On our call last week, someone asked me if I was good at multi-tasking. I think she thought I get lots done so I must use that process.

I try hard not to be a multitasker? How about you? Do you read your e-mail while you’re on the phone and at the same time bind your quilt? Quite the picture, isn’t it?

According to Harvard Business Review blogger Paul Atchley, studies show that multitaskers are less efficient, perhaps by as much as 40%, than they think. He says that it takes an average of 15 minutes – and I’ve read numbers as high as 40 minutes – to reorient oneself to the main task. Wow – 15 minutes! Can you imagine how much time you waste on a daily basis trying to get back to the task at hand?

If you want to break your multitasking habit, here are four tips:

1. Focus on one task at a time. Atchley says our attention starts to wane after 18 minutes. He suggests that if that happens and you switch to a different task, make notes about the first task so it’s easier when you go back. I think that if your attention wanes, it might be time for a quick stretch and then quickly re-focus on the same task.

2. Since I mentioned focusing on a task, be sure to divide your project into doable tasks. Set a timer for the task. I find it easier to focus if I have specifically set the time aside.

3. Eliminate distractions. This could be closing the door to your studio, letting the answering machine pick up the calls, stopping the audible tones of your e-mail. What’s key is paying attention  – again focus – to your task.

4. Stick with it until it’s done and done right.

And, if you think multi-tasking is only a problem today, here’s a good quote from Lord Chesterton, attributed to a letter to his son in the 1740s:

“There is time enough for everything in the course of the day if you do but one thing at once; but there is not time enough in the year if you will do two things at a time.”

Good luck single-tasking.

Please share your thoughts below.

Can you picture yourself here?

* Headed to the office or studio passing through the kitchen only to see the dishwasher needs to be emptied. Well, it won’t take that long. Let’s do it first and just get it done.

* Back on track headed to the office or studio only to be distracted by the laundry basket. Well, let’s just throw that one load in. It will only take a minute or two.

* Looking at the messages that came in the night before. One was from a friend down the street. Well, what could she want? It’s just a quick phone call, and it will be out of the way.

* Now you are in your office and ready to get to work. Wait, let’s just check the email. Oh, some of these look really quick to answer. Let’s just do them first and get them out of the way.

Did you just lose half your day because you had what I’ve termed “gotta-do-it-first-itis”? And, do you have this problem more than one day a week? Welcome to the club. I think we all think that we can do the one quick task and then get on with what’s on our agenda. Problem is that that one task can lead to another. They are all quick.

Are you familiar with the late Stephen Covey’s 4-quadrants from his book Seven Habits of Highly Effective People? Things are urgent and important; important and not urgent; urgent and not important; or not important and not urgent. The problem with “gotta-do-it-first-itis” is that you are spending too much of your time in the not important and not urgent box. You figure if you can just do those things first, they’ll be out of the way and you’ll have enough time for what is important. Meanwhile, those items that are important and not urgent tend to move toward become important and urgent.

How do you get out of this? First, start your day with an agenda of what you need to accomplish that’s in the important and not urgent category. Hopefully, you won’t encounter too may distractions of the truly urgent/truly important. Second, schedule those not urgent, not important tasks for outside work hours.

Do you have ways that you’ve eliminated “gotta-do-it-first-itis?”

Please share your thoughts below.

1. You are never too old or challenged to reach that dream.

While we saw our share of young men and women, even younger girls and boys, the oldest U.S. Olympian is 54-year old equestrian Karen O’Connor. She doesn’t even come close to being the oldest for this year’s Olympics. That goes to 71-year old Hiroshi Hokestu, also an equestrian. As for being challenged, consider the South African sprint runner Oscar Pistorius, a double amputee who competed with his J-shaped prosthetics. In that same category would be Im Dong-Hyun, an archer from South Korea who is legally blind and wears nothing to correct his sight. Or even Malaysian shooter Suryani Mohamed Taibi, who participated in the Olympic games 34 weeks pregnant.

2. Be “all in” all the time.

The Badminton World Federation disqualified eight female badminton players from China, South Korea and Indonesia from the Olympic doubles competition for trying to lose matches to receive a more favorable draw. I learned that this was not the first time nor the first sport where this happened. Another example, the Japanese women’s soccer coach had his team play for a 0-0 tie with South Africa so it didn’t have to travel to Scotland where it might have to face the US. If we act from a place of service, we won’t be scheming to get ahead. We’ll just be ahead, or learn how to get there honestly.

