Final Cut: Words to Strike from Your Resume

Final Cut: Words to Strike from Your Resume: Before you add another bullet point to your resume, consider this: Crafting the perfect document isn’t always about what you add in—the best changes may lie in what you take out.

Five Components of BRAVE Leadership

Five Components of BRAVE Leadership: Leadership is about inspiring and enabling others to do their absolute best – together –to realize a meaningful and rewarding shared purpose. The strongest leaders take a BRAVE approach to every one of their New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plans by examining their organization’s behaviors, relationships, attitudes, values and environment.

4 Reasons Why Influence is the New Job Currency

4 Reasons Why Influence is the New Job Currency: “There are so many conversations taking place about careers, leadership and management that it’s hard to decide which one to be a part of.”   I hear this from people all of the time; especially those out of work who just don’t know what to believe or which voices to follow.   As we transition from a centralized to decentralized workplace, one thing is certain: you must be actively involved with conversations that will advance your career and your influence.   In today’s economy, influence is the new job currency and without it you are now more vulnerable than ever.

Why gratitude is good for business, year round

Why gratitude is good for business, year round: Instead of showing appreciation exclusively during the holidays, some businesses are building it into their day-to-day and reaping financial rewards on account of it.

How to Bootstrap Your Business

How to Bootstrap Your Business: Starting up a business is a full-time job. So how do you manage it when you already have a full-time job? Here's how a few entrepreneurs juggled both to payoff.

A Key Ingredient to Successful Movement Marketing

A Key Ingredient to Successful Movement Marketing

How to Sell to Grocery Giants Wal-Mart and Whole Foods

How to Sell to Grocery Giants Wal-Mart and Whole Foods: Here are seven concrete suggestions on getting your products onto the shelves of major grocers.

The First Rule of Building a Business

The First Rule of Building a Business

Richard Branson on How to Avoid Common Startup Mistakes

Richard Branson on How to Avoid Common Startup Mistakes: The celebrated British business mogul shares what he's learned on his entrepreneurial journey.

Three Steps to Finding a Business Mentor

Three Steps to Finding a Business Mentor: Here's how to meet an experienced startup advisor and maximize the relationship.

Ten Tips To Clear Your Portfolio's Dead Weight

Ten Tips To Clear Your Portfolio's Dead Weight: Portfolio management involves risk management, but it might also take a little house cleaning to stay on track. Part of this process involves mentally preparing yourself for great profits. Having the right mindset can begin with a few steps. The following 10 actions are designed to clear out the...

Ten Career Lessons from the Top of the Masthead

Ten Career Lessons from the Top of the Masthead: A must read for all career women this week is Ken Auletta's profile of Jill Abramson, the first woman executive editor of the New York Times. There are so many lessons in this article for women who wish to break the glass ceiling, that I've reduced them to ten action

3 Money Steps Toward Joy This Holiday Season

3 Money Steps Toward Joy This Holiday Season: We’re all appalled. It’s not even Halloween, and the stores are teeming with Christmas. In Northern California, we’re still having 90 degree days, but if we walk into Target, there’s a winter wonderland inside. Few enjoy the early onset of the holidays. But the holidays are coming, and taking time now to make a holiday spending plan can guide you through the season and help alleviate money vagueness and fear. You’ll feel less stress and experience more joy by taking action now and following these three steps.

Five Things to Never Say to Your Direct Reports

Five Things to Never Say to Your Direct Reports

Startup Aims to Leverage Crowdsourcing in Product Development

Startup Aims to Leverage Crowdsourcing in Product Development: C.J. Kettler's online crowdsourcing venture, Genius Crowds, aims to move product ideas from the "light bulb" stage onto store shelves.

How to Really Listen

How to Really Listen: One morning, my wife Eleanor woke up, turned over, and said, "I am not looking forward to this day." I asked her why.

5 business books you can really use

5 business books you can really use: Tired of reading the same old advice? Here are a few books that can actually help you run your business.

Innovation is About Execution, Despite the Myths

Innovation is About Execution, Despite the Myths: Most people think innovation is all about ideas, when in fact it is more about delivery, people, and process. Entrepreneurs looking to innovate need to understand the execution challenge if they expect their startup to carve out a profitable niche in the marketplace, and keep innovating to build and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage.

