The Autodidact’s Arsenal: Teach Yourself Anything!

September 21, 2011 education No comments

Autodidact: a person who has learned a subject without the benefit of a formal teacher or formal education; a self-taught person.

If you’re reading this, you have access to an Internet connection which also means that you have the ability to learn virtually anything you set your mind to! This post is a primer on the basic tools that you can employ to learn things from just about any discipline.

Google

Google is probably the most powerful learning tool we have today. Google will help you to find the sites you need to learn the foundations of the topic you are learning. Use these search templates to get the best results (fill in the ‘…’ with whatever topic or skill you’re trying to learn):

  • “How to …”
  • “Best blogs on …”
  • “… forum”
  • “best books on …”

You also can, and should, use the “how to …” search template on YouTube to get visual tutorials.

Google is always my gateway into the world of whatever topic I am learning. It’s how we can find articles, people, and communities with expert advice on the topic. Chances are that whatever questions you come up with have already been asked so search forums or blog comments to find answers. Many communities collaboratively create beginners guides and if you still have unanswered questions just ask, people love the chance to help.

Books

After using Google to search for the best books, compare several lists from multiple sources and make a mental note when you see multiple sites mention the same book. Chances are that the titles appearing on multiple lists are the best and will make for a good launching point. Grab these books from your local library, download them for free (if its copyright has expired) from Project Gutenberg to read on your computer or your Kindle.

Practice your speed reading skills to really start devouring books. Keep in mind that it is important to know when to slow down; do not sacrifice comprehension for speed. I also recommend taking notes every chapter or section to sum up the main points you want to remember and to also copy down any quotes you like. You can also purchase your books if you choose to mark them up.

Dictionaries

A dictionary, physical or otherwise, is essential for the autodidact because new words are bound to spring up when learning new things. Most people would just skip the words and forget about them and they point they sought to make. Not us. Look those words up whether it be in a physical dictionary or an online alternative such as one of my two favorites, OneLook and Dictionary.com.

Notes

I know that we all have our preferred methods for taking notes, but there are so many neat tools out there that you might find something you like better. Two things I have played with and liked are a client called Zim and a web-based solution, Springnote. Both of them are based on wikis. You’ll see others if you check out some of the links I provide at the end of this post.

Tim Ferris has an excellent blog post on note-taking that I highly recommend.

Know Your Objectives

You don’t always need to read entire books to learn things. If you’re trying to learn X, don’t read the chapters about Y and Z. Use the table of contents and index to find everything about X in the book and only read those parts. If you enjoy the book and the author, make a note of the book for when you or someone you know is looking to learn X, Y, or Z. You can always read the whole book if you want, but, in terms of acquiring a specific skill, you do not need to.

The same thing applies to websites. Sort blog posts by their relevant tags or keywords. Use ctrl+f (the find command) on any site to search by your own keywords. There is an overwhelming amount of information to sift through for any topic. As autodidacts, we need to learn to filter and process information efficiently, quickly, and effectively if we plan to learn something without the guidance of a teacher. Knowing your objectives is how you guide yourself.

Ask Questions

If you cannot find the answers you need, you need to be able to find the person, people, or community that can, whether they exist online or offline. Once you’ve studied the topic to the best of your ability you will discover that you have some unanswered questions. Find someone to ask those questions and have a discussion. Do not fear asking people for help; an autodidact learns from others all the time. We can’t do it alone.

Being an autodidact, a self-taught person, involves learning from countless other people. The distinction between autodidactism and a traditional education is that the autodidact creates his or her own curriculum and selects the study tools, resources, pace, and so on. The traditional student leaves all of that up to the teacher. Being self taught is the act of taking up the responsibilities of a teacher yourself. It does not mean that others cannot teach you. Learning is a social process.

Sites Related to Autodidactism

Here are some sites that I recommend related to autodidacts (in no particular order):

  • Khan Academy – A nonprofit organization that seeks to provide a quality, free education to anyone, anywhere.
  • Academic Earth – A collection of videos of college lectures, some free some not, on a variety of subjects
  • Wikiversity – “Wikiversity is a Wikimedia Foundation project devoted to learning resources, learning projects, and research for use in all levels, types, and styles of education from pre-school to university, including professional training and informal learning. We invite teachers, students, and researchers to join us in creating open educational resources and collaborative learning communities. To learn more, try a guided tour or start editing now.”
  • Self Made Scholar – Has some great articles on self-education. I found the ‘Free Classes’ part of the site to be useless though.
  • TheFreeLibrary.com – TONS of information available here on this site! Some categories have a bunch of crap by random people but you can find articles from scholarly journals for free!
  • Online Colleges – This is their list of the ’100 best self-education sites for switching careers.’ There are some great resources there (I found Springnote through this list) and if my list leaves you wanting more then maybe this list can help.



How to Get More Bids on eBay Auctions

August 24, 2011 eBay No comments

There are all sorts of subjective guides for eBay out there, but I found some evidence based on research that sheds some light on what makes a good eBay auction. After the abstract and link to the article, you will find the researchers’ conclusions which will
help you to get more bids on your eBay auctions. If you’re not selling on eBay and you’d like to learn how, check out my eBay guide.

