For example, many people thought at the start of the pandemic - and this too shall pass. So they waited. And they waited. And then they realized they would be waiting and basically doing nothing for nearly two years.
To obliterate status quo, do you have what it takes to become a high-performance leader even during the toughest times? Ten traits characterize the people who do. The key is to never slip into mediocrity and do nothing.
The essence of making revolutionary changes is taking risks. Bold risks produce bold innovation; they launch new products, services, and companies; they improve workplace conditions for employees; and they may even end up changing the world.
Here are 10 questions to ask (and answer) to help guide you and your organization to achieve bold innovation. This is an article I [Laurel Delaney] wrote for American Express more than a decade ago and it still applies to today's world.
Don’t reinforce the old ways of doing things. Continuing to take risks is an important part of achieving bold innovation.
As we go forward in 2021, think carefully about your strategy for innovation in your business. The genesis of every new product, business or service offering is a concept: an idea for something you believe people want and will buy at a price they can afford to pay you for the work needed to produce it. Concepts can arise out of anything at any time. I think of it as spontaneous innovation, which occurs in every aspect of our lives. Some might refer to it as spontaneous expression, and it’s typically a moment that can’t be repeated easily.
In this article I [Laurel Delaney] present four (4) examples.
Oh, and at the end of each passage, there’s a lesson learned along with a big question to get a conversation going.
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| ©2021 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
And at the same time, we celebrate with you the birth of Escape From Corporate America – some 17 years ago – on July 7, 2004. Thank you for your readership. Your engagement keeps me going.
Here are a couple of specific examples: You created a whole new way to pitch clients but haven't landed one new piece of business. You launched a new line of shoes and no one is buying them. You developed a brilliant method of allowing everyone in the world who has access to the Internet to connect on a platform to change the world, and only eleven people signed up.
Sound familiar? Here are five signs that serve as early detectors of total business decay. This is an article I [Laurel Delaney] wrote more than a decade ago yet it is still relevant to our times.
More than 1,000 women have completed the program. They range from 16 to 51 years old, and are from diverse backgrounds — stay-at-home mothers, burned-out executives, women laid off during the pandemic. More than half have been women of color.
Learn that anything is possible.
In the article below, I [Laurel J. Delaney] highlight some points in Michael Treacy's book, “Double-Digit Growth: How Great Companies Achieve It – No Matter What." His insights are still relevant for today's business owners. The five ways to go after growth consist of:
As of 2020, these companies employed nearly 9 million people and generated $1.8 trillion in sales. Last year alone, women started 1,821 new businesses every day. Of these, over 60% were started by women of color, and Latina women-owned businesses grew more than 87%.
As Winston Churchill once said: “A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
Women entrepreneurs must see opportunity in every difficulty, too. Now is a perfect time to think about how to create a new market space. Your clients in the past — indeed, the whole marketplace — have changed.
Take a look at seven areas women entrepreneurs can discover new ways to solve old problems and gain traction in our new world.
The one tip that trumps them all? No. 10.
Deal with it. Don’t think of surviving. Think of thriving. Action, not words, says it all. Imagine yourself five years from now and where you will be. If you can envision it, you can do it. And end up sleeping like a baby.
American pop singer Lady Gaga has taken the world by storm with her robust voice, over-the-top theatrical performances and outrageous costumes. Global small business owners can learn from her without going to the same extremes.
There are lots of little ways to reposition your business, be different, and have customers take notice of you both online and off. All it takes is a little innovation and determination.
Learn more.
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| ©2021 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
Here's what makes this race special. Ms. Vicki Oliver is Stash's trainer and SHE has that chance to put her name into the thoroughbred record books. She is the 18th woman to saddle a horse in the Derby. And, yes, she is quite aware of the history lesson she could teach if Hidden Stash finds his way to the winner’s circle.
“It’s unbelievable how much work she has put into this,” [Braxton] Lynch [one of the founding partners and the racing manager at syndicate group BBN Racing] said. “She has been doing it for over 20 years. I tell you, it’s not an easy business being a woman. It wasn’t an easy business 25 years ago when we both got into it. It’s hard work. Man, woman, whatever. You have to put in the work."
Can SHE do it? Race on ...
She says, "Self-leadership will empower you – regardless of your work position to become an agent for change and contribute to the greater good of all."
