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Improving your Business Writing in a New York MINIT: Five Steps to Better Communication

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Copyright 2006 The Edventures Group

You know the feeling?

You’ve dodged the writing bullet for days...

It’s time to hit that send button and share your words of wisdom. Your supervisor or your client is waiting. And you’ve got nada, nothing except a blank screen and a deadline. What’s worse is you’re having flashbacks to college. It’s the night before a term paper is due and you have zip to show! Instinctively, you reach for that old familiar standby…Cliff Notes! Yes, Cliff Notes got you through English class!

But, there’s no Cliff Notes for weekly summaries, reports, evaluations, or RFP' s! And, no amount of excuses, coffee or Red Bull will help you now. But a tight plan that saves you from being a master of disaster when it comes to business writing can save the day, and those sleepless nights that proceed the deadline day!

You are not alone. These anxious writing moments are suffered in offices across the world. They create enough job stress to collectively power a small city. And they shake even the most confident business person throughout the organization, from the mail room to the board room.

Writing skill matters in business. You may be the Face to Face deal closer extraordinaire or the networking legend in your workplace, but your balance sheet is out of whack if you can’t talk the talk in writing. Today’s complete business person balances oral and written skill. Confident writers know the power of INKING THEIR THINKING, and they use it to advance in their career.

Facing your writing demons means growing up. You’ve got to get rid of the negative image being a poor writer. More than likely, it’s a view left over from inadequate high school or college classes. Sometimes it’s the result of no real experience as a writer. Can you imagine hitting a 67 on the Golf course each Saturday without constant practice and instruction? Well, writing, like golfing is based on muscle memory. The more you think and write, the more you imprint the process through application, the easier it is to write. Avoidance is the killer, and those deadlines keep coming. Think what it would feel like to be a confident wordsmith. You can be, and you can do it quickly…using the New York MINIT process as your model.

The New York MINIT writing framework reflects the urgent pace of a New York minute when things get done in a flash. After years of writing neglect, you need to get capable on the job, fast. And the New York MINIT framework let’s you develop a quick, clean process. You can internalize the MINIT system and use it easily, days before your writing is due for deadline. You’ll confidently meet a deadline. And, with practice, you’ll learn to write quickly, perhaps even in a few short minutes as you move from one meeting to the next during a busy day! So whether you are in Des Moines or Chicago, or Manhattan or Memphis, you can use the New York MINIT framework to quickly and clearly process your thoughts into written products. You’ll soon create written business documents that get attention and praise from your readers in a New York minute!

The NEW YORK MINIT

Writing is a process. Good writers move their thinking forward from envisioning an idea to presentation of a final product. These 5 Steps in using the New York MINIT for Business Writing Success will help you do the same. They are sequential. Depending on your skill, you may become stuck in the early stages. If you run dry, return, as you should, to step one….being stuck is a sure sign that your writing idea is too broad. By starting over, you can narrow and define your thinking.

Step One: M means….  Make time to “Prewrite”!

• Think and draft your writing WITHOUT Writing: Allow yourself to “dream” it, massage your thinking, and let your mind go. Good writers do a lot of “Prewriting” before they actually put pen to paper! This could take hours or a few days, but it is MOST important. Prewriting is done without paper.

• Think about your audience: Who will read this? Put yourself in his or her shoes as you pre-write. Think from the client’s point of view. What do they WANT to know? If it’s not clear. Get on the phone and ask!!

Step Two: I means…    Incorporate “Feedback Lines”!

• Find a writing buddy: Use someone not related to you who can talk to you about your prewriting thoughts in a quick conference. Tell the partner you want them to listen for small details of what you’ve thought about. This should take five minutes! It is not a critique, it’s a coaching session. Your partner listens and does not control the talk. You should be doing the talking. You are trying to narrow your broad thinking.

• Note to Self: Use post-its, use tape recorder, one scrap of paper or your blog.  Start to write your idea. For a sustained period of time of at least 15 minutes.

• Put the Editing Police on Notice! DO not stop to look at individual words as you get your ideas down….DO NOT edit yourself at this point. It is too early in the process. Research shows this is the time when people give up. It is not the time to nitpick over word, phrases or spelling. You want to make meaning. Give yourself permission to write a little garbage if you have to. Don’t get stuck here. Write freely! It’s for your eyes only.

