There’s a place at the base of the mountain where I live that has the best, old-fashioned milkshakes and malts you have ever tasted. It’s like being transported back into the ’50’s. Being a sucker for good ice cream, I usually try and stop and get one of these heavenly delights every time I pass [...]
That’s one of those quotes kind of like, “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” It works great as long as everyone buys in completely and conducts themselves accordingly. It’s helpful to separate friendship from business on several levels, but especially so when your business will be competing head to head with that of a [...]
As the economy turns ever downward, business owners are scrutinizing each expenditure. While I’m a big proponent of managing expenses, I have to ask the obvious question: why haven’t they been watching their expenses all along? Sure, a slow down in the economy makes things tighter, but isn’t a dollar a dollar no matter what [...]
With all the talk lately about work needing to be fulfilling and rewarding, some people have misconstrued that to mean that work HAS to be fun. While many parts of work can be — and are — fun (especially when you’re engaged in a rewarding, fulfilling career,) it’s certainly not always fun. That’s why they [...]
Some people will argue with the declaration made in the title of this post. But in my experience, if employees don’t respect and trust you, they’re certainly not going to follow you. Some managers, especially young ones, think that if you’re “popular” or funny, or caring, or everyone’s buddy, that is enough to get everyone [...]
When I have a bad experience I usually share it. By the same token, when I have a good experience I also want to share. A little over a week ago I decided to build an island for the kitchen (I build furniture as therapy in my spare time.) I wanted big turned legs for [...]
I remember working with a company a few years ago that had old machines that were constantly breaking down. The machines needed to be rebuilt, but production was so busy, there was no time. They were six weeks out on delivery at that time. To their way of thinking, taking time to stop and fix [...]
I’ve been saying for years that ideas are a dime a dozen. It’s not great ideas that make great money, it’s great execution. My son sent me an excellent link to Signal Vs. Noise Blog entitled “I had that idea years ago!” The premise of the piece is that we all see “other people getting [...]
I was talking with my son last night about a business he’d worked in that was, “the best business” he’d ever seen. What made it the best? “People worked together. Nobody slacked. The boss didn’t act like the king. Everyone was friendly to each other. Everyone helped the customers and the company. There was no [...]
I spoke with a college student I know well yesterday and came away with an unsettled feeling. When I asked what he would be studying, he informed me he was applying for medical school and hoped to be accepted next spring. As we talked further, it appeared he really wasn’t that interested in medicine (or [...]