I spoke with the matriarch of a family business yesterday. She received numerous mailers from Little Engine Ventures over the last couple of years. Eventually, she decided to explore further. She started by holding on to one as a reminder. She then surveyed her husband: “Dear, how would you rank your job satisfaction?” To which Read more about Uncertainty and Profit[…]
Two years ago I set out to read the 100 most influential books of all time as part of my comprehensive reading plan. I recently completed Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged.” I immediately purchased “The Fountainhead.” This is dangerous writing. Rand introduces us to a form of ethics and philosophy that was dubbed Objectivism in the Read more about Considering Ayn Rand’s Objectivism[…]
I owe my blog readers an apology. I recently completed two books by William Zinsser: “On Writing Well” and “Writing to Learn.” In both books Zissner goads his students to be organized and write without noise. Clear writing is clear thinking. What good is a passage if it does not deliver a sound conclusion? The Read more about Apology for Noise[…]
A few years ago I gave a talk at the locally organized TEDx event at Purdue University. One of our Executive on Deck candidates found it. Bonus points to her for the good background research on us. It feels a bit pretentious to tell you to watch me ramble on about my entrepreneur journey for Read more about Redeeming Entrepreneurship[…]
I have a phrase that I sometimes use that does not always ring true outside of my own head. I used it again today, and thought to myself, ‘I should write down what this means.’ So, here goes! Business situations sometimes develop that are like a log jam or a scary spider. Everyone is running Read more about Eat the Bug[…]
I missed my goal for total books in 2018 but I did widen my latticework of applicable knowledge. Check out my reading plan for more context. Below is the top five new-to-me books of 2018. Visit Top 5 Books of 2017 for previous list. Honeybee Democracy by Thomas D. Seeley Michael Mauboussin recommended this book. It Read more about Daryl Starr’s Top 5 Books of 2018[…]
On January 8, 2019, Recycle Guy Holdings, LLC acquired the assets of Circle City Dumpsters from Rod’s Quality Concrete, Inc of Whiteland, IN. The combined companies will continue to service the Indianapolis and surrounding areas with prompt and professional solid waste management services. The founder of Rod’s Quality Concrete, Rod Vore will remain focused on Read more about Recycle Guy Acquires Circle City Dumpsters[…]
This month I had a new partner point out that we spend more time evaluating a specific manager than a specific company. It’s true. Our Executives-on-Deck may spend 3-9 months tagging along on numerous lunches and coffees with a wide variety of people before joining our payroll. A particular business might be judged in a Read more about People Power[…]
My good friend, Jason, tipped me off to this quote years ago… Rather than “No, because…” “Yes, if…” We liked it so much that when designing MatchBOX, he put it in one of the most prominent spots. We wanted the community of MatchBOX members to always have an attitude of saying yes to things. It’s Read more about No, because… Yes, if…[…]
We just purchased our first stapler. That’s right. We bought businesses before we bought a stapler. Today is a monumental day. As I loaded it with staples and put it on the shelf I happened to think, “this is weird… and somewhat revealing.” At our Annual Meeting I had a slide that compared Conventional with Read more about Buying Our First Stapler[…]