The Freestyle Entrepreneur

There’s only one thing worse than tough, rotton, lousy times.  That’s uncertain times.  Our economy could be nose-diving into the sea … or it could be on the verge of pulling out and soaring back up into the wild blue yonder.    What to do: Don’t over-react.  Instead, take the time to assess your business [...]

No, that’s not an original thought — time is money – but it is right on the money!  We all have the same 24 hours each day.  But why is it that some of us cover miles and miles of productive terrain each day, while others barely get their shoelaces tied, so to speak?    Here are [...]

Shoot The Negative People (Or is that being too negative?) I’ve walked out of meetings when some train-stopper started saying, “yeah…but!”  These clowns can kill innovation, cause more problems than they solve, bring a mood of excitement to a screeching halt. What to do:  Stop them dead in their tracks.  Send them out of the room.  [...]

I got swapping motivational business stories yesterday with a new business associate.  We talked about Steven Covey and W. Clement Stone and other biz authors we had both read, so we had terrific issues in common, almost like we had been referred by mutual friends.   We also both laughed at how we had come roaring [...]

Why is it that great leaders have great teams while lousy non-leaders tend to have lousy teams?  Look at the approach to hiring.   Great leaders are not afraid of being upstaged by an employee.  On the contrary, truly great leaders are always looking for their own replacement … because they know they still have [...]

According to Biz Guru Guy Kawasaki, a PowerPoint sales presentation should have 10 slides, last no more than 20 minutes and contain no font smaller than 30 points.

I know how to achieve success.  It’s really simple:  Goals, focus, attention to the details and determination.   It seems to me that where many of us fall down is at that yeah-but point.  We want to take a simple, proven formula for success and round off the corners, adjust it, compromise it, very often [...]

We all sell something, and we always sell all the time. When we smile, we sell a relationship.  When we short-change a customer or client, we sell doubt and distrust.  When we fail to persuade prospects to buy our product, we have sold them on our lack of ability to meet their need.  The bottom [...]

Have a written job description before you hire an employee.  This helps both you and the candidate properly define responsibilities.  Also, have current employees write their own job descriptions.  You may both learn a lot.

While networking helps you meet people you need to know, it is relationships that make business both profitable and personally rewarding. How to stay in regular contact with your business friends: Schedule regular meetings and/or telephone calls with key professional friends either monthly or quarterly.  The best part:  No agenda.  Just chat and catch up.  [...]