THRIVE

IN YOUR CAREER
70 TIPS FROM A COLLECTION OF
SMALL BUSINESS EXPERTS

Compiled and Published by

Tips Products International
www.tipsbooklets.com

70 TIPS FROM A COLLECTION OF

SMALL BUSINESS EXPERTS

Compiled and Published by

Tips Products International
www.tipsbooklets.com

INTRODUCTION
This booklet brings you practical and immediately usable
insights in bite-size pieces for you to create success in
your small business. Whether you are beginning your
entrepreneurial journey or have been on this path for
awhile, you are sure to find one more idea you had yet
to consider.
Each author in this booklet offers tips from his or her
expertise. These well-tested tools and techniques are
sure to get you thinking about what works best for you
now and in the future.
Youll see suggestions about everything from how
to create a physical environment that supports your
success, tools to keep your business relationships
running smoothly, ideas for marketing and promoting
your business, utilizing the services of a Virtual
Assistant, and ways to look at money. Find all of that
and more right here in this booklet. Test one thing at a
time. See how it suits you.
Contact these authors. They remain successful,
inspired, and inspiring by contributing to your life. Plus
they are really terrific and interesting people youll want
to know and have in your life. Interview these authors
in your publication if you are a journalist. They are
professionals, ready to share what they have with those
who find it useful.
Multiple sources and bulleted content are all in one place
right here for your article, radio or television interview,
blog, or website.

Get a price quote if you are shopping for services

or products they provide.
Purchase printed copies of this booklet from any of
the authors or the publisher to use as a customized
promotional tool for marketing your business.
Talk with us about licensing the downloadable
version for other promotional applications like
social media and on your website. The possibilities
are truly endless.

Published by:
Paulette Ensign, CEO and Chief Visionary
Tips Products International
13146 Kellam Court, Suite 133
San Diego, CA 92130
858-481-0890
paulette@tipsbooklets.com
www.tipsbooklets.com
2010, TPI All Rights Reserved
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THRIVE IN YOUR CAREER

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ATTRACT. ENGAGE. RETAIN.

Choose high impact activities. Adding content to
your website, posting articles to directories, creating
videos, and contributing to social media all build
your search engine rankings. People solve their
problems in two ways: Using a search engine and
asking their contacts (online and off). Without a
strong web presence you may as well be invisible.
Offer exclusive content. What gets shared on
Facebook should be different from what gets shared
on Twitter or through your newsletter, otherwise
theres no incentive for people to belong to all of
your communities.
Be a trusted resource. Contact clients and
prospects just to say hello or share a resource.
Youll be seen as friendly, helpful, and thoughtful
rather than just another salesperson.
Keep marketing. The only way out of a feast or
famine cycle is to have a continuous stream of new
potential clients in various stages of the decision
making process. Marketing only when you dont
have clients is a way to stay locked in a feast or
famine cycle.
Let your personality shine. The only way to attract
your ideal clients is to let the real you come through
your marketing.

Winnie Anderson works with service businesses to attract,

engage, and retain more of their ideal clients. She and her
team of Virtual Marketing Mavens help you expand your
online marketing to create a powerful, fully branded, web
presence; integrate your online and offline marketing; and
position you clearly as the leader in your segment. She
offers coaching, consulting, training, and design services.
Winnie Anderson

Virtual Marketing Mavens

199 New Road
Suite 61, #359
Linwood, NJ 08221
888-672-9145 toll free
Winnie@VirtualMarketingMavens.com
www.VirtualMarketingMavens.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

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INFORMATION IS KEY
Subscribe to and read leading trade publications
for your industry both printed and online. Set
up your schedule so you have time to read 1 hour
every day. Contribute articles and letters to the
editor to them.
Study your competitors and determine how your
product or service can offer greater value. Read
their web pages and blogs. Start a blog of your
own. Use social media like Facebook, Twitter and
LinkedIn to learn about any customer concerns or
common complaints.
Attend trade shows and conferences in your
field and volunteer your services to them. You
are considered an authority or leader when you
speak at shows.
Remember business is about relationships.
Make sure you keep up with current events. Read
the New York Times online to see what most of the
country is reading and talking about.
Use Google Alerts. This is a free service by Google
that is a modern digital version of clipping services.
You enter in any subject or term and Google sends
you an e-mail when anything is written on that
subject online.

