"Fireworks! I love the fireworks. Watching them always makes me feel like a kid."

"One of my favorite stories is about a fireworks show gone wrong. I used to be in a service club called the Jaycees. Many local Jaycee chapters put on the fireworks show, particularly those in small towns. I heard about one chapter’s show, in particular. One year, at the beginning of the show … not more than a few fireworks in … they lit one that misfired. It hit the pile of all the remaining fireworks! BOOM! An amazing display … but their whole show was over in less than a minute!"

Nothing like having your grand finale at the beginning!

There is an art (and some luck) to putting on a good fireworks show. As we were talking about this, we thought it was interesting how it relates to storytelling.

The start

It kicks off with a little burst that grabs your attention right away. Then you get into the flow. There’s a certain rhythm to the fireworks, often synchronized with music. The rhythm changes throughout the show. At times, they’re firing off quickly; at other times … a    little     more     slowly.

When you tell a story, start with an attention grabber and then get going. Vary your pace with the action of your story. Talk faster to imply that things are developing faster or slow down when it’s called for. Make your timing fit your story.

The pseudo-finale

Usually you’ll see a pseudo-finale about half way through the show. They give you a taste of what the grand finale will be like. 

"Sometimes it’s so good that you think it is the finale! You get bummed that it’s almost over."

As you tell your story, depending on its length, think about how you can get them to anticipate the climax as you near the middle. This will keep them engaged and wanting more!

The grand finale

This is what everyone’s been waiting for. It’s almost sensory overload with so much going on at once – the sound, the sights, the colors exploding in the sky … one right after the other, sometimes on top of each other.

"You feel your heart start pounding faster … that rush of adrenaline. You’re in awe and you don’t want it to end."

"You don’t want your story to be like the Jaycees’ fireworks show I mentioned earlier. You want it to build, and build, and build …to your final line - the point of your story. You want your audience on the proverbial edge of their seats. Leave them wanting more … realizing why they should listen to you."

5 additional ways to get the most bang out of your next presentation

It’s unlikely that you would use all of these in a single presentation. However, variety virtually guarantees a better response from your audience.

• Start or end with a good joke. People love to laugh. It gets them fired up!

• Think more graphics, less text. It gives your message more pop!

• Blend video in. It gives you a break and can get your audience to react.

• Have a running theme – a key word or phrase – that you keep coming back to. This provides a little spark throughout your presentation.

• Finally, use sound effects.

"In case you haven’t heard our show today, listen in to see how we used sound effects to make it more fun. At least we think it is!"

Keep in mind … you’ll get the biggest bang if you mix it up!

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One of the first things to look at is what they’re promising you. Specifically …

Do they make earnings claims?

"Many offers will tout how much you can make. Legitimate operators will do one of two things: they won’t make any claim at all, or … they will tell you both the number and percentage of people who actually earn what they’re claiming. In my experience, they’re more likely to not make any claim at all."

Some real world examples

"I did a search for “home based business opportunities.” I saw six on my screen without scrolling down. Of those six, five made an earnings claim. I saw claims like “$250 thousand or more at home”, “$500 to $8,000 per month”, and $30 to $150 thousand in 12 months”. Then I looked at the most regulated business opportunities – franchises. I typed in “franchise opportunities”. One out of the four franchise opportunities made an earnings claim and it was also one of the home-based business opportunities!"

We’re not saying that being a franchise automatically makes it a legitimate opportunity. Nor are we saying that just because it’s not a franchise means it’s a scam. But from these examples, you do see differences in behaviors of companies that are more regulated and those that are not.

Do they stand behind their own claims?

"I went to the site of one of the home-based business opportunities. This was the one that claimed you could make $250 thousand. I scrolled way, way, down to the bottom of the page and clicked on the tiny, little link that said 'Earnings Disclaimer'."

"Mary-Lynn printed it out. It was in ALL CAPS. Unlike the small font used for the Earnings Disclaimer, this was in 13.5 point type. They’re covering their you-know-what."

Here are some highlights …

“ANY EARNINGS OR INCOME STATEMENTS,  OR EARNINGS OR INCOME EXAMPLES, ARE ONLY ESTIMATES OF WHAT WE THINK YOU COULD EARN.”

“ANY AND ALL CLAIMS OR REPRESENTATIONS, AS TO INCOME EARNINGS … ARE NOT TO BE CONSIDERED AS AVERAGE EARNINGS. TESTIMONIALS ARE NOT REPRESENTATIVE.”

And our favorite part …

“WE DO NOT GUARANTEE OR IMPLY THAT YOU WILL … GET RICH, THAT YOU WILL DO AS WELL, OR MAKE ANY MONEY AT ALL. THERE IS NO ASSURANCE YOU'LL DO AS WELL.  IF YOU RELY UPON OUR FIGURES; YOU MUST ACCEPT THE RISK OF NOT DOING AS WELL.”

We’re NOT (sorry, we got used to seeing ALL CAPS) saying this particular example is a scam, but you would definitely want more information before proceeding.

The thing about earnings claims, at least here in the U.S., is they are required by law to disclose both the number of people and the percentage of people who are earning any amount they quote you.

So don’t be afraid to ask for documented proof of any claim. Then check out our article that describes your next steps are when investigating a business opportunity.

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We were eating!

That’s why today’s show topic is really … I can’t believe I ate that whole thing! Plop … plop … fizz … fizz!

Mary-Lynn recalled …
We were at a family diner. I started reminiscing about when I was a kid. There was this restaurant that we would go to when we went to visit my grandma. It was called the Hen House. The outside looked like a big red barn. The inside had a country décor and a fun little gift shop that my sister and I would always visit after eating. They had games and books and candy …

George added …
We’re showing our roots here. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it (which is likely most of you), the Hen House was a Midwestern chain. Sort of a smaller version of Cracker Barrel.

