Being a business owner can be a lonely job. This applies both to sole traders and those who run their business from home, as well as owners of larger businesses. Having ultimate responsibility for the failure or success of your business can often place you in a position of isolation when it comes to sharing the emotional load.

It is important therefore to have people involved in your life and business who champion you. For some of us, our family members are great champions: I am fortunate to have a partner who not only supports the fact that I run a business, he is a great advocate who has even secured clients for me on more than one occasion!

Even those of us that do have family support, our family members most often do not really understand what it is like to be a business owner. Without wanting to sound ‘elitist’, running a business is one of those things that cannot be truly understood unless you have experienced it.

So it is important to find a peer (or two) who can become champions of you and your journey as a business owner. This might be someone in the same phase of business as you; someone who you can relate to the current issues you are facing. Or it might be someone who acts more like a mentor, who can listen to you when you need a sounding board and can offer advice where needed.

Although business ownership can be a solo effort as far as responsibilities and daily tasks, you should never seek to ‘go it alone’. Find people with whom you can share the emotional highs and lows: this not only gives you motivation to keep forging ahead, it also makes the journey much more enjoyable.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Most women starting a new business are full of ideas (which is great) and passion (even better!). But it can be easy to get caught up in the ‘fantastic idea’ and make mistakes that can be easily avoided. So here are some tips for starting out:

Take time to test: you absolutely need to go with your ‘gut feeling’ when starting a business. But if you do not take the time to test and research, you are likely to fail (and fail quickly). Talk to experts and people who have been in business for more than five years. Work out who your target market is and see what they think of your idea. You might receive feedback that you did not anticipate and may find you have to do some more work before you launch. That does not mean you should give up! The product or service you launch may look different than what you first envisaged, so be open to change.

Market aggressively: you are competing with many other products and services, and advertising ‘noise’ in general, so you cannot expect that your idea will ‘sell itself’. No matter what it is, you have to create a comprehensive marketing plan. This does not necessarily mean spending a lot of money, but you do need to have a clear plan of what and how you are going to promote.

You cannot do it all: at the very beginning, you will likely be the one doing every aspect of your business. But if your idea takes off, you must bring in other people with specific talents and skills. Associate yourself with other business owners and start building valuable and trustworthy relationships so you can draw on those networks when you need to.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

As you may have surmised if you are a regular reader of this column, some of my articles about customer service are based on personal experience. And as I am sure I have said in nearly every one of those articles, ‘bad’ customer service experiences are usually going to be talked about more loudly, and to more people, than ‘good’ customer service.

Unfortunately, my latest tale is not a good one! I was recently dealing with a business on behalf of a client. The information I needed to access via my client’s online account (with their permission) was not appearing as it should and I needed to contact the business owner. The first issue was that there were no contact details on the business’s website – no email, no phone, no address, not even a contact form.

After finally tracking down an email address via an invoice, the communication that I received from this business was nothing short of astonishing! Not only did they fail to answer my questions, they grew increasingly rude and antagonistic with each email. The sender of the email began to write in CAPITAL LETTERS to emphasise frustration at my apparent stupidity and ended one email with ‘you are not my customer’.

It was this statement that was the most telling about this business. In business, everyone you come into contact with is your ‘customer’. The definition of a customer for this business is “someone who has paid me money and who is on my list of customers”. What they fail to realise is that potential customers will not convert into ‘paying customers’ if you do not already treat them as valuable. Add to this the fallout from negative feedback, and this business has done themselves an enormous disservice.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

My kids bought me a Superwoman t-shirt a few years ago. I like wearing it, as most days I do feel like Superwoman with all the tasks I’m juggling. But I came to a stark conclusion recently: I am NOT Superwoman. This wasn’t an attempt to bring myself down and be negative, but rather it was a reality check that revealed I really couldn’t sustain effectively everything I was doing.

I am a typical business owner with entrepreneurial traits: that is, I cannot stop my mind from coming up with new ideas or new ways to do things. It can be hard to filter or prioritise those ideas and work out what to focus on. I am coming to the realisation that because I am not Superwoman and do have a finite number of hours in the day, I am not able to progress every idea I come up with, no matter how good it is!

