The More Things Change...

"The art of progress is to preserve order amid change, and to preserve change amid order."

- Alfred North Whitehead
British Mathematician and Philosopher

As we hurtle through each day in the name of progress, it might well behoove us to pause, consider, and contemplate what Whitehead's words mean. It's not an easy or simple thing with which he charges us. But, I'm so glad that progress is viewed as an 'art.'

Where Have All the Leaders Gone?

Like me, you may have recently received an excerpt from Lee Iacocca's bookWhere Have All the Leaders Gone? If not, you will! It's making the rounds.

It's really a great, thought-provoking piece. Not only is it timely because we are where we are in this far-too-long slog to choose a new leader for this country and it reminds us of some very valuable criteria for choosing that leader when we go to the polls. But, considering how Iacocca brought Chrysler back from the brink, it's also a great list of qualities any business leader or entrepreneur should emulate.

I'll leave the politics out of it. Just do yourself a favor and take a coupla' minutes to read what Mr. Iacocca has to say.

*Disclaimer- I happen to be an owner of a rare cherry '91 Chrysler TC by Maserati, exotic red w/ black leather interior.

More Food for Entrepreneurial Thought

"Pearls do not lie on the seashore, if you desire one you must dive for it." ~ Asian proverb

"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage". ~ Anais Nin

"The opposite of courage is not so much fear as it is conformity." ~ Wayne Dyer

(Compliments of my friend, Lisa Zimmerman.)

If I read every book, listened to every CD, podcast, watched every Webinar, DVD, etc. that're recommended every day for 'improving' whatever, I'd never have time for anything else, like, building a company, training for a triathlon, spending time with friends. That being said, I will go out on a limb and say that one of the best things I've ever done for myself was load a complete set of "The Power of Intention" by Wayne Dyer on my iPod and listen over and over.

From the site Dr.WayneDyer.com - "he transforms conventional thinking about making things happen in our lives into a profound understanding of how each person possesses the infinite potential and power to co-create the life he or she desires."

Isn't that what an entrepreneur does? Isn't that what we all want to accomplish in our lives?

Best wishes for a fabulous weekend!

I Took The Other Road

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
- Robert Frost

We've all seen, read, and heard this quote many times. But, just like a piece of music that you listen to over and over or a book you re-read every year or so, it can speak differently to you each time and evoke a flood of thoughts, memories. Today when I read it, it seems the perfect description of an entrepreneur.

Recently, when interviewing David Stein of Automatic Mail for The National Networker, he offered his description of an entrepreneur, "...what many call entrepreneurs are business owners responsible for their own destiny, but they are not trailblazers and that’s what I think defines an entrepreneur."

Not that it doesn't take courage to buy a franchise or a small business and build it up through blood, sweat, tears, and years, but that isn't the same as creating something new. Think McDonald's franchises vs. Ray Kron's creation of that model.

In a conversation yesterday, we talked about what we wanted to do, build, create. The other person said he wanted to create something that has a big "wow" factor, e.g. Google Maps. As I've said so many times before, I seek to solve problems by taking what already exists and combining these in a new way to make something that is greater than the sum of the parts and offers ease, efficiency, and economy for our users.

Does that fit the entrepreneurial model? What do you think makes an entrepreneur? Send me an email, please!

Twitter for Dummies

Twitter, everybody, well, most everybody loves it, but just like Facebook, there are a lot of questions about how to leverage it for your own purposes. Following threads can be challenging. Wondering if you're following the "right", "cool" people. Just trying to sort topics out and make sense of all the chatter.

Enter TweetScan. Enter any topic that's on your mind and TweetScan will deliver a list of up-to-the-minute tweets from all kinds of people that you may or probably aren't following.

Needless to say, I am in love with TweetScan.

Thought for April 7th

"The greatest challenge to any thinker is stating the problem in a way that will allow a solution." -- Bertrand Russell

April 4th Quotation

"First secure an independent income, then practice virtue." -- Greek Proverb

The first time I read this quotation it conjured those past times in ancient Greece we've seen portrayed in art where the leaders in their flowing white togas of the city-states are gathered together, discussing and debating what was the best course for their city-state and its citizens. Then, it prompted the image of the well-to-do founding fathers gathered in Philadelphia signing the Declaration of Independence. Next, I thought of the many leaders this country had who came from wealthy families that had a tradition of public service set by those founding fathers. Admittedly, the motives were not always entirely altruistic. Their wives practiced charity, organizing giving to the poor.

And, of course, one always thinks of the corporate raider (or Paris Hilton) who commits all kinds of awful acts to achieve success, gets caught, makes retribution in one way or another, "finds God", and pursues a pious path.

Finally, I thought about how the old model has evolved so quickly to what we have today where "regular, ordinary" people start foundations and work tirelessly to support their causes, lobby for research into rare and not-so-rare diseases, demonstrate for human rights, ecological responsibility, where companies from the first day have a clear corporate social responsibility policy in place and pay their employees to do community work, where everyone wants to "give back." Everyone wants to do good works in gratitude for all they've been given.

We're not doing such a bad job at some things. Give yourself a little pat on the back.

Now, get out there and commit an act of kindness!

First Quote of the Day

There is scarcely anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse, and sell a little more cheaply. The person who buys on price alone is this man's lawful prey. - John Ruskin

So true! But, on the flip side, just because something is more costly does not always necessarily mean that it is 'better.'

How do you walk the line? Interviewing the people who'll have to use what you're buying, researching the options, balancing needs versus cost, determining the benefits, break-even point, figuring out the real cost of what you're investing in, and eventual ROI.

Treat your end-users like your customers and make sure you're giving them something they want and will use.

So, in the end, it may turn out that the mid-priced product that might be a little 'too big' in the beginning, that you won't outgrow or will scale will save you money on both ends. By only having to train once, by not spending money on bells and whistles that people won't use or don't need, everyone will be happy, including your CFO.