A mortgage that does not fully amortize (liquidate) the loan and leaves a balance due when the loan matures.

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In all the work you have done through the first 5 modules of “Creating your Strategic Vision”, you have devoted tremendous effort to demonstrating your Value Message. The challenge is how do you do this? It is done by asking the following questions:
1) What does your business bring to the marketplace beyond the basic industry core competencies?
2) What’s unique about your business?
3) How will you communicate this?

Before we get into addressing these questions, let’s try to understand why someone might buy from you. There are several key concepts of understanding the mind of your prospect.

For your prospect to agree to buy from you, she must go through what is called: The Pain of Change. This is a measurement of the prospects feelings and experiences associated with doing something such as
decorating.

You need to relate this to the Consequences of Not Changing. This is the prospects losses they incur by not doing business with you. Perhaps it is the emotional letdown of not using your decorating skills.

When a prospect first becomes aware of your business, they believe that are doing fine without you. They also believe that if there are consequences for not doing business without you, this is acceptable. If this is true, then you do not have a prospect.

In order to begin the selling process, you must introduce the concept that there are indeed consequences associated with not doing business with your company. If there are no consequences, there is little chance
of making a sale. To educate your potential prospect about the dire consequences of not doing business with you, you need to use questions to raise this awareness.

Before we get into asking these questions, let’s think about you ideal prospect. What would be the potential pain or risk if they were to do business with you? This is what was referred to before as The Pain of Change.

Here are some examples:
It’s too expensive!
I might make poor decisions.
I could end up with poor quality workmanship.
I am afraid to do custom work.
I am not convinced of your decorating ability.
I don’t trust you.

It is up to your Value Message to answer these concerns. Your prospect will work hard to convince you that you do not have a Value Message, so they can base their buying decision solely on price. If you can’t defend your Value Message then you run the risk of being judged as a commodity. It is urgent that you communicate your Value Message so you can separate your business from the competition.

There are certain core competencies that every competitor brings to the market. These competencies are things all competitors do, and are essential to be taken seriously in the marketplace.

However, if you choose to compete based upon only the core competencies that everyone else has, you insure that your business will be considered a commodity. If you only want to discuss things like product quality and price, you will be evaluated solely upon the investment required to buy what you are offering. Your uniqueness of what separates you from the competition will most likely be ignored.

The concept of the Value Message says that you must bring something unique to the market place so you can convince your prospects to go through The Pain of Change and buy from you.

Exercise:
List the 3 strengths or unique features of your business offering:

1) In House Workroom
2) Great Showroom
3) Talented Design Team

For each strength list a corresponding consequence the prospect experiences by not having as part if the offer.

1) In House Workroom-A lack of quality control and higher prices because of no middleman.
2) Great Showroom-No ability to view actual examples of work.
3) Talented Design Team-Not having treatments that you can show off.

For each consequence indicate how does it show up? Who ultimately gets the bill for not having it? Who feels the consequences the most?

1) A lack of quality control and higher prices because of no middleman, results in poorly done treatments that the consumer pays for and is stuck with.
2) No ability to view actual examples of work, results in not being able to picture your custom window treatment ahead of time, and ending up disappointed because of not meeting your expectations.
3) Not having treatments that you can show off, results in not meeting the emotional expectations of the client. This is what she values most. Remember, Decorating is Entertainment!

To review, let’s take one of the strengths and add the corresponding consequence and the result:
An In House Workroom addresses the problem of poor quality control and the issue of higher prices because of no middleman. The result of not having such a service could be poorly done treatments which the consumer ultimately pays for and is stuck with.

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Based on “The Instant Trainer”

Involving students in the learning process is a challenge for every educator. Here are some ideas to help you.

1. Know Your Audience and Address Their Personal Concerns.

When you introduce a class or training session, you want to set the tone for a positive, participative environment. Five key points to help you help your students to relax and settle in as you begin to facilitate include:

Expectations.

Most people come to a class with some level of anxiety, wondering if it will be worth the time, what the experience will be like, and if people will be asked (or forced) to participate. You can reduce anxiety and uncertainty by laying out an agenda, outlining what students can expect to learn, demonstrating how they’ll be treated when they participate, and giving everyone a chance to get acquainted with your style before you ask them to do anything. Set positive expectations by expressing a sincere desire to help people learn.

Reflection.

Adult learning theory tells us that people relate best to practicality, relevancy, and personal application. They also need occasional opportunities to “go inside themselves” to think, review, and process information and determine how the content or activities relate to their situation. You can facilitate this process by giving students occasional opportunities to enjoy some “mental space.”

Objection.

Some people consider a class or training session an inconvenience, an interruption, or simply a mandatory requirement rather than an opportunity and they may arrive with a negative attitude. You also might witness resistance or apathy. People resist information if they fail to see the relevancy, need time to digest it, have a personal agenda, or object to what they think you are going to do. People won’t learn anything until their concerns have been addressed.

Try using the third-party approach to addressing objections.

You can say something like “Some of our students initially thought we were going to…., but we are really going to….” and then explain. If you think someone might question a learning activity (such as how groups are formed), offer a quick explanation: “At first, this might seem a little off base, but bear with me.” How can anyone object if you bring it up first?

Connection.

This is the “A Ha!” of learning. It’s that miraculous moment when an individual student (or the entire class) gets a significant insight, revelation, or connection. These are the turns of mind, the paradigm shifts that take us to new levels of thinking; they are the whole reason educators teach, instruct, and preach. To help students make connections, let them tell you rather than you telling them.

Perfection.

If you pay attention to what goes on in your classroom, you will learn a good deal from your students. You’ll witness students taking your ideas and making them better. We’re all learning–even the educators–and we can all keep trying to perfect what we do.

