Posts by Mark Morgan Ford
Stealing Time For Yourself
“How many of you get up before six a.m.?” I asked the 80 people who came to last year’s Wealth Building Conference. Twenty-six hands went up — many more than I had expected. “And how many are up before seven?” Another 32. I suppose it shouldn’t have surprised me that two-thirds of the group were…
Read MoreWhen Audacious Advertising Works Against You
An article in Inc. Magazine titled “Over the Edge” made the point that lots of businesses today, hoping to create a name for themselves or break into new markets, are relying on increasingly dramatic advertising campaigns. One example: a promotion for a hair-replacement product developed by Maverick Marketing that showed a baboon’s ass in the…
Read MoreWhy I Don’t Care About Unemployment Rates
The unemployment rate in December 2004 was 5.4%, the newspaper tells me. Then it goes on to compare that to unemployment rates in prior Decembers. Who cares? I don’t. And neither should you. It doesn’t matter how many millions of people are out of work in America. Or, for that matter, throughout the rest of…
Read MoreWhen Your Portfolio Cries For Help
Unless you make a point of staying on top of the latest business and investment trends, it’s a good idea to have a professional look over your portfolio every once in a while. (Kind of like bringing in your car for its annual check-up to get it purring again.) Your friendly Wall Street investment firm…
Read MoreHow to Write a Good Thank You Note
You can judge the success of parenting well before the children are old enough to get into Harvard or the local penitentiary. Well-raised kids write prompt, thoughtful thank-you notes. K and I have about 16 nieces and nephews. And twice a year — once on their birthdays and once again at Christmas time — we…
Read MoreDon’t Make Excuses . . . Just Apologize
Your customers are usually smarter than you think. Some of them are even smarter than you are. I used to work for a business that thought differently. When we created products, we thought, “Why kind of idiotic stuff will they fall for next?” When we wrote advertising copy, we always made the most hyperbolic (see…
Read MoreChoosing The Bad Guy
To an outsider, it might have seemed a very easy choice. One candidate for the job of heading up the project was very professional, a tough negotiator, dogged, determined, and principled. The other candidate had a reputation for being tough on his employees, hiring his friends . . . and he was rumored to take…
Read MoreDon’t Put It Off Any Longer – Retire Next Year!
Let’s talk about retirement. Everyone will have his or her own idea of the perfect retirement, but there are some elements we can probably all agree on. An ideal retirement would have you waking up each morning feeling good about yourself . . . looking forward to every minute of your day . . .…
Read MoreThen Why Don’t You Kill Yourself
He had just been divorced for the second time. He wanted to talk about it. So he opened the phone book and made an appointment with a therapist whose name seemed friendly. “And she was very warmhearted,” he told me. “But before the first hour was up, she was asking me if I had ever…
Read MoreThoughts on Our Question of the Week
The question we asked our ETR and AWAI staff members this week was “What are you most thankful for?” You read many of their answers yesterday. And I hope at least some of them inspired you to share your own answers with us on “Speak Out.” The question triggered thoughts in my own head. And…
Read MoreHow ‘Social Proof’ Can Increase Sales
Social proof increases sales by helping potential customers identify with others who have purchased your product or service, eliminating the risk.
Read MoreWhat Good is Good Advice?
An ETR reader wrote to say that she enjoys ETR “to the utter max!” Excuse me for what seems to be a self-congratulatory citation: “It is my favorite e-mail of the day, as all your info and words of wisdom (obviously borne of experience) really hit the spot. I know you are busy, but I…
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