The Most Common Strategy Mistakes

I recently read this article from the Harvard Business School Working Knowledge newsletter.  It is an excerpt of an interview between the author (Joan Magretta) and Michael E. Porter, renowned authority on competition and strategy.  Even though it is an excerpt, the Q & A format touches on the key mistakes we all can relate [...]

Six Apps for Enhancing LinkedIn Profiles – Website Magazine

You can find an app store on just about any platform now-a-days, and LinkedIn is no exception. LinkedIn Applications are designed to enrich a user’s profile, but for those of you that haven’t rummaged through the networking site’s apps, here are a few that have caught our attention. Click the following link to read about [...]

Landing Page Design Trends for 2012 – Website Magazine

Turn Down the Volume and Hear the Cash Register Sing! Business website designs have become increasingly “quieter”over the past couple of years. Internet professionals have come to realize that when executed properly, a Web page can still achieve rock-star results with a more classical approach. This trend will only become more evident in 2012, and [...]

Are Creative People More Dishonest?

YES, that is the title of an article in the December 7, 2011 issues of the HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL Newsletter. In a series of studies, Francesca Gino and Dan Ariely found that inherently creative people tend to cheat more than noncreative people. Furthermore, they showed that inducing creative behavior tends to induce unethical behavior. It’s a [...]

Perfecting Your Digital Handshake

Side bar:  I just read the following article by Heather Robson, Managing Editor, Wealthy Web Writer.  She makes some helpful suggestions on how to make a good first impression and enhance your professional profile.  See if you can use some or all of them.  Don’t forget to share what works!   The Basics of a [...]

Adopting a Buyer-Focused Marketing Model

 It is no longer a secret that successful marketing needs content that serves the needs of a clear target  audience — content that is informative, timely, and sharply focused on the buyer’s agenda/journey. There is a lot of information out there on how to develop and implement such a buyer-focused marketing strategy.  I recently attended a [...]

Success – Wanting It Badly Enough

Let me admit it outright: I’m hooked on those competitions on Cable TV’s Food Network.  It started when I stumbled onto one of the shows, Iron Chef America, around last Thanksgiving.  Anyone who’s seen the cooking show knows of the frenzy and craziness that the competing chefs generate as they race to create multiple gourmet [...]

Keeping Your 2011 Plan Simple and Doable

This year I decided not to make any New Year’s resolutions – at least not in the traditional sense of a creating a list of wishes, do’s and don’ts.  Experience has shown me that those types of resolutions are transitory.  They survive only for a few weeks and before long are buried in the field [...]

Tis That Time of Year!

Tis the time for frenetic activity, accompanied by indulgencies in food and spending.  It is also the time to look ahead in anticipation of the New Year – a time to think of new beginnings in our personal, community, and business lives.  For me it is a time to anchor my thoughts and expectations around [...]

Curiosity Feeds The Freelancer

You’ve probably heard the saying “curiosity kills the cat …” You probably know the etymology of that saying.  I know parts of it – but that’s for another article.  For now, I thought I’d put a positive twist on the old adage.  Curiosity does not kill; it feeds! Take the National Geographic (Nat Geo) network.  [...]