A Tested Entrepreneurial Spirit

We can maintain the most accurate schedules, but ultimately, we never know what unforeseen problems life will throw our way on any particular day. Though being a CEO puts me in a position to have other levels of management extinguish most fires, the major disasters require personal intervention.

I actually enjoy a good challenge. Sure, money is a great motivator when it comes to resolution, but there is something about the fire in the belly, the drive propelled by business obstacles that draws me to these events. So much of business is second nature to me now, a challenge is actually fun. When I look back on my career, I recall opportunities…some, which I created, and others I recognized and seized. Of course there were always challenges along the way. Unfortunately, a few years back there was a set of related catastrophes so overwhelming that it shook me to the core. Yes, they concerned me, puzzled me, gave me countless sleepless nights…but they never broke me. I was determined they would not shatter the dreams I was building into a rewarding reality. By rewarding, I mean much more than profitable. I have been able to do what I love, with people who I appreciate, respect and share my vision. Money made and continues to make many things possible. But in the words of William Henry Channing I wanted “….to be worthy, not respectable; and wealthy, not rich; prosperous not superior…, three goals in life that will never be attained without principle or compassion.

However, I quickly realized that this particular chain of events would change my life forever.

Now let me say, I rarely find myself in the middle of anything I haven’t anticipated. I make it a point to know what may be coming my way. This set of horrendous circumstances, however, really did arrive out of the blue. As I stated earlier in this piece, I love a good fiasco. Usually, I enjoy the amalgamation of creative thinking, logic and collaboration that results in a resolution that is satisfactory to all concerned. This disaster was very different. My opponent was the ADA of a bordering state. If you haven’t figured it out by now (especially if you noticed the countless election ads recently shoved down our throats via mail, telephone, TV and internet), having or seeking a formidable title does not guarantee integrity. In my opinion, the individuals whom I was forced to deal with conducted themselves under the pretext of practicing justified prosecutorial law to conceal the slander they fabricated to advance their own careers. Every attempt to seek a corroborated truth on my part resulted in another door being slammed in my face. Days turned into weeks; weeks into months and months into years. Occasionally there were glimpses of light, but hope was usually short-lived.

Knowing the truth was on my side and constantly concerned about individuals and families depending on me, I could never and would never subscribe to the philosophy: “if you can’t save everyone at least save yourself.” So I continued to fight. Ultimately, we reached a conclusion…not anything that even resembled an honest settlement, just an ending to a 3-year nightmare. During the entire debacle, few of my business associates, had an inkling of what I was experiencing. Neither did most of my family and friends. While, I was trapped in a labyrinth of lies, it was business as usual for everyone else… nothing to trouble anyone….except me. Many people helped my company and me in many ways. However, no one knew the depth of issues.

Naturally, there is much more to this story. It is my goal to recount it in a full, accurate and substantiated book, which I will to publish in 2015. My goal in sharing what I have discussed today is simply to advise you that calling yourself an entrepreneur requires more than innovative thinking and an adventurous spirit. Being an entrepreneur immediately transforms you to a guardian of sorts. You gave birth to an idea, which led to a business. Now you must be the sovereign protector of all who depend on you…from the loyal administrative assistant who has served you for years, to the brilliant young designer you hired last month. There may be times you’ll have to walk through hell to do it, but you must. Your company deserves it, your employers and shareholders deserve it and your good name deserves it.

If you take away any advice from this post let it be these admonitions:

• Even though you take every precaution to operate within the parameters of the law, those charged with administering the law are not necessarily pillars of integrity
• Dishonesty is an equal opportunity destroyer, particularly when fueled by ambition
• Truth, transparency and a clear conscience may not help you when people are serving their own ego and aspirations
• Just remember…if your grit is greater…if your fight is fiercer …if your principle prevails…you will eventually win.

When I started my first company 31 years ago (yes – I was 18 years old) I thought being an entrepreneur was about getting financially rich. I started with nothing (actually $102) and turned that into millions of dollars and industry accolades.

The “rich” I feel today is deeper than the money that comes – then goes – and comes back again. Determination, which is realized in obtained results, especially when overcoming great odds, provides a greater feeling of wealth then flying first class or driving a race car. What a higher high? Forgive those that “try” to hurt you. Success is good revenge, but forgiving them (yes you ADA) is the best of all!

Recently I was asked if I could rewrite the past 3 years what would I do differently. My response? I cannot do that and do not know if I would. What I learned has made me a better entrepreneur and man. So not only do I forgive you Mr. ADA, I thank you. You tested my entrepreneurial spirit and helped me realize true wealth, which is internal self-realization. Oh and yes…I will be back in first-class soon and back on the track in my race car. This time it will be fun on many levels.

