Tag: Business

Its common sense, and actually, I prefer the older worker for that reason, but also for a few more.

The miserable failure of the Traverse City Area Chamber of Commerce annual dinner for 2009 to produce a top notch entertainment for our $1000 table, instead brought in David Stillman founder of Bridgeworks.  While his presentation was interesting to a point, it became a seminar at best, lacking in the true entertainment style the annual affair had become locally famous for.  We have had noted speakers Tony Snow, the Variety group "Capitol Steps" and other great acts over the years, but never a dry presentation as was last year's.

After seeing five of my guests get up to leave halfway through his presentation, the remainder of us decided a redeeming event that would have saved the evening was likely not going to happen.  The rest of us emptied the table as well, and went home, joining a few others in the room who felt as we did.

I cannot even imagine the improvements I could make to my business If I was given $188,000 per each new employee I hired. I would be able to "blow away" the competition by undercutting them.  I could man the phone sales lines 24 hours a day.  I could invest in new equipment, buy new product, etc...

$188,000.00 is not exactly chump change.. It is about 4 and a half times the national average manufacturing yearly earnings. (Or twice that of the average UAW worker's earnings)  And since my compensation package is even less, I could employ each person for about 6 years..  What the heck.. I would shoot the moon and go for the 5 year plan and pay em more!

As the state's population continues to free fall, the nation's overall population continues to creep upwards, making the size of Michigan's US congressional districts one of the few things within the Great Lakes State that seems to be growing of late.

Of course population migration is nothing new to Michigan or this country for that matter--it is a legacy of this free people. For much of its history as a state, Michigan was largely frontier and sparsely populated. It wasn't until the manufacturing boom of the Detroit area that the state's population began to rocket. In 1900, just eight years before Henry Ford's first Model T rolled out of the factory, Michigan's population stood at a little under 2.25 million. By 1930 that population had doubled, and by 1960, an additional three million people could call themselves Michiganders.

Michigan has come to a fork in the road, and instead of left or right, it has driven itself into the ditch. It should be noted that in the case of the new ban on smoking, it does come at a financial cost.

The cost to nonsmokers to impose their will on smokers, say, in a restaurant, bar or airplane, is zero, or close to it. They just have to get the legislature to do their bidding. When the cost of something is zero, there's a tendency for people to take too much of it. You say, "Williams, in my book, there can never be too much smoke-free air!" Here's a little test. Say your car's out of gas and stuck in a blizzard. You wave me down for assistance. I say, "I'll be glad to give you a lift to safety, but I'm smoking in my car." How likely is it that you'll turn down my assistance in an effort to avoid tobacco smoke? You might be tempted to argue, "That's different." It's not different at all. The cost of a smoke-free environment is not what you're willing to pay.

Scholarships, or grants toward studies are typical competitive examples of philanthropy.   And now..  One of those contests has reached its conclusion.

This year, Industrial Covert Unlimited (our company) had a scholarship competition that was announced here and a few other places.  We handed out about 45-50 pocket sized constitutions from the heritage center for Halloween, email blasted, and posted on blogs the details of the competition.  The purpose of this contest was to reward and promote the understanding of our nation's most important and permanent laws; the United States Constitution.  The reward, though not "life changing" in its size, very real nonetheless; $100 for whatever purpose desired.

Imagine if the management of General Motors was to put only one lug nut on each tire of each car they made.  Certainly such a process could save a few dollars on each car.  Further, what if the seat belts were held in place with a plastic clip instead of a metal one?  Add to this a windshield of regular pane glass, and the first pothole met at 60MHP, results in the driver racing through the air looking like a thanksgiving turkey fresh from the processor before the stretch wrap.

A pre-declaration of value, or pre-establishment of price, hardly makes the "worth" an absolute.

The buyer determines what something is worth based on a number of considerations. Considerations are made in how it enhances their life, by satiating current hunger with the purchase of a food stuff, if it keeps them warm as a sweater or coat may, or even how it can allow them to be more efficient in creating their own wealth through the use of a tool or specialized device.

Growth is often equated with survival in business and perhaps elsewhere..

Sometimes however, that "big score" can threaten the very existence of your business.  Rather than enhance, it becomes an anchor, an albatross, a white elephant if you will.  Added responsibility sans the wherewithal, or perhaps miscalculated costs can bury the dreams of the business owner who fails to calculate a little for chance, or happenstance.