Steve Jobs and the Seven Rules of Success

Oct18

Steve Jobs and the Seven Rules of Success

BY Carmine Gallo | Steve Jobs’ impact on your life cannot be overestimated. His innovations have likely touched nearly every aspect — computers, movies, music and mobile. As a communications coach, I learned from Jobs that a presentation can, indeed, inspire. For entrepreneurs, Jobs’ greatest legacy is the set of principles that drove his success. Over the years, I’ve become a student of sorts of Jobs’ career and life. Here’s my take on the rules and values underpinning his success. Any of us can adopt them to unleash our “inner Steve Jobs.”

1. Do what you love. Jobs once said, “People with passion can change the world for the better.” Asked about the advice he would offer would-be entrepreneurs, he said, “I’d get a job as a busboy or something until I figured out what I was really passionate about.” That’s how much it meant to him. Passion is everything.

2. Put a dent in the universe. Jobs believed in the power of vision. He once asked then-Pepsi President, John Sculley, “Do you want to spend your life selling sugar water or do you want to change the world?” Don’t lose sight of the big vision. Related: Why Entrepreneurs Love Steve Jobs

 3. Make connections. Jobs once said creativity is connecting things. He meant that people with a broad set of life experiences can often see things that others miss. He took calligraphy classes that didn’t have any practical use in his life — until he built the Macintosh. Jobs traveled to India and Asia. He studied design and hospitality. Don’t live in a bubble. Connect ideas from different fields.

4. Say no to 1,000 things. Jobs was as proud of what Apple chose not to do as he was of what Apple did. When he returned in Apple in 1997, he took a company with 350 products and reduced them to 10 products in a two-year period. Why? So he could put the “A-Team” on each product. What are you saying “no” to?

5. Create insanely different experiences. Jobs also sought innovation in the customer-service experience. When he first came up with the concept for the Apple Stores, he said they would be different because instead of just moving boxes, the stores would enrich lives. Everything about the experience you have when you walk into an Apple store is intended to enrich your life and to create an emotional connection between you and the Apple brand. What are you doing to enrich the lives of your customers?

Related: 10 Things to Thank Steve Jobs For

Related: 10 Things to Thank Steve Jobs For

6. Master the message. You can have the greatest idea in the world, but if you can’t communicate your ideas, it doesn’t matter. Jobs was the world’s greatest corporate storyteller. Instead of simply delivering a presentation like most people do, he informed, he educated, he inspired and he entertained, all in one presentation.

7. Sell dreams, not products. Jobs captured our imagination because he really understood his customer. He knew that tablets would not capture our imaginations if they were too complicated. The result? One button on the front of an iPad. It’s so simple, a 2-year-old can use it. Your customers don’t care about your product. They care about themselves, their hopes, their ambitions. Jobs taught us that if you help your customers reach their dreams, you’ll win them over. There’s one story that I think sums up Jobs’ career at Apple. An executive who had the job of reinventing the Disney Store once called up Jobs and asked for advice. His counsel? Dream bigger. I think that’s the best advice he could leave us with. See genius in your craziness, believe in yourself, believe in your vision, and be constantly prepared to defend those ideas. Related: Remembering Apple’s Steve Jobs

The Making of a 20-Something Multimillionaire Serial Entrepreneur

Oct10

The Making of a 20-Something Multimillionaire Serial Entrepreneur http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220436

5 Goals to Losing Weight

Oct5

5 Goals to Losing Weight

Exercise Class Working Out

To lose weight, you need to burn more calories than you eat. Every good weight-loss plan has the same two parts: food and physical activity. Wise food choices can help you eat fewer calories and daily (or almost daily) physical activity helps you burn off some of the calories you consume. You lose weight more easily and you’re more likely to keep it off, too.

