Marketing Behind the Scenes #15

After I’d been substitute teaching for about eight months — all the while working in the word processing centre in the student union building at the university typing papers — the manager went on maternity leave. She had an assistant manager who was not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Nice girl, but a follower. In addition, this typing place had two other full-time unionized employees, and a few part-timers like me.

Yes, really. A small office with an organizational chart. You see it all the time.  Lots of chiefs. Everyone’s in charge.

I applied to be the acting manager while Mrs. Disorganized was on maternity leave. I was perhaps not the likely choice, as I was a part-timer.

Still, I was quite convinced that the assistant manager wasn’t up to the job, and I managed to convince the general manager of the student union the same.

I was given the job. It was for 4 months.

You can imagine how happy the assistant manager was, and how thrilled she was to now be taking orders from me.

How old was I? Twenty-four. Distinctly unqualified at least on paper. I had a Bachelor of Arts in English, and a Bachelor of Education.

The office had been losing money for awhile, but since it was run by the student union, and considered to be a ’service’ for students, they let the money thing slide for a long time. But the year before I took over (1990-1991), they’d run a huge deficit of $35,000 in just one year.

Once I became the manager, I changed two key things…

++

To read the complete entry, sign up for email series: “Marketing Behind the Scenes: The REAL Story of One Roast Vegetable” here: http://oneroastvegetable.com/story.htm

~ All best, Shelley

Paris Post: Photos from September 13

Trip to the Marais and the Jewish quarter, for the world famous falafel. This is our best ‘celebration’ meal. I think we were celebrating our apartment in Montreal being rented (which has since fallen through, anyone need to rent a lovely furnished apartment in Montreal?).

Because the restaurant is closed on Saturday, we visited on Sunday and the line-ups were long on the left for take out, and shorter on the right for eat in, which we did!

  

And it was time for an updated picture of me in front of this restaurant I’d love to own… Have you seen the UK episode of Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares that takes place in Paris? This is the restaurant, right down the street from the falafel place.

And here’s last year’s picture,
same restaurant was for sale then, too:

 

THEN I was filming the last video for the Fabulous French Desserts cooking class, soft peach cake:

 

 

 

I may have to buy some frozen peaches and make this right now, I’m starving!

~ All best, Shelley

Paris Post: Photos from September 12

I know I’m about 6 weeks behind in posting my Paris pictures. I’ll work on getting caught up over the next week or so. Not to worry, I’m still taking lots of pictures, I just have to sort through them to show you the best ones. (Nothing more boring that looking at someone’s BAD travel pictures…)

On Saturday, September 12th, we went to Parc de Bercy … big park and gardens which is next door to a big music sports / concert hall (this is where Madonna played when last here).

  Main entrance to the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy (POPB)

 

yes, they have grass growing up the side of the building

 

the teenagers were having a lot of fun skateboarding down the many flights of stairs

 

this is the park next door

 

the gardens are set up so that you can sit on the grass between the flower beds

 

Alas, I don’t have any pictures of the outdoor restaurant, complete with live DJ spinning groove 1960s albums, where we sat and had a beer in the sun.

More to come

~ All best, Shelley

Marketing Behind the Scenes #14

Extract:
==

When I was studying to be a special education teacher, I kind of liked going to type after a day of dealing with kids. My word processing job at the university was a good place to have some ‘comfort’.

Typing had clear expectations, and projects had a beginning, middle, and an end.

And when it was quiet, I could work on lesson plans and type my own stuff. Like the fiction stories I continued to write, because I hadn’t given up my dream of doing a Masters degree in Creative Writing … I just didn’t know where it fit in.

I finished the teaching program and started substitute teaching.

I was often called back to deal with the most difficult classrooms. Seems that my special ed training, specifically in ‘mild impairment’ and behaviour modification, made me a good substitute to call when you have a particularly difficult class.

++

To read the complete entry, sign up for email series: “Marketing Behind the Scenes: The REAL Story of One Roast Vegetable” here: http://oneroastvegetable.com/story.htm

~ All best, Shelley

PS/ There’s one spot left for November’s Beta Business Class here, and I have champagne waiting to drink > http://www.oneroastvegetable.com/members/signup.php?price_group=-4177

Marketing Behind the Scenes #13

My fourth key to self-discipline is:  “Ask your customers every day for positive feedback, ideas, and comments.”

I don’t know about you, but working at home alone can sometimes feel like you’re working in the DARK.

You write emails, create products, you hold teleclasses — but sometimes you’re not super-sure if your group is *really* interested in whatever tangent you’re following.

