What is an Intentional Funeral Director? Some years ago I attended a Men's Retreat at my church. The plan was that we would all ride to the camp on the church bus. What the pastor told us before we climbed on board set the whole tone. He said: [...]
Maybe you are anxious to exit your business. Or perhaps you dread the day you will no longer be involved. Either way for a successful business transfer you need to be ready. It has been my experience that when people think they are ready and even eager to exit the business they have only given [...]
I have lived in my house for 30+ years and we are getting ready to sell and move closer to my daughter and her family. I have two goals: Sell for top dollar Sell quickly So we are getting it ready by repainting it and updating a few odds and ends. Not more than we [...]
There are 3 Universal requirements for a successful family business transfer: A competent successor The Business is ready The owner is ready Part 1 - A Competent Successor A successor is competent when they have demonstrated both the ability and willingness to run the business. For most small businesses however this is a major challenge. Yes [...]
The message at the end of this video is the message I pray all my friends and family will embrace. Merry Christmas to ALL.
I seem to have a penchant for joining fights that aren't mine. Not long ago I was presenting a seminar on dress and decorum to funeral directors at a large state convention. Several women asked for my opinion on wearing pants. Frankly, I hadn't thought about it so I didn't have one. Since then, I [...]
A lot of my readers are curious about what their business is worth but aren't yet ready for a full valuation. They just want an idea. Well, as you can imagine that gets kind of messy. There are a lot of moving parts in a valuation; but if you just want an educated guess click [...]
Uhhh...NO! I got an email from Harvard Business Review today. It invited me to take an assessment on innovation readiness for my company. Instead, I took it as if I worked for all of funeral service as I know and experience it. The results weren't surprising but still disturbing. I did my best to be [...]
A client and friend of mine recently spent days revising the staff schedule to be more efficient and effective. He took great pains to think about its impact on staff and did his best to devise a plan that would work best for the funeral home AND create the least inconvenience for his staff. After [...]
Last week's blog sparked a lively conversation on and offline about clothing. From those conversations I think it might help to add one more insight. It was 1989. George H.W. Bush was president. I had just come from a podiatrist because my feet were in constant pain. I have flat feet. My prescription: wear only [...]