The process of working out where to focus my time now involves asking myself questions such as:

-       is this new idea going to impact negatively on my core business?

-       am I prepared for the additional time and energy it will take to progress this idea?

-       will my ‘outside work’ commitments (including family) be negatively affected? Will I be sacrificing time with those people and/or activities?

-       is it important enough to make the commitments and changes that will be required?

Sometimes answering the above questions will result in a resounding ‘yes’ and a new idea will flourish. But other times, I know I need to be prepared to let other commitments take priority and let a good idea lay dormant for a while longer. 

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

There are many women in business who have inspirational stories and lessons we can learn from. Arianna Huffington is visiting Sydney this week, so this is an opportune time to write about what we can learn from her.

Arianna Huffington is most well-known for the news and blog site ‘The Huffington Post’ that she launched in 2005. If you are on social media, you are likely to have seen an article or two from this website, which has become a “frequently cited media brand”.

Aside from Huffington’s forays into politics, book writing and even some acting, an incident in 2007 gave her another ‘platform’ to push. She suffered a facial injury when she fainted at work, because she was severely exhausted and not getting enough sleep. In many of her books and within her own workplace, she promotes a healthy balance between work and the ‘rest of life’ and the ‘power of a good night’s sleep’.

Her latest book, ‘Thrive’, is the culmination of what she has been practicing and preaching since her fainting incident. It is an attempt to ‘redefine what it means to be successful in todays’ world’.

What is success to you? Is it about the amount of money you are earning? The number of staff you have? Arianna Huffington has learnt the hard way that our traditional notions of success lead to burnout, illness and “an erosion in the quality of our relationships, family life, and, ironically, our careers”.

Most business women I know are not getting enough sleep and operate their work and lives in a way that can have disastrous effects. As Huffington says “The essence of leadership is being able to see the iceberg before it hits the Titanic."

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

As a business owner, you can find many sources of information on how to succeed. But not many of them tell you that you also need to be prepared to fail. When you run a business, you can often feel like you have something to prove. When you first start out, particularly if it is an unconventional business, there can be people who view your ‘business venture’ as a ‘phase’ or are negative about its potential success. So often there is pressure to always make sure business sound successful.

But there are very few business owners and entrepreneurs who have not failed at some point in the journey, in both big and small ways. Some experts will tell you that it takes several ‘falls’ (including complete business failures) to find success. And if you go into business ownership expecting success at every turn, you might want to shift your expectations!

This is not all doom and gloom! In fact, many experts will tell you that failure is quite possibly a requirement for success. We learn inherently more from ‘what not to do’ and most of us are highly motivated not to make those same mistakes again.

Risk is, of course, relative. That is, when you are 20 years old, single and have no mortgage, the failure of your business is perhaps not as dire as someone with three children and a long list of expenses. But here’s the clincher: every worthwhile thing in business (and life) has risk. The greater the reward, usually, the greater the risk.

So the key is not to dream about success, but to take some calculated risks and take steps to make it happen. And don’t expect that there will only be one risk – your business journey will require continual evaluation, and taking of, risk.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” (George Bernard Shaw)

On first reading, this quote is quite funny. But when you consider the implications of it for business owners, it is more sobering. Throughout our work day, we communicate in many different ways. We communicate face to face with employees. We communicate online on social media. We communicate in writing through email and other written communication. And we communicate via our marketing materials.

Written communication has the downside of being unable to accurately convey tone. Oral communication has the downside of being affected by the speaker’s ability to present information logically and clearly, and is dependent on the listener’s ability to process the information they hear.

So it is vital to work on getting your communication avenues operating effectively. For businesses, time is money, and poor communication is inefficient. If you don’t spend time carefully checking your message or your delivery, you will often spend more time repeating or rehashing the same information.

