Advice shared from letters, emails, phone calls from clients and others.
With Brief Annotations I thought I'd share the book lists with brief annotations that I've created for people aspiring to Right Livelihood. The lists cover the six primary areas of focus when it comes to using mindfulness to find meaningful work. Mindfulness Compassion at Work and in Life Relationships, Family, and Community Working for Yourself and Others Active Health Practices Inspiring Stories Each book in these lists has passed the test of time and many foresee the troubles of today 10, 20, or 30 years ago. The problems have increased in seriousness, but the tried and true solutions are as…
Recently I was asked why I had drifted away from using Paypal, Venmo and similar payment services to collect payments from my clients. One simple reason: Zelle. Zelle is a money transfer service free to customers of participating banks. Zelle sends the recipient a text or email indicating there's a payment waiting for them, along with a link to accept it. If the recipient's bank is a participating partner, the recipient simply needs to register for the service through their bank's website or mobile app with an email address or phone number. Zelle payments are typically available within minutes. (The…
That's right! People don't buy products or services. They buy a way to rid themselves of: a pain a problem a challenge Or they buy to fill: a desire a need. They want solutions. They also want Courtesy Friendliness Honesty If you give them these, they'll choose you every time over anyone who gives less. My old mentor Michael Phillips taught his apprentices that the whole transaction of the exchange of goods and services. should be the basic unit of observation. This is contrary to contemporary economic theory’s focus on the basic unit of observation as money (or its equivalent).…
Client Advice MESSAGE FROM XXXXX XXXXXXX ON 09/15/2022 Hi Claude, Dropping in for some input. I was thinking of sending a bulk message to my Men's team, but I'll start with you instead since you're as badass as their combined total anyway. The Biden administration recently allocated $350 billion dollars In federal loans and loan guarantees for energy and automotive projects and businesses. That money will be dispersed by the energy department. (Side note: Critics say this looks suspiciously like what happened to Solyndra, the energy company that borrowed $500 million from the Obama administration and then went bankrupt...) Of…
Patagonia founder Chouinard
Not to long ago, I got a request from a member of the Briarpatch (the alternative business network I coordinate) to listen to a podcast her godson had created about hippies and the counterculture movement of the 1960s. The response I wrote to him follows: I'm a friend of Xxxxx's and coordinator of the "hippie" business network she has been a member of for many years. She invited me to listen to your podcast and I thought it was delightful and pretty damn accurate. As she pointed out, she was in the incubator of the East at the time which…
Of Historical Note In the Briarpatch's early years, our open books practice spread by word of mouth to counterculture businesses coast to coast. This set the stage for the launch of the "open-book management" movement popularized in the early 90s by Jack Stack and John Case in their books, respectively, • The Great Game of Business: Unlocking the Power and Profitability of Open-Book Management • Open-Book Management: The Coming Business Revolution. Stack chronicles the story of an International Harvester factory in Springfield, Missouri that headquarters was putting on the chopping block. The 130 or so managers and employees who…
The Briarpatch Book
There are many ways to organize a work portfolio. Gleanings from planet Briarpatch have revealed a simple portfolio model based on the activities required to become and remain visible to your potential supporters and fans. A majority of these activities involve communications in support of increasing trust, building relationships, and delivering meaningful, value-rich products and/or experiences. A Simple Model of Seven Activities for Creating the Good Work Lifestyle Think About It Write About It Speak About It Teach About It Coach About It Consult About It Productize It These activities generally proceed in the order listed, though there may be…
Never hold a meeting when action will produce just as much or more. Conduct all meetings standing up (except of course, for those who are legitimately chair-bound). Let no meeting last longer than 15 minutes. Let no meeting be held without a preplanned agenda (including estimated times for each agenda item). Begin every agenda with a statement of purpose (aka the hoped-for outcome). Make sure all "purpose statements" are actionable. Everybody must participate. No spectators. No computers, phones, or other electronic digital devices may be present. Exceptions: These are allowed only if they serve a function to further the meeting.…
Make meetings an adventure
