Listen to Wayne Hurlbert on Blog Talk Radio



Speaker, leadership and management consultant, Founder and President of Dalton Alliances, Inc., and author of the perceptive and practical book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst, Francie Dalton, describes how working effectively with people can often become difficult when the other person's behavior is repugnant. She shares tips to help improve personal responses and interactions even when your patience is most tried. She points out how valuable an ability to work with others truly is to an organization. The author shows us the seven worst workplace behaviors and how to improve and optimize your interactions with those difficult people. Discover how to be your best while others are at their worst.

Francie Dalton is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on BlogTalkRadio.

The show airs live on Thursday, December 2, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Speaker, leadership and management consultant, Founder and President of Dalton Alliances, Inc., and author of the perceptive and practical book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst, Francie Dalton, describes how working effectively with people can often become difficult when the other person's behavior is repugnant. You will learn:

* How to assess the seven most challenging personality types

* Why the ability to evaluate and optimize interactions is important for managers

* How to apply the ten guiding managerial principles for optimal effect

* Why versatility is important and how to achieve it



Francie Dalton (photo left) CMC specializes in the communication, behavioral and management sciences. She works with organizations that want to bridge the gaps between where they are and where they want to be to increase profits and productivity.

Francie's work in the area of leadership development has been featured in Harvard Management Update, CEO Magazine, Investor's Business Daily, American Way Magazine, The New York Post, MSN Money, NY Times, and more. She has been a regular columnist for the Washington Business Journal on issues of leadership, and has appeared on CNN Financial News Network, where she was interviewed about her work in the areas of leadership and performance measures.

A veteran of the Vietnam Era, Francie was trained as a German linguist, spending four and one-half years with the U.S. Army Military Intelligence Service. She then took her Masters in Business from Johns Hopkins University, and in 1991, founded Dalton Alliances, Inc., a premier consultancy offering customized assessments, interventions, executive coaching and developmental workshops.

Adjunct faculty at the University of Maryland, Francie taught business management to doctoral candidates from 1994-2003 and is an instructor for the US Chamber of Commerce in the coveted Institute of Management certification course. With dozens of published works to her credit, she is a frequent speaker for corporations and associations, whose clients include scores of CEOs and senior executives throughout the United States.

Her new book, Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst was published by ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership.

My book review of Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst by Francie Dalton.

Listen live on Thursday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.



If you miss this very informative show, it will be available for free download as a podcast for iPod, iTunes, and MP3 players; or play it right on your computer. To download this, or any other of my guest interviews, go to the Blog Business Success host page and click on Archived Segments. Once there, click on the podcast icon at the end of the episode description, to download the show free of charge for your listening enjoyment. You can also subscribe to the show feed.



To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with speaker, leadership and management consultant, Founder and President of Dalton Alliances, Inc., and author of the perceptive and practical book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst, Francie Dalton, as she describes how working effectively with people can often become difficult when the other person's behavior is repugnant. She shares tips to help improve personal responses and interactions even when your patience is most tried. She points out how valuable an ability to work with others truly is to an organization. The author shows us the seven worst workplace behaviors and how to improve and optimize your interactions with those difficult people. Discover how to be your best while others are at their worst on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst, Francie Dalton, personnel management strategies, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

READ MORE - Francie Dalton: Versatility: Optimize Interactions In The Workplace - Blog Business Success Radio

Versatility

How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst

By: Francie Dalton

Published: August 16, 2008
Format: Hardcover, 160 pages
ISBN-10: 0880343001
ISBN-13: 978-0880343008
Publisher: ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership





"With broad implications for organizational America and for the nonprofit sector specifically, coping successfully with these changes will elevate the function of management to a veritable art form. Paramount among the managerial competencies required is versatility", writes speaker, management consultant, and CEO of Dalton Alliances, Inc., Francie Dalton in her perceptive and practical book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst. The author describes how to achieve versatility and become a successful manager of people through recognizing and working with difficult personalities for positive results.

Francie Dalton employs a mixture of humor and insightful observations as she shares the seven most challenging workplace personalities. Each type of problem person is different, and provides their own special difficulties for peers, subordinates, and their superiors. The seven challenging behavior types are:

* Commanders: Relentless, driven, unstoppable implementers
* Drifters: Fickle, flighty, creative geniuses,
* Attackers: Caustic, hostile, conquerors
* Pleasers: Sensitive, friendly, humanizers
* Performers: Cunning, manipulative, charismatic ambassadors
* Avoiders: Diffident, enigmatic, spectators
* Analyticals: Micromanaging, procrastinating, masters of process



Francie Dalton (photo left) recognizes that a manager, who reads this book, won't be able to change the personalities of the people in the organization. What the author does is provide the skills to recognize the challenging character types, and shares the tools to work with those difficult people effectively. With a more clear understanding of the motivations of the other people within the organization, a manager can reach better decisions collectively, in a much shorter length of time. The ability to assess and interact in an optimum form with different types of people is a critical skill for a manager in the modern organization. Francie Dalton lists ten guiding principles to help managers become more effective at optimizing talent that affects every part of the business or nonprofit organization. The ability to optimize interactions is a core management value that is essential for the practice of versatility.

For me, the power of the book is how Francie Dalton presents the seven challenging behavior types in a non-degrading format, through humor and example. The ability of the person behind the personality barrier, when approached and optimized correctly, is of tremendous value to the organization. The author shares ten guiding strategies that build on the ability to assess the seven personalities, and transform those individuals into strong contributors to the business. The author's combination of gentle humor, theory, and practical skills arms the manager with the background and tools necessary for gaining the attribute of versatility. As an added bonus, Francie Dalton provides access to to a versatility self assessment test that will benefit all managers in their striving for the achievement of versatility. Combining the results of the test with the skills taught in the book is a very valuable and important opportunity for any manager.

I highly recommend the insightful and informative book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst by Francie Dalton, to any manager seeking to improve their ability to optimize interactions with people who are perceived to be problem personalities. The assessment and management techniques described in this fine book will help a manager to utilize the talents of all employees, peers, and superiors for the overall benefit of the organization.

