I’m at a loss for words. The events of the past week have jarred me from my complacency and forced my eyes open to see the world as I have never comprehended it before. My masked grandchildren arrived yesterday for merely 6 hours to unveil the headstone for their grandfather, my father in law. We couldn’t hug, we stayed outdoors, (thankfully the weather obliged), and we played games as if things weren’t really any different than our visits in the...

I just had the opportunity to host my good friend and colleague, Mitch Jackson, on my Raising the Barr® show and engage in a fascinating conversation. We discussed some of the powerful technologies and platforms available that you should consider leveraging to strengthen your thought leadership. But, becoming a thought leader starts with your mindset and taking massive action.   Insights Timeline: 0:00 Introduction 5:00 The most important goal: Empowering your audience to take a desired action 7:14 Are you...

Last week I shared with you the 30 Questions to Identify Your Ideal Client which generated tremendous feedback and interest from you. Today, I want to dive deeper and help you discover where to find these clients? To do so here are the additional questions I would highly suggest you ask to uncover the answers and then follow my recommendation for each: What social media groups such as Facebook and LinkedIn or special forums or membership sites do they belong...

On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being not at all and 10 being extremely well), how well do you know your customers? A few years ago, in my article, Who Are Your Top Customers? I revealed several questions you should ask yourself to identify the attributes of your best customers. Today, I want to focus on helping you evaluate the attributes and characteristics of your “perfect” client by answering some key questions. Here are the top 30 questions...

“We’re Going on a Treasure Hunt.” Remember that song we used to sing to our kids? For me, that song represent the innovative mindset that helps craft life and business extraordinary adventures and experiences. I love creating and experiencing adventures in my life and business. Some of my best memories, remarkable experiences and successes stem from such adventures. Some are serendipitous while others are planned or as I like to often view them as experiences of planned serendipity.   Three...

This week has already started as a very busy and productive week for me. On Monday, I invited an intimate group of my clients to participate in a Zoom call when I got to share my thoughts on “Thriving in Challenging times.” I am planning on inviting more of my clients and continue these discussions on various topics of interest. I am also pleased to relaunch my podcast channel “Raising the Barr®” this week, where I am excited to bring...

As we are all adjusting to the new normal of organizing our lives and conducting our businesses, I’ve had the opportunity to brainstorm with many of our clients as to ways of best utilizing our time. Here are the top 15 ways: Reaching out to clients and offering our help Creating exciting new content in a variety of media formats Creating online courses Brainstorming with trusted advisors to identify new ways of innovation Submitting content to be published through various...

How many weeks have you been sheltered in place? Here in Cleveland it’s been about 30 days, and everyone is continuing to do their best to stay at home and follow the protocol that has been set. It’s not been easy; Zooming, Skyping and FaceTiming with my friends, family and clients has helped, though I am aching to hug and squeeze my grandkids each time I join in the virtual dance party, art project or read a book to them...

We’ve been practicing social or actually physical distancing for a few weeks, visiting with friends and family via Zoom, Skype or FaceTime, and dashing in an out of stores for essential items now with the agility of Olympic sprinters. Masked, gloved and goggled, with the help of separation lines and plexiglass screens, we have nearly and hopefully mastered the art of keeping the covid-19 virus as far away from us as possible. As one of the holiest weeks on the...