This SMB owner is bucking that trend in a highly price competitive market. I found inspiration on my way to a horse show. My trainer is always better with caffeine in hand, so I was motivated to find her coffee. stopped at a little Ma and Pa gas station - the fourth place I'd tried. The others  were out of brew and too busy to make more on this particular morning. The pot was empty here too - what are the chances?    As I turned to leave the owner stopped me - offered to make a fresh pot. Thelma (my F-250) was definitely due for a bath - so why not? MORE >>

Companies develop beliefs based on leadership, market experiences and 'corporate legends' Often I'll walk into a turnaround and find a demoralized culture.  My good friend Bob Burg, and his co-author John David Mann, opened my eyes to the concept of receiving. Thanks to their wonderful series of Go-Giver books, I learned about my very own unconscious belief pattern that was blocking my receiving. Yes, I've always received enough to have a good life, but never better than good. Everyone but me.   I gave and gave and gave - to clients, friends and family. MORE >>

  Our markets and customers change continuously as well - just like everything else in our world. That's not going to cut it in today's dynamic and ever-accelerating markets.  Change is a natural state. Seasons change, weather changes, our bodies change.    We change with age, with education,with experiences and with exercise, or lack thereof.    Relationships change, people change, everything about our lives change.  So why does 'business focus' translate to a static response? Until we have an obvious crisis. MORE >>

We head into markets firing with all our value, assuming something will hit a willing buyer right between the eyes. We cover the proverbial wall with marketing and sales campaigns - assuming something will stick.  That's kinda backwards, isn't it? catch myself doing it all the time. get an idea, remember something I need to do, all while I'm in the middle of something else. I'm distracted by the new thought, so I get up to go fix whatever, grab whatever, do whatever, so I can come back and focus. 50+ mentalpause may be partially to blame. But not really. MORE >>

Wanna be a market leader?  We interact with our markets and competitors and partners all the time.    What better way to tune our instincts than grounding our intuition in pure market reality.    Find an expert who eats, breathes and lives the intricate details of your market and customers.   Apply your intuition. You know what I mean, that feeling that tells us a product idea has legs, a story is going to sell, a customer segment is going to love our new idea.    You just know when you're on the right track. MORE >>