At Encharter Insurance, our goal is to achieve Best Practices, peak performance in all that we do.  We want to grow, offer world class service, and deliver solid financial results.  To do this it takes a team effort and several lessons I learned on the road, Marathon training.  Here are those five lessons from the road:

#1  – It all starts with a belief that you can do it!  Although I am slightly out of shape, I know that running in a Marathon and finishing is possible.  I know of plenty of people my age that have trained, gotten in shape and finished a marathon.  Therefore, finishing a Marathon for me is possible – it is simply a matter of whether or not I want to put in the time and effort.  For me to say otherwise is “Head Trash”.

Likewise, growing an insurance agency, double digits in a down economy, is possible.  Others have done it and are doing it.  Therefore, it is simply a matter of whether I want to put in the time and effort.

#2 – It takes heart, grit and determination to make it through the tough times.  I have had plenty of “difficult” training runs on my way to finishing a marathon.  Days when the rain is coming in sideways, the legs hurt and there is a stitch in my side. 

Similarly there are days, when as the leader of a company, the horizon appears bleak, your people are getting you down, and you are just plain tired.  It takes a similar grit and determination to make it through those tough times.

#3 – It is all about small incremental improvement.  When I first set out on the road, a mile or two seemed like a long run.  However, day by day, a mile turned into two miles, into three miles and now into 10 -13+.  It didn’t happen all in one day.   If I had tried to do the full 26.2 miles all in the first week, I would have crashed and burned. 

Same in business – To take an organization from current performance to “Best in Class” performance, it cannot happen overnight.  Continuous Improvement movement, day after day is what is needed to move the organization where it needs to go.  Small, incremental improvement, delivered day in and day out.

#4  You are going to have set backs.  As I looked to make incremental improvement, I found that there are simply days, and weeks where you cannot accomplish what you have previously done.  In fact, cycling from high performance weeks, into lower performance weeks, actually set you up to reach your next milestone.  Thus, after a week where you achieve a personal record long run – say 16 miles.  You need to take the next week and run short.  Setting yourself up to achieve 18 miles the week after.

Just like in business, your team cannot run at peak performance constantly.  They need time to recover from a peak, celebrate the accomplishment, and prepare for the next peak.  You need to be willing to give your organization a little down time.  Generally, as the leader, you will have greater drive to move your organization forward.  You need to be aware of this drive (it is what has made you successful and at the same time can be your Achilles heal)

#5  You have to know who you are running for and constantly remind yourself of your goal.  Training is a long and arduous process.  When you are out on the road training, there is no one there to remind you why you started.  No one to push you to go on.  No one to hold you to account.  Only you know whether you made your training  goal and you ran 10 miles or 12.  Therefore, you need to know who you are running for and always remind yourself of the end goal -  That feeling of accomplishment when you have finished the race and run well.  You need to remember  that few people have the grit and determination to run 26.2 miles.

Likewise in business, you must always remember your goal and keep focused on what you want to accomplish and who you are doing it for.  You will often find yourself out all alone on a “long training run” with no one to cheer you along.  You need to have focus, determination and resolve to push forward.  Only then can you feel the reward of a job well done and accomplishing what few others have done.  Delivering a world class organization.

In Business, as in life, nothing happens until a person believes.  Call it faith, belief, trust, intuition – for something to happen you must believe it to be possible / believe it to be true.  In my last post –“What’s holding your organization back?  Head Trash! – I talked about the self-limiting beliefs we all have, that keep us from achieving our full potential.

However, belief alone is not enough.  It is only one part of the results formula.  What is required is ACTION.  In the face of uncertainty and being a little uncomfortable, each of us will make a choice.

-          To go with what feels comfortable (let’s face it the status quo feels comfortable)

-          Or to try something new and take ACTION upon that belief.

For instance, assume I have a goal to run a marathon – which I now do by the way.  As an older, somewhat out of shape, typical American, running a marathon seems impossible.  And yet I know of others, in my similar position, who have gotten themselves in shape and successfully completed a marathon.  So running a marathon, for me, is not impossible.  To say so is “Head Trash” – a self limiting belief I hold on to, so I do not feel a failure for not trying.   Once I identify the” Head Trash” for what it is and push it aside, I am free to try for my goal. 

However, unless I take ACTION upon my belief and turn the belief into action (training, implementing a new diet, signing up for the marathon, showing up on race day, etc.) my belief is simply a wish.  At Encharter Insurance, if our goal is to achieve double digit organic growth and I know of others in my industry that have achieved this goal, then any excuse I give for not achieving my goal is “Head Trash”.  Yet, my goal requires ACTION.  I need to take my goal and break it into small achievable parts and start taking ACTION upon my belief and plan.

