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Best Practices for Building & Leading Tribes

June 22, 2010

Filed under: Thought Leader, Uncategorized, Women Leadership, success, vision — Tags: , , , , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 7:48 am

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Seth Godin, TribesIn a recent blog post, I shared some important ideas about tribes based on Seth Godin’s must-read book, “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us.” 

This week, I will add some practical tactics so you can get started right away with building and leading your own tribes.  I will use one of my tribes, Big Fish Nation, as an example. 

Last week, I had a wonderful teleconference with one of the Big Fish “sub-tribes,” the Mastery group, as we discussed our favorite parts of Godin’s book (hard to narrow down!), then shared our own tribe-building best practices.  This is what I love about spending time with my tribe members…  I always learn and get motivated just by being in the same space with them (virtually or face-to-face)! 

It is important that we share information and inspiration across tribes, so here are some of my (our!) tribe’s  learnings from last week’s teleconference:      

BEST PRACTICES* for Leading & Building Tribes:

  • Create and Communicate a Clear Vision:  If you don’t know where you’re going, your tribe won’t either.  Create your vision of, as Godin says, “something that could happen but hasn’t (yet),” and communicate it regularly to your tribe.  Then have faith in the vision.   Believe it. Plan for it. Lead to it!
  • Set the Beat:  Lead by example…  be organized, meet your deadlines, speak and act with integrity, be accountable, turn work around quickly and professionally, show your enjoyment, etc. Show your tribe how to reach the vision! 
  • Lean In:  Commit to the vision and “lean into it” with passion, confidence and fearlessness.  We don’t always need to plunge forward (although sometimes that’s how we get started!), and a steady forward-leaning attitude keeps us moving ahead and thinking ahead. 
  • Lean Back:  Each tribe also needs followers.  Sometimes the most effective thing a tribe leader can do is to lean back and allow someone else to lead.  Each tribe member has different strengths and all are needed to make the vision a reality.  Just remember to follow eagerly and continue “leaning in”!
  • Just Do It:  Godin says, “The largest enemy of change and leadership isn’t a ‘no.’  It’s a ‘not yet.’”  If you sense that NOW could be the time for you and/or your tribe to act, then JUST DO IT.   Don’t miss your opportunity. 

These are just a few of the ways we can build and lead our own tribes.  

What are some of your Best Practices?

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*A special thank you to Big Fish tribe members Gail Benmosche, Peg Calvario, Amy Cotter, Amy Hart, Starla King, Sonya Mittleman, Andrea Russo,  and PJ Sparks for these Best Practices!

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Are You Leading or Following?

June 8, 2010

Filed under: Thought Leader, Women Leadership, success — Tags: , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 8:24 am

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Without leaders there are no followers.
You’re a leader
We need you.
- Seth Godin

Seth Godin, TribesThis month in the Big Fish Mastery program, we are reading Seth Godin’s book, “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us.”  – another “must read” for all women business owners as we continue to find new ways to connect powerfully with each other!

The concept of creating a tribe or belonging to a tribe might seem like a foreign idea, but it’s actually a simple – and absolutely important — way for us to think about and do business. 

Godin’s definition of “tribe” is “…a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea.”   

For example,  Big Fish Nation is a tribe:  we are all women business owners, connected to the idea that women business owners can have it all …  that we can be wildly successful in our businesses without giving up the rest of our lives.   

All Big Fish tribe members also have access to online conferencing tools, conference calls, Facebook groups, etc.  to stay connected with me, each other, and the Big Fish concepts. 

As the Big Fish tribe grows, so does the energy around the original Big Fish idea, and attracts other potential tribe members… which ultimately positively affects the bottom line! 

Think about your own business… have you created a group of people connected to you, each other,  and the primary idea of your business?   Do the people in your organization care deeply about you and your work?  Do they have a shared vision that they have faith in?  

If so, congratulations — you are leading a tribe!

If not, you can start building your tribe today. 

