It is Friday and I have had quite a week.  Long hours, moments of joy and sadness…and I loved every minute of it.  I have hit hyper speed in my personal journey…yes, I do have my seat belt on

I thought it would be fun to get some facts from a business that is all about being different and providing its customers with a great shopping experience…

lululemon athletica

You can read more about this company by visiting www.lululemon.com as I don’t want to take a long time to make an intro here.

I visited this store on my trip to Boston back in September.  I have to say it was quite the experience.  Everyone there was ALL ABOUT the clients.  If you are ever in a town where there is a retail store you should stop by.  Rumor has it, the Milwaukee “sstore front” will become a full fledged shop so you can visit it locally!

Here are 3 takeaways with some HUGE lessons:

1.  The company refers to its “store clerks” as Educators.  This is a big positioning shift.  These individuals are now valuable versus being a pain in the butt (“Can I help you find something?” – you know the typical drill).  How do you refer to yourself and your support team?

2.  Lululemon’s brand personality has …

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I recall the first time I met with a client of mine after she was a guest at one of the monthly business meetings back in 2008. The focus was how to grow her fitness business that was in its early stages.

As per the usual the brain storming session resulted in more ideas than time would allow, but that shows the immense possibilities that lie within a business. The most important opportunity came after I asked her two questions…

What is your closing percentage and what is your closing script?

After watching her just one time I was able to fix the real problem, which wasn’t needing more leads, it was how to offer her services and the structure of her pricing.

After a number of months testing the pricing and the offer it is now completely rock solid. This also is a lesson in testing, written about here as bonus.

My point is, try to take a step back and see if there is another way of looking at a challenge you are facing. Get someone else to look at it and give you feedback.

It’s all about perspective. This one idea could change a big challenge in your business to a huge opportunity. Try it out. You may just like it!

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I recently started to read a new book titled “Walking the Dead,” by John Eldredge (The Glory of a Heart Fully Alive), as I have been led to it as I go through a time in my business and personal life in which I need direction and answers.  I ran across a quote that John references from Leif Enger:

“We and the world , my children, will always be at war.  Retreat is impossible.  Arm yourselves.”

Life is tough.  Business is tough.  All of us set out to accomplish certain things in life and business.  Some we achieve and some we don’t.  The question is what, of all that we do, really matters?  This is a question that has been running through my head for the last month or so.

I have sought counsel from some brilliant people that have influence in my life to help me with this daunting question.  I have prayed about it and seek guidance from God.  I spend time reflecting and thinking about my journey.  I in return am asking for clarity and confidence.

I am at a huge crossroads on some decisions I need to make in my life.  Major decisions.  Decisions that will effect my future, my happiness and my peace of mind.

You may be wondering why I am sending you this email.  I wrote this today because I want you to know that we are “at war” …

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I thought it would be a good time to write a quick story about having a premium product/service mindset.

I have been doing some updated research for a workshop I am doing on the topic of “Price,
Profit Power & Prosperity” and thought I would give you an example of the mentality that goes into carrying this
culture deep within the details and experience of what you are selling…

Audi (the car manufacturer) has teams to make sure its cars please the senses so it oozes PREMIUM in every corner of its automobiles.

Audi has several teams that are in place to stimulate all the senses we have as human beings.

The one I found most intriguing was Audi’s “Touch Team” for Button Activation

Audi and psychologists studied the depth that buttons must be pushed in
order to FEEL “premium.”

The answer…4 to 6 millimeters. Any more or less SEEMS “cheap.”

That is just one of the many details Audi pays attention to in order to sell its cars at a premium price.

I tell you this story because I think it is important to pay attention to these details to make sure your customers have an experience that upholds premium pricing.

Take a step back this month and think of some of the “small” details that could enhance the experience your customers have with you.  It will be well worth your time.

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You may want to grab your favorite beverage here.  I promise it will be worth the moments you spend reading this…

*a forceful message and a long email – a wake-up call on your way to wealth*

After having a phone call about business and personal wealth philosophy with an individual that is outside of our group, the conversation led to me sharing my Piggy Bank Philosophy…

Realizing that I’ve never written about it before, I thought now’s as good a time as any.

Among other things, I have an overriding belief on the reason why Entrepreneurs work their businesses like ‘jobs’ instead of ‘investments’, accepting a ‘paycheck’ instead of a ‘return’, is not because they don’t want to get rich, but because they don’t know how.

Specifically, they don’t fully embrace the true goal of being an entrepreneur.

In a few seconds I will summarize this goal, in one very clear, simplified statement.

First, I want to make the point that, the reason we (and yes, that means me, I did for well over a decade) fall victim to this flawed thinking is because we have been conditioned by everything around us to think about business and money in a certain way.

