Volume 4, Issue 32
Kwik Clip!
Gerry O’Brion
Want to know how to help your franchisees stop talking about their goals, and actually start achieving them? Gerry O’Brion, our latest addition to the SPEAK! roster (and we are excited!), has some great insights to share about the importance of goal setting and accountability. He artfully combines tried and tested strategies with new research and the result is actionable, memorable and fun; your franchisees will be up out of their seats and jazzed to take real steps toward success!
Enjoy this clip on Gerry’s Ignite Your Goals program:
And here’s what some of his attendees had to say:
Kwik Query – Survey Questions
Today’s Kwik Query…
Do you regularly help your franchisees set and review goals?
Please share!
Kwik Tip
Gerry’s presentations empower attendees to get clear and take measurable action to achieve their goals. We asked him to put together a Kwik-Tip distillation that could help jump-start our reader’s goal setting process. Hope you get as much out of these as we did!
Ignite Your Goals!
Six Secrets to Accelerating Franchisee Growth
By Gerry O’Brion
“I’m swamped! There is just too much to do!” Success for franchise owners comes down to picking the right things to do – and then getting them done. Whether you’re managing the business yourself or have a staff supporting you, there is a lot to do.
Every day is filled with activities – some urgent, some important, and some simply distractions. Many times small business owners don’t have the luxury to just pass projects to the next person down the line – you have to roll up your sleeves and get it done. You need to be more efficient, more nimble, do more and work faster than the big guys.
Think about your business right now. What are the one or two things you could do by the end of the year that would make a difference in your business? We all have this list – those important things that we know we need to do, that we know would make a difference, and that we’re still not accomplishing.
There are a few simple steps that will move you from having goals to actually achieving your goals. These are not for the faint of heart. The techniques are basic and easy to implement, but there is a reason that almost no one does them – they might make you uncomfortable. So answer this – would it be worth a little discomfort to accomplish more, accelerate your success, and take your business to the next level? Let’s get started.
1. Have a goal. Yes, this sounds very, very obvious. Yet 80% of people in the US don’t have a stated goal they’re currently working towards. What is it you really want to accomplish? Get clear on the outcome you want and you’re already way ahead of the game. Every large competitor out there has a goal their shooting for and you should too.
2. Write it down. All it takes is a pen and a piece of paper. Bring your goal to life by writing it down. Does this really make a difference? Turns out, yes – a big one. A recent study by Dr. Gail Matthews at Dominican University in California produced some striking results. Those who wrote their goal down vs. those who just had a goal in their mind were 42% more likely to accomplish their goal. So grab a pen and paper or open a new document on your computer and get writing!
3. Tell others. Now that you’ve written your goals down, don’t keep them to yourself. Yes, here is where it starts to get uncomfortable. Many of us tend to be hesitant to share our goals. What if we fail? Then we’ve put it out there and we’ll look bad. Are you more concerned with looking good or achieving success? People who write down their goal achieve a 50% higher success rate than those who simply have a goal. As a business owner, it’s critical that everyone on your team knows the goal they’re shooting for. It will motivate and focus them. Have everyone who works for you create a personal goal that ladders up to your organizational goal.
4. Create accountability. If you want to really ignite your goals, tell someone and then have them follow up with you periodically. Talk about getting out of your comfort zone! We tend to think that we can stay accountable to ourselves. In reality, studies show that we’re significantly more likely to do what we say when we have external motivation vs. internal motivation. Matthews’ research showed a 77% increase in success when participants sent a weekly progress report to a friend. Be accountable to other small business owners that you know. Check in quarterly with your employees to see how they are doing against their goals.
5. Have a plan. The next step is to create a plan. A big goal is always easier to master when we break it down into parts and put it on a timeline. Do you have a written business plan? When was the last time you looked at it? Most independent business owners only write a business plan when they need money from the bank. Sound familiar? There is a reason why banks require people to have written plans. They work. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Keeping your plan simple is more effective anyway. A simple one-page plan is all any business should need to outline the key activities related to accomplishing their goals. Have everyone in your organization contribute to building the plan, and be sure they all understand how they fit into accomplishing it.
6. Track your results. Finally, check in frequently to see how you’re doing against your plan and your goals. It only takes a minute, but can be very powerful. Benjamin Franklin was famously consistent about planning each day in the morning, and reflecting on each day in the evening. Being purposeful about where we’re going can make a dramatic impact on the activities we choose each day.
Success in business comes down to the choices we make. How will we spend our hours today? Which projects are going to help accomplish our goals? Are we willing to be uncomfortable to get what we want? Write down your goals, tell others, create accountability, craft a plan and track your results. Here’s to your success!
Gerry O’Brion is the most recent addition to the SPEAK! roster. He is a speaker, author and coach who helps companies achieve their goals. Gerry was an executive for leading Fortune 500 and nationally recognized franchise brands including P&G, Coors, Quiznos and Red Robin. Gerry ‘gets’ franchising from the inside out and brings fresh, contemporary insight into branding, local area marketing, accountability and leadership.
Partner Post
The 2014 Best Ideas & Leadership Summit is one franchise event you won’t want to miss. Designed for senior franchise executives and decision makers who want to deliver superior results for their franchise, this 3-day, biennial summit will allow you to create your own customized Blueprint for Franchise Excellence that will advance your business to the next level. Participate in one of 3 tracks for innovative ideas in franchise sales and operations, local marketing, or executive leadership. Learn from fellow franchise CEOs, V.P.s and Directors from some of the fastest-growing companies in a facilitated peer-to-peer learning environment. Accelerate your business with 50+ innovative ideas, latest research, trends, news, and proven best practices that address some of your recurring issues and challenges. Hear inspirational speakers, expert panelists, and influential leaders in a collaborative environment with one of a kind access to franchisors and subject matter experts that are experiencing breakthrough results in their competitive spaces.
