Womanpreneur – SiMar

Learning Through Lessons – How Reflection Improves Business Performance

Allison Todd — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 22:03:02 +0000

In the last week, we had discussed some vital topics that could help business organizations upscale the day-to-day operations while focusing on the long-term results. As per Allison Todd –Founder and Chief Strategist at SiMar, knowledge plays a vital role in boosting both individuals and the economy. Thus, reflecting upon the lessons learned is an essential step towards achieving your organization’s long-term goals. SiMar is a dedicated social media marketing agency delivering business coaching services to clients.

As we unfolded ways to improve your business’s marketing strategy, boosting business communication, and so more. It is high time to reflect upon the lessons to get hold of the same. SiMar is a leading digital marketing and business consultancy agency that aims to deliver in-depth coaching to both budding and seasoned enterprises. In this post, we aim at unveiling the importance of reflecting upon the lessons learned throughout the week while celebrating our business owners, clients, and the respective achievements.

Importance of Reflection for Your Business

You can refer to a successful business as the one that thinks and observes the ongoing market conditions. Such companies or brands are characterized by exchanging much abundant information and awareness amongst the respective members. The availability of information helps improve the overall awareness and understanding of organizational weaknesses, strengths, opportunities, and risks.

Therefore, we can refer to reflection as the process of getting engaged in significant critical time aside from the normal day-to-day schedules. During an organizational reflection period, some individuals or groups sit down to think and analyze both personal & organizational issues to get previous lessons to their advantage in the present.

Allison explains that brands can look forward to setting specific days for a retreat in terms of the respective staff at the business level. Moreover, organizations can also conduct in-depth reflection session for the following:

Employees can reflect on what they have achieved.
Their overall performance
Their respective compliance with the brand’s strategies
The risks & challenges they have faced
And the strengths & weaknesses throughout the period.

With these, they can find a business coach for the best results.

With proper reflection on the week or month’s activities, organizations can present ideas & previous experiences to some usable knowledge and relevant actions. Reflection can be made necessary by organizational performance and personal experience. Mostly if your organization does not set specific goals or objectives.

A Note from Allison Todd

Allison from SiMar notes that an organization’s overall success & growth depend on knowledge generation and learning. Learning serves to be an organizational setting that is limited to acquiring personal knowledge, including the given organization’s entire staff’s combined learning capabilities. As such, organizational learning tends to be a subset as well as a component of the organization.

Get the most of your organizational learning capabilities by reaching out to SiMar –a leading social media marketing agency, for improved results.

Intro to Social Media with Allison Todd

Allison Todd — Sat, 28 Mar 2020 23:33:13 +0000

Join Allison Todd for Intro to Social Media. During this Entrepreneur Training you will gain tips, tools and templates to help automate your social media and organize your digital channels. This is a FREE online event on March 31st and April 1st, 2020. Watch, listen and participate from the comfort of your favorite space. Grab your virtual seat now!

Day 1 – Learn how to automate your social media. I’ll share my favorite productivity tools. Each attendee will receive a FREE Social Media Resource Page & Planning Template.

Day 2 – Learn about each channel (FB, IG, LI).This will include channel descriptions, helpful tips and the benefits of each channel. Each attendee will receive a FREE Social Media Resource Page & Profitable Profile Template.

Business-In-A-Box Bonus Attend BOTH days and receive a bonus. Gain access to a Intro to Social Media Training – Set Up Your Social Media with SiMar. Learn how to set up your LinkedIn Channel and gain helpful tips to automate and optimize! Each attendee will receive a FREE Learn 2 Love LinkedIn eBook.

Grab your virtual seat now! You must be a member of position2profit.com in order to access this training. Hint! Hint! JOIN position2profit.com.

To learn more about SiMar and the business services offered, contact us.

Taking the Grateful Path and Why It’s Greater

Allison Todd — Thu, 11 Jan 2018 02:35:41 +0000

If you are unsure, taking the grateful path is the way to go and here’s why it’s greater. For those at a crossroads career wise, the new year can bring a lot of deep thinking and self-reflection. Entrepreneurs consider whether their business plans are effective, while job seekers–particularly new applicants–devise 101 ways to expand their skill set with the hopes of finding the perfect employer and job.

