Category Archives: Relationships

February 27, 2015 · 10:25 pm

YOUR BUSINESS AND YOUR CHILDREN

By Nick Arvis

“Why am I doing this?” That’s the question dominating a President’s Advisory Committee board meeting (PAC). None of the members—all business owners—intend to give or sell their business to their children. Instead, in a reversal of traditional social norms, all of them plan to use their wealth to empower their children on whatever paths the kids happen to choose.The members range in age from early forties to mid-fifties. Each of them has done very well. Their children range in age from the early grades to out-of-the-nest adults.

. Continue reading →

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Tagged as business owner, ceo, Entrepreneur, founder, hiring your children, hiring your kids, nepotism, PAC, president, President's advisory committee, social change, sociology

January 31, 2015 · 1:36 am

SABBATICAL

By Mark T Wayne

“He’s in Tahiti,” says Loop Lonagan. “Dat’s where Jonelis is. Them guys at Heartland Angels oughta know.”

Speaking strictly for myself, I see no excuse for a man like Lonagan and place no weight on his opinions. I may fire him—I have not yet decided. After all, Jonelis ain’t here. He announced a sabbatical and disappeared. That is correct, sir! I am in charge! That is my hat on the hook. Those are my boots resting on the WWII Air Force desk. I will take this opportunity to exercise my power as I see fit. Any fool that criticizes my splendid white suit or magnificent mustache may face instant dismissal! Continue reading →

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Tagged as britian, brittian, brittish isles, flying across the ocean, iceland, lost, missing, Mystery, sabatical, sabattical, sabbatical, time off, trip, vacation, where's waldo

January 9, 2015 · 10:28 pm

UNDERESTIMATING THE COMPETITION

by Robert Jonelis

Ever face a crisis situation? Raw panic? Of course you have. We’ve all been burned by miscalculation, greed, and shoddy research. People have been making the same mistakes for quite a long time and a young woman from the 10th Century can teach us a pointed lesson about the importance of accurately sizing up the competition. Continue reading →

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Tagged as bankrupsy, belly up, best practices, business lessons, busniess mistakes, case study, consequences, crisis, Greed, miscalculation, Panic, Princess Olga, research, shoddy research

December 22, 2014 · 10:16 pm

A LOOP LONAGAN CHRISTMAS

John Jonelis

This is outrageous. I’m concentrating on my computer screen when a huge mitt grabs me by the back of the belt and plucks me from my chair. Next thing I’m dangled high over the desk, arms and legs flailing till I steady my balance and end up nose-to-nose with Big Bill Blair, our urban Paul Bunyan.

“‘Scuse me, Mr. Jonelis,” he says in a slow polite rumble that carries with it a stale smell of corned beef and cigar.

Big Bill slowly chews gum. Looks disinterested. Acts like nothing’s unusual. Continue reading →

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Tagged as blond, cheer, Christmas, Christmas ornaments, Christmas party, Christmas presents, Christmas tree, Christmastime, dancing, fist fight, good times, hard times, Holiday, Holiday season, prayer, santa claus, street people, stretch humvee, swedish massage

December 12, 2014 · 3:08 pm

YOUR WORK IS NOT YOUR LIFE

Why entrepreneurs have to make time to think about who they really want to be

by Howard Tullman

Very few things in our lives are absolute. Everything is measured by degree, from our attention to our patience to the range and intensity of our emotions.

At the same time, some things are absolute: You can’t be all things to all people; you can’t dance every dance; and, throughout your life, you’ve got to make hard choices, sacrifices, and compromises, and then you’ve got to live with them through thick and thin for a very long time. Continue reading →

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Tagged as down time, family time, important, Meaning, meaning of life, perspective, proportion, Purpose, real meaning, sabbatical, time off

September 22, 2014 · 7:53 am

LIES ABOUT PARADISE

as told by Mark T Wayne

I recognize a sharp character flaw among outdoorsmen of all sorts—an uncontrollable urge to exaggerate—particularly after an excursion to a wilderness such as northern Manitoba. Permit me to treat you to a few horror stories of the Great North Woods. I promise to debunk them all. Continue reading →

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Tagged as artificial lures, bear, canada, canadian fishing lodge, catch and release, cree, eagle, exaggeration, fabrication, Fish, fishing, fly in resort, hooks, Knee Lake, lie, log cabins, Manitoba, mark twain, Northern, northern pike, Northstar Resort, Pike, poker, primal, primitive, shore lunch, untruth, walley, walleyed pike, wild, Wilderness

September 8, 2014 · 12:47 am

FISH STORY

as told by Mark T Wayne

Fishermen are liars!

