Actually, I didn’t almost lose my ass. I nearly lost two. You see, my wife and I raise donkeys. Having a donkey wasn’t my idea. I never wanted to own a donkey. But my wife, Lori, pleaded with me to get one. I fought back and stood my ground. “We’re not raising any farm animals…
Businesses and brands that are replacing service workers with technology are discovering that this strategy is creating as many problems as it’s solving. Robots (the broad term I’ll use to describe digital kiosks and various other mechanical systems) are diligent, and they don’t call in sick. They won’t cheat you. They won’t ask for a…
Ask most people under 40 to define the America Dream and you’ll likely hear them mention owning their own business and/or being their own boss. If you dig deeper and ask why so many young people want to pursue entrepreneurship, surprisingly, the first response won’t always be about making more money; in fact, it seldom…
I’ve never wanted to own a donkey. My wife pleaded for one. To settle this argument, we reached a ‘compromised’ the way we typically do. In other words, we now have one, … er’ …make that four adorable miniature donkeys: two males and two females. Donkeys are the most misunderstood – and often the most…
If you try to recruit teenagers — and hire them — and onboard them — and train them — and manage them — and try to motive them the way you were recruited, hired, trained, etc. like you were recruited, hired, trained, etc, you’re going to find your breaking point in a hurry. There is a ton of promise and potential in this enigmatic Gen Z workforce. Make no mistake: they want to be successful in their jobs and they have a skill set that will astound you. And they are able to adapt to the rapid changes that are happening everyday in your business much quicker than you and your seasoned workers are able to adapt. But they will arrive with a different set of attitudes, values, and beliefs about this thing called ‘work’.
Attention parents! If your kid is still parked on the basement couch this late in the summer playing Fortnite and driving you crazy by whining they can’t find a job, it’s time to change the password on the Wi-Fi and kick ‘em to the curb with a tough-love boot. As the U.S. economy continues its remarkable rebound from the…
Everything I ever needed to know about business, I learned in less than 10 minutes at the age of 16. I was a junior in high school when I ‘accidentally’ signed up for a business course titled “D.E.” I thought I was registering for Driver’s Education, but this class was Distributive Education (aka, DECA, now called…
The global health pandemic has completely upended the world of work. With social distancing restrictions and other health measures in place, many companies have either shifted to hybrid workplaces or completely transitioned to remote working models. Covid has forever changed the workplace culture, pushed digital skills to the forefront, and paved a clear path for…
Brooky, my 13-year-old granddaughter, is smack dab in the middle of middle school. Even if there were no such thing as the Coronavirus, my heart would bleed for her. That’s because I remember my 8th grade year as being the very worst of my life. Too old to be a kid. Too young to do…
What we call “labor” today bears little resemblance to its meaning of yesteryear. In fact, during the late 1800’s, one of our nation’s darkest labor periods at the height of the Industrial Revolution, the average American worked 12-hour days and often 7 days per week in order to eke out a basic living. Few other…