Sometimes you get a billion emails saying “yes, thanks, exactly.”  Other times it’s dead-silent.

So what do you do?

A blog is helpful. It creates an easy way for people to leave comments and feedback. I usually set up my blogs so that users do NOT have to register to leave a comment. I also have it set so that comments are NOT held in moderation first, and that people do NOT have to use their real names or real email addresses.

Why do I do this? To encourage the highest response rate possible.

Because, frankly, if you’re not having a CONVERSATION with your clients (which by definition is back-and-forth, and not one-sided), then you’re just talking to yourself.

A conversation requires two people: you AND your gang.

I will periodically say something like: “What would you like me cover, what would you like to see next, tell me what you wish for in my next class, tell me what you think of this … share your ideas with me.”

BUT I also say, from time to time: “YOUR NAME, if this IS NOT for  you, it’s OK if you unsubscribe from this list. No hard feelings.”

Because if it’s not for them, THAT’S OK. I want my gang to be full of people who are wanting to hear from me.

Some people will unsubscribe. Lives change and priorities change. That’s normal.

I remember when I first started One Roast Chicken, in my insecurity, I used to email people who UNsubscribed to ask them “why?”

Now I know to just let them go.

And instead, I turn to WELCOME the 50 new subscribers who have entered today

All best,
Shelley

PS/ There’s one spot left for November’s Beta Business Class here > http://www.oneroastvegetable.com/members/signup.php?price_group=-4177

What’s the key part? Keep going.

I got an email from Lin this week, saying that she was interested in my Beta Business Class.  But that she wasn’t ready yet.

Here’s what she wrote:

“Shelley, I’m not ready to sign up or invest time yet in the Beta Business Class … Starting my own business has been on my mind for such a longgggggg time, yet it scares me, mostly because I don’t want to fail. I am now 52, no time to waste. I have had so many different ideas of starting different businesses but always figure it won’t work, someone else is doing it, too much competition!”

When I answered Lin, I addressed her specific business ideas, and gave her some ideas for getting started.  But I could have said a lot more about what’s ‘really’ going on here.

**

Here’s what I should have said to Lin:

Everybody’s afraid, that’s normal. My favourite quote about ‘fear’ comes from my friend Suzanne Falter-Barns in her book “How Much Joy Can You Stand?”

“Not only is failure an essential and important part of your progress, it is unavoidable. No matter what you set out to do, sooner or later there will be a failure, whether it is a complete and total belly flop at the onset that redirects your course, or a later one, after you’ve become an established success. Basically, experiencing failure is like arguing with your spouse; nobody wants to do it, but sooner or later it’s bound to happen. And handled intelligently, failure won’t be a disaster at all. Rather, it will yield all sorts of important information about your well-being and your conduct in life” (p. 92).

The other side of the ‘fear’ question is the reality of time.

In another 3 months, Lin, you’ll hopefully still be here on the planet, kicking around, finding stuff to do. It’s also possible that if you follow a slightly different route, and you make different choices beginning now, that in 3 months’ time you’ll be much closer to your idea of having your own business. You can do something or not, but it’ll still be January soon enough. Where do you want to be in January?

Because any action in the ‘forward’ direction takes you closer to your goal. Even if it doesn’t work out.

I started a site called “One Roast Chicken,” and if we’re measuring success in $$, then this site failed.
BUT! It had a mailing list of 4500 when I began One Roast Vegetable. ORC had content and articles and recipes prepared, AND a cookbook designed — all content I have slowly migrated over to the new site. ORC gave me an audience, a way to check what people wanted and a safe place to test my ideas. I would never have started One Roast Vegetable if I didn’t have the other site first.

So you know what, when I’m telling my ’story’ of how I got started, I don’t even say that ORC ‘failed’. I say it was an experiment that taught me tons, and gave me a clearer direction on how to go forward.

Because…

For each decision we take, and each thing we try, it either works or it doesn’t. If it does, we keep going.

If it doesn’t, we refine and keep going.

What’s the key part?

Keep going.

I hope this is helpful

**

~ All best, Shelley

PS/ Link to this week’s 73-minute audio recording about starting your own business is here > http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WMb7Tw64

The sign-up link for my Beta Business Class is here > http://www.oneroastvegetable.com/members/signup.php?price_group=-4177
This is a one-time offer, as I’m creating the curriculum for a 90-day class that will begin in January.  Register now and you’ll be part of a small-group mastermind, class development, and get one-on-one time with me, and all for 67% LESS than January’s price will be.

here to see what I SHOULD have said to Lin

Key #3 > Have an Accountability Partner, Support Group, or Mastermind Group.

