Diana Mercer

Update on Marketing Strategy: Drilling Down

2010-02-25T15:20:00.000-08:00

My marketing coach, the inspiration for my earlier post on Drilling Down, has changed her company name to People Biz., Inc. and has a new URL: http://www.peoplebizinc.com

2010-02-03T16:10:00.001-08:00

Indiana Assn of Mediators Marketing Conference 2/27. I'm the featured speaker! http://ping.fm/OdxqH

2009-07-10T15:49:00.001-07:00

Really excited for the Indiana Assn of Mediators Conference! http://ping.fm/NVPn2

2009-07-05T20:03:00.001-07:00

Looking forward to helping people get married. http://ping.fm/kI9p8

Marketing Strategy: Drilling Down

2009-04-10T16:49:00.000-07:00

Marketing Strategy: Drilling Down

http://www.peace-talks.com

You’ve got a great marketing plan and lots of terrific ideas yet you’re still not making any money.

What’s wrong? Isn’t hard work and great customer service enough? Isn’t networking like crazy sufficient? Why doesn’t the money follow all this hard work?

I consider myself to be the World’s Foremost Expert in What Doesn’t Work when Marketing an Service Business. It’s a title I’m hoping to relinquish, and I think I’m getting closer to the solution. A major part of that solution will be drilling down.

Consider the farmer looking for water on his property. He digs a 6 foot hole, doesn’t find water, and so he digs another 6 foot hole a few feet away. Not finding water, he digs again. And again. Pretty soon, his property is full of 6 feet holes. Frustrated, he sells the property for a song because it has no well. The next farmer picks one of the holes and digs down 30 feet, finds water, puts in a pump and a tank and then rents a back hoe to fill in those pesky holes dotting the property.

By always trying to move onto the next big thing we’re like the first farmer, digging a little bit and then moving on, without really concentrating our efforts on any one thing.

The stack of business cards never entered into your database, that promising person you met at a networking function who you never followed up with, the web site you haven’t updated in 8 months, the half-written articles and the LinkedIn profile where you never uploaded your headshot are all of your 6 foot deep holes.

So by drilling down I mean digging deeper into the details of each of your marketing ideas and plans. Rather than trying to think up the next big thing, focus on what you’re currently doing and doing well, and those activities which already bring results or which look promising. Find 2 or 3 things to focus on. You can go back to the other 98 things later using the same process.

Isolate each of these activities and write down the steps which make each successful and worthwhile. Write out the steps so that anyone could do them. Get really detailed.

There are 2 reasons for doing this: The first is that you need to be sure that you have all of the steps down in order and that you are actually following through on each to the end rather than stopping halfway. No more 6 foot holes! You also want to be able to change some of the steps if you figure out a more profitable or efficient way of completing the task.

The second reason is that you may be doing all of these steps now, by yourself, but one day you will have a marketing assistant who will do many of them, so you need to have them written down. The more structure you have to the tasks the easier it is to assign them to someone else, and the more you can break them down into simple steps that are easy to measure the less you’ll pay for your marketing assistant labor. While you may need to personally write articles, for example, you could hire a law student to post them on the internet. You may need to design your brochure, but that same law student could do the mailing.

The next step is to figure out how you’ll measure the results of each activity. Quantify everything until you can decide which details are helpful and which are not. Make tracking sheets so that you have records of each activity and so that you’re sure you’ve thoroughly done each one. A typical tracking sheet at Peace Talks includes the expected result, the amount of time spent doing a task, the cost of doing the task, and whether at first glance it seems like it would make sense do to the task again, and, if so, when, and whether there’s anything you would change about the task next time.

If you use attending the Local Bar Association Holiday Party as an example, your tracking sheet will include your goals for going to the party, which might be to connect with 3 lawyers you’ve provided services for in the last year but with whom you haven’t had a chance to follow up. You’ll spend 3 hours travelling to and from the event and attending. The event cost is $50. After the event you’ll make a note about what went well and what fell short of expectations, and you’ll decide whether this is an event you should go to again.

Let’s say that you decide it was worth the time and money, but realize that another lawyer in your building who has referred business to you was also there. Next year, you could suggest carpooling with her so that you get a chance to make your travel time productive. You may also find that because it’s a mixer, you really have the chance to talk with more than 3 people, so next year’s goals for the event include reconnecting with 3 people but also meeting 6 new people. And, you’ve decided you’ll ask those first 3 people to make introductions to people in the room they think you should know. That makes it a warm introduction and it gives your contact a reason to circulate and brag on you, making her look well-connected and in-the-know.

If you’d left all of these details simply in your head, you probably wouldn’t do anything differently next year, and you’d miss all the great opportunities you identified after this year’s event.

By quantifying the activity in terms of goals and expected outcomes along with opportunity cost (the time you spent) and out-of-pocket cost, you’ll soon decide if, compared to other marketing activities you’re keeping track of in the same way, whether this activity is cost-effective and worthwhile. So when you get next year’s invitation, you’ll know in an instant if you think you ought to attend that event or spend your time and money somewhere else.

Much credit is due to my marketing coach, Alicia Marie Fruin, of Profit Consulting, http://wwwprofitconsultingco.com, who introduced me to the concept of drilling down in her $89 tele-workshop. And yes, I go to these things so you don’t have to, but according to my drilling down tracking sheet, that was the best $89 and 4 hours on the phone I’ve ever spent.

Free Mediation Services for Laid Off Workers

2009-02-10T15:06:00.000-08:00

PEACE TALKS MEDIATION SERVICES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Diana Mercer
Phone (310) 301-2100
Email: mediator@peace-talks.com

LOS ANGELES DIVORCE MEDIATORS OFFER FREE MEDIATION SERVICES

Show us your layoff slip or foreclosure judgment, and the mediation’s on us” says Diana Mercer, Founder of Peace Talks Mediation Services, Inc. “Don’t let the burden of a failed marriage jeopardize your chance for a fresh start.”

“I’ve already been criticized that I’m encouraging divorce but a free divorce doesn’t entice anyone who wasn’t already on that path. Nobody would accept a free funeral who didn’t need one, and the same is true of divorce,” says Mercer.

You’ve read the stories about people staying together because they can’t afford to get divorced.[1] But are the short term savings worth the toll on your long term well-being?

A 2003 study led by Jacquelyn Campbell at the John Hopkins University School of Nursing found that unemployment is the single strongest predictor in cases where men murder their wives. An abuser's lack of a job increased the risk of femicide fourfold.[2]

Domestic violence programs report that victims are experiencing an increase in abuse in part because out-of-work abusers have more opportunity to batter. Rhode Island, for example, has recently seen a 25% increase in felony-level domestic violence crimes.[3]

The good news is that as soon as a year after a divorce, the couple’s standard of living may actually rise as the dust settles. Graphic designer Adam Weston turned his journey into a healing blog, http://www.adamsweddingdress.com/, and sites like First Wives World http://www.firstwivesworld.com focus on the healing end rather than prolonging the grief. Most people take on some sort of self-improvement journey after a divorce[4].

