Do you remember this?

Desolie mentioned the good old days, on a day I’d just discussed them with Dad.

As businesspeople, our beliefs have deep implications for how we operate.

To optimise same, I’d like to know:

It all began with the garbage truck …

Concrete data

Dad and I were chatting on his terrace.

Having put a smashed concrete planter in his wheelie bin, he worried the ‘garbo’ wouldn’t take it.

As heavy vehicles approached, he wondered if each were the garbo.

I said that in the good old days, the garbo always came at the same time every week, and that today’s outsourced contractors were all over the joint.

Monster truck

Some time later, a deep roar murdered all other sound.

‘That’s the garbo’, said Dad.

A leviathan hove into view, its dwarfed driver leaning out to peer at Dad’s bin.

With a shriek, a mechanical claw swooped, ... Continue reading]]>

Do you remember this?

Desolie mentioned the good old days, on a day I’d just discussed them with Dad.

As businesspeople, our beliefs have deep implications for how we operate.

To optimise same, I’d like to know:

• Were the old days actually good?
• Are these days better?
• If not, can we go back?

It all began with the garbage truck …

Concrete data

Dad and I were chatting on his terrace.

Having put a smashed concrete planter in his wheelie bin, he worried the ‘garbo’ wouldn’t take it.

As heavy vehicles approached, he wondered if each were the garbo.

I said that in the good old days, the garbo always came at the same time every week, and that today’s outsourced contractors were all over the joint.

Monster truck

Some time later, a deep roar murdered all other sound.

‘That’s the garbo’, said Dad.

A leviathan hove into view, its dwarfed driver leaning out to peer at Dad’s bin.

With a shriek, a mechanical claw swooped, plucked and tipped the bin into the bowels of the beast.

The speed and force were so great, I expected the bin to vault the road and slay a knot of schoolchildren opposite.

Back blocks

‘Well, Dad’, I said. ‘You needn’t worry about bunging that bloke’s back with your blocks!’

Dad replied that in the good old days, there were three men to each truck: runner, tipper and driver.

I added that when I was a child, our garbos recognised me and were friendly.

At xmas, Mum left cash and a thank-you note for them.

In our letterbox.

Overnight!

‘That was before the drugs came,’ said Dad.

And though Doncaster wasn’t a noted 60s hotspot, I knew what he meant.

Time check

Driving home, I listed conditions that would have to exist for the good old days to return:

1. Public ownership of sanitation services.
2. Job satisfaction.
3. Job security.
4. Reduced (or no) key performance indicators.
5. Trust.
6. A sense of community.
7. Egalitarianism.

I seem to recall these used to exist in our society.

Yet time can colour our thoughts.

I also remember that dogs, kids, rust and wind wrought havoc with old tin bins.

Future shock

And so, my questions anew:

• Can we rekindle the best of the past?
• Should we?
• How?

Or is the way we presently do business the best?

Dump your brain,

recycle memories

and glean fresh insights

here.

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

One day, you may seek sponsorship for your business, team, club, project, cause or event.

This can be tricky, especially in lean times.

In helping clients give it their best shot, I’ve learnt a few things.

I’m hoping you’ll add your two cents, so we all get more bucks for our bang.

Cold hard cash call

Some clients think the best way to tap cats for cash is to cold-call, introduce themselves and their cause, then send written information if they get a bite.

Yet none of the firms I’ve worked with phoned first.

Not only does this put prospects on the spot, it gives them a chance to say ‘no’ before you’ve made your case.

Folding stuff

Instead, I suggest a mail-out with a follow-up phone call 1-2 weeks later.

The mail-out is usually a one-page cover letter with a more detailed (but not encyclopaedic) enclosure/attachment.

Once you get a nibble, you can send more nitty-gritty stuff as requested.

Addressing the ... Continue reading]]>

One day, you may seek sponsorship for your business, team, club, project, cause or event.

This can be tricky, especially in lean times.

In helping clients give it their best shot, I’ve learnt a few things.

I’m hoping you’ll add your two cents, so we all get more bucks for our bang.

Cold hard cash call

Some clients think the best way to tap cats for cash is to cold-call, introduce themselves and their cause, then send written information if they get a bite.

