Marian Banker, President of Prime Strategies, is an admirable example of someone who drew from her previous professional
Marian Banker
experience to create a successful entrepreneurial formula, which she continues to modify and evolve. Her background includes being an executive in large organizations, an educator, an entrepreneur and a mentor.
Eight years ago, during a life transition, Marian found the coaching profession, which was at that time in its formative stages. She was attracted to coaching because it offered her something she would enjoy doing on a regular basis, would find personally satisfying and would make an effective difference in people’s lives. The opportunity to make her own decisions, write her own rules, and be in control, also motivated Marian to start her coaching business. The hardest part was to make people aware of the new concept and methodology of coaching. Marian also acknowledges that it took time and practice to master the way she presents her services.
Today Marian calls herself a Business Leadership Coach and utilizes strategic alliances to offer comprehensive services to entrepreneurs and small business owners across the country. She is always looking for professionals with whom she has synergy to co-create workshops and complement the services Prime Strategies provides to its growing client base.
Prime Strategies offers business coaching (one on one and group), staff training, business management and a variety of programs designed to assist the small business owner in staying in control of their business.. Marian publishes and edits a monthly free e-newsletter for which she writes the Feature Article and includes current news and information that she considers relevant to her readers. Additionally, she hosts a monthly Telephone Roundtable, which brings entrepreneurs together and gives them the opportunity to learn from each other. Each month Marian invites a different guest expert to talk about timely topics around which people can interact and ask questions.
The challenge, according to Marian, is to keep herself out there. Since she never knows where the business may come from, she needs to be constantly promoting herself, giving workshops, listening to clients and creating new services.
Her future plans are to provide a virtual place for small business owners to come together online. To date she has had difficulties setting up the technological part of the site. Marian intends to continue building alliances in areas related to her main focus. Her creativity and ability to draw from her experiences, with the ideal of making a difference in her clients’ businesses and lives, are the secret to her success.
In addition to friends and professionals she counts on, Marian has a small group of supporters, which she calls her Power Group. They meet for two hours on a monthly basis and help each other stay focused and on target. She offers the following advice for aspiring entrepreneurs: “Every business needs a solid foundation on which to grow. It’s also important to learn the basics of good business practice, to find trustworthy advisors and to create a network that can encourage and support your efforts. This will help you remain optimistic and be able to keep going when times are tough.”
To learn more about Marian Banker and Prime Strategies visit her website www.primestrategies.com.