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Linda Murray Bullard

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The LSMB Back Story…(as previously published)

The LSMB Business Solutions Back Story

Linda Murray Bullard, MBA, CSSP, PMP

Before I started my business

Insurance was just beginning to feel the effect of the Affordable Healthcare Act (ACA, Obamacare). In 2008, I had designed and built my dream home and gotten married. Life was good. I was working for a large healthcare insurance company and coping with internal management challenges. The rumble started in 2010. There were whispers at the insurance company of a major overhaul like we had never seen. The executives seemed anxious. They had to begin thinking of shifting the entire organization to meet the challenges of doing business different. By 2011, just as I was finishing up my bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration of organization management, I started to physically feel the deafening calm before the storm.

The catalyst for starting my business

It occurred on January 24, 2013. After 26 years, I was told my services were no longer required. That was the longest relationship I had other than my family. I also filed for divorce which was finalized in February 2013. Initially, I was devastated. The time to become more financially independent was upon me. Struggles sharpen your survival skills.

It might sound crazy, but the same bill that cost me my job would in a matter of weeks also saved the life of one of my family members. The dismissal turned out to be the best thing that could happen to me and my family. I learned from those experiences never to put all my eggs in one basket ever again. I was also able to benefit from the Affordable Housing Act, which allowed me to adjust my mortgage payments. Life had settled down.

And, I found that the 26 years I spent were not wasted. The experiences helped me to establish a relationship with the people I now serve. I worked thirteen different positions on my previous job and learned how to become marketable when desiring to move from entry-level to manager…without a degree! This also helps me to create content quickly.

The Beginning

It was in 2011 when we were first made aware of the possibility of the shifts in our jobs. Instinctively, I started taking additional business classes in 2012 right as there was a layoff of sorts. I was determined that I would never put the control of my standard of living in someone else’s hands. The classes helped test your ideas in the real world, which added to my college learning and existing business acumen. The Launch Chattanooga administrators of the classes were and still are very supportive. In fact, after graduating from the class, they were my first customers. I wrote 17 business plans for other graduates and the institution paid me for them. I was ecstatic! I have been facilitating classes for them and others for the past four years.

In addition, the time off gave me time to pull out an old 2007 personal essay to see if it was book worthy. The essay evolved into “The Well Ran Dry: Memoirs of a Motherless Child,” which is a creative autobiography that I use to empower teens, women and men. It encourages them to look past their circumstances to see their best life. The book was accepted by the US Library of Congress in December 2013. It is available for free just by asking for it by name in over 16,000 public libraries in the United States. And, it is also available for purchase on Amazon.com, as well as all major online book outlets.

The Evolution

My original plan was to create business plans and get paid after the client received their funding. I quickly learned that was an unwise decision. So, I begin pulling from my experiences from previous employment. I assessed the needs of my Avatar. By doing this, I created more products like resumes, mock interviews, business and career coaching sessions and training workshops. I also formulated a strategy from over 25 years of professional speaking and youth messages in church to draw larger audiences.

My ideal clients are women between the ages of 34 and 54 who are struggling to find what they need to go next level. I help them to create a strategic plan for moving forward. Many times that means going back to find that passion project that was silenced by life’s noises. My current business model consists of multiple revenue streams, strong business relationships, and a zeal for helping startups specifically. I am still creating products, as needed. My next book is a five-part series designed to assist startups step by step. The book is in the production stage.

Exciting Plans for 2018

Just this past weekend, I spent major time with key influencers who gave me invaluable pointers on how to increase my social visibility. A few of them even did video with me. *check my LinkedIn page. In 2018, I plan to increase my revenue by a very substantial number over last year’s numbers. Also, I would like to touch the lives of more people and finish my five-part series: Building Your Own Business: The Startup Handbook, which is based on what I have seen over 30 years in Corporate America.

Lessons Learned/Words of Wisdom:

1)    Get a mentor or business coach. Pay attention to both, what they say and what they don’t say.

2)    Seek a successful like-minded community of founders and business people. Find your people!

3)    Build a team. Yes, you probably can do it by yourself, but don’t. You really need a team…no for real, for real!

4)    Utilize your local Small Business Development Center or Small Business Administration office in your area. They have free and budget-friendly information you need in your business life.

5)    This is a journey. Enjoy it and be patient with your business and with yourself.

Tips to Showcase My Expertise: Now that I am a business strategist, every small business owner I have ever met knows exactly what they want to sell; however, few of them understand this is only one half of what they needed to become successful. The statistics don’t lie. There are 50-90% of business owners closing their shops anywhere from the first 18 months up to 5 years into their businesses’ life cycles. Some who make it past year five die in the next five years. Fully understanding how and when to pivot for your business is extremely important…in fact, not knowing can be fatal. I want to help women do business well. My students labeled me “The Business Plug” because I plug them into the resources and people they didn’t know exist. I strive every day to live up to what they see in me. I know how this journey started, but my ashes are truly turned into diamonds and I enjoy showing others how they can have the same or even more.