Edward DuCoin  #20

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Ignorance is no Excuse: Concerns for Business in 2015

This year Congress will likely enact changes that will result in modifications of the tax law as well as other laws directly impacting small businesses. That’s why we recommend small-to-mid-sized businesses remain aware of regulatory issues that can affect them.

Below are a few in the pipeline to keep top-of-mind:

1. Do you remember the Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013? Designed to create a level playing field between physical stores and on-line merchants, it was supposed to authorize states to collect sales tax on items their residents purchased over the Internet. Although the bill never made it through Congress, the tax revenue it promises to generate should assure it would be reintroduced this year
2. President Obama signed the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014 into law on December 19, 2014. The law retroactively expanded roughly 50 tax breaks, also known as “tax extenders,” through December 31, 2014. The short-term extenders were beneficial to small businesses, particularly in areas such as the accelerated expensing of certain asset purchases and bonus depreciation in 2015. This adjustment in the tax law, along with budgetary constraints resulting in IRS layoffs, will likely cause complications in reviewing tax returns and delays in processing refunds.
3. The present trend of passing legislation increasing the minimum wage continues to sweep across jurisdictions throughout the country. It is recommended that businesses remain informed on this subject and comply with minimum wage regulations to avoid costly penalties and sanctions.
4. Obey Ban the Box laws. Ban the Box laws were passed by certain states, counties or cities around the nation to prohibit employers from rejecting a job applicant based solely on a criminal background check. Most applications feature a box that must be checked if the applicant has a criminal history…thus the term…ban the box… The goal of this law is to give an applicant the opportunity to engage in the interview process and demonstrate skills rather than be dismissed as a candidate because of a previous criminal issue. If the law is applicable in your state you must comply.
5. There are a number of developments coming, or currently under consideration, which may impact small business owners who currently offer a retirement plan to their employees, or are thinking about offering one. The U.S. Treasury in 2015 will more broadly introduce its non-mandatory workplace savings program – myRA – which will allow employees to place deferred funds into a program that is similar to a Roth IRA. Additionally, 14 states have proposed legislation that would create workplace savings programs through employers not currently offering a retirement plan for their employees. Other proposed legislation would offer further incentives to small businesses to open retirement plans, provide for lifetime income information on plan statements, and require further disclosures around target-date funds included as plan investment options.
6. In conjunction with the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Department of Labor is expected to initiate new strategies to modify and simplify current overtime protocols. The projected guidelines will likely increase the number of workers who qualify for overtime pay. This will be accomplished by:

• Raising minimum salary levels required for exempt status employees
• Expanding on the definition of responsibilities of so called administrative employees exempt from overtime pay
• As passage of this initiative is said to be imminent employers are advised to review how they determine whom they will classify as exempt employees according to job description, and salary levels. Employers should expect the probability of tracking and paying overtime rates where applicable.

Staying up-to-date with the ever-changing regulatory environment is imperative. Your Lawyer, Insurance Agent, CPA and even your Board of Directors are advisors. You are ultimately responsibly for “getting it right.” Think of it this way…the parties above (your advisors) most likely have malpractice insurance. Is there such a thing as business owners insurance?

Edward DuCoin ed@orpical.com 856.304.2800

Enjoy 3 minutes………...

Addressing the Cyber Apocalypse

2014 proved a banner year for cyber criminals. Hundreds of millions of individuals worldwide were victimized by hackers. Cyber criminals work very hard at being equal opportunity offenders, as evidenced by their victims, which included: government agencies across every continent, major banks, hospital systems, national retail chains, entertainment giant SONY and on January 12th, hackers supporting militants groups took over Twitter and YouTube accounts belonging to a major U.S. military command.

There is no denying that the convenience technology provides has enabled us to do more than we ever dreamed possible. At the same time, consider what we have been made to risk in the process. How bad has it gotten? Following the SONY security breach debacle, a seasoned and celebrated reporter asked President Obama if he perceived the hacking actions of North Korea (the alleged perpetrators) as an act of war. While he responded in the negative, he promised retaliation.

So does this mean we should plan for a cyber apocalypse? Perhaps it’s not my nature to be intimidated, so I have no intention of looking forward to conducting digital business with anything other than confidence….and neither should you. That’s why I suggest we address cyber threats from a genuinely American perspective...vigilance, preparedness and the adamant refusal to be victimized. Our nation’s citizens have the intellect resources and resolve to respond to cyber criminals head-on. It takes a unified effort to win this battle and everyone has a stake in the game. It’s time to turn your concern into commitment and your anxiety into action. Working collectively, large corporations, small businesses, and private citizens can make ourselves impervious to this cyber-crime.

