Recent Articles From EvanCarmichael.com http://www.evancarmichael.com/ http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Ask-and-You-Shall-Receive.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Ask-and-You-Shall-Receive.html “Ask” is a powerful word because it calls upon another person’s most noble motive—to serve. As a result, I’ve found that nearly all people will give when asked. You may recall the greatest teacher said, “Ask, and it shall be given you.” I believe you can get almost anything you want … if you ask. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Embracing-Technology.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Embracing-Technology.html We hear so much talk about retailers embracing technology, Fortune Magazine may have summed it up best: “If you want to outdistance your competitors… you have to embrace technology as powerfully as you can. But what type of technology? http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Most-Neglected-Ingredient-in-Business-Growth.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Most-Neglected-Ingredient-in-Business-Growth.html Some 96% of all businesses fail within their first eight years. Owners who have survived great challenges know that some crucial elements protect them from fire damage. Too many, unfortunately, have neglected one element. That void can be lethal to a business. The most neglected ingredient promoting business growth is leadership. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Synergy-The-Power-of-the-Flock.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Synergy-The-Power-of-the-Flock.html What happens when a group of players with mediocre talent outperforms a team of superstars? Just because you have a group of players playing together doesn’t mean they’re a team. “It’s easy to get the players. Getting them to play together, that’s the hard part,” said Casey Stengel, the former great New York Yankee manager. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Are-You-CrisisMinded-or-OpportunityMinded.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Are-You-CrisisMinded-or-OpportunityMinded.html Today, the economic boom has gone. What’s your attitude? Are you thinking “doom and gloom”? Or are you thinking “hidden opportunity”? I believe our attitude and thoughts are a bigger problem than the external economy. An African proverb states it well: “It’s hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your mind.” http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Leadership-The-Successful-Use-of-Conflicting-Principles.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Leadership-The-Successful-Use-of-Conflicting-Principles.html “The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. But the opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.” -Niels Bohr, Nobel-Prize winning scientist http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Expertise.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Expertise.html As consultant and trainer I always teach the value of being an expert. There’s no doubt that as an expert it’s just as important to be an expert in not just product knowledge, but in your subject matter as well. This knowledge helps your confident in front of a customer or audience. It also gives you the ability to ask excellent and relevant questions. You can quote famous people and books to position yourself as an expert, but you can’t fake expertise very long. http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Are-you-Proactive-or-Procreactive.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/Are-you-Proactive-or-Procreactive.html Experience tells me that the primary force separating successful from unsuccessful people is action. Successful people act, while unsuccessful people don’t. Achievers do what failures beg off doing. Chinese proverbs put it this way: “Talk will not cook rice,” or “Man who waits for roast duck to fly into mouth will wait a very, very long time.” http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Back-to-Basics--The-Three-Rs.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Back-to-Basics--The-Three-Rs.html In turbulent times, we do well to re-assess basics: Where are we, and where do we want to go. Our re-assessment may uncover nothing … or silver-linings on the edges of dark clouds. What we uncover depends largely on our attitude. Studies indicate that attitude determines as much as 88% of success. Positive attitude is critical for leaders, managers, salespeople … everyone who wants to keep learning and earning! http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Seven-Deadly-Sins-of-Retailing.html http://www.evancarmichael.com/Productivity/3409/The-Seven-Deadly-Sins-of-Retailing.html Most businesses that fail do so because of their owners’ “sins.” Usually it’s not for lack of hard work. On the contrary, most store owners put in long hours. The problem is that owners don’t succeed for working hard; they succeed because they produce results, plan ahead and optimize their resources.