Read the useful and essential book Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst by Francie Dalton, and discover how to work successfully with individuals with even the most challenging personality types. This critical knowledge will assist the manager in helping all members of the organization to contribute to their fullest extent. This book teaches versatility for the manager in all areas of managing and motivating people of all types. That ability will provide you and your company with a powerful competitive edge.

Tags: Versatility: How to Optimize Interactions When 7 Workplace Behaviors Are at Their Worst, Francie Dalton, personnel management strategies, business book reviews.

READ MORE - Versatility by Francie Dalton - Book review

Listen to Wayne Hurlbert on Blog Talk Radio



Columnist and workplace diversity coach, and author of the thought provoking and complacency disrupting book The Diversity Code: Unlock the Secrets to Making Differences Work in the Real World, Michelle T. Johnson describes how workplace diversity goes far beyond rules and regulations. She points out that companies may be great at compliance and following the rules but be terrible at creating authentic diversity. Michelle Johnson addresses the difficult questions surrounding diversity and cross-cultural employee issues. She shares how to recognize differences in others, how to manage those differences, and in reconciling and valuing those differences. Learn the value of true diversity to any organization and how to understand and share in diversity for the benefit of all.

Michelle T. Johnson is my internet radio show guest on Blog Business Success; hosted live on BlogTalkRadio.

The show airs live on Tuesday, November 30, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Columnist and workplace diversity coach, and author of the thought provoking and complacency disrupting book The Diversity Code: Unlock the Secrets to Making Differences Work in the Real World, Michelle T. Johnson describes how workplace diversity goes far beyond rules and regulations. You will learn:

* What workplace diversity really means

* How some common ideas about diversity are no longer valid

* How to introduce diversity effectively beyond a rules and legal approach

* The benefits of a diverse workplace in the globalized economy



Michelle T. Johnson (photo left) is a native of Kansas City, Kansas, and has been working while black since the age of 14. One of her earliest jobs was at a library, where her interest in books flourished into a love of the written word. Michelle attended school in Kansas City, Missouri, and continued to feed her hunger for all things literary by working in libraries while in high school and in college at the University of Kansas.

While at KU, Michelle was bitten by the reporting bug and majored in newspaper journalism. She had summer internships at newspapers in Rochester, New York and Louisville, Kentucky. One of the highlights of her college experience was working as a columnist for the campus newspaper, which gave her the opportunity to interview Gordon Parks, a personal hero whose autobiography “Choice of Weapons” inspired her on her path.

Once she received her journalism degree in 1986, Michelle worked at the Philadelphia Daily News for a short stint before working the duration of her journalism career at the Louisville Courier-Journal and the Austin American-Statesman. Michelle was able to combine her concern for community and civic issues and her love of writing by covering the neighborhoods, and transportation beats at the Louisville Courier- Journal, and the drug and alcohol and county government beats at the Austin American-Statesman.

Upon deciding that the role of mere observer was not her strong suit, Michelle decided to pursue a career in law. Michelle attended the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law, where in 1994 she was named, by the Missouri Supreme Court, as the Top Moot Court Oralist of her law school. She received her juris doctorate in 1995. With a strong interest in employment law springing from both her personal experiences and those observed, she focused on the concentration of employment litigation.

Moving back to Kansas City, Missouri to be near her family, Michelle has worked the bulk of her years as an attorney in litigation law firms representing companies whose employees have brought complaints against them. To give herself a well-rounded experience in the field of employment law, Michelle opened her own law firm, and briefly worked as a solo practitioner, primarily representing employees who had complaints against their employers. During this time Michelle also worked as an administrative hearing officer for the city of Kansas City, Missouri, conducting hearings for citizens who have brought complaints regarding violation of the city human rights laws.

Currently, Michelle uses her skills and experience working as a mediator and human resources consultant in Kansas City where she lives with her dogs Hilbert and Henry. In her free time, Michelle knits, walks, reads, is a member of Center for Spiritual Living and writes fiction and non-fiction.

My book review of The Diversity Code: Unlock the Secrets to Making Differences Work in the Real World by Michelle T. Johnson.

Listen live on Tuesday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.



If you miss this very informative show, it will be available for free download as a podcast for iPod, iTunes, and MP3 players; or play it right on your computer. To download this, or any other of my guest interviews, go to the Blog Business Success host page and click on Archived Segments. Once there, click on the podcast icon at the end of the episode description, to download the show free of charge for your listening enjoyment. You can also subscribe to the show feed.



To call in questions for my guest, the number is: (347) 996-5832

Let's talk with columnist and workplace diversity coach, and author of the thought provoking and complacency disrupting book The Diversity Code: Unlock the Secrets to Making Differences Work in the Real World, Michelle T. Johnson, as she describes how workplace diversity goes far beyond rules and regulations. She points out that companies may be great at compliance and following the rules but be terrible at creating authentic diversity. Michelle Johnson addresses the difficult questions surrounding diversity and cross-cultural employee issues. She shares how to recognize differences in others, how to manage those differences, and in reconciling and valuing those differences. Learn the value of true diversity to any organization and how to understand and share in diversity for the benefit of all on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: The Diversity Code: Unlock the Secrets to Making Differences Work in the Real World, Michelle T. Johnson, successful workplace diversity programs, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

READ MORE - Michelle T. Johnson: The Diversity Code - Blog Business Success Radio

Black Faces in White Places

10 Game-Changing Strategies to Achieve Success and Find Greatness

By: Randal Pinkett, Ph.D., Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D., Philana Patterson

Published: October 28 2010
Format: Hardcover, 288 pages
ISBN: 9780814416808
Publisher: AMACOM









"We are officially retiring the glass ceiling and suggesting as a replacement a new metaphor that we call 'the ever-changing game'", write co-founder, chairman and CEO of BCT Partners, Randal Pinkett, Ph.D.; leading business scholar at Rutgers Business School, Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D.; and business news editor for the Associated Press, Philana Patterson, in their eye opening and landmark book Black Faces in White Places: 10 Game-Changing Strategies to Achieve Success and Find Greatness. The authors describe the often uncomfortable reality and challenges faced by African American men and women as they enter the exclusive boardrooms, and the highest levels of academia and politics in America, and how they must redefine the rules of the game along the way.