Want To Save Serious Cash? Focus On The Big Stuff First

Want To Save Serious Cash? Focus On The Big Stuff First: This post provided by SavingsAccounts.com. How many times have you heard your friends or coworkers talk about cutting back and saving more money? And how many times have you heard them follow this with grand plans to quit buying overpriced coffee or start packing a lunch everyday? While these ...

Startup Success Fast Track

Startup Success Fast Track: How today's business owners are building thriving companies

Quiz: Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Entrepreneur?

Quiz: Do You Have What It Takes to Be an Entrepreneur?: If you're thinking about starting a business, it's time for some personal assessment. Take this informal quiz to see how your personality compares with the popular profile of today's successful entrepreneurs.

6 Personal Traits Will Accelerate Your Influence at Work

6 Personal Traits Will Accelerate Your Influence at Work: “They just don’t understand me!”   This is one of the most popular excuses from employees that are having trouble creating impact and influence in the workplace.    In fact, most employees whosay that are just tired of a workplace culture that does not encourage them to share their individuality.

Money-Saving Websites

Money-Saving Websites

Do What You Love! How to Identify and Pursue Your Passions

Do What You Love! How to Identify and Pursue Your Passions: I spent nearly 15 years working in nonprofit management, mostly in fundraising and marketing. I was good at it—people told me so all the time. It came easily to me, paid the bills, and was a very comfortable career path.

Avoid These 4 Critical Mistakes During Open Enrollment

Avoid These 4 Critical Mistakes During Open Enrollment: In the world of personal finance, we are often told what we should do. Alas, with the seemingly endless number of positive steps you can take, that approach can sometimes leave you feeling overwhelmed.

Six Tax-Wise Ways To Reduce Your Legal Bills

Six Tax-Wise Ways To Reduce Your Legal Bills: No one likes paying legal fees, but tax rules can reduce your legal bills.  Here’s how.

Are You Ready to Seize Your Big Opportunity?

Are You Ready to Seize Your Big Opportunity?: Even in challenging economic times like these, dynamic institutions are reinventing themselves and positioning themselves to prosper in a rapidly changing world. Even in stressful times like these, innovative and deeply passionate individuals are leading change and looking for ways to seize an opportunity that will propel their organizations forward.

How to Tell an Employee to Stop Dressing Provocatively

How to Tell an Employee to Stop Dressing Provocatively: First, review your company's dress code with management. Then meet with the individual and communicate your request honestly.

Better ways to network

Better ways to network: Successful executives share their best advice on sparking, cultivating and sustaining profitable business relationships

How To Improve Your Writing

How To Improve Your Writing: There’s a lot of advice out there on being a better writer (some of it is pretty funny, intentional or otherwise), but the focus always seems to be on how best to inhabit the writerly identity and not how to, you know, actually get better at the underlying task. It’s like an article on getting rich that only tells you how to order champagne with élan, but doesn’t mention anything about how to make money in the first place.

Are you making enough of the right decisions, fast enough?

Are you making enough of the right decisions, fast enough?: Effective decision-making systems are core to successful business strategy execution.

Three Financial Guesstimates Every Business Plan Needs

Three Financial Guesstimates Every Business Plan Needs: Not a numbers person? Our columnist explains the fundamentals of financial projections that should go into your business plan.

How To Predict Your Competitor's Next Moves

How To Predict Your Competitor's Next Moves: By Leonard M. Fuld

3 Mistakes That Block Career Bliss (and My 52 Biggest Mistakes)

3 Mistakes That Block Career Bliss (and My 52 Biggest Mistakes): Serving as a career coach and trainer, I see thousands of professionals making the same mistakes, over and over, not knowing how to reverse their negative patterns.  These mistakes are common but highly destructive, and can lead to your waking up in midlife scratching your head about how you arrived in a career you hate (that hates you back).
I have to admit that I’ve made many of these mistakes myself, and then some (for more about my story, check out Breakdown Breakthrough).  Last year, I was speaking with a new friend, Justin Krane, about my career trajectory, and he asked if I’d share my top ten business mistakes.  That got me thinking…
I decided then to come clean with My 52 Mistakes in life and work.  (Here’s the original list).  A quick word about “mistakes” – I believe it’s important to openly share our mistakes – not so that we can beat ourselves up about how we’ve blown it, but to heal, learn and grow.  And to remind you that you’re not alone in the mistakes you’ve made.
As I review My 52 Mistakes now and distill them down to their essence, I see three fundamental missteps people take that keep them from the experience of fulfillment, success and satisfaction they long for.    
The 3 Biggest Mistakes People Make… 
1. Waiting and waiting for a miracle, and resisting what is
In our culture and society, it seems we have confused dogged individualistic determination with an inability to face reality.  Many of us have been suckered into believing the myth, “Build It and They Will Come” – the idea that if we believe in something hard enough, it simply must come to pass.  Well, it’s not true.  That behavior is what author Maria Nemeth in her great book The Energy of Money calls “metafizzling.”  I’m sorry folks, but we’re not in control of everything that happens to us. 

