A Time to Reflect…and Reset The holidays always offers a time for us to pause and reflect on the good…and bad…times we’ve had in the past year or even further. As with every year, we at Parker Associates & PTC Computer Solutions wish you the best of holidays and an even greater 2020. It’s a wonderful time to think and rethink about what we went through collectively in 2019 and even before that, but it’s also a great time to reset your business. Sometimes, a few changes are all that is necessary but sometimes it requires a full reboot. 2020 will not be like any other year. In fact, no […]

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Make 4 Agreements with Yourself In business, being honest with your customer is one of the most important attributes a business can have. In today’s day and age, more than any other time in history, this is critical. People are smart. People are informed. People see through anything that isn’t honest and it is as important as anything. The customers of the future are the children of today and the “Pivotals” are the up and coming generation, right behind the Millennials. The Pivotals make decisions based on the values of a company as much as any other aspects. They have lots of choices when buying and they are as informed […]

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The Importance of Planning It’s a question that everyone agrees is important. However, a surprising number of people, and companies, don’t do a very good job of planning, if they plan at all. We run across it all the time in Real Estate Development. And, with some projects, there are many millions of dollars at stake. It’s shocking, but not surprising. Some people think that they can make it work from their gut instinct. Others feel that if they build it, they will come. And, still others just follow the leader. If they can do it, we can do it! Right? Wrong. The only way to be the most successful […]

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Success in Business Relies on Avoiding Distraction The Medieval Monks taught us a few key lessons. They understood long ago How to Reduce Digital Distractions. Yes! Digital Distractions. In this excerpt from an online article, there are many tricks to be learned. The Medieval Monks came up with some pretty quirky tricks to stay focused, but they may have been on to something. Medieval monks had a terrible time concentrating. And concentration was their lifelong work! Their tech was obviously different from ours. But their anxiety about distraction was not. They complained about being overloaded with information, and about how, even once you finally settled on something to read, it […]

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6 Steps to Successful Projects In an economic environment where everything is clicking smoothly, we sometimes forget to plan sufficiently. 2020 may prove to be a turning point in planning. If you aren’t planning ahead sufficiently AND properly, you may find yourself in a bit of a pickle, to use a technical phrase. Whether you’re running a for-profit or a nonprofit business, an ability to organize efforts and initiatives is a necessary skill to achieve success, especially in today’s environment. Effectively executing efforts and accomplishing goals requires planning and coordination among team members. With a process in place to guide you, you will become more adept at moving projects from […]

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Doing the Right Thing is Imperative to Doing Right In any given situation, doing the right thing might be the result of good habits cultivated over a lifetime or might come about only after periods of trial and error, painful soul-searching or courageous risk-taking. Doing the right thing is directly connected to our personal spirituality beliefs because it’s difficult to separate moral code into the various compartments of our life. We cannot have one set of values at home and another in the workplace. That creates an inner conflict at times that can open the door to a destruction of character. I suspect we’ve all made decisions from time to […]

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Resilience in 2020 We at PTC are always looking to the future. It’s the way businesses survive. Looking to the past is helpful, but having a feel for the future is critical. Of course, no one knows for sure what is going to happen, but let’s take an educated guess with the help from our friends at Well Fargo. Another test of the global economy’s resilience in 2020. Experts report that we can expect slow global economic growth again this year, but four trends could create crosscurrents that raise the risk of recession. Two of those trends involve China. First, China continues to prioritize services growth over construction and manufacturing. […]

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Don’t Let the Holidays and Holiday Traffic Walk By With the holidays here, there are a number of people out shopping and looking around for all sorts of things. Don’t let them walk on by, capture them with a few straightforward ideas. Making an impression during the holidays is a great time to make an impression. 1. Matching funds Your local newspaper runs a drive to collect monetary donations for people in need. The paper keeps a running tally. Perhaps your business announces you will match the final amount received. You could place a reasonable cap on the amount that might be designed to match the first $X amount raised […]

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The 3 Layers of Text We do a lot of writing at PTC for our clients. Between maintaining SEO and managing the Social Media of many, many clients, we have to put writing content at the top of the list of importance. It’s because of this that we have to also emphasize how important the content of the text is. Much like the desserts I love this time of year, the writing I enjoy the most has layers. In writing (not dessert) I specifically enjoy the text, the subtext, and the metatext. Each has its place in different mediums: print, formal digital writing, and blog posts. When writing, it is […]

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The Kiplinger Letter – Oct. 25, 2019 Home Tech Takeover More front doors in your neighborhood will soon sport video doorbells as more homeowners and renters seek the security of 24/7 surveillance. The small cameras are connected to Wi-Fi, and users can tap into live HD video from anywhere. The latest devices feature a wider field of view, vivid night vision and prerecorded messages for visitors. A big selling point: Spotting package thieves. In fact, sales of web-connected cameras of all types are going gangbusters.Global unit sales of cameras to consumers will surge by 20% yearly through 2023.That year, total revenue is projected to hit nearly $13 billion, much of […]

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