Flashlight App

Every year when we arrive at the cottage, all the doors and windows are shuttered; the water and the power are turned off. After unlocking and removing the backdoor shutter, the first job is to navigate through the very dark house to find the power box in the back bedroom. Using the Flashlight app on my iPhone I was able to see my way to throw the switch. The challenge is always to avoid the winterkill of mouse carcasses but, thankfully, this year there were none.

Tide Charts

The St. Lawrence River is tidal at our cottage location. It is much more fun to go to the beach when the tide is out and the Schralp Tide Charts app, tells us what we need to know – when the tide is high and low Planning a day hike is now easier than ever and we can avoid being stranded somewhere.

Height Finder App

According to Height Finder app, the cottage is 230.7 feet above sea level. When you are climbing up our path from the beach you may think it is much more.

Level App

Carpentry tasks always populate our to do list. This trip we planned to dig a veggie garden. We constructed a 2×10 frame with a superstructure for netting to deter the deer. We used the Level App to set the frame in place. My iPhone was already in my pocket. The real carpenters level was in the tool shed – a 100-yard walk back down the hill through the woods.

Calculator

The calculator on my iPhone also came in handy when calculating the area for new carpet installation and comparing the per-foot and per-yard pricing.

Google

When we were at the nursery, we Googled a plant name to find out if the specific variety of plant might thrive in our specific location, full sun, zone 2. The nursery vocabulary was beyond my current French capabilities.

French-English Dictionary App

Ah, but I found the French-English Dictionary app which is a big help for rebuilding my vocabulary. At the beginning of the cottage season, my French is pretty rusty.

Notes

For each trip to town, we used Notes on my iPhone to make lists of things to get at the nursery, the hardware store, the grocery store .

For the Birds

Bird watching is one of the great delights at the cottage, especially in May. While the Peterson Field Guide is still my ready reference book, the iBird Explorer Canada app is useful for listening to and trying to identify the warblers, woodpeckers and sea birds. This year we saw Snow Geese flying northeast, in formation. Other small migratory birds arrived while we were there and we were able to identify a Blackburnian Warbler, an American Redstart, Black and White Warbler. We also listened to their songs on the iPhone to help identify them.

Weather

Some members of my household (those who jog) have to know what the temperature is and how hard the wind is blowing.  With the iPhone we can easily and quickly check the weather forecast on the Environment Canada website. My ear is not yet able to catch up with the local radio forecast which is toute en français. Last week we thought our old thermometer was broken because it rarely moved from 10C.

Business to business communications

We tethered my iPhone to our laptops and were able to do some real world work while at the cottage. We considered this a suitable rainy day activity. The service was reliable and fast – a far cry from the old dial up service of years past. The land line phone wasn’t working so we were glad to have the iPhone 3G connection.

Old cottage life

Alas, there are no apps to do all the physical chores. We still had to take off, paint and stow the shutters, clean out the eavestrough, vacuum, dust, wash the dishes and windows, etc. But the same joyous pursuits are available to us – hiking, whale watching, bird watching, reading (it rained for 6 of 9 days,) playing board games, and talking to one another. We can paint, carve, embroider, or knit. During my childhood summers at this same cottage  we had no phone, no TV,  few electrical appliances or tools, and of course, no computers. Part of me wants to turn off all the apps, and another part says, stay connected, keep in touch, keep up, find out what is going, use the new tools and move ahead.

Raise hands from FreeFoto.com

As a writer, a sole proprietor of a business communications company I need to know where my time goes. It isn’t all spent staring out the window looking for inspiration for a catchy phrase for a subject line of an e-newsletter. Sometimes I need to take a hard look at how I spend my time and re-focus on activities that are productive. You may say, define productive. Can you measure the results of the time you spend doing volunteer work?

Expectations of volunteering

Do you simply compare the time spent to the rewards achieved? Remember what Albert Einstein said, “Not everything that counts can be counted. And not everything that can be counted, counts.”

