Zappos Inspiration; Big Ass Fans Success; Covey Quote of the Summit; Nov 1 Deadline Sydney Growth Summit
October 31, 2013
Update China; Ohio State Football; Save a Fireman’s Life; Crowdfunding Video
November 14, 2013

5 Best Books 2013; Buffett-Munger Advice; Profit/X Examples; Best Strategic Decision; Holiday Gifts

"…keeping you great" 




HEADLINES:



We're good at lifelong learning. Warren is better in his 70s and 80s, in
many ways, than he was when he was younger. If you keep learning all the
time, you have a wonderful advantage.
 

Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's Partner 

Berkshire Hathaway



5 Best Biz Books 2013
 
my latest list is online and on the newsstands in the Nov 18 issue of 
Fortunemagazine
– add these five
outstanding biz books to your reading list
 and
corporate library. 



Congrats to Rajeev Agarwal
 
speaking of books, I continue to encourage CEOs to write a book as a way to
generate interest in their company (potential customers and employees). Rajeev
Agarwal, founder of Redmond-based MAQ Software (and GazellesPro member) just
released a book entitled 
What
I Did Not Learn at IIT
.
Clearly geared to attracting tech talent in India, it has both a catchy
title and great looking cover
! Congrats Rajeev. 



Buffett's and Munger's Best Advice
 
rarely interviewed together outside their annual gathering in Omaha, Fortune managed
an exclusive joint interview
 with
Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger. Take one minute to scan how they've helped
each other over the years (and who feels they helped the other more!). And
Munger's take on envy is worth the minute. Then here's
a link
 to the extended interview
of the Buffett/Munger duo and several other powerful duos willing to support and
learn from each other. Do you have such a biz partner? So long as you get along,
it makes the journey a lot more fun. 



Profit/X Clarification
 
one of the most important findings in Jim Collins' research still generates a
lot of confusion — his Profit/X concept. In my latest
Growth Guy syndicated column
, as you prepare your 2014 One-Page Strategic
Plans, I delve into the power of choosing the right Profit/X (actually, the
numerator can be anything – revenue, employees, GM, etc.) and how the "X" needs
to align with your BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal). If all this is confusing,
take 3 minutes to scan through the column. It's one of the most important
strategic decisions you'll make so it's critical to get it right. 



"H#!! Froze Over"
 
…and check
out this short article
 on what
might be one of the greatest strategic decisions of all time – Apple's rebel
engineers defying Steve Jobs wishes and making iTunes available for the PC. It's
a one minute read if you have time. 



Best Time to Give Holiday Gifts
 
knowing that this is culturally specific, John Ruhlin, author of 
Cutting
Edge Sales
,
suggests the week before Thanksgiving or the middle of January are the best
times to give holiday gifts if you want a 100x impact. This way you avoid
getting lost in the noise of other gifts your customers receive during the 4
weeks between Thanksgiving and the New Year. Notes Ruhlin, "It is best to give a
gift in the middle of July when no one expects it then to be one of 100 gifts a
busy executive receives and get lost in the chaos." 



"Thanks" Giving Gifts
 
…and if you're looking for an appropriate gift, books are always great way to
position you as a lifelong learner – and a way to share knowledge that will help
your customer's business and ignite a business-focused conversation. We have a
few boxes (36 to a box @$10/book plus shipping) of 
The
Greatest Busines
s
Decision book available as one option. Email
Missy Giltner if
interested.



COACHING: 




Need help implementing the Rockefeller Habits?

Verne Harnish
Verne Harnish
Verne Harnish is founder of the world-renowned Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) and chaired for fifteen years EO’s premiere CEO program, the “Birthing of Giants” and WEO’s “Advanced Business” executive program both held at MIT. Founder and CEO of Gazelles, a global executive education and coaching company with over 150 coaching partners on six continents, Verne has spent the past three decades helping companies scale-up. The “Growth Guy” syndicated columnist, he’s also the Venture columnist for FORTUNE magazine. He’s the author of Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0); Mastering the Rockefeller Habits; and along with the editors of Fortune, authored The Greatest Business Decisions of All Times," for which Jim Collins wrote the foreword. Verne also chairs FORTUNE Magazine’s annual Leadership and Growth Summits and serves on several boards including chairman of The Riordan Clinic and the newly launched Geoversity. He is an investor in many scale-ups. A father of four, he enjoys piano, tennis, and magic as a card-carrying member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians.