Carole Ann Rice on YouTube

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Women Talking Business!

Not enough time? Always exhausted? Coach Carole Ann Rice reveals the Secrets of how to Work Smarter not Harder.

If you often sigh that there are not enough hours in the day or find yourself working later into your evenings and taking work home at weekends; it could be time to re-assess how you could do less but achieve more.

Today in the UK one in six people work over 60 hours a week.  Outsourcing our lives via nannies, cleaners, dog walkers or even hiring someone to sort our photo albums or visit ageing parents is increasingly becoming the norm.
Since when did this this frantic state of busyness become a “good” thing?  Having our private lives commercialized means we are increasingly becoming disconnected with our families, the seasons, our communities and even with our sense of self and spirituality.  Overwhelm is an all too common by-product as we feel out of control and disenfranchised from life.

The key to any successful person is not only managing time well but also factoring in the highly essential need to take time out to play and have fun.  Remember fun? 

This is as crucial to our success as any other element of our working lives.

This isn’t the rehearsal and do you want to say on your final day here on earth that you wished you’d spent more time at the office?

But the good news is that burn out doesn’t have to beckon.  You can create more, get your work finished on time, have a life and still feel energized – and all without a prescription, chocolate or chardonnay!
Here’s how.

1.    Zap Your Tolerations

Tolerations create small leaks of energy.  Have enough tolerations in your life and pretty soon you’ll be running on half a tank.  What might you be tolerating in your life?  Get a pen and walk around you house listing the things unfixed or annoying. You can do this in all areas of your life and then start working through the list and zap them.

Common tolerations include: a messy office or home, unfinished decorating, IT problems, thoughtless colleagues, no healthy food in the fridge, paperwork mountains, niggling health problems (toothache, insomnia etc)
Commit to zapping your energy leaks today.

2.    Manage your meetings.  Do you have to go to so many?  Would the minutes be enough for you to get the flavour of issues discussed? Question every meeting you are asked to attend. Try to organize quick and well paced conference calls instead.

3.    Plan your day.  Make a realistic list of the most important things you must achieve that day.  No more than 5 goals and focus only on them.  Delegate where you can.

4.    Group activities.  Schedule the most important tasks first then group remaining activities together such as phone calls, writing proposals, reviewing documents.

5.    Create supporting habits. We as humans are nothing but creatures of habit.  Are your habits supporting or sabotaging you?  Analyse how you work.  What do you avoid doing until last? Are you always over committing?  Is being routinely late acceptable?  Good habits include saying “no” more often, making time to plan and organize i.e. white diary space, doing the tough stuff first, taking small breaks.

6.    Simplify.  As you go through your working week make a note of systems, processes or communication that can be simplified or even eliminated.  Could you check emails on the on the hour instead of every minute?  Do you use an automated system for reminders and follow ups?

7.    Be a cool communicator.  Be specific in emails, phone calls and correspondence.  State times, requirements and deadlines to avoid email ping pong of questions bouncing back.  Be polite but professional on the phone; avoid lengthy chats about holidays, family and the flu.  Keep your communication friendly, clear and brief. You can save hours this way.

8.    Find role models or hire a coach. This is the fastest route to productivity.  If someone is several steps ahead of where you want to be seek them out and learn how they do it.  A coach also helps keep you on track and accountable. 

9.     Be responsibly selfish.  Don’t let other people’s needs, deadlines and work distract you from your own agenda.  Volunteer less.

10.    Avoid energy vampires.  We all know the sort of people who make your heart sink and leave you feeling depleted or anxious.  Keep contact to a minimum, lay down strong boundaries, don’t get into their “story” and make your communication clear.

On a final note, work can be rewarding and engaging but don’t let it become your master.  Time is a precious and the only resource we all have and once it’s gone it’s gone forever.  Use it wisely.

Why not book a free 30 minute session with Carole Ann? Visit www.realcoachingco.com

Five Steps to Raise Your Media Profile – by Coach and Writer Carole Ann Rice

As the one-time Fashion and Lifestyle Editor of the Birmingham Post I received six “thank you” bouquets in one week. I write this not to boast about my literary expertise but to share the story behind all those fabulous floral tributes.

They were sent to me from business owners, small, large or just by individuals that I had written about and featured on my pages.

The articles written had generated such an unprecedented upswing in business the featured individuals wanted to thank me and show me their gratitude for the increase in custom and, in some cases, the follow-on interest which lead to TV and radio coverage, getting yourself or your business featured in the press is a guaranteed way of not only getting more sales but of raising your profile, creating a competitive edge, gaining credibility and establishing you as an expert; if not the expert. Why not become a household name?

Journalists need good stories and news. It’s what fills their pages and makes their life easier for them. Could you or your business be the Next Big Thing the media need to know about? Does the world need to know what you have to offer?

The route to developing a media profile is not a complex one but one that needs some honing and consideration before you embark on the journey. Just like anything concerned with business building the results won’t happen overnight but with persistence and tenacity you will eventually get a return on the time and investment you put in.

Here are five starter points to help you set your compass to magnetize the media and considerably expand your business and personal potential.

• Be clear about your intention – Ask yourself what you would like press coverage to give you. Is it to inform, educate, establish or introduce yourself or your products or services? What do you want people to know about what you do? What is your offer and why would people want to read about you? Would you like to establish yourself as an expert in your field?

• Placing your story – where and what publication would your “story” fit into? Is it ideal for the business or lifestyle pages of your daily paper? Would it be best placed in the weekend supplements, the woman’s pages or new gadgets features? Don’t rule out specialist publications and periodicals; there are thousands out there, which could give you concentrated exposure to a specific target market. Finding a suitable publication in which to place you story is essential.

• Do your research – each day the nationals has different themed pages – careers, health, business, beauty, women, books etc – start to find out who edits the pages you want your story to appear in. The glossies work approximately 3 months ahead to plan seasonally and again check the themed pages and research who is responsible for editing them and directly contact them by email or telephone. This way you can start to compile a data base of contacts as you go.

• Have a compelling story – finding a story that the journalist will be interested in is the key. What sets you apart from others in your profession? Do you have case studies or clients willing to testify to your services? Identify your USP and don’t hold back in selling it. You need to explore your offer and give it a commercial twist. For example if you are a financial consultant could it be that you help people save money, become money magnets or know how to make passive incomes? Shout it loud and proud think – what would make my story interesting to others? Are you noticing current trends that you think the press would be interested in? E.g. you’ve seen a 50% upswing in your clients booking upmarket camping holidays.

• Look for hooks - Using current affairs or the latest news stories as a hook is also a useful way of developing an angle. For example money-saving tips in the current economy go down well; recycling, green issues and even the seasons can all provide a relevant peg.

Be creative and helpful. Don’t make the journalist have to think how they are going to use you – show them. Develop top tips, offer free samples or invite the reporter to personally try your services. Remember too that one press release sent out randomly may not bring the results you desire. But with persistence and ingenuity you will eventually see that harnessing the power of the press can really work for you and your business.

Carole Ann Rice is co--author of Find Your Dream Job (Marshall Cavendish £12.99) and is a life and leadership coach. Why not book a 30 minute free session with her now?

www.realcoachingco.com