Here in NY state, we are entering our 4th week ( or is it year?) of lockdown. Some of you are working at home for the first time today. Many of you also have school-age kids to educate, or elderly parents to worry about. But one thing is clear, we have never been through a situation like this in our lifetime.
No Experience Necessary.
We are all navigating new situations daily. I bought this magnet at the Getty Museum years ago, and it gives me confidence. Just because we have not been through this type of situation, does not mean we cannot survive and thrive. You can take action today.
Did you join the 5 Day S.W.O.T. Challenge?
I have never run an online challenge before and wasn’t 100% confident in getting all the software to work together. But I realized that by offering the free program, it would give my readers an activity that would get them thinking about some solutions and new opportunities. So I took the S.W.O.T. analysis process that I go through with new clients and broke it down into 5 simple steps. I sent out emails and almost 50 of you signed up! And here are the results:
- Day 1. My automated email wasn’t so automated. Some people got it, many didn’t. Some people who got the emails couldn’t get into the private course area. I answered emails, got folks into the course area, and felt like quitting.
- Day 2. I could see that some people were actually taking the challenge and starting to answer questions! Yay! But then the DANG second automated email didn’t work either. I resorted to sending the email out manually. I had a cocktail at noon…
- Day 3. More people were in the challenge and the participants were starting to write some amazing answers to the daily questions. I felt a glimmer of hope.
- Day 4. The workaround I figured out for the daily emails actually worked and only a few people emailed with questions about how to get into the course. I started thinking about offering my next challenge.
- Day 5. Success! I ran my first challenge and learned a lot.
The final results
At the end of the challenge, I had a course survey. I asked: What were your top two takeaways from this challenge? Here were a few responses:
Rebecca wrote ” What opportunities are realistic and more feasible to come into fruition versus unrealistic and impractical opportunities that have too many weaknesses holding them back. Basically, where I should focus my strengths/energy and what is a waste of time or not right for this moment in time. 2. The amount of opportunities there are and growth available within these hotels and the leisure market.”
Juan wrote: ” A) If we think small we act small. If we think big we act big! For example, when you asked about SWOT I immediately taught about 2 or 3 items per category will be enough. But when you asked for Ten opportunities I had to brew 3 more cups of coffee and I really felt the challenge. Thank you! B) It made me an expert in my Hotel and even more proud of the Service and quality that was in front of me but I had not fully discovered! C) The challenge was “work-related therapy” and made all of us better patients of the travel industry. Since we are all crazy about this industry! LOL! Especially in these moments that we are experiencing!”
Jonathan wrote: “I shouldn’t be resentful of my own perceived weaknesses for the sake of moving forward with an identified opportunity. The mindfulness procured by this challenge helped clear my thoughts.”
So all my missteps, mistakes, and feelings of failure were worth it! And if I can try something new, so can you.
The next Challenge – a free 5 day Linkedin Challenge
My friend Louise Brogan is a Linkedin Expert. Louise is also a Certified Facebook expert but has realized that Linkedin is a platform that can be leveraged for more business and is quickly becoming the leading social media platform for business.
Louise had a 5 day Linkedin Challenge for her readers earlier this year and I took it. It was brilliant, as they say in the U.K. Louise has offered to run it again for my readers! And because she is so great on Facebook, we will be adding a Facebook live element to this challenge. Imagine all the things that can go wrong! But we are excited to bring this opportunity to you.
For those of you who are out of work, this is the perfect time to update your profile and learn how to leverage this platform. The challenge is free and we will be starting it the week of April 13th. You can sign up here to get on the waiting list. And I am sure things will go wrong and I am sure I will lose my confidence at some point. But I am going to do it anyway! And we are looking forward to helping you improve your Linkedin profile and strategy. Join us!