Have you ever had the morning where two cups of coffee wasn’t even to get you going to tackle the day? The type of morning where your bed is so comfortable that you wonder why you ever leave it to do other things? Yes, it is that type of morning. We all need a little motivation from time to time. One way that always gets me going are quotes that I love. From Vince Lombardi to Lao Tzu, here are 50+ quotes to help kick start your day! 1. “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” -Lao Tzu 2. “Leadership rests not only upon ability, not only upon capacity; having the capacity to lead is not enough. The leader must be willing to use it. His leadership is then based on truth and character. There must be truth in the purpose and will power in the character.” -Vince Lombardi 3. Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy. – Norman Schwarzkopf 4. The golden rule for every business man is [...]
By Ja-Naé
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Posted in Business Tools, Innovation, Marketing, Strategy, Uncategorized
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Also tagged $100 business, $100 startup, business, business with less than $100, how to start a startup, how to start your business, how to start your business with $100, inspiration, Ja-Nae, janae, leadership, quotes, starting a business with $100, starting a business with less than $100, starting a business with little money, starting a startup
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This weekend, I met with my friend Mark who explained to me that his overconfidence actually got in the way of his success. I know, this flies in the face of everything we keep hearing about “confident people are successful people.” But the problem for Mark was his cockiness; thinking he knew it all. Believing he always knew what was best often ended up tripping him up in the long run. Confidence is good, and something we should all strive for. But some lament being overconfident and getting in over their head. The secret is to know your limitations and strike a balance between confidence, which inspires others, and cockiness, which alienates others. Here are three ways to cultivate confidence while tempering overconfidence: 1. Display confidence, but always question yourself. Even the most confident among us have doubts. But lingering doubts undermine the confidence of those who work under us, eventually unwinding the trust others have in your leadership and the task at hand. Leaders need to be a source of guidance to inspire others and keep group confidence strong. But at the same time, you should always continue to question and reassess your decisions in private. 2. Know when [...]
November 1, 2010 – 9:01 am
I cannot stress enough how essential it is to build company culture. In fact, whether you’re a new small business entrepreneur or an old hat at running a business, this is one of the most important things to focus on. Your company culture is directly tied to your brand, and it affects people’s perceptions about your brand. In today’s podcast, “Simple Ways to Build Company Culture”, I talk about how this can make or break your business. [Audio clip: view full post to listen] When you think about company culture, what are some of the first things that come to mind? Join the conversation by leaving me a comment today. Connect with Ja-Naé on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook ______________ Looking to start a business or own a small business? Please consider buying my book, How to Start Your Business with $100 because it will save you thousands of dollars and you should find what you’re looking for.
By Ja-Naé
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Posted in Business Tools, Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Podcasts
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Also tagged brand, Brand identity, brand image, business, business podcast, company culture, leadership, Marketing, small business, starting a business
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October 19, 2010 – 9:00 am
Even though I left the church, I feel inclined to help an institution that has run into so many issues. I sincerely believe that the ordination of women will benefit not only the Catholic Church but make a positive impact on the world.
October 12, 2010 – 5:30 pm
By falling back on addressing your crowd with questions that are safe for everyone, you may only generate a discussion useful to no one. Questions will result in immediate feedback. You can enhance the relationship between you and your crowd and find better ways to connect with them. The more in sync a leader is with their audience, the more effective your crowdsourcing efforts.
I have been thinking a ton about the artists program I’m putting together in Assisi and my spiritual pilgrimage to Taizé. Of course, it brought back great memories of my last trip to the monastery and a conversation a friend and I had over a pint of Guinness: Sam: “You do a lot of sh*t, Nae. I am not sure if you sleep.” Me: “Of course, I sleep. Didn’t you have to wake me up this morning?” Sam: “Yeah, but how do you tell people what you do and who you are?” Me: “I believe that we can sum up who we are in one word. Sooo….what’s yours?” Though I won’t go into our answers, I still firmly believe this. As Americans, we put a lot of emphasis on what we do instead of who we are and what we believe. Isn’t who we are and what we stand for more important than what we do for work (unless you are completely aligned with doing what you love)? People connect with people, not tasks or jobs. So, I figured I would reach out to some of my Facebook peeps and see who they are. Which one word represents each of [...]