Peace Talks Mediation Services, Inc., http://www.peace-talks.com, teams attorneys and therapists as mediators to craft a divorce agreement which is fair to both parties, preserves assets, and emphasizes children’s wellbeing. With the average Los Angeles divorce costing $100,000[5], Peace Talks’ average divorce is $8500. Peace Talks’ founder, Diana Mercer is also the co-author of Your Divorce Advisor: A Lawyer and a Psychologist Guide You Through the Legal and Emotional Landscape of Divorce (Fireside 2001).
###
For more information on divorce mediation or to schedule an appointment, or for details on the free mediation program, please visit http://www.peace-talks.com or contact Linda Duarte at (310) 301-2100 or e-mail PeaceTalksLA@aol.com.

Free mediation services include up to 6 hours of [otherwise] billable time: 3 hours of mediation and 3 hours for a mediation resolution roadmap and report or deal memo. The best predictor of the total time a divorce takes is the amount of acrimony between the spouses, so 3 hours of mediation time may or may not be sufficient to complete any particular divorce. Legal paperwork and drafting not included. Peace Talks chooses the mediator(s) assigned to the case. Free services offered on the 1st Monday of each month; other days may be added depending on demand. There is no obligation to pay Peace Talks for additional services, paperwork, or drafting. For those who are non-indigent and who don’t qualify for the free program, Peace Talks offers a sliding fee scale. Each appointment requires a $50 deposit to secure the appointment time. The $50 is refunded at the end of the free appointment or credited against additional services purchased.
[1] New York Times, December 30th, 2008
[2] LiveScience.com February 2, 2009
[3] Boston.Com, December 25, 2008
[4] GFK Roper Custom Research
[5] Presiding Family Judge Marjorie Steinberg as quoted in the Los Angeles Times Magazine, May 4, 2008

Cisco and Peace Talks

2008-08-22T11:01:00.000-07:00

Peace Talks was a Cisco technology award package winner in 2006.

For a small business like ours, it’s all about leveraging our time and technology. Our Cisco phones and technology help us to do that all day long, every day.

The IP Phones Cisco installed for us can be customized in an incredible number of ways.

Just one example: We use an auto-attendant which clients may access after hours, like many businesses do. But with our Cisco phones, we also programmed a second auto-attendant for mediators to use. Since most of our mediators are independent contractors, jugging a variety of projects, having one phone number and voicemail that they can give to their personal clients and access without interrupting Peace Talks personnel is a huge value add for them. We can provide that at no cost at all. That tiny feature, which barely scrapes the surface of the features the phone can offer, is incredibly valuable for our practice.

My favorite application is that we can expand the system using either software phones installed on laptops and connected to the internet, or additional handsets in remote locations. For example, our Cisco technology package includes a handset for me at home, so if I’m working from my home office, the phone rings just as it would if I was at Headquarters….and callers are unaware that I am not at my Peace Talks desk. When I place outgoing calls, recipients’ caller ID shows the Peace Talks number, so I don’t have to worry about client calls on my home or cell phone at 3 am. With my IP Communicator software, I use my computer exactly as I do my phone at the office. When I make calls from a hotel room at a conference halfway across the country, it rings to clients as coming from Headquarters and my voicemail is accessible in the same way as it is from my office phone.

And, I must say, we love our Cisco partners, Creative Business Concepts, Inc. (in particular, Jim Froggatt) have been terrific. They’ve really listened to our needs. They came ready to not only install and program the phones, but to switch gears as we discovered additional possibilities for applications and programming. Jim, especially, is a huge asset. He was a technology trainer with the US Army, so he knows how to teach technology applications without going over our heads.

We’re not quite there yet, but Cisco’s [very amazing] videoconferencing technology will be key for us in expanding to a national (and international) practice. The videoconferencing is so realistic that it looks and sounds like you’re actually in the room with folks who are half a world away. As it’s installed in business centers and business hotels, and later adapted for small business use, it’s a technology we’ll be able to use to do mediations. The 3 large screen TV’s gave us so much real time detail that I was able to read micro-expressions on people’s faces. Before, when I thought of videoconferencing, I imagined pixellated web cams with sound that didn’t sync with the jerky movements on the screen. Now, it’s 99% as good as being in the same room with someone. Unbelievable!

Thanks, Cisco!

The Power of Networking

2008-08-14T11:05:00.000-07:00

I just attended the Women's Leadership Exchange, www.womensleadershipexchange.com, in Long Beach. It was a long day--I left home at 6:30 am and got home at 10:00 pm.

My business coach, Dennis McCue, www.dynamicfirm.com, says I go to too many meetings and seminars. I appreciate his concern, but he's never been to a WLE, NAWBO, www.nawbola.org, or Make Mine a Million $ Business, www.makemineamillion.org, event.

It's at these events that I get my inspiration and new ideas. So many small business owners toil alone, or nearly so, and it's at these seminars and events that we meet kindred spirits who are going through the same issues we are. So yes, it's about learning, and yes, it's about networking, but it's also about reaching out, sharing ideas, and reinvigorating ourselves for the endurance race of building a small (soon to be large) business.

Client Feedback

2008-02-09T16:40:00.000-08:00

While we were at the seminars for Make Mine a Million $ Business, http://www.makemineamillion.org/, a man approached me at the break. He said, "Your firm handled my divorce a few months ago. I wanted to give you an update---my ex-wife and I are still talking, and we've been able to part as friends. I'm still good friends with my brother-out-law (my ex-wife's brother) and attend his kids' soccer games. Mediation, http://www.peace-talks.com/, allowed us to move on with our lives in a way that made sense. My ex-wife got a promotion and my career is thriving too. I just wanted to let you know what a difference Peace Talks made in our lives by letting us handle an unfortunate situation with dignity."

WOW! That was really powerful. His words really put into perspective our Peace Talks Vision Statement: At Peace Talks, we create peace in the world one family at a time. And it's true.

2008 Update

2008-02-09T16:33:00.000-08:00

I was at the Make Mine a Million $ Business http://www.makemineamillion.org/ event in Burbank in January. It was the day after the awards and we were at the seminar, talking about our struggles and progress since joining the Count Me In http://www.countmein.org/ community. I shared that two years ago I was worried that I ought to close my busines and find a job. But through utilizing the resources provided by Make Mine a Million and CMI, I instead refocused my efforts on growing the business and reaching out (rather than recoiling in fear) and in 2007 I hired 5 new pepole and my gross revenues were up 20%. My profitability increased by 250%. When my vision got big, so did the numbers, and it was Make Mine a Million $ Business that inspired me to that vision.

Now for a quick 2008 update: during the first 6 weeks of the year, we're up 60% year to date. I'm repaying my lines of credit and I've hired two new employees. I'm working with a terrific business coach, Dennis McCue, http://www.dynamicfirm.com/ and we've got an ad campaign going with Val Pak.

I've moved my $1 million in gross revenues ahead by 1 year, and I'm shooting for it to happen this year. That's a big goal, but I've learned the difference between thinking big and thinking small, and I like thinking BIG much better!