 

Network With Me: Join me in taking part in the 2018 One Million Woman Link Up to monetize LinkedIn. #SmartWomenPartnerGrowRich http://bit.ly/2JeQAfO

Contact Info:

 

Business Email: [email protected]

Cell phone: (423) 838-3117

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindamurraybullardspeaks/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LSMBBusinessSolutions/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lsmbbusinesssolutions/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LSMBBiz

Look, I previously said you need to build a strong business network. I’ve found just the community for you and your business. Join me for the 2018 One Million Women Link Up!

#Comment #Like #Share #Lead #TheBusinessPlug

Professional Speaker

Three Financial Mistakes Business Owners Make & How To Avoid Them

In the time of LSMB Business Solutions’ existence, I’ve ran across all types of small business people. Some have been in business for several years. Some are new to business ownership. Some are somewhere in between the two before mentioned.

The commonalities are pretty much the same. Most business owners know all there is to know about their “widgets,” and they think they are the best at it! If you don’t believe me,  just ask them. They will straight out tell you no one can do it as well as they can do it.  Confidence is a great thing to have when you a business owner. Why?  I’m glad you asked. Without confidence, no one will buy into their products or services.  (Smart moves, business owners.)

Product knowledge is the second thing I’ve found that most business owners have. Some many have more of it than others, but most business owners know at lease the preliminaries about their widgets. Like confidence, that is good, as well. Why? Boy, you are so good at asking the right questions! This is good because no one will buy a product or service from anyone who cannot respond intelligently when they have a question. However, in business confidence is not enough and product knowledge, whether a little or a lot is not enough either.

Now that you know what business owners know, let’s discuss what they don’t know. When interacting with the business owners I’ve met over the past three  years or so, I’ve found that the majority of the business owners do not know following three things, so I’m going to tell you how you can avoid them.

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  • Knowing how to price their widget

Most business owners do one of two things. They either guess or they see what the competition charges and come in lower than the competition. Both of those are bad ideas for this reason. Neither of these practices are based on reality. The better way is to set down with a certified public accountant, a professional business coach or a mentor (preferably someone who has been in business six years or longer) and discuss your financial situation from startup, if application, fixed cost, and variable cost.

There are three price options: a) High-End, Luxury ; b) Most Likely; 3) Minimum Necessary. The High End, Luxury price is the most the customer will pay for their widget. It is the High End, Luxury price. This price comes with all bells and whistles, so choose it only if you are willing to throw in a few giveaways and are willing to go that extra mile.

The Most Likely price is the most reasonable price a customer will pay for their widget. Think of it as the win-win price. You will want to make this your go-to price because it will keep your customers coming back.

The Minimum Necessary price is the lowest price a business owner can sell the widget for and still make the amount needed for their bottom line. Think of this as the “bare bones” or “final discount” price.

Not using the right pricing numbers can lead to so many other financial problems that many business owners get frustrated and simply quit. They literally give up the Struggle. These three experts can help business owners arrive at their most likely price based on “real world” situations.

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Before or after you continue to read the information below, if you have any questions please click on the following link to complete this Customer Intake Sheet and email it along with your questions to [email protected]. If you would like to schedule an appointment, please provide your best time of availability after 5:00 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends.

LSMB Business-Coaching-Intake-Questions-Sheet

And now, back to the issues at hand… Secondly, business owners do not invest in their learning and because of that,

  • Do not know how to read and understand a financial business report

Knowing how to read and more importantly financial business reports is very imperative to every successful business owner. Why? I see you are still asking those most wonderful questions!

Understanding how money flows in and out of a business and then seeing how it flows on a cash flow statement, a balance sheet, a profit/loss statement and an income statement can help a business owner really understand at a glance where the money comes into the business and where the money is going when it leaves the business.

These few reports are just a tip of the iceberg of the many reports business owners need to understand, and having this very basic knowledge will allow business owners to make informed decisions about where they are and where they want to go. Armed with this knowledge can help them to identify trends so they can make future projects and understand the ebb and flows of their business

  • Failure to seek help

I was teaching a class when a lovely couple attended and stated they had been in business for eleven years previously. They were currently out of business, but in telling me their story, it made me want to cry for them. They thought they were doing very well because the were always making money, but when a friend asked them to use a financial tool, they learned they had been operating in the red for years!! They never went for help. They believed between the two of them they could handle operating a business because although they had not taken business course, they were college educated.

