Do You Have the DESIRE to Succeed? I’ve long suspected that business success, like any noble endeavor, ultimately depends on DESIRE. Skeptical? Here’s a question: What’s the one indispensable component for building a successful business? Is it IDEAS? Nope. Ideas are everywhere. Since 1968, attempts to create a tablet included the Dynabook, the GRIDPad, and […]
For years, I’ve noticed a pattern with small to midsize companies. They go through cycles of intense activity and success, followed by burnout and stagnation. It left me wondering, why do they do this to themselves? Wouldn’t consistent, stable performance be more productive and less stressful? Then I had a flashback to my college days—nights […]
Do you want to grow your business? If your answer is yes, here’s some bad news: growth comes with its fair share of pain, often showing up as chaos that you might not be used to seeing in your business. Let me explain. If you’re running a business that’s treading water, you might feel uneasy […]
Shiny Object Syndrome (SOS) is a condition recognized by many entrepreneurs. It’s that urge to impulsively start “promising” projects, launch new products and services, and dabble in miracle marketing methods. Pretty soon, your company is stretched thin trying to manage both your legacy business and these shiny new ideas. Sadly, many of these ideas don’t […]
If you’re familiar with business operating systems like Scaling Up, EOS, Pinnacle, or Summit OS, you’ve heard about Rocks. They go back to Stephen Covey’s “rocks-pebbles-sand” analogy, showing how important initiatives should always trump urgent tasks in your business (and life). Less is more. I believe Rocks are about carving out time to work on […]
Fear is normal for an entrepreneur. If you never feel fear, it means you’re not failing, which means you’re not trying new things—and if you’re not trying new things, you’re not growing your business. Entrepreneurs often oscillate between euphoria and fear. One doesn’t happen without the other. Fear and anxiety are the “morning after” effects […]
Like Gino Wickman, Shannon Byrne Susko started as a member of Verne Harnish’s Gazelle program and she was inculcated in Rockefeller Habits and Scaling Up principles. Her system, documented in her books (The Metronome Effect (2014) and The 3HAG Way (2018)), evolved from Scaling Up’s toolset. However, there are some notable differences. Susko recognizes the […]
John Doerr was an electrical engineer who started at Andy Grove’s Intel, which he left to become one of the most successful venture capitalists in America. He has backed Amazon, AOL, Compaq, Google, Netscape, Twitter, Slack, and other successful tech businesses. Doerr took Andy Grove’s objectives and key results (OKRs) management tool with him and […]
The 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX) program, created by FranklinCovey, drives organizational results through behavior change. 4DX focuses on articulating your major, definite objective, the one it calls the Wildly Important Goal (WIG or The War) and then breaking it down into a handful of “WIG Battles” and quarterly execution steps. The process includes keeping […]
Following the publication of Traction, Verne Harnish came up with “Rockefeller Habits 2.0” and titled it Scaling Up. This is a system directed at strengthening fast-growth companies, organized around four areas: people, strategy, execution, and cash. In Scaling Up, Harnish updated the One Page Strategic Plan and added a thinking tool he calls the 7 […]
