Drive they business, let it not drive thee. – Benjamin Franklin There are two occasions in which many small business owners want to press reset on their business: when things are going […]
strategy
Focus On The People Keeping Your Lights On
Ten percent or less of the people who interact with your business actively support your business by buying from you. If you have an online business, it’s probably closer to 1%, with […]
Two Questions to Ask Before You Make a Change In Your Business
The fun part about running a business is that there are always things that can be changed. The not-so-fun part about running a business is that there are always things that can […]
Building Your Campfire: Three Keys to Gaining Influence Online
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Ethan Waldman of Cloud Coach. Small business owners, especially new ones who are just getting into building an online presence, spend a long time […]
Getting Results Takes Time
Hofstadter’s Law: It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into account Hofstadter’s Law. – Douglas Hofstader People often ask what they’re doing wrong when they’re not getting the […]
Video Review: Built To Sell by John Warrillow
[If you’re reading this via email or RSS, you may need to click through to watch the video.] Note: I’m doing something different this time because, as much as I’ve wanted to, […]
5 Questions Business Owners Should Be Asking, Expanded
Running a growing business is a challenge because there’s a very delicate balance between taking care of everything that needs to happen today while preparing for what needs to happen tomorrow. Even […]
Do Your Thing To Rock Your Brand
I was talking to a client last week and heard myself say the very words I needed to hear and apply. It’s amazing how the people you’re meant to help often provide […]
Is Your Business Too Dependent On Its Suppliers?
It’s easy for our own strategy to be determined by what our suppliers are doing. If we become too dependent, we risk having our strategy set by our suppliers rather than having […]
Watch Your (Own) Lane
“Everyone knows the tactics by which I am victorious, but no one knows the strategy out of which victory is evolved.” – Sun Tzu “Watch your lane.” Spend a little time around […]
On Blogs Being Dead
Blogs aren’t dead, but the way in which they sit in the web of content is different than it was a mere year ago. The new technological options are just that, and it’s our use of them that we need to be more aware of.
The Four Key Dimensions of Business
When we look at businesses holistically, there are four distinct dimensions that account for every decision and action. The four dimensions are: Strategy Operations Marketing Finances Though they’re distinct dimensions, they’re heavily […]
There’s More To Your Market Than Current Demand
There’s more to your market than current demand. To be competitive for the future, we have to project where our markets will be going, too.
20 Inconvenient Business Truths
Here are 20 inconvenient business truths. All of them are obvious but easily forgotten.
What Are Your Core Activities?
What are your core activities? Do you know how to determine when it’s time to pull your resources in so you can focus on your core activities? Over the course of the […]
What Are Your High-Value Activities?
Efficiency is doing things right and effectiveness is doing the right things. – Peter Drucker Effectiveness trumps efficiency. The ideal case is when you’re doing the right things right, but if you […]
Go Big or Go Home…or Go Deep
[If you’re reading this via email or RSS, you may need to click through to watch the video.] At long last! I can share the talk that I gave at Andrea Lee’s […]
Successful Launches In The Past Don’t Make You Innovative Today
Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Marissa Bracke. Just because people are buying your stuff doesn’t mean your tactics are effective. Sometimes it’s just a lack of alternatives. As an […]