You have contingency plans in place for when things go wrong, but what will you do when things go right – or better than right? What will you do when your performance exceeds your expectations? Companies that experience rapid and unexpected growth often stumble. Here’s how to be sure that doesn’t happen to you: [...]
I was 17 when I first read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill; it was the textbook for one of my courses in school. It was years later before I fully appreciated the value of Hill’s message and the wisdom of the curriculum designer. I was significantly older when I first met Sharon Lechter, [...]
Business is about relationships, and relationships begin with introductions. The good news is that the old social rules about gender and age don't apply to effective introductions in today's online and offline business world. These days, it's all based on precedence. In other words, rank rates. When you perform an introduction, the "less important" [...]
Earlier this week, I attended Spark and Hustle, a conference targeted to women business owners created by Tory Johnson. The speakers were high-energy with great stories and valuable information and ideas. The attendees were primarily women entrepreneurs who were there to get ideas and strategies for their businesses. Tory is on a 20-city tour, so [...]
Email is quick, casual and convenient–and a potential minefield. An email gaffe can be amusing, embarrassing or even career-ending. Use these guidelines for proper email etiquette to make sure your electronic messages don’t come back to haunt you: Remember that readers cannot hear your tone of voice or see your facial expressions and gestures. [...]
To create an effective marketing campaign that will drive growth in your company, you have to know your customer -- and that sounds a lot easier than it is. There are two angles to the issue of knowing your customer. 1. Have a clear picture of your prospective customers. 2. Have a clear picture of [...]
You can’t make it through a day—or even a few hours—without hearing something about social media. A social media policy for your employees is essential. A social media strategy for your company is equally—if not more—important. Do you have one? Keep these issues in mind when developing your social media strategy: • Begin with [...]
Do you know who is receiving your text messages? Early this morning, I received a text from a client wishing me a happy Mother's Day. Yes, that's odd from a number of perspectives, but this is a quirky client and I appreciated the thought. Before I could respond, I heard another text come in. It [...]
Last November, I went to small claims court and sued a lawyer for non-payment. After some wrangling, we settled with both of us feeling ripped off. In retrospect, we could have avoided all the ugliness – and perhaps even still be working together – if we had written and both signed a contract that [...]
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me. You probably learned this rhyme as a child and maybe chanted it to a playmate who was teasing you. It would be nice if it were true, but it's not. Words can hurt. They can also help. However words are used, they're [...]
