In September 2018, I published an article “What Happens During Transition Determines Where You End Up (Good or Bad)“, (The original article is here.) which started out… In the immortal lyrics of The Clash’s song Should I Stay or Should I Go, “This indecision’s bugging me”. Six years ago, I wrote that one of the […]
Barb Stuhlemmer
What Will Happen to Us Without Our Small Businesses?
As a large portion of owners of small- and medium-size businesses approach retirement, there is a challenge for our communities and our economy that does not garner the concern it should. This is a serious shift that our economy is going to experience, and I feel we are not ready. In Canada, 97.8% of all […]
What Was Missing in My Sales Funnel May Be Missing In Yours
Recently, one of my coaches and I were chatting and they asked if they could look over my sales funnel. What a great ask, because, although I have much of my processes written out in steps and SOPs, I don’t have an overview of my entire marketing & sales process. I am the big picture […]
If You Can’t Afford To Lose Client Relationship – Be Good at Communications
In June I had my Facebook account suspended because an Instagram account, that was not mine, was not following the rules. If you have ever had any issue with Facebook then you know how difficult it is to get your questions answered or connect to customer support. I had to go to the Internet to […]
Value is in The Eye of The Beholder
What may be valuable to you may not be valuable to someone else. Value is defined by what others are willing to pay for, in time, energy, love, attention, commitment, and/or money. When we are willing to invest in something, it is because we find value in how it will affect our own lives. In […]
A New Program – The Foundational Pieces for Consistent Delivery
This month we launch the EXIT Readiness Accelerator Mastermind program. A program that includes regular peer support and 1-1 strategy & coaching for business owners wanting to prepare their business to run without them. It took several months to ensure we had all the fundamental pieces in place before we started. It is true, that […]
Here’s why your people can’t do the work as well as you?
Many times, I have been told how hard it is to hire great people. I get questions and statements like: Why can’t they do the work I expect them to do? I hire experts and I still have to make everything happen. Is there a secret or is there really no good people? Well, it’s […]
Change: What AI and Photography have in Common
In the early 2000s the cost of a digital camera came down, making it more affordable to the average person to own one. The benefit of a digital camera was that you didn’t need to understand shutter speed, ISO, and aperture settings, because the camera knew how to do this for you. You also didn’t […]
From Developer to Leader: Building a Team for Generational Continuity and Sale
You are the owner of your business and you are the leader of almost everything you have put into place so far. You made all the initial decision and the initial investments of time, money, and energy. You have lead the way through the initial sales, hiring support and employees, and you are the one […]
Exiting Your Business is Like Running a Train with No Conductor
As a business owner, we are the conductor of our small business. The train runs because we tell it what has to happen and when. But, when we want to stop being the conductor, for most small business, this means the train will not run any longer. If we want to get off the train […]