A goal or dream realized, a successfully implemented plan, landing a good paying job that you also happen to love, or anything that resembles a victory easily allows gratefulness to creep into one’s heart. But when life offers the opposite or less than what’s expected, we still need to embrace an attitude of gratitude.

Gratitude: The Grateful Path

Gratefulness will tell you that there is a reason for every failure, for every botched business startup, for every job opportunity lost. Gratitude will help you embrace reality and usher you towards much better solutions as you work to achieve your life’s purpose and goals. Do you regularly feel or express appreciation for what has happened in your life whether it’s good or bad? I can help you assess the ups and downs that randomly occur as you attain your personal and professional goals! We’ll kick-start 2018 by tackling your personal development plan, crafting and/or reworking your vision statement and mission, and always end on a positive note, with motivational tips for aspiring entrepreneurs.

But remember that everything in life begins and ends with an attitude of gratitude! Paving a grateful path includes routinely expressing thanks for both huge and trivial things, as well as all of those moments in between. Let your gratitude spread like wildfire to the essence of your being, and then share the wealth with others. When you live in gratitude, you can handle anything thrown at you as life easily comes full circle.

–And on that note, SiMar Inc. thanks you for being here! Together, let’s make 2018 the first chapter of your success story!

Does happiness elude you? People mover, community builder, and confidence coach, Allison Todd can help you get back on your feet, untangle the heavy burden of your heart, and unleash the prowess hidden deep within you. Check out SiMar Inc.’s coaching services now!

How to Effectively Deal With Complex Situations

Allison Todd — Sat, 04 Nov 2017 12:15:45 +0000

Your store’s suppliers do not deliver goods as planned. An employee fails to meet the deadline for a much-needed project. Your business partner is doing things without consulting you. A manager suddenly calls in sick and no one is available to handle her post but you, who also happen to have another commitment. Day in and day out, complex situations can happen to you, your work or your business. It is going to be tough and frustrating. Yes, it can sometimes get the best out of people. But do you know that there are ways to help effectively deal with such complex situations?

Work It Out

Health experts often reveal that exercise prevent frustrations from building up. It encourages mental clarity, release endorphin, and deliver needed energy to last throughout the day. While it is almost a daily occurrence for problems and challenges to take place in your office, store, or in your life, you can engage in an early morning workout like a jog around the block or a 30-minute run on the treadmill can be of great help. Yoga or Pilates is also an excellent choice of workout as both can strengthen the muscles, release positive, and enhance mental clarity. Don’t have time? Walk or bike to commute for work or business.

Feel the Outdoors

People often overthink when dealing with a difficult situation. Things can get overwhelming that it often gets the worst out of their character. Do not go down that slippery slope. Once you put yourself in the midst of it all, you tend to go down faster than you can handle. Try to pause, if not, step back and see the whole thing from another perspective. One way of doing so is to get out and rest your mind. Some topnotch entrepreneurs go for long walks or visit a nearby spa for an hour of full body massage. This helps revive the mind and let’s get a glance from an outside perspective. Often, being too engrossed in your work or business will make your imagination well run dry. Get some fresh air. Once you get back, you’ll be amazed at the results.

Act On It

Too much analysis can be draining. It just does not help to feel that no matter what you do, it will not simply matter. The complex situation will still persist. It will drive you to think negative thoughts about your co-workers or your employees, your business partners, or yourself. So, why not gain full control of yourself. Accountability matters when problems start to rise. Too much finger-pointing leads to nowhere. Acknowledge there is a problem. Work out a solution. Then, delegate accordingly. The best way to address a problem is not just in finding solutions but also in ensuring that such will be applied accordingly.

When it comes to dealing with complex situations, two things usually come into play—emotion and change. Problems, uncertainties, and changes are often considered negative. By simply curving such fixed mindset into a growth mindset, you can easily see the opportunities lurking behind. Gain back control on your thoughts and actions, and spread positivity to everyone. When this happens, you can guarantee turning any complex situation into an opportunity for growth.