Of course, this is our fault, responsibility can’t be pawned off to someone …

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I can remember as a little kid that I always had a really good reason why I wanted to go to the candy store, play ball at the park or stay out later than originally told by my Mom.  I conveyed this reason by telling my side of the story, in hopes of making my case as to why I should have what I truly wanted.  I didn’t win every time, but more often than not, my story was persuasive enough to be rewarded with what I asked for.

Why am I bringing up my childhood memories here?  I want you to remember what it was like to be a kid.  Remember what it was like to fight for what you wanted because you thought your life would be over if you couldn’t stay at your friend’s house for another 30 minutes or you didn’t get that pack of baseball cards because you knew it had the one card in it that you just had to have.  You fought for what you wanted.

Why should it be any different in business?  Your story sells.  People buy you just as much as they buy your product.  So, it is time to grab root from your childhood and remember what it was like to put your “pitch” in a way that was compelling for “Mom” to say “yes!”

There are some key components that you want to be aware of.

#1 – Your story cannot be …

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Doesn’t that headline sound much better than “A Penny for Your Thoughts?”  I would have to say too many business professionals are looking for “penny” ideas instead of seeking out ideas that can have a real impact on their business.

I can remember when I was a kid (I’m not that old so isn’t wasn’t that long ago) they had penny candies and penny gumball machines.  Those times are long gone.  That is when a penny had some value.

Today, we should be looking for the “Five Hundred Dollar” idea.  There is a reason so many businesses fall by the wayside when we go through tough times like we have for the past few years.

People are too busy worried about the little things that have nothing to do with their bottom line.  Thoughts that make them feel good that they are “busy” and can’t make that next sales call to find the next great opportunity that lies waiting for them.

I say, “Let’s think BIG!  If you aren’t interested in that then step aside as there are opportunities to conquer for those of us who are deep in the battle.”  There is a lack of “big thinking” out there anymore.   We are in this race anyways, why not leave it all on the track.  Why not go home with your head held high instead of sulking about the opportunities that didn’t come your …

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I was sitting at my kitchen table enjoying a steaming hot cup of coffee reading the latest edition of Fast Company (April ’11) magazine when I came across an interesting article titled, “The Kids Can Create” by Linda Tischler.

To summarize the article, middle schoolers were asked how they would redesign elements of the school experience like lockers, chairs, desks, etc.  The results were staggering.

The kids made comments about how the chairs were uncomfortable making them fidget around more often, their lockers were their “bedrooms” for the year so they wanted them to be more functional and personal, as well as, having a place on their chairs for their backpacks so they wouldn’t clutter the aisles.

When was the last time you were in eighth grade to know these challenges?  When was the last time you bought and used your own product or service?  Do you think it could be enhanced to meet the needs of today’s consumers?

One volunteer for this project did.  Jerry Helling, President of North Carolina based furniture company Bernhardt Design, found some amazing ways to enhance the design of school furniture and will be displaying prototypes of the middle schoolers’ concepts at an upcoming international expo.

Rinat Aruh, of New York industrial design studio Arulidan, said, “The kids had come up with some mind-blowing ideas.”

I am writing about this topic here because it is a reminder that sometimes you …

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A breakthrough in business can be as simple as figuring out what your can provide your clients that they will buy from you over and over again.  There is nothing better than having continuity in your business to have revenues you can count on while you are growing and expanding your customer base.

Let’s take the razor as an example.  We all know there is no way you can buy one razor and make it last for an extended period of time, unless of course you want to have razor burns everywhere.  That’s not something I am interested in.

So, whether you buy disposable razors or replacement razor heads a lot of people are buying one or the other.  This isn’t an item you buy once a year of once every five years.  The amount of disposable razor products bought each and every year is staggering.  I am sure the hardcore environmentalists cringe at the word razor.

To get to my point, this is a product that is used over and over on a regular basis creating ongoing sales and revenue for the companies that sell in this arena.

How can you add the “razor” component to your business?  Or, if you already have the ongoing revenue model in your business, how can you add another?

Finding new clients is far more costly than maintaining a relationship with your current clients and having them buy …

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First of all you are darn right it does… all the MONEY happens in Vegas, and whatever you bring with you, you can betcha, it’s staying there.

But why?

I’ll tell you right now, and I’m going to share with you some kick ass lessons I have learned over the years from my trips to this crazy city, just for you.

I was just talking to a friend of mine yesterday about his recent trip to Vegas for a “conference.”  (Don’t you just love how no one misses a conference when it is held in Vegas!)  We talked very little about the conference but talked about the gambling, 5 star restaurants and cool clubs that he found time in his busy “conference” schedule to be able to enjoy.  The stories were hilarious and brought me back to my last trip there.

While I was there, for the first time, I really enjoyed walking up and down the strip not doing any gambling or drinking, no big party time (I experienced those indulgences many times before) just highly focused attention to the “money grabbing” that goes on in that city.

Anyhow, I took in the sights and really had a great time.

Of course I know you expect me to come back with some “business lessons” where ever I go, and that’s exactly what I did.

For starters, let’s begin with the …

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