Beth Beutler's Blog, page 23

An Open Letter to the HOPE Family

One Year Anniversary and 200th Post

An open letter to all of our HOPE family,

October 15, 2015 was my last day as an employee of another business. While HOPE Unlimited has been around since 2005, I consider October 15 as the anniversary of being fully focused on my own company, and I have much to be thankful for in this first year. Since that “marker” day is coming up this coming Saturday, I wanted to kick off this “anniversary week” by using this 200th post to say “thanks!”

I want to thank God for providing clients, students, readers, and colleagues that have helped HOPE Unlimited begin to serve key leaders and bring encouragement to overwhelmed professionals around the country. I have appreciated several opportunities to speak and teach in live settings, and anticipate increasing what I offer via online tools.

I have one more ebook coming out by the end of the year, and my other books are in production as audio books now.  There’s been at least one new post a week on the blog since January 2014, and now I’m regularly doing Facebook live Tips in 10 presentations.

On the virtual assisting front, we are steadily incorporating team members to provide excellent service on a variety of tasks for our clients. Four additional professionals who share our values allow us to seamlessly provide many kinds of support, and our retainer system remains a flexible way for individuals, executives and entrepreneurs to receive the administrative support they need without hiring an employee.  Thank you to those who have spread the word–word of mouth is a great form of advertising.

For all these things, I give thanks. I wouldn’t have a business without people contracting us, buying my resources, hiring me to teach, or keeping up with us on the blog or social media. And I wouldn’t have HOPE if God didn’t instill the gifts, energy, and time and wisdom to steward it. It’s a constant learning process.

If HOPE can be of service to you in any of these areas, please contact us. And again, THANK YOU for allowing us to serve you and be part of your life.

Beth

HOPE Hint

Helping Overwhelmed Professionals Engage with others

The Pursuit of Excellence

How do you define it?

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“Excellence” just becomes a more respectable word for “control” which is a fancy version of “manipulation” which is a physiological word for “sin.”…   Emily Freeman

I read these words from the book Simply Tuesday and let them sink in.

I help overwhelmed professionals EXCEL.

Is it wrong to excel?

No.

But it depends on what you excel at.

In 1 Thessalonians, 4:10, Paul commends the Thessalonians for their love, but exhorts them to excel still more.

“or indeed you do practice it toward all the brethren who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, to excel still more.”

When we think of excellence, especially in business, what do we think of?

A product that is selling better than we expected.
A published piece that has no typos.
Getting all the facts straight in a report.
The financial reports being accurate.
The presentation to the investors going well.
The office looking spiffy.
Employees looking sharp.
Meeting and exceeding customer needs.

Are those bad things? No, but what’s the motivation?

Do we want to excel so we can control our image or turn certain outcomes our way? Or do we want to excel in loving and serving people?

I confess that I want to excel in business and often measure it in my bottom line. Am I contributing enough to the household budget? Do I need to supplement by finding more work? How many clients do I have or teaching gigs lined up or online books/resources are selling? These are all tangible measures of business “excellence.” They deserve some attention, but also, quite frankly, too much focus on these results can cause stress.

Instead, what if I were to think in this framework at least some of the time, to complement the look at financials and metrics?

Did I excel today in helping (insert client name here) improve THEIR business or work life (or even personal life) a little bit?
Did I guide (insert a reader’s name here) to think more clearly about an issue or idea?”
Did I help (insert student’s name here) streamline their day a little bit or get along better with their teammate?’’

And, am I willing to reach beyond my comfortable “Macedonia” to help and love others, even those different from me?



An answer of “yes” to THOSE questions is what excelling is all about.

If only…

HOPE Hint

Helping Overwhelmed Professionals Expand their thinking

Tips in 10: Tips to Keep Facebook from Driving You Crazy

In this week’s Tips in 10 I talk about ways to navigate Facebook so that your stream has more of what you like, and less of what you don’t. And I give myself a grade for how I did one a week of trying to cut back on Facebook. As always, you do not need to be on Facebook to enjoy this video.

 

How to Make the Most of Remote Work at Coffee Shops

It can be productive--here's how

https://unsplash.com/@punttim

In another post, I shared that my attitude toward working at coffee shops had changed. But I don’t want to throw the idea completely under the bus. There are good things about working away from your normal office, such as

A fresh perspective.
The energy of people.
A stimulating environment.
Coffee.

But coffee shop work can be distracting, too, so if you work at a coffee shop regularly, here are some tips to help the time be more productive.

