All posts in Business

http://ilcantone.com/2009/11/entrepreneurial-challenge-how-to-turn-5-into-650-in-2-hours/

http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Introduce-Your-Business-in-60-Seconds-Or-Less&id=256791

http://ask.officelive.com/smallbusiness/blogs/team/archive/2009/04/30/need-a-strong-elevator-pitch-try-this-template.aspx

http://blogs.hbr.org/nivi/2009/04/how-to-write-an-elevator-pitch.html?cm_mmc=npv-_-DAILY_STAT-_-APR_2009-_-STAT0401

http://www.readwriteweb.com/start/2010/04/the-art-of-the-email-pitch.php

http://www.here.org.uk/2007/05/real-life-examples-of-business-pitch-emails-good-and-bad.html

Stop saying ASAP. We get it. It’s implied. Everyone wants things done as soon as they can be done.

When you turn into one of these people who adds ASAP to the end of every request, you’re saying everything is high priority. And when everything is high priority, nothing is. (Funny how everything is a top priority until you actually have to prioritize things.)

ASAP is inflationary. It devalues any request that doesn’t say ASAP. Before you know it, the only way to get anything done is by putting the ASAP sticker on it.

Most things just don’t warrant that kind of hysteria. If a task doesn’t get done this very instant, nobody is going to die. Nobody’s going to lose their job. It won’t cost the company a ton of money. What it will do is create artificial stress, which leads to burnout and worse.

So reserve your use of emergency language for true emergencies. The kind where there are direct, measurable consequences to inaction. For everything else, chill out.

There are four-letter words you should never use in business. They’re not fuck or shit. They’re need, must, can’t, easy, just, only, and fast. These words get in the way of healthy communication. They are red flags that introduce animosity, torpedo good discussions, and cause projects to be late.

When you use these four-letter words, you create a black-and-white situation. But the truth is rarely black and white. So people get upset and problems ensue. Tension and conflict are injected unnecessarily.