Be a Leader
“A boss creates fear, a leader confidence. A boss fixes blame, a leader corrects mistakes. A boss knows all, a leader asks questions. A boss makes work drudgery, a leader makes it interesting. A boss is interested in himself or herself, a leader is interested in the group.” — Russell H. Ewing
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Sun Tzu on Leadership
A leader must be strong enough to impose a strategy on the organization, said the ancient Chinese warrior, but also confident and trusting enough to allow subordinates to carry it out successfully.- From “Sun Tzu and the Art of Business” by Mark McNeilly
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Needs for Strategic Planning
Needs to be a factor in strategic planning:1) The need for the executive team to grow2) The systems and structure to handle the increased complexity*3) Navigating through the tricky marketing dynamicsIf you get an opportunity, get a copy of “The Rockefeller Habits” by Verne Harnish. He discusses these “barriers” and identifies them.* (Note: Challenges do NOT go up proportionately...
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You’ve Heard of Line Item Veto Right?
How about “line item accountability”? Try assigning responsibility to your team by line items. Responsibility to watch, report, recommend, etc. This takes generality out of whatever you choose to focus on. It can be line items of budgeted expenses. It could be watching specific trends. It could be— (well you get the idea). Why not...
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Strategy to Maintain
a “state for success” Here are 7 steps to achieve: 1-How do you want to feel about your life? (must be great or repeat step1) 2-“Escape” for awhile, “Suspend Disbelief, “Allow Emotional Engagement” 3- Can you make a decision to be 100% responsible for your actions and results? (must be yes or repeat step 2) 4-are you willing to...
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Revisiting SWOT
some observations This time-honored management approach remains a valuable tool in your strategic planning kit. To refresh, the acronym stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. The exercise is basically an assessment to be utilized in going forward with planning. However, be aware of the following: 1-It is basically an “inside perception” of where the...
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10 Business Commandments
(here’s the first 3) by Norm Brodsky 1- Numbers run the business. If you don’t know howto read them, you are flying blind. 2- Cash is hard to get and easy to spend. Make it before you spend it. 3- Don’t focus on the top line. Gross margin is the most important number on the income statement. ...
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