  1. Keep portions smaller than your fist. It’s easy to overeat when you have too much food on your plate. Smaller portions help prevent overeating. Overeating can make health problems worse, especially if you have diabetes. One way to control overeating is to reduce portion sizes when you eat. For most foods, a reasonable portion is ½ to 1 cup – about the size of a woman’s fist. Even if your fist is larger than that, it is still a handy measuring tool that goes everywhere you go. Just keep your portions smaller than your fist. See our Suggested Servings from Each Food Group and Healthier Kids portion sizes. Not all foods fit the “fist” rule.
The two most common exceptions are:
  • Meat, chicken and fish. For these foods, keep portions the size of a deck of cards (about half the size of your fist.)
  • Plain vegetables, including salads without dressing. You can have as much as you want because these foods are filling and low in calories.
  1. Control your hunger with filling foods that are low in calories. Foods such as soup, salad, fruits and vegetables can help fill you up without adding a lot of calories. These foods will satisfy hunger and help you lose weight. Research shows that people feel less hungry when they eat a certain volume (amount) of food. High-fiber foods, such as fruits and vegetables, can provide a feeling of fullness and also digest slowly. That helps you feel satisfied longer so you eat less.
  2. Keep track of what you eat. When you keep track of what you eat, you’re more likely to meet your food goals. Studies show that keeping a food log or diary helps people lose weight and keep it off.
  3. Make trade-offs to reduce how much fat and sugar you eat. Foods high in fat and sugar are usually high in calories, too. But that doesn’t mean you have to give up your favorite foods. Learn to make trade-offs instead. If you want to indulge in your favorite dessert, eat a lower-calorie meal.
  4. Enjoy more physical activity. As you already know, regular physical activity is important for keeping your heart healthy. Increasing physical activity may help you lose weight and strengthen your heart at the same time.

If you feel you need extra support to lose weight, look for a weight-loss program that’s been proven safe and successful. Look for a program that:

  • Stresses a healthy eating plan (low in saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol and sodium, with plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean poultry, meat and fish, and fat-free or low-fat dairy).
  • Includes daily physical activity.
  • Gives you personal support from a group, buddy or dietitian.
  • Does not deprive you of the foods you enjoy.
  • Has a system to help you keep track of what you eat and drink.
  • Recommends a gradual weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week until a healthy weight is reached.
  • If you’re insulin-dependent, does not conflict with your diabetic diet. Talk to your doctor or diabetes educator if you have questions.

 

Instead of … Try …
Counting every calorie and fat gram Keeping a food diary. Once you know what you are eating you may be able to reduce the amount without having to count every calorie. Try eating ½ portions.
Eating dessert after dinner If you feel like you have to eat dessert, try eating dessert only after lunch, and choose a low-calorie dessert like fruit. The earlier in the day you eat high-calorie foods, the more time you have during the day to burn off those extra calories. (That doesn’t mean eat dessert after breakfast.) Refer to the “make trade-offs” section above.
Skipping meals to lose weight Eating 4-5 smaller meals during the day. Eating every 3-4 hours helps control hunger. Just make sure that your smaller meals do not exceed your daily total calorie goals.
Starving between meals Planing ahead and bringing healthy snacks with you wherever you go so you won’t be tempted to pick up something unhealthy on your way. Drink a tall glass of water to get you through a craving.
Tasting food while you cook Resisting eating the food you are making until you are sitting at the table with a plate and proper portion sizes in front of you.
Stopping at the grocery store on the way home Shopping after you eat. Never go to the store hungry or you’re asking for trouble. If you must go to the store before eating a meal make sure you have a healthy snack (see above) to eat before you get there to curb your appetite and reduce the likelihood of binge-buying.
Weighing yourself every day Weighing yourself once a week. We recommend choosing the schedule that works best for you. If you have heart failure, you must check your weight every day to look for sudden changes.

http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/WeightManagement/LosingWeight/5-Goals-to-Losing-Weight_UCM_307260_Article.jsp

5 Goals to Healthy Eating

Oct4

5 Goals to Healthy Eating
Woman Eating Healthy

Eating healthy is easier than you might think. Add these simple healthy eating habits to your daily life over the next few weeks and you’ll see just how easy it is. By making small changes like these over time, and taking them one at a time, not trying to rush into all of them at once, the changes are more likely to stick.

