How much passion do your employees put into the business? How much passion do your field marketers put into the business? If there is an imbalance between the field and your home base, you need to correct it quickly.

I can make money with any product with the right compensation plan. I am sure if you have been in direct sales, MLM or network marketing long enough you have heard that line. It is pure silliness. When I was first involved in network marketing that was the attitude. It was wrong then, it is wrong now. Except for a small percentage of disingenuous-silver-tongued-sales gurus, this has never worked in traditional retail nor for the masses in direct sales.

Some of the best business advice can come from the most absurd places. I must admit that watching the real news is depressing. Oil spills, nuclear disasters and Moammar Gadhafi do not make for an uplifting evening. The more serious life gets, the more I need the ridiculously sage words from sources such as Sigmund Marvin from What About Bob, “From all the horror in this world, what difference does it make?”

It’s the time of year for mistletoe, eggnog, caroling, friends, relatives, honey ham and excuses. My kids plan for it for five months, my wife scrutinizes the coupons for good deals and even wakes up at 4:00 am to get the best deals.  I love this time of year for so many reasons, but it can be hard for entrepreneurs. Tis the season of excuses.

Systems don’t always work. Sometimes systems are broken and a complete makeover is necessary before it kills your business. Sometimes years of experience can be wrong. Sometimes, your superiors are just comfortable with their way and don’t want you to upset the apple cart. Maybe you are a follower and want to go along with a system just because you are told to. Maybe you are working in a sales factory that suppresses your creativity and is holding you down.

This week we were talking about team building. In the office, Lacy does a great job making sure we are always on track. Sam jokingly suggested we should do some trust falls. I don’t think he meant it. I thought it was an excellent idea. The video shows our team building activity from three different camera angles.