Voicing Your Opinions on Social Media

  We all have opinions. We have platforms and issues that we support. Most of us try our best to deliver quality content on our business page. But what about our personal page? Should we edit ourselves and our friends? We have freedom of speech on our side, right? The big question is, will it affect our business?
  To answer these questions, I dived into my past. We did not have a debate team in school, but debating and discussion of the issues was a constant in our lives. Our high school teachers forced us to take sides that we did not agree with. They pushed us to understand the other side in order to gain perspective and let's say, for the sake of argument, to be able to overcome those objectives. My small high school is one of the reasons I believe in small classrooms.
  Here is another thought from my past, I have role-played. In Acting classes and in Dungeons and Dragons games. Alright the super nerd status is out, but let's set that aside for the moment. Acting allowed me to explore areas my personality had never dared to go before. Dungeons and Dragons allowed me to play a very different character. True Neutral. The true neutral character allows the player to switch sides and be unpredictable, except for the fact that they would take the underdog's side.
  I do this on my personal page on Facebook. Why? I like debate and I like to learn things from others. And yesterday, I learned a lot from just two posts. Remember, my friends are from a range of backgrounds and we think nothing alike. I pose questions and make statements. The point is, I am an educator first. I am a firm believer in the types of debates Socrates and Plato used to teach students. And I am thankful for the friends that participated in the discussions because there were a lot of excellent points made. And if you really read through them, we had found a middle ground. Why can't our own representatives do this? Sure, it took hours of hammering out. We still had a dissenting voice. But the majority reached a middle ground. And we agreed on several things, the media is full of dogs digging numbers for bones and civil unions should be recognized. Marriages, or the standard religious view, should be left to one's own church. Keeping religion and politics separate, as the Constitution was meant to do.
  The key is, how will the observing audience take to these debates?

• Positively. Why do I say this? There was no name-calling, no finger pointing. It was civil. It was, a discussion. 
• Your viewpoints should reflect your business. And clearly, I am still True Neutral. I am the standard moderate. Fiscally conservative, socially liberal. Isn't this what you would want from an education based business? I believe so. 
• Compartmentalize personal thoughts from your business thoughts. Hrm, why separate them? Because you do not want bad feelings with clients that do not agree with your politics. When you are acting on behalf of your business, it is best to stay in your zone of expertise and push politics aside. 

  I have had to hide people's feed on my Facebook account because of their personal beliefs. I have never had to hide a business. I hope it stays that way. I have had to go so far as to "un-friend" someone because their viewpoints were so radical and it was difficult for me to not fire one back! But think about this, most of us have more friends on Facebook than we have followers of our business page. So if I feel compelled to hide your personal feed, your voice begins to shrink. And we want our voices heard, don't we?

Some thoughts on a Monday morning

  This blog is not only about what other entrepreneurs are doing right or wrong, it is also about my personal experience on this journey. Some of my regular readers know that I have been working on a start-up education-based company called Learning Connections for the past two years. Because of going to school full-time, I have only been able to work on it on a part-time basis. At the time, I figured that it was alright to spend that little time on it because I have been tutoring for years.
  But I don't want to build just another tutoring center. There are plenty of those. I wanted to set this business apart from any other standard educational start-up. So I had to think, what will set Learning Connections apart from everyone else? Me, my experience, my specialties and those I hire, their experience and their specialties.

A small list of things I know I can improve on:

• Defining the business niche. The niche for this business rests on the laurels of Science and Math. I have been involved in science fairs since I was a participant in high school. I left Massachusetts having served as a judge, secretary to the region, specialist in scientific review committees, and mentor to middle schools starting their own science fairs. I relocated to Roanoke and continued to help a Roanoke City Middle school and judge fairs. Conclusion? Play up the applied math and science!
• Get out there more. Meaning, get out from in front of the computer and spend some quality face time with people. Find out about other businesses. How can you help them? Conclusion? Consultations in creative problem solving and Math Skills Review for new employees.
• Play it up. From the internet stand point, you would probably think that I'm rolling in the dough. Right? While I am reaching people across the world online, I noticed a major discrepancy. I wasn't reaching the locals as much as I should be. There is still an internet disconnect in my small town and the surrounding areas. Conclusion? Don't completely discount standard methods of marketing in smaller areas. 
• Boost self-confidence. From various reports, community and people I went to high school with, I am the super nice, quiet, smart girl. The only adjective that seemed to bother me was quiet. Most of my friends would not tell you that I am quiet! I can be quite the chatterbox! Conclusion? Don't be shy about talking you and your business. Plain and simple. Take the talk from the internet to every day life and the people I meet. My neighbor and I bumped into each other while I was walking the dog this morning. She loved my new dress and asked if I had started a new job. My response? "Sort of." UGH! What was that!!!! I know I can do better than that! I am proud of what I have accomplished so far and what I am about to do! Time to change my tune! 

  When you listen to these little signals, they can help bring you and your business into better focus. Why am I sharing this with you? Because these are some of the traps we fall into when creating. I am hoping my experience helps you and you sharing your experience helps me gain some insight as to how all this works. Sound fair? I would love to hear some of the bear traps you fall in! Maybe we can help each other out!

Researching Your Business

  Many of us watch businesses come and go, many of them go for various reasons. Many blame the current market. Others blame poor location or too much competition. Well, maybe we should have done more research! The current business structure is changing. It is no longer about standard marketing strategies or stiff and structured business plans (Of course you need a business plan! But keep it flexible!).
  I will use my situation as an example. There is flux of teachers who have been leaving the school system for many reasons. Many of these former teachers believe that tutoring on the side may not bring them riches, but it will bring them enough to live. I am seeing a lot of hand written ads, boring tear-aways, and other standard marketing strategies. Here is what I am learning so far:

• Find a niche. Research yourself! What are your gifts and talents? What sets you apart from everyone else? Here is what I figured out about myself.
• I love to write. Blogging, when I make the time, is an outlet of self-expression for me.
• I love to communicate and meet people. 
• I love the Sciences and Applied Math. 
• I love being creative!
• Mold yourself into that marketing niche. It doesn't feel wrong if it feels so right! The focus of my business is Math and Science from elementary to post-college. Teachers in these subjects need support, especially in high school when the availability of materials drops. 
• Don't discount possibilities. I have tied myself to Arts organizations for a reason. Most artists don't realize how much Math and Science play into their work. Read or listen to my blog on my website. It explains how I use Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligence to teach. 
• CHECK OUT THE COMPETITION. I can't believe how many people set up shop without doing this first! 
• Talk to the community. Can you provide a need not being met right now? What is it? Would people use it? How much would they pay for the service? Many times we undercut ourselves just hoping people will arrive because of the price. Not so. Find a compromise in your pricing system, fair pricing for you and your clients.
• Use every marketing resource available. I am not talking TV ads or anything extravagant. Use the Internet! A lot! You may want to hire someone to do this for you! But make sure they have your voice in their communication. Most importantly, just get out there! Attend events. Meet people. No one will come to you, you have to go to them!

Good luck!