SEHRISH NAEEM - 8 Qualities of Remarkable Employees

Sehrish Naeem Says:

Great employees are reliable, dependable, proactive, diligent, great leaders and great followers... they possess a wide range of easily-defined—but hard to find—qualities.

A few hit the next level. Some employees are remarkable, possessing qualities that may not appear on performance appraisals but nonetheless make a major impact on performance.

Here are eight qualities of remarkable employees:

1. They ignore job descriptions. The smaller the company, the more important it is that employees can think on their feet, adapt quickly to shifting priorities, and do whatever it takes, regardless of role or position, to get things done.

When a key customer's project is in jeopardy, remarkable employees know without being told there's a problem and j

2. They’re eccentric... The best employees are often a little different: quirky, sometimes irreverent, even delighted to be unusual. They seem slightly odd, but in a really good way. Unusual personalities shake things up, make work more fun, and transform a plain-vanilla group into a team with flair and flavor.

People who aren't afraid to be different naturally stretch boundaries and challenge the status quo, and they often come up with the best ideas.

3. But they know when to dial it back. An unusual personality is a lot of fun... until it isn't. When a major challenge pops up or a situation gets stressful, the best employees stop expressing their individuality and fit seamlessly into the team.

Remarkable employees know when to play and when to be serious; when to be irreverent and when to conform; and when to challenge and when to back off. It’s a tough balance to strike, but a rare few can walk that fine line with ease.

4. They publicly praise... Praise from a boss feels good. Praise from a peer feels awesome, especially when you look up to that person.

Remarkable employees recognize the contributions of others, especially in group settings where the impact of their words is even greater.

5. And they privately complain. We all want employees to bring issues forward, but some problems are better handled in private. Great employees often get more latitude to bring up controversial subjects in a group setting because their performance allows greater freedom.

Remarkable employees come to you before or after a meeting to discuss a sensitive issue, knowing that bringing it up in a group setting could set off a firestorm.

6. They speak when others won’t. Some employees are hesitant to speak up in meetings. Some are even hesitant to speak up privately.

An employee once asked me a question about potential layoffs. After the meeting I said to him, “Why did you ask about that? You already know what's going on.” He said, “I do, but a lot of other people don't, and they're afraid to ask. I thought it would help if they heard the answer from you.”

Remarkable employees have an innate feel for the issues and concerns of those around them, and step up to ask questions or raise important issues when others hesitate.

7. They like to prove others wrong. Self-motivation often springs from a desire to show that doubters are wrong. The kid without a college degree or the woman who was told she didn't have leadership potential often possess a burning desire to prove other people wrong.

Education, intelligence, talent, and skill are important, but drive is critical. Remarkable employees are driven by something deeper and more personal than just the desire to do a good job.

8. They’re always fiddling. Some people are rarely satisfied (I mean that in a good way) and are constantly tinkering with something: Reworking a timeline, adjusting a process, tweaking a workflow.

Great employees follow processes. Remarkable employees find ways to make those processes even better, not only because they are expected to… but because they just can't help it.

SEHRISH NAEEM - Five Tools for Naming a Startup

SEHRISH NAEEM  Says

1. Google  
If you aren’t familiar with the acronym G.I.A. (“Google It Already”), you should commit it to memory. The search-engine behemoth has a number of applications that are perfect to kick off your startup name search. Google Adwords’ Keyword Tool provides detailed information about the popularity of certain words and terms, including specific traffic numbers associated with them. Google also provides a patent search function that searches the entire U.S. patent database. Google Trends allows you to search through current and past search trends, so you can see when and why people have searched for your proposed business name. Most importantly, Google as a whole is a tool that gives you a macro view of the words and images associated with your idea. See what happens when you run your proposed business name through Google images, videos and even its translator.

2. Free worksheets
The Internet is a penny pinchers’ nirvana. You can find plenty of branding companies willing to dish out a little free advice for the opportunity to serve your company in the future. Companies like Wow Branding, Brandings and Brands For The People offer worksheets and e-books aimed at helping you brainstorm, focus your ideas and create a stellar brand name.

