Deafness and … Avoiding it When we’re talking it’s hard to listen. But when we stop talking and don’t hear what that prospect or customer is saying that’s a big problem. In sales speaking well is important. But listening is downright critical. We all know the validity of that point, but are we practicing that basic […]
Good sanitation and … Staying in business Giving customers diarrhea is just bad business. Just ask Chipoltle (or Taylor Farms who processed the jalapenos thought to be the cause of the recent salmonella outbreak there). And that outbreak was on the heels of the lettuce born Cyclospora Parasite contamination that resulted in lettuce being recalled from […]
Speak up well… And be heard It may be that you’re both comfortable and pretty competent at speaking in public. If so, that’s great – especially when it comes to conducting those in-service training sessions in front of group of employees in that heath care facility. But if that’s not entirely the case for you, here […]
Life, living and… Surviving it Life is uncertain and that’s a fact. Another is that the realization of that simple fact escapes the understanding of a lot of folks. They yearn for those simpler times when everything was clear, and the path forward uncluttered. Well here’s a newsflash: Those fabled times really never existed. Ask your […]
New ideas… Old resistance That’ll never work. Yep, as we get longer in the tooth, we’re prone to cling to whatever beliefs we already have and to almost automatically reject what’s different, new, or just on the cutting edge. Now that’s not to say that all things new ought to be wholeheartedly embraced, or that […]
A Secret to success… About bosses and buyers There are lots of pieces of advice on how to advance in business. One very good one goes, “Figure out what’s important to your boss’s boss and do that!” That’s not to say we should ever ignore what our direct supervisor wants but positively affecting what his […]
Prep and make ready… And not the sous chef Here’s a basic sales truth that we tend to forget: Our success selling new business is not particularly proportional to our desire to make the sale. Conversely however, it’s very much related to our degree of preparation. That begins with doing the basic homework to learn […]
Yep, cash is… Really king Odd as it may sound you could have two businesses with sales, gross profits and operating costs that are absolutely identical and yet have two entirely different financial pictures. One is vibrant and poised for growth while the other is about to shutter its doors! The first business has average […]
Some rules… To remember There are two pretty hard rules that underpin the integrity of both the Profit and Loss Statement and the Balance Sheet. The first one for the P&L is that the owner and the business are separate entities. The second one regards the balance sheet rule that business assets are, with few […]
Balance sheet… decoded (kinda) While we’re in bean counter mode, addressing the least understood financial statement (the balance sheet) seems appropriate. But first let’s set the table: The P&L statement is a record of the profitability of the business over a period such as a month, quarter or even full year. The balance sheet is a […]