Tips & Talk 85 – The Very First Question Every Time Should Be …
This one tip will save you an enormous amount of time and your sanity. It will give purpose to your efforts or help you catch yourself if your intended actions aren’t even necessary.
This should happen very time you’re about to embark on a new project regardless of its size. It could be huge, like starting your business or small like adding a new social media platform or deciding on a craft show to attend.
Listen in to hear what the question is and why it’s so important that it can change everything.
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Transcript
Hi there.
Speaker:It's Sue and thanks for joining me for Tips and Talk
Speaker:Day. These are bite sized topics that I pull from community
Speaker:questions and things that I'm observing in the world of handmade
Speaker:small business.
Speaker:If you'd like to submit a topic DME over on Instagram
Speaker:at Gift Biz Unwrapped.
Speaker:Before we get started,
Speaker:I'm gonna share a secret with you.
Speaker:One of my superpowers is the ability to get an enormous
Speaker:number of tasks and projects done each and every week.
Speaker:I easily meet deadlines,
Speaker:rarely forget to do something.
Speaker:I know at the start of each day what needs priority,
Speaker:attention and action type A personality.
Speaker:Yes, and a follow through on the Kobe assessment,
Speaker:which should have given me the clue,
Speaker:but it wasn't until people started commenting to me that I
Speaker:realized not everyone naturally knows how to do this.
Speaker:It's the biggest single contributor to the growth I always see
Speaker:in my businesses without spending hours and hours working either.
Speaker:It's about focus and doing the right things efficiently.
Speaker:Prompted by all the questions on how I do this,
Speaker:I went about finding a way to help you perform at
Speaker:a higher level too.
Speaker:I analyzed my methods and formalized my process,
Speaker:which is one many of my coaching clients now also follow.
Speaker:You can use it too.
Speaker:It's all part of a tool called the Inspired Daily Planner
Speaker:made specifically for gifters,
Speaker:bakers, crafters,
Speaker:and makers.
Speaker:Make no mistake,
Speaker:this is not your ordinary planner.
Speaker:First off,
Speaker:it comes with a video explaining my productivity strategy and the
Speaker:physical planner isn't dated,
Speaker:so you can start using it the second it arrives at
Speaker:your doorstep,
Speaker:and that's not all included for each day is a motivational
Speaker:or business building tip and plenty of space to capture and
Speaker:book in time for to-dos scheduled appointments and all those ideas
Speaker:that are now getting lost.
Speaker:You can watch the video for free and then get your
Speaker:inspired daily planner@giftbizunwrapped.com
Speaker:slash inspired.
Speaker:This one tip will save you an enormous amount of time
Speaker:and your sanity.
Speaker:It will give you purpose to your efforts or help you
Speaker:catch yourself if your intended actions aren't even necessary.
Speaker:This should happen every time you're about to embark on a
Speaker:new project,
Speaker:regardless of its size.
Speaker:It could be huge like starting your business or small,
Speaker:like adding a new social media platform or deciding on a
Speaker:craft show to attend.
Speaker:Before you take on any new projects,
Speaker:ask yourself some version of this question,
Speaker:Why is this an important thing to focus my energy on
Speaker:now? Then you should have a specific and detailed answer to
Speaker:that question that includes,
Speaker:what is my intended result?
Speaker:How do I expect things to be different once this is
Speaker:in place,
Speaker:and is the result worth the energy,
Speaker:time or money that will be required?
Speaker:By gaining clarity on why what you're doing in your business
Speaker:is important,
Speaker:you'll find that you can grow faster because you're devoting resources
Speaker:to the right things and because you're using your time intentionally
Speaker:and you know the why to your efforts,
Speaker:there's less stress and overwhelm.
Speaker:You're only working on things that you've consciously decided can make
Speaker:a difference.
Speaker:It also leads to thinking about how you'll monitor whether set
Speaker:activity is bringing in the expected results.
Speaker:I'm always amazed when I ask people why they're working on
Speaker:this or that.
Speaker:Most times there's no concrete answer.
Speaker:I'll get responses like I keep hearing,
Speaker:I should be on TikTok,
Speaker:or I think it would be fun to redo my labels
Speaker:in different colors,
Speaker:or I'm going to be really productive this weekend and reorganize
Speaker:my office.
Speaker:While these things may or may not be necessary ever,
Speaker:it's also a question of whether now is the right time.
Speaker:It's so easy to be busy doing things that don't lead
Speaker:you to your goals.
Speaker:It feels like you're being super productive,
Speaker:but there aren't any dollar achievements realized for the time that
Speaker:you've put in.
Speaker:That's because it's easier to do things you're comfortable with that
Speaker:come naturally to you than work on projects that can move
Speaker:the sales needle but are more challenging.
Speaker:Then you fool yourself that you're working so hard on your
Speaker:business, which you are,
Speaker:but your sales don't increase.
Speaker:Sound familiar?
Speaker:With that in mind,
Speaker:take a look at the activities you have lined up for
Speaker:the next couple of weeks or maybe one you're working on
Speaker:right now.
Speaker:Are you able to give yourself an answer as to how
Speaker:this project will impact your business positively?
Speaker:Be mindful that project creep can come into play here too.
Speaker:Obviously, preparing for an upcoming craft show is important and will
Speaker:lead to sales and new prospects to add to your email
Speaker:list, but what exactly are the valuable tasks?
Speaker:By way of example,
Speaker:here's what I'd suggest are productive and valuable tasks,
Speaker:A dry run setup of your table so you ensure that
Speaker:you have all the elements of a strong display,
Speaker:particularly if this is your first show.
Speaker:There's making enough product to sell,
Speaker:creating a plan to collect email addresses at the event and
Speaker:planning and practicing your checkout system so you're efficient and people
Speaker:don't walk away because they've waited too long.
Speaker:Here's what I suggest.
Speaker:May not be productive tasks,
Speaker:going out and buying a new tablecloth so you have a
Speaker:backup just in case,
Speaker:or redesigning your bag stuffers with different wording and logos when
Speaker:the current one is just fine.
Speaker:I'd say that sending out announcements to those who attended your
Speaker:past shows is a much better idea and making a plan
Speaker:for how you'll post on social media before and during the
Speaker:show to prompt attendance would be a more valuable project too.
Speaker:Leading directly to more customers at the shows and more sales
Speaker:for you.
Speaker:Get the idea here.
Speaker:Make a note for yourself and post it somewhere where you'll
Speaker:see it each day.
Speaker:The note should read,
Speaker:Why am I doing this project?
Speaker:Consciously review your activities in this way and see the change
Speaker:it makes in your life and the growth that you'll realize
Speaker:in your small business.
Speaker:That's a wrap.
Speaker:I'm a get to the point kind of girl,
Speaker:and this is what you can expect from these quick midweek
Speaker:sessions. Now it's your turn.
Speaker:Go out and fulfill that dream of yours.
Speaker:Share your handmade products with us.
Speaker:We want them and they bring us both.