16
Mar
It’s nearly spring and actually feels like it (here in Toronto at least)! Which title are you going to take outside to enjoy with the sunshine this weekend?
#1 MONEYBALL by Michael Lewis
1. MONEYBALL (Kindle) by Michael Lewis
2. STEVE JOBS (Kindle) by Walter Issacson
3. THE POWER OF HABIT: WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO IN LIFE AND BUSINESS (Kindle) by Charles Duhigg
4. THE POWER OF HABIT: WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO IN LIFE AND BUSINESS by Charles Duhigg
5. I WILL TEACH YOU TO BE RICH (Kindle) by Ramit Sethi
6. THINKING FAST AND SLOW by Daniel Kahneman
7. STEVE JOBS by Walter Issacson
8. STRENGTHSFINDER 2.0 by Tom Rath
9. THE POWER OF HABIT: WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO IN LIFE AND BUSINESS (Audible Audio) by Charles Duhigg
10. THE REAL CRASH: AMERICA’S COMING BANKRUPTY–HOW TO SAVE YOURSELF AND YOUR COUNTRY by Peter Schiff
16
Mar
Yesterday I found out that our contact form had been broken since January 5th. No one knows why, and it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the 968 emails that had been submitted through the form, and then trapped in a mail server, never making their way to us.
I, quite honestly, felt sick to my stomach as I read through emails from people asking for help with Actionable Workshops or making suggestions on ways we could improve the functionality, emails from authors and publishers and potential clients.
It was the repeat emails that were the worst. A few people getting more and more frustrated as their multiple, unreplied-to-emails piled up. I felt terrible.
So what do you do?
- 1. We fixed the glitch.
- 2. We added a phone number to the contact page, so people had multiple ways to reach us. (just in case)
- 3. For the people who had unresolved Workshop challenges, I refunded all payments since January.
- 4. For the authors/publishers/”suggesters-of-ideas” I humbly begged forgiveness and called as many of them as provided phone numbers as possible.
- 5. I wrote this blog post.
I was originally going to title this post “being human” meaning, of course, that we all make mistakes and it’s ok, so long as we learn from them. But that sounded like I was excusing myself. And that’s not my big takeaway from this experience, anyway.
The big takeaway is about being available. Particularly as a small business owner, nothing is more important than developing multiple connection points with your clients; your people. There should have been a phone number on the contact form from the get go. There was a contact number in the welcome email for workshop subscribers, but it should have been listed again in their dashboard. And finally, I should have reached out. It’s not like we have so many customers that I couldn’t call them all once a month, if I wanted to – if I made it a priority. It’s so easy to let that stuff slip by though… you get busy with attracting the next customer, with the next product upgrade. You gotta ask yourself though – what’s more important than connecting with your tribe?
Lesson learned.
13
Mar
As Actionable Books continues to grow, I find myself in need of more and more “professional services”. Whether it’s “upgrading” my accountant, lawyer or video producers, I find that there’s a higher level of expectations on what we produce and we (of course) want to stay ahead of those expectations. Last week it was a new CRM (Client Relationship Manager) that I wanted to look into. Salesforce.com is the the king of the CRM world… which doesn’t always mean they’re the best.
But in this case, it does. Within an hour of signing up for the free trial I had an email from Mohammed. I connected for a call with Mohammed (very cool dude) later that same day, who asked probing questions about my business, and then connected me with Nick – a local who understood Software as a Service (SaaS) business models and could further help me address my needs. I connected with Nick today for 25 minutes and had a fantastic conversation. Not only did he help me feel comfortable with my decision to go with Salesforce as my CRM solution, he spoke to me as a human being; making the occasional joke, asking (with genuine interest) about my business and allowing me to participate in the creation of a plan that makes sense for all things Actionable. There’s a reason Salesforce is number one.
Now, here’s the most interesting part – I’ve spent 20 minutes using the Salesforce tools and I can’t figure it out yet. Rather than getting frustrated and moving to another alternative (keep in mind they haven’t taken a dime yet), I’m confident that the robust capabilities of the tool, along with the fantastic level of support I’ve received to date, will far outweigh any learning curves with understanding how to use the product.
There’s a bunch of lessons we can all take from Salesforce. Keep it up, guys.
12
Mar
Some of you may remember that we published a limited run DVD last Christmas, showcasing the Actionable Interviews of 2010. It was a social experiment to see if we could create a truly win-win-win model:
Win #1: You get 6.5 hours of brilliant, candid content from leading business thinkers of our time for $25.
Win #2: Increased exposure for the authors interviewed, as well as for us (ActionableBooks.com)
Win #3: All profit was donated to Room to Read, improving global literacy through the creation of schools and libraries.
In case you missed the outcome, we sold just over 500 DVDs in the pre-Christmas rush. We only have 200ish copies of the DVD left and, when they’re gone, they’re gone. We won’t be producing any more.
If you missed out on getting a copy and would like to do so, I’m making it available through shoplocket‘s nifty new embedder. You can buy directly through the link below.
12
Mar
If you’re a high functioning, productive leader, you’re busy. You have commitments, responsibilities and regular “to-dos” that keep your calendar booked and your inbox full. There’s really no way around that, as far as I can tell. I also know that there are few things pre-programmed into your calendar that are going to take your business forward in radical leaps and bounds. Those tasks – the game changing ones – only enter your life when you make time for them… when you make time to step out of the trees and look at the forest as a whole, so to speak.
In Making it All Work, David Allen suggests a formula for staying focused on the forest. The formula involves regular, structured hours away from the “to-dos” of the business so you can focus on the plan – where you’re going, and what it’s going to take to get there. In my own business, I’ve found the monthly 1/2 day to be extremely valuable. Taking half a Friday, once a month, to get out of the office and – armed with some key data – hang out in a coffee shop, working through the business. It takes diligence to keep this time from being swallowed by to-dos. Be diligent. Maintain your priorities and get off the hamster wheel, if only once a month.
