Welcome to our July 2006 newsletter!

In this month's newsletter:

News from CEO David Baumgarten
ATO Business Start-up Checklist
Latest NEIS Star Ranking - top performer status in Sydney
A Morning with the Experts for Business At Home Operators
Sydney Business Advisory Service - help with business issues

Business September 2006 - 'Open Doors for Your Business'
Contractors Bill 2006 introduced into Parliament - ICA update
You can't lose anything you don't already have!
Avoiding the 'always available' trap
Are you 3 years plus in the service industry and experiencing growth pains?

Wentworth Courier Business Excellence Awards
Photographers at our functions
Work Choices Seminars
Clearly Business tenant profile - We're All About Marketing (WAAM)

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Business Thursday - Procrastination in Business 6th July
Creating an Effective Small Business Brand- Burwood Business Breakfast 11th July
The Power of Networking - Randwick Business Breakfast 12th July
The Basics of Selling on eBay - Workshops 25th & 26th July
Advanced eBay Training - 27th July

News from CEO David Baumgarten

I must admit it has taken me a month to catch up after having a month off. Yes, I need another holiday. Also I think I was procrastinating about putting finger to keyboard.

Which leads me to our next Business Thursday on 6th July, looking at Procrastination in Business - if you haven't yet booked in, stop procrastinating!

The Tom O'Toole Business Breakfast held at East's Leagues club on 30th May was a great success with over 80 guests. I sat and listened to Tom give a whole business program in a 40 minute presentation. He comes from the 'real life' college and like others who attended I was totally motivated.

On 6th June the first of the Business Breakfast Series in the Marrickville area took place. We had over 60 attendees which was a great turnout. With our partners we are now planning our next event.

On the subject of Business Breakfasts, we have the next Burwood Business Breakfast on the 11th July. Our presenter is Paul Wilson from Hot Chilli & the topic is Creating an Effective Small Business Brand.

In the Eastern Suburbs on the 12th July we are facilitating another Business Breakfast on behalf of the Randwick Combined Chambers. The global networking guru herself, Robyn Henderson, is flying in from Queensland to be our speaker.

Check out our Community Noticeboards for details of these events plus functions of the BNI, Olympic Referral Group, Canada Bay Business Group and other events in your area.

During the month I had the opportunity to catch up with Meredith Wallace, Director of Community Services, Waverley Council, as well as with Anne Clarke and Eugene Sarich from Burwood, Prue Foreman from Newtown Main Street, Karen Allen from Canada Bay and Graham Humphreys from Bankstown.

All these people are in touch with their respective communities and doing a great job. It is a given that the Small Business team at the Department of State and Regional Development is, as always, very supportive.

I also attended a meeting of the Bondi Chamber of Commerce - The guest was David Campbell, NSW Small Business Minister. I am always made to feel very welcome by the chamber and it was a great presentation by the minister.

I am also very excited to be involved personally and for ESBEC to be a sponsor of The Wentworth Courier Business Awards. We are proud to acknowledge that The Courier has been a foundation sponsor of this organisation for15 years. See below for more details.

To give you the heads up, Business September is not far away. Cancel the holidays… keep the calendar free so that you can take advantage of the business month. More news to follow.

I also have some good news: I have spoken in past newsletters about Growth workshops and I am pleased to announce that Aus Industry (Federal Government) has approved a tender submission to allow me to offer these across Sydney - so stay tuned.

In the meantime have a great month and end of financial year!

David Baumgarten, CEO

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ATO Business Start-up Checklist

The ATO recently released a checklist for people new to business. This simple list is designed to help people get their tax affairs in order from the beginning.

Check it out on the ATO's website at www.ato.gov.au/businesses/content.asp?doc=/content/69534.htm


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Latest NEIS Star Ranking - top performer status in Sydney

As you may be aware we deliver the New Enterprise Incentive Scheme (NEIS) on behalf of The Federal Department of Workplace Relations. The managing agents who deliver this program are regularly ranked against their peers.

I am pleased that we again were awarded 4 stars out of a possible 5. This program is about launching tomorrow's businesses. Many businesses have gone through this program and are now leaders in the business community.

Want to know more? See our NEIS web page

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A Morning with the Experts for Business At Home Operators

An initiative we are trialling in Waverley and Canterbury in October is a half day workshop for Business at Home Operators.

These seminar style workshops will be looking at very specific issues that you have told us about. Hopefully they will have the "NOW Effect" in assisting you to operate your business.

So if you are a plumber, electrician, graphic designer, consultant or fall under the category of a Home Based Business or home office and are interested in these workshops, please email me personally at david@easternsuburbsbec.com.au to register your interest.

