Getting Paid is Hard Work
For any business, big or small, sending out an invoice should be a delightful experience—the crowning culmination of all the hard work that generated a slew of billable hours resulting in said invoice, the glorious banana treat the end of a long day’s, week’s, or month’s labor. Sadly, invoicing—especially for smaller businesses, independent contractors, and…
On the Road to INTERBIKE 2017
Attention all you biking enthusiasts, the future of the bicycle industry is coming to Las Vegas next week. It’s time for the annual Interbike International Bicycle Exposition where the “bicycle industry gathers to celebrate, educate, and conduct the business of cycling.” As a biking enthusiast myself, with both a personal and professional interest for what’s…
Appreciative Inquiry: Asking About What You Do Best
It’s five years from. Like “Monkeyz Van Winkle” (Rip’s better looking, simian forebear) you wake up from a long sleep. The world around you has changed. You’ve changed. Your business has changed. CORE GAMING BACKPACK KICKSTARTER The Ultimate Gift for Gamers, the ‘Core’ Gaming Backpack is a Great Gift for Travelers, Busy Professionals, and Students…
Decisions, Decisions: Timing Is Everything
There’s a common saying that timing is everything. I tend to agree. After all, who am I to argue with a sage pop philosopher like Alanis Morissette who wrote about the irony of bad timing in her iconic hit “Ironic” in 1995. In it, she sings that “an old man turned ninety-eight. He won the…
Do You Practice The Art of Delegation?
We entrepreneurs like to think we can do it all. It’s what drives us. It’s what makes us successful in the first place. It’s what makes us think we can do more and have more . . . always. I’m sure you’ve heard the well-known story of the professor and his seemingly “full” jar that…
Nine Promotional Hacks to Keep Your Marketing from Taking a Vacation this Summer
Memorial Day is in the rear-view mirror, which means summer weather is about to hit and vacation “season” soon will be in full swing, including for yours truly and the Monkeyz staff. It’s an annual rite that’s good for the body, mind, and spirit—and good for recharging the batteries so you’re in tip-top fighting shape…
You’ve Got Intelligence, Now Do Something With It!
Do you value market intelligence, or do you just assume you know your marketplace and customer motivations? Far too often, this King Monkey has seen the gathering of market intelligence relegated to the “nice to have but not necessary” portion of marketing budgets. At a recent brainstorming session with my team to discuss strategies and tactics…
Let’s Be Positive: Why Would You Want to be Anything Else?
Being positive broadens the mind and unburdens the soul. It leads to more creativity, greater resiliency, and rampant innovation—all those things near and dear to Barrel O’Monkeyz staff, clients, and colleagues. Where do you rate yourself personally and professionally on the positivity meter? Positivity also leads to big time benefits to your physical health and…
We’re Back: Sea Otter Bigger and Better than Ever
By all indicators, this year’s Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, CA was bigger and better than ever, with more exhibitors (400+), more sponsor banners (900+), and 8% growth in the number of athletes competing. As for the number of visitors/spectators, while the exact total isn’t available yet, the main parking area held 1,000 more vehicles…
Are You Curious?
Writer, broadcaster, and “man of the arts” Arnold Edinborough once wrote, “Curiosity is the very basis of education and if you tell me that curiosity killed the cat, I say only the cat died nobly.” Personally, I don’t believe curiosity killed the cat. I believe curiosity is good for us, whether we’re feline, simian, or…
Does Your Business Have “App” Appeal?
Having an App for your business is a near must these days. Large business or small, deploying an App fills essentially the same business need that Websites first began to fill 15 or so years ago by providing customers and prospects a digital space in which to interact with your brand. In other words, if…
Do Your Projects Suffer from Scope Creep?
Scope creep—the tendency of a project to grow beyond its original parameters—can happen to the best of us, often despite the best intentions of all involved. Scope creep can rear its head in virtually any aspect of our home or work lives: You stop off at the grocery store for “only” a couple of items…