Yet none of the firms I’ve worked with phoned first.

Not only does this put prospects on the spot, it gives them a chance to say ‘no’ before you’ve made your case.

Folding stuff

Instead, I suggest a mail-out with a follow-up phone call 1-2 weeks later.

The mail-out is usually a one-page cover letter with a more detailed (but not encyclopaedic) enclosure/attachment.

Once you get a nibble, you can send more nitty-gritty stuff as requested.

Addressing the point

As with all communications, much depends on your audience (i.e. prospects).

If you define exactly who these people are, you can work out how best to address them.

For instance, sole traders respond differently to CEOs, and marketers have different ‘hot buttons’ to accountants.

The shorter your ‘hit list’, the more you can tailor each prospect’s letter.

Personalised communications work far better than generic.

Your mail-out must be clear and concise, so busy strangers grasp it fast.

It must also be flawless, or it’ll torpedo your credibility.

Fascinating facts

During my human resources career, I saw hundreds of ‘HELP!’ letters hit various corporate boxes.

Most were killed on sight by gate-keeping secretaries.

Some went up the command chain if they offered the organisation a benefit.

The benefit could be obvious, like a shirt logo, event banner or other shout-out (taking care not to overdo it).

The benefit could also be subtle, like donating a desirable charity auction item (which losing bidders would rush out and buy afterwards).

Children’s requests scrawled in crayon always made it to the top.

Going for gold

When I edited a components company newsletter, the most interesting bit was the progress of a young girl pursuing her Olympic martial-arts dream. (She could be in London as we speak.)

She was clearly popular with staff and management alike. She visited the factory, sent dispatches from overseas events and never failed to mention that without the company’s support, she’d still be knee-dropping her kid brother in Upper Combucta West.

Her initial sponsorship request was of the crayon variety, which goes to show that rules can be broken.

The take-out, then, is to use your head before showing your hand.

I now ask you to donate your tips, thoughts, stories, questions and wisdom for our mutual benefit.

Please …

give generously!

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

Shocking news!

Like many, I have trouble getting tradespeople to do anything.

But compelled by the dictates of 120-year-old Empire House, I keep bashing away.

Recently, I had a rare win with an electrician.

I report this result in the hope you may repeat it in your home and/or business.

Such peer review could flag a shift in artisan communication.

Negative

In the past, I sought to curry favour with tradies by being friendly and flexible.

But I went way too far. For instance, when a:

I thus gave away all my power for a modicum of goodwill.

And when, as people do, these craftsmen took my ... Continue reading]]>

Shocking news!

Like many, I have trouble getting tradespeople to do anything.

But compelled by the dictates of 120-year-old Empire House, I keep bashing away.

Recently, I had a rare win with an electrician.

I report this result in the hope you may repeat it in your home and/or business.

Such peer review could flag a shift in artisan communication.

Negative

In the past, I sought to curry favour with tradies by being friendly and flexible.

But I went way too far. For instance, when a:

• Sparkie asked for a convenient time to visit, I said I worked from home and was there pretty much 24/7.
• Plumber said he was flooded with storm work, I said I’d happily wait until he caught up.
• Plasterer mentioned he had several big jobs on, I offered to let him do mine in between.

I thus gave away all my power for a modicum of goodwill.

And when, as people do, these craftsmen took my inches to miles, I got upset.

On reflection, I see I was unreasonable, as I’d created a rod for my own back.

Positive

Having failed to resolve a chronic phone line problem, I switched from gentle reminders to a more structured approach:

‘Dear Fred*,

Could we please get this problem fixed on Monday?

I’ve been waiting for nearly six months now, and my clients have been complaining about my crap phone line – which is making me sound like a hack.

I have a multi-party phone conference with a huge new prospect this week, so it’s critical I get this problem sorted beforehand.

Please can you help?!

Best regards,

P.’

Fred came the next day! He fixed my line, which remains flawless.

How come that?!

Stunned at my success, I analysed my approach and found four points of difference. I had:

1. Nominated a specific day.
2. Flagged the time I’d been waiting.
3. Detailed the consequences of not getting action.
4. Used a much firmer tone.