When poor communication is evident in your dealings with people outside your business, it makes your business appear unprofessional. And this is not just contained to communication directly with those outside parties: if your communication is poor internally, this will soon affect the product or service you provide. Customers and clients will notice (and be annoyed) when they receive conflicting information, or if miscommunication affects their interaction with your business.

As Sydney J. Harris explains, “The two words 'information' and 'communication' are often used interchangeably, but they signify quite different things. Information is giving out; communication is getting through.”

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Have you seen the Facebook page and blog called ‘Humans of New York (HONY)’? When you find the page, you may wonder why I am recommending it. It’s not a business. It’s got nothing to do with women in business. But just today I realised what an amazing example it is for business owners.

The creator of the page says: “I began Humans of New York because I thought it would be really cool to create an exhaustive catalogue of New York City’s inhabitants…but somewhere along the way, HONY began to take on a much different character. I started collecting quotes and short stories…these portraits and captions provides a worldwide audience with daily glimpses into the lives of strangers in New York”.

Although it is not a commercial/business venture (aside from a #1 New York Times bestseller book that has now evolved from the blog), the creator of this page has tapped into a dazzlingly simple ‘niche’ market.

The page creates a ‘global village’ culture, where readers feel connected to the subjects. His images provoke response. His stories are not embellished – he just lets the words speak for themselves.

This popularity has come about because the creator of the page has appealed to basic human emotions. The absolute best marketing does exactly that too. Luxury car advertisements are a classic example. Rarely do these ads give the viewer a list of specifications or the price. Instead, they sell a ‘feeling’ and appeal to desires. They want you to fall in love with the product first.

What we can learn from Humans of New York is to find ways to appeal to the most basic of wants and needs in order to elicit an emotional response to your product or service. This will be far more successful than trying to convince potential customers to buy in to your latest sale without first investing themselves.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

This week we all heard the tragic news that actor and comedian, Robin Williams, had died from suicide. More so than most celebrity deaths, the comments on my social media feeds were that of shock and genuine sadness at the passing of this comedic genius. Many wondered how someone so brilliantly able to use humour to entertain millions of people could succumb to depression.

If nothing else, the ‘positive’ effect of a tragedy like this is that it gets people talking again about depression. And in the business world, the incidence of depression is remarkably high.

As those of you who are business owners know, there can be a great deal of pressure. Some of this is from external sources, such as clients, finances, the workload itself, and so on. But a lot of this pressure also comes from ourselves. We want to succeed! And sometimes we can put inordinate amounts of pressure on ourselves to do so.

Leanne Faulkner, founder of successful company Billie Goat Soap, was interviewed a few years ago about her struggle with depression. She said “I used to read all these stories about successful entrepreneurs and wonder why I was such a failure”. She likened the superficial stories she read to a “schoolgirl with anorexia who thinks that super models are the norm”, and took a long time to “realise that very successful entrepreneurs are the exception”.

Small business owners are often less likely to seek help because they may feel that if people know you have depression, it will negatively affect your business. There is no shame in seeking help. In fact, it is no different to the help you would seek in any other aspect of your business.

If you need help, contact Beyond Blue www.beyondblue.org.au

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Have you heard the saying ‘it takes a village to raise a child’? It is a concept that believes children need the influence, nurture and support from a wider group of people beyond their immediate family. When it is said today, more often than not it is because someone is lamenting the loss of that ‘village’ concept.

In today’s society, most of us live in large communities, extended families are distant and we live a more individualistic lifestyle than in previous decades and centuries. Most of us do not experience that ‘village’ lifestyle where we are intimately involved in each others lives. There are some who are wondering how we can reclaim some of the benefits of that lifestyle.

Many local businesses seem to have been going through a similar thought process. There is a definite focus amongst many locally owned and operated businesses to highlight and promote the fact that they are local, and use that as a positive point of difference to large corporations.

The flip side of this though, is that for these businesses to succeed, the local community has to embrace the idea of supporting local business. Anecdotally, I have been encouraged by the shift I have seen over the past few years. My own business has seen a dramatic rise in local clients, who are keen to support local business.

