Posts by Fran Tarkenton

I believe that learning from our failures is one of the—if not the—most valuable steps to achieving success. But our culture often tells us to avoid failure at all costs. I learned early on, though, that when I encountered defeat, failure, and difficulties, I needed to learn from those experiences and come out the other…

One of my most trusted mantras throughout my life has been that we all have to read the signs. The signs are everywhere. The signs are reality. If we look at reality, at what is happening around us, then we can make better decisions. That’s a lesson I learned from my Hall of Fame head…

It is natural for us to get excited about our own ideas and projects. But as a small business owner, it’s important to keep objective about what you are doing, so that you will be willing to make a tough decision if you find that something is not working. When you come up with an…

Procrastination in business is a very real problem—for companies both large and small. I am continually amazed at how many people and companies have wall-to-wall meetings, all day, every day. At the end of the meeting, they have successfully scheduled the next meeting, and that’s it! They never actually get anything done. Ideas bounce around…

What is our best? What do we really mean when we talk about doing our best? It’s become a stock answer we hear whenever someone asks another person to do something: “I’ll try my best!” Afterwards, we’ll hear the inevitable follow-up: “I tried my best.” I’ve come to realize that those statements bother me. At…

Your business isn’t about you. It’s not about what you think people want, it’s not what strategies you think will work, it’s not what you think your product or service’s value is. The reality is that any business has to be about meeting the needs of other people, providing a product or service that other…