Too many businesses focus only on the “product” or the “business.”

Successful, sustainable, scalable, and profitable businesses FOCUS on both.

They measure and FOCUS on Results.

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The Four Cornerstones of Business Success

The first test of any business isn’t the product — it’s the problem. Viability is about one core question:

Is there real demand for what you offer?

Without viability, even the most brilliant product or service will fail to gain traction.

NIH Data-sharing Requirements Put Funding and IP at Risk

by Lea Strickland | May 12, 2025 | Commercialization, Government Contracting, Government Funding Compliance, Viability | 0 Comments

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is updating data-sharing rules (public access) to its funded research. Researchers must quickly share everything from datasets to protocols in public repositories. This bold step, tied to the NIH's $47 billion budget, aims to...

Trump’s Tariffs: Strategies to Thrive in New Landscape

by Lea Strickland | May 6, 2025 | Business Growth, Capability, Change Management, Competitiveness, Economy and Economics, Entrepreneur, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Small Business, Small Business, Viability | 0 Comments

Trump's tariffs and economic strategy have refashioned the global trade landscape. These tariffs have sent ripples (and, for some, tsunami-like waves) through markets, creating challenges and opportunities. For U.S. businesses, small and large, these tariffs level the...

Do Business Like a Coyote: Why Opportunistic Predators Thrive Anywhere

by Lea Strickland | May 19, 2020 | Business Management, Competitiveness, Strategy, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

The Nature of Coyotes If asked, you would probably express a negative view of coyotes. However, coyotes have many admirable characteristics. Most notably, the coyote can adapt to thrive in most environments and habitats. We can learn a lot from the coyote and apply...

Where is Your Business Located? Realist Road

by Lea Strickland | September 14, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Entrepreneur, Execution, Leadership, Operations, Opportunity, Resources, Results, Viability | 0 Comments

Normally when I am writing about the location of your business, I am focused on the physical or virtual locations of the business. Today I want to focus on the mental or psychological location of your perspective on your business. In working with clients, the success...

Is your Business Performance FINE?

by Lea Strickland | September 1, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Business Plans, Capability, Customer, Customer Relationships, Entrepreneur, Operations, Resources, Viability | 0 Comments

Does your day start something like this? “How are you today?” “Fine.” This is a typical exchange that occurs for most of us daily. A variation is going to a networking event or business function and “How’s business?” “Fine.” But is your business really FINE?...

It IS About the Customer! Know and Serve Them.

by Lea Strickland | August 23, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Customer, Customer Relationships, Opportunity, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

Whether our organization is for-profit, not-for-profit, or a government agency, what we do is about the customer. Sometimes we forget that. We get so caught up in "the business" that we lose sight of "the customer." What’s worse is that sometimes we aren't really sure...

Is the Glass Half Full? Half Empty? Or is it the Wrong Glass?

by Lea Strickland | June 14, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Management, Execution, Leadership, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Operations, Resources, Results, Viability | 0 Comments

One of my friends was telling me about a discussion she had with her eighteen-year-old son. They were talking literally about a glass of Dr. Pepper. “Is the glass half full or half empty?” she asked her son. He said he thought she just used the wrong glass. If she had...

Customer Focused?

by Lea Strickland | May 31, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Management, C.O.R.E. Business System, Capability, Commercialization, Competitiveness, Customer, Customer Relationships, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Viability | 0 Comments

Is Your Business Customer Focused or Trying to Be All Things to All People? I love the single-cup beverage systems. When I want something to drink, I don’t have to boil an entire pot of water, coffee or tea. I can choose my drink of preference, pop in the single cup,...

Business Concept – Validating Your Idea

by Lea Strickland | May 8, 2016 | 12-Steps to Start, C.O.R.E. Business System, Concept, Customer, Focus Points, Opportunity, Viability | 0 Comments

Crazy Ideas and Business Concept Many highly successful businesses have been started on ideas other people thought were crazy. Many unsuccessful businesses were started as "sure things." How do you know before you start if your idea is worthwhile? How do you...

10 Elements of Successful Businesses

by Lea Strickland | May 3, 2016 | 12-Steps to Start, Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Business Ownership, C.O.R.E. Business System, Capability, Commercialization, Competitiveness, Concept, Entity, Entrepreneur, Execution, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Small Business, Small Business, Start-up, Viability | 0 Comments

While every business has elements that are unique to it. Every successful business shares common characteristics with other successful businesses. Concept The first element of a successful business is a clear concept of what the business is and does. This concept is...

Once the business proves that demand exists, the next hurdle is delivery. Capability is the backbone of business success — the systems, processes, and infrastructure that allow you to serve customers reliably, efficiently, and profitably.

