Well, we heard Tuesday night that we will be sending more troops to Afghanistan.  We also heard that they may start coming home in 2011.  Good luck with that!  This rant is not about whether or not we should send more troops.  I’ll leave that question to our readers. 

The thing we need most from our leaders, whether in business or politics is Clear Vision.  What we often get instead is a muddled lack of clarity and indecision.  That’s what bothered me about Tuesday’s speech.  I heard no real vision or plan, maybe you did, but I did not.  What this …

We’ve all heard the stories about how St. Nick is able to make all of those Christmas Eve deliveries. What would happen if Santa’s team acted like some employees?

Dasher : “I don’t understand why Rudolf always gets to take the lead. I think I have better ideas about how to make these deliveries on time.”

Dancer: “ Let’s start in Norway then work our way back to North America. I would really like to stop by my favorite smoked salmon store to pick up a …

I just finished a fascinating book by Matthew E. May called In Pursuit of Elegance. It includes a number of interesting examples, including concepts drawn from application of the Kaizen method at Toyota.

 But one of its central themes is that elegance requires subtraction.  One of the reasons we are having an economic adjustment right now is that we have spent much of the last five years in an additive state – increasing our ownership of property, buying ever larger automobiles, and packing our homes with stuff. Our corporations were bloated, our governments inefficient, and our time jammed with activities.

We have seen painful …

California has adjusted its tax tables, exemptions, and certain credits for deflation, resulting in a higher tax liability for anyone who has made exactly the same income as they made in 2008.

I was driving through Napa with the air in my face on a perfect day when I saw this hay neatly stacked.  …

After fuming about this issue for a couple of days, I decided to help gather my fellow CPAs together and see what we could do to stop the IRS in their tracks. It seems the IRS has decided to come after some wineries for using LIFO  to value their inventory. 

Last week , with the help of the Napa Valley Vintners Association, we brought Washington Insider, Dean Zerbe, …

Many career difficulties can be traced directly to communication. It is always wise to understand your own style and the styles of those you work with and sell to, but it makes even more sense today. Almost every job posted on Monster.com includes a requirement that the applicant have “excellent communication skills.”

…and only half of what you see.

 Just ask CNBC’s Jim Cramer of Mad Money. In last night’s episode of the The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, among other things, Cramer tried to explain why he recommended his viewers buy Bear Stearns just days before the company’s collapse.

90% of economic activity is based on psychology. How we …

Yesterday’s Press Democrat tells the tale of a winery employee who almost got away with embezzling “nearly 1,000 bottles of Bordeaux-style red wine” some valued up to $175 each, for a total of almost $200,000 worth of wine. The former customer service employee, based at the winery’s distribution center, managed the scheme by creating fake shipments of wine, which he labeled lost. He then sold the wine online, with the aid of two other individuals.

Company …

 Why is the tax credit side of the stimulus bill not going to help our country?

Three easy to understand words. They are “too darn complicated”. The purpose of tax credits is to help people do something for the economy or spend money that they otherwise might not spend. Tax credits can do …