We are pleased to have Executive Business Coach Jim Gleason join us today. Jim is currently with The Resource Development Group, where he coaches and mentors several business clients to successfully and effectively navigate change to achieve the results they desire.
We cover several topics of interest especially to small business owners, but they certainly apply to business professionals of all types. I started out by asking a broad question that seems to be on the mind of many of my professional peers these days.
“Why is business so difficult these days? It seems that every time I get together with fellow business owners, we talk about how long it’s been since we’ve seen our families. Yet we don’t seem to be getting the return on our time.”
As Jim often does, he had a perfectly reasonable response to this common situation. He’s the kind of guy that just seems to be able to break things down into simple, understandable concepts.
We also talked about the effects of inexperience when it comes to networking and pricing. For Jim and I both, our businesses are complex and highly consultative. An “uneducated” customer might want to get to the bottom line right away. “How much would it cost for Promethius to produce a podcast for my business?“
Such questions can’t be answered without a whole lot more information. What are you trying to achieve with your podcast? Who is your audience? What business are you in? An inexperienced consultant might be inclined to give some sort of answer to the pricing question right away, even though he can’t possibly set reasonable expectations without having more information.
Another common issue facing many small business owners was reflected in another one of my questions for Jim.
“How can I get my staff to think like I do when I’m not around?”
As a business grows, the ownership has to rely more and more on staff to be the face of the company. This can be frightening for leaders, but it must be done if you intend to grow.
News:
Nielsen Media Research Company is reporting that video-sharing website youtube.com is the fastest growing website on the internet. Web traffic to the site grew 75% just in the week ending July 16, from 7.3 million to 12.8 million unique visitors. Youtube.com traffic has grown nearly 300% since January. The website still operates without a set advertising model, but plans are reportedly in the works to offer several sponsorship packages.
Two presenters at a Hacker conference in New York City claim to have successfully copied or “cloned” an implanted RFID or “radio frequency ID” chip. The controversial chips, manufactured by the VeriChip Corp, have been marketed as counterfeit proof, and are generally considered to be a future favorite of the retail and banking industries. VeriChip has not yet responded to these claims.
BusinessWeek is reporting that Clearwire Corp. has announced major plans to create a nationwide wireless broadband network within the next three years. The company has amassed enough licensed radio spectrum to create a nationwide, wireless broadband network based on an emerging technology called mobile WiMAX — a powerful cousin of the familiar WiFi technology. Clearwire received major backing on July 5, when Intel Corp. and Motorola invested nearly $900 million into the company. The two hardware manufactures plan to sell products that integrate with the new WiMax platform.
Scammers have begun using the telephone to harvest data for use in identity theft and credit card fraud, and VoIP is making it easier for them to cover their tracks.
Websense Security Labs, San Diego, in June reported a scam that targeted customers of Santa Barbara Bank & Trust with an e-mail alerting them to a supposed problem with their account. Instead of directing them to click on a link, the e-mail listed a phone number for customers to call to verify their identity. When the victim called the number, a fake automated voice response system set up by the scammers asked them to enter their 16-digit account number using the phone keypad.
Voice phishing—or “vishing”—is dangerous because although most Internet users won’t click on a URL in an e-mail, they’re quite accustomed to entering their credit card or account number through a phone keypad. It’s best these days to talk to a live person any time there is a supposed account issue generated by your banking institution.
To protect yourself, read more here.
Shelley Hendricks with 
