Blog Feed: Build Your Soul Purpose

How To Avoid Enabling Your Team

Published on 2013-01-02 12:16:20

I grew up in an alcoholic home and from  that experience I know all about the concept of enabling people’s behavior and how destructive that can be.  When you manage people, it’s easy to fall into a trap where we think we are helping pe

The Team That Plans Together, Wins Together

Published on 2012-12-26 08:05:15

When I was in the corporate world, everyone looked to get together as much as possible.  It was meeting after meeting after meeting.  Very few of these meetings were very effective.  They were mostly used to give people things to do.  In a small

Is Your Schedule Fast and Loose?

Published on 2012-12-19 08:00:59

It’s about that time of year where you start reflecting on business habits and what you can to make next year great.  One of the tools that we have at our disposal is our calendar.  This tool has been around for a long time yet it is still an

Do Your Customers Have The Only Say In Your Brand?

Published on 2012-12-12 07:30:11

I spent some time in an interesting discussion on branding recently that came from an article about branding.  It was an article about a recent talk that Bert Jacobs CEO of Life Is Good gave at an Inc. 5000 conference. Bert had an specific opinion a

Is Your Management Style An Episode Of Spy Vs Spy?

Published on 2012-12-05 07:42:56

Do you remember Spy Vs Spy from Mad Magazine?  I use to love that comic strip as a kid.  They even made a video game on Nintendo that I used to play frequently as well.  If you aren’t familiar with Spy Vs Spy, it’s about 2 spys who are

What Is Your Management Philosophy?- New Podcast

Published on 2012-11-28 10:41:40

I posed the above question to a group of business owners recently and I was surprised at the depth of conversation that ensued as a result.  There were some real breakthroughs to be had around this question. If you manage a group of people, what is

Fight For Your Team- New Podcast

Published on 2012-11-21 08:27:14

When I speak in front of a group of business owners and ask them who their most important relationship in their team is, about half of them will say their employees.  When I ask them if their employees know they are most important, most of the busin

How To Create Flawless Execution In Your Business- Interview With Stuart Friedman

Published on 2012-10-11 09:37:02

Flawless execution?  I know those two words put together pique my interest.  In fact they pique my interest a lot.   What if you could create a team that was on the same page and executed projects on time, on budget, every time. I met today’s podcast guest, Stuart Friedman, at a business meeting that I attended a month or so ago and he had the type of content and approach that resonates with business owners. When it come to falling short in your business, it’s usually because you [..]

Improve Your Process, Improve Your Results- New Podcast

Published on 2012-08-29 09:04:29

I will say up front that I am not an Alabama Crimson Tide football fan.

Celebrating and Connecting With The Important People In Your Business

Published on 2012-08-22 12:40:24

In life, we tend to get caught up in achievement.

Simple Ways To Increase The Value Of Your Business

Published on 2012-07-25 09:29:17

In the context of creating value in your business simply it comes down to control.  There are a lot of external factors that can affect the value of your business; government regulation, new products from competitors, unexpected tragedy, etc.  The good news is that you have a lot of control on the value of your business. This week I had the pleasure of again speaking with a group of mainly dentists and chiropractors from Freedom FastTrack.  Professional business owners typically get less than [..]

There’s Gold In Them Thar Employees- Podcast

Published on 2012-07-12 09:43:31

You know what I never hear from business owners?  I never hear business owners say that they have too many resources.  Let’s be clear, I never want to hear that either.  The  more resources that you can have in your business, in the form of relationships, ideas and money, the better.  Even though we know that resources aren’t always as abundant as we would like, I am always surprised at how little effort we put tapping into the relationship capital that exists within our teams i [..]

Overcoming Blind Spots In Your Business

Published on 2012-07-05 09:14:02

If there was a problem in your business, would you want to know about it?  What if you didn’t immediately recognize there was a problem?  Then you have  blind spot. Blind spots and working through them is a tricky.  If we knew something was a blind spot, would it still be a blind spot?  Roy Williams in one of his great memos, recently broke down a recipe for happiness that helps you overcome blind spots. This week’s podcast breaks down the 4 areas that go into the recipe for hap [..]