The idea of going paperless has encouraged all of us to engage in many of our day-to-day tasks via digital applications. Easy? Yes. Fast? Real time processing, for sure. Safe? That’s up to you. As we continue to expand the fields of our existence spent within the digital realm, we will become more vulnerable to those diligent and devious malware creators who are constantly devising new and cunning ways to deceive us.

I can offer a few suggestions, but only you can implement them to keep your personal and/or professional web activity secure.

• Install reliable security software and run all updates
• When choosing passwords avoid using names, addresses, birthdates and/or other information that may be easily accessed by a savvy internet searcher
• Change passwords regularly

Technology will continue to perform many of our tasks and with the coming of the Internet of Things (IoT), the majority of them. But when it comes to guarding ourselves and all that is important to us, the human factor must play a crucial role. It’s up to us to investigate and use the safeguarding software that is best for our personal and professional privacy and protection. While we are busy developing smart watches, smart appliances, smart phones and smart clothing (oh yes,,,it’s the next big thing), equally brilliant minds are developing devices to outsmart the smart. Accessibility is great. Having everything at our fingertips is wonderful, but we can be neither lazy nor negligent when it comes to paying for convenience with caution.

Edward DuCoin

123 words – "Death Laugh"

I hope I am on my deathbed. Well first point, I would not have been killed in a plane crash – which would suck. The last 120 feet, the impact zone from nose to tail, well that would be shocking – but the first 33,000 feet would really suck.

So assuming I have a deathbed, I hope I laugh at myself for all the things “in life” I worried about but that were really bullshit. Like what some people thought of me or my sometimes overreaction to nonsense.

Why do I hope this? Because I will die laughing and that seems like a pretty good way to go. No regrets, huge mistakes with lots of lessons learned, taught some and loved by those who matter.

***

What is “123 words?

Much of my writing is 1,000+ words of CONTENT RICH – oh so 2014 Marketing. Some of it good, some so boring it is painful to write let alone read. I am so tired of seeing articles written that focus on “the 5 reasons why you should do this” OR “the 8 ways you can do that.” It has it place, but how about something whipped out in minutes – no research, off the top of your head and where you cannot use the RETURN key - - no backspace – no changes – what you think hits the paper; oh I mean screen. No changes – because all thoughts should be captured. Why 123? The first one I wrote was 123 words. Seems to work for me.

WOW

The first time I wrote the initial "123" the word count was 123. Ok – fine. BUT – and I am not kidding – for fun I did a word count on the description above. Remember – no return key – no changes. Guess what - - 123 words.

Edward DuCoin

856 304 2800

ed@orpical.com

Sex in the Workplace

For years, sex and sensuality in advertising were implied and because they were exceptionally effective they continue to be powerful advertising tools. Relaxed censuring has made sexual advertising far more prevalent and overt. The problem that comes into play is determining the line between acceptable and excessive.

Obviously there are ads for items like lingerie, jeans, perfumes and body creams that might genuinely require graphics to be somewhat sexual in order to be effective. Even that warm and fuzzy feeling we’d get every time we saw the Anheuser Busch Clydesdales romping through the snow wishing us season’s greetings have proven less enticing than a beach party, during which cold beer is quenching the thirst of a great looking bunch of guys and girls in bathing suits.

Here’s another interesting fact…today not only does sex sell, but we actually sell sex. Everything from condoms to erectile dysfunction medications has a platform. Having said that, the mention of possible side effects like: going blind, hearing loss, nausea, dizziness and a permanent erection, might cause a Viagra ad to frighten more would be fornicators than it satisfies. And who casts the men for the erectile dysfunction commercials? They are creepy looking.

Do I approve of sex in advertising? Yes, within reason. I am committed to producing the most successful campaigns for my clients and if that means content with sexual overtones we will “do it.” In doing so, however, there are two directives I insist be followed: I will never objectify a gender, culture or socio-economic group and I insist on a tasteful presentation of the material.

So the simple answer is yes, sex sells. Explicit or implied, sex in advertising is here to stay. As advertisers we can do our part to keep sexually driven campaigns inoffensive as possible. Ultimately the results will be revealed at the register.

Now that I am done writing this I am heading out for a burger!

Edward DuCoin - 856 304 2800 - Orpical Group

Want Proof?

I wrote a very good article about advertising clients 8 days ago. It had 20 page views on my blog (that I do not post to often).  In 6 minutes - the SEX articles got more hits.