How?  Godin says it “takes only two things to turn a group of people into a tribe:  a shared interest and a way to communicate.”  

The shared interest can come directly from the goals and vision of your business, and you can use the social media tools available now (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, etc.), to provide a variety of ways for your tribe members to communicate – globally! — around that shared interest.

We can make an even bigger impact in the world when we intentionally connect our individual tribes into larger tribes.  For example, I’m a member of NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners), and am attending the NAWBO conference this week to interact with those tribe members.  

Some other tribes to visit (and become members of) are:  

I am convinced that tribal membership and leadership need to become part of EVERY business leadership toolkit. 

Are they in yours? 

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Tapping into our Richest Resources

June 1, 2010

Filed under: Thought Leader, Women Leadership, success — Tags: , , , , , — Starla J King @ 8:19 am

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[blog post by Starla J. King, Big Fish 2009-10]

I was intrigued to see the flood of responses to Lorin’s blog post last week and responses to the referenced WSJ article (by Sharon Hadary) about the topic of women business owners taking their businesses to the next level(s). (Click here to read full blog post).

Apparently we women entrepreneurs are hungry.

Hungry to feed the success of our businesses… …hungry to create flourishing businesses that we can be proud of AND be recognized for… and hungry for the tools to do all of this without overwhelming our lives.

I’m certainly one of those hungry women. I’m ready to sidle up to a buffet of resources and connections and best practices that every one of us women entrepreneurs have.

I keep thinking about that buffet (or maybe it’s more like a full-fledged banquet) — the incredible skills and knowledge in each woman business owner – and wondering, how can we better leverage those resources in and for each other?

What if, for example, every one of us made an intentional effort EACH DAY to do ONE THING to help advance another woman in her business? Such as:

  1. Make powerful introductions between potential business collaborators – powerful because you’ve sensed shared values and goals between these women, not just a similar business line.
  2. Contact (call, email, even text) a woman business owner asking “what one thing can I do for you today?” And mean it.
  3. Share information and inspiration (both are critically important) tailored specifically to the recipient. Become one of the people whose emails always get read because each email is that impactful.
  4. Ask other women business owners for specific assistance. If another woman business owner might be able to fill a specific gap in your skill set, knowledge base, or even a certain type of motivational energy, ASK her for help, or even negotiate a mutually beneficial business deal. Chances are, the collaboration will further her business every bit as much as yours. 
  5. Ask each other the tough questions. Many of us women entrepreneurs have business or life coaches who ask those questions that require digging deep internally and doing clarifying research externally. If we’ve been coached, we know how to ask those questions of each other. And if we haven’t been coached, we can still ask open honest clarifying questions of each other. Questions ignite discovery – the fuel for taking ourselves and our businesses to the next level.
  6. Be someone else’s microphone. When another woman business owner impresses you or inspires you, let other people know. I suspect we’re all pretty good at personally congratulating or thanking that person, but how often do we publicize someone else’s successes? Let’s each start doing that regularly – TODAY.

Just one more thing here – the part about not overwhelming our lives. Yes, I’m asking each of us (myself included) to add something to each day. And believe me, I know we are all busy enough that we struggle to find space in our schedules for even the priorities. But I am not asking us to add a tedious To Do to our list.

I’m suggesting instead that with a little practice, we can make showing up for each other consistently just another part of the unique and highly effective way we women do business.

Are you with me??

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Big Fish Nation is an incredible program for connecting women entrepreneurs with each other and invaluable tools. If you want to hear about my Big Fish experience, email me directly at starlaking@comcast.net.

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Taking Women’s Businesses to the Next Level

May 25, 2010

Filed under: Thought Leader, Women Leadership, goals, success — Tags: , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 7:08 am

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I read a terrific Wall Street Journal article last week (by Sharon G. Hadary), called “Why Are Women-Owned Companies Smaller Than Men-Owned Companies?”.   I recommend it as a “must read” for all of us!

It’s fascinating to me that even though statistics show that women can own and run businesses with million and multi-million dollar annual revenues, the average revenues of majority women-owned businesses are still smaller than (only 27 % of!) the average revenues of majority men-owned businesses. 