What are your expectations of volunteer activities? Are you looking for business, personal enrichment, knowledge, social interaction, recognition, work experience?

Do you want to share knowledge, help others, promote a good cause, nurture other businesses, give back to your community, raise funds for a charity, enrich your spiritual life?

Volunteers are the critical core of success of many organizations. Putting a dollar value on volunteer activities takes away the real meaning. Motivated volunteers hold our community together and allow useful organizations to exist and continue to provide useful services.

Where do you volunteer?

I do most of my work in my office, by myself, as I try to create content for websites and newsletters. When a volunteer activity comes up, I usually jump at the chance to get out of my office and I cherish the opportunity to talk to people face to face.

As a volunteer ambassador with the Brampton Board of Trade I can help businesses make connections with each other at After Hours Events. My principle has always been to give. Many years ago when I started my first business, I found that other business owners provided me with helpful advice and connections. I hope I can do the same as an ambassador. It’s not about selling my business services it’s about helping others make connections.

Since the early or mid 1990s I have been a member of HPCA (the Halton Peel Communications Association.) For this past year I have been on the 5-person executive serving as the Meeting Coordinator. My job is to organize monthly events with speakers or activities that provide professional development for a group of sole proprietors who are writers, editors, podcasters, videographers, PR professionals, photographers, graphic designers and web developers.

HPCA is such a friendly group of talented people. The members are an endless source of information and help. The time commitment is insignificant when compared to what this group gives back in knowledge, collaboration, and camaraderie. In the course of conversations with other board members, I pick up all sorts of helpful information on the latest tools and technology and strategies to handle this ever-changing world of communication.

In addition to these business-related volunteer contributions, I spend a similar amount of time on church committees and activities. This deep commitment is a very personal one that brings me satisfaction because I feel I am helping where I can. All I have, (and that is GREAT deal) comes from God above, and I am committed to giving back as best I can.

Many hands

I still do have time to run my business and my household. Sometimes it is hard to keep a proper balance and I force myself to make tough choices. In a volunteer context, the old phrase, “many hands make light work” holds true.

It’s my hope that more business owners would step up and volunteer when a need is expressed. If you are like me, by volunteering, you’ll uncover talents that you have not yet allowed yourself to exercise. You’ll have fun, you’ll laugh and yes, sometimes you’ll cry. You’ll meet new and inspiring people. You’ll experience a sense of accomplishment that cannot be measured and cannot be evaluated with price tag.

Today, text messages are fired off rapidly and responses come back only seconds later. We now use a variety of short forms, abbreviated words and symbols. It is a new language of sorts. I need to study it some more. Some of the more common initialisms are quite logical when you think about them. Others take a bit of thought. Some are profane and not particularly articulate.

Are we losing the ability to eloquently express ourselves? Are we limiting our vocabulary by resorting to these short forms?

A couple of months ago I got an iPhone and I am still trying to get used to the sensitive touchscreen. My fat fingers and the auto correct function can send some pretty crazy messages. The web is full of embarrassing auto correct gaffs. The tool (iPhone) is handy, and has some great apps. Until my fingers get more adept, I will use the touchscreen keyboard with caution.

Using language effectively allows us to deliver messages that in a clear, concise and often beautiful way. We don’t have to use flowery and verbose sentences. We need to know how and when to use the right words. When we can articulate our thoughts and feelings in words, we communicate and we get results.  As Albert Einstein said, “make it as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

A colleague, David Hunter pointed me to this YouTube video that demonstrates the power of using the right words – real words, not abbreviations.

Are you challenged with the new text message abbreviations? Does your audience understand them?

The challenge was to find out all we could about someone, or something and fit that information into a context for a specific audience. In my business today, I use the same research principles when writing articles, white papers, case studies, or website content for specific target markets.

In the museum context, I wrote material for the various age groups of exhibit visitors. Children aged 6-10 years, teens and adults. I also wrote a “Coles Notes” version of the life in 18^th century Nova Scotia to provide some context for historic house guides for sites such as Ross-Thomson House in Shelburne, N.S. I also wrote for a more academic audience with an entry in Volume VI of the Dictionary of Canadian Bilography.

