The Psychology of Video

“Video communication connects with viewers from a multi-sensory perspective – sound and sight – while speaking to all our senses. Yet video respects the viewer and allows viewers to absorb the information and form their own conclusions. More than any other medium, video alters our paradigms, and changes the way we see the world”. www.solterra.us  

Video is what the internet was made for!  It’s an interactive and multi-sensory medium.  A video is so much more engaging than reading lots of text.  It’s said that a 1 minute video is = to 1.8 million words!  That’s why we all like to watch the video when we go on a website and with more and more of us using mobile devices to surf the web it’s also so much better to watch the video on a website or email than try to read lots of text.

Just think about it – much as we all hate watching tv ads (well I do anyway)  they work!

What is now happening with online is that we can all have our own ads! – Yep and we soon will.

With the growth of mobile devices, phones, ipads etc its so much easier to watch the video than read the text.

What do you do when you go on a website?  Do you watch the video?

YES, YES and YES again!  Even more importantly with the new low cost solutions available EVERY business can benefit from the smallest to the largest.

Video is becoming increasingly essential for a business to compete effectively and achieve the results they want.

We can all understand and appreciate the power of TV style commercials that has been part of our lives for many years.

In the past it has been a luxury of the larger companies and corporations that have afforded and reaped the benefits of TV style advertising and marketing.

With the growth of the internet, broadband and its ease of access everywhere, along with low cost tools and systems that allow video production and hosting to be accessed by anyone it really makes sense for any business of any size, shape or form to reap the benefits and gain more sales and customers.

Video and its use is not new it’s just that up until now it’s only been available to those that could afford it!

I have suddenly been made aware of video and that it is the new revolution coming!

Watch this space

I am loving learning all about it

This is a question I often get asked and it happen recently with two enquiries so I thought I would share my response with you.

What is the difference between coaching and consultancy?

For me consultancy is about buying in a specialist and skilled resource to deliver a particular “spec of work” or specific outcomes and objectives.

Coaching is about you working with a Coach to enhance your skills, tools and understanding to enable you to achieve the specific outcomes and objectives you want in your life and work.

Let me put it another way.

If you were running a football or rugby team and you had a particular important match coming up you would buy in or get on loan a specific player in a particular position to do a job for you.  That’s the same as consultancy – buying in a resource to deliver something you specified at the beginning.  It achieves a purpose and gets you to where you want to be.

If you were running the same football or rugby team you might employ a coach to improve the skills of the team in attack.   The role of the coach is not to play in the team but to transfer those skills, techniques, tools and approaches to your players so that they can deliver the results you want.  You may even have more than one coach addressing different areas, attack and defence.

When you are thinking about your business or life and what do you need then take a moment to consider what you want to achieve and which of these approaches is going to get you there.

Someone to play in your team for a while and achieve a result or someone to improve the team’s performance over time.

Both will have a major impact on your business and your life.

If you want to benefit from coaching contact me to find out how to make it happen for you.

email profit@yorkshirebusinessservices.com
tel: 07956027738

The benefits of coaching and creation of a coaching culture within an organisation are widely researched, proven and measured to provide significant return on investment to the organisation and the individual.

Think about this – over a ten year period, companies that intentionally “managed their cultures well” outperformed organisations that did not.

• Revenue increased 682% v 166%
• Stock price increased 901% v 74%
• Net income increased 756% v 1%
• Job growth increased 282% v 36%

(Source – Kotter & Heskett 1992)

If you want to benefit from coaching in your organisation , business or personal performance and reach these levels contact me to find out how to make it happen for you.

email profit@yorkshirebusinessservices.com
tel: 07956027738

There is a lot of debate and discussion about the terms “mentoring” and “coaching”. It is important to have a clear understanding as a base to any mentoring or coaching programmes for yourself or your business before you start.

I like the definitions below – Carol ;

“A mentor is usually referred to as a “critical friend”, or guide who is responsible for overseeing the career and development of another person outside the normal manager/subordinate relationship” Clutterbuck and Sweeney (1997)

“A coach is someone who plans an intervention – designed to improve the performance of an individual in a specific task” Clutterbuck and Sweeney (1997)

Some other definitions;

CIPD defines coaching as – developing a person’s skills and knowledge so that their job performance improves, hopefully leading to the achievement of organisational objectives. It targets high performance and improvement oat work, although it may also have an impact on an individual’s private life. It usually lasts for a short period and focuses on specific skills and goals.

