In the first of many episodes to be released exclusively in the WOODUBEND & POSH CHALK STOCKISTS WORLDWIDE group, our hosts SollyJo and Linda Carter were tackling the subject of staying successful during this crazy business climate.

“2020 is the year that everything changed” – Linda Carter

Nothing will ever be the way we knew it completely after this year, the world has made an adjustment and we need to follow that.

The three key subjects of this chat are:

• Attitude
• Goals / Plan
• What does the customer want now?

Attitude:

What may seem a simple concept but can make all the difference for your business.

Your attitude towards yourself, your customers, your business, it all relates and it all reflects on how well you succeed.

An attitude can affect a person’s entire day, being down can bring other people down with you, doing that is not going to make a sale.

The current pandemic is effecting our attitudes, but we cannot let it. Think to yourself ‘I will succeed in my business’

“What you do makes a difference and what you have to do is the difference you want to make” – Jane Goddall

Things to do to change your attitude:

Think of something you are grateful for every morning before your feet hit the floor, think to yourself ‘What am I grateful for today?’

You need affirmation for yourself, motivational messages in notable places like your mirror “you can do this / Your are the best” staring back at you every day.

Self assess when you walk into that store every morning, are you bringing the best YOU into there? If not, why not?

Beware of who you surround yourself with, people with a negative attitude will reflect onto your attitude, be the alpha, don’t let them bring you down you need to bring them up!

Remember, a lot of your customers have their own story, their own troubles, they need someone to listen, to be their personal cheerleader, that is what will bring them back. Be cheerful, and always ask ‘What are your goals?’

Goals / Plan:

Every good business needs a plan.

3% of businesses in the world have plans, these businesses are the more successful

Making a good plan:

To begin a plan, you need to have goals. It’s better for the goals to be small/bite-sized goals, as the smaller they are the more achievable.

Once you have identified the goals, you need to think, ‘what is the benefit of achieving these goals?’ because without understanding the WHY, you’ve no motivation to start in the first place.

Finally, you have to figure ‘what is going to get in my way?’ what obstacles are going to stop you or at least slow you down from achieving your goal,

For a lot of us, the COVID 19 pandemic would have thought to have been a hindering obstacle, but surprisingly it has helped! This is now a whole new area to plan for, how to cope with the increase of interest in crafting and hobbies. We are all very lucky because this industry is thriving.

Think, are you the 3% or the 97%?

What do customers want now?:

Simply listen.

Your store is a refuge for stress, this is where your customers go to have fun, think about their projects or start a new hobby.

What may be ‘business as usual’ for you may be the start of a life journey for someone else.

Your customer wants attention and wants to be heard, listen to them, ask the right questions, and build a relationship.

And a final word of advice:

Don’t focus on the competition, focus on being YOUR best self.