Tag: Beth Montpas

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Slow Down to Speed Up

slow your mind

The constant influx of emails, social media, and staying afloat is exhausting. Slow your mind and you’ll reap the the benefits in all aspects of your life and business.

Stillness, Silence, and Space

When you don’t make the time to sit with yourself, your mind becomes a small, studio-sized apartment. But when you make the space to sit with your own stillness, your mind transforms into a home, with room to bring others in. Special thanks to meditation teacher, David Nichtern, for introducing this concept to me (and it’s one I think about often).

When you sit with yourself, you realize you had a mentor with you all along. Nobody knows what you need better than yourself. Listen to this mentor, and go one step further by asking your future self the business decisions you’ve been struggling with. When you sit with these questions you’ll find the guidance you’re searching for.

Before you sit, consider some beliefs that might be limiting you. These may include:

  1. There is only one way to grow a business.
  2. Everything has to be perfect.
  3. Excessive effort is required.
  4. You aren’t smart, you don’t work hard, there is no hope.

You already know these aren’t true, but sometimes it takes sitting to really believe them. If you need more guidance on how to sit in stillness, there are a plethora of free resources available on YouTube.

Inspiration for this post comes from “Listen to Your Authentic Inner Voice” by Beth Montpas published in the February 2023 issue of Creative Retailer.

If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to Creative Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you. And don’t forget, you can always purchase single issues if you prefer that instead.

If you still can’t get enough, register for the Creative Retailer LIVE Spring 2023 event May 2-4 in Pawhuska, Oklahoma for opportunities to learn from peers and network with industry professionals.

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Implementing Your Goals

Annual goals

In honor of this past week’s AQR Academy session, we’re covering how to implement your goals.

Step 1: Create Yearly Goals

Start by defining five big goals. Some examples include increasing sales by a certain percentage, gaining new online qualified leads, upgrading technology, etc.

Although defining these goals might not be easy, they should be simple. By that we mean if you can’t write down your goals on a napkin, you have too many to feasibly accomplish.

Step 2: Define Quarterly Benchmarks

The next step is to create an action plan. Start by breaking down these goals into metrics. At the end of each quarter, what sort of growth would you like to see as progress to accomplishing your end result?

Step 3: Weekly and Daily Tasks

Now comes the mundane part. After setting quarterly metrics, break down what needs to happen each week, then each day, to get to these metrics. A good goal to have is 15 tasks a week, or 3 tasks a day.

How does this help? By setting aside the time to define what forward movement looks like, you can get right into the difficult work knowing that it’s moving you towards your yearly goal.

Be Flexible and Stay Motivated

This structure is a great place to start, but don’t be too hard on yourself. Flexibility is a good thing and some weeks certain tasks are going to slide—and that’s ok!

Keep in mind what sorts of activities help to keep you on track. Whether that be daily exercise or silent time to yourself, those goals are just as important to schedule into your days and weeks.

Inspiration for this week’s blog comes from “Implement Your Goals” by Beth Montpas published in the April 2022 issue of American Quilt Retailer.

If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you. And don’t forget, you can always purchase single issues if you prefer that instead.

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Optimize Your Website: Part Two

Website design

Last week we established website goals—including informing your customers and increasing revenue—as well as where to start. During part two of “Optimize Your Website” we’ll cover how to accomplish those two goals.

Inform your Customers

Customers come to your website for information. Feature what makes your business unique and what you do best. Further, on each page, ask yourself “What do I want my customer to do after visiting this page?”

That’s when your call-to-action comes in. Each page on your site should include a clear and concise call to action to encourage your customers to stay engaged. This can be as simple as: Shop Now, View All, or Sign Up.

Increase Revenue with Website Design

There are multiple ways your website can help you increase revenue. The first is through your website’s design.

The first piece of advice is to keep it simple. First, this makes information easier to find. Second, a simple website is easier to maintain. If a customer has to click on your site more than three times to find information they need, your design needs to be simpler.

Another way to have simple design is through maintaining branding. Colors should be similar to your brand, and images should be clear and clutter-free as well.

Other design pieces to keep in mind is your navigation. Navigation tabs should be organized from most-to-least important.