Understanding Divorce Video

2007-03-27T16:45:00.000-07:00

I got some good news this week! Last year I participated in the filiming of a video called Understanding Divorce. It won a Silver Telly Award, which is a prestigious documentary

award. Very exciting! I knew that this was a good video, and it's nice to see that the awards committee feels the same way! It's available for $60 from Amazon.com, http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Divorce-Toolkit-Workbook-Parenting/dp/B000NNL39Q/ref=sr_1_1/104-2860874-1984728?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1175038581&sr=1-1.

The photo in this posting is from the video shoot. Those 40 pounds I lost sure show--this is a "before" photo.

In other exciting news, I made my reservations for the next Make Mine a $Million event, at the NAWBO National Convention in Atlanta, May 31-June 2, 2007. I can't wait to see everyone, and to attend the conference! www.nawbo.org for more information.

Visit our newly updated web site! www.peace-talks.com. After the Managment Development for Entrepreneurs program encouraged me to do a Business Improvement Project, I revamped the front page to be more of a portal for all of the different mediation services that we offer, from premarital mediation, www.premaritalmediation.com to estate planning mediation, www.estateplanningmediation.com, to same-sex couples and never married parents, in additon to our more traditional divorce mediation services. All of this business improvement stuff is very exciting.

Make Mine a $Million Southwest

2007-02-21T16:57:00.000-08:00

Make Mine a $Million Southwest

A group of California and Arizona Make Mine a $Million finalists and awardees gathered at my house on February 20, 2007 for some informal networking and a business development workshop led by Natalie Armstrong, President and Founder of Golden Media, http://www.golden-media.com/ .

Together, with Natalie’s help, we tackled topics like outsourcing, independent contractors vs. employees, profitability, business development, blogs, financial advisor teams, motivation, isolation when you’re a solo businessperson, and dealing with difficult people and conversations.

In the crazy excitement of the larger Make Mine a $Million events, sometimes it’s hard to find time to really get to know each other. It was great to take a pause and spend a day together, taking our time a little more than usual, relaxing together, sharing a meal and also talking business. The finalists were a great addition to the group, too, bringing an additional level of enthusiasm and connection to our larger community of women entrepreneurs pledged and destined to break the $1 million barrier. www.makemineamillion.org rules!

We had such a good time, and the event was easy to set up: we used my house since it’s near the airport. Because we didn’t have to rent a room, we could take as long or short a day as we needed, and people coming from a distance didn’t need to micro-manage their arrival or departure times. My sister-in-law (also a budding entrepreneur) helped with the food and airport pickups, and let Patricia and me focus on the people and not the cleanup. At $20 a person, along with Natalie’s donated time, we put together the world’s most cost-effective event. I’d encourage all of the local Make Mine a $Million applicants, finalists, participants---and everyone who’s made the pledge to get past the $1 million mark to set up similar get-togethers in your own community. It’s easy! And so valuable. We are so much stronger together than we are all alone in our entrepreneurial isolation!

Mad props to Natalie Armstrong from Golden Media, our facilitator, and Patricia Kelly from Limerick (,http://www.limerickinc.com/index.htm) our co-host, and her daughter Joan, our Bay Area flyers, Molly Fuller from Hands On Gourmet (San Francisco), (www.handsongourmet.com), and Erica Douglass from Simpli Hosting (San Jose)http://www.simplihosting.com/, our Arizona flyers, Sharla Hartgraves and Lisa Bayne from Here on the Corner (Tempe, http://www.hereonthecorner.com/) and our local LA $Millionaires, Lena Badali from Badali Design, http://www.badalidesign.com/, Garnett Newcombe from Human Potential Consultants, http://www.hpcemployment.org/contact.htm, Vanessa O’Neill from Cedar Spring, http://www.cspring.com/, http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/06/million_winners/source/16.htm, and Julie Fogg from Active Port. www.activeport.com.

Like my blog? Then you'll love my web sites, www.premaritalmediation.com, and www.peace-talks.com.

Divorce Story Pilot Update

2007-02-09T11:00:00.002-08:00

Divorce Story Pilot Update

Pilgrim Films and TV, http://www.pilgrim-films.com/, came back to the office to do some additional pick-up shots on February 3, 2007. I was able to see a little bit of the rough edit on the pilot, and it looks AMAZING! The editor has really captured the essence of mediation and family conflict, as well as the role of the mediator. He really "got it", and it shows through on the screen.

HOORAY!

I was worried that the show might depict mediation, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mediation, as being all about yelling and conflict, and not about the complexities of human relationships and the grief of divorce. I was worried that the show would miss the subtleties of what a mediator does in trying to help people through their emotional turmoil while fashioning an agreement. No More Worries!

And, of course, not completely off my personal radar screen: they've expanded my role in the project, using me as a narrator to bridge the gap between different phases of the mediation. Love that. This photo is from one of the early mediation sessions, and I also like that I look great (if I do say so myself) and like I know what I'm doing. http://www.peace-talks.com/about.php

WHEW!

Now I'm so excited about this project that I could jump out of my skin!

Visit my divorce mediation blog at http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php

Cisco Rocks!

2007-02-09T11:00:00.001-08:00

Cisco Rocks!

Kerri Page,http://www.novasim.com/ , Garnett Newcombe, http://www.hpcemployment.org/contact.htm, and I went to Cisco, yes, me, Diana Mercer from Peace Talks Mediation Services, Inc., www.peace-talks.com, (here's the press release from Make Mine a $Million about the Cisco awards, www.makemineamillion.org), http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2006/prod_073106.html, in San Jose for a focus group about small business technology needs on January 31. While I figured that they’d spend time asking us about our Cisco Systems IP Phones, http://www.ciscosystems.com/en/US/netsol/ns641/networking_solutions_packages_list.html, the technology package which we won as part of the Make Mine a $Million program, I didn’t realize that they’d also give us an interactive demonstration of all of the different applications for the phones as well as related technology.

Cisco is doing some amazing stuff. The IP Phones they installed for us can be customized in an incredible number of ways. Just one example: We can use an auto-attendant which clients may access after hours, with a second auto-attendant for mediators to use so that when they check their voice mail without interrupting office personnel. That tiny feature, which barely scrapes the surface of the features the phone can offer, will be incredibly valuable for our practice.

That same phone can be customized to include a database….including things like taking attendance for schools, or checking inventory availability for a warehouse or retail application. It was mind blowing, frankly.

My favorite application is that we can expand the system using either software phones installed on laptops and connected to the internet, or additional handsets in remote locations. For example, our Cisco technology package includes a handset for me at home, so if I’m working from my home office, the phone rings just as it would if I was at Headquarters….apart from the inevitable barking dogs at my house, callers would be unaware that I wasn’t at my Peace Talks desk. When I place outgoing calls, recipients’ caller ID shows the Peace Talks number, so I don’t have to worry about client calls on my home or cell phone at 3 am.