Why is that??  

According to this article, part of the answer has to do with “women’s own self-limiting views” and the other part is “the stereotypes, perceptions and expectations of business and government leaders.”  

 This article does a great job of describing ways to strengthen our internal and external perceptions and beliefs, many of which apply directly to the Big Fish concepts we learn about and practice daily.    For example,

- “Change the Mind-Set”:  We need to ‘think big’ (BIG, BOLD ACTIONS and GOALS) from the very beginning.  Even if we don’t plan to grow a multi-million dollar business, we need to plan for growth, learn more about business finance, and start believing that we will get business capital if we ask for it.

- “Women Learn From Women”: This is not about male-bashing or right or wrong ways of leading.  Women simply lead in different ways than men do, so women need other women to relate to.  We need to support each other in growing our strengths and finding new ways of doing business that feel more natural to us.  Natural = Best Self = Highly Effective!

- “Start with the Goals”:  Hadary says, “Research shows that the only statistically significant  predictor of business growth is not the industry, size of business or length of time in business. It is the entrepreneur’s goal for growth.”  We must set our goals and we must set them for SUCCESS.  The higher our goals, the higher our beliefs, and the higher our successes.  (See other blog posts about goals).

 I would also add a couple key points from my experience:

- It’s Our Choice:   One of the response comments to this article pointed out that not all women entrepreneurs want a multi-million dollar business … that some women specifically choose NOT to grow their business beyond a certain point in order to avoid the potential stressors and demands of a “big” business.   There is no right or wrong size for a woman’s business – the important thing is that we intentionally choose the size of our business and set our goals based on that choice.   When we are “at choice,” we are creating our lives, leaving no room for self-limiting beliefs.

- Publicize Our Success:  If we are to change stereotypes about the capabilities of women leaders, we must share our success stories.  We must celebrate our successes publicly, using a variety of avenues to showcase our successes.   Tell the media about your achievements, join organizations that provide networks to give you additional visibility, and always be aware of ways you can market yourself and your successes.   It’s up to us to change the stereotypes one success story at a time.

I’ll leave you with a quote from the article, something for you to print and post as a reminder to take it to the next level:

 “We have to show women how to embrace change; to be trend-setters rather than simply react; to innovate beyond expectations; to develop global integration; and to practice social responsibility.  We need to help them identify ways to make their enterprises scalable and to build teams of talented people for where the enterprise should be in five years, not just today.”  - Sharon Hadary

See you at the next level!

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Are You Holding Up Your Half of the Sky?

May 11, 2010

Filed under: Thought Leader, Women Leadership, success — Tags: , , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 7:03 am

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In last week’s blog post I shared my experience of what turned out to be quite a hot :) topic — walking on fire.

It was a daunting task, one that I really did not want to do, yet I realized there was a learning opportunity there and decided the learning would be worth walking thru my fear and over the coals. Long story short, (see full story here: “Fire Walk Anyone?”), I DID IT!!!

Yet even as challenging (and important!) as that fire walk was for me, I keep thinking about how it pales in comparison to the experiences many women in third-world countries face in order to start and run their own businesses.

I recently read (and highly recommend) an incredible book called “Half the Sky”, by husband and wife Pulitzer-prize-winning authors Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.

The book includes case study stories of women who have been victims of ongoing sex crimes, poverty, male-dominated oppression, etc.

For many of these women, just getting through each day was a “fire walk” of physical and mental torture, and I can’t even imagine how they found their strength and courage each day.

The really amazing thing is the women who not only survived, but flourished by starting their own small businesses and gaining respect and even financial freedom.

These women are important examples for all of us women business owners!

As Big Fish, we know the importance of BOLD ACTIONS – those actions requiring extra courage to move our lives and our businesses forward.

So think about the level of BOLD actions these women are taking as they go against cultural norms to create their new lives and businesses! Think of the impact if we all take our own BOLD ACTIONS to the next level!