Sign up for Tomorrow night’s F’REE teleclass here

I wrote before about my “5 Keys to Self-Discipline.”  Even if you were like me, and a ‘model’ employee, it can still be hard to make the transition to being a self-employed person.

Today I wanted to talk a bit more about Key #3 > “Have an accountability partner, support group, or mastermind group.”

When I was in university, I handed in my assignments on time.  There were clear expectations. I knew if I was late, I’d lose marks. Some classmates always asked for extensions for reasons real or imagined

Not me. I was a teacher-pleaser.

But once on my own as a business owner, I didn’t have a teacher  telling me what to do, when to have it done, or what was expected.

In 2006, when I wanted to start my second business (One Roast Chicken), I signed-up for my first online class.

We called a telephone number once a week, all of the class participants were there (and our teacher), and we talked about building our businesses.

We had readings and assignments. We got things done.

Once the class finished six weeks later, of the 10 students registered, 7 of us decided to continue to meet weekly to continue to support each other. One woman dropped out soon after.

And then we were 6.

You know how sometimes you can’t see what to do next, but you can see what SOMEONE ELSE might do next?  An online group works like that.

We have remained that same group of 6 women meeting on the phone, supporting each other’s businesses, since the summer of 2006.  Even though I’m in Paris, Robin and Andy are in California, Leslie is in Texas, Ginger is in New Jersey, and Elizabeth is in North Carolina, we continue to meet every 2-3 weeks.

And I can honestly say that after billions of hours on the phone with my mastermind friends (I’ve calculated it, it’s probably closer to a squillion-billion), I know for a fact that I could NOT have built my online company to where it is today without their support.

Working at home alone is hard enough. Motivating yourself is a tough job.

Doing it without any kind of external accountability or support?   I’d say it’s darn near impossible.

I’d never do it alone.

If you’d like to talk about starting your business, getting your ideas rolling, and about being part of my next online class, you can sign up for tomorrow night’s F’REE call. We’ll get together on the phone, we’ll chat, share ideas, and everyone will walk away a GENIUS.

OK, more likely we’ll talk about what kind of business YOU could start, if only you had the right SUPPORT, the right ACCOUNTABILITY system, and the right ENCOURAGEMENT from someone who’s already done it.

Sign up for tomorrow night’s call here.

All best,
Shelley

Two acts of bravery

“Walk the talk.” You’ve heard this expression before. Well, today I wanted to make sure that I could.

You see, since arriving in France at the beginning of July, I’ve been nervous.

My French is very 85%, which is usually sufficient enough to get me through most conversations. Sometimes people comment on my ‘cute’ accent (Quebecois that it is).

Other times, Parisians squint their eyes tight with concentration and say: “WHAT? What do you want?”

I have been known to walk around the grocery store for 20 minutes before breaking down to ask: “where is the coconut milk” — in  trying to avoid that squinty-eyed-look.

So one of the things I’ve been putting off since July has been to find where I can donate my homemade banana bread.

In Montreal, I had a great drop-in women’s centre and they gobbled up the banana breads at a rate of 10 to 40 per month (depending on your sponsorship and the availability of dead bananas).

I’ve been putting off finding a homeless shelter in Paris now for three months … When I looked online, I couldn’t find anything at all, using English or Quebec-French terms.

I knew I’d have to ASK someone. IN PERSON.

But who could I ask? A homeless person? I was quite hesitant to do this … don’t want to be presumptuous, misunderstood, or offensive … what if I can’t understand their answer to me?

And so I’ve avoided this for 3 complete and entire months.  (That’s a long time.)

In the meantime, my mom and sister have been making banana breads and delivering them to a shelter in Nova Scotia…

But anyway. Today I took a suggestion from my mastermind group, and I walked into my local church. They have a little ‘welcome’ office at the back, and I walked through the dark church, 2:30 pm (giant cathedral, with chairs instead of pews).

** Bravery Act #1 begins **

Granny in the welcome office was very happy to see me. She was about 75 and perhaps had spent the entire day alone thus far.

I explained that I wanted a homeless shelter where I could donate food, banana breads in particular.

She patiently explained in shelley-simple language, that “it’s not done like that here.”  Partly because there aren’t any homeless shelters — it’s a socialist country so people are better taken care of by the government (sort of), but also because the weather is so good you can honestly sleep outside all year.

I know that Médecins sans frontières gave out tents a few years ago, and all over town you can see little pup tents set up under bridges, in alleys, and in parks near the Eiffel Tower where we live.