Randal Pinkett, Ph.D. (photo left), Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D., and Philana Patterson recognize the challenge for African Americans is to change the game from one where the rules don't work for everyone. For Randal Pinkett, that game changing moment arrived on the reality television series The Apprentice, where he was asked by Donald Trump to accept being a co-winner. Until that point, the show had featured only one winner per competition. Donald Trump was attempting a rule change in the middle of the game. Randal Pinkett refused the ruling, and created his own game changing moment. That type of game changing event is faced by African Americans every day, and the authors present a groundbreaking set of techniques for leveling the playing field. The authors don't seek an entirely color blind America. Instead, they envision a diverse and multi-cultural country where differences and alternative voices and are embraced as part of the fabric of a dynamic society.



Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D. (photo left), Philana Patterson, and Randal Pinkett, Ph.D. move beyond the outdated glass ceiling metaphor, and describe the situation facing African Americans and other diverse groups, as one of an ever changing game. The good news, according to the authors, is that the game can be modified to suit the participants, as the rules are not fixed in position. The authors point out that the modern African American experience consists of identity, society, meritocracy, and opportunity. The authors modify these rules to change their focus from equal treatment to equal respect as people of diverse culture, heritage, and individuality. To strengthen their case, the authors present ten important strategies to to empower and inspire African Americans.



For me, the power of the book is how Philana Patterson (photo left), Randal Pinkett, Ph.D., and Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D. share concepts that are grnuine game changers that enhance opportunity while celebrating the diversity offered to all organizations by Black voices. With the world becoming a global marketplace, the recognition of multicultural, multi-ethnic, and multinational diversity represents not only a competitive advantage, but an understanding of the reality of globalization now and in the future. This not just another book on success, but one that takes very seriously the still unresolved challenges facing minorities in a majority white culture.

Instead of the usual platitudes about working harder and attempting to fit in, the authors provide actionable real world strategies that make a difference. By making the bold analogy of organizational behavior as a game, the authors remove the psychological barriers for initiating change. By describing the current rules of the game as being in constant flux, the authors empower African Americans to make changes to those rules that recognize diversity and accord respect to all individuals.

I highly recommend the indispensable and must read book Black Faces in White Places: 10 Game-Changing Strategies to Achieve Success and Find Greatness by Randal Pinkett, Ph.D. and Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D. with Philana Patterson, to anyone seeking a book that offers an empowering alternative to the usual success manuals. The authors provide a powerful and workable set of recommendations for African Americans to achieve more than mere success, but also respect and recognition of their individuality. In a world where diversity is now the rule, and not the exception, this book provides a valuable guide for changing the old rules to create new ones that better suit the current and future reality.

Read the important and groundbreaking book Black Faces in White Places: 10 Game-Changing Strategies to Achieve Success and Find Greatness by Randal Pinkett, Ph.D. and Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D. with Philana Patterson, and discover how to embrace diversity, while changing the game to provide greater opportunity, respect, and empowerment to everyone in the organization. This book provides the tools necessary for African Americans and members of other minorities, to achieve success and respect on their own terms. This brilliant and timely book provides the blueprint for building more diverse organizations, and a better society for all people.

Tags: Black Faces in White Places: 10 Game-Changing Strategies to Achieve Success and Find Greatness, Randal Pinkett, Ph.D., Jeffrey Robinson, Ph.D., Philana Patterson, cultural diverstiy strategies, business book reviews.

READ MORE - Black Faces in White Places by Randal Pinkett & Jeffrey Robinson with Philana Patterson - Book review

Brand Rewired

Connecting Branding, Creativity, and Intellectual Property Strategy

By: Anne H. Chasser, Jennifer C. Wolfe

Published: July 8, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 224 pages
ISBN-10: 0470575425
ISBN-13: 978-0470575420
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons












"The key to economic success in developing and maintaining brands is to design intellectual property strategy into the creative and innovation process", write intellectual property thought leader Anne H. Chasser and intellectual property attorney Jennifer C. Wolfe, in their insightful and groundbreaking book Brand Rewired: Connecting Branding, Creativity, and Intellectual Property Strategy. The authors describe the importance of a holistic approach to innovation that includes intellectual property considerations from the very beginning of the conceptual and design process.



Anne H. Chasser (photo left) and Jennifer C. Wolfe recognize the importance of brands to a company. Whether the organization is protecting or reinventing a century old brand, or developing an innovative new branded product, a strong brand image represents a clear competitive advantage. The authors demonstrate the critical importance of the brand, and the innovation it contains, represents valuable intellectual property. The authors take the position that brand development, due to its intellectual property component, must be rewired to reflect the realities of the modern marketplace and customer empowerment. The authors point out that there is no inherent conflict between strategic design thinking and intellectual property considerations. In fact, the authors make a powerful case that the inclusion of intellectual property concepts enhances the creative process through lower costs in innovation and legal protection, increased revenue, and a longer lasting and sustainable brand presence.



Jennifer C. Wolfe (photo left) and Anne H. Chasser understand that a decline in brand value can represent a financial disaster for a company. The recognition on the part of the most innovative organizations, that brands are a critical store of value, has led to a fusion of several key components in the creative process. The traditional separation of creative thinking from that of marketing, branding, and intellectual property has all but disappeared in the corporate innovation leaders. In its place is the rewired branding principle described by the authors. Through collaboration of teams drawn from widely disparate departments, and through input from customers, the innovation process has been transformed into holistic endeavor. Through the introduction of intellectual property consideration at the inception of the creative process, the value of the brand is strengthened and additional value is very often discovered for extraction.

For me, the power of the book is how Anne H. Chasser and Jennifer C. Wolfe describe how incorporating an intellectual property strategy into the innovation process strengthens the brand, increases revenue, and lowers present and future costs. The authors combine a strong theoretical framework for rewiring the brand development process with practical advice on how to utilize this innovation into any organization. The authors bring their own legal expertise in the field of intellectual property to the book, adding perspective from the judicial and legalistic viewpoint. Those legal concerns, when brought into the creative process from the very beginning, are demonstrated as crucial to gaining the full value from any new or existing brand.

The book contains valuable case studies from several successful corporations that have integrated the rewiring concept into their innovation. These real world examples add depth to the principles shared in the book, while illustrating the concept brand rewiring in action. With the application of an intellectual property strategy, a company not only develops a growing brand inventory, but also an ever increasing intellectual property portfolio. The competitive advantage resulting from this proactive approach to product development is reflected in greater profit potential and increased market share.

