Blank Spaces and Goals: 5 Tips for Goal Achievement

Earning a promotion. Eating better. Starting a business. Balancing our work and personal lives. These are points of change in our lives, points that require us to tackle a laundry list of tasks in order to achieve our goals of change. It's easy to set goals; it's not so easy to work toward them. We lose willpower, motivation escapes us and day-to-day bogs us down as we pursue change and greatness. But it doesn't have to be that way.

You've got these blank spaces, so write your goals:

1. Recognize who you need to become to achieve your goal. Change is coming, right? Your goal is something you've never reached and the work that precedes that is something you've never experienced. That means you've got to be ready to become someone new. 

2. Write down a plan to meet your goals. This one seems simple, but it's also easily overlooked. If you want to earn a promotion, write down each step it will take to get you there. What do you need to learn? Who do you need to lean on for professional support and advice? What responsibilities do you need to take on? Begin with these questions and discover other details that are important to consider. Answer those questions each day with your actions. 

3. Devote time to your goals each day. This may mean giving up your time to do other things other things or at the very least reallocating your spare time to make room for your new goals. Discipline yourself to do what's needed each and every day; when you reach your goal, you'll be proud of how far you've come.

4. Ignore excuses. Excuses will enter your mind with ease; ignoring them will be difficult. However, a critical part of your plan to meet your goal is working through those difficult days when you wake up unmotivated and those difficult nights when you come home feeling underaccomplished. Commit yourself to ignoring any excuses, and continue towards achieving your goal. 

5. Strive for excellence. What can you do better? What aspects of your performance can you refine for better results? What changes can you make TODAY that will impact your growth tomorrow? Create opportunities for excellence in even the smallest tasks and work toward daily improvement.

What tips would you add? What advice has help you reach your goals? We'd love to hear about it! Let us know in the comments below. 

By: Susan Gail Taylor, Social Media Manager and Copywriter at RME360

6 Tips to Mingle (and Jingle) Your Way Through Your Office Holiday Party

It’s here! 

The last weekend before the holidays. And the last opportunity for your office to throw a party or maybe for your boss to invite your department out for drinks. 

Excited? Apprehensive? Feeling like bailing? Whatever you may be feeling about holiday celebrations in your office, here are 6 tips to help you make it through the activities before you head off to your loved ones’ holiday festivities:

 1.  Don’t go on an empty stomach.

Your employer may spring for hors d'oeuvres or even shell out for a lavish meal, but it’s still a good idea to have a bite (or two) before you arrive. Wine can sneak up on the best of us, and managing being intoxicated with managing showing your boss your social side can backfire before you realize having that third glass of cabernet sauvignon was a faux pas.

Besides, you’re there to mingle, and mingling with food isn’t always a pretty sight.
 

2.   Reach out to coworkers you don’t know well or don’t know at all.

You may go through your typical day at work and have direct contact with 3-5 people. You may email that guy in Accounting on a weekly basis, but not know that he teaches accounting classes online after work. You may see that one woman who always wear that one blazer every Tuesday, but have no clue what her name is or which department she works in. Why not use your office holiday gathering to reach out to people outside the small circle of those you know? Rapport among coworkers makes for a happier, more productive workplace.

Who knows? That woman in that blazer may be on the other side of that desk when you’re interviewing for a promotion.

3. Recognize diversity.

It’s important that no one feels excluded or overlooked. While it may seem like a good idea to plan a party or activity that specifically represents every affiliation, it’s a better idea to go for neutrality.The holiday season and the end of a productive year for a business are reasons for everyone to celebrate; make it comfortable for everyone to do so.

Focus on what you share with coworkers with religious and cultural affiliations that are different than yours. What is something you all share? Maybe it's a laugh about ugly holiday sweaters. 

 4. Be sensitive to diverse dietary needs.

While many in your office may want to hold a holiday gathering at a fancy steakhouse, think about the lack of options such a place may offer to vegetarians or vegans. “They can just have a salad” isn’t exactly the most welcoming mindset; we all enjoy having several options to choose from when we dine out. Work with restaurants, event halls or catering companies to design a menu that makes everyone in the office feel included and appreciated in your office celebrations.