And, I must say, we love our Cisco partners, Creative Business Concepts, Inc.,http://www.cbconcepts.com/, Larry Boyd and Jim Froggatt have been terrific. They’ve really listened to our needs. They came ready to not only install and program the phones, but to switch gears as we discovered additional possibilities for applications and programming. Jim, especially, is a huge asset. He was a technology trainer with the US Army, so he knows how to teach technology applications without going over our heads. We decided to learn the basic features of the phones, installed February 2, 2007, for a couple of months and then Jim will come back to do some additional programming for some features we’d love to have but didn’t want to overwhelm ourselves with all at once.

Last but not least, Cisco treated us like rockstars. They gave us a demonstration of their [very amazing] videoconferencing technology, which is so realistic that it looks like you’re actually in the room with folks who are half a world away. While that application is a bit expensive for Peace Talks at the moment, as it’s installed in business centers and business hotels, and later adapted for small business use, it’s a technology we’ll be able to use to do mediations. The 3 large screen TV’s gave us so much real time detail that I was able to read micro-expressions http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro-expression on people’s faces. Before, when I thought of videoconferencing, I imagined pixellated web cams with sound that didn’t sync with the jerky movements on the screen. Now, it’s 99% as good as being in the same room with someone. Unbelievable!

Thanks, Cisco!

Management Development for Entrepreneurs

2006-12-21T17:23:00.001-08:00

Management Development for Entrepreneurs

I’ve just finished the classroom portion of the most fantastic course at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. It’s called Management Development for Entrepreneurs, MDE, http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x663.xml, and it’s for entrepreneurs who already own their own business but who jumped in without going to business school first. It’s a 10 week certificate program, with 80 hours of class, about a zillion hours of homework, and a final project called a Business Improvement Project (BIP). Your BIP is based on a series of exercises you do throughout the program: defining your mission statement, evaluating the internal and external environment for your business, and then formulating a strategic plan based on the results.

The picture here is me, www.peace-talks.com, and Patricia Kelly, of www.limerickinc.com, a fellow Make Mine a $Million Awardee.

Ladies, this program was life-changing.

I’m hard at work on my BIP now. What a relief to have some direction based on what I’ve assessed as internal and external strengths and weaknesses, threats and opportunities. Prior to MDE, I had a lot of ideas about what might be good projects and lots of marketing ideas, but now I know which of the ideas are most important to do first, and everything else has really fallen into place. MDE has helped me prioritize, know where my money should be spent, and where I need to be spending my time. I've already changed the first page of the web site, www.peace-talks.com, to reflect the additional services which I'm now offering through Peace Talks based on what I learned in MDE.

I can’t wait until February 2007’s graduation! Not only has the class been informative and provocative, I’ve also made some terrific friends. We all have very different businesses, but, like the Make Mine a $Million Awardees, we all struggle with the same issues. It’s an amazing group of people, and their ideas and feedback have been really, really helpful. That, and one is a salon owner who taught me to do my own blowouts on my hair. Fantastic all around!

If you aren’t near Los Angeles, find a business school near you and ask if they offer such a program. For business students, it would be a terrific refresher. For the rest of us, it’s a real formula for success. http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x663.xml

Last but not least, I learned about MDE from Julie Fogg, http://www.activeport.com/, a Make Mine a $Million Awardee in my San Francisco class of June 2006. Thanks to Julie’s suggestion, I not only applied for MDE, but I also applied for a National Association of Women Business Owners LA Chapter scholarship…..so I was able to attend the program free of charge. The Make Mine a $Million connections have been so fantastic! So thanks to Make Mine a $Million, www.makemineamillion.org, to Julie, www.activeport.com, and to NAWBO-LA! www.nawbola.org.

Braggin Rights on My 2006 Press

2006-12-21T17:21:00.000-08:00

My Press, December 2006

Okay, okay, okay, I know I’m tooting my own horn here, but who cares? I’m so psyched about my recent press and articles about me, I just have to say something. Not that I've missed any opportunity to "talk" via my blog, http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.phpm or my premarital mediation blog, http://www.premaritalmediation.com/blog/.

The American Bar Association Journal www.aba.org, wrote an article about me and my career change from litigation to mediation in the December 2006 issue. Check me out on Page 60 in volume 92.

The Association for Conflict Resolution’s Family Law Quarterly’s fall 2006 issue features my article “Advanced Mediator Interventions, Part I” and the spring 2007 issue will have Part II. www.acresolution.net

Not satisfied with just one dose of Diana Mercer, the Association for Conflict Resolution quarterly magazine’s fall 2006 issue, ACResolution, also did a nice article about my winning a Make Mine a $Million Business Award, so check me out on Page 8.

I’ve had new subscriptions to my blog, http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php. The premarital mediation blog, too! http://www.premaritalmediation.com/blog/

Thanks to a week as Alumni in Residence at my law school, Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington, IN, so I made the alumni news: http://law.indiana.edu/alumni/profiles/mercer_d.shtml.

And, of course, the CNN Money quote: http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/15/commentary/everyday/sahadi/

Cisco did a press release: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2006/prod_073106.html and, this is really cool, a French magazine that's for an organization like the National Association of Women Business Owners, www.nawbo.org. Brush off your high school French: http://www.linternaute.com/femmes/carriere/0609-chefs-d-entreprise-laureates/12.shtml

And, best of all, Consumer Reports Money Adviser used our chart of the costs of divorce in a cover article, “Divorce, Los Angeles-style” for the June 2006 Consumer Reports Money Adviser.

Okay, enough bragging….but as I recap 2006, I must say, it’s been a very good year.

We hope you won't need to get divorced, but if you do, please visit us at www.peace-talks.com.

Make Mine a $Million, New York!

2006-11-28T17:58:00.000-08:00

Make Mine a $Million, New York!

Okay, it is not difficult to persuade me to come to New York. But what a treat to be coming as a Make Mine a $Million awardee! www.makemineamillion.org What a relief to be in the audience and not on the stage, making the dreaded competition speech. I had a lot of fun networking at the event with the folks who came up to my booth at the Hammerstein Ballroom as well as visiting with my new pals at American Express, www.americanexpress.com, Intuit and the Count Me In staff. www.countmein.org

The photo is me, Diana Mercer, www.peace-talks.com, with Robin Moorad, www.imagoassociates.com.

We really had a terrific time. I got a chance to get to know my fellow awardees, too, and we got to spend some quality time together, between the impromptu hotel gatherings and the group coaching and learning session at American Express’ offices in the financial district. Margery Miller, http://www.makemineamillion.org/m3/home.php?page=meet_the_coaches, led a great group both at the session itself as well as throughout the week as we presented ourselves to prospective applicants. I even got to wear my sparkly suit. When I bought that suit, the saleslady asked, “Honey, do you have a place to wear this suit?” and I told her, “No, I do not, but I am going to find one!” And did I ever find a place to wear that suit! www.stjohnknits.com. ...okay, www.stjohnwholesale.com.

It was such a thrill sitting just feet from Senator Hillary Clinton as she talked about women’s economic independence. Yes, I do believe she could be President. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, ranking democrat on the House of Representatives Small Business Committee, was also really inspiring. It was such a boost to know that now, thanks to our affiliation with Make Mine a $Million and our colleagues through Count Me In, we have friends in high places.