Gary R. Brongas book Bringing a Product to Market From

Your Home is intended to streamline the process of taking
a product from an idea to reality. It is based on his beenthere-done-that experience. He started his product CLIPEZE with an idea, computer, and $500. Today CLIPEZE
is sold in over 1,000 retail stores and catalogs around the
world.
Gary R. Bronga

Clipeze Worldwide, Inc

P Box 373
.O.
Mims, FL 32754-0373
800-385-0014 toll free
admin@clipeze.com
www.garybronga.com
www.clipeze.com

THRIVE IN YOUR CAREER

CUSTOMER SERVICE AT ITS BEST

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Go the extra mile for customers. It often takes

just a few extra seconds at the end of an interaction
to finish well.
Use positive expressions to assure your customer that you will follow through. Of course.
Consider it done. Id be glad to.

Multiply your effectiveness by treating your coworkers as valued customers. People will often
pass along what they have received.

Listen and take your customers seriously. If they

think there was a problem, there was a problem.
Realize that every day you make a difference
in the life of each customer. You either make it
easier or more difficult.

Caulton-Roberts Associates was established in 1989 in

East Longmeadow, MA. Having spoken to thousands
of individuals about customer service, Kathy Caulton,
company president, lists A.T. Cross, Service Corporation
International, Health New England and many financial
institutions among her clients. Ms. Caulton has authored
the 1995-2007 Daily Calendars on Customer Service
Excellence. Over 100 of the Fortune 500 companies have
purchased these calendars for their employees. The
calendar has been distributed in over 20 countries. Of the
many reasons people cite for hiring Caulton-Roberts, the
full customization of the material to suit the specific needs
of the company is key.
Kathy Caulton

Caulton-Roberts Associates
PO Box 852
East Longmeadow, MA 01028
413-525-5731
Kathy@caulton-roberts.com
www.caulton-roberts.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

ORGANIZED MINDFULNESS

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Refer to your business plan, mission statement,

policies, and procedures often. They will aid in
decision-making, keeping you focused and on track.
Create sensible support systems. Use products
and systems that support how you think and learn
i.e. visual, auditory, or kinetic. The right system
aids in memory retention, work-flow, and motivation.
When in doubt hire a professional organizer or other
professional to help you with any concerns.
Develop daily/weekly habits and routines. This
creates dependability and minimizes clutter. Use a
daily to-do list and prioritize accordingly. Schedule
all activities to manage time and capture important
opportunities. File completed projects or paperwork
at the end of each day.
Honor space limitations. Scientifically, all objects
emit an energy field. Overly cramped or cluttered
spaces create confusion. Define boundaries and
respect their limits. Store surplus supplies off-sight.
Keep all like things together according to purpose
and function
Realize that consistency and maintenance are
key. Schedule a review routine twice annually
to ensure all systems are current and relevant.
Include as part of your policies and procedures.

Sheila Delson is a Certified Professional Organizer

specializing in helping those afflicted with chronic
disorganization challenges, such as ADHD, OCD,
compulsive hoarding, and others. She is the past-president
and certification director of the Institute for Challenging
Disorganization (ICD), formerly the National Study Group
on Chronic Disorganization (www.nsgcd.org).
Her companys mission is to help people achieve a higher
quality of life by developing functional personalized
systems and a safe, clutter-free environment.
Sheila S. Delson, CPO-CD

FREEDomain Concepts, LLC since 1994

5 Oak Bend Road
Poughkeepsie, NY 12603
845-463-4140
Sheila@freedomainconcepts.com
www.freedomainconcepts.com

THRIVE IN YOUR CAREER

THINK LIKE AN ENTREPRENEUR

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Take only Ideal Clients. Definition of an Ideal

Client: Already appreciates the value you bring, has
the money to pay you, you like them. Trust your
intuition. Do it only if it feels right.
Lower the price without giving discounts. If
someone doesnt want to pay you the full amount,
ask them what part of your services do they want
you to take out?
Charge what you are worth. Your first customer
is you. Practice saying in the mirror: My fee is
$___and Im worth it. until your eyes tell you that
you believe it yourself.
Realize pie in the sky thinking gives pie in the
face results. Promises of more business later by
giving a good deal now is a scam. If they dont want
to pay you what you are worth, walk away and be
glad you dodged a bullet.
Know how to sell. Listen, so you can Identify their
need, describe their pain, offer a solution, give a call
to action.

Marilyn Ellis has a lot of people listening. As an author,

speaker, certified life coach and professional organizing
dynamo, she not only helps people get organized but she
also helps them think organized! Her company name,
Lighthouse Organizers, LLC reflects her true desire to
help people navigate through their busy and challenging
lives. If you are stuck on the rocks, lost in the fog or
surrounded by sharks, Marilyn will shine her harbor light
on you and bring you home safely.
Marilyn Ellis, CTACC

Change your thinking, change your life.