Strategic Customer Acquisition: Organic vs. Cultivated Growth

by Lea Strickland | May 13, 2025 | Business Growth, Capability, Credibility, Customer, Opportunity, Small Business, Start-up, Visibility | 0 Comments

Effective customer acquisition is the lifeblood of a new business, especially in its early stages. When customers organically discover and buy your products or services, it proves your business is viable. Early wins can mislead you. The real challenge isn’t attracting...

Trump’s Tariffs: Strategies to Thrive in New Landscape

Seven Mistakes Businesses Make in Their First Year

by Lea Strickland | April 16, 2025 | Business Articles, Capability, Operations, Small Business, Start-up | 0 Comments

The first year of business is exhilarating and overwhelming at the same time. You're excited about the potential and eager to prove your idea's worth. You may also be simultaneously anxious to be your boss and scared of leading the organization; your money is on the...

Why Viewing Employees as Cogs Undermines Leadership

by Lea Strickland | April 15, 2025 | Business Articles, Capability, Execution, Leadership, Operations | 0 Comments

In today's fast-paced business world, effective leadership is a key factor that separates thriving organizations from those that struggle. However, when leaders become overly focused on their own perceived uniqueness, they risk overlooking their employees' inherent...

Want a Thriving Business? Focus on Building Your Business Capability

by Lea Strickland | May 18, 2020 | Business Articles, Business Management, Business Ownership, Capability | 0 Comments

Don’t Turn on Sales without Operational Capability Several years ago, a marketing firm contacted me to work with one of their clients. The client was complaining that the successful marketing campaign was killing his business. They were right. The marketing firm was...

Is your Business Performance FINE?

Sales Constraints – What’s holding us back?

by Lea Strickland | June 6, 2016 | Capability, Customer, Resources, Results, Sales and Service Excellence | 0 Comments

Are you operating at peak performance? Do you spend more dollars for less return? When you invest to expand capacity, does it translate into more results (revenues and profits)? If not, you’re investing in the wrong option. Here are 10 sales constraints: lack of clear...

Customer Focused?

10 Elements of Successful Businesses

Vision, Strategy, Structure, and Results

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, C.O.R.E. Business System, Capability, Commercialization, Competitiveness, Credibility, Entrepreneur, Execution, Leadership, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Non-Profit, Resources, Results, Small Business, Small Business, Start-up, Strategy | 0 Comments

The successful organization - one that is both productive currently and viable long term - has integrated the vision, strategy, and structure of the organization to enable financial success. The ability of an organization to achieve every iota of success it is capable...

Before customers buy, they look for proof — proof that you can deliver, proof that others trust you, and proof that you’ve solved similar problems for others.

Credibility shortens sales cycles, reduces objections, and builds loyalty.

Strategic Customer Acquisition: Organic vs. Cultivated Growth

by Lea Strickland | May 13, 2025 | Business Growth, Capability, Credibility, Customer, Opportunity, Small Business, Start-up, Visibility | 0 Comments

The Five Mental States of Unethical Behavior

by Lea Strickland | April 16, 2025 | Credibility | 0 Comments

heavy lifting to maintain ethics and fight unethical behavior

Imperfect Pitches You Can’t Make Them … or Stop Them

by Lea Strickland | August 28, 2016 | Concept, Credibility, Crowdfunding, Funding Your Business, Visibility | 0 Comments

Tough Lessons: You Can’t Make Them … or Stop Them Parents know it and live it. Consultants and other advisors have to learn it. You can’t force anyone to make a wise choice or the best decisions. You can't stop companies from making imperfect pitches to potential...

Vision, Strategy, Structure, and Results

Too Big, Too Soon – Too Far, Too Fast

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Change Management, Credibility, Entrepreneur, Execution, Leadership, Non-Profit, Small Business, Start-up, Strategy | 0 Comments

Enthusiasm. Confidence. Passion. Belief. All of these are important to the success of any new venture. They can also be the biggest pitfalls for the new venture. The momentum and the drive to do everything at once can lead an entrepreneurial team to expand before the...

Product, Resources, and Customers – The Three-fold Objective

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, C.O.R.E. Business System, Commercialization, Competitiveness, Concept, Credibility, Entrepreneur, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Non-Profit, Resources, Small Business, Start-up, Strategy | 0 Comments

Every organization begins with the same three-fold objective: develop the “product”, obtain sufficient resources, and capture the market/customer. The manifestations of this three-fold mission vary in magnitude, scope, and timing. The underlying processes and...

The Tyranny of Customer Choice

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, C.O.R.E. Business System, Commercialization, Competitiveness, Credibility, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Small Business, Start-up, Strategy | 0 Comments

A truism for any organization is that its customers have choices. They can chose from a range of products, services, and alternatives to satisfy their needs, from doing nothing to “do it yourself,” to doing it the most expensive way possible to finding a cheap...

