I have always tried to pay a living wage. The actual dollar amount is irrelevant because a living wage can vary dramatically depending on where your business is located.

It wasn’t too long ago when it seemed like someone was coming into the shop looking for work about every day. These days, it’s a rare occurrence.

It seems like the cost of everything associated with doing business is rising. But the one the thing that is actually going down and going down dramatically is advertising.

I have a lot of pieces of wood that are too good to throw away but too small to really be useful. We sometimes call pieces like this scrap, but I have always maintained that there is no such thing as scrap.

Technology has been creeping into how we do business for a long time now. Obviously, CNC machines have taken on an increasing role in cutting, milling, shaping, carving, etc. And hand-held tools like routers and sanders are a lot smarter than used to be.

Current stats show a very low unemployment level across the country. This is a good thing. People have jobs.

There’s an old expression: Out of sight, out of mind. People will not do business with you if they do not know you are there. Even people who have done business with you in the past tend to forget about you once the current transaction is completed. Staying in sight is important.

I recently saw an internet posting of a very fine piece of woodwork. There were many compliments, including “that could be in the Louvre!”

In my junior high shop class, the instructor insisted that we begin by planing the edge of a board. The edge had to be straight and square. I spent most of the semester trying to accomplish this.