Keep It Simple, Stupid (K.I.S.S.)

Most of us have heard this term before but it's so easy to forget what it really means, especially in business.

When I worked as an advertising representative for a magazine, my publisher told me to design ads using the K.I.S.S. formula (keep it simple, stupid) This method worked well; I quickly created clean, crisp, successful ads for my clients. But, when I forgot the formula, I would struggle.

Are you struggling in your life of business? Maybe your business or life just needs a kiss.

Where can you apply the formula? Maybe you can simplify your sales technique, closing the sale, administrative work, marketing plan, email communications, financial plan...

Take this week and see what's complicating your life. Make a goal of using the K.I.S.S. formula and see how it saves you time, energy and your sanity and yes, even money.

Feel free to email me on how this works for you. I'd love to hear how this works.

Take care and happy escaping,

Lisa Rickwood - "Small Biz Stres Buster"

Lisa Rickwood, "Small Biz Stress Buster," is a small business coach, visual artist and author of Escape The Pace: 100 Fun And Easy Ways To Slow Down And Enjoy Your Life and co-author of Power & Soul: 42 Successful Entrepreneurs Share their Secrets for Creating the Business and Life of Their Dreams. She helps small business owners ‘master stress for professional and personal success.’ Get your FREE e-book, 5 Critical Actions That Hurt Your Business and Add Stress to Your Life…and How to Escape Them by visiting: http://www.escapethepace.com/

'The More People I Meet, The More I Like My Dog." (Bumper Sticker)

I'm not sure where I first saw that bumper sticker, but being a dog lover, I thought it was funny although I internally disagreed with it. (I like people)

Fast forward about 20 years...20 years of advertising sales, retail sales and working with the general public. Okay...I still like people but I really like my dog -

What you can learn about a dog and how to apply it to business:

1. Dogs are reliable: You can count on them - they're loyal. Is your staff dependable, do they treat customers with respect? Do your staff arrive on time, do their job well? Or, are there problems? How does reliability fit in your business? Can you deliver your product or service on time and to the best of your ability?

2. Dogs like to have fun: If your business isn't any fun, why do it? Okay...some of you have to for the moment - there's no quick alternative. But when you get the chance, see how you can infuse some fun into your workplace.

For example, even after the 'politically correct' way of being emerged in the corporate world, my former boss at a newspaper, downloaded un-politically correct comics and we laughed our heads off on Monday mornings. What a great way to start the week!

3. Dogs know when to play hard and go for a nap: If you're 'burning the candle at both ends,' you're not going to be having fun, and you're not going to be F-U-N. After you complete a huge project, you owe it to yourself to 'goof off' and do something fun.

Go for that hike, bikeride, swim - read, do yoga, hit the spa, have a night out with the guys...do something to blow off steam. We're all too serious and it hurts our bodies, minds and spirits.

4. Dogs like exploring: Stuck on a project, feeling 'in a slump,' or stressed out? Go exploring. You can travel out of town, visit another city or armchair travel online. Get out of your head and environment and see what others are doing.

My dog, Ricker, is 'an escape artist,' and loves to run away so he can see new things in the neighbourhood (and chase cats). When he comes back home he's happy, exercised and ready to do whatever a dog needs to do.

5. Dogs are creative: If a dog wants a bone, to chase a cat or to escape, he'll find a way. When you consider that the average dog has the intelligence of a five year old, that's pretty smart - quiet a bit of knowledge in that doggie brain.

Creativity is fast becoming something that innovative companies are looking for. If you or your company are creative, you can stand out and attract more customers or clients. How to be creative? Put a creativity box in your business. Ask employees to post ideas based on a company challenge;read a book on creativity, keep a notepad nearby, write in a journal, surf the Net, take photographs, do a crossword puzzle, create the title for a hit song, write a poem, play an instrument. The point is - get your creativity juices flowing. Everyone is creative in a certain way - i't's about thinking differently, solving old problems new ways.

Have fun and remember: 'It's a dog's life.'

Lisa Rickwood, "Small Biz Stress Buster," is a small business coach, visual artist and author of Escape The Pace: 100 Fun And Easy Ways To Slow Down And Enjoy Your Life and co-author of Power & Soul: 42 Successful Entrepreneurs Share their Secrets for Creating the Business and Life of Their Dreams. She helps small business owners ‘master stress for professional and personal success.’ Get your FREE e-book, 5 Critical Actions That Hurt Your Business and Add Stress to Your Life…and How to Escape Them by visiting: http://www.escapethepace.com/

When Your Plans Go Up in Smoke...