• Take Inventory: Look at what you have written and circle the main points. Do they seem to be tied to a small enough idea? The mistake writers make is they take on too much and overwhelm themselves and the reader. You may have a template you use for a weekly report which should tighten your direction. If you have no template, remember less is often more. If you have the best points on the paper, you won’t need to be a Ramblin’ Man or Woman when you write the draft!

• Outline Away! Use whatever means works to create a quick outline. Use traditional Roman numerals, use bullets, use post it’s. Use what fits as you order your thinking.

Step Three: N means….Now Write!

• Write your draft! and begin with one or two sentences that you use a formula over and over. Write an opener that you can tailor later just to get you started. Then write past this opener. You can always go back and revise it. Treat it as  your running start from the high diving board. You might need it the first time you write, but chances are you will cut it in the final version.

• Don’t look at your first free-writing! Just keep your points in mind and begin fresh. Looking to the free-writing may cause you to become unfocused. You want your ideas to flow and new stronger thoughts to bubble up.

• Think simple! You are building a simple house of text! You need a front door, a kitchen a living room and a bedroom and a back door. Walk your reader through the house! It’s five rooms…Front door is the opener or Intro, the three rooms are main phases, points, articles, or benchmarks, depending on the writing task. Your closing is the back porch. Remember, keep it tight. No need to build a mansion! .

Step Four: I means… Invest in Voice!

• Make your draft live: Use a few writer’s age old tricks:1. Take out your wordy adjectives and long phrases.2. Vary the length of your sentences: short-short - long-short 3. Load your text with strong verbs 4. Avoid the passive voice ( No “en”or “ed” verb endings that have the words was, were, is…like “was chosen”. Use a subject and verb constructions that are active in Voice.) 5. Use a resource book if you want to use some specific vocabulary, but make your choice natural for yourself. Your report should be written in your business voice, not sounding like a textbook!

• Take another look: Reread your work and if your writing buddy can help you, read it quickly to him or her for clarity.

Step Five: T means… That’s a Wrap!

As you near the point of sending the writing:

• Use Spell check! • Read your work yourself…backwards from the end to the intro, checking the spelling yourself. • Give the report to another to read and EDIT, not to change content. • Double back to your writing buddy through email, if necessary

Following this process, with special attention, and your result will be a more confident you. Remember, you have a lot to make up for, years of avoiding writing. You can prove yourself a capable business writer using these steps. Do it in a New York minute!

IT Outsourcing

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Software companies are required to produce lots of software products for their clients. These software products being used for giant organizations such as airlines, banks, financial institutions, big corporate houses and various government bodies, where lots of data being stored and updated every day. IT (Information Technology) software companies in US, Canada and Europe who are taking up these projects require massive investment in infrastructure as well as huge manpower to work on them.

This is competitive world and every industry wants to be very competitive in every business. So is IT software industry. To cut the labor costs, IT software companies are increasingly outsourcing their jobs to developing countries in Asia, Latin American, Africa and Middle East. Since “cost saving” is the prime objective of IT software firms, it is estimated nearly 50% of IT software jobs being outsourced to developing nations..

Most of the jobs outsourced are creating software in .Net, Java/J2EE, database solutions, smartcard solution and wireless/mobile application developments. BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) are also helping their foreign clients in voice and non-voice solutions, customer care, data management and so on. Outsourcing firms hire well educated English speaking young staff, who are energetic and willing to work in shifts. These outsourcing companies charge very economical hourly rates and most of them are working even less than $7/- per hour, which is much lower than standard hourly charges in U.S.

India has taken the lead in IT outsourcing jobs. Its Bangalore city is now said to be Mecca of IT industry. With favorable government policies and substantial investment in infrastructure are making India as the great attraction for IT software outsourcing jobs. By outsourcing their IT jobs to India, U.S., Canadian and European companies will not only save labor costs but this will also help them to be more competitive, concentrate more on core competent areas and enjoy tax benefits. Once the IT software jobs are outsourced, companies can concentrate on marketing, advertising, launching of new products, finding new customers and so on.

Please do visit at http://www.kpoasia.com to know more about outsourcing.

5 Tips to Choose the Best Home Business Opportunity

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With the rise of the Internet, there's never been a better time to launch a home business. Millions of people are choosing to work from home and make money on line, using only their computer and mouse. Millions more are involved in more traditional network marketing, scheduling parties and selling products to their friends, neighbors, and family. If you want to make money on line, how do you know what the best home business opportunity is for you? Read on for five tips to help you choose.

