Are You Holding Yourself Captive?
Did you know that elephants are trained to stay where they are by tying a rope around one of their massive legs and attaching it to a peg in the ground? Can the peg and rope really hold back an elephant? Absolutely not! Then why does it work? Because elephants…
READ MOREAnother Way to Make Money on Oil
In 2008, Exxon Mobil set a quarterly record for US companies. They made $15 billion in profits when oil prices were above $100/barrel. With oil prices still lingering above $100/barrel, they (and the rest of the oil majors) may not set a new record but they will still make obscene…
READ MOREEliminate the Flu and Make 136%
Two years ago this month, the world was gripped by fear. A global pandemic had emerged. And no one was ready for it. It was the H1N1 virus – swine flu. Fortunately our worst nightmare never came true. While the strain killed an estimated 18,000 people worldwide, it accounted for…
READ MOREThe Language Perfectionist: Of Course This Point Is Important
The expression of course looks innocent, but it can create problems. Writers and speakers casually insert the phrase to indicate that something is obvious or self-evident. In most cases, it’s perfectly acceptable. But in others, it can sound insulting or patronizing. The Penguin Dictionary of American English Usage and Style,…
READ MOREKissing Frogs Equals More Profits
Of all the important elements you need to run a business, what do you think is the most important? Good marketing is critical… Top-notch sales copy is key… High-quality products and/or services – definitely important… Good ideas – essential. But you can get all of these things – and more…
READ MOREProfit Opportunity: Profiting From What Governments Do Best
Disasters have a way of creating big investment opportunities in their wake. It happened last April after the massive Gulf oil spill. And now it’s happening again in Japan. Following the Macondo Gulf blowout in 2010, the main concern was how to make the production of offshore oil less dangerous.…
READ MOREWhat a Theme Park Can Teach You About Business
Say what you will about theme parks. (Too expensive! Too cheesy and artificial!) But they do get at least one thing right. They bend over backward to make the customer experience as good as it can possibly be. Take visitors with young kids, for example. Here are a few conveniences…
READ MOREBusiness Success is Easier than Before
I was sitting around socializing with some friends the other day when one of my guests told a story about how an acquaintance had driven off the highway and into a farmer’s field… She followed the tractor path four and half kilometers into a wooded bog and eventually buried her…
READ MORECopycatting Is a Good Thing
“So far, my website is pretty much identical to the Early to Rise site,” PG told me. PG is one of my coaching students. I had just asked him to tell me about the progress he was making with his online business. He had a sign-up box on the top…
READ MOREDouble Your Personal Power
In any organization, power moves inexorably to those who speak well. By well, I don’t mean eloquently. I mean persuasively. There is an art and a skill to persuading people to accept your ideas.
READ MOREThe Language Perfectionist: Amusing April Acronyms
A few months ago, I wrote a serious column about acronyms. Now April Fools’ Day provides an appropriate occasion to explore the humorous possibilities of acronyms and initialisms. You say you didn’t know that abbreviations can be funny? Sure you do! This is a phenomenon that everyone has encountered or…
READ MORE