The contestants’ speeches were really fabulous. What a great group of finalists! I shared a great moment with Sharla Hartgraves and Lisa Bayne from www.hereonthecorner.com. I was really impressed, and I’m so psyched to be joined by 20 more future $Millionaires who share my same vision of success. I even snuck off the next day to get a sandwich from Indian Bread Company, www.indianbreadco.com one of the winners. Fantastic!

I’m honored and privileged to be a part of this group.

Like this blog? Then you'll really want to read more about premarital mediation, right? http://www.premaritalmediation.com/blog/

Mission Statements

2006-11-22T18:35:00.001-08:00

Mission Statements

Thanks in no small part to Make Mine a $Million Business, www.makemineamillion.org, and Count Me In, www.countmein.org, I’ve been awarded a scholarship to attend the UCLA Anderson School of Business’ Management Development for Entrepreneurs Program. http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x663.xml What an amazing opportunity! (a few of my classmates in photo at right): www.peace-talks.com, www.murgedesigns.com, www.takeitdown.com.

One of the first things the program asked us to define was our Mission Statement. Now, I’ve had a mission statement for my mediation practice for a long time. This was the first time I’ve done a mission statement for the practice, and what I want for the practice to be. http://www.peace-talks.com/about.php#aboutbusiness

Using the outline from MDE, which is: Mission: A broad statement of what the organization ultimately wants to become. Often includes specifics about markets, service areas, profitability, budgets, quality of life, and reputation, I came up with a new mission statement.

I am really inspired! Who wouldn’t want to work here?

Our Practice Mission: Peace Talks serves greater Los Angeles as the premier mediation firm. The best mediators in the country come together at Peace Talks to provide exemplary conflict resolution services to couples, the community, and to our profession. Our mediators create wealth along with their own schedules, including time for family, friends, and community. Peace Talks builds peace in the world one family at a time.

Our Professional Mission: Peace Talks Mediation Services is dedicated to providing a constructive, forward-thinking and peaceful ending to relationships. Marriages may end, but families endure. We provide a confidential, efficient and impartial atmosphere to help people resolve conflict and to create solutions with integrity and dignity for everyone concerned.

Interested to read on? Check us out at www.peace-talks.com and www.premaritalmediation.com.

Mad Props to the Mentors!

2006-10-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

Mad Props to the Mentors!

Struggling with some ad copy for a one-sheet, I reached out to the Mentor Program from Make Mine a $Million Business, www.makemineamillion,org, and Count Me In, www.countmein.org. Mega Mentor Margery Miller http://francine-glick-cmi.blogspot.com/ hooked me up with Paige Dawson, http://www.arkonas.com/About%20Us/paigedawson.html, a marketing specialist in Dallas.

Because I'd done so much writing about mediation, I'd just gotten too close to it to be able to do a good job, and I really wanted to make a good impression with this piece.

Margery hooked me up with Paige Dawson at MPD Ventures in Dallas (www.mpdventures.com) and Paige took the time to review my proposed copy, interview me on the phone, and then she sent me completely revised text along with some guidance for the graphic designer......she really came through for me. She went above and beyond what I'd even asked for, and I could not be more pleased. She was a huge, huge help.

The One Sheet, http://www.provisors.com/members/1sheets/Mercer-Diana.pdf was designed by Commercial Artisan, a design firm in Indianapolis, IN (my hometown), www.commercialartisan.com.

I sent Paige some Apple's Bakery http://www.applesbakery.com/ cookies to thank her, but I wanted to let the world know how terrific she was and how much the mentor connection via Make Mine a $Million Business helped me.

I've got to tell you, it's so nice not to be alone anymore in growing this business. Having a place to turn, and a cohort of 20 plus $Millionaires, to ask advice, talk about ideas, and to turn to when things get scary is really, really nice.

THANK YOU!

Here’s a link to the one sheet draft is attached in case you're curious! http://www.provisors.com/members/1sheets/Mercer-Diana.pdf
and, to read on: www.peace-talks.com or www.premaritalmediation.com

Best and Worst Since Winning the Make Mine a $Million Business Award

2006-10-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

The Best Things:
• Support and friendship www.limerickinc.com, www.activeport.com
• Cisco Award http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2006/prod_073106.html
• Coaching, mentoring www.coachconnection.com
• TV Pilot cast & shooting http://www.pilgrim-films.com/
• Miscellaneous people reaching out and making contact http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php
• New found energy for the business, knowing I’m not alone http://www.premaritalmediation.com/blog/

The very best thing that has happened is that I now have a network of fellow women business owners who are also experiencing the growing pains of transitioning from entrepreneurship to mature business. Knowing that I can reach out to my fellow awardees, Count Me In, www.countmein.org, the mentors, and to my coach is a tremendous benefit to this program, and it feels like a safety net underneath me when I’m taking a risk.

Better yet, these women business owners are quickly becoming friends even though we live in different cities and parts of the country. They understand what it’s like to work late and miss vacations because you’re trying to build a business. They share my passion, and my experience, even though we’re in different industries. The bond has formed quickly---for example, when 2005 winners Julie Tucker and Jennifer Elias (SmartsCo), www.smartsco.com, organized a meeting for the awardees in San Francisco, a dozen awardees drove and flew in to participate in the workshop led by Count Me in Mentor Marci Rinkoff. http://mbrcoaching.com/whois.html

The connections have been invaluable. For example, as part of Make Mine a $Million I met a fellow awardee, Julie Fogg. www.activeport.com. I’d lost my enthusiasm for my NAWBO membership, www.nawbola.org, but Julie convinced me to renew and urged me to apply for their scholarship program for the UCLA Management Development for Entrepreneurs Program. http://www.anderson.ucla.edu/x663.xmlThanks to Julie’s encouragement, this fall I will attend this world-class program on full scholarship! www.nawbo-la.org.

When I reach out to Count Me In, American Express, or anyone connected with the Make Mine a $Million Business program, someone reaches back in a meaningful way. The courage it takes to reach out is met with assistance and support.

A close second, of course, is winning the technology upgrade from Cisco Systems. http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2006/prod_073106.html The VoIP telephones and networking capabilities will revolutionize the way we do business, and move us into the next level of client service. The technology infrastructure Cisco will provide will allow us to mediate via videoconferencing, hold online meetings, provide responsive telephone service, and facilitate group work with shared files and real-time responsiveness. These are upgrades we’ve needed for a long time, but which we haven’t been able to afford, and winning the Cisco package will make a huge difference in our productivity and client service.

The coaching and mentoring services have also been key. Being able to reach out, asking for help, and having my needs met has been a real boost for me not only business-wise, but emotionally and creatively. Knowing that I can dream and have support to reality test my ideas and plans makes me more self-assured, and I’m bringing that newfound confidence into work with me every day. A mentor helped me write an advertising piece that is truly outstanding, and my coach has helped me to find a comfortable niche in networking. Thanks to the mentoring and coaching provided by the Make Mine a $Million Program, I have moved from not knowing the next step to having a solid plan for the next phase of my marketing. www.coachconnection.com and http://www.coachwilla.com/.