1. Know your options. There are tens of thousands of Internet-based home businesses, if not more. They range from multi level marketing opportunities to ecommerce to intellectual property sales. Your first step should be to find a website that has an overview of the best home business opportunities. This will save you countless hours scouring the Internet in order to find all of the choices available.

2. Know your strengths. Perhaps you're a great writer, and would enjoy - and profit - from taking public domain books and articles and crafting them into books and articles that you could sell on the Internet. Perhaps you're an experience network marketer and would do well selling products or online opportunities to others who want to break into the field of network marketing. When reviewing home business opportunities, narrow your field to those that play to your strengths.

3. Know your weaknesses. If you don't know the first thing about building websites, it doesn't make sense to choose a home business where you'll have to build a bunch of websites. Likewise, if you couldn't sell water to someone in the desert, don't go into direct sales. Even though you might find an incredible home business opportunity, if it doesn't dovetail with your talents, it's not for you. It's like any other job: there are jobs you're automatically qualified for, those that you can learn as you go, and others that are beyond your reach. Again, success lies in playing to your strengths.

4. Diversify your revenue streams. Despite what many opportunities claim, your best chances for success come when you bring in revenue from several sources. You may begin with one home business, but over the course of a few months, you should add several others. By doing this, if one revenue stream goes south in any given month, you'll always have backup sources of revenue.

5. Set goals and meet them. In order to be successful, you need to set goals. The goals you set should include revenue goals, marketing goals, and goals specific to the home businesses you're engaged in. Once you've set your goals, you need to make a plan to reach them. Then, you need to commit to doing whatever it takes to follow your plan.

Having a home business is incredibly rewarding. If you're a parent, you'll have more time to spend with your children. If you're retired, you'll have additional income. If you're a student, you can pay for your education. If you simply like the idea of giving up the hassles of a nine-to-five job, a home business will give you the freedom you desire. Just do your research, play to your strengths, diversify your revenue streams, and set and meet your goals, and you'll experience the satisfaction that being a successful home business owner can bring.

Why Isn’t Everyone Working From Home?

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Most people today have the opportunity to work from home if they choose, however, like skydiving, working from home is not for everyone.

One person’s pleasure is another person’s poison.

If you do want to work from home, do you want online or offline, product or service, health related, information related, affiliate business? Etc,etc,etc. The list goes on and on. Find something that is of interest to you, this is very important, you must be passionate about your business, know your business inside and out, study and research about your products, services and opportunity, plus it’s good fun.

We are taught to do well in life, but not too well, because to be really successful you need to take risks and you don't want to do that, do you?

We are conditioned from an early age, do well at school, get a good job, marry, have children and not to rock the boat!

All the successful people around have definitely rocked the boat at some stage, they have done things where people have said, ‘What are they doing, are they mad?’ These people are in the minority, they want more, they need challenges, so they take risks, sometimes they win and sometimes they loose, but whatever happens they just keep on going, trying new things, investing in what seems like hopeless opportunities, but what makes this minority of people different is their will to SUCCEED.

Everybody can see these people succeed and fail, so everybody says, ‘Well I won’t be trying that it’s to risky’

The beauty of working from home opportunities is that you CAN try them out and risk very little. Some opportunities have trial periods so the risk is zero.

But be careful, you cannot eat a piece of chocolate by just smelling it!

People try to work from home, but they don’t really try, they sort of go through the motions without really committing to anything. A lot of people will start their home business and expect to be wealthy without doing anything different to what they done before.

If you keep doing what you have always done, you will keep getting what you have always gotten!

So if you’re happy with your lot in life, I’m happy for you, if however, you want more I wish you every success, deep down you know whether you want more from life, it’s now a case of , how bad do you want it?

Decide to succeed, plan to succeed, take action to succeed and you will SUCCEED!

Keep Dreaming And Never Quit

The Virtual Office – Run Your Business From Home

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At one point in my career I found my self Chief Information Officer of a small start up company, struggling to make ends meet. We were burning $50,000.00 to $75,000.00 per month and not quite making that in *gross* sales.

We were depending on investors to fund the business and investors were getting harder and harder to find. It looked like our little business was not going to make it.

