With a globalised and increasingly competitive business world, sales teams have progressively understood the value of major accounts.

The only motivation book I will recommend to others is Self-made in America, by John McClintock. John introduced me to an obscure English word that I now use as a cornerstone of my daily activity – conation.

Last week I was talking to the manager of a communications company about the trials and tribulations of sales staff and their lack of ability to look after their customers. I asked the manager whether he had sales reps or account managers to which he replied “they are the same thing …. aren’t they?”

Within a few weeks of the birth of our first child, Diane and I were already imagining and anticipating how it would be when he was all grown up, had graduated from college and was out on his own.

I asked some of our contributors to provide us with their best tip on how a business can survive especially while we are in this recession.

Bob Parsons of GoDaddy says simply “get and stay out of your comfort zone”. I agree and would add that adults don’t learn unless we are disoriented.

Centuries of academic emphasis on “teaching” (which fills our heads) instead of on learning (which fills our lives) has left us more proud of our ability to reason than of our ability to know.

We love to know exactly what the near-term process is we’re supposed to be doing, we’re almost obsessed with it, to the point that at least in business, we’re too often okay …

To build a business that provides you the lifestyle you want, you need a vision that motivates you. And guess what? Making money is not an empowering vision. I know plenty of people who’ve tried it including me.

Small businesses with the fastest growing revenue know exactly where they are going. According to Inc Magazines 28th 500 fastest growing small businesses list, approximately 88% of them have a statement outlining where they are going. The other 12% are living dangerously.

This is my first article BusinessBlogs.co.nz. I’ll try to tell you what usually remains untold about company management and control.

Retail establishments are usually open for 60 hours or more over 7 days a week. This generally means that no one person is there all the time.

All businesses have times when throughput isn’t as it was or prospects simply aren’t as receptive to their calls as they had been in the past.

These two ideas are very important for making a change to how any business is operating. With them, your working world can improve and flourish.

Spock’s constant frustration over the Star Trek crew’s inability to act logically, is because logical thinking happens in our 3rd brain.

I ran a marathon 30 years ago. While training, my wife, Diane, started casually jogging with me at the end or beginning of my runs. A few weeks before the marathon she ran a half-marathon with me.

Why do buyers often introduce ‘irritants’ like arranging for your competitors to be visiting them just before or after you so you pass in reception, or saying they just had a comparative quote 10% lower than yours?

The business environment is full of ups and downs just as the world economy has its’ peaks and troughs. In the very same way each individual business will have its fare share of good times and bad.

I was speaking with a business owner recently about a number of topics and we got round to marketing and then on to Twitter.

Which of these words are you using to run your business? Here’s a way to remember them – “Try” to strike them from your vocabulary, “but” if you “can’t”, you can “settle” for only using a few and make a “goal” of getting rid of the rest “later”, when you’re “alone” and nobody’s watching.