Coping Mechanisms for High Pressure Management
Pressure can result in higher or lower output. A healthy dose of pressure can result in flow state, increased focused, and clarity of decision making and action. Too much pressure and you are crushed by the weight and stress of the situation. What’s the difference? The output is determined by how the pressure is transformed […]
Imprimatur
An imprimatur (sometimes abbreviated as impr., from Latin, “let it be printed”) is a declaration authorizing publication of a book. The term is also applied loosely to any mark of approval or endorsement. Wikipedia Imprimatur has become a weird but helpful internal codeword for me and Daryl to use in the office. Daryl and I […]
Distinguishing Make-to-Order versus Engineer-to-Order Service Businesses
Service businesses often begin by displacing the internal development or employment of a skill. For example, “I’ll hire you to shovel while I move on to this other thing.” As the sophistication of the skils move up the intellectual stack the singular skill is often replaced with judgement balancing across multiple skills. For example, “I’ll […]
Run your Negative Service Company with purpose.
Mikel recently invited a business owner to lunch. In his email invite he used the phrase “negative service company” and the owner chuckled. He said he had never heard that phrase before. He runs a multi location restoration business. This sort of shocked me. Our flagship negative service company does autoglass repair & replacement. For […]
Where is the opportunity stored?
Carrying opportunities is expensive. Capturing opportunities can be profitable. Owners and managers alike enjoy identifying and developing opportunities. Many have developed habits and allocations to how much time and expense to allocate to product development. This is usually associated with the pace of customer change or the profit margin of the idea. Developing opportunities is […]
Words Have the Power to Create
An often repeated, Little Engine Ventures’ value is “confront the facts.” And, one of the facts of life is that integrity is the consistency across word, thought and deed. What is rarely confronted is the power of words to create. As children, we learn that when we cry we often get our way. We polish […]
Develop the Right Kind of Stink
My mother is an artist. My father is a farmer. My father likes to say, “The only thing I can draw is flies.” I like to say, “A wise businessman ought to develop the right kind of stink.” He wants to repel the misfits and attract those that will lay eggs in his pile. The […]
On Being a Serial Obsessor
I have been called a “serial entrepreneur.” I have recently been describing myself as “an entrepreneur turned investor.” This morning, I read a descriptive phrase that better fits the present phase of my life and doesn’t negate my historical experience. I am a “serial obsessor.” I am a serial obsessor. I have recently been obsessed […]
Consistency Versus Change
There is tension in business. One of those subtle challenges is determining when to stay the course in the face of opposition and when to change. Also, when do you stay the course when it’s working well, and not change faster (even when it’s really tempting!) I once described myself as an “addict of change.” […]
Creating a liturgy for your business
I’ve been in a low church tradition for 20+ years. Folks in our strain of Christianity have a sense of pride around our lack of formal rules in how we worship. But, we know a high church tradition by its formality and ritual practices. But I’ve come to understand that every church has its liturgy. […]