What Single Step Will Make The Biggest Difference This Year?
The amount of news and information regarding current economic conditions, social media, marketing and technology a small business consultant like myself might write about pale in comparison to this truth:
Control of attention is the ultimate individual power. People who can do that are not prisoners of the stimuli around them. They can choose from the patterns in the world and lengthen their time horizons. This individual power leads to others. It leads to self-control, the ability to formulate strategies in order to resist impulses. If forced to choose, we would all rather our children be poor with self-control than rich without it.
It’s by David Brooks, a NY Times columnist. It’s a critical element to my success and a struggle I face everyday as a small businessman. Especially since a key element of my client work is making sense of the technologies we need to harness, whether its email, Facebook and it’s ilk, or more significant tools such as Customer Resource Management (CRM). My ability to focus on the goals I establish will allow me to do the things I want. Much like the sign I saw at Jimmy John’s
If you do the things you have to do when you have to do them SOMEDAY you will be able to do the things you want to do when you want to do them.
That’s my New Years resolution, and my daily resolution. Hat tip to Jakob Nielsen, who also offers his Top 10 list for addressing information pollution, for individuals and for companies.
No commentsWhat is Your Mobile Security Plan?
It’s a problem that has been around from the beginning.
When I have a security question, the first place I go to research it is the SANS Institute. A client has been struggling with issues associated with notebook users, and weekly fixes that need to be applied due to exposure to external threats. Their use of Windows Mobile devices has not received the same attention despite their similar ability to expose business secrets.
This paper from the SANS Institute addresses the risk that small portable devices are leaving our networks open to every day. Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), mobile phones, portable email devices like the Blackberry (RIM) device are gaining in their power and application. Don’t ignore the threat.
No commentsCompeting On A Global Basis
One of the more interesting aspects of Springfield I’ve come to admire in the six years I have been here is the level of entrepreneurial activity. It’s both a strength and a weakness however. I’ve experienced it directly in the film making and soccer industry in this region as individuals or groups that might have achieved more together instead end up competing. Ultimately the competition, and the market, deliver the right solution however.
That is what has taken place in St Louis with InBev’s purchase of Anheuser-Busch. I worked at McDonnell-Douglass and Emerson Electric, and looked closely at a position with A-B coming out of the MBA program at Washington University. I also spent a decade selling technology solutions to the top firms in St Louis. Working with hundreds of firms, I’ve seen a wide range of business cultures and models. St Louis went through one major shift with Boeing’s purchase of McD based upon the changing market conditions in place at that time and now they will experience it again.
This article, offering background on InBev’s Chief Executive Carlos Brito, offers insight on what brought Anheuser-Busch to this point:
Brito eschews the kind of corporate perks that have become typical today. He and other executive board members fly business class only on flights over 6 hours; otherwise they go coach. There are no company cars, free beer or reserved parking spots.
“Whoever gets there first gets the shade,” he said.
Contrast that with Anheuser-Busch, which maintains a fleet of corporate jets, a barber shop and company cars for executives. Every employee gets two free cases of beer a month and free admission to A-B’s theme parks.
It’s the same market impact that is happening to the auto industry now. Rather than Congress mandating mileage standards, the global economy will direct GM and Ford to ‘do the right thing’.
Ultimately I am an optimist. I’m old enough to have been through the gas crisis of the 70’s, when I first started driving, being laid off by Emerson Electric in the recession in ‘85, and the tech meltdown in 2002. You plan, you prepare, and you enjoy the simple things. Like Bill McClellan’s take on the situation
Here is my new daydream: I am in Rio de Janeiro, sitting at an open-air cafe near the beach at Ipanema, smoking a Cuban cigar, wearing a Panama hat and drinking a Budweiser, that great Brazilian lager. I am watching the young women walk past to play volleyball on the beach. Because South American women are attracted to older men, several of the young women stop to flirt with me.
“Where are you from?” one asks me. “Rio de Luis,” I reply.
That is as much of the daydream as I care to reveal, but let me just say that the young women are captivated by the notion that there is a Brazilian city in the heart of the United States.
I’d like another cold one please!
No commentsGoogle Apps For Your Business
Managing email is one of the more frustrating technological challenges my clients have. Whether it’s administering accounts, ensuring reliable delivery or worst, dealing with spam, it’s a chore.
As a small business myself, I’ve migrated to Google Apps for Business, primarily for the email support. I now rely on Google to handle delivery and spam control for all of my business mail. I have IMAP support set up, allowing me to work offline and while its not 100% reliable, there have been only a few short instances where delivery was delayed. The spam control is wonderful - I check it every day and average 100+ spam emails and I can only recall one false positive in the past year.
With that in mind, I share with you this recent notice I received from my host:
Next week is National Small Business Week, and to celebrate, the Google Apps Team is going on tour. From April 21st through April 24th, we’ll be visiting the most entrepreneurial city in each of the four regions of the U.S.*: Washington D.C., Charlotte, NC, Kansas City, MO, and Phoenix, AZ.
Come by to meet members of the Apps team, find out what’s new, and connect with other businesses using Google Apps.
——————-
Event information for Kansas City, MO:
——————-Date:
Thursday, April 23, 2008Location:
Kansas City Live
Corner of 14th Street and Grand Boulevard
Kansas City, MO 64106Time:
10:00am - 3:00pmFor more details, visit http://www.google.com/apps/citiestour .
We hope to see you there!
The Google Apps Team
If you’d like to learn more about Google Apps, contact me and I’ll demonstrate my personal experience with the tools available.
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