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Last week, the Brown Palace Hotel kicked off the holiday season
with their annual Champagne Cascade. It was earlier
than usual this year to celebrate Denver’s 150th birthday—and
it just happened to be on Victoria’s birthday too!
We enjoyed a scrumptious brunch after watching champagne being
poured into the top of the 6,000-glass pyramid. What a fun way
to celebrate!
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We want to introduce Nick
May, our new associate, who’s come on board to help
grow Make-it-Fly® Denver,
so that more business owners here can take advantage of
Advisory Boards. These are challenging times for many small
business owners, and it’s more important than ever
to have others around you to encourage, support and challenge
you and keep you on track.
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| This week, with our Director of Franchising,
Dave MacDonald, we plan to train others to run Make-it-Fly®
Advisory Boards in different locations.
Our very best regards,
Dave and Victoria
P.S. Check out Holiday
Gift Ideas from Make-it-Fly®! |
| Mark
Turner
Aspen Creek Landscaping
Although Mark Turner’s business is landscaping, he thinks
of himself more as an artist than
a landscape contractor, and that philosophy is
reflected in his landscape designs. “Our specialty is natural
Colorado ‘mountainscapes,’ ” he says. Aspen
Creek Landscaping custom designs and installs residential landscapes,
installing everything from water features to fire pits to stamped
concrete patios to sitting walls.
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| Mark started his landscape business in 1990. “I
played the club circuit as a professional musician for eight years
before that,” he says. “I
learned most of the basics about running my own business by being
the leader of a band: promotion and marketing,
working with people of every personality type imaginable, and
troubleshooting and solving problems as diplomatically as possible.”
Q: What do you find most fulfilling
about running your business?
MT: I love being
able to put myself in a position to practice my creativity –
one of my core values. I also like the fact that if I work hard,
I am rewarded exponentially; if I don’t, the reverse is
usually true. I had a hard time working for other companies and
never being rewarded fairly for what I contributed.
Q: What motivated you to start
this business?
MT: I always wanted
to be a landscape architect since I was in high school. Botany
was my favorite class in college. It was a natural evolution to
become an entrepreneur and spend my time doing the things I like
best.
Q: What book has been most helpful
to you in your business?
MT: When
I started my business, I would listen to a lot of audiocassettes
in my car. Brian Tracy was a big influence, including his Psychology
of Achievement, and Subconscious Mind Power by James
K. Fleet is an excellent book/program. Lately, I have found The
Slight Edge to be very helpful in keeping my focus together.
Q: Who has influenced you most
in your life?
MT: Before
I became the leader of my own band, the leader of the band I was
in mentored me. Before I started my own landscape company, the
owner of the landscape company I was working for was my mentor.
It is a natural process to learn what they are doing and then
do it better.
 Q:
What has proved to be your most successful marketing strategy?
MT: My designs
usually sell themselves. I draw them by hand with pen and color
them with architectural markers while my competitors usually give
out a generic computer printout. It distinguishes me from the
crowd. One of my nicest compliments this year was from a customer
who asked for the original so he could frame it.
Q: What have been the greatest
challenges you have had to overcome, or are currently facing,
in your business?
MT: Lack
of time is always the most difficult obstacle to overcome. When
you don’t have enough, it can be an incredible stressor.
It also affects your productivity since you don’t spend
as much time in the crucial time management quadrant 3: important
but not urgent. This is where all your business planning should
take place to head off fires (i.e., quadrant 1: important and
urgent).
Q: How are you benefiting from
participating in a Make-it-Fly® board?
MT: I saw
Dave and Victoria at a seminar at my landscape association meeting
several years ago and got on their email list. After two years
of receiving their great tips, this spring I decided to give it
a try. Dave guaranteed me before I joined my first board that
it would be worth it. He was right! The opportunity to work and
brainstorm with 12 entrepreneurial board members like myself each
month is an incredible experience. I have learned a tremendous
amount from each member, not only for my business but for my own
personal growth.
 Q:
What would you say to other business owners who are contemplating
getting involved in a Make-it-Fly® board?
MT: It
truly is a life changing experience that you won’t regret.
The richness of advice that you
receive is worth 10x times the cost. I was always
a little envious seeing corporate board meetings and never having
the chance to experience that as a small business owner. This
is the perfect opportunity!
Mark Turner can be reached by phone
at: 303-929-5804, or visit his web site at: www.aspencreeklandscape.com.
Forward
this email to a friend. |
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|
 Dave’s
Networking Tip:
Don’t
hand out your business cards at networking events,
unless someone asks you for one. Resist any temptation
to distribute your brochures at events. You’re not
there to sell, but to get to know people. Don’t
take or ask for a business card unless you plan to follow
up promptly. |
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Holiday Networking Nuggets
Tips
to Help You Make the Most of Holiday Events
By Victoria Munro and Dave Block
Take advantage of holiday parties to make
new friends and grow your network, which in turn can lead to growing
your business. The tips below
make this easy.
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View
each holiday gathering as a networking opportunity.
Go prepared with business cards, an attitude of giving and
a commitment to help others. |
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Don’t
try to sell your products or services. Rather,
ask questions to gain information about the person you are
talking to, and learn about their interests and passions.
Find out what’s special about them and how your can
serve and encourage them. |
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Wear
something unique that stands out and makes
it easy for others to ask questions and start a conversation.