Abstract of the Article:

The sellers of the over twelve million products listed on eBay every day are hoping to receive the highest possible price. An analysis of product descriptions leads to the conclusion that readability is the most important contributor to an active sale. Clear description of product and product quality should be addressed in complete sentences. Buyers prefer a product description where the seller sounds knowledgeable but does not use abbreviations or jargon.

Read the full article.

The two main ideas that you need to take action on are to take good photos and write good descriptions.

Good Pictures Are Essential

The researchers’ advise that you use a sharp, colorful, bright, and focused picture. Avoid flash; natural light or studio light makes for a better picture. The study states that auctions with good pictures were associated with a higher ending price 71% of the time.

A digital camera is the easiest way to take photos for eBay. The important features you need to look for on a digital camera for eBay is macro focus, white balance feature, and a minimum of 3 megapixels (MP).

Macro focus is what allows you to take clear, crisp photos up close and personal. This is used to show fine details on items such as textures, small areas of damage, or fine details.

A white balance feature allows you to use any light you please to take photos with vivid colors. The saves you money and space because you won’t have to buy expensive photography lighting equipment.

Lastly, you need a camera with at least 3 megapixels. Keep in mind that since eBay automatically resizes your photos, more megapixels is not necessarily better. Before going out and buying a new camera, check out the information for your cell phone’s camera because there’s a pretty good chance that it’s good enough to work for eBay photos.

Remember, when the buyer can see exactly what they are bidding on, they’ll bid higher. So make sure you take good pictures! Here are some very highly rated options for digital cameras on Amazon:

Nikon Coolpix 3200 3.2MP Digital Camera This camera has macro focus capabilities as well as settings for different lighting levels. You can’t beat the price either!

Olympus Stylus 5010 14 MP Digital Camera If you want a well priced, highly rated camera that you can use for personal use as well as for your eBay auctions, check this one out. It’s got everything you need for eBay photos plus a whole lot more.

Here’s an awesome site on photography that you can use to learn the basics and get some tips: ExposureGuide.com

Write an Easy to Read Description

DESCRIPTIONS LIKE THIS IN HUGE FONTS ARE A HUGE TURNOFF TO BUYERS!!!!!!!!!!!!

The researchers suggest to use a size 12 font and keep your description left-justified. Use all capital letters only for the product’s name. Make sure that your descriptions are logically organized into paragraphs with headings when necessary. The study recommends that you avoid the use of jargon, abbreviations, lack of paragraphs, misspelled words, excessive exclamation points, poor spacing between words, and unnecessary animations/music/graphics that will increase the time it takes for the page to load.

An amazing resources for copywriting is copyblogger.com. I highly recommend this post on writing headlines because it will help you to write names for your auctions that get more clicks.

References

Rawlins, Claudia; Johnson, Pamela. (2007, January 1). Selling on Ebay: persuasive communication advice based on analysis of auction item decriptions The Free Library. (2007). Retrieved August 22, 2011 from http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Selling on Ebay: persuasive communication advice based on analysis of…-a0179779919


Creating Competitive Advantage by Jaynie L. Smith

August 22, 2011 books No comments

Buy the book on Amazon

The Books post category is how I recommend books. You’ll find information about: the author and his (or her) style, what topics are covered in the book, my notes I took while reading it, as well as quotes I thought were particularly enjoyable. You’ll get all of this along with MLA citations. Enjoy!

About the Author

Jaynie L. Smith is a corporate keynote speaker, author, and competitive advantage consultant. She’s been featured on television at First Business News, Fox Business News, and ABC World News. Jaynie has also been a guest on several radio shows. Her writing is easy to digest and enforces its concepts with relevant case studies and examples.

The Book

My copy of the book, in MLA form, is:

Smith, Jaynie L., with William G. Flanagan. Creating Competitive Advantage: Give Customers A Reason to Choose You Over Your Competitors. New York: Doubleday, 2006.

You can get a copy of the book on Amazon or at your local library. There’s also an audio book version.

My Review

Jaynie’s book helps to focus your marketing message so that you get ahead of your competitors and get and keep more customers. After reading this book, I will never have a business that has ‘high quality products, excellent customer service, and has been around since 2002.’ Instead, I now know to state quantitative and objective competitive advantages like ‘products last an average of 20 years, staff responds to customers house calls in 3 hours or less, and employees have combined industry experience of over 30 years.’

This book will not only teach you the benefits of competitive advantages, but also how to identify or create them, how to find out what the customers want them to be, and how to use them to increase sales to ultimately increase your business’ profitability.

