Archive | Business Frustrations

Technology is Great…until it isn’t

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On June 17, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Getting the Job Done, Getting Through Life and Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Mental Health, Psychology, Small Business Success, Workplace Technology

We rely on technology in today’s world. Some tech is life or death; some of it just seems that way. After my last post, one might understand my frustrations with technology – the loss of data with a server crash is very painful. And, even after supposed recovery of the data, we find ourselves spending […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On June 17, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Getting the Job Done, Getting Through Life and Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Mental Health, Psychology, Small Business Success, Workplace Technology

One of my friends recently asked me to fix her computer. She was surprised when I told her I have absolutely no idea how to fix computers, phones, tablets, or any other electronic devices. She remarked that, because I am so smart, she thought fixing a computer must be simple for me! I wish! Given […]

Colossal Technology Failure

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On June 10, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Small Business Success, Workplace Technology

When you run a business, no matter the size, it is almost impossible to “do it all.” For Magnus, that means hiring someone with expertise to manage, process, and report things beyond my, or our, capabilities. A simple example is bookkeeping and accounting services. Another critical service is “Information Technology,” that is, IT. We have […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On June 10, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Small Business Success, Workplace Technology

The “colossal technology failure” was, in my opinion, a customer service failure. The relationship of Magnus Research Consultants and its IT provider is a customer-vendor relationship, such that, as the IT’s provider’s customer, Magnus is entitled to have its concerns addressed. This being said, in the almost 30 years Magnus has been in business, the […]

The Major League

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On May 25, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Partnerships, Business personalities, Careers, Common Courtesy, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Jury Research, Litigation Consultants, Litigation Research, Litigation Tips, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Trial Consultants, Trial Consulting

My family is a baseball family. My dad, the late Park T. Pigott, Sr. played baseball, coached baseball, and generally speaking, lived much of his life for baseball. I am not usually fond of sports analogies, however, recent experiences with clients of Magnus Research Consultants have reminded me of baseball. Almost all of Magnus’ clients […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On May 25, 2021

This minor leaguer experience was one of the strangest situations we have had in years. We had been, to keep up with the baseball analogy, “scouted” by the end client (that is the entity/person paying our bill). Our ability to work with the lawyer was limited until that scouting was completed. Admittedly, this process was […]

Holiday Inn

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On May 18, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Travel, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, RoadWarrior, Travel, Trial Consulting

I wish it were possible to know the number of Holiday Inns where I have stayed and the number of nights I have stayed in them. When my parents and I traveled across the “lower 48″ states in the United States, our hotel of choice was Holiday Inn. Often, we planned our itinerary around the […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On May 18, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Travel, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, RoadWarrior, Travel, Trial Consulting

It has been interesting to see the world adjust to a pandemic with microscopic particles scaring us all. Not that we are staying at hotels frequently like we did pre-pandemic, but for business and family reasons, we have, I have, traveled a little in the pandemic times. All hotel chains are making adjustments and taking […]

Retainers

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On May 13, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Relationships, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Jury Research, Litigation Consultants, Litigation Research, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Small Business Success, Trial Consultants, Trial Consulting

Call it a deposit; call it a retainer. Magnus doesn’t start work without one (except in rare circumstances beyond the scope of this post). We need money, we want money; importantly, other people want money. We learned, the hard way, that clients need to “show us the money.” One of our first cases blew up […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On May 13, 2021

No one works for free. By definition, work is performed in exchange for compensation. (The obvious exceptions, such as slavery, human trafficking, etc., are beyond the scope of this post.) The fact that one of the largest law firms in the U.S.A., as well as its client, one of the largest corporations in the world, […]

Social desirability

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 27, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business personalities, Careers, Employment, Jury Behavior, Jury Consultants, Litigation Tips, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Psychology, Small Business Success

Social desirability has important implications in jury selection. Social desirability refers to the phenomenon of saying or doing something because “everybody else” does. For example, when an attorney or a judge asks a prospective juror whether he/she can put aside all biases, predisposed beliefs, and personal feelings and instead, be an impartial judge of the […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 27, 2021

Answering a question in a socially desirable way implies there is a “right” or expected answer, to some degree. In the basic courtroom questioning of prospective jurors as to whether they “can be fair,” it is pretty obvious that one is not expected to say “no”. Being fair is a fundamental trait that most people […]

Your Momma Doesn’t Work here…

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 22, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Careers, Employment, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Managing Employees, Small Business Success

This topic has been on my list for a long time. It is another example, among many, where Melissa and I have been surprised at the actions of employees and we have learned something along the way. “Your momma doesn’t work here” might be the start of certain admonitions, such as “Your momma doesn’t work […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 22, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Careers, Employment, Getting the Job Done, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Managing Employees, Small Business Success

Readers of David’s and my post may think we sometimes “color the truth” to exaggerate the experiences we have had as employers, small business owners, and consultants with attorneys as clients. We don’t. It’s all true. The truth is, in many instances, more wacky than any story I could invent! I often think of my […]

Hard Work

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 15, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Careers, Employment, Getting the Job Done, Litigation Research, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Small Business Success, Trial Consultants

Always learning – that’s the reality of life, and in operating a business. A lesson learned many years ago happened when we hired a young woman as a research associate. She fit all of our hiring criteria for education, background, etc. She was attractive and well dressed. Her appearance was important to her as evidenced […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 15, 2021

Hooray for Jessica! As David mentioned, after our experience with one of our former employees, who resigned over too many broken fingernails, we were delighted to hire Jessica Nurek (now Jessica Palomino) because, not only was she qualified for the research associate job, she was not afraid of performing hard work. Cleaning animal stalls is […]

Hiding behind Email

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 1, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Relationships, Careers, Common Courtesy, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Research, Litigation Consultants, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Marketing your Business, Small Business Success, Trial Consultants

Prompted by my posts about “different direction” and “ghosting,” a related phenomenon is hiding behind email, especially as a way to deliver bad news. Maybe it is just me, but it seems a matter of professionalism and fairness that, if one asks someone else to do something like prepare a proposal for consulting services, the […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 1, 2021

I love to discuss, and write about, etiquette. As a social psychologist, I am keenly aware of the social norms involved in etiquette, which involves far more than knowing which fork to use. There is a certain etiquette involved in communicating with others, in both professional and personal settings. This includes “responding in kind” to […]

I’m a Professional Judge of Character – Trust my 1st Impression

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On March 30, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Partnerships, Business personalities, Business Relationships, Employment, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Litigation Consultants, Litigation Research, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Marketing your Business, Mental Health, Psychology, Small Business Success, Trial Consultants

There have been several notable examples of my, and others’, questioning my first impressions of someone. On all of these occasions, my first impression was correct and unfortunately, questioning it caused negative turns of events. In that, as a psychologist, I am what most people would consider “a professional judge of character,” I have tried […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On March 30, 2021

One aspect of owning a business never gets easier – hiring. I feel like it is always a gamble. And, I’m apparently not a good gambler because I’ve taken chances on hiring people who turned out to be ill equipped to do our work, or worse, a really bad fit, a bad choice, maybe a […]

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Archive | Business Frustrations

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

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