Bold actions are not the only factor connecting women entrepreneurs across the globe. As Half the Sky shows, even though women entrepreneurs around the world have very different kinds of businesses, there are many similarities in what it takes to be successful:

1. We all have a vision and put our energy toward making that vision a reality.
2. We all set goals and keep our tasks and energy focused on them.
3. We all have courage, determination and persistence.
4. We all have a support system.

It’s important to realize these similarities so we can be open to supporting women entrepreneurs not just in our own countries, but in other countries. Together we can have global impact!

One great resource for practical ways to support women across the globe is the Half the Sky book and the accompanying website at http://www.halftheskymovement.org/get-involved.

Big Fish Nation also offers a full-year program called the Starfish Program – a program in which each Starfish is “partnering” with another women business owner in a developing country, directly giving and receiving time, energy and expertise to and from other women entrepreneurs who are hoping to have their chance to also change their world.

As women, we need to realize our unique skills and contributions to our world. After all, “Women hold up half the sky” – Chinese proverb (attributed to Mao Tse Tung 1893 – 1976).

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Fire Walk anyone?

May 5, 2010

Filed under: #BigFishIntention, Adventure, Thought Leader — Tags: , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 12:46 pm

FireWalk Any One?

Every now and then I sign up for something to rejuvenate me…. This time I signed up for a 2.5 day women business owners retreat with Tory Johnson’s Spark & Hustle program www.womenforhire.com . I knew very little about the people putting it on and the event itself. I just followed my intuition and signed up.

Upon arriving, I learned the first morning that that first night, we’d be doing a ‘fire walk’. At first, I was annoyed! I did not sign up for this! I never had ‘walking on fire’ on my bucket list! The truth, I did not want to do it, I was scared to put my tender, feeling feet into hot coals, it simply sounded stupid!

I remembered 7 or so years ago when I wanted to strap a hang-glider to my back and jump off a cliff in California. Stupid? Maybe, but I wanted to do it! I wanted to feel what it felt like to be a bird in the silent air 100’s of feet above the noise on the ground.

As I reflected on that experience, at the retreat, I was trying to find parallels… what intrigued me was the difference between doing something I wanted to do and something I did not want to do. I began to see how I felt about doing things I want to do and did not want to do…. And realized there is going to be a big opportunity for learning here should I choose to take it on. I was not yet convinced I would.

So at the end of the day, as the sun was going down, 22 of us gathered in 3 small busses and headed north to www.firewalking.com where a man named Charles Horton greeted us, he was our fearless leader. His story was so motivating and moving in and of itself.

He said a few very wise and simple things:

1. In order to do this fire walk, we must get ‘in state’ and realized what he was referring to was to get in ‘best self’ state like we talk about in the www.bigfishnation.com. He went on to say that his goal is to stay in this positive state for 95 percent of each day. I realized that he just raised my bar. Could I be in best self 95% of each day? Could you?

2. He went on to say that we had choice if we wanted to walk. We were not to pressure each other or encourage. Just focus on ourselves and allow each person to make their own choice. And accept what each person’s choice was. Again, a great point, I had to ask myself how often I judge those closest to me for their choices.

3. He continued, no matter our decision don’t make it easy, rather ‘Let it be Easy’ — ah this bit of advice I heard loudly. And I realized what a huge difference it was to make it easy rather than let it be easy. Allow. Allow. Allowing is so much easier than making! AH, it was starting to sound doable…. Walking on fire.

4. Another thing he said: put your attention on something OTHER than your feet and fire! ‘Energy flows where attention goes.’ I said to myself, this is the first principle in the book I wrote!? I have to walk my talk and do it… and I have to admit that I felt this was the ultimate test of me really being able to do so!

5. There was another sign in his ‘space’ that said: ‘Highly successful people routinely step out of their comfort zone to accomplish what they want.’ The truth, I had to admit that I had not been out of my comfort zone in while. And as time went on, I was realizing I was about to. UGH!

