Like any other self-employed person, the celebrant, to
be a successful business person, must have not only the qualities that make her
a good officiant, but also characteristics that will make her a successful
business person. Successful business people are noted for:
1. Initiative
Business people who succeed take personal
responsibility for what happens. Action is the key. Whatever you plan to do,
you do it in a timely fashion. Any promises you make to yourself or to your
clients are kept because you enjoy the challenge of getting things done. You
know the importance of promoting yourself as a business person and are active
in doing just that.
2. Persistence
No one has ever succeeded without persistence. By
focusing on exactly what you want to achieve as a celebrant you will be able to
overcome the inevitable challenges that will come your way. You have the
self-confidence in not only being ready to undertake a task, but to keep at it
until it’s finished.
3. Planning
Essential requirement is that you know exactly the
outcome you want in planning every step of the way. This includes making a
detailed list of your immediate and long-term goals, and tackling them in an
orderly fashion. Knowing where you want to go, and putting in place realistic
initiatives which will take you there, is a necessary requirement.
4. Flexibility
Change is inevitable in every aspect of life. It is inevitable
in your business. Accept it and use it to your advantage. While having a plan
for your business so that you know where you’re going and how you’re going to
get there, continue to watch what’s happening around you, and revise your own
methods and ideas so that you don’t get left behind.
5. Clear, creative and analytical thinking
You need to be an ideas person, aware of trends and
fashions, working towards being the first, rather than the last to adopt new
ways of celebrating various ceremonies. While as an officiant you are a people
person, as a business person you need to be logical and rational, and perhaps
even a bit pragmatic. Feelings and sentimental thinking need to take second
place to running your business as a financial success.
6. Communication skills
Celebrancy requires the skill of getting along with
people. You need to enjoy working with your clients, networking with people in
your industry, gaining their goodwill and support. Competence in human
relations, including the ability to get along with others is imperative.
Creating relationships with all the people you come in contact includes the
ability to mix easily with people, be a person easy to get to know, and be a
real asset in social situations. Ability to talk easily, and enjoying talking,
is a real asset.
7. Able to describe the services you provide
Unlike tangible goods which customers can see, and
hold and touch, your services are very much in the perception of the client. It
is you who must be able to communicate the benefits and advantages of your
services to the client. No matter how good, or even how much better you are
than other celebrants, in order to sell your services to a client you must need
to communicate this fact to her.
In effect, you are the product you’re selling. You
must be able to communicate your differences from other officiants. Your
enthusiasm and passion for what you’re doing. The experience and the training
which makes you the professional you are. The qualities that make you and your
services unique.
6. Confident
Since you are the product you’re selling, you need to
be confident by knowing what you are about. You can only convince others by
knowing and believing in your professionalism and your ability to provide
quality service.
7. Reliable
Your clients, like everyone else, have experienced the
frustration of calls that are never returned, the promised information that
never arrives, the waste of time waiting for service people who might arrive
today or tomorrow, or hopefully by the end of the week. As a successful
business person, you never promise what you can’t deliver and you always try to
deliver more than you promise.
8. Self-motivation
You need to believe in what you’re doing, in the way
you’re doing it, and in your ability to achieve what you’ve set out to achieve.
As a self-employed person it is not enough for you to merely have goals which
you want to achieve. You must be able to motivate yourself to do whatever it
takes to actively promote these goals. Planning is not enough. You need to be
committed to what you’ve set out to do.
9. Business like
You might love dealing with people, but you must never
lose sight of the fact that you’re running a business and not a charitable
institution. Be financially responsible by charging fees that repay the time
and money that you put into running your celebrancy business.
Initially, almost all people starting a new business
are just a little embarrassed about asking for their fee, and worrying about
the fee being too high. Unless you get over it very quickly, you won’t be
running a business for too long.
10. Robust health
Look after your health. Celebrancy is about being on
time and on the ball. Since stresses are inevitable, make sure you don’t succumb
by taking care of yourself physically, mentally and emotionally. Make some
rules about how you want to run your business and what time off you would like
to have. Some celebrants choose not to perform ceremonies on public or
religious holidays because they prefer to spend that time with their family and
friends. Decide on your priorities so that you won’t feel that you are wholly
controlled by your business.
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