And, as good things started happening, Pilgrim Films and Television, http://www.pilgrim-films.com/, the production company producing Divorce Story, called with a shoot date for the pilot. Court TV continues to announce that Divorce Story is in development, even though the company has changed hands and faced layoffs. Pilgrim and Court TV believe in this program, and so do I. Based on the pilot shoot on August 24, 2006, I believe that this program will not only be on-air as planned, but that it will be a hit. As I walked onto the set, I held my Count Me In bracelet tight and channeled all my $Millionaire friends.

I’ve had many interesting e-mails and telephone calls from some top notch people who have read the Make Mine a $Million web site and my blog, from authors to fellow business owners. People have been reaching out and making contact, just because they’re interested in the award and the program, and this shows me that Make Mine a $Million is truly an idea whose time has come. www.makemineamillion.org

The sum of all of this is that I have new found energy for the business, knowing I’m not alone. It’s okay to be worried about the future----everyone else in my shoes is, too. Everyone worries about making payroll, or about launching a new product or service. None of us is alone in this. And now there’s a group of people coming together who believe in each other, who aren’t afraid to move forward even when they’re terrified, because we also believe in ourselves. So thank you to Count Me In and Make Mine a $Million for the confidence to soar.

The Worst Things: The worst thing that happened after winning the Make Mine a $Million Business Award was that business dropped off almost immediately. Suddenly, I was a Future $Millionaire without any income. One day I actually called the office myself to make sure the telephone was working.

Then the TV production company called and said that if we wouldn’t provide clients to be filmed for the TV show that they’d simply re-cast the show with mediators who were more cooperative. My educated guess said they were trying to snow me, so I told them to go ahead and re-cast, because the integrity of my practice was more important than compromising client service for television. Still, the idea of being re-cast after working on this project nearly 8 months wasn’t pleasant.

Rational Diana said that it wasn’t any one thing that had happened, and that business income is cyclical, even if this downturn wasn’t following a typical cyclical pattern. Run your business as you think it should be run morally, financially and ethically, keep an eye on the numbers, don’t be afraid to change plans or switch gears, and keep it real. No burying your head in the sand when things get tough. Slow and steady wins the race, and if you’re not busy, then you can use the time to market, work on an important longer term project, or even take a day off. One day, one week, or one month’s business doesn’t predict your long term success.

Histrionic Diana said that I’d obviously failed in some way, and that thinking I could build a business with a model that relied exclusively on 2 people who hate each other for business was a mistake, and that perhaps it was time to get a real job. I was a failure, and a fraud. $Millionaire, indeed.

I decided to side with Rational Diana. I hung in there, knowing that now at least I wasn’t alone in building this business and that I have a support network to whom I can turn. I came clean—I posted my sudden downturn on my Make Mine a $Million blog. After all, if you can’t face it yourself, you can’t fix it. And if I’m going to be poor, I may as well stay real.

So once I faced it, I got busy. I reached out to Count Me In, and asked for a mentor to help with an advertisement, and Count Me In fixed me up with Paige Dawson, who was a tremendous help with the project. I signed up for the Coach Connection program, and started working with my coach on what I might be missing in my marketing plan. I re-read First Things First by Stephen Covey, and made my goals and priorities lists and added them to my Palm Pilot.

And wouldn’t you know, business picked up. Rational Diana was onto something.

The funniest thing that’s happened: As the press came out for the Make Mine a $Million Awards, a cold call slipped by my assistant and I found myself talking to a salesman who was unable to explain why he was calling or what he sells. Mystified, I asked him to clarify twice, but he couldn’t. I told him I didn’t think we were interested, and hung up the phone.

Moments later, a flame e-mail appeared in my in box from Mr. Salesman, exclaiming that it was very rude of me to have hung up on him and, “I hope those Make Mine a $Million people teach you some manners!”

Like my blog? Then you'll love my premarital mediation blog: http://www.premaritalmediation.com/blog/ or maybe my divorce mediation blog: http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php, or, of course, the main Peace Talks Web site, http://www.peace-talks.com.

Update on the Road to $Million

2006-09-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

Update on What’s Happened Since June 2

We’ve been busy since winning the Make Mine a $Million Award in San Francisco on June 2, 2006!

You know, sometimes it feels like the to-do list only gets longer—never shorter, but when I look back at all that’s happened in the 3 ½ months since winning the Make Mine a $Million Award, it’s amazing all that I’ve accomplished!

The biggest accomplishment has been in support and networking. I worked with a fantastic coach through the Coach Connection program and really got some fantastic ideas and projects cooking thanks to Coach Willa. Thanks to her support and troubleshooting with my reluctance to network, I’ve really made a lot of progress. Most importantly, it’s progress that feels comfortable and realistic. www.coachconnection.com, www.coachwilla.com.

I realized, too, that apart from formal networking, I’ve also come a long way with informal networking. Through fellow Make Mine a $Million awardee Julie Fogg, www.activeport.com. I learned about the UCLA Anderson School of Management’s Management Development of Entrepreneurs program as well as a full scholarship through NAWBO-LA. Thanks to Julie’s encouragement, I was accepted for both, and started the MDE last night! It’s going to be quite a challenge, but it’s also exhilarating to think how far I’ll come in just another 3 months as I go through the MDE program.

At the MDE orientation, I was delighted to see that among the group of 35, I already knew 4 people thanks to Make Mine a $Million (fellow awardee Patricia Kelly of Limerick, Inc. www.limerickinc.com. is also a classmate) and NAWBO-LA. www.nawbola.org That would not have been the case only a year ago!

Thanks to the coaching and support I’ve received through Make Mine a $Million, I’ve come so far in such a short amount of time…..I can hardly wait to see where I am a year from now!

I'm learning so much that I've started a blog, http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php and I've really updated the web site, www.peace-talks.com. It's all very exciting!

Divorce Story Pilot Shoot, August 24

2006-08-28T17:01:00.000-07:00

Divorce Story Pilot Shoot, August 24

This TV show stuff has been a real rollercoaster ride! Twenty-four hours before the shoot the production company calls and tells us that they just want me, and not my co-mediation partner, to do the pilot shoot. I know she was disappointed—we were both really looking forward to working together on this. But it’s so odd—the test was sold based on us working in a co-mediation model, not to mention the fact that I haven’t mediated a case on my own in a long, long time. So now suddenly they do a big change-up, and I need to be prepared to face these clients, and TV cameras, alone. www.pilgrim-films.com.

They found me from my web site, www.peace-talks.com, which never ceases to amaze me. If I didn't have a web site, or a blog, http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php, would I be invisible? But what a great way for a little business like mine to make its presence as big as its heart.

I also learned that Pilgrim meant it when they said we could be re-cast at any time, and that they wanted to use other mediators, not just Peace Talks. Of course, I told ‘em to go ahead, ‘cos I knew that they’d never to find 2 mediators who work together in the way that Tara and I do… I’d say we’re an interesting mix of top notch mediators plus a hint of Laurel & Hardy. I mean that in a nice way. Well, Pilgrim did indeed find another mediator. I managed to weasel the name out of the producer and gave that other gal a call. I don’t think I’m in any danger of being re-cast after my discussion with her, but you never know. She was willing to offer up her client list to the TV producers, which I wasn’t willing to do, and this show is hard to cast….so you never know.