Anyway.  I asked Granny I could give out banana bread at the clothing drive the church holds. She said no, they don’t do food.

I explained that I didn’t need to find a ’shelter’ exactly.

I told her that you lovely folk (One Roast Vegetable clients)  sponsored banana breads each month, and that I was looking for a  place to donate them.

Then her genius light bulb when on. She got out her big cross-referenced binder and her rolodex (no computer here).  And she found the answer for me:  Relais Frémicourt >
http://www.oeuvres-uof.org/fremicourt/.

Founded by the St-Vincent de Paul Society, the Red Cross and others, this Food Bank provides emergency food to anyone in need. It started in 1985, and they give out food baskets weekdays from 2:00 pm to 4:30 pm, and they also serve a real dinner two nights a week.

And, bonus, it’s 4 blocks from my apartment.

So I said thanks to Granny, and I walked out the door and over to rue Frémicourt. I stuck my head into the back office.

** Bravery Act #2 begins **

I explain in my 85% French that I want to donate food. Mrs. Cheerful Foodbank suggests I bring in non-perishables.

I take a deep breath and launch into my story about clients, banana breads, Montreal. Mrs. Cheerful Foodbank asks if they can be stored, and I say they can be frozen.
She asks “how many?”

I say:  “Between 10 and 40 per month has been the average this past year.”

Her eyes bulge. Literally.

“Please can I give them to you? I’m trying to find a place to donate them.”

Clearly no one just walks into her food bank saying: pretty please with sugar on top, can I bake stuff for you and give it to you weekly.

She says yes, and then repeats “c’est vraiment gentile” [that's very nice/kind]. She kept saying it over and over again.

Then she opens the freezer to show me it’s gigantic EMPTINESS that could be filled up with banana breads.

So. Long story.

Here’s the moral of the long story.  (There might be 2 morals.)

One, people can still be amazed by random acts of kindness.   If you’d like to sponsor a banana bread this month, you can go here: http://tinyurl.com/7yghnw. They’re $2.75 Cdn each. I’ve posted  the recipe on that blog page, too.

Two, I’m currently designing a business coaching class to begin in January, and the beta group begins will start up in a few weeks.

One of the exercises is about addressing ‘fears’ of any kind.

My fear was of not being understood. For three months I walked around with that.

Then this past Monday, I pledged to my mastermind group that I was
going to solve the problem this week.

And two days later, it’s solved.

That’s what having some business support can do   (At at the same time I’m refining the bravery exercise by using  myself as a guinea pig. GROAN.)

If you’d like to sign up for the beta business class, it goes on sale on Friday @ noon eastern – you can read more here > http://tinyurl.com/y9jql7t

Hope your day is as great as mine.

Nothing like a little bravery to brighten your day

All best,
Shelley

Marketing Behind the Scenes #11

Thanks for your kind emails where you comment on my talents of being  “dedicated” or “determined” or that “nothing will stop me.”

Please forgive me, but I’ve got a myth to dispel.

I’m as afraid as the next person.

Maybe more so.

There was a period between 1995-1997ish where I was afraid to fly.

Yes, perhaps it was based on one bad turbulent thunder-and-lightening flight. But then after that I was anti-flying. Completely.

And for my yearly vacations from Vancouver to Nova Scotia to visit my family, I drove. There and back. Alone.

[Now get out your atlas and calculate that that's 9 days of driving. Each way. http://tinyurl.com/vanc-hfx]

++

To read the complete entry, sign up for email series: “Marketing Behind the Scenes: The REAL Story of One Roast Vegetable” here: http://oneroastvegetable.com/story.htm

All best,

Shelley

Marketing Behind the Scenes #10

I’ve been sending you emails about the ‘behind the scenes’ story leading up to how I started One Roast Vegetable. But I don’t want you to think that it’s been a step-by-step, easy, exciting, “everything works,” everything is lovely kind of story.

It’s not that kind of story at all. In fact, I’m sure that most people’s business stories aren’t neat-and-tidy, despite the version they may tell you.

While I was in the Education program at UBC, studying to be a special education teacher, I had a part-time job in the basement of the student union building typing papers for students. There was a big “office services” kind of place, that did typing, rented out access to self-serve computers on a mainframe, and even did some temporary personnel placements.

+++

To read the complete entry, sign up for email series: “Marketing Behind the Scenes: The REAL Story of One Roast Vegetable” here: http://oneroastvegetable.com/story.htm

All best,

Shelley