There’s an old military saying: a title doesn’t make you a leader — visibility does. You can have the corner office, the fancy title on the business card, and your name on the building, but none of it matters if your people rarely see you. Leadership is not paperwork. Leadership is presence. It’s showing up, […]
Excuses Don’t Pay Invoices
Oh Man, I get so tired of the excuses. It seems like people, especially salespeople, look for every excuse under the sun to explain why they cannot do their job. I’ve been around this industry long enough to hear just about every excuse in the book. Tariffs. Supply chain snarls. Material shortages. Labor walkouts. Late […]
Your Customers Aren’t Loyal — Stop Pretending
You have to earn loyalty every day with every delivery By Dan Beaulieu Let’s cut through the fairy tale. Your customers are not loyal. They never were. They are loyal only until the next late delivery, the next missed deadline, the next quality failure. Loyalty in business is as fragile as glass—and it will shatter […]
Marketing Isn’t Fluff — It’s Ammunition
I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard someone in our industry dismiss marketing as “fluff.” You know the tone — a little smirk, a little condescension, and the implication that “real companies” don’t need marketing. They say: “We make a great product. Our work speaks for itself.” No, it doesn’t. Not anymore. […]
Your Biggest Competitor Is Complacency
I’ve been around this industry long enough to hear every excuse under the sun: “We can’t grow because of the economy.” “Our competition is too cheap.” “The big guys have all the advantages.” Nonsense. Most of the time, you’re not losing to anyone else—you’re losing to yourself. That’s right. Your biggest competitor isn’t the shop […]
The Phone Is Still Mightier Than the Keyboard
There’s a dangerous myth floating around in business today: that the keyboard is mightier than the phone. That if you blast enough cold emails, send enough LinkedIn connection requests, and fire off enough proposals by PDF, customers will eventually roll over and buy from you. Let me set the record straight: cold emails don’t close […]
Stop Whining About the Market — Outwork It
Every time the market hiccups, every time the industry cycle dips, I hear the same tired chorus: “The market is down. Customers aren’t buying. What can we do? We just have to wait it out.” Nonsense. The market doesn’t owe you a thing. Never has, never will. If you think that by showing up, opening […]
20 Lessons in 20 Years — A Career in Common Sense
By Dan Beaulieu, for the 1000th edition of “It’s Only Common Sense” The Long Game of Weekly Truth-Telling One thousand columns. 20 years. The first edition of It’s Only Common Sense was published on September 5, 2005- Twenty years ago the first 10 columns were monthly. But then on July 31st, 2006, the column went […]
Why Failure is an Opportunity for Growth
It’s only common sense that failure, as painful as it may be, is one of the best teachers in life. Whether you’re running a business, managing a team, or navigating your personal journey, failure offers an unparalleled opportunity to learn, grow, and emerge stronger. If you’re not failing now and then, you’re likely not trying […]
Stop Chasing New Customers and Start Keeping the Ones You’ve Got
Come on, I get it! Customer retention is not glamorous. It doesn’t have a flashy ad campaign. It’s not going viral on social media. And nobody’s handing out “Best in Retention” awards at trade shows. But if you’re running a real business — not a popularity contest — then customer retention is where your real […]