Oh, and forget what I said about a “sane, middle-class couple” being cast in the pilot. Of course, they found a beautiful middle-class couple who live in a fabulous McMansion, but that’s where the sanity stops, for sure. The allegations that were flying—whoa, Nellie! Of course, I can’t say what the crazy secrets were, but the director said afterwards that she was watching my face when the wife blurted out her worst suspicions and that I didn’t even flinch. It was quite a revelation, however! No worries—this will make for some great TV!

At one point the client was yelling at the top of her lungs and then suddenly, under her breath, she mutters, “well, this is gonna make for some great TV.” And she wasn’t kidding!

All in all, the shoot went just as well as it possibly could have gone, at least from my perspective. I looked great in my Spanx and blue St. John jacket (hello, E-Bay! www.ebay.com or www.stjohnwholesale.com LOL) with my blow-out. I was at the top of my game. I was poignant, and brilliant, and spoke almost exclusively in sound bites. Hopefully I won’t be completely edited out!

So when I got back to the office the next day I de-briefed with Tara, http://www.peace-talks.com/fass.php, my mediation partner, and we came up with all kinds of interesting tidbits so that if I need to stir the pot next time. I can’t wait to share the juicy details with everyone-----so I’ll keep you posted!

Take Me to the Pilot

2006-08-18T16:21:00.000-07:00

Take Me to the Pilot

Okay, the day’s almost here. Time to film the pilot for Divorce Story, our reality show about divorce mediation with Pilgrim Films and TV (American Chopper). Fingers crossed, it will be on-air in January 2007 . www.pilgrim-films.com. They found me via my web site, www.peace-talks.com. Can you believe it?

Fingers crossed for us---we film on August 24 at noon in the divorcing couple’s home near LA.

I’m so glad that Pilgrim finally found a couple to mediate on TV. Divorce is such a lonely and personal process, I’m surprised they found a reasonable, sane middle-class couple to agree to do it on television….but they did! And it should make for amazing television, at least in a documentary sort of way, as opposed, say, to Fear Factor. Or at least I hope so. www.wikipedia.org/mediation.

The plan is that the show is mostly about the people themselves, and how they come to the realization that their marriage is over and the journey that they take into and through the process. The mediation itself is only part of the program, and only part of the story. http://www.peace-talks.com/what.php

As a mediator, it will be interesting for me to be able to compare what I see in the mediation room with what I see of the back story and in-between session footage.

I hope that the contrast of what actually happens in the mediation room is not so different than what makes it to TV. That’s what I’m most worried about---I have to worry about the integrity of our mediation practice. As a professional, I can’t portray mediation as a circus, but as a participant in a TV show I have no influence over how it’s edited together.

My biggest wish is that people watch the show and realize what a great option mediation is for handling a divorce or custody matter. I hope that I can be a part of promoting mediation on the first nationally televised show about divorce mediation. This is a tremendous opportunity for me, and for the profession. All I can do is bring my best.

Want to know more? Visit the Peace Talks Divorce Mediation blog at http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php

My BFF the Credit Card

2006-08-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

Who knew my BFF (best friend forever) would be a credit card company?

I wasn't sure which AmEx card to apply for, so I called Debra Filtzer, our Count Me In OPEN rep, https://home.americanexpress.com/home/smallbusiness.shtml, on the telephone, and she sent me some information and a link which helped me to select the Business Platinum card as the best fit for me. She let me know about a $250 statement credit that was offered so that the card fee of $300 for the first year would be almost completely offset....letting me try on a premium card for size without a huge risk on my part.

Like, when was the last time you got personal service from a gigantic credit card company? Frankly, I was shocked, but that was just the beginning.

I was assigned an account manager....who answered the phone in person when I phoned with questions. Amazing. Then when my card arrived, it had a great booklet with it explaining the benefits--not some skinny piece of paper written in 4 point type. I'll actually use the benefits since I know about all of them, unlike most cards I carry.

I called the AmEx travel services and they were able to get me a 2 cabin upgrade and bottle of champagne when I booked my cruise through them. No extra charge, same great rate as offered on the cruise web site.

Between the fantastic--and I mean fantastic---personal service and card benefits, I am truly an OPEN by American Express fan. Lest I appear a cheap shill for one of the program's sponsors: As a business owner, I balked at accepting AmEx initially because their processing percentage is about twice that of Master Card or Visa....but I figured that I'd accept wooden nickels if it helped clients to pay, so I decided to take AmEx. Clients LOVE paying with it (and when I see the membership rewards points benefits I now understand why) and now I'm a believer!

What a great sponsor! Hooray for OPEN by American Express!

That they were ready to believe in a little company with an ambitious mission like mine, www.peace-talks.com, is really important to me. I've heard the same thing from other business owners, too--that American Express was the first company that gave them business credit, and the first company that believed in them......http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php when you visit my blog, you'll hear all about it!

Since the Awards, August 2006

2006-08-01T16:00:00.000-07:00

Has it really been only 2 months? A lot has happened, all of it good!

Cisco: Peace Talks, www.peace-talks.com, is one of the 5 recipients of the Cisco Smart Business Communications Solutions award. http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2006/prod_073106.html This is very exciting, given that our current networking technology is…..well, non-existent. This award comes at a key time: we may be on the verge of expanding our business to serve a national market, and our technology has to be set up to support that opportunity. The way I see it, mediation is an innovative way to resolve conflict. Cisco’s Smart Business Communications solutions will launch our ability to reach and serve couples in conflict seamlessly whether they’re in our office or halfway across the world.

Coaching: I’ve been working with my coach on networking. She’s helping me to evaluate what’s worth my time and paired to my talents and what’s not. Scared Me wants to hide behind the web site, since that’s where most of our business comes from, but Smart Me knows that I need to diversity where our referrals come from, and that by sitting in my office I’m never going to be able to make the kinds of connections that I need to make Peace Talks a thriving, multi-location mediation service. She’s been incredibly helpful in pointing out to me where I’m shining and how to maximize those opportunities. When I don’t know what the next move is, she’s there to troubleshoot with me. All in all, it’s been incredibly helpful. Now it’s time to put it into action! www.coachconnection.com, www.coachwilla.com.

Mentoring: Count Me In was able to hook me up with a professional ad copyrighter, Paige Dawson, http://www.mpdventures.com/, to help me with a one-sheet for Peace Talks. http://www.provisors.com/members/1sheets/Mercer-Diana.pdf It gets harder and harder to write my own copy; the more I do it, the harder it gets to understand what others might think are the most important value, benefits and results of mediation. Between my coach and the mentor, this project is really on track. Better yet, it’s on track in a way that I just couldn’t have accomplished on my own.

OPEN by American Express: Who knew my next best friend would be a credit card company? https://home.americanexpress.com/home/smallbusiness.shtml. Debra Filtzer, a Senior Manager at American Express, seemed to take a personal interest in helping me choose a credit card. Excuse me, but when was the last time a big company made a personal effort to help? I am very impressed. Apparently the OPEN accounts also come with personal account managers. Each time I’ve called, I get an actual person who answers the phone, and not a voicemail loop. I am amazed. Goodbye, United Mileage Plus Visa, and hello American Express Business Platinum!

