Our company was rapidly growing, and we needed to hire a new customer service person. That’s when we hired “Cyndi.” And Cyndi was great. She worked hard, her attitude was great, and she consistently left the office at 7PM or later. Suddenly she was leaving the office every day at 5:30PM. I knew it wasn’t…
“Whatever you do, don’t react,” The investor told me. The investor (we’ll call him the good investor) was driving to our office, and he was going to be a little late to the board meeting. Our other investor (we’ll call him the bad investor) had asked to have the “closed session” of the board meeting…
“We’re in the first stage of a three stage fab expansion,” The CEO proudly told me. It was December 2000, and I was being recruited to run the Communication’s Division of the company. The economic bubble was bursting already, yet here was this CEO boldly proclaiming his company was expanding. “Do you really think this…
How Do You Keep Stress From Crushing You As CEO? By Bret Fox “I think we should sell the company,” One of our investors said to me. I was meeting with the investor at his office on Sand Hill Road. We were in the process of closing our Series B funding. We had a term…
When Is The Second Best Time To Get Help? By Brett Fox “I’m sorry, but I can’t help you,” I said to Jim. “I think the best thing for you to do is sell the company. I wish you the best of luck.” Jim’s company was past the brink of disaster and well into its…
“Hi Mr. Fox. It’s Jean at AAA Pool Company. I’m calling you back regarding the quote we gave you to fix your pool pump.” The pump on our pool needed to be replaced, and I was, to say the least, a little surprised at the $2,000 estimate AAA Pool (not its real name) had just…
Do You Really Know The Right Way To Say No? By Brett Fox “Thanks for taking the time to meet with me today. I really appreciate it, but I don’t see a fit for you in our organization,” the CEO said to me. The CEO’s tone was firm and even pleasant. He certainly wasn’t being…
I walked up to the white board and in huge capital letters I wrote: IGNORE PHYSICS! We were starting the first step of defining our next generation process technology, and I wanted to set the proper tone to the engineers in the room. [Do you want to grow your business? Maybe I can help. Click here.]…
Can Your Startup Survive A One Customer Market By Brett Fox at brettjfox.com I’ve loved the Chicago Cubs since I was a little boy growing up in the northern suburbs of Chicago. The problem is they have broken my heart many, many times. I watched my Grandfather pass away without the Cubs winning a World…
The Second Way Complaining Customers Help Businesses Stay Ahead By Brett Fox at www.brettjfox.com Shit! The check engine light just came on my car. And that means I’m going to have to drop a thousand bucks to get it fixed. “Well, at least it isn’t blinking red,” I thought. A blinking red light is the…