Personal Coach Advice on How You Can Earn Respect in the Workplace

After you graduate from college, the only thing you want to do is get your first job immediately. You will do whatever it takes to get hired, and the last thing you want to do is screw up. Unfortunately, so many new grads end up making this mistake early on in their careers.

Surprisingly, the problem most new graduates face in the workplace does not come from the fact that they have poor technical skills or they lack knowledge. What usually costs them their first job is their “persona” in the workplace.

Without any experience and expertise, how are you supposed to earn the respect of your boss and your colleagues in your first job? Below are some important things to remember and practice:

1. There are many things you don’t know yet, so don’t pretend that you do.

It doesn’t matter if you graduated with honors because the truth is that you don’t have any experience to boast yet. You are a newbie in the business world, so you should avoid assuming you know how things should be done around you. You can’t afford to have your older and more experienced colleagues thinking of you as arrogant.

2. Be appreciative and offer a sincere ‘Thank You”

Everyone around you is a human being who loves being appreciated. Thus, one way of gaining positive attention is by being a warm member of the team who knows how to appreciate the good things other people do.

3. Volunteer and be an angel to your coworkers.

You may be surprised to know that most of the people in the organization are clock-watchers. These workers are not always willing to put in extra work or spend even an extra minute in their cubicle. As a newcomer in the workplace, it is good practice to offer to take on some extra assignments or tasks. This will make your boss and coworkers think of you as someone they can rely on any time.

4. Be a good listener.

Surprisingly, many newbies in the business world are not being good listeners because they are often too eager to prove what they know. As a result, they are often thought of as arrogant and someone who is not willing to learn from those who know better than them. It is very important that you know how to listen and not just hear what you are being told. Besides, there is a lot you can learn by paying attention to what is being said by those who have more experience and knowledge than you.

Earning respect in the workplace is no joke, especially if you are too young to have something to show off. By talking to a personal coach, you will learn how to be significant in the workplace while at the same time gaining the respect of your colleagues.

Business Consulting – 10 Steps for Planning Your Business Expansion Overseas

If you’ve decided that it’s about time you expanded your business in another country, you shouldn’t treat this as simply duplicating what has been done in your own country. Several factors play an important role in the success of a business overseas – culture, economy, market, etc. It is also crucial for a business to have a dedicated resource for the development and expansion of the business in a certain region.

Needless to say, going global is a huge step for any company, and it could be very expensive also, especially if there is no concrete strategy in place. Thus, as a business owner, you will have to be ready to start up a business again, while taking into consideration the legalities, local operations, and local marketing involved.

Below are the 10 steps for planning a business expansion that will help make your international transition as smooth as possible:

1. Decide on which country you would like to expand and take the time to really know its market and culture.

2. You have to visit the country so that you may be able to evaluate the areas and eventually decide where you can develop your business.

3. Assess the current competition. Is the market very competitive? If so, how much? What is the market share of the competition?

4. Perform a SWOT analysis so you will be able to determine your areas of weaknesses and your strengths. What steps are you going to take to address your weaknesses? Can they jeopardize your business and all your other investments? It is important that you be able to fix your weaknesses before you even enter the new market. This way, you will avoid making costly mistakes that may even ruin your brand reputation.

5. Determine the size of your potential market. Is it huge enough? How are you going to grow it?

6. Pay attention to the demographics within your area of choice. Know the population density, disposable income, and economic growth. Does the local area have the ability to support your business? Will there be enough manpower?

7. Does the service or product you are to offer suit their culture? You’ve got to be ready to make slight changes to your product and marketing just to make sure they fit in with the local culture.

8. How do the people in the area approach business? What happens in an ordinary working day? What is their suitable clothing?

9. You also need to determine if you have an existing system or infrastructure that will enable you to deliver your product. For instance, will you be able to provide technical support?

10. Finally, you have to know if it’s going to be possible for you to replicate your existing business model. This is a complicated process, for sure, and so working with a business consulting agency may be necessary.

Business Consultant Tips for Improving Productivity in the Workplace

Providing your employees with a good workspace can significantly increase employee productivity. This doesn’t mean, however, that you need to patter your office to that of Apple’s or Google’s. Believe it or not, a few minor design tweaks will do.

Below are some very simple design fixes you can apply in your office environment that will improve your workers’ levels of happiness, health and productivity.

1. Mind ergonomics.

You really cannot expect your staff to be productive if their backs are killing them because of the wrongly designed desk chairs and computer screens they are using. If it is possible to adjust the height and position of the desks and chairs being used in the office, then have everyone do it. The heights of the desk chairs, desks and even computer monitors should allow for the things to be parallel to the floor. The upper arms have to be perpendicular to the floor, and the wrist should be as straight as possible.

