Yes, We Do That

  "The key is, no matter what story you tell, make the buyer the hero." - Chris Brogan I had two experiences the other day that left me shaking my head in disbelief. Both were solicitations for my business, one a radio commercial, the other, a direct telemarketer. First, the auto dealership. If it seems like I've been picking on them, having j...

​ I thought that 2020 , with all the trials and tribulations of the pandemic, social unrest, and our collective inability to go out and gather as we always have, was astonishing. Holy cow, the events of the first 3 weeks of 2021 only magnify the extreme situations and conditions that we are all living in and under. I turn, as I often do, to quotes ...

  "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." - William Shakespeare With absolutely no disrespect intended, it is interesting to me that over the course of my career how computer programmers have become software developers, psychologists have become therapists, and secretaries have become administrative assistants. I certainly unders...

The pandemic of 2020, and soon to be 2021, has created both extreme and lasting impressions on us all of us.  It is a singular event that truly, "We are all in it together.  "For me, it has been interesting to see how politicians, business leaders, and everyday people have handled the challenges and emotional upheaval that have ...

"Quality performance starts with positive attitude."   – Jeffrey Gitomer Ok, hands up if you've struggled with maintaining and sustaining a positive attitude consistently for the past 8 months.  My guess is that if you're in sales, even if you are normally the most buoyant and resilient type, you and your team may have had more than ...

"You are only confined by the walls you build yourself."               ~Andrew Murphy It didn't matter that this was, I believe, the 7 th time that I had done it. It didn't matter that it was a 'relatively' moderate day, temperatures were in the low 30's. It didn't matter that I ...

"This is the ultimate in feel-good projects. To make money and make people happy, it's a Santa Claus project" ~ Craig Belser Santa Claus may just preside over the most successful customer service organization in the world. This is amazing, given the fact that he has many logistical and operational disadvantages. The ordering system is antiquated. I...

"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. " Maria Robinson Anyone who really knows me knows that I don't celebrate my birth 'day.' I push the envelope as much as I can possibly get away with, and turn it into at least a weekend-long celebration, if not even more. Since the big event happened ju...

"Whenever you see the opportunity to create a WOW! moment, act on it!"   - Shep Hyken Every 4th of July, I pack the kids into the car and head off to the fireworks show at the local park.  And while it is always entertaining, this past year we started whispering half way through that maybe we would not come back next year.  Been ther...

Last week was maybe not a major, but still impressive career milestone for me.  I celebrated my 32 nd year at The Allied Group. In an era where the average millennial will have 11 jobs in their career, working for a number of different companies, I seem to be a bit of an outlier having worked for the same company with only 4 unique jobs over t...