Sometimes, You’ve Got To Give Up On A Goal — Even Though It’s Easier To Keep On Going
If you really want to be successful in life, you must work long and hard in pursuit of your goals — but you must also be prepared to abandon a path in an instant the moment you discover it is leading you the wrong way. This is one of the…
Forget Most of What You Think You Know About Feng Shui: Here Are The Essentials for a Productive Place of Business
I tried to believe. I really did. But half of what I read about feng shui seemed totally loony. So, once again, I’m going to rely on the benefit of 52 years of experience. Here’s the “ETR shui” on setting up a good office/studio. First, some observations and conclusion: *…
Getting Help from Rich and Powerful People
IR arrived at my office for our lunch meeting 20 minutes early. If there is anything worse than arriving 15 minutes late, it’s arriving early and expecting your host to drop what he’s doing and pay attention to you. If you must arrive early because you aren’t sure how long…
Have You Begun To Keep A Journal?
In Message #731 (“Give Yourself 10 Minutes a Day — and Enjoy the Subtle Pleasures of Keeping a Daily Journal”), I encouraged you to start a journal. I pointed out that among other benefits it would provide you with: * a record of what you did when and to whom…
New Year’s Resolution Progress Update
So what are your top four goals for 2003? In what way do you plan to be wealthier? Healthier? Wiser and happier? If you didn’t do so at the beginning of the year, here’s your second chance to write them down and make a list of what you need to…
Direct-Marketing Dilemma: Is It Better to Create or Buy Your Product?
There are plenty of good reasons to create and manufacture your own unique product if you are in the direct-marketing businesses. Most obviously, you can lower production costs. Lower manufacturing costs give you a greater product margin and that can allow you to sell your initial product (and thereby establish…
I Wouldn’t Want To Do Business With Him
Do you know someone who will never tell you what he is thinking? Someone who is circumspect when discussing business? Someone who avoids any conversation about personal feelings? I do. In fact, I can think of several as I write this. They are parsimonious in their language and their speech.…
Who Is It That Reads ETR, Anyway?
You know how bad I think most small-business periodicals are. Fortune Small Business might be the worst. Staffed by a boatload of (I’m sure) very smart and capable (mostly) young women, it is full of feel-good stories and equal opportunity reporting. There is also an inexcusable level of innocence when…
Success Comes Faster As Your Experience Builds
I have a little gift for you. A simple idea that can make a big difference in your life. It can mean the difference between struggling through an ordinary life or being immensely successful. It is a very small thought that is worth a very great deal to you if…
Use These 4 “P’s” To Sell Your Ideas
There are four “P’s” that will help you get people to buy into any big idea you have — say, for example, an idea for a new product or a strategy to improve your business. They are: 1. Problem 2. Promise 3. Picture 4. Pitch 1. Describe the PROBLEM. Start…
What If You Were On The Bottom Looking Up?
I was fortunate in being born into a family that believed in education. But we were not rich … far from it. We were 10 people living in a small, $12,000 house. Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I wore hand-me-down clothes … drank powdered (instead of real) milk ……
Become A Millionaire By Investing Only A Dollar A Day
In “The One Minute Millionaire,” authors Hansen and Allen say there are two routes for climbing “Millionaire Mountain”: the long route and the short route. The long route is the safest and easiest. You can become a millionaire by simply investing a dollar a day (roughly $30 a month) over…