After crunching some numbers I determined that we could cut expenses into less than half if we would let everyone who was not critical to the business go and more importantly, close down the office and run the business 'virtually'.

At first the executive team balked at the idea but I told them how we could do it and showed them how much we could save monthly by doing it. After careful consideration they agreed and our little business went 'virtual'.

After giving the employees the bad news we closed the office and each member of the executive team took home all files, equipment, etc. that was most pertinent to their job. We supplied our 'critical' employees with computers, software and equipment as needed.

Just before we left the office we set up a virtual PBX phone system. They're offered all over the Internet. You can do a search on one of the major search engines for 'virtual pbx'. The one I use now is GotVMail.com. It works pretty well for us and it's very inexpensive.

Most large businesses have automated pbx system these days so using this system doesn't make us look like we don't have a central office. You can even upgrade it if you prefer and use a live person to answer the phones. Those are also available in plenty. When a call is placed to the pbx system it is forwarded to the number we set up (like for sales, support, Bob Fischer, etc.) If the phone isn't answered the pbx system sends the call to that phone account's voice mail. The best thing about these pbx systems is that they're VERY inexpensive. We currently pay $35.00 to $75.00 per month and we even have an 800 number. Even though we all have phones and cellphones, the expense isn't nearly as high because our phones are not set up with the phone company as 'business' phones. Say it's a 'business' account and the monthly bill doubles or more.

Having the phone system covered we turn to the corporate information/file system.

Being the CIO I took all of the computer servers and the Internet connectivity equipment home. I set up an adequite Internet connection to my house (again, non-business) and ran all of our inter-computer networking and our Website over the Internet from my home. We set up a VPN (a secure) connection between our computers over the Internet so we could see them all just like we could if we were in an office. Secured directories on any computer were protected just as they would be in an office. For a 'central' file server I set up an FTP (File Transfer) site on our file server. Again it was fully protected against intruders but all of our people could access the central file system just as easily as if we were in an office.

As far as interoffice communication was concerned, we still used phones and email alot like we often did in the office anyway. For meetings we could use 'virtual meeting' software but we found that we much preferred to just meet at a restaurant and enjoy a (company expensed) bite to eat.

NOw our little business was running fully virtual. Everyone was working from home and I might add, *loving* it. Soon after we were under way we ran into a nasty problem. We learned that our employees (the critical ones who we highly depended on) found it too much of a temptation to watch TV or handle domestic affairs (being at home) rather than really dedicating the time we were paying them for to working for us. Gradually it got so that no live person would (almost) ever answer our phones. Our clients were not being taken care of. Sales was dropping (which was already a problem). We (I) started to think that I had made a mistake and that this was not going to work.

We had an executive meeting concerning the problem and determined that we had a choice: solve the problem or close our doors. We determined that we would do our level best to solve the problem.

The first thing we did was hold a corporate meeting (and treated everyone to lunch) and explain our problem to our employees. We told them flatly that if it didn't stop they would lose their jobs.

The second thing we did was to restructure employee pay. Salaries went *way* down but were subsidized with pay based on production. This was a little closer to piece work. The emphasis was not on how long they worked but more on how much they got done.

In addition to that we developed software to monitor their work. For every little piece of work they did they had to check a box or click a button on the computer to mark that it was done. If they didn't they didn't get paid for it. Of course we had to periodically check to make sure they weren't lying and for the most part they were honest about it. Sometimes more detailed information was required like selecting the client from a drop down or selecting specific services that were provided. Long story short, they had to record every part of their work to our database in order to be paid.

We developed reports of each of our employees' work so we could closely monitor them. We made some reports available to all our employees and some available only to specific employees. For example, our service team could always see what each other was accomplishing. Our sales team always knew who was selling what (with information restrictions like customer names, etc.). We set up 'senior' employees to monitor their subordinates (especially concerning voice mail messages to make sure the phones were getting answered) so we had a 'virtual supervisor' system in place.

So we knew, our employees knew (and knew that we knew) what they were doing at all times. Sure, like any business, we did have to let a few go and rehire but for the most part it worked *very* well. Our sales and operations were much better than it was, even when we were in the office. Everyone was accountable to the whole company for their actions. Good work was rewarded (mostly with money but also with promotions) and bad (or lack of) work was penalized (sometimes with the loss of their great 'work at home' job).

