Posts by Mark Morgan Ford
How To Think “Out Of The Box”
“We do not at present educate people to think but, rather, to have opinions, and that is something altogether different.” – Louis L’Amour (Education of a Wandering Man, 1989) Much has been made of the importance of thinking “outside the box.” To solve difficult problems, it is said, you need the ability to do this.…
Read MoreDouble Your Reading Speed Immediately
“What refuge is there for the victim who is oppressed with the feeling that there are a thousand new books he ought to read, while life is only long enough for him to attempt to read a hundred.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (Over the Teacups, 1891) According to some experts, the average reading speed…
Read MoreEach Customer Service Call Is A Sales Oppurtunity
“Common sense is as rare as genius.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson (Essays, 1844) Most business owners mentally divide their work in half. On the one side, they put sales and marketing. On the other side, fulfillment and customer service. Often, these activities are separated physically, with different managers and divergent work philosophies. Many times, the…
Read MoreReview And Reconsider Your Life Goals Today
“Insight doesn’t happen often on the click of the moment, like a lucky snapshot, but comes in its own time and more slowly and from nowhere but within.” – Eudora Welty (One Time, One Place, 1971) I woke up, as usual, at daybreak. Lacking the resolve to run the hill behind my apartment, I opted…
Read MoreSpend More Time On Headlines And Less On Everything Else
“Genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.” – Thomas Edison David Ogilvy, one of the legends of modern advertising, was a big believer in headlines. He understood that nailing the head is the secret to making the whole ad work. Ogilvy practiced what he preached. Of his many successful headlines, the best known…
Read MorePostage is Zero With Email Marketing
“Act quickly; think slowly.” – Greek proverbAre you using e-mail to sell? If not, you are probably missing a very good marketing opportunity — one that can add fast cash and bottom-line dollars to your business. I was never a fan of web-based selling. It always seemed to present the same problems as general advertising:…
Read MoreWhat You Can Learn From Garrison Keillor
“A straight path never leads anywhere except to the objective.” – Andre Gide (Journals, 1922) Here’s an interesting question about focus and mastery. A Garrison Keillor fan asked him: “As a young painter, I’m wondering if, in order to become a successful artist, I must whittle down my oeuvre to a single subject/theme. The most…
Read MoreIs “Working For Yourself” The Only Way To Get Rich?
“Keep moving. Slower or faster does not matter as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius Contrary to popular mythology, most self-employed business owners are not getting rich. In fact, the average income of small-business owners is virtually the same as that of employees. According to the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Small…
Read MoreWhat To Do With Good Employees, Part 3
“Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.” – Albert Einstein (Out of My Later Years, 1950) On Wednesday, we talked about money — how much good employees should be paid. Yesterday, we talked about benefits — both standard and fringe. Today, I’d like to discuss…
Read MoreChoose investments that keep your risks low and your profits high
If you get up early and make good use of your time, you will have a higher-than-average income. If you commit to saving a significant portion of that extra income and check your net worth every month, your net worth will grow quickly. How quickly depends on three things…
Read MoreWealth Building Secret #2: Earn More Than You Spend
“I didn’t want to be rich, I just wanted enough to get the couch reupholstered.” – Kate (Mrs. Zero) Mostel If you continue to get up early and read Early to Rise your income will climb. How do I know that? Because the world is starved for ambitious, hardworking, and focused people. Waking (and getting…
Read MoreWealth Building Lesson #1: Get To Work One Hour Earlier
“Once you are really challenged, you find something in yourself. Man doesn’t know what he is capable of until he is asked.” – Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary General This week, we are talking about building wealth — your wealth. We both know there are more important things in life than money. But there are…
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