It’s your business to keep

healthcare a business!

     Successful businesses  run on management that’s charged with taking responsibility to match authority. Yet we continually empower politicians to assume authority without making them accountable for taking responsibility.

     We elect and empower  people who are not business leaders, and they in turn appoint and empower other people who are not business leaders. And then we sit back and expect business leadership? You know what? We’re just not getting it.

     This whole healthcare fiasco  is proof of the pudding. It is impossible to dictate success because success is in fact determined by exercising the ability to rise above dictatorship.

     Federal Government  mandated healthcare cannot succeed because it will break what little is left of our economy’s backbone. And all of us will pay for that failure with our hard-earned tax dollars! 

     If you think $3-$4 per gallon regular  fuel costs are bad (and it was $2.75 today and rising in Eastern Pennsylvania), and you think healthcare insurance is outrageous, and that there’s a real shortage of good, qualified doctors available to choose from, think again!

     You may indeed  want to reconsider rushing to endorse the proposals our UN-businesslike Federal politicians are trying to ramrod into existence by emptying our wallets!

     If healthcare cannot be promoted  and run as a free enterprise competitive system and administered on a state-by-state basis, it doesn’t stand a chance of surviving… and the government’s feeble attempts to throw tax dollars at the auto industry will pale by comparison because the crash of healthcare will be paid for directly out of our own pockets for decades to come.

     While we’re at it,  by the way, education is the next explosion waiting to happen. Getting government hands off of healthcare will go a long way to getting government hands off of education.

     And if you’ve ever had a dream for yourself and your family, it should be for both of those events to occur. Why?

     Because when all is said and done,  NO one knows your and your family’s healthcare and education needs better than you and your family, and those needs are different in Delaware than they are in California, or Maine or Texas!

[Note: For what it’s worth, besides having seen Pennsylvania’s gas prices myself today (!), I have decades of experience as both an educator and as a healthcare management consultant. What’s offered above is NOT a matter of loose, unfounded opinion; but if you doubt, do your own homework!]

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Our beloved “geek” 

gets married today!

     After something like 18 years  of loyal service, including middle of the night emergencies, our beloved computer guru, Michael Todd Infusino, is embarking on a new life with his marriage to (God Bless Her!) Naomi “Nomie” Nomura.

     Nomie is the sweetest thing  that’s ever happened to Michael, and we are so happy for them both that they have found each other! (It’s like Pepperoni Sushi!)

     Michael is the genius  responsible for creating and maintaining this great blog site, as well as my business site www.TheWriterWorks.com. 

     Michael has been a gift from the heavens  because — without Michael to kick around — there would be no blog!

     Just imagine:  you would be staring vacantly at your screen wondering what else in the world you could possibly find to replace this wonderful “boost your butt and your business” site six days a week! (Of course you would find nothing; it’d be like your favorite TV show going off the air… maybe 30 seconds of respectful silence? Aaah, but this isn’t about blogs!)

     What this is REALLY all about is that Kathy and I are headed off to Michael and Nomie’s wedding,  and we just wanted the rest of the world to know what truly fine human beings these two young people are, and that we’re very proud of them and pleased for their decision to share one another’s strengths.

     It’s been a pleasure to know them as individuals, and it will be an even greater pleasure to know them as husband and wife (wife and husband? Hmmm.)

CONGRATULATIONS MICHAEL & NOMIE!

WE WISH YOU GREAT HEALTH AND HAPPINESS!

Hal & Kathy

# # #  

Are YOU on my desk?

     As I look around me,  I see notes and slips of paper with phone numbers and phone messages and email addresses and reminders… all people who have said they are definitely interested in moving forward with business consulting and/or writing services… all people who have not followed through even though I have offered gentle reminders.

     If you commit to someone  that you intend to do business with at some level, and especially when you set a target date, either do it… or call that person immediately to let him or her know that you have second thoughts, other thoughts, no thoughts… whatever! But communicate!

     In street lingo,  it’s referred to as “S*@& or get off the pot!” and it means exactly that!

     How can you expect  to build or maintain any kind of reputation for integrity when you tell people one thing, and do another?

     How can you expect  people to think respectfully of you and your business when you don’t treat them respectfully?

     Does this mean  sending out an RFP to “outside” services and then not communicating about it once the proposal is submitted? Of course! Doesn’t every proposal require some explanation? 

     Does this mean  agreeing to have the information a product or service provider needs in order to complete an order into her or his hands by a certain date, and then honoring that agreement (or immediately notifying the other party of the need for a delay)? Of course!

     Does this mean  honoring a customer discount offer that’s presented 24 hours after the expiration date (regardless of reason offered)? Of course! 

     If you are on the receiving end  (or actually, non-receiving end might be more appropriate) of any of these kinds of situations, you may need to re-negotiate your relationship to the point of having to ask point blank:

“Are you interested in moving forward with this as we’ve agreed, or not?”

(If YES,  “Let’s set a deadline of _____ for getting _____ done. Okay with you?”)

(If NO,  “What specific things can I do right now to get us back on track?”) 

Putting things off , like services you contract for, or not providing essential input for those services to do what you’re paying them to do, is a losing proposition for all involved. And the cost of not communicating is lost integrity. Neither is a healthy business practice!