Soul Purpose Isn’t The End Game

Published on 2012-06-26 12:16:10

How big do you want to build your passion and purpose?  Many current entrepreneurs and would be entrepreneurs want to create value at a large level.  They are excited about the possibilities.  Having a purpose and passion are important but it’s not the end game.  It’s just the beginning. How you build around that Soul Purpose to leverage it is how you create value at a larger scale. As a business owner you must: Get people on your team who can truly support your vision. Learn how [..]

Overcoming Your Case Of Rugged Individualism- Podcast

Published on 2012-05-02 12:12:04

Rugged individualism is a serious condition that affects many business owners.  Symptoms of this disease include an overwhelming desire to do everything, an destructive viewpoint that leads  business owners to think that only they have the solution, routinely working in activities that aren’t their Soul Purpose and ultimately extreme fatigue and a waning desire to work in their business.   There is a cure for Rugged Individualism.  There is hope. The key is to gain as much understandin [..]

Controlling What You Can Control

Published on 2012-04-26 14:35:09

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference. ~The Serenity Prayer Even though a business owner wouldn’t tell you that this is their first reason for being a business owner, control is important.   Business owners like calling the shots and not having to answer to people. The question is, are you taking control too far by trying to control things that happen in your business that you can’t cont [..]

Tips For Delegating And Hiring- Podcast

Published on 2012-04-23 13:00:26

When it comes to employee management, this isn’t always something that comes natural to newer business owners.  Particular areas of concern is for business is with hiring talent and delegating responsibilities. With regards to hiring, the main tip that I can give here it to know what you want and what you value.   Business owners that are clear on what they want can better find and assess candidates. If you know your values, then you can ask questions that will provide some insight on wh [..]

Creating The Right Habits In Your Business

Published on 2012-04-19 08:00:09

You matter a lot to your business.  You are the primary driver of the culture and what happens in the business.  When I work with a business owner, the first place I start is habits.  I want to see how you interact with your business. There are some specific are that we cover when it comes to habits.  The first place to start is with beliefs.  If you have limiting beliefs that negatively affect your productivity then all the tools in the world won’t help you.  What are those things y [..]

Making Planning Easy- Podcast

Published on 2012-04-04 09:05:22

Sometimes the best things for us are the hardest things to engage in and do.  Put planning at the top of that list.   Planning doesn’t need to be seen as a difficult task for your business.  In fact, when done right, planning will make your life easier in four different ways. 1.  You can’t do it all yourself.  When you get good at planning, you realize that you need help and that there are some things in your business that you shouldn’t be doing.  Rather than focus on wha [..]

Aligning Your Business- New Podcast

Published on 2012-03-07 16:26:06

Cue the theme from Welcome Back Kotter because the Your Life, Your Purpose podcast has been resurrected from the ashes.  Today I wanted to talk more about aligning your business.  Why it’s important and what problems that aligning your business solves. Also make sure you check out these recent posts on the subject as well: Success This Year Starts At The Core Of Your Business The Process of Aligning Your Business Want A Stronger Team?  Communicate. Enjoy the podcast below.          

Building A Business Around Your Soul Purpose

Published on 2011-05-24 09:51:50

Last week I had the opportunity to be interviewed by financial coach Chris Miles on his monthly client call. The topic was, what do you do with your Soul Purpose once you have an idea on what it is that you can do to create value in the world. Chris is a unique financial coach in that he focuses on an individuals ability to create value in the world which then leads them to the ability to create more wealth. On our call last week, I gave four points that I feel are critical to getting started: 1 [..]

