Business coaching consulting executive services

 

 

Business Coaching and Consulting Executive Services

10 Tips to Impress for Success

Experts say that it takes as little as three seconds to make a first impression — an impression that, once made, is lasting and difficult to change. So, whether you’re at a holiday party or lunching with a potential client, make sure you make a positive impression.

 1.  Appearance counts. Dress appropriately for the gathering you’re attending. Make sure that your clothing is clean and that it fits well. If you look sloppy, people will assume that you and your business are sloppy as well.

 2.  Fix your hair and polish your shoes. Don’t let a bad hair day cost you the connection. Putting off that much-needed haircut or color job could make you stand out — but not in the way you want. And while you’re at it, make sure your shoes are polished and appropriate for the business environment. People will look from your head to your feet. If your shoes aren’t well maintained, potential clients might wonder if you pay attention to other details.  

3.  Grip-n-grin. People will judge you based on whether you shake their hand and by the quality of that shake. When you greet someone, make direct eye contact, smile, and extend your hand. Slide your hand into the other person’s and lock thumbs. Use a firm — not painful — grip.

4.  Speak clearly and talk well. Speak at a moderate pace, use a well-modulated voice, and enunciate properly. Listeners judge intelligence, cultural level, education, and even leadership ability by the words we select — and by how we say them.

5.  Demonstrate good listening skills. Maintain steady eye contact and give positive verbal cues: “Hmmm ... interesting!” “What did he say then?”

6.  Keep your business cards handy. Have a good supply of them with you at all times since you never know where you will encounter a potential client. Keep your business cards in a card case or holder. That way you’ll be able to find them without a lot of fumbling around, and they’ll always be in pristine condition.

7.  Be ready to talk about your business. What would you say if you had 15 seconds to describe your business and convince a potential customer that you’re better than the competition? Write down the message and commit it to memory. Clearly and concisely stating what you offer shows that you’re focused on your business.

8.  Hang out with colleagues and clients. If your company has after-hours activities (playing softball or Thursday night happy hours), make it a point to attend every now and then. These types of activities are great ways to bond with your coworkers. But be on your best behavior. Don’t call the ref names or get sloshed. The same goes if a client invites you to one of his company’s outings.

9.  Walk quickly. According to several studies, people think that those who walk more quickly than they do are important and energetic. Pick up the pace and walk with purpose if you want to impress.

10.  Solicit expert advice. A career coach could help you spruce up your image so that you never have to worry about making a great first impression.

TOP

 

10 Tips for Better Communication

  1. Think before you speak. Saying what you mean and meaning what you say is the golden rule to communication. To achieve this, you must hear what you are saying before it is spoken. This requires pausing for a moment of thought. Analyze what you plan to say and evaluate whether it sounds like what you mean. When you speak to someone you don’t have a backspace key to erase what you just said.
  1. Watch your body language. Your body language, facial expression, posture, movement, and tone of voice can help you emphasize the truth, sincerity, and reliability of your communication.
  1. Be honest and direct, and focus on the issue. If you enter a conversation insecure about making your point, you probably won’t make it.
  1. Slow down and don’t run your words together. Speak slowly enough that people understand you easily. However, be careful not to slow down to the point where people begin to complete your sentences just to help you finish. When you finish a thought, think of adding a period (.) by counting to three in your mind.
  1. Eliminate fillers. When speaking, try to eliminate fillers such as ”uh,” “um,” “like,” and “you know.”
  1. Use appropriate volume. Speak loudly enough to be easily heard but softly enough to avoid shouting or screaming. If people ask you to speak up or to repeat yourself, this is a clue that you need help in this area. If people shush you or ask you to lower your voice, that’s a clue, too.
  1. Keep it simple. Don’t stuff a handful of thoughts into one breath. Break up your ideas and use direct statements; they will be easier to comprehend.
  1. Use the right words/pronounce words correctly. If you’re not sure of the meaning of a word, don’t use it. Same goes if you aren’t sure how to say it.
  1. Make eye contact. Eye contact emphasizes sincerity — and without sincerity your point will not be received.
  1. Recognize when you need outside help to communicate effectively. Consider hiring a coach to help.

 

10 Tips for Coping with Transition

Transition/change equals stress. Even exciting, positive changes shock our systems and cause anxiety. When you find yourself experiencing frustration, anger, even depression—just remember it’s part of the natural path to acceptance. Here are some tips that may help you navigate transition more gracefully.

  1. Keep a journal that includes a review of your day and your feelings.
  2. Reach out to others and get more support than usual—let family, friends know how to help you.
  3. Use time management skills wisely—set realistic priorities and delegate wherever possible.
  4. Make a list of ways you can simplify your life and do it!
  5. Slow down, take a temporary time out.
  6. Think of this time as an adventure—an opportunity to design the life you want.
  7. Create some new habits that regularly nurture your mind, body and spirit.
  8. Make a list of things you are tolerating right now and develop a plan to reduce or eliminate them.
  9. Make a list of everything that’s missing from your life – things that would lead to fulfillment and balance and develop a plan to GO FOR IT!
  10. If you need additional support or accountability consider hiring a coach to help.

