Nothing
Happens
by Itself
Copyright © 2023 Karl W. Palachuk
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Greetings!
End of January is a great time for pruning. It doesn't freeze much where I live, so it can be harder to know when to prune back trees and bushes. Most things never "die off" completely, so they have new growth even in the middle of Winter.
But if you want healthy plants that grow well in the Spring, you need to trim them in the Winter.
The same is true in your business. You need to take the opportunity to stop doing some things. I encourage you to take some time and consider what you might cut back on in your business for 2023.
Obviously, you should stop doing things that lose money. So, it's worth making a list of those thing. But it's also good to examine things that don't "lose" money, but simply keep you tied to the past.
My staff will tell you that I am very slow to make changes. But at the same time, I'm constantly refreshing things and trying new things. What I'm actually slow at is stopping the doing of old things.
One great example: Moving away from QuickBooks. This decision was a lot like firing an employee. You've probably heard the old advice (which I first heard from Brian Tracy): The best time to fire someone is the first time the thought crosses your mind. My move away from QB was a lot like that. As soon as I considered it, I knew it was the right thing to do.
But . . . there's comfort in keeping things the same. And there's a "project" involved in making a change. It's often easier to make changes a little at a time. But with something like your primary financial tool, it's an all-or-nothing move.
Every year, I examine the major pieces of my business and try to look at them objectively. Yes, I try new things. But I also stop doing things. Gradually, over time, everything changes.
Consider how you might save both time and money if you stopped doing a few things. And how might you spend that time and money more effectively for your business?
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. . . A few notes this week:
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Hurry, Hurry, Hurry
Amy Babinchak's new Growth-Focused Peer Group
If you are interested in a special peer group dedicated to doubling the size of your business, contact Amy right now.
She wants to get the peer group started, and have everyone set their goals as soon as possible so the "group" part of the adventure can start next month.
See the details and contact Amy here:
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Save, Save, Save.
I talked to Harry Brelsford about his big MSP Rescue event in Chicago next month - and he gave me a discount code to give to YOU.
The event is . . .
MSP Rescue
February 17th
Chicago
The standard price is $99 - but you can save $50 (more than half price) with the coupon code KARL. So your final price is only $49.
Information and Registration at:
As Harry says, "It's time for MSPs to INNOVATE in 2023 to THRIVE under any economic scenario." View the list of speakers and topics at https://msprescue.pro/. |
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Sneak Peek: SMB Online Conference 2023 |
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We haven't finalized everything . . . but we have the site up. You can register now for this great event at smbonlineconference.com.
May 17-18
Please check it out and let me know if you have any questions.
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Have a great week!
:-)
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All New Course from James Kernan! |
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Sign up now.
Leadership and
Management Principles
for MSPs
Learn the industry’s best practices on managing, leading, and growing your business. These sessions will be focused on leading people and teams while connecting them to your vision and goals.
Taught By: Coach James Kernan
All New Course
- Five Tuesdays: February 14 March 14, 2023
The Leadership and Management Training Program will include five live training sessions delivered in 60-minute classes. Designed for technology business owners, executives, directors, and managers, this training program covers industry best practices for managing and leading your teams.
Award winning business coach and trainer, James Kernan is back to educate you on the industry’s best practices on managing, leading, and growing your business. These sessions will be focused on leading people and teams while connecting them to your visions and goals. We will review foundational leadership skills, management tips, recruiting, onboarding, and training new employees and how to connect every single employee to the company’s goals. This class is ideal for any owner, executive, manager, or key employee you are grooming into leadership.
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You will learn:
- What does leadership look like in the workplace?
- How to lead and motivate your team
- How to hold your team accountable
- What is the difference between a BOSS and a LEADER?
- Learn key skills and fundamentals that will help you gain trust with your entire team.