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Sydney Business Advisory Service - help with business issues

This service is delivered on behalf of the NSW Department of State and Regional development.

Our Program Manager is Daniel Boland who is more than happy to assist anyone looking at starting a business or already in business.

This service is available at Bondi Junction, the City (323 Castlereagh Street) and Bankstown. The service is by appointment on Tel. 1300 650 058

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Business September 2006 - 'Open Doors for Your Business'

Yes, a year goes by so fast… another Business September is just around the corner.

The theme this year is 'Open Doors for Your Business' and a dedicated website will go live from Monday 3rd July. We are currently putting together our program for the month so stay tuned.

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Contractors Bill 2006 introduced into Parliament

The Federal Government's Independent Contractors Bill 2006 was introduced into Parliament at the end of June.

The Independent Contractors of Australia (ICA) has made an initial assessment of the Bill and provided a summary of the more important sections. The Explanatory Memorandum to the Bill also contains some useful information about the number of contractors in Australia.

For ICA's assessment, an extract from the Memorandum, and links to associated resources, please go to www.contractworld.com.au/reloaded/ica-news.php and follow the two links in the News box.

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You can't lose anything you don't already have!

The fear of losing a sale that has yet to be completed has kept many salespeople from doing what needs to be done to actually close the sale... or close the file if the sale cannot be completed.

When the selling process starts to drag on - a prospect does not follow through with commitments or otherwise stalls the process - salespeople need to be assertive and address the issue with the prospect. Often, however, the fear of being perceived as desperate or pushy prevents salespeople from taking those actions.

You cannot lose something you do not own, and you do not 'own' the sale until the terms are agreed and the money is in the bank! The only thing you risk by addressing the prospect's delaying tactics is uncovering the truth, and if the truth is that you are not going to close the sale, wouldn't you rather find out sooner or later?

The above article supplied by Phil Lee from the Sandler Institute.

Contact Phil at plee@sandler.com or visit www.sandler-au.com

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Avoiding the 'always available' trap

Article by Robert Gerrish

Well, don't we just have it all at our fingertips these days? Mobile telephony, satellite monitoring, wireless go anywhere internet connection, SMS and 'always on' email straight to our palm devices. As soloists, there's no excuse for failing to stay in touch with our work (and our clients) regardless of where we are or when.

The marketers of course, would have us believe this is all good. I disagree. Sure, some of it can be good and at times it is very convenient, but the worrying trend is that always available may become the workplace norm.

A quick glance at how these new services are being marketed and you'll see imagery depicting young, happy executives tapping away at the keyboard while at the beach or in the garden. In the distance we see friends and family supposedly playing and communing happily. Everyone is doing what they love. How nice.

Let's now consider the reverse scenario: Friends and family playing happily in the office while you work. Do you reckon you'll get much done? Nope. Me neither. You'll be distracted and certainly won't be concentrating on your work.

Relaxing with friends and family isn't a totally passive pastime. You need to participate if you are to give and receive. It's called 'being present'. If you're not joining in, all you're really doing is moving the office to a new location…and one where nothing terribly meaningful is achieved.

Let's look at other implications of the always available trap. Remember the good old days when you took a day or two off and were pleasantly surprised when everything ran smoothly in your absence? The times when your clients and associates rose to the challenge of management and decision-making and showed themselves much more capable than you had given credit? Why would anyone risk making a decision about anything now, when you're just a moment away

On the other hand, if you want to make every micro decision (a control freak!) then carry on, you're doing just fine. While some soloists may quite rightly say that being always available and in touch is wonderful for their business, a survey on our site suggested over 72% of you would be more than happy if a surprise law banned mobile phones. Chances are partners and friends are sure to agree!

The answer to this is not that complex. Being available can most certainly be good, but we have to establish boundaries with our colleagues and clients. If you don't stay in control of your involvement in your business, you'll forever be its prisoner. That doesn't sound like a good recipe for loving your work, does it?

Article supplied by member Robert Gerrish from Flying Solo www.flyingsolo.com.au

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Are you 3 years plus in the service industry and experiencing growth pains? We can assist...

I am pleased to advise that this organisation was one of a select number that had funding approved by the Federal Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources to assist businesses committed to growth in the service industry.

If your business is past the 3 year mark (or showing symptoms of rapid expansion) we would like to hear from you. Information sessions will be conducted throughout August in Metropolitan Sydney.

To register your interest please email david@clearlybusiness.com.au

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Wentworth Courier Business Excellence Awards

ESBEC is a proud sponsor of the above awards. Entries have now closed and we await the announcement of the winners.

The gala evening will be on the 12th July at the AJC. Check out the Wentworth courier to book your table. See you at the Awards.