Research was the basis for all that writing and research is the basis of all the writing that I do now. The resources are no longer musty handwritten documents that require deciphering. The skills of understanding what the audience/customer needs, asking questions, seeking out information, keeping notes, organizing and analyzing research material are the same.

Today’s resources

Most of my work today is writing website content. The main information resource is often a one-on-one interview with my customer. At this discovery stage, I digitally record interviews so that I can be sure to grasp the important technical vocabulary and nuances. On second listening the recording often provides new insight. I also take notes but the recording fills in a gap or two.

YouTube provides an immense resource on every imaginable topic. But you must consider the source, its authority, motivation and reliability.

Blogs also provide a great deal of information and advice. I sometimes think of blogs and comments on blogs as the very worst of open line radio talk shows. Everyone has a voice (including me) and not everyone knows of what he speaks! Blogs do give voice to previously unheard contributors. We make careful choices on our listening selection. Every good researcher considers his source.

Similarly, historical research is limited to the documents that have survived. We strive to determine the relevance of the source. Sometimes we don’t know if the writers of these old documents were the nutbars of their time.

In historical research, a primary source such as a diary is always considered preferable. The diary of Anne Frank, for example is a stunning first hand account that delivers colour and context in a way that a history textbook cannot.

Blogs are the 21^st century version of a diary and they can be useful sources of information, opinion and context.

WikiHow and Wikipedia also provide helpful backgrounder information on every topic. Do they speak with the same authority as Encyclopedia Britannica once did? This everyman authentication gives a broader interpretation of the world we live in.

Google search is probably the first place people go to find information. The quantity and quality of information is overwhelming. Organizing the information that you find can be a challenge. Bookmarking tools when used properly are a huge help.

Social bookmarking

Sites such as Del.icio.us  can provide useful links to new-to-me information. For a helpful tutorial watch Donna Papacosta’s video about using Del.icio.us to advantage.

Get organized

The two-fold benefit of finding resources that other people are using and organizing your own bookmarks make Del.icio.us a powerful tool.

Uncover the nuggets and write

Research uncovers the nuggets of information that will make your writing glow. Information collected during the research phase provides the foundation for your writing. Research tells you how much more you need to research. That is always the challenge. You need to know when to start writing.

How do you conduct research? What tools do you find the most helpful? How do you organize your notes, interviews, bookmarks?

Most people get it

At my assigned table, we each made appropriate introductions and exchanged business cards. Although two of my tablemates worked for the same company, they reached out to others at the table with questions about business focus and target markets of others. Another guest at the table I have known for some time. The others were strangers to me. The conversation turned to social media and I discovered an opportunity to set up a meeting to discuss the use of social media for business. The table conversations focused on information gathering with each of us looking for ways to connect with one another. It appeared that everyone was using the opportunity to build this network opportunity by getting to “know, like and trust people,” just like John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing recommends.

The shocker came in the form of a late arrival.

After lunch had been served and the speaker had made her presentation, a woman approached our table with these words, “Hi I came late, here is my card, I’m looking for business.” As she handed out her cards, I quipped, “aren’t we all?” There were a lot of side ways glances and rolling eyeballs as we all recognized the faux pas that the late-comer committed. “When will they ever learn?”

How could this woman hope that any of us would make the effort to get to “know, like or trust” her when she burst into our conversation the way she did? She did not introduce herself by name, nor did she ask our names. She just dealt the cards, asked for business and moved on to the next table. Her card informed us that she is an account manager for small business with a major Canadian bank. “When will they ever learn?”

Have you attended networking events where total strangers tried to sell their product or service directly to you? How did you feel? What was your reaction?

