biz www.idahowomensjournal.com | July/August 2014
Veterans: Boots to Business Training Courses for Entrepreneurs Power Trips Don’t Fit 5 Reasons Speakers Don’t Get the Respect They Deserve Infographic: Visual Content Gets 94% More Clicks Than Text Intuition and Your Business?
Geneal White: Creating an Online School for Entrepreneurs www.idahowomensjournal.com
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biz
Contents
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Profile: Geneal White An Online School for Entrepreneurs
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Veterans: Boots to Business Training Courses for Entrepreneurs
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Power Trips Don’t Fit
Intuition and Your Business?
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5 Reasons Speakers Don’t Get the Respect They Deserve
Infographic: Visual Content Gets 94% More Clicks Than Text
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SNAP Events A social networking after party for business owners Third Wednesday of each month September 17, 2014 October 15, 2014 November 19, 2014 December 17, 2014 Meridian School District 1303 East Central Avenue, Meridian, ID (East entrance) 6:00pm to 8:30pm
Who’s Behind This? Karleen Andresen Publisher Joy Alexander, Designer Rob Ayers, Cover Photos For information about advertising, please email the publisher at KarleenAndresen@ gmail.com. You may also download the media kit on the website: IdahoWomensJournal.com The Idaho Women’s Journal distributes 10,000 bi-monthly issues through the U.S. Postal Service and more than 650 Treasure Valley business locations and 6,000 residences. We are also partnered with the Gem State Family Journal. Advertisements can be emailed, camera ready, 300dpi to LocalMagAds@gmail.com. 2014 copyright by Idaho Women’s Journal, LLC. All rights reserved. No portion of this magazine may be printed or reproduced without express written permission of the Publisher. IWJ reserves the right to deny any article or advertising for any reason. Advertisements may be revised to meet the standards of this magazine without notice. The opinions, claims, and evidence provided contributors and/or writers do not necessarily reflect the position or opinion of this company. Distribution and placement in this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the products or services being represented.
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Save the Date Friday, April 3, 2015 9:00am to 4:30pm Boise Centre Something Epic is Coming! This day will change your life! Why the Flip Covers?
As women in business, we still have a life. The IWJ wants women to know that all aspects of their life are vital, relevant, and worthy of equal space. We refuse to deny we have a life. www.idahowomensjournal.com
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Profile
An Online School
for Entrepreneurs by Amy Urian 4
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www.idahowomensjournal.com
G
eneal White did not say, when I grow up I want to start a school. Instead her passion to help business owners avoid the traps and pitfalls of poor business choices, led her to start an innovative online academy. Vila Business Academy (pronounced Vee-la) was powered from Geneal’s consulting business where she heard the needs of the small business owner. Launched in December 2013 after a year of creation, Vila Business Academy takes the idea of a college adjunct instructor with real world experience to a new level. She established the next level by creating a 24/7/365 online place of learning centered on the entrepreneur who want to start their business immediately. For the established business and the struggling business, it takes them back to refocus on things they may have forgotten or thought they could do without. The examples and tools used in the course are from real world experiences. Her goals for the students of Vila Business Academy are to open the opportunity for sharpening their business acumen, to understand how to set up their business plan, to know why it will work, and when to modify the plan. Vila Business Academy offers about 40 modules. Enrolling is so easy a six year old can do it, as proven by her grandson. Courses are broken up into small professionally produced video segments, with printable workbooks. Once a student of Vila Business Academy finishes their course subject, they have access to the information online for up to one year; but always able to reference their printed workbook and community business resources. Taking what seems like a big conversation and cutting it down into understandable concepts makes business plans much easier. “These are best practices for their best success,” says Geneal.
