When I said yes to an employment opportunity in Spokane, I wasn’t seeking a reason to move or close my consulting agency. I adored where I lived and my business was doing just fine. Better still, I was happy. I was making money doing what I truly loved to do—training teams, developing people, and brainstorming innovative futures. But after a long-term on-site gig with a … Continue reading Behind My Mask
Last week at The Running Event, the keynote speaker uttered words every single business owner needs to hear—He said, “Love and business…there’s plenty of room to cultivate both.” Love and business. Two terms that typically don’t get much playing time. Not together, anyhow. But this guy insisted that any business’s future relevance depends on both working as one. The speaker was Walter Robb, former CEO … Continue reading Love and Business
Retail is Why I Keep Going Back to México City On a whim in early 2016, I booked a fight to México City. Why? I had Southwest voucher about to expire and the airline had recently opened up this international route. I could never have guessed that less than two years later, I’d have returned three more times. I certainly would never have predicted that … Continue reading This is Your Home
Your attention will always manifest your reality. Continue reading Think it to Become it
Just Because You Want Change Doesn’t Mean You Will Change Retailers tell me all the time that they want to make ‘a big change’, but rarely do they know what this change looks like. Sure, they exclaim their readiness to rock the boat, but they are too far from water to set sail in the first place. Often folks think I’ll define this change for … Continue reading 4 Steps to Your Big Change
The 7 Steps of Quality Retail Training Before I worked in specialty retail, I was a classroom educator. Straight out of the military I took a job as a non-credentialed physical education teacher. I lined kids up like they were in basic training and had them shout a call-and-response while I guided them through stretches and calisthenics. They loved it, I loved it, but the … Continue reading Train Like a Classroom Teacher
What an Atlanta Airport Bathroom Visit Taught Me About Customer Service On Monday I had a layover in the Atlanta airport. I don’t usually fly through ATL—mostly because I am a Southwest loyalist—but when I do I am repeatedly impressed by the airport’s amenities. If I’m passing through in the evening, I’ll head over to terminal E and visit One Flew South—a classy joint for … Continue reading We Aim to Please
Using Whole-Team Collaboration to Take Your Team to the Next Level Recently I spoke to a room filled with some of the best retailers in the running industry. We did a brainstorming breakout during which small groups of folks bounced from one idea table to the next while jotting down thoughts on a particular topic. I encouraged everyone to refrain from self-editing. Which is to … Continue reading The Game-Changer
If retail’s your thing, like engineering’s an engineer’s thing or fixing cars is a mechanic’s thing, then most days your nine-to-five is pretty easy. There may be aspects of your job that make people see what you do as tricky or adventurous, but to you, for the most part, it’s a cake walk. Various reasons make you the right person for the job. To try … Continue reading YOU Are the Action Plan