So it was time to start the process. He first had us break boards! Yes, break boards. At first I was thinking, ‘this is stupid!’ First of all, I use my hands a lot, I do not want to hurt them! So, 23 women started breaking boards. Everyone broke their board, but me! My board DID NOT BREAK! Or shall I say, I DID NOT BREAK MY BOARD THE FIRST TIME! Charles being the kind man that he is, allowed me to try a second time (after announcing that this is a onetime deal)… I barely broke the board, but I did. There were still wood fibers attaching the two sides… oh no, I started to have doubts about the fire thing. I remember saying to myself, ‘If I cannot break the board easily, how can I walk on fire?!?!’ I could have started freaking out. But I did a few deep breaths and did not put my energy there… I looked forward. Put my energy on the next thing. We threw our boards with our limiting beliefs written on them in fire, burned those shallow, disempowering thoughts in the fire.

It was time… the coals were hot. I could feel the heat from the fire. I really could easily have gone down the ‘You’ve got to be freakin’ kidding me…. ‘ path. But I didn’t. I stayed with the notion of ‘I feel great today. I feel terrific. I feel healthy. I feel happy. I am powerful. YES! YES! YES!’ I put my attention on the moment not the coals or heat.

The first woman walked! She did it. The second woman walked. She did it! In that moment, I knew that if I thought at all about what I was about to do, I would not do it. I was the 3rd woman to walk. The first step was warm. The second like warm rocks that sun was beating on. I did not feel the other steps and before I knew it, I was back on cool, moist grass. No pain. Nothing! Just pure elation! I DID IT! I REALLY JUST WALKED ON HOT COALS!

So the bottom-line, when we decide that we are going to do something we do not want to do (sales, speaking, a conversation, walking on fire) there are some basics:
1. Know what you have to do and DO IT! Don’t think too much about it.
2. As successful people, we should be doing this consistently!
3. When doing such things, remember where your energy is, it matters!
4. Let it be easy… .allow it to be easy.
5. Remember you always have choice! Even if we do not want to do it… and know we need to do it to go to the next level… Choice is powerful.
6. Get ‘in state’ and stay ‘in stay in state’… and simply this is Best Self in the big fish program.

I have written in this blog about this experience and the truth is, it is just the beginning of the learning from this experience and should you want the full ‘story’ about my fire walk journey email me: lorin@bigfishnation.com and I’ll share my full story with you.

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Big Fish eStory: Emily Knudson

April 20, 2010

Filed under: Big Fish eStory, Thought Leader, Women Leadership, success, vision — Lorin Beller Blake @ 10:22 am

It is time to feature another amazing women business leader….

 

Emily Knudson
Owner of: Empowered Fitness
Big Fish Case Study

 

 

What Kind of Business: Personal Training Studio located near Charlotte, NC

Before Big Fish, I was a business owner that was an expert in fitness but felt I was not the best, most savvy, business woman. I was all about my work. I have a family but I was not spending quality time with them. My work phone was forwarded to my cell phone after work every night and I took the calls each time the phone rang. I was ready for help and direction in my life and business. I was ready for a whole new level of income and lifestyle.

What is different about me as a leader because of being a Big Fish during the past year:
1. Core Corporate Values made a huge difference in how we assess and hire staff.
2. Developing written protocols and documentation for staff and functioning of the studio allowed the business to function better without me allowing me to now own a more sustainable business.
3. The goal wheel has helped me have higher functioning intentions. I go about things in a much more intentional manner making life easier and more fun.
4. I feel much more balanced and connected to family not because I am at the studio less really but more because I know my values, know my priorities and have a clear vision of what I am creating both as a mom, wife and a business owner.
5. As a leader, I spread my leadership skills out into the community this past year (via NAWBO and a local Business Advocacy Group of which I started). I also have inspired my staff to step into a bigger leadership role at the studio which has them take more responsibility. I am definitely a much more confident leader in every aspect of my life.
6. We assessed and added many more profitable services and cut out unprofitable services.
7. I have expanded and integrated as a woman, a person, and a business owner. I love the fact that Big Fish Nation is a goal oriented program. I thrive in that setting.

