BIGG success is life on your own terms. Money is one of the five elements of BIGG success.

We gladly display our relationship status on Facebook. What if Money reported its relationship with you in the same way?

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But it doesn’t feel any sense of commitment. You play around, but Money soon departs to meet up with someone else.

So Money comes and Money goes.

Eventually, you meet up with Money that seems like it wants to hang out with you. This Money reports that you are In a Relationship.

It’s still new…you’re still getting used to having Money around. You’re still getting to know each other.

But at least this Money doesn’t run off with another person every chance it gets.

At some point, you and Money get Engaged. You make an initial commitment to each other.

You begin making preparations to make it all legal. You start to trust Money.

But then, Money calls it all off.

That’s when It’s Complicated. You’re not sure what happened.

Money seemed devoted to you and your future. But it got cold feet and ran off.

You know it’s not you; it’s Money. But you still wonder…what did you do wrong? If you examine the situation, you’ll realize that Money wasn’t giving you what you really needed.

Sure it was fun. You would go out. You would have a great time. But you weren’t building the foundation for a lasting relationship.

So you learn more about relationships with Money. As you discover how to maintain a healthy relationship, you and Money decide to get Married.

The wedding is an informal ceremony. Few people attended. Of course, there was a loved one or two. No minister was necessary.

Just your professional advisors. They were there to help you get what you want out of your relationship with Money.

You’ll want to check in with them from time to time, just to make sure you and your Money are fulfilling all your desires.

Everything is wonderful. You love Money. So much so, that you get possessive.

You don’t let Money out of the house. You try to save Money just for yourself.

But you feel empty. And Money isn’t at its best either. Money doesn’t do well holed up at home.

So you and Money come to an agreement. You will be In an Open Relationship.

You’re still committed to each other. Money wants to help you fulfill your heart’s desire. It likes to get out with you and explore the world.

But it also wants you to willingly share it with other people.

Money is a tool. And not the bad kind unless you turn it into that. Money can be a force for good. But it needs your help.

Money follows your lead. And a healthy relationship with it leads to BIGG success!

What is your relationship status with money?

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He stood at the bar, surrounded by people…yet all alone.

Music. Talk. Laughter. A blender. Noise. He was aware of them all but his thoughts were even louder.

Why did she leave me? Why doesn’t she love me anymore?

She used to be his biggest fan. She used to tell him so.

And she never stopped telling others how much she loved him. She said so…on Facebook and Twitter and in real life.

Listen to the audio version of this story. Click the player to hear it on The BIGG Success Show podcast.

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When they first got together, people said they were a perfect match. He looked out for her needs. He took care of her. His passion was visible to everyone.

But over time, he began to take her for granted. He thought she would always stick with him. She would always be a fan.

She would catch him looking at others. At first it was just a glance. But the glances showed more interest as time went by. He didn’t think she noticed; he was wrong.

She also noticed that he didn’t look out for her like he used to. He just didn’t seem to care as much.

The passion was gone. But she wondered if he still loved her.

He seemed more distant. It seemed like he found others more interesting than her.

It used to be just the opposite. No one was like her. He was devoted to her. But now it had come to this.

She couldn’t take it anymore. She left him.

She started buying from his competitor.

His competitor shows the same kind of passion for her that he used to show. She hopes this relationship lasts.

It’s complicated…but if it works out, she’ll talk about him on Facebook and Twitter and everywhere else she can.

Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file | podcast:
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The news has been full of storm clouds. Among other indicators, unemployment is rising. There is one thing you can do to face challenges like this with confidence – prepare for it in advance by keeping your options open. Here are four ways to do that:

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Visibility

Insure that people see you doing what you do best. Is your job "outbound" so you're clearly visible to customers? If so, capitalize on that relationship. Ask them for a brief note about working with you. It will come in handy at your next evaluation or if you need to look for other work.

If your job doesn't expose you to anyone outside your company, then work on your visibility. Get involved in your industry. Look for conferences you can attend. Participate in forums and comment on blog posts about your industry. You might even consider starting your own blog to show off your expertise. Volunteer to work for your favorite non-profit.

There are many ways to do it. Get started right away if you’re not already doing it. And then do a little maintenance – reach out in some way – every day.

Networking

It's amazing how many people land a new job through a referral. It's also amazing how much business results from our networks.

So why do so many of us pay so little attention to our network until we really need it?

Do you participate in local opportunities? Is your company a member of the Chamber of Commerce? If so, do you attend Chamber functions? Are you a member of any local service clubs? These are great real world opportunities to build your network.

Are you on LinkedIn? What about Facebook and Twitter? Have you joined any industry-specific social networking sites? The contacts you make through these sites will be valuable now. They may prove invaluable should you be forced to make a change.

How about combining the virtual with the real? Have you registered on Meetup to find out about local events of interest to you? You’ll meet some fantastic people while growing your network at the same time.

Marketing

It begins by positioning yourself. What makes you unique? How can you communicate that? What opportunities play to your core strengths?

Is your resume up-to-date? If not, there's no time like the present! For sample cover letters, resumes, job search and interviewing tips, check out Resume Help.

Building a Bridge Plan

What would you do if you were forced to change jobs? How would you pay your bills? Where would you look for a new job? Who would you contact for referrals? For what services would you pay? For example, would you hire a career coach?

As you prepare this plan, keep a couple of things in mind.

• You may spot some problems.
  That's why you're doing this now. For instance, at what point might you need to find some part-time work or freelance work to pay the bills?

• Allow for some recovery time.
  You're human. It will be emotional. But you'll feel much more confident having thought it through in advance. And you'll be able to keep your options open to find the right opportunity for you! That’s bigg success!

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Thanks for the gift of your time today.

