3 Lessons From Monopoly

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While my kids are playing Call of Duty or Minecraft, I chill old school and play Monopoly on the iPad. I play at the Hard level against three computer AI opponents and I win over 90% of the time, which I like. I actually think I’ve learned some stuff, too.

1) Focus & Mind Your Business

I usually win just by controlling one or two property groups; the Orange, Purple or Light Blue. The game AI makes the computer buy up everything in sight, which I use to my advantage in trades. If I have extra properties, I usually mortgage them right away. I just want one or two color groups where I can immediately build three houses.

2) The Dice Don’t Matter

There’s a lot of luck in Monopoly and it makes almost no difference to me at all. The dice are what they are. I don’t count on the dice so I can buy a property; just as often as not, I’ll do trades to acquire the properties I’m focused on buying. You can get what you want , if you’re focused on really getting it.

3) Adapt To The Rules

One thing I do to keep it interesting is to mix up the Houses Rules. Sometimes, make it so there’s a ton of cash in the game — extra money for landing on Go plus money for landing on Free Parking. Sometimes, I make it so there’s almost no cash — starting with a lower bank and no money for passing Go. I still win consistently because I adapt how I play the game to fit the circumstances.

Attribution Some rights reserved by Mike_fleming

Interview: Karol Gajda & A Minimalist Lifestyle

I have a slew of interviews that I haven’t posted yet. Here’s one I did with Karol Gajda from the website Ridiculously Extraordinary. Karol talks about his journey from owning a BMW to living out of a backpack…and living his life. Karol hasn’t rejected ‘business’; he’s embraced it.Very interesting guy and lots of stuff in here will challenge you, no matter what you believe.

 

Radio Stranahan: Adding Income With Teaching

Would you like to add a great extra stream of income to your creative business? Those who can do — teach!

Listen to internet radio with Radio Stranahan on Blog Talk Radio

American Meh.

I had to run up to Radio Shack to get myself a doodad and I had about forty minutes before the bus came, so I popped in the Einstein Brothers bagel shop across the street to grab an iced coffee and sandwich.

It wasn’t bad exactly. But it wasn’t great.

And not great is bad.

The place was deserted at 11:30am. I was the only customer for the next ten minutes. Nothing distracting to the two employees except side work.

My bagel was slightly burnt. Not enough to return it, just around the edges so it wasn’t edible in bits.

There was no milk for the coffee; I had to ask them to bring it out.

There no Wifi, and it strikes me that Wifi at a breakfast / lunch chain is a total no brainier. But no mind, I turned on my Sprint Mobile Hotspot to get access.

Next to my booth, there were little bits of paint peeling off the walls. Not enough to repaint the entire wall but just enough so you wonder why they didn’t touch it up. And a cup had been left on the table next to me and nobody had bothered to throw it away or clean the customer area.

This is business death by a thousand cuts. No big deal. They could fix everything by just acting for one little bit like they card.

Which brings me to typos.

This is why I announced my move to stamp out typos (so far, 2 found.) it’s really just part of an effort on my part to make sure you know I care about you being here. It’s as simple as that.

My New Business / Digital Marketing Blog

I have a new blog. As I say over there…

Welcome to the new economy! It doesn’t have to be scary. It’s really pretty awesome once you understand how much better it can make your life.

We’re in a huge period of transition today due to the digital revolution. I’ve watched technology grow from my TRS-80 to the Amiga to Mac & PCs to the iPad & Droid. I’ve been writing about the business and social impacts of that tech growth for about twenty years.

You can learn to profit from all these amazing changes.

If you have your own business of you’ve even thought about starting one, go visit LeeSttanahan/biz/  often!

Site Update: Looking For Comments

I removed a few ads and added a bunch of links to my sidebar. Any notes? Love to hear feedback or suggestions to improve the site — thanks!

#CustomerLove Interview : LaVonne Ellis

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Image by LaserGuided

I love the #CustomerLove challenge and so I did a short interview with LaVonne Ellis about it. Listen to our short conversation about how the challenge started, how you can get involved and even some good suggestions on learning and making money.

Downloadable MP3

You can learn more about LaVonne at her site MakeCustomersLoveYou.com and CompleteFlake.com.

The original post by Naomi Dunford that LaVonne mentions is here.

I’m doing my own Customer Love giveaway — free, no strings consulting — read about it here.

Customer Love

LOVE

Do you run your own business or creative enterprise? My friend and client LaVonne Ellis is doing something cool — she’s laid down the Customer Love challenge and a site called MakeCustomerLoveYou.com, with details and a free e-book when you sign up. (The e-book is really pretty, too!)

There’s a #CustomerLove hashtag over on Twitter and daily challenges to help you creative a great, value based relationship with your customers. Go read all about it and take part.

And IF you take part, let me show YOU some love — a 1/2 hour of free consulting about your business. My normal rate for consulting is $125 for a half hour, so this is a real doozy of a giveaway. We can talk about any business or creative challenges you have, brainstorm or discuss marketing, tech issues, copywriting, networking — whatever you want!

There’s nothing to buy, no contest to win. If you want the consulting session, you’ve got it. Just ask.
And if you’ve never worked with a consultant before, no problem — it’s fun and I make it easy!

Here’s what one of my clients says…

I had no idea what to expect during my first coaching session with Lee. What I didn’t expect was that he’d be able to immediately cut through the all the irrelevant issues that were distracting me. Before we’d even spoken, he already knew what was most important to me and he focused on that. Because of that first session, I am now working daily toward reaching the goal that is closest to my heart. It’s a great feeling to finally be moving forward towards the life I’ve dreamed of … one day at a time.
- Jamie Lee Wallace, writer and marketing coach

No strings, nothing to buy — just be part of the #CustomerLove challenge and then email me at Lee@Stranahan.com, say FREE CONSULTING in the subject and we’ll set it up.