Essays & Articles About Business, Leadership, and Culture
Entrepreneurship For Humans
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You, Me, and The Economy: How to Think About Economic News from a Human Perspective
The economy is in the news. Big time. Inflation has been a big headline, with news breaking August 10 indicating that it rapid price growth might be...
Refund Policies: What’s Fair and What’s Not For Online Businesses
“If you don’t see results, you didn’t want it bad enough.” That’s become the prevailing narrative of the online business refund policy. Of course,...
Overdelivering Doesn’t Help Anyone (And Is Probably Causing Harm)
Photo by Erda Estremera on Unsplash “Underpromise and overdeliver.” I'm sure you've heard that maxim before. But most of the time I spend money, I...
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I’m So Over This (or, the Trouble With Platforms)
Photo by Steve Johnson on UnsplashImagine you start a cottage business making hot pepper jam. Once you've perfected your recipes, you've got to sell some jam. To do that, you need to get in front of potential customers.You decide that a good way to do that would be to...
How “Know, Like, and Trust” Became Ensh*tified
Photo by Karsten Winegeart on UnsplashAuthor and speaker Bob Burg popularized the three magic words you’ll eventually hear just about any marketing educator say: know, like, and trust. “All things being equal,” he wrote in his 1994 book, Endless...
Buying Freedom and the Freedom to Buy
Photo by Jamie Street on UnsplashMarie Forleo bills her signature course, B-School, as the "ultimate system to grow your business and own your freedom." It's the subhead on the sales page.Scroll down just a bit, and you'll see how she defines freedom: "Live where you...
20 Podcast Episodes That Explain (Almost) Everything in 2024
Last week, I shared 10 books that rocked my world in 2024. Today, I’ve got 20 podcast episodes for you. If you think that’s a lot, just be glad it isn’t 40 or 50!If there was a theme among the books I selected, it was the politics and social...
3 Ways to Avoid Acquiescence Bias
Photo by Nick Fewings on UnsplashWhen novelist Ursula K. Le Guin received a survey from her alma mater as part of the hubbub around her class' 60th reunion, she dubbed it "interesting" and proceeded to approach the questions with a critical eye and a sardonic...
10 Books I Loved in 2024
While I’ve started writing more directly about what I read, I often read a lot that doesn’t appear in my work in a citeable way. Yet, almost everything I read influences my work—including the fiction.So as this year begins to come to a close (and...
What Works for the Holidays
Photo by Alexander Grey on UnsplashIt's Thanksgiving week here in the US, and before you know it, it'll be time for all the other end-of-year holidays.I'm working on some behind-the-scenes stuff this week, but I thought I'd pop in with a little roundup of essays (and...
Seeing Software
Photo by Josh Calabrese on UnsplashI hate project management software. Despise it. Refuse to use it—and if I can help it, even look at it. This does not endear me to people in my life who are more traditionally organized and process-driven.That includes my dear...
Who Do You Mean ‘We?’
Photo by Kyle Ryan on UnsplashWe is an incredibly economical and efficient little word with massive implications.In just two letters, it can express “You and I are the same,” or “You and I are in the same group,” or “You and I are in this...