Supporting local business helps your community economically, generates more local jobs, reduces environmental impact. It also has many benefits for the buyer, such as often knowing the source of your product (or the person who has created it), better service and increased community interaction.

So let’s claim the ‘village’ concept for our local businesses. In order for a local businesses to thrive, it takes a village to raise it: so support local business and encourage those around you to do the same.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

You may have heard about the Australian insurance company who launched an advertising campaign right after last week’s MH17 airline tragedy: "Is MH17 Malaysia Airlines tragedy a sign to consider life insurance?". They were rightly condemned for this and it was very quickly removed. This was a blatant form of ‘cashing in’ and it is deplorable that any person or business thought it was acceptable to do this.

But it is actually not this sort of ‘cashing in’ to which I am referring in the title of this article. Each time there is a disaster or a wide-spread tragedy, most of us feel helpless and many of us want to find ways to help. As business owners, we are often in a great position to coordinate assistance, but here is the difficult part: at what point do we cross the line between genuinely assisting victims of a tragedy and ‘using’ the tragedy to provide exposure for our businesses?

In the days following the MH17 airline tragedy, a well-known women’s media website posted on social media: “Details here on how to leave messages of support and condolence…”. But rather than linking directly to the Prime Minister’s condolence website, it linked to an article on their website.This crossed the line for me as there was no need to go via their site and it was viewed by many followers as ‘cashing in’.

Perhaps asking yourself the following questions will help you decide what action is appropriate:

-       Can I achieve the same or similar outcome if this is done anonymously?

-       Am I really being generous or am I (truthfully) seeing this as a way to gain publicity for my business?

-       Can I partner with larger aid agencies by posting links to their campaigns, rather than donations coming via my business (in response to my ‘special promotion’)?

-       Am I prepared to support this cause long term or am I just getting caught up in the hype of a topical issue?

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

“A ship in harbor is safe - but that is not what ships are built for.” This quote by John A. Shedd is so interesting for women in business. Most of us spend a great deal of time in our personal lives protecting and keeping safe those around us. So sometimes our instinct in business can be the same: to avoid risk and keep our business ‘safe’.

Occupational and hazardous risks aside, taking risk and moving outside the ‘safe zone’ is something that every highly successful business has done. Read the biographies of any entrepreneur or industry leader, such as Richard Branson or Steve Jobs, and you will see numerous examples of pushing themselves and their companies into ‘risky’ situations.

This is not to say that all their risks paid off: in fact many of them didn’t! And I am also not suggesting that we all need to follow the extreme examples of Branson and Co. in our own businesses.

But as this quote suggests, as a business owner, you have a particular set of skills. You likely started your business because you dared to dream that you could be a success. If you are being ‘safe’ are you doing what you were built to do?

So I am challenging you to re-capture those big dreams! Ask yourself:

-       What needs to change?

-       How can I do business better?

-       How can I exceed the expectations of my customers?

-       What can I do to create a truly unique experience for people who come into contact with my business?

-       What calculated risks can I take?

-       How can I generate passion and excitement amongst my staff to help me achieve my goals?

Are you prepared to try and fail rather than wonder what might have been?

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

As a woman in business, you have probably seen the latest television advertisements for the company AAMI. The premise of the light-hearted scenario is that “small business owners never switch off”.

I found myself agreeing somewhat: if you are anything like me, you are always thinking of ideas and your business is never far from your mind. Inspiration can strike at the oddest of times and often occurrences and experiences outside of your work time can prove to be useful to your business (in a variety of ways).

However, the more I see these advertisements, the sadder I become. The dad who is speaking to a client on the phone in his van, while he watches his son’s AFL game, is cheating himself and his son. He is watching the game, but he is not fully present. And I am certain that this would not go unnoticed by his son. Spending quality time with friends and family (and particularly children) means not being distracted and focussing fully on them.

Although business owners should be passionate about their business - and there will always be times when urgencies, deadlines and crises mean that the business ‘comes first’ - we also need to switch off. Children grow up quickly, friendships need regular input and life in general passes by all too quickly. We need to invest time in the things that are important.

