Brad and I wrote a little while back about wearing headphones at the office. He noticed I was wearing them more often and we had some issues when he would try to get my attention. So we shared about it on LinkedIn, and it generated a storm of comments from people with polar opposite views — either they…
When I was starting my business, everyone told me: give up your job, give up your life, and work like hell. That was my introduction to entrepreneurship. The problem was that, at that time, I was a single dad with three young kids. Working 100 hours of the week (even if I was free to…
So, let’s say you’ve been working for a company for a while, and you really want to find a way to accomplish some new tasks or take on new roles with your position. You’re ambitious, hungry, and ready for a challenge. But that means figuring out how to convince your boss that A) You’re ready…
Running a business is hard. That’s why a lot of folks decide to partner up and start a business with someone else. There are some definite advantages to working with a partner: two heads are better than one, and partnerships often have access to better resources and talent that a solo founder might not have….
One of my team members has been facing significant health challenges. She spent most of this past month in a doctor’s office, and wasn’t working very effectively. I didn’t count her PTO days, or dock her pay. I sent her some flowers and prayed for her to get better. Another one of my team members…
Missing deadlines is a common occurrence in the world of small business. No one is to blame (or everyone is to blame) and there are no real consequences — until the owner wakes up one morning and says, “Hey, weren’t we supposed to be finished with this project by now? What happened?” There are plenty…
The headlines are dramatic, and appear to swing from one end of the pendulum to the other: Stock market has best day of the year; Dow up 188, US jobless rate falls to 5-year low of 6.6 percent. Are we actually seeing the beginnings of the much promised recovery, or are we experiencing a minor…
Is your business getting better? Showing some signs of growth? If so you might have tried to go out and hire some new team members only to discover – it’s getting hard to find good people again. When the labor market gets tight (as it is right now) it’s time to find ways to get…
One of the most agonizing decisions that a business owner has to make is deciding when to hire a new employee. It’s a huge risk! You’re bringing on additional salary, you have the cost and distraction of the search, there’s training the new person… And what if they don’t work out? It’s a difficult process…
The world of podcasting is exploding. Every day, smart people put up excellent material that informs and, if we’re lucky, entertains. Interviews with the best and the brightest are available on practically any subject, in any field. Whatever your interest, there is a podcast out there to engage and enlighten you. But if you’ve never listened to…