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visit: www.VilaBusinessAcademy.com Today, Vila Business Academy is in multiple states. She says, “Entrepreneurs are very passionate and excited about their bright ideas, and I do not ever want their business dream to be taken away.” The unique trait of Vila Business Academy as a company is it seeks to collaborate with local community resources, such as the chambers of commerce, Women’s Business Centers, and networking groups like the Idaho Women’s Journal. Geneal pulls back the curtain offering demonstrations of her program before partnering. Operating with transparency, she believes if organizations can see her service, they can decide for their selves. By educating the local resources first, a potential business owner who needs help can be referred to Vila Business Academy with confidence. When entrepreneurs and local business resources work together, businesses stay local and the community thrives. Geneal knows the school of hard knocks is a painful and expensive education. She advocates, “A person can be exceptional at what they do and still lose their business.” The 22 hours in this entrepreneurial series evolved from her national training experience with a top corporation and the meticulous notes Geneal kept of each business situation that crossed her path. She approached the situation by diagnosing the problem, researching the solution, and working with her client to chose the best option for the business. Following up with business owners, she collected feedback on the plan they had implemented, why it was successful, noted if the methods were ineffective, then reworked the plan for another avenue of success. Vila Business Academy Entrepreneurial Series is continually gaining a
following from organizations such as the Realtors Board, Idaho Women’s Journal and community resources. Today Vila Business Academy is in multiple states with more to come. Geneal White already has several more tracks to add to Vila Business Academy, and organizations are requesting others. The curriculum remains affordable,
The school of hard knocks is a painful and expensive education. A person can be exceptional at what they do and still lose their business flexible, and easy. Geneal made the executive decision to price point the program below the industry norm to really help the small and start up businesses. To learn more visit : www.VilaBusinessAcademy.com or visit the Idaho Women’s Journal site under “Business Basics.” July/August 2014 5
Veterans: Boots to Business Training Courses for Entrepreneurs by Calvin W. Goings, SBA Regional Administrator We just celebrated our Independence a little over a month ago. While the Nation celebrates with fireworks, parades, barbeques, baseball games and family reunions, the SBA celebrates differently. As these men and women transition to civilian life, the SBA stands ready with training courses to make their dreams of business ownership a reality. The very popular SBA-sponsored “Boots to Business: from Service to Startup” is a worldwide program offered as a component of the Department of Defense’s redesigned Transition Assistance Program (TAP). The curriculum was developed to introduce transitioning service members to business ownership. It connects them to resources in their local communities.
The SBA has launched another program: “Boots to Business: Reboot,” an entrepreneurship training course for Veterans. “Boots to Business: Reboot”, is intended to introduce veterans to the fundamentals of business ownership, and lead participants through the key steps for evaluating business concepts and developing a business plan. The program will also introduce participating Veterans to a network of lifetime business support available locally across the U.S. by introducing them to SBA’s network of Veteran Business Outreach Centers, Women’s Business Centers, Small Business Development Centers. To learn more about these programs or to sign up for future programs, contact www.Boots2Business.org.
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Power Trips Don’t Fit www.PsycTests.com
by Ilona Jerabek
P
ower trippers believe that once given a position of authority, they will get the respect and social status they feel they deserve. In fact, 62% of people in our sample believe that being in a position of power will improve their life. This could be the case for some people, but it depends a great deal on their personality. There are those who, when given power, will use it to make a difference that benefits a lot of people. Those who are more self-serving and who use their influence over others as a way to boost their ego are more likely to alienate others. Power is a tool that, when used the wrong way, can do a lot of harm. Attitude toward power, it seems, plays a major role in how a person will wield their authority. When comparing people with a self-serving view of power to those who believe that it is something that should be used responsibly, our research revealed some surprising differences:
• 88% of those who are self-serving will use intimidation to get what they want, compared to 7% of the responsible group. • 98% of those who are self-serving see power as a way to improve their social status, compared to 8% of the responsible group. • 88% of those who are self-serving believe that doing their best is not enough – they need to BE the best (compared to 26% of the responsible group). • 96% of those who are self-serving dislike being outperformed by others, compared to 31% of the responsible group. • 81% of those who are self-serving believe that being in a position of power is the ONLY way they can gain the respect of others, compared to 1% of the responsible group.
