Posts by Early To Rise
Mind Your Manners
“Rudeness is the weak man’s imitation of strength.” – Eric Hoffer Winning friends is a good way to create a supportive network — but it’s not the best way to influence your employees. The best leaders I know don’t concern themselves with being liked. Their focus is squarely on the business. That said, you don’t…
Read MoreYou Want More Out of Life? Here’s What You Gotta Do
“Change your life today. Don’t gamble on the future, act now, without delay.” – Simone De Beauvoir Six months ago, I set up an informal lending bank for employees of Rancho Santana — the beautiful Pacific seaside development I’m involved with in Nicaragua. The deal is pretty simple: Local people associated in some way with…
Read MoreWhat You Can Learn Frm NetFlix
“Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson As we told you in Message #1138, NetFlix rents unlimited movies, up to three at a time, for a monthly subscription fee of $21.99. Reed Hastings got the idea for starting the business after he got hit…
Read MoreHow to Believe in Yourself
“Smile, for everyone lacks self-confidence and more than any other one thing a smile reassures them.” – Andre Maurois In “The Power of Positive Thinking”, Norman Vincent Peale says that unless you have a positive attitude about yourself and your abilities, “you cannot be successful or happy.” I believe he is half right. Yes, you…
Read MoreHow to Start a Profitable ETR Microbusiness in 30 Days, Part 1
“Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage.” – Niccolo Machiavelli Two years ago, Dan Domerofski was laid off as a financial analyst. After several weeks of unsuccessfully searching for a replacement job, he created his own auto-service business.…
Read MoreWhat Good Marketers Know About Choice, Part 2
“You and I are essentially infinite choice-makers. In every moment of our existence, we are in that field of all possibilities where we have access to an infinity of choices.” – Deepak Chopra One of the main points Dr. Barry Schwartz makes in his book, “The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less”, is that…
Read MoreCash in on the Next Big Wealth Trend
“Unlimited economic growth has the marvelous quality of stilling discontent while maintaining privilege, a fact that has not gone unnoticed among liberal economists.” – Noam Chomsky If you had invested $10,000 in the U.S. economy 50 years ago, you’d be worth about 10 million dollars today. Maybe more. As compared with every other market in…
Read MoreDonald Trump on Negotiating
Here are Donald Trump’s best ideas on how to be a great negotiator: Consider what the other side wants. Trump tells the story of how he acquired the tallest building in southern Manhattan, 40 Wall Street, for $1 million plus the liens. He did so because he spoke to the owners personally, not through an…
Read MoreSuccessful Business Meetings Begin Long Before They Are Scheduled
“One important key to success is self-confidence. An important key to self-confidence is preparation.” – Arthur Ashe Like it or not, every business meeting is a forced performance. You are on stage. The people you are meeting with are your audience. What you do, how you act, what you say, your gestures, and your…
Read MoreSelling Is Simple – Keeping It Simple Is Hard
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” – Leonardo da Vinci I’m having an ongoing e-mail argument with two colleagues about selling homes in our beautiful seaside community on the Pacific Ocean in Nicaragua. It began with a letter written for prospective customers that described a near drowning in the surf. This is the surf we are…
Read MoreThe Secret of Transubstantiation, Part 2
“All things must change to something new, to something strange.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow My friend Paul L. is an expert transubstantiator. Lacking any specific talent or experience in screenwriting, he woke up one day several years ago and decided to write screenplays. He admits that his early attempts were awful (and I can verify…
Read MoreHow to Use Your Job as a Springboard to a New Career
“An act has no ethical quality whatever unless it be chosen out of several all equally possible.” – William James Two ETR readers who are employees of a corporation I consult with began a side business to handle the data of the company they worked for. Since their initial interest in starting the side business was…
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