A discussion about the fundamentals of leadership and success.

Making 2013 a Renaissance Year for You and Your Business

“The plans of the diligent lead to profit, as surely as haste leads to poverty.”

Proverbs 21:5

2012 was a year defined by uncertainty regarding issues over which business leaders had little or no control. Many coped by adopting conservative strategies and taking a “wait and see” attitude. 2013 is all about resurgence and growth, and the most successful entrepreneurs make the revitalization of themselves the foundation for future prosperity.

2012 in the rear view mirror

Pottstown: Ripe for Redevelopment, But Needs a Unified Effort

“Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much.”

Helen Keller

Once a hotbed of manufacturing, Pottstown’s more recent history has been characterized by a sluggish economy and high unemployment. But its eventual revival is a certainty, as it has far too many assets to remain in the doldrums for long. Taking advantage of all that Pottstown has going for it, however, will require some fresh thinking, a spirit of unity, and a concerted effort.

The Mysterious Stock Market: As Psychological as it is Financial

“The dumbest reason in the world to buy a stock is because it’s going up.”

Warren Buffett

Action, intrigue, uncertainty, elation, and exasperation. I’m not talking about the latest box office thriller; I’m referring to the stock market. Despite its perplexing ups and downs, it affects us all, no matter what business we’re in. For that reason, improving our understanding of what drives it is essential. And what drives “the market” is that which drives all business— human psychology.

Making Every "Business Minute" Count: Maximizing the Dollar Value of your Time

“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”

William Penn

Two things that business owners have in common are that (1) we survive by translating our time into dollars and cents; (2) the clock is more often an enemy than a friend. There are ways, however, to rethink how we look at both our priorities and our time that can help. The rewards for those who are willing to do so include better efficiency, less stress, and last but not least, improvements on the bottom line.

Facebook Fiasco: The Relationships Between Business, Technology and Ourselves

“In the business world, the rear view mirror is always clearer than the windshield.”

Warren Buffett

“A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.”

Yogi Berra

Getting Your Ducks in a Row: Organizing Yourself for Success and Prosperity

“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.”

Robert Collier

Implementing the Seven Habits of Highly Successful People

“Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals.” – Jim Rohn

Coping With Tough Economic Times By Unleashing the Power Within You

“More gold has been mined from the thoughts of men than has ever been taken out of the ground.”

Napoleon Hill

Despite the Digital Revolution, Business is Still About Relationships

“The best computer is a man, and it’s the only one that can be mass produced by unskilled labor.” Wernher Von Braun

Organizing Your Finances for Simplicity and Prosperity

“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

Albert Einstein

A Mind for Business: How Successful People Think

Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right!

Henry Ford

Developing Your Business To Business Sales Skills: The Art of Cultivating Relationships

All things being equal, people will do business with, and refer business to, those people they know, like and trust.

Bob Burg

Six Keys to Succeeding in Business

"There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure."

General Colin Powell

Passing by the shops, storefronts, and warehouses that once housed thriving businesses that are now closed, I always think of those that failed unnecessarily. Given the business I’m in, it always bothers me when I see yet another tragic failure, because I know that many of these can be averted by the systematic and diligent application of known principles.

Success as a Choice: Working Smarter During Tough Times

“The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.”

Vince Lombardi

Using Goals to Take Charge of Your Life and Your Business

“Success is how high you bounce after you hit bottom”

General George Patton

Dealing With Tough Times: How Successful Leaders Do It

“When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.”

Benjamin Franklin

Working with various business leaders in these troubled times has given me valuable insights into why some do well during economic downturns while their competitors who serve the very same markets struggle or go out of business. Of course they actually do things differently, and I’ll address that aspect in a bit.

Satisfying Customers by Putting Employees First: How Successful Leaders Produce Results

“Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.”

Jack Welch

An Emphasis on Strategic Planning: One Sign of Effective Leadership

“He who fails to plan is planning to fail.”

Winston Churchill

A lot of discussions of leadership focus on the qualities that define success, and such discussions certainly have their place. We must keep in mind however, that qualities such as “vision,” “determination,” or “empathy” are not actual behaviors, but abstractions. And while abstractions are useful for theorizing, it is what leaders actually do that really matters.

Leaders Innovate While Managers Imitate: A Not-So-Subtle Difference

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Anyone who has paid attention to business management over the past several decades has got to be fascinated by the sheer number of trends that have been touted as being the wave of the future. A look back however, shows that the past is littered with the remains of such trends, along with their jargon, implementation manuals, and training rituals. In the meantime, sound leadership retains its value as the most viable business resource.

Managing Complexity, Chaos and Change: The Value of Systems Thinking

“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present.”

Abraham Lincoln

“The future ain’t what it used to be.”

Yogi Berra

Thriving in business at any level is tougher now than any time in recent decades, and the challenges to individual business leaders are increasingly daunting. While it used to be argued that “change is the only constant,” even that is no longer true. Change occurs at an ever-accelerating rate, making it anything but a constant. The ability to anticipate and adapt to it has never been more essential.