I highly recommend the important and must read book Brand Rewired: Connecting Branding, Creativity, and Intellectual Property Strategy by Jennifer C. Wolfe and Anne H. Chasser,to anyone seeking an improved and integrated approach to product and brand development. The information contained in this useful book will transform the way that any company approaches innovation and the creative process.

Read the essential and enterprise building book Brand Rewired: Connecting Branding, Creativity, and Intellectual Property Strategy by Anne H. Chasser and Jennifer C. Wolfe, and put the power of collaborative innovation through brand rewiring to work for your organization. The addition of intellectual property considerations to the development process will leave your competition far behind.

Tags: Brand Rewired: Connecting Branding, Creativity, and Intellectual Property Strategy, Anne H. Chasser, Jennifer C. Wolfe, product innovation strategies, business book reviews.

READ MORE - Brand Rewired by Anne H. Chasser & Jennifer C. Wolfe - Book review

Perform Like A Rock Star ...and Still Have Time for Lunch

By: Orna W. Drawas

Pubiished: April 1, 2010
Format: Paperback, 216 pages
ISBN-10: 0984265104
ISBN-13: 978-0984265107
Publisher: ROI Marketing









"When you perform like a rock star, something special happens. People notice you. People come to admire you. And people want to be associated with you", writes international speaker and goal achievement workshop instructor Orna W. Drawas, in her inspirational and peak performance building book Perform Like A Rock Star ...and Still Have Time for Lunch. The author describes how to maintain the focus necessary for achieving peak performance and provides the essential actions for maintaining the resulting positive momentum.

Orna W. Drawas equates being a peak performer with being a rock star. The comparison is an apt one as peak performers attract people, accomplish seemingly impossible feats, and become famous within their own context. Unfortunately, as the author points out, most people are far from achieving anything close to rock star status. People simply aren't performing at the peak level that elite rock stars demonstrate on a regular basis. The good news, according to Orna W. Drawas, is that anyone can become a rock star with a little practice and the right instruments. For the author, the opening act for any budding rock star is to take stock of their own current activities and obligations. Chances are that little things, ranging from e-mail to those routine daily interruptions, are keeping a person from becoming the peak performance rock star that is within them.



Orna W. Drawas (photo left) uses a combination of stories and delightful drawings to remove the curtain that so often surrounds success. While the concept of success is often discussed, but seldom explained adequately, the author provides the reader with an easy to understand description from which to work. When a person understands and recognizes what is really wanted in life, Orna Drawas points out that achieving those goals is much less difficult than is usually thought. The author provides the good advice of focusing on what is important, what helps to reach the desired goals, and then stopping doing what distracts from that target. Orna Drawas emphasizes priorities, and avoiding the time wasters, that get in the way of those priorities. With these side tracking time users removed from the to do lists, and the time that they consume focused instead on the ultimate goal, precious hours are made available for productive use. Through delegation, the containment of email, and better handling of meetings, the author guides a person away from the worst time wasters in most people's days.

For me, the power of the book is how Orna W. Drawas demonstrates, in clear and understandable language, how to focus on what is really important to success, and how to better use time during the day. Not only does the author share the theoretical concepts of superior goal setting, time management, and greater focus, but also shares a proven program for peak performance. The practical and easy to apply time management techniques will work for anyone, including those people who insist they have no time available in their schedule. Orna W. Drawas points out that much of what is thought to be important is really distraction. The book contains some very good advice for taming email to a manageable level, and also for using meeting time more effectively. As the reader goes through the concepts presented in the book, the recognition of time wasters and lack of focus becomes clear. With that realization in place, the reader is then ready to achieve rock star levels of peak performance.

I highly recommend the time saving and enjoyable book Perform Like A Rock Star ...and Still Have Time for Lunch by Orna W. Drawas, to anyone seeking a readable and useful book on superior time management and for achieving peak performance. The author shares the essential tools, in a usable and easy to put into practice format, for becoming a rock star.

Read the Perform Like A Rock Star ...and Still Have Time for Lunch by Orna W. Drawas, and discover how to discover your real goals, and how to achieve them. This book provides the tools necessary for achieving success, and you will still have time for lunch.

Tags: Perform Like A Rock Star ...and Still Have Time for Lunch, Orna W. Drawas, peak performance, business book reviews.

READ MORE - Perform Like a Rock Star and Still Have Time For Lunch by Orna W. Drawas - Book review

World Class Diversity Management

A Strategic Approach

By: R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr.

Published: August 9, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 288 pages
ISBN-10: 1605094501
ISBN-13: 978-1605094502
Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers











"Practicing World-Class Diversity Management means operating a level that is the best in the world with respect to diversity management", writes renowned human resources expert, and CEO of Roosevelt Thomas Consulting & Training, Inc., R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. in his landmark and thought provoking book World Class Diversity Management: A Strategic Approach. The author describes how to achieve a globally recognized high standard of diversity management through application of his Four Quadrant model and his trademarked Strategic Diversity Management Process.

Roosevelt Thomas understands that any diversity management program, to be recognized anywhere in the world, must have develop an established standard of excellence and best practices. In order to create a common set of practices and standards, the author provides his Four Quadrant model of diversity management, as a starting point. The four quadrants include the core diversity values:

* Managing workforce demographic representation
* Managing demographic relationships
* Managing diverse talent
* Managing strategic mixtures



R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. (photo left) expands on the concepts presented in the Four Quadrants by providing in depth reasons why each quadrant is important. Not only does each quadrant present goals, motivations, and challenges but also expresses an unspoken and unnoticed way of thinking behind the stated purpose of each quadrant. The author delves deeply into the underlying assumptions that are associated with diversity management that goes beyond the usual superficial analysis. For the creation of a global standard for diversity management, the author recognizes that the systemic approach must go farther than race, gender, or culture. The method must also be useful to the organization and the workforce, and not become loaded down with value statements that fail to address the complexity of the issues. As a result, Roosevelt Thomas examines both the overall benefits of a diversity management program, and the obstacles in the path of its implementation by the organization.

