If you are thinking about running your own business, stay in school. Many of the skills learned surviving the college experience can be just as important as what they teach you in the classroom.
Just to get through 4 years of college requires disciplines and mindsets that are essential to self-employment and building your business. Yes, college is expensive and there’s no promise of a job. But just going through the… Read More
7 Lessons Taught in College but not in the Curriculum
Put Your People on the Same Team
No matter what kind of business you think you’re in, you quickly find out you are in the personnel management business. With careful hiring, mentoring, recognition, and compensation plans, your people can be your greatest asset.
Recurrent, personnel issues can be a distraction to you and your staff. Some react to personnel problems by firing the offending parties. Occasionally this may be necessary, however the… Read More
World’s Best Sale Pitch: “My Product will help you Increase Sales”
We’ve spent over two decades in sales, and it’s true – nothing happens until the sale is made. We have a friend who described her sales job as “conveying the value proposition of (her) product to (her) buyers.”
There are many books written on the subject of sales, sale techniques, and best closing strategies. We’ve often said the best sales person is the “Assistant Buyer”. The key to sales success… Read More
Improving Your Productivity can be as Simple as a Walk in the Park
We often take walks in natural environments for more reasons than just the exercise. We’ve found that putting ourselves in nature provides many subtle benefits beyond physical fitness.
Even if you get out for just 45 minutes in the middle of a hectic day, amazing things can happen. For one thing, it’s natural, like we all are. Our bodies were meant to be in a natural environment. We are perfectly designed to walk, rather… Read More
Grow Your Business Faster by Sharing the Wealth
Henry Ford used to say he’d rather have 1% of what a hundred others made working for him, than 100% of what he made by himself. Some business owners want to have it all, but in the process, cut off the very folks they need to get what they want.
Our business colleagues have chastised us for “overpaying” our sales people. They’d say, “Aren’t you afraid they will make more than you?” Actually, we had several sales… Read More
Vacations Increase Creativity and Productivity
Some people have to be forced to take vacation. Some even feel guilty or “irresponsible.” Others rack up unused vacation time for its monetary value. Still others see honor in putting their job ahead of a timely break.
Whatever your reason for not taking regular vacations, it can’t measure up to the benefits you and your job receive when you put business aside and give yourself a rest.
Regular vacations not only… Read More
The Advantages of Being a Small Start-Up – Part 2
This is the second installment in a four-part series designed to encourage small start-ups by recognizing some of their inherent advantages.
Small start-ups face a myriad of challenges. They are undercapitalized, unproven and have no market traction. They are up against the status quo that will use its established power and influence in the marketplace to suppress any new challengers. Buyers are reticent to take… Read More
Dress for Success (Especially in the Office)
Many companies these days seem to think that they are giving their office staff some kind of a benefit by letting them dress any way they want. Business casual has become casual and casual has become downright scruffy. What happens when Mr. Big walks into your company and your people are dressed in a way that doesn’t telegraph customer service and professionalism? Before you can say anything, your new client has made… Read More
Positive Company Culture is critical to Growth and Survival – Part 3
This is the third part in the series about the original Barefoot culture. Culture really sets the tone, boundaries, and expectations the team has toward your company, your mission and your product.
We’ve saved the best for last because having a common cause and a common challenge forges, more than any other single factor, positive company culture.
When you are growing especially a new a brand, something… Read More
Positive Company Culture is critical to Growth and Survival – Part 2
A company survives and grows due to sales and the loyalty of customers and staff. Sales are based on price, value, dependability, integrity, availability and perception. The basis of perception is image, networking, and more recently, the transparency of the producer.
Transparency is what the brand stands for, its authenticity, its identification with higher values, and the actions it takes to demonstrate those… Read More
