About the Author: Chris Burbridge
A deep conversation with Erin Higgenbotham of DEEP East Oakland Coop
I speak with Erin Higgenbotham of DEEP Oakland Grocery Collective, to help them envision a way to accelerate the success of their startup that means to bring a healthy grocery store to East Oakland.
Profit & Transcendence: Friends (Not Enemies)
States Coffee in Martinez, California: not afraid to charge $8.75 for a cappuccino and a blueberry muffin ($9.75 with tip). They’ve carved out a strong reputation in a relatively short time. Quality, quality, quality. Servers are happy and present. It’s very simple, when you think about it: the world is full of mediocre experiences. We
Money Machines Build Monsters… If Left Unbalanced
Having spent time with some of the richest, most powerful, most admired people in the world, as well as some of the poorest, most disadvantaged people in the most obscure corners of the globe, I can assure you that, beyond a basic level, there is no correlation between happiness levels and conventional markers of success.
No, Really: People Hate Email Marketing, and We Have to Change It
Over fifteen years building websites and helping small businesses with their marketing, I’ve noticed a very consistent trend: time and again, they express their vehement hatred for email marketing tactics. They have had it with pushy emails, annoying popups, etc. And yet, online marketers push this stuff as the panacea that is going to save
The Guru Industrial Complex – With Kathryn Gorges
When is the advice of others helpful? When and how are step-by-step approaches and formulas helpful, and when are they going to get in the way? We discuss the issues we see around the "guru industrial complex"—that common pattern online of a teacher promising quick fixes and creating engagement in online courses, etc., that do not always necessarily pan out—but still seem to create them a lot of income. How does this work, and what is wrong with it?
Re-Nourishing the World through the Richness of Personal Business – With Kathryn Gorges
We break down some of what makes a smaller, personal business more special than a generic big-box store. We create more language for that. We provide a rationale for rich experiences. We see the multi-layered dimensions of unique experiences, and discover how shopgoers, owners, and staff, are all collaborators in creating something, which can be wonderful. We discuss ways to discover what is working and not working, according to a rich framework.
Towards an Economics of Thriving – With Kathryn Gorges
We discuss the work that Essential 3 is doing to help small businesses thrive better. We break down categories, and talk about how we are starting to practically apply a multi-dimensional approach to what business success really looks like. And how this has implications for the planet, and personal satisfaction. We ask: What is the economy for?
October 17, 2020 – Chris Burbridge + Anita Edge
Chris talks with Kathryn about what she's been discovering and finding this last week: range of values to balance in a business; Mad Men marketing has done a disservice to small business; people want meaning and purpose, even in business; and more...
October 10, 2020 – Chris Burbridge + Anita Edge
Why the courage to do things in an uncommon-but-better way is the key ingredient in what we're doing now. The difference between a reactive business, and a deliberate business.
Why We Turned Our Consulting Practice Inside-Out
What we do now that helps meaningful things get found better, faster I’m going to tell you why we completely abandoned how we did marketing—when doing it the normal way had begun to seem... pointless. We looked at what really worked—for companies who want to create compelling, original, and meaningful things, that are loved and