I have a book by William Dooner, the guy who started the Hen House chain. And to me, the most memorable thing from his book is when he talks about the purple tree in the forest.

Hence the subject of today’s show!

The Purple Tree

Dooner says to picture yourself walking through a lush green forest. In the middle of it, you come upon a tree that is painted purple. You keep walking, but you can’t get that purple tree out of your mind. Most likely, your impression is negative … because it doesn’t fit. Why someone would paint that tree that color?

Mary-Lynn …
When I heard this story, I wondered if this is where Seth Godin got his idea for The Purple Cow. Because I’d never heard this purple tree story before, but I’d definitely heard of the purple cow.

We can’t speak to Seth Godin’s inspiration, but they are different concepts. William Dooner said to look for something that stands out because it doesn’t fit. It probably leaves a negative impression. Seth Godin encouraged us to purposefully not fit in so that we stand out. By doing that, we make a positive impression.  

In either case, purple tree or purple cow, you remember it.

So, as it applies to real estate, the purple tree in the forest means properties that may be run-down, out-of-the-way, unused, underused … that sort of thing. What Dooner did with the Hen House chain is a perfect example (see, we’re about to make it all fit … you were starting to doubt us, weren’t you?).

The $10 million purple tree

He saw this vacant land next to gas stations along the interstate. It was ugly, smelly, littered with junk, no landscaping. A purple tree. 

This land had never been used commercially. At that point in time, there often wasn’t any place to eat when you stopped to fill up with gas. So Dooner had a bigg idea – he invested $15 thousand to start a restaurant chain on that unwanted and unused land. He later sold that chain for $10 million!

Beyond real estate

We highly recommend Dooner’s book. It’s called How to Go from Rags to Riches in Real Estate. It’s a must read if you’re interested in real estate investing, but this purple tree concept goes beyond that.

Think about customers nobody wants to serve, employees nobody wants to hire, jobs nobody wants to do. Maybe one of those is your purple tree! So look around today … where do you see purple trees?

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George said  …
I never talked about this for years. I thought it was just me. Then I got up the nerve and mentioned it to my sister, who also owns businesses.

But it’s something I think a lot of entrepreneurs don’t talk about.

Mary-Lynn added  …
With Bigg Success, I’m experiencing business ownership for the first time. And I feel like I’m on a roller coaster. There are days where I feel exhilaration from the ride and there are days when I feel sheer terror and want to get off the ride.

Entrepreneurial terror

If you’ve never experienced it, count yourself lucky, but most people in business have.

You can feel terrified at times even with a job. You may fear you’re going to lose yours when you see other people’s jobs getting cut. But it’s still different for business owners.

George …
I remember one of the guest speakers for my class who talked about the number of mouths he had to feed now. A lot of the most successful business owners I know take personal responsibility for their people. They don’t look at just putting bread on their table; they worry about their employees as well.

That can keep you up at night!

Inc. published an article (way back in February 1987) called Entrepreneurial Terror. A portion of it has been republished on Wachovia’s Small Business site.

It was written by Wilson Harrell, a serial entrepreneur and author of For Entrepreneurs Only. He said:

This company doesn’t love misery

He says that you shouldn’t share your lows with your friends and loved ones, because you’ll just pass the worry on to them. Unless they’re your partner in business.

He adds that you should always share your highs, though.

How highs turn to lows

The way you spend your time and money when you’re on a high often has a lot to do with how low you go. Let’s look at two examples:

• Too busy for marketing
  When you’re so busy, you may even be running at capacity, and you know your business couldn’t crank out any more volume no matter how much you wanted to. So you slow down – or even stop – your marketing efforts.

  George …
  I’ve done this! It’s easy to do – there’s no time! But that insures the next down cycle because you’re not doing those things that you did to get to the up cycle.

• Being careless with money
  A lot of times cash flow is at its peak during an up cycle. That’s part of the reason you’re on an emotional high. So you make that major expenditure. Or you add to your overhead. The next thing you know you’re on a low because business and cash flow have slowed down and you have little or no cash reserves.

You may not be able to avoid the highs and lows. What you can do is conduct business so that your lows are higher … and your highs are higher!

It may not feel any different, but you know it is. You’re reaching ever higher levels of success! Now that’s bigg success!

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Networking vs. Networlding

We asked Melissa for her best networking tip. She says not to think of it as networking, but think of it as networlding, which is the title of one of her books. Networlding expands opportunities rather than limiting them.

As a networker, you might set a goal of meeting two people. If you’re a networlder, you would set a goal of meeting two people who you can form a long-term relationship with and build opportunities for you, for them, and for the greater good.

The “overstuffed Rolodex syndrome”

Many people confuse activity with accomplishment. You leverage your network by thinking about who would be good connections for you. Start with people who have complementary values. With the online world, you can have quality and quantity by being specific about what you ask for to create a vibrant exchange.

7 levels of support

Networking isn’t about taking. It’s also not about just giving. You can support people:  

• Emotionally

• By providing information

• By providing knowledge (information plus experiences)

• By promoting them

• Through wisdom sharing (the 20 percent that will yield 80 percent)

• By creating transformational opportunities

• Community (creating the greatest good for the greatest number)

Links to Melissa’s sites

networlding2.org
This is Melissa’s most interactive community. The goal is for members to support each other in achieving their respective goals. You can create your own profile and build your own private circle around your special interest.

Networlding E-Learning
Here you’ll get six FREE lessons on networking for business and sales or networking for jobs.

Melissa will also help you with writing a book. If you’re really serious about it, contact her.

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