Topics Covered

Some of the primary topics covered in this particular book by Jaynie L. Smith are as follows (in alphabetical order):

About Competitive Advantages Notes
  • Competitive advantages make your business stand out and they are the reason you’re in business. To reap the benefits of competitive advantages, they must be marketed properly (Smith 1).
  • Competitive advantages are the reason why customers choose you over the competition (Smith 2).
  • Competitive advantages answer the questions “why should I do business with you?” and “what are you offering that the other guy doesn’t?” (Smith 2).
  • There are external and internal competitive advantages. External competitive advantages should be well known to customers and internal competitive advantages are essential for businesses selling commodities (like Walmart’s purchasing power or Coca Cola’s distribution) (Smith 14).
  • Jay B. Barney defines ‘Competitive Advantage’:

    “A firm is said to have a sustained competitive advantage when it is implementing a value-creating strategy not simultaneously being implemented by any current or potential competitors and when these firms are unable to duplicate the benefits of this strategy.” (Smith 19)

  • There are four types of sustainable competitive advantages:

    • “Have high customer-switching costs.
    • Being the lowest-cost producer in a commodity market.
    • Owning valuable intangible assets, such as patents and trademarks.
    • Benefiting from the network effect.” [the network effect is when something becomes more useful when more people have it. For example, a fax machine has more value when ten thousand people have one than it does when three people have one.]

    (Smith 38)

  • Warren Buffet on competitive advantage:

    “The key to investing is not assessing how much an industry is going to affect society, or how much it will grow, but rather determining the competitive advantage of any given company and, above all, the durability of that advantage.” (Smith 42)

  • “Competitive advantages free you from price-based competition” (Smith 68).

Return to topic index

Creating Competitive Advantages Notes
  • Come up with competitive advantages using plain English and quantifiable, objective claims (Smith 10).
  • There are two ways that competitive advantages come about: cost advantage (can you save you customers money?) and differentiation advantage (added value) (Smith 17).
  • Competitive advantage must be objective and not subjective (Smith 21).
  • Competitive advantages must be quantifiable, unclaimed by competitors, and they must also not be clichés (Smith 22).
  • Value-added items can be competitive advantages if no competitors do it (Smith 55).
  • If you spend a lot on training for your employees or customers, that is a competitive advantage (Smith 64).
  • “If you do something that your competitors do, but you talk about it before they do, then for a while it can be a competitive advantage” (Smith 94).
  • Don’t lie about competitive advantages (duh) (Smith 105).
  • Review marketing and sales materials, including the company’s homepage. Find subjective claims and turn them into competitive advantages (Smith 112).
  • Competitive advantages must have meaning, play a role in the buying decision, be quantifiable, be dollarized, and be true (Smith 138).
  • “Your competitive advantage may lie not in the products or services themselves, but in how you provide them” (Smith 166).

Return to topic index

Marketing Competitive Advantages Notes
  • “Your competitive advantage can save your customers money. It’s up to you to show them how” (Smith 46).
  • “Sometimes you save your clients money without their realizing it. So tell them” (Smith 53).
  • “It is far more expensive to gain a new customer than to retain a valued one” (Smith 67).
  • You don’t always need to make huge changes to take on powerful competition. Sometimes you just need to better educate your customers on your competitive advantages (Smith 86).
  • Ad agencies usually charge in one of three ways: an hourly rate, based on billings (a percentage of what the ad space costs), and based on performance (Smith 87-89).
  • Competitive positioning: “You really don’t have a competitive advantage, but your customer thinks you do because you are making a valid claim that your competitors have yet to beat” (Smith 114)
  • Let customers know about internal processes and procedures that ensure they get what they want when they want it (Smith 159).
  • If needed, educate the customer so that your competitive advantages make sense and are powerful (Smith 165).
  • Turn competitive advantages into slogans and put those slogans wherever you can (Smith 202-204).
  • Make your company’s ‘About Us’ page into a ‘Why Us’ page and list your competitive advantages 9Smith 209).
  • Use testimonials to turn your best customers into salespeople for your company (Smith 213).

Return to topic index

Research Notes
  • Before promoting competitive advantages, ask your customers what they think of them. Find out what the customers think is important and promote those competitive advantages (Smith 20).
  • When researching customers, make sure you don’t ignore the customers who went to your competitors (Smith 58).
  • Research your competitors to keep ahead of them in competitive advantages (Smith 97).
  • Focus on what your customers care about most and they will keep coming back (Smith 119).
  • Quantify everything possible so that you can maximize your options and evidence for your competitive advantages (Smith 136).
  • Customer research is more important than market research (Smith 153).
  • You need to use a 3rd party agency to do customer research (Smith 154).
  • Select one clear objective per study for customer research (Smith 157).
  • Here is a list of measurable deliverables that you can measure against your competition to create competitive advantages:

    “

    • Product knowledge
    • Post-sale tech support
    • Inventory availability
    • Product performance
    • tech-savy reps
    • Unique design
    • Consistently complete shipments
    • Good delivery condition
    • Easy installation
    • Fast response to customer queries
    • Superior communications
    • Sales Leads
    • Installation training
    • Shipping documents
    • Product training

      • “

    (Smith 166-167)

  • Doing customer research allows you to work to create new competitive advantages (Smith 180).
  • Review your competitive advantages, as well as your competitors’, at least once per quarter (Smith 196).
  • “Business is a chess game. Play it strategically. You need to think two or three moves ahead if you expect to win” (Smith 196).
  • Create customer advisory boards to have your best customers tell you what is good and bad about your company (Smith 215).

