My Report to the President
Dear Mr. President: You had requested an executive summary of my analysis of your current ability to influence and create constructive change. I’ve listed the points in no particular order, since they are all important. Sorry we couldn’t meet as planned,
Bad Habits to Break
Chronic bad habits: • Assuming the client himself or herself is the cause of the problem. They were smart enough to hire you, and even good people need help. Never assume your client is damaged unless you see evidence (e.g., they
Implicitly Explicit
At the Million Dollar Club’s meeting in St. Lucia we all present our visions of near-term trends in business and services. I’ll share one of mine here. Just-in-Time mindsets have been applied to save huge amounts of manufacturing costs, inventory expense,
Wholesale and Retail
St. Lucia: We had a fascinating discussion today that revolved around the "wholesale" and "retail" nature of consulting. In brief, the wholesale application is to organizational entities, and the retail to individuals. Many consultants (and speakers, coaches, and so on)
Cold Comfort
My wife and I had to pick up our truck, which had been "naked" without radar and laser detection, so we decided to go hunt out a mini-fridge so long as we had the cargo capability with us. The fridge
The Wrong Line
I'm waiting in line at the bank. There's only one person in line ahead of me, and four tellers. However. One teller is occupied by a man who is a small business owner doing a transaction, and claiming he did not get
Umwelt
Umwelt (oom-velt) refers to an organism’s self-life. It’s the opposite of anthropomorphism, in that we try to understand an animal’s personal point of view, rather than assigning it human points of view. Or as John Muir once explained, when asked
Stupid Strategies, Predictable Results
The future of newspapers is in one of two directions: The will form national networks, as have radio and TV stations, or they will grow small and serve localities. A good friend of mine and media expert agrees with me
Flying Solo
This originally appeared on AlansForums.com, but I think it has utility for my larger community: Short and Sweet Okay, so what makes people successful in the solo consulting business? Who else would know as well as I?! • The self-confidence to help others
Agendanomics
Agenda: A list or outline of things to be done, subjects to be discussed, business to be transacted; a program. — Webster's Third New International Unabridged (For those of you lost in Wikipedia, that's a "dictionary.") You have to beware of