Our CEO Role Model

In leading our companies we are called, before all else, to model God’s character and His ways in our business interactions. As we focus on keeping this first thing first, we use the gifts and opportunities He has given us to permit Him to reach others through us. We do this in the process of conducting business. We don’t stop leading the business, making daily calls and decisions, or dealing...

Your Leadership IQ

Lech Walesa told Congress that there is a declining world market for words. He’s right. The only thing the world believes anymore is behavior, because we all see it instantaneously. None of us may preach anymore. We must behave.” Max DePree, Chairman Herman Miller Leaders lead, and leadership by example is the best technique as proven for thousands of years. No great leader has ever been...

Considering Buyer Behavior

Buyers come in many shapes, sizes and behaviors. Ideally, our pricing policies and customer handling reflect this. Customer motivations, flexibility and preconceptions – all of which impact how we can best connect with them – can be all over the map! Zig Ziglar, famous sales expert and Baptist Sunday School teacher, said, “Every sale has five basic obstacles: no need, no money, no hurry, no...

Seizing the Moment (part 2)

Here we are, in the middle of an extended recession, hunkered down and unsure as to when the pressure will let up. Many of us are praying for restored demand and a healthy backlog that will allow us to “breathe easy” again. Is this where you are today? Is your attitude one of simply waiting out the slump and surviving to play the game another day the same way we always did? One of the grand...

Loyalty: An Engine For Healthy Growth

We’re quick to overly complicate what’s involved in building a healthy company. Overwhelmed by a continuing barrage of ‘helpful’ input from authors and consultants, we continually seek the latest ‘breakthrough’ ideas and techniques to catapult us past competitors and ‘beat the odds’ in becoming a long-term success story. Sadly, in spite of all the expert advice, just 22% of the...

Diligence – A Key to Order

For C12 members, the key question is “What does God expect or require of us?” We propose that the answer is ‘diligence,’ defined by the dictionary as “the attention and care legally expected or required of a person.” A practical definition would be, “to meet the requirement inherent in a given situation, responsibility or relationship.” In Kingdom terms, we might further say:...

Marketing Demystified

 Marketing Demystified  “If the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying “Circus coming to the Fairground Saturday,” that’s advertising. If you put the sign on the back of an elephant and walk it into town, that’s promotion. If the elephant walks through the mayor’s flower bed, that’s publicity. And if you get the mayor to laugh about it,...