Drove back from Boston to Chicago last weekend to ferry my new college graduate (and all her stuff) back home. Along the way, we played the license plate game. (We found 47 states in just over 1000 miles!) I couldn’t help but notice that every time we found a New Hampshire plate, I had a…
In the last two emails, I’ve talked about some common problems that entrepreneurs confront when they are growing their business. They are over-invested in their importance and competence. They believe, “If I work harder, it will get better.” They don’t see anyone helping them — it’s all up to them. They can’t let go… If…
Let’s just say you are the world’s best baker — you are at the top of your class technically. Sure there are more things to learn, but what’s your next challenge? What’s the hill you want to climb? There was one other thing that struck me as I listened to the fantastic podcast I wrote on…
My son, who works in the restaurant industry, sent me this fantastic podcast where David Chang interviews Chris Bianco (of Pizzeria Bianco) and Chad Robertson (of Tartine Bakery) about their lives and careers. It’s incredible; you should listen to it. But what struck me most about the interview was how the problems, fears, and challenges…
Just like children, businesses grow through predictable phases. We talked about start life as baby startups, that progress to raging growth companies in our first email. Then we talked about the adolescent crisis that leads to specialization. Today, we finally reach a more stable “adult” phase. Here’s my version of this story focused primarily on B2B…
Just like children, businesses grow through predictable phases. We talked about start life as baby startups, that progress to raging growth companies in our last email. Today we reach adolescence, before settling into a more stable “adult” phase in our next email. Here’s my version of this story focused primarily on B2B service businesses. See if you…
Just like children, businesses grow through predictable phases. We start life as baby startups, then progress to raging growth companies, before settling into a more stable “adult” phase. Here’s my version of this story focused primarily on B2B service businesses. See if you see any of your own experiences in it. Baby startup Once upon…
I want to get started making videos to help me build an audience and to improve the search optimization of some of my content. I’ve been cruising around YouTube checking out creators who have unique styles. I’m itching to figure out what gear I need and plan out some videos to create. Starting something new…
In the U.S.A., this is Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start to summer where people go outside, barbecue, hit the beach, and take a long weekend off. I’m also taking this weekend off, to unpack all the boxes that we packed and moved earlier this week. So no business wisdom today — go outside and…
There are as many different “types” of entrepreneurs as there are businesses, but there are some common traits I see that many of us share. We don’t mind hard work, we like to start things more than we want to finish things, and we have a nose for opportunity. These three traits are a cocktail…