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Management - Page 2

I have had a change of heart regarding bad behavior

I can't believe I am saying this only a few days after I reminded my blog readers that I refuse to reward bad behavior - that I am in fact, not going to put any more energy into someone who I can't change or rectify their bad behavior. At some stage, people just won't change. They will laugh it off and pretend it didn't happen.
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Is it possible to beat a business bully?

Is it possible to beat a business bully?

This week I encountered a business bully, except it was personal and they just happened to also be a business person. Someone with deep pockets who tried to "scare me" as he put it. He finally apologized but I have thought deeply about how often in my career this has happened, largely because I am a woman or a small business owner. There are a lot of dishonest people around. People who deliberately don't pay bills as they know it costs more to sue someone, or those who are just not nice people and want to be bullies because they get kicks out of it.

I use to be scared. I use to get anxiety over it. I use to fall apart and perhaps even shed a few tears.
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Never give away everything

Never give away everything

Please keep your pants on, and never give away everything, it's as simple as that.

Too many entrepreneurs get so desperate that they give away the kitchen sink when in fact all their prospect wanted to know was that they could do a good job.

As an entrepreneur, it's hard to start a business and to keep it going year-after-year profitability creating value and jobs. But many do so very successful, and yet those who fail seem to do so falling often on their own sword.
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You could be the reason your business has stopped growing

You could be the reason your business has stopped growing

Most entrepreneurs don't really listen that much. They trust their gut instinct and often find that their newest great idea, should take precedence over everything else their business has going on. 

While that is good and well, this constant need for gratification and results often leads to entrepreneurs missing the mark - and then wondering why they are forging ahead as first thought.
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Why an only child can be hard work in the workplace

Why an only child can be hard work in the workplace

Having siblings often is an essential ingredient in helping a child navigate the world, teaching them how to share, be empathetic, and play well with others. With only children, there is less need to navigate the world as usually parents over compensate for the fact that they are the "one and only" child they have, and help make their lives as smooth and easy as possible. All of their attention goes on the child, and when the child asks for something, its hard to say no - afterall, you only have one child.

Only children are more often than not spoilt by their parents. 
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Why entrepreneurs need to constantly rethink their businesses

I had a humbling experience today and I want to share with you just what that meant to me as an entrepreneur and founder.

Marketing Eye has been around for more than 10 years. We were not an overnight success, but have steadily grown a very successful business in Australia and in the US (Atlanta, Dallas, Seattle, Denver).

Building a business has never been easy and every single time I think that its got its groove going, I am awakened with a rude shock. It seems that the business is always growing, changing, adapting and needing a new influx of ideas or improvements in the way we do business.
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The billable hours conundrum for professional services firms

Unlike many other professional services firms, I cared less about how many billable hours my employees were doing until the fatal day that it was brought to my attention by my internal accountant that some people were "performing" not as good as others and the gap was highly significant.

It is harder to work in a professional services firm than in corporate. Knowing that you have to do a certain number of billable hours is a lot of pressure until you actually stop thinking about it.
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They are not only brand ambassadors, but owners

They are not only brand ambassadors, but owners

I gave the team a small project, and even before they started i knew the result. It had something to do with our company so it was experimental in every sense of the word. But I knew deep down it would fail, and I knew why.

Normally, I would be the first to say "that won't work". However, this wasn't the time. It was a small project and it wouldn't harm anyone by being a failure. Instead, it would be a lesson learned and I was willing to pay the price.
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How to hire your next leader

How to hire your next leader

For six months we searched for a VP of Marketing to run our Atlanta operations, and after searching Australia, US and UK/Europe we found Shara Atkinson. She is from Atlanta but for the past 10 years has lived in the UK. 

Hiring Shara has been a game-changer. Prior to her appointment, I was overseeing the US market and managed staff from afar. Let me share with you, "it's not the best idea". Running a new company remotely is very hard. It's easy for Marketing Eye to get business, but hard to keep employees and train them from a different continent.
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18 months ago I hired my niece

18 months ago I hired my niece

 18 months ago, I decided to employ my niece who was 18 at the time, to work at the Marketing Eye Sydney office.

I spent alot of time thinking through this decision, and did not take it lightly. I decided that given how young she is, I would have her answer the phone and do administrative duties with the hope she would show aptitude for an area of the business, and we could further train her.
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5 Ways to make your employer lose faith in you

5 Ways to make your employer lose faith in you

Employees are the heart and soul of any organization. I once named a recruitment company in Australia "Human Directions" because it is the human direction of a company that ultimately determines whether your company is going to be successful or not.

I learned a lot over the past 16 years of being in business about people. I have had employees lie, steal, manipulate, gossip and conduct unethical practises that are not within the company's core set of values let alone my own.
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The only thing more powerful than a big idea is...

The only thing more powerful than a big idea is...

The only thing more powerful than a big idea is the team that can see it through. 

Many of us have big, huge, gigantic ideas - but how many of these ideas actually see light of day. Statistics show that not many do. 

If you are anything like me, you live and breathe ideas and the very essence of your being is celebrating the fact that you are an "ideas person". But an idea is just that unless you do something about it.
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How much power should you give your employees?

How much power should you give your employees?

Marketing Eye is an international business. With our expansion to Atlanta and then other locations throughout the US, we had to really think about what our organizational structure was going to be like moving forward. After a lot of investigation, and research, we decided to work as a flat organizational structure and give people the power to make important business decisions.
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A glass of champagne, a quick chat, and a look to the future

A glass of champagne, a quick chat, and a look to the future

Every Friday is different. Some days we are so busy, we can't scratch ourselves. Other's we are creating great brands, and needing to free ourselves from the shackles of everyday work life and think outside the square. 

Our environment is transformative. I say this because each of our offices has their own unique personalities. They seem to encompass the culture that has fostered from an environment free of layered management and flat in structure.
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