3. Perseverance, determination and focus pay off.

Gymnastics is one of my favorites to watch and I loved watching the USA girls win the gold. When it was down to the finals, they knew they had to “stick” it and did. You see those qualities in all the athletes.

4. Protect your intellectual property.

This happened earlier this summer. Ravelry, the online knitting community, was set to hold its third Ravelympics, the timing of which coincided with the Olympics. The U.S. Olympic Committee didn’t think much of the Ravelympics and sent the 2-million member group a cease-and-desist letter stating, “We believe using the name ‘Ravelympics’ for a competition that involves an afghan marathon, scarf hockey and sweater triathlon, among others, tends to denigrate the true nature of the Olympic Games. It is disrespectful to our country’s finest athletes and fails to recognize or appreciate their hard work.” Of course, the USOC didn’t know what they were dealing with when it comes to knitters and eventually apologized for any insult and its plans to take legal action seemed to unravel. As for Ravelry, it hosted the Ravellenic Games.

5. Work in your brilliance.

In team sports, each person has a role. A good example is gymnastics. While the whole team needs to be excellent overall, each person is likely to be brilliant at one aspect, for example, the balance beam. (I marvel that someone can do a flip on that four-inch wide beam.) And, some members are good leading off the event and others ending the event. If you think back to the women’s vault, Jordyn Wieber, who had failed to qualify for the overall, led off, nailed her first vault setting up the rest of the team. In your business, look for where you can work in your brilliance and let other team members do the same.

6. Keep improving.

Olympic athletes continually push themselves to be faster, stronger, better than they’ve ever been. Look at the numbers of athletes who return to the Olympics competition again and again, bettering their results each time. This is what builds skills and confidence for us.

7. Have a good support system.

While the athletes are on their own competing in many events, off the course they do have a strong and vast support team. That includes family, friends, coaches and untold fans. And those fans don’t even have to be in the stadium. I’m sure wherever you lived, you watched the home support team of your local athlete. I remember seeing the coverage of the back-home-supporters in the gym watching 15-year-old Katie Ledecky from Bethesda win a gold medal. Look for people you can add to your support system to help keep you grounded, give you advice, cheer you on and help pick you up.

8. We are all champions.

From the influence each of the Olympians had on others around them, we all have that influence on those around us. So take time to be the champion for others.

What lessons did you see from the Olympics? Please share your thoughts below.

Do you have some business or personal dreams that are putting off because you think you need to know more before you move forward? Maybe you think you need another art course, or maybe you need that extra marketing course. Or, your website could be better. Or, your quilting skills need to be better to enter that show. Or, you don’t know as much as or are as skilled as someone else. Or,…

Hey, I’ve been there. I’m someone who thrives on knowledge, and I’m always searching to learn more. And, it’s a good thing, except that it can put an obstacle in my path. It’s easy to look for the next course to build my knowledge or skill level instead of taking action, albeit imperfect action. Here are some tips to move you forward:

1. Don’t wait for everything to be perfect. It never will be. There will always be more to learn. The best time to start has already passed. The next best time is now.

2. Don’t compare yourself with others. There will always be someone who is further along the path than you. And, remember there are others who not as far as you. You are only where you are and have to start from there. Any action you take at your current level moves you to the next level.

3. Commit and take a bold action. You have something to offer that no one else does. Others are waiting to start; don’t follow that path.

This reminded me of a quote from Oliver Wendell Holmes:

So what are you waiting for? You are definitely qualified to start.

Please share your thoughts below.

On Monday I received a lovely email from a friend wishing me Happy Birthday and reminding me of all I had accomplished. She also said that I had influenced many more artists than I could imagine. That was a wonderful reminder for me to take some time during the day to reflect on those two thoughts.

I find as entrepreneurs that we often do not take time to look at our accomplishments. We tend to have the end goal in mind and just keep working toward that. We don’t look at all we accomplish, and we often don’t celebrate those we do. Last week I mentioned that I like – or try – to end my day with a review what I accomplished during the day. It’s nice to have a formal mechanism for this, whether it’s a journal you update daily or just notes and the check marks of completed items on your calendar page. What was fun for me was to go back through the year and see what I had accomplished and how I am in a different place today than I was in January.