It’s not about selling

Networking is not about selling to the person sitting next to you. Networking is about getting to know, like and trust people. A follow-up meeting after an initial introduction will help to develop rapport, explore goals and identify some common ground. Sometimes called business-building interviews, these discovery meetings provide the opportunity to get to know one another. At these meetings, you find out about the other person’s expertise and needs. Even when you know, like and trust a person, in a networking context, it is not usually appropriate to sell. The opportunity is to share leads. For example, I might know someone that could use your services or product and likewise you might know someone who could use my services. I am not selling to you. We are making referrals.

Networking opportunities when used properly, provide valuable business connections.

Where do you network? What are the benefits of networking for your business?

A puzzling collaboration

I once conducted a face-to-face communication seminar for front line managers at a company with about 150 employees. We had three or four teams of managers at the session. We started out discussing the importance of teamwork and pride of accomplishment. Each team picked a name to help them boost team identity. I gave each team a bag full of jigsaw puzzle pieces and told them they had seven minutes to solve all the puzzles. What I did not tell them was that each puzzle had a couple of missing pieces and that the other teams the missing pieces.  Unless they collaborated with the other teams, no one could complete a puzzle.

It was fascinating to watch how the exercise unfolded and to slowly see the light dawn. One team realized that they couldn’t solve the puzzle and started looking around the room. They would have to ask another team for help. ONLY by pooling all their resources were they able to solve all the puzzles. Perhaps it was a trite way to make a point. Throughout the day the message was reinforced. Communicate and collaborate for success. Eventually they recognized that in their everyday work as well, not just in this exercise, they needed to engage with others who had essential roles to play.

Collaborative partners supplement your expertise

In my own business providing writing services, my most profitable projects have been ones in which I collaborated with other professionals who complement my skill set.  I am a writer and I don’t do page layout, unless the client wants the final product to look like my eighth grade art project. When design and page layout are needed I call a professional graphic designer to provide the quality product my client wants.

I am a writer of web content and I don’t do website design or development. When a client needs web design I call in a professional web site designer to do the job. Or, when web designers have clients that need web content written, they call me. It works both ways.

Collaborators learn from each other

Working on a common challenge with people who are willing and open to share ideas and solutions can be powerful and profitable. I have found that giving and receiving feedback helps me to identify ways to improve and change. It makes us all better at what we do.

Where can you add value to your client’s projects? When is it time to call in reinforcements to meet a deadline or to complete a task where your expertise is lacking? Can you set up a team of experts to enable you to submit proposals for bigger projects?

You’ll have an opportunity to hear about successful collaborations and learn about the depth of expertise in the membership of HPCA at our March 22 Bring and Brag Event.

1. The to-do list is getting unmanageable.

When a small business owner gets overwhelmed with day-to-day tasks, writing new marketing material, a new testimonial story,  updating of the website or writing the customer newsletter usually get pushed off the to-do list.

Business owners can concentrate on running the business when they outsource their writing tasks. Professional writers are skilled at coordinating communication tasks, conducting interviews, collecting the required information to distill messages and write the story for the targeted purpose. They can do the job efficiently.

2. I’ve never written anything like this before.

You may have some experience in writing a specific type of content but sometimes business owners fail to recognize the differences in various writing styles. Brochures, web content, white papers, case studies, media releases, corporate video scripts, advertisements, e-newsletters each require a different style and format. A professional writer knows where to start and how to finish the task with clear, concise messaging aimed at the targeted market and in the appropriate style.

3. My first language is not English.

When a business targets a Canadian English audience, they may need some help with editing text to make sure the message is clear, and uses local phrasing and terminology.

4. I’m too close to this subject.

Familiar subject matter gets in the way of defining the real message. The saying “you can’t see the forest for the trees” illustrates your dilemma. You see all the little details, every fern frond and every pine needle without seeing the bigger picture of the forest. A professional writer can bring a fresh set of eyes to help define or find your message and write it for a particular audience. A proofreader can find all the typos that you cannot see because you are too close the material.

5. It’s a big project but it’s still six months away.

When you start a large project, such as a website redesign or a trade show, deadlines seem to be in the distant future. As a result, your everyday work always pushes the big projects back.