Connections: I find myself re-energized for all things business with the connections I’m making with the Make Mine a $Million winners. www.makemineamillion.org. We’ve been circulating photos, participating in the conference calls, and using each others’ services (Apple’s Bakery Cookies www.applesbakery.com, have made a real impression in Los Angeles legal circles!) and I’ve even been reading the blogs. It’s so nice to know that there is a group of folks going through the same sorts of things that I am, and that I have a place where I can turn to when I’m struggling. It’s so easy when it’s easy, but when things get tough it’s hard to reach out. So thank you, everyone: winners, staff, mentors, coaches, Cisco, American Express, and now, friends.

Want to hear more about what we're doing here at Peace Talks? Visit our blog: http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php

Challenges Update, August 2006

2006-08-01T15:48:00.000-07:00

(photo: Diana and mediation partner Tara Fass,http://www.peace-talks.com/fass.php )
Much to my surprise, business inexplicably picked up as soon as I came clean with the fact that business dropped off the first half of 2006 on this blog. I guess that’s just another indication that the best move is to turn toward our problems and confront them square on, because it certainly paid off in this case. We’ve just had our best July ever. Read all about it on our blog, http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php or get the full scoop on our web site, www.peace-talks.com.

Also in the good news department: Pilgrim Films and TV has cast the pilot, www.pilgrim-films.com and we should be shooting our first episode of Divorce Story the week of August 14. This could be the beginning of something very, very big.

2006 Challenges for Peace Talks

2006-07-12T11:30:00.000-07:00

2006 is a challenging year. Peace Talks Mediation Services, www.peace-talks.com, needs to make the transition between entrepreneurial venture (read: fly by the seat of one’s pants) to mature business. The temptation to dive into the next to-do list item must give way to taking time to develop a strategic plan, a budget and financial plan, and a meaningful update to the business plan.

During the first 2 quarters of 2006, revenue has inexplicably fallen off. I don’t know why this has happened. I’ve gone over [what seems like] every possibility, and nothing makes sense. Los Angeles is the epicenter of people getting divorced, people who are willing to try new things, and people who have plenty of secrets. Mediation is a perfect fit. Even the web site, our best source of business, is getting twice as many hits this year as last. I need a plan on how to deal with the ups and downs of revenue, and how to budget for the lean times. http://www.peace-talks.com/divorcemediation/index.php for the full story.

Financial challenges for 2006: I need a budget and financial plan for the next 6 and 12 months. Specifically, I need to get a handle on my business-related spending, which isn’t excessive, but it is haphazard. I also need to pay myself a decent wage. Six years into this business, I should be making at least something close to what I'm worth. This transition is exhilarating yet daunting. I've created one of the only full time family law mediation practices in the country in an industry with huge barriers to entry and profitability. I see myself as a trailblazer, and the challenge of being one of the first mediation-only practices in the country is part of the incentive to continue. Plus, I love my job. Our clients are really great people having the worst day of their lives, and our work makes things better for them. My marketing company has been really supportive, www.golden-media.com, but it takes awhile for marketing to work.

Business challenges for 2006: I need to decide where Peace Talks, www.peace-talks.com, is headed in the short and long term future. Do I position it to sell? To make a franchise offering? I need to delegate some of the marketing projects and schedule some in-service days to work on the business rather than in the business.

The Competition, June 2005

2006-07-04T18:11:00.000-07:00

It’s been a wild ride already, and it’s only been 3 weeks! All I knew when I got to San Francisco (at the NAWBO national convention, www.nawbo.org) and saw the other finalists and the energy in the room was that I needed to be a part of this group of people. The organization is called Count Me In, and that’s all I could think: Count me IN! www.countmein.org.

Check out the size of this room---no pressure!

The first day was terrifying. We were to rehearse our speeches for the final contest in front of the coaches, Nell Merlino, head of Count Me In, Margery Miller, among other heavy hitters. One problem: I hadn’t written my speech because I thought that the workshop was about writing the speech, not giving it. I jotted down a few notes before it was my turn (second!) so although it was clunky at least I got some words out. The criticism was constructive, but difficult to hear. And when I heard the other contestant’s speeches I realized I was in trouble—the competition was stiff! And now that I’d seen how amazing the other women business people were, I wanted to be a part of the Award group more than ever.

I worked on my speech like a maniac. I realized I’d pitched it all wrong—I’d pitched mediation as a service, not me as a promising business owner, www.peace-talks.com. I rehearsed it aloud over and over again. I’m not sure what the people in the neighboring rooms thought as I started and started again. I even made my husband listen to it over the speakerphone. I went out to dinner with a college friend. “I am in ‘way over my head!” I told him. He didn’t believe me---if only he could’ve seen the quality of the talent in the room! The odds were good—20 winners out of 33, but this wasn’t shooting fish in a barrel by any means.

Self-doubt struck. We’re at $250,000 now. How on earth could I get to a million dollars in gross revenue? Could I do it? I wallowed in that for awhile, and then I decided to get busy. Once I broke down the $Million mark into exactly what it would take, I realized that it was only 153 mediation clients per year. If 153 out of 41,000 divorces filed in Los Angeles each year came to my mediation practice I would have $1 million in gross revenue. I had an epiphany. I could be a $Million business---easily!

Fingers crossed, I went to the ballroom at the appointed time and fell in line with everyone else. At that point, I’d done all I could do to prepare. All I could do is try to own the room and stay in the moment. Everyone’s speech went so well---as much polishing I’d done, they’d done the same. Afterwards we waited for the results together, tension building as the music blared and lights flashed. Dani Levy, the keynote speaker from Daily Candy, www.dailycandy.com, was inspiring. I love Daily Candy and read it every day. When I was finally called up as part of the winner’s group, I was elated, along with everyone else. Suddenly I’m standing on the stage next to the other winners and Suze Orman. But the trip had just begun.

The orientation made it clear that you’d get out of the program what you put in, and that if we needed help, Count Me In, Make Mine a $Million, www.makemineamillion.org, the coaches and mentors would be there to help. This would be a safe place where I could admit my shortcomings and challenges and we’d troubleshoot together to get to the next level. It sounded like it was going to be a lot of work, but it also sounded very comforting. One of the reasons I applied was that I didn’t have anywhere to go to talk about the problems in my business, or where I felt my knowledge wasn’t up to speed. To other mediators and people in my community, everything’s always “Going great! Really busy!” but in reality there’s always something that could be going better. Here I could be honest, and that honesty would propel me to the $Million mark.

Since returning home, it’s been a whirlwind of activity. Business Week Online interviews, Los Angeles Times articles, talking with the PR agents, talking with Count Me In, exchanging e-mail with other award winners, and organizing my own plans around the award is keeping me very busy! I marched myself over to Tiffany and bought a bracelet engraved with Count Me In so I could remember the spirit of the award moment every day.

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