Imagine that you are walking alone across a vacant parking lot on a breezy day, when out of the corner of your eye you notice a crumpled-up bill blowing at your feet. You immediately step on it to keep it from escaping, and then reach down to discover that it’s a $100 bill. No one…
Leni and Lou are fraternal twins. They were born 3 minutes apart, eat the same food every meal, and sleep in the same room. But aside from their DNA, they are as different as night is from day. While Lou yearns to be outdoors with a ball in her hand, Leni would walk past five balls, two…
The world of franchising is exploding as more and more franchised brands and concepts emerge each year. Sadly, in many of those organizations, there exists a wide chasm separating disenfranchised franchisees from the brand’s franchisor usually stemming from broken promises and unfulfilled expectations. In those franchised brands that are thriving, however, harmony reigns supreme as both parties…
When rules are broken in situations that don’t call for immediate termination, gain your composure and think “Open The Front Door Now.” This is the acronym for a simple formula that helps you address—and correct—many of the annoying small issues and problematic behaviors of your employees. Treating these problems according to the OTFDN formula will get them…
There are limits to the extent an employer will go to keep an employee happy, even when the employee is a top performer or in one of those almost-impossible-to-replace positions. But unless they are feeling neglected, unappreciated, or mistreated, most employees would prefer not to go through a job change and would rather stay with…
Every employee who works for you will eventually arrive at a crucial intersection, if they haven’t already. At that point, you hope they turn right and buy-in to your leadership and the vision and values of your company. Turning that direction means that they see a future for themselves with your organization so they’ll invest themselves fully…
I’ve been writing and speaking about millennials since they first made their way into the workplace as teenagers in 1998. Since then, I’ve interacted with thousands of mature business owners and leaders who’ve confessed their struggles and frustrations in managing this enigmatic generation. Today, more than half of all millennials (born 1980-2000) are 25 and older, and the part-time teen workers of 1998 are…
Is it just me, or have you noticed an outbreak in the number of flaky people out there? I’m not talking about liars, cheaters, and thieves. Flakes aren’t bad people who intentionally do bad things. Flakes are the irresponsible ‘me first’ knuckleheads who are lacking in the simple social graces. To assure we’re on the same page, allow me to share…
Look through the holiday cards and messages you’ve received this holiday season and ask yourself which ones really give you that warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Very few, if any. The sad reality of living in a time-crunched impersonal digital age is that most holiday messages we now get are nothing but glorified PR blasts on behalf…
For each of the past twenty years, my wife and I have watched National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation while putting up our Christmas Tree. Why we still laugh uncontrollably at the same bits we’ve seen so many times is something our kids may never fully understand, but I digress. This classic movie’s plot centers around the plans Clark Griswold (Chevy…