2. Get rid of the clutter.

Encourage your staff to keep their desks or workstations clutter-free. As a manager, you need to be good role model in this, so make sure your desk is well organized and neat also. There are a number of ways you can keep your desk organized, such as using post-its, filing cabinets, and organized folders.

3. Reconsider the color of the office.

According to several studies, color has a significant effect on people’s productivity at work. According to color psychologist Angela Wright, blue is the color that stimulates the mind; red affects the body; yellow stimulates creativity; and green keeps a calming balance. If it would cost you a lot to have the entire office repainted, then go for accents instead. This way, the different departments or teams in the organization will be surrounded by colors that fit their work.

4. Put a touch of nature.

Adding some small potted plants around the office is another way to promote productivity at work. A couple of studies have concluded that having a plant on an office desk boosts cognitive attention and improves productivity. In addition, it also helps filter the air by removing bacteria and mold. Indeed, this simple change in the office can do a lot in keeping workers healthy, relaxed and productive.

5. Sufficient lighting.

Another way of increasing productivity in the workplace is to let in a lot of natural light. If there aren’t that many windows in your office, you can just rearrange the office so that as many desks will be positioned closer to the windows. Indirect light is another option if there is limited natural light in the area.

These design fixes are minor, if you come to think of it, but they do a lot in boosting the mood and level of productivity among employees. If you want to learn other ways of improving efficiency and productivity in the workplace, working with a business consultant is ideal.

Business Consultant Tips on Growing Your Business Network

It is the nature of a person to do business with people they are familiar with, like and of course, trust. As a business person, you have to be serious in building your business network as this can definitely take your business to new heights.

Below are some business networking tips that will help you grow your professional network:

1. Be willing to share your ideas and expertise.

By helping the people in your network to become better or stronger, you are allowing them to be in a better position to help you in the future. You can help them by sharing your ideas, expertise, and information. You may also promote the accomplishments and whatever your network is engaged in.

2. Build a good reputation for yourself.

In the corporate world, people always choose to do business with people who they think are valuable for their own business. Thus, you should present yourself as someone who is helpful, skillful, and valuable. When you have this kind of reputation, people will find more reasons to meet you and have a business relationship with you.

3. Stay in touch and remain visible.

You will not be able to build a network if nobody knows who you are and what you do. Thus, it is important that you have a group of people with whom you can consistently communicate or get in touch. There are many ways you can connect to them, such as through social networking, blogging, emails, and in person as well. Take note also that you should be visible where you can meet the people you want to meet and hang out with.

4. Always look at the bigger picture and think long term.

The connections you have are the ones that will open many doors of opportunities for you, but it is your relationships with them that will enable you to close deals with your network. Keep in mind that networking is not all about connecting on LinkedIn and exchanging business cards with other business people. You can benefit the most from networking when it is long lasting. This means that you should keep in touch with those people you like, and be patient until you eventually build a strong and lasting relationship.

5. Don’t forget to follow up!

You should always strive to have a reputation as somebody who is persistent and one who delivers on their promises. If you promise something to someone, make sure that you follow it up on them. You should never let them feel ignored and taken for granted.

As any businessconsultant will say, the objective of professional networking is to gather information, improve your visibility in the industry, and most of all, build personal connections. All of these will help grow your business and advance your career.

Signs that Team Building Activities Are Not Enough to Make Your Employees Stay

Every business owner knows it – the hiring process can be a real nightmare! Hiring managers spend hours sorting piles of resumes, cover letters, and application letters without any guarantee that they can find a good candidate. On the part of a business owner, employee turnover is damaging to the company, especially financially-wise.

The bottom line is that as a business owner, you should do your best to retain good employees. However, there is no way you can stop them from quitting when they want to. By making yourself familiar with some warning signs that your employees are about to quit, you will still have time to either convince them to stay, or to find a good replacement for them.

Below are the signs to watch out for:

1. Personal Crisis

Your workers have their own personal lives too, which is something every employer should not take for granted. In order to keep your employees happy, you need to help them maintain the balance between work and their person life. When something goes wrong in any of these aspects, it is likely that the other aspect will be affected.

2. Jealousy and Envy

It is a luxury for any employer to have a go-getter. However, there are times when competitiveness becomes a problem. Overly competitive employees are likely to get frustrated and mad if they get passed up for a promotion. As a result, they lose motivation and they are even likely to find another place of employment where they think they will be given what they deserve.