Avoiding the Seven Deadly Mistakes in Business

Avoiding the Seven Deadly Mistakes in Business: Everybody makes mistakes. But it’s better if you can learn from other people’s mistakes before you make them, too. In a recent speech to entrepreneurs in Brant, Ont., I offered my take on......

Great Ideas: 3 simple paths to fearless public speaking

Great Ideas: 3 simple paths to fearless public speaking: There’s a reason many people would rather be in the casket than delivering the eulogy. Public speaking can fill even the most self-assured executive with dread. And even if you’ve been addressing large groups for years, chances are you’ll still feel a few butterflies before you take the podium.

7 Fees That You Should Always Negotiate

7 Fees That You Should Always Negotiate: Consumerism is an art, and with the right strategy, you can easily keep costs down. Beyond time-consuming activities like couponing, negotiating is a great place to start. (This gallery is based on information from the Investopedia story of the same name http://financialedge.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0711/7-Fees-That-You-Should-Always-Negotiate.aspx)

Steve Jobs' Six Rules of WOM and Buzz Marketing

Steve Jobs' Six Rules of WOM and Buzz Marketing: By now, some readers must have been getting tired of reading scores of stories and articles about Steve Jobs' legacy. However, no mater how much it is written and said about great men, and the lessons they left behind for the generations to come, it is never enough. Here, I want to add the six rules of Word-of-Mouth (WOM) and buzz that Steve Jobs applied successfully in promoting the Apple products:

The Key Trait Successful People Have, and How To Get It - Forbes

The Key Trait Successful People Have, and How To Get It - Forbes

A Fool-Proof B2B Marketing Recipe

A Fool-Proof B2B Marketing Recipe: For B2B marketing, it is the quality that counts, not the quantity.

The Top 5 Free Finance Apps

The Top 5 Free Finance Apps: The top five finance apps for your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch cover every angle of business and personal finance.   You can manage all of your bills in once place, check the latest prices of commodities, or control your stock portfolio with unbelievable immediacy and accuracy.

Startup Lessons from David Cohen and the TechStars

Startup Lessons from David Cohen and the TechStars: Though the TechStars program lasts three months, participants say the entrepreneurship lessons will stick with them forever. Here's a snapshot of what they learned.

The Myth of the Business Plan

The Myth of the Business Plan: Don't fall prey to analysis by paralysis. Writing a business plan isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you're agonizing over a written plan, your time might be better spent talking to potential customers.

How to Run a Meeting

How to Run a Meeting: Dr. Nadine Katz goes to a lot of meetings. Some of them last so long the participants have to order in food or switch rooms. About nine years ago Katz, who is senior associate dean, professor and director of medical education in the department of obstetrics, gynecology and women's health at

10 Experts Share 10 Tips: Looking Great at the Office

10 Experts Share 10 Tips: Looking Great at the Office: When it comes to personal branding, the outer you reflects the inner you. Putting care and thought into your style will help you stand out in all the right ways.
For some expert advice in this arena, I approached 10 leaders in the beauty and fashion worlds and asked them each for one tip for looking your best at the office:
1. “I love to see a woman go to work in a dress that can take her from day to evening so that she looks appropriate in the office, but can head straight out for a night on the town.”

Four Common Startup Money Mistakes

Four Common Startup Money Mistakes: Good financial management is key to startup success. You can get your business off to a sound start if you can avoid these money traps.