A professional writer brought in at the beginning can handle the writing tasks ensuring the project is done well without the stress of trying to do it all at the last minute.

6. We need some planning time but we still have to get the newsletter out.

I actually had a client ask me to step in to finish some writing assignments so that they could take some blue sky moments with staff for a strategic planning session. They came back with plans for the next year and I had the assignments completed. Calling in a writer to take care of the deadline driven projects was an effective use of their resources.

7. I’m bored with this stuff.

When you are simply bored with the material you’re working on generating any kind of reasonable copy is a major challenge. You have no new ideas and you need a fresh perspective. A professional writer can bring the creative burst that you need.

8. It’s time for some fresh ideas.

Professional writers are skilled at thinking outside the cubicle. We work with a variety of clients in a variety of industries. As a result, we are exposed to fresh ideas and creative people who help to generate new points of view, new directions. The enthusiasm that we bring to our clients is contagious.

9. What is my unique message?

You do have a unique story to tell about your product or service and it needs to be told in an enthusiastic and believable way. A professional writer will ask enough of the right questions to draw out the unique message and tell your story in a way that is suitable for print, the web, podcast or video. The underlying message may be the same but the words and style will vary by the method of delivery. You need an independent writing professional to craft your message.

10. We don’t have anyone we can assign full time to this project.

Businesses need flexibility. Writers work by professional standards on an as-needed basis or by project. Generally, we are flexible with time. This is essential to meet our customers’ deadlines. We constantly push boundaries and strive to deliver value to customers. Customers who see value in the work of freelancers are satisfied customers. Satisfied customers provide referrals and that’s the best business we can get.

Examples of business-to-consumer social media success are everywhere. As Michelle B says on Top Rank, “But how about the B2B social media winners? I’m guessing these weren’t as easy to name.”

Ben Parr says in What the Future Holds for B2B Social Media Marketing, “Business-to-business (B2B) social media is a different animal. B2B and enterprise companies aren’t trying to convert millions of individual consumers into customers — they’re trying to convince a smaller group of companies with bigger budgets to buy their products or services. Social media’s power to spread a message across the web isn’t as relevant.”

John Jantsch says in Duct Tape Marketing, it is all about getting your clients to “know, like and trust” you. The statement applies equally in a B2B  or a B2C environment.

A few trade journal editors and local news publications still publish traditional press or media releases. B2Bs need to get exposure for events, activities, new product releases, and accomplishments. The new tools do not rely on the whim, preferences or prejudices of editors. (Do editors have favourites?) Social media releases rely on followers, friends, status readers, blog subscribers, e-newsletter subscribers and groupies.

Build a social media profile

Companies that focus on business-to business can effectively use e-newsletters, blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube to help distribute news. It doesn’t have to be a struggle if you start slowly. But you need to start.

E-newsletters

For many business-to-business clients the best place to start is with an e-newsletter sent to an existing customer and media contact list. Using a sign-up form on your website you can increase your subscriber list. To do this, your newsletter must provide valuable, useful content – something that readers will want to read, save, and forward to another colleague or contact.

Groupies on LinkedIn

I recommend that my clients start by creating a complete profile on LinkedIn. It’s all about knowing, liking, and trusting. A complete the profile helps to develop your credibility.

Business-to-business clients find that groups on LinkedIn provide a powerful way to get information and to give information – all providing exposure for your company’s expertise. Businesses can find LinkedIn groups that are aligned with their interests and industry where they can share without disclosing corporate secrets.

Your status updates can draw attention to useful and interesting content in your latest e-newsletter or a message posted on your website.

Companies can also create their own closed group on LinkedIn. For example, you could form a group for your worldwide agents, distributors or representatives to share information, leads and product knowledge. It is all about communication.

