One of the most damaging words an entrepreneur can use is “whatever.” It’s one of the 7 words that entrepreneurs should never say. The only context where the word “whatever” works is when speaking to someone you trust, and you say, “Do whatever you think makes sense.” But otherwise it smacks of indecision, laziness and […]
Archives for August 2006
The Elephant In The Room is YOU
* You’re the person companies aren’t talking about enough. * You’re the person companies are scared of, but really shouldn’t be. * You’re the elephant in the room. While I think the brouhaha over Snakes on a Plane borders on the absurd it should be a huge eye opener for businesses. It showed us that […]
The #1 Pro and #1 Con of Watching the Competition
Is watching the competition a good idea? You tell me. There are some clear pros and cons to watching the competition. First, let me say this: obsessing over your competition is bad. It can’t help you or your business. If you want to obsess over something, obsess over your customers. So what’s the #1 pro […]
How to Make Sure a Prospective Employee Will Fit In
The most important thing when hiring someone in a small business or as an entrepreneur is to make sure they fit in well with the team. I said that yesterday. It’s more important than anything else. Remember, there are no guarantees when hiring someone. You could do 10 interviews, 6 background checks, tail the person […]
The Most Important Thing to Remember When Hiring Someone in a Small Business
Charles Dickens wrote, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” I’m fairly certain he wasn’t referring to hiring people in a small business, but the thought applies well. When a small business owner or entrepreneur makes the decision to hire someone it’s a big one. It should not be taken […]
I’m Podcasting at the Great Big Small Business Show!
Did you think I’d stay out of podcasting forever? Muhahahaha… Someone once told me I had a very sexy voice. They were extremely drunk. And I paid them to say it. But, I couldn’t be held down forever (OK, no one was actually holding me down) — so when Becky McCray asked me to join […]
My Top 4 Mistakes as an Entrepreneur
“Pratice what you preach” or “Do as I say, not what I do”? Maybe it depends on who you’re talking to, but today, I’ll pratice the former and embrace my failure. How have I failed? Oh, let me count the ways. No, really, I’m going to count the ways. Here are 4 big mistakes I’ve […]
Get Hooked on StumbleUpon; It’s a Fun Tool for Finding New Sites
StumbleUpon is cool. And fun. And interesting. It took me awhile to finally give it a try, but after a bit of cajoling from Chris Cree and a sizeable boost in traffic over the last week to my side project Where Is Basil I jumped in. StumbleUpon allows you to discover new and worthwhile websites. […]
Companies That Act Like 2-Year Olds Need to Grow Up
My son, Sam, will turn 2 in early September. The “terrible twos” have already started. Thank you for your support. His two favorite words at the moment are “No” and “Mine.” He might even use them in a sentence, “No, mine.” Sam likes to repeat himself. A lot. “No. No. No. Mine. No. Mine. Mine. […]
How To Extend the Shelf Life of a Blog Post Through Linking
Blogging is great, but it ain’t perfect. One of its biggest downfalls is that most blog posts have a short shelf life. Blogging demands that we update content regularly…which means something you’ve written just a few short days ago has already disappeared, pushed away by newer content. True, a blog post never really disappears. It’s […]