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Photographers at our functions

I have been asked by a number of people who are our photographers at our functions.

We use the services of Moshe Rosenzveig - 4D Photography (mosher100@fastem.com) and Michael Thompson Photography (michaelthompson@ihug.com.au).

Thank you to both these gentlemen.

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Work Choices Seminars

The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) will be conducting a national seminar series to introduce participants to the WorkChoices system.

The seminar's aim is to provide Australian employers and employees with an overview of WorkChoices and the advantages and the opportunities it provides.

There will be over 350 seminars held nationwide during the next three months. See this link for more information and bookings: www.workchoices.gov.au/ourplan/events/

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Clearly Business tenant profile - We're All About Marketing (WAAM)

Susanna Kopman of independent marketing agency WAAM (We're All About Marketing) decided to take advantage of the Clearly Business serviced office facilities several months ago. Having initially used the virtual office facilities she now enjoys the benefits of a serviced office based in the heart of Sydney.

Susanna's business focuses on providing highly practical marketing solutions for small to medium-sized businesses. As she describes it, 'We're the marketing department for businesses which can't afford their own marketing manager".

Having her office based at Clearly Business allows Susanna to interact with many other small business operators and provides a convenient location for meeting with clients. The numerous training and networking opportunities on offer at Clearly Business also create a stimulating and positive environment in which to run her business.

As a small business operator herself, Susanna knows how important it is to spend the majority of time focusing on your core business and what you do best. For this reason she enjoys being able to save her clients time and money by researching the best marketing strategy for them and accessing the appropriate people and resources to implement that strategy. In turn Susanna enjoys having the support of the serviced office facilities so that she can focus on meeting her own clients' needs.

From website, logo and business card design to PR, sales training and event management, Susanna aims to offer all aspects of marketing in a practical and cost-effective way. To take advantage of the Clearly Business virtual and serviced office facilities call 9212 0555.

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DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Business Thursday - Procrastination in Business 6th July

A special invitation to individuals and teams… This fast-paced, interactive two-hour workshop will show you how to:

• Discover what Procrastination really is
• Get clear about your own Brilliant Excuses
• Learn simple, guilt-free techniques to help you and your team overcome procrastination
• Create strategies for dealing with the procrastination of others
• Learn to access, trust and use intuitive-based action
• Discover how to apply the concepts of RISER and the 'Push-Pause' technique to your own work situation

Book a seat NOW via our Networking Calendars….do not procrastinate!

ESBEC - Networking Calendar
Clearly Business - Networking Calendar

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Creating an Effective Small Business Brand - Burwood Business Breakfast 11th July

You don't need a multi-million dollar advertising budget or a degree in marketing and design to make the most from branding. You too can create a magnetic brand that adds value to your enterprise.

For more details and to book your place see our Networking Calendar

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The Power of Networking - Randwick Business Breakfast 12th July

This presentation by networking guru Robyn Henderson will give you the essential do's and don'ts for effective networking, including:

• The psychology of networking - how, why, when and where it works
• Turning business cards into business
• How to continually move out of your comfort zone
• How to enjoy networking

Book your seat via our Networking Calendar

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The Basics of Selling on eBay - Workshops 25th & 26th July

"I know about eBay - however how can I use it for my business? I need to know more..."

The above is a frequent question that I am asked. We are all aware of the impact that the World Wide Web is having on our daily life. We as consumers are driving the focus of online shopping.

I for one do all my banking via the web and just booked my entire overseas holiday on the net (and it all came together successfully!)

For those looking at starting a business and considering the opportunities that eBay can provide, these workshops are a must. On the 25th July we look at selling on eBay, listing, setting prices and most importantly how to monitor. This workshop is offered again on the 26th July. For more information and to book see our Training Calendars:

ESBEC - Training Calendar
Clearly Business - Training Calendar

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Advanced eBay Training - 27th July

The workshop on the 27th July, 'Advanced eBay Training', looks at how to start and/or grow an eBay-based business using a store.

Last time we offered this workshop we had an overwhelming response. So book early.

For more information and to book see our Training Calendars:

ESBEC - Training Calendar
Clearly Business - Training Calendar

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Home-Based Business Action Program - Canada Bay - 15th August

Take Your Home-Based Business to the Next Level!

I am pleased to advised that we are offering the Home Based Business Action Program on behalf of the NSW Department of State & Regional Development. This program is an ideal opportunity to review your business plan NOW!

Make the decision to expand your vision and develop new concepts and skills. Program commences 15th August and finishes mid September 2006.

For more information email daniel@clearlybusiness.com.au

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Newsletter edited by Charmedia

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