Blogs

Yes, blogs require time and a consistent and continuous commitment. A blog should focus on industry specific topics to demonstrate your expertise. Like anything else, you have to promote you blog. As a result you will acquire blog subscribers who can promote your content – if the content is valuable, interesting, thought provoking or even controversial and if it uses keywords. Again, here is an opportunity for your readers to tweet and share your content with their followers.

Video

Product releases with a static digital image should be supplemented with a video clip showing the product in action. There is no need to wait for the bi-annual tradeshow to demonstrate or launch a new product. Launch it when it is ready and show it to the world by posting the clip on YouTube and promote it on your blog, in your e-newsletter and on your website. Encourage your followers to share, like, and tweet it.

Social media releases, whatever form they take, rely on the interests, preferences and whims of your followers, subscribers, status update readers, and LinkedIn groupies.

Start by creating a social media profile and create content that is valuable, newsworthy, helpful and informative so that your potential clients will know, like and trust you.

If you are involved in B2B transactions I’d be interested to know how and if you are using social media.

Image by Filomena Scalise

As a techie* you probably have no difficulty communicating with your peers. You use acronyms, terminology and examples that your colleagues understand. The difficulty arises when you need to communicate with techies in different fields or when you need to talk with non techies such as customers, upper level management or the sales staff.

I write marketing material, presentations and web content for technical products and services. When I talk with techies I need to play the role of “designated idiot.”(I first heard this term used by Bruce Madole in 1994 at an HPCA presentation.) I have found that techies often assume knowledge that their audience may not possess. By being the designated idiot, I ask questions until I understand the process or product. When I understand, know the acronyms, expressions and terminology I can then write the web page, the white paper, the case study, the testimonial story or the marketing brochure.

When techies are presenting, talking to customers or training their sales staff they need to keep in mind the following principles .

Know your audience. Find out who they are, what they need and want to know. Determine their level of technical understanding. Some may not know the difference between an extruder and a die, or a browser and a hard drive. You need to be able to talk to them at their level – not down to them. You need to help them follow your train of thought, and use real examples that they can understand.

Talk about the benefits of features. As a subject matter expert, you know your product better than anyone but sometimes you see all the features and are blind to the benefits of your product. The benefits are what interests potential buyers and it’s what sells the product.

When talking to your sales staff or to a customer about design issues, talk about the benefits of the features. Describe how a feature will contribute to efficiencies, cost savings, or ease of use. Use practical examples from the field, not from the lab.

Beware, the devil is  in the details. Techies are often frustrated because they want to talk about every detail such as the thickness and type of plating on a particular part. But the audience only needs to be assured that the part will stand up to the rigours of use. You may have spent months testing various plating materials to come up with the right one. So what? You now have the part that works effectively and won’t wear out like the one competition uses. When a savvy customer asks about the type of plating then you can provide the justification for the type of plating.

Image by Idea go.

As a techie, you have a detailed knowledge about the products you design, and we hope you demonstrate that enthusiasm for the product. Be cautious about delivering a brain dump. Not only will you intimidate the technically challenged and but you will fail to impress the knowledgeable members of the audience. It is a fine balance. You need to provide enough information without overwhelming.

A techie with well-developed communication skills can be a powerful partner to sales staff and the marketing team, including outsourced suppliers (such as buzz4biz). You can provide great support when you are able to communicate with customers and provide in-depth and understandable answers to customer questions.

*For the purposes of this article “techies” is an all-encompassing and endearing term to describe engineers, engineering technologist and IT professionals of all kinds. It is not a term of derision, but a term of convenience.

All images from www.FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Good corporate citizens adhere to the principles of “doing good, going green, coming clean.” How can my small businesses apply these principles and how can I measure their success? Some of my thoughts were inspired by an article by Jennifer Waller, “Social responsibility comes clean,” p48, Communication World, Sept-Oct 2009.

Doing Good – It’s more than helping the little old lady across the street.

It’s just a few days before Christmas, and it’s the season for giving. We can give in a variety of ways to our families, our friends, our peers and our community.