Plan ahead. Block off times in your week for working out of your normal office. Pick a specific task or two you will be focusing on during that block of time, and perhaps even add notes to your calendar appointment to remind you of those tasks.
Pick appropriate tasks.  Decide ahead of time what kinds of tasks best match the coffee shop atmosphere. Do you do design work well? Does writing come more easily? Are there tedious tasks that are best? For example,  I find that adding or preparing material (i.e. social media images) to client social media libraries works well as a coffee shop task, while appointment setting and email communication may not.
Expect to be distracted. Whether by conversations around you or just the normal hustle/bustle of a popular coffee shop, you are not going to have the quiet you might get at a library or your home office. This may be fine, depending on the type of work you are doing. Just don’t walk in there expecting everything to be quiet and perfect for your work.
Create your atmosphere. My coffee shop bag includes ear phones, an inspiring pouch, a coaster, a fake candle, and a large scarf that can act as a shawl or lap blanket. These don’t take much space but help me create a mini oasis of inspiration for the time I will be there, which often is two hours or more. 
Allow yourself time to ease in. Hopefully you are planning to purchase something to eat or drink (don’t be a coffee shop squatter.) It gets a little cumbersome to type, sip coffee, eat a bagel, etc all at once. So allow yourself time to enjoy your snack while you do something such as reading to ease into work mode.
 Jot a schedule or use a timer to keep yourself on track. It’s easy to fritter away time scanning social media, watching videos, or even reading helpful material. Use a timer app to keeping you on track, working in segments on writing, researching, or interacting.
Enjoy the unexpected. You may run into a friend or business colleague at a coffee shop, or strike up a conversation with a stranger. Maybe you’ll notice someone who needs a little encouragement or decide to discreetly pay for the meal of the next person in line. Don’t miss out on the little serendipitous opportunities that may spring up. Productivity is great–but people are important.

Over to you. What tips do you have for working in a coffee shop?You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Tips in 10: How to have a successful re-entry after vacation [Video]

You do NOT have to be on Facebook to enjoy these videos. If you can’t see the video in your email or feed, you can click here.

Replay of our Facebook Live Tips in 10 about successfully returning from a vacation!

Tips in 10: How to Say No Graciously [Video]

Tips in 10: How to Say No Graciously

You do NOT have to be on Facebook to enjoy these videos!  If you can’t see the video, you can click on this link to see it.

Big, or Solid?

What's the best type of platform?

 

If they don’t know who you are, then you have been given the gift of obscurity. Let this not be offensive. Let this be a relief. – from the book Simply Tuesday by Emily P. Freeman

One of those thoughts that make you go “Wow.”

I am a platform builder.

I work with/for platform builders (among other things.)

I am a charter member of Platform University, a professional education website that helps me grow in various topics related to entrepreneurship, marketing, and managing a lifestyle business.

But the quote above from Simply Tuesday reminds me that having a large platform is not the end goal. Obviously the author hopes her book gets “out there.” But she’s learned and observed that being well-known or “famous” (even if not like a Hollywood celebrity, but within your own region or industry) is not all it’s cracked up to be. It can remove your privacy. Change who you are. Make you too concerned about what people will think.

“What others may think” has been a stumbling block in my life. This may be why my own “platform” has only grown in small increments. God knows what I can and cannot handle well so perhaps I’ve been protected from what can come when you are known nationwide.

I recently had an experience where a casual conversation could have led to me revealing something that would not have been wise. It would not have been an earthshaking mistake, but it was better to act with discretion.

A wise person (Person A) that I’m close to did not reveal too much of their opinion about a certain local situation. Person A knows I have a “platform” in social media and in our hometown.  In a totally different environment, I had a conversation with Person B who asked me if I knew what Person A thought about the situation. The question was innocent and not intended to be gossip–they knew Person A was involved in a particular industry–but the situation revealed to me how easy it could be for well-connected people to share too much.

This is a danger of having a sizable platform. You begin to be familiar with so many people that you have to try to steward information well so that it is not shared indiscriminately.  You can also lose the personal touch or meaningful interaction with people. I’ve recently been listening to a podcast that was all about how to become less accessible as your platform grows. I admit it’s great information from a practical standpoint, and quite understandable, but it’s also a little sad.

I don’t intend to stop trying to work with–and on–my platform, and part of my job is to help my clients in managing theirs. But I think I’m going to re-frame my thinking to focus less on “building” platforms and more on “stewarding” them…managing them well.

Because solid is often better than big.

 

Tips in 10: Making Mistakes, Enjoying Pets and an Email Attachment Tip [Video]

Tips in 10: Making Mistakes, Enjoying Pets and an Email Attachment Tip

If you cannot see the video, you can click this link to get to it.