by Cara Lumen
Suddenly the weather is affecting my personal calendar and I find myself with yet one more thing to consider when scheduling my week. I moved from California to Kansas City and now I have to care when the next snowfall is coming. So even though I set aside a patrician time in my schedule to go get groceries, I suddenly have to care exactly when I go according to the weather report so I’m not stomping through snow to do it. I have to keep my schedule fluid. I have to keep it flexible. And I have to be willing to change.
Watch for the latest needs of your Target Audience
We have to stay flexible in our business, too. We have to be nimble in our response. We have to leave room for change. Nimble means lively, quick, and dexterous. As an entrepreneur we have to be ready to quickly address the most recent needs of our target audience. What do they need to know right now? How can I offer a part or all of that knowledge? How rapidly can I get it to them?
Economy is always a factor, it changes and people are looking for innovative, inexpensive ways to get their problem solved or the job done. What do I do?
How can you change what you offer?
I’ve been collaborating with Judy Stewart of www.jstewartdesigns.com for a lot of years creating web sites for our clients. I do the content development and she does the web design. We work in DreamWeaver and we have our clients get Contribute so they can work in it too. But a new client made me start looking at alternatives I could offer, based on what I now know. I looked at WordPress. I know there are a lot of free templates out there but my clients want unique, made-for-them designs and Judy can do them. Now I have recently found another partner Adam Sayler of www.impressionengineers.com who can translate those designs into WordPress. And suddenly, I have another version of a website to offer my clients. And another person to collaborate with.
What new collaborative partners can you develop?
Who do you need to collaborate with to create new services and products for your clients? Adam and I are going to create a blogging course together – he knows WordPress, I know the marketing. How can you create a Collaborative Partnership that will double the people you reach and create something you neither one can offer by yourselves. And how rapidly can you bring it into existence?
Are your systems in place and ready to move quickly?
Get your systems in place so you can respond quickly to the new needs of your clients. Your intake forms, your invoicing system, your social media update system, your virtual team, your product development plans.
Review your ideas regularly
It turns out I have a lot of half finished ebooks. I know, that’s not a good thing, unless I suddenly see a new need that I have not addressed and can pull up one of those ebooks and get it out there in a week. Now that’s nimble. And with that much of a head start it may turn into a telecourse rather rapidly. I’m not saying to keep a lot of half-completed projects on hand, but do keep your ideas handy so you can develop them on a minute’s notice.
Be Prepared to create and adjust
Be nimble with your ability to change directions. I taught a course “How to Build a Magnetic Marketing Plan.” I was going to turn it into a home study course. But after I taught it I realized it needed to be a workbook so people could go through the material at their own pace. Create and adjust. Create and adjust.
Nimble is about being skillful, it is about anticipating, it is about keeping your fingers on the pulse of the people you serve and stepping in quickly to fill their most current pressing need. How nimble is your business?