Maybe I was just lucky.

But I sure plan to try this tack again.

(I’ll let you know how I get on.)

Rewire?

Meanwhile, let’s take a macro look at my experience.

Building-related businesses are dropping like flies.

I wonder if this downturn might encourage tradies to lift their game.

Could the building industry take a hard look at itself and address such chronic complaints as:

• Failing to turn up.
• Failing to turn up on time.
• Turning up unannounced, weeks after an appointment, immediately before some vital event (e.g. large family dinner).
• Doing sub-standard work.
• Using sub-standard materials.
• Refusing to provide guarantees.

In my view, any tradie who pulled this off could eclipse his shabby competitors to win a dwindling work pie.

Or is such thinking pie in the sky?

Whatever your view,

this debate needs your

spark.

* Not his real name.

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

Some businesspeople label the fruits of their labour.

I think this is great in some cases.

But I draw the line when the fruits are … fruit.

Here’s a quick analysis to see if you agree.

Firm foundation

Some hand-made clay bricks from Roman times bear the impression ‘Felix fecit’.

This means ‘made by Felix’.

Not only was Felix the brick maker a proud artisan with a keen sense of branding, he even learnt Latin to address his target audience.

To that I cry ‘Optime!’^

On the fence

When I walk Melbourne streets, I occasionally pass beautifully wrought fences.

Often there’s a tasteful plaque, fixed at eye level, with the maker’s name and address.

As I read these, I think that if I ever have a property grand enough for such a construction, it’d be a deep pleasure to contact such an apparent master.

Site lines

When my Primary IT Guy finished my website, I encouraged him to add his tag, which is still ... Continue reading]]>

Some businesspeople label the fruits of their labour.

I think this is great in some cases.

But I draw the line when the fruits are … fruit.

Here’s a quick analysis to see if you agree.

Firm foundation

Some hand-made clay bricks from Roman times bear the impression ‘Felix fecit’.

This means ‘made by Felix’.

Not only was Felix the brick maker a proud artisan with a keen sense of branding, he even learnt Latin to address his target audience.

To that I cry ‘Optime!’^

On the fence

When I walk Melbourne streets, I occasionally pass beautifully wrought fences.

Often there’s a tasteful plaque, fixed at eye level, with the maker’s name and address.

As I read these, I think that if I ever have a property grand enough for such a construction, it’d be a deep pleasure to contact such an apparent master.

Site lines

When my Primary IT Guy finished my website, I encouraged him to add his tag, which is still there today.

In return, he features my website on his.

This seems eminently fair and sensible.

Sour grapes

But when I go to the grocer, I’m dismayed.

The bananas bear stickers that say ‘Banana’.

The apples have stickers that say ‘Apple’.

And the lemons have stickers that say ‘Lemon’.

A few stickers have logos – meaningless by themselves.

Fewer have brand names (which merely remind me who to avoid next time).

Almost none have contact details, thus negating the only purpose of stickers I can conceive.

(Perhaps you have other ideas.)

These plastic plaques make me feel my mind is fading so fast that I need food recognition aids.

Pacific Coast Eco Bananas, as we’ve seen, are infinitely more sophisticated.

Wasted

I don’t know if food stickers are biodegradable, so I remove them before composting.

Often they end up in my sink (or down it, if I’m not quick enough).

I ponder the vast effort it must have taken to design machines to plaster polymers on nature’s bounty.

I fear my purchases contribute to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Most of all,

I simply wonder …

Why?!

Stick up

What do you think?

Do you label your goods or services?

Why (not)?

Does labelling work?

Have all businesspeople the right to do it?

Or should our grocers be green?

Are food stickers a permanent fixture?

Or is this brand tactic

a lemon?

* Photo by me.

^ Nice work, Squadron Leader!

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

Take a closer look …

As an impressionable youth, I was surprised when a senior retail colleague invited me to his home.

Tim* and I had only dealt fleetingly, yet somehow he knew I was studying human resources.

He said he had something vital to impart that could galvanise my fortunes.

Though he declined to ‘ruin the surprise’ with details, I was intrigued enough to accept.

If the shoe fits

When I arrived, Tim’s smiling wife seated me with nibbles but no drink.