  1. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Aim for 4-5 servings each of fruits and vegetables every day, if you consume a 2,000 calorie diet. Vegetable or 100% fruit juice counts toward this goal.
  2. Eat more whole-grain foods. Like fruits and vegetables, whole-grain foods are low in saturated fat and cholesterol and rich in fiber. Whole-grain foods include whole-wheat bread, rye bread, brown rice and whole-grain cereal.
  3. Use olive, canola, corn or safflower oil as your main kitchen fat. Limit how much fat or oil you use in cooking, and use liquid vegetable oils such as olive, canola, corn and safflower oils in place of solid fats.
  4. Eat more chicken, fish and beans than other meats. In general, skinless poultry, fish and vegetable protein (such as beans) are lower in saturated fat and cholesterol than other meats (beef, pork and lamb).
  5. Read food labels to help you choose healthy foods. Food labels provide information to help you make better food choices. Learn what information to look for (for example, sodium content) and how to find it quickly and easily.http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/WeightManagement/LosingWeight/5-Goals-to-Losing-Weight_UCM_307260_Article.jsp

Weight Watchers Lost 119

Oct4

I Knew I was Worth ItLauren afterLauren before

 

After

 

Before

Name

Lauren

Age

30

Height

5’7″

Was

265.8 lbs 

Lost

119 lbs* 

Weight

146.8 lbs 

As of

3/6/2011

 

*People following the Weight Watchers plan can expect to lose 1-2 pounds per week.

 

Now I’m able to shop in the regular ladies department at stores. I haven’t been able to do that since before high school.

Lauren lost weight with a prior Weight Watchers program and the PointsPlus® program.

At more than 100 pounds overweight, Lauren woke up one day and had an epiphany: it was time to put herself first again.

I was kind of heavy as a child, but really started gaining in my late 20s and after I got married. Before I joined Weight Watchers meetings and started following the Plan, I was fed up with my unhealthy lifestyle. I felt like I was trapped in my body and I didn’t know how I’d gotten to that point. It was time for a change and I knew I was ready.

I chose Weight Watchers because I’d heard about a lot of people’s successes. My mother-in-law is also a Lifetime Member and has always spoken so highly of the Plan. I knew it was the right choice.

Growing confidence

I wanted to be able to incorporate foods that I loved into my life. I didn’t want to give anything up. I did some research on Weight Watchers and thought this fit exactly with the type of change I was trying to make. I found a meeting that night.

I started out by sitting in the back of the meeting room and just listening. But now that the weight has come off I’m more confident and I share my stories and struggles with the group.

Rethinking the mirror

I just recently started looking in the mirror and seeing what others see. For the longest time, I kept thinking people were only saying I looked good because they felt like they had to. But as my wardrobe got smaller and smaller I started to say, “OK, maybe they’re right. Maybe I do look good.”

I’ve been married for almost four years. My husband loves this new wife more because I’m so much more confident. I needed to get myself happy and this has just made our marriage so much stronger.

The PointsPlus difference

The timing of the switch to the PointsPlus program was perfect for me because I was at plateau and was struggling to lose the last of my weight. It forced me to take a second look at the food I was eating. So PointsPlus was the boost and change I needed to get me to my goal. And now earn even more activity PointsPlus values when I work out. Bonus!

Weight Watchers is still really all about balance. The meetings taught me to evaluate all the food I eat and why I’m eating it. But guess what? If I want a cheeseburger, I’m going to eat a cheeseburger, as long as I track it and compensate for it throughout the day.

I’ll never be one of those “naturally thin” people. I’ll have to work at this all my life but it feels great knowing that Weight Watchers will always be a part of my life. It’s comforting. I knew I would be successful, I just had no idea how much I would lose. But I was determined and I knew I was worth it.

The fitness factor

Before starting the Plan, I was exercising a little bit. But I was coming home and eating a steak and cheese sub with a small order of fries. Now I’m smarter. After I work out, I treat myself to something like almonds or cheese, but I don’t want to “ruin” my workout by eating a lot of unhealthy food.

I’ve definitely upped my workouts as well. I go to the gym five days a week and I do an hour of cardio and then a half hour in the weight room. And I also do Zumba which is so much fun! You get to dance and get your cardio in while you dance. I’m not good at it at all, but I have a blast doing it. A year ago I never would have even stepped foot into a Zumba class because I was so unconfident.

Getting to Goal

When I hit my goal weight, my Leader, Jane, had a family celebration during the meeting for me. My husband, father and stepmother all came to the ceremony. I shared my journey with other members as well as my successes and struggles along the way. I loved being able to shop for new clothes and, for once in my life, share my clothes with my best friend!

