Driving by a local convenience store, I’m immediately drawn to the faded awnings and falling sign. I think to myself how much they could do with the place if they freshened it up a little. So how much does appearance matter when it comes to your small business? Of course money is often a tight […]
Category: Work
Starting a business is a slow process that takes significant and often precious resources – time, money, and energy. Often times a new business focuses on gaining new clients but it can be easy to forget the essentials in doing so. Business Cards How better to make a first impression than with a professional, quality […]
Starting a small business takes work and resources – specifically your most limited of assets, time and money. You invest a great deal in something you believe in, but are still uncertain if it will succeed. Nobody likes to fail, but too often people settle so they don’t have to. Being hard on yourself means […]
Today marks one year that I left Corporate America and began consulting full-time. If you’re familiar with how Promise Consulting Group came about, you’ll remember I started in July 2010 with only a Vistaprint website. At the time, I was working there managing US digital marketing, and creating the PCG URL was nothing more than […]
As a manager, what do you pride yourself on? – Career advancement for your employees – Regular check-ins – Recognition for a job well-done These are all great attributes of a leader, but what about the less obvious and more difficult task of candid discussion? Any good leader will work to build camaraderie among their […]
Every small business knows the struggle of a one-man shop. The list of things to do is never-ending, and unfortunately as an entrepreneur, often you have to go it alone. So when does quantity over quality mean error over accuracy? Managing the finances, marketing the business, analyzing performance: all in a day’s work when growing […]
This is an all too familiar phrase in a fast-paced company – but what does it really mean? The word delegate is defined as “entrusting or transferring power, authority, or responsibility to another.” You may have heard the phrase “delegate down”, but what does that mean in the workplace? Does it mean saving administrative or […]
Someone once told me that you should measure your work with how you feel in three areas: – Are you happy? – Are you learning? – Are you advancing? Every person will evaluate these questions differently. To some, advancing (and thus bringing in more money) could be more important than how much they are learning. […]
What’s your passion? Dictionary definition is “a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything.” Why do people start their own businesses? Is it for money, for freedom (from corporate structure or otherwise), for power? What would you want to do if you didn’t need to work? Some people might answer that they’d want […]
Advice is given to us so often, it’s easy for it to fall on deaf ears. Some of this so-called advice is given from friends and family; other comes from colleagues or a mentor. How do you decide what sticks? The top 8 things I’ve learned from those around me can be summed up in […]