An interesting article in the Melb Age newspaper on the flow on effect to smaller businesses.
In an interesting basic view, if the big banks can’t get money to lend, or they are pulling their heads in “Just in case” then your chances of getting credit of some kind may well be hampered, in the short […]

In the spring cleaning theme… is your leader leading the charge? did they “twig” to the change of season? did they come in the door with a renewed spring in their step? Well if the answer is no, maybe you should take the lead and remind them.
Get them focused - ask them to be flexible […]

With spring just 11 days young, it’s time to clear out, clean out, seek out, innovate, create, get nasty with “stuff” and make way for fresh ideas, colours, thoughts and so on. Explore the ether, the space, the things I know little about (well to some degree).
It’s fine for me to feel this way but […]

Fast thinking and wisdom can work wonders, I saw this today and thought it’s well worth reproducing here, enjoy!
A wealthy old lady decides to go on a photo safari in Africa, taking her faithful aged poodle named Cuddles, along for the company.
One day the poodle starts chasing butterflies and before long, Cuddles discovers that he’s lost. […]

Think in symbolic terms, if you were a warrior or a goddess, then the title of leader can become more, much more. If you imbue your role with this kind of title (perhaps even just internally) you can then develop a model to work with.
Lets go deeper. I have used the terms Goddess and Warrior, […]

“Leadership, why do I need leadership skills?” This is a question I get asked often. So  in quick response to that I often come out with… “Oh you need this for lots of reasons…” and then stumble through some of them… sometimes I even forget some of the gems.
Leadership why you need it.
If you are […]

In business you deal with people and as such they are an important aspect to the business (in fact read that as VITAL to your business!) so vital that without them things don’t get purchased, sold, manufactured etc… So in the scheme of things you need them, and as such the big question is do […]

Getting started in business is one thing, gaining success is another. Many of us will have seen and heard of people who have failed in business even though they felt they had a great business idea and the finances to put behind it to get started… So what went so wrong that it failed?
Lets look […]

Here’s a short video from Tom Peters, if ever you wondered what comes first passion or skills, here’s Tom’s answer…
Thanks to Tom and the team at Skill Soft.

A friend and I were chatting, he is to be made redundant, and after many years in his role with a big multinational he stands to get a good pay out. He’s still got plenty of time as an able bodied worker and wants to work… But.
There have been a number of larger businesses fold […]

Firstly.. Why be a coach?
You would not expect your favourite sports team to be effective without a coach… nor would you expect the people you lead to be effective without a leader.
To get high-level productivity from the team your role as a leader takes in a great deal of coaching and mentoring skills. Therefore your […]

This might seem like the sort of question that might be more suited to a personal development blog or professional development series of some kind, but I felt the issue was of burning intrigue for me so here it is.
It’s of interest to me because I see so many businesses, and as I spend time […]

Leadership is it… If you have ever wondered about what makes a solidly compelling and successful company, well check the list and see what you think…
A leader leads by example… If it’s a brilliant business the leader is brilliant and that excellence is passed down with ease. They follow excellently because they were led excellently, […]

carnival of australia

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Welcome to the February 27, 2008 edition of Carnival of Australia.
 Thanks to all the contributors, some great stuff there, enjoy your reading! 
Elias presents The day we said “sorry”! posted at Ramblings of an Australian teacher, saying, “I hope I can still squeeze in the current carnival.” - Yes and No Elias! I […]

In an historic address to the nation today Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said “Sorry” to the stolen generation. He said sorry for the pain, sorry for the ongoing indignation, sorry for previous governments not apologising, for taking indigenous children from their families many years ago.
In essence he is saying we are sorry for the […]

I know it’s a big word, but its an interesting one (anything that big has got to have some merit.)
The thing is it’s all about being (or becoming) dis-interested and for this forum dis-interested in business.
I know what it’s like being in small business, lots of challenges, lots of ways to run astray, simply because […]

I learn things from many sources (hey don’t we all?) but today I was listening to a business owner talking on an issue that reminded me of a useful story that fitted to the situation, here it is…
Pete had been investing in shares for many years, and had weathered many ’storms’ and made and lost […]

From an original article on various business success pointers, here are the individual “how to” possible options for you to explore.
Training to win/win
You and your staff should be trained to make the whole show win, then the customers can win too. A great position to get to and stay in.  For some the idea […]

From an original article on various business success pointers, here are the individual “how to” possible options for you to explore.
Upholding great values
People love it when you are on a positive footing and in the values area it’s a great place to start (integrity – honesty, truthfulness etc.).
Start the business with a strong stance on […]

From an original article on various business success pointers, here are the individual “how to” possible options for you to explore.
Enjoyable to run
Who wants a business, which is a hassle to run? Who wants to work in a tough field? No one… Make it a joy to be part of for you and staff […]

In the race to maintain and or grow their business many business operators find another hurdle that pops up far to easily, and that’s staff turnover. Some call it churn, but whatever you call it it costs the business $$.
Some businesses try to keep their wages above the award rates in the hope it will […]

