https://markfalzon.com/journal Essays from Mark Falzon — strategy, mindset and meaning, from 45+ years of building. en-AU https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-do-you-bounce-back-from-the-abyss-after-a-failed-product-launch https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-do-you-bounce-back-from-the-abyss-after-a-failed-product-launch Fri, 21 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT It can sometimes feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders when you’re running a business. These are some of the emotional challenges you may face and how you can deal with them. What do you do when it all starts to go wrong? It’s a question that almost every business owner has to confront at some point. There will be plenty of challenges along the way. I’ve found that many business… https://markfalzon.com/journal/what-uber-can-teach-us-about-when-innovation-moves-faster-than-legislation https://markfalzon.com/journal/what-uber-can-teach-us-about-when-innovation-moves-faster-than-legislation Thu, 13 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT The Australian government pours billions of dollars into innovation. But are its own legislation holding it back? What happens when innovation moves at a faster pace than legislation? And all around the world – from France to Italy to New York – Uber have battled taxi lobbies and archaic government policies. The same is true here in Australia. In 2015 our government announced a new plan to… https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-1-thing-world-class-high-performers-such-as-oprah-winfrey-george-lucas-and-steve-jobs-have-in-common https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-1-thing-world-class-high-performers-such-as-oprah-winfrey-george-lucas-and-steve-jobs-have-in-common Wed, 07 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT Hint: It’s not goal setting, natural ability or hard work. What do you need to be a world class performer? Most will tell you that you need to set goals and work hard to reach them. Others will tell you that you need natural ability to even stand a chance. They’re all wrong. There’s a secret to success that world class performers have that you don’t. What is it? They have coaches and mentors.… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-isaac-singer-used-the-strength-of-intuition-to-make-the-sewing-machine-a-commonly-found-item-in-most-households https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-isaac-singer-used-the-strength-of-intuition-to-make-the-sewing-machine-a-commonly-found-item-in-most-households Thu, 02 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT Unlocking the power of creativity can help you to reach the flow state. But before you can do that, you must understand the power of intuition. What does the word “innocence” mean to you? You’re probably thinking of a childlike state in which you’re unburdened by the shackles of adulthood. And you would be right. Innocence is the process of entering the state of “in no sense”. It’s how you… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-spot-game-changing-business-opportunities-that-others-miss https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-spot-game-changing-business-opportunities-that-others-miss Thu, 02 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT Western Union Boss William Orton Was Offered The Telephone Patent For $100,000. He Said “No” Because He Saw It As a Novelty. But Just A Few Years Later He Offered Alexander Graham Bell $25 Million. What Can We Learn From Orton’s Mis-Read? You may have a great idea or a strong business. But you need the right business opportunities to get to where you need to go. That’s the tough part. So many… https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-concept-of-leverage-in-business-and-how-to-use-it-while-keeping-your-risk-to-a-minimum https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-concept-of-leverage-in-business-and-how-to-use-it-while-keeping-your-risk-to-a-minimum Thu, 02 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT Are you a business owner who wants to use leverage to grow your business? Make sure you read this advice before taking one step further. Every business owner wants to scale for growth. To do that, they need to know how to leverage their business to attract the right investors. I’m going to get to that in a moment. First, let me share a story with you about a company that I’ve learned about and… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-stay-connected-to-what-truly-matters-when-you-own-a-fast-growing-business https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-stay-connected-to-what-truly-matters-when-you-own-a-fast-growing-business Fri, 08 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT A fast-growing business presents all sorts of new challenges. You may feel lost under the deluge of new work. It’s this loss of connection that can break a company when it’s right on the cusp of achieving success. You may find yourself with a fast-growing business . Fast growth means higher revenue and shows that you’re doing something right. You’ve found your niche and can build a strong… https://markfalzon.com/journal/founder-of-4-brw-fast-100-companies-reveals-how-to-take-your-business-from-where-it-is-to-the-next-big-jump https://markfalzon.com/journal/founder-of-4-brw-fast-100-companies-reveals-how-to-take-your-business-from-where-it-is-to-the-next-big-jump Mon, 04 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT If you’re not ready to take your business to the next big jump, you’ll remain stagnant. Preparation and anticipation is the key. Here’s what to look out for. What do you think holds you back from moving your business to the next big jump ? Many business owners feel shocked to discover that they are the reason why their business hasn’t grown. The decisions that they made during the start-up… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-use-the-flow-state-to-make-the-best-business-decisions-of-your-life