Return to topic index

Sales Notes
  • Good salespeople must be able to answer the question “what’s so special about your product or services?” (Smith 27).
  • A good script of competitive advantages can be better for closing sales than expensive sales training (Smith 31).
  • “It can pay to replace your own elevator speech with competitive advantages” (Smith 35).
  • Monitor your company’s sales closings to determine how your business is doing, what’s working, and what’s not (Smith 36).
  • Calculate how much you’re losing by not closing sales. See how much there is to gain by closing more sales (Smith 36).
  • Prove that you can save a business money and you have an enormous advantage. Of course, you need objective, quantitative figures (Smith 47).
  • If you don’t have the info needed to calculate the savings you could give a company, give the company the tools it needs to see for itself and then let them call you (Smith 50).
  • If you can’t get numbers from the customer (to dollarize what you could potentially save them) cite how much you’ve saved similar clients (Smith 66).
  • Educate all of your employees on your company’s competitive advantages (Smith 200).
  • “One of my clients offers a small cash reward to employees who, when randomly questioned, can tick off the company’s top three competitive advantages” (Smith 201).

Return to topic index

Types of Competitive Advantages Notes
  • “Price isn’t everything. When you compete on price, you’re accepting commodity status” (Smith 4).
  • When competing with giants who have huge purchasing power, don’t compete on price. Instead, adopt new competitive advantages such as terms and guarantees. Be more flexible with your terms than the giants and promote guarantees because few people take advantage of them (Smith 59).
  • Some examples of competitive advantages are: inventory turns (how fast products sell), materials (dollarize the value of quality), delivery (the speed of delivery), and information (how well you gather, manage, and use information) (Smith 60-62).
  • More example competitive advantages: convenience, higher quality and style, expert advice and personal service, image, perceived bargain (Smith 78).
  • “Strengths are important, of course, but they are not differentiators.” Strengths are not always competitive advantages (Smith 93).

Return to topic index

Want the full experience?

Purchase the book here or grab it at your local library. There’s also an audio book version.

If you’d like to discuss the book, let’s do so in the comments. It’d be a pleasure!


The Virtue of Order

August 19, 2011 uncategorized One comment

“Let all of your Things have their Places. Let each Part of your Business have its Time.”
– Benjamin Franklin

This post is part of a series on the philosophical framework that I’m working on. Read more here and please don’t hesitate to contribute in the comments or by email! :)

Order is a Virtue

An orderly lifestyle is conducive to living a long, healthy, and enjoyable life. An ordered life is an organized life. We can order our time, our thoughts and our belongings. By living an ordered life, we avoid wasting our time searching for things or doing unimportant tasks. We reduce stress, avoid distractions, and improve our health both physically and mentally.

Managing Time

Do not rely on your memory to recall scheduled events. Use some sort of calendar or planner to record and organize your work, activities, appointments, and so on. Google Calendar is a good free tool for tech lovers and you can set it up to send you reminders in text message form. A simple wall calendar, desk calendar, or planner can accomplish the job as well. Personally, I record my work schedule and other events in my cell phone or my paper notes when I’m on the go and then transfer them to my Blueline desk calendar. It’s a cheap and functional tool and you can likely find it, or something similar, for less at a brick and mortar store.

Use your calendar to track deadlines, dates that bills must be paid, birthdays, etc. You’ll rarely, if ever, forget any appointment or event again once you form the habit of using a calendar.

We must schedule time to do our work, chores, household tasks, and leisure time. The schedule doesn’t have to be set in stone, if you feel like working when you’ve scheduled leisure, switch the two. Do not eliminate one for the other unless necessary. This is where resolution comes into play. If you hired someone to help you accomplish your life goals and that person spent 2 hours a day watching Jersey Shore, you’d probably fire that person. We must make sure that we do not live like those we would fire.

“This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Resources on Time Management:

Managing Our Thoughts

It is impossible for us to remember everything so do not bother trying. What we can do, however, is keep a record of everything of importance or interest so that we can have access to that information when needed. Always carry a writing utensil and paper so you can jot down your ideas, thoughts, and other bits of information through out your day. This can be used to jot down names and information about people you meet, important dates, books or movies you want to check out. Write anything.

Keeping an idea journal is a useful tool for when you are seeking inspiration, whether it be at work or while pursuing a hobby. An idea journal is a simple list of ideas you have thought of along with any necessary details or sketches. I prefer to keep mine in a sketchbook because I like the book form with unlined pages. There are many other journal options as well. Since I use sketchbooks I have no journal recommendations so make sure to share yours in the comments!

Keeping a personal journal is a way to become immortal. Brett and Kate McKay (from the ArtOfManliness.com) have an amazing article on journaling and they have done a far better job than I ever could. Read it here. I keep my personal journal and my idea journal separate so that I don’t disclose anything private when sharing my ideas and also for the ease of finding ideas without having to skip through as many entries.

“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.”
– William Wordsworth

Resources on Thought Management:

Organizing our Belongings

Messes are distracting. Disorganization induces stress. We must avoid this mental and physical chaos by keeping our belongings neat and orderly. Do this by any means necessary; throw things away, donate stuff, get some totes and fill up a closet, whatever it takes.

You know that feeling you get when you’ve just cleaned your desk and you sit down to work feeling excited and empowered? Make that feeling the norm by keeping your desk clean. This goes for every room and every thing. I’m in the process of selling everything I don’t want on eBay and you can do the same with little effort. Read my graphic tutorial here.