Pins, custom nametags and embroidered logos can pique someone’s
curiosity and beg a question. |
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Be
a giver! Plan to leave each person you talk
to with something of value. This could be as small as a smile
or as significant as a referral. Other ‘gifts’
might include: information to help them deal with an issue
or situation they’re facing, a relevant, helpful article
or book, or someone they should meet and get to know. |
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Avoid
the challenge of trying to balance a plate and glass
while you shake hands and talk with others. When you’re
eating, focus on that, but when networking, give your full
attention to the person you’re talking to. |
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Have
a positive attitude about the event you’re
attending. Let the host or organizer know how much you appreciate
the hard work she or he put into making the event a success. |
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Prepare
to offer ideas for unique, affordable, fun
holiday gifts that people you meet might give to their clients,
friends and family members. |
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Do
your best to let everyone you talk with feel important,
special and valued. Offer sincere
compliments and pay attention to what they have to say. |
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Ask
people what they enjoy about the holiday season
and what they find challenging. Listen, and, if it’s
appropriate, offer helpful suggestions. |
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Avoid
any negative comments or conversation and
maintain an attitude of gratitude and joy. It
will prove contagious! |
Click
here for the printable version.
Click
here to read more articles like this one.
Forward
this email to a friend.
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Victoria’s
Marketing Advice
Tell the World What Your
Clients Are Saying
You can’t have too many really good
testimonials. Including photos of the writers adds interest
and credibility—people are more likely to read them.
Audio and video testimonials are even more powerful. |
Back
to Top
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The Riverfront specializes in well
crafted, richly satisfying occasions that balance
aesthetics, personality and party. The site is versatile, accommodating
groups from fifteen to five hundred. Features include: two dance
floors with professional sound and lighting, a fireplace nook,
three bars, outdoor patio, and gazebo. Our personal chef, custom
menus, and full suite of inclusions rank us paramount in our industry.
Call 303.865.8500
today
and schedule your holiday event!
www.riverfront-center.com
Learn Proven
Sales Writing Secrets – For FREE!
Casey On Copywriting is a free e-newsletter that
teaches you
dynamic sales writing tips.
| |
You’ll
Learn:
• Powerful headline writing skills
• Proven formulas for writing brochures
• Persuasive sales writing techniques
• And much more! |
Learn more at www.caseydemchak.com
|
|
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Holiday Gift Ideas from
Make-it-Fly®
For your family, friends, clients
and yourself!
Victoria’s
new book, The Small Biz Balancing
Act: Secrets to Restoring Passion and Play in Your Business
and Life. Click
here to read a chapter and order your copies
now!
|
Live by Design in
2009 January Small Biz Retreat
A day away to plan (and play)
with Barbara Brannen
We know your time is precious and
it’s tough to get away for a whole day, but
this retreat will be a great investment—it
could change your life and business. You’ll
leave this practical, interactive and very fun day
with a complete strategic
plan for your business and your life in 2009.
Click
here to sign up now, take advantage
of discounted early bird prices and
make 2009 your best year ever!
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READING
THIS AD? THEN WHY NOT PUT YOURS HERE TOO? The
In-Flight Refueling Ezine reaches more than 2,700
entrepreneurs, small-biz owners, consultants and marketers. Reserve
your advertising spot today in the next In-Flight Refueling
Ezine,
http://www.make-it-fly.com/ezineads.html.
Paid Advertising Disclaimer: Make-it-Fly®
LLC does not represent or endorse the accuracy or reliability
of any of the paid advertisements above or the quality of any
products, services, information, or other materials displayed,
purchased, or obtained by you as a result of an offer in connection
with any ad. It's common sense to do your own due diligence before
purchasing any product.
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The
Make-it-Fly® Advisory Board 101
Each
Make-it-Fly® Advisory Board 101 program
consists of 12 non-competing business owners who meet once a month
for three consecutive months. In the spirit of giving, they offer
each other solutions, ideas, resources and encouragement. Dave
and Victoria facilitate each group and share powerful tools to
assist business owners in reaching their goals and living more
balanced lives.
If you have experienced a Make-it-Fly®
program, please share the following openings with other business
owners who need support. Call Dave for more information at 720-962-8888.
Programs are held from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Current program openings in Denver:
- Fridays - January 9, February 6, March 6, 2009
Full
- Tuesdays - January 20, February 17,
March 17, 2009
- Thursdays - January 29, February 26, March 26, 2009 One
seat open!
- Fridays - February 13, March 13, April 10, 2009
- Tuesday - March 3, April 7, May 5
Click
here to sign up for Advisory
Boards.
Or call Dave at 720-962-8888.
Alumni
Boards are groups of 12-14 small business owners who have
participated in at least one Make-it-Fly®
Advisory Board 101 and wish to continue the support and accountability
with a group of like-minded, giving business associates. Members
meet once a month for a three-hour meeting.
If you completed the initial Make-it-Fly®
Advisory Board 101 and are interested in more information on Alumni
Boards, call Dave at 720-962-8888.
Make-it-Fly®
Café 
High altitude networking, where exceptional people help each
other.
Next
Café:
Date: Thursday, February 26, 2009
Time: 4:30 to
7:30 p.m.
Location: The
Riverfront
2852 W. Bowles Ave., Littleton (One block west of Santa Fe)
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Click
here to read previous issues of Make-it-Fly®'s
email newsletters.
Contact
Make-it-Fly® - Dave and Victoria:
email: info@make-it-fly.com
voice: 720-962-8888
web: www.Make-it-Fly.com
Reprint
Permission:
Please email or call Victoria if you'd like to reprint any information
contained in this newsletter. Thanks! © Copyright 2008. All
rights reserved.
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Make-it-Fly®
LLC
720-962-8888
355 South Teller Street, Suite 200, Lakewood, CO 80226, USA
http://www.make-it-fly.com
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