This past week I finished reading Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell, and had a light bulb moment regarding the telephone and why it is such a powerful communication tool. (Actually, to be perfectly accurate, I finished listening to Blink. With the arrival of Spring I'm back to walking to work most mornings and, with my iPod in my pocket, it is a grea...

A few months ago I had lunch with an entrepreneurial friend of mine. He was quieter than usual; I did most of the chatting while we made our menu choices. Once the waiter had taken our order and left, I asked my friend what was on his mind. And I heard what I often hear – he wasn’t keeping up with prospective clients properly. He wasn’t fi...