This particular topic is something I still need to do a lot of work on. If you have any resources or tips please share them in the comments! I’m particularly interested in good websites and books.

“Getting your house in order and reducing the confusion gives you more control over your life. Personal organization some how releases or frees you to operate more effectively.”
– Larry King

How do You Live an Orderly Life?

Share your stories, tips, and resources with us in the comments!


How to Get to the Top by Jeffrey Fox

August 6, 2011 books One comment

The Books post category is how I recommend books. You’ll find information about: the author and his (or her) style, what topics are covered in the book, my notes I took while reading it, as well as quotes I thought were particularly enjoyable. You’ll get all of this along with MLA citations. Enjoy!

About the Author

Jeffrey J. Fox is an awesome writer who writes clearly and concisely. His words are gems of knowledge that can be absorbed and appreciated, enjoyably, in short sittings. Most of Jeffrey’s books can be read cover to cover in as little as 2 hours. Fox’s wisdom and stories are both instructional and entertaining. Professionally, Jeffrey Fox is a marketing consultant, speaker, and author.

The Book

My copy of the book, in MLA form, is:

Fox, Jeffrey J. How to Get to the Top: Business Lessons Learned at the Dinner Table. New York: Hyperion, 2007.

You can get a copy of the book on Amazon or your local library. There’s also an audio book version.

My Review

What I love most about Fox are the case studies and stories that he uses to get his points across. In How to Get to The Top, Fox shares insights and wisdom that you don’t get from business textbooks or even business books in general. You can really tell that he knows that he’s talking about. His advice is actionable and he drops a major gem on listening which you can read in the block quote in the sales section. The bulk of his lessons in this work is on management and personal development.

Topics Covered

Some of the primary topics covered in this particular book by Jeffrey Fox are as follows (in alphabetical order):

Some of the notes are should be common sense. The stories that accompany notes such as these truly help to convey the magnitude of how important these simple concepts are.

Business Etiquette Notes
  • Be sensitive to cultures, ethnicities, religions, backgrounds, politics, causes, and relationships (Fox 159).
  • Never be late. Show that you respect the value of time, both yours and others’ (Fox 150).
  • “Get your point across, but never be rude” (Fox 139).
  • “Treat customers as important guests to your home” (Fox 123).
  • Never become intoxicated during business or around your associates (Fox 96-97).
  • Cut food into dime sized peices. Eat slowly (Fox 94-95).
  • Give the best parking spaces to customers, not executives (Fox 84-88).
  • Do not use pronouns in communication. Use names (Fox 65-66).
  • Always compliment the chef, whether you are out or at home (Fox 29-31).
  • When you are at your place of work be modest, humble, collegian, courteous, calm, controlled, questioning, inspecting, and helpful. Solve problems, remove barriers/frustrations, give credit, recognition, and thank-yous (Fox 16).
  • Have impeccable table manners regardless of whether you are eating alone or with others. Enjoy meals with other people when possible (Fox 1-4).
  • Don’t immediately take the first offer (Fox 144).

“When sellers and buyers come to an agreement after some back and forth counters, then the seller sold high and the buyer bought low.
Don’t immediately take the first offer. It will upset the offerer. Counter and count the money” (Fox 144).

Return to topic index

Career Development Notes
  • “Never be sick. Never be tired. Never half-arse it. Jump at any opportunity to shine” (Fox 119).
  • Keep a list of ideas to increase revenues, increase profits, cut costs, and beat competitors. If/when a new CEO is hired, give him/her some time then send them this list named “What I would Do in the First 100 Days If I Were CEO.” Be polite, nonjudgemental, and noncritical. This will get you on the CEO’s radar and possibly even get you a meeting/promotion to discuss the ideas and start projects (Fox 18-20).

Return to topic index

Management Notes
  • “Spend the company money as you would your own, and you and the company will have a lot more” (Fox 158).
  • Get out of the office and into the action. Sell and market in person. Assess employees, competitors, facilities, et. in person rather than by reading reports. Talk. Listen. Learn (Fox 147-149).
  • Sign all the checks. “Signing all the checks ferrets out embezzlement, identifies areas for expense control, and red alerts misspending” (Fox 133).
  • “Only hire people you would invite home to dinner” (Fox 120).
  • “Working on fixing weaknesses is a waste of time. Working on strengths is where the money is” (Fox 113).
  • “Work on what’s working or you won’t be” (Fox 115).
  • Tell employees what needs to be done and why the ‘what’ needs to be done but leave the ‘how’ to them (Fox 98).
  • Don’t promote causes, religions, politics, sports teams, etc. in your business (Fox 81-83).
  • “Don’t do nonbusiness activities at your business. Nonbusiness leads to no business” (Fox 83).
  • Have a good sense of humor. It can be useful for relieving tension” (Fox 78-80).
  • Find someone in the company who is a good judge of character and work ethic. Use that person to help in the hiring process to avoid expensive mis-hires (Fox 70-72).
  • Get in the trenches! “The sales force is the company’s eyes to the marketplace” (Fox 59).
  • Don’t waste time on tasks or activities that don’t get/keep customers (Fox 55-56).
  • Don’t blame, accuse, or criticize (Fox 26).
  • “Don’t complain about a problem; do something to make the problem go bye-bye” (Fox 28).
  • Keep people doing the jobs they’re best at (Fox 23-24).

