If asked to respond very quickly, we’d all likely say that we’d prefer something that’s the best in its class: the best car, the best software, the best cup of coffee in the area. But, if given time to ponder such a question, most of us would likely change our answer to whatever is good and dependable. It doesn’t do …

Figuring out who’s the strongest man in the world is a pretty simple thing to do. We gather together all the world’s strong men, ask them to lift some heavy barbells, and see who lifts the most weight. It’s a pretty straightforward thing to measure. Figuring out who’s the best _________ (insert your career here) is a much more difficult …

Tomorrow. You’re always a day away. Song from “Annie” by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin It’s human nature to work on the easy stuff, and put off the difficult things for another time. I’ll do that later. We love to procrastinate. It’s easy to do, and it’s easy to convince ourselves that we’ll get to that important thing. Eventually. I’ve …

We’re all looking for it: success; successful relationships, a successful life, a success career. Success is the prize, the Holy Grail, the goal we’re all striving to reach. But, it’s hard to attain. Success is cryptic, difficult to understand, and even harder to achieve. We can’t help but wonder why more of us can’t break through; why it seems only …

In business, most people try to play their cards close to the vest: working hard to keep their secrets hidden; never sharing the valuable information that they’ve learned with a public that’s eager to know. Like a selfish magician, they show us the trick but refuse to let us in on the secret. But great magicians are different. They’re not …

Many business owners become frustrated by the fact that, when starting a business, their products are not very good. This stress can prove to be so overpowering that we never really get started, because we can’t come up with something that meets our high standards. Let’s take a second to stop and think about this problem. We want to have …

There’s been a lot of noise lately about AI computing and the thought that it’s going to take over all our jobs. The storyline is that, eventually, human workers will be unnecessary. The reality is that there will always be certain jobs, like being a home inspector, for example, that do not lend themselves to AI. That does not mean, …

There are two kinds of business owners. The first kind knows the rules, knows what they’re supposed to be doing, knows how to do it, and does it consistently, the same way every time. The second kind of business owner has an extensive understanding of their industry, and uses that knowledge to increase the value they offer to their clients, …

All too often, we say that “it’s our job.” If it’s a job, the customer gets what they get. We expect the underpaid, overworked fast-food server to mail it in. It is what it is. But, if we’re a small business owner, it’s not just “our job.” (Or at least it shouldn’t be.) It should be “our profession,” and that …

It can be hard for a small business owner to make the jump: to acquire an new skill. Quite often, this new discipline comes with a big up-front cost. All that reading takes up valuable time. We’ve got to pay a lot to take that class. The equipment is really expensive. I just can’t swing it right now. Thinking in …