I have an idea about the new scam making the rounds. This is where you get an email changing the bank details for your deposit. This happens so much in normal business that Investec Bank writes about it. It’s also happening when you buy/sell your home. With big deposits. Bottom line: If you pay the … Read more

Last time I wrote that banks sell money. I want to tell you a story about why it’s useful to keep that in mind. Always. Somerset West, 1998. A small group. I love those. Everyone has time to share their story. (This is not so easy when the group is 100+.) We’d reached the part … Read more

Have you ever borrowed money for your firm? Silly question. So easy to do. Walk into a bank. Pass a credit check. Sign some papers. Bingo Presto. Cash in your account. Whoa Big Boy. Sign some papers? Bingo Presto? A banker’s biggest lie: “Those are our standard forms. Every client signs them.“ Not true. Not every client. Someone … Read more

Revisiting the CrashProof material dislodged a bunch of memories about the live seminars I once presented. Before I start, a short comment from Pam Franz about those Springboks I wrote about last time: I was at that seminar when the Springboks were next door, 22 years ago, wow time flies. Your mail jarred my memory and brought a … Read more

I said I’d tell you a bit more about live seminar distractions. There were two other biggies…. The first was a full house at the old Sandton Crowne Plaza circa 1996. Think of 100 seats crammed in a room with a capacity of 80 seats. Most hotels have a large banqueting room. They break this … Read more

Data privacy no longer exists. But we talk about it as if you can still get it. This whole data privacy thing is hard to grasp because it’s so hidden. I looked at how to make it easier to see. A Firefox plug-in shows you what’s going on behind your curtain. I plugged it in. … Read more

Many firms are pushing hard to get you onto paid training and programs. I get three or four queries each day asking if the claims made in received emails are true. Some quick answers: The POPI deadline has not yet been set. From the time Government announces the deadline you have 12 months to comply. … Read more

Last week I muttered about waves and troughs. This small business gig is not for the fainthearted. I’m not talking about “entrepreneurs” starting up in Moms garage. I’m talking about folk facing no other choice. It doesn’t matter what went wrong. Job loss. Divorce. Illness. Pick one. I’m not here because I chose it. I’m … Read more

Last week I muttered about waves and troughs. This small business gig is not for the fainthearted. I’m not talking about “entrepreneurs” starting up in Moms garage. I’m talking about folk facing no other choice. It doesn’t matter what went wrong. Job loss. Divorce. Illness. Pick one. I’m not here because I chose it. I’m … Read more

South Africans abroad are interesting. I read an article a while back about why Americans are so vocal. It's how a society changes when millions of immigrants come from different countries. And then they spread across vast open spaces. The only way to survive in that kind of change is to talk to strangers. It's … Read more