In the world of competitive advantage, strategic thinkers win the war, tactics win battles. Joe runs a profitable company, providing value to his customers. He did not achieve this on-going success with only luck and hard work. He focused strategically on his goals. He purposely set out to be the best. He was early in utilizing computers to control and measure processes.
Limiting Beliefs
Mark Twain was fond of saying, “When a cat jumps on a hot stove, he’ll never jump on a hot stove again. He’ll also never jump on a cold stove.” Twain was pointing out something we humans do regularly. To save time and effort, we use one or a few “facts” to make a quick judgement. The tendency to overgeneralize is
Why do you want to boil the ocean?
Wally is smart, savvy, and like other Raven Roundtable members, enjoys sharing his hard-won wisdom. He purchased a small manufacturing plant, growing it into a $15 million company in 5 years. In a recent CEO Roundtable meeting, he listened as John shared his plans for transforming his company by bringing on a new and very different product line. Wally couldn’t
Business Lessons in Junior High
In seventh grade, I learned one of my most important business lessons: the benefits of clearly communicating a message to an audience. Picture a geography class full of 13-year-olds. Our assignment was to create a diorama about building the pyramids. We were divided into teams, given a shoe box and our assignment. My team was diligently painting and gluing, all
Cheaper can cost more
Do you agree that cheaper sometimes means it can cost more? For years Mike and his employees have been frustrated with inefficiencies due to cramped space and disorganization. His company is in dire need of space dedicated to storing tooling and fixtures. Mike finally agreed to add an addition to his shop; plans included a new tool room. Everyone was
Hello! Hello! Hello! – The echo effect
Have you ever had the opportunity to shout and listen to your voice bounce back at you? Pretty cool! Masters of communication often make good use of this echo effect. They’ve learned that listening and repeating back the words they hear makes people feel more comfortable. This mirroring and clarification of language brings a better understanding of the other person’s concerns
Your first job
Do you remember your first “real” job? The first job where you had to be at work for certain hours, performing certain duties AND you received a real paycheck! Over the years, I’ve employed a number of interns, high school students who want to learn about some of the aspects of office/administrative work. Our latest intern, Emma, with her enthusiasm
So Many Good Ideas-How Do You Choose the Right One?
Sean and Dave are brothers and business partners. They’ve built their company by working hard, paying attention to the numbers, and listening to customers. Their business had been stable and successful for years. But changes in technology along with increasing competition have begun to threaten the status quo.
Having A Grease Gun That Doesn’t Work Is Worse Than…
My husband and I were chatting over dinner about what he’d accomplished that day. He commented, “Having a grease gun that doesn’t work is worse than having no grease gun at all.”