the best management ideas ever

If you’ve ever tried to get multiple people to understand and implement new processes, you already know that it can be akin to herding cats. The cats only grow in size when you're trying to change the way your business operates. 

It's important for all team members to be on the same page because as your business grows, this only becomes harder. So, how can you begin to overcome this hurdle?

It’s no secret that change is hard. Times change, people change, and your business will definitely change.

There's this little saying among parents, "the days are long, but the years are short." It's often used to remind each other that while the tantrums can be draining, life moves and changes quickly. 

Whether you have kids or not, the sentiment that time passes and life changes quickly are relatable to anyone. It's probably even more poignant to business owners. 

Do you let business come to you naturally or are you constantly nurturing prospects? Trick question - you should be doing both. If you're good at what you do and you invest in ongoing marketing efforts then business will come to you naturally. But, it's also important to do some business development nurturing. 

It's like when you're decorating your house. You invest in a houseplant, but then you fail to invest in taking care of that houseplant. It needs nurturing care. Sometimes specialized care. Or it won't last. 

Meetings can be contentious things. Done poorly, they take time away from working hours and make participants feel as though their time isn't valued. Worryingly, some 67% of meetings a considered a failure - with these collectively costing the economy $37b a year. 

However, managed well, meetings can be a high-value endeavor. They can be a great way to share ideas, make progress on projects, oversee decision making, and bring the team together. With middle management spending some 35% of their time in meetings and upper management a huge 50%, leading effective meetings is a must for productivity and profitability.

Here's how. 

Ever asked a colleague about an email or task, only to get sidetracked talking about something else entirely? At StellaPop we call these moments "squirrel time," after Doug the notoriously distractible dog in the film Up.

Not all squirrel time is bad. We all need a break every now and then, and sometimes squirrel time can result in valuable discussions or insights about a client, a task or a process. But how do you control squirrel time so that you don't go nuts?

Here's how we ensure that we stay on task and meet our deadlines - while still allowing for occasional office chit chat and discussion.