focus (take one)

It has been almost two weeks since my last post. A lot has happened. Focus. I have the ability to construct tunnel vision almost at will. For long periods of time. I consider this my greatest personal strength. You know, like that spider man-like character can shoot webs and fly around the city... I can focus on a task and stay the course. Speaking of courses, if I have failed to convey how important that it is for your career (and your business, for the entrepreneurs among us) that you attend the North East Ohio Constraints Management Workshop on June 24th, I am sorry. This event is huge. No, not in numbers. There are only 50 total workshop seats (plus 50 more "keynote only" seats). Howard Meeks is on a mission. He has focus... to save American jobs. His financial analysis workshop will open one's eyes to the REAL world. Not the GAAP induced dogma that many have mistaken for managerial accounting. If I have failed to get your attention, please take a minute to visit the workshop web site: http://www.neoworkshops.info/ Why the revisit on this subject? There is still time (and seats) available to make reservations. Dan Hanlon will amaze with his perception of the early stage business model. More than "eye candy", Hanlon will ignite the desire "to make a difference!" Howard Meeks will guide the class interactively through the proper financial analysis to make your dreams for your department or division or company (or organization) become reality. Wild claims? Perhaps. Your mileage may vary. Zig Ziglar and I both take the tartar sauce with us when fishing. -ski

P.S. Today, my focus was on moving the NEO Workshop to the top of everyone's "to do" list. Let me know if I made my point.

neo workshop 6/24

North East Ohio Constraints Management Workshop Presented by Purple Curve Events Friday, June 24, 2005 KSU Stark Campus Professional Education & Conference Center Canton, Ohio Registration $250 each, $350 for two. All attendees will receive a FREE copy of my book, Purple Curve Effect. All those early birds, registering in the month of May, will receive a FREE copy of Dan Hanlon's book, Riding the American Dream. Fine Print: I, Jeff "SKI" Kinsey have a financial stake in this workshop. "Inspired, creative, passionate problem solving skills have never been more important for business management leaders!" www.neoworkshops.info -ski

horses & such

As my good friend (and my personal professor) Howard Meeks likes to kid, I am a collector of "down home wisdom." Seems a marketing guru by the name of Paige Arnof-Fenn offers a list of nine great expressions for those serious about moving their business to the next level. Confessions of a Southern Entrepreneur www.entrepreneur.com/article/print/0,2361,320943,00.html Among my favorites: "9. Rode hard and put up wet." For the movie buffs among us, you should recognize this line from the classic, Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man starring Mickey Rourke and Don Johnson. But I digress... As a marketing guru, I cannot believe that Paige missed my favorite: "You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him float on his back." Business lesson, in Ries & Trout speak (from Bottom Up Marketing): "Only a narrow thought can enter one's mind." People have, and will always, want what they want. Period. In marketing, as Eli Goldratt says, "it is all about figuring out that ducks like corn." No amount of effort (or money) will convince ducks that they should eat rhubarb. Yet we all know otherwise smart people that try. -ski

wyckoff book review

The Complete Guide to PROFITABLE Powersports Dealerships by John Wyckoff is worth reading. I won't recap my amazon dot com review here, simply jump to amazon for a look. MYOB-2 http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/asin/0976530406/applyingcommo-20/ Many of us excited about the motorcycle industry are aware of Wyckoff. I was working the Red Horse booth in Cincy this year, and was unable to break away to catch one of Wyckoff's presentations at that VTwin Expo. Anyone who did so, please add a few comments to this post. I do read his articles in MPN. I do not always agree with every statement, which is a great compliment. If two people have the same exact views on everything, then one of them is not necessary! John challenges me, and that is a good thing! -ski

hey erik

My 2003 Buell XB9S Lightning. Wow. As Erik Buell says, this bike is "fun and its intense!" Buell American Motorcycles http://www.buell.com/en_us/buell_way/buell_on_buell/ What a first purchase for my eBay indoctrination. It almost did not happen. I missed out on another bike, and received [what turned out to be a bogus] "second chance" email. Suggesting that the winner did not complete the purchase, and that the seller would accept my bid. But the address was different than the original seller's address. Close call. I tried again, and decided to use the "Buy it Now" option. Flew to Dallas, paid the Buell off in Postal Money Orders and headed out on the bike for Daytona Beach and this year's Bike Week. The first week of March was lousy for riding: it was cold. But somehow it did not matter. This bike is a ton of fun on the interstate. I must confess that the D&D exhaust makes ALL the difference in the world. It sounds like a vtwin should sound. Riding the XB9S on the back roads of my childhood home, Tuscarawas county, is more fun than I imagined. Believe me when I say that is significant. Since my brother introduced me to the Buells two years ago, I have been dreaming of owning one. I went to the Demo Rides that Buell does around the country and experienced the ultimate riding machine first hand. But now, on my home turf, the Lightning is amazing. But one question Erik, why are so many motor company dealers dropping the Buell line? Ever consider selling "Buell Only" dealerships? Call me. -ski

people "take three"