Bottom-line Impact:

• In 2009 compared with 2008, we grew the business 555.8% in net income!
• 2010 first quarter compared to 2009 first quarter, we increased our net income 32.1% and 42.9% better in gross profit margin also
• Last year we served a max of 32 clients at any one time, this year current clients served thus far is 54 and it is only April!

If you would like to speak with me, Emily Knudson, about the Big Fish Program, you can reach me at: emily@empoweredfitness.net or 980.621.2060 or check us out at: www.empoweredfitness.net

Don’t you just love great stories about real women that inspire?

I do!  Make it a terrific day.

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Humility Matters

January 26, 2010

Filed under: Being vs. Doing, Thought Leader, success — Tags: , , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 7:13 am

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It’s month one of a new year, and I’m guessing many of us have new or ongoing goals  around exercise. 

I wonder, though, how many of us are paying attention to our humility muscle?  That’s the one connected to the self-confidence muscle which we business owners exercise regularly.  

Our muscle groups work in pairs, with one shortening while another one lengthens, and if we ignore one of those muscles, we weaken the effectiveness of the entire pair.   

It works the same way with the humility/self-confidence muscle pair.   When we balance our self-confidence with our humility, we become stronger, more effective leaders.   

John Baldoni writes in his Harvard Business Review blog that a strong self-image is practically a requirement for success,  yet confidence can easily become an overbearing ego.  To keep that ego in check , we need to have honest friends (to tell us the truth!), and to be aware of our shortcomings. 

Notice, though (women, are you listening?), that he does not say to dwell on our shortcomings, since that becomes counter-productive and self-defeating. 

Starfish ready for BIG BOLD ACTIONS!

While we do need to keep our ego in check, humility is not about down-playing our own strengths and successes or hiding our shining skills.  It’s about playing up the strengths and successes of those around us, and bringing others to those same levels with us (or BEYOND us!).  

Humility is equal parts confidence + goodwill + compassion, components that all lead to BIG BOLD ACTIONS – the fuel for ongoing business success.

If you haven’t used your humility muscle for a while, make sure to prevent injuries by taking the time to warm it up with some gentle stretching before going all out.  It takes some time to get used to a new way of being.    

Next time you go to the gym, or work, or any part of life, remember to exercise your humility muscle as much as your self-confidence muscle and get ready to experience wild success!

(Keep in mind, if you need “business exercise buddies” the Big Fish Program is here for you!)

 

Big Fish!

Big Fish!

 

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Why Women Biz Owners need to support organizations that are all about Women Biz Owners

November 9, 2009

Filed under: Thought Leader, Women Leadership — Tags: , , , , , — Lorin Beller Blake @ 1:56 pm

35 years ago, a very small group of women saw the value in banning together to support each other, form an ‘official’ group to create a united front for so many reasons…. This organization is National Association of Women Business Owners . Did you know that there are 10.5 million women business owners in this country? If you are one of them, why not support a group or the groups that are all about:

- Politically making it their mission to make the path easier for women who have businesses
- Create venues big and small to promote, educate and celebrate women business owners
- Educate women business owners on current and real issues we face

- Come together as groups for buying power, lending power and media impact

There are many other women business organizations each that do various things:

So many times we ask, what will the organization do for me, but I do think it is also important to ask what can we do for such organizations? They need leadership. They need advocates. They need your stories! They need your passion about other women business owners.

What You Can Do

 I have been traveling to various women’s gatherings all around the country the past few months and it is so refreshing to be among those that love what they do…. And in this tough economic time, it is important to surround yourself with others that are of like mind or in the similar situations… any women that has a business knows what it is like to run a company, have a family and be in a challenging economic time…. You never know when you might need that uplifting message and you can count on the fact that if you are doing great, your message is needed out there. Join one of these organizations committed to advancing and making it easier for women to build great businesses together.

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