I like to assume that, as time goes on, we grow and learn; at least I hope we do. Everything changes over time, and as we gain experience (and some things we’ve understood are reaffirmed), we come to view things differently. As the saying goes, “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose …” In […]
I know that I’ve said more than once that companies in the same channel are typically more similar than different. Sports select for specific attributes in athletes, which is why you don’t see 145lb NFL linemen or 280lb gymnasts. By that same token, the demands of a given channel lead to business (the ones that […]
If you stick around long enough you will see patterns repeat themselves. Most businesses in this channel are more similar than they are different; they have similar strengths and weaknesses. They’ll also have similar problems that need solving. The problems will be similar but seldom identical. The solutions that worked for your clients may need […]
Anybody who knows me knows that I seldom pass up a chance to quote the legendary agent Dicky Fox from the film “Jerry McGuire.” Fox explains, “The key to this business is personal relationships!” Maybe it’s not true of all industries, but it’s definitely true of the ones I’ve worked in. I’ll get to why […]
The legend goes that an oracle had prophesied that whoever undid the Gordian Knot in the palace of the Phrygians would rule all of Asia. When Alexander the Great and his armies arrived in Gordia, he faced the knot, drew his sword and cut through it. The point of the story of course is that […]
It’s helpful for managers to grasp the fundamentals of psychology, both for individuals and groups. One principle I’m going to focus on here is the tendency people have to form cliques, and to define in-groups and out-groups. At work, those in-groups often gel around shared job roles. That’s good, so far as it goes. Where […]
Ongoing training and education is, ideally a fact of life. Continuing education or work will include seminars, certifications and ongoing product training. And if you’ve been around long enough, you’ll have spent plenty of time on both sides of the equation as both the learner and the presenter. Training programs, whether they’re presented by a […]
If Facebook is good for anything, it’s good for leitmotif. Learning how to game the algorithm, plus a little bit of good luck, and your newsfeed can mostly be wholesome content like cool custom cars, and cute animal videos. If your feed causes you more stress than joy, that’s a problem that needs to be […]
People often throw around the expression that “history repeats.” In truth, the original axiom — it’s attributed to Mark Twain, although I suspect it’s even older — states that “history doesn’t repeat, but it does rhyme.” It’s certainly true that if you stick around long enough, you begin to see patterns — that what’s happening […]
Mike Tyson famously said, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” In much the same way you could say, “Everyone agrees to respect MAP until they need to boost their revenue.” Minimum Advertised Price, or MAP, is the lowest allowable advertised price a brand sets to maintain the integrity of its […]
I went on record last year saying that the official motto for 2020 should be “Oh No, What NOW!?” Frankly, January 2021 already got off to a rollicking start. If you thought 2020 was a “Gong Show,” so far we’ve all had an eventful year and it’s not even February yet. I’ve written before about […]
I’ve written at length this past year about how COVID has affected, well, everything. The adaptions we’ve all had to make to our changing circumstances have been pervasive. I was just organizing all my paperwork to send to our accountant for my taxes. My total travel/work expenses for 2020 added up to $440. In a […]
Last week if you missed the announcement that Google was shelving Stadia, its streaming gaming service you can be forgiven; the news cycle comes at you fast these days, and it’s easy to miss things even if they would normally be front and center on your radar. Anyway, the article at The Guardian that I […]
This blog post is a twofer: brief commentary on two related subjects. So I’ve been messing around on a fairly casual basis with different DYI home control. Currently my house is home to Apple Home, Google Home, Roomie Remote, and a plethora of IP-controllable devices around the house. Without passing judgment on any one […]
In more than one editorial I’ve made the point that new business opportunities come from who you know. And that if you want more things to come your way you need to know more people. That’s why it’s important to network: to meet new people and find opportunities that you wouldn’t otherwise know about if […]
As I think I’ve mentioned more than once in recent columns, everybody I know is taking stock of the new world they find themselves in and asking themselves how they can make money. Some answers can be fairly radical, such as opening up into channels you’ve never been in before. Others can be more elementary, […]
