Raise and Resolve Your Customer’s Main Objection
A necessary but often-overlooked technique for making your advertising work is to expose and eliminate your customers’ fears and objections. Every product or service has both benefits and drawbacks. Some of the drawbacks can make an otherwise good customer shy away from a purchase. Rather than ignore the drawbacks and…
READ MORENobody Likes the Pusher Man
“No pressure, no diamonds.” – Mary Case The Pusher Man is the go-to guy when it’s time to stop talking and get things done. He’s the haggler who pushes you to kick in every minute of the time and every bit of the resources you drunkenly agreed to invest in…
READ MORETwo Jobs You Should Never Delegate
“Whether a man is burdened by power or enjoys power; whether he is trapped by responsibility or made free by it; whether he is moved by other people and outer forces or moves them — this is of the essence of leadership.” – Theodore H. White (“The Making of the…
READ MOREWhy Employee Awards Don’t Work
“I don’t deserve this award, but I have arthritis and I don’t deserve that either.” – Jack Benny During the 25 years I’ve been in business, I’ve been involved in at least a dozen employee-award programs. I’ve done employee-of-the-month awards, most-improved-employee awards, hardest-working-employee awards — you name it. If I…
READ MOREThe Awful Truth About Teamwork
“Look over your shoulder now and then to be sure someone’s following you.” – Henry Gilmer In Dick Lyles’ book “Winning Ways”, a parable on success, Albert is hampered in business by his inability to work as a team member. His supervisor tells him to visit a local college-football coach…
READ MOREWhy You Can’t “Live Rich” in Drip-Dry Clothes
“Happiness seems to require a modicum of external prosperity.” – Aristotle (“Nicomachean Ethics”) Elaine St. James, “America’s simplicity expert,” recommends getting rid of clothes that need to be dry-cleaned and replacing them with drip-dry. St. James says, “Obviously, there are a number of occupations with dress codes requiring clothes that…
READ MOREImpress Your Boss by Keeping Him Informed
“I have made this [letter] longer, because I – have not had the time to make it shorter.” – Blaise Pascal If you want to impress your boss . . . whether you are new on the job or not . . . keep him periodically apprised of your progress…
READ MOREGetting Sick and Getting Ahead: Are They Related?
“I’ve used up all my sick time, so now I’m calling in dead.” – Author unknown A colleague of mine made an unannounced visit to one of his divisional profit centers, only to discover that the manager had been home “with a flu” for three days. “I could hardly contain…
READ MOREUnderstanding Motives is Central to Successful Leadership
“When I’m inspired, I get excited because I can’t wait to see what I’ll come up with next.” – Dolly Parton People who are emotionally engaged in their work perform at higher levels than those who aren’t. When we bring emotional energy to our work, we increase commitment, creativity, productivity,…
READ MORESet a Goal and Rally the Troops
“In the province of the mind, what one believes to be true either is true or becomes so.” – John Lilly You have an idea about how your business can do something new or better. You have run that idea through a gauntlet of trusted colleagues, individuals with the intelligence…
READ MOREHow to End a Bad (Personal or Business) Relationship
“Ah yes, divorce, from the Latin word meaning to rip out a man’s genitals through his wallet.” – Robin Williams The last time I spoke to FJ, he was cursing his soon-to-be-ex wife. He was angry at her for giving up on the marriage and vowed to do everything he…
READ MOREStay in Touch and Reap the Benefits
“Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.” – William Butler Yeats If you are an executive — even the CEO — of your business, consider writing a note once a week or even once a month in which you express, in the most informal…
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