Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only €10,99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Business Shorts: Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur
    Business Shorts: Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur
    Business Shorts: Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur
    Ebook125 pages7 hours

    Business Shorts: Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur

    By Jerry Ross

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Time is your most valuable asset!  Discover time-tested business principles in no time at all!  Business Shorts is an engaging collection of short stories and timeless business principles critical for the success of entrepreneurs whether in a start up or an established small business. Told from the perspective of a life-long entrepreneur, this book is a must for any small business owners library.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHigherLife Publishing
    Release dateAug 24, 2012
    ISBN9781935245605
    Business Shorts: Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur

    Related to Business Shorts

    Related ebooks

    Small Business & Entrepreneurs For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related categories

    Reviews for Business Shorts

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Business Shorts - Jerry Ross

      BUSINESS SHORTS:

      Practical Insights for the Busy Entrepreneur

      By Jerry Ross

      Published by HigherLife Development Services, Inc.

      400 Fontana Circle, Building 1 – Suite 105

      Oviedo, Florida 32765, (407) 563-4806

      www.ahigherlife.com

      This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise – without prior written permission of the publisher, except as prohibited by United States of America copyright law.

      Copyright © 2012 by Jerry Ross

      All rights reserved

      ISBN 13: 978-1-935245-46-9

      ISBN 10: 1-935245-46-5

      First Edition

      11 12 13 14 – 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

      Printed in the United States of America

      Credits

      Publishing Consultant: Wendy Kurtz, APR, CPRC,

      Elizabeth Charles & Associates,

      Editor: Juli Baldwin, The Baldwin Group, Dallas, TX,

      Publisher: Higher Life Publishing

      ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

      There is no possible way to thank all those who have helped me along the way. Everyone I encounter contributes to my knowledge, insights and perspectives, each in different ways and measures.

      There are, however, a few very special people

      I would like to acknowledge. Thank you…

      to my wife, Laura, and my son, Kevin, who know all my faults and love me anyway.

      to my mom and dad, who didn’t stop at nine kids (I am number ten!)

      to Brian, who isn’t here to cheer me on, as he did all his life.

      to my family – Anne, Tom, Sally, Susan, Dan, Pat, John and Mike

      for their guidance, patience and mentorship.

      Special thanks also go out to:

      Juli Baldwin

      Scott Banta

      Jamie Barkley

      Clay Bennett

      Jeff Bosworth

      Jim Braley

      Lisa Busto

      Eugene Campbell

      Tom Creamer

      Meg Crofton

      John Crossman

      Richard Crotty

      Gus Davies

      Ralph Felton

      Jack Finn

      Don Furry

      Rogue Gallart

      Jim Getz

      Nancy Gidusko

      Steve Hanlin

      Tom Horvath

      Paul Hoyer

      Gail Kilbourn

      Wendy Kurtz

      John Lewis

      Missie Lopez

      Tom Marin

      Bill Matthews

      Julie Matthews

      Eddy Moratin

      Steve O’Donnell

      Tom O’Neal

      Dorothy Ohl

      Ferris Ohl

      Vicki Ohl

      Marlowe Pitchel

      George Rodon

      Gene Romanga

      Nancy Sanders

      Bob Shephard

      Jacqueline Spencer

      Nicole Ware

      John Wilmers

      Leanne Wolfe

      …and every client who has ever purchased from me!

      CONTENTS

      Introduction

      Part I: The Entrepreneur

      Jerry’s Terrible Tale

      You Never Know…

      This is Retirement?

      Activity is Not Accomplishment

      Discipline

      Time Out

      The Juggling Act

      When You Know That You Know

      Tough Times Don’t Last

      Vision…or Not?

      This is Not a Dress Rehearsal

      Nice Guys Finish First

      Breaking Up is Hard to Do

      Lester

      Glass Houses

      I Hate to Interrupt…

      The Need for Speed

      The War on Excellence

      Part II: The Business

      Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word

      Doctor X

      Listening

      Tempo

      What’s Your Brand?

      I Have Seen the Future…

      Lean Time Lessons

      Trade Show Success

      The Treasure Hunt

      Negotiate

      A Customer Service Star

      Redirection

      Recipe for Success

      My $40 Tomato

      Closing Time

      Two Ears, One Mouth

      Go Blue!

      What’s in Your Wallet?

      The Reality of Birds and Business

      Pricing

      Would You Like Fries With That?

      Tip That Man!

      Brand Rude

      Lessons Learned from the Medical Profession

      Screech and Dent

      Part III: The Rest

      When Up is Down

      Million, Billion, Trillion

      On Taxes

      Free-Market Tickets

      Choices

      INTRODUCTION

      Business Shorts started as a blog – a fast and easy way to capture the business lesson in a chance encounter or my fleeting thoughts on how to improve a particular small business. After repeatedly being urged to write a book on my experiences as a lifelong entrepreneur, it occurred to me that I’d been writing my book for years through my blogs.

      So, when I got ready to write the book, I intentionally decided to use a blog-type format – short essays that offer observations and insights on a specific topic or illustrate a business principle that can be applied immediately. If you’re looking for complex theories or long discussions about strategy, this is probably not the book

      for you.

      My hope is that Business Shorts will provide you with a quick and easy way to pick up a new idea, discover a different perspective or just remind yourself of the basics of business success.

      I’ve grouped the shorts into three categories:

      • The Entrepreneur – insights about each of us as entrepreneurs/owners and human beings

      • The Business – thoughts on business subjects such as marketing, sales, employees and finances

      • The Rest – observations about external factors like the government, competition and the marketplace

      I hope you will enjoy reading these stories as much as I have enjoyed writing them. All of them are true; however, some of the names have been changed to protect the guilty! (Hopefully they have changed their ways!)

      Many thanks to everyone who participated in this book, knowingly or unknowingly, and thank you to all the entrepreneurs and small business owners who make it happen everywhere, everyday!

      - Jerry

      Part I

      THE ENTREPRENEUR

      JERRY’S TERRIBLE TALE

      From the moment I got out of bed, things just did not go as planned.

      It all started with the toothpaste. In an effort to get just a teeny bit out of the empty tube and onto my toothbrush…SPLAT…it hit my tie. Not a big deal – I just changed the tie. A bit later I was cruising down the road with my travel mug full of coffee. All was fine until I hit the brakes…SPLAT...coffee all over the shirt...big time! This was not a small spot on the sleeve; it was front and center for all to see. I thought, Okay, not good. But hey, what can I do about it now? I have an early appointment I have to get to. Maybe things will improve when I get to work.

      In an effort to avoid depressing you, I will summarize what happened next. Coping with a fear of my own bad breath, in my coffee-stained shirt, I tore a fingernail which bled profusely. Then I lost my reading glasses. And just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, I bent over to look for my missing glasses and RIPPED MY PANTS! Yes, they ripped right where you are thinking they ripped…and there was no hiding this rip! Where was I going to find enough safety pins to make this kind of repair? I wished I’d just stayed in bed!

      Somewhere in that gloomy funk – sporting my ripped pants, coffee-stained shirt, bloody fingernail, missing glasses and questionable breath – I had a moment of clarity…what if everyone just decided to stay home when things go a little haywire? What would happen if nobody showed up to work because things were not going well? Who would keep the world moving?

      I began to wonder if my daily annoyances were really that bad in the big scheme of things. There were at least a hundred people I could think of who would have traded places with me, right then and there, ripped pants and all! I hated to admit it, but most of my days were filled with annoyances just like that day was. I thought about how often I allowed the little irritations of the day to taint my outlook on all the good things that happen.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1