866-379-6440 toll free
mellis@ecis.com
www.lighthouseorganizers.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

MAKE DECISIONS YOU CAN TRUST

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Use your powerful tool. The most powerful tool

you have is choice and the way to make the most
powerful and best choices in your life is from your
Gut, never from your Ego.
Follow your Gut. If you dont follow your Gut you
wont get what you want or where you want to be
in life no matter how hard you try. It is impossible to
create a life you desire through a mental process.
Be more concerned with how you want your
day, your work, and your life to feel than how
you think you want it to be. Your Gut is about how
you feel. Only your Gut can show you how to create
your life to match the feelings you have inside.
Trust your instincts. Dont believe everything
you think. Thinking is the learned response often
confused with intelligence. Being a good thinker
doesnt mean you make the best decisions by thinking things through.
Admit who you are and stay congruent with your
words and actions. Let your Gut be your GPS and
guide you through choices on a daily basis. Youll
see what isnt working and be able to make better
choices.

Mary Goulet authored Go With Your Gut, How to Make

Simple and Critical Decisions. She coaches individuals on
how to trust their instincts. The only way to live the life
you crave. This is the only decision-making and problem
solving process that teaches you exactly how to Go With
Your Gut and trust every decision and choice you make.
Mary Goulet

Go With Your Gut

760-445-2022 Pacific Time
Mary@gowithyourgut.net
http://GoWithYourGut.net

THRIVE IN YOUR CAREER

MASTER YOUR P
.R.I.D.E.

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Possibility Pledge to become a possibility thinker.

Learn to say Yes instead of No to your dream
career.
Responsibility Take 100 percent responsibility
for your current state of affairs and for realizing your
dreams.
Inspiration Commit to a career that inspires you,
and create experiences that add significance to your
life.
Design Develop and design a strategy to achieve
your goals, and then take action. Think big, start
small, start now!
Engineer To ensure that you reach your goal of
having a career where you thrive, engineer it for
success: enlist support, do your research, improve
your skills- whatever it takes to get there. Remember, the impossible isnt!

Patrick Healey has been a business owner his entire adult

life. He works with business owners and professionals
who want to grow their businesses by attracting and retaining the best employees. Pat is an expert in the field of
employee attraction and retention having written and published three books, A Womans Guide; Finding Joy In
Your Job, The Employee Attraction & Retention Workbook For Small Businesses and soon to be released
Be The Best Boss; What you need to know, what you
need to do!He shares his information nationally through
his workshops and keynotes.
Patrick Healey

Integrated Team Solutions LLC

P Box 1834
.O.
Lake Oswego, Oregon 97035
503-720-5973
pat@EmployeeAttraction.com
www.EmployeeAttraction.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

ITS ABOUT THE PEOPLE

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Be aware of the rules and ramifications of

personal relationships with subordinates,
coworkers, and supervisors. There are strict
penalties for improper relationships and abuses of
power.
Learn how to react to situations. Reacting to the
actions of others or circumstances is not always
in your best interests. Note situations you wish
you had not reacted to peoples actions or words.
Sometimes the best choice is not reacting. Yet
other times, sharing credit for your successes with
team members and those around you is a wellappreciated way to react as a leader.
Be more patient. Practice delayed gratification.
This helps develop your self-discipline and saves
you money in interest payments throughout your
life. Borrow money only when absolutely necessary.
Review Standards of Operations to understand
definitions of conflict of interest. Participating
in an activity causing a conflict of interest can hurt
your career and is punishable. Ask a superior when
in doubt.
Seek opportunities to teach what you know.
Teaching others is an opportunity to sharpen your
skills and share knowledge, whether in a classroom
or one-on-one as you go about your day. Superiors
will recognize your teaching skills and see you as
having management or leadership potential.

Elbert Mackey helps people organize their lives to be more

successful and productive. His latest title is the Promotion
Journal: Youve Been Promoted. The tips and strategies
in this booklet are potent examples for increasing your
productivity and developing a positive reputation that can
advance your career to higher levels.
Elbert Mackey, Founder, CEO

How to Say Congratulations.com

223 West Anderson Lane, Suite B/202
Austin, TX 78752-1135
512-779-9956
mail@howtosaycongratulations.com
www.howtosaycongratulations.com

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YOUR VIBRANT PATH

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Be entrepreneurial, even when you work for

someone. People see you as a go-to person, leading
to opportunities for job growth and great future referrals.
Innovate, take on tasks, propose solutions - without
being asked.
Cultivate your leadership skills. Make working with
you a transformational experience and people remember you and your leadership. Conduct yourself with
courage, integrity, and humility. Read about leadership.
Discover and indulge your passions. If you strongly
believe in an industry, company mission, or adore actual
work itself, your positive energy attracts people and new
opportunities.
Learn how to manage up. You and your boss have
a symbiotic relationship. As you help your supervisor look and be successful, that reflects well on you.
Learn how your supervisor receives information best
(verbal, written, etc.); use that method to communicate
requested data, anticipated items, and to showcase
your work.
Live in balance. Explore interests and engage with
people outside of your work sphere. This keeps you
from burning out in your career. Plus, it gives you more
options and connections in the future.

Mary Miller offers coaching on both personal and professional goals. She is an attorney by training, with other
careers along the way. A premise of coaching is that within you are the knowledge and answers needed to move
into the future you desire. Mary asks clients to grow and
stretch themselves. She believes the quote from William
Butler Yeats, Do not wait to strike till the iron is hot, but
make it hot by striking.
Mary C. Miller, J.D., ACC, SPHR
Integrated Choices, LLC
Explore. Decide. Go.
434-242-7181 Eastern Time
CoachMary@avibrantpath.com
www.avibrantpath.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

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THE ORGANIZED ENTREPRENUER:

ACHIEVE PEAK PRODUCTIVITY

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Customize organizing systems. When creating an

organizing system, design it with your habits, needs,
work, and lifestyle in mind so that it is easier for you
to maintain.
Do a Brain Dump by getting all of that
information out of your head. Keep track of tasks,
ideas, and information that you are afraid you would
otherwise forget if you dont write them down or
store them electronically.
Separate your master project list from your
daily to-do list. The master list includes all of the
projects you plan to get to, but cannot realistically
accomplish in one day.Your daily list puts it into
action.
Unclog your calendar. Identify tasks on your
calendar, agenda, or to-do list that you dont really
need to do and let them go. You can revisit them
again on another day, or delete them altogether.
Own your interruptions. Broadly define an
interruption as anything that you didnt want to, or
expect to, happen at that time. When an interruption
occurs, decide to take it, delegate it, delay it, or
pass on it.

Lisa Montanaro is the owner ofLM Organizing Solutions,

LLC, created in 2002. She is a Certified Professional Organizer, Business & Life Coach, and Motivational Speaker.
She is the author of the book The Ultimate Life Organizer: An Interactive Guide to a Simpler, Less Stressful &
More Organized Life, published by Peter Pauper Press.
Lisa is a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) and the National Speakers Association (NSA).
Lisa Montanaro

LM Organizing Solutions, LLC

P Box 113
.O.
Warwick, New York 10990
845-988-0183
Lisa@LMOrganizingSolutions.com
www.LMOrganizingSolutions.com (website)
www.DecideToBeOrganized.com (blog)

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PLAN FOR SUCCESS

Put whats in your head down on paper. Write
a plan including goals, objectives, and necessary
actions to document where youre going and how
youll get there. Getting this on paper makes you
accountable to yourself and others.
Communicate the plan to team members. This
gives you better commitment from your team while
also ensuring everyone is working toward the
common goal.
Work it, watch it, adjust it. Implement the
plan. Keep it visible. Refer to it often. As other
opportunities present themselves it will be easier to
determine whether you can take a detour or need to
stay on track.
Partner with a Virtual Assistant (VA). This helps
for focus and minimizes overwhelm. By partnering
with a VA you can delegate necessary tasks that
eat up your time and take away from revenue
generating tasks or time in front of clients. Draw on
their expertise for sharing new concepts, ideas, and
generating products.
Give yourself permission to alter the plan.
A plan provides direction, but sometimes other
opportunities come about. Its okay to alter the plan
if it makes sense. You may even discover a whole
new direction is needed.

After spending 20-years in retail/direct sales, lending and

manufacturing Kelly Poelker gained first-hand knowledge
in many aspects of operating a business. In 2000, she left
her cubicle behind and set out to share her knowledge
and expertise with other small business owners by helping them to build a solid foundation for their businesses.
Kelly co-authored Virtual Assistant - The Series books
and Working Virtually.
Kelly Poelker, President

Another 8 Hours, Inc.

