Much has been written about the value of completely de-tethering yourself from the office during vacation: Look at something besides your computer screen. Recharge your (metaphorical) batteries. Reconnect with family. These are all valiant and important pursuits – but not always realistic in today’s world. As consultants, we fight a constant battle to balance our [...]
Archive for the ‘How To’ Category
I’m not there: Five ways to check in when you’re checked out (for vacation)
Thursday, Aug 19th, 2010 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: How To, Project Management, Uncategorized
Filed under: How To, Project Management, Uncategorized
Top 5 Ways to Improve Your PowerPoint Presentation
Wednesday, Aug 11th, 2010 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: Consulting, Copywriting, Customer Focus, How To, Marketing, PowerPoint, Presentation, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
Filed under: Consulting, Copywriting, Customer Focus, How To, Marketing, PowerPoint, Presentation, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
The words “PowerPoint” and “presentation” have become almost synonymous in the business world. The software is packed with mini-tools designed to grab the audience’s attention and drive home your message. Used correctly, these tools can be a powerful message enhancer. Go overboard, and it’s just a mess. Here are the top five ways to improve [...]
End-of-year self review part 3: updating yourself
Thursday, Dec 24th, 2009 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: How To, Small Business, Uncategorized
Filed under: How To, Small Business, Uncategorized
We discussed what small businesses can be doing to prepare for the coming year in Part 2 of the series. Today, we’ll get into the fun stuff: focusing on you.
Your personal “look” says a lot to clients. Whether you’re in the office every day or work at home in sweats and tee shirt, eventually, [...]
End-of-year self review part 2: preparing your small business for the New Year
Monday, Dec 21st, 2009 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: How To, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
Filed under: How To, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
We discussed basic office organization in part 1 of the series. Today, we’ll focus on the home-based office. We recommend starting with the organization discussed in part 1, as it will make your small business tasks we’ll be tackling here much, much easier.
Step 1: Review your professional materials
While we live in a primarily digital world, [...]
End-of-year self review, part 1: organizing your office life for a happy New Year
Sunday, Dec 20th, 2009 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management, Small Business, Uncategorized
It’s the end of the year, when offices are mostly empty and the self-employed are at the movies. Whether you volunteered to stay at work “in case a client calls” or you’re just taking it easy in the home office, you have work to do. In this three part series, we’ll discuss the key tasks [...]
Forget Toastmasters, improve public speaking through podcasting!
Monday, Nov 2nd, 2009 by Dave Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: Blogging, How To, Podcasting, Work Tools | Tags: apple itunes, audacity, audio editing software, audio recorder, basic tools, free music, levelator, podcast, Podcasting, Toastmasters, WordPress, xml feed, Zoom
Filed under: Blogging, How To, Podcasting, Work Tools | Tags: apple itunes, audacity, audio editing software, audio recorder, basic tools, free music, levelator, podcast, Podcasting, Toastmasters, WordPress, xml feed, Zoom
We recently launched a podcast for our gaming blog, and it’s made a real difference in my public speaking. I joined Toastmasters years ago, and while it’s a great tool for some and definitely wins out in the social department, it never cured me of my ums and ahs.
But after three weeks of podcasting, they’re [...]
Get inside your customer’s head: It’s just like packing a lunch!
Wednesday, Sep 16th, 2009 by Dave Kramer | 1 Comments
Filed under: Customer Focus, How To, Project Management | Tags: customer data, customer experience
Filed under: Customer Focus, How To, Project Management | Tags: customer data, customer experience
For some reason, relating the work I do to the customer’s experience of it comes naturally to me. I think it’s because I’m empathetic, which in high school made me pathetic but now, as an adult, it’s a job skill! I just instinctively look at a particular deliverable (be it a site, article or tool) and [...]
Planning a Client Visit, Part 3: Final Prep
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management
You’ve refined your story, prepped your team and picked up a roll of quarters just in case parking is a problem. Now, it’s time to round up the team and head out! Here are some tips for the 24 hours preceding your visit:
1. Remind your team the day before. Send an e-mail to the team [...]
Planning a Client Visit, Part 2: Prepping Your Team
Thursday, May 21st, 2009 by Jacqui Kramer | 0 Comments
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management
Filed under: Consulting, How To, Project Management
You’ve done due diligence to get to know your client. Now it’s time to help your team prepare. While technology tools are helpful in keeping everyone on track, don’t assume people pay as much attention to them as you do.
To help keep your team on track:
1. Set specific deadlines for each person. If a team [...]