Switching off is also important for your business. If you are never, or seldom, taking time to refresh and regenerate, your business will become stale. You will miss opportunities, increase stress levels, decrease motivation and find it difficult to negotiate your way through difficult periods. Do yourself, your family and your business a huge favour: schedule daily, weekly, quarterly and yearly times where you truly “switch off” from business.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Travelling overseas the past few weeks gave me an opportunity to experience many different ways that people ‘do business’. While some differences were simply cultural differences that I was more than happy to roll with, other differences were great examples of ‘what not to do’!

One of the places we visited was a theme park, which upon entry, provided us with a glossy, comprehensive looking map so that we could find our way around. It was available in English as well as a number of other languages: so far, so good!

Unfortunately the map was not only difficult to understand, it actually made navigation around the park harder, not easier. So we decided to ignore the map and follow the signs around the park to get to the attractions we wanted to see. That worked well until we got to a junction and there was no sign telling us where to go next!

What was obvious to me was that the management of the park had not taken the time to assess their maps and signage from a newcomer’s point of view. It made perfect sense to them because they were familiar with the layout of the park.

This got me thinking: how often in your business do you make assumptions? Do you have a Frequently Asked Questions section on your website that answers all your customer queries? Do you provide basic information about the services you offer? Do you give clear instructions for first time visitors?

It might be time to assess your marketing materials (including signage, forms and other materials that customers interact with) to ensure that you are helping your customers rather than hindering them.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

By the time you read this, I am likely to be sipping a cocktail in a resort in a tropical location. I have managed to escape the winter cold and am having a few well-earned weeks off.

I mention this partly to make you jealous! But mostly because, as all business women are fully aware, taking time off is not generally something that can be done easily. You are the backbone of your business, and there is always something to be done and deadlines to meet. Sadly, too many business women will report that it has been years since they have taken a substantial break.

Ultimately it comes down to whether you are committed to taking a break. Believe it or not, the world will keep turning if you are not there! But you do need to factor holidays into your business plans and plan ahead.

One of the ways I created an opportunity to take leave, was to inform my clients well in advance. I gave them options and deadlines – and importantly, I stuck to those boundaries! This enabled my clients to also plan their requirements, and they were all willing and able to do so.

Your business may not be as flexible with deadlines as mine, and may involve employing or outsourcing someone to continue your work while you are away. Do not use this as an excuse not to take a break! There are always ways to ‘replace’ you. And ultimately, your aim should be to make yourself expendable. After all, the goal of most business owners is to work a little less, rather than be chained to their business.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

I have written many times about the importance of good customer service. I was compelled to write another article on this topic because of a fantastic example of customer service that I came across.

I recently booked a hotel in Hong Kong. I was a bit apprehensive about booking it because it was not a hotel that had been recommended to me and I was booking it online directly with the hotel.

My fears were very quickly eased. They responded to my queries within a few hours and provided me with comprehensive information. But what really made them stand out though was the email I received from them a few days before my arrival. Although obviously a standard communication sent to all guests, it was personalised with my name, the weather forecast for the days that I would be in Hong Kong, the events happening during my stay and contained a repeat of all my transfer and accommodation information. It also showed photos and names of their staff and was generally a welcoming and friendly email.

None of the actions this business took were difficult to implement and did not cost them any money. But those actions speak volumes about the quality of their business. They do seem to genuinely care about their customers, and seem to be seeking to make their customers’ experiences of their hotel positive.

The key to this ‘easy’ aspect of customer service is that they have great systems in place. And those systems have a good balance between personalised touches and automated actions so that staff are not ‘manually’ creating this communication each time. What systems like this can you implement in your business?

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Most of us know that to succeed in business we need to find a niche. But often other factors take precedence. Many women start a business to work around family commitments, and so choose an industry that is conducive to that, rather than researching possible directions. But finding a niche is essential to long term success.

But how do we do that? What does ‘finding your niche’ look like?

