3 Attributes Powerfully Successful Problem Solvers Possess

by Donald McMichael

rubrick cube

Good problem solving skills are fundamentally important, especially when leading a business.

But problems (what’s that consulting term… challenges) are something that we don’t particularly like.

They’re time-consuming. They bogart their way into our already packed schedules. And the queue never seems to end!

A formula that primes us as humans to find the easiest or quickest way out. Have you ever chosen this route – only to realize that you missed a much better solution? Or, worse yet, failed to identify the problem correctly only to have the situation get much worse? [click to continue…]

The Secret of Getting Business Deals Moving

by Donald McMichael

The Secret of Getting Business Deals Moving post image

Say it’s not so!

It can’t be.

But alas it is. We are segueing into September. Over the next two weeks bathing suits will be wrung out, surfboards stowed, and backpacks wrenched out from beneath that pile of camp gear.

Turning up the dial

This is a period of both great anticipation and trepidation. The kid’s are running frantically to get those last summer hit list items crossed off. While we’re becoming more focused on those business discussions that we’ve been attempting to schedule for the last 6 to 8 weeks.

Improving conversation productivity

With only three productive months to go before we closeout the year things need to get popping posthaste. We have to be on top of our persuasion game. With this in mind I want to refer you over to [click to continue…]

Seven Business Books Worthy of Your Attention

by Donald McMichael

Seven Business Books Worthy of Your Attention post image

If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere don’t look now, but summer’s winding down.

Grab time to go outside with your mobile device to catch up on both those rays and that summer to-do hit list.

I know for me that includes mapping the learning blueprint for the Entrepreneurship course I’m slated to teach this fall.

In a recent post for the F.I.T. blog I wrote about how entities like universities go about putting into place the right formula to accelerate learning. A significant factor of which is a student’s ability to learn how to effective and efficiently learn on their own.

So what does this have to do with you?

Unfortunately, most people leave school and never look back, but as a seasoned entrepreneurial leader you know that the quest for knowledge is a never ending voyage. You continue to practice the art of self-learning and I’m here to help.

In the spirit of those heading back to school I put together a list of titles that every businessperson should have in thier reading rotation. Check out these seven ( in alphabetical order) that I’ve consistently recommended to my friends:  [click to continue…]

The New Gatekeeper?

by Donald McMichael

The New Gatekeeper? post image

Pop quiz, What do each of the below have in common?

“Come on out to the picture show.”
“Same Bat time, same Bat channel.”
“I want my MTV.”

Each is a former powerful lever in the media game.

Ever since I fell into the media/entertainment industry in the mid-1990s the winning combination for corporations was a mix of market demand, variety within a niche (think ESPN), and access.

The underlying business driver has always been that we (the public) want the content we desire in an appropriate form and fashion… oh, and did I mention timeliness. We love to learn, explore, and escape and video has been a terrific medium. Which is why everything from the top-notch production value of blockbuster films to the basic homemade quality of how-to content has a potential home.

That covers variety and demand, but what about the third point, access? [click to continue…]

Keeping Your Strategy From Going Bust

by Donald McMichael

Keeping Your Strategy From Going Bust post image

Why do business strategies fail?

They’re developed by smart, insightful, and motivated people.

That shouldn’t be a formula which results in over 70% going belly up. Yet it does, with most doing so within six months of completion.

Popular convention focuses on two causes of failure:

  • people flaws
  • and, tool flaws

If any of the following statements sound familiar you’ve been caught in the slip stream of a bad strategy discussion.

  • We had it nailed on paper, how could we have been so wrong?
  • Why is the business is only making a fraction of the profit potential we projected?
  • Something needs fixing but we can’t see a flaw in our plan.

All valid concerns that need to be address, however, the real question is why do smart business leaders choose bad strategies. When I asked this of my contemporaries here’s what I heard. [click to continue…]

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Donald McMichael

Insights for entrepreneurial leaders that help them answer two fundamental questions "Where should we play?" and "How do we win?".

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