The Façade

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Capability, Competitiveness, Credibility, Leadership, Non-Profit, Small Business, Start-up | 0 Comments

A façade can be an appearance—the surface image of care, interest, integrity—either projected by a person, group, or organization or attributed to them by others through observation or perception. Whether intentional or not, we all have a façade, an outer image that...

Commercialization : Viability, Visibility, Capability, and Credibility

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, C.O.R.E. Business System, Capability, Commercialization, Credibility, Entrepreneur, Government Funding Compliance, Start-up, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

To begin a discussion of commercialization, we must begin with a few definitions. First, for convenience, the term “product” will be all inclusive of the following: technology, software, protein, textile, device, system, component, etc. Second, “commercialization” is...

Business Plans Are Not Academic Exercises

by Lea Strickland | July 30, 2014 | Budgets and Financial Tools, Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Business Plans, Capability, Credibility, Entity, Small Business, Start-up, Viability | 0 Comments

Under the current economic conditions, saying that funding is tight for early stage companies is the epitome of understatement. Yes funding is tight, but it is available for sound ideas with well-thought out businesses and experienced business people developing them....

Even the most capable and credible business can’t grow if the right people never hear about it. Visibility ensures your message reaches decision-makers in the market you serve.
But visibility isn’t about broadcasting to everyone — it’s about targeted, consistent, and strategic positioning.

Strategic Customer Acquisition: Organic vs. Cultivated Growth

by Lea Strickland | May 13, 2025 | Business Growth, Capability, Credibility, Customer, Opportunity, Small Business, Start-up, Visibility | 0 Comments

Do Business Like a Coyote: Why Opportunistic Predators Thrive Anywhere

by Lea Strickland | May 19, 2020 | Business Management, Competitiveness, Strategy, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

Organic or Cultivated Clients? Which Do You Want?

by Lea Strickland | September 23, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Competitiveness, Customer Relationships, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Resources, Results, Visibility | 0 Comments

These days the term “organic” seems ubiquitous. Organic has come to mean more than the traditional dictionary definition. In this instance, I want to talk about organic growth as it relates to a natural process that is without direct intervention or influence....

Marketing, Branding, PR and the NC 100

by Lea Strickland | August 30, 2016 | Focus on Business Radio Show, Visibility | 0 Comments

LISTEN NOW! Marketing, branding, and PR play pivotal roles in business growth. They increase visibility and convey your message - what it is you DO! Guests: Chuck Norman and Deneen Bloom Chuck Norman, Owner/Principal of S&A Communications and Publisher of The...

Imperfect Pitches You Can’t Make Them … or Stop Them

by Lea Strickland | August 28, 2016 | Concept, Credibility, Crowdfunding, Funding Your Business, Visibility | 0 Comments

It IS About the Customer! Know and Serve Them.

by Lea Strickland | August 23, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Customer, Customer Relationships, Opportunity, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

How to Grow Your Business, One Relationship at a Time – Network!

by Lea Strickland | June 6, 2016 | Customer, MWorld, Operations, Resources, Visibility | 0 Comments

Grow Your Business — Build Relationships Previously published in MWorld, The Journal of the American Management Association Volume 8, Number 3 Summer/Fall 2009 In today’s economic uncertainty, having a solid network can help your organization. However, it isn’t easy...

Networking: Relationship Building, Not Hard Pitch Selling

by Lea Strickland | January 22, 2016 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Small Business, Strategy, Visibility | 0 Comments

I have a developing list of bad behaviors in networking. It seems after every event I can add either an entirely new “don’t” or an innovative variant of the core list. Chumming – Method of “baiting” the water to entice sharks to take the bait and encourage feeding...

“Who You Know” and Open Market Competition

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Competitiveness, Customer, Opportunity, Small Business, Start-up, Visibility | 0 Comments

The world is not objective. It is composed of people, and people are human (at least most of us are). People are at our most basic emotional and relationship-based. We do deploy our logical minds to override and control much of our instinctual behavior and that also...

When No One Answers

by Lea Strickland | July 31, 2014 | Business Articles, Business Growth, Business Management, Competitiveness, Customer Relationships, Marketing, Sales and Business Development, Small Business, Start-up, Viability, Visibility | 0 Comments

Everyone has experienced it. Someone calls you prospecting for business. You get a message on your voicemail, you get a card or letter in the mail, and sometimes it is something you are interested in getting more information about. So you return the card, send an...

Schedule a Complimentary 30-Minute Consultation

Ready to learn more about how we can work together! Let’s schedule a phone call or Zoom session.

Get Focused!

Schedule a Complimentary 30-Minute Consultation

Custom Solutions.Decades of Experience.Holistic Business Perspective.

The Four Cornerstones of Business Success

Schedule a Complimentary 30-Minute Consultation

Custom Solutions.
Decades of Experience.
Holistic Business Perspective.