In the past, it was enough to give to charity on behalf of your business. Most charities rely on corporate donations and are thankful for their support. Company-sponsored benefit events make a huge difference to charities of all sorts. I firmly believe that a big part of being a good corporate citizen is giving. My company gives to the St. Andrew’s Food Cupboard in Brampton, Ontario. How much I give in 2011 will be determined by my total sales for the year. My business plan identifies the percentage that I will give.

There are other ways of giving – it doesn’t always have to be cash. In looking at my business plan and setting goals for 2011 I am looking at how I will budget my volunteer time, for mentoring and giving back to my community. Will it be continuing to serve as an ambassador for the Brampton Board of Trade, delivering seminars at the Small Business Enterprise Centre, acting as a judge for the Brampton Outstanding Business Achievement Awards, serving as Meeting Coordinator for the Halton Peel Communications Association? What other things can I do that will make a difference in my community?

How do you decide on what and how to give? I try to look at what principles are important to me and align them with my business goals.

How does your business do good? How do you measure the “goodness”

Going Green – seeking new opportunities

The carbon footprint of my business is proportional to the size of my business. In 2011 I will be looking for new ways to decrease my impact on the environment. With the assistance of grants from the governments of Canada and Ontario, improvements to the “physical plant” have significantly reduced hydro, natural gas and water consumption thanks to

• improved insulation
• new doors and windows
• improved heating and cooling systems
• low water usage plumbing.

Driving

In 2010, the business use of my vehicle changed. I now use public transit to get to meetings and seminars in Toronto instead of driving my own car. I now use Skype for conference calls whenever possible. When I have a request for a face-to-face meeting I consider, my time and my gas consumption before agreeing to attend. Commuting to meetings is a dreadful waste of time and gas. (But, if there is a free lunch involved at a really nice restaurant, well…!)

I have calculated my business mileage for the 2010 and hope to reduce that amount by 2% for 2011.

Saving trees and ink by printing less

My analysis shows that I have used 50% less paper and 30% fewer ink cartridges in 2010 over 2009. When I had only one monitor, I used to print reference and instruction pages. Now I just move the images of those pages to a second monitor and carry on. Of course, when I do print, I print on both sides of the paper. It may be an age-related issue, but I am getting better at reading long documents on the computer screen instead of printing! Maybe it’s time for an e-reader of some sort. Santa, are you listening?

Lighting

I keep the blinds in my office open and thrive on the daylight. The ceiling fixture has new energy efficient bulbs, as do all the lights in the building.

Cleaning

At my request, the cleaning staff (the always reliable Doris) now uses phosphorous-free, scent-free products. Good for the environment and no more sneezing! It’s great.

As a small business what are you doing to reduce your impact on the environment and how are you measuring your success?

Coming Clean  – the transparent part of your business

As an unincorporated, private company, there are no legal requirements for me to publish year-end results to shareholders. As a sole proprietor, I am accountable to me, myself and I and Revenue Canada. When there is a problem, I only need to look in the mirror to find the cause. But most of the time I seek solutions from other professionals with complimentary skills to my own.

I believe it is important to be upfront about my agenda, my goals and my successes. In 2011 I plan to set up a team of advisors to act as my unofficial board of directors. I hope these hand-picked colleagues and friends will act as my sounding board to help me follow through with my plan. I will share my goals and my strategies for achieving those goals. I hope they’ll push (inspire, cajole, and encourage) me to keep focused and on track and hold me accountable. Sometimes its that extra push that home-alone workers need.

There are other ways for businesses to be transparent. One of the key ways is by sharing information on Facebook and LinkedIn. Although I consciously set personal limits on the types of things that I discuss on these sites I recognize the need to be open and to share thoughts, experiences and convictions that I might not otherwise discuss with business associates.

So that’s part of my plan for 2011 – do good, go green and come clean. The part about getting and servicing clients is a topic for another day.

What are you planning for next year? What are your goals for 2011? How will you measure your success?

Merry Christmas to all. Wishing you a happy holiday and a good, green and clean 2011.