Category: Business enhancement

Why You Need to Practice Perseverance to Achieve More of Your Goals

Pamela Ayuso June 3, 2019

Perseverance is one of the key ingredients to accomplishing anything worthwhile in life and professionally. Growth is not always linear: there are usually ups and downs. Sometimes it may even feel like you took two steps back when what you intended was to move forward. At times like these is where perseverance is most useful; it encourages us to keep going. You may not know for sure when you’ll get there or what you will discover along the way, but perseverance will ensure you keep going long enough to find out.

According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of perseverance is:

“continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition”

Setbacks happen often enough that it is difficult to stay on track. Part of growth is persevering: having the ability to face challenges and move past them. The problems we encounter can either be defeating empowering. Instead of pushing us to quit, they can help us grow in our capacities as professionals and leaders. Once we achieve our objectives, we will be able to handle more.

Configuring Processes to Gain More Efficient Results

Pamela Ayuso May 27, 2019

Our company recently underwent a company-wide process revamp: we examined all our processes, revised the content, and standardized the formatting since it was not consistent across departments. This project underlined the importance of setting up processes to be as clean and organized as possible with proper categorization and structuring. This deliberate configuring helps the user focus on the language itself and not be distracted by discrepancies in the arrangement of the processes.

We have processes for every department within our company. Some departments, like Finance, have more processes than others based on the nature of the work. For more on how we use processes at Celaque, our firm, please refer to my blog posts on processes: The Benefits of Implementing Processes in Your Business, How to Improve and Grow Your Business with Effective Processes, and 6 Useful Ideas to Make Your Processes More Streamlined.

The Greatest Impact on our Limited Time

Pamela Ayuso May 13, 2019

We juggle numerous tasks, day in and day out. The mountain of work can often seem to grow every day and the amount of work we need to do never seems to end. It is at times like these when it’s important to question the quality of the work we are doing. There are days when we may complete 20 different to-do list items, but what have we accomplished in the grander picture?

The to-do list is inevitable and quite powerful. It is the means through which our goals can become a reality, but it can also become a problem when it starts having a life of its own and controlling our lives. Instead, you can ask yourself the following questions at the beginning of each day:

What matters the most today?
What will have the greatest impact?
What is crucial today?

How to Streamline Project Management and Effectiveness

Pamela Ayuso April 29, 2019

One mechanism that we have found works well for following up on and managing complex projects at our company, Celaque, is holding recurring meetings. We meet every week or every two weeks to go over a set agenda. The person who leads the meetings establishes the agenda. We make major decisions as a group and guide the projects forward. Since starting these meetings, we have found we can make better choices and move faster because there is an added accountability to the group.

Meetings have been overscheduled and can even be negative if not appropriately deployed because they can waste a lot of time. On the other hand, they can also be very powerful if used for the right kinds of reasons. In the case of committee-type groups that come together to work on projects, they are very impactful. Multifaceted areas or plans often require input from numerous points of view because there are so many variables to take into consideration. A person may look at the work from one perspective, but another person may view it from a different one. The best product will, therefore, emerge.

How to Set Up Your Peer Coaching Group for Success

Pamela Ayuso April 15, 2019

Peer coaching groups are one of the most useful mechanisms you can design for your career. Growing a career/business is complex, and it is much easier to face challenges with others who are in the same boat as you. In a peer coaching group, you and a group of professionals can come together to listen, learn, and share your career paths and projects.

During these meetings, the group members discuss goals, challenges, or simply what is happening in their professional lives. In between sessions, you’ll have a group of people you can rely on for support during the projects you are embarking on.

You may not be in a location where a group is readily available, so you may have to set one up yourself. In any case, to have the greatest impact on your professional life, it’s imperative to make sure your peer group is the right one for you.

Self-Discipline: The Personal Quality that will Expand Your Business

Pamela Ayuso March 11, 2019

Self-discipline is an often-overlooked trait that is vital for professional growth. It is one of those virtues without which our careers can never reach their full potential. Anything that is worthwhile takes work and dedication. According to Merriam-Webster, its definition is:

Correction or regulation of oneself for the sake of improvement

Self-discipline is often uncomfortable and unpleasant. It usually involves sacrificing in the present for an action that will move you closer to reaching a goal such as implementing a new system by a deadline or writing a chapter of your book. The word itself can even have a military ring to it because it requires perseverance through the challenges we face. However, the only way to sustainably get to where we want to go is through following the rules and doing the work.

Without self-discipline, we would never get anywhere.

Metrics and How They Can Benefit Your Business

Pamela Ayuso February 25, 2019

Creating dashboard metrics for every part of a business is one of the best uses of your time as a business leader; they will give you an overview of the current state of every important part of your business. Metrics provide the key parameters that show you where your company is headed such as the number of sales or prospects in the pipeline or the amount the company is spending on monthly basis.

These metrics, however, shouldn’t just be limited to the standard values that come to mind when we refer to these types of indicators. They can also include the parameters that are crucial to your company and more specifically, your industry. Some of these indicators may not even be used by other similar companies–they might be your special formula and what makes your company unique.

The Important Role of Entropy in a Business

Pamela Ayuso January 28, 2019

I’ve been reading Steven Pinker’s book, Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism and Progress. I highly recommend this book if you are interested in learning more about how our civilization has progressed throughout the ages and how it can relate to your business.

One of the principles Pinker explores is entropy, also known as disorder, a concept that is useful for any business leader. He describes entropy in the statistical sense, whereby it is more probable than not that something will become disorganized and not be in an ordered state.

Time and Effort: How to Invest for Your Business’s Success

Pamela Ayuso January 14, 2019

Setting an initiative up for success takes time, as it is not something that happens automatically. The great thing about time investment is that it does pay off. Similar to compounding interest with invested money, putting in the time to ensure a project will launch smoothly will help you reach your end goal and guarantees that it continues working efficiently in the future.

Say you are interested in starting a blog for the company and your goal by the end of the year is to have three months of blogs uploaded on your site ahead of time. Perhaps you want to set up a monthly accounting process at the company that is performed accurately and on time with minimal managerial intervention. These are both possible goals to have. Although they may not be easy, all it takes is an investment of time and effort.

Peer Coaching and How It Can Benefit Your Business

Pamela Ayuso November 12, 2018

Sometimes it can feel like we are the only ones facing an avalanche of challenges and that we are alone. What is more likely, though, is that others are going through similar hurdles. One of the ways to find others who are in the same journey is to join a peer group. A peer group will connect you with others who are up to similar projects and will provide a forum to discuss problems and resources. Mostly it will help you understand that you are not alone and will help make the process more enjoyable.

Peer coaching groups are essential in today’s complex world. These can either be formal or informal groups of professionals who come together to share their challenges or projects. Other team members can suggest helpful courses of action or resources. You and your peers are also available for support or advice between sessions.