3. Your community

After you have come up with some ideas, turn to those you trust. Your friends and family make a great initial test group. Organize your potential ideas, present the concept and create a survey to keep the resulting feedback organized. Andy Smith, principal of Vonavona Ventures, an early stage enterprise consulting group and co-author of The Dragon Fly Effect, a book about brands, advises against long surveys that will turn off friends. “Make it focused and ask the bare minimum number of questions,” he says. “Take the extra step to make it interesting and fun somehow.” Pop Survey and Survey Monkeyare two free websites where you can easily create your own professional online surveys.

4. NameChk.com, Domain Registries
Once you have narrowed the field to a few potential names, it’s time to start researching availability.NameChk.com is a tool that can save hours of research time. Just plug in some potential names into the search box and it will simultaneous check almost 100 different online networks and communities, giving you instant feedback on username availability. You might even find a few helpful networks you’ve never heard of before. Also check domain registries, such as Go Daddy, Register.com andDomainRegistry.com, that will allow you to check availability and secure your URL.

5. The Government
One of the last steps in the naming process is making your entity official. Searching the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database will reveal if your name is already in use (something you should have already Googled, remember?). If there’s a similar name registered, information will be available regarding what products it’s associated with, and if the company holding ownership is still active. Make sure to follow the trademark process outlined on the USPTO website and consider legal counsel before submitting an application. The cost associated with filing an online trademark application varies depending on the class of product, but generally falls in the $275 to $325 range.

SEHRISH NAEEM - Six Strategies for Partnering with Big Brands

Sehrish Naeem Says:

Tom Szaky didn't even try to get his product--a worm excrement fertilizer packed in a recycled bottle--into small retailers when he started TerraCycle six years ago. Instead, he reached as high as he could: Wal-Mart. "If I want to be big and do it quickly, the best way … is to work with the world's biggest companies," he says. "They can accelerate your cycle much more quickly than any other company can."

The Trenton, N.J.-based company's first big partnership with Wal-Mart in Canada was just the start of what has become a $14 million business. TerraCycle now gathers unrecyclable trash and converts it into products and packaging for such big brands as Kraft, Pepsi and Mars. Last year, corporate partners spent $45 million on TerraCycle-related marketing--far more than Szaky could have ever done alone.

Related: How to Redefine Your Business in a New Market

But breaking in with big companies is no easy feat. For Szaky, it took lots of research, persistence and trial and error. "The biggest mistake small companies make is they don't do enough homework," says Brant Slade, co-author of Think BIG!: An Entrepreneur's Guide to Partnering With Large Companies (Course Technology PTR, 2009). "They think … more from the small business point of view as opposed to thinking from the large business point of view."

Here's a checklist to help your small business prepare to partner with big brands:

1. Be unique. Make sure your business pitch is carefully thought out and offers value to your potential partner. After Robin Thurston co-founded MapMyFITNESS.com, an Austin, Texas-based fitness social network that offers online routes, training and group activities, he and his partner realized they had developed a geo-location technology that bigger companies wanting online fitness tools and access to a social network could use. With their first corporate partner, Cadbury's Accelorade sports drink, they collaborated on a web interface enabling users on their site to map and share workouts. "You have to have something that is clearly valuable to that big brand that they might not want to spend the time investing in or doing," Thurston says. Now, the company also builds web platforms and mobile phone apps for brands like NBC Sports, Humana and Skechers, whose customers can opt into the MapMyFITNESS social network.

2. Remain persistent. Although Szaky had the worm-excrement-in-a-recycled-bottle market cornered, getting that first deal with Wal-Mart in 2005 still required persistence. After scouring LinkedIn and alumni networks to find the right contact, Szaky called Wal-Mart 10 times a day, every day for three weeks until he finally got through and set up a meeting. Big companies field lots of requests, so persistence is a must. "There are some brands we are working with today that literally were five-year conversations," Thurston says.

3. Think big. You have to think like a big brand to partner with one. For MapMyFITNESS, that means developing large-scale projects. "A big brand doesn't want to talk about a $10,000 project," Thurston says. "They want to talk in seven figures and really big user numbers." For example, Thurston and his partner proposed that big companies give away their product with subscriptions to the MapMyFITNESS website. The size of their user base--nearly seven million today--was large enough to interest brands like Procter & Gamble's Febreze.

4. Plan for fast growth. If you're growing too quickly to keep up with demand, you'll lose money--and probably your partner. Szaky learned that lesson through experience. "The more we grew, the more we lost," he says. While TerraCycle's sales reached $6.6 million in 2008, it had a net loss of $4.5 million. The next year, Szaky began developing agreements with companies to handle production for him. Today, 40 companies make and sell TerraCycle products for major retailers and TerraCycle turned a profit of $100,000 in the last year.

Related: Richard Branson on Strategies for Success

Polka Dog Bakery, a Boston-based dog treat maker slated to expand into 1,763 Target stores this May, let the retailer oversee production and distribution in order to make the partnership feasible. "It would have been too much for us to expand at that capacity," says cofounder Robert Van Sickle of his 11-person company.

5. Prepare for scrutiny. Make sure your financial and legal affairs are in order. Since TerraCycle works with multinational companies, the company gets audited every two months. After failing the first few audits in his early partnerships, Szaky realized he needed to focus more on developing proper procedures. "If you are going to go down the path of working in big businesses, having your house in order is critical," he says. "You are going to get the growth but you are also going to get a lot more scrutiny."

6. Build on existing partnerships. Don't rush to find the next partner once you successfully link up with a big company. MapMyFITNESS gets a lot of new business from expanding existing partnerships, Thurston says. Companies are often more willing to consider developing a licensing partnership, for example, if they're already buying advertising on your website. "Too many entrepreneurs chase after the next client instead of recognizing the current client could mean a lot more revenue for them if they simply explore other revenue channels," Thurston says. Partnerships now account for a third of his company's total revenue.

SEHRISH NAEEM - 12 Leadership Traits You Need to Thrive in Tough Times

Sehrish Naeem Says:

Trying to grow your business in this sluggish economy is a little like trying to swim through Jell-O. Ineffective or uncertain leaders definitely need not apply.

So what does it take to lead a small business through this ongoing economic mess? The blogosphere is humming with ideas lately. Here's a roundup of the important traits for entrepreneurs in 2012:

1. Listen. Tune in to what workers and customers are saying, and you'll find great ideas for how to move forward.

2. Give credit. Workers love leaders who acknowledge their ideas.

3. Be yourself. In our age of sound bites and phony smiles, tell your story honestly. It's rare and refreshing, and makes workers feel like they know you -- and want to help you succeed.

4. Communicate. So much company dysfunction can be prevented with clear communication. Otherwise, workers are in the dark. And soon, they won't care.

5. Don't be trendy. Avoid the "strategy du jour" problem. Choose a course and stick to it.

6. Beat anxiety. Stop worrying and turn your negative emotions -- regret, fear, sadness -- into teachers that help shape your character.

7. Be service-oriented. Leaders can be sort of self-involved, forgetting that they are in a position of leadership. To serve customers, shareholders and workers stay focused on others.

8. Be accountable. Define the results you want, and acknowledge when a screw-up is your fault.

9. Use empathy. Demographic changes have foisted more and more women into the workplace. Make sure your communication and leadership style is a fit for today's workforce.

10. Share the big picture. If your workers don't know the company's overall goals, it can be hard for them to solve problems. That leaves you having to micromanage every problem instead of being able to delegate and offer guidance.

11. Keep your cool. The days when being a screamer worked are long gone. If workers are worriedabout whether you're in a good mood today or not, little gets done.

12. Think like an immigrant. When you arrive on new shores, you often see the business world with fresh eyes. Use your unique perspective to spot opportunities others are missing.