That has been the number one attitude of the majority of people I have ran into. They think they are smart enough to run a business without help. These people are not crazy. They are not dumb. They are smart people, in general. But, they have no idea that just as they would go to a doctor for their medical expertise, they need to go to a business expert for business expertise. Again, confidence and product knowledge are not enough to stay sustainable.

When I tell my entrepreneurial students that the going rate of failed startup businesses in Hamilton County is over 90% in five years, their eyes glaze over and shake their heads in dismay. It is not because of bad ideas or bad people. That statistic is not a concrete number that cannot be changed. Most new businesses fail because they “think they can do it on their own.”

Hiring a professional business coach, attending a reputable entrepreneurial class, finding a mentor…these all add to the success of a viable business. When reviewing the successful businesses on the other side of depressions, recessions and economic downturns, the ones who survived are the ones who created strategies to stay ahead of the game. It is hard for some to believe that there were firms who were not touched by the most recent recession, but there were businesses who did not feel the impact. Strategic positioning has to be learned from someone who is familiar with strategic planning and business concepts. This can be obtain through any of the before mentioned means and business owners do themselves and their customers a disservice when they do not use resources to gather that education.

These are just a few of many things business owners do incorrectly. Look to LSMB Business Solutions for more advice on how to strengthen your business knowledge. If you have questions, I have answers.

I come to take you higher,

Linda

 

Professional Speaker

Do It

I had a wonderful time this weekend serving at The Deeva Code “Women’s Empowerment Brunch” on Saturday, June 11, 2016 at The Peyton. The engagement was sponsored by Ms. Ambera Brown. If you don’t have her in your list of powerhouses, you need to find her and add her quick. She was able to bring together women from as far away as Washington DC to Raleigh and from Cleveland to parts of Mississippi.

When I tell you this event was the highlight of the weekend, followed very closely by my alumni’s 151st weekend celebration…it was all that! I met so many  beautiful cultivated sparks who just needed someone to stop back to breathe a breath of fresh air on their spirits so they could move to their next level. These ladies were degreed, educated, dreamers who worked in their various wheel houses inspiring others, but they had forgotten to refuel.  That’s what happens when you pour into others, you forget to celebrate yourself.

One of the ladies posted, that they laughed, cried, hugged and bonded during the event. The Empowerment began with a beautiful 27 year old Lauren Hodges inspiring the ladies to dream and have visions. She instructed them not to allow others who had given up on their dreams to jade the visions God had placed within their hearts. I had prayed for a Word from God to give to the ladies and it was in Lauren’s speech that God gave me clarity. My position was to reiterate her message and to begin the work she had given them. Therefore, my message was simple, “Do It,” which was an acronym.

D= Don’t give up on you and don’t allow others to give up on you. People full of doubts and fears are normally hanging around Haters who feed their doubts and fears. When faith is fed, fears starve to death. Stop allowing negative people to use you as the toilet where they dump their messy, drama filled lives at your doorstep. You are not the toilet. Show them where that stuff goes…it has a place. Separate yourself from people who don’t support you! (Now, if these are your husband and children, contact me! This does not apply to them! There’s something else you should consider if you think they are hating on you.)

O= Organize your life, girl! Look at your Circle. There are three types of people in it. The first ones are those who always bring the drama…yep, them. You know them because you just had a flash of them in your head as you read this…they bring it and they bring it every time. Separate from them. You do not need to RSVP every negative situation you are invited to join. The second group are “Sometimers.” Sometimes they are with you and sometimes they are not. Give them the opportunity to correct what they are doing wrong. If they do not, “Bye, Felicia.” Then, there’s that final group…the loyal Ride or Die Group who really rides or dies! These are the “Doers.” Do yourself a favor and get you some Doers. There won’t be many, but that’s ok. If you can find five who are true to you and support you, you are doing well.

I= Invite positivity to your live.  Now that you’ve removed all the negativity from your life you have room for the positives. Expect to be upgraded. Where energy goes, energy flows. The Bible tells you to focus on the positives. You have to be what you want to bring into your life and it starts with your mind set. When you change your mind about how you see yourself, you change your world.

T=Tell five people. Write down 3 goals. Set a reasonable deadline and tell five people, preferably strangers. You need to put what you want into the universe and start working toward it. You are empowered to do everything God has assigned you to do in this life. It is your job, your responsibility…as Muhammad Ali stated, “The rent you pay for your stay on Earth.”  You have to do the work to get where you were designed to be in your life. It will not be easy and it will not be free, but it is definitely doable and you are definitely capable of making it happen if you throw away the excuses and move toward the light of your intended life.

You deserve your best life, but only you can make it happen. Stay bless and DO IT!

Stay blessed,

Much love, many blessings

Linda