2010 October Archive at julian carr

Every day I get up and my mind snaps into thinking objectively about the day. It goes something like this….. hmmm, I am a human, and naturally I want to be outside, I want to be active. But wait. I need to strategize about how to accomplish this since I am running a business. My mind switches, I know I will get to my circuit training later this afternoon, right now, I have a long to do list, my body accepts this and now my craving for furthering my business is just as hungry.

#1 SELF-MOTIVATION

Literally my motivation = my productivity. If I don’t feel like this guy above everyday, the communication orchestration that I conduct every day to make my business breathe will suffer.

#2 SELF-CONFIDENCE

It’s up to you how confident you want to be. There is always someone out there more able than you, more connected, yada yada… but you have to narrow your focus on your goals and your vision. Look at exactly how you are going to chase your ambitions, don’t dwell on the obstacles, be aware of them, but put your energy into how your goals are achievable and start moving, amongst the leeches, the predators, the competitors, the bright, the capable. “If you want to be a champion, you’ve got to feel like one, you’ve got to act like one, you’ve got to look like one.” RED AUERBACH

Be confident. In your personality, in your beliefs, in your intuitions, in your talents, in your conscious. Take that and be confident by yourself, amongst strangers, with friends, at work, in public, with family, in your relationship, and in business.

#3 ETHICS AND MORALS

If you have zero conduct of these matters, or if you simply feel that everything and anything is fair game in business, that is fine, but ultimately, the world, doesn’t agree. You, your brand, your business will slowly attain a reputation that is no bueno. You must be aware of what you personally want your business to stand for. I see morals as desirable conduct that has been mapped out for you, and I see ethics as your own acting out on what morals expect from you and what you apply and deliver on.

#4 TIME-MANAGEMENT

I constantly find myself with what at first seems like an almost impossible list of initiatives. When I look at everything at a whole, it feels overwhelming, like a heavy weight… I break it down, I’ll look at it in terms of one month, then one week, once I’ve dissected my tasks/goals/initiatives into small components, I can start looking at these by the day, any goal is attainable one task at a time.

#5 SALES

I am not a salesman. It is not in my nature. I once held a job as a cold calling telemarketer. I hated it. I was trying to talk people into buying things they didn’t need and didn’t want. That is my definition of a salesman. With my business I create things I know people will love and want. I position my company in the appropriate industry that I feel like I am an expert in. Once I have that established, I speak to the buyers, and I know they have to spend X dollars each year to fill their store shelves, they control a certain dollar amount of cash flow, I create a tributary (if you will), to channel their cash. I speak with them, not at them, I include them, no elitism, I relate to them, understand them from their perspective, it is usually acknowledged and appreciated, and ultimately resulting in a sale. I sale my product through the relationship of me and them. My brand and their store. My fair/competitive prices and their understanding of their $$ flow. I sale through my understanding of them and their needs and wants.

The other half of sales is marketing. To sale I must understand the industry as a whole, see things from a comprehensive viewpoint. Once I’ve accomplished this and my products are on store shelves, I now must understand the consumer, one purchase at a time. I create products that I know people will want, I create a brand I know people will find attractive. I guess it’s just like the understanding the retail store buyer’s perspective. I understand the individual perspective as well. My designs, brand, and products, I aim, appeal to people that are full of personality, they aren’t buying Discrete to “dress” in it. They are wearing it as an extension of themselves, no biggie, but exactly what they are looking for and can identify with. On top of this I need an understanding of the ever-changing world of social marketing, I take chances, try things, I try to be aware of the current engine, but I think outside the engine, and I am not afraid to be creative/innovative.

#6 FINANCE

My philosophy is, you are going to get fat if you eat potato chips all the time. As a business, making dumb decisions, uneducated purchases, excessive marketing, etc are all equivalent to eating potato chips. If I don’t know what I’m doing with my finances as a business, then I can’t make smart educated decisions to further the business. The business will become unhealthy, and fat. I say no to potato chips.

#7 INSTINCT

When you are running a business, you are faced with many decisions. Small, large and many in between. I often ask my friends, family, and girlfriend their opinion when making decisions. Usually it is to compare it to my instinctual feeling on the matter… I am open to everyone’s opinion, but when making decisions so often, I don’t know the answer in a lot of cases, but I don’t get overly analytical, I make a decision and stand by it. Live it, believe in it, act on it. The decision will acquire a life of it’s own, and soon other people are believing it and living it. Gather information, but don’t dwell, make decisions based on your instinct, and ask for help to weigh and consider.