My husband has also gotten into better shape. We’re both in the best shape of our lives now.

I just love the new me. Before I started, I would always hide in the back of the group for pictures or crop myself out. But I’m not the same person I was. If there’s a camera, I’m like, “Hey! Look at me!” I’m so much happier and healthier and more active than I was before. I take much better care of myself. While people notice the weight loss, they also notice I’m much more confident than I used to be. Weight Watchers was the best thing that could have happened to me and at the perfect time in my life when I was willing to change. It has honestly changed my life.

Lauren’s Tips
  • The idea of losing 100 pounds is really intimidating. I never even dreamed I’d get under 200 pounds. Set mini goals for yourself. That just kept me going and going.
  • Look for the perfect meeting for you. There are meetings closer to where I live, but I drive a lot farther to hear my Leader Jane’s tips and inspiring words.
  • Snack throughout the day so you’re never starving. And plan your days in advance so you’re never worried about what your next meal will be.
  • I look for the most flavorful foods so I can get the best bang for my PointsPlus value buck.
  • Use you weekly PointsPlus Allowance in the way that’s best for you. I use them for eating dinner at a nice restaurant every Saturday night. Other people spread them throughout the week.

How Two Small Companies Are Driving Revenue Using Social Media

Oct2

How Two Small Companies Are Driving Revenue Using Social Media

 
Erika Napoletano
BY Erika Napoletano | September 26, 2011|

26

How Two Small Companies Are Driving Revenue Using Social Media

Photography by Andrea J. Walker

 
Serving up social: Marination’s Roz Edison (left) and Kamala Saxton.
It’s tough to go anywhere these days without finding a sign that begs us to “like” a business on Facebook or to follow it on Twitter. Yelp stickers in front windows are more prevalent than those from the Better Business Bureau. And all we have to do to learn about a business we’re thinking of patronizing is drop its name into a web search box and wait for the results.

But exactly how are businesses using the plethora of social tools to convert possibility into revenue? I came across two examples in vastly different industries. If you have a brick-and-mortar location, here are two businesses that offer tools for turning virtual relationships into concrete revenue.

Marination Mobile (Seattle)
Who said you couldn’t cash tacos at the bank? Founded in early 2009, Marination Mobile is the brainchild of partners Kamala Saxton and Roz Edison. Coupling the vast success of the Los Angeles food-truck business with a wine-drenched evening, they hatched the idea for a truck-based dining experience that’s gone gangbusters.

So where does social come into play? Their business plan has never been without it. “We knew that if this was ever going to be a success, we had to include the people we wanted to serve in our business plan,” Saxton says. In business-planning vernacular, that means they included social web strategies in their marketing efforts four months prior to when their food truck served its first taco.

What’s the secret sauce? They discovered Emily Resling, who not only had a knack for social marketing, but also understood their brand–she drives Marination’s online personality in ways they could have only dreamed about. She has even developed a style guide for the brand.

 
 
 

Today, Marination Mobile isn’t just mobile. Contrary to the traditional practice of brick-and-mortar restaurants launching food trucks, they’ve gone back-assward and now have opened a storefront location. In two years, they’ve gone from concept to two business locations, and the owners thank their audience for making that happen.

“Hey, we sell $2.25 tacos. That’s not unique,” Saxton says. “What’s unique is the audience we’ve built. We have well over 10,000 eyeballs on us between Facebook and Twitter. That means we have 10,000 supervisors and managers waiting to tell us when we do something great–or when we don’t.”

Animal General Hospital (Port St. Lucie, Fla.)
When Dr. Enrique Borrego opened his veterinary practice in 1990, location and word-of-mouth were all a vet needed to bring in clients and their furry friends. Borrego opened his current location in 2000 to better serve his neighbors in the quiet Florida town. But in 2004, Port St. Lucie became one of the fastest-growing communities in Florida, and soon there were multiple vet practices within walking distance of his office. It was clear he had to find a way to differentiate Animal General Hospital.

He tried local magazines and the Yellow Pages, but over 18 months netted no new clients. At a loss, Borrego turned to Rich Urban, a former vet tech with a savvy set of marketing tools that could reshape the local vet practice.