So what choice will you make today?  Who will you be…..will you retreat or will you face your goals head on.  Will you be a person who is willing to face uncertainty and the possibility of failure to achieve RESULTS?  For those who are willing to TRY, go the spoils.  For after all, I would rather be known as a person who “spent himself in a worthy cause; who at best knew in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory or defeat” – Citizens In A Republic by T. Roosevelt.

Ever wonder “Why can’t my organization get to the next level?”  Does it ever seem like there is an invisible hand, inside your organization holding you back from the full potential you know your organization can achieve?  Let me introduce you to that invisible hand – HEAD TRASH.

What is head trash?  It is the set of self limiting beliefs we all carry around inside of us.  It is the thing that holds us back and is the main reason why some leaders take their organizations to great heights, while other leaders do not achieve great things with their organizations.  The amount of Head Trash you carry with you is why your organization will never be able to grow beyond you as a leader.   For me, this is what keeps me up at night.  Am I limiting the growth and success of Encharter Insurance?  The answer I am forced to conclude is – Yes, I am my organization’s chief limitation and at the same time the main catalyst for expansion. The minimum that I believe is achievable is the maximum my organization will ever accomplish.

So how do I identify my “Head Trash”?  The main question is this – Is what I am attempting to achieve truly impossible or is it impossible simply because I don’t want to take responsibility?  Have others been able to achieve it, just not me. 

-For instance, for me to say I want to fly, unaided by any equipment is impossible.  No one has achieved it and therefore, no amount of planning or effort will allow me to achieve this feat.  However, for me to grow my operation double digits in a down economy is not impossible.  There are MA Insurance Agents and CT Insurance Agents that have done it.   Although the people who have are few, the feat is possible.  Therefore, the limitation on my ability to achieve this feat is me, not the market, or the economy, or my people.  These are all excuses.  Ways for me not to take blame for what I cannot achieve but others have.

As a leader, this hurts, because it places my organization’s success or failure right where it belongs – at my feet.  However, at the same time, it is liberating.  I have the ability to achieve what others have achieved and perhaps beyond – provided I believe it to be possible and take action based upon that belief.

So in this new light, take a look at your goals and objectives for 2011.  Have you successfully accomplished all that you set out to do?  If your answer is no, yet you know of others in your market who have, what is holding you back?”  The answers you are giving to this question:

-          Have you looked at the Economy?

-          My product is becoming a commodity!  People won’t pay more for what I have.

-          My people are holding me back!

-          Customers lack the loyalty they once had

This is your “head trash”!  Time to look your problems dead in the eye for what they are – excuses.  Time to move beyond!

One of the best parts of my job is getting a chance to talk with local business owners about how Encharter Insurance is helping them grow their business.  I recently got a chance to sit with Gary Brunelle, President of Ace Fire and Water Restoration.  Gary is a recent addition to the Encharter family having become an Encharter Partner  within the last few months.

Gary first met Encharter as a result of a telephone call from Ben Beauchaine, Sales Executive  for Encharter.  Ben invited Ace to our social media event in Amherst, MA, where social media techniques were explained.   At the event, Gary heard about Encharter Partner’s Program – under the program, Encharter allows members of the local business community to advertise their business on Encharter’s web-site.  This gives them instant access to Encharter’s 16,000+ clients and helps them increase their SEO through “back-linking”.

 In addition to the partners program, Gary, Amy, & Lisa from Ace had the opportunity to sit with David Siekman, one of Encharter’s Social Media Engineers to learn more about blogging, Facebook, Twitter, Local Maps, SEO and YouTube and how these tools could be used to help attract more clients.  What was a surprise to me, was the success that Gary has had as a result of Partnering with Encharter.  “We were getting about a 100 hits per week, which I thought was fair.  But today’s count was 351 and that is just in a month time” said Gary.  “I equate that to what we have done with Encharter”

Wow!!  Over a 300% increase in weekly web-traffic!  That is good for any business and Gary was thrilled with the result.  “Our business isn’t easy and I appreciate being able to team up with Encharter to help both our firms grow” Gary shared with me off camera.

Encharter Insurance couldn’t be more pleased.  We are helping a local business grow and as a result we are able to add a new client to the Encharter family.  So welcome Gary.  If you can achieve a 300% increase in a month, I am looking forward to seeing what the upcoming year will bring.

To watch the full video click on this LINK!

