Ray Kroc bought the rights to a small hamburger joint run by Dick and Mac McDonald. He was 52 years old at the time and selling milkshake machines. Ray always believed in the power of a positive attitude in sales. He said, “With a smile and enthusiasm I can influence someone to buy a sundae […]
The Golden Arches of Wisdom Read More »
I own a solid orange polo shirt and often wear black suspenders. Being a DIY kind of person I often make trips to a local hardware store to buy materials or tools for one of my projects. On more than one occasion I have worn this combination to a local Home Depot store and been
What Color is Your Brand? Read More »
I was reading an article the week after Christmas that referenced “Boomerang Thursday”. I was aware of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but not Boomerang Thursday. It turns out that this is the day that people return unwanted Christmas presents. Doing further research, I discovered several important business lessons related to Boomerang Thursday. First, the
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Inspirational Quote from Confucius: I hear, and I forget. I see, and I remember. I do, and I understand.
Inspirational Quote from Confucius Read More »
Bill Bowerman was a very successful track and field coach at the University of Oregon. Runners at the University often suffered from shin splints, leg cramps, knee, and back issues as they trained. Bill was obsessed with designing solutions to solve these problems. One morning he was in his kitchen watching his wife Barbara make
Just Do It – How to Grow an Idea Read More »
With today’s 24/7 news cycle, there is no excuse for an absence of information. There is only the eroding sense of duty felt by Americans to remain informed. If you are reading this post today, share it with your friends and make a commitment to talk to your children tonight and instill in them the value that we as Americans have to remain actively engaged in the news and public issues affecting us all.
Are You Reading This? Read More »
Some time ago, I did some research on the role dyslexia plays in entrepreneurship. I came across findings by Sally Shaywitz of the Yale Center for Dyslexia & Creativity that indicate dyslexia is a key attribute of many successful entrepreneurs. Notable figures such as Richard Branson, William Hewlett, Henry Ford, Ted Turner, and Charles Schwab
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As you might imagine I have the occasion to speak to lots of successful business people and spend much of my time trying to understand what attributes make for a successful entrepreneur. One difference I see is how non-entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs approach education. The vast majority of my friends that have successful jobs working for
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The online retailer Zappos is known for its top-shelf customer service. One way Zappos excels at customer service is the amount of flexibility and discretion it gives its customer service representatives to make the customer happy. Hiring and training the right customer service representative makes all the difference between success and failure at Zappos. Zappos
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One of the goals of this blog is to help entrepreneurs think about common problems in totally new ways. To that end, I would like to introduce you to Takeru Kobayashi, who as a rookie in 2001 smashed the world hotdog eating record simply by rethinking the problem. Up to that time, the record for
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