TAA DIXON

I love to use soundbites as a quick and easy way to capture client success stories. Click play above to hear what Major Pat Spaulding had to say after we designed his new Army recruiting website.

Click image on the right to learn more about him and see his website.

I am a small business owner entering my 10th year of business on June 1, 2009, and I often find myself getting invited to speak about the topic of entrepreneurial success. I was recently honored to be the featured speaker at Woodland Park High School’s Baccalaureate Service. One of the points I talked about centered around the idea of achieving success by using your strengths. In order to do this, you must first know what your strengths are.  I found a book that helps you identify and nuture your greatest gifts.

There are many great tools and assessments out there – and my absolute favorite (hands down) is the one made popular by Marcus Buckingham’s book Now, Discover Your Strengths. When I found this book in 2001, I was one year into my business (720MEDIA - a web design and marketing firm I co-founded). I recommend this book any chance I get, because it has made such a positive difference in my perspective. And I think it’s a great gift for graduating seniors too!

I learned that my five top strengths are:

1. Command: People strong in the Command theme have presence. They can take control of a situation and make decisions.
2. Strategic: People strong in the Strategic theme create alternative ways to proceed. Faced with any given scenario, they can quickly spot the relevant patterns and issues.
3. Maximizer: People strong in the Maximizer theme focus on strengths as a way to stimulate personal and group excellence. They seek to transform something strong into something superb.
4. Futuristic: People strong in the Futuristic theme are inspired by the future and what could be. They inspire others with their visions of the future.
5. Achiever: People strong in the Achiever theme have a great deal of stamina and work hard. They take great satisfaction from being busy and productive.

To this day, I still keep a copy of this summary taped to the wall in my office – as a daily reminder of where and how I need to spend the majority of my time in ways that utilize my core strengths. This sort of focus has enabled me to achieve the levels of success I knew were possible!

Have you discovered your strengths? Share your story!

As a successful small business owner, I am often asked to meet with students or other business professionals because they want to “pick my brain” or bounce their ideas off me. Here are several business etiquette tips to keep in mind if you’re the one doing the asking:

#1 – Be punctual. If you’re asking someone to “brainstorm ideas” (your ideas) over coffee or lunch, be prepared to arrive 5 min. early so that you can greet your guest. Don’t sit a table hoping they will find you. And remember to have your cell phone handy (give them your # when setting up the meeting). You never know when someone might need directions or need to let you know they’re  running late.

#2 – Be prepared. Have a list of questions ready. The best way to thank someone for their time is to be respectful of their time. Be as efficient and organized with your thoughts as possible.

#3 – Pick up the tab. In general, it’s your job to pay if you’re the one requesting the meeting. Especially if you want to ask questions that benefit you or your organization.