Episode 43: Asking For Feedback: Identifying Your Strengths and Weaknesses as a Small Business Owner
For this week’s quick tip episode, you will need to reach out to a couple of people and ask for feedback. If you’re about to start a business or trying to assess how you’re doing as a business owner, Fiona shares how asking your colleagues what you’re good at and which area in your business do you need to improve on will help you be better at what you do. Listen now and get ready for some honesty!
Topics discussed in this episode:
Introduction
What do you think you’re bad at?
Asking feedback
What Fiona’s colleagues shared with her
Fiona’s lack of confidence before
How she used the feedback to improve
What you need to do
Marketing for Your Small Business
Resources mentioned in this episode:
Episode transcript:
Hello and welcome to Episode 43 of My Daily Business Coach podcast. I am super excited to be recording today.
I want to give a massive, massive shout out to anyone listening in my hometown of Melbourne who has just been told that we have a bit more freedom and importantly, that retail businesses can open. I know, I know, I know that we are not doing anywhere near as badly as so many other parts of the world in terms of health issues. But man, being in serious lockdown. And this has been like this for six to seven months where we have had curfews, we have had five kilometre radiuses. We can't go out. Businesses have had to open, shut, open, shut, and just had no real certainty as to when they could actually open their doors. We are going into the busiest period of the year for many retailers.
So having that certainty now or a little bit more has just done so much for. I've had lots of conversations with small business owners in Melbourne today and it has been huge. So really, really, really wanted to say well done to everyone in Melbourne who is a small business owner who has got through the last six to seven months in lockdown. Massive, massive news for the small business community where I live and wherever you are in the world. I hope that you are safe. I hope you're listening to this and you are mentally strong and that your business is doing well.
So today's quick tip episode is a tactic that I used when I first started my business. Now I started my business - I didn't officially start working with people until early 2016, but I started the business in 2015 while I was still working. And I built up a client list that definitely had some way to go after resigning from my full-time executive role. But I used this tactic and I'm not entirely sure where I first learnt about this. I know that in 2015, when I was doing all of this, I was watching quite a bit of Marie TV. So it could have been one of her episodes. It could have been for a business friend somewhere along the way. I learnt this tactic circa 2015.
And it really helped me understand myself and understand certain things around me that have helped me and had an impact on the way that I run and market my business. So today I'm sharing this tactic with you in the hope that it does the same. Okay, ready. Let's get stuck in.
What do you think you're bad at? I feel like immediately. Many of you are sort of answering in your head with, “well, how long do you have, Fiona? Because I'm bad at lots of things.” And for many small business owners, we think like that. We carry around this never-ending list of all the things that we're not great at or that we could improve on or that we're, in “bad at”.
Now, on the flipside, what do you think you are excelling? What are you the go-to guru on?
Now, I'm betting that immediately at your head, it's not as long at least as the first question, right? So give yourself a moment and really think about that. You know, think about what are you amazing at? Now, what I've just asked you to do is sometimes harder when we consider those two questions, you know, what are you good at? What are you bad at in relation to ourselves? If I had asked you to list out the good and bad qualities about a business friend or colleague or one of your staff, then you would you'd usually be able to answer that a lot quicker and you'd be able to answer it probably more factually correct than what you think about yourself, because we can be really harsh on ourselves and who we are.
So today's tip is a tactic that I deployed when I started my business, and it was really to ask about 15 to 20 people. I think I ended up with 20 to ask those people and some of them I'd worked with, some of them I knew socially and maybe in the mix was like one or two good friends.
I asked them for feedback and I asked them for really honest, really true, really solid feedback, brutal feedback, really. And the question that I asked them was simple. I said, “Which three things do you think I do really well? And what is one thing I don't do well that I could improve on? Or one area that you think, “Hmmm…not one of your best character traits, Fiona.”
Now, I know that this can be a daunting thing to ask. And, of course, you know, people have a tendency when we ask them things like this to want to paint these positive, perfect picture to be like, you're amazing. I know you look fantastic in everything. I can't even think of something that you're not good at.
But when requesting this, what I did and I just sent an email to the 20 people I stressed. I want honest feedback. I want brutal feedback. Please don't sugarcoat anything. And I also suggested that if they didn't know exactly how to say frame the assort had a word and then just give me bullet points or just give me even, you know, an attribute or a character trait that I have in either relation to the three things I do well or the one thing that I could improve on. And that was absolutely fine, thay didn’t have to write these essays. And so I waited. I sent it. I waited. And it was really interesting to see a who got back to me, but also the answers that people gave. And what was most interesting about their answers was the common themes that kept coming out, these themes that were sewn throughout, you know, whether it was somebody I'd worked with 10 years ago, you know, on the other side of the planet, or if it was somebody that I'd worked with very closely or recently and even other people on the list who unrelated and they were from all different parts of my career.
A lot of what they said was the same for me in the kind of positive area, the three things I do well, a lot of the time it was things like empathy and integrity. You know, those words came up a lot. And in fact, I think empathy was the most common trait or word in relation to the three things that I do well. And I mean that figures, you know, given the way I was raised, given what I'm interested in, I am really interested in like psychology and how people operate and all of that stuff. And in the fact that I work in marketing, I mean, you absolutely need to have empathy for your audience in order to connect with them through marketing. And so I also try and do everything, you know, with integrity. It's not just a word I bandy around. It's something that I actually really try to live up to.
