I wish I would have said something in a meeting while sitting across from a blabbering mouth that didn’t know when to stop flapping.  Instead, I missed speaking up at the meeting intelligently because I was preoccupied with why I was even there.  I spent the next 10 minutes trying to come up with a clever one-liner that would set the world straight.

Some time ago I went into a new local business to check out their offerings. I liked the store and their products but they didn’t have that sense of community. Sadly, eight short months later, they closed their doors. I couldn’t help but notice they committed some cardinal sins that lead to their demise.

In a previous article, I outlined the troubles companies have with employees who share their personal lives on social media. Each day brings new stories about social media faux pas, creating scandals for individuals and companies alike. According to a 2012 survey by PayScale, a salary and benefits information company, only half of the companies surveyed had a social media policy and 42% said they forbid all forms of social media activity at work. 

“Influence is something everyone can do. The people you spend most of your time with will influence you the most. It stands to reason if association influences, then you are an influencer by virtue of your association with others.” – Karl Rohde

As I approached a friend’s house the other day, I noticed a “No Soliciting” sign on the door. It got me thinking about how marketing is changing. The internet’s impact on marketing cannot be overstated; it has leveled the playing field and allowed anyone with a connection to selling their wares to the world.

Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn – Benjamin Franklin

I love books, but I never thought I would love business books. I was wrong. The right business book can be life-altering. There are gazillions of great business books out there, but here are some of my favorites.

Didn't Eleanor Roosevelt say something about no one can make you feel inferior without your consent?  Just substitute ‘inferior’ with any emotion and take your power back. – Marilyn Sherman

“The single most important thing [you can do] is to shift [your] internal stance from ‘I understand’ to ‘Help me understand.’ Everything else follows from that...”
– Douglas Stone, Difficult Conversations

Early in our marriage, I learned the four words my husband feared the most were, “We need to talk.” Through the years, I’ve discovered most of us have the same fear—even when we’re initiating the conversation. Here are a few quick tips to ease the stress of having a difficult, albeit necessary, discussion at work when problems arise.