Take a moment to step outside yourself. Now, be honest with me here… if you could be your own boss, how would you rate your own performance in the last three months? Would you get a raise, a day off as a treat, or would a big and brawny security guy kindly escort you to the parking lot?

In order to be an effective marketer and a progressive human being for that matter, you have to take breather and look in the mirror. What are you doing that’s working and what can you do to improve?
See what it is you are actually doing in all your busy days running from meeting to meeting, answering calls, or a zillion emails. Are you remembering your goals or your MISSION? Have you sat down and actually taken the time to write out your goals and your mission?

I read somewhere once that you should give yourself a “Company Evaluation” every month to make note of your progress and see where you still need to tighten up your act. I made a similar format to the evaluation form used at one of my past jobs. I tried it on myself for a few months and it really helps me re-focus and remember what my overall VISION was in the first place. It also brings brought my strengths and weaknesses to the forefront!

Try it out and rate yourself at the end of the month to see how you did. Here’s an example of how to do it. List your responsibilities and objectives and rate each one. 1 being the worst and 5 being the best:
Evaluation of The Sweet Tooth (Pastry company):
– Make an income of $3,000+ with orders for June: 2
– Develop a buzz about my company: 4
-Increase catering for events to at least 5 parties per month: 4
– Improve time management: 1
-Manage and build an effective team: 5
Pros: I did great with developing buzz, because of the press I received in the Daily News. Giving the editor free pies worked!
Cons: I was late for two important meetings because of poor time management.

I like to write out the pros and cons of the overall performance as well. What did you do exceptionally well and why? What are the steps needed to make next months evaluation better? When you elaborate on your highs and lows you can be your own coach to some extent. You can then set goals to make improvements instead of floating through each month with no direction. Having this on paper will stop you from repeating the same destructive patterns. You might even want to get a folder or binder to keep them all in and monitor your progress.

We Need More Hours In A Day!
I had to check myself the other day because I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to do TOO many things that weren’t helping my businesses. I started to come to the realization that time management was one of my biggest issues and Andrew Morrison, (the Build Your Business in 90 Days  instructor) suggested I get a coach. I didn’t think I needed one, since I was so organized and together. LOL. Little did I know.

Thanks to Andrew, I’ve recently hired an amazing coach who I met at M.O.B.E. in April. Stephanie Backstrom of Bee Ready Leadership Training and Development has put me on the path of getting more organized with my time and building my vision. Being that I am my own boss it does help to have someone guide me through the process of becoming the POWERHOUSE that I’d like to be.

Between conversations with Stephanie and Andrew alone, I’m seeing the overall picture –even bigger than I ever imagined…so get ready for Gots To Have It and The Give ‘N Take Network to make some SERIOUS improvements in the next few months! Okay, I’ll calm down now. I was about to make a speech. 🙂

Back to my point…yes, I actually have one. I wanted to share some time-saving tips that I’ve been utilizing from the advice of Stephanie Backstrom and Andrew Morrison.

Break It Down!
_ Review your schedule a week in advance. (Sounds easy enough, but most of us rarely do this — even with Mr. Palm Pilot in our lives.)
_ Break up big projects into baby steps.
_ Delegate, Delegate, DELEGATE! There is always someone who can help you. Just master the art of picking the RIGHT person for the task.
_ Set deadlines for every task, no matter how small. Okay,I’ll admit that I’m good for thinking something is a very small project and “a piece a cake”, until 10 of those small pieces of cake pile up and make a big mess. So, set a deadline for the small project and get it outta the way.
_ Know your best times of day to work. (Are you a morning person or do you like burning the midnight oil?)
_ AND my favorite that I’m just getting the hang of :
LEARN HOW TO SAY NO! You can’t please everybody.

Alright now…go shine up that mirror, take a nice long look, and let me know if you see the same reflection next month. Hopefully, you’ll see someone on a whole other level. I’ll be waiting to hear from ya.

Spring Your Technology Forward!
by Lena L. West
I hate to break it to you folks: spring cleaning is no longer a household endeavor. And, before you pack your picnic basket and head for the park, take the time to do some technology spring cleaning.
Review your website. Is your website repurposed brochure-ware? Does it teach your visitors anything? Is it interactive? Make sure, above all else, that your website is professional, typo-free, tells what you do in a clear, concise manner and has your contact information posted prominently on each page.
Time investment: 20 minutes.

Keep in touch. If you already own your own domain and are satisfied with the status of your website, this is the perfect time for you to start your own e-mail newsletter (e-zine).
Your e-zine should feature articles written by you in an effort to share information about your particular industry with your client base.
Time investment: 60 minutes.

Back it up. If you are a not doing a regularly, scheduled, off-site back up of your company’s important data, you are putting that data in a perilous situation. On September 11th, many companies learned the hard way just how important off-site data back ups can be. For businesses with high-speed Internet access, consider off-site, Internet back ups. They are automated, reliable, secure and cost-efficient.
Time investment: 30 minutes for set-up – 0 minutes once set-up

Computer housekeeping. Sometimes computers can be dumping grounds for all kinds of files and ‘stuff’. Start by cleaning out temp files and cookies, running a scan disk and wrap-up with archiving your email to save old data that you would still like to keep. After running a scan disk and deleting temp files, many people report that their computer runs faster and more smoothly. (Imagine that!)
Time investment: 20 minutes.

Keep it current. Take the time to get the latest security patches and upgrades for your hardware and software. Printers may have new drivers and software may have security holes that need patching. If it’s been three to five years since your last computer purchase, you may want to begin scouting for a new one.
Time investment: 40 minutes.

Schedule some time to complete the above tasks now because it’s no fun having tech problems when you’d rather be on the beach.

Lena L. West is the Founder & CEO of xynoMedia Development (http://www.xynoMedia.com), a technology-consulting firm that specializes in helping companies make strategic decisions about the use and implementation of technology solutions. When she’s not snorkeling, she can be reached at: LWest@xynoMedia.com

Own your power and have continued success,
Simone