I remember once when I was at my last employed role, somebody said to me, you know, you and your principles. And it's like, “Yes, I have principles.” You know, I have these things. I think that, you know, if I see you in a top 10 list, then you didn't pay to be in there. You know, I want to do things with integrity. It is a really crucial part of my business. And to know that, you know, if I'm ever on an award list or if I'm ever on in media or if I'm in the top selling book here or there or whatever, that. In that place, you know, I didn't just pay for it. So it was interesting to see that. And of course, it was nice. It's always nice to read these things about yourself. But what was perhaps really interesting was to see in the one area that I can improve on to seeing those answers again, I was really shocked by how many people said the same thing. And it's something that has come up many times in my life. So it wasn't a total surprise. But it was kind of shocking how many people from different parts of my career were able to pinpoint the exact same thing. And that thing was the way that I talk about myself and the way that I I guess, you know, now without getting into like a therapy session, I had a few things happen to me when I was young that have left me or had left me.
I think I've worked through most of them, with therapy, was that people I had had things happened to me that made me feel very unsure of myself. I was very lacking in confidence. And when I was younger, I was bullied a lot at primary school. I went to two different primary schools. I went from prep to grade four in one. de five and six, I moved to a new school…But yeah, that was a part of my growing up and actually looking at it.
Now, when I look at my son's school, I'm like, “Oh, the teachers… they're so interested in what the children are doing and how they're playing and interacting. And I think back in the 80’s definitely that didn't exist because I used to to sit on a lawn chair. Often I remember exactly where I was at the primary school, and not once did it take to come along and sort of try and get other people to play with me.
But I think that start in life, you know, left me quite lacking in confidence for some time. And it also made me feel like I couldn't boast or talk confidently about my achievements or what I was doing. And so when it came back to the feedback that people were giving, a lot of it was that when it comes to things that you're doing well or things that you've done in your business, you tend to downplay, like you tend to downplay it or, you know, I make jokes when people would say something good about me or I sort of shied away from accepting praise or putting myself forward for things.
And so in some feedback, you know, someone in one of the feedback, someone said something like, you know, “You've got this business and sometimes you try and bring in these experts or other people instead of just being like, I have this knowledge and I can share it.” And that was really interesting to see.
Another person said, you know, often when I introduce you to people, you're quick to downplay what I've just said, as if, you know, you haven't done that in your career or you don't have that expertise or something. And so that has been something that I really have worked on. And I guess I'm sharing all of this because based on this exercise is asking people for three things I do well and one that I can improve upon way back in 2015, when I was starting my business, I was able to then amend things in my messaging to shine a light on the stuff that I do well and also to be really conscious of that area that I can improve on, to be really conscious of not talking myself down, of not making a joke or making light when somebody said something positive or nice about me. And I know it might sound like such a simple thing, but having this information imparted to me by these 20 people, you know, many of whom I had worked with in a very professional setting rather than, you know, me just thinking this is what I'm good at. This is what I'm bad at.
Having this information from these people really helped me shape the way I presented myself, you know, back then when I did it in 2015 and today, five years later. And I mean, I'm still someone who can feel shy promoting themselves. And I know this is ironic because you feel like you work in marketing. You have a podcast, you just put a book out you don't really seem like that. And you're on Instagram stories all the time. But I can tell you, it's taken me time to be able to do that. And I've had to find a way of promoting or even, you know, just admitting my wins or my achievements in a way that feels comfortable to me, and it's actually really helped because I work with a lot of people who feel the same way, who feel initially maybe uncomfortable about selling or promoting or marketing. And what we're able to do together is to work through how to do that in a way that aligns with who they are, with their values, with their beliefs. And just the impact that they want to have on the world and to break it down so that there isn't that lack of confidence, that they feel really confident and proud of what they're doing.
And I feel like, you know, I have got to that stage in my business where I do feel proud. I do know that I know my stuff and I'm able to share it. But that has taken time. So I guess, gosh, I really do feel like that's a bit of a therapy session.
But no matter where you are in your business, whether you're super established or you're just starting out, this exercise of asking 20 people for three things that you're good at and one that you could improve on is really eye opening and helpful, especially if you're sort of thinking about 2021 and. Okay, what am I going to do differently in my business? And this is a really good insight to have to be like, well, how do other people perceive me, especially my peers or my colleagues or my clients or customers.
So to do it, all you need is to consider 20 people that you trust to give honest feedback, also that you respect and that you really want to know feedback from them and then just contact them.
So I sent an email. It was pretty short. I simply said something like, hey, I'm about to start my own business and I'm looking to get feedback that could help me in the way that I communicate this business and my offerings and myself as the business owner. So can you please provide me with three things you think I do well and one area or trait that I could improve on?
And I literally sent it off and I waited. And I think most people got back. Some people had to chase up. And, you know, maybe there might have been one or two that didn't necessarily feel comfortable or just didn't have the time to write back.
So if you are thinking, okay, this sounds like a good idea, then I suggest not just listening to this and being like, that's a good idea, actually actioning. So, you know, set yourself a deadline to send that email off to those people this week or max this fortnight and make it happen.
And if you're interested in marketing in a way that isn't sell, sell, sell, and that really aligns with who you are, the values, the belief systems that you have. And it feels really good rather than feels lame or sales just not true to who you are. Then you might want to check out my online course marketing for your small business, which dives into all the things you need to know about marketing, as well as provides loads of practical templates and tools to create your own marketing strategy and plan.
So you can find that simply at marketingforyoursmallbusiness.com. And of course, we'll link to that in the show notes. So that is it for today's episode - episode 43 and this quick tip, as mentioned, you'll find everything you need to know from today's episode, including a full transcript and links to everything that I've mentioned, including my marketing for your small business course.
And you can find that at mydailybusinesscoach.com/podcast/43 as this is episode 43.
Thanks for listening to the My Daily Business Coach podcast. If you want to get in touch, you can do that at mydailybusinesscoach.com or hit me up on Instagram at @mydailybusinesscoach.
Remember to hit subscribe so you don't miss out on future quick tip episodes or my longer coaching ones or my interview episodes with small business owners from across the globe. Thanks so much for listening. See you next time.
