Posts by Ken DiPrima
Does Your Balance Sheet Have An Asset Called Social Capital?
By Ken DiPrima
Time and time again, we read about a new spectacular company that, just a few short years ago, was started in someone’s garage, financed with a meager $700 from personal savings or a gift from a friend or relative, that quickly skyrocketed into a huge, successful company worth millions of dollars.
How did they do that? What makes them so very different from the millions of companies that start up every year that either fails or flounders for a period of time, until the owner decides to do something else?
Were Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg just lucky, or …
My Best Sale, Ever!
By Ken DiPrima
Whenever salespeople gather, the conversation almost invariably turns into them swapping their personal sales war stories. It makes sense—selling is their stock in trade, and most salespeople are very good at telling stories. Their tales can vary from closing the most skeptical of clients, to converting a competitor’s best client into their own.
There is nothing wrong with a little harmless bragging, especially if it makes the storyteller feel more secure and comfortable among their peers. Almost everyone has experienced a moment when they accomplish something extraordinary during their professional career. These fetes remain indelible in their minds, and …
Learning and Training Beyond the Classroom
By Ken DiPrima
At a college graduation, I was introduced to a young man who had just earned an MBA. As I was congratulating him on his wonderful accomplishment, he said something chilling to me. “I’m so sick of studying. I swear that I’m never going to read another book in my life.” He was quite satisfied that the education he just completed had filled his knowledge chest with all the skill sets he needed to succeed in the business world. He was set for life.
If this new MBA recipient remains true to his word, he will start falling backwards in …
Learning Through Rejection
By Ken DiPrima
“Beat it kid, ya bother me!”
“The answer is no, and that’s final!”
“Thank you for your proposal. Although it has great merit, we regret to inform you that our committee has formally rejected it.”
Nobody enjoys rejection, no matter what the situation may be. Even though it happens in all of our lives, it is always painful and difficult to accept. Rejection is the most common emotional assault we sustain in our daily life. And now with the advent of social media, electronic communications, and apps that help us find soul mates, people are exposed to the risk …
Understanding the Life-Cycle of a Business
By Ken DiPrima
There are few constants in business, but one is always present; change. Every business goes through various common stages of corporate existence during its evolutionary process. This movement, called the Business Life-Cycle, includes the startup and initial growth stage, the expansion or rapid growth stage as it moves into new markets, the mature operational stage, and the eventual decline as consumer interest in their product wanes. What occurs within the company during this decline will either result in a rebirth of the company and a resumption of its growth, or the eventual death of the enterprise.…
What Are My Chances?
By Ken DiPrimaIn 2014 Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor, challenged the betting world by announcing his own bracket contest for the Annual March Madness; The NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament. He offered $1 Billion to anyone who correctly picked the winner of each of the tournament’s 63 games. Each year hundreds of thousands of people make their picks in brackets offered a variety of different places—from the office pools to the March Madness junkies, through major newspapers and sports channels. Mr. Buffet’s bracket challenge had an extremely large payoff, but only for perfection. There are winners in the rest of the pools, usually …
Let’s take five!
By Ken DiPrimaNothing is working right for me today. Everything I do seems to turn out wrong. Why did I get stuck with this lousy assignment? Why is everyone so cranky? How come my computer isn’t working?
Time Out! Don’t be rash! Count to ten! Step away! Clear your head!
We all know life isn’t perfect. Everyone has days when things don’t turn out as we hoped, whether we’re at home, at work, or doing something recreational for fun. And when things aren’t going our way, it’s time to take a step back and reflect.
Anne Lamott, a blogger …
Rules of the Road
By Ken DiPrimaThere are dangerous conditions ahead: Winding Road Ahead, Road Narrows, Falling Rocks, Steep Grade, Slippery Pavement, Deer Crossing, Signal Ahead or Do Not Enter. The transportation departments of governing bodies, who are responsible for the roads, conveniently post these warnings. Drivers can rely on them in order to adapt to the prevailing conditions. By being alert and taking the appropriate precautions, they can reach their destination safely and without mishap.
Wouldn’t it be nice if business owners were given warning signs to follow when the conditions for their business to underperform or fail were lurking ahead? Wouldn’t it be nice …
A Good Working Environment
By Ken DiPrima
All too often, companies hire large masses of people in order to fill high turnover slots on their personnel rosters with little regard to the employees that they hired or for the ultimate success of the company. Hiring and training costs eat into precious profits and, frequently, fail to deliver the desired outcome.
What steps can a company take to make certain that these two vital functions more successful and long lasting?
If you think that change is hard for clients to accept and implement, just think how difficult it is for new employees to become acclimated and productive in …
“Say It Ain’t So, Joe.”
By Ken DiPrima
“Say it ain’t so, Joe.” So goes the legendary question asked of ‘Shoeless Joe’ Jackson after he was accused of being part of the ring of Chicago White Sox players who ‘threw’ the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. Before being banned for life from baseball for his actions, Jackson was, at the time, among the game’s super stars with a lifetime batting average of .356 in a short 13 year span. He hit an incredible .408 in 1911, his first full major league season. No one wanted to believe that he could have been involved.
And, then, there …
