Spring - time to make new ideas!

Gloves of many
colours in Milan

 

It's Spring! It's time to consolidate, plan, encourage new growth. I've been redeveloping my web site (still not ready to launch, but soon!). Reading about search engine maximisation and such important things(every consultant's dream, passive income, right?).

In my barely-existent spare time, I'm involved in this year's Theatresports Cranston Cup. You can win tickets to the semi-finals at the Belvoir Street Theatre in Sydney on 5, 12 or 19 November 2006 simply by suggesting some scene starts. Or buy your tickets to the heats at the Newtown Theatre every Sunday till end October.

Richard Bennett and I are in the throes of developing a brand new story telling workshop for Ludic Creative. You may have noticed that story is becoming more prominent as a knowledge management tool in business. It's long been a way to teach and learn more effectively. If you'd like to polish your story telling skills, pop along. Sat Nov 4 06 1 - 5pm. More info here.

This month we have:

• Ludic Creative's Life is not a rehearsal and Storytelling workshop
• Improving your consultancy: optimise your web site, charge "tips", improve your image
• Managing better: Strategic planning - is your organisation any different?
• Fascinating: Freud museum, remodelling schools
• Fun: art on the streets, that treadmill video, lots of impro to see and do!

May it bring you plenty of ideas!

Cindy

Your Consulting
business

The inside of the clock
at the Musee d'Orsay,
Paris

 

 

 

 

Tips on optimising your web site

I've been visiting selfpromotion.com recently. It's a lot of very useful information on optimising your web site. You could spend hours there, and then more hours doing as he suggests.

The site is interesting for 2 reasons: Firstly, there is a tool there which allows you to submit your website to a number of less-dominant search engines (i.e. not google), which will potentially save you up to 150 hours of typing.

The second interesting thing about this site is that no one asks for payment. You can contribute what you think the service is worth, and there are benefits for doing so (he keeps your details on file so you can resubmit, for example).

It's a business/consulting model based on "tips", and the site owner, Robert Woodhead has even written about the model itself.

I've heard of some alternative practitioners in feng shui and similar disciplines who use the "pay what you think it's worth" model, but no mainstream consultants. If you have a service which costs you little to provide, but adds great value, the model may work there; or indeed if the return on investment is massive. Any ideas? I'd love to hear them!

Charging enough, charging more

Always on the look out for marketing tips. These are no-nonsense tips on selling and marketing coaching services (and the principles generalise quite well across to other professional services). Found them just this morning!

One of the many villages
on Lake Como

Image counts

I have had my own image consultant now for more than 15 years. I rarely wear things that don't fit, my wardrobe has no clothes that don't go with anything else, I always feel properly dressed, and I spend far less time agonising over what to wear, what to wear! (and less money on clothes).

If you'd like to know some of the principles which will help you be more together around wardrobe (I never had a casual wardrobe until I went to an image consultant!), Jean Woo and Evelyn Lundstrom, NLP trained trainers with impressive corporate records are running some style and colour workshops on 1 October and 26 November 2006 (both Sundays) at Sydney Venue.

Managing better

Trattoria in Bellagio, on
Lake Como, Italy

Strategy - the ins and outs

McKinsey recently compiled a survey about corporate strategy, which said most companies have a formal process for strategy, but don't use it to make their most important decisions (now that doesn't quite make sense, does it?).

Less than 50% of the several hundred execs who answered the survey were happy with their organisation's strategy planning process; but strangely enough the more senior they were, the happier they were! They thought that people would be more satisfied if the company aligned their people with the plan (or the plan with their people?), and monitored progress against plan.

Compare what you think of your organisation's strategic approach with other companies - this may comfort you (yes, we're just like everywhere else), or inspire you to get more involved with strategic planning in your organisation.

Fascinating

Patty Cake - Bellagio,
Italy

Freud Museum

It's 150 years since Freud was born. Go visit the site of museum in his London home. You'll find photos of Freud, the museum itself, catalogues of the letters he wrote, and essays on all kinds of Freud-related topics (the history of dreams, for example).

