Every new year, we re-evaluate our plans for the next 12 months. I took a look at my past lists and pulled the best five that I thought would be good for everyone. 1) Be funnier. This applies to my family, my work life, and this blog... Life is more enjoyable when you can make others laugh. So I promise to try to make my wife, my children, my employees, my vendors, my clients and you laugh more. 2) Treat your staff well. You can't play with your food, but no one says you can'

We're all busy. I've got a few plates spinning at any given time family and friends take up what little time is left when I leave the office. People often ask how I stay on top of everything. (Usually not family and friends, who think I work too much). I guess my answer is that I'm hardwired to multitask and generally require less sleep than most people. Good old-fashioned hard work aside, there are three important lessons I've learned to help keep me one step ahead of it all

It seemed natural to, at some point, blog about great books. I am, after all, a publisher. In order to make this list credible, though, I have not included any of the books we have published, or even books by authors whom I know or I have met. So, then, if I have published your book, or if I know you, please do not be offended that your book is not on this list. What follows is a list, in no particular order, of 10 great books that every entrepreneur or employee of an entrepr

With the new year just a few days away, it's time to think about our plans for the next 12 months. I took a look at my list and pulled six that I thought would be good for everyone. 1) Be funnier. This applies to my family, my work life, and this blog... Life is more enjoyable when you can make others laugh. So I promise to try to make my wife, my daughter, my employees, my vendors, my clients and you laugh more in 2008. 2) Treat your staff well. You can't do it with your foo

In Hamlet, Shakespeare said "Brevity is the soul of wit." Winston Churchill said, "Say what you have to say, and the first time you come to a sentence with a grammatical ending -- sit down." There are about 20 other good quotes that speak to this point, but I'm trying to make a point here, so I'll stop at two. Keeping to your message, and making a short, quick point, is incredibly powerful. Just about anyone who graduated from high school can make a long, boring argument abou

I'm kind of a time-management nut. I like to make the best use of every minute in the day. I should first admit that for me, part of the appeal of saving time is the game of it. When I'm on hold, I put the phone on speaker so I can do things around my office. I have two computers on my desk, so I'm never waiting for programs to load or download files. I work hard to be efficient -- and I want to pass my favorite tips on to you. The Marines taught me to love the simplicity of

I once received a last-minute invitation to visit Ireland's most famous band, U2, in Dublin along with a long week of parties and concerts. To call it a once-in-a-lifetime experience is an understatement. As if I needed more of a reason to be excited, a couple friends offered me front-row tickets. My wife is a huge U2 fan (as any red-headed Irish girl should be), and I had it all planned out. Only one glitch. I couldn't go. My schedule was too booked and I had to turn the tic