Welcome to the October 2004 issue of the "Think Without Boundaries".  You'll notice the "new look" to the newsletter - this new look is part of the style of my new website as well.

       It's been a very busy month since the last issue! The biggest announcement is that my website is now OPEN FOR BUSINESS. Please come for a visit to:

www.ThinkWithoutBoundaries.com

     You'll find articles, an online quiz, links to free web resources, art work from two  of the very talented artists that I work with, outlines of the workshops I offer and LOTS more!

      I'd love to hear your comments and ideas....plus if you've got articles you've written and would like to submit them to me, the writer's guidelines are on the site too!

     In this issue you'll find information about:

• www.ThinkWithoutBoundaries.com website's Grand Opening
• Marketing Survey & Contest
• Recommended Reading "The Frog and Prince"
• Random Acts of Kindness
• Business Topic of the Month - Business Cards
• Businesses for Sale

Ever want to know what visitors to your website OR potential clients might be thinking?

I'd like to know what YOU think! Please take a short survey - give me your opinions and you'll be entered into a draw for a copy of my CD "Living Life with Passion". This CD (which is also available for sale on my site)contains short, inspirational stories that will provide you with bursts of motivation when you're preparing to do a sales call, waiting for the kids after school, or you just need an emotional "pick me up".

If YOU would like to create a survey and find out what your potential customers are thinking now you can! Why not sponsor a survey on the "Think Without Boundaries" site? Email me for details!

      In mid September I was in Calgary, Alberta at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce Annual General Meeting. It was an amazing opportunity to meet business owners from across the country, and hear what exciting things they are doing!

     One of the people I had the pleasure to meet is Darcy Rezac, The Managing Director of the Vancouver ( British Columbia) Board of Trade. He is also, along with Judy Thomson and Gayle Hallgren, author of a GREAT book, called "The Frog and Prince, Secrets of Positive Networking...to change your life"  This fun to read book (told in a fairy tale style about frogs, toads and lily pads) shows you how easy it is to create your own business network of people.

      If you are just starting out in business you will learn a lot from this book. It will help you develop more confidence in your "cold calling" skills, and your ability to meet and converse with new people. If you get nervous about going to functions where you don't know anyone, this book will give you tips and ideas about how to approach strangers so that they are no longer strangers!

    If you have an established business, you will find it helpful as you learn to grow the network of people around you. The book even includes tips on creating a winning design for your business card, and some networking business customs in other countries. 

    If you're wondering why networking is important - think about this - wouldn't it be nice if you were the person who could say "oh, I know someone who could help you with that" during a conversation? That's what networking is ALL about!

     If you're wondering how to become one of those people who seem to "know everyone" then this is  THE BOOK FOR YOU!

The Frog and Prince Darcy Rezac Buy New $19.95 Privacy Information

      This past month I had the opportunity to work with two totally different, yet equally special groups.

      The Canadian Student Leadership Conference meets once a year in a different Canadian city. The group consists of teens from 15 to 18 years of age, from all across Canada. This year they met in my hometown of Abbotsford, B.C.  and I was invited to put on a workshop!  I had about 35 students sign up for my "Think Without Boundaries" session. It was a lot of fun. The kids had so much enthusiasm and energy, it naturally rubbed off! These young people were full of ideas, and motivation about how they wanted to positively impact the future of their nation and the world! I was really inspired! Everytime I work with teens I realize why I love them so much.

 

     The Abbotsford Hospice Society works with the dying and their grieving families, extended families, friends and communities. I did a morning workshop with the Hospice's Board and helped them work on their future plans. It was a great experience to see how this special group works within the community, and to see what wonderful plans they have for the coming years.

     

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  "It's always fun to do the impossible"      Walt Disney

*RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS YOU CAN PRACTICE THIS MONTH: 

• Put coins into parking meters about expire
• Smile at someone who looks like they're having a bad day
• Donate to a charity in memory of a friend
• Buy a dozen flowers and give them away one by one to strangers
• Phone a friend "just to say hi"
• Send a hand written note to a loved one
• Buy an extra bag of groceries for the food bank
• Be kind to yourself!

If you've got some "random acts of kindness you'd like to pass along, email them to me and I'll include them in a future issue!

 

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 TOPIC OF THE MONTH

      How many business cards do you give out every month?

When I ask new clients or business people I meet, this question, they may respond in a number of ways.    

     Here's a few of the common responses:

 1) "oh I don't know....a half dozen maybe"

 

2) "you know I never remember to carry them"

 

3) "let's see....we moved our office a year ago and don't have new ones, so I haven't been doing it for a while"

 

4) "I have enough business so I don't need to do that"

 

5) "we have a yellow pages ad so I don't need business cards"

       Darcy Rezac (author of "The Frog and Prince" - highlighted above) says it much more elegantly than I do, but we both agree - the message is the same!

      You NEED to be handing out

A LOT of business cards!

 

      Darcy suggests that if you are going to a networking luncheon take a minimum of 28. If you've started to panic, while thinking "how on earth will I give away 28 cards?" - DON'T worry!

      Darcy's book has numerous suggestions for how to "exchange" business cards. 

Here's a few of my ideas:

 - leave one on your table with the tip for the waitress in a restaurant

 - when you check in at the doctor's office give the receptionist your card

 - on a plane trip - give one to the person sitting next to you (strike a conversation first of course!)

 - almost any conversation lends itself to a business card introduction

 

* If you've got some ideas - share them with me and I'll include them in next month's issue!

Email your tips to me  

      I love business cards because they truly are one of the lowest priced ways to promote your business, they are fun to create, and if used properly they can do great things for your business' bottom line!

 

Challenge yourself to see how many you can give away in a day.

 

I strongly encourage my clients to give away AT LEAST 10 PER DAY!

 

Why not challenge yourself to give away one more card every day for two weeks? On Monday give away one card, Tuesday two cards, Wednesday three cards, etc. See what kind of a difference it makes to your business.

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$25,000 Dealership includes $43,000 worth of inventory at retail, plus equipment worth $8,400, plus lifetime training and support. Manufacturing, Wholesale and Retail - work from home, proven product range. (Master Dealer gets four dealerships. When he sells them, he gets all his money back and then 30% on the sale of any dealership he brings in, plus 10% of all their purchases!)

 

No geographical restrictions. Outside of Canada , US$. Contact Robin via email or phone him Tel. 604.945.5754 Toll Free Tel and Fax: 1.866.746.0631 (North America, Hawaii & Alaska) PST 

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