Casual Fridays

We’re on the lookout for wolves.
You know… back-stabbers, saboteurs, spies and just plain evil-doers.
We suspect they’re among us. The wolf in sheep’s clothing.
But there’s something much more dangerous in our midst, also masquerading as sheep.
This “silent killer” of companies is much harder to find than the wolf. He wears the disguise well, even [...]

I missed blogging last week. There’s a story behind that.
I play basketball at 5:45 AM every Tuesday and Thursday. It may sound crazy to play basketball that early, but it allows me to do something I enjoy without interferring with my family time in the evenings.
Last Thursday I didn’t feel very well after [...]

Some business owners say they don’t “buy into” marketing. They characterize their business as nuts and bolts. Providing a high quality product to the customer is the path to success.
By educating the public about the superior features of your product, people will see the truth and buy your brand.
The problem is most people [...]

You’ve probably heard of the prodigal son, and you probably also know it originates from a story Jesus told. (you can read it here)
What you probably don’t think about is how it relates to your company.
Oh boy, does it.
Here are lessons from this story that we can apply to business today:
1. The son wanted instant [...]

I had a conversation with someone who was venting about her boss’ rude behavior.  He berated her for being late (even 5 minutes), overworked her during the day, and failed to ever show appreciation.  This person is a hard worker, so I trust she’s not exaggerating.
My response to her was, “Respect for people is respect [...]

People are rarely, if ever, satisfied.
We’re not satisfied with fast food customer service, politicians, football officials, nor the price of gas.
Most of all, we’re not satisfied with ourselves. Not with our weight, our salaries, our homes and cars. We’re not satisfied with the time we have for exercise, for fun, for friendships and [...]

Seth has written what I think is his most important post ever.
How do we define success? Usually by others’ expectations.
More to come on Friday.
(More from me at least. My expectations don’t set Seth’s schedule.)

Do individuals need institutions, or do institutions need individuals?
Addressing that question, johnmoore of Brand Autopsy snagged a nice find of a Dan Pink article recently published in Ad Age.
Dan Pink states:
That big agency or marketer needs you a lot more than you need them. I mean, what do you need now to reach potential clients? [...]

I was recently reading about the new Apple Mac Pro computers on digg. What’s most interesting is the reaction Apple gets from any announcement. Apple fans usually love it. Apple haters hate it (go figure). Reading their comments on digg is not for the faint of heart.
Why does Apple alienate these [...]

This would have been perfect if it were chocolate milk (see below).
Two experiences this week that caught my attention.
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First
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My family came by the agency to eat downstairs at Gina and Guiseppi’s. As we struggled to commit the kids to a drink selection, the waitress suggested chocolate milk (which wasn’t on the menu). She was [...]