Do Business Well

Most currently available interactive television technologies are nothing to get excited about. They’ve all been variations on the movie-on-demand and pizza-to-go themes. The problem, of course, is that we already have movies on demand: you rent them at the local video shop. And we have pizza to go: just pick up the telephone. But what if the boundary between television and the World Wide Web blurred? What if you really could tell your TV what you were interested in and it would find it for you?

Imagine that you’re watching the news one evening when your interest is piqued by a story about the United States awarding mostfavored-nation trading status to the People’s Republic of China. You want to learn more, so you click on the Tell Me More button on your television screen. Several icons appear superimposed on the images you’re watching. Movie icons (”micons”) display recent related stories from a video library, and there are links to several recent print stories as well. Continue Reading »

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The one thing that every person has in common is the amount of time they have in an hour — sixty minutes. Depending on individual priorities, the manner in which these same periods are spent is infinite in choice. Amazingly though, and despite efficient management of time, the majority of our achievement and happiness takes place in a short space of time. Using the unit of one hour as a reference point, ten minutes is utilised in channelling our energy proactively, while fifty minutes is wasted in using our energy reactively. With the majority of our energy absorbed through involvement with such draining elements, it is no surprise that there is so much fatigue and depression.

Every waking hour takes you either towards fulfilling your particular speciality, or away from it. There is no neutral, only forwards or backwards. Channelling your energy has nothing to do with keeping in balance, which is more to do with restoring energy that has been drained. Continue Reading »

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As you look through these or refer back to them, please see them first as a source of inspiration for specific ideas on how to handle specific problems. Then begin to develop a sense of how to solve all problems with creativity and a can-do attitude.

1. Tomorrow is Friday. For your company that means payday. Time to pass out paychecks to your employees. Time to take home the bacon for you.

Unfortunately, sales have been soft for a full week, or your largest customer is behind in paying you, or you made a substantial error in your checkbook, or you had to put out a large amount of cash to fix a piece of equipment or . . . any one or two of many things that could happen, and now, you can’t make payroll tomorrow. Continue Reading »

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Sometimes, you have to be a clown

Sometimes, it pays to be a clown. It pays to do things that make your people and your customers laugh. Remember the power of the Court Jester: in the Middle Ages, the jester was the second most powerful person in the kingdom after the king because he made people laugh while he was telling the truth. If you truly want to capture the attention of others, make sure you amuse and entertain them. But do it in a way that is respectful and appropriate.

This point is especially appropriate to those people who have a great sense of humour. If you have this skill, use it to its maximum. If you haven’t, try to develop it. But don’t force it. Continue Reading »

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How to exercise the Power of Choice: pause, evaluate, decide, act, be slow to anger, be quick to forgive

Many would-be entrepreneurs fail even though they have the ability, the resources and the passion. You know why? Because they dare where angels fear to tread. They fire before knowing where they’re even aiming. They become victims of their passion and temper. They allow their hearts to rule their heads.

Being a highly successful entrepreneur is a high-wire balancing act. On the one hand you have to be able to pause and coolly evaluate a situation. On the other hand, you must be decisive. On the one hand you must be passionate about what you’re doing. On the other hand, you can’t afford to take it too seriously. On the one hand, you must rarely lose your temper. On the other hand, you must always forgive. On the one hand, you must trust others. On the other, you must be extremely vigilant. Continue Reading »

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1. SERVICE IS ABOUT PEOPLE: HIRE THE ATTITUDE, PROVIDE THE SKILLS

If you want to offer your customers 5-Star service, look for the desire to please others in the people you hire. Here’s a fact: you cannot change people’s attitudes if they do not want to change. If you hire people who do not have a genuine love of others, you’ll never give it to them. And you will be stuck with non-performing employees who try to drag everyone else down with them. The wrong people won’t deliver the right service.

On the other hand, we believe in hiring potential champions and turning them into real ones. Once you’ve hired the “Right Stuff”, then train them well. Give them the skills both through formal and on-the- job training. Ensure they thoroughly understand your company’s mission and values. Continue Reading »

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Take theirbreath away! Amaze them! Delight them!Over and over again.

“A great lover is not someone who has a different partner every night. A great lover is someone who makes the same partner feel like a different partner every night”

Daphne du Maurier

Think back over the last three months and remember a time when a company really exceeded your service expectations. So what do you think? Is this a problem?

Not if you’re a true blue entrepreneur. It’s a massive opportunity! In fact, it’s probably the biggest reason why you’re going to succeed, right? You’re going to introduce a level of service unprecedented in your industry, right? You’re going to amaze, astound and delight your customers, right? We hope your answer is yes! yes! yes! Because great service alone may be enough to give you the competitive edge. All you have to do is to set yourself apart from the herd and lift your service standards well above the norm. Continue Reading »

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So far I’ve talked about using savings accounts and CDs to save up stacks of cash. There are lots of other investments out there— stocks, bonds, precious metals, commodities, and many more. Most of these kinds of investments don’t really work for teenagers because they require large amounts of money to get started.

There’s one nonbank investment that works just fine for teenagers—mutual funds. They don’t require lots of money to get started, and they can make your savings grow faster than a bank account. Here’s how they work.

Let’s say you have $500 to invest in something. You could buy 100 shares of a stock trading at $5 per share, but that’s putting all your eggs in one basket. If the stock does poorly, you’ll lose some or all of your investment. Not a good idea. Continue Reading »

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Week two

1 Take time out to plan what you are going to do this week You’ve just started. Look back on the first week. Where did you succeed? What could you do better? Visualise your goals such as a new home, a car or an overseas trip. Focus on why you are making all this effort.

2 Hold a meeting in your home You said you would do it, so do it. Get your sponsor to help you. Invite as many friends and members of your family as possible. Make it a fun evening. Have a few product prizes to give away. Show the videotape or part of it. Talk with enthusiasm about what you are trying to do and the benefits of network marketing. Invite people on board the steam-train! Continue Reading »

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The horizontal axis of our matrix represents the degree to which customers are willing to seek advice or help.

The self-reliant people, in the left quadrants, like to mow their own grass, but those on the right prefer to hire a maintenance service and free up their time for other tasks. In a restaurant, some prefer to help themselves at the buffet or use the take-out service, while others don’t mind waiting to be served at the table.

There’s more at work here than time pressure alone: Customers clearly occupy a range of attitudes, from do-it-myself independence to a heavy reliance on others. A supplier who confuses one type (”I’m just browsing; I’ll call you when I need help”) with the other (”Could you show me what’s available and help me make up my mind?”) does so at her peril.

In the process of purchasing, a customer’s decision to rely solely on himself or to leverage others depends mainly on how complex he perceives the decision will be. Continue Reading »

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