- Basic leadership fundamentals and skills
- How to lead though challenging situations
- Motivating and management of employees
- How to overcome and deal with conflict
- Create a recruiting process
- Create a recruiting presentation
- Fine tune your onboarding/training plan for new employees
- How to screen candidates based on your core values
- Create your Culture Plan and Core Values
- Positive vs Negative Leadership styles
- Why recruiting specific staff is important
- Communication/Meeting Schedule
- TEAM – Trust, Encouragement, Accountability and Mentoring
- Creating a PURPOSE for each employee
- How to create goals/kpi’s for all staff members
- How transparency can motivate performance
- Rewarding and Recognition of employees
- Creating your Management Scorecard/Dashboard
... And More!
Includes five weeks of webinar classes with related handouts, assignments, and “office hours” with the instructor.
ITSP University Certification:
Meets Certification Requirements for:
- Management
- Service Manager
This class will be recorded. Each unit is generally posted within 24 hours of the live class. These recorded units will become the On-Demand class and you’ll have lifetime access to it.
Class Content
Unit 1 How to connect your entire team to your vision, mission, and goals
Unit 2 How to deal with conflict and overcome gossip in the workplace
Unit 3 How to motivate your employees so they want to come to work everyday
Unit 4 How to hold employees accountable while making work fun
Unit 5 How to attract A-Player recruits, while making sure you have the Right Employees in the Right Seats
Note: * Members of the Small Biz Thoughts Technology Community attend at no additional charge. See details in the Community
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All the Resources That Are Fit to Print |
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Recent Blog Posts, Podcasts, and Videos |
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Small Biz Thoughts Blog:
SMB Community Podcast - New episodes drop every Thursday
The Killing IT Podcast - New episodes drop every Tuesday
National Society of IT Service Providers News Blog
Relax Focus Succeed:
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Selected Recent Videos and Webinars:
Our YouTube IT Consulting channel now has more than 640,000 views!
Subscribe today and don't miss a thing!
A quick guide to my Playlists:
- Total: Over 880 videos on the Small Biz Thoughts channel
- 350+ SOP videos
- 265+ Relax Focus Success videos
Plus . . .
- Training, Courses, Seminars on Managed Services
- Product Reviews
- and more
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Community News
SmallBizThoughts.org
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New Members:
We meet every Thursday at 9:00 AM Pacific on Zoom. Join us. The link is at the top of your Dashboard.
ALL Members: Please engage us and get maximum value from your membership!
Here are three big tips for 2023 - besides accessing the thousands of downloads at SmallBizThoughts.org! |
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First - Take Classes at IT Service Provider University!
Your membership includes ALL the courses at ITSPU. Right now, that's twenty 5-week courses! We offer ten of them live every year. All of them are available on demand. And we have programs to allow your staff to attend as well.
PLUS, we're adding three new courses during 2023! The first of these - on Management and Leadership, with Coach James Kernan - Starts next month. Sign up now for FREE!
Grab your discount code in the Community and then head over to ITSPU.com to register today.
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Second - Grab Your Discounts
Once you log into the Community, you'll see a dollars sign next to your name: $.
Click it to find your discounts.
In addition to the discount for Harry's event above, you'll find discounts for
- All of our 5-week courses
- Constant Contact
- The SMB Online Conference
- Karl's Bookstore
- Bigger Brains
- Cheeky Sales Coach
- etc.
Grab your discounts today!
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I was looking for a profile background picture for one of my sites and decided on this one.
It's from Patong Beach (Phuket, Thailand) from last November. And it's a sunny picture on a winter day!
:-)
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What's Here?
This calendar lists two kinds of things: LIVE in-person events from any organization that focuses on the SMB consulting community; and MY events, whether live, webinar, etc.
If you have live events on your calendar that may be useful to others in the SMB Community, please let us know. We'd be happy to list them.
