Continuing our discussion on the four common mistakes that entrepreneurs make, today we will introduce the second common mistake:  undervaluing management competency. Undervaluing Management Competency Most entrepreneurs are by nature creative, passionate people.  They have an idea or product, and they understand that idea or product inside and out.  Unfortunately, they haven’t got the first … Read more

Ask anyone who’s ever started or owned their own business about what they’ve learned, and every one of them will say the same things:  “If I had it to do over again…” or “If I’d only known…” or “I wish we had paid more attention to…”  Each one will have a different list of lessons … Read more

Dr. Robert Kaplan of Harvard Business School stated “…the most profitable 20% of customers generate between 150 and 300% of total profits. The middle 70% of customers about break even, and the least profitable 10% of customers lose 50 – 200% of total profits, leaving the company with its 100% of total profits. And, often, some … Read more

With this post, I’ll bring to a close my four-part series on customer service.  Here is the fourth and final theme that we have to understand and master in our customer service process. Theme 4: Customers Talk Everyone is your customer.  I remember the story I once heard about a salesman, but let’s be honest, the … Read more

Picking up where I left off with my last post, I’ll discuss the third of four themes that we have to understand and master in our customer service process. Theme 3: Don’t Personalize It Don’t get sucked in.  In dealing with difficult and upset customers it is important to remember this excerpt from the Prayer … Read more

In my last post, I talked about the theme of Attitude.  In this post, I’ll discuss the second theme of customer service:  care. Theme 2: Care Demonstrate that you care.  My favorite quote is one that has been attributed to a number of different people.  I think that’s because the quote is so great that … Read more

It seems that most companies pride themselves on their customer service.  They invest in training programs, performance incentives, surveys and much more in attempts to measure up.  And yet, it seems, so many efforts fall short of the intended goal.  Why do we make it so hard?  As I see it, there are four broad … Read more

There is a saying among Plains Indians that was passed down from generation to generation: “When you discover that you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount”.   Recently, Mark Buckland and Wayne Lockhart wrote an article that discussed strategies that do not work.  It’s humorous, but unfortunately, all too true. Here … Read more

When people start a business, they typically would have the one or more of the following objectives: To create a regular income stream greater than the amount you would earn as an employee; To have the managerial freedom to make the decision you believe to be correct; To develop a long term business; To develop … Read more

The following is an excerpt from an article by fellow Mindshop member, Peter Wallace, from New South Wales, Australia.  Many businesses that have just managed to survive the Great Recession are now facing the daunting prospect of funding the recovery.  Typically, the weakest candidates go broke early on in a recession and many marginal businesses … Read more