3. Engaging in Job Seeking

If you notice that one of your employees is often dressing up although it isn’t a requirement in your company, you may have a reason to believe that he or she is doing a job search. What you won’t like about this is the fact that they may be using company time and resources to search for another job. What you should do is confront him or her and ask if they’re planning to move elsewhere.

4. Repeatedly Asking for Personal Time

If your employee is always requesting for a vacation or leave, it is possible that they are trying to make you release them or let them go. Personally informing an employer about quitting is not easy for many of us. Thus, many opt to make their employers think that they are no longer an important part of the company, and thus should be let go.

5. Lack of Engagement

If you notice that an employee is losing his or her motivation to work, this is a real sign that they may be heading out. You may try talking to them personally about it, or you may also implement various team building programs to give them a good reason to stay.

Career Planning: Common Reasons People Are Job Hopping

If you’ve been struggling to stay in one job and it has made you a serial job hopper, this post is for you. The purpose of this article is not to criticize you, but instead, to motivate you. While it is true that job hoppers seem to lack the ability to commit to a long-term employment, they often have good intentions, too! Thus, I could understand how frustrating it must be to not be able to find the right job that is worth holding on to.

If you’re open enough to admit that you are a job hopper, it is important that you find out what’s going on, and what could be causing this situation you are in so that you may also find a way to resolve it.

Here are the common reasons why many of us end up jumping from one job to another:

1. To discover oneself.

Many employed individuals go through the challenging journey of self-discover. This is especially true among younger professionals out there. They bounce from one employer to another because they want to explore their options. Apparently, it is hard to know what you really enjoy if you don’t have enough experience yet. Sometimes, you really need to try out different jobs so you can determine what it is you don’t like to do, and what you really like to do.

2. Wrong job search strategy.

It is possible that you are not able to find the right job because your approach to job search was not good in the first place. For instance, applying for a job that you didn’t research about could end up in you having to do things you really don’t like doing. As a result, you quit your job and look for another one. But using the same wrong job search strategy, chances are you will end up in another job that does not suit you.

If you want to find a job that you will truly enjoy, you have to be smart right from the start. Make sure you are applying for a job that fits your personality and your passion.

3. Failure to adjust to workplace culture.

One common reason for changing jobs is one’s inability to adjust to the existing workplace culture in an organization. This is a serious issue if you are someone who is not willing to totally adapt to a place. There is actually nothing wrong with constantly looking for a place where you feel comfortable, but you also have to consider that perhaps, you also need to learn how to adjust to your surroundings, because in the end, you will benefit a lot from it. Remember that for your careerplanning to succeed, you need to be open to change.

Things a Business Coach Will Suggest You Focus On When Putting Up a Business Overseas

When it comes to expanding your business, one of the most attractive ventures to get into is to launch your business in a foreign country. You may think that money or capital is all you need to successfully start up a business overseas, but the truth is that it takes more than just money.

While there are many opportunities in new markets for business owners who have a set of skills that is unique from the local population, it is still vital to take the following elements into consideration to ensure the success of the business:

Property Rights and Political Climate

There are some countries where it is common for foreigner-owned business or properties to be confiscated by the national government. As a wise business person, these are the countries you should avoid at all cost. It is important that you be aware of the country’s political condition first, as well as what property rights you will have as foreigner, before you make your investment.

Economic Situation

Among the good prospects are those countries that have low unemployment rates, low debt-to-GDP ratios, and high consumer spending. You want to do business in countries where there is low inflation rate, a growing middle class, and increasing incomes.

Knowledge of the Industry

You don’t have to be an expert in a certain field for you to be eligible to base your business on it. But of course, the market in your country is not the same as the market in another country. Thus, what works for you in your home country may not work for the people in a different country. In this case, you would want to partner with a local with relevant experience in the field, and contacts that will help your business to succeed.

Language

If you want your business to cater to people from a different country, you may not necessarily have to worry about the language barrier. But you can definitely benefit from having the ability to communicate with the local people in their language perhaps. If you’re not confident in speaking the foreign language, consider hiring a translator who will help you understand some important information that may only be available in the other language.

Market Research

You should certainly spend a considerable amount of time doing an analysis of the local spending habits, and also how much time and money it could take to market your services or products. Don’t forget to take into consideration also how much your employees should be paid, as well as the work habits of the locals.

If this is all too much too handle, there is no question that you need professional help coming from a business coach. A business coach has the experience and knowledge that will help you establish a successful business overseas.