For me, the power of the book is how R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. presents a powerful and workable framework for establishing a global diversity standard, but also provides the practical steps necessary for achieving that goal. While the goal of creating a workable and readily applicable diversity standard is a daunting task, the author demonstrates that such is system is not only possible but is usable in a wide variety of local, national, and international organizations. Roosevelt Thomas shares his program in detail, complete with a full understanding of its benefits, challenges, and possible obstacles to implementation.

The author takes a global and strategic perspective to the issues involved in diversity resulting in an objective and useful model that promotes discussion, acceptance, and analysis that works around the world. To illustrate the ideas presented in the book, the author shares the story of the fictitious CEO Jeff Kilt, who faces the diversity issues confronting business leaders, on a regular basis in a rapidly evolving global workforce. The actions taken by Jeff Kilt reflect how real world challenges are met through the principles described in this excellent book.

I highly recommend the seminal book World Class Diversity Management: A Strategic Approach by R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr., to any organizational leaders in the public, private, or not for profit sectors seeking a richer understanding of the concept of diversity and how to embrace the opportunities presented by a diverse workforce. The principles offered in this fine book are workable, and present a framework for developing and enriching the diversity and cross-cultural aspects of a globalized workplace. The concepts shared by the author are equally effective in a local, national, or multinational setting.

Read the business transformational book World Class Diversity Management: A Strategic Approach by R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr., and embrace the potential and opportunity presented by a diverse workforce. The future is multinational and cross cultural, and this book provides a guide to achieving success in that globalized present and future.

Tags: World Class Diversity Management: A Strategic Approach, R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr., multinational and cross cultural organizations, business book reviews.

READ MORE - World Class Diversity Management by R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. - Book review

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Leading training and development expert and Partner in Designed Learning, Peter Block, and Emeritus Professor of education and social policy and coordinator of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute at Northwestern University, John McKnight, co-authors of the visionary and thought provoking book The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods, describe the invisible but immeasurable impact consumerism has had on families and communities. Purchases of essential products and services are made from outside the community. Services and necessities of life are outsourced. Because people look outside of their own community for products and services, they think of themselves as consumers and not as citizens and neighbors. The authors offer an alternative concept for creating a satisfying life. They share the possibilities that result from forming a community that nurtures both families and useful citizens. The authors offer practical ideas for developing voluntary and self-organizing structures within a community. The ideas can help rebuild families, neighborhoods, entire communities and strengthen their local economies.The authors offer hope for building peoples' lives on their own terms for their mutual benefit.

Peter Block and John McKnight are my internet radio show guests on Blog Business Success; hosted live on BlogTalkRadio.

The show airs live on Tuesday, November 23, at 8:00 pm Eastern Time; 5:00 pm Pacific Time.

Leading training and development expert and Partner in Designed Learning, Peter Block, and Emeritus Professor of education and social policy and coordinator of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute at Northwestern University, John McKnight, co-authors of the visionary and thought provoking book The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods, describe the invisible but immeasurable impact consumerism has had on families and communities. You will learn:

* Why consumerism has created unhappy and dissatisfied communities

* Why communities possess the people and resources to revitalize themselves

* How to develop the spirit of giving and sharing and of building citizenship

* How communities can rebuild themselves, their people, and their neighborhoods



Peter Block (on left in photo left) is an author, consultant and citizen of Cincinnati, Ohio.

His work is about empowerment, stewardship, chosen accountability, and the reconciliation of community.

Peter is a partner in Designed Learning, a training company that offers workshops designed by Block to build the skills outlined in his books. He is the author of Flawless Consulting, Stewardship, The Answer to How Is Yes, and Community. He is the recipient of numerous awards, most recently the Organization Development Network's 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2008 Community: The Structure of Belonging was published, and his latest book, The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods, co-authored with John McKnight, came out in May 2010.

He has also authored Flawless Consulting Fieldbook & Companion: A Guide to Understanding Your Expertise (2000). The Answer to How Is Yes: Acting on What Matters (2002) won that year's Independent Book Publisher Book Award for Business Breakthrough Book of the Year. Freedom and Accountability at Work: Applying Philosophic Insight to the Real World was co-authored with consultant and philosopher Peter Koestenbaum (2001).



John McKnight (on right in photo left) is emeritus professor of education and social policy and co-director of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute at Northwestern University.

He is the co-author of Building Communities from the Inside Out and the author of The Careless Society. He has been a community organizer and serves on the boards of several national organizations that support neighborhood development.

My book review of The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods by John McKnight and Peter Block.

My book review of Community: The Structure of Belonging by Peter Block.

Listen live on Tuesday at 8:00 pm Eastern, 5:00 pm Pacific time.



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Let's talk with leading training and development expert and Partner in Designed Learning, Peter Block, and Emeritus Professor of education and social policy and coordinator of the Asset-Based Community Development Institute at Northwestern University, John McKnight, co-authors of the visionary and thought provoking book The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods, describe the invisible but immeasurable impact consumerism has had on families and communities. Purchases of essential products and services are made from outside the community. Services and necessities of life are outsourced. Because people look outside of their own community for products and services, they think of themselves as consumers and not as citizens and neighbors. The authors offer an alternative concept for creating a satisfying life. They share the possibilities that result from forming a community that nurtures both families and useful citizens. The authors offer practical ideas for developing voluntary and self-organizing structures within a community. The ideas can help rebuild families, neighborhoods, entire communities and strengthen their local economies.The authors offer hope for building peoples' lives on their own terms for their mutual benefit on Blog Business Success Radio.

Tags: The Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods, John McKnight, Peter Block, community rebuilding and empowerment, Blog Business Success, Blog Talk Radio.

READ MORE - Peter Block & John McKnight: The Abundant Community - Blog Business Success Radio

As part of his ongoing coverage “Making Sen$e” of financial news, Paul Solman sat down with Bethany McLean and Joe Nocera, co-authors of All the Devils are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis.

Bethany McLean, famous for breaking the Enron story, is a contributing editor of Vanity Fair magazine, and Joe Nocera is a columnist for The New York Times.

The two share several basic opinions about the financial collapse: that rating agencies were the No. 1 culprit; that Republicans and Democrats hold equal political blame; and that subprime lending was never really about home ownership – it was about predatory lending.







