Vote by FRIDAY to Help a Woman Business Owner

You've got to be in it to win it! And, I am -- now I need YOUR vote!

Perhaps you've heard of the Chase Mission Main Street Grants for Small Business? The program will award up to 20 grants of $150,000 to help small business owners to grow their businesses.

Now, through FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, small business owners who have been in business for at least two years and have less than 100 employees can submit an application. InStep Consulting has applied, and I'd love to have your VOTE of support!

What Would a $150K Grant Mean to InStep? 

2014 is a milestone year -- I've been in business for 10 years! It's definitely been a roller-coaster ride that I couldn't imagine doing any other way. 

 

Now, it's time to think about the next 10 years. I do know they will be different -- because the business landscape has changed dramatically just in the past few years.

 

This grant would help me to do some of the strategic planning and sustainability consulting work that I offer to clients on my own business! That would mean hiring PR/marketing and business coaches; plus, I'd like to increase the bench-strength of the coaching and consulting team.

Voting is really easy! Visit the Chase Mission Main Street website:

• Click the VOTE NOW button
• Input your Facebook login
• Click VOTE!

I need at least 250 votes to be considered for a grant. Thank you for your support! Feel free to "Share Your Vote" with your social network afterwards.

In Which Direction is Your Mindset Taking You and Your Business?

It's been said that your mindset is like the steering wheel of your life. In which direction is your mindset taking you? Could you use a Mindset Reset?



What would you do if your business became unrecognizable to you in the second half of 2014?

I'm looking for a few business leaders who are ready to work on their most important business goals like they knew they couldn't fail. Sign up for a Mindset Reset for Business Coaching Session using the button below:

Colette is Featured Expert in MOLI Small Business Center

Hope you all had a FABULOUS Memorial Day weekend! Keeping in line with my 2008-year of-Technology, I'm excited to announce that I'm now a Featured Expert on a NEW social media and commerce community -- MOLI Small Business Center.

MOLI is a free, online social community where small business owners and individuals over the age of 18 can create and manage multiple profiles from a single account to control their privacy and separate their social, business and family relationships.

The Small Business Center is a comprehensive, multimedia, interactive destination where members can network, engage in discussions, and access expert advice, resources, tools and tips on how to take their businesses to the next level. An important component of the Center is the interactive forums, where members can engage with a seasoned group of entrepreneurs and business experts. The forum that I moderate is the Life Balance community.

What's cool is that in addition to the tools and coaching services that field experts like me can offer, MOLI also has found great partners (like E-Myth) to provide resources.

The MOLI Small Business Center – Where Entrepreneurs Work, Network and Play!

Come join me in the Life Balance community!

Meet Komal Gulzar -- Intern with InStep Consulting

As I mentioned in my last post, InStep Consulting has an intern from Brooklyn College. I asked Komal to share some initial thoughts on her internship experience. Read on ... I think we ALL can gain some career tips from Komal!

CE: Why did you decide to do an internship this summer?
KG: I wanted to explore a new field in business management and learn about what this industry has to offer me once I graduate with a bachelor’s degree. I had the opportunity to get insight into the accounting and finance fields last year. So, I chose Business Consulting this summer. I was curious about what role a consultant plays and how he/she helps businesses. So far, I have learned that a consultant helps the employer and the employees bond to improve communication and effectiveness on both sides.

CE: What do you hope to gain from your internship?
KG: In the end, it’s all about the experience. Experience helps us make better choices and decide which career to pick. Why would we choose one career and not the other? It all depends on the quality of experience we have.
In my opinion, there are two types of internship experiences: one where we just "kill time" to fulfill the program requirements. We play a passive role and just expect the internship to be a good experience.
The second type makes all the difference. This is when we really put a lot of effort into it. We’re curious and ask a lot of questions. We want to know every little detail about every thing at the host site. We not only ask how something is done, but also why not do it some other way. Even if we’re not really interested in this field, we take it as a challenge and try to meet our goals.

CE: What advice would you give your fellow JFEW interns? (Jewish Foundation for the Education of Women)
KG: In short, we should treat our internships as if they were our first jobs. We should clarify that what we do in an internship is not for the supervisor or somebody else, but for ourselves.
Yes, we do help the company in the process; but the goal is to learn. And, if we don’t put our hearts into it, we’re not helping anybody, but wasting everybody’s time. Think of it as if it were for your own business or company. Wear what you do.

CE: Tell us what YOU think!
KG: Your answers to these questions might be different – maybe you want to explore a new field or to discover something new about an industry you’re already interested in. Don't take my word for it; experience it for yourself and then share your thoughts with the rest of us. We would love to hear from you!