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	<title>Slade Sherman &#187; Business Tools</title>
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		<title>Prezi puts the WOW in Presentations</title>
		<link>http://www.sladesherman.com/small-business-tools/prezi-wow</link>
		<comments>http://www.sladesherman.com/small-business-tools/prezi-wow#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Oct 2010 03:21:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Web2.0 Weapons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business Tools]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Small Business Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Web2.0]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.sladesherman.com/?p=215</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Every now and then I get excited by an amazing new app that shifts the status quo and today I discovered one called Prezi. The site delivers a brand new approach to setting up presentations and it&#8217;s good to see &#8230; <a href="http://www.sladesherman.com/small-business-tools/prezi-wow">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Every now and then I get excited by an amazing new app that shifts the status quo and today I discovered one called <a title="Prezi" href="http://www.prezi.com" target="_blank">Prezi</a>. The site delivers a brand new approach to setting up presentations and it&#8217;s good to see something that offers a real alternative to PowerPoint. If you do presentations then give Prezi and go and it&#8217;s sure to WOW your clients!<span id="more-215"></span></p>
<p>I&#8217;m going to let the video do the talking but in summary, using their beautifully designed UI you can setup an account and then create awesome presentations. All editing is done by a simple menu and their &#8216;Zebra&#8217; tool that allows you to add and edit text, images and video.</p>
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<p>Prezi does to Powerpoint what the upcoming release of <a title="Sumwise" href="http://www.sumwise.com/" target="_blank">Sumwise</a> promises to do to Excel (shameless plug for some exceptional friends of mine).</p>
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<p class='technorati-tags'>Technorati Tags: <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/Business+Tools' rel='tag' target='_blank'>Business Tools</a>, <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/Small+Business+Marketing' rel='tag' target='_blank'>Small Business Marketing</a>, <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/Web2.0' rel='tag' target='_blank'>Web2.0</a></p>

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		<title>Business Tools: Elimination, Pareto and Parkinsons Law</title>
		<link>http://www.sladesherman.com/marketing-plan/business-tools-elimination-pareto-and-parkinsons-law</link>
		<comments>http://www.sladesherman.com/marketing-plan/business-tools-elimination-pareto-and-parkinsons-law#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 05 May 2009 16:54:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>admin</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Marketing Bits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[80/20 Principle]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business Tools]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Parkinsons Law]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.sladesherman.com/marketing-plan/business-tools-elimination-pareto-parkinsons-law</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I recently reread &#8216;The 4-Hour Workweek&#8217; by Timothy Ferris and I think it&#8217;s a must read for any entrepreneur. I found the first two thirds of the book most useful in particular concepts around &#8216;Elimination&#8217;, &#8216;Pareto&#8217; and &#8216;Parkinson&#8217;s law&#8217;. My &#8230; <a href="http://www.sladesherman.com/marketing-plan/business-tools-elimination-pareto-and-parkinsons-law">Continue reading <span class="meta-nav">&#8594;</span></a>]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I recently reread &lsquo;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0786158964?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=myzerr-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0786158964" target="_blank" title="The 4-Hour Workweek">The 4-Hour Workweek</a>&rsquo; by <a href="http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/" target="_blank" title="Timothy Ferris">Timothy Ferris</a> and I think it&rsquo;s a must read for any entrepreneur. I found the first two thirds of the book most useful in particular concepts around &lsquo;Elimination&rsquo;, &lsquo;Pareto&rsquo; and &lsquo;Parkinson&rsquo;s law&rsquo;.  My bullet point summary of these concepts are as follows:</p>
<h3>Elimination &ndash; Time Management</h3>
<p>Ferris recommends doing away with time management and focusing on achieving the few important things that need to be done every day. Concepts include:</p>
<p><span id="more-57"></span> </p>
<ul>
<li>Being busy is a guise for avoiding the few critical important but uncomfortable actions you need to complete every day.</li>
<li>Effectiveness &ndash; Things that you do that get you closer to your goal.</li>
<li>Efficiency &ndash; Doing the things in the most economical manner. Efficiency does not mean you are effective.  1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Doing something unimportant does not make it important. 2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Requiring lots of time does not make it important. 3.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Apply efficiency to the right things in order to be effective.</li>
</ul>
<p>Eliminate all that is irrelevant and focus on doing what is important.<br />
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</p>
<h3>Pareto / 80-20 Principle</h3>
<p>The 80/20 principle states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. Ferris advocates keeping the 20% good and reviewing or removing the 80% bad.  For business, the 80/20 principle can be applied to:</p>
<ul>
<li>Clients</li>
<li>Affiliates</li>
<li>Problems</li>
<li>Marketing</li>
<li>Suppliers</li>
<li>Products</li>
</ul>
<p>Most things make no difference so it&rsquo;s important to identify and focus on the important few and ignore the rest. For more information on the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle" target="_blank" title="Pareto Principle">Pareto Principle</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pareto_principle" target="_blank" title="Pareto Principle"> click here</a></p>
<p>.</p>
<h3>Parkinsons Law</h3>
<p>Parkinsons Law states that a task will swell in perceived importance and complexity in relation to the time allocated for it&rsquo;s completion.  If you have less time it will result in a focus on completion through execution of the essentials.</p>
<ol>
<li>Limit tasks to the important to shorten work time.</li>
<li>Shorten work time to limit tasks to the important.</li>
</ol>
<p>So in a business application, identify the few critical tasks that contribute to the most income and schedule them with short and clear deadlines. Don&rsquo;t let minor tasks distract you! For more information on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinsons_law " target="_blank" title="Parkinsons Law">Parkinsons Law click here</a>.  In addition to these concepts, Ferris has a number of useful suggestions on being effective, dealing with time wasters, setting goals and actions, and eliminating irrelevant interruptions in your life.  If you think you&rsquo;ll get value from understanding and implementing these concepts buy the book or hire it from your library. It&rsquo;s an easy read and rates up there with the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887307280?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=myzerr-20&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0887307280" target="_blank" title="E-Myth Revisited">E-Myth</a> by Michael E. Gerber.</p>
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<p class='technorati-tags'>Technorati Tags: <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/80%2F20+Principle' rel='tag' target='_blank'>80/20 Principle</a>, <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/Business+Tools' rel='tag' target='_blank'>Business Tools</a>, <a class='technorati-link' href='http://technorati.com/tag/Parkinsons+Law' rel='tag' target='_blank'>Parkinsons Law</a></p>

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