This weekend I was thinking about stock trading, business, the world we live in, and the whole system. You probably were too. So what did you do? What did you learn and how can you profit from it?

I wanted to know how things were going in commodities, health care, retail, transportation, media, advertising, technology and housing. That was just to start!

So what is the best way to gather competitive intel on all this? Like any good spy, you watch, listen, make contact, and start the right conversation…

So when I got gas, I chatted with the gas station attendant about the traffic. When I bought coffee, I looked at the price and looked at the crowd in the store compared to my last visit. When I bought some snacks at the local convenience store I asked the clerk about how busy things have been lately. When I visited a local health care facility I looked at the staffing and wait time for services and I asked the nurses how things were going. I checked the parking lot of another facility. I noted traffic patterns on the roads and shelf stock in the retailers. Price changes… Looking for everything I could learn from and asking about all that I see, every chance I got.

The goal is always to consult the right expert, in this case, the person who is at the point of sale and doing the selling.

Services or goods, I look, listen and enjoy a nice conversation with the people I do business with. Then ponder profit. Theirs, mine and everyone’s.

Learn the trends. Watch your world. Listen. Ask…

Make friends with the people you do business with. They can help you each day. Let them. Be sure to help them too. It is how the American System of Business works in The United States and around the world. It is life. Engage and enjoy!

Some of the most profitable business intel comes as the result of simply asking a friendly question. Listen to the answer, learn your resources and watch your world…