running a business

Family And Friends First. Always.

I had a book due
to the editor on March 1st.
That deadline was tight.

Then a loved one
became very sick.

I set the book (the product) aside,
told my editor (business partner)
the book would be late
(which put the launch date
at risk),
and I focused on the loved one.

Product launches can be
rescheduled.

Businesses can be replaced.

Money can be earned
a different way
or
it can be borrowed.

Family and friends
and other loved ones
can’t be replaced.
And their time on this planet
is limited.

Put them first.
Live life with no regrets.

Scheduling Noon Meetings

Most people don’t know
if 12 pm
is noon or midnight.

I’m one of those people.
I always have to
look it up.

And in this global
running 24 hours a day
business environment,
meetings could happen
at noon OR midnight.

A super easy solution
is to schedule meetings
at 11:57 am for noon meetings
and
at 11:57 pm for midnight meetings.

Ensure everyone knows
your noon meeting is starting
at noon.

Schedule it for
11:57 am.

Scan Crucial Information

Recently,
I scanned
a bunch of photos
borrowed from older generations.

A family had lost
all their photos
so I gave them virtual copies
of the photos we had
featuring
their family members
and their ancestors.

That won’t replace
all the photos
that were taken from them.
Many of those photos
had no copies.

But it gave them
SOME photos,
some visual tracking of history.

I gave everyone access
to the drive
where the scans are stored.
EVERYONE can have a copy.
That means the images should
never be completely lost.

What does this have
to do with building a business?

There are some documents
that you likely only have
in hard copy.

If these documents
are important to your business,
scan them
in case a fire, flood, theft
or something else happens
and they are lost to you.

Track Your Progress

Many social media platforms
remind users
of what they posted
1, 3, 5, 10 years ago.

It shows people
how much or how little
they and their world
has changed.

I track my progress
similarly.
I’ll look at stats
from 1 year or 2 or 10 ago.
And I wonder
at how much I’ve progressed
and how much I’ve learned.

I was a dumba$$
10 years ago.
I didn’t know
a fraction of
what I know now.

I’ve also published
close to 50 stories
in the past decade.
That’s a HUGE accomplishment
and it inspires me
to push forward.

Track your progress.
Use it for inspiration.