https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-use-the-flow-state-to-make-the-best-business-decisions-of-your-life Mon, 07 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT We all know how good it feels to get into the flow. You fire on all cylinders and accomplish more when you’re in your groove. But how can you achieve this flow state with more regularity? This article shows you how. The flow state is a special thing. When everything flows together, you feel unstoppable. Business decisions come easily and everything locks into place. You can simply achieve more… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-be-more-creative-and-intuitive-in-business https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-to-be-more-creative-and-intuitive-in-business Wed, 02 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT Without a creative spark, your business flounders. You can’t come up with the “next big thing” that will keep your customers interested. In the end, your competitors overtake you. Here are four science-backed tips for developing creativity. How much do you value creativity within your business ? It’s an important question. Creativity is the source of almost every success that your business may… https://markfalzon.com/journal/a-guide-to-dashboarding-and-how-it-can-help-your-business https://markfalzon.com/journal/a-guide-to-dashboarding-and-how-it-can-help-your-business Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT Business dashboards provide the key metrics that allow you to make better decisions. Think of them as an ECG of your business. Here we examine what they are and how they can help you. Structure. It’s not the most attractive of words. But it lies at the heart of every single business. With proper structure you can figure out where you are and where you’re going. Your business structure props up… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-i-took-our-company-from-0-to-12-million-in-sales-in-3-years-by-doing-the-opposite-to-everybody-else-in-our-industry https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-i-took-our-company-from-0-to-12-million-in-sales-in-3-years-by-doing-the-opposite-to-everybody-else-in-our-industry Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT Anybody can conduct business in the same way as everybody else. It’s the businesses that create “wow” moments that achieve the most success. Here’s how to do it in your business. Do you have clients who rave about your service? Or, do you have clients that are happy enough but aren’t helping you to sell more products? Maybe you fall into the latter camp? If so, you’re not alone. Many business… https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-i-used-strategic-thinking-to-sell-my-business-for-millions https://markfalzon.com/journal/how-i-used-strategic-thinking-to-sell-my-business-for-millions Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT Do you know how to be a strategic thinker? It’s a skill that you can learn surprisingly easy. Here’s my story and 3 strategic thinking tips I’ve picked up along the way. You need to be more strategic. It sounds like a simple piece of advice. And on the surface, it makes sense. Your company needs a strategy in order to achieve success. You need to know where you want to go and how you intend to… https://markfalzon.com/journal/i-made-millions-in-my-business-and-i-was-miserable https://markfalzon.com/journal/i-made-millions-in-my-business-and-i-was-miserable Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT How to avoid the trap of assuming financial success brings fulfilment. By the time I was in my early-20s, I’d achieved “success”. I’d followed my passion for filmmaking and evolved my work to take in advertising and marketing. My wife and I lived in a gorgeous home, had all of the latest gadgets, and plenty of money. We travelled a lot and I was even the president of my local Chamber of… https://markfalzon.com/journal/23-ideas-to-grow-your-business-faster https://markfalzon.com/journal/23-ideas-to-grow-your-business-faster Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT Here are 23 ideas, many of which, to varying degrees, will accelerate the growth of your business. Some of these ideas are simple and easy to implement. Others are much more complicated and expensive. These are the top results from a recent Google search on How To Grow Your Business Fast. The interesting thing about all of these ideas however, is that they all refer to the what to do or the how… https://markfalzon.com/journal/big-rocks https://markfalzon.com/journal/big-rocks Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers. A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full.… https://markfalzon.com/journal/hurry-up-and-wait https://markfalzon.com/journal/hurry-up-and-wait Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT Sitting by the pool late one evening in Bali, I was reflecting on my journey and the constant questioning by my children, “Dad, when are we going to be there?” My reply was always the same, “hurry up and wait”. Have you ever noticed this when you are travelling? It’s all about hurry up and wait! Quick, wake up, we have to get to the plane on time. Racing around. Final packing. In the car, racing… https://markfalzon.com/journal/is-reputation-everything https://markfalzon.com/journal/is-reputation-everything Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT Is reputation everything? I’m not sure about that. You see our reputation is something outside of us. It is a set of beliefs that other people formulate about us. For example, you could show up in the world in one way and 10 different people could have a different point of view about who you are and about your reputation depending upon a range of things, such as their background, race, social… https://markfalzon.com/journal/is-your-net-on-the-right-side-of-the-boat-small-changes-can-make-a-big-difference https://markfalzon.com/journal/is-your-net-on-the-right-side-of-the-boat-small-changes-can-make-a-big-difference Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT For many years I have enjoyed deep sea fishing and have sometimes spent hours motoring from one spot to another trying to find fish. I have often found you can be just a few metres off a mark and catch nothing. Along comes another boat and props right next to you and they immediately start pulling in a great haul. For anyone that did Sunday school as a child you will recall that parable where… https://markfalzon.com/journal/letting-go-of-the-past https://markfalzon.com/journal/letting-go-of-the-past Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT In our human form we perceive things through our various sensors and then try and make sense of them by defining them in some way. Good – bad, right – wrong, soft – hard, round – square. These definitions (beliefs) are based on our limited perception. Based on our perceptions and definitions we then go about living out the fixation (or lie) of the underlying definition (belief) based on the… https://markfalzon.com/journal/living-yes-and-saying-no https://markfalzon.com/journal/living-yes-and-saying-no Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT One of the most liberating experiences is to open your life to abundance and possibility and one of the easiest ways to do this is to start saying Yes to the universe. Abundance and possibility is everywhere but for many people they don’t experience it in their lives because they don’t say Yes when it arrives … and it is always arriving. But if you start saying Yes to the universe every time… https://markfalzon.com/journal/mentoring-vs-coaching https://markfalzon.com/journal/mentoring-vs-coaching Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT There has been a great deal of research done into the different roles of Coaches and Mentors and I think you can simplify much of this as follows. A coach is required when you would like to accelerate your action through someone holding you accountable around an agreed set of predetermined outcomes over a predetermined time period. A mentor is required when you would like to accelerate your… https://markfalzon.com/journal/mr-mum-success-is-not-a-destination https://markfalzon.com/journal/mr-mum-success-is-not-a-destination Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT My wife, Michelle, and I moved to our farm a few years ago. Michelle continued her corporate role, mostly working from home, while I took on the Mr Mum role so that I could spend more time with our children. It didn’t take me long to learn that looking after two small children was a full time job. At first I had this idea that I would home school as well. Hmmm … that lasted about a week. Thank… https://markfalzon.com/journal/one-click https://markfalzon.com/journal/one-click Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT I just spent the last 2 weeks securing assets for a new business venture. You know, all those little things like web site domain names, Twitter and Facebook accounts and all those other incredibly important items that are so critical to the success (and ultimately, the sale value) of just about any business these days. Naming, branding and positioning a new business venture can be challenging.… https://markfalzon.com/journal/procrastination https://markfalzon.com/journal/procrastination Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT I recently had a client ask me to help them with a perceived problem. That old chestnut, procrastination. Rather than approach the problem from, I guess, the typical premise that it could be “solved” by diary and time management, goal setting and discipline, we took a different approach. The outcome I wanted to achieve for my client was a way forward that was designed around ease and grace… https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-slow-reveal https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-slow-reveal Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT I traveled to a small village near Ubud in Bali recently and found myself visiting a beautiful garden called Bali Pulina. I had taken an early morning journey into the mountains to photograph the terraced rice paddies at dawn. On the way back to my villa for breakfast my driver asked if I would like to visit a coffee plantation. It was still early and I had time so, going with the flow, I ended… https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-wall https://markfalzon.com/journal/the-wall Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT A friend once suggested to me that every business is hurtling toward hitting the wall. Some see it coming and manage to avoid it, whilst others have no idea what is about to happen. The significance of this statement never really hit me at the time! Big or small, there is nothing obvious to distinguish one business from another when it comes to hitting the wall. Who could have imagined that some… https://markfalzon.com/journal/what-was-your-first-business https://markfalzon.com/journal/what-was-your-first-business Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT Do you remember the first time you sold something and made money? How old were you? What did you sell? Do you remember what it felt like? Was that the start of your entrepreneurial career? I often hear these great stories from highly successful entrepreneurs about their first business endeavour. They are usually pretty simple and they often started very young. You know the stories, lemonade… https://markfalzon.com/journal/you-never-know-who-you-might-be-speaking-with https://markfalzon.com/journal/you-never-know-who-you-might-be-speaking-with Thu, 23 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT When I was about 16 I had my first real business. It was a video production studio on the Central Coast. This was back in 1979 and the total set up cost me about $40k which was a lot of money back then (you could have bought a house for that much). Not long after I set the studio up an elderly gentleman dropped in to ask me for help making a decision on what video camera he should buy (well, I…