Wicked cold this AM in Vermont. Deep snow in the yard out by the barn assuming I could see the barn, but it's pitch-black outside at 6:00 AM.
Stratton Moutain's up the road a piece and totally open after two months of snowmaking and a ton of natural snow so far this season.
Bottom line on every January:
No surprise anywhere since "It's the winta' in New England", and it's supposed to be wicked cold and snow in January. Just like holding sales meetings in January!
Tags: Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, 2025SalesPlanning
Wicked cold this AM here at the NH beach just trying to figure out whether it's today or tomorrow to make the weekly 3-hour trek to the much colder Vermont. Right now, a heavy lean toward tomorrow so that I can clean up in the office, get a few work things finished, complete this semester's grading and finish the last very rough chapter of a book idea I'm working on. Just by typing out those words, I convinced myself that the journey over the river and through the woods will happen at sunrise tomorrow. 3' of snow on the ground at the VT house in the valley, with tons more on the hill.
Tags: Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, A wonderfully warm and safe Christmas
Some rules don't change in the rhythm of business or being a professor at Tufts!
Tags: how to write a business plan, how to write a marketing plan, how to write a sales plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, 2025SalesPlanning
As a skier since I was 5 and a snowboarder-only since I was 50-the beginning of the snow season continues to bring immediate positive emotions and a few practicalities to the forefront especially at this time of year. I've been involved in the ski & snowboard industry as a board member, as an entrepreneur and as a manager off and on for decades. Very exciting and rewarding times, and for those of you who may think that working in the industry would be a wonderful opportunity to be out on the hill, the reality is just the opposite since from Thanksgiving through mid-February, you're working every day, all the time.
Tags: Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, 2025SalesPlanning
No matter who you or I voted for, it's good to have this election behind us, so we can get back to work.
-too much division
-too much distraction
-too much caution
Time to get back to work and focus on moving ahead!
Tags: Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, 2025SalesPlanning
Just completed Week 9 of the 13-week semester this past Wednesday
Tags: Sales Best Practices, Sales Management Best Practices, how to write a business plan, HubSpot Tips, business planning meetings, how to write a sales plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, 2025SalesPlanning
At the end of every semester, I end with "The 3 Rules of Jack" which focus on life lessons. Rule #2 is to consistently practice life-long learning in everything that one does. Maybe that's an advanced degree (60% of my students do this post graduation). Maybe it's an individual work-related course, or perhaps it's pursuing a personal love of painting or sailing, learning another language, or in my wife's case, welding. After watching two generations of students and many, many generations of friends, those individuals that are the most stimulating, those that have the most fun, and those that live the longest are those who stretch themselves to continuously learn.
Tags: HubSpot Tips, Inboound, writing business plans, writing your marketing plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning, 2025MarketingPlanning, DavidMeermanScott, howtowriteamarketingplan, inboundmarketing
I have the excitement of living on the NH beach, working in Boston, teaching at Tufts and spending time in Vermont. If it weren't for the NH-Boston commute, the daily rhythm would be perfect, but it is what it is, and even the length of the commute has a seasonal rhythm of its own with the fall being the worst. At least the drive is a good time for podcasts.
Tags: Sales Best Practices, Sales Management Best Practices, Making Tough Choices, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning
I don't know about you and your college experience, but my undergraduate years at BC were largely focused on balancing classes, taking copious notes, prepping for exams, working part time jobs and commuting back and forth-rain or snow-on my $250 motor scooter. I was younger than most, wicked naive about what to expect and how to act, and very rarely got the opportunity to critically think. When I had the opportunity 22 years ago to teach at MIT, which I still do every fall, and I'm now in my 20th year at Tufts teaching Marketing and Sales, I structured everything around activating critical thinking among my students by working in teams around complex projects. In fact, that's exactly what we've been doing in our consulting practice so transferring that discipline of project-based critical thinking to the classroom has been very direct.
Tags: Sales Management Best Practices, how to write a business plan, business planning meetings, Teaching at Tufts University, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning
Surprise! Surprise!
The leaves are falling in Vermont!
When I was in in Vermont last weekend cranking up the leaf blower, I realized that the natural rhythm of the Fall was well underway. 30% early color in my woodlot and lots of buses full of leaf-peepers. Stratton's ad this morning featuring this picture marketing the fall festival next weekend and early discounts on ski passes made it official for me.
In the very unique state of Vermont, 25% of the annual tourism dollars happen in the next two or three weeks with busses from Ohio rolling in daily filled with seniors waiting to buy tiny, overpriced jars of maple syrup. Right now, the rhythm of the seasons in Vermont is all about marketing as it should be!
Tags: sales and marketing best practices, how to write a business plan, improving sales productivity, how to write a marketing plan, how to write a sales plan, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, 2025 Business Planning