Picture this...you're on a 17 1/2 foot speedboat with your family, it's a beautiful, sunny day and you're getting ready to head over to a floating pub for a family dinner. As you cruise the ocean at 5 knots, you get ready to up the throttle and go for speed once you're out of the harbour. Ahhh, you can taste the steaks already.

As you get your boat up to 20 knots, the sudden sqeel of a warning bell goes off to alert you of a problem. Great, you think...those steaks will have to wait. As you look back at your engine, the smoke is billowing out of the engine and it's not looking good.

You turn your boat around and start heading back to your marina and then the engine dies. Great...now you'll have to have someone rescue you. Since many boaters are good samaritans and as any boater knows, there will come a time they break down, a saviour comes to your rescues. Yes, this person has rescued 5 sailboats, 7 speedboats and has been rescued once.

What's the point of this story? Sometimes the best made plans of mice and men go astray - yes, you can plan, you can use the Law of Attraction, but sometimes the boat's motor needs a new waterpump.

So what are you going to do? Stop whining and change your plans.

This story was true, it happened to me and after our boat got towed to shore, we got in our truck and headed to a restaurant that we'd never tried before. We sat outside (like we wanted to do at the floating pub) and instead of watching boats go by, we watched cars. The food was good, the view was okay and the company was great.

In short, when business or life doesn't go as planned, have a backup plan - an alternative plan. And, try to see the bigger picture; sometimes seemingly annoying bad things are blessings in disguise.

I'm glad we had a problem with boat when we did; we were close to shore and weren't way out to sea when this happened. Had we been out far away, who knows how long it would've taken to find a good samaritan.

By the way, we finally did get over to that floating pub - The Dingy Dock Restaurant, and the food was awesome. So...sometimes your plans have to wait.



Take care and happy escaping,

Lisa Rickwood - "Small Biz Stress Buster"


Lisa Rickwood, "Small Biz Stress Buster," is a small business coach, visual artist and author of Escape The Pace: 100 Fun And Easy Ways To Slow Down And Enjoy Your Life and co-author of Power & Soul: 42 Successful Entrepreneurs Share their Secrets for Creating the Business and Life of Their Dreams. She helps small business owners ‘master stress for professional and personal success.’ Get your FREE e-book, 5 Critical Actions That Hurt Your Business and Add Stress to Your Life…and How to Escape Them by visiting: http://www.escapethepace.com/

Butterflies and Business

"The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough." ~Rabindranath Tagore

If you're an entrepreneur or small business owner, you know all too well about the TIME game. What's that? Basically, it's that feeling of trying to cross off every single thing on your to-do list before the end of the day.

So what do you do if you're trapped in the 'too much to do, too little time' game? Get smart.

Here's the thing - don't do everything on your list. That's right, life's too short. Yes, you may need to send that proposal to a prospective client, finish a report, write a letter, do some consulting, etc. but do you need to do everything on your list? How do you know what to do and not to do? This will vary depending on your business and lifestyle but there are some things you can do to simplify your day.

Try this:


- Every day, start out with a plan. Be sure to have 3 key high-payoff things you'd like to achieve. This will keep you focused and you won't have to have a to-do list a mile long.

- Take at least 30 minutes every day and work undisturbed. Have your assistant answer calls, or turn on your answering machine.

- Every day say this phrase, "Is this the best use of my time at this moment?" This phrase will keep you focused. Sometimes you will use your time to work on business, sometimes the best use of your time might be to take a walk or relax.

- Write down your high pay-off activities on paper. Every day, try to focus on these most and let the other things be dealt with minimally. ex. high payoff activities might include: consulting, selling products, phoning past customers or current customers, etc. High pay-off usually means activities that generate the most revenue.

- Hire experts to do jobs that aren't your forte. This will free you up to do what you're good at. ex. if you don't enjoy doing websites, why waste your time? Get someone to do this so you can focus on your real skills.

Our time on this earth is fleeting, much like the life of a butterfly. When we really think about this, we need to make the best use of our time in our business and life.

I invite you to think about your day today as you read this. How are you spending your time? Are there things you can eliminate? Can you add more fun to your life? How can you make your life better?

Take care and happy escaping,

Lisa Rickwood, "Small Biz Stress Buster," is a small business coach, visual artist and author of Escape The Pace: 100 Fun And Easy Ways To Slow Down And Enjoy Your Life and co-author of Power & Soul: 42 Successful Entrepreneurs Share their Secrets for Creating the Business and Life of Their Dreams. She helps small business owners ‘master stress for professional and personal success.’ Get your FREE e-book, 5 Critical Actions That Hurt Your Business and Add Stress to Your Life…and How to Escape Them by visiting: http://www.escapethepace.com/