By Audrey K. Chisholm

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Tired of Losing? Check Your Strategy.



Strategy is the ability to leverage the resources you have been given in order to win in a given situation. I started my apparel company without having any prior experience in the retail industry. I was still able to win because I relied on God for supernatural strategy. I prayed and God gave me the brilliant idea to schedule a meeting with a former retail store owner that I had recently met at a networking event. I did not have much money at the time, but I invited her to my house for dessert and I was able to acquire her years of retail experience in an hour. I later ran into regulatory issues that required over $1 million in fees and costs to obtain a license to sell collegiate apparel. I needed a strategy. Once again, I prayed. God told me to share my dilemma with a lawyer friend of mine in New York, despite the fact that he did not have a background in retail. To my surprise, he outlined a winning strategy that worked. I have been selling officially licensed collegiate apparel for the past five years. Later, when I began contracting with an international manufacturer to expand my company, I once again relied upon advice I had learned from local retailers. Before hiring the first (5) five members of my sales team, I consulted the sage advice of one of the top salesmen in the country. Learn to ask the right questions to develop superior strategy to win in your relationships, business, education, and personal life. How do you do it? Pray and ask God to direct you to the right person that is succeeding in an area you are struggling in. Then ask them how they did it.

3 comments:

  1. Wow...God's timing is great. Thanks for sharing this message. I am going to start praying for a supernatural strategy! AMEN!

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  2. Thanks for sharing, Audrey! 'He's an on-time God; yes, He is....' You've reminded me of 2 things here. God's advice is THE best advice and will strategically position you to accomplish what He's entrusted you with. And networking is a vital part of every CEO's life.
    -Food for Business
    ~Growing~

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  3. Great post. People definitely sleep on surrounding themselves with people more advanced than they are in certain areas. Even the things I do that are good, God put someone in my life to get me to that level. I don't believe that success comes from talent alone. There are a few little things that people miss. What you wrote above is one of them. I believe you're going to be very successful! Thanks for sharing!

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