Perhaps just like in your business,  Insurance is becoming a commodity.  Similar to the way WalMart or Home Depot has commoditized retail / hardware store sales, the big insurance companies have started to commoditize insurance – particularly personal auto insurance.  What is a poor local business owner to do?  Complain about it – or -

Change the rules of the game – partner together, bring excellence to the local marketplace, and use social media to push brand awareness and value!  Personally, not being a complainer by nature, I prefer option #2 – let’s band together and change the rules of engagement.  Together let’s prove that we can bring real value to the local community and convince people that their money is better spent at local businesses vs. at the Big Box – what do you say, are you with me?

That is what Encharter Insurance is committed to doing – joining with like minded local businesses to use the internet and social media advertising to drive back the Big Box.  It starts with our Encharter Partner’s Program.  We allow local business owners to advertise on our website to our 15,000+ customers.  We give the local business owner a back-link on our website – helping to drive Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and making is easier for local customers to find you on the internet.  We ask that you back-link on your website to us.  However, the partnership doesn’t stop there.  We will help you shoot a short commercial for your business and get it posted on YouTube, on our website and on your website.  Next, we will give you a social media consult, to help you better understand how to use the internet and social media to drive local business.  Encharter has an award winning social media department, designed to help local businesses learn the techniques that have allowed Encharter to grow their new business 67%.

What is in it for us -  A healthy, growing,  local business community.  If we write your insurance, a growing client means more to insure – more cars, more equipment, and more employees.  If we don’t write your insurance, we hope that if we can prove our value and help you grow, that you will choose to do business with us.  It is as simple as that.  No quid pro quo, just a willingness to consider having your insurance with a company that is committed to local businesses and growth.

Sound fair?  Want to get involved?   Then just go to our Encharter Partners Sign-up Page and give us some basic contact information.  We will have someone contact you right away to get the ball rolling.  Together we can take back the local business community.  While none of us are big enough to take on the Big Box alone – there is power in together.

I have heard it said that people and businesses fail for one of two reasons:

                #1 – They don’t know what to do!

                #2 – They know what to do, but they fail to do it!

Given the newness of internet and social media advertising, clearly there are businesses and individuals that still fall into category #1 – “They do not know what to do”.  However, if this is you and you operate in CT or MA, Encharter Insurance is here to help you out.  We have been using Internet and Social Media Advertising to grow our new business 67% and we are willing to show you the techniques we use to grow our business.  Why?  We want the local business community to grow and one of the best ways to do that is through Social Media.  As stated in my previous Blog “Taking on the BIG BOX with Social Media – A small company’s unfair advantage!” I talked about how the local business can succeed using social media.

So, if you or your business still falls into category #1 – there is hope.  Encharter Insurance will help you understand how to use blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, etc. to drive business.  We are looking to develop a business partnership with you and together bring back localness to the communities we serve.  All you need to do is contact us on our “Partners Sign up page”.

That means, if you are still reading this blog, you now fall into category #2.  You know what to do, but you have not yet taken the steps to do it.  Resources are out there to help you navigate the maze of social media.  I am partial to the “Dummies” books and recommend:

-          SEO for Dummies   

-          Facebook for Dummies

-          Twitter for Dummies

-          YouTube for Dummies

-          Blogging for Dummies

I have read each of these books and find their practical and often humorous advice invaluable.  I also highly recommend Mashable to anyone interested in keeping up on the newest and latest trends in social media.

That said, you can have all the book knowledge in the world, but if you do not implement, (the doing potion of the knowing / doing gap) then you will not gain traction.  My recommendation is baby steps.  Take one portion of social media and this week, do something.  I recommend you start with SEO and blogging.  Learn how to create hyperlinks in your blogs and blog / hyperlink your way to more customers – here is a link to our blog on insurance.  I also highly recommend YouTube.  With a $300 camera and some basic editing software, you can create a killer testimonial video for your business.  Just click here to check out an Encharter Insurance Testimonial.

What’s that you say “I don’t have the time or patience for that!”  Really!!  If you are so busy that you  just do not have the time to grow – it sounds like it is time to bring in additional help. (and it doesn’t have to be expensive help)  Almost all our videos are created by high school students – working part time for minimum wage.  They do it for the experience and because they love the work.

Not sure that will work for you…you need someone with a bit more experience due to the technical nature of your business.  How about college interns?  College students are dying to get practical experience, particularly in the area of social media.  Yes, getting an internship program will require a little leg work with your local college.  However, you will get highly motivated students with fresh ideas to help you drive your business forward.

So there you have it. 

-          Hands on help learning social media through the Encharter Partners Program.

-          Resources you can turn to – Dummies & Mashable

-          Fresh ideas on steps you can take today to enter the world of social media

-          Ways to increase your workforce for little to no cost

So where do you fall now?