TOP

10 Tips for Managing Your Career Path

The latest job trend analysis suggests employees switch jobs about every three years. This means many of us will work for more than 10-15 different companies over the course of our career. Is it any wonder that managing your career path has become a frightening proposition? Below is a list of tips for helping you define and navigate your career path more successfully.

  1. Identify and gain an understanding of your values, interests, skills and life goals.
  2. Formulate a personal mission statement or purpose and use it as a standard for making decisions—especially job related decisions.
  3. If your current skills don’t support your mission and values then develop a plan to learn new ones.
  4. Define your future from a big picture perspective and use it as a road map in formulating a job search.
  5. Explore all your options—conduct research, prioritize targets, assess your resources and develop an action plan.
  6. Accentuate the positive—focus on your strengths and what comes naturally.
  7. Prepare for success by brushing up on interview and networking techniques.
  8. Polish your communication and negotiation skills. They will not only help you negotiate your BEST OFFER, but they will help you be more effective in every area of life.
  9. Don’t be shy—learn to market and promote yourself to your target audience.
  10. Believe in yourself, but don’t be afraid to ask for a second opinion—or help from a coach who can help.

TOP

10 Tips for Marketing Your Business

Most small business owners are experts at their craft, but often lack the ability to SELL or market their product or service. The following tips are no nonsense ways to tell your story and build your business.

  1. Network. Get to know 100 other business owners/professionals that can refer to you and create strategic alliances. (Attend Chamber of Commerce meetings, do volunteer work, attend social activities, hand out your business card at tradeshows)
  2. Keep your goal in mind—never let an opportunity pass to mention your business/profession.
  3. Develop a website, get it on search engines—tell everyone.
  4. Host (or sponsor) an event—social, charitable, political at your place of business.
  5. Nurture relationships with current customers—exceed their expectations—every time.
  6. Use memorable business cards, web addresses, 800 #’s.
  7. Offer to help others.
  8. Communicate with customers—develop a newsletter, coupons, referral and discount programs that serve as incentives and give you an opportunity to strengthen loyalty.
  9. Cross promote your service/product with other complimentary goods/services.
  10. Learn from others—use a coach to get ahead: develop a marketing plan, adopt a “no plan B” attitude and “JUST DO IT.”

TOP

10 Tips for Energizing Your Life

Life is too short to feel STUCK! Of course it is easy to become stuck in a rut, even in the best of circumstances. While most of us can identify the problem or reason behind our lethargy, just knowing the reason alone is rarely enough to help us change. More often than not, it takes awareness plus ACTION. Below is a list of tips that will help you energize your life and begin developing a more healthy lifestyle.

  1. Be aware of self-defeating messages inside your head and substitute them with positive, self-affirming messages.
  2. Learn to manage your time and to say “NO” gracefully—creating energy requires spare time.
  3. Give yourself rewards—have something to look forward to EVERYDAY.
  4. Re-connect spiritually with something bigger than yourself.
  5. Take time off to play.
  6. Spend time with people who make you feel good about yourself (and stop spending time with those who do not).
  7. Be intentional—be decisive and committed. This helps create positive energy.
  8. Be attractive—act “as if” you already have everything you want. This “fake it til you make it” attitude adds confidence and helps you look/feel more successful right now.
  9. Practice “extreme self care” - love your body and care for it: exercise regularly, take vitamins, have a check-up, schedule a massage. . .
  10. Double check your values, goals and current career & life path—if they don’t match consider hiring a coach to help.

TOP

10 Tips for Creating a Life that Fits

To quote an old cliché: “If you don’t know where you’re going, then you’re never going to get there!” By identifying your unique talents, gifts and personal values you can begin to form a foundation for transitioning aspirations and dreams into meaningful goals and a more fulfilling, joyful life that “fits.” The following tips will help you discover what you’d like to achieve in life. Then you and your coach will work together to develop a plan to obtain it.

  1. Give up old rules and ideas that have held you back - it’s time to create new ones that work!
  2. Define your passion—what is it that motivates you, peaks your interest and comes naturally?
  3. Identify your 5 core values and use them as standards for every decision.
  4. Use your values and passions as a guide to identify your calling in life.
  5. Make a commitment to STOP suffering and start taking action.
  6. Make a list of activities that rejuvenate you and enjoy at least one every day.
  7. Nurture yourself regularly.
  8. Spend time with or find new friends that are supportive, joyful and energizing.
  9. Restructure, limit or give up time spent on costly activities and people that drain you physically, mentally and emotionally.
  10. Evolve. Instead of striving for success, invest in yourself and attract it! Experiment, explore and focus on what fulfills you—hire a coach to help!

TOP

 

Home | Career Coaching | Executive Coaching | Life Coaching |
| Health Coaching | Assessments | Become a Coach | Contact

Copyright © 1999-2010 Parsons Associates Coaching, LLC All Rights Reserved