JEFFREY BROWN: Next: a "who done it?" look at the financial crisis. NewsHour economics correspondent Paul Solman has our conversation.

It's part of his reporting Making Sense of financial news.

PAUL SOLMAN: At the Museum of American Finance on Wall Street: the co-authors of "All the Devils Are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis."

Bethany McLean, famous for breaking the Enron story, is a contributing editor at "Vanity Fair" magazine, Joe Nocera, a columnist for The New York Times.

Bethany McLean, Joe Nocera, welcome.

JOE NOCERA, co-author, All the Devils are Here: Thank you.

BETHANY MCLEAN, co-author, All the Devils are Here: Thank you.

PAUL SOLMAN: You frame this book as a look back at the whole financial crisis, so I thought I would frame this interview as a: Who is the biggest culprit?

JOE NOCERA: I certainly would put the rating agencies right at the top of my list of bad guys, or my list of devils.

A place like Moody's took a culture that had a reputation for some integrity, and completely corrupted it in a drive for market share and profits.



Bethany Mclean and Joe Nocera (both in photo left)

PAUL SOLMAN: So, biggest culprit, ratings agencies; you agree?

BETHANY MCLEAN: I do agree. If they hadn't taken subprime mortgages and rated enormous quantities of them AAA, meaning they gave those bonds the same credit rating as the U.S. government debt has, this -- this whole thing couldn't have happened, because debt that is rated AAA is precisely the debt that is snapped up by the largest quantity of buyers all around the world, buyers who are not capable of doing the detailed work to analyze these bonds by themselves.

And yet there is still this myth that these buyers are supposed to be sophisticated buyers, and they're supposed to understand what they're getting into. And the cornerstone of this myth, the thing that makes it all work, is the rating agencies, because the investment banks say, well, we sold AAA securities.

PAUL SOLMAN: But don't you cut ratings agencies any slack? I mean, the incentives are all there for the ratings agencies to do what they did, no?

JOE NOCERA: I don't cut them any slack at all. They are supposed to be protecting investors. That's what their job is. They're not supposed to be in cahoots with the Wall Street firms that are ginning up these securities.

And yet that's what they did. They used to rate normal, old- fashioned corporate bonds. And then -- then this new form of finance arose called structured finance. And that's all these, you know, mortgage-backed securities bundled into CDOs, so on and so forth, all this complicated stuff.

It became a growth area, a profit area that far outstripped the old fuddy-duddy business of rating government bonds. So, the rating agencies raced, jumped on it. And it just flew. And then the top executives really started to drive the place around the profitability of structured finance. And that's really what happened, more than any other single thing.

PAUL SOLMAN: But isn't that what happened at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?

BETHANY MCLEAN: A slightly more complicated story with Fannie and Freddie, because they were set up to serve this noble purpose, to enable home ownership. And we can have a debate about how noble a purpose that -- that actually was.

But there were these odd entities that were half-private and half-public, meaning they had this mission to serve the public good by boosting home ownership, but they also were privately-held companies that were traded on the stock exchange, with a responsibility to produce profits for the bottom line, and, even more importantly, executive bonuses that were tied to those bottom-line profits.

JOE NOCERA: The dirty little secret of Fannie and Freddie is that they jumped into subprime, not for political reasons, but because they were being left behind by the private market, and they were losing market share because, subprime was becoming so big, it was kind of starting to take over the securitization market. Fannie and Freddie needed to be in the securitization market, so they dove in with both feet.



Paul Solman (photo left)

PAUL SOLMAN: OK, Republicans or Democrats, who is more responsible?

(LAUGHTER)

BETHANY MCLEAN: Both.

JOE NOCERA: Both. Republicans want to blame Fannie and Freddie and the government, because they have a hard time accepting the notion that the market failed. Democrats want to blame it on the marketplace, on Wall Street and subprime companies, because they have a hard time accepting that the government didn't do its job. The fact is, neither party did their job.

BETHANY MCLEAN: And, after the crisis, it has become very popular for Republicans to say, well, the Democrats caused this with their focus on homeownership, on putting people in homes who couldn't afford those homes.

But one of the really interesting things, if you go back to the 1990s to the birth of subprime lending, it was never about homeownership.

PAUL SOLMAN: What do you mean it wasn't about homeownership?

BETHANY MCLEAN: It was never about homeownership, because subprime lending grew out of cash-out refinancings, meaning the ability of somebody to go to a bank, refinance their mortgage, and take cash out of their house in order to live on that cash.

And that enabled consumer spending through the 1990s and through the early part of -- of this decade. Most of the business of the major subprime lenders, from Countrywide, to Ameriquest, to New Century, was cash-out refinancing. It wasn't the first-time purchase of homes by homebuyers. And this was celebrated by Republicans, as well as Democrats.

JOE NOCERA: Homeownership was a giant fig leaf, particularly for the rise of subprime.

I was stunned, in the reporting of this book, how much subprime was about predatory lending. And it was way more than I thought. And then, when you find that a company like New Century, which really, you know, 85 percent of its business is refinancing, 15 percent of its business is homeownership, that's astounding.

PAUL SOLMAN: What does predatory lending mean in this situation?

JOE NOCERA: Taking advantage of unsophisticated people to put them into loans that -- knowing, absolutely knowing, that they can never pay them back, often lying about what the interest rate hike is going to be, prodding them to lie themselves about their income, about their true financial condition.

BETHANY MCLEAN: I -- I started this book with a bias toward personal responsibility, and, if consumers got in over their head on their mortgage, that was their fault.

And one of the big discoveries to me in the course of reporting the book is the extent to which these loans were sold; they weren't bought. And one of the most telling moments were these internal documents from Washington Mutual, one of the big subprime lenders, around 2003 talking about how to get consumers who really wanted safe 30-year fixed-rate mortgages to take out these dangerous option ARMs instead.

PAUL SOLMAN: ARMs meaning adjustable rate.

BETHANY MCLEAN: Adjustable rate mortgages -- how to sell those to people, and how to confront a consumer who said, but it doesn't feel right to me. I want to pay back my mortgage every month. This is what my parents did.