Here’s Jerry’s 3 rules of life, pretty simple… so lets add some business thinking points to it.
Print it, use it, tick things off as you do them, make notes, add to the list, include some of these points in your staff training and see what happens.
Thanks Jerry lets see what happens now…
Bust your ass…

Work hard, […]

This is the seventh in a set of posts designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of “how to” as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

I’m on the phone with a salesman from one of my suppliers. He asks me, “So, do you sell to any medical practices?”
“Yeah I do”, I replied. “I have some dentists and a periodontist.”
“Great!” he exclaimed. “You’ll be interested in our new stethoscope covers!”
Really, I think to myself. Let’s see, when was the last time […]

This is the sixth in a set of posts designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of “how to” as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

This is the fifth in a set of posts designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of “how to” as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

 This is the forth in a set of articles designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of “how to” as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

This is the third in a set of posts designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of how to as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

This is the second in a set of posts designed as a series to complement the initial post… Strengths in your business The aim being to provide a simple “How to” guide for people daunted by the prospect of “how to” as it can be too easy to read and say “Oh yeah that’s it, […]

I watched this afternoon as a bunch of people stood up, stepped forward and got the living daylights pummeled out of them. They stood tall and after a grueling 3+ hours of warm up exercises it was an incredible feat.
I am talking about Karate not a street fight… (thank goodness!)
What I witnessed was people from […]

I called my stockbroker a couple weeks a go. I had a question. I wasn’t sure who to ask for because it’s been about a year or so since I actually talked to anyone there. Anyway, I finally get “my guy” on the phone. What a phoney!
This guy doesn’t know me from a fence post […]

In the crazy mixed up world of business we can often forget why we are in business… of course it’s to make a profit but what kind? is it just money or are there other profits to be had?
Other profits might include
• People learning more and benefitting society by utilising their new found skills and […]

“Daddy”, my 11 year old daughter excitedly exclaimed. “All I have to do is sell seven Holiday wreaths and I earn enough money to go on the school trip to the amusement park at the end of the year!”
As I reviewed the info packet with an advertising professional’s eye, I casually asked, “What do […]

In business it seems like we juggle a whole bunch of things, from finances, planning, to marketing and operational issues and lots in between. I often say it’s about how well you juggle as to how well you do in business, however lets take some pressure off for a while and imagine if we stopped […]

I don’t mind stating I feel less than excellent. I have some quotes to do, some work to do, some people to chase, some calls to make, bills to pay, $$ to chase and frankly I don’t care if it all gets washed away in a great flood (or any other disaster for that matter.)
We […]

Have you ever thought about the activity and decisions that takes place in your business, or in your life for that matter? Let’s get a handle on things to explain more about what I mean.
Active and inactive - It’s either one or the other and not much in between, of course at the either […]

Business can be fickle, some succed, others fail, some just plod along making just enough to struggle on even though the market might be very buoyant.
In the end many will say business is just about money. Yes and no… I like to think I get more than just money out of what I do. […]

Describing business in terms of its stages, infancy, adolescence, maturity and so on is a great way to sum up the situation, but there are impacts and of course differences in each.
So in the development of the franchise from the start up infancy stage, through to maturity there are some different challenges to face that […]

In a previous article I mentioned business being like a roller coaster with its ups and downs… This time lets look at some of the causes of this “uppsy downsy” situation.
1. I feel flat - This can be from a build up of things not going too well, everything else can be okay but the […]

The road we travel in business is a rough one at times, then it gets smooth and before we know it it turns to a dusty track with giant potholes.
I’m talking about the everyday challenges we face, be it in getting enough customers, having enough profit, ensuring staff are happy and the $$ are still […]

An article by Kirsten Le Mesurier in the Age on innovation struck a chord.
The premise of CEO’s and senior exec’s saying innovation must happen… rarely works, it’s often a directive that can be buried in red tape and politics. Too many times the ideas are wanted but the process becomes a durge and in no […]

In a previous post I mentioned trademarking as a development tool and I discussed “See something - Do something” It’s a nice simple model for business but it can be taken further than a business context, here’s how and perhaps why…
In the branding stakes there is a lot of mention these days about “Brand You” […]

Earlier in 2007 I did a post on Trademarks not what you think… It gave some starting points and some background to an idea that is really all about values and beliefs but does so in a more street smart way.
I thought it was time to pull out a few more and explore how they […]

In the world of franchising there are many chances to connect with the Franchisees and the Franchisors, meetings, conferences, and the initial training. As the leader of the franchise (or franchise division) or as the franchisee, search for more ways to connect with each other. Then pass on that ‘connection’ attitude or skill to your […]

In flipping about the net I came across this link. http://www.bcg.com/
Simply put the publications section has some great resources for businesses of all sorts, check it out, there’s plenty for everyone…
Very professionally put together, usually when I come across resources like this you end up having to pay or need to be a client with […]