On Thursday, April 21, Ashton Minor, Smartfem’s social media manager, and I had the pleasure of attending an event put on by Chase Bank at The Boulders in Carefree, Arizona. It featured Mel Robbins as a keynote speaker, someone we had only been briefed about in email. Chase as a company serves over 4 million American businesses and 100,000 locally in Arizona and their main focus is giving businesses the tools they need so they can focus on the business rather than the finances. This particular event we attended was one of 20 sessions Chase is presenting through the fall and all of which are to help businesses grow.
Before Mel Robbins begins her speech she is introduced as a Tex X speaker, an author, a mother, a wife, and a business owner. Not a bad list of things to be associated with or described by. When the gorgeous Mel Robbins walks onto the stage she immediately commands attention. Her voice is powerful, her walk is pure confidence and she is dressed to kill. Exactly the kind of woman I aspire to be. Right away she informs everyone that she forgot her watch and that she must be kept on schedule because she tends to talk over the scheduled time.
After a quick introduction she really gets into the thick of the reason that she is there. We were in a room full of not only Chase employees but also businesses from around Arizona. The purpose? Give these business owners more of a workshop instead of a speech. That is exactly what she did. Rather than standing on the stage and talking the entire time Mel worked the crowd and asked business owners the important questions.
The issue at hand? Each person in that room was involved with a business that pays the bills. Whether it’s theirs or they are helping the person that owns it. So the question is, roughly quoted from Mel, “how do you continue doing what you’re doing and also spot new opportunities?” She has compiled a list on ways to grow business that makes it easy to understand.
Focus on what matters
Be a fan of the ABC’s of Influence. These are ways to make an employee feel, which coincides with the three reasons people act, which are:
Paid, which is least likely reason to make an employee care
Pushed, no one responds well to this, but things do get accomplished
And personal, the most effective form of motivation, exemplified below.
Appreciation- This, as Mel puts it, keeps you in others minds in a positive way.
Belonging- There is absolutely nothing worse than coming to work and feeling like you do not belong. It is proven that if the employees are friends with each other the work environment is more pleasant and more productive. She suggests giving employees lunch breaks at the same time.
Crucial- Make your employees understand the significance of their role and you will have dedication.
Leverage yourself
Think like a disrupter– This is putting yourself in your competition’s shoes. What could be exploited and what are your business’s weak points?
Disrupt doubt– Rather than feeling hesitant and procrastinating the inevitable, Mel says five seconds of pushing will get you through the tough times.
The goal is to refocus on what the purpose of your business is, and identify what is holding you back. If it is paper work in the back piling up, hire a part time back office assistant. Remember why you started the business. For some it was freedom and for others it was the chance to make a difference. Don’t forget the purpose behind all of your hard work. When things are hard and you’re dreading getting up count to five and force yourself to act. When you’re done you’ll be accomplished and confident. A quick tip suggested by Mel Robbins is her “30 before 7:30” in which you take time alone to identify what you spend too much time on and what you need to spend time on. You can also use this time to plan out how you will do it.
I wish I had the space to write everything during this event, but I would probably leave you with a novel. Mel Robbins was a wonderful keynote speaker, her voice was clear, her topics were relevant and her information was invaluable. Having the privilege to meet this self-made human made my day and gave me a real image of what I aspire to be. I thank Smartfem so much every day for giving me an outlet for my writing and the opportunity to meet such awesome women. If any of our Smartfem readers have questions I would be happy to answer anything or give a copy of my notes from the event!