People mingled, dressed very much like my hosts.

After small talk (in which I became progressively anxious to learn the ‘big deal’) Tim called for silence.

He then produced a tin of black shoe polish, and began rubbing it into his carpet.

The others gasped, then looked at me.

Having seen this on TV, I showed less shock than they seemed to expect.

And when Tim reversed his ‘mad’ act with a cleaning agent, I realised I’d been ... Continue reading]]>

Take a closer look …

As an impressionable youth, I was surprised when a senior retail colleague invited me to his home.

Tim* and I had only dealt fleetingly, yet somehow he knew I was studying human resources.

He said he had something vital to impart that could galvanise my fortunes.

Though he declined to ‘ruin the surprise’ with details, I was intrigued enough to accept.

If the shoe fits

When I arrived, Tim’s smiling wife seated me with nibbles but no drink.

People mingled, dressed very much like my hosts.

After small talk (in which I became progressively anxious to learn the ‘big deal’) Tim called for silence.

He then produced a tin of black shoe polish, and began rubbing it into his carpet.

The others gasped, then looked at me.

Having seen this on TV, I showed less shock than they seemed to expect.

And when Tim reversed his ‘mad’ act with a cleaning agent, I realised I’d been sucked in to an Amway party.

Subterfuge

As I abhor mendacity, I threw courtesy to the wind and made for the door.

Tim and two cohorts cut me off, imploring me to:

1. Buy a bottle of cleaning agent for myself.
2. Buy a box to sell to friends, for fun and profit.
3. Consider my premature departure’s impact on my career.

As I saw none, I pushed past them (in a scene similar to one decades later).

Dirty talk

Researching this tricky topic, I found a plethora of terms:

• Multi-level marketing (MLM).
• Direct selling.
• Pyramid scheme.
• Network marketing.
• Referral marketing.
• Party plan.
• Affiliate marketing.

I sense that new words emerge as the old ones get … polished off.

Legit-i-Mate

Fonnie sold Avon for a while. She had no trouble moving product, but we nearly drowned in promotional guff.

She’s bought Nutrimetics and Tupperware from friends and been happy with the experience.

I recall being impressed by the pink Mary Kay cars of super salespeople.

While these legal firms are a far cry from chain letters and airplane games, the MLM waters still seem murky.

Buy-in

To clarify, I’m keen for your MLM experiences.

Have you:

• Sold?
• Sold out?
• Been sold out?

How is the MLM business model holding up on today’s fast-shifting retail sands?

The first five commenters will get a set of knives so crap they leave steel shards in soft cheese.

So don’t delay.

Join us

today!

* Not his real name. Actually, it might be; I was pretty annoyed by his deceit.

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

I’m a big fan of continuous improvement – in both business and personal life.

But some advocates of this discipline are beyond me.

Take, for instance, Émile Coué’s conscious autosuggestion:

Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better.

This exhortation is so demanding, I can’t keep up with the damn thing!

So I think I’ve a better idea …

Too-hard basket case

First, let’s unpack Émile’s proposition.

‘Every day’ is Draconian, totalitarian (and possibly Orwellian).

It includes Mondays, public holidays, days we can’t get out of bed and days we’re too busy to scratch ourselves.

‘Every way’ is even more demanding.

It’s hard enough to pull off a good day’s work. Must we simultaneously improve our health, knowledge, relationships, finances and everything else too?

‘Better and better’ is not only elitist, it’s a tautology.

Whatever happened to ‘near enough is good enough’ and ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’?

Middle path

Agreed, those last two might be a little underachieving.

So here’s ... Continue reading]]>

I’m a big fan of continuous improvement – in both business and personal life.

But some advocates of this discipline are beyond me.

Take, for instance, Émile Coué’s conscious autosuggestion:

Every day, in every way, I’m getting better and better.

This exhortation is so demanding, I can’t keep up with the damn thing!

So I think I’ve a better idea …

Too-hard basket case

First, let’s unpack Émile’s proposition.

‘Every day’ is Draconian, totalitarian (and possibly Orwellian).

It includes Mondays, public holidays, days we can’t get out of bed and days we’re too busy to scratch ourselves.

