October 2013
Strategies for Success Newsletter October 2013 Issue 94
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Published by Emily Huling Selling Strategies
www.sellingstrategies.com
Copyright 2013 Emily Huling. All rights reserved.
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In this October 2013 issue:
Thoughts from the road
Josmo’s Café
Did you know…?
Stay Energized!
Emily Live
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1. Thoughts from the road
Employee commitment is transparent
The beautiful Baltic Sea was our vacation destination in late August. It was a fabulous trip with seven ports of call. Three memorable experiences were touring Buckingham Palace, witnessing the changing of the guards on horseback in Stockholm, and exploring the palaces in St. Petersburg. John has posted some of our pictures on the website if you’re interested.
Our Elite status on Celebrity Cruises permitted us to take a backstage tour of the Eclipse Theater. Our guides for the tour were three production cast performers. Before we took the physical tour of how they swing from the rafters, move the stage, and change costumes in 30 seconds or less, we were able to ask questions. A question that came early on was this, “How did you come to be a cruise ship entertainer?” Here are the revealing answers we heard.
The talented lead singer, a young woman from Fairfield, Ohio of all places, said “I figured the experience would look good on my resume. After my nine-month contract is up, I’m heading back to the states to do theater work.” A young female Romanian dancer was definitely more enthusiastic when she said, “What a great opportunity to see the world and gain experience! I’m signing up for another contract.” The last performer from Germany, an old man by acrobatic standards at 39, was a lifer in his profession. He said his parents are dancers and he dreads the day he has to hang up the trapeze and rings. When he does, he’ll probably teach. He has been performing on cruise ships for 20 years.
Over dinner that evening, our traveling friends from Toronto, Richard and Susan, and John and I all commented how interesting it was to be half-way around the world and find people with the same attitudes about work we find at home. Some just show up waiting for something better, some enjoy the work and use it as an opportunity to grow and advance and some are absolutely passionate about what they do.
There is one more thing the four of us agreed on. We saw these performers on stage three times. Each of their attitudes was clearly evident in their performances. In fact, after the first show, we commented how disappointing it was to have a great lead singer who didn’t want to be there! She didn’t need to tell us!
Moral of the story: If you think your attitude about your job doesn’t show through, think again.
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2. Josmo’s Café
Two recipes to share with you this month…
We’re wrapping up summer in the south this month. Here’s one more potato salad recipe to add to your collection. Warm Dijon Potato Salad. I like it because it’s a little sharp and adds flavor to a basic main dish. John and I eat a lot of grilled chicken!
Seems like more of our friends and neighbors have fig trees. I love homemade fig jam, but I’m not so keen on the traditional jam-making process. Here’s an easy and delicious Spicy Fig Orange Microwave Jam I found on Simply Recipes. To make it even easier if you plan to eat it right away, just put the jam in regular clean jars and refrigerate.
For almost seven years, Josmo’s Cafe has been a joy for John and me! Learn the history and try the famous Josmo’s Cosmo cocktail posted on the Josmo’s Café webpage.
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3. Did you know…?
Go Green – Ditch the Yellow Pages!
I love getting Steve Anderson’s weekly TechTips! Steve is the go-to person about insurance industry technology and productivity. As an info junkie, he always shares news you can use! Here’s one tip I know will be of interest to you.
It is possible to stop getting paper yellow pages! The phone directory opt-out site was created by Yellow Pages Association, the trade organization that represents the publishers of phonebooks in the United States, signaling an acknowledgement that printing and distributing paper phonebooks to every household is no longer a sustainable practice.
To opt out of receiving the phonebook at your door, go to YellowPagesOptOut.com and register. The registration process requires you to enter your address and phone number, but a note on the page promises that this information won’t be used for any purpose other than to opt out.
Once registered, you’ll receive an email with your auto-generated password, which you can then use to log into the site. From there, you can select which phonebooks you would like to receive (wishful thinking on their part?) or click the gray “Opt Out of All” button in the lower left and then click “Save Changes.” After opting out, you’ll get a confirmation email listing the phonebooks you’ll be receiving in the future, if any. I just completed this easy process and received immediate confirmation e-mails.
If you don’t use phonebooks, opt out today — and help save a few trees!
If you want to learn more about Steve’s offerings and sign up for his weekly TechTips, visit steveanderson.com.
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New this month on the website – 17 Terrific Telephone Tips (add link) Use them as a customer service topic at your next office meeting!
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4. Stay Energized!
October Energizer Minute – Protect Your Brand. Get supercharged with Energizer Minutes – one-to-two minute audio stories told by yours truly to energize, invigorate, and inspire!
Follow me on Twitter @EmilyHuling to read my weekday Energizer Moments.
Receive your complimentary copy of the priceless 2012 Energizer Minute Collection plus 27 Quick Tips for Business Success when you order $50 worth of books and audio programs.
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Selling Strategies’ purpose is to build top-performing sales, service, and leadership organizations. We offer insurance industry expertise to companies, agents, and MGAs to accomplish culture change, strategic planning and implementation, business development, improving customer experience, and leadership and management development and coaching.
To learn more, visit www.sellingstrategies.com or call me at 888-309-8802.
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Planning your 2014 meetings and events yet? 2014 Speaking Topic List now available!
Many of my clients are starting extra early this year to contract with the best speakers and venues.
Based on client, meeting planner, and participant requests, I’ve developed several new compelling people development and business-building programs for association events, employee meetings, MGA and carrier-sponsored meetings. Click Here for a complete list of speaking topics and information on fees and CE credits.
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5. Emily Live
Please get in touch if you want to connect when I’m in your area or if you’re interested in a similar program for your organization.
Professional Independent Insurance Agents of Colorado Annual Convention – Deliver Service That Sells and Protects and Kick Your “But” – Denver, CO – October 2-3, 2013
Private client – Organic Growth – The Process and Practices of Sustained Success – Greensboro, NC – November 4-5, 2013
Independent Insurance Agents of Kentucky Annual Convention – Louisville, KY – A Marketing Plan: Your Roadmap to Success – November 8, 2013
Private client – How to Become the Agent of Choice – Atlanta, GA – November 19-20, 2013
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Selling Strategies: Strategies for Success Newsletter is published by Emily Huling Selling Strategies. For further information contact emily@sellingstrategies.com.
© 2013 Emily Huling. All rights reserved.