That little start up company is still in business and still struggling along. I question the overall business plan of the company but the virtual offices works *great*; much better even than I originally expected it to.

Since then I've noticed that a lot of businesses are beginning to let employees work at home. I have a friend who works for a large 'temporary personnel' company. She used to go into the office every work day. Now she works at home full time.

With the technology that is available today it is definitely feasable, in many cases even practical to run a business 'virtually', that is without a central office.

Home Business Remedies to Fit Your Busy Schedule

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If you are pressed for time but still want to start your own home business, there are several possible solutions. Earning an Internet income doesn't have to be stressful - it can actually be fun. If your dream is to work at home while enjoying a lucrative Internet income, read below for some home business remedies to fit your busy schedule and financial needs.

Home Business Schedule

Even with a home business you should set a certain time aside each day to work on your business. Do your best to stick with a work schedule just as you would at any other job. If you plan to work eight hours per day, let this be the limit. Don't neglect your family and personal hobbies. You'll need some time away from your desk and/or computer to relax and clear your thoughts. Also, remember to exercise. Working on a computer all day can be detrimental to your physical health if you neglect daily exercise.

If working a part-time schedule, keep on track with your business and lifestyle by setting aside a few hours or one whole day each week to work. You might work at another full-time job while building your home business, so keep a healthy balance between the two and don't over-work yourself.

Save Time with an Internet Marketing Group

When working within a limited time frame, you won't have much time to promote your home business. Working with an Internet marketing group will help relieve much of this burden. An Internet marketing group will market the business for you, provide lead generation, and in some cases, even close the sale for you.

Another benefit is you can take advantage of their call centre where they will answer your customers' questions. With the free advertising they provide, your out-of-pocket expenses will be minimal. You'll be able to concentrate on other aspects of your business.

Use the Products of Others to Earn an Internet Income

Selling your own products takes time and money. You have to produce a product or service and take the time to ship products or to provide your own services. There are many companies online today that will allow you to sell their products for profit. You find the customers while they fulfill the orders. From affiliate programs to MLM products and drop shipping, your opportunities are limitless online.

Time-Saving Home Business Products

If you're thinking of selling your own products or services, choose products that require little investment and have a high profit margin. Informational products such as e-books are among the top sellers online today. E-books are downloadable so there's nothing to print or ship. Your customers can download an e-book immediately after the purchase from an auto-response email. Once this is set up, you will be free to promote your home business. You'll only need to update the e-book from time to time.

Other time-saving home business products include high-profit crafts or items you can make from your own home, Web services such as web design or graphic design, Internet marketing services, training materials, books, and many others.

Remember, find a home business that suits your lifestyle. Choose a business that you enjoy and use the tips above to maximize your Internet income while saving time for your personal life.

Must Read Guide to Write a Winning Business Plan !! Grab The CASH Now !!!

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Ever thought of starting a business? Short of money though? Sourcing for capital is definitely essential if you want to grow the business and tide your business over the

initial tough period. In the below article, I will share with you the essentials to writing a successful business plan to help you seek better alignment with your team and also to

convince the potential investors that you have done your due research and work, and have a clear idea of what you would want to achieve both in the short and long terms. Without this business plan ready, who will be convinced to lend you huge sums of money, right ??

So read on now to find out more...

Outline of a Successful Business plan

1) Executive Summary

2) Customer Need and Business Opportunity

- (Customer)Who are the targeted customers?

- What are their needs?

- What are the characteristics affecting consumer behaviour?

- (Business Opportunity) Understand the nature of the business markets

- Analyze the business buyer behaviour and process

- Understand the buyer-Decision Process for new products

- Additional analysis for institutional markets (eg: hospitals)

3) Market and Competitive Analysis

- Analyze the market environment through the companyЎЇs micro and macroenvironment

- Understand the marketing research process

- Find out current competitors and the existing products, and explain why our products have

an advantage over theirs

4) Business Strategy and Key Milestones

- Types of market segmentation

- Perform target marketing by evaluating different groups, selecting wanted groups, and

choosing strategy of marketing

- Positioning: identify possible competitive advantage, choosing the right competitive

advantages, selecting an overall positioning strategy(Value Proposition) , developing a

positioning statement and communicating and delivering the chosen position

- Make use of promotion, pricing partnership and PR to gain initial entry

- Anticipating and Countering Competitive Reaction

- Brand Development and Other Entry Barrier Building Mechanisms to Defend Position

- Market Growth/Diversification/Internationalization Strategy

- Expansion of Partnership, Affiliation and JV Strategies to Sustain Growth/Diversification

- Maintaining & Exploiting Options for Multiple Revenue Models

- Building Market Sensing Mechanisms to Learn and Adapt

5) Product Development Plan

- Work by R&D team

- Considerations in designing a successful prototype in the shortest period of time

- Product testing

- Test marketing

- Possible Commercialization based on results from test marketing, and the factors to take

note

- Deciding on a sequential product development style or simultaneous product development.

