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What a dumb question. If you're a parent, I doubt you've ever gotten an answer that comes anywhere near what you'd call satisfactory. And if you've ever had a parent, I doubt you've given such an answer. Because it's the…

"Never Give Up" I'm always a big fan of Inc Magazine, but when they had this advice on the cover I had to say something. It's not that you should give up - it's that saying "Never Give Up" makes…

Seth says: If you are willing to satisfy people with good enough, you can make just about everybody happy. I'd say If you want to make everyone happy you'll HAVE to be satisfied with good enough. [read the whole story…

Animal trainers have a saying "It's never the animal's fault" Because animals don't speak, trainers need to find non-English methods to communicate what they want. If the animal doesn't perform, they try to find a better way to communicate, they…

I mentioned this before but I don't think I gave it the focus it deserves. The focus it deserves is actually in this New Yorker article and a shorter one in Fast Company. But consider this key quote. If someone…

I usually keep politics out of this blog, but I'm writing this piece not to change your political views as much as challenge how you think about the relationship between business and politics. Many years ago I was a member…

I got this idea from a client - Thanks, Kendra. In meetings when they have an topic on the agenda they allot a certain amount of time to it. Then they set a timer at the start. It keeps the…

What would you pay for a tool that could transmit the wisdom of your smartest people out to everyone in your whole organization? One that is able to reduce errors in the most complex activity and achieve consistent results time…

Joel Spolsky recounts his move from a Microsoft to (eventually) Juno Online Services in New York. Eventually, though, I started to discover that the management philosophy at Juno was old fashioned. The assumption there was that managers exist to tell…

...is acknowledging what they are worst at. They think they're good (or good enough) at everything. But consider that every company needs to get results in four areas. This means the company needs skills such as: Designing a product customers…

I'm sure you've heard that when you ASSUME it makes an ASS out of U and ME. Here's a way to make assumptions that work. Investors all know that business plans are fiction, or rather fairy tales (fiction sometimes has…

The key to growing your company is to prevent problems rather than solve them. There are two parts to this: Attitude and Skill. Attitude - you must not like being the hero. Heroes solve problems. Usually at the last moment…

We all know about working smarter not harder. But Seth Godin has an interesting insight that we often confuse working longer with working harder (or smarter). Here are a couple of choice quotes. None of the people who are racking…

Lots of things. Mostly they put too much emphasis on the outcome and not enough on the process. I'm not a big fan. Yes, I know you need them if you're going to ask for money. And yes planning is…

This from Jessica Hagy who does all kinds of funny, insightful stuff on index cards. But the bigger point is, many people think (no, it's beneath thinking, they just KNOW) that to run (never mind start) a company you have…

1. Does it fit into the big picture? This is the 80/20 rule. Should eliminate 80% of stuff. Of course you have to know what the big picture is. I think many people are afraid to eliminate stuff because it…

Leadership has been getting all the spotlight in recent years, but management is really where the action is if you want results. Management is the hard work of developing (as well as sustaining) an environment that supports people to be…

This from Paul Orfalea. [founder of Kinkos which got acquired by FedEx and now has 1,200 stores in 10 countries] You must be flexible and astute and focus on the big picture. Busyness is not your friend. Startup entrepreneurs too…

One of the services that makes this blog worth every dollar you pay for it, is the time I take to scour the web and find the gems for you. Two posts in blogs I love come together today under…

Everyone knows that to grow a business you have to delegate. But it's hard. Here's why. Most of what you do (and want to delegate) is knowledge work. Peter Drucker coined the term Knowledge Worker to mean someone who works…

It's well known that the pessimist says the glass is half empty - so his surprises are all positive ones. The optimist says the glass is half full and somehow keeps that attitude despite her negative surprises. What does the…