for them.

They’re giving themselves
an ‘out’ if the project
goes wrong.
They can smugly tell you
“I told you so”
while not having to be involved
with implementing their changes,
while not doing any of that work,
because they KNOW
it is too f*ckin’ late
to make their changes.

Ignore last minute contributors
and their suggestions.

Support Your Decision Makers

My eldest brother
lives with our Mom.
He makes the majority of decisions
concerning her healthcare.

He normally consults
with us first
but he often doesn’t have time
to wait long for agreement.

If I respond in time
we discuss the decision
and come to an agreement.

If I don’t respond in time,
I fully support his decision.

Because he is making
the best decisions he can,
tackling all that responsibility.

And any wrong decisions made
are truly
my fault.
I didn’t respond in time.

We should put a process in place.
And then support our decision makers
when they follow that process.

If they can’t contact us,
any wrong decisions made
are truly our responsibility.

Being reachable
is part of being
a business builder.

Support your decision makers.

Someone Told Him No

James Patterson,
one of the best selling authors
in the world,
owner of a publishing house
with thousands of
best selling releases,
and
proud user of ghostwriters
(he outsources the writing
of his own novels),
is

“worried that
it is hard for white men
to get writing gigs
in film, theatre,
TV or publishing”.

“[It’s] just another form
of racism.
What’s that all about?
Can you get a job?
Yes.
Is it harder?
Yes.”

In other words,
someone dared
to tell him no,
to not consider him
for one opportunity.

“When you’re accustomed
to privilege,
equality feels like
oppression.”

You’re going to hear
more bellyaching
from
(often super successful)
old white guys
about being oppressed.

They’re not accustomed
to being told no,
to competing
with the rest of us.

Ignore them.
We have our own
businesses to build.

Vacation Plus One Day

When people ask me,
as a business builder,
as someone in charge
of her own schedule,
when I’m returning
from a vacation,
I tell them
I’ll be back to work
one day AFTER
I truly am.

No one knows
I’m working
that first day.

I don’t schedule meetings
or other tasks
for Day 1.

It is dedicated
to urgent issues,
to tasks that can’t wait,
to catching up
on communications,
to getting maintenance things
done.

Because there WILL
be at least one issue
that can’t wait
one more day.

And tackling that issue
means ignoring everything
and everyone else.

Give yourself an extra day.
You’ll need it.

You’re Allowed To Be Happy

There’s a so-called self-help expert
who insists
there’s danger
in too much happiness,
too much joy.

The expert is trying
to make people feel guilty
about being happy.
Yeah.
In THIS pandemic
and climate change inflicted
world.

Maybe there is someone
on this planet
who IS ‘suffering’ from
too much joy
but I don’t know
that person.

If you’re happy
(and you’re not hurting
others with the source
of that joy),
embrace that happiness,
protect it,
savor it.

Treat it like the gift
it is.

You’re allowed to be happy.
Finding happiness
should be one of your goals
in life.

If You Can Safely Do So, Go Outside

There are parts of the world
where a human
can’t safely
leave their home today
due to climate change.

This will become
more and more common.

What does this mean
for business builders?

We should think
long and hard
before building a business
that requires
people to go outside,
to leave a building.

If we do build
such a business,
we might wish
to consider
how we could make
inside
an option.

And we should,
ourselves,
today or tomorrow,
go outside
if it is safe
to do that.

We should enjoy
that option
because it might not
always be there
for us.

Go outside today.

But build businesses
that can operate
inside a building.

Our Own Rate Of Growth

I planted tomato seeds
harvested from the same plant,
stored and sown in the same way.

Some plants sprouted
weeks apart.

The late sprouters
look as healthy
and viable
as the early sprouters.
I suspect they will bear
as many tomatoes.

They merely were
on a different schedule.

I’m on a different schedule
from other business builders.
I suspect you are too.

That schedule isn’t bad
or good.
It is merely different.

It is OUR schedule.

Don’t compare
your rate of growth
to those of other businesses.

You and your business
are unique.
Your rate of growth
will be unique also.

Know Your Critics

A movie releasing soon
looks like it might be
a Romantic Comedy.
The heroine and hero might have
a romantic happy ending.
They might stay together.

Then I read critics’ reviews.
They all raved
about the ending,
which told me
it was likely to be sad.
Someone would likely die.
The couple definitely
wasn’t staying together.

A reading buddy contacted me,
telling me
she loved my latest book
and was giving it 5 stars.

She gives all my books
5 stars.
I love this
and I really appreciate her
but I know
not to judge my books
based on her reviews.

Know the critics
you are interacting with.

They all have biases.
They’re human.

Take those biases
into consideration
when interpreting their reviews.