Tag Archives: international relations

COVID and Dirty Laundry

The longer this virus goes on, the more I am reminded of Don Henley’s 1982 song “Dirty Laundry.” A friend and his wife declined an invitation to come over for a glass of wine (OK, maybe a bottle) on the … Continue Reading

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Exit Planning in a New Political Environment

What does a new political environment mean for business owners who are planning to transition their businesses? Should you accelerate your plans, or slow them down? As I’ve said many times in this space and elsewhere, the biggest single factor … Continue Reading

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History Begets Attitudes

History begets attitudes. I’m back from my biannual depressurization trip. This time it was to Central Europe. As always, I assess new and different things through a business owner’s eye. We visited five countries (Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary), … Continue Reading

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Will Small Business Win in the End?

A few weeks ago Schumpeter, the nom de plume for each current author of the business op-ed column in The Economist, postulated the decline and fall of the Western Corporation. Could small business be the little furry mammals of the 21st … Continue Reading

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Germany Makes a Business Decision

Germany just announced that it could accept an additional 500,000 refugees when other countries are jockeying to accommodate as few as possible. As much as the announcement was portrayed as a humanitarian effort, it is just as likely a simple business decision. Few members … Continue Reading

Posted in Economic Trends, John's Opinions, Politics and Regulation, Strategy and Planning, Top Blog Posts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

My Interview with Robert Morris: Part I

Robert Morris is the number one reviewer of business books for Amazon.com. A few weeks ago he posted a great review of Hunting in a Farmer’s World, and asked if he could interview me. Bob’s questions were really fun, and the interview … Continue Reading

Posted in Customer Relations, Incentives, John's Opinions, Leadership, Managing Employees, Sales, Strategy and Planning, Top Blog Posts, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

What Price Sochi?

In business, there is a danger that a big new project, landing a giant customer, or an unexpected personal event will draw your attention away from the job of running your business. When an owner is the driving force behind day to … Continue Reading

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Why Don’t We “Buy American?”

America’s trade deficit underlies a host of headlines. We continue to send payment for fossil fuels to countries that use it to finance people who kill our soldiers. We borrow trillions from China, so that we can pay them for more consumer goods. We … Continue Reading

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Small Business Goes Global

I know that the business press has described the Internet based global marketplace for a decade now. Certainly I have any number of clients who’ve seen their small businesses impacted by a customer’s ability to search the globe for competitive … Continue Reading

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Is America the next Rome?

James Fallows has written a massive, thought-provoking  article about America’s current social, political and economic issues in The Atlantic. Like so many of us that have spent time overseas, he looked at the US with fresh eyes on his return.In Fallows’ case, … Continue Reading

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Planning for the Strategic Triple Threat

1. The new need for multi-level strategy Over the last 4 months, I’ve been devouring information on the recession and economic crisis. I have come to the conclusion that small-business owners are faced with unprecedented complexity in their planning process. … Continue Reading

Posted in Business Perspectives, Customer Relations, Economic Trends, Entrepreneurship, John's Opinions, Leadership, Strategy and Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments