Leadership

When Cause And Effect Converged With Humanity

November 21, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Editor’s Note: Jim wrote the origins of this article and published it in Volume I, Issue 2 of his NEWSLETTER, November 21, 1999.

This is a story about how cause and effect merged parallel universes and one person made a difference that changed the course of human history.

As the 17th Century dawned on the New World, a manchild was born to the Patuxet tribe. His father named him Tisquantum. They were part of a confederation of tribes known as the Wampanoag (“eastern people”), inhabiting much of what became known as New England.

In time, Tisquantum would become a very important individual to the future of America, but not before his life would change in ways not to be imagined by any 17th-century Earthling. [Continue Reading]

Veteran’s Day: Recognizing And Honoring All Who Served

November 11, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Veterans Day in America has its origins in Armistice Day.

“To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory.”

That 1919 quote by President Wilson commemorated the first anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, which ended WWI “in the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.” And then, on November 11, 1938, Congress made “Armistice Day” a federal holiday.

But since that war did not, in fact, end all wars, a decade later, an Emporia, Kansas small business owner named Alvin King had a problem with the narrowness of the Armistice Day definition. It turns out that Al’s nephew, John E. Cooper, was killed in the Battle of the Bulge in WWII, which motivated him and the Emporia Chamber of Commerce to start a movement to redefine Armistice Day and give it a new name: [Continue Reading]

Intangible Motivation Produces Tangible Results

November 7, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Imagine that your best employee just resigned. How much will it cost – directly and indirectly – to find, hire, train, and get a replacement to the productivity level of your exiting employee? You already know the answer: maybe years. Not a scenario you want to contemplate, right?

There are many reasons why someone leaves a job, but decades of exit interview records show that compensation is seldom the main reason. Consequently, it’s an article of faith that employees don’t leave companies they leave people – usually a manager. That means that such a disruptive circumstance is likely not only preventable, but the solution is essentially one of those intangibles that cost you little to nothing. Often, just some of your time and attention.

Motivation is one of those intangibles, and smart business owners know about its power. They’ve experienced the direct link between motivating employees to be successful in their assignments and the success of their business.

You can become one of those smart managers before a key employee turns in their keys because he or she merely couldn’t come up with a reason to be motivated to stay. Consider these six motivational best practices.[Continue Reading]

Has America Crossed Its Rubicon?

October 5, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Last week in our online poll we asked this question: “Should the House of Representatives stand on budget cuts, even if not passing a budget shuts down the government?”

And we offered these four answers, with response numbers at the end:

Doesn’t matter. It’s just more GOP theater – either way they’ll lose. 23%
Yes, we have to stop spending ourselves into bankruptcy. 47%
No, because government shutdowns always cost Republicans more politically. 27%
Doesn’t matter. The U.S. is already too far gone on so many levels. 3%

Of course, as is the case in so many questions about our federal government, this week’s topic came loaded with associated issues: 1) the basic obligation of getting a budget passed; 2) the political leverage both parties try to acquire in the process; 3) the dysfunction of deficit spending; 4) our prohibitive national debt; and, of course, 5) the beautifully messy system we call a representative republic that doesn’t leave the minority without options, however limited. Our aim this week was to offer answer options that would cover these issues.

In America, there’s an entire court system and set of laws devoted to what happens to regular folks when their financial reality looks like that of our federal government today. It’s called the bankruptcy system. So perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised to see that[Continue Reading]

We Made The Experiment, And The Fruit Is Before Us

October 3, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

For more than 20 years in our online poll, we’ve asked our audience for their thoughts on a wide variety of Main Street subjects. Recently, we asked the following question with four response options, and results in parenthesis:

“Based on your observations, will younger generations – currently under 45 – be able to take full possession and manage the transfer of America’s business?”

• Absolutely. Just as well as any other group – maybe better (23%).

• Not looking great so far – high in entitlement and low in work ethic and critical thinking (26%).

• It seems they’re behind, but there is a minority – about 20% – who could save them (28%).

• Time marches on and each inheriting generation shapes their own future (23%).

In the hundreds of polls we’ve published, rarely has the tightness of the spread of responses been as noteworthy as the leading vote options. For now let’s set aside the 23% who defend the younger generations and the same group who equally defends humanity in general, and focus first on the leading responses.[Continue Reading]

Three Words That Might Change Your Life – Really!

September 12, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

For most of my half-century-plus career, I have consulted with small business owners about their current situation and future plans. Alas, the reality of operating on Main Street is that often the issue on the table could take them down. In fact, the circumstances might be so desperate and the prognosis so dire that the person upon whom the business’s buck stopped – or crashed – might be close to being unable to function.

During one such session, sitting in front of a client who looked like he was about to be eaten by an alligator, and having experienced a similar state of affairs myself in the past, I called upon what I’d learned about perspective and what really matters in life with this question: “How’re your children?”

“What the … ?!” he exclaimed incredulously and not a little irritated.

When I repeated the question more slowly, his next response was delivered with a level stare: “They’re fine. My business is going down the tube and you’re asking me about my kids?[Continue Reading]