‘Every way’ is even more demanding.

It’s hard enough to pull off a good day’s work. Must we simultaneously improve our health, knowledge, relationships, finances and everything else too?

‘Better and better’ is not only elitist, it’s a tautology.

Whatever happened to ‘near enough is good enough’ and ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’?

Middle path

Agreed, those last two might be a little underachieving.

So here’s my seven-out-of-ten idea:

Almost every day, in at least one way, I’m getting better.

This give us scope.

If we:

• Go for a swim, we needn’t eat bran.
• Walk the dogs, we can have a beer.
• Suffer a completely crapola week, we can skip a day until things improve.

The trick is to keep moving forward, but with a bit of wiggle room either side.

Going the distance

Faced with overpowering goals, I tend to give up rather than smash through.

But I can devour an entire sourdough baguette, if I slice it into manageable bits.

A year of around 300 small-to-medium-sized improvements, with a few biggies for effect, is nothing to sneeze at.

And it’s heaps better than throwing your hands up and doing squat.

My counsellor likes the middle way a lot, but what do you think?

Second opinion

As you can see, my view of life is literal.

I need you to moderate my perceptions.

Is my middling mantra a clever compromise or a cringing cop out?

You can comment now, later or not at all.

For on balance, and with good faith,

I believe we’ll succeed in

the end.

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

Is this the best we can do?

 There are more people in China than anywhere else.

Yet my grasp of this huge nation borders on ignorance.

I could do months of research to bring me up to speed.

Or I could ask you.

Dumb Aussie?

As an opinionated Dutch migrant, Dad raised me to believe European history was the only one worth studying.

Yet when Mum finally dragged him to China, his eyes shot open.

He realised that while his forebears were grubbing in the mud, China was streets ahead inventing paper, printing and the compass.

The West eventually ‘caught up’ but today we see an even bigger swing to The East.

I think this is worth watching.

What I don’t know

Below are my (mis?)understandings of China.

They came to me through various filters, so I’m keen to get them vetted by those close to the action.

We haven’t played Fortunately/Unfortunately for a while.

What better topic for this game than our biggest ... Continue reading]]>

Is this the best we can do?

 There are more people in China than anywhere else.

Yet my grasp of this huge nation borders on ignorance.

I could do months of research to bring me up to speed.

Or I could ask you.

Dumb Aussie?

As an opinionated Dutch migrant, Dad raised me to believe European history was the only one worth studying.

Yet when Mum finally dragged him to China, his eyes shot open.

He realised that while his forebears were grubbing in the mud, China was streets ahead inventing paper, printing and the compass.

The West eventually ‘caught up’ but today we see an even bigger swing to The East.

I think this is worth watching.

What I don’t know

Below are my (mis?)understandings of China.

They came to me through various filters, so I’m keen to get them vetted by those close to the action.

We haven’t played Fortunately/Unfortunately for a while.

What better topic for this game than our biggest Asian neighbour?

Unfortunately

When I was Personnel Manager for a global corporation, Chinese jets crashed so often that we had a written policy forbidding more than one director to travel on the same flight. Just in case.

I hope things have improved in the last 15 years.

Fortunately

China is buying a WHOLE LOT of our raw materials.  I hear, for instance, that China builds a city the size of Brisbane every month.

This sounds extraordinary, but is it true?

Unfortunately

Chinese products aren’t known for their high quality. But nor were Japan’s – at first.

And digging up stuff to send it overseas isn’t the best possible thing for the environment.

Fortunately

China’s doing BIG things in renewable energy and already leads the world in wind power.

If we’re so smart, why aren’t we doing this?

Unfortunately

Chinese languages are difficult to master.

Then again, English is hardly a snap.

Studying Mandarin could be an extremely smart move.

Fortunately

There’s a large, vibrant population of Chinese Australians from whom savvy business people could learn.

Unfortunately

It takes years and years (and years) to build enough trust to do business in China.

Those who know set up ages ago.

Have the rest of us missed this slow boat?

East meets West

We may be able to run our businesses (for a while) without reaching out to China.

But what happens when China comes to us – via tourists, expats and new corporations?

Do we really want them to find us ignorant?

Can we afford that luxury?

I suspect not, and suggest we bone up on this big player.

To this end, I warmly invite your additions, corrections, questions, impressions, admonitions, expectations and excitations

about all things

China.

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

She’ll be right … or will she?

My favourite bit of brainstorming is coming up with everything that could conceivably go wrong with a project, product, campaign, launch, business plan etc.

Apart from being great fun, this process really helps you anticipate and avoid pitfalls you might otherwise never consider.

So let’s give it some thought.

Great minds

When I worked full time for an advertising agency, there was a business development manager with a psychology degree and a passion for brainstorming. (He’d probably cite something like this.)

As I had a reputation for ‘unusual ideas’, he often invited me to his brainstorming sessions.

As a participant, I didn’t have to bother with theory.

I was free to let imagination run riot.

Big ideas

One day, this guy wanted to foolproof an EXTREMELY BIG business pitch.

We started slow, with easy stuff like:

As the coffee and cookies flowed (he ... Continue reading]]>

She’ll be right … or will she?

My favourite bit of brainstorming is coming up with everything that could conceivably go wrong with a project, product, campaign, launch, business plan etc.

Apart from being great fun, this process really helps you anticipate and avoid pitfalls you might otherwise never consider.

So let’s give it some thought.

Great minds

When I worked full time for an advertising agency, there was a business development manager with a psychology degree and a passion for brainstorming. (He’d probably cite something like this.)

As I had a reputation for ‘unusual ideas’, he often invited me to his brainstorming sessions.

As a participant, I didn’t have to bother with theory.

I was free to let imagination run riot.

Big ideas

One day, this guy wanted to foolproof an EXTREMELY BIG business pitch.

We started slow, with easy stuff like:

• Bid writer gets sick.
• Tender deadline gets brought forward.
• Conflict of interest is discovered.

As the coffee and cookies flowed (he always supplied the good stuff) we went up a notch to:

• Contributor blurts content to competitor over drinks.
• IT system gets infected with virus.
• Paper jam ignites sole A3 printer at last minute.

Then we started to cut loose with:

• Disgruntled administrative assistant executes chronic vendetta by ‘losing’ master file.
• Lighting strikes satellite dish, razing office to ground.
• Terrorists target remote data storage site.

As time passed, we got crazier and crazier; each way-out idea sparking more.

And because this guy followed correct brainstorming protocol (i.e. do NOT shoot ideas down in flames in Phase 1) we felt free to give our minds full rein.

Naturally, when the sober Phase 2 came round, most of our contributions were dismissed as insane.

And yet, just as a kernel of truth resides in every joke, each fantastic confabulation got the bid team thinking about a potential real-world threat.

This must have helped.

We got the gig.

Wrong way

The demons that haunt The Feisty Empire are:

• Typos.
• That result in very rude swear words.
• Which reside in global communications.
• That can’t be changed.
• And are highly visible to clients, prospects and competitors.
• Forever.

Mulling this worst-case scenario always impels me to do one more check, no matter how tired I am.

Your way

I’d now like to brainstorm what could possibly go wrong in your business.

If you start us off, I bet we’ll list things you never imagined.

It’s a bit of fun, yes.

But it could also save your commercial hide.

So what do you

think about

that?!

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire

Today we have a change of pace.

One of the most frequent accolades this blog receives is that it’s thought provoking.

As I consider this high praise indeed, I’d like to table what gets me thinking.

Happily, it’s a video (see below).

So you can sit back and relax (just like in those old Junior Science classes).

The Story of Stuff

If you’ve not met Annie Leonard, I strongly suggest you do so now:

Watch The Story of Stuff.

Annie is one of the world’s true ‘good guys’.

She really is striving to leave the world better than she found it.

She changed my thinking, and may well change yours.

The Story of Change

Yesterday, Annie took things up a notch by releasing her new movie.

The subject?

How to build a more sustainable, just and fulfilling world:

Watch The Story of Change.

Annie’s Project Team asked if I’d spread the word.

Yes or no?

While tweeting the video link to my followers ... Continue reading]]>

Today we have a change of pace.

One of the most frequent accolades this blog receives is that it’s thought provoking.

