When I ask people, “What is the purpose of business?” The typical response is, “To make money.” To that, I have to ask, “How do you make money?” There’s only one answer. You have to provide value that helps customers. And providing value that helps customers is …service. So, service must come first. It must … Continue reading Stakeholders, Service, and Relationships …THE Keys to Success

When you are reading a book, it’s nice to start a new chapter. It gives you a sense of forward motion. It’s a point where you can appreciate what you’ve learned and get excited for what’s to come.  We’re getting ready to do that on the calendar. While many argue it’s just another day—it is—we … Continue reading A new chapter

It’s that time of year. Time to pause. Take a breath. Look around and appreciate all those people who have contributed to your life.  As my favorite holiday movie (It’s a Wonderful Life) says, “No one is a failure who has friends.” So, take a moment and let someone know they’ve made a difference. Let … Continue reading Pause

Does your business put people first or profit first? Knowing this matters because one is about benefiting something greater than yourself, and the other is not. And when your work benefits something greater than yourself, it matters more than work that is self-serving. People would miss it if it were gone. And I would venture … Continue reading What matters most? Here’s a simple test.

Name one thing you must give to get any return. Simple. A hug. To be hugged, you must hug.  Business is the same. To get (revenue/profit) you must first give (service). This seems to get lost on many businesses where the ongoing money mantra takes center stage. But that’s a problem because money is an … Continue reading You must give to get.

If you are an advocate of or a professional tasked with making business a more human experience, one of the key pieces of advice you will hear is, “You must first get executive buy-in.”  Well, you first need to understand that buy-in is only possible if the executive(s) see the need and want to change; … Continue reading Waking leaders up to reality is sometimes the only way

Happiness. We all want it. We have a whole “self-help” industry built around it. Yet, sadly, many seem to never achieve it.According to research, one of the keys to happiness is satisfaction, the joy that comes from the fulfillment of our wishes or expectations. However, so many times in life, no matter what we achieve, … Continue reading Thanksgiving. A path to happiness.

“I'm not going to change the world. You're not going to change the world. But we can help - we can all help.” -Cristiano Ronaldo Beginning on June 6, 1944, the world would be saved from a madman—not by Churchill, Eisenhower, de Gaulle, or Montgomery; it would be saved by a bunch of men whose … Continue reading You matter!

“Always stick to what makes you weird, odd, strange, different. That’s your source of power.” -Robert Greene Your “weirdness” could actually be the superpower that distinguishes you from the field in a way that no one or nothing else can. Your “weirdness” could be the spark that moves the dial to greater success for an … Continue reading Be weird! Make the world go.

Here is a question that should be no less than priority one for business leaders today. How do we do business in a way that makes the world a better place while, at the same time, allowing organizations to make money to survive and thrive? Every business school in the land and every business student … Continue reading Stop the foolishness. We need real leaders in business.