Archive | Entrepreneurship

Templates – Creating and Using

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On April 8, 2021

Category: Business personalities, Careers, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Research, Litigation Research, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Small Business Success, Trial Consultants

We spent some time recently updating the templates we use at Magnus. From day 1, I’ve worked on developing templates and, over the years, modifying them to keep up with changes as necessary. We have templates for reports, for contracts, and countless forms that help us keep track of our work. The only thing standardized […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On April 8, 2021

David likes forms and templates more than anyone I have ever known. When we are in the process of developing a new service, David routinely advocates for using a template to ensure things are standardized. Although all of my questionnaires are custom designed to assess mock jurors’, survey respondents’, and other research participants’ attitudes about […]

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 […]

Tribute to Willy

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On March 16, 2021

Category: Business personalities, Business Relationships, Careers, Employment, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Getting Through Life and Work, Giving Back, Growing Old is Not for Sissies, Life Outside of Work, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Mental Health, Psychology, Small Business Success, Work-Life

I am writing this on March 3, 2021, one of the saddest days in the long history of Magnus Research Consultants. Last night, our beloved office dog, Willy, passed away of a brain tumor. Willy was the dog of David’s and my wonderful employee and friend, Megan. For the past 7 years, Willy worked in […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On March 16, 2021

As you can tell, this dog, Willy, was truly hu(mans) best friend. Willy and Megan were tight – she trained him well. And, he trained her well also. She communicated with him in his language – she knew what he was trying to tell her. Usually things like, pay attention to me, feed me, walk […]

Better Than “Different Direction”

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On March 2, 2021

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

As a follow up to David’s last post regarding the soul killing phrase “We have decided to move in a different direction,” I will provide alternative phrases that are more appropriate forms of rejection. Keeping in mind that David, and other consultants, spend considerable time and money speaking with prospective clients, preparing proposals outlining the […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On March 2, 2021

I like that-“vapid euphemisms.” In my most recent vapid encounter, vapid also seemed to apply to the paralegal who called me. Whether it was her fault or not, she not only had insufficient information to give me as to what the attorney purportedly wanted (which was an inappropriate research design, given what she did know), […]

Different Direction

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 25, 2021

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

Last week I got a call from a paralegal who asked me to provide a proposal for a mock trial for a commercial case. She told me that, although she’d been a paralegal for 25 years, she had never shopped for a trial consultant. I walked her through the process, provided her with information on […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 25, 2021

If you think about it, and I certainly have, “We are moving in a different direction” or “We are moving in another direction” is meaningless drivel. This statement has somehow become common when it comes to rejecting job applicants, consultants’ proposals, and people, in general. In preparing for my part of David’s post, I have […]

Ghosting

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 18, 2021

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

Ghosting. This is a relatively new term used to indicate what might otherwise be called “radio silence,” that is, a loss of communications. Despite the many ways we can now communicate, via email, text, direct messaging, “zoom” calls, or even the good old phone or maybe “snail” mail, it amazes me that we often end […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 18, 2021

Ghosting is rude, unprofessional, and, when it comes to friends and family, mean. I have been ghosted on several occasions, by long time friends who chose to cut me out of their lives for unknown reasons. One of these friends remained out of touch for about 20 years, another, for 7 years, and another, 6 […]

No One Has Ever Said They Wish Their Jury Research Had Been Later

A Point of View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 16, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Employment, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Jury Research, Litigation Research, Litigation Tips, Magnus, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Trial Consultants, Trial Consulting

In almost 30 years of owning and operating Magnus Research Consultants, David and I have been fortunate to have few complaints from clients. When there have been complaints, they have been of the following type: (1) “Your report is too long and comprehensive; it took too long for me to read”; (2) ”The charts summarizing […]

Another View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 16, 2021

This topic is salient because I had the discussion again recently, “What is your lead time for conducting research? My client wants to put it off as long as possible, because maybe they can settle…” I patiently explained that the ramp up period, once we’ve provided a proposal, agreed on the research design, gotten approval […]

Mercy of the Court

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 11, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Jury Research, Litigation Research, Small Business Success

Twice this week, when talking with clients, or prospective clients, I’ve been told they are waiting on the judge to do something. The language they used was “I’m at the mercy of the court.” Their lamentations are painful reminders of the nature of our work. Often the idea of “mercy of the court” is mentioned, […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 11, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Jury Consultants, Jury Research, Litigation Research, Small Business Success

“I’m at the mercy of…” usually means one is powerless to protect oneself from someone or something. When attorneys tell David and me they are at the mercy of the Court, this expression doesn’t have the same ominous meaning that it does in other contexts. Often, attorneys mention being at the Court’s mercy as a […]

Juggling

A Point of View

David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

On February 4, 2021

Category: Business Frustrations, Business Partnerships, Careers, Entrepreneurship, Getting the Job Done, Getting Through Life and Work, Growing Old is Not for Sissies, Magnus Insights, Magnus Research, Managing Employees, Marketing your Business, Mental Health, Small Business Success, Trial Consulting, Work-Life

I shot a photograph of a juggler a couple years ago when I was wandering the streets of New York City while there to work on a client’s case. My eye was drawn to the colorful balls flying in the air so I walked toward the area behind the main NYC library. Turns out, several […]

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

On February 4, 2021

Most people have a difficult time “walking in someone else’s shoes.” We live our daily lives, caught up in dealing with our personal issues, rarely giving much thought to what other people are going through. David and I have a dear friend who, for as long as we have known her, has been battling a […]

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Archive | Entrepreneurship

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David H. Fauss, M.S.M.

Another View

Melissa Pigott, Ph.D.

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