You could possibly find a new dish you like and make a new friend.

5. Avoid business talk. Enjoy the gathering. 

You may be interested in hearing client feedback on the project you submitted earlier in the week or confirming the date of your holiday bonus, but don’t corner your boss or anyone from HR about them. Attending an office holiday gathering with the agenda of getting such information can be perceived as rude or tacky. Instead, take the time to talk to your boss and coworkers about their interests outside of the office and enjoy seeing them in an entirely new light.

That light might include a disco ball over a dance floor.

6. When it’s time for you to leave, be sure to say goodbye.
 You’ve managed your wine intake, you’ve met new people, you’ve helped to make it comfortable for everyone to enjoy the party and have options to eat and you’ve possibly seen your boss dance under a disco ball. Unless you’re hitting the after party with your coworkers, it’s time to say goodbye. Shake hands, give hugs and thank your boss and those who helped organize the gathering. It’s the polite thing to do and will surely be warmly received.

Happy holidays from all of us here at RME360! 

By: Susan Gail Taylor, Social Media Manager and Copywriter at RME360

6 Tips for Building Lasting Client Relationships

 Do your favorite brands interact with you on social media? Do they show their appreciation of your patronage? Do they give you the "wow" factor at each point of service?

If they want to build lasting relationships with you, then they should be doing these things and more. And if you aren’t providing such things in an effort to build meaningful relationships with your clients, then it’s time to make immediate changes. Use the following tips to help you provide amazing service so that you can wrap the story and reputation of your brand around each client and prospect.

• Celebrate milestones with clients. This sounds simple, huh? But often we find ourselves too busy to remember birthdays, anniversaries or other important milestones our clients celebrate. Make time to send a card or to send a VSnap video via social media or email for such dates. (VSnap allows you to record 60 second personalized videos, a technique that can help you establish a connection and create trust.) 

• Remember that not every call should be a sales call.  If a client thinks you only call to sell her something new, you won’t be able to establish a meaningful relationship.  Find other opportunities to call clients and provide value to your service. Invite them to lunch to say thank you for their business, send them links to articles relevant to their businesses or call them to discuss best practices for a product or service you provide. Try to have multiple client touches throughout the year. 

• Don’t hinge your entire relationship on digital communication.  It’s very easy to rely on e-mail as the primary relationship tool, but remember that clients need to hear your voice and see your face, both of which add a personal touch and go a long way toward deepening client relationships.

• Exceed your clients’ expectations with the “wow” factor. One of the best ways to develop a meaningful relationship with your clients is to give them 1) exceptional service and 2) exceptional results. Don’t oversell yourself and don’t promise more than you can deliver, but set expectations that provide you with opportunities to excite your clients. Think about the last time a brand left you saying “wow.” Did a representative call you by your first name? Did he tweet about your business from his company’s profile? Did she deliver a product or document to you because you couldn’t come into the office? Did he send you a goody basket with a handwritten note? Remember how you’ve been dazzled by exceptional service and recreate such moments for your clients.

• Inspire your team with best practices. So now that you’ve recalled how you were dazzled, inspire your team to do the same by discussing best practices. One of the most powerful ways to continue with providing the “wow” factor is to share ideas on how to do so with your employees and/or colleagues. Bring in breakfast one morning and sit down with your team to listen to their ideas and to pass on yours as well. Talking about these ideas can increase the chances that providing “wow” factors become a standard for your brand.

• Find common ground. Do you and a client both love sports? Do you both have aging parents? Do you both enjoy the same activities outside of the office? Talk with them about such common ground issues; having something to talk about other than the business you are collaborating on makes working together on both sides much more gratifying.

By: Susan Gail Taylor, Social Media Manager and Copywriter at RME360

"You Are My Cup of Tea": How to Create Fabulous Customer Experiences

Do you create fabulous experiences for your customers? Is your brand their cup of tea?

Check out this infographic for tips of how to improve your customers’ experience with you. Click here for the enlarged image. 

By: Susan Gail Taylor, Social Media Manager and Copywriter at RME360