CIPD defines mentoring as – Traditionally mentoring is the long term passing on of support, guidance and advice. In the workplace it has tended to describe a relationship in which a more experienced colleague uses their great knowledge and understanding of the work or workplace to support the development of a more junior or inexperienced member of staff. This comes from the Greek myth where Odysseus entrusts the education of his son to his friend Mentor. Its also a form of apprenticeship.

CIPD – Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development

Coaching is a conversation, a dialogue, whereby the coach and the individual interact in a dynamic exchange to achieve goals, enhance performance and more the individual forward to greater success – Zues & Skiffington

I think it is important to distinguish between coaching and mentoring and agree I with Clutterbuck and Sweeney (1997)

One of the ways to think about the difference is to visualise how the conversation and relationship would be different if you had a scheduled coaching discussion at 12 to discuss your expectations, roles and responsibilities compared to if you called your mentor to discuss some things that you have been thinking about.

What really matters in a coaching and/or mentoring relationship is that you know WHY?

What are you hoping to achieve, to change, to gain out of the relationship?

What is it you want to prevent happening, failure, breakdown in communication, lack of performance?

You may even want to work with the coach to find out what it is you do want!

All of them are right and your coach or mentor will make sure that both of you know what the relationship is aiming to achieve for you from the outset.

If you want to benefit from coaching in your organisation , business or personal performance and reach these levels contact us to find out how to make it happen.

email profit@yorkshirebusinessservices.com
tel: 01943 607851

I know what you are going to say!  aagh!

Hold on its actually really exciting!.  You don’t believe me….well let me tell you a story.

I have been lucky enough to have been working with client over the last few months on a Business Link funded strategy review.  To cut a long story short……

He has a great product innovation which has a potential investor contacting him.  Of course what they want is an outline proposal and financial plan.  I was really happy that he called me up to help him produce a plan and proposal to send over.

It made me realise how often I work with people not only in their personal lives but mostly in thier business lives and finance is a mystery to them or something they associate with MATHS at school.  For whatever reason they avoid it or are genuinely fearful of it.

Financial Planning is a critical part of your life and specifically your business and business success. We sat down together and I worked with my client to pull together a financial plan and projection.  When we had finished my client was astonished at the figures and projections we had produced.  Astonished in a good way because he had learnt so much more about this product he had been developing and lived with for so long.  Being a creative person he did not enjoy the financials but felt he had gained a real insight into how the product could really make money and be a commercial for him.

This is just one story and one perspective on financial planning.  It’s an area that I know keeps a lot of people awake at night and it does not have to be like that.

Remember that you can take control and make it happen for you.  If you don’t know where to start there is always someone out there to help you.  Some of you will have accountants who would love to help, banks have software packages they sell you or give you when you open an account…. and much more.

If you want help just give me a call NOW 07956027738

What are we going to do with this weather!

All the meetings I did have planned just seem to have been cancelled and reorganised.  Its so difficult to get about and I think most people have just closed the doors and gone inside!  Hey ho

Real opportunity for me to write up all my coaching and meeting notes – I will get my Diploma documents finished!

Sorry I just had to let you know how great the NLP practioner training is.  Only part way through but really great.  Wonderful people and awesome training.

I highly recommend the training to you.  Dylan Sunter (who lives and breathes what he trains).  If you want to know more about him this is his website.   Evolve NLP

Hi – just a bit of help to those working on the ILM L7 Diploma Coaching & Mentoring Coding used by JRA specifically.

Its based on the Web Study Guide from the ILM – if you want a copy just email me and I will send one over to you.  Its not easy to find on the ILM site.

This gives you the D7   —- Which means Diploma level 7 and then the 1-4 elements of the criteria.

Are you with me so far?   …… Great

There are then specific Learning outcomes expected for each of the 4 required units.  I am going to follow through only the first – if you get it from that then you can follow it through for the rest. Its not exactly mapped to the ILM guide but it does follow through.

ILM L7 Diploma Criteria

So are you ready……. thats right

D7.01 ……. Critically reviewing the role of the leadership mentor or executive coach in developing leadership performance

There are two primary learning outcomes for this section ( if you are using Tom’s guide you will see these at the top of his spreadsheet guides).

