Guest Blog

By Mark Overbye Contemplating the death of a close friend recently has me wondering whether I’m investing my time properly. Am I exercising my talents in ways that add value, increase joy and elevate my life beyond the generic? This metric could be a good measure of our business success as well. We all experience selfish businesses more interested in their ...

By Mark Overbye There are only three answers; yes, no, or not right now. I always prefer a quick no over a long maybe. If you believe the universe is conspiring to help you and that all things happen for your benefit, it’s good to dispense with the distractions that keep you from being on the right path.   We ...

By S. Chris Edmonds If you’re trying to hire people right now, you’re up a creek. The US Federal Reserve Bank in September estimated that the average time required to fill an open job rose from 20 days to 50 days over the previous four months. And a new global McKinsey study finds that 40% of respondents are somewhat likely to quit in ...

By Mark Overbye I recently called a service business and was greeted by a gruff “Hello.” This was followed by, “Hang on,” when they paged the right person. Their harsh and uninviting tone was hardly the recipe for building a relationship. They didn’t know me; I was simply a first-time caller inquiring about their services. This presents the proverbial fork in the ...

By Mark Babbitt At one point not too long ago, it seemed an economic recovery was inevitable. But, COVID variants combined with politics-as-usual—along with what many people believe to be a labor shortage —stopped many businesses and industries from regaining momentum.  While we can’t solve the COVID crisis as quickly as we’d like, we can beat the labor shortage. At ...

By Myril Shaw The Senate recently narrowly approved President Biden's pick, Rohit Chopra, to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. News outlets say the confirmation gives the bureau a director who is likely to embrace an aggressive "watchdog" role as a consumer advocate, and one who favors stiff penalties for bad actors such as predatory lenders. Like it or not, ...

By Stephanie Vatalaro To build a pipeline of future participants, we must start engaging younger, more multicultural audiences now. That could be said about any number of things, but we know it to be true about fishing and boating. According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau report, for the first time in history, the white population has decreased and our country is ...

By Myril Shaw A new form of identity theft known as synthetic fraud is on the rise. And you won't like what we have to say about it. With traditional identity theft, someone will normally notice something amiss or unusual or inflated on their credit report, credit card statement, or bank statement. With synthetic fraud, there is nothing to notice. ...

By the Water Sports Foundation All over the country this upcoming holiday weekend, boaters will be cruising to popular gathering spots for watersports, to raft up, drop anchor and swim, enjoy barbecues and cap off festivities with spectacular fireworks celebrations.  “After a year of Covid restrictions, boaters are out on the water in force, soaking up plenty of sun and ...

By Steven Graham Ensuring a loan package is funded quickly is important to your dealership's business. It takes all three parties – you, your customer, and your F&I team – working in step to make it happen smoothly. Yet, every loan is unique in some way, and requires specific instructions based on the customer, lender, and dealer. So, how do ...