How do you get these people to take out a risky mortgage instead? You told them that home prices could only go up. And the reason Washington Mutual wanted to sell these option ARMs, instead of the 30-year fixed rate mortgages, is that Washington Mutual could turn around and sell these to Wall Street for a lot more money than it could sell the old 30-year fixed-rate loans.

JOE NOCERA: The astonishing thing about the run-up to the crisis is that this situation was happening all over the country. Lots of people on the ground could see it. And, yet, no one in government, whether it was the Fed, whether it was the regulators, whether it was Congress, was willing to do anything about it.

And -- and not only that. In some cases, like the bank regulators, they actively pushed back and stopped anybody trying to stop this kind of lending.

PAUL SOLMAN: Is Wall Street any worse than it ever was?

BETHANY MCLEAN: Yes, I think it's worse.

Wall Street, by the very sleaziness and impenetrability of its practices, set up its own run on the bank, because, when push came to shove, there was no transparency. And, even though in -- you can argue that this was a run on the bank, it was a run on the bank created by the way Wall Street did business. So, in the end, they only have themselves to blame.

PAUL SOLMAN: Some people have argued that this wasn't not quite a plot or a conspiracy, but a means by which Americans who had companies with stuff to sell could get money into the hands of people whose incomes were stagnant, so they could buy this stuff, that is, lend them the money.

BETHANY MCLEAN: I do not think that was ever an explicit plot. In other words, I don't think any group of people ever sat in a dark room and said, here's what we are going to do, and it's eventually going to bring the financial system down, but we are going to keep this party going while we can.

But I absolutely think that was an implicit plot. In other words, in order to keep the U.S. economy going, you had to keep consumer spending strong. In order to keep consumer spending strong, you had to have consumers whose income otherwise wasn't keeping up have a ready source of cash.

That was cash-out refinancing, by using their homes as piggy banks, and no one wanted to stop that party.

PAUL SOLMAN: You agree with that?

JOE NOCERA: Totally, 100 percent.

PAUL SOLMAN: Joe Nocera, Bethany McLean, thanks very much.

BETHANY MCLEAN: Thank you.

JOE NOCERA: Thanks for having us.

Tags: PBS NewsHour, Paul Solman, Bethany McLean, Joe Nocera, All the Devils are Here: The Hidden History of the Financial Crisis.

READ MORE - PBS NEWSHOUR Paul Solman: Bethany McLean and Joe Nocera

Instant Recess

Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time

By: Toni Yancey, MD, MPH

Published: November 3, 2010
Format: Paperback, 280 pages
ISBN-10: 0520263766
ISBN-13: 978-0520263765
Publisher: University of California Press










"The societal benefits of of physical activity cannot be fully realized until most people get moving", writes Professor in the Department of Health Services and Co-Director of UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, Toni Yancey, MD, MPH, in her inspirational and health transformational book Instant Recess: Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time. The author presents a compelling case that a lack of physical activity is costing employers and the community money, time, and lost production due to the sedentary lifestyle of employees and the general public.

Toni Yancey offers a simple but highly effective solution to the declining physical fitness of the American population. The solution is the concept of instant recess. In the form of a brief, low impact group workout, suitable for everyone from children to adults, instant recess provides a fun and active way to improve physical fitness. The technique can be used anywhere, from workplaces, to community centers, to schools, to create an activity that fits into any busy schedule or program. For employers, instant recess fits well into the workplace, increasing fitness and activity levels of employees, while providing bottom line improvements as well. Toni Yancey shares research evidence that demonstrates how structured physical activity while at work results in a healthier and more productive workforce. With lower absentee rates and lower health care eosts, there are tangible benefits for the organization, at very little expenditure in terms of money and time.



Toni Yancey (photo left) shares some easy to incorporate fitness ideas, that any organizations can adopt, with no loss of time or cash outlay:

* Ten minute exercise breaks during meetings and regularly during the work day
* Use standing ovations as the standard for showing appreciation
* Post stair prompts and have managers lead in using the stairs
* Include fifty percent or more healthy food choices in machines and cafeterias

While these concepts provide fitness, at no cost to the organization, they also build teamwork, provide motivation for incorporating other changes into the company, and boost employee morale. The resulting productivity increase, from healthier and more engaged employees, benefits the company as well as the individual employees. Toni Yancey asserts, and with the backing of strong research, that the individual and company level fitness improvements translate as well to enhancement of the overall well being and quality of life in the larger community as well. The application of fun and easy group events not only builds bodies but it creates stronger social bonds as well, providing both tangible and unseen benefits for all.

For me, the power of the book is how Toni Yancey describes the benefits to individuals, organizations, and communities of a physically fit population. The author backs her concepts with the latest research into fitness and its relationship to health, productivity, and personal well being. Toni Yancey also provides an extensive reference section for further study. Along with the theoretical research and ideas, the author shares easy to organize group exercises, as well as initiatives that individuals can take on their own. For companies, the author provides evidence of benefits for productivity, employee job satisfaction, and the overall profitability resulting from a more engaged and healthier workforce.

Toni Yancey goes far beyond the usual nutritionally based advice for individuals and organizations. While she includes sections on healthy eating, the author emphasizes the importance of combining a balanced diet with regular, intense physical activity. Toni Yancey also shares methods for overcoming cultural objections to the concept of physical activity, and the value of instant recess as a means of clearing these cultural obstacles.

I highly recommend the practical and personally transformational book Instant Recess: Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time by Toni Yancey, to any business, organizational, political, or community leaders seeking an easy and enjoyable method of increasing the overall physical fitness of their constituencies. As the book's subtitle points out, just ten minutes of physical activity per day will begin the transition from a sedentary population to one of improved health and energy levels. Everyone benefits from the added productivity and lowered health costs that result from an active and fit organization, community and nation.

Read the timely and essential book Instant Recess: Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time by Toni Yancey, and begin the journey to better health and physical fitness in your business or community. Not only are the suggestions in the book easy and fun, but they build bonds between people that overcome barriers. Everyone loved recess while at school. The idea of instant recess should prove effective and enjoyable for everyone as well.

Tags: Instant Recess: Building a Fit Nation 10 Minutes at a Time, Toni Yancey, MD, MPH, organizational physical fitness benefits, business book reviews.

