Lisbeth Calandrino::

I hope this article is timely for you; it is for me.  For many of us the  economy is still moping along and we’re trying to figure out what to do next. Consumers are changing their buying habits, myself included. Friends are downsizing their lifestyles and examining their life choices. The recession may be over, but the landscape has changed.  In many ways it’s unfamiliar; at least it is to me.   I’m in a different place too. It’s not a bad place, it’s just a different place and different doesn’t always feel right–especially in the beginning.

Change is good. Well, change is interesting but it’s more interesting if it’s happening to you rather than me. In my case, I find when it’s time  for a change I put more hours in at the health club! Somehow I know it’s a safe place for my mind and my body. I feel less stressed after my workout and  feel I’ve done something good for me.

Each of us is building new roads, repairing our highways and hopefully avoiding serious pitfalls.  I’m convinced that sharing this journey with positive friends who have good intentions will make our journey more pleasant and safe. It’s time to re-cultivate your the garden and  get rid of the weeds that might be choking you from making new decisions. Sometimes, these weeds come in surprising forms–forms we call “friends.”

Just as I’m writing this article, I received this from Kevin Clancey a Realtor in Albany, New York from his Monday Morning Mojo:

The biggest obstacle to creating a wonderful life is self-limiting beliefs. A self-limiting belief is an idea you have that you are limited in some way, in terms of time, talent, intelligence, money, ability, or opportunity. - Brian Tracy

At times we all have limiting beliefs, and there’s nothing to fear except fear itself and fear can be defined with the acronym “false evidence appearing real”. So, now what, where do you begin? It’s time for you to become your own coach, a good coach.

Speaking of coaches, one of my guests on Red Hot Customer Service Show was John Stahl from The Growth Coach of New York  serving business owners throughout the Northeast. John talks about limiting beliefs. Of course, beliefs simplify our lives but limiting beleifs dis-empower and hold us back. John talks about “getting comfortable with being uncomfortable” while making changes. If you’re talking about business challenges, Johns says the biggest challenge is between the ears of the business owner. I think this is a problem that many of us share.

Coach Vincent Lombardi once said that the difference between a good coach and a bad coach is the good coach always knew what the end would look like. If you don’t know where your want to go, how will you get there? If you get wherever “there” is, how will you know it’s the right place? In Warren Bennis’s book, “View from the Top“, he examines ninety leaders and found that one of key strategies was “attention through vision.”

What’s vision you ask? Vision can be a simple act or a thought; what do I really want out of life?

What makes me happy?

What are my dreams, my goals or my purpose? What would I like more of in my life?

I know I want more time at the lake.

Sometimes visions are statement for the future, a destination that you want to achieve. Last year I joined Toastmasters. I have competed in several events and recently joined the advanced Toastmasters Group. My goal is to continue to advance my speaking craft–I love speaking. The club gives me the opportunity to test new topics, get feedback and make changes. It’s a way to continually focus on something that’s important in my life.

Your vision may be simple. If you are invested in the outcome and feel ownership over your vision, then the happiness is in the journey– the appreciation of the uniqueness of the components it takes to get there.

I have looked through many blogs and read about many blogs; now I have my own ideas about what makes a good blog. Here are some ideas for you to consider as you determine how to build your blog.

• A blog is not simply a commercial for your business. If this is your format then you probably won’t have many takers. Why, you ask? Blogging is part of the new Web world — commonly called 2.0 — which is the conversation with the customer, not the one where you tell them or show them why they should buy from you. Your customers will get the idea from your blog. Are you writing things that are of interest? Will they comment or send you notes? The blog provides the means for conversation.
• Ask your readers what they would like from your articles. This is a good time to consider how well you know your customers and what you can be doing to build relationships.
• Take a look in your industry. What are others writing, talking and blogging about? Call them and talk with them. Add comments on their blogs or ask if you can be a guest blogger. This will get you some experience and ideas as to how blogs work. Send a blog link to all of your friends and ask what they think. This will get you some good feedback.
• Make a long list of topics that you can write about. I say long because you want to write because you love it not because you hate it and now you have another job! Check other blogs in your industry and see how you can make yours different or what can you build on.
• When you write your posts, add links to other blogs, articles on the subject, videos and photos. Remember, the reader should come to you because you add value — not only from your writings but from other places when they can get ideas. Start collecting information, sign yourself up for RSS feeds on topics of interest. This way, you'll get info all during the day and will get the latest scoops on your topics.

Don’t forget to make it easy and have fun!

According to Technorati, there are 150,000 new blogs created each day. There must be some reason. Blogging is an economical way to build your business by interacting with your clients in a world wide forum. What better way for people to become familiar with you, your skills and to build your branding message than an online forum?

Let's not mix up blogging with Facebook and other social networking media; business blogging is not about your life – it's about what  makes your business powerful.

Customers who sign up get automatic updates and can interact with you and give you feedback on your ideas. According to Steve Broback, in his article The Business of Blogging, "Google loves blogs and they rank high in search results. Google has become every company's de facto homepage. Research shows most new visitors to a given company's site come through links from Google so your blog can greatly amplify your site's search engine results."

Many businesses have Web sites that are static and just sit. A blog will wake up your site, your customers and your employees, a place where, if the content is right, people will keep coming back for more. If you're saying the right thing you will be building your business and you will be in control of the content. Too many have their Web sites built and don't have any way or any know how to change the content or "fix" little glitches. If the site builders leave, We have a dead Web site with outdated information and graphics.

Want to get started but don't know how? Remarkablogger has helpful hints daily on how and what to write as well as new developments in the blogging field.

Go out and look at other blogs in your blogsphere; what are your competitors doing? What are other bloggers saying? Take a look at Christine Whittemore's Flooring the Consumer for a great example of a full-blown blog. Check out Talkfloor for some industry blogs.

Write about your industry, new products, your experience with products and installation. Ask your customers to comment on your products, what do they think? Eventually you will have a network of people who will be singing the praises of your business. Don't worry about negative comments, it happens to everyone, just fix whatever it is and vow to get better. A blog is like having a world wide consumer panel without the costs.

Ask an architect to comment on a product you recently recommended or a general contractor and his experience with your work crew or your salespeople. Blog about the price of raw materials and have your manufacturers comment.

Blogs are like a form of public relations for your business, one that you can easily control and use to your advantage.

Keep them short, to the point and give them good titles.

Let me know what you think. Will any of you out there be blogging tonight?