8 Deadly Sins Of Website Design

Published on 2011-04-19 18:01:24

Is my website making money? How often do you ask yourself the above question?  For most business owners who have enough to worry about.  Their website is often a forgotten tool specifically if you don’t rely on e-commerce to drive your business. I interview Richard Swart of Aspen Web Services late last year about what business owners can do to improve their website and make money from their website efforts. Richard gave me his 8 Deadly sins of website design. (I also recording this as a [..]

A Simple Sentence For Business Clarity

Published on 2011-02-16 11:38:08

How can I describe my business in one simple sentence?  Ever been to a networking event or mingling at a party and had that question pop into your head?  I think we all have.  Being able to describe what problem you are solving or what you aim to achieve in the simplest terms can be a powerful tool for your business. I was in a board meeting for a company that I work with about six months ago and one of the gentleman in the board, Rick Sapio, called this simple statement a “Catalyzing S [..]

Can Writing Make You A Better Business Owner?

Published on 2011-01-11 11:58:15

To write or not to write.  That’s the question.  Many business owners that I talk to feel like they don’t have time for writing or that it’s not important.  Writing in and of itself won’t make or break your business but it could make you a better business owner. Writing is a great tool for self discovery and for gaining additional clarity about your business.  It’s also a great way to be social in the social media landscape without being present.  Today I wante [..]

The Underrated Marketing Tool

Published on 2010-11-03 10:33:03

Business owners spend a lot of time worrying about bringing in new business and rightfully so.   As we sit and worry about these customers we haven’t met, we often forget about the customers we already have. Introducing customer service, the most underrated and underutilized marketing and sales tool that a business owner has at his/her disposal. In the 1950s, Peter Drucker said that “there is no business without customers”.  It seems as if we forget that in this day and age. [..]

How Do You Filter Your Decisions?

Published on 2010-10-28 17:14:59

When you start a business one of the hardest things to do is turn down, what we perceive to be, an opportunity. Saying yes to too many things puts us and our business in a position of being stretched thin. How do you overcome this dilemma? Values based decision making. What is values based decision making? Values based decision making is based upon having a set of principles that you stand for as an individual and as a business that help guide the decisions you make personally and professionally [..]

Jobs For Life…Insane or Brilliant?

Published on 2010-10-14 10:50:36

Every once in a while I see an article that sounds so crazy I have to read it immediately.  The recent article by Steve Tobak from BNET, Jobs for Life: If It Works in Germany, Why Not America? The article is about how the German company Siemens gave 128,000 of their German workers jobs for life. In the article Tobak wondered if this was  insane on the surface.  I am wondering the same thing.  I can’t tell if this is a brilliant move or disastrous.  Essentially, it comes down to two c [..]

The Importance of Strategery

Published on 2010-10-11 16:54:37

Your business has some specific things that must happen in order for it and you to be successful.  You and I know this.  The real question is, do you know what those activities are and how do you ensure that your business stays focused on these tasks day-in and day-out? The minute that you say the word “strategic” to business owners, either their eyes start glazing over or they think that anything else you are going to say is some variation of business buzz words that they don̵ [..]

What Is Your Career Built On?

Published on 2010-07-28 08:42:52

You need a platform that makes it easy to turn your insight into a movement. ~ Seth Godin from the book Linchpin There’s a new world of work that exists in today’s marketplace. I call it the New Work Revolution. This new world of work starts with understanding and building a platform for yourself that you can work from to create maximum value in the marketplace. What is a platform and is your career built on one that is solid enough? The reason having a platform is becoming so import [..]

How Bad Do You Want It?

Published on 2010-07-21 16:52:43

Taking action has been discovered to be, if not the ultimate, at least one of the top 5 principles for success.  Even though we know that taking action is the right call, we still don’t take the steps necessary to achieve the results we are looking for.  Today I want to dive into your mindset by asking the question: How bad do you want it? From a mindset standpoint there are three main culprits that inhibit our success.  Those inhibitors are fear, stories and complexity. Fear is the mos [..]