work-life balance

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]

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]

Feed Your Spirit And Starve Your Alligators

June 29, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Small business owners know all about that metaphorical business reptile – the ubiquitous alligator. They slither in from everywhere, continuously chomping holes in your business, tearing apart projects, taking a bite out of performance, and eating away at momentum.

We know three things about these caustic crocodilians: 1) every small business has them; 2) they don’t go away on their own; 3) besides the operational intrusion, they take an emotional toll. And as good as we may get at minimizing the business damage alligators can cause, we’re too often not as good at dealing with that emotional thing.

As the CEO of your business, if your enterprise is to survive, let alone flourish, you have to deal with each alligator that pops up. To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling, your business’s sustainability and organizational effectiveness depend on the ability to keep your head when all around, hungry alligators are trying to take it off.

To keep your head and at least stay even with the alligators you must do three things. [Continue Reading]

Parental Paradox: A Father’s Love Is The Harder Job

June 18, 2023 by Jim Blasingame

Parental love is a paradox, simultaneously delivering the expectation of a safe harbor with the consequences of discipline. As the father of an adult daughter and son, plus the grandfather of four knucklehead boys (Hurricane, Tornado, Crash, and Train Wreck), I’ve learned some things about this paradox.

All the hours logged as Dad and Poppy have often caused me to contemplate how different are the roles of mother and father, especially in the overt demonstration of parental love. And it’s fascinating how the manifestation of this love differs between mother and father – biologically, emotionally, and experientially.

A mother’s love, at once gentle and fierce, is observed in almost all animals, not just humans. No doubt you’ve heard this simile: “… as sweet as a mother’s love,” and this warning: “Never get between a momma bear and her cub.” I’ve witnessed and have been the happy recipient of this side of the parental paradox, and there truly is no other force like it in nature.

However, a human father’s love is more often associated with the other half of the paradox by unfortunate references like “tough” and “strict.” Here’s a warning no one has ever heard from a father:[Continue Reading]

Entrepreneurial Intangibles Are Essential To Tangible Success

November 20, 2022 by Jim Blasingame

Now in my fifth decade as a business owner, this Baby Boomer has been reflecting on what’s been learned that would benefit the next generation of entrepreneurs.

It’s understandable to focus most of our attention on the many hard fundamentals of how to sustain a successful small business operation. But after logging many hours in that tangible mode, you’ll discover that it’s just as critical to respect the softer entrepreneurial intangibles that tend to be the human being behind the venture. And those who recognize and incorporate these in their approach to ownership are more likely to achieve that elusive holy grail of human intangibles: happiness.

In that spirit, allow me to offer two intangibles that are just as essential to business success as cash flow and profitability: [Continue Reading]

Dispelling The Myths Of Ownership

July 26, 2022 by Jim Blasingame

Since hope truly does spring eternal, on any given day you’re likely to meet a starry-eyed human babbling on about becoming a business owner.

Probing for the object of this person’s entrepreneurial infatuation will precipitate what, where, how, and when questions and, finally, the most important question: Why do you want to own a business? Answers to this last one, unfortunately, often produce what I call “The Myths of Small Business Ownership.” Here are the four most prominent: [Continue Reading]