Of Maternity Leave and Running A Business

Allison Todd — Thu, 02 Nov 2017 12:54:10 +0000

Do womenpreneurs really have maternity leave? While the law specifically points out working women to have maternity leave, womenpreneurs do not enjoy the same. It is almost virtually impossible to take a time-off after giving birth as it can be catastrophic to the business—financially and logistically.

How many women in business have continued working even while being wheeled into labor rooms? Or have jumped back right to answering business queries a few hours after delivery? While maternity leave may sound next-to-impossible to womenpreneurs, there are actually some options in place to ensure that you do not sacrifice health and well-being while keeping the business afloat. To give you an idea, here are some key points shared by womenpreneurs across industries on how they survived the ordeal of pre- and post- partum challenges while running a business.

Set-up a strong support system. There are many ways to ensure that you do not lose out on your business while enjoying time off it all in a matter of two to three months (or, if you are lucky, even more!). To some support could be by way of delegating tasks to a business manager leaving you only to tackle the most serious matters, ones that will mean life or death for your business. Technology made this possible.

Save up for the rainy days. Some usually set aside money on their elective disability insurance benefit which various states like New Jersey and California provide to self-employed people like sole proprietorship, freelancers and the likes. This usually covers time during and post- pregnancy. Others normally prepare for the long haul ahead or as a contingency plan to save as much as they can. They cut back on vacation plans, eating out and other aspects to cut on cost.

Steer clear of new clients. For womenpreneurs in the service industry, this could be a time to focus on your current roster of clients. You would not want to be all over the place when the time comes for you to rest after giving birth.

Outsource certain tasks. There are reliable third party service providers out there which can be of help. SiMar Inc., for instance, offer content management and comprehensive digital solutions to aid in certain aspects of a business. Tap colleagues in the industry who can also help lighten the load.

Delegate accordingly. Employees usually feel pride and honor to be entrusted with gargantuan responsibility and often, give it their best shot. Motivate them. Build a culture of accountability. This helps foster trust and growth in the company.

Maternity leave to womenpreneurs is a challenging process. Even with all the help a new mom gets, she will always find a way to exercise her entrepreneurial rights. A business is her baby, after all. But every once in a while, it is highly recommended to rest and to think of nothing but your own self. This will not only keep your health in check, it will also help keep your sanity.

Mompreneurs Guide To Meal Planning

Allison Todd — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 12:24:45 +0000

Juggling family life and business can be tough to any woman. Being a working mom and being able to feed your kids with home-cook food can be tough but not impossible. So many women have to undergo all the trouble of doing the balancing act and often, the lure of fast-food and take out goodies win. Mompreneurs, however, developed strategies which make the whole meal planning experience efficient and effective.

1. Go into the specifics by breaking down your meal plan. Try focusing on a full dinner at least 3 nights a week. A healthy and complete diet usually includes a protein (meat or poultry), vegetable, and carbs while low-fat or Paleo requires you to skip the carbs. Try to cook in excess to have leftover nights every other day. On other nights, try simple meals like omelet, bacon and hot dogs, pre-seasoned chicken or meat for deep-frying, and so on. Or you may head to a local diner or a local farmers market.

2. Keep things fresh, simple yet delicious. There are vast resources for recipes online. Feel free to download apps like Big Oven, Yummly, AllRecipes, CookPad, Epicurious, and much more. Many of these apps list down ingredients, where to source them out, calorie count, and cooking hacks presented in video tutorial form.

3. Invest in a good stove or oven to maintain freshness and taste. Nuking food in a microwave may seem the easiest thing to do but it also carries a lot of risks. Note: Frozen leftovers must be thawed before re-heated to ensure safety, too.

4. Make plans for the week and do it ahead of time. Last minute cooking should be minimized at all cost. Consider planning on a Saturday then, do grocery and prepping for meals in pre-packed Ziplocs on Sundays. Feel free to cook the night before while the kids are already in bed. Re-heat them at least 30 minutes before dinner time.

