When I was in Middle School, I had a couple of game-changing moments thanks to a couple of teachers who were extra hard on me. At least, in the moment that’s what it felt like. Now, looking back, they were just calling me to my potential like any good teacher, coach, parent, or mentor should.…
Struggling to make your marketing work? Start by clarifying your value proposition in your advertising. Figure out what your offering really means to your audience and how it changes their life. Make sure your Call To Action is easy to understand and complete. Once you have dialed in these aspects of your campaign, double down…
Automation can be simpler than you may think. It can be an investment in new software or equipment that works better, faster, or more reliably. There could be an improvement to the efficiency of your operations that’s yearning to be made, but you might instead be trying to ride it out with slow, outdated, or…
fric·tion /ˈfrikSHən/noun“the resistance that one surface or object encounters when moving over another.” Friction and resistance have a way of sneaking into your business. If you’re not taking a frequent and honest look at your business operations, then it’s easy to let approvals, processes, checkoffs, punch lists, and reviews add friction. Here are 4 questions to ask…
You can’t be brave. Well, more specifically: you can’t be brave unless you’re scared first. Synonyms of Bravery include valor, courage, and heroism. This word might spark images of soldiers charging the hill or first responders running straight into a tragedy, but you and I have opportunities to be brave every day. My favorite quote…
It was all going to waste… Ford Motor Company has a reputation for disruptive innovation unlike any other company in modern American history. A lesser-known tangent of Henry Ford’s legacy is another brand you’ll find in American homes from coast to coast: Kingsford Charcoal. Early “motor coaches” were primarily made of wood, and as part of…
Bad news, good news. Gig work, The Great Resignation, and “Quiet Quitting” become news bites that spread negativity when it comes to employment. Hating your job is a punchline in our culture – comic strips, sitcoms, and cinema all portray the same trope about a hollow soul having to drag themselves to work, dreaming about…
Negotiate everything. Most people hate conflict, and a few people enjoy it. Rarely are people “fair to middling’” on confrontation. But dealing with conflict is a secret skill that can be a superpower as a business owner. If you haven’t shopped around pricing from your supply chain in a while, it’s time. In fact, it’s…
There are two types of people in this world. Those that would rather ask permission, and those that would rather ask forgiveness. If you’re the asking permission type, you’ll need to get outside your comfort zone as a business owner. Sometimes you just have to make decisions and ask forgiveness later. Or there might be…
In the advertising agency business, I used to tell my team that, deep down, every single client who walks through our door wants more. They want to grow by getting more of something – usually it was pretty evident, like leads or sales or customers. But sometimes it was more subtle than that: they want to be…