I grew up in Cadillac, Mich. And no, it’s not near Detroit. My parents still live there, and I like to go back and visit — especially when the high-speed pace of Chicago gets to me.

One of the companies we represent was owned by Russ Geaslen. He changed the boiler industry as we know it by designing and patenting the primary/secondary piping of modular boilers in 1964 (Patent No. US3329343A). Russ was half genius and half mad scientist. Unfortunately, he passed on to the big boiler room in the sky in 1996. I still miss him.

It’s no secret I want to kill social media. I consider 72.3% of it a cocktail party with no end and even less point. Yet the remaining percentage has some viability for business. The more we experiment, the more we throw out the useless, the more I see a twinkle of marketing light at the end of the tunnel.

This is the month when we Americans give thanks for all that is good in our lives and I’m all for that. I love the big meal, the gathering family and the Macy’s parade. I also love nodding off on the couch after all that grand stuff.

After completing a hydronic installation, especially one that’s taken you a few days longer than expected, do you ever ponder that there is just too much “stuff” in some of these systems?

A powerful story was all over the news earlier this year about a contracting organization’s employees secretly videoed selling repairs and making recommendations. The experts who prepped the equipment had tested it and deemed the problem a minor one with a prudent, inexpensive fix.

Change isn’t always easy, especially for service businesses that are already dealing with aggressive competitors, demanding customers, shrinking margins and a whole host of productivity issues. With everything else going on in a business owner’s day, evaluating which business software solutions to purchase ends up on the back burner.

Have you noticed that it seems as though certain companies tend to thrive regardless of market conditions or specific challenges they may be facing? I’ve been studying human performance (specifically peak performance) for years in individuals and organizations.

With recent statistics noting “air pockets” in the post-recession, stuttering economic recovery, new doubts are being cast on the future of America’s housing comeback. On a year-to-year basis, the expansion of additional residential construction seems to have plodded ahead at a low double-digit rate with expectations of a forthcoming pickup, even if that rate is modest by previous standards.

If you are like most designers or installers, I would wager that you have never read the installation manual for the piece of equipment that you design or install. And if you do not, you may be held responsible for any omissions recommended in that manual but not implemented.