Leadership

A Question of Color

Corey Blake — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 14:12:23 -0500

Yesterday was day 1 of a 6 day trip working with Daniel Cardwell on A Question of Color.

Privatizing Gains and Socializing Losses

Michael E. Douroux — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:22:42 -0500

"Repealing Glass-Steagall was 'obnoxious' and a bipartisan 'absurdity'...

The end result of the repeal was you have 'taxpayers subsidizing risk-taking' on Wall Street...

'It's the most anti-capitalist thing I've ever heard of in my life.'

...Glass-Steagall wasn't regulation, 'it was common sense'..."

Driving Dramatic Progress through Touchstone Events

Seth Kahan — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:56:12 -0500

The original touchstone was basanite. It is a smooth, black stone used to test the quality of gold and silver. It was rubbed across the precious metal and the authenticity could be determined by the color of the streak produced. The word touchstone now means anything that tests genuineness or excellence.

"Job Losses Could Trigger Round 2 of Banking Crisis"

Michael E. Douroux — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:10:18 -0500

"The unemployment rate now stands at 10.2%, yet stocks are at a 2009 high. The bulls will tell you not to worry; the unemployment rate is a lagging indicator. True as that may be, Charlie Gasparino author of The Sellout, has a word of warning: the jobs data may be a leading indicator when it comes to the health of our banking system.

One of Gasparino's sources, Calyon Securities banking analyst Mike Mayo (who warned of the credit bubble before the crash) tells him, if unemployment rises to 11%, 'there could be an issue where we have round 2 of this crisis.'

Why?

Increase Sales Using Dynamic Marketing

Mr Rickman — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:05:21 -0500

As the choices of new marketing strategies and initiatives evolve, organizations constantly reevaluate what marketing initiatives to pursue and how much to invest in each marketing communications channel.

Sales Results Developing Website Conversion Rates

Mr Rickman — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:35:11 -0500

A Website Conversion Rate is defined as the number of visitors or potential customer leads to your site that perform a desired action measured against the total number of visitors in within a specific timeframe (ex. 30-days).

Why Values Trump Rules and Regulation

Dov Seidman — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:59:36 -0500

Everywhere I travel, I hear the same refrains: "We need more regulation," or on the flip side, "If we hadn't deregulated, we wouldn't be in this financial mess."

It looks like the White House is of this mind-set. Citing Wall Street for helping to create a "culture of irresponsibility," President Obama wants to impose more rules on the financial industry by, among other things, creating a Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

Alesia Shute and Everything’s Okay: Another Story Inspiring Change

Corey Blake — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:04:39 -0500

As some of you know, our client, Alesia Shute, was diagnosed with cancer when she was seven years old. At a time when most kids are learning to ride bikes, Alesia was overcoming obstacles that knock adults to their knees. As a child, she survived six major surgeries and several minor ones and endured years of pain and uncertainty. But Alesia didn’t want to tell a story that focused on the pain and struggles of her journey; she wanted to tell a story about overcoming, a story that would inspire other patients and survivors to live openly and joyfully.

Economics: Economists are Irrational!

Dr. Jim Taylor — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:03:02 -0500

I recently read an article
by the Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman in which he described
the renewed battle between so-called freshwater economists (so named
because they are largely based at the University of Chicago and other
Midwestern universities) and saltwater economists (based primarily at
Princeton, MIT, Berkeley and other coastal universities). The

Psychology of Technology: Horse or Cart: Technology is Actually in Front

Dr. Jim Taylor — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:00:37 -0500

A fascinating new book, The Nature of Technology: What It Is and How It Evolves,
by the economist W. Brian Arthur, was just published that challenges
much of the conventional wisdom that we hold about the relationship
between science and technology. Most notably, the notion that science
is the horse to technology’s cart; in other words, scientific
advancement results in technological innovation.

Work/Life Balance: Part II

Dr. Jim Taylor — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:23:39 -0500

In my September post, I introduced you to my perspective on work/life balance: what it is,
the causes of work/life imbalance, and the basic process for how you
can create better balance in your work and personal lives. This post will focus on specific and practical strategies you can use to actually
establish better work/life balance.

Warm Fuzzies

China Auto Sales Rise 72% Hit 1.2 Million Units

Mr Rickman — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:09:00 -0500

Automakers sold a total of 1.2 million cars and trucks, the government-sanctioned China Association of Auto Manufacturers announced November 8, 2009. China's October auto sales 72% from a year earlier, outpacing U.S. sales for another month, according to data reported Monday. However, despite China's growth, the October sales were far below the U.S.

Are You Measuring the Wrong Things?

Roberta Matuson — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:08:01 -0500

Am I the only one who can't figure out why organizations put so much stock in "smiley sheets?" These are the sheets participants complete after they have attended a conference or a presentation. Here's what these sheets usually reveal. They indicate that the participants really can't wait to leave the conference, so they'll just check off whatever boxes they can so they can hit the road. What they don't do is measure how well the participant has assimilated the information or what they will do with this information, which is really the reason companies hire speakers.

Website Sales Content Solutions Driving More Web Traffic

Mr Rickman — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:56:57 -0500

There are a variety of sources of web traffic, you can achieve, such as effective search engine optimization or targeted

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Sales Power Dialing Results Art Not Simply Technology Based

Mr Rickman — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:47:30 -0500

Cold Calling is the most difficult part of sales for many to find comfort mastering and involves consistent focused discipline to get through. At times, it may feel daunting. On the other hand, when telesales is done right, the experience is most rewarding.

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Effective Sales Teams For Higher Revenues

Mr Rickman — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:40:29 -0500

Today, we have an ever-increasing number of knowledge workers.

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Sustainable Job Employment Solutions For USA

Mr Rickman — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 17:26:08 -0500

The unemployment rate continued to spiral upward over 10.2% for October 2009. Mixed data includes factory orders in the U.S. slight bump upwards .9% for September 2009, primarily from government stimulus spending in auto, heavy machinery and military sectors, according to Commerce Department Reports.

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Elizabeth Warren, chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel for bank bailouts

Michael E. Douroux — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:23:15 -0500

"The numbers are bleak -- unemployment has surpassed 10 percent for the first time since 1983 -- and Warren is not surprised.

'Let's face it,' Warren said, 'This is sort of how we went about the rescue -- we rescued at the top and we left the bottom to kind of fend for itself -- and that's showing up in the unemployment numbers.'

Warren went on to explain that the report is really about the guarantees the Government made to protect banks' assets while leaving the public out to dry.

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Time.com -- " Why It's Time to Retire the 401(k)"

Michael E. Douroux — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:15:45 -0500

"...upgrading the 401(k) alone won't save the nation's retirement-savings problem.

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Escaping Your Inner Mental Prison

Dr. Alex Pattakos — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:45:20 -0500

"Live as if you were living already for the second time and as if you had acted the first time as wrongly as you are about to act now," the world-renown psychiatrist and author of the classic bestseller, Man's Search for Meaning, Dr. Viktor Frankl, advises us.
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Geithner "Burned Billions," Shafted Taxpayers on CIT Loan

Michael E. Douroux — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:27:45 -0500

"William Black, professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law is dumbfounded. 'We put ourselves on the hook in a completely inept way where we lose first. We lose entirely as the taxpayers.'

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6 Steps to a Breakthrough

Seth Kahan — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:59:41 -0500

Get your scope right.
Identify the area you will address. This will determine what is relevant and what is not as you move forward, untangling inter-dependent relationships.

Identify your Most Valuable Players
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From Mission to Marketing, How to Show Integrity in Everything You Do—and Why You Should

Corey Blake — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:18:46 -0500

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Wanted: Bold And Courageous Business Leaders

Greg Selker — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:01:47 -0500

We are standing on a precipice, teetering between growth and decline.

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Focus on MSNBC's Dylan Rattigan

Michael E. Douroux — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:57:41 -0500

The host of MSNBC’s Morning Meeting is one example of an increasing number of people from across the spectrum with high-profile platforms who are stepping out, asking the hard questions and won’t quit until we get some straight answers and solutions to the same unresolved systemic problems that brought us to the edge of economic meltdown.

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