My garage is full of junk. That’s right. If you opened my garage today you would see junk piled high. It goes half way to the ceiling! Wood, insulation, drywall, light fixtures, dirt, and cabinets that had been torn out. The master bathroom in my house is being remodeled. It’s a gut job. We’re taking it down to the raw studs, and then creating a brand new bathroom. Initially, we were going to re-decorate, but that really didn’t seem to solve our issues. Sometimes you have to go back to the original studs and build what you want, just the…
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For a customer to make a purchase, there are three key questions that must be answered in their mind. If you can answer these questions in a positive manner, you can make the sale. If you shortcut your presentation, don’t hit on all of the important issues, and don’t answer these questions for your customer, then you cannot make the sale. Take the responsibility of providing the needed answers so your clients can buy your products and services. 1. Why should I buy? A customer will only make a purchasing decision to satisfy a need. The good news is…
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The lottery was up to $90 million this past week and I bought a ticket. It was just a dollar. I immediately started calculating in my head that the total cash payout, after tax, would be about $42 million, still enough for a nice holiday. Then the balance of the calculations began. I could give $5 million to each child, $2 million to various charities. And, I’d still have $20 million left to share with my wife. But it didn’t stop there. I tinkered with the numbers and came up with a way to give $1 million to each of…
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As an entrepreneur you have to guard your time. You have wonderful ideas, maybe more ideas than you can handle, but you need to stay focused. Look at everything you do. Which items are you great at? Which tasks provide the greatest return in dollars on your time? Which tasks could someone else do while you’re busy? Outsourcing broadens your coverage. By outsourcing you extend the amount of work you are able to get done and increase the return on your investment of time, your most precious commodity. When looking for reliable people and organizations to outsource to you should…
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A few years back, I was watching the women’s finals tennis match at Wimbledon. The announcer commented about eventual winner Serena Williams’ concentration and focus. He said, “Serena knows how to keep her eyes on the prize.” What a great way of saying what all professionals must do! Most business people don’t achieve their highest possible success because they get distracted. They let unimportant but seemingly urgent tasks and events draw their focus away from the real target. Great business leaders are accountable for their actions and keep their eyes on the prize. Here is how they do it. …
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“Never, never rest contented with any circle of ideas, but always be certain that a wider one is still possible.” – Richard Jefferies -Nineteenth century English naturalist and novelist. An individual’s paradigms are the set of rules by which they think the game of life is played. Your paradigms dictate the way you see the world around you. You can have major improvements in your life by shifting your reference points. Since your paradigms are the basis of your reference points, a change in your paradigms will ultimately affect the greatest change in your life. Paradigms are a result of…
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What drives your company, the offense or the defense? I went to a football game recently. My team won 33-22. You may think that the offense ran away with the game, running up a whopping 33-points and really sticking it to the competition. The truth is that the offence was non-existent. The offence only managed to gain 121 total yards. As a matter of fact that is the fewest yards ever by a team in the National Football League that scored 33 points! What happened? Simple. The defense carried the team. They forced seven turnovers, scored one touchdown and they…
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My wife and I met with our financial advisor Karl earlier this week. We spent an hour reviewing the performance of our portfolio, re-clarifying our personal investment goals, and discussing our estate-planning situation. Karl is thorough. We have the utmost confidence in his work and the firm he is associated with. In addition to the “business” part of the meeting, Renee, Karl, and I talked about our children and their interests. The time went by quickly. As we were finishing up, Karl thanked us again for a past referral we had sent his way and also asked us if there…
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If I listen, I have the advantage; if I speak, others have it. – From the Arabic The average person spends over 70% of his/her life in an awakened state. During this time, you are constantly communicating either with yourself or with others. Good communication skills are critical to success. People judge you by your ability to effectively convey your thoughts. There are four main modes of communication: reading, speaking, writing, and listening. Reading, speaking and writing are part of the school curriculum from grade school through high school. For the most part, few people have had any formal education…
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I just received a magazine in the mail that is dedicated to exclusive homes that are for sale around the United States. The houses range in investment from $750,000 to over $36 million. Of course the $36 million dollar home has a beautiful view of Lake Tahoe and is complete with a three-hole golf course! Personally, I am in the middle of an extensive remodeling project on my home. I know how fast you can spend money on a house. Today it takes a lot of money to buy a nice house. It takes an enormous amount of money to…
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