Most of us now actually have a full cup because of the amount of information around us at our hand's reach. Recently I have shifted my profitability business coaching to CPAs, accountants,...
"We often get so preoccupied with age that we miss that mastery in front of our nose. Is she old enough to run that company? Is he young enough to be dating her? Let me introduce you to someone who doesn’t care about old or young, but...
Although the answer is an obvious “yes”, I find all of us are doing a lot of things to resist and always have doubt. For instance, I sometimes ask a business owner to try out a new software. Some of the responses...
“Spying on the divine” “The ocean has a thousand moods and yet, we still trust and sit with it. The sky is not controllable and yet, we still honor it. The plants change without permission and yet, we know to call it growth. The trees...
s your business craving to instantly increase profitability and eliminate debtIs your business ready to enjoy the financial freedom on a level that you never knew before If the answer is yes to those questions, I am here to help you get...
Most people who know me personally would know this fact about me… I am a highly spiritual person. I start my day with a prayer for another blissful day. I begin my meals with an expression of gratitude to God for the abundant food on the...
Many years ago, an international consulting firm I was working for at the time implemented a new 360-degree evaluation system where all employees receive feedback from seniors, team members, as well as subordinates. One of the feedback I...
One of my clients recently told me that they needed to make more profit in order to be able to hire me as their CFO. I told them, "Sounds like you're in the chicken-egg dilemma!" If you think about it, operating a business is not as...
It's never too late to press the "RESTART" button in life! One time, an audit partner asked me—an auditor in a large international firm—why I did not go back to Vietnam and run my mother’s company. He had overheard my conversation with...
Do you know what is one of my biggest fears? The day I stop creating and looking for changes. The act of creating and changing, to me, means pausing, listening, and reading. I panic when I run out of a good book to read. I draw back...
Is there a difference between customers' pain and problems? The short answer is YES, there is a difference. In fact, businesses must understand it and address both customers' pain and problems in order to become wildly successful....
Do you know what are the 3 most expensive mistakes CEOs make? 1. Being their own CFO Since a CEO's role is to drive a business forward, they tend to be highly focused on sales, operations, or both. As a result, there is a high chance that...
With excellence as one of my core values, I naturally strive for the best and never settle for less. I recently won it BIG for one of my clients. For the last 6 months, I was tasked with finding a construction software that can handle a...
Have you read Elon Reeve Musk's book 'Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future'? In his book, Musk says that his employees in the early days were willing to come to work for little to no pay. "Oh, you're bluffing!" you may...
A typical counselor would advise you to pick a career that is in tune with your heart's desires. Your parents, on the contrary, would tell you to pick a major in university that can earn you a big fat paycheck in the future. And perhaps,...
Chip Conley once asked, "Is life a stressful sprint or a meaningful marathon?" If you ask me, it is both! The key to success is knowing when we need to persevere—which can be a stressful sprint—and knowing when to follow our hearts—which...
As an auditor, I have worked with many different businesses and can easily tell how each one is performing just by looking at the numbers. Having developed my businesses and those of the companies I have worked for over the years, I have...
A freelancer I work with recently told me, “Wendy, I see you working around the clock. Take good care of yourself and rest well!”. I told her, “Oh no, I love every bit of what I do!” Mark Twain said “find a job you enjoy doing, and you...
I got fired for the first time in the 18th year of my career! I was not underperforming. I did not have a fall out with my manager or boss. And I certainly did not breach any contract. I was fired because I was overperforming. In 2018, I...
Most people who run their own businesses are typically very good at a lot of different things. They are good at business development, money management, widening their knowledge, gaining new skills, leading others, and more. But do you...
When everything is smooth sailing, most of us develop a false sense of confidence in ourselves. We think that we can independently handle anything that comes our way without requiring others’ help. How do I know? Because I, too, once...
I have conversed with business owners enough times to know that, when we have differing opinions on a shared matter, we can become egotistical. We verbally say that we are open to change and learn, yet when someone suggests something that...
If you ask any one of my 20 employees and partners, they would tell you that I am not your typical boss. I do not mind them coming into work a little late and leaving a little early. I do not mind them working from home or from a coffee...
When potential employers look at my resume, most would instantly reject me without so much as a second thought. Why? It is because I have never been “loyal” to any of the companies I have worked for, at least by traditional standards. In...
Do you know what sets a business owner apart from the plethora of others out there? Their unwavering passion. I once knew the owner of a retail clothing store that performed very well in its initial years. However, over time, the owner...
When you take a step forward, do you feel like you simultaneously take 10 steps backward? I have been in your shoes! After working in 4 different CPA firms and successfully turning a company from a state of loss to handing out quarterly...
As a business owner, you’re used to wearing many hats: developing and delivering your products or services, marketing, sales, HR, operations, finances, etc. It’s safe to say that you’re being pulled in many different directions,...
At its heart, business is about relationships. How and with whom you interact can make or break your organization, and that starts with a small business owner’s most important partner: its Chief Financial Officer, or CFO. A good CFO...
If your business is feeling the pain of COVID-19, you’re not alone. According to a Goldman Sachs study conducted last month, 96% of small business owners say the outbreak had already impacted them. And worse, 51% report that their...
Recently, I had a call with a prospective client who had reached out to our firm. He told me that four years ago, after being laid off, he started a baking company that created themed cookies for special events. When I asked his goal, he...
At its heart, business is about relationships. How and with whom you interact can make or break your organization, and that starts with a small business owner’s most important partner: its Chief Financial Officer, or CFO. A good CFO...
Most business owners have the best of intentions when starting or building their business. They believe that if they align their passion with their purpose, then the profits will follow; they’re a given. That’s where they have it wrong....
Here’s a sobering statistic: About 20% of small businesses will fail within their first year. Worse, nearly 50% of these businesses will fail by the end of their fifth year, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The...