Posts by Mark Morgan Ford
Stop Wasting Your Time!
“Dost thou love life, then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff life is made of.” – Benjamin Franklin (The Way to Wealth, 1757) To paraphrase the words of Ben Franklin, mentor emeritus of ETR, the one currency of our lives is our time — and how we spend that time is the truest…
Read MoreHow Are You Spending Your Time?
“The secret of success is constancy to purpose.” – Benjamin Disraeli (speech, June 24, 1870) I was looking at last month’s daily-task lists and was struck by how much of my time is spent prodding people rather than in other, more creative, activities. By memo, meeting, fax, e-mail, or phone, more than half of my…
Read MoreDon’t Even Think About Fooling Around On The Internet
“Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its brevity.” – La Bruyere (Characters, 1688) MN just told me that “38% of employee time on the Internet is personal.” That completely freaks me out. At one business I consult with, that would translate into about $700,000 a year…
Read MoreGet More Out Of All Those Books You’re Reading
“Some books are undeservedly forgotten; none are undeservedly remembered.” – W.H. Auden (The Dyer’s Hand, 1962) The average American adult reads about 150 words a minute. At that rate, a book of 250 pages will take you about 12 hours to read. If you take a good speed-reading class, you can easily triple that rate.…
Read MoreGreat Business Meetings Don’t Just Happen
“The leader must know, must know that he knows, and must be able to make it abudantly clear to those about him that he knows.” – Clarence B. Randall (Making Good in Management, 1964) It was said that Napoleon’s presence on the battlefield made “the difference of 40,000 men.” This was not a reference to…
Read MoreSeeds of Wealth
Dear Early Riser, What you are doing by honing your success skills — in my humble opinion — is the smartest thing you can do for yourself. The economy is faltering, and recession is upon us. Every businessman I know is working scared. Soon there will be cutbacks and layoffs. It’s one thing to have…
Read MoreWhen a “Yes” Is Better Than a “No”
“Optimism is a kind of heart stimulant — the digitalis of failure.” – Elbert Hubbard (A Thousand and One Epigrams, 1911) As a boss, you don’t want people “yes-ing” your ideas when they have legitimate concerns about them. On the other hand, you don’t want people “no-ing” them simply because they see problems. Hire and…
Read MoreHow To Make People Like You
“The easiest kind of relationship for me is with ten thousand people. The hardest is with one.” – Joan Baez Yesterday, we talked about good manners. We said that while they are not a necessary component to success, they certainly won’t hurt your progress — and they may even help you by limiting the accidental…
Read MoreGood Manners And Success
Despite what some pundits have said, making people like you is not the secret to success. There are plenty of very rich, very powerful, and very successful S.O.B.s out there. In fact, there may be an inverse relationship between affability and accomplishment. Spend too much time and energy trying to please others, and you won’t…
Read MoreHow To Make Meetings Work, Part 1
“I am a great believer, if you have a meeting, in knowing where you want to come out before you start Excuse me if that doesn’t sound very democratic.” – Nelson Rockefeller There’s an interesting article in the Harvard Business Review (HBR) this month. This one on a problem you have probably encountered time and…
Read MoreLogophiles, Listen Up: Buy This Book – Or Else!
“English usage is sometimes more than mere taste, judgment, and education — sometimes it’s sheer luck, like getting across a street.” – E.B. White If you cringe when you hear “between you and I.” When you scan a headline that shouts “Save up to 50% — and More!” Or when you see a report that…
Read MoreWhat To Do If You Get Blindsided By A Bad Customer Service Report
“Criticism is prejudice made plausible.” – H.L Mencken Sooner or later, one way or another, you will find yourself being criticized publicly and unfairly for some breach of customer service etiquette.Your natural action will be defensive. You are a good manger who cares about how your customers are treated. In fact, youve made it a…
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