There is a 4th way: collaboration. Instead of merely discussing problems, you may work together with others for your mutual advantage. You help your partner. Your partner helps you.

Try Collaboration

Collaboration is used by BIG companies when they form joint ventures. But collaboration truly is a means for SMALL outfit to spread its wings. Instead of trying to be a jack-of-all-trades - there is no such thing these days - work on what you do best and enjoy, and partner with an expert or experts in fields you are not so good at and don't enjoy.

Collaboration enables you to strengthen you strengths while working on projects you ordinarily would not get. Someone else, who enjoys it, does what you can't or don't want to do. She strengthens her strengths. As partners, you may reach great heights.

> If you are a good writer and you love to write, but you can't draw a straight line, COLLABORATE with someone who is an accomplished artist, but can't write a complete sentence. The 2 of you may be able to design outstanding websites.

> If you are a hotshot programmer, but don't know how to sell your exquisite software packages, COLLABORATE with a super-salesman, who though he may not understand details of your work, appreciates results you produce. Though 2 of you may be independent performers, working together you may achieve a great deal more than working individually.

> If you are an inventor who loves conceiving all sorts of gadgets but has no idea how to manufacture them, COLLABORATE with a manufacturing expert who appreciates what you do. Why not include a venture capitalist and make it a 3-way collaboration?

Finding a Collaborator

If you are typical, you are good at some things and not good doing other things. To be productively effective, all you need do is find experts at things you must get done but are not so good at. This sounds simple and easy. But it is not. People come in all shapes and varieties. Some you can work with; others you can not. The trick is to locate an expert that is suitable for you.

Among factors to consider are following:

In this age of information, it is really easy to get bogged down by all little bits of paper that seem to infest an office, whether it's a corner suite in a downtown skyscraper or just your kitchen table. If you use a computer, it can be even worse -- you could end up with hundreds of files that are hard to identify and impossible to locate.

If you don't take steps to organize your information, all of this "information clutter" could cause you to lose valuable time as you try to find what you actually need. Even worse, you could lose business by losing that key piece of information you need to make sale.

Here are just a few simple pointers on how to be more organized as you try to run your business:

1) Folders, Folders, Folders: A good filing system, used religiously, is best way to avoid "clutters." Whenever you start a new project, label a folder to hold information. Then, whenever you receive something that pertains to project, make sure to file it as soon as possible. Make sure to mark and organize your folders -- A good system is to just have a place to keep your past folders and a place (easily within reach) to keep folders that you are currently using.

You should use this same system on your computer. Create a folder for each project and keep everything you need right there. The nice thing about a computer is that if you have a file that pertains to more than one folder, you can just copy it and have a copy of it in each folder.