A New Direction

When it comes to learning about business there is a great deal to be said about getting a solid college education.  And yes an MBA helps when it comes to learning about business, but perhaps the greatest lessons are learned after school is out, the school of the real world begins.  Rael Bricker is originally from Johannesburg, South Africa, but lives in Perth Australia.  He has a Master’s De...

Let’s be honest the world is changing at an amazing pace.  Technology is moving so fast that as soon as you purchase technology it is already obsolete.   As we come through the pandemic we have watched which companies were able to handle change and which ones sadly could not.   The other fact is that if we are not willing to change, or chose to ignore it.  those businesses will die.   And th...

When it comes to work freedom is the last thing we think about.  Most of the places we work at for instance use some sort of a hierarchy.  But what if you could truly have freedom at work ?  What if you really mattered?  What if your opinion mattered?  What if you were given more choices within your job?  When we think about those questions depending where you are at in the hierarchical chain you...

We have all been through and continue to go through crisis.  For the last two plus years we have been dealing with the pandemic.  We have seen businesses crumble, people scatter, emotions rising.  The truth is leading in a crisis is not easy.  Now we have Russia invading and starting an unprovoked war with the Ukraine.  Talk about leading in a crisis, no one is envious of what Volodymyr Zelensky t...

When it comes to our job search we often get the same old tired advice.  Many job search professionals will want to focus on your resume, cover letter, or your network.  And while those things have value we often miss the most important element in our job search…YOU.  As our authors Cathy Wasserman and Lauren Weinstein on this episode of A New Direction describe it, “we can have a tsun...

We place a great amount of stock in what people say, but perhaps we have that wrong.  We more than likely should pay closer to the body language of the person because that may be more of a give away of what that person is thinking.  Most of us are fascinated with body language when it comes to deception and lying.  Most of us also believe we can detect lying accurately in others say with their bod...

When it comes to marketing the research is clear, your best marketing is telling your authentic unique story.  Why? Because our brains are naturally wired to hear and relate to a story.  Also, because we all have one.  What is more every story is unique which means that your story becomes a differentiator when it comes to your marketing.  The question becomes how do you tell your marketing story? ...

We all love a good story.  In fact, we watch movies and TV shows because we love the storytelling that happens with in them.  But some how in business we get a disconnect between storytelling and our brand.  Sure we will spend tons of money on marketing, believing that it is making a difference.  But we are perhaps missing the greatest marketing advantage each of us have…and that is telling...

We all know the statistics…the number one reason why people leave their job is their boss.  But we also read how managers are frustrated because they cannot seem to motivate their employees to be as productive as they need the to be.   Honestly when it comes to this relationship it appears to be no relationship at all.  The fact is this relationship should be a partnership.  A partnership th...

Most of us do not realize it, but the fact of the matter is most of our behavior is guided by fear and a resistance to change.  We are susceptible to FOMO “fear of missing out”, or we fear that we may lose what we have.  We may jump from relationship to relationship because we have an unconscious fear of commitment, or we may fear we are not loveable.  The media uses fear to keep us en...

As a leader we are called to be problem solvers.  But we are also called to be great communicators.  If we cannot communicate effectively…well…we will not be a leader for long.  The part of communication in leadership that is rarely talked about is the “language” of leadership.  Yes it is true or language can be affected by our tone, but language can also be the words we us...

Whether you are a solopreneur, entrepreneur, start-up, B2B, B2C, small business, corporation, profit or non-profit we all should have a desire to see your organization operate at it’s highest level.  There are three critical parts to every organization, culture, people, and leadership.  And if any one of those areas are week or off track so is the entire organization.  Thankfully former CEO...

Do you really know your customer?  What percentage of your customers come back to you to do business with you again?  Do they love you so much that they tell other people about your business and get you referrals?  If you don’t like the answers to these questions, or are hesitant to answer these questions, then chances are you do not know your customers as well as you think you do, and they...

What does climbing Mount Everest have to do with being an Entrepreneur and a Start-Up Company?  Turns out pretty much everything.  If you are considering a Start-Up then the truth of the matter is you are on a journey.  And that journey is pretty much of a climb that is beset with potential pit falls and altitudes that you have never experienced.  In fact if you are an entrepreneur with a Start-Up...

I remember working for a Division 1 University and a person that I worked with was frustrated with the younger generation at the time and he said, “They need to get over it!  You don’t go to fun…You go to work!”  Sadly when it comes to  work and fun that attitude still seems to prevail.  There is mistaken belief that work and fun are like oil and water and the two don&#8217...

Money.  When we hear it, it brings all sorts of  emotions.  It seems some people have money and others don’t.  And yet, there are those who by most standards do not make much money, but wind up millionaires at the end of their life.  How is that possible?  This is why on this episode of A New Direction author and financial planner Clark Kendall talks about money how to accumulate it, how to...

Regardless of what you do in business it all really comes down to one word…communication.  If you are trying to employ your team to do more, it’s communication.  If you want to overcome a crisis, it’s communication.  If you want people to buy your product or service it’s…wait for it…communication.  I think we all know that this is ultimately true, but how much d...

Let’s say your 5 foot 3 inches tall and you decide to join the U. S. Marine Corps, what do you think you are going to learn about leadership?  Now add to that you are female in the Marine Corps…what do you think it will take to be a respected leader?  When it comes to leadership my guest on this episode of A New Direction co-author Angie Morgan (U.S. Marine ret’d) doesn’t s...

The fact is we are all sales people at some point if not most point in our lives.  But then there are those people who have made sales their career.  It is a profession.  But let’s be honest it’s not an easy profession.  The fact is for most people who are not in sales when they hear the word, there can be this yucky feeling in the pit of their stomach and an urge to runaway.  Why?  We...

What if you had a had a business where all your people wanted to stay because they loved it so much. In fact it was so good that you never had to really hire anyone because people were running to your door to be a part of what you have going in your business? What does it take to do that? Well it takes a culture. But not just any culture. It has to be such a great culture that people feel that the...

As we are in the very beginnings of the holiday season things can get pretty chaotic.  As great as the Holidays are or can be the stress can be overwhelming.  We all get caught up into having to put up decorations, making travel plans, making menus, gift buying and the list just gets longer.  But it isn’t only our personal life that is affected.  Quite frankly all of our businesses become af...

When it comes to our jobs often we feel powerless.  Sometimes this occurs because when we work for someone else we believe that we do not have any control over our job.  Then there are those who feel stuck in their job, they feel as if they cannot move up or go anywhere.  They blame their boss, blame the management, ,blame the ownership, they blame others in general for their lack of motivation or...

When it comes to leadership who better than a U.S. Army general is more qualified to talk about it.  When you have led thousands of men and women in the midst of brutal, volatile, and dangerous combat, and having to take the responsibility of the lives of all those under his command you better demonstrate great leadership.  You not only need to have great leadership knowledge, but you must have ch...

Owning your own business is exciting.  However, when you choose to own your own business you are responsible to make the decisions.  And this is where business mistakes happen…in the decision making process.  It has been said that in the game of golf that the one thing a professional golfer does that an amateur does not do, is they know how to avoid the mistakes.  This of course makes them m...

How do you go from being in debt to owning franchises, owning property and your own business?  It all starts with changing your stinkin’ thinkin’.  Let’s face it we all want some sort of success.  Or we would like to have even more success.  And when is comes to success we have a tendency to look outward.  We want to find some “trick”, some easy way to find this illus...