The second part of my friend’s email was about the influence I had that I didn’t realize. Again, to some extent its the “not looking back” part. I talked some about this recently when I wrote about the ripple effect. Yes, I can see the influence I have on a direct basis. That’s easy. Someone makes more money because I made a suggestion for her business or she starts to build her list of followers because of another. I have a harder time seeing this on a larger scale. It could be an off-hand comment I make to a large group about trying something new. I may never realize that comment set something in motion for someone to create something new, whether that’s artwork or a product; to venture down an uncharted path; or to make positive changes in her life. I think that both the influence I know about AND the influence I don’t are the reasons I find so much joy in what I do.

So thank you, Christine, for the wonderful reminder. And, thank you to my clients, members, followers and e-zine readers for letting me share what I know with you.

When was the last time you looked at what you accomplished? And do you have a formal mechanism for doing this? Do you know who you are influencing?

Please share your thoughts below.

With quilt show season at its height, I thought I’d share some tips for shopping large shows, both wholesale and retail.

1. Pack comfortable clothes and shoes. You can easily be on your feet for eight hours or more. Take to heart the Quilts Inc. admonition, “Remember at Market, fashion stops at the knees!”

2. Take some healthy snacks with you, like fruits and nuts. All the booths will have snacks of the chocolate variety and while a bit is fine, you want to be sure to keep your stamina up. Once you start walking the floor, it’s hard to leave. Something new or an old friend catches your eye. That sugar rush just won’t sustain you. And, don’t forget to bring water or an empty water bottle to fill to keep hydrated.

3. Take advantage of the learning opportunities. Quilts Inc. has lectures and classes the day before Market opens and then the mornings and evenings when the vendor floor is closed. This is a wonderful opportunity to take back knowledge to share with your staff and customers and to build your business. At retail shows, you can often find wonderful classes that will teach you something to share with your customers. Even just bringing back knowledge of “what’s new” is important.

4. If you go to Quilt Market, don’t wait in line for Sample Spree. I always check the lines for Sample Spree and often find the same people at the front of the line every show. They recognize me coming now! Some of these attendees get in line at 2 pm for an event that starts at 8 pm. They miss half of the Schoolhouse Sessions and terrific learning opportunities. Once the doors open, most everyone in line gets in within five to 10 minutes. Even latecomers get in. Last I heard they weren’t giving a prize for first one in the door!

5. Don’t forget your business cards. You are going to meet shop owners and quilt business owners from around the world in addition to buying for your business. A good tip is to make a note or two on the back of the card as a memory jogger for when you get home. And, to make it easy for ordering, try printing the information on labels to make filling out forms easier.

6. Start with a plan to shop the floor. Spend time the night before going through the show program, marking those you must see. Set a schedule that includes any appointments you have with fabric companies or distributors. If you are shopping with a group, be sure everyone knows the schedule. Many shop owners walk the floor and collect literature during the first day, go over the material at night and then buy the second or third day. Other shop owners know what their shop needs and buy on the first walk through. Figure out the plan that will work best for you.

7. If you are traveling with a group, be sure you’ve got everyone’s phone numbers programmed in to your phones. Market is really big, and it’s easy to get separated from your group. Even keeping up with your group at a small show can be a problem.

8. Keep a journal so you can track what you see, need to follow up on, etc. I usually have a small 5″ by 8″ notebook where I make notes about what’s new, action I need to take when I get back, and secure business cards I collect. It’s fun to see what’s transpired over the years.

9. Look for ways to connect. Everyone has to have lunch and/or dinner. Look for someone at a table, go join them. You’ll probably pick up a business tip and be able to share one, too. And, likely you’ll make a new friend.

Please share your thoughts below.

It’s definitely Quilt Show Season! AQS/Paducah was last week, Quilt Festival/Cincinnati and MQX the week before, and Machine Quilters Showcase and Quilt Market are in a couple of weeks. That’s just the larger shows. I think you can find a local show almost any weekend now. This past weekend I enjoyed one of the local guild’s annual shows.