Another way to increase revenue is through conversation. Integrated communication tools help you answer Frequently Asked Questions at any time of the day.

And of course, your website should be responsive, meaning it should accommodate every device including phones, tablets, and computers.

Last but not least, include a search bar so information is even easier for the end user to access.

Inspiration for this post came from “Increase Your Website’s Value” by Brad Tanner of Rain Retail Software and was published in the April 2022 issue of American Quilt Retailer.

AQR Academy

One last thing before we go! The May AQR Academy workshop is right around the corner on Wednesday, May 4 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. CST. The event will be hosted by Beth Montpas, Lifestyle Coach, and the topic is Goal Setting – Setting Yourself Up for Success where she’ll cover how to both set your goals up and make them happen.

If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you. And don’t forget, you can always purchase single issues if you prefer that instead.

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Personality Styles

personality types

Knowing your personality will help you play to your strengths (and recognize your weaknesses). Take the quiz to find out what style you are, and how you can apply that knowledge at work.

Personality quiz:

  1. Are you outgoing (quick to take action) or reserved (cautious)?
  2. Are you task-oriented (live and die by to-do lists) or people-oriented (tasks can wait for how someone is feeling)?

If you answered outgoing and task-oriented, you’re a driver.

If you answered outgoing and people-oriented, you’re a promoter.

If you answered reserved and task-oriented, you’re an analyzer.

If you answered reserved and people-oriented, you’re a supporter.

Traits and Downfalls

So what does this all mean?

  • Drivers are strong, aggressive, results-oriented, natural leaders. They’re powerful, impatient, determined, competitive and very-independent. They can also be stubborn, bossy, arrogant, cold, and willing to sacrifice relationships for money.
  • Promoters are creative, charismatic, risk-taking, fun, spontaneous cheerleaders. They can also be irresponsible, superficial, cocky, and bad with deadlines.
  • Analyzers are disciplined, precise, rigorous, loyal, responsible, and precise. They can also come across as emotionally disconnected, robotic, hold themselves back, and get stuck in analysis paralysis.
  • Supporters are committed, sweet, flexible, sensitive, empathetic, open, and loving. However, they also come across as sacrificial, dormant, insecure, invisible, or sad.

Knowing this can help you play to your strengths and recognize areas you can improve. Also note your employees personality types, and be sure to cater your meetings to how they work best.

Inspiration for this post came from “Know Yourself” by Beth Montpas published in the October 2021 issue of American Quilt Retailer.

One last thing before we go! The latest products, techniques, and information to launch you into 2022, The Buzz, is still available for just $12.95. You’ll receive 15 30-minute informative videos on the latest products and how to showcase it in your store. You’ll also receive an awesome swag “bag” box (while supplies last).

If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you. And don’t forget, you can always purchase single issues if you prefer that instead.

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No-Stress Notifications

notifications

Some days, technology feels like an added stress. If clearing out notifications is a trigger for you, check out these tips to manage that sense of urgency.

Turn off notifications

The best way to stay on task is to turn off notifications. If you have a schedule and stick to it, you don’t need to know every time a new email comes in or someone likes your photo.

If sticking to a schedule seems daunting at first, limit yourself to checking email and social media to every 15 minutes. Once that becomes easy, move it back to every 30 minutes, 45 minutes, and eventually to every hour.

Another healthy habit to get into is keeping devices away from your bed. Many of us are spending more time at home, and healthy boundaries are more important to keep than ever. Bedrooms are for sleeping, living rooms are for living, and the office is for working. Sticking to these rules and your life will improve in more ways than one.

Declutter

Sometimes apps that take us away from the task at hand. Clean out your apps periodically. Delete apps you don’t use anymore, but also consider deleting apps that are available online (Facebook, Pinterest, etc).

One great way to limit how often you pick up your phone is to invest in a smart speaker. This way you can set a timer, listen to podcast, or stream music without getting pulled into a phone blackhole.

Inspiration for this post came from “Digital Decluttering” by Beth Montpas published in the October 2020 issue of American Quilt Retailer.

If you’re looking for more information to guide you in owning a retail business, subscribe to American Quilt Retailer today. Already a subscriber? No worries—join our Facebook group for insights and dialogue from industry specialists like you.