Bigg success is life on your own terms. You are the entrepreneur of your own life. You can be taught some things about entrepreneuring; others you have to learn on your own. Please join us next time when we talk about which is which.

Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

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Related posts

Steer Your Way to Bigg Success

Becoming An Entrepreneurial Employee

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Let’s talk about social media strategy. Say you’re a small business owner. You don’t necessarily want to get on Facebook and have a Fan Page with only ten people. Would it be better to just be yourself on Facebook and tell people about your day, rather than setting up a Fan Page for your business?

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Yeah. I would say to first get accustomed to it. As a matter of fact, my Facebook Fan Page for the Marketing Doctor just started last week and I’ve been on Facebook for a year or two. I preferred my personal page where I described what I liked and disliked, linked to my blogs and things like that. You just have to take the first steps. Like anything else in life, once you overcome the inertia, magical things happen.

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We met you online, John. We met you through another good friend, Jim Bouchard, who we also met online. It’s amazing how powerful these tools are in placing every individual, every small business, close to par with large businesses.

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You could say that again! A small business is much more nimble to change. It’s the difference between a forty-foot sailboat and a multi-ton carrier trying to change course. If I could talk a little bit to the contact with Jim Bouchard, it was very serendipitous. I met his wife Alex on Facebook. She asked me to look at her husband’s web site and critique it. So I did, which was unique according to Alex. From that, Jim wrote back and thanked me. The point is that I didn’t think I was going to meet Jim through Alex. It was nothing like that. I was trying to assist. Through that assist, we’re here today. We never would have met if it weren’t for social media. It’s like going to a cocktail party but not leaving the house!

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Thanks John so much for sharing your wisdom with us.

We recommend that you get to know John better by checking out his site. He blogs, consults, speaks and offers great marketing tips for free in his online classroom.

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Thank you for reading our post today. Please join us next time when we’ll discuss making money multiply magically. Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

Subscribe to The Bigg Success Show in iTunes. 

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Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file:
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What's Hot in 2009: Questions

When Things Don't Go Your Way

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John, let’s say you have a brand and it’s not working. You need a brand-over. How would you do that if you’re an existing business?

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The first thing you have to do is reach out to your customers. This rebranding, or brand-over notion, comes from the marketing concept. It is not “build it and they will come” ala health care that’s being promoted. It’s find out what people want and give them what they want. For example, let’s say you have a car wash and you think hot wax is what everyone wants. But you’re not getting the number of people you want through your car wash. So you ask your customers, “Why aren’t you coming to my car wash?” They say, “It’s the hot wax. It interferes with my paint job.” Ah! What does that tell you? You shouldn’t be using hot wax, even though people in the business have told you that hot wax is great. Ask your customers. Stay in touch with them so you can give them what they want. How do you get somebody to like you? You tell them what they want to hear or give them what they want. That’s the secret.

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That’s how I got Mary-Lynn! Companies have kind of gotten this, John, although they don’t always deliver upon it. As individuals, isn’t it important to understand that a brand is a promise? We have to be careful about what we promise to be absolutely certain we can deliver it.

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Absolutely. There’s nothing worse than promising a consumer something you don’t deliver. I’ll give you an example of this. Many years ago, in the New York area, there was a beer called Peel’s Beer. Their advertising was so clever that it generated a lot of initial sales. The problem was nobody liked the beer. They promised a great beer but they didn’t deliver a great beer. Not a good thing.

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Maybe they should have positioned it as the beer you drink after you’ve had a few?

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There you go! Are you sure not in marketing?

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John, you always offer a “Tantillo Takeaway” on your blog. I’d say our takeaway with you today is “know your target market.”

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That’s always the secret. Who is your target market?

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You recently had a great post about institutional communication versus individual. The example you gave is that John McCain now has more followers on Twitter than the White House. So the individual has power with new media that institutions don’t have.

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That is correct. It’s driving the heck out of these Washington media types that the blogger, or the candidates themselves, can go directly to the voter. If we’ve learned anything today, it’s that the game has changed. You have to be on top of all the new social media. I’m 58 years old and I’m on Facebook with over 3,400 friends. I’m on Twitter and LinkedIn. I even went to my old high school web site and now I have a page there. The point is that you have to use every marketing tactic you can possibly use in today’s world. It’s funny. It’s the very reason President Obama became President Obama. He was sophisticated. Now, in the institution of the White House, maybe he feels that he has to move on or do things more traditionally.

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He’s also more edited now than he was before.

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No question about it.

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Let’s talk about small business owners. We hear all the time that they don’t have the time to get out there and utilize these new media tools. They don’t even know how to get started. What would your suggestion be to them?

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You have to do it. Enlist young people – high school students, college students home for break or friends of your own children. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time. To give you an example, I started Facebook about a year or two ago. I didn’t really do anything. Then I went down to my favorite place in the world – God’s waiting room – Miami Beach, Florida – at Christmas time. I’d picked up a book in the library, about how to market yourself on Facebook. It’s been an increasing positive function – how do you like that, George – in terms of Facebook friends ever since. I love it. And hey, if I can do it, anybody can do it. You have to make a little bit of time. It’s a good reason to go on a vacation where you don’t think about your business, but about yourself in terms of the business. It’s a little different. I’ve found it fun and exciting. You have to make it part of your day. It’s like doing cold call sales. Nobody likes to do it. But, at one point, when things aren’t moving, you just have to go and do it. You have to make time.

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Thanks so much for joining us today. Next time, we’ll wrap up our conversation about John. We’ll discuss social media marketing tips. Please join us! Until then, here’s to your bigg success!

Subscribe to The Bigg Success Show in iTunes. 

Subscribe to the Bigg Success feed.

Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file:
http://media.libsyn.com/media/biggsuccess/00474-090309.mp3

Related posts

What's Hot in 2009: Questions