This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Kelly O'Neil, Innovate Media Services

The economic landscape for service-based business has been shifting for some time, but 2020’s COVID-19 pandemic has really thrown things into uncharted territory. It’s got business owners worried, to say the least. Many are wondering what the next move will be – and how to prepare for it.

The good news is, there’s always room at the top. Companies that know how to attract premium clients are always better positioned to profit in any economy. But that said, you can’t be complacent. It’s critical to know your market, and when big changes are afoot in the world, you can bet there will be changes in the market as well. Whether you’ve been serving a wealthy clientele for years or are just getting started marketing to the affluent, you need to know what’s going on so you can respond appropriately in your business.

Lucky …

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Sarah Theobald, The Empire Agency

There I was, at my college graduation, looking around at my peers wondering how many of them were as lucky as I was. I was so blessed to have the opportunity to start my corporate job the very next day. $42,000 salary with benefits and my very own cubicle-- it was all I could ever want!

*Record Scratch, Freeze Frame* WHAT?! Looking back on myself in December 2019, I truly don’t recognize the girl who was so excited for her corporate life to begin. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot and wouldn’t be where I am today without that experience, but I would never go back.

Why did I decide to leave corporate?There were many company-specific reasons I chose to leave my corporate life behind, but I’ll share the more universal reasons with you. First and foremost, I did not like working in a restrictive, cubicle environment. I a…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Adrienne Rivera, Spiritual Business Coach (Adrienne Rivera, LLC)

How is your current ability to experience emotional and physical intimacy? Do you run as far as possible from it or do you welcome it as an experience for your growth?

I was recently conducting a spiritual business coaching call & intuitive reading with a client and her fear of emotional intimacy was what was keeping her stuck. I could tell intuitively that that was the root of this before we even started talking about her business. I could recognize it because I remembered what it was like to be in that situation.

I’ll never forget being on the playground in 3rd grade and telling one of my best friends, “I don’t want to play with you today. I want to play with my other friend today.” She ran behind a tree and cried. I felt so bad. I didn’t know how to help her feel better. In that mo…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Suzanne Peters, Woman To Woman International Network Inc. (WWIN)

Can you imagine a world where everyone had to figure out everything for themselves? A situation where nobody could learn anything from anybody else. Languages wouldn’t evolve, any breakthroughs in Math and Science would have to be repeated over and over again. Progress would only ever be able to go so far. And not very far at that. It’s doubtful that every new person would be able to figure out how to start a fire, then how to use it to make goods, and so on. Individually isolated humanity would never advance beyond hunter-gatherers - if they even survived at all.

What if we were allowed some freedom - say you could communicate with the people in your community, but no one anywhere else. You would make some progress. People could pass on some of their knowledge and so on. You may even be able to ge…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member WendyAnn Hornak, Far From Basic

It happens to all of us, sometimes we just need a confidence boost to propel us into action. We hear it all the time, action and consistency will lead to results and like Mel Robbins says, you are never going to feel like it you just need to do it!

When I learned that my routine, my simple daily routine, could impact my daily outcomes I was floored. I mean who would have thought that something as simple as making your bed can help you create forward movement. However, it does, the simple little tasks we do have an impact on our overall day, mindset and ultimately our end result.

I decided to give this a try about a year ago now and I have never looked back! Short term goals are essential to your overall success. Crazy right? However, if I look back to see why I fell short in the past, it was simple. My vision and my goal…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Jessie Festa, Jessie on a Journey

Why did you get into blogging?Be honest. 

Maybe it was to travel more or to spend more time with loved ones. Possibly you liked the idea of being your own boss and getting paid to be creative. Or maybe it was a passion for writing.

What I'm guessing was *not* a motivator = spending endless hours hunched over your laptop, though I realize this is what ultimately happens to so many bloggers. 

To help combat this problem, I'm sharing some of my favorite tips for spending *less* time on your laptop -- while still growing your blogging business. <-- Because let's be real, even if you're sitting by a hotel pool it's still better to be swimming in the water than staring at a screen. ;) 

By the way, I also offer a free resource library for bloggers (https://jessieonajourney.com/bloggi…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Mary Sue Dahill, Work Smarter Digital

How do you know you’re ready for CRM? You know it’s time when you feel like this:- Your sticky note process is no longer working, and you’re losing leads.- You miss following up in a timely fashion because you are doing everything by hand.- You feel like things are getting out of control -- because they are.

Missing data = lost relationships = lost salesCRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is both a philosophy and a digital solution that manages business relationships with clients, prospects, partners, and contacts.Think of the CRM as the heartbeat of your business relationships. It is the hub of information for your business data as well as the engine that runs your business systems. As a micro-business owner, our contacts are our business, and our service is our biggest advantage, which is why the CRM is you…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Brenda (Brandy) Hilliard, Biz Star Power

“You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why not?’’ Action brings your dreams closer. Undoubtedly, accountability is a crucial feature of an action-oriented startup, but perhaps an essential attribute is a propensity to act. Survival skills jumpstart your business and boost your performance. Sometimes, we hold ourselves back. We have these huge dreams of what we want to accomplish, yet we’re reluctant to go after them.– George Bernard ShawThe most common reasons are that you’re just not sure where to begin or are your fears are taking over. This is when you have to remember why you absolutely should chase after your business dreams and empower that ambition and passion to make it happen. You’re always thinking about it, right? I know I’m still thinking about th…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Elena Favaro Viana, Contracts for Entrepreneurs

Plain and simple: your onboarding process sets the tone for your working relationship. It is how you introduce your clients to your business, service or product.

As a business owner, acting from a place of reaction is a bad idea, so it’s important to set yourself up proactively with the help of this winning formula for a Flawless Legal Onboarding process: Proposal Stage + Welcome Package + First Call.

From a legal standpoint, what you do here matters. When executed properly, this flawless legal onboarding process can help avoid the majority of future client-related-headaches. When talking about headaches, think: pesky late payments, fraudulent copycats who steal your intellectual property, tardy time-wasters, or those clients that completely ghost you! (Nobody has time for that). A structured onboarding s…

This blog post has been authored by Stand Out Online Member Engracia Sleeswijk, ESleeswijk Consultancy

Problems are everywhere. The degree to which a professional can solve a problem distinguishes him from the common herd. Problem-solving skills help you determine why an issue is happening and how to resolve that issue. It's one of the critical skills that employers seek in job applicants. If this problem-solving thing is so crucial to daily life, what is it?Consider problem-solving the process to observe your environment and identify things that could be changed or improved. You will have to diagnose "the why" of the current state and its influence. To be able to be successful at problem-solving, you need an open mind. Look at the different angles and choose the best possible option.Each step in the problem-solving process employs skills and methods that contribute to the overall effectiveness of influencing change and determine…