My new column is out. The Small Business Edge: Why Solopreneurs and Small Businesses Will Weather the Downturn, looks at why I believe that small business has a big edge in this economy. Five quick reasons: Innovation Networks Competition Nimbleness Flexibility You...
It's never a good idea to get too caught up in our great ideas, inventions, and innovations. Ask Tropicana, the most recent brand to get wrapped up in its righteousness without stopping to take the pulse of its community. Businesses need fresh voices and outside...
I love boards. Not sawed lumber, though I imagine that comes in handy if you need to build shelter from the rain. But those management structures that are designed to provide guidance, oversight, and strategic direction to an organization. I believe that all...
A recent study on social media trends offers some useful insights on small business use of social media. The top line findings--that Twitter, blogs, LinkedIn, and Facebook are marketers' preferred social media tools--is pretty predicable. But it's some of the other...
WHY should I join your network? I've seen a number of so-called discussion questions on LinkedIn Groups lately that are are on the theme of "Open Networker -- please link to me" and "I'm building out my network -- please invite me to connect." In none of these cases...
Did GM's CEO have to go? There's been a lot of discussion about the government's move to replace Rick Wagoner as a precursor to any wholesale restructuring by the troubled automaker. My own opinion: He had to go. Reinventing a business is hard work, and it typically...
I'm a huge fan of newspapers, and I love the physical act of reading the newspaper. And yet I cancelled my subscription to The Washington Post today. Newspapers are in a vicious cycle: they are losing readership (and subscribers), so they're cutting back. In recent...
Sometimes the simplest solutions are the most elegant. Not the Apple design kind of elegant, but rather the functionality of wheels on luggage or mini air canisters for the road cyclist. I found the coolest gadget at Costco yesterday: a plastic case for two AA...
What can you do today to get noticed? My neighbor Steve Stern operates a small financial investment advisory firm. We usually meet up in the halls and chat for a few minutes. Yesterday was no different--except that he and an employee were headed to the Irish Pub down...
Let me put my bias on the table: I'm an education snob. Not about what school(s) you went to, or even what you studied. I just think learning is important. I'm proud of the fact that I had two full years of science and a year of calculus in college. And I'm still...