Nothing Happens by Itself
Copyright © 2021 Karl W. Palachuk
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Catch up with me LIVE in Q4 . . .
Here's where you can join me live and buy me a beer:
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NexGen+ 2021 - October 25-26 - Anaheim - I'm doing seminars on building YOUR absolutely unbreakable rules of service delivery.
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ChannelPro SMB Forum - November 16 - Los Angeles - I'm not presenting. Just attending. But you can still buy me a beer.
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ASCII Success Summit - December 8-9 - Orange County - I'm not presenting. Just attending. But you can still buy me a beer.
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SMB Roadshow - December 14th - Las Vegas - Four hour educational program.
For links to all of these, see the calendar below. And I hope to see you out there somewhere.
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Join us LIVE online October 20th!!!
The Killing IT Podcast has been going for more than 130 episodes - and we are grateful for all of your support and feedback.
Here's what we're up to:
- A LIVE version of our show.
- You'll see a little bit of the "prep" work we do (such as it is)
- We'll record FOUR topics. Normally, we air three topics. This means attendees will will get a bonus extra topic not available anywhere else.
- And we'll stick around for questions and general networking afterward.
Your cost: FREE!
All you have to do is wander over to KillingITLive.com and register. We'll remind you on the day and time. Then come back October 20th at 9:00 AM Pacific for the live event.
October 20th
9:00 AM Pacific / Noon Eastern
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CompTIA's State of Diversity – A Global Perspective – Wednesday
I sit on the Advancing Tech Talent and Diversity Executive Committee. Happy to invite your to the annual event . . .
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is a global conversation. Please join CompTIA’s Advancing Tech Talent and Diversity Community at our 2nd annual "State of Diversity – A Global Perspective" event on LinkedIn Live.
Wed, Oct 6, 2021, 8:00 AM Pacific
You’ll get valuable insights and solutions to DEI challenges from industry thought leaders from around the world to include Nadia Nagamootoo, Founder and CEO at Avenir Consulting Services, Susanne Tedrick , Principal Infrastructure Specialist - Microsoft and Stefan Kollenberg Director, Client Strategy at Volley. Bring your pen and paper. We’re going to help you finish the year strong and set you up for more success in 2022.
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NSITSP is progressing . . .
In my last newsletter, I posted the new Board of Directors. In the intervening week, all the committees have met.
"All" the committees are three: Formation, Finance, and Legislative. The Board appointed chairs and I have distributed information to committee chairs so they have the full roster of people who have volunteered in one way or another.
I know it seems that we're moving slow, but it's best to do it right than to do it over.
If you haven't joined today, Please Join! It's only $100 and we can use the numbers as we begin to look at legislative activity.
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UK/EMEA folks - Important calendar update for this week.
CompTIA has announced their EMEA conference for October 6-7 in London. I'm not in the UK (obviously), so I just found out about it due to a YouTube Video announcement. Check that out for some of the juicy details.
If you have in-person events for the calendar, please send them my way.
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Have a great week.
-- Karl W. Palachuk
:-)
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Online Forums - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly |
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Let me start with: I Love Reddit!
I know many people disparage Reddit, in large part because they feel they've "moved on" from a certain level of discussion. But I find Reddit is over better at many things that the forums run by vendors for their own products.
A great example of a horrible series of forums, in my opinion, is Microsoft. Virtually every forum topic looks something like this:
Q. Hey, I have a problem. [Massive detail.]
A. Me too. Had this problem for three years. Anyone know the answer?
Microsoft: Have you read through this old, off-point, article from 2013?
A. Same. Had this problem for years. Anyone know the answer?
A. Same prob. Anyone know the answer?
A. Me too.
A. I have same problem here. Any fixes yet?
Of course, this goes on for 99 pages.
There are many kinds of forums on the Internet, some much more useful than others. Here are a few thoughts on Reddit and others.
The Good. Let's start with the really good stuff about forums. In a perfect world, you will post a question and get legit, useful, honest, sincere, helpful responses. In my opinion, you find this on Reddit.
Yes, there is always someone throwing tomatoes, but it's nothing compared to the unbridled newsgroups of yore. Overall, I believe Reddit has become friendlier and more helpful than many of the groups on Facebook, and certainly more welcoming to new-comers.
The Bad. As I mentioned, the worst forums I see are the big tech companies who have decided to save a bunch of money by getting rid of their support lines and relying on users to help each other. That works to a point. But in the Microsoft example, they have also decimated their MVP program and almost eliminated any incentives for people to help each other. As a result, their forums are dominated by questions without answers.
On the paid side, there are sites like Experts Exchange. It used to be free and now charges at least $50/month. That would be great if you always found the answer, but there's no real guarantee of that. This leaves a real void, in my opinion.
The Ugly. Okay, I'll be honest. Reddit has more than its share of unqualified people who are trying to do everything half-assed for half-price. The poverty mentality dominates many forums. But that crowd is more and more being educated by more experienced people who give good advice.
In all online forums, you have to put up with a LOT of advice from strangers whose credentials you don't know. But, eventually, there's a "piling on" of good advice. I've seen it many times: Someone wants to do something we all know is bad for their business. A few people say go for it. Then a crowd of people say, no. Stop. Read a book. Ask a pro. Take a class. Do it the right way.
There's an old saying that you never want to see sausage or laws being made. Well, good advice can be the same way. It takes some patience to help people enter, improve, and get good at this industry. And while it may not be fun to watch, there really is some good advice and good growth taking place online.
Overall, I'd like to see more people join in the giving back that takes place on these forums. If you've spent ten or twenty years learning some hard lessons, why not help out a stranger who's just getting started? Maybe they don't have to make all the same mistakes.
:-)
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Next Class:
Rayanne's Always-Awesome Finance Class!
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Revised Every Year!
Financial Processes for the IT Services Firm
Course 5W07
Taught By: Rayanne Buchianico
Five Tuesdays
- All classes start a 9:00 AM Pacific
You're guaranteed to learn something that will make or save you the price of admission!
There are few things more important than the finances of your business. But most technology consultants didn't get into business to run balance sheets or figure out cash flow.
This class provides unique content from a unique teacher! Rayanne is a managed service provider from Tampa, FL. She is also an accountant and an Intuit certified ProAdvisor. In addition to her MSP business, Rayanne helps I.T. consultants to take control of their finances and understand their own business at a deeper level.
Topics for this class include:
- Learn to read and understand your Balance Sheet and P&L Statements
- Create a chart of accounts that makes sense for your business
- Separating out information on the P&L for management decisions
- Entities and tax considerations - understanding how your entity is taxed. Handout is a tax projection worksheet for this year's taxes
- Cash flow forecasting - Handout is a cash flow projection spreadsheet to forecast revenues and expenses
- Understanding margins and ratios - Deep dive into the P&L and Balance Sheet to understand how the numbers work together to make decisions. Handout is a worksheet on calculating and understanding the ratios & margins.
- Use margins to price your services for profit
- Calculate billing and burden rates
- Action plans for success
. . . and More!
Week One: Introduction to Your Company’s Finances
Week Two: Cash Flow Forecasting
Week Three: Margins, Ratios, KPIs, and Breakeven points
Week Four: Jobs, Budgeting, and Internal Controls
Week Five: Planning for Taxes
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Only $299 per student
Delivered by Rayanne Buchianico, Financial Coach and QuickBooks Advisor. Rayanne has been an MSP - managed service provider - for many years and advises MSPs on how to get the most out of their QuickBooks and PSA integrations.
Includes five weeks of webinars with related handouts, assignments, and "office hours" with the instructor. All classes are recorded for download. All classes include suggested "homework" that is totally action-focused and intended to move your company's marketing forward.
This course is intended for business owners and managers. It is particularly useful for front office and financial managers.
A Few Details . . .
- Each course will be five one-hour Zoom webinars
- There will be handouts and "homework" assignments
- Class webinars will be recorded and made available to paid attendees only.
- All calls start at 9:00 AM Pacific Time
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All the Resources That Are Fit to Print |
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Recent Blog Posts, Podcasts, and Videos |
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Small Biz Thoughts Blog:
SMB Community Podcast - New episodes drop every Thursday
The Killing IT Podcast - New episodes drop every Tuesday
The Cheeky Sales Coach Podcast / Video - New episodes drop every Wednesday
National Society of IT Service Providers News Blog
Relax Focus Succeed:
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SOP: Clients who abuse your phones |
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Selected Recent Videos and Webinars:
A quick guide to my Playlists:
- Total: More than 760 videos on the Small Biz Thoughts channel
- 310+ SOP videos
- 100+ Relax Focus Success videos
Plus . . .
- Training, Courses, Seminars on Managed Services
- Product Reviews
- and more
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Small Biz Thoughts Community News
SmallBizThoughts.org
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Next SBT Roundtable: Lessons from the Robotics Competition |
Members: Join us for the Thursday meetings!
We always have great topics and members share excellent information and insights. The link is always at the top of your dashboard.
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Coming up this Thursday: For the next SMB Roundtable, my guest is my brother Neil. He's a CAD designer for Boeing. They sponsor a high school robotics team and Neil is the coach. Well, amidst the pandemic, remote learning, and a bit of a recession, they won the international robotics championship.
