January 4th, 2010 Kaylin Linke
With the first of the year, as usual we are overwhelmed with messages of new beginnings, fresh starts, and clean slates. (And, on a side note, I once again am prompted to ask - what exactly would constitute an old beginning? But, I digress…)
Employing the adage, “if you can’t beat them, join them” I, too, am throwing my thoughts into the mix, although, hopefully with less redundancy. As some have probably heard, we spent the weeks between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays moving into a new office space. Not just new to us, but also including a pretty hefty remodel. After a slightly stressful transition period, I’m happy to report that I haven’t heard the hum of an air compressor, experienced a power outage, or been trapped in a conversation with painters for almost two weeks now. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to talk to them. I just ran out of intelligent comments regarding brush stroke techniques despite my appreciation of their enthusiasm for the topic.
So here I sit at my new desk completing all the normal tasks of my job and the only unpacking I’ve done includes my computer, phone, stapler, planner, notebook, beloved calculator, and two pens. That’s it. Turns out that is all I really need. And, honestly, there aren’t even staples in the stapler so really it should be reclassified as a paperweight holding down the invisible stack of documents on my desk. The poor trees reincarnated as paperwork and file folders gave their life in vain as everything that I have packed away is also saved on our network drives and, might I add, much more accessible in that form. Sincere apologies to my new set of highlighters and the budget used to purchase them. Apparently, I will never be a consistent color-coder. And while I’ve enjoyed the various tchotchkes commemorating the vacation spots of my co-workers, it appears they are also not essential tools when crossing things off my to-do list.
Is this a shocking discovery? Not at all. I can clearly remember thinking to myself that I could/should probably get rid of most of these things when I packed them. And while I’m confessing, I even knew when I petitioned for that set of highlighters that the chances of me actually using them were slim. The lesson here is that I wasn’t informed enough to take the step of decisively saying yay or nay to any of these items until I functioned with or without them. You might even say (drum roll please) that I needed to research it first. Informed decisions are the easiest to make.
While I’m not advocating moving every year to facilitate your new beginning, I am suggesting that a closer look at the essential vs. unessential, practical vs. unpractical, yay vs. nay, might give you the confidence you need to take action. So, if this is the year you are vowing to embrace those goals that always seem to be slightly out of reach- those last five pounds, that lingering credit card debt, or messy closet- do your homework first.
You might just get a side benefit out of it. Finally write blog entry? Cross that one off the list.
Oh, and for anyone wondering, namely those of you who gave them to me, no, I’m not throwing away my collection of vacation themed magnets, key chains, and figurines.
Not all worth can be judged on functionality. Plus, they are pretty.< ><-->
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July 4th, 2009 Nina Nichols
Unless you’re willing to gamble everything – your time, money, hard-work and dreams — on what you “believe” your market wants, then you should consider a realistic alternative: discover what your audience genuinely desires and the amount they’re willing to pay for your product or service through market research. Now is not the time to gamble. Understanding your competition and marketplace can tremendously improve your critical decision-making when launching a new venture or project. The old adage, “knowledge is king” has never rung truer than in the world today.
If you are embarking on a new endeavor, don’t risk your blood, sweat, and tears by bravely proceeding forward where angels fear to tread: think-forward, be realistic and take every precaution to achieve success. Do what’s right for the future.
Just think about what the chief executive of Coca-Cola Enterprises recently told a group of graduates…. “Coca-Cola operates in more corners of the world than any other enterprise. It’s been said that after the word ‘hello,’ Coca-Cola is the most recognized word in the world. Our business has chosen the idea of ‘happiness’ as the best way to connect our brand with billions of people in more than 200 countries. Did some marketing guru randomly make that choice? No. It was a thoroughly analyzed decision about what speaks to the aspirations of people today.” If Coca-Cola, likely the best know product name in the world needs market research, you can bet your bottom dollar that every other company or venture does too. Avoid the school of hard-knocks by enjoying a lesson already learned: Conduct market research – it’s the real thing!
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March 16th, 2009 Nina Nichols
It doesn’t matter how you spell it – with an “i” or a “y” using a hyphen or not –it still is a word that instantly dissolves our confidence and our financial security. There are many links and suggestions about “how to cope with losing your job” or “how to make it through this recession or hard times”. Surely someone, somewhere has the perfect solution. Here’s a simple idea that might help you through hard times. This idea won’t save the house or make a cloudy day sunny, but it is easy, fun, beneficial, and has been recommended on television shows like The Today Show and CBS in the San Francisco Bay Area. What is this solution for the lay-off blues? Join a market research panel! It is usually free to join, at least it is at the Resolution Research panel. You contribute your opinions and ideas by participating in market research studies and receive compensation. Read more »
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March 12th, 2009 Maro Lee
I love reading open-ended responses in survey data. Answers given typically run the gamut from enlightening to absurd to brilliant to laugh-out-loud funny. Most researchers will agree that the data from open-ended responses plays an integral role in the overall analysis, which is why it’s so important to continually train interviewers on the art of active listening, probing, and recording responses. Oh my multi-tasking! Sometimes it’s easier said than done, but there are a few basic concepts that I believe aid an interviewer in mastering this skill: Read more »
Posted in Qualitative | 2 Comments »
March 3rd, 2009 Mary Wuest
Okay, so I walked the Republic but hey — I was proud to make it up the 56 flights of stairs (that’s 1,098 stairs!) along with my colleagues Craig Koehler, Maro Lee, Kaylin Linke, Amanda Miller and more than 1600 other climbers.
The 3rd annual Anthem Run the Republic tower race took place in Denver on February 22nd. They raised almost $300,000 for the American Lung Association of Colorado, which will go toward helping to fight lung disease and to promote lung health. With the Republic Plaza being the tallest building in the Rocky Mountain West at 717 feet tall, I will attest to the fact that this climb makes you aware of your lungs in whole new way. It was fun and inspiring to be there amongst the climbers, volunteers and sponsors who gave of their time, money and lung power for this important cause. We all plan to do this again next year and beat our personal times. Stay tuned ….
11:07 CRAIG KOEHLER
14:55 MARO LEE
15:54 KAYLIN LINKE
20:45 MARY WUEST
25:05 AMANDA MILLER
The Climbing Crew
Posted in In The Field, Off The Field, Out Of The Park | No Comments »
February 28th, 2009 Jim Callihan
Well, sort of.
In my earlier posting regarding the $787 billion stimulus package – and the nearly $5,000 per second in spending it represents when spread over 5 years – I had suggested that it was a bit ludicrous to imagine spending that huge amount in the span of 30 days.
As it turns out, it may not be such a wildly bizarre notion after all.
Following my usual routine this morning I grabbed my cup of coffee and began my leisurely scan of several internet news services. Prominent among all the headlines was one announcing President Obama’s proposed $3.55 trillion budget for 2010.
As huge numbers go that one is REALLY impressive, and, I’m afraid, all the more incomprehensible. Afterall, it equates to having 3,550 stacks of one billion dollars. To me, three thousand stacks of anything is probably a few stacks too many – but stacks of $1 billion? All, I might add, budgeted to be spent in a single year.
So I got to wondering. Read more »
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February 16th, 2009 Jim Callihan
All too often these days it seems we’re confronted with numbers that seem, well, a tad incomprehensible. At least for me. As hard as I try I just can’t seem to wrap my brain around a “stimulus package” valued at around 790 billion dollars. Seems I get only far enough to conclude that it’s a really, really huge amount. Even when I break it into smaller pieces it still seems intellectually overwhelming. Afterall, a mere one percent totals about $8 billion, and that, I’m afraid, still stretches my imagination beyond its limits. Only when I get to a fraction as small as one-tenth of one percent does a dollar figure I can comprehend appear – a mere $79,000; but then when I try to imagine one-tenth of one percent I find I’m pretty much where I started, dealing with numbers that are either too large, or now too small, to be meaningful. Read more »
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December 9th, 2008 Nina Nichols
Since my original posting, I’ve been asked a few questions regarding the “auto” write-off that was mentioned in the blog. I’ve asked & received answers from Alicia and posted the Q&A’s below:
Q: “Does the car have to be purchased through a business or can an individual purchase & capture the same write off?”
A: Employees have a tougher threshold. They need to prove the miles were unreimbursed by their employers and for a business purpose – commuting doesn’t count. They also would only be deductible to the extent that they exceed 2% of the employees’ adjusted gross income, and then only if they itemize.
Q: “Does it have to be a brand new car or are there other requirements for the write-off?”
A. It doesn’t have to be a brand new car.
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December 1st, 2008 Nina Nichols
I’ve worked with the same large, well-known CPA firm in Denver for probably a dozen years and every year, I’ve asked what, if anything, I can do reduce my tax exposure. The response was always standard – increase your expenses, buy a home (which I did when I didn’t own one), but that was about it. But this year, I’m working with Alicia Green (www.abcpa.us), whom I’ve know for years. She’s successfully dealt with many different issues, specifically with Quickbooks. She is a true expert and even teaches Quickbooks classes.
This year, she sent out the “year-end tax savings ideas” email below to her clients, which I found to not only be thoughtful, but actually useful, so I wanted to share it with you! Alicia says (reprinted with her permission, of course)…. Read more »
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November 20th, 2008 Nina Nichols
I wonder how many errors in business - or in most any relationship - have occurred because someone “assumed” that someone else had it covered. Do any of following examples sound familiar?
- The car had on its blinker so I assumed it was turning.
Crash.
- We only sell alcohol to adults.
But officer, she looks older, plus she said she was 25.
- Hand me the tickets.
I thought you had them.
- Where’s the camera?
I thought you brought it.
- The ad was printed with misspellings.
I assumed that spell-check would catch that – or the printer. After all, what kind of printer is he anyway?
- The invitation had the wrong date.
I thought that’s the date you told me.
- The milk was expired.
They should only sell items that are not expired. I shouldn’t have to check the date.
If you “shouldn’t have to check it,” that’s a sure-fire sign to double-check it. Read more »
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