Have you ever met someone and knew right off, that you were on the same page? I have. Of course, in many cases, I later found out that I was pretty much clueless! But for me, life is a lot more fun that way. Dan Hanlon http://www.ridingtheamericandream.com/ While on assignment in Iowa, I made a point of looking up Hanlon. My brother had bought his two brothers (and himself) each copies of "Riding the American Dream." I found a kindred spirit in the pages, and that ultimately lead me to contact Hanlon and request a few minutes of his time over a cup of Starbuck's coffee. Long story short, we had several meetings over the winter months, and I learned that I did not appreciate his talents. I was not clueless, but definitely lacking. His seven year ride atop the Excelsior-Henderson corporate structure honed his talents to a level that I can only dream of achieving. At our last luncheon, I left feeling that I owed Dan a debt that I could never repay. Wrong. It is my intent to co-sponsor an event in Northeast Ohio, and feature Hanlon as the keynote speaker. Details forth-coming over the next few weeks, but we can all do our homework by re-reading (or purchasing, and reading) his book. Here, from his web site: "Now, for the first time, you can read the official -- no holds barred -- hell-raising story of setting out to conquer the impossible of building a company to compete against worldwide industry stalwarts. Here you get the insider entrepreneur's view of launching and building an American company and raising nearly one hundred million dollars -- and all at the grassroots level. And not an Internet, medical or high-tech wizardry startup, but rather the out-of-fashion bricks and mortar." This event could be the one that puts your new venture on the road to extreme success! If your organization would like to co-sponsor this event, write me soon! Details will evolve on Purple Curve Events. -ski

define "cool"

In the world of blogs, everyone surfing the web seems to have their favorite sites. One that I watch on a somewhat regular basis, is Anita Cambell's Small Business Trends. She often shares posts from a motorcycle maven that many of us recognize: John Wyckoff http://www.smallbusinesses.blogspot.com/2004/10/how-harley-davidson-lost-its-cool.html I recall sharing this post via email back in October, when Wyckoff wrote it. It is just as powerful today. Do I agree that the motor company has lost its "cool"? No. They continue to enjoy great fiscal rewards, year in and year out. But the custom OEMs do offer a lot of cool bikes, starting as little as $20k. But as a throughput guru, I loved the comment [again, from October 2004] about Big Dog and American Iron Horse being sold out for about six months. Dare I suggest that they should contact me? -ski

shameless plug

The clock was ticking. It was only a matter of time. Why promote my own book in my blog? Because it is a great book. It simply works. Purple Curve Effect -- SKI's Throughput on Command http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/asin/0976069202/ Every week I find myself reviewing some passage in the text. It really is a "business leadership guide." In fact, I have caught myself remarking out loud after reading a portion, "man, this is good!" The foreword by H. William Dettmer is worth the price of the book alone. Bill shares the transition of Constraints Management Method (CMM) from beginning up through the release of my book. Thayer Bennett did a great job compiling the index. How many business books do you know that have references to folks like Abbott and Costello? Aerosmith? Dan Akroyd? Archimedes? And that is just the "A" section! Call for action Those of you that have read the book, please consider taking a minute and visiting the Amazon link to share your views on the book. In fact, the first person to post a review will receive a free DVD of my session with Ed McCullough on Hilton Head Island's Talk of the Town, where we discuss the book and talk about some of the success stories from the book. Even better, if you do not own the book [yet!], it seems Amazon is discounting it! -ski

people "take two"

Tim Sanders http://www.timsanders.com/ Talking about folks that have been important to my throughput, I must mention Tim Sanders. The original "lovecat" as he says. His best seller, "Love is the Killer App" is a must read for the serious student of business success. Why? It talks of helping others. Without thought of financial reward. Because it is the right thing to do, for those in an enlightened society. Promoting others that contribute value is a noble effort. What if each of us, individually, made a simple decision? "Instead of the status quo, of telling eight people about my bad experiences, and only two people about my good experiences, what if I reversed the numbers? What if I started sharing my good experiences with eight or ten or twenty people? What would society look like? These are the kinds of questions that run through one's mind as you read Tim's book. If fact, I had the privilege of participating in the audience last month, as Tim taped a program for WQED in Pittsburgh featuring his new book, "Likeability Factor." It was most excellent. It gave me a new found enthusiasm to share TIm's work with others. I consider Tim Sanders "for real." And that is a bold statement in today's world. -ski

the people that you meet -- "take one"

Charlie "Tremendous" Jones said it best: "Five years from today, you will be the same person that you are today, except for the people that you meet, and the books that you read." Albert Einstien felt that he had achieved some measure of success by standing on the shoulders of those that had gone before him... and so it is with me. I would like to share some links to some of the folks that have given me a hand up in the world. The world is a better place because of their contribution. Someday, it is my hope that others might say that about me, and actually mean it! Ed McCullough http://www.whhitv.com/talkofthetown.html Ed is one of those rare individuals that defies classification! Most of the folks that I know, that know Ed agree, he is "Hilton Head Island's Most Colourful Individual." Period. I have a handful of friends for which I would swim the widest ocean to simply share a cup of coffee. Ed is one. Ed is the greatest talk show host you migth ever hear or see. One of the few folks that reads more veraciously than I, Ed takes the interview process very seriously. It is my hope that someday PBS will take note, and give this master his own show.

-ski

Welcome

SKI Consulting and Implementation is all about throughput. Due Date performance. Achieving one's goals. Welcome to the "Throughput" blog. As David Letterman asks, "Is it anything?" Only time will tell. -ski