1.  Evaluate the contribution of leadership mentoring and executive coaching in developing leadership performance.

There are in JRA terms two specific areas of assessment

1.1 Appraise the abilities and performance characteristics of effective leaders.

1.2 Evaluate the alternative strategies for developing leadership performance and the potential contribution of leadership mentoring and executive coaching to individual and organisational performance.

SO …….. When you look at the coding J1.1.1

What it means is that you have just answered D7. 01 Critically reviewing the role of the leadership mentor or executive coach in developing leadership performance

Part 1 … evaluating … above and section 1 …. appraising

These are the criteria copied from the ILM study guide for the criteria  just for info.  (Yes I know there are three but JRA have merged them into two)

• The abilities and performance characteristics of effective leaders are appraised
• The purpose and role of leadership mentoring and executive coaching practice are critically reviewed
• Alternative strategies for developing leadership performance and the potential contribution of leadership mentoring and executive coaching to individual and organisational performance are evaluated

So do you get it?…….. I know its complicated if you are still having problems then give me a call and I will go through it with you.

Call me on 07956027738

Would be great to hear from you anyway.

Have a look at the following list of the most compelling reasons we have found that you would benefit from a business coach.

1. Give you some focus and direction to marketing and selling your products
2. Not making enough money/profit
3. Hold your hand in the step-by-step process of growing your business
4. To fast track your success as a business owner
5. A shoulder to bounce things off – to listen
6. To keep you accountable

If any of them resonate with you and always wondered what a coach could do for you then give us a call.  We are here to help and all you have to do is ask.

Give you some focus and direction to marketing and selling your products

Are you clear where your business is going and how you are going to get there?

You may have the ideal product, but as a result of all your advertising and marketing efforts nothing is happening or its not happening fast enough.   Sound familiar?  So do you give up?

How will a coach help?  A business coach will work with you to focus your marketing and sales effort, show you how to market your product more effectively and how to find the right target market. With the right focus, plan and message you can market your products and/or services correctly. Once you understand the marketing processes and approach that works, you can apply them in the future to anything you wish to sell.

Not making enough money/profit

We can all probably put our hands up to this.  But have you been in business for a few years and your business is now stagnant? Are you making a profit, but going nowhere? Are you concerned about the current economic climate and its impact to your business?  A business coach will work with you to teach you how to turn your business around and how to take your business to where you want to be.

What a business coach will teach you will apply not just to one business but to any others you create or are involved with.  You can apply the principles you learn to any business you own.

Hold your hand in the step-by-step process of growing your business

Sometimes in business, you get to the point where you are a bit unsure of what to do next. You feel like you want to hit your head against a brick wall.

A business coach will give you the clear focus, guidance and steps, on overcoming any barriers and working towards the goals you have set.  A business coach will be there to work with you through the challenges and opportunities you create.  A business coach can be like a guardian angel. They are there for you every step of the way guiding you with a helping hand.

To fast track your success as a business entrepreneur/leader/owner

All of the best sports people have the best teams of coaches and advisors around them.  Just like a talented athlete you would use a business coach to set your goals, give you structure and direction to guide and work with you through the (continuing) learning process of running a business.

A business coach will put you on track and keep you focussed and show you what to do at the right times. They are your coach, mentor, consultant and advisor. He or she will make you and your business, what you want it to be.

A Shoulder To Bounce Things Off

One thing is certain that it can be lonely running your own business. You need someone that you can talk to and discuss the business in confidence.  That can answer your questions on all parts of your business and can help you bounce ideas and give you instructions and can look outside the box and give you a different perspective.

A business coach is like a silent partner. A partner who has a no financial interest in the business, no axe to grind, but is only interested in you getting to keep the rewards.

To Keep You Accountable

A business coach will keep you accountable for your business and what you should be doing to grow you business. They are not there just to agree with you they are there to challenge and explore, to ensure that your decisions and plans are well thought through and the benefits and risks understood.

They will be there to work with you and guide you each step of the way, while you put what you learn into practice.

They will not do it for you. You will.  (If you hire a consultant you are hiring a resource to do the work)

What you learn can be applied to any business, now and in the future.