                #1  “I don’t know what to do”

                #2  “I know what to do, but have yet to do it”

Don’t let the Knowing / Doing Gap swallow up your business.  Take action today!

I recently had the pleasure to sit with Serges LaRiviere, Owner of Ink & Toner Solutions.  Ink & Toner is a small business in the Amherst, MA area.  Serges recently attended an Encharter Insurance event, concerning Internet & Social Media Advertising.

It was especially gratifying to me to hear how beneficial Serges found the event and how he is using the techniques taught, to help him grow his business.  “It completely opened my eyes as to what social media can do for a business.” said Serges. “I had no idea of the powerfulness of it.”  Since attending the event, Encharter Insurance has helped Ink & Toner shoot a video commercial for their business and post that commercial on YouTube and on Ink & Toner’s website.  Encharter also has given Ink & Toner a social media consult, whereby Serges was able to see where his business was on the web and gain some practical knowledge on how to increase his search engine optimization (SEO).   Follow this link to hear the entire  Ink & Toner Testimonial video.

At Encharter, we are committed to the local business community and to helping local businesses grow using social media.  Social Media is the single greatest weapon a small business person has to gain market share and drive back the Big Box.  To learn more, you can read my recent blog article  “Taking on the BIG BOX with Social Media – A small company’s unfair advantage!”

We would love to help your business learn more about Social Media and “Partner with us”.  By joining our businesses together, we can have a greater local presence and can help one another grow.  Call me old fashion, but that is what being in the local business community was all about.  To find out more about how we can partner for growth, visit our “Encharter partners sign up page”

It is also worth mentioning that Encharter has several social media events upcoming like our event at the Waterbury Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, September 8^th or you can hear more at the New Economy Boot Camp in the Boston area on Wednesday, September 22^nd.  We are taking registrations for both events.  Don’t miss out on your opportunity to learn more about social media and how to grow your business.

“You’re the first company that I have seen that operates like you guys.” said Mr. LaRiviere.  “Thank you.” 

You are welcome Serges.  We are here to make sure you and Ink & Toner are successful.  After all, at Encharter, “It’s all about protecting you!”

In my opinion, this is one of the best times to be a small business person.  In the past, the BIG BOX companies had an unfair advantage when it came to advertising.   However, with the advent of social media and the internet, a small company has the ability to compete with the big boys on equal footing.

Take YouTube for example – 10 years ago or so, if you wanted to put out a commercial or shoot a testimonial video, you had to hire a PR Firm and a production company.  Then you needed to get your message out on Television.  Total cost – best not talk about cost!  It was so prohibitive that only large corporations could play.  Today with a $300 camera, inexpensive editing software and a free subscription to YouTube – bang you have a great insurance commercial or  insurance testimonial video, ready to broadcast to the world.  Click on the hyperlinks above to check out two of ours.

How do you get your message out?  No need for the expensive PR Firm or high cost television broadcast company, you can get your message out on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogs, etc.  to all your fans.  Then, allow for the “viral” nature of the internet to take over, capitalizing on one of the oldest and best advertising methods available – Word of Mouth Marketing.

Suddenly, marketing your firm isn’t the high cost venture it once was and telling the world about your unique selling proposition has never been easier.  The only thing standing between you and your BIG BOX competition is – “Doing”. 

A little uncertain about exactly how to get started?  Hey it’s natural to avoid something new.  My recommendation is to jump in using blogging.  Blogging is a great way to increase your Search Engine Optimization and help people find you.  The best thing about blogging is that through hyperlinks, you can drive key search terms for your business.  I also highly recommend Facebook.  Facebook is just too big a community to ignore and best of all it is easy to develop a following in your local community.  However, like blogging, Facebook requires work.  You need to post regularly and remember that Facebook is about being social.  If all you do is push your business, Facebook will not be a successful -social media for you. 

Still uncertain as to how to get started, why not reach out to Encharter Insurance.  We have been using social media to grow our new business 67% in just 10 months and we are helping businesses in CT & MA figure out how to use social media.  Our offer is unique – sign up to be an Encharter Partner and we will advertise your business on our web-site to our 16,000+ client for FREE.  By “back-linking” from our web-site to yours and from yours to ours, we increase both our firms SEO (search engine optimization).  We also will give you a free social media consult, where we will help you learn how to use blogging, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter to help you grow.

Interested, visit us on line and sign up to become an Encharter Insurance Partner.   At the very least, come and “Like” Encharter Insurance on Facebook – then you can watch how we go about posting and what we do to be successful.  You could also add this blog to your RRS Feed or become a follower of one of our other blogs – MAInsuranceblog.com or CTInsuranceblog.com.

