Be a Dog with a Bone: always go for your dreams by Peggy McColl, 2003.
For years we have celebrated man’s best friend and his zealous love for life. This business fable teaches us to take a second look at our pets and discover the lessons they can teach us. Do you have a “glass is half full” personality? If so, this book will take you farther, teach you to reach for more. If not, the anecdotes will encourage you to pick up that glass and look again. Your trustworthy pet can teach you to discover your dream, identify those actions that will move you toward your goals, and eliminate the thoughts and actions that will prevent you from reaching those goals.
In the past few months we have been reading business fables for the Business Book discussion group. Here are a couple of reviews to spark your interest. To get a copy of a business fable or to inquire about the book group call Terry Zarsky at 531-6333 extension 2308.
Juggling Elephants: An Easier Way to Get Your Most Important Things Done-Now! by Jones Loflin and Todd Musig, 2005.
In this fun business fable, Jones and Todd apply lessons from the circus to our everyday business and personal lives. The moral of this story is easy to discern. You are the ringmaster in your own circus, and your circus is made up of multiple rings. Those rings represent the essential pieces in your life: business, relationships, and personal growth, to name a few. This tale escorts you through discovering the rings in your life, the acts you currently have, those you may want to add, and how to manage those acts in a way that is satisfying to you as well as your colleagues and family. In other words, this story will help you become a better ringmaster in your own circus.
The Myth of Multitasking: How “Doing It All” Gets Nothing Done by Dave Crenshaw, 2008.
Dave Crenshaw questions the existence of one of our most valued skills – multitasking. He illustrates his point through a business coach and a struggling CEO looking for some pointers in time management. With a few short exercises the coach is able to expose the cost of multitasking in our daily lives.
Dave’s scenario begs us to take a few minutes to look at our day. Where do you spend most of your time? How many times are you interrupted in a day? Who interrupts you most and for what reasons? Is there a more efficient approach?
To answer the last question our business coach provides his charge with several techniques to streamline her time along with worksheets to move her in the right direction.
All in all, this is a brief but informative read, providing a clear depiction of the time management problem as well as the means to overcome it.
Are you trying to find the perfect location to rent for your new business? Or maybe you are trying to target a marketing campaign toward the largest demographic in your area? PPLD has recently acquired a new subscription database called BusinessDecision by CIVICTechnologies to assist you in finding out these facts and more.
Accessible via the Electronic Reference section of the PPLD web site, BusinessDecision provides demographic data from ESRI based on a location that you designate. You may designate a specific address, zip code, or hand draw on a map an area that about which you would like to receive extensive demographic information. Based off of GIS information, as well as Census data and others, BusinessDecision is able to provide detailed data and reports, including the Tapestry Area Profile, which identifies and profiles the top segments of the population for any given area. To learn about the BusinessDecision Tapestry Area Profile, check out the data manual to see what type of information BusinessDecision may be able to provide you about your potential customers.
To read the Colorado Springs Business Journal writeup about BusinessDecision, click here. For more information about BusinessDecision, or any other library business resources, contact the PPLD reference desk at 389-8968.
