Leadership
What Makes a Top Performer?
Way back in dinosaur days, when I was drafted to play in the NFL, I was a third-round draft choice coming out of University of Georgia, a big football school. Tom Brady, in his time, was a sixth-round draft choice; Joe Montana was a third-round draft choice; and Johnny Unitas was a free agent. And…
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Best of Mentoring: Adam Grant on Identifying Givers, Takers, and Matchers
Adam Grant’s mentoring series is an in-depth exploration of his research on giving and taking, and how those behavioral styles translate into a business world. He and Fran discuss how a “giving” approach affects a business, how you can build a culture of giving, the ways giving influences individual and team performance, the risks of…
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Is Your Mindset Holding Your Startup Back?
Startups are risky ventures — so much so that three out of four fail. But really, failure is part of life. Everybody fails, and business is no exception. If you’re not failing, you’re not trying hard enough. But the failure itself isn’t the important thing. What really matters is how you handle those mistakes. Take…
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Best of Mentoring: Mark Murphy on Talented Terrors
Mark Murphy’s mentoring series is all about uncovering the most important secrets of effective leadership. He and Fran discussed common misconceptions about leadership, like why it’s not motivational speaking, as well as the power of early detection. In this session, Mark discusses the danger of talented terrors: people who look like high producers but don’t…
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The Common Trait Among Top Producers
I have been working with Tarkenton Companies for 12 years now. I typically work hand in glove with new Tarkenton Financial agents to provide the initial assistance they need to flourish in the Tarkenton system, but the relationships I have built with agents allow me to continue to work with them for years to come.…
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Reinvent Yourself Every Day
A key trait of successful businesses—and entrepreneurs—is a willingness to reinvent themselves every day. The world is constantly changing, including our competition, our customers, our workers, and our market conditions. For a business to be able to grow, it needs to be flexible enough to adapt to these changes in real time. It is very…
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Why You Should Give Customer Service Guidelines, Not Rules
Two words that can drive me crazy are “company policy.” Policies are often used as unbendable rules that are not conducive to customer service and creating a customer-focused company atmosphere. Let me share a story with you to illustrate the point. It is filled with lessons about customer service, and I’m willing to bet that…
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The Limits of Your Knowledge
I don’t know everything. That might sound like an obvious statement, and I would hope that every other person would be willing to admit as much, too. But even after acknowledging the limits of your knowledge, what are you doing about it? Because I don’t know everything, I make it a priority to keep on…
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We All Need Mentors
Mentors play such an important role in our lives. I know that my mentors made a huge impact on me, in both football and business. And even now, at 76 years old, when I’ve started more than 20 companies on my own, I still have people I go to for insight and learning. It never…
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Midweek Reading: Ali, Women in Business, and Sustainability
The late Muhammad Ali shared his thoughts on leadership, and the most important traits for leaders, in his memoir written with his daughter. The Good Work Institute provides entrepreneurs with unexpected advice: slow down and focus on sustainability and fundamentals, not explosive growth. Nearly 1 in 15 working-age adults has a past felony conviction, massively…
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