5. When cooking, do it in big batches. Cook at least twice the usual in preparation for leftover nights or simply freeze them for another day. Make a broth out of your chicken bones and store in airtight containers then, freeze. Preserve pickles and sauerkraut. Make your own mayo and ketchup. Have a slab of cheese handy. Those Jamon Iberico or Serrano also makes good kitchen investment.

6. When eating, we mean sitting down as a family, talking about each others’ day, exchanging ideas about the recently concluded elections, of the Supermoon, and all things some people may think as mundane. Part of the breakdown of families with both partners working or doing business is that communication seems to be focused on phone calls, emails, SMS, and perfunctory hi’s and hellos. Talking, laughing together, and exchanging ideas as well as sharing challenges when done in person always make it easier to handle.

7. Be flexible and best of all, stay positive. Though challenging, being both a mom and an entrepreneur is a privilege and must be dealt with joy and openness. Yes, you will grill a too-well- or not-so- done steak. You may even burn a few omelets and pancakes. Yes, you will lose some form of Nirvana but you will love it! Real food is love—especially when shared with family.

Why Traveling Is A Boon To Millennials

Allison Todd — Mon, 23 Oct 2017 12:37:58 +0000

Traveling is a boon to the soul. Though often seen by others as a frivolous activity, experts have continually revealed that young people must be encouraged to travel to give them a better grasp of the world and to enliven their spirit. In business, travel initiatives can make millennials gain momentum and competitive advantage particularly in today’s highly driven and competitive markets.

Millennials who want to break free from long-held obsolescence are encouraged to travel to find fresh, innovative ideas in doing business. It would be such a shame to explore in an encased glass when the whole world is beckoning them to partake, to take the plunge. To give you a clearer perspective, here are some of the reasons why today’s millennial populace should put traveling on top of their priorities list.

Take Risks, Conquer Fear

Millennials can capitalize on their youthful brazenness to conquer their fear of the unknown. Fear makes many promising entrepreneurs and professionals degenerate into oblivion. Allowing these young go-getters from going after what they want without getting scared of stumbling or failing, they can embrace any situation life will throw at them—and eventually find ways to overcome them. Business, career, and life in general are all about taking risks. Traveling to uncharted territories is already a risk in itself allowing millennials to gain courage in taking the plunge over and over again.

Soaring to New Heights

Many unexposed young people tend to settle in whatever is deemed available, easy or profitable even at the absence of originality, creativity or growth. To travel-savvy millennials, settling is a thing of the past. Their exposure to different lifestyles and cultures allow them to expand their views about themselves. Traveling allows them to build a sense of renewed confidence where the one-size-fits-all doctrine no longer held its charm. It carves a new path for them to unleash their prowess from within.

Global Competitiveness

Many of those who do not commit to traveling are virtually leaving in a bubble. It is such a shame as there are so many opportunities that lay in wait for those willing to chase them. Millennials who commit to traveling are being prepared to perform (or outperform others) in the global market. It’s a riot out there and those who have immersed to such variations and differences have a clean grasp on the many avenues that lead to success. Travel around the world. Look for opportunities. Ask questions and learn from them. It is one thing to be competitive and completely another to do so globally.

Improved Communication

Communication is an essential aspect of business and career. Travel-savvy millennials exposure to the melting pot of cultures, languages, and personalities allow them a broader view about various situations in life. This helps them easily adapt to varied situations and being able to survive even in the toughest of them. By exposing themselves to different personalities, this also improves their communication skills and narrative style with different audiences.

Yes, there is more to traveling than what meets most millennials eye. Like a learning laboratory, one has to explore the many avenues in life to fully comprehend their significance later on. Traveling is all about millennials immersing in activities that will enhance their growth and competitiveness mindset. It also gives them the courage to look at business or career in different lenses and find success no matter how hard the challenges.

