Hurricane Coming

For those of you who don't know I am in the Houston area. I will not be posting anything for the next couple of days due to Hurricane Ike.

I have been watching the news since last night and the track for the storm has shifted so the eye of the storm will be coming directly over my house. My family and I have taken precautions to be safe.

I will let you know any updates on conditions here from my house, right now we are just waiting and watching the news stations for updates. For those of you reading in the Houston area also, please be safe. I know alot of people here still have Rita in their minds, but this is different. We will be taking a direct hit this time, and hurricanes are very dangerous. Please pray for all of us here in Houston.

-Rebecca

Get Involved!

I don't think I can sing praises enough for networking. Networking is extremely important for any business owner or employee. The more people you know, the easier it is to find the resources you need.

I recently encountered this when trying to research licensing requirements for my business. No matter what search terms I used, I came up with nothing. It wasn't until I met someone through my contacts that was in the industry that I found my answer.

Networking is a tricky subject, though, because everyone has a preconceived notion as to what networking actually is. To some it is talking about business, to others it is making friends, and yet others look at it as scouting for customers. The latter is inadvisable; people can sense sales pitches and it sends them running.

I have my own definition of networking and it is working for me with great success. To me, networking is finding out who I can help. When I network, I try to help others accomplish their goals, and in return I ask them to do the same for others. It is the "pay it forward" concept.

When I meet someone I try to find out what it is they do, and what they would like to do. Through our conversation I try to get a feel for their ability to help others, and maybe even probe them for information that could be useful to me. In the end I try to connect them with someone that I know who could benefit from talking to them and who they can benefit from.

I am also willing to offer advice and help using my expertise if needed, and when they ask how they can return the favor, I usually advise them that I will send someone their way sooner or later.

To me networking is about building friendships. People remember the person who selflessly helped them solve a problem or accomplish a goal. This way of netwoking brings good karma and good energy to you, and good things will start to happen for you.

As I mentioned before I found the licensing requirements for my business and found that I need 4 more months of experience to obtain certification. Through my networking thus far I have helped 2 people find jobs and I am currently working on a lead for another.

Lo and behold, out of the blue I got a call from a recruiter that has a job exactly in my field (which I have mentioned is rare), that should help me gain the needed experience, and would provide me with a salary to help me build more capital for my startup in the process.

So my advice for anyone is to get involved. Meet people and try to help them in any way you can. Good things will happen for you in the least expected ways. If you have no idea where to start, find groups in your area through LinkedIn or Meetup.com, look up professional organizations in your field.

When you get yourself out there you will find more and more opportunities and groups to get involved with. Just remember your purpose is to find people you can help, and the good things you need will happen for you. Now get yourself out there and good luck!

-Rebecca

Alphabet Soup

With so many companies and organizations out there that specialize in certifying you, how do you know which one to choose? It is easier for some to choose, since some professions have notable certifications (i.e. CPA). For others who are more specialized, like me, the alphabet soup can be pretty confusing.

As a valuations analyst alone there are more than 10 to choose from, but what in the long run is going to matter to customers or investors? No matter who I talk to the question about certifications inevitably comes up.

Not all businesses will require this step. Mostly it makes a difference in business services and consulting industries. No matter what your business does though it is a good idea to investigate certifications, because it may mean something to your investors if not your customers.

I could go on for days covering all the certifications out there, explaining the importance of each one. It is a much better use of your and my time to cover the process to determine which ones are of use to you.

The first step you should take is to research all possible certifications for you and your business. Once you have built a list (I suggest a spreadsheet for this) it is good to write down what you need to do to obtain certification, how long the certification process is, and how much it will cost.

Once you have a good list built with all the criteria listed, you should make good use of your network and contact people who are in your field as well as people that represent your ideal customer or investor. Ask them what these letters mean to them, if they prefer one or the other, and how prestigious they think each is. The main goal is to determine if any will help you achieve customer confidence in you and your product.

Next you should use this information to rank each one and be sure to include personal preference of time and money in your analysis. You may eliminate some, but ultimately you will develop a plan that will be included in your business plan. By saying that you not only have experience, but will obtain XYZ by x-date, you will be able to increase investor confidence and maybe even ease your customers' minds.

If it will take you more than a year to obtain any of them, for service industries, it is a good idea to include in your plan an offering of dirt cheap services for the first few customers to build a reference base to suffice in the short term.

No matter what business you are in it is a good idea to at least research certifications as part of your strategic planning. It may make a world of difference in the long run.

-Rebecca