Thanks to all who texted, tweeted, emailed, G+’ed and Facebooked this weekend asking if “my” episode of Your Business on msnbc tv was going to air Sunday morning as scheduled. Due to hurricane coverage, it has been rescheduled for Sunday, September 4.
Didn’t know that Clairemont played a role in the makeover of Asheville Playgrounds and that the entire thing was orchestrated and documented by msnbc? See my last post for details.
Tonight is a big night for me — it will be my very first InSpire Awards dinner. It seems like just yesterday that Dana and I were hunkering down, filling notebook after notebook with a year’s worth of hard work — all in hopes of impressing the judges with what we know to be a lot of really great stuff!
If I am getting a little ahead of myself, know this — the InSpire Awards are hosted each year by the North Carolina Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. It’s like a more local version of the PRSA’s Silver and Bronze Anvil Awards. And by golly, we’re excited to be a part of it!
I could go on and on about all of the awesome work we did for clients like Thomasville, Drexel Heritage, Briar Chapel, Triangle Family Services and UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School, but instead, I’ll just say this — we’re proud of each and every entry we submitted. One thing I love about Clairemont is that we put our hearts into each and every campaign and project, no matter how big or small!
As for tonight, we’ll be sure to fill you in on how things go. It promises be a night full of surprises. For one, I know that I am especially looking forward to the steak au poivre, as I have no idea what that actually is.
Stay tuned, oh faithful ones, and wish us luck!
Josie
What started as a blog post about the lessons I’ve learned in my first year in business turned into a Triangle Business Journal guest column that ran in Friday’s issue. This should perhaps also be called, “Good question, Chuck Norman!” Thanks to all of our friends who support us on what has already been a wonderfully amazing journey! Below is the full article, with added hyperlinks for relevant info.
Confessions of a new business owner
Earlier this month, I sent a text message to a few friends on my one-year anniversary of resigning from an amazing job to risk that starting my own communications firm could be even more amazing. Sure, there were other firsts that followed – filing my company’s paperwork with the state, getting my City of Raleigh business license, signing a lease for office space – but none as significant or terrifying as resignation day. It meant there was no turning back.
Responses to my text message included “congrats” and “mazel tov” and “how does it feel?” One response, however, stopped me in my tracks. There was absolutely no way I could respond quickly to, “What have you learned?” After a bit of reflection, here is my answer:
1. Starting a business is not just one risk. It seemed like simply making the decision to start a business was the risk. I envisioned it like this: resign, open a business, exhale and let the bliss begin. Now I know that being a business owner is about taking risks every single day, and that’s actually what makes it so satisfying. Once the doors are open, you have to take risks to go after clients, hire team members and invest in professional development and networking opportunities. Moving ahead is all about risk-taking.
2. Ask for help. Like most entrepreneurs, I started a business to do what I love. Sometimes, running the business can get in the way. You need help! Find people you can trust, and admit your weaknesses. QuickBooks is mine. At first, I was determined to conquer it, and I made decent progress. Then I realized I had spent two hours in QuickBooks that I should have spent on a new business proposal. I knew I needed to reprioritize. Now I neatly organize my paperwork so that someone else can update our QuickBooks files, and I can focus on what I do best — serving clients and building a business.
3. Network smartly. Networking is about meeting people to meet more people to meet more people. Right? But what happens if that first person doesn’t really understand what you do or what you are seeking? I learned a one-question strategy for smarter networking while lunching with Sherry Essig, a business life coach and owner of Raleigh-based Flow Dynamix. As the check arrived after a lovely conversation, Sherry got a serious look in her eye and asked, “What does a good lead look like for you?” What a simple AND important question! And yet I had never asked nor been asked this question in my 18 years of professional networking. Try it. I bet you will always be asked the same question in return.
4. Having hurt feelings is okay. Dwelling on them is not. It’s confession time. I’m so personally vested in my work, that I occasionally get my feelings hurt. As I was considering becoming a business owner, I told myself that I simply couldn’t have feelings anymore. This was unrealistic and unnecessary. I care about what people think and say about me. (Goodness, isn’t that a trait of most PR people?) At the same time, I’m in a competitive industry, and sometimes things are said that simply aren’t accurate. I’ve had to learn that it is okay to feel hurt initially, but I have to move on and stay focused on my goals.
5. Stay true… to your values, yourself, your hopes and dreams, your mission and your promises to your team. As well as every reason you wanted to start a business and every thought that followed, “If I had my own business…” If you haven’t read The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, buy a copy today. I took author Mike Michalowicz’s advice and carefully crafted immutable laws for Clairemont Communications. They have guided me through launching my business, hiring (and unfortunately firing) team members and recently having the courage to politely tell a prospect “no thanks” because working with him would have meant being untrue to our value system and nearly every reason that made me want to start a communications agency in the first place.
6. Celebrate & enjoy. Another confession. Throughout most of my career, I’ve been an approval-junkie. Hey, don’t we all want a pat on the back? If you want to fully embrace the lesson of taking pride in a job done well and being completely satisfied with that and that alone, start a business! At the same time, as a business owner, I believe in stopping to take time to celebrate our big wins as well as everyday accomplishments and freely handing out pats on the back to team members. What’s the sense in taking all the risks if you aren’t going to celebrate your successes and enjoy each and every minute of it?
CLICK HERE to download a PDF version of the article.
People often ask, “What’s a typical day in PR?”
If you haven’t worked in the industry, it might appear that it is more glamorous than it really is. And the funny thing, the days I call glamorous (like the one in the video) might be what other people call boring. I can tell you that the things that seem glamorous usually aren’t. Like the time I hosted a client event on a yacht in the South of France during the Cannes Film Festival. I can assure you there was nothing glamorous about instructing guests to remove their shoes before coming onto the yacht or tending to a seasick spokesperson.
If you love PR agency life (I do!), you love it for the variety. From building the strategy to the mundane tasks. That’s what makes it fun! For me, getting to go on-location with highly-creative people to a beautiful home in North Carolina for a client catalog shoot to capture fodder for the client’s social media outreach is great fun and a wonderful day!
Clairemont Communications Blends Traditional and Social Communications
— New Agency Launches; Clients Announced —
Raleigh, N.C. – February 3, 2010 – Clairemont Communications, a new public relations and marketing communications agency, has launched to help companies and organizations address the changing media landscape and best manage strategic communications.
Clairemont currently serves international and national brands with headquarters or locations in North Carolina, including Thomasville Furniture, Drexel Heritage and Briar Chapel by Newland Communities. Continue reading “Clairemont Communications Blends Traditional and Social Communications”