As I consider this high praise indeed, I’d like to table what gets me thinking.

Happily, it’s a video (see below).

So you can sit back and relax (just like in those old Junior Science classes).

The Story of Stuff

If you’ve not met Annie Leonard, I strongly suggest you do so now:

Watch The Story of Stuff.

Annie is one of the world’s true ‘good guys’.

She really is striving to leave the world better than she found it.

She changed my thinking, and may well change yours.

The Story of Change

Yesterday, Annie took things up a notch by releasing her new movie.

The subject?

How to build a more sustainable, just and fulfilling world:

Watch The Story of Change.

Annie’s Project Team asked if I’d spread the word.

Yes or no?

While tweeting the video link to my followers was a no-brainer, I had to think about flagging Annie’s message on this blog.

I figure not every business owner wants to be hassled by greenies.

Then it occurred to me that we’re doubly involved in The Story of Change.

As producers, we’re potentially part of the problem.

But as consumers and citizens, we can be part of the solution.

I realised our dual position had 50+ shades of grey and could therefore make for a fascinating debate.

You decide

Even if you think the world is your personal ashtray, it still makes good business sense to keep tabs on those pesky tree-huggers.

Because with ethical investment rapidly picking up speed, the ferals may end up with more spending power than the rest of us combined!

And so, on balance, I conclude that this post is relevant to our forum.

The question is, what do you think?

A very sharp knife is in da house.

It’s a red-letter day at The Feisty Empire.

After a six-year absence, my smartest associate has returned to the fold.

Adam Finlay helped build my business.

Now he’s helping me grow it.

By describing this journey, I plan to collate hints to help your business too.

Past

At the peak of Empire in 2005, I had five writers in training.

Adam out-learned, out-worked and outlasted the others.

But when my biggest client unexpectedly hired in-house copywriters, my revenue plummeted by more than 80%.

There was barely enough work for me.

Adam toughed it out, working on my business instead of in it.

We created forms and systems to make daily life faster, easier and more accurate.

Finally, my investment money dried up and Adam had to move on.

In giving a glowing testimonial to his prospective employers at Deakin University, I felt like I was cutting off my right arm.

Present

Adam shone in his new senior ... Continue reading]]>

A very sharp knife is in da house.

It’s a red-letter day at The Feisty Empire.

After a six-year absence, my smartest associate has returned to the fold.

Adam Finlay helped build my business.

Now he’s helping me grow it.

By describing this journey, I plan to collate hints to help your business too.

Past

At the peak of Empire in 2005, I had five writers in training.

Adam out-learned, out-worked and outlasted the others.

But when my biggest client unexpectedly hired in-house copywriters, my revenue plummeted by more than 80%.

There was barely enough work for me.

Adam toughed it out, working on my business instead of in it.

We created forms and systems to make daily life faster, easier and more accurate.

Finally, my investment money dried up and Adam had to move on.

In giving a glowing testimonial to his prospective employers at Deakin University, I felt like I was cutting off my right arm.

Present

Adam shone in his new senior editorial role.

Soon he was editing me, improving my writing by 20%.

Then he nailed his masters with high distinction.

Then he gained national professional accreditation as an editor.

Meanwhile, I rebuilt my client base, studied social media and developed new income streams.

Today I’m on the cusp of having more work than I can handle.

So Adam’s return is most propitious.

He’s found that he prefers editing to managing, so is delighted to be back ‘on the tools’.

He’s not the only one!

Future

I’ve been putting the word out to clients.

Their response has been extraordinary.

Many remember working with Adam all those years ago (such is his technical prowess and superior bedside manner).

They’re telling their networks, and fresh work is already starting to flow.

When I took last weekend off, I threw Adam the Empire’s ‘keys’, knowing he could handle anything in my absence.

With my capacity doubled, I’m ramping up my business generation efforts and saying yes to more projects.

I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Your growth

I’m eager for your tales of love and loss, staff and colleagues, growth and decline and the lessons springing therefrom.

By sharing our stories, we’ll all evolve.

So when the next wave comes,

we’ll surf it!

Paul Hassing | Founder & Senior Writer – The Feisty Empire