One day when I was about 14 my Dad was sitting in our kitchen and staring at the wall. After several minutes he left the room, came back with a sledge hammer, and announced that we really needed a bay window in the kitchen. He then proceeded to put a hole in the wall. Within… Read More
Reading Seth Godin’s post, top ways to defend the status quo, made me think about survivors. Aren’t they the ones defending the status quo? Survivors wait to see which way things are moving before they commit. They wait to see if the leader will be punished or rewarded before they will voice an opinion. They… Read More
Balance: a state of equilibrium or equipoise; equal distribution of weight, amount, etc. When people discuss work-life balance, I always envision a two-sided scale with the time and effort devoted to “work” on one side and “life” (everything else) on the other. Each item is discrete (it has a beginning and an end, a value,… Read More
Today I spent most of the day at O’Hare after my American Airlines flight was canceled. I did get another flight four hours later, but I was stuck in the airport and I didn’t have my computer. The last time I was in an airport for more than four hours was earlier this year when… Read More
When considering subcontractor/contractor, qualified lead, or partnership arrangements (defined in part 2), you need to work with the right people and define as many of your terms as possible up front. Work with the right people Look for companies and individuals that share your values and priorities, management style, client relationship philosophies, and work ethic.… Read More
How long can you stay away from your computer? Your cell phone? Your Blackberry? When did they start to be so important? Were they this important a year ago? Um, yes. Two years? Uh-huh. Five years? Sorry to say but, yep. The last time I went anywhere over night without my computer was my… Read More
A few months back I made some noise on Tom Peters’ blog about how Dell customer service was pitiful. A week or so later, I got a call from Rob – My Dell Guy! Rob said: “From now on, you just call me if you have a problem.” He gave me his extension and… Read More
As a small business owner or a solopreneur, business development relationships are among the most difficult to manage. To start exploring these challenges, we’ll need some common language to describe the types of relationships that exist. We’ll start simply (by clarifying terms) and add detail as we discuss how to make these relationships work (a… Read More