Top Womenpreneur Focused Business Ventures For 2017

Allison Todd — Mon, 23 Oct 2017 09:18:06 +0000

The business arena where womenpreneurs thrive is continually growing. One of the most lucrative avenues being swarmed by women is the fashion, beauty and clothing industries. Offering exciting and glamorous opportunities for both aspiring and established womenpreneurs, it has continually swept global markets growing into one of the world’s billion dollar booming industries. When thinking of making it big in 2017, here are some business ideas to keep into mind:

Style Maven. Think Rachel Johnson with all that oomph and charm. Becoming a fashion consultant is one of the most thriving industries today. You can start out by linking your fashion consultancy firm to an established retail business. Widening your network among friends and work colleagues will also be of great help. Build your brand and reputation in the market to open a huge following from celebrities and big-wig names in the industry where being not in fashion is a crime.

Designer Shop. With all the tools online nowadays, enhancing your penchant for style and inventiveness can be done in more ways than one. Let your creative prowess take center-stage by setting up a designer shop. You can have a brick and mortar shop catering to local fashion enthusiasts yearning for a new taste of glam and charm. Extend it with an online shop that caters to those off your grid.

Fashion Blogging. For those who have just “retired” from mainstream fashion industry but still want to be active in the field, this thriving business is the one for you. Set up a fashion blogging platform then, connect with active friends in fashion and clothing. Be their mouthpiece in the online arena and simply charge for your services.

Fashion School. You may also go the extra mile and open your very own fashion school, virtual or otherwise. Facilitate training on costume and fashion designing, makeup techniques, Cosplay designs, seasonal fashion, and so on. Be reminded though that this is a highly competitive business and will require astounding brand management to build-up your reputation.

Costume Rental Center. Do you have a collection of glamorous outfits, special occasion dresses, accessories, and other fashion items? Make good use of these design pieces by renting them out. This business allows you the opportunity to earn money from things that you no longer use but offers great aesthetic help to others.

Fashion Accessories Shop. Starting a fashion accessories shop is another rewarding opportunity this 2017 for womenpreneurs. You can have both brick-and-mortar store and online shop to cater to varied clienteles.

Beauty Salons. Train in some of the country’s top beauty schools. Learn the magic in creating your own mark in the business of hairstyling, makeup, nail art, and if you may, tattoo art. This has always been a thriving business, one that has no reason or season for abating. Hire certified personnel in the area and market your brand online.

These womenpreneur-focused business ventures will be rocking the New Year. Welcome 2017 with a bang by planning out the details as early as now! Do take note that a business coach can come handy at this time when you want to do it right.

Small Business Recycling Tips

Allison Todd — Sun, 22 Oct 2017 12:26:12 +0000

With the rising popularity of the Paris Climate Change Summit and the growing agitation of many nations across the globe on the negative impact of pollution to the steady decline of the environment, many businesses are also recording an all-time high in environmentally conscious strategies. This somehow marks the growing popularity of recycling. Quite frankly, this also means a huge boon to small businesses when done accordingly.

Studies have revealed that recycling has proven time and again to be an excellent practice that needs to be embraced by small-scale enterprises. Apart from the cost saved from recycling, these efforts also help improve public image thereby, attracting a huge following from equally environmentally conscious consumers and advocates. Additionally, such efforts also help to boost employee morale creating a positive domino effect within and outside the organization.

As a small business owner, the following tips will help create a well-rounded recycling system in your workplace:

1. Create a checklist to identify the recyclable materials in your office or store. All businesses, big or small, have an enormous basket for recyclable waste like paper, computer ink cartridges, electronics, packaging stuffs, plastic, Styrofoam materials, and many more. This checklist will be your guide in preparing appropriate collection units for storage prior to selling or delivering them to recycling plants.

2. Carefully craft an initial collection strategy. Here, you will need to set-up waste bins and storage in a manner that’s easy and convenient for employees to utilize. Depending on your organizational setup or size, areas of disposal must be carefully designated with waste bins or storage carefully labeled.

3. A disposal method must also be established. You can have it collected or picked by a waste management company or perhaps, sell them to a recycle plant. There are many ways of doing so however, costs must considered when choosing the right one for your own recycling initiatives. You may want to consult a local waste management service or get in touch with a nearby recycling plant, whichever case may apply for your business.

