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TDZ Blog

Strategy Is Changing; What Does That Mean for You?

By Tracy Diziere | October 1, 2019

A recent Forbes article covered how marketing strategy in mature organizations is “moving from communications leadership to growth accelerant.” That might sound like a bunch of mumbo-jumbo to some of you. And like some pie-in-the-sky idea to others. So let’s break it down for the entrepreneurial-minded leader, shall we? As a small service-based business leader, you’ve […]

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Channel and Global Marketing Teams: Better Together and with a Creative Partner

By Tracy Diziere | August 13, 2019

As technology service offerings grow, channel partners’ opportunity to step in, cultivate custom solutions, and offer managed services has skyrocketed. In tandem, revenue from indirect channels has soared. While stats vary, a Forrester study commissioned by Mediafly reports that almost half (49%) of a company’s overall revenue comes from the channel. Or as Principal Analyst […]

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Success Is an Inside Job

By Tracy Diziere | December 19, 2018

Part of my message at today’s Conscious Connections panel “Insight from Women of Influence, Impact + Profit” was “Success is an inside job.” This was/is a hard learned lesson and speaks to the need for personalized attention when growing as an entrepreneurial-minded leader. I/we need this kind of help. That’s why I fill the role of […]

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Why We Take a Holistic Approach to Service

By Tracy Diziere | November 6, 2018

Why do we take a holistic approach to service? Why does service experience design start with a broad view? David Clarke in an Adweek article says it best: Experience isn’t just one thing. It’s comprised of sales, customer service, order entry, human resources, quality assurance, shipping, billing, collections, maintenance—a hundred parts of an enterprise. Therefore, […]

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Nothing Is Created Alone

By Tracy Diziere | January 9, 2018

I’m putting a stake in the ground: Nothing is created alone. This is what came from my Root Session with the fabulous team at Root + River. I’ll write more here later. The important thing is to know that it does take other people to create. We need each other. Despite our ideas about rugged […]

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How Are You Responding to Uncertainty

By Tracy Diziere | September 23, 2016

Not Much Is for Certain. How Are You Responding to Uncertainty? Spoiler alert: I don’t have it all figured out but I do have one tool you can use related to strengths which I’ll address at the end. There seems to be a lot of buzz and advice around being comfortable with–accepting?— instead of responding to […]

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Creating Your Own Vocabulary – Tracyisms

By Tracy Diziere | August 15, 2016

As you learn new things, identify trends, or solidify your own ideas about your industry or your world, it’s often useful to create your own vocabulary. I’ve created this post as a running tab of the words I’ve created or picked up on and made my own. I call them Tracyisms. Do you have words […]

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How to Develop a Plan to Update Your Website Content

By Tracy Diziere | July 16, 2016

How to Develop a Plan to Update Your Website Content for Solopreneurs Looking to develop a plan to update your website content–either on your own or with some outside help? Most of us know there’s dated content on our sites. If we look at updating our content, we’ll be able to re-post, re-promote and ultimately add […]

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Change Starts with You (and 3 Steps to Start)

By Tracy Diziere | May 17, 2016

“Stuckness” sucks. The way out? Realizing that nothing is keeping you glued in place but you. That you don’t need to wait for something to happen to loosen you from the grip of whatever’s got you. And the big realization: That change starts with you. What do you mean, “Change Starts With You?” It starts […]

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Knowing Yourself – The Start of Your Success Journey

By Tracy Diziere | April 26, 2016

I believe that success starts with knowing yourself–and defining your version of the word.  When we begin tapping into our authentic selves, we start to uncover what is unique to us. We begin to notice where we have deviated or fallen away from the path that is of our own design. And while perhaps different […]

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Guest Blog Posts

In addition to our own posts by title below, check out the following guest posts:

Focusing on Successes and Strengths vs. Failures and Weaknesses

The Best Place to Spend Your Marketing Time & Money

Customer Expectations: Mind the Gap

Key Topics

Planning for Delegating: The First Step

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Planning for Delegating: The First Step

Most solopreneurs and self-employed service providers want to delegate the stuff that doesn’t make sense for us to do. The trouble is, most of that stuff isn’t “knowable” automagically. It’s not like we can flip a switch so that someone else knows how to execute at least 80% as well as we would. (But perhaps somewhere […]

Sleep: More Important than We Think, Probably

By Tracy Diziere | 1 Comment

Sleep is an important activity that we might be underestimating in terms of impact on productivity. That’s why it is the Day 15 challenge of #30DaysofQ2.  (Whoaaa, we’re halfway there!) We don’t always think of sleep as important as we should, especially if we are getting 6 hours of it. In fact, subjects getting 6 […]

Asking for What You Need: A Quadrant 2 Activity

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Asking for What You Need: A Quadrant 2 Activity

Too often we don’t ask for what we need. Especially women. That’s why I created Authentic Women’s Exchange–an invitation-only “netplaying” (vs. netWORKING) group that provides the space for women to ask. We met today, as always, on the 13th of the month. So today is not so much a challenge as it is an affirmation. […]

Focusing on Your Purpose: Part 1

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Focusing on Your Purpose: Part 1

With a title like “Focusing on Your Purpose,” you might expect a very long post. But it’s Saturday night and another Q2 activity awaits–watching a movie with my husband. So, I’ll keep it simple and address the idea in parts. I came into the awareness this week that I have been ignoring my purpose. Well, […]

Increasing Skills as a Quadrant 2 Activity

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Increasing Skills as a Quadrant 2 Activity

Increasing skills through professional development and training–in any format–is an important but not urgent activity.  I remember from my corporate days how we would plan for it at our annual review. But actually scheduling it was different. There never seemed to be a good time to take “off,” to be away from the office. There […]

Process Mapping for Smaller Small Businesses

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Process Mapping for Smaller Small Businesses

Processes are in place whether you design them or not. When you’re a smaller small–a solopreneur, solo service provider, or microbusiness–making time for process development can seem a luxury. A nice to have. And even sometimes “a waste of time” compared to the pressing needs (read: Quadrant 1) of sales efforts. This is as much […]

Planning Never Gets Old for Project Managers

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Planning Never Gets Old for Project Managers

I manage projects, for my own clients and select agencies.  Project management just comes with the job when you’re an in-house marketer, which is what I was before starting my own gig. Aside from taking an e-learning course once, attending a PMI meeting as a guest, hanging out with Phoenix Digital PMs, and listening to […]

Planning for an Expense: Day 9 of #30DaysofQ2

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Planning for an Expense: Day 9 of #30DaysofQ2

Financial planning. Budgeting. Forecasting. The most organized, business savvy folks wouldn’t DREAM of not planning when it comes to money. And yet the solopreneurs I speak to sometimes are not planning for an expense. What I mean by this is they have not thought about what they would like to spend on a given service. […]

Connecting People: Day 3 of #30DaysofQ2

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Connecting People: Day 3 of #30DaysofQ2

Connecting people is a Quadrant 2 activity I try to do every week. I admit, I have tasks on my list to introduce people that are over a year old. (Gasp!) It’s because these tasks are not urgent. They may or may not make a difference in people’s lives, I reason. So these “to dos” […]

Day 2 of #30DaysofQ2: Mend Personal Relationships

By Tracy Diziere | Comments Off on Day 2 of #30DaysofQ2: Mend Personal Relationships

Work is my Achilles’ heel. It is what I will do and default to doing when left to my own devices. Meaning, any “free” time I have, I feel a giant magnet pulling me to WORK. I’m not saying it’s all Quadrant 2 work. I’m just hyper-aware that one of my greatest weaknesses is CHOOSING […]