Return to topic index

Marketing Notes
  • Don’t put crap on your windows. “Your windows are not bulletin boards. They are a place to display merchandise, to entertain customers, to attract customers” (Fox 90).
  • Don’t use buzz words or clichés. Create your own buzzwords. Speak plainly and sincerely in order to be understood (Fox 67-69).
  • Quality is not job #1. Getting and keeping customers is job #1 (Fox 43).
  • “Getting the customer to purchase your product, and to repeat that purchase is job #1″ (Fox 45).
  • “Quality is a meaningless word. Quality is defined by the customer, not by the manufacturer or seller” (Fox 43).
  • “To get and keep customers you must be able to answer this question: “If I, the salesperson, the marketer, the manufacturer, the investor; if I were the customer, why would I do business with me”" (Fox 52)?

“You must be able to answer the question honestly, objectively, factually. It is best if you can articulate the answer using dollarized values” (Fox 52-53). Aim for ten words or less (Fox 54).

Return to topic index

Mentoring and Parenting Notes
  • “All work and no play make Jack a dull boy, but no work and all play keep Jack a boy” (Fox 62).
  • “The earlier the kid starts working, the earlier the kid starts to learn what he or she will need to know to be successful” (Fox 61).
  • Teach kids the consequences of sloth and quitting (Fox 22).

Return to topic index

Personal Development Notes
  • Don’t dwell on the negativity of the past. Do something to improve the present and future (Fox 162-164).
  • Act like you own the place. “Acting like you own the place means you share all of the owners’ concerns and you act upon them” (Fox 155).
  • “Act as if you are in your complete comfort zone” (Fox 155).
  • “Only bet on yourself. Don’t bet on events and people you can’t control or influence. Don’t bet on what you don’t know or understand” (Fox 130-131).
  • Use numbers and probabilities to help make decisions. Waste no time panicking or choking. Spend 90% of your time thinking before making a decision. Do not second guess yourself unless new facts are presented” (Fox 105-107).
  • Don’t shirk. “Shirk means to avoid doing what has to be done, or avoiding taking responsibility. Shirk means hiding, evading, running from the battle” (Fox 103).
  • Don’t be phony (Fox 101). “Be real. Being real leads to real deals” (Fox 102).
  • Stay fit. “Your brain makes you money. Your body carriers your brain. Take care of your body” (Fox 93).
  • If you can’t, don’t, or won’t do something, say so as soon as possible. Don’t lead people on and waste time (Fox 75-77).
  • “Tip as if you were the tippee” (Fox 46). “Yesterday’s tippee might be tomorrow’s tipper” (Fox 51).
  • Don’t mope. “Moping is a waste of time and of life. Moping steals from action. It steals from accomplishing. You can’t get things done in a state of mopitry” (Fox 35).
  • Speak sweetly; you may have to eat your words (Fox 31-34).
  • Anonymously pick up the check for clergy, teachers, and soldiers (Fox 25).

Return to topic index

Sales Notes
  • Always ask for the sale or a commitment that leads to a sale (Fox 128).
  • When selling, observe the SW rule. “Some will. Some won’t. So what?” (Fox 74)
  • Do research. Get numbers. Speak little but what will aid the decision. Respect the time of others. Give dates, time lines, and ask for actions (Fox 40-41).
  • “Customers don’t buy technology; they buy what they get from technology” (Fox 37).
  • Outside of your company, be a flag waving company patriot. Promote the company’s products, services, and values. Be a tireless, fearless, enthusiastic, seller of your company (Fox 16-17).
  • Listen!

“The secret to moneymaking listening is to listen for something. You must listen for what you need to know to make the sale, cut the deal, achieve your business objective. Specifically, you must listen for numbers, facts, dates, names. If a customer tells you he wants a “longer lasting” device, you must ask “What do you mean by longer lasting?” If the customer answers “A device I can use for a few years,” you have heard nothing. You must ask, “What do you mean by a few years?” If the customer answers “Three year,” then you have a number. You have correctly listened.” (Fox 109)

Return to topic index

Want the full experience?

Buy the book here or the audio book here.

If you’d like to discuss the book, let’s do so in the comments. It’d be a pleasure!


The Virtue of Industry

August 5, 2011 uncategorized One comment

“It’s amazing how much you can get done when you’re always doing.” – Thomas Jefferson

This post is part of a series on the philosophical framework that I’m working on. Read more here and please don’t hesitate to contribute in the comments or by email! :)

Industry is a Virtue

Industry is a virtue because it is a vehicle to release our creative energy into a real form which leads us to living a happier, more fulfilled life. Industry is a means by which we accomplish goals, develop as human beings, and build self-esteem which is necessary for us to persevere in all of our virtues. Discipline, Freedom, Individuality, Mental Health, Physical Health, Social Health, and Time, all of our values, require the virtue of Industry in order to be upheld. Ultimately, the quality of our lives depends on our Industry.

