As I Was Saying

"A good memory is essential to success in business, although I no longer recall why."

Anonymous

And that is critical because . . .

Give me a moment, it's on the tip of my tongue.

The REALLY Hard Work

"He has hard work who has nothing to do."

Proverb

Recently retired or thinking about being so soon?

What then?

You'd better plan for more than golf.

I Know That!

 "Man knows much more than he understands."

Alfred Adler

Late 19th century/early 20th century Austrian medical doctor

Have you ever thought about what you "know" versus what you "understand"?

And don't get me started about what we think we know versus think we understand.

Scary!

Where You Headed?

"To the person who does not know where he wants to go there is no favorable wind."

Seneca
4th century BC Roman philosopher

Any plan will get you there if you don't know where you want to be.

Do you?

I'm A Collge Graduate, I Know Stuff!

"College is a refuge from hasty judgement."

Robert Frost

20th century American poet

Is or should be?

If is, shouldn't the college graduate carry their apparent learned ability to not make hasty judgements with them into the working world?

In all too many cases I think it is the opposite, but then I may have been hasty making that judgement.

What do you think?

Business Justice . . . An Oxymoron?

"Justice denied anywhere diminishes justice everywhere."

Martin Luther King Jr.

20th century American civil rights activist/clergy

Even in business?

It occurs to me that "justice" is not a term I often hear mentioned relative to business.

Ethics, fairness, occasionally even morals, but not justice.

Is there a difference or is justice not something that relates to business?

Give Up?

"If you're going through hell, keep going."

Winston Churchill

WWII British Prime Minister

I think we often do have a tendency to stop when things are not going as we hoped.

If we do to look for a better way, fine, but if we are stopping just to stop, no.

How do you handle adversity?

The Best Medicine

"He who laughs, lasts."

Mary Pettibone Poole

Early 20th century author

You may have to read this twice to get the meaning.

And then laugh when you do, it will do you good.

What You (Should) Work For

"The worst days of those who enjoy what they do are better than the best days of those who don't."

E. James Rohn

Author

So intuitive and yet worth reminding ourselves of what should be the primary goal of our working lives.

A "career" is a long time to be doing something you don't enjoy.

The Glorius Departure

"All glory comes from daring to begin."

Anonymous

BW reader Tim Andersen asked me if all my new venture decisions were based on reason or passion, a question which relates to this post.

If they had been largely or certainly completely based on reason, I doubt I'd ever have started anything.

At some point, you have to begin.

Trust But Verify

"Your own mind is a sacred enclosure into which nothing harmful can enter except by your permission."

Arnold Bennett

Late 19th/early 20th century English novelist

Yes, you are the keeper of your mind's "gate", but are you always on duty?

How many business decisions have you made that were based on information you acted on without checking its validity?

Unique Is What You Seek

"Most people grow old within a small circles of ideas, which they have not discovered for themselves."

Marquis de Vauvenargues

18th century French moralist/writer

And by "discovered" he only means finding the idea not inventing the original thought behind it.

We all could and should do so much more original thinking.

Try this.  Make a list of the things you've done in your business life that are truly unique to you.

Don't worry if the list is not all that long; that is what has been, which is not necessarily what will be.

Begin now to make the list longer.

Me, Me, Do Me First!

"Never step over one duty to perform another."

English proverb

Another one of those on the surface "I get it" thoughts, but think about it just a bit more.

Little of what most of us must do is clearly sequential; we must prioritize to know what to do first and even that often changes.

How do you know what to do, when?

Who Do You Trust?

"A good friend is my nearest relation."

Thomas Fuller

17th century British clergy/author

When it comes to business, would you more trust a blood relation or a good friend?

In Light of Reason

"Reason is a very light rider, one easily shook off."

Jonathan Swift

17th century Irish born English satirist

Business places a high value of the ability to reason but are people any better doing that at work than they are in their personal lives?

I don't think so.

In The Moment, But Which Moment?

"The Future; that period of time in which our affairs prosper, our friends are true and our happiness is assured."

Ambrose Bierce

Late 19th century American writer

Thinking about my business life I believe I have too often looked back fondly on what has been, or eagerly to what will be, in contrast to simply being happy with what is.

What about you?

A Little Loyalty? A Little Ethics?

"Stick to a friend a little in the wrong."

John Randolph

Late 18th century/early 19th century US congressman

How "little"?

If you work for someone you know is doing something a "little" different than what is "right", what do you do?

Work Hard To Relax

"Idleness, like kisses, to be sweet must be stolen."

Jerome K. Jerome

Late 19th century, early 20th century English writer

Very true.

I most appreciate "down time" when I "steal" it in the middle of intense periods of work.

Very Type A I know but true nonetheless.

Plus I like the fact that when it came to naming their son, the Jeromes apparently had a sense of whimsy.

Wanting To Achieve Is Not Enough

"Zeal without knowledge is fire without light."

Thomas Fuller

17th century British author

Most children have a lot of energy and enthusiasm but sometimes, without thought, direction and planning, that does not translate into achievement.

Fun maybe but not achievement.

When it comes to business, it would be nice to have fun but regardless it is essential that we achieve.

The "Just You Wait And See" School Of Management

"The longer you wait for the future the shorter it will be."

Anonymous

We all have only so much time.

How will you spend yours?

Thinking about what you will do or what you are doing?

Personal SWOT?

"The greatest of faults, I should say, is to be conscious of none."

 Thomas Carlyle

19th century Scottish writer

How many of you who have done SWOT analysis on your company, have also done so on yourself?

With emphasis on the "W".

Not On My Watch!

"Change tends to be viewed as a threat to our control."

Unknown

Probably.

And if so it is a big part of the reason so many managers are so uncomfortable with change.

How much of the change your company has undergone can you say began with you?