Vending at these shows can be draining and it’s key to keep your energy up if you are to have a good show. Here are eight tips to help you have your best show yet:

1. Set an intention or goal for the show. Is it to make a certain amount of sales, to get your patterns picked up by a distributor, to test a new product, to get rid of aging stock? When you are clear on your intent, you’ll be more focused, and your results will show that.

2. Establish eye contact with show visitors, smile and engage them in a conversation. Ask questions that will lead to an answer that is not yes or no. Share something of yourself and your product. Your customer is buying you as much as she is buying your product. And, I’m sure you’ve been to a show where the vendor sits on a chair in the corner of an empty booth. Of course it’s empty; no one feels welcome to enter! Get up and greet your customer.

3. Demo if you can. Nothing draws a crowd like a demonstration. Next time you are at a show as a visitor, take a look at the more crowded booths. Many will have a group watching a demo. This engages your customer and leads to more sales.

4. Qualify your buyer, i.e., separate the browsers from the buyers. Quilt Market is filled with what I call “the entourage,” quilters who want to see what Market is all about. And, I love quilters who want to become involved in our industry; they keep our industry vital. However, while they may have some influence or be the buyer of the future, they are not the decision-maker today. I’m not saying to ignore them or be rude. You can engage them in a conversation, only find out who makes the buying decision and try to get to that person.

5. Have plenty of handouts and brochures. Not everyone is ready to make a decision when they first meet you. Some like to take materials back to the hotel room and compare before buying. Be sure to bring an original of your handouts in the event you need to get copies during the show.

6. Have a way for people to contact you later. I recently visited an artists cooperative, and while all the artists had business cards none included a web site on the card. Many times, I’d like to peruse the artist’s web site and see what other work she might have. Not all your buyers will purchase while they are in your booth or even at the show. Make it easy for them to see your product line.

7. Put your website, phone number, booth number on all your handouts and receipts. Buyers will share their finds with their friends and this will lead to more sales. At one of the first shows I vended in the 1990s, a friend stopped by the booth and showed me a new notion. She wanted to purchase another, only she didn’t know the name of the vendor or where he was located, and the receipt offered no help. Neither did I. (As it turned out, he was in my row!)

8. Keep up your energy. If you are doing multi-day shows, it’s easy to get run-down. Have healthy snacks and water in the booth. Try to stick to your regular sleeping routine, something I find hard to do at shows. If your energy is zapped, it will show in your results.

Hope these tips add to the success of your next show.

Please share your best vending tips below.

Does it seem like your time just slips away and that at the end of the day, you didn’t accomplish all you planned? Do you have dreams about what you want to do in your spare time, only you don’t have any?

For some people it’s not being clear on what you want from your day – or even your life. There’s that clarity thing again, but it really is the key to everything. One of the exercises I often hear suggested is to look at your life and decide what your days would be like if you were not limited by time or money. Once you do that, here are some additional steps.

1. Get clear about how you are really spending your time. To do this, you will need to track how you are actually spending your time, all of it. Keep a diary – kind of like when you keep track of what you eat – of what you do with all the time in your day. Start with when you get up and go through the end of the day. Do this for at least three days, preferably a week. I guarantee you will learn something unexpected.

2. Once you see how you really spend your time, review what you do that isn’t part of that ideal day. (If your ideal day was sitting by the water in the Caribbean with an umbrella drink, you might have a lot that doesn’t fit, but at least you know what you’re aiming for!) Look at what you are doing that could be done by someone else on your team. If you don’t have a team, look at what you could have someone do if you did, and consider moving in that direction.

3. Consider what you are doing that you shouldn’t be doing at all. If you find lots of those activities, learn how to say no. Look at those where you should be limiting your time, e.g., surfing the Internet. What you do should be using your skills and helping you pursue your goals.

4. Look at what activities you pursue that are really your passion. Try to spend more time there.

5. Review which activities are “putting out fires.” You may be familiar with Stephen Covey’s quadrants from his Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Things are urgent and important; important and not urgent; not important and urgent; or not important and not urgent. Your goal should be to spend time in the important and not urgent quadrant. If you are spending time in the urgent and important quadrant, you are putting out fires. Likely, this is because you didn’t prioritize or you procrastinated. Many of us spend too much time in the not important or not urgent areas and then we end up with those fires to put out.

6. If you want to spend time appropriately, plan your day the night before. That way you decide your priorities and can get more accomplished.

Remember, how you spend your time is how you spend your life.