6) Marketing Plan

- 4 PЎЇs to consider: Price, Product, Promotion, and Place

- Pricing: Factors to consider from internal and external factors. Understand the various

general pricing approaches like cost-based pricing, value-based pricing , and competitor

based pricing. Also under pricing strategies like market-skimming and market penetration

pricing. Test out product mix pricing strategies, price adjustment strategies, and see which

is more appropriate.

- Product: Decide on things like product attributes, branding, packaging, labelling and

product support services. The product has to appeal to the target market

- Place: Basically about distribution network, figure out the supply chains and the value

delivery network, selecting the type of channel design, channel management decisions.

Creating marketing logistics and integrated supply chain management.

- Promotion: Applying the marketing communications mix including advertising, sales

promotion, public relations, personal selling and direct marketing, and see how to integrate

into one. Understand the communication process with consumers, and know the steps in

developing effective communication which include identifying target audience, determining

communication objectives, designing a message, choosing a media, selecting the message

source, and collecting feedback.

7) Operation Plan

- The operating plan should describe facilities, location, space requirements, capital

equipment, and labor force that are required to provide the company's product or service.

8) Management and Key Personnel

- The management team is the key to turning a good idea into a successful business. Bankers

and investors look for a committed management team with a balance of technical, managerial,

and business skills. The proposal should include a description of the organizational

structure, key management personnel and their primary duties, and the board of directors, if

applicable.

- Describe the exact duties and responsibilities of each key member of the management team.

For each individual, include a brief statement of career highlights that focuses on his or

her ability to perform the assigned role. A complete resume for each member should be

included as an exhibit to the business plan.

- In a table, present the key management roles in the company and the individual who will

fill each position. Discuss any current or past situations where the management personnel

have worked together, and indicate how their skills complement each other and result in an

effective management team.

9) Financial Projection

- The financial plan is basic to the evaluation of a business opportunity and should

represent your best estimate of future operations. It can also serve as an operating plan

for your management team.

- Includes sources and use of funds, estimated cash flow analysis, P&L, and balance sheets.

10) Risk Factors and Key Assumptions

11) The Proposed Offering

- The potential benefits an investor will expects to get back from investing in your

business. No one likes to lose money, right ?? Key Performance Indicator would be ROI

(return on investment)

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In conclusion, with this basic guideline, you now a better idea of what to include in a

business plan to make a convincing statement and proposition to the potential investors.

Next step is to start the momentum going !! Time and Tide wait for no man.

3 Cold Calling Mistakes that Trigger Rejection

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Here are 3 common cold calling techniques that you should probably avoid:

Mistake #1: Center the conversation around yourself and what you have to offer

In the old approach, you introduce yourself, explain what you do, and suggest a benefit or feature of your product. And then you close your eyes and pray that the other person will be interested

Unfortunately, the moment you stop talking you usually hear, "Sorry, I’m busy," or "Sorry, I'm not interested."

You see, you’ve started your cold call by talking about your world and what you have to offer. But realistically, most people aren’t all that interested in you. When you talk about your company and your product, it’s just another advertisement to them. You haven’t engaged them, so they often just "turn the page."

Prospects are much more interested in themselves and what’s important to them. So if you start the conversation by focusing on their world, they’re more likely to interact with you.

So instead, talk about an issue or problem they may need solving. Focus on them rather than on what you have to offer. And see where it takes you.

Mistake #2: Be confident they should buy your product or service

In the old cold calling mindset, you’re taught to focus on the sale and be completely confident that what you’re offering is something the other person should buy.

The problem with this approach is that you haven’t asked them to determine this along with you. So think about it – in the old mindset, you’re really deciding for someone else what’s good for them. I know this isn’t intended, but that’s exactly what comes across to your prospects.