Don’t miss out- join us at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, right outside of Washington D.C. on August 6-8 for this must-attend event. Visit www.franconnect.com/franconnection for more details.
Hurry and book your reservation now! Hotel room accommodations under the FranConnect block expire on Tuesday July 15, 2014 and the Gaylord is sold out other than the committed block
Greg Nathan, international thought leaders on Franchise Relations and I will be there and we hope you’ll join us!
More soon….
Katrina
Katrina Mitchell
Want to connect for a quick brainstorming call about creating a ‘WOW!’ Convention for your franchisees? Click here to schedule 15 minutes to chat! https://www.timetrade.com/book/HDGLR Chief Match Maker SPEAK! Franchise Speakers That Deliver! We know the Franchise World. It’s all we do. 720-304-3710 303-669-9905 Cell katrinalmitchell (skype)
Published on Thursday, July 10, 2014
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Get the checklist for choosing the right franchise speaker here!
What Gerry’s Clients Have To Say About Him
“Gerry was FANTASTIC! His message was perfectly aligned with what we were wanting our opening keynote speaker to deliver. He arrived the day before, got there early, took time to get to know the franchisees and the management to make absolutely sure he understood our model, and our message; that really showed once he took the stage. Another impressive contribution to our overall event was how seamlessly Gerry was able to drop in key nuggets about sessions to come, teeing up our team for highly impactful sessions of our own– it was perfect! Everyone loved Gerry’s interactive follow-up workshop on goal setting – his message was totally focused with respect to where we’ve been, where we are now as a company, and where we are going. The franchisees were so excited and fired up! I would recommend him to any franchisor. Gerry is absolutely a ‘10’ out of 10.
Allan Young, CEO
ShelfGenie Franchise Systems, LLC
“Gerry really did his homework, and tied his presentation in perfectly with the activities we had planned for the rest of the event. He set us up to look just great. He was very professional, flexible, and really in tune with who he was speaking to. The franchisees loved him!”
Gillian Harper, Director of Business Development
ShelfGenie Franchise Systems, LLC
“If I had to pick one word to describe Gerry O’Brion as our keynote speaker it would be ‘EXCELLENT’! He listened closely to what we wanted to accomplish and delivered the perfect messages to our franchisees. His content was relevant and current to our business and did not feel ‘canned’ in any way. Gerry was so authentic and genuine; our franchisee loved spending extra time with him. Gerry also knew exactly when to ‘hit hard’ with his message to ensure that our franchisees were picking up the valuable skills that he was putting down. We all got huge benefit from the interactive goal-setting workshop and our franchisees are still talking about their experience with that. It was a powerful experience to really see each other as individuals and to share what we are proud of. I won’t hesitate to recommend Gerry as by far, one of the best speakers we have ever worked with!”
Cam Inglis, President
Marble Slab Creamery
“There’s always tension in the relationship between the franchisor and franchisee. Gerry is excellent at understanding what they both need so he can get them both going along the same path twice as fast to get to their goal together. He’s got a special gift to be able to articulate to both the franchisee and the franchisor how to come together to achieve their initiatives. We used him at our conference and he got nothing but great reviews. We look forward to using him not only for our future conventions but along with the Which Wich team as we grow and continue down the franchise path.”
Jeff Sinelli, Founder & CEO
Which Wich
“Gerry’s presentation had rich content focused on innovative customer-centric marketing. He has some great content and examples of low cost, high impact items to build guest loyalty. His content is applicable to any franchise. His presentation style is such that it captures and keeps the audience’s attention. I highly recommend Gerry.”
Azim Saju, Chairman
Choice Hotels Owner’s Council
What Our Clients Say About Us!
“When I make an investment in a speaker, we get one shot; it’s a sizable investment in what could be a HUGE miss. As it turns out, working with SPEAK! was one of the best decision of my professional career! Katrina’s guidance and expertise took the guesswork out of the process, and ensured that my investment was a HUGE HIT instead. The value the speakers brought to the conference was incredible. Almost all of our franchisees came up to us and said, “This is by far the best conference we have ever had!” and they are a pretty discerning bunch. There isn’t anything SPEAK! could have done better – and we’re already looking forward to working with them next year!”
Allan Young, CEO
ShelfGenie Franchise Systems, LLC
“SPEAK! is a fantastic resource for any franchise group looking for speakers and trainers. In the past, I have spent many, many hours looking for the right speaker to address our franchisees. This year, with SPEAK!’s expert guidance, we invested a fraction of the time and came up with an truly exceptional speaker. I couldn’t be more pleased and look forward to using SPEAK! as a valued resource for future events.”
Cam Inglis, President Marble Slab Creamery, Canada
“Working with SPEAK! was, in a word – PERFECT! The process was organized, simple and clean. The speakers they provided were exactly the kind of professionals we were looking for and had the credibility we needed to connect with our franchisees . They listened, and brought exactly what we wanted to this conference. I never worried for a moment about the impact and success of these breakout sessions.”
Alicia Cowell, Director of Learning & Development CK Franchising, Inc./Comfort Keepers
“SPEAK! made finding the perfect speaker for our annual Spring Meeting SO EASY! Katrina listened to what we wanted to accomplish and quickly presented us with the perfect options to choose from. I felt confident from the start that we would have a first-rate speaker to really support both our franchisees and our vendor partners. As a conference planner with so many details to manage, I loved SPEAK!’s proactive checklist and timeline — logistically, they were amazing to work with. The entire experience couldn’t have been easier nor produced better results and I’d recommend Katrina and her team at SPEAK! to any franchise company looking for outside talent!”
Karen Cady, Conference & Event Director
FranNet
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