Do you have any tips on spending your time more appropriately? Please share your thoughts below.

One of the things we talked about during the Creative Arts Business Summit was building a support team for your business. Teams are one way to leverage your business to grow. When I think of professionals in the quilt and fiber arts industry who do this, I first think of pattern designers. They know that they cannot possibly stuff all those patterns into plastic bags themselves. It’s not long before they’ve enlisted every family member and friend in that task. At some point it becomes so unwieldy, they look for additional help, often at the local sheltered workshop.

So, who do you put on your team? I like to look at the team as three legs on your company stool. You have your advisory team, your work team and your support team. And, of course, some people may be on more than one team.

Your advisory team might include your accountant, your lawyer, your banker and your insurance agent. They are people who help your business stay legal and in the black. You might talk them to once a year or once a month or as the need arises.

Your work team helps you on a more day-to-day basis or project basis to get your work out into the world. It might include the pattern stuffers and testers, your virtual assistant, your bookkeeper, your web designer and web tech person, your photographer, your sales reps.

Your support team might add your spouse, your networking group or mastermind partners, your coach. It might include your housekeeper or day care provider so you can focus on your business.

Where do you find these people to help you so that you can work on your business? Friends and colleagues are good place to start for a recommendation. Your guild or other groups you frequent are another source. You can also try Craig’s list or look online. A google search may be just what you need. I have one client who is successful using odesk.com. Another uses elance.com. Your IAPQ member benefits are another source. You can use our IP attorney if that need arises. And, if you are looking to add a virtual assistant to your team, Suzanne Moore can help you identify what your needs are.

I believe that once you add support in the way of team members you will begin to see your business grow in ways you just didn’t expect. And, it’s a wonderful change.

Who do you have on your team and when did you realize that you needed to add to your team? Please share your thoughts below.

Over the years I’ve wrestled with saying “no” to many requests. When I was two years old, I’m sure I didn’t have that problem. Just ask my family! As I grew up, I think the people pleaser in me showed up, and “no” seldom found its way into my vocabulary. As an adult, I have a distinct memory about learning how to say “no.” I was doing volunteer work at a local museum for a major fund-raising event. I was responsible getting volunteers for my committee. I still remember the woman I asked who instead of just saying “no” said, “No, I can’t help you now, but when the event takes place I’ll be glad to work.” Gosh, that no really didn’t sound so much like a no.

Yes can be the right answer many times, but none of us has unlimited time available to say yes to everything. It’s knowing when to say yes or no and then how to say it that makes the difference.

Here are seven ideas to help you say “no.”

1. Does the request move you closer to your goals? If it does, that’s great. Commit the time needed. If it doesn’t, it should be easy to say no.

2. How does the time commitment for a “yes” affect your priorities? Sometimes we might like to say yes, but the time away from our stated priorities is a sacrifice that we aren’t willing to make. One example might be that your priority for family time requires you to say no to requests that interfere with that. And, don’t forget that commitments to yourself count as priorities; don’t give up time you need to rejuvenate or “fill the well.”

3. It’s OK to think about the request. You can tell the person you’ll give some thought to their request and then get back to them. This gives you time to consider the request, see how it fits into your goals, priorities and commitments.

4. Don’t apologize for saying “no.” Often people will say, “I’m sorry, but I can’t because….” It’s not necessary to give a reason why you can’t. It’s your time you are guarding. If you feel the need to explain, a simple “I can’t at this time” should work.

5. Offer an option. If you want to be involved in an activity that will take too much of your time, think of how you can do something small that will be less stressful. That’s what the woman who taught me how to say “no” did. For example, if you’re asked to be responsible for arranging for snacks for your child’s soccer team for the season, offer to bring snacks for one game. When my quilt guild was in need of volunteers for its show, I offered to design the brochure and advertising materials, something I could do on my own time.

6. Try to be aware of when someone is going to ask you for something. If you are on a committee or part of a group, it’s much easier to let the chair/group know ahead of time that you are already committed and can’t take on something else.

7. Practice saying no. Try it when you are asked for personal information when you shop. Try it with telemarketers.

And, once you’ve said no, just move on. In all likelihood, you’ll feel better and much less stressed, and the person who asked just moves onto the next name on her list.

How good are you at saying, “no”? Please share your thoughts below.