I take a working holiday to warmer climates to escape the winter and to create focused time working on a project. This year I wrote the first draft of my second book Scale Your Sales, but then another surprise project materialised.
I spent six weeks in Morocco. I took my book outline, and within days of arriving I secured a local data SIM for internet access, drafted a work plan and started writing. My target was to write 1,500 words a day, but I was soon beating this target. The writing and research were going well all through Christmas and New Year celebrations.
I would wake and jog along the beach at sunrise, after breakfast, I sit down for the day to write, with a break on the balcony I would continue to work until my brain was completely fried. Dinner was at 7pm followed by a relaxing evening speaking to family and friends or watch movies.
Atlas mountains
The uninterrupted days were interspersed with massages, reading, visits to the Hammam, a tour of the Atlas mountains, a few socials with other tourists in local bars. You can see my many posts of this time on my Instagram channel.
I have enjoyed these working retreats for many years and would highly recommend it if you have the flexibility to make space in your life for an extended working holiday.
The benefit of a long retreat is the expanse of space for uninterrupted creative thinking. Creative thinking is simply the ability to look at the thing in a new was, to make a new connection, to problem solve and to see things differently. It is said, that creative thinking encourages self-expression and allows you to distinguish yourself from the crowd. During this time, I am my most productive and I deliver my best work because I have the thinking space to do so. I do not see this as a luxury but as a necessity for my business.
“I wonder how much better your company would be if you were able to take stock every year?”
Big projects
It is essential to have a compelling reason for any big projects; otherwise, you will get distracted and lose momentum. I know the book writing process is an endurance race that is not complete when the book is written or even published. The hardest bit for me is to get started on connecting coherent ideas into relevant strategies and models.
“What important project could benefit from you taking yourself away and dedicating focused time on starting and completing the project?”
Here is my process of planning for any successful business project that provides a solution relevant to an audience.
What’s Your Reason Why?
My reason for writing was to get my Scale Your Sales system in a format that was easily accessible and widely available to my audience. I had developed the model from my work developing sales teams in Key Account Management using strategic sales tools and social selling methods. The first task in any project is to understand your reason why and create clarity on the objective of the project. Your reason and intention may be lead generation, credibility building, passive income, or new business opportunities, but establish it up front.
Why You or Your Business?
What unique perspective, experience or skill do you or your business have that no one else has that an audience needs to help solve a problem? I had the experience and knowledge; however, there was always a niggling feeling around the impact this book would create, something I need creative time to explore. While writing the Scale Your Sales draft book, there were more significant ideas germinating on the bigger sales transformation, which did not easily fit into my Scale Your Sales model.
If like me you want your project to become one of the most powerful marketing assets in your business portfolio, potentially earning you multiple media appearances, speaking opportunities, more clients, consulting contracts and new product development, then there is a process that you need to ensure your project is successful.
- Begin with the end in mind and ask what do you want your project to do for you and your business?
- List your objectives in order of priority; here is mine:
- Create thought leadership.
- Secure paid global speaking opportunities.
- Land opportunities for consulting and masterclasses.
- ‘If you build it and they will come’ does not work so list the audiences that your objective will have the highest impact on, this your project’s community.
- Nurture and engage the community with survey and updates long before the project is ready to launch.
- Market and promote the creative process and the launch strategy long before the project launches, the sales strategy must all be well executed if the project is to be a success.
Regardless of your business objective, for
your project to have a significant business-building impact, it is crucial to have clarity when undertaking an energy-intensive project.
Writing a book can become a meaningful brand and business opportunity only if the book is relevant and compelling to your target community of potential buyers. The best way to ensure that they do come, get them involved and invested in discussing the content and adding value to the solution. Excellent sources of answers to your research questions include Quora, Ask the Public, Industry forums on social media and survey platforms.
The critical thing is not to go through the agony of writing a book or investing in a project unless you have evidence that there is an audience to buy it. I plan to continue interviewing industry experts, as I am aware that my perspective is not the only consideration.
I want the book to have a unique value proposition, and I have read the books my target audience would have read, to get the audience perspective and a clear idea of the gaps in the market. Some of the expert interviewees may add to the recommended reading, which will help create a blueprint.
Get a Mentor
You would not start a business or advise anyone to do so without first doing diligent research on the target audience, the product and seek professional advice from someone who has done something similar.
If you have never written a book before and would like to then I would recommend The Ultimate Guide to Writing and Marketing a Bestselling Book – on a Shoestring by Dee Blick, I have written one chapter on self-publishing, but this book gives you everything you need to know. There are many decisions to make, and it is best to have an overview of the options, the pros and cons. Whether you decide to self- publish, hybrid or go with a publisher, you must develop your community early in your book writing project.
There is no point writing a book or doing any project if it is not going to get found by the audience, it was created to help. The marketing and sales are as essential as the creation of the product unless you invest in the promotion then you will not generate the impact and the sales worthy of your energy investment.
The surprise project that materialised was that I had material for another book that take the perspective of the buyer rather than the seller – watch this space!
I have some exciting sales strategies to share with you at Accountex, make sure you book your seat for: 6 Ways to Scale Your Sales Building Brand. Janice will be speaking at Accountex on May 2 in the Sales and Marketing Theatre at 11am.