“I love animals. I wanted to be a doctor, not a vaccination clinic,” Borrego says. “I knew there had to be a better way to market my practice, and Rich held that key.”

Urban built a client-care strategy that spanned from the moment of first interaction to long after clients had gone home from their latest appointment. Using YouTube, Facebook and e-mail marketing, the strategy has produced some astounding results. Borrego estimates he spent $27,000 over 18 months for Yellow Pages ads. In a single 18-month online campaign combining Google advertising with Facebook ads, $3,600 in spending brought in a remarkable 250 new clients and $75,000 in revenue.

The bottom line for this vet? Interaction. “Yellow Pages ads are static. Facebook and Google–those are interactive. People in this day and age demand interaction, so we’ve built ourselves to be an online resource for our clients,” Borrego says. “Great information coupled with great care–that’s why people keep coming back. That’s the social part of social marketing.” You can find Animal General Hospital on Facebook and YouTube, and stop in for some paws-atively great care when you’re in Port St. Lucie.This article was originally published in the October 2011 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Virtual People, Real Dollars.

7 Key Steps to Losing Weight

Oct2
7 Key Steps to Losing Weight

  • Article By: Megan Gressor
 
7stepslosingweight

You have to believe in yourself to hit your weight-loss goals. Get 7 key strategies to help you stay focused while you’re losing weight.

When trying to lose weight, believing in your goals and having a positive attitude can be as important as improving your diet and being active. If you have a plan to keep yourself motivated while you’re losing weight, you stand a better chance of succeeding.

“People struggling to lose weight often talk about their lack of willpower, as if willpower is something that you are either born with, or not,” says Palma Posillico, former VP of training and development for Weight Watchers International. “Losing weight is all about ‘wantpower’ — about recognizing that you already have all the resources you need to get what you want.”

These resources include knowing what you want, knowing how to get it and knowing how to keep yourself motivated along the way. Here are some strategies to help you discover all three and reach your weight-loss goals.

1. Plot out your goals
It helps to have an action plan to keep you on track. “Storyboarding” is a technique used by movie directors to sketch out a plotline, frame by frame, before they start filming. In a similar way, you can make a blueprint for success by breaking your goal down into parts. Say you’ve given yourself three months to lose 10 pounds. Make a chart of the timeline and build it up, week by week, with details of shopping strategies, exercise tips and so forth—anything that helps make your goal concrete and achievable.

2. Envision your success
Athletes mentally rehearse every step of their winning routine to make it feel attainable. In the same way, you can make your own goals as real as possible by visualizing yourself succeeding in particular scenarios, like making the right choices when dining out. Revisit these scenarios often, and think about how good you’ll feel about achieving your goals.

3. Don’t sabotage yourself
Many of us unconsciously sabotage ourselves with self-destructive thoughts such as “I’ll never lose weight.” Whenever you catch yourself thinking this way, try to substitute more constructive statements; for example, “I haven’t lost as much weight as I would like, but I can change that. I’m going to start by setting aside time to exercise three times each week.”

4. Be your own cheerleader
Some people believe it’s modest to put themselves down. But you wouldn’t call a friend “fat” or “ugly,” would you? You deserve the same respect, so try becoming your own best friend. Celebrate your progress, and try not to obsess about setbacks.

One way to do this is to make a list of your accomplishments in every area of your life (personal, professional and physical). List the talents and skills that enabled you to achieve them, and look at this list often. Adds Posillico, “Begin a daily journal of everything you did ‘right’ today.” You’ll be surprised how quickly it adds up!

5. Avoid being a perfectionist
Try not to think in all-or-nothing terms — that you’ve blown your diet, for example, simply because you’ve overdone it at one meal. “We need to be kinder to ourselves, and learn to regard setbacks as learning opportunities,” says Posillico.

6. Follow through with your goals
Believing you can achieve your weight-loss goals is important, but you have to act too, by changing your eating habits, increasing your physical activity and so on. You can’t just think yourself slim, but you can think yourself into the right frame of mind to optimize your prospects.

7. Affirm your self-belief
Feel your confidence wavering? One way to reinforce your self-belief is with positive affirmations: simple, self-validating statements repeated as often as possible, preferably daily. Try coming up with one or two of your own, and remember to keep them positive. You can — and you will — succeed, as long as you believe you can do it!