Industry is man’s endeavor to have a permanent impact on his world by transforming his values into earthly products; whether they be songs, novels, software, buildings, sculptures, the form can be any thing or any act. The scale or quality of this work is irrelevant so long as its creator has put forth his best efforts and has stayed true to his values. This is true because we do not become exceptional overnight, we must first pay our dues to our vocations.

Industry and Time

The virtue of Industry is one of the primary means of attaining the value of Time. When you’ve conquered laziness and discovered a passion to pursue, there is always a way to monetize it. This transforms your work time into leisure time that you get paid for. If you put in at least some of your 72 hours a week on a regular basis, you will eventually become good enough (or, in rare occasions, lucky enough) to monetize your passion. When that happens, you work time during the week is transformed into paid leisure time. You then have complete power over how you choose to spend all of your time since 40+ hours is not always put into work. This is how the virtue of Industry ultimately leads to the achievement of the value of time.

Practicing Industry

Do stuff. If you want to be a writer, write. Want to be a marketer, market something. Want to be a director, make a movie. We have the Internet, our possibilities are endless. More software and tools exist now than ever before and these resources give every individual on the planet (who has Internet access) the power to do just about anything. All you have to do is pick something and do it. If you are not sure if you would like something, do it anyways. Find out. Stop waiting for the perfect idea because chances are it will never come. Don’t wait your time, you life, and opportunities by waiting.

“I shouldn’t have done that” is a good thing.

It sure beats “I should have done that.” Success comes with countless failures. Embrace failures as the learning experiences that they are. We know that failure is a learning experience, yet we still fear it. Why? I have no idea, but my desire for success and happiness is far greater than my fear of failure and ridicule. This is what I remind myself every time I feel fear starting to creep up on me. The worst thing that can happen is that I learn something. The best thing that can happen is success.

Either way you can say “I’m glad I have done that,” which is a success in and of itself.

How Are You Industrious?

Show us your creations, your works-in-progress. Tell us your story, your passion! If you don’t, you better go work on something as soon as you finish reading so that you can come back and share! ;)


I’ve Been Published!

August 4, 2011 personal news No comments

Today is a very exciting day for me because it is the first time that I’ve been published in something other than a school pamphlet. J$ from BudgetsAreSexy.com (one of my favorite personal finance blogs) has been kind enough to publish my article on tutoring for his Side Hustle Series! Make sure to check his site out and let me know what you think about my article.

About BudgetsAreSexy

J. Money is a cool guy who writes on various aspects of personal finance. His writing reads as though he is actually speaking to you person-to-person which is a nice change from the formal, ‘proper,’ articles on personal finance. He’s easy to relate to, has great insights, and an excellent community. J. Money is involved in charitable activities and even runs his own, Love Drop. Another project of his is a giveaway site which is aptly named Giveaways Are Sexy. Check him out!


“Mend”

July 27, 2011 uncategorized No comments

This post is a transcript from my second Toastmasters speech at Midvale Country Club with the Professionally Speaking Toastmasters club. The speech is titled “Mend” and the image above is the picture I reference later in the speech. I hope you enjoy!

Mend

The “Americans with ‘Dis’ abilities” theme is a good fit for me because I spend a minimum of 40 hours a week with incredible people who happen to have developmental disabilities. I work, learn, and play at Mary Cariola Children’s Center here in Rochester, New York. We’re well known for our heartwarming success stories. We defy doctors, rebel against psychologists, shatter the laws of science, and help our students do what was believed to be impossible.

However, what we don’t really talk about is how our students fix us, the staff.

Mr. Toastmaster, fellow members, and welcomed guests, what I’m going to share with you tonight are four major life lessons that I have been taught by people with disabilities.

The first lesson is familiar, but often neglected: enjoy the simple things in life. We live in a culture where we are rarely satisfied with what we have. As a society, we scream “MORE! MORE! MORE! GIMME! GIMME! GIMME!” A better car, a better house, better clothes. It’s disgusting.

My students are always happy with what they have. They don’t show jealousy or envy when a classmate gets something that they don’t also receive. They are unaffected.

On the other side of the coin, when they receive a gift, the most simple of trinkets, they are ecstatic. They’ve won the lottery! They are grateful and they are satisfied. It’s beautiful.

The second lesson is to be proud of your work regardless of its scale or your ability. We can’t all be the best, but, we can all do our best and, when we do, the product is sacred.

This is a picture a student made for me. It’s no “Mona Lisa,” but when he finished this picture anyone could tell that he felt like Da Vinci. His next picture was twice as good.

The third lesson is on the power of a smile. Smiling makes people happier. Smiling makes people live longer lives. Smiling creates bonds between individuals.

My students smile all day long and I have no choice but to smile as well. They smile because they’re happy and, as I mentioned before, they’re satisfied and grateful for life. Since I started working at Mary Cariola, my days have been freed from exhaustion and boredom. I’m happier everywhere, in and outside of work. Plus, I’m in the best physical shape of my life.

That’s the power of a smile. A simple smile.

The fourth lesson is to never do something that you don’t want to do.

When I was new and I told students that ‘it’s time for work,” I’d sometimes get the response “No!” My gut reaction was to frustration, even anger, but I quickly discovered that defiant “No!” to be inspirational.