• 96% of those who are self-serving believe that being in a position of power means that they are superior to others, compared to 1% of the responsible group. • 89% of those who are self-serving stated that they are much more confident in a position of authority than when they are expected to follow, compared to 1% of the responsible group.
• 78% of those who are self-serving feel uneasy when they are not the ones in charge of a task, compared to 15% of the responsible group. • 95% of those who are self-serving aim to win…even in friendly competitions, compared to 20% of the responsible group. • 29% of those who are self-serving would put other people’s needs first if given a position of power, compared to 83% of the responsible group. Being in a position of power doesn’t make you a leader; it doesn’t give you charisma. And what a lot of people don’t realize is the fact that when you pull rank to make sure people do what you want them to do, you lose some of that power. They may very well follow your orders, but will do so grudgingly. So the morale of this story is, if you have power and want to keep it, use it sparingly, when it really matters and for the good of the whole. To see where you measure on dominance, visit: http://testyourself.psychtests.com/testid/2117. www.idahowomensjournal.com
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Intuition and Your Business? Have you heard these comments in the wake of business gone bad? “It sounded too good to be true…” “He made my skin crawl, but my business partner brought him on and he milked us for $250,000.” “I invested $35,000 of my retirement into this business venture only to realize later that I should have trusted my gut.”
Sitting around a table of fellow female entrepreneurs, every woman lamented about a business decision she made that went against her ‘gut feeling’. We’re taught to listen to our brains, our business partners, or advisors over our intuition, but many of us live to regret those decisions. Case in point: In 2012, I decided to go back to school to become a holistic health coach and write a book about the psychology of eating. It made “brain” sense. I conducted a 15 year study on diet behavior and was well versed on the topic. I had written articles on the subject matter is worldwide publications. Everything was going along smoothly until I hit a snag – writer’s block for a three-month period. I kept pushing and the universe kept pushing back. Frustrated at my inability to compose one single sentence in a book that was due in mere months, I hired a book coach. At our first meeting, she led me through a guided meditation to meet my writing muse, aka my intuition, with the thought that I would ask this muse why I couldn’t write. My muse told me I was writing the wrong book for the wrong audience. I was floored, so my “brain” chose to ignore my intuition and kept plugging away at the wrong book. Not surprisingly, I got nowhere. A few days later I did the meditation again and got the same answer, but this time my muse/intuition told me to sit down at my computer. In the span of 15 minutes, I had a detailed outline for the book I was supposed to be writing. A
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by Mary E. Pritchard, PhD completely different book. Everything came out effortlessly, and I was energized. The thoughts, words, and pages began to flow. Listening to my natural intuition, I finished the entire book in three months. In less than a year, the concept of my book has taken off and I am speaking across the country and Internationally. I write for the Huffington Post on the subject matter and have been a cover girl on the Idaho Women’s Journal. So how do we avoid ‘writing the wrong book’ when it comes to business decisions? While it may not always be possible to side-step potential errors in judgment, checking in with your intuition can go a long way to averting disaster – as long as you follow your own intuitive advice. Each morning, the first thing I do when I sit at my desk is recite this simple prayer. I may recite it again right before making an important decision, writing, blogging, etc. It works for me and has worked for many of my clients. I hope it inspires you to trust your intuition the next time you’re faced with a business dilemma. Goddess/God/Buddha (whatever deity calls to you) Guide my thoughts (touch your forehead), my sight (touch your third eye – right between your brows), my words (touch your lips), my voice (touch your throat), my heart (hand over heart), my hands (hands open wide), and my body (sweep hands down to the floor, following your body as you go).
The point of this prayer is for you to get out of your own way. In other words, shut down your logical brain and let your intuition be in the driver’s seat for a change. It’s worked for me countless times. I hope you find it useful.