Company culture is one of the most important things you can focus on. It doesn’t matter if you are starting a business, running a small business or leading a 300 person company. Your culture is your direct link to your brand AND its longevity. Why? People support things they relate to and believe in, as I spoke about in this recent post about leadership perspective. If you’re not building your company culture, then you’re losing the game. Here are 3 Simple Ways to Build Company Culture: Find your Company Values: What does your company stand for? What do your employees believe in? What motivates them? Brands that thrive are the ones that unite its employees with its customers for a greater purpose. What’s yours? Stop Changing What You Offer: When companies struggle (I saw this a lot during the recession), they start reinventing themselves. That is not always necessary. Know which products and services are your biggest seller and find things that compliment that. No need to reinvent the wheel. Grow and Nurture Your Leaders: Employees can be your biggest evangelists. So can your customers. Consider them all leaders representing your company. How can you grow and nurture them into [...]
By Ja-Naé
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Posted in Business Tools, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Marketing, Strategy, Uncategorized
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Also tagged building culture, entrepreneurial, growing a business, Innovation, leadership, starting a business
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We all need inspiration. Becoming an entrepreneur and starting a business, as well as growing it into a successful small business takes a lot of blood, sweat, and tears. If you’re on this road, then here are some business and leadership quotes that may help you along the way. 1. “The art of leadership is saying no, not yes. It is very easy to say yes” -Tony Blair 2. “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” -Lao Tzu 3. “The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority.” -Ken Blanchard 4. “You do not lead by hitting people over the head – that’s assault, not leadership.” -Dwight D. Eisenhower 5. “A good leader is not the person who does things right, but the person who finds the right things to do.” -Anthony T. Dadova 6. “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” -John Quincy Adams 7. “Leadership is a combination of strategy and character. If you must be without one, be without the strategy.” -Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf 8. [...]
By Ja-Naé
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Posted in Business Tools, Entrepreneurship, Strategy, Uncategorized
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Also tagged entrepreneurial, entrepreneurs, how to start a business, how to start a business with $100, leadership, quotes, small business, start a business, starting a business
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Whether you are starting a business or are a leader of a successful organization, you will constantly be faced with obstacles. The question then becomes, “How will you overcome them?” Many times that can easy be accomplished by changing your view or perception of the situation. Which is sometimes harder than it sounds. Mike is the CEO of a mid size company and has 200 people answering to him, as well as, watching his every move. Though the company is making millions of dollars, morale is extremely low and employees are constantly on the hunt for new jobs. This situation is not new to Mike. He has seen it evolve over a period of a year and decided to do nothing about it. Finally, when he realized that things were spiraling out of control, he said to his C-Row, “Dammit! We need culture. Someone take care of that, will ya!” Nothing was done. What Mike failed to realize is that as the leader of this company, people were looking to him to lead the charge. It wasn’t until one day when his daughter asked him to play Follow the Leader that the light bulb went off. It took a kids [...]
By Ja-Naé
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Posted in Business Tools, Creativity, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Marketing, Philosophy, Strategy, Uncategorized
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Also tagged creative marketing, entrepreneurs, home-based business, leadeship, social media basics, starting a business, wahm, work from home, working from home
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Entrepreneurs, artists, small business owners, parents learning social media basics to watch over their kids, it doesn’t matter. I see it all the time. People share with me what holds them back and it is ALWAYS the same: FEAR! Though fear can hold us back (and even paralyze us), there is only ONE thing you need to do to overcome it: No matter how small a step, continue to move forward toward your goal or objective. Life, like water, is meant to flow, move forward. We must flow with it. So, do just that. Put one foot in front of another. What situation have you had in your life where you found that you were forced to move forward, but you were glad you did? Did someone you love pass away? Did you get divorced or have a terribly break up and thought you would never move on? Have you ever been put in a position where you were not sure how you were going to pay your rent and you were forced to find a way? Share with us how you put one foot in front of another and why you were glad you did. We can all benefit [...]
