Nessa's Notes

It's been said that it's better to give than to receive. And although everybody enjoys getting presents, most people understand and believe this is true. That's why one of the worse things about financial poverty is not being able to give. But not being able to receive freely is another effect. A person tends to feel guilty about taking if they think they can't recriprocate. But accepting is also allowing someone else to give. So, sometimes it good to give the gift of receiving.

My favorite client is a lovely, spunky and confident woman. She is established in her business; she knows what she wants and what she needs. She has decided what she will and can do, and she gets help (that would be me) with everything else. Every business owner should have a "favorite" customer. No, not so you can actually "play favorites", but so that you have a model for your ideal client. It doesn't matter whether this person actually exists in reality. He or she should exist in your imagination, and in your marketing plan. You should be able to see, hear and understand her. You should know his likes and dislikes, his values and his needs. Why? Because your business should be designed around your ideal client. You want to know who they are so you can talk directly to them. You want to be able to attract them, and let them know that you and your business have what they want and need.

I admit that I often think of my business in a simple way. I believe that it's better to keep most things simple and uncomplicated. Less complexity = less chance for chaos and confusion. And much less chance for hurt feelings and missed opportunities. So I sometimes have trouble understanding why most big buginesses (and many small ones) just don't seem to get it. Can someone please tell me what is so difficult about using "the right words" and treating people "the right way"? Mama taught you the keys to business success long ago: Play fair. Help out when you can. Mind your manners. Always do your best. Admit it and apologize when you're wrong. When you make a mistake, correct it. See how simple it it?

"Networking" is the business buzzword these days. So many folks want and try to do it, even when they aren't quite sure what it is or how to do it. It comes very naturally for some, and others have to work at it dilligently. This should be no surprise - all of life's talents and activities are like that. No one is good at everything. Now I am by no means an expert when it comes to social skills - business networking included. But I am good with my relationships. Few they may be but quality has always been better than quantity. And relationships are the point and purpose of networking. In my personal life, this means I'm fiercely loyal, loving and protective. (I am a Leo after all.) In my business, it means I make an effort to get to know my clients as people and not just as accounts. Of course not every relationship has to turn into a close friendship. (That's just a bonus.) But relationship marketing means just that - FORM RELATIONSHIPS. If you want to kn...

Sometimes a change is necessary. It's ok to change your mind when you find that your original plan isn't working right. It's ok to change when you learn something new. So, I'm changing the focus of this blog. Obviously, it's been a while since I posted because what I thought I wanted to do wasn't really what I needed to do. With that in mind I've decided to give it another shot. I'll talk about what's really important (to me anyway). I'll try to provide helpful and/or entertaining information. And I'll let you get to know me with the hope that I can learn about you. After all, learning is the most important thing any of us ever do. When we stop learning and growing, we begin to die. This will still be about business because that's one of my passions. And it will most definitely still be about wealth creation, because that's something everybody needs. No, I'm not just talking about making loads of money - although of course that is...

Today is Independence Day. Happy Fourth of July! What better way to celebrate than to free your dreams? Dreams and dreamers are the beginning of everything. It takes a plan to achieve a goal, but it takes a dream to create a goal. Dare to imagine your best life. Write it down - in detail. Review it regularly, make it a part of you. Your dreams will not only define your goals, they will provide the passion, energy and enthusiasm to help you reach those goals. Now go celebrate. Watch some fireworks and get inspired. Never give up your dreams! PS. When you dream of your own business, visit me at http://www.vanessasdesk.com to help you start right and grow big.

There are many ways to become wealthy. Some methods are complex, and some are rather simple; but none are easy. All require good planning, a certain amount of risk, and a lot of determination. This all depends, of course, on exactly what your definition of "wealthy" is. To some folks wealthy will always mean having a certain amount of money - having $XX in the account. To others, being wealthy means having enough to share or having peace of mind or any of the other hundreds of definitions that there are. For our purpose here, let's agree that wealthy means having money. Maybe for you that means enough so that you don't have to worry. Or maybe it means enough to share. It could be that you want to be secure enough to know you'll never run out. It doesn't really matter because we've already determined that it takes at least some money to achieve any dream. So where does that money come from? Obviously, there are dozens of sources and hundreds of possible ste...

These are the things most people really mean when they say they want wealth. We all know that money itself is only useful because of the things it can do. So, have you ever thought about why you want it and what you want it to do for you? Money can buy a certain amount of security. The security to know that you'll have enough food and the mortgage will be paid, living in a safer neighborhood and being able to plan for college or retirement are the kinds of security that money can buy. Having enough money can certainly buy you a lot of control in your life; the kind of control that poor folks aren't allowed even in their homes. Imagine being told when you could or couldn't have visitors and how long they can stay, or how many people can sleep in each bedroom, when you can do laundry and how much water you can use. There are millions of things in the world that cannot be controled. But there are many, many things that can. The amount of money you have determines what they are...

Does that seem like a silly question? Maybe it is, but have you ever considered your attitudes about money? When and how did you learn about budgeting, financing and other money matters? Whether you have none or more than you can count, your opinions about money were probably formed early in life. And it most likely doesn't have much to do with how much money you had, unless you were extremely rich or poor. I grew up in the south in the 60's. My parents were students at A&T at the time of the sit-ins and demonstrations. The schools were still segregated when I started. In spite of these things, I knew early that economic status was a much larger and more frequent cause of discrimination that either race or gender. I believe it was true then - since economics was the reason for most institutional racism. And it is even more true today. My being black and female may or may not have influenced the treatment I've received at banks, real estate agencies, and medical offices....

I'm not sure exactly what this blog is going to be yet, but there are a couple of reasons and a story connected to it. I'll be perfectly honest and admit that one of my reasons is business related. Blogging is a good way to let folks get to know you, and that's good for business because you can't understand and trust what you don't know. But business isn't the main reason for this venture. Since I was very young I've always wondered about the reasons why some people have and others don't. And I've wondered about why people treat each other the way they sometimes do. I have theories, and I'll bet you do too. So, my main reason for starting this is to explore and learn. I want to hear your ideas and opinions. I'll try to be regular, and I hope not boring; I'll be honest and sometimes opinionated, but never intentionally hurtful or offensive. I hope we can share. I hope we can make a difference.