Mary Pritchard, PhD is a diet expert in the field of psychology and hormone management. She is a professor at Boise State and has been conducting research on diet behavior for more than 15 years. Her works have been published in more than 50 journals including Psychology Today and the Huffington Post. She offers free information online and through teleconferences. To work with Mary: www.AwakeningtheGoddessWithin.net www.idahowomensjournal.com
5 Reasons Speakers Don’t Get the Respect They Deserve It’s the brass ring that can’t be found. You’ve put the desire into the universe, worked hard, spent time to hone your craft, talked to people, put a respectable effort into marketing, and been around a bit, but you’re still wondering what the secret formula is. Why aren’t you having success on a higher level? Why aren’t you getting the respect you obviously deserve? As a marketer, I’ve seen it thousands of times, literally, good businesses or business owners that can’t get ahead. Yet the message repeats. Here are the top reasons you don’t get the respect you deserve.
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You’re doing the same thing but wanting different results – If you want to get on stage or your book to be #1 in its genre on Amazon, play with the people who can guarantee to get you there.
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You want to feel good more than you want results – You achieved your current success by being uncomfortable, yet, you don’t want to repeat it. I’ve watched worthy experts remain in their groupie bubble. They’ve found real fans and they don’t want to push out. They go to coaches that will make them feel good about what they are doing rather than invest in being uncomfortable. Spending money doesn’t mean you got uncomfortable, it means you took a risk. Spend money to achieve a new level with results.
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You don’t ask for respectable results – The next time you invest $5,000, get a guarantee of the program you are purchasing. I www.idahowomensjournal.com
made this mistake several times before I woke up. I purchased a $5,000 program many years ago and received coaching; at the end I knew what my business and life tendencies were, but nothing else. I purchased a “Make money buying real estate” program. At the end I had lots of videos and workbooks, but no one to ensure I was able to purchase a property. You cannot get to the next level until you ask for results. For example, I offer a $5,500 public relations program, guaranteed to position you as the expert in 60,000 copies. I offer a 40,000 speaker program. After the training, I guarantee you get on stage and are able to present your product or service – to make money. If you want respect, expect respect.
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You don’t want to believe you should improve – What worked before won’t necessarily work now. Remember, you’re wanting a new height of success. This is a rare quality, which is why “those people” are getting the respect you seek. Think Oprah. No one would have believed anyone
by Karleen Andresen Karleen Andresen is a fierce marketer and the creator of guaranteed programs for experts, speakers, and business. She’s successfully worked with thousands of businesses and owners. If you feel ready to take a jump in success, connect with Karleen, KarleenAndresen@gmail.com, www.KarleenAndresen.com could direct her to new heights, yet Dr. Phil came along and rattled Oprah’s cage to the point she began promoting him. Have you thought perhaps your message could be revitalized. Could your product or product design use a facelift? Could you use new training or guidance. Look for someone who believes that and connect with them.
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Ego – Have you checked your ego lately? Most likely if you’ve had success, diligent fans, and you’ve made money selling your products, there’s a good chance you should have someone check your ego. Here is one of the largest problems I’ve seen among the relatively successful - their head can’t fit through the door anymore (lol). Find an even better expert than you currently have, and check your ego at the door. If you want the gold and find yourself at the top, check your ego, believe you should improve, ask for results, get uncomfortable, and change what you’re doing for something better. July/August 2014 9
Infographic: Visual Content Gets 94 Percent More Clicks Than Text by Kristin Piombino
used with permission by Ragan.com
When someone visits your website for the first time, he will pay 16 times more attention to your site’s visuals than text. And in 2.6 seconds, the visitor will decide whether your site is “good” or “bad.” After 10 seconds, the person will either commit to staying on your site or leave. In short, you have mere seconds to convince website visitors that your site is worth their time, and visuals are an effective way to win people over, an infographic from Bandwagon Creative explains. According to the infographic, our brains can process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.
Top half of the Infographic
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Bottom half of the Infographic
... visual content isn’t just for websites; it’s critical on any online property. When compared with text-only content, visual content receives:
84
percent more views
94 40
percent more clicks times the amount of shares
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