Are you humming the old Johnny Rivers song? “There’s a man who lives a life of danger. … They’ve given you a number and taken away your name. …” (guitar riff here) Sorry, I’m not talking about that kind of agent, but someone who can be just as dangerous! A good friend owns a firm […]
Years ago, I was part of a team that sequestered itself — at the request of our CEO — to come up with our “vision and strategy” for the company. This was a smart group of executives with good backgrounds and many opinions, all with healthy enough egos. We holed up for two days in […]
Hold people accountable in your organization I recently had coffee with a fraud. He looked good, smelled good, dropped names and used buzzwords like a pro. However, he was a chocolate bunny … sweet on the outside and hollow on the inside. These characters can deflect blame like a superhero deflects bullets. All fluff and […]
When I started flying high-performance aircraft at high altitudes many years ago, my friend and I decided to conduct a test. Above 12,500 feet, you’re required to have oxygen (OK nitpicker pilots … between 12,500 feet and 14,000 feet, you can noodle around for half an hour without it). We took a non-pressurized airplane to […]
I recently came home late from a long day hoping I might be graced with leftovers for dinner. Unfortunately, my wife was gone and frankly, her idea of leftovers is the last half of a bag of popcorn anyway (she comes from a long line of culinary-impaired Irish Catholics). As I pulled a pan out […]
“The only reason for time is so that everything doesn’t happen at once.” — Albert Einstein In business, we talk a great deal about “return.” Return on investment, cash-on-cash return, return on equity and return on invested capital are a few. However, whether you’re a CEO or a sales rep, perhaps your most important measurement […]
At the end of the day, there are really only two ways to win in business, assuming you have a viable market: (1) be like others and execute better or (2) be different. I’ve had clients who’ve succeeded in both camps, but those who took a different approach were more successful — both in top-line […]
A Wall Street Journal article on September 20, 2010, stated that Hyundai is coming out with a new luxury car. A Hyundai luxury car? Isn’t that a bit like gourmet Velveeta? It begs the question, “How far can you stretch a brand?” A typical strategic position would be to own a spot on the map, […]
Years ago when my four children were small, my wife and I took them on a road trip to see their grandparents. I had told the three oldest kids that we were getting up in the morning to drive to the Midwest. Our youngest son Danny, who was 3 at the time, was already in […]
My brother is in management at a large financial firm but is as good at construction as any contractor. Whether it’s a deck, a finished basement or a sauna, he builds it perfectly. Likewise, my friend, John — an engineer — is a great woodworker. He builds grandfather clocks that Angela Merkel would be pleased […]