Recently in Management Category

There are a lot of good IT employees out there, so this is not meant to scare you. But if you read on, and this sounds familiar, I hope this can help a bit.

2 types of challenging interviews I usually see:
    The introvert who forces you to draw the information from them
    The "Salesperson" who is trying to sell you on themselves

The first summer after my oldest daughter turned 15, it was time for her to get a job. Unfortunately, despite my threats of cutting off her allowance, she had not taken job hunting seriously. Several weeks before summer started I started talking with her about getting out there so she could possibly have a job lined up and start work by the time school got out. But, unfortunately, she never made that a priority. Until she realized that she has no money to pay for text messaging!

Certainly as a businessman I can understand the necessity of maintaining a solid bottom line, but it never made sense to me that the company could not understand that the investment in its people, and not just its managers, would be the most important investment they make.

To me, running a business isn't just about making money, it's about being the very best in the business. Very few people are an island amongst themselves, and even fewer have succeeded solely on their own. Operating a business successfully requires delegating authority and finding people who can do things better than yourself.

A statement a friend of mine used to bury in my head regularly as she supported my idea of starting this business, now I know why!

After attending conferences, we always comes back ignited with new, bold and innovative ideas. We come back with more ideas on the table than we'll be able to implement within the next twelve months. That's both good and bad. Many of the ideas are simply spectacular but we lack the resources to implement them while maintaining focus on our core business. The price of innovating minds, I guess!

The other day, one of my daughters provided me with some wisdom she said she overheard, "Friends are like potatoes. If you eat them, they die." That aphorism was brought to mind because I've recently had some people try to bite my head off.

Finding good employees can often be difficult, especially in an "employees market". Currently it seems it's harder for employers to fill a job than it is for job seekers to find one. That means it's incumbent upon us business owners and managers to get a bit more creative in how we find candidates for open positions. And then, like any good marketer, you've got to persuade your top candidates that you not only want them, they want you too.

It's been said that only the most egotistical of people could ever run for U.S. President. I believe that. But that doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad thing either. It takes thick skin and a very strong desire to succeed to run a legitimate presidential campaign. There has to be something truly special about a presidential candidate. Not so much in doing what it takes to get enough votes to win, but simply in thinking one has the strength to succeed in run the country effectively.


Running a successful presidential campaign and running a successful company and running a successful personal life are all very much the same. They all take someone with great personal strength. Weak people need not apply to a successful, satisfying life.