Blog

What is the question you want an answer to?  Don’t ask the question that gives you the answer you want but gives you the response you need.  And be prepared to drill down to get specifics.  For the most part, our fellow business people are prepared to provide details when asked.

Thinking big requires us to think in general terms, use vague slogans, and avoid specific details.  No details are to be found anywhere in these big picture plans.
Although they will never admit it, many “big ideas” fail because they do not consider the small details of how the big plan will happen. This is why we need to think small.

Germany Kent, an American Hall of Fame media and communications professional, is quoted saying: “Relationships matter.  The roles people play in your life will influence you, so get serious about who you allow to affect you.  Nurture those relationships in your circle that foster success and happiness, and continuously position yourself among change agents and thought leaders.”

What Is the Hard Part?

The answer to this question is whatever the most important thing is right now. It is what is the very next step that must be taken right now to move you closer to your ultimate goal.

One efficient way to view work is to consider that there are two types of work—good work and busy work

While the feeling of accomplishment in business—meeting a timeline, beating a budget, winning a sale—are all uplifting, this sensation is multiplied exponentially when others take notice.

Problem solving in business is defined as implementing processes that reduce or remove obstacles that are preventing you or others from accomplishing operational and strategic goals.

In business, a problem is a situation that creates a gap between the desired and actual outcomes.  A true problem typically does not have an immediately apparent resolution.  If it did, it would be solved before it became a problem.

To have a good day, three questions must be answered in the affirmative.

Did you spend your time and attention on things that matter?
Do you feel that you did a good job and had the support of others?
Did the day leave you feeling more energized than depleted?

Although the ego of many business people will resist, luck has a great influence on the success of every business.  Research has shown that hard work can make a business good, but it takes luck to make a good company great.

Being an entrepreneur or a small business owner is all about having ideas—good ideas, crazy ideas, bad ideas, old ideas, unbelievable ideas. This is where innovation comes from.  You see something that doesn’t work right, is poorly served, or is inefficient—and you dream of a way to solve it.  See a need and meet it.  Find where the pain exists and relieve it. Sure, the idea must be workable.  And it requires research to see who had a similar idea before, who else is attempting to solve the same problem, and what has previously failed.  But everything begins with a good idea.