READ MORE - Instant Recess by Toni Yancey - Book review

Successful freelance writer and editor Nathan Segal, was kind enough to take the time and answer a few questions about his very practical and information packed book Secrets of Profitable Freelance Writing.

Nathan Segal describes his proven techniques for landing those choice magazine writing assignments, creating effective internet content, and for making a living as an independent freelance writer.

Thanks to Nathan Segal for his time, and for his very informative and comprehensive responses to the questions. They are greatly appreciated.

What was the background to writing this book Secrets of Profitable Freelance Writing?

Nathan Segal: It largely came about from hanging out on forums. What I kept hearing were complaints from writers about the content sites and the low rate of pay. I was appalled by what I heard and decided to do something about it. The result was my book.

So many freelance writers struggle with finding writing assignments. Why is this the case and what are they doing wrong?

Nathan Segal: The number one reason is they don’t know how to market themselves.

More often than not, they wind up on the writing sites where they get paid a pittance for their articles. Other times they wind up on job boards where they’re in a bidding competition with other writers for work. And in that case it’s about who can underbid who, so even if you get a contract, it’s only for a few dollars per article. It’s hard work and you don’t make any decent money.

How can freelance writers better research writing opportunities?

Nathan Segal: By understanding how to search for work. There are two major methods:

1. • Keyword research

2. • And using online directories.

The internet provides a wealth of research opportunities. How can freelancers find magazines seeking their writing?

Nathan Segal: By understanding how to search and what keywords to use. I offer an extensive list of search terms in my book. As above, here’s an example: paying American magazines. That will give you access to a huge number of resources.

With directories, the process is easier because you have access to a database with listings of many magazines. Two that I recommend are:

http://www.freelancewriting.com and the Gale’s directories. You can get free access to the directories here:

http://www.nypl.org/collections/articles-databases/gales-ready-reference-shelf



Nathan Segal (photo left)

Can a freelancer also use the same techniques to become a telecommuter for a company?

Nathan Segal: Yes and no. They still need to search, though they would be using different keywords to search. In this case, they would use keyword phrases like: writing jobs, technical writing jobs or writing gigs. Some sites to look at are SimplyHired.com, or Craigslist.

Can the many writing sites on the internet help to build a reputation as a writer?

Nathan Segal: Yes. You use those sites to write content. Then when it’s published, you refer to that content in your query letters. This helps to establish credibility.

Why should freelancers be familiar with technical concepts like screen captures and the various web photo formats?

Nathan Segal: Depending on who you write for, you need to know how to save files. As an example, if you write for a print publication, you’ll probably want to save those screen captures as a TIFF file. If you write for the web, you’ll want to save them as JPEG or GIF. Generally, I use JPEG for full color images and the GIF format for text, line art and dialog boxes. Also, for a print publication, the resolution would be around 300 dpi (dots per inch) for good quality. For the web, it’s different. A good resolution would be 96 ppi (pixels per inch) for the PC and 100 ppi for the Macintosh.

You are a strong proponent in creating content through interviews. Can interviews be used for revenue and re=purposed for other uses including reputation building?

Nathan Segal: Absolutely. This was one of my main tasks when I was a columnist at Streaming Media World. I used interviews all the time. Also, for a novice writer, interviews are one of the easiest and most enjoyable ways of breaking into freelance writing.

I did this in two different ways, telephone and email interviews. Telephone interviews offer a lot of spontaneity and can be quite a bit of fun. The down side is having to transcribe them later. In contrast, the email interview allows the interviewee to take time with their answers. It’s also great for me as a writer because I can edit one of those in about 15-20 minutes, then it’s ready to post.

Many freelance writers have expressed concerns about how to write a good query letter. What makes for a great query letter that gets assignments?

Nathan Segal: In my experience, there are a couple of really important things. First off, never write an article in advance of the query. If you do so and the editor doesn’t like it, you’ve wasted your time.

Secondly, when you write a letter list three article topics and write a short summary of what you have in mind – no more than a few sentences. The idea is to capture the editor’s attention. Also, by writing three topics, you stand a better chance of getting an assignment.

Why should writers get to know the editor and how can a great editor help a writer succeed?

Nathan Segal: The editor is ultimately your best friend, though many writers don’t know that. Many writers are afraid of the editor; other writers hate editors because the editor changes their copy .

The reality is that a good editor can show you how to write really well. The editor can also shape your writing career. In one case, I worked with an editor by the name of David Tanaka. David showed me that my greatest strength was as a “how-to” writer. The result is this interview and my book.

Despite often long experience with freelancing, many writers are still unsure how magazines pay for work. How does a magazine pay for writing?

Nathan Segal: In one of three ways: by the page, by the word and by assignment.

As for when you get paid, again, there are three ways: On acceptance, on submission and on publication. Of these two options, I recommend the first two. Unless you have a good cash flow, don't work for a magazine that pays on publication, because you could be waiting for a long time. In one case I wound up waiting for nine months and I still hadn't been paid.

How can a writer increase their income to make freelancing a full time business?

Nathan Segal: Develop a client base of several magazines that you write for, all at the same time, or in rotation. This is how I did it.

Coming up with story ideas is often a challenge for freelancers. How can a writer generate more story and article ideas?

Nathan Segal: Study back issues of the magazine for article ideas. That’s the easiest way. Also, read the author’s guidelines to see what their favorite topics are, then see if you can come up with a new approach. Contrary to what you might believe, similar topics come up and it’s in the way that you write them that determines a new approach and fresh content.

What is the first step a freelance writer take toward becoming a success?

Nathan Segal: Decide on what you want to write. Use a mind map.

What is next for Nathan Segal?

Nathan Segal: Transitioning into being a mentor and coach. I’m also taking my marketing knowledge and am creating a video series. Eventually I’d like to give some workshops, as well.

**************

My book review of Secrets of Profitable Freelance Writing by Nathan Segal.

My Blog Business Success internet radio interview with Nathan Segal. Blog Business Success hosted on BlogTalkRadio.

Tags: Secrets of Profitable Freelance Writing, Nathan Segal, successful freelance writing business, business author interviews.

READ MORE - Nathan Segal: Secrets of Profitable Freelance Writing - Author interview