So rather than being full of confidence and enthusiasm, stop for a minute and think about the other individual. Relax into a real conversation instead of moving into a persuasive strategy or sales pitch. Put yourself in their shoes and invite them to explore along with you whether what you have to offer is a match for them.

Others really can distinguish the difference. You’re inviting them to see if you might be able to help them solve a problem. This makes for a much better connection right at the beginning, and you’ll get that immediate rejection reaction much less.

Mistake #3: When someone brings up an objection, try to overcome it

You know, one of the reasons cold calling is so difficult is that sometimes you may not be very familiar with the other person and their business. When you make that first call, you don’t know very much about their issues, problems, budget, and time constraints.

Chances are, not everyone is going to benefit by your product or service.

So realistically, your company or product isn’t going to be a match for everyone. And yet, when someone brings up an objection ("we don’t have the budget for that," etc.), the old cold calling mindset trains you to "overcome," "bypass," or "override."

But when you do that, you put the other person on the defensive. Something they’ve said is being dismissed. And here’s where rejection can happen very suddenly.

So it’s much better to listen to their concerns and continue to explore whether what you’re offering makes sense for them. There are some wonderful phrases you can use that validate their viewpoint without closing the conversation.

So now you’ve discovered the 3 major cold calling mistakes people often make. See if you can shift away from those old self-sabotaging mindsets. When you do, you’ll notice that people will engage you much more, and the immediate rejection you’ve grown so accustomed to will happen much less.

Work toward Financial Freedom with a Home Business

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When you start a home business, the first question that probably comes to mind is "how will I ever build my business to earn money and become financially free?" With any home business, financial freedom doesn't just happen overnight. Whether you're selling products from your own warehouse or factory, selling e-books (written by you or reselling), or offering a valuable service, there are some home business "musts" for success.

Research, Research, Research!

If you don't have a product or service to offer, you can always opt for a ready-made home business. A ready-made home business is one that is set up by another individual or company in which you are trained to sell their products to others. Before delving into a ready-made home business, research many opportunities to find out what types of products and services you'll be able to offer to your clients.

Don't jump on every bandwagon you see. Read what each business opportunity has to offer and compare value-added services with the investment required. Find out what's involved to join, promote, and continue with the business.

Try to find a home business opportunity that you feel comfortable with and will enjoy doing for a long time. If you enjoy your business, you're more likely to succeed and realize financial freedom.

Choose a Home Business that Fits Your Personality

Not every home business type will be right for you. Choose one that fits your personality. If you enjoy sales and are very good at it, then choose a home business that allows you to interact with others by phone, e-mail, or face to face. The business might include direct sales to the end consumer, business-to-business sales, or networking to help others realize financial freedom.

If you would rather promote online and do your own thing without much interaction, then start a home business that allows you to do this. If you prefer to sign on with another company to promote their products or services, find out if they will close the sales for you. If they will do this, you can have freedom to promote and build the business doing what you love the most.

Work Diligently from Home

Once you decide on the type of business, it's time to work! Put your best foot forward when starting a home business. Don't assume that working from home will be easy. To have a real business, you must really work at it. Create a business plan and set realistic goals to earn money and achieve financial freedom over a period of time. Then spend much time finding ways to promote your business for real results. Beware of promotional companies that sound too good to be true. There are some very dependable promotional companies, but there are also many scams. Research a company before paying into their programs. Look for companies that have been around a while and have a good reputation. Ask around in discussion forums (related to your type of business) for advice and resources on promotion.

Create a Steady Cash System

Once you promote your home business a while and start getting sales, determine what you'll need to do to create a steady cash system for the future. Find ways to maximize your efforts. Create more content for your website that will attract additional search engine traffic. Start an e-zine (electronic newsletter) to gain repeat visitors to your website. Add more products or services to get repeat business. These will help you continue in success for the long run. Your income will be steady and you'll be able to make money from home on a full-time basis.

Continuing Education

Learn all you can about your business and products. If you're selling e-books that were written by others, read as many of them as you can so you'll know the quality and details of the items you are selling. If offering a service, learn how to offer the best service possible. You can easily order home study courses to help you learn new trades or improve on your skills. The more you know about your business and products, the better you'll be able to promote them and assist your customers when they have questions.

If you follow these simple steps, you'll be able to start a home business that brings you satisfaction each day. Financial freedom is sure to follow!