618-624-3080 Central Time
kp@Another8Hours.com
www.Another8Hours.com

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

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NETWORKING:
YOUR CAREERS #1 TOOL

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Keep your word. Making promises you cant keep

destroys your credibility. If you arent certain you
can come through, say so. (Networking Principle)
Create, practice, and perfect a powerful
self introduction that you can give in fifteen
seconds. Make sure it tells who you are and what
you do, creates curiosity in your listeners, and
leaves an impact. (Networking Skill)
Set monthly goals for networking. Include
events, phone calls, notes, meetings and emails.
Review your progress quarterly to identify what
works. (Networking System)
Create a Referral Club or Master Mind
group with a few like-minded people. Pool your
energies to build the success of each member.
Use social networking to expand and extend your
sphere of influence. (Networking Action)
Identify people you would like to collaborate
with and offer to help them reach their goals.
Use networking in the personal, professional, and
community areas of your life. (Networking Action)

Networking is not rocket science! You can do it if you are

willing, open minded, and present in the moment. Your IQ,
financial situation, or social status are not key factors in
networking which consists of four components: principles,
skills, systems and actions. Networking links needs
with opportunities, challenges with possibilities, and
problems with solutions. Donna Reed is a Strategy
Coach, Facilitator, and Author with over 25 years experience in networking. She is the author of Networking
Tips That Build Powerful Connections, 55 Networking Tips For People Over 55, and numerous articles.
Donna M. Reed

Strategy Coach, Facilitator, Author

5740 East Paseo del Cenador
Tucson, AZ 85750
520-299-8199
toolsachievers@q.com
www.ToolsForAchievers.com

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EFFECTIVE BOOK PROMOTION

Be as committed to marketing your book as you
were to writing it. What was the point of writing if
it never reaches the readers? You sell your ideas
better than anyone.

Realize your book is one element in spreading

your message. Its a product and more than an end
in itself: Its part of your campaign to share the story
you were passionate enough to write.

Think creatively about book promotion. View

every encounter as a chance to spread your
message. Be prepared with your elevator pitch.
Offer business cards as follow-up information. Be
appropriate and respectful of your listeners time.

Do one thing every day to promote your book,

no matter how small. Phone someone, create a
mailing list, and write your blog post. That one effort
puts you ahead of 90% of your peers, who do no
promotion.

Learn the power of social media for your book.

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube They can all
promote your message, your book, and you. Its not
a fad; its the future of marketing.

An award-winning author, speaker, and independent book

publisher, Mary Shafer leverages 35 years in marketing
and almost a decade in book publishing helping authors
and publishers effectively promote their books. Mary runs
The Word Forge, a freelance marketing consultancy and
its publishing division, Word Forge Books. She is president
of MidAtlantic Book Publishers Association, and member
of The Authors Guild and The American Society of Journalists and Authors. Get Marys marketing newsletter, The
Anvil, www.thewordforge.com .
Mary Shafer

The Word Forge

PO Box 97
Ferndale, PA 18921
888-320-9673 - toll free
wordsmith@thewordforge.com
www.thewordforge.com
www.maryshafer.com - author blog

70 Tips From a Collection of Small Business Experts

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A PROACTIVE APPROACH TO Success

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Invest in yourself regularly.Reading business

books, taking classes, learning new skills,
improving your oral and written communications
skills, or polishing your image improve your
marketability and show others that you are serious
about succeeding.

Do more than expected.Your boss and clients

have certain expectations. By exceeding those
expectations, not only will you make an impression,
youll find additional opportunities. Ways to exceed
expectations include: turning work in before its
due, volunteering for additional work, pitching
ideas, packaging projects professionally, and
finding ways to reduce costs.

Break your primary goals into bite-sized

goals.By breaking a major goal into smaller,
easier-to-accomplish steps, you will be empowered
to take action and will experience a greater sense
of accomplishment along the way.

Surround yourself with positive, successful

people.Not only will positive, successful people
lift you up with their infectious energy, youll see
how they approach business, customers, and
challenges. Observe, ask questions, seek advice,
and learn!

Become a mentor.Mentoring is rewarding to

mentees and mentors alike. Youll be exposed
to a fresh perspective and an enthusiasm for
your career that you may have lost. Sharing your
passion can rekindle it, allowing both of you to
grow.

Celeste Stewart has used these proactive tips to turn her

passion, writing, into a thriving and successful business.
Celeste provides engaging, informative Web content, eBooks, articles, newsletters, press releases, training manuals, product descriptions, and white papers. In addition
to selling words for a living, Celeste regularly helps other
freelance writers thrive in their writing careers.
Celeste Stewart, Freelance Writer
Temecula, California
951-757-3532
celeste@celestestewart.com
www.CelesteStewart.com

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