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January
CyberTech Global Tel Aviv
Jan. 30-Feb 1, 2023
Tel Aviv, Israel
:-)
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February
ChannelPro Summit
Feb. 1-2
Dallas (Southwest)
Zero Trustworld 23
Feb. 1-3, 2023
ChampnionsGate, FL
Cisco Live!
Feb 6-10, 2023
Amsterdam
SMB TechFest
Feb. 9-10, 2023
Southern California
MSPExpo
Feb 14-17, 2022
Fort Lauderdale, FL
IOTSSA Cybersecurity Conference and Expo
Feb 15-16, 2023
Phoeniz, AZ
MSP Rescue
Feb 17
Chicago, IL
ASCII Edge 2023
February 22 & 23
Newport Beach, CA
MWC Barcelona 2023
Feb 27-March 2, 2023
Barcelona, Spain
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March
XChange March 2023
March 5-7, 2023
Orlando, FL
More info: https://event.thechannelco.com/xchange-march
ChannelPro Summit
Mar. 8-9
Dulles, VA (Mid-Atlantic)
CloudExpo Europe
March 8-9, 2023
London, UK
Gartner CIO Leadership Forum
March 14-15, 2023
Londong, UK
IT Nation 2023
March 20-22, 2023
London, England
Cloudfest
March 21-23, 2023
Europa-Park, Germany
ASCII Edge 2023
March 22 & 23
Atlanta, GA
James Kernan's Millionaire Mastermind Quarterly
March 30-31
Orlando, FL
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April
ItaliaSec: IT Security Conference
April 4-5, 2023
Rome, Italy
The IT Sales And Marketing Boot Camp
April 11-14, 2023
Nashville, TN
HIMSS
April 17-21
Chicago, IL
ASCII Edge 2023
April 19 & 20
Dallas, TX
CyberSecurity Expo
April 20, 2023
Bristol, UK
Connect IT Global
April 24-27, 2023
Las Vegas, NV
RSA Conference
Apr. 24-27, 2023
San Francisco, CA
TECHSPO New York
Apr 27-28, 2023
New York City, NY
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May
ChannelPro Summit
May 9-10
Chicago (Midwest)
2023 SMB Online Conference!
May 17-18
Zoom
Online - Stay Tuned for Details - but mark your calendar now.
Join Me Live Online!
ASCII Edge 2023
May 24 & 25
Newark, NJ
:-)
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June
Cisco Live!
June 4-8, 2023
Las Vegas, NV
IT Nation Secure
June 5-7, 2023
Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center
Orlando, FL
ChannelPro Summit
June 7-8
San Jose, CA (West Coast)
Infosecurity Europe
June 20-22, 2023
London, England
ASCII Edge 2023
June 21 & 22
Tampa, FL
James Kernan's Millionaire Mastermind Quarterly
June 29-30
Denver, CO
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July
ChannelPro Summit
Aug. 9-10
Newark, NJ (Northeast)
ASCII Edge 2023
July 12 & 13
Columbus, OH
CyberSecurity Expo
July 13, 2023
Manchester, UK
:-)
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August
ASCII Edge 2023
August 30 & 31
Toronto, Canada
:-)
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September
ChannelPro Summit
Sept. 6-7
Boston (New England)
ASCII Edge 2023
September 20 & 21
Chicago, IL
James Kernan's Millionaire Mastermind Quarterly
Sept 28-29
Omaha, NE
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October
ChannelPro Summit
Oct. 10-11
Atlanta (Southeast)
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit 2023
Oct. 16-18
Miami, FL
ASCII Edge 2023
October 18 & 19
Washington, D.C.
dattoCon 2023
Oct. 2-4, 2023
Miami, FL
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November
Send me your events !!!
:-)
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December
James Kernan's Millionaire Mastermind Quarterly
Dec 7-8
Phoenix, AZ
:-)
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Note: If you know of any in-person event for SMB Consultants, please send info to karlp@greatlittlebook.com. |
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Small Biz Thoughts is a subsidiary of Great Little Book Publishing Co., Inc. |
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