2. Have Students Practice The Skills You’re Teaching Them.

Practice is critical to success. If people don’t try their new skills in your class where it is safe and structured, chances are they will be hesitant to make the attempt in the real world. However, many students are afraid they’ll look foolish if they practice new skills in front of others, so you may need to encourage your students and create a non-threatening environment for them–where it’s okay to make mistakes.

3. Round Robin Role Plays.

The part about role-playing that everyone hates is having to be alone, in front of the classroom, practicing a new skill while everyone else in the class is watching. Here’s a different approach: a special structure designed for simultaneous, organized role playing (this means that everyone in the class will be engaged in role plays at the same time so no one feels singled out or pressured to perform. Get students into groups of three.

To choose a method for “turn” taking, each person will need to choose to be either A, B, or C. The A’s will go first, followed by the B’s, with the C’s going last. You will need to plan your class agenda so that there is enough time for each student in each triad to engage in skill practice. There’s a powerful aspect of conducting role plays with three rather than two people. The three roles rotate so everyone takes an active part in the skill practice. Each student will have an opportunity to be the principal (the person practicing the new skill), the respondent (other party), and the observer.

4. Have “Instant” Activities in Your Back Pocket.

There may be times when your class gets tired, distracted, or listless–the perfect occasion for an instant group activity. We call these back pocket exercises because they can be conducted on the spot when they are most needed, with little preparation or supplies. They are so named because you can pull them out of your back pocket and instantly involve your students. Instant Activity with Index Cards. (10-15 minutes for groups of two; 15-20 minutes for groups of three) Give every student a 4″ by 5″ index card and ask them to write down a problem or challenge they are currently experiencing at school and would appreciate some input on. Then form groups of two or three and instruct them to take turns describing their index card situations. Instant Activity Needs Assessment. (10-15 minutes) Give every student a 4″ by5″ index card and ask them to write down his/her most difficult problem or challenge relating to this particular topic or skills they possess which help them to deal with the challenges this topic presents. You can make up your own central question depending upon the point you wish to make. Ask for volunteers willing to share their insights with the rest of the class.

5. Conduct Effective Debriefing.

Debriefing is the process of facilitating self-reflection and discovery. The secret to effective debriefing is in asking good questions to help students explore WHAT went on during the activity, WHY it went on, and HOW it relates to real life. To explore what went on, prompt students to describe what they saw, felt, or observed during the activity by asking: What did you see or hear? What was your reaction to that? What were your expectations before you began? What did you think when…..? What else did you observe? Draw out students’ perceptions and interpretations of why people reacted as they did by asking: Why do you think you/they responded that way? Why do you think that happened during this activity? How did that affect you/the group? Why is this kind of reaction significant? What does your/the group’s reaction suggest? You can help people transfer information to their world by asking questions such as: What principles were operating during this experience? What kinds of conclusions can you draw about people/life/work, etc. as a result? How does what happened here relate to what happens to you at home/work/school? When you have experienced a similar situation in real life, what was the outcome? What did you learn from this experience?

6. Address/Treat Physical Fatigue.

Even the most enthusiastic students can get tired, but you have many options in the prevention and/or treatment of physical fatigue: Use questions to stimulate interest and hold attention.

Hypothetical questions are nice: “You may be thinking…” or “Now, if you’re wondering why…” as they they ask for emotional involvement. Offer periodic stretch breaks.

Even one minute of mild physical activity can rejuvenate a group’s collective energy level. Quick mixes are good energizers: if you are at a point where students could discuss the material you just presented, break them into discussion groups in a manner that requires everyone to physically move to join his/her group. If your class is large, time is limited, or there are other logistical constraints making a physical stretch break inconvenient, you can advise students to stand up and engage in a discussion with one or two people near them. If you’re sensing possible fatigue symptoms, you can directly ask students how they are feeling. It helps to do a perception check with your class to verify if what you are interpreting is indeed what’s going on. If you are teaching a multiple-hour class, give the group a five-minute break every hour on the hour. This is especially helpful if you are teaching a full-day class.

7. Use Questions to Encourage Learner Involvement.

There are three types of involving questions or statements you can use to help elicit comments, invite opinions, or encourage active participation: Hypothetical questions and statements gain attention, help draw students into presentation, and help them visualize a personal situation. Examples include: “How many times have you…?” and “If you’ve ever thought about how convenient it would be to….” Anticipatory questions and statements build suspense asking students to get involved by building up to what is about to come. Examples include: “You may be wondering…” and “Have you noticed a pattern here?” Exploratory questions stimulate students to tap into personal experiences and ask people to visualize or answer a question. Examples include: “Have you ever wondered about…?” and “How many times have you asked yourself…?”

8. Invite Participation by Using Student’s Names.

The more involved you get with your class, the more likely they will get involved with you and your program/class. At the start of a class/semester, use a class chart, name badges, table tent cards and/or structured introductions to help you get acquainted quickly with your students.

9. Offer a Variety of Strategies to Help Students Pick Class Partners.

Offer a variety of ways to get students to physically mix without using the same old approach every time. Suggest students choose a partner by finding a person who has the same color jacket or shirt, the same type of watch face, the closest height, the closest birthday, the same shoe size, the same sock color, etc. These strategies are juvenile, but designed to eliminate any sense of insecurity (or that third-grade fear of “What if I don’t get picked?”)

10.Offer a Variety of Strategies for Putting Students into Groups.

Getting students together can take time away from your class and dampen the spirits of the class if students feel uncomfortable about finding their places. Make group formation quick, easy, and fun. There are dozens of grouping strategies from which to select. For example, you can invite students to form groups by matching items or colors, counting off by numbers, or completing pieces of a puzzle previously distributed.

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Making payments on a loan that are so small that the balance increases instead of decreasing.

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