Lawrence Fine

People want exciting careers. They think they have to do something exciting and innovative to make a lot of money or to be successful.

If they are going to open a store, they want to open a high end fashion boutique because that is where the money is (Walmart seems to be doing ok without being a high end anything)

If they are going to open a restaurant they want to run an expensive gourmet restaurant because you can charge those people big money and therefore make a lot of money (Ray Kroc seemed to do just fine with his fast food chain called McDonalds and not many consider a Big Mac to be gourmet).

If they are going to be a writer they think they have to write the next best seller to be successful (technical writers can make a very nice living).

Looking to do something glamorous can be exciting but keep in mind a lot of very successful people do things most others would consider to be boring…for example, who would think about growing grass for a living? The reality is, one can make a lot of money growing grass and then selling it (and by grass, I do mean real grass).

What others might perceive as boring, you might perceive as being the ideal solution to allow you to live a successful and glamorous life.

Just something to think about

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Frequently we will set long term goals that will occur years from now BUT they are set taking current needs/wants into account. The problem with this is it doesn’t take into consideration what your needs/wants will be when the goal is met.

To give a simple example, a 14 year old might set a goal of making $100 a week. To a 14 year old, that amount might sound GREAT. However, if it takes 10 years to achieve this goal the 24 year old might not be too happy to be making $100 a week (not the greatest example but it’s the first one that came to mind!)

When setting long term goals, set them taking into consideration what things will be like when the goals will most likely be met. This is why it’s so important to keep an eye on trends and what is happening in the world and not just what is happening in your world.

Just something to think about

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There are two types of ways to do business with customers.

Transactional business
Relationship business

In transactional business it’s a “one and done” type situation. The customer wants a product, you have a product, they like the price and make the purchase. In many cases you will never hear from this customer again if they can find the product somewhere cheaper.

Relationship business takes longer to develop because it requires making an actual connection with the customer. It means you learn about them and they learn about you, you develop a long term relationship, you are looking for long term business instead of just the current transaction.

It’s easier to do a transactional business but if you are looking to develop something long term, definitely look into developing the true relationship.

I just finished a new “book” on the importance of relationships in business. It’s currently only available to be read through the Kindle ebook reader or through any of the Kindle apps including on your PC (available at http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=sa_menu_karl2?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771 )

The book is titled Building Personal Relationships for Business and is priced at $3.99. You can purchase it at http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TNJ8KW

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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Can’t we be supportive of others?

There is such an attitude of “us vs them” these days. If “we” can’t win then we want “them” to lose.

Auburn fans root for Auburn first and whoever is playing the University of Alabama next.

Clemson fans would rather see anyone win as long as it’s not USC.

Liverpool fans openly root against Manchester United whether they are playing against them or not.

Why can’t we root for good performances regardless of who it’s for as opposed to being so adament about rooting against certain schools, teams or organizations?

In an article on the IndyStar.com web site it quotes a person after watching Butler University win their game as saying “Any Indiana team, I’m definitely supportive of, I’m very supportive of all Indiana teams” This was coming from a fan of a different school than Butler.

What if we were to encourage and help our competitors get better? What if we were to share ideas and concepts to make our competition even stronger? Long run, wouldn’t that force us to get even better?

Some people think watching others fail makes them stronger. Others realize if their competition is stronger it will make them even better.

Which type are you?

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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How often is the word “luck” used when it really is just an excuse?

“The only reason that person is successful is they were lucky” (no, they are successful because they worked hard and took advantage of the opportunities that were out there).

“I would have been successful but just had bad luck” (no, you saw a dip in the road and gave up while the successful person realized that this dip would have a quick upturn if they are willing to persevere).

“He is lucky that he is well known, otherwise he wouldn’t be so successful” (no, he is well known because he put himself in a position to get recognized and through that opportunity he was able to work to become successful).

“I tried but had some bad luck” (you tried…and then you quit)

Seneca wrote “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity” How often do people quit in their preparation before they ever come across the opportunity and find a way to blame anyone or everyone other than themselves?

If you want to be “lucky” go prepare yourself for when you do come across the opportunity and then be willing to persevere through any dips in the road.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There are two ways to create new products, services and businesses.

1. The old school model is to create the new product, service or business and then try to convince the market to buy
2. The new model is to create what the market wants.

The key is to utilize the information that is available to know what the market wants.

People think of Google.com and Bing.com as search engines. While they certainly are search engines they are also great aggregators of data. They know what people are searching for, what they are looking for, when, where and even why.

People think of Facebook and Twitter as social networks. While they certainly are social networks, they are also great aggregators of data and information.

Marketing is important but first use the data that is out there to know what to create before you get to the marketing stage.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There are many places to go to get information these days. TV shows, web sites, newspapers, friends etc. When I hear people with different opinions I find it interesting. However, when I hear someone using out of date information I lose all interest in anything they have to say.

As an example, people can express their views on politics and while it’s a subject I have very little interest in, I can respect them for having these views even if they might be very different than my own. On the other hand, if you refer to a web site as a source of your information and the web site is no longer online, it makes me wonder what other data you might be using that is out of date and irrelevant.

This applies to things as simple as a copyright notice on a website. If I go to a website and see a copyright notice from a couple of years ago, I just assume the site is no longer being updated OR that the people care so little about their web site they don’t take the time to keep it up to date. If that is out of date, what other information on it might be out of date as well? Since there are so many other sites out there I can get similar information, I will almost always leave and find one that is up to date.

Opinions are great, everyone has them and we don’t have to agree on them. On the other hand, if you are going to use facts, sources etc, make sure they are up to date and accurate or else you will lose all credibility.

Just something to think about

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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I was speaking with someone the other evening who said “I need to get ready for tomorrow, I’ve been sick recently but tomorrow I have to be energetic and motivated”.

This is a person who knew that tomorrow might not be her best day but she would have to act as if it was. As far as the outside world was going to be concerned, tomorrow was going to be the best day of her life.

How often do you go out there and feel like crap, feel down, feel tired and let everyone know it? How often do you start a conversation by telling people everything that is wrong with you?

How much more effective would you be (and how much happier would others around you be) if you took the approach that no matter whether you were having a good day or a bad day, you were going to present yourself to the world as if this was the best day of your life?

If you are energetic and motivated (or, at least give the impression of being energetic and motivated) others around you will be the same. Give it a try, it really does work.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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There are three types of customer service people.

Those that are so bad they leave a bad impression.

Those that leave no impression at all.

Those that leave a positive impression.

Most people don’t want to leave a negative impression but I don’t understand why so many companies seem determined to have their employees who work with the customers to have no personalities, leave no memorable impressions and act more like robots than people.

If I want to work with a computer I’ll do so online. If I go into a store, or somewhere else where there is true human interaction, act like a human and not a robot and it will encourage me to come back again.

Just something to think about.

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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If you own a Motel 6 franchise but when you travel you only stay at Ritz Carlton’s do you really understand what your customers are experiencing? Does a brief walk through give you the same experience as what they experience on a daily basis?

If you own a sushi bar and don’t like sushi, do you really really understand what the customers complaints might be about?

If you are a car salesperson but take the bus to work, do you think that will give your customers a feeling that you truly understand the product?

If you an advocate of being green but drive a gas guzzling car and litter on a regular basis, do you think many people will take you seriously?

It’s one thing to be able to talk about your product, service or company but do you truly relate to the industry and them to you?

Just something to think about

Have a great day!

Lawrence

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