After a superb day of fishing in the Canadian Wilderness, I prepare to utter my first exaggeration when Jonelis comes in with this monstrous THING. Look at it sir! This stretches all limits of credulity!

Naturally I object and make accusations of foul play. Just look at that fish! Continue reading →

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Tagged as big fish, canada, exaggerating a story, exaggeration, Fish, fish eats fish, fish stories, fishermen, Fishermen are liars, fishermen lie, fly in resort, giant pike, Knee Lake, liars, Manitoba, monster pike, Northern, northern pike, Northstar, Northstar Resort, Pike, pike eats pike, Wilderness, winnipeg

August 5, 2014 · 1:08 am

ROUGHING IT

as told by Mark T Wayne

“Don’t you want to feel safe?” asks Rosalind Russell. In response, Clark Gable knits his brows. “I never have. What’s it like?” * Vigorous travel is a grueling sport! One anticipates deprivation and hardship on any trip of significance. One seeks adventure! Exhilaration! One does not select air transportation to wrap oneself in a safe cocoon. No sir! Air travel exists for one and only one purpose. SPEED! Continue reading →

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Tagged as airline, Airport, airport security, canada, cancelled flights, clark gable, delay, fishing, fishing trip, mark twain, o'hare, rosalind russell, safe, security, speed, strip search

July 19, 2014 · 5:18 pm

PERSUADING A GROUP

From the Journal of the Heartland Angels

by Paul LeRoux

General George Patton, leading U.S. Army general in World War II said, “No one is thinking if everyone is thinking alike.” WARNING – This article will contradict what most believe about speaking to a group. Continue reading →

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Tagged as effective public speaking, effective speaking, how to give a powerpoint presentation, how to give a slide presentation, How to present to a group, persuading a group, persuasive speaking, powerpoint presentation, public speaking, slide presentation, speaking

May 27, 2014 · 3:51 am

ARISE 2.0

by Loop Lonagan

Whadaya think happens when 15,000 people get behind the entrepreneurs in their own neighborhood? Good things—that’s what happens! Energy. Enthusiasm. Stuff gets done! Lemme tell you about it: Continue reading →

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Tagged as Bootstrapping, Church, Community, Neighborhood, new ventures, Private equity, risk capital, Small business, startup, Startups. Venture, Ventures

January 30, 2014 · 11:48 pm

TOUGH LOVE

Techbash – Part 5

John Jonelis

This is a story about raw love. Tough. Rugged. Unashamed.

I’m at i.c.stars—the premier social incubator in Chicago—and I find myself a bit overwhelmed by it all. I stop in to thank Sandee Kastrul, their President and Co-founder and she pours me some hot coffee.

“I think,” She says, “that at the end of the day, there are three things that you should know about us:

We’re positioned as an opportunity, not a charity.
Rather than exploit our interns, we exploit our CIOs.
We’re funded by the technology industry—not the government.

Those seem to me rather interesting assertions for a social venture. But she goes on to explain: Continue reading →

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Tagged as brand, changing a culture, committment, dedication, firing, hidden talent, highly sought after talent, lifting a culture, perfect attendance, Pride, reputation, self sustaining social venture, strength from adversity, strength of character, Tough love

January 11, 2014 · 12:58 am

THE APPRENTICE MEETS DIGITAL BOOT CAMP

Techbash – Part 3

VERBATIM – John Jonelis

This is a story of high expectations, high reality, and high energy. I may as well give it to you straight, because Loop Lonogan would want it that way. He’s in the lockup. Too much hard partying on Twelfth Night. His guests spilled into the street and all kinds of trouble erupted—part of it involving a policeman he knocked cold. So I’m here at i.c.stars headquarters. Here to finish Lonagan’s series of articles. I’m talking to the president and co-founder, Sandee Kastrul. Continue reading →

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Tagged as adversity, bad neighborhoods, civics, Crime, Digital Boot Camp, fertile ground, gangs, giving back, hidden talent, hottest recruiting ground., IT training, job training, leadership training, learn fast, learn on the job, learn while doing, learning a skill, learning technology, learning to program, no hope, overcomers, overcoming, perseverance, reciprocity, resiliency, rich soil, rough neigborhoods, school of hard knocks, self taught, social entrepreneur, social incuabator, Social venture, teaching a skill, teaching technology, technology education, technology training, The Apprentice, vocation, vocational training