Posts by Mark Morgan Ford
Working With Your Spouse
There was a good piece in The Wall Street Journal recently about the “risky business” of working with your mate. It begins with the story of a man who was forced to fire his wife at home, during dinner. Part of the problem, the article said, “was that the wife tended to want more ‘honey-sweetie’…
Read MoreHow Not to Conduct an Interview
I never give interviews. My publisher, John Wiley, doesn’t like it, but they know that my books will sell well without the promotional events, so they tolerate my taciturnity. For some crazy reason, I made an exception to my rule recently. I got an e-mail from an ETR reader. She said she worked for some…
Read MoreCellphone Rudeness
I was waiting in line at my neighborhood bookstore when I became aware of a struggle going on behind me. “I thought I told you to turn that thing off,” snapped a woman in gray slacks. She was scolding her son, whose cellphone was ringing. I hadn’t even noticed the sound – a sad testament…
Read MoreA Million Little Lies
People have been arguing about whether James Frey should be criticized for making up portions of his Oprah-fueled, best-selling memoir, A Million Little Pieces. His defendants – including Random House and Oprah – argue that the book is “really about recovering from drug addiction” and that the “made-up parts” (about spending three months in jail…
Read MoreBeware of Young, Enthusiastic Fitness Coaches
I was lifting weights in 1962, and have been reading about physical fitness for 40 years. Most of the personal trainers I talk to don’t know a fraction of what I know. And yet, I wouldn’t pretend to be an expert. As my friend JM says, “A personal trainer is just someone who takes a…
Read MoreEscaping Debt But Not the Guilt
Picked up the phone in my above-garage office – something I almost never do. (My time there is meant to be devoted to writing fiction.) A lady on the line first asked for K and then for K’s husband. She told me we were past-due on a cable bill. “But we don’t have cable,” I…
Read MoreThe Four Levels of Learning
There are four levels of learning and, therefore, four levels at which to teach. Recognize the strengths and weaknesses of each, and you will be a much better teacher and student. 1. Telling It The teacher conveys his knowledge by explaining it. This method often provides the most ego gratification to the teacher and the…
Read MoreAn Introduction to “Hot Trading Secrets”
“Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.”– Jack Kerouac I have an intellectual weakness for contrarian investing. Buy quality when it is unpopular and prices are cheap. Sell it when the crowds have finally caught on and prices are zooming. This is the sort of moneymaking…
Read MoreAchieve More With a Mentor
With the advice, experience, and support of an experienced person in your field, you can avoid the most common mistakes you are likely to make. You overcome the stickiest problems and find shortcuts to success.
Read MoreThe Real Estate Outlook for 2006
According to the National Association of Realtors, there are more houses on the market today than at any time in the last 19 years. At the same time, housing sales have fallen for the last several months. That adds up to a picture that looks like it should be titled “The end of the real…
Read MoreAn Interesting Interview With a Very Interesting Thinker
A recent profile (by Deborah Solomon in The New York Times) of someone named Peter Watson has caught my interest. Watson is the author of a new book – A History of Thought and Invention, From Fire to Freud – which claims to “chronicle all the major ideas in the world since the invention of…
Read MoreThe Attributes of People Who Have Personal Power
When you have personal power, you inspire great work. You do so by finding and nurturing extraordinary talent, setting substantial goals, making those goals seem exciting, and then focusing the entire team on the necessary tasks required to achieve them. Great leaders are willing to do hard thinking, make tough decisions, and get the job…
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