Recently I had lunch at a new local restaurant. When I arrived at the restaurant it was immediately obvious to me that this business has found their niche. It was not that they are doing any one thing that makes them stand out from other restaurants. But they have worked hard to pull together a number of small, but meaningful aspects that combined, are establishing them as a memorable eatery.

What stood out to me was that the business owners have done their research. They have responded to what they know their local community enjoys. A key factor in their success seems to be the experience they provide for people: they have a great ambience, the food is upmarket yet not overpriced and staff are friendly and interested.

As you can see by this example, ‘finding your niche’ does not necessarily mean finding one unique product or service. Your niche can be a combination of tried and true factors. If you are still not sure how to find your niche, just start doing one area exceptionally well. Simply by doing that you will begin rising above all the other businesses who are content to keep doing what they’ve always done.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

If you have been in business for longer than five minutes you will have read or heard about the fact that your business branding extends well beyond your logo. But sometimes I wonder whether than message has really sunk in!

Recently I was driving in the car with my administration assistant. She noticed a van on the road near us and remarked that she had been thinking of trying out that company. As we drove closer to the van, she noticed that the driver was smoking and she remarked “well, maybe I won’t now!”. This company was in the natural health industry, so the image of someone smoking was incongruous for her and resulted in her forming a negative opinion.

This business had a great logo, solid marketing messages and attracts a ‘cashed up’ niche market. But they failed on a basic aspect of branding – everything that customers see and experience about their business should reinforce their message. And unfortunately, seeing the driver smoking did the exact opposite.

It was highly unlikely that the driver of this van was the owner of this business, and as such, the business owner does not have ultimate ‘control’ over everything that every staff member does. But what they do have control over is the policies they enforce, the culture they create and the consequences for staff who perform outside those boundaries.

In addition, if we had contacted the business to let them know what we saw, the reaction to our complaint would have given the business an opportunity to ‘redeem’ themselves. The way you deal with a ‘branding glitch’ speaks volumes about your commitment to, and the validity of, your marketing messages

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

Last week marked a sad occasion: the passing of the legendary Maya Angelou, American author and poet. She became a poet and writer after a series of occupations as a young adult. She was an actor, writer, director, and producer of plays, movies, and public television programs. Maya was active in the Civil Rights movement, and worked with Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.

I have always found Maya Angelou inspiring (and have quoted her a few times in this column!) because she consistently broke conventions and worked hard to rise beyond her difficult childhood and early adulthood. She became recognised and highly respected as a spokesperson for blacks and women, and provided the world with many profound and inspirational quotes.

So my tribute to Maya Angelou is to list some of her most inspiring quotes – enjoy!

• I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
• Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.
• One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.
• I learned a long time ago the wisest thing I can do is be on my own side, be an advocate for myself and others like me.
• I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender

On Facebook this week I was reading many responses to the resignation of Georgie Gardner, one of the hosts of The Today Show. She explained that she was leaving so she could spend time with her family while her children are still young. Most women admire her decision, although the reaction has also been “Georgie seemed like she had it all, but even SHE can’t balance a demanding job and children”.

Georgie certainly isn’t suggesting (in words or example) that every working mother needs to follow her lead. But it did prompt me to think again about how business women achieve some sort of balance.

Everyone who has started a business has encountered numerous situations where they needed to seek expert advice. Seeking assistance (with tasks outside your skill set or on larger ‘direction’ and goal issues) is essential to taking back time.

You need to ensure that you plan the next steps and goals in your business: but you also need to be prepared to throw it out! You will waste time and create more stress by sticking with a plan that isn’t working.

Although it likely goes against your very core as a business owner, you need to stop aiming for perfection in everything you do. There will always be something that can be improved and if you wait for ‘perfection’, you are likely to miss opportunities and waste a great deal of time aiming for the unachievable.

We all feel overwhelmed at times. But the sooner we realise that extensive hours (and inadequate sleep) has more negative than positive results, the sooner we will find a better balance in life.

Michelle Grice writes a weekly column for business women in The Western Weekender