# # #  

When you’re getting screwed…

• Scenario A.  You bust your butt to provide the Smashface Cosmetics Company with superior package designs. Your performance exceeds their expectations and definite sales can even be traced to your efforts. . . They thank you and tell you that they’ll not be honoring your agreed-to fees, and you’ll have to accept a 30% cut because “as you know, times are tough right now”! 
• Scenario B.  The Breaka Ubones Surgery Group thanks you for putting in 20 hours a week (instead of the contracted 10) to develop their medical practice, but you haven’t delivered them enough hip and knee replacements in the past 30 days and they need the fee they’re paying you for a golf sponsorship.
• Scenario C.  Your management/marketing consulting input resulted in the Half- Moon-Half-Hour-Room-Rental Motel purchasing 14 new mattresses that are now bedbug infested. It’s your fault, they say, and they refuse to honor your management consulting fee until all the bedbugs are gone, and even then, only if you do them a free website upgrade and revise their brochure.
• Scenario D.   You get an audience with a major company that asks for rush help launching a new product. You do a quick come back with a comprehensive startup plan. They thank you then issue a RFP to four of your competitors for the same job. . . You ask to be included. They agree. You work for three full days, produce a ten-page proposal that works (at 30% lower fee than others propose). They hire a firm that gives them a fancy presentation, and then ask you to submit ideas for another project.

HA!  YOU MUST BE KIDDING!

FIRE ‘EM!

T H E Y    D O N ‘ T    D E S E R V E    Y O U .

     Besides, they’ll make you broke,  and they’ll never respect you anyway. Get rid of them. Walk away. And unless your brother is a great business lawyer, forget about pursuing legal action. Just take it on the chin, and walk. Of course you can afford to let them go. How affordable is it for you to continue? Use the time and energy you save to go get a new client!

     There comes a point where your time and energy are not worth the hunt.  And you need to be able to drop the deal and move on to other people and situations where you can make a difference and where your input will be respected. Integrity always finds its reward!

     Life is too short  to waste time and energy on stupid people with hidden agendas. 

# # #  

RIP Police Officer Chad Spicer

Tonight’s blog post is dedicated to the family of Georgetown, Delaware, Police Officer Chad Spicer, 29, who was killed by gunfire last night in the line of duty during what was an attempted speeding vehicle stop after an apparent drug deal had gone bad. Officer Spicer leaves a wife and 3 year-old daughter. Another officer was wounded. Two suspects were apprehended; a third is still at large as of this writing. Details and family donation information are available at www.wgmd.com Rehoboth Beach radio.             

     It is a sad day indeed on Delmarva Peninsula.  Once again, we live through the senseless murder of a brave American who gave his life to protect those of his neighbors. One thing’s for sure, he never imagined leaving his family and friends behind like this when he woke up yesterday and reported for duty.

     If the odds for not surviving  another day haven’t crossed your mind lately, let this terrible incident be a reminder. We live lives too short as humans to devote our energy, time and attention to all the business stresses that run through our minds and shudder through our bodies every day.

     We may think that the older we get,  the closer we move to death’s door, but death makes so such exception when the suddenness arrives unannounced. When that moment is here, will we want to have spent our years and months and weeks and minutes being worried about business events that haven’t yet come… and may never?

     Will we want to have spent our time on Earth  dwelling on past business events that are over and done with, and about which we can do nothing to change? Just because we own or manage a business, do we use that responsibility as an excuse for mistreating ourselves and others, or even for wishing ill-thoughts?

     As our businesses go, so go opportunities to grow and help ourselves and others to better appreciate the riches of all that surrounds us every day. It’s easy to bitch and complain, to make excuses and blame. But “easy” is not part of being human. Genuineness is. Love is. Caring is. Hard work is. Service to others is. A sense of humor is.

     Business is our tool.  Let us use it to lead others to cultivate life by thinking and acting positively in all that we do. It may not always be possible, but it’s always possible to try.   

# # #  

Travel in circles

of authenticity!

     I used to teach  my entrepreneurship students to carry their business cards everywhere. I even suggested that a couple of laminated cards tucked into a bathing suit pocket or workout or yoga bag wouldn’t be a bad idea. They thought I was nuts!

     I’ll tell you what…  you find me someone who is a self-made business success who doesn’t always have a business card available, and I guarantee you that an inheritance played some role. Proactive business owners and managers know that most explosive business opportunities come from where you least expect them.

     I’ve had people  track me down with a ten year-old business card that no longer had the same address and phone numbers. And of course you can find anyone these days on Google. The point is to not discount the value of every contact you make every day.

     Networking isn’t about  a great grip handshake, a business card exchange and a teethy smile. Networking isn’t a flashy passing or a thunderbolt. Networking is all about cultivating the relationships you initiate.  Here are four thoughts, and a bottom line…

One:

Take the time and trouble  to jot down the date, event, and some memorable trait or visual or vocal characteristic or attribute on the back of every business card you collect. “Red hair / wire-rim glasses / unbuttoned collar / infectious laugh” are the kinds of comments that will help bring the individual back into focus after a hundred other cards and a hundred hours pass. 

Two:

Write something personal  on the cards you give out, especially to someone you really want to remember you. Scribble a connecting website or 2nd email address that’s not printed on the card, your cell number, or a book title you recommend.

Three:

Follow up. Follow up. Follow up.  Nobody does it. I’m not talking about being annoying or badgering; don’t waste your time. I mean if someone mentions they have a child with a special interest or need, and you run across information that’s related, send it along: “Saw this and was reminded of our discussion; thought you might be interested.”

Four:

The biggest and/or best business deal  you ever get is likely to come –as they say at the ballpark– from out of left field. It may be a contact you never dreamed of being productive, or one that comes as a second or third person referral from someone else who you never thought even noticed you.

The Bottom line . . .

Don’t write anyone off. 

The world is getting smaller every day.

People who like you and what you have to say

will talk about you and make sales for you . . .

when you least expect.

Oh, and expectations, by the way,

breed disappointment.

Value and appreciate everyone you encounter

regardless of appearances or stature.

What goes around, I’m reminded,

comes around!

Travel in circles of authenticity! 

# # #

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Hal@Businessworks.US   302.933.0116

Open  Minds  Open  Doors

Many thanks for your visit and God Bless You.

Make today a GREAT day for someone!