How to Enter a Room and Network Like a Pro

Oct2

How to Enter a Room and Network Like a Pro

Consider these tips to make a lasting impression on new connections, before a meeting even starts.
BY Ross McCammon | July 26, 2011|
So, we’re assuming you’re on time and you know why you’re there and you know exactly what you want from the people in the room and you’ve Googled them and found out where they went to school and that according to LinkedIn they made a couple of questionable professional moves in the early ’90s and at least two of them tweet. What we’re interested in is that pregnant series of moments that lasts for around a minute and is ostensibly about introductions and handshakes and the offering of beverages and, if you’re lucky, a Danish or something, but is really about the beginning of potentially important relationships.

How to Enter a Room

Play Video

How to Enter a Room
 
4 Reader Comments.

The main problem with entering an unfamiliar meeting room is that it’s like leaving a bar when it’s still light outside. Things seem a little too bright, a little overwhelming, a little disconcerting. Yet no matter how thrown off you feel, the guiding principle is: It’s your room. For the next, oh, 30 seconds to a minute, you’re in charge. Even if it’s their room, you’re in charge. Even if your earnings are a 10th of the salary of that guy you’re about to shake hands with, you’re in charge. You’re not the only one determining the mood of the room, but you have to take responsibility for it.

Consider a lesson from the forest. “Pretend everyone’s a bear in the woods,” says Robbie Pickard, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based comedian who spends his career entering rooms full of people he needs to impress. “If you look scared, the bear is going to attack you.” Which we always thought involved yelling and waving your arms and stomping the earth and throwing a Coleman lantern. But what he’s saying is, offer no apologies or expressions of trepidation or false humility. Protect yourself with confidence. Confidence makes you look comfortable.

It should seem like there’s no other place in the world you’d rather be.

At this moment, more than any other moment in the meeting, you’re your own agent. You’re saying, “I’d like you to meet myself.” (Note: Do not under any circumstances actually say, “I’d like you to meet myself.”)

Key Technical Matters

1. WHEN people introduce themselves, say their names back to them or take a mental note. But try to keep their names in your head. Saying a person’s name back to them 20 or 30 minutes after you’ve met them suggests graciousness and respect, and it will endear you to them.

2. DO NOT give out business cards before the meeting begins. Because it makes you look like a blackjack dealer.

3. LOOK everyone in the eye for, like, a millisecond longer than is comfortable.

4. Don’t carry yourself in a way that could be described as “jaunty.”

5. IF there are fewer than six other people in the room, shake everyone’s hand. If there are six or more, shake approximately five hands, and then nod amiably to the rest. The shaking of hands can get out of hand.

6. At no time say, “Let’s do this!”

7. NO fist bumps.

8. DON’T talk about anything that isn’t pleasant, such as how much traffic you were just in or how hot it is or how you have a cold.
 

 
 
 

Bill Clinton is a useful example. The man knows how to enter a room. He might not know how to leave, but he knows how to enter. Two out of the two former press secretaries we called for help with this column (we figured they might know something about the subject of entering meetings, since they’ve seen people enter the most important rooms in the world) mentioned Clinton as the best room-enterer they’ve ever seen. Which is pretty easy to do when you’re the president of the United States, but still, there are lessons in his approach.

“When Bill Clinton entered a room, he owned the room from the second he walked in,” says Dee Dee Myers, Clinton’s first press secretary and now a managing director at The Glover Park Group, a D.C. communications firm. “Because he was curious, he wanted to talk to people and would totally engage them. And pretty soon all the energy in the room was running in one direction.”

Marlin Fitzwater, press secretary for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, says, “Bill Clinton was probably the best I’ve ever seen. He walked in and demanded the attention of everyone. The lessons of Clinton are: Don’t be aimless, don’t be casual, don’t be flippant. Let your audience know they’re important and that you’re there because you have a message to give them.”

So, it’s an act, yes. But it’s not entirely an act. The act is supported by an important psychological underpinning: actual curiosity. “You have to be curious,” says Thomas Huseby, managing partner at Seattle VC firm SeaPoint Ventures. “Most entrepreneurs are thinking about what they want to teach or what they want to convey, and everybody would much rather talk to someone who is curious. It’s amazing what that attitude does.”

That’s how to enter a room. With curiosity. But not necessarily about the business at hand. Meetings at Esquire often start off with questions about the view from our conference room on the 21st floor of the Hearst Corporation tower in Midtown Manhattan. If the person we’re meeting with asks anything at all about the city, we take them over to the window and give them a quick tour: the Empire State Building, the exact location in the Hudson where Captain Sully landed the plane, that statue of Ronald McDonald that somehow ended up on the roof of a four-floor walk-up on Eighth Avenue, how New Jersey looks vaguely bucolic if you squint. It’s a rich, interesting conversation.

Who wouldn’t want to be in a room with you now? You’re amiable and confident and pleased with the way things are going. You’re ready to talk and to listen. You haven’t given them any reason why they couldn’t see themselves giving you a lot of money or offering you a contract or partnering with you in some way. You’re someone they could see themselves doing business with, is what we’re trying to say.

All that, and you haven’t even sat down yet. 

Have a question for the Esquire Guy about how to comport yourself at work, on the road or maybe in a bar? (or even at work in a bar on the road?). Ask it at Askesquire@entrepreneur.com.

This article was originally published in the August 2011 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: How to Enter a Room.

Most Valuabe Ingredient (Ground Beef)

Oct2
 
Ground Beef

  • Article By: Debbie Koenig
 
Ground beef

We’re pretty sure that if you Google “versatile,” you’ll find ground beef. That’s because out of all the meat products you can buy, few offer as many different kinds of bang for the buck. It’s nutritious, it’s affordable, and it tastes great — even beyond burgers.
The Score
Bewildered by ground-beef labels? Let’s decipher:
Fresh: The beef has not been frozen, and ideally it’s been ground that day. Ask the butcher to confirm.
Frozen: It’s cheaper, but riskier: Inexpensive frozen ground-beef patties have been implicated in numerous E. coli outbreaks. Some manufacturers combine low-grade scraps and slaughterhouse trimmings from multiple suppliers, which increases the likelihood of contamination.
Natural: By USDA definition, almost all beef is “natural”: There are no added ingredients, and it’s minimally processed. The term isn’t always meaningless, though; some labels offer specifics like “no antibiotics/no hormones added.”
Organic: Certified organic beef comes from animals that were never given antibiotics or hormones, and everything they ate was also certified organic.
Grass-fed: Beef that is exclusively grass-fed contains a higher proportion of healthy lipids and antioxidants than conventional beef, and it’s more environmentally friendly. But because all cattle eat grass for the first six months of their lives, some less-trustworthy manufacturers use the term. The difference comes after that, when most cows are sent to feedlots and fattened on grain. Look for symbols saying “USDA Process Verified” or “American Grassfed Association” to be sure you’re getting the real thing.
Lean/extra-lean: Usually made from sirloin, lean ground beef contains less than 10% fat, and extra-lean has less than 5%. PointsPlus® value-wise, extra-lean is the way to go, though aficionados will notice it’s less juicy than fattier options.

 

In Play
  • When buying, choose an undamaged package that feels cold; the meat should have a cherry-red outer layer. Beef is dark purplish-red when first ground, and turns bright red after a brief exposure to oxygen. (Vacuum-packed meat, which isn’t exposed at all, should be purplish-red.)
  • At home, refrigerate ground beef for two days max. If you’re not using it right away, transfer it to heavy-duty wrap or a zipper-lock freezer bag with as little air as possible, and freeze. It’ll stay safe to eat indefinitely in the freezer, but taste quality will decline after four months.
  • Keep your meat cold while defrosting: Either put it in the fridge for a day or two or in a bowl of cold water (still in its packaging) on the counter for a few hours. Change the water every 30 minutes.
  • Since extra-lean ground beef tends toward dryness, juice it back up by adding ingredients such as Worcestershire sauce to recipes.
  • To keep hamburgers, meatballs and meatloaf from becoming too dense, mix gently. The more you mash, the heavier the end result will feel.

Four Alternatives to PowerPoint for Your Next Presentation

Oct1

Four Alternatives to PowerPoint for Your Next Presentation http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/220317