It’s handy and useful to employ mental tools and rubrics to organize your life in an effort to be more efficient and productive. But it’s also important not to mistake the maps you’re reading for the territory itself. As useful as such things are, it’s possible to be blinkered by them, and cut yourself off […]
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, it’s been a tough year for lots of companies, and indeed entire sectors. When business is slow, we’ve all got an imperative to look for new opportunities. But you have to be smart about it. In the past, I’ve seen manufacturers or their distributors see declining […]
It’s probably poor form to lead into an editorial with sarcasm, but if you hadn’t noticed things have changed this year. And they’ve changed a lot. And we’ve all had to adapt, rather quickly, to those changes. Observing my dealers adapt to change, adjusting their operational procedures to accommodate new safety requirements has been inspiring. […]
In the Shakespeare play, “Twelfth Night,” he wrote, “Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” This year, thanks in no small part to the economic and social impact of COVID-19 we’ve all had, probably not greatness, but trouble thrust upon us. On the bright side, there often is […]
In talking with my dealers — across all those conversations — common threads emerge. Big on everyone’s minds right now is “what’s going to happen next?” concerning COVID-19, not to mention other potential disruptions. A concern that’s been ongoing for some time, regardless of other issues, is maintaining or even growing margins. We all know […]
I’m at the point where I’m genuinely tired of dealing with the impact of COVID-19 on business, and I’m definitely tired of talking about it. But, as they say, we play the hand of cards we have dealt. There are a lot of complications that we have to face today as a result of COVID. […]
So I had a particularly notable and unsatisfying customer service experience this year. I say “this year” because it’s been slowly unfolding like a slow-motion train wreck throughout almost all of 2020. Bear with me here, because it’s kind of a convoluted tale. There’s a brand of outdoor apparel that I’ve been loyal to for […]
The other day, my dad asked me to call him and give him some advice. Family friends of his were going to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary virtually via Zoom. A 60th wedding anniversary is a remarkable milestone and deserves to be celebrated. But obviously, all people involved have concerns about gathering in large groups […]
Talking to my friends, peers and contacts in various channels, I’ve realized that we’re all facing similar challenges. I mean, obviously. Who isn’t? The challenge I want to address here is planning for the future. We’re all making our way through a period in which the precedent was before our lifetimes, so we have very […]
I just realized it’s been a while since I’ve written anything ephemeral or lighthearted. Although, in my defense, it’s been a really weird year. And like everyone else, I’ve had a lot to deal with. Way back at the end of 2019 (in the before times, if you remember those) I had chronicled how we […]
We covered the balancing act between the estimated time to complete tasks and the actual time in the previous installment. That leads to a related topic: the management of personnel, resources, and material. Tipping the balance between estimated and actual back into your favor requires proper management of the people and resources on your project. […]
It’s said that the hard lessons are the only ones we really learn. I had a coach a long time ago, a gruff old man from a former Soviet bloc country. One of his bits of old country wisdom was, “Pain is best teacher; perhaps only teacher.” Someone else once said to me, “The universe […]
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I felt like I needed a break from thinking about and talking about the impact of COVID-19 and the quarantine measures that we are taking — personally and professionally. That said, the topic is at least a little inescapable. For my dealers who’ve still been open […]
Things are weird right now. As I’ve said in other columns, business is still being conducted, just differently. And, I’m sorry to say, at a slower tempo. Some things still need to get done, though. And one of those things is tech support and troubleshooting, whether it’s for an existing installation or a new install […]
If you’re still working, as I am, you’ve already discovered that you need to work differently — in a few different ways. As the Zen expression goes, “this understanding applies to all things.” Face-to-face meetings are a thing of the past, one of which we did “before.” To be completely honest, the two things I […]
You may have heard by now that we’re all dealing with social distancing and travel restrictions as a result of the official response to COVID-19. Some things may start to reopen soon, but I don’t think we can count on anything going back to business as usual for quite awhile. If you’re still working, as […]