You see, my students refuse to do things that are not meaningful to them, things that don’t give them a sense of fulfillment.

Meanwhile, us “normal,” “non-disabled” people habitually engage in activities from which we derive no sense of fulfillment. A lot of people work unfulfilling jobs. Why is that?

Is it to make more money, to buy more things, to satisfy more desires that increase exponentially in intensity over time? Our friends with disabilities are much more sophisticated and much more developed than us in that regard.

These four lessons: enjoy the little things, be proud of your work, smile, and never do what you don’t want to do, have had a profound effect on my life.

I am paid to help my students, to teach them, to “fix” them. But what the average person fails to notice is that it is the people with disabilities who ultimately fix us and change our lives for the better.

And they do this, this divine act, simply by being.

Thank you.


The Value of Time

July 25, 2011 uncategorized 2 comments

“Since thou art not sure of a Minute, throw not away an Hour.”
- Benjamin Franklin

This post is part of a series on the philosophical framework that I’m working on. Read more here and please don’t hesitate to contribute in the comments or by email! :)

Time is a Value

Our lives are composed of a finite amount of time. To waste time is to waste life itself. To avoid this folly, we must not engage in unfulfilling or unnecessary activity.

We must also avoid laziness and inactivity. Benjamin Franklin said “a Life of Leisure and a Life of Laziness are two Things.” Not all of life’s activities have equal merit. For instance, working on the production of your creation, whether it be a song, a business, or a quilt, is leisure. Laziness is watching a reality show. Laziness is surfing the web aimlessly. Laziness is excessive sleep.

Any activity that does not fulfill us is lazy and we justify these activities by saying to ourselves “well, I worked so hard on so-and-so today, I deserve a break.” We are fooling ourselves if we believe that. Ayn Rand says that the unfocused mind is an unconscious one. Let us postpone our unconsciousness for our deaths so that we do not waste our lives as zombies.

“When you waste the gift of time you show that you are content to dwell in selfish mediocrity.” – Brett McKay

Triumph over Laziness

Combat laziness by trying new things to discover a new hobby or passion. Spend your time working on something meaningful in your leisure. Create something. Learn something. Explore somewhere. Meet someone. Do something.

The easiest way to conquer laziness is with a good book, so head over to your local library. Here are some of my recommendations. Derek Sivers also has an amazing reading list complete with his notes.

Work Shouldn’t be Hard

Work does not have to be something difficult or boring that we dread every Monday morning. If it is, take action to change it. In the meantime, start doing work that you love in your leisure time. You’ll know you’ve found something worth doing if it puts you in the state of flow where time passes incredibly quickly.

If you have ever started projects that you wish you saw through to the end, read the War of Art by Steven Pressfield. I have never read a more motivating or inspirational book in my life. Plus, you can read it cover to cover in a single sitting.

72 Hours

There are 168 hours in a week. If you spend 40 at work and 56 sleeping (8 hours a night), you still have 72 hours. That’s a lot of time and a lot of life. Don’t waste it!

What Do You Think?

What do you do to fight off laziness? Share your hobbies, creations, and stories. We’d love to read them. Personally, I love quotes so be sure to share any quotes on Time that you find valuable!


The Good Life

July 23, 2011 uncategorized 3 comments

Photo by Stephen Davies

After extensive thought, research, and soul searching, I’m finally ready to share my philosophy with the world. This philosophy is the foundation for goals to be set and for choices to be made. It is what I believe to be the path to success; a fulfilled life of personal growth, distinguished achievement, self-satisfaction, and happiness.

Some definitions are required before we begin. As Ayn Rand says in her 1961 essay, The Objectivist Ethics, a value is “that which one acts to gain and/or keep” and a virtue is “the act by which one gains and/or keeps it.” Rand also states that values and virtues must be chosen through the scope of an entire lifetime which I agree with because they should be timeless and not subject to frequent changes.

Life is the ultimate value. Rand explains that without life there cannot be values, which is logical because a non-living object, such as a stone, surely does not have the capacity to favor one outcome over another. Thus, as living organisms, we begin to form values to protect our most important asset: life.

To sustain our value of life, we need to have other values that are conducive to living a long, happy, and fulfilled life. Here is a list (in alphabetical order) of my values which I will discuss in depth in their own posts:

  • Discipline
  • Freedom
  • Individuality
  • Mental Health
  • Physical Health
  • Social Health
  • Time

To achieve these values and sustain them, I believe that these virtues must be upheld (also in alphabetical order):

  • Activity
  • Frugality
  • Independence
  • Industry
  • Justice
  • Moderation
  • Order
  • Rationality
  • Resolution
  • Sincerity
  • Tranquility

By carefully and rationally selecting values, we can determine the proper virtues to live by and make habits of. Once we begin to live virtuously, our values will, in time, be attained. By attaining our values, we will have reached the pinnacle of happiness, satisfaction, and accomplishment in life.

Now, for full disclosure, I want to say that my philosophy is still being developed and it will constantly be under refinement. I’ve finally gotten to the point where I feel I can confidently share it with the world. I invite everyone to share their thoughts, criticisms, and comments to help with that refinement. Together we can work towards perfection and mutually enjoy each step.


« Older Entries