STRATEGY CENTRAL

Is Your Organization a High Fire Hazard Severity Zone?

By Mark Howell, on March 26th, 2008

You have goals. You have objectives. You even have a very detailed vision statement. But every time you turn around, you’re dropping what you’re doing to put out a fire. Another fire. The third fire in the last 10 days! It’s like you’re living in a high fire hazard severity zone. You may be getting [...]

Quotebook: Predicting the Future

By Mark Howell, on March 24th, 2008

Frances Hesselbein was a guest on the Leading News podcast last week. Quite a gal. Not sure if you know her. Former CEO of the Girl Scouts. Legendary example of the Drucker disciples. I’ll post a link to the audio from the call as soon as it’s available. Listening to her was very similar to [...]

Revenge of the Chocolate Bunny Comedy

By Mark Howell, on March 23rd, 2008

This was too good 2 years ago. Seemed fitting today to bring it back! Thanks to Tom Asacker for the comedy!

Quotebook: Ethics

By Mark Howell, on March 23rd, 2008

We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. Ours is a world of
nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know
about peace, more about killing that we know about living. General Omar Bradley

Ed Young, Jr. Meets Joel Osteen

By Mark Howell, on March 22nd, 2008

Some things are just too good to pass up. Enjoy it for what it’s worth…there’s actually quite a message if you watch through to the end. Gotta love it!

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World

By Mark Howell, on March 19th, 2008

A while back I got an email asking if I’d like to review a book by John Wood, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children. I’d never heard of it…but it sounded interesting so I said "yes." It’s been in the stack waiting its turn and on Sunday [...]

The Back of the Napkin

By Mark Howell, on March 18th, 2008

Every once in a while a book comes out that I get really excited about. Funny how it works…it’s not always the same genre, but there are just times that I hear about a book and really can’t wait until it hits the mailbox. The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with [...]

How Important Is Succeeding?

By Mark Howell, on March 17th, 2008

I don’t know about you…but I’m only learning how to lose gracefully…at Monopoly. I know there is a place for the ability to live without getting your way. I get that. But there is something so sacred about the business that many of us are in, I really believe we ought be be pretty serious [...]

News from the Patio

By Mark Howell, on March 16th, 2008

Preempted by a freak thunderstorm. Even in So Cal. First flash fooled us…for about 10 seconds. The boom was a dead give-away.

Reducing the Risk for Potential Customers

By Mark Howell, on March 15th, 2008

First the big decision: Are your customers the people who have already said, "Yes." Or are your customers the people who haven’t yet said "yes" but might? See, for many of us, we’ve got the existing group but we really want to reach the customers who have not yet said "yes." Make sense? So our [...]