4. Consider collaborating with other local businesses in the area. Your bakery’s margarine or butter container can be another business’ storage solution. Those shredded paper materials can be made paper mache masks or building insulation. The list could go on. What could be your trash is some other business’ treasure.

5. To ensure sustainable success of your recycling initiative, it is also important to raise awareness and educate your employees. You cannot enjoy the fruits of your company’s recycling initiatives without the cooperation of everyone. Train them on the salient points of garbage disposal. Let them commit to the initiative.

Does your company have any unique recycling efforts you wish to share to the rest? Drop us a line HERE. It is high time to do our share in ensuring that environmentally conscious capitalism thrives.

Correlating Ballet Dancing And Womenpreneurship

Allison Todd — Sat, 21 Oct 2017 22:54:05 +0000

What could one correlate between the artistry of ballet dancing and in running a business? While there are many talented ballerinas who have conquered the business and entertainment arena, what particular discipline and drive in this chosen few can be held essential to an entrepreneurial wannabe? Being tenacious, creative, unbending and disciplined are just some of the amazing characteristics that both ballerina and womenpreneurs possess. Beyond the glitz and glamour of being on stage, the real essence of ballet lies in its perfect blend of commitment and discipline brought about by years of training hardships and self-actualization emanating from the fierce consequence of being on the limelight.

Taking the High Ground

Ballerinas and womenpreneurs are like two outfits cut from the same cloth. Both have to go through certain life and work idiosyncrasies filled with motivations and doubts brought about by some of the usual challenges in society like gender bias, racism, and in some case, prejudice. Like lithe dancers challenging the wind with its gracefulness, womenpreneurs also challenge the usual environmental perspective in doing business.

Womenpreneurs has proven time and again that fierce work ethics, perseverance, and wise use of strength are key ingredients in bringing their prowess on the entrepreneurial centerstage. They challenge the expected, pursue their mission and vision, and carry their own weight amid any uproar or challenges in society. This is almost in the same league as ballerinas who had to contend with the usual stereotypical concept of ballet glamour. By breaking the mold and challenging the usual expectations, womenpreneurs particularly black womenpreneurs continue to shine in the business arena.

Strategic Mindset

SMXLL

So how does one maintain such relevance between ballet discipline and business success? For one, it is important to strike at the core of one’s self-confidence. The main driving factor in propelling one’s entrepreneurial prowess, getting one’s confidence level and staying in that level allow for more motivating factors to let the wheel of success moving forward, with seemingly no reason for stopping. The prevalent measurement of success changes over time but the confidence level in pursuing such remains unquestionable. There will be skeptics and negative forces but when one’s confidence level is up, no amount of criticism will pull a ballerina or a womanpreneur down.

Confidence complimented with persistence and fierce discipline also helps one build on the momentum. Womenpreneur must learn how to recognize and respond to successes (and failures, too!) to make a huge difference in their entrepreneurial venture. Capitalize on such winning moments while taking heed on the impact of your weakness. Ultimately, this helps to build on momentum and to create strategic actions leading to sustainable growth.

Of course, goals must evolve as one goes through the journey of ballet dancing or in building a business empire. Being laser-focused on a single goal will not only make you stagnate, it also degrades your sense of growth. Opportunities about out there and it is up to you to set new targets and seize them. Yes, do not be mistaken. The end-goal—business (or dancing) success—is and will always be important. Let it not blind you though, but rather find ways to adapt to any situation.

Collaborative Success

SMXLL

Another important correlation in business and ballet lies in the organizational structure of a company. Frankly, one cannot do it alone. Ballet production must have both lead roles and supporting casts to deliver an astounding show. In the same way, businesses have team managers and members working cohesively to deliver targets. The key in delivering sound results lies in building a team that shares the same passion, work ethics, and focus. Train and retrain them. Let them not run obsolete on their crafts. Like ballerinas, they need their skills to be honed—all the time.

Indeed, there are glaring similarities and correlation between ballet dancing and doing business. From wise use of skills to dedication, passion, confidence, and the collaborative efforts to deliver positive results, the language and culture of entrepreneurship does not fall far from that of ballet dancing after all.