I am most interested in how you teach all the skills of programming, machining, mechanics, and design to high school students in their spare time. Even when there's not a pandemic and remote learning, how is this possible?
Join us for all the juicy details. Link at the top of your Community Dashboard.
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And don't forget to check out the October Community Newsletter.
Don't miss it! You can watch the video here:
The October members-only newsletter went out Friday. If you're a Community member and didn't get the email, contact us and we'll figure it out.
Of Note: We're going to post a new Member Roadmap for implementing some of the CISA recommendations mentioned above. This is absolutely a members-only benefit. So don't miss it.
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Remember you massive class discounts! Whether you're a monthly or annual subscriber, do yourself a favor and sign up for classes over at Great Little Seminar. You save 3x or 4x the cost of your membership, depending on your plan.
After the current class on super-charging your social media, Rayanne has her super popular class on Financial Processes for IT Consultants. After that, I'm offering my also-popular class on Service Agreements SMB IT Consultants. Even if you already have a service agreement, this class is worth taking. After all, your agreements are not about your service: They're about your relationship with your client!
Coming in January - a 100% all-new class on Customer Service. Do not miss it.
If you need something, please post a question in a forum or email Kara (your Community Manager) or me.
:-)
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California State Lottery terminal at my local grocery store
I expect this from old installations, not brand new ones.
:-)
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What's Here?
This calendar lists two kinds of things: LIVE in-person events from any organization that focuses on the SMB consulting community; and MY events, whether live, webinar, etc.
If you have live events on your calendar that may be useful to others in the SMB Community, please let us know. We'd be happy to list them.
Of course: Everything here is subject to change based on Covid. Click the links for the latest details. Please send updates so we can post them.
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October
ChannelPro SMB Forum - Live Event
Oct 6, 2021
Raleigh, NC
CompTIA EMEA Conference
Oct 6-7
London
DTX 2021 (Digital Transformation)
Oct. 6-7
London, UK
DattoCon 2021 - Now virtual
Oct 13
SMB TechFest
October 13-14
Anaheim, CA
SMB IT Professionals National Conference - Australia
Postponed!
. . . Maybe next year
Sherweb Accelerate
Oct 18-20
Hollywood, FL
More Info: https://info.sherweb.com/accelerate.html
Channel SEC London
October 19th
London, UK
Kaseya Connect IT
Oct 19-22
Las Vegas
NexGen+ 2021
October 24-26
Anaheim, CA
Join me Live!
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit
October 25-27
Miami, FL
ASCII Success Summit
October 27 & 28
Orlando, FL
I'm hoping there's a trip to the Gold Coast in my future. Stay tuned.
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November
Channel Partners Evolution
Nov. 1-4
Las Vegas, NV
Managed Services Summit Live
November 2nd
Amsterdam
Kaseya Connect Europe
Nov. 2-4
Amsterdam
ASCII Success Summit
November 2 & 3
Washington, DC
IT Nation Connect North America
November 10-12
Orlando, FL
IT Nation (Connectwise) Evolve Peer Groups
November 15-19
Sydney, Aus
Managed Services Summit North
November 16th
Manchester, UK
ChannelPro SMB Forum - Live Event
Nov 16, 2021
Los Angeles, CA
Join me Live!
Women of the Channel Summit West 2021
November 16-17
Palm Springs, CA
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit
November 18-19
Schaffhausen, Switzerland
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December
Women of the Channel Summit East 2021
December 6-7
New York, NY
ASCII Success Summit
Orange County, CA - December 8 & 9
Join me Live!
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit
December 8-9
Dubai, United Arab Emirates
James Kernan's Millionaire Mastermind Event
Dallas, TX
Dec 9-10th
SMB Roadshow - Las Vegas!
Las Vegas, NV
Dec 14th
Join Me Live!
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If you know of in-person events we should list, please let us know.
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January
Send us your updates!
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February
Acronis #Cyberfit Summit
February 17 - 18, 2022
Singapore, Singapore
Xchange+
February 27 - March 1, 2022
Dallas, TX
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March
Cloud Expo Europe
March 2-3, 2022
London, UK
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April
Send us your updates!
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May
Send us your updates!
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June
Send us your updates!
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July
Send us your updates!
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August
CompTIA ChannelCon 2022
August 1-3, 2022
Houston, TX
More Info: Coming after ChennelCon 2021 ;-)
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Note: If you know of any in-person event for SMB Consultants, please send info to karlp@greatlittlebook.com. |
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Small Biz Thoughts is a subsidiary of Great Little Book Publishing Co., Inc. |
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