The world is changing, especially the world of advertising.  We are all going digital and in the process social media is taking the world by storm.   As a business person, you have a choice, ignore the trend or find a way to compete in the new digital economy.

At Encharter Insurance, we have made the choice to embrace the new Modern Consumer and utilize social media to our competitive advantage.  However, how do you get your employees (who have spent years building their reputation in the old economy) to recognize the need for change and embrace it.

Answer: Continuous communication and coaching.  In addition, as a leader, you need to find new and unique ways to present your message.  Below is an excerpt from a recent communication on “Me, Inc.”

 To the Employees:

Here are some questions for you this morning – consider it a poll of sorts:

Question #1

 How well are you marketing and branding “Me, Inc.”

___ I am awesome, everyone knows about “Me, Inc.”, how terrific “Me, Inc.” is and what “Me, Inc.” has to offer.

___ I am okay at marketing “Me Inc”

___ I stink at marketing “Me Inc”

Question #2

Would you like to make more money and / or be more successful?

                                ___ Of course are you kidding??

                                ___ No thanks!!

Question #3

I believe the following statements to be true / false

   ___ if more people know about “Me” and want “Me” the greater the demand for “Me”

___ if demand for “Me” increases and the supply of “Me” stays the same,  the price “Me” can demand increases.  (since I am one of a kind – the supply of “Me” can never increase – ain’t that awesome!)

Sorry to hit you with Economics 101 so early in the morning.

Question#4

___ When I do a Google, Yahoo, Bing Search on “Me, Inc.” today.  I am satisfied   with what I find?

 ___ Nobody does Google, Bing, or Yahoo Searches on People so who cares!

Isn’t today the day for you to increase the value of “Me, Inc.”?

Here is how!! 

1.  Get on Facebook and start using it!
   1. Increase your list of “Friends” – people who know about you
   2. Let people know what you are up to – personally and professionally
2. Work on your LinkedIn profile
   1. Add your business contacts
   2. Let people know what you are up to professionally
3. Get on Twitter
   1. Find out what Encharter & I am all a twitter about  (@EncharterCEO)
   2. Let people know how you can help them
4. Press Release
   1. Let us press release about your significant events
   2. Then Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook about them.
5. Hire additional help
   1. Dave / Stephanie / Heidi and Encharter are willing to help you – within the confines of Encharter Insurance parameters.
   2. Interns coming on board soon

Don’t have time for all of this.  Okay, I get it – “Me, Inc.” isn’t important to you!  Well that is one company I am sure is going to fail.  The leadership of the company doesn’t care about the company’s success.  Time to dump that stock!

As a concept, “Me, Inc.” hit a chord with many of our employees and has started an interesting chain discussion on increasing our personal brand awareness.  So, how about You?  Are you going to take steps this week to increase the value of your personal brand – “Me, Inc.” ?  As manager of your personal brand, no one cares about “Me, Inc.” more than You!  The tools are available to make your brand accessible to the world.  Will you take the steps today to make it happen?

Let me explain, I have spent my career turning around organizations, divisions, & business units that are broken.  I have generally found that these organizations are made up of good people that want to succeed.   (after all, who goes into work and says, “I am really looking forward to being mediocre today?”) However, these organizations are generally lacking a vision, a mission, and solid leadership.  The organization has spent significant time in a state of neglect and the people in the organization have often forgotten what it feels like, looks like, and smells like to succeed.  To merely say, “This is what we must do.”, is simply not going to work.  A successful leader must model the behavior that is desired, not just state the behavior that is needed. Thus a leader needs to be able to say, “Come, follow me.”  They must get to the front of the organization and model the behavior that they want their employees to adopt.  This is much different than getting behind an employee, putting both hands on their back and pushing them in the direction you want them to go.

What does this look like in practice?  Take for example a small thing like corporate credit cards.  In general, I have found that corporate credit cards increase corporate “expense account” spending 20% or more.  By moving to an expense reimbursement system – you incur the cost and we reimburse it – expenses are reduced.  (there is something about making the employee incur the expense personally, even if for a short period).   However, you cannot implement this strategy and not be willing to model it.   You must be willing to say, “We are eliminating corporate credit cards, starting with me.”

Another example would be Encharter’s Social Media Strategy.  A leader in the social media arena must be willing to say, “Come join me on Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn” they cannot simply say,  “All employees need to be on these media.”  Especially since the social nature of Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn allows employees to see how active you are and how committed you are.  As you can see, blogging, and being on social media is part of my leadership from the front of the organization.

Leadership is a calling.  When the bullets are flying and the chips are down, look around and see who is standing at the front of the organization yelling “CHARGE”…..there you will find your true leaders.  They aren’t in the back, pushing others into the line of fire.