How to Turn the Fear of Failure into a Business Growth Strategy

How to Turn the Fear of Failure into a Business Growth Strategy: Will the Great Recession ever be over? Recent news from the Federal Reserve and the stock market make the answer uncertain. This economic environment makes the mistakes of failing and its consequences even scarier. But, facing failure can actually be a business growth strategy for a promising company, by letting go of the past and taking an action that leads to another chance at success.

Three Questions to Answer Before You Write a Business Plan

Three Questions to Answer Before You Write a Business Plan: Before you can map out a business plan, you have to make some basic decisions about the direction that you want your company to take.

Five Questions Your Business Plan Must Answer

Five Questions Your Business Plan Must Answer: Business plans don't have to be a lengthy ordeal. But you're more likely to get off to a good start if you think through critical questions about how you'll make money and run the show.

What Is Charisma? Body Language Quick Takes #9

What Is Charisma? Body Language Quick Takes #9: Charisma is not what you think it is.  It’s not a God-given gift that you either have or you don’t.  It’s rather something you can learn, something you can turn on or off at will once you understand how it works.

How to Prepare Yourself for Startup Success

How to Prepare Yourself for Startup Success: Preparation is key to success as a young entrepreneur. Consider this practical advice before you begin.

Five Simple Tips to Make Co-Working Work for Your Business

Five Simple Tips to Make Co-Working Work for Your Business: Is a co-working space right for your business? Here are some tips on how to make coworking a nicer experience for you and your suitemates.

Lessons Learned from Scary Business Mistakes

Lessons Learned from Scary Business Mistakes: Young entrepreneurs often share common stumbles. Here are three tips to avoid making the same startup mistakes.

The Five Key Traits of Empowered CMOs

The Five Key Traits of Empowered CMOs: Marketers are beginning to adapt to the realities of today’s empowered customer. Armed with high-tech mobile devices and backed by legions in their social networks, there’s no doubt that consumers now can flex their buying muscle in new ways. They can gather product information, read reviews, comparison shop, solicit opinions, ask for customer service and eventually, buy –all whenever and wherever they choose to do so.

How Business Owners Counter Online Slander

How Business Owners Counter Online Slander: Push falsehoods down in search results by creating more content about the company. To fight off an attack, ask sites to remove false comments

How to Turn the Fear of Failure into a Business Growth Strategy

How to Turn the Fear of Failure into a Business Growth Strategy: Will the Great Recession ever be over? Recent news from the Federal Reserve and the stock market make the answer uncertain. This economic environment makes the mistakes of failing and its consequences even scarier. But, facing failure can actually be a business growth strategy for a promising company, by letting go of the past and taking an action that leads to another chance at success.

10 Myths About Social Networking For Business

10 Myths About Social Networking For Business: Common misconceptions and what to do about them.

10 Quotes From Bill Hewlett and David Packard That Every Executive Should Read

10 Quotes From Bill Hewlett and David Packard That Every Executive Should Read: Below are 10 quotes from Bill Hewlett and David Packard that I have posted near my desk.

The 3 Cs of a great B2B marketing strategy

The 3 Cs of a great B2B marketing strategy: Thinking about your company, customers and competitors can give you a huge edge

Great Ideas: Three keys to guiding your company through any change

Great Ideas: Three keys to guiding your company through any change: Three keys to guiding your company through any change

The Definitive Guide To Selling More Of Anything Online

The Definitive Guide To Selling More Of Anything Online: The web has done wonders for shrinking sales and marketing budgets. But we are a long way from getting the most out our e-commerce efforts. What follows will help.

Using Social Media To Leap From Startup To Established Business

Using Social Media To Leap From Startup To Established Business: There are an estimated 27 million plus small businesses in the U.S. alone. If you’re one of those startups, you know how tough it is to get your message out about the innovative work you’re doing and the products, services or technology you’re producing. Your very success depends on getting the word out to the right target audience who need your solution and making sure you stand out from the crowd.

Five Things Every Small Business Should Know About Public Relations

Five Things Every Small Business Should Know About Public Relations: Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are great, but the basics of public relations remain.  You still need coherent messages, valuable networks and great stories.  Here are five must-haves for successful PR.

Six Tips On Collecting Meaningful Customer Feedback

Six Tips On Collecting Meaningful Customer Feedback: Collecting useful customer feedback is a critical business need that most small businesses do poorly, because they don’t organize their data collection, and rarely focus on gathering information they can actually use to make business decisions. Here are a few hints on how collect good data better: