The primary desire of family business advisors, like myself, is to see family-owned businesses live on for many generations. But some family businesses are beyond saving and want to die peacefully. Those businesses need hospice. Hospice is a service and philosophy of care for terminally ill patients. Hospice has four primary goals: Relieve the pain...

Columbus never achieved his goal but we celebrate the outcome of his failure. Columbus was obsessed with finding a westward route to Asia from Spain. Finding it would enrich not only his Spanish patrons, primarily Queen Isabella, but himself as well. Columbus attempted and failed four times to find a westward route to Asia. On...

  We can chuckle at the cartoon, but its message is profound. During my recent speech to the Dallas-Fort Worth Institute of Management Accountants, I alerted them that their career competitors are no longer accountants that you can outrun or outwork. Robots, Siri-type Artificial Intelligence (AI) devices and computer algorithms have entered the accounting profession....

“Only the unprepared are afraid.“ Peyton Manning That was Peyton’s response when asked “Are you nervous before you speak to a large crowd?” I was not fearful or nervous before my speech last night for the Dallas-Fort Worth Institute of Management Accountants. The title I chose for my talk was Rich Accountant, Poor Accountant. Here’s...

“I wish there was a Waze app for navigating my business and career.“ When driving I use the Waze app on my cell phone because: It offers me alternative routes to my desired destination. It routes me around unexpected obstacles, like accidents. It re-routes me to my desired destination if I make a wrong turn...

President Dwight Eisenhower and President Abraham Lincoln share something unusual in common. Neither had the support of family or friends when they ran for president. No one in Lincoln’s family voted for him. And no one in Eisenhower’s home town of Denison, Texas voted for him. Though both lacked the moral support of family and...

During my years at Johnson & Johnson, I had the opportunity to attend several board meetings. I noticed at most meetings, VP of Marketing Marty would often be the only board member to challenge proposals from our business unit president, Mr. Taylor. I asked my boss, the CFO, “Why does Marty always seem to question...

For many people, November 28, 2002 will be a time of misgiving instead of thanksgiving. “Misgiving is a disturbed feeling of fear, doubt, or apprehension.” (1) Fear of terrorism, possibility of war in Iraq, doubts about the economy, and apprehension about your business make it more difficult than usual to festively celebrate Thanksgiving this year. Like us, the...

If Ft. Worth Star-Telegram staff writer Mark Lowry had his way, Merry Mas would be our seasonal greeting. “If you want to see the Rockettes, then go, but remember to leave after the Christmas Dreams number, before The Living Nativity begins. The show’s creators are wrong to assume that Jews, Muslims and other non-Christians don’t...

Outsiders offer at least one indispensable asset: their ignorance. Outsiders have not yet learned what works in your business and what doesn’t. They haven’t learned why your business uses one set of processes instead of another. And they don’t know why you view a particular activity as value-added, when someone with less information might think...