We are a big fan of Dr. Egel's and very much admire and respect her work. Read the entire article: First You Lead Yourself! Then You Can Lead Others!
In a loving gesture to her husband of 73 years, the Queen placed a handwritten note on top of the Duke of Edinburgh's coffin throughout his funeral services on Saturday [April 17, 2021]. The monarch signed the note with the nickname "Lilibet" — a nickname she was given as a child.
Philip is thought to be the last person who called by her childhood moniker.
Queen Elizabeth may have lost her husband but she has gained additional love and support from people all over the world for her leadership, courage and strength. She will never be alone.
We salute and honor "Lilibet" with the duty and public service she has shown her country and the world. May the Duke of Edinburgh rest in peace. May "Lilibet" carry on.
Working their way from the ground up, they show that everything is possible with a little determination and belief.
Have a look at these inspirational female leaders and try on some of their ideas yourself. Then get ready to live an extraordinary life, both personally and in business.
A professor by the name of Autumn Stanley believes it was a machine patent which automated the manual techniques of weaving straw with silk that previously enabled women to make hats in their homes.
Read the entire story on how a cottage industry was born.
Meanwhile, put on your mask and fancy bonnet, and have yourself a very Happy Easter.
The Women’s Entrepreneur Initiative (WEI) Study concludes that for them to continue to make gains, women business owners need better access to resources, financing, expertise and networking.
Constance Gamache of Deloitte Consulting says, "Women are the fastest growing, highest performing and most economically underutilized subsegment of entrepreneurs."
Enough said.
We've always known that women need an entrepreneurial hub (or cafe) to share experience, resources, challenges and opportunities. We have had one going on since March, 2020. Won't you join us? It's every Tuesday at 4PM CT. Everyone is welcome. Don't let the global part throw you – most of our tribe are startups that have the world as a market on their mind. See you there because I facilitate the discussions every week.
Alyson Saxe ran into an old friend at Costco, who – upon learning Saxe had children – inquired whether she worked outside the home. Saxe explained that she'd founded a PR agency. "My friend said, 'How great! You're a mompreneur!'" recalls Saxe. "'You get to work and have time for your kids and family!'"
Saxe, later, went on to raise north of $2 million for her second company, the brand-management platform IrisPR, based in Phoenix. "I work every bit as hard as male entrepreneurs. "I am not a mompreneur," says Saxe. "I am a mother. And I am an entrepreneur."
Read on to appreciate how business language – like much other language – is de-gendering.
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| ©2021 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
According to the National Association of Women Business Owners, nearly 12 million businesses are owned by women, generating $1.7 trillion in sales, and employing over 9 million people. Together, these businesses represent one of the fastest growing sectors of our economy.
Read more about how women entrepreneurs are driving America's recovery from the global pandemic.
Black women business owners are continuing to remain at the forefront of innovation as entrepreneurs and the New Voices team is joining forces with the Target Accelerators team yet again to give ten of these hard-working women the chance of a lifetime.
Poised and prepared before a panel of business experts, the ladies shared their entrepreneurship journeys for a chance to win between $5,000 and $20,000 in funding for their businesses.
Winners will also receive business coaching and mentoring from @newvoicesfamily to help them grow and scale their companies with purpose.
To learn more visit, here (note: this was previously aired but you can get your free passes to check things out).
Below Colleen talks about why relationships matter and how to take 5 steps to building stronger ones.
One step in particular resonated with me:
4. Be consistent — and genuine. Walk the talk. Do what you say you’re going to do — and in a timely manner. Bring the authentic version of yourself, warts and all, when meeting with existing or potential partners. You don’t have to be perfect. But you do have to be real.
So often people don't practice this. Do you?
Read the entire article, Relationships Matter: 5 Steps to Stronger Partnerships
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| ©2019 Laurel J. Delaney. All rights reserved. |
Find out from the founders of an Israeli venture capital firm as they tell how they have made it in a man’s world and the ways they feel the status quo could be changed.
Akola means “she works” in a local Ugandan dialect, and it was founded as a nonprofit almost 12 years ago with the idea that sustainable job creation is the only way to get women out of poverty.
Drill down further to see how through a combination of vertically integrated manufacturing, swift innovation in their product offerings and a strategic business model that includes a combination of for-profit and nonprofit entities, the decade-old brand has been able to navigate the Covid pandemic with unwavering commitments to sustainability and social impact.
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