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THERE IS A SAYING in computer geekdom: “Garbage in, garbage out.” Meaning that you can’t expect great results when you’re starting with junk.
The human mind works the same way. And it explains how easy it is for people to get caught in cycles of despair and hopelessness. If you don’t have hope coming into your life, it’s hard to imagine how you can have hope for a better future.
HAPPY LUCKY’S TEAHOUSE is a little shop in downtown Fort Collins. They have the largest tea selection in Colorado, as displayed on their ever-growing “Great Wall of Tea” alongside teapots, accessories, and silk scarves.
Silk scarves? What’s that about?
It turns out that those scarves were an important part of the genesis of this business. Read the rest of this entry »
TODAY IS THE 
FEAST OF ALL SAINTS in the Catholic faith. It’s a remembrance not only of named and recognized saints, but all who have achieved eternal life – whether we know them or not.
It’s a great time to ponder the ultimate purpose of what we’re doing here.
Photo from Tax Credits on Flickr
LET’S FACE IT: You spend most of your career doing what others want.
You’ve probably felt hemmed in by obligations, the need to support your family’s lifestyle, and a desire to amass retirement savings.
But now what?
I’ve been working with people who now want to take their considerable expertise and build a new consulting business, mentor in the community, or be on a non-profit board.
YESTERDAY WE EXPERIENCED some great innovations in the business community.
At the Quid Novi Conference, I talked to all kinds of business leaders, all the way from startups to firms making billions of dollars. What a great environment for learning from the best!
I was also honored to have Small Fish and Quid Novi award three of the most amazing, incredible innovators in Colorado!
YOUR EXPERIENCE OF THE WORLD comes through many filters and lenses.
So I was inspired by a discussion with my friend Joanna last week, where she explained her belief that TRUST is one of the major factors by which you interpret circumstances.
There’s a lot of wisdom in this.
Imagine that your experience with government regulation hasn’t been all that positive, either personally or in your business. Read the rest of this entry »
RECENTLY WE FOUND OUT that Volkswagen has been taking illegal steps to evade emissions regulations on their diesel vehicles.
That’s been publicized broadly, so I don’t need to talk about what they did. Instead, I’d like to point out some cautions about WHY they did it.
Because it’s something which can affect each of us in our businesses.
OUR MODEL OF BALANCE tends to be quite static.
Stable. Unchanging.
Unachievable in real life.
Because, in real life, you’re constantly running. Things are changing every minute, every day, every year.
The very instant you think you’ve achieved stability, it gets destroyed by the things you’re doing and what’s happening in the world.
BUSINESS IS TO MAKE MONEY.
Right?
Well, I was honored to be a member of a panel discussion this week with Amy Ross about Conscious Capitalism. The question came up: What is the purpose of business, if not to make money?
Because that seems to be the universal assumption of our economy and culture.
YOU WANT TO BE AWESOME at everything. I get that.
The problem is that the real world gets in the way!
Here’s an example: You want to attract awesome, talented employees. But your business plan also says you’re very tight on expenses.
Which means you probably can’t pay people what they’re worth. Perhaps you’ll save money on hiring less-than-top-notch people, then spend a bundle training them up.
