About this blog

After more than 25 years operating a trial consulting practice together as co-founding partners of Magnus Research Consultants, Inc. and Magnus Graphics, Inc., and more than 30 years of marriage, Dr. Melissa Pigott and David Fauss decided to share some of their thoughts, experiences, pet peeves, and perspectives on operating a small “mom & pop” business. The intended audience for their writings is other business owners, as well as employees of small businesses. Trial consulting is a professional service business, as was David’s photography business. There are many unique issues faced by professional service providers; Melissa and David share some of their insights on running a successful business.

Do You Want My Opinion or My Tacit Agreement?

Many people ask me for my opinions. My opinions are solicited by family, friends, and clients, and sometimes, even by strangers. I would go as far as saying I am a professional giver of opinions, in that my clients retain me primarily for my expert opinions and advice about their high stakes lawsuits. Sometimes, however, […]

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This topic is obviously very real and concerning to Melissa.  The nature of the two relationships with which Melissa was dealing in this situation made it even more difficult.  Fortunately, I do not think I have faced such a conflicting situation.  I may be guilty of offering unsolicited advice or suggestions, and sometimes, a best […]

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Just Ask

Some recent business dealings have reminded me that asking can result in rewards. This is a lesson long ago imparted by the late Ron Lit. Ron was a wheeler dealer (really – he was a car wholesaler, among other things, as we wrote about in an early post, way back in 1994 https://magnusinsights.com/connections-ron-lit/). Ron told […]

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Ron Lit passed away on Friday, July 13, 2005.  He was also born on Friday the 13th , May 13, 1938 to be exact.  Ron was an enigma; for example, his actual name was neither Ron nor Lit. He had a tremendous impact on both David and me in the years we knew him.  From […]

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I Hear Things

I hear things. You’ve got that right: I hear things. I often hear things other people cannot hear. My eyesight is extremely limited (in fact, I am legally blind without corrective lenses) and, as such, I have always relied on my keen sense of sound. In addition, because I have been a musician for almost […]

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Most of us enjoy having 5 senses, and I won’t venture into a 6th sense; I can attest to Melissa’s keen sense of hearing.  It goes well beyond her listening ability, for which our clients pay dearly.  Melissa can hear so well that the mocking birds in our yard that start singing wake her with their […]

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12 Digits

Many of the posts we write are inspired by recent events, though our list has many titles we created as far back as 10 years ago at the inception of the Magnus Insights, 2’s Company blog. I’ll admit that there are many DF titles I haven’t written yet. I’m writing today, while smiling a bit, […]

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David is right.  We have a long list of topics to write about, including some that have been on our list for many years.  But lately, it seems that David writes about new things that inspire him instead of writing about something that inspired him years ago.  This being said, I never imagine we would […]

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Don’t Make the Boss’ Job More Difficult

In the 50 years since I started my first job, I have been an employee for 20 years and an employer for 30 years. In my roles as employee, then employer, I have often marveled at some people’s absence of awareness of a fundamental workplace principle: Don’t make the boss’ job more difficult. There are […]

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I knew Rosemary, Melissa’s assistant at the hospital where they worked.  Rosemary was the epitome of professionalism and did her job in an excellent fashion which is why it was not long that she went from working for Melissa to working for Melissa’s boss.  In the 30+ years of Magnus we have, fortunately, had team […]

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The Balancing Act Continues

As I was standing in line this morning, a Friday morning, at Walmart (don’t judge me), I thought about how odd it was to be shopping on “work time.” And, further, I thought about the list of categories we have on this blog, one of which is “WorkLife.” We previously wrote about work life balance […]

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As I mentioned in one of David’s and my recent posts, we recently had lunch with 2 of my childhood friends, a married couple, who are retired.  Their enthusiastic advocation of retirement included the statement, “Melissa, when you retire, you can do whatever you want”! I replied, “That’s not a motivation for me.  I already […]

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Be Nice

Be nice. That’s easy to understand, but sometimes, difficult to do. What does it mean to “be nice”? I never gave it much thought until I had lunch at a restaurant in Fort Lauderdale several years ago. The restaurant’s slogan is “be nice” and they have bumper stickers with this motto for anyone to take. […]

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The opposite of being nice, that is, being mean, seems to have a much higher degree of visibility.  Mean sells, mean makes the news.  The increased political polarization of our United States seems to increase meanness, and decrease niceties.  For some, the example of “leaders” behaving badly translates into a belief that those behaviors are […]

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If in Doubt, Ask.

It is okay to ask questions in life, in work. In the work environment, as an owner, manager, supervisor, or whatever I may be, whatever hat I may be wearing, I want to hear questions. I dislike it when an employee does not ask a question, for whatever reason, then does something wrong, or does […]

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Here’s a question for David: Why was your part of this post so short? But, to get to the point, I agree with David about asking questions, up to a point.  We recently terminated an employee who spent more time asking us stupid questions than using her brain.  This employee seemed, to me, to ask […]

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The Ability to Understand Others’ Perspectives

I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion. This includes me. When conducting mock jury or other social psychological research, I almost always encourage the open expression of differing views by informing our research participants that “There are no wrong opinions or points of view.” I know some people who enjoy verbal sparring, however, I […]

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In our often politically polarized world, it appears difficult for some people to accept that other people have valid, opposing, opinions.  Our work involves watching “regular people” who are recruited to participate in our mock juries or focus groups express their opinions.  Clearly, some people are more adamant about their own opinions than others.  Some […]

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One of Us Must Be Wrong

One of our first marketing trips when Melissa and I started Magnus was to my hometown of Jacksonville to call on family friends and referrals. I will always remember visiting one of those attorneys, Carl, who told us that he and his client, an insurance adjuster, disagreed on the value of a case. It was […]

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David’s post reminds me of a song; of course it does! The song is titled, “You Know I’m Right” and it was written by David Gilmour (of Pink Floyd fame). One of the lines in the song is “Either you are wrong or I am right.” Another is “Why should you bother with the other […]

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