Business Commons^™

December 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

Harsh Realities: Five Truths Halting Your Company’s Organic Growth Making a lasting change is usually easier said than done. Most of us spend more time talking about change than actually going through with it. Businesses have just as much difficulty going through with change as individuals and Fired?

How to Sell Yourself When No One is Buying The toughest interview of all is the one you face when you are over 50. The over 50 age group has the highest rate of unemployment today. However, Tucker Mays and Bob Sloane give five important ways the over 50 job seeker can …

November 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

One Question Every Small Business Owner Must Answer — Understanding Your Competitive Advantage Every business owner must be able to answer one very basic question, “Why should a prospective customer buy my product or service rather than a competitor’s?” If the owner cannot answer this question, he or she should probably cut his or her losses and seek alternative employment

The 3 R’s for Dealing With Workplace Bullying Workplace bullying is a pressing problem in today’s workplaces. According to the Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI), 35% of the U.S. workforce report being bullied right now! Danita Johnson Hughes gives some tips …

October 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

From Social Brand to Social Business Many organizations today are on a quest to become a social brand. They are investing in Facebook applications, branded communities and blogs

The Consequences of Living and Dying Without an Estate Plan Most of us expect that tomorrow will be another day like any other. But, as Euripides said, “No one can confidently say that he will still be living tomorrow.” If you don’t have the proper documents for your estate, the court will make decisions for you and your family

9 Timely Tips for Pre-Presentation Preparation If you ever find yourself invited to …

September 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

Avoiding Consensus Overload: Seven Tips to Help Leaders Make Thoughtful, Yet Rapid Key Decisions To take advantage of a competitor’s weakness, as a leader, you have to be able to move quickly, and you can’t do that if you spend too much time trying to figure out what every last person on the team thinks

How to Get the Feedback You Didn’t Want to Hear (But Really Need to Know) There is only one way to find out the key things you are missing in business that could help you get even better results—and that’s by getting feedback

Sick of …

August 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

How to Say “No” the Right Way People who don’t mind saying no may lack the skills to do it gracefully and often instill hard feelings, even when that is not their intent. For those who have no problem saying no, but need a little guidance, Carl Van gives some tips on saying no more effectively

10 Tips to Optimize Your Email Marketing Campaigns With the multitude of laws, spam filters and confusion over the best method in using emails, Gregg Brown gives 10 tips to help you get the best results from your email marketing campaigns

Can’t Live With …

July 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

Practice Nets More Benefits for Public Executive ‘Airtime’ allows workers to receive credit toward pension for years they didn’t work

Building Outrage: How Corruption Has Crippled the Construction Industry Stories of corruption should warn every major construction project owner of the dangers of placing millions—and sometimes tens and hundreds of millions—into the hands of companies with very questionable business practices

Resisting the Steve Jobs “Innovation Temptation”; Steps to Creating Great New B2B Products Steve Jobs method of creating products without his customers’ input won’t work for most businesses, especially B2B (business-to-business) suppliers. Dan Adams offers his advice on how you …

June 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

The Galleano Winery—a National Landmark The Galleano Winery remains much the same from 1927 when the land was first purchased by the Galleano family. It is a national landmark right in our own backyard

Economic Forecast Employment in Riverside/San Bernardino is beginning to show signs of an imminent recovery, per California State University, Long Beach

The Exchange: Four Tips for Having Conflict-Busting Conversations in the Workplace The trick to moving past office conflicts and on to increased productivity in your organization is knowing how to broach the topics in ways that leads to improved working relationships

Getting Organized Doing too …

May 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

How Much Does Depression Cost? Government statistics released in November show that 6.5 percent of U.S. adults suffer from depression

The Engagement Factor: Four Ways to Use Your Customers to Boost Innovation (and Profits!) at Your Company The best way to ensure your company will be a success is to deliver more than your share of customer value

Do We Run Universities as Businesses? CSU System is facing challenges at this time. This means that for CSUSB the budget will be around $18 million less

How to Protect Yourself Against Medicare “Gaps” Every Medigap policy has to follow federal and …

April 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

Get Hired 2011: Nine Best Practices for Using Social Media to Win Your Dream Job If you’re one of the many Americans today braving the job market, you’ve probably learned that your social media presence can make you or break you. Maribeth Kuzmeski explains how to use your online presence to leave a great impression with potential employers

Regaining Conference Attendance and Maximizing Your Conference Experience Uwe Janssen gives us up-to-date tips in gaining conference attendance seeing the struggle with the decline in conference attendance due to budget cuts, rising travel expenses and concerns over impact to productivity

I Made …

March 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

The Mommy Trap—Family-Prenup for Financial Insurance Susan Spencer discusses the Jack and Jill Syndrome—mothers who become single parents with no savings, no child support and no career. She suggests that a “family prenup” might be helpful before marriage —insuring the couple’s children have some financial security

Five Ways to Make the Most of the Recovering Economy at Your Company Many economists are saying that the U.S. economy is finally on an uptick. Now that more growth is possible, Dan Adams warns that it’s the time to make sure your company is poised to get its share of the economic recovery …

February 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

Toward a New American Century Michael Milken believes America can extend pre-eminence on competition from China and other countries if we assume greater responsibility for its common destiny. He gives six areas in particular that provide opportunities for positive change

Create a Mastermind Group That Works for You Joelle Jay outlines six steps of mastermind creation—a small group of dedicated peers who share and support each other through the challenges of life and leadership.

The Future of Your Business is in the Palm of Your Hand—Using the Power of Smartphones to Grow Your Business What started as a must-have device …

January 2011, Inland Empire Business Journal

Inland Empire Business Journal

We Are the Champions: Seven Tips for Turning Your Customers Into Fans for Life There are tons of ways to win over your customers and create brand loyalists who keep coming back. Maribeth Kuzmeski gives us seven tips and easy-to-implement ideas that will help you turn any customer into a fan for life

The 2010 Execution Round-Up: Companies That Couldn’t “Get It Done” This Year and Those That Did Rick Lepsinger outlines several world-known companies that either could or could not “Get It Done” in 2010 and the lessons learned by their mistakes or accomplishments

The Future of Business Is …