Remodeling schools

Microsoft is working with the schools in Philadelphia to design a school system of the future. You can read all about it, and even take a virtual tour of the buildings where it's happening. It's not just about using technology to the fullest, it seems to have some quite lofty outcomes! Check it out.

And Fun, fun, fun

Happy Singing nuns
window display in
Bellagio, Italy

Fun - Art on the streets

I'm part of Walking the Street this year. It's a community event where the shop windows in South Newtown become an art gallery. It begins on October 7 and goes through to 22nd, on King Street Newtown, from the station south towards St Peters.

Local artists from Sydney's inner west exhibit their works in shop fronts. Some even customise their work to reflect the retailer - we have, for example, a button shop and a braid shop, as well as a specialty house paint store and a few restaurants. It really brings art to the streets.

Some of the work is very good, and some not so much, but you can do it at 3 in the morning if that's your rhythm, or on a Saturday evening before popping into one of the 100 or so restaurants in the Newtown area (I love Trisha's Indian meets French, or Rippa's excellent Italian, or even Pasha's if you're after Turkish, or Newton's for real Mexican).

 

Chairs with goodies, Menaggio, Italy

 

 

More fun - Ludic's Life is not a Rehearsal workshop

If you are keen to develop your softer skills - listening, building on others' ideas, controlling less, then remember our Life is not a rehearsal. Joe Renzi, recognised as a successful e-entrepreneur by MyBusiness magazines, came along and played. He had an insight on how to unleash his own staff's creativity. Many people come just because it's the most laughter they'll have in 4 hours ever! Once you've been once you can continue to come for free. Some of our participants have now been to EVERY workshop.

Next workshop is 25 November 06. Discount to you as an ezine reader $100 instead of $150. More details here. Next workshop 1 - 5pm Saturday November 25 2006 at North Sydney.

Clock, Lugano,
Switzerland

Life on the treadmill

Who knew life on a treadmill could be so colourful, rhythmic and appealing. Someone sent me this link a few weeks ago, and I was to say the least delighted in watching it. It has sound, so take care as you download it (or plug in the headphones). It would seem that it's a music video, but I watched with great glee, and never noticed the music for the cleverness of the "dance".

Fantasy caravan

The Neverwas Haul is a caravan with a difference - it's a replica of a Victorian mansion on wheels, and towed by a steam engine. It was inspired by the works of Jules Verne. It travels around the US. FAscinating what enthuses people!

At play in a park in
Lugano, Switzerland

And impro, of course

And two independent shows put on by some of my impro-buddies: This Wednesday 27th September 2006 - Mid-week madness: an evening of long form impro comedy: 8pm, Bar Broadway, cnr Regent St and Broadway, at Broadway: Pay what you think

And on Monday 3rd October (Long weekend Monday) The Fourth Wall: Long form improvisation on stage, and live on the streets of Balmain, shot to video, and presented on screen during the show. It's a theatre performance and a mini movie, all in one show! This is a "one off" event, performed for the first time in Australia, combining both long form and real world impro. The Crypt Theatre @ The Cat & Fiddle Hotel 456 Darling St, Balmain $10 adults, $7 concession

As always , you can see Scared Scriptless Theatresports® performance every Friday. It’s at the Clarence Hotel, cnr Parramatta Road and Crystal Street, Petersham. There are now 2 shows: at 8pm the Theatresports® show - guaranteed comedy (in the vein of "Thank God you're here", but more story). The second show is more surprising. The Late Show is 45 minutes of non-stop improvising; it starts at 10:30 (15 minutes after the end of the first show). Great for a post-Leichhardt meal!

Love to hear from you if any of these ideas spark something good for you and yours!

C

Cindy Tonkin The Consultants’ Consultant
Certified Management Consultant

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This month's images are original images ©2006 Cindy Tonkin taken in France and Italy in July 2006. See more here.

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