Keep Balanced, Unions Suck, and How to Enforce Integrity

It's rare we read good business posts, that can be backed by real studies. If we do come around some, we'll post them here for you.

Keep Balanced

Carmine Coyote (Love the name!) encourages entrepreneurs to keep balanced. We're major fans of balance in business. That is, use the sprinter's mindset--not the marathoner's mindset. The more you work, the more you deplete your energy reserves. It takes relaxation, then, to refill those reserves. Otherwise, you're a burnout waiting to happen.

Unions Suck

Steve Rucinski gets it right: Unions kill profits. Yeah, it probably helps rank-and-file employees already in the unionized business, but that's it. It hurts companies from hiring future employees, destroys opportunities for existing employees, damages shareholders, batters working conditions, decreases customer value, etc., etc., etc. I've yet to hear one good argument for it. Bad arguments? GM, Ford, Airlines, American Schools--just to name a few.

How to Enforce Integrity

I was struck by this statement: "Have every employee sign a Code of Conduct and Business Practices." It sounds routine, but here's the magic behind it: If you get people to commit to something, they'll likely follow the rule. It's the whole psychological-I-wanna-be-consistent-cuz-I-said-I-would phenomenon. Pschology mega-star Robert Cialdini calls that the "consistency" persuasion. Make people commit to something, but don't force them--give them the choice, and they'll more than likely commit to whatever they say. Disagree with anything? Please let us know and we'll post your unedited response on our journal.

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