In his book SPIN Selling, Neil Rackham discovered that sellers are fearful of asking problem questions while buyers welcome them. Buyers report that professionals, who ask problem questions seem to understand the business, seem to talk about valuable things and are more interesting.

by Dr. Kerry L. JohnsonJohn needed to process the paperwork on 5 more sales by noon and had another 10 issues to iron out in underwriting. He was falling behind in his client calls and couldn’t even get the standard paperwork done. His wife was getting ticked at him claiming he wasn’t the guy she married. He hadn’t spent more than 10 minutes with his kids in the last week. All this and he couldn’t even claim he was making more money. John was feeling more stressed as the week went on. It didn’t make sense. He should be able to coast a little after all these years.

Wrap text is a useful technique that you will use frequently when working in Excel. You add the shortcut by adding a style in the Style box. Adding the Style box to the Formatting toolbarRight-click one of the toolbars, and select Customize. Select the Commands tab, and then select Format. Drag the Style icon from the Customize dialog box to the Formatting toolbar, and drop it next to the Font Size box (or anywhere else you choose).

By Deborah Walker, CCMCMost job seekers understand that the job market has changed radically over the last few years. Sadly, however, many still hold to job-search assumptions that do not apply to our current market conditions. If you believe any of the following five statements, you could be dragging your job search out longer than necessary. Cut your job search time by knowing the truth about the job market and learning how to combat these assumptions. "My last job search was a snap.

by By Susan M. HeathfieldEveryone knows right from wrong. Right? Wrong. People disagree about the definition of right and wrong all the time. That is why the topic of business ethics is currently front and center in the media and in office break rooms. When daily, the next Enron, Arthur Andersen, or WorldCom story hits the wires, it's difficult to ignore business ethics as an issue.

You know you need to tackle that high-priority project, but you make a few phone calls, sort through yesterday's mail, and before you know it, it's lunchtime. Even the most focused people tend to put off getting to work on overwhelming projects - maybe because of the size of the project, the complexity, difficulty - or all three. Get a clear picture of the entire project and prepare a step-by-step plan for completing it. When you think about doing something on the project, don't focus on the entire project, instead, focus on a quick five-minute task or a small work session.

By, Troy WaughBecoming an insider and selling to owners, board members and top management takes a unique combination of both attitude and aptitude. An attitude that you, as a businessperson, have the expertise and stature to converse with these top officers is crucial. But attitude is not enough. With a proper sense of self-worth you can start the conversation, but it takes real know-how to hold the attention of top officers.Attitude

By, Troy A. Waugh, CPA MBA

Stay flexible. Change will be constant. New opportunities will present themselves. Unexpected challenges will throw themselves at you. Be ready to duck, bob, weave, side step, and hop-scotch. Agility is power. Stay alert to your own environment. Even carefully watching the trends, we can't predict everything that will happen to you and your company. Futurists work at the "30,000 foot" level; corporate leaders operate at the mountain top level. Keep your head in the clouds and your feet on the ground. Practice "Future Thinking." Always look ahead in everything you do.