Bounce or Splat?
If you’re an entrepreneur, you know that the path to success isn’t a straight line. It’s a fact of life even if you are not an entrepreneur. I ask my kids when they face an obstacle, make a mistake, or suffer a set-back, “Should you splat or bounce?” The...
Dealing with Mistakes
Homer Simpson’s simple advice is hilarious. Too often when a mistake happens the urge is to do a “Homer” and cover it up with something like “It was like that when I got here.” That’s a deadly path in a world pervaded with social media. Bad news can reach...
Fearless Entrepreneurs Are Creative Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs are fearless. By definition they take amazing risks. They keep going when the odds seem to be long. Sometimes that gets them into trouble. But there is one other area of your business that benefits from fearlessness – Creativity. Creativity is linked to hope – a vision about...
Let Me Sleep On It
Have you ever heard the expression let me sleep on it? Sleep is something we all need. Yet, for the entrepreneur it is often dismissed as an inconvenience – something that interrupts your momentum. When you’re starting out you want to give it all you got. But If you’re...
How is Culture Built in Your Organization?
Top down or bottom up? Good relations with employees are important. You want to keep in touch with what’s happening on the front lines. Your people are usually the ones closest to your customers. They are also often the best source for new ideas. Ways to improve your business...
Born Round, You Can’t Die Square – Wrong!
This old saying is sometimes said to be a Sicilian Proverb. I added the “Wrong”. The implication is that you’re stuck at birth. Your mind is what it is and you are doomed by fate to live your life one way. If you adopt this philosophy, no doubt that...
Risk and Reward
“No risk – No reward”. We’ve all heard that old canard. It implies that if you take more risks, you will automatically receive more rewards. Anyone who follows that rule in business or in life is leaving success to chance. Entrepreneurs are risk takers by definition. Successful entrepreneurs are...
A Principle of Magnets
If you ever played with a pair of bar magnets as a kid, you know that they can be used to attract or repel depending on how you align the poles. In business the impulse is to attract any and all customers like screws, nails, and anything made of...
Good vs. Evil
Where do you come down? I’m not asking if you worship Satan. In business do you have a social duty or should the pursuit of profit be your blind ambition? Many believe that the profit motive should be the sole driving force in business and that everything else...
It’s All (Not) In The Name
Naming your new company is serious business (no pun intended). You would think there are a few rules to follow. You want it to be memorable. You want it to represent what you do, perhaps. You don’t want a name that will be confused with some other brand. You...