Category Archive

In a recent Raven Roundtable a member shared, “A long-term employee just quit.” A chorus of sympathetic groans rose from around the table. Good employees are hard to find and losing a valued, long-term staff member can be hard. However, conversation around the table pointed out several possible advantages. Employees who quit aren’t always the high performers. This is the

It could happen to you. A crucial member of your staff leaves. Now what? A Roundtable member was faced with that dilemma. Replacing the employee would have been the logical choice; it would have filled out the team and made customers feel better. It would have been business as usual. But this member had read the book Multiplication by Subtraction by Shannon

How often do you come across an ad that seems too good to be true? The saying “the devil is in the details or the fine print” cautions us to be wary. When you open a bank account, log onto a website, sign up for a “free” app or a new cell phone, you agree to terms spelled out in the fine

Walking across a parking lot last week I spied a penny on the ground. I picked it up. Picking coins up off the ground has been a long-standing habit for me. Money is money, whether it’s a penny, a quarter, or a dollar. Not everyone feels the same. Friends with me have said everything from “A penny is not worth the

Life is filled with decisions. Some small: what will I have for breakfast? Some more serious and long-term: Where should I invest for my future? Some decisions are profound and life changing such as getting married, having children, entering the military or changing careers. The decisions that change your life forever are called vampire decisions. In her book “Transformative Experience”  L. A. Paul

We have all had them – a day that starts bad and gets worse: The dog wouldn’t come in which made you late for work. In a hurry and fumbling for keys, you drop your phone on the driveway and crack the screen. Your boss/foreman/assistant looks like she’s in a sour mood as you walk by. Then lunch rolls around,

A recurring topic in our CEO Roundtables is how to attract great employees. The labor pool has plenty of average candidates, but businesses who want the best must keep abreast of the latest hiring strategies. Brand your company as a great place to work. Your story is shared best by you and the people who work for you. Put video testimonials

In high school I participated in speech competitions. One friend had a speech impediment which made it difficult to understand some of her words. I often wondered what made Carol brave enough at 16, to speak in front of an audience and panel of judges. At our class reunion last year, Carol shared that our English teacher, Mr. Meredith, tutored

On the Best Valley Dairy Farm, we milked Holsteins. We often had our “favorite” cows, but when the industry developed the capacity to measure the quantity and quality of each cow’s milk, we were shocked to realize our favorites were not necessarily the producers who kept our farm in business. Sadly, one of the few options was hamburger. According to

I heard an interesting phrase last week: “The juice isn’t worth the squeeze.” It was in reference